Toho Kingdom

Came across this insight from Victor Santos about his work on Godzilla:

http://www.dcinthe80s.com/2017/06/artis ... Monsters?

VS: I always say this was my first contact with a popular character and how that world is. People of IDW were really cool and they let me do whatever I wanted -- but some reviews and criticisms were terrible. It was hard working day by day knowing the opposition of some hardcore fans (and this was before the twitter rising, luckily) but I had fun drawing my beloved fat lizard.

I empathize with him there. While I wasn't the biggest fan of Santos' work (it was inconsistent and rough at times), I found his stylized use of silhouettes & panelling/layouts to be creative. It gave me Michael Avon Oeming/Frank Miller vibes.

Some examples:

Yeah I don't think I loved the art then but I appreciate it a bit more now.
THE WRITING on the other hand...

darthzilla99 wrote: ↑Sat Aug 20, 2022 6:50 pm
To be fair, the original IDW run of comics overused SpaceGodzilla and Destroyah. I remember people complaining about them being used way too much as big final bosses while Ghidorah was shafted for the most part.

This. How quickly people forget. Destoroyah and SpaceGodzilla featured heavily in the ongoing and were the final bosses of GiH and Cataclysm respectively. Give Ghidorah his long-denied DAM role here (which we almost got in RoE) THEN give him, along with SpaceGodzilla and Destoroyah a short break for a while. Also, we got Biollante as the main antagonist in the last series so I’m not sure what the complaining is about.

Added in 3 minutes 51 seconds:

Shenanigans wrote: ↑Sun Aug 21, 2022 6:40 am It does amuse me that in IDW's comics, Ghidorah has both been overused yet underutilized. He's been in damn-near every series but has been a boring, largely weak villain. I want to see the Showa-era depiction that Godzilla doesn't face alone. I'm so tired of the one-on-one matches. Give me another DAM battle royale with all of Earth's monsters vs. the planet destroyer.

Yeah, he’s been used a lot but never really used correctly. That’s the problem.

TitanoGoji16 wrote: ↑Fri Aug 26, 2022 8:52 pm I seem to recall it being said somewhere after Kingdom of Monsters that Super Mechagodzilla was remodeled/upgraded into Kiryu, but I may be misremembering things.

IIRC Kiryu was created by some pompous billionaire who was inspired to make his own Mechagodzilla after seeing the government's in action. Ironically it looks like the government effectively took control of Kiryu in ROE anyways to replace their own MG.

JesstrK wrote: ↑Tue Aug 30, 2022 6:42 am

darthzilla99 wrote: ↑Sat Aug 20, 2022 6:50 pm
To be fair, the original IDW run of comics overused SpaceGodzilla and Destroyah. I remember people complaining about them being used way too much as big final bosses while Ghidorah was shafted for the most part.

This. How quickly people forget. Destoroyah and SpaceGodzilla featured heavily in the ongoing and were the final bosses of GiH and Cataclysm respectively. Give Ghidorah his long-denied DAM role here (which we almost got in RoE) THEN give him, along with SpaceGodzilla and Destoroyah a short break for a while. Also, we got Biollante as the main antagonist in the last series so I’m not sure what the complaining is about.

What complaining are you referring to here? The complaints about Ghidorah being used in All Hail the King? Because I don't think anybody here would complain about a Showa-style Ghidorah popping up in one of these books; its just that that doesn't appear to be happening here (though MMPR comes reasonably close to delivering that).

TitanoGoji16 wrote: ↑Fri Aug 26, 2022 8:52 pm I seem to recall it being said somewhere after Kingdom of Monsters that Super Mechagodzilla was remodeled/upgraded into Kiryu, but I may be misremembering things.

Also the whole Showa Mechagodzilla arc was just a mess in general.

Yes, you're right, in that it was also in Godzilla: The Half-Century War that the Heisei Mechagodzilla was upgraded into Kiryu (see issues #4 and 5).

TitanoGoji16 wrote: ↑Fri Aug 26, 2022 8:52 pm Also the whole Showa Mechagodzilla arc was just a mess in general.

What exactly was so messy about it? Was it that the MG are sort of a big threat, and then sidelined for MKG? I felt like that arc was the most clear and consistent. Other than the Trilopod arc it’s very clearly an “arc”

Shenanigans wrote: ↑Tue Aug 30, 2022 4:25 pm

TitanoGoji16 wrote: ↑Fri Aug 26, 2022 8:52 pm I seem to recall it being said somewhere after Kingdom of Monsters that Super Mechagodzilla was remodeled/upgraded into Kiryu, but I may be misremembering things.

IIRC Kiryu was created by some pompous billionaire who was inspired to make his own Mechagodzilla after seeing the government's in action. Ironically it looks like the government effectively took control of Kiryu in ROE anyways to replace their own MG.

JesstrK wrote: ↑Tue Aug 30, 2022 6:42 am

darthzilla99 wrote: ↑Sat Aug 20, 2022 6:50 pm
To be fair, the original IDW run of comics overused SpaceGodzilla and Destroyah. I remember people complaining about them being used way too much as big final bosses while Ghidorah was shafted for the most part.

This. How quickly people forget. Destoroyah and SpaceGodzilla featured heavily in the ongoing and were the final bosses of GiH and Cataclysm respectively. Give Ghidorah his long-denied DAM role here (which we almost got in RoE) THEN give him, along with SpaceGodzilla and Destoroyah a short break for a while. Also, we got Biollante as the main antagonist in the last series so I’m not sure what the complaining is about.

What complaining are you referring to here? The complaints about Ghidorah being used in All Hail the King? Because I don't think anybody here would complain about a Showa-style Ghidorah popping up in one of these books; its just that that doesn't appear to be happening here (though MMPR comes reasonably close to delivering that).

There was complaining about Ghidorah being used too much lately because of All Hail the King, Rivals #3, and being the final boss in Godzilla vs. MMPR. JessitriK and I were mentioning that back in the during the first idw run (everything up to Rage across Time) people were complaining that SpaceGodzilla and Destroyah were overused while Ghidorah was underutilized as a big antagonist kaiju.

LSD Jellyfish wrote: ↑Tue Aug 30, 2022 4:58 pm

TitanoGoji16 wrote: ↑Fri Aug 26, 2022 8:52 pm Also the whole Showa Mechagodzilla arc was just a mess in general.

What exactly was so messy about it? Was it that the MG are sort of a big threat, and then sidelined for MKG? I felt like that arc was the most clear and consistent. Other than the Trilopod arc it’s very clearly an “arc”

Yeah I thought it was a decently solid arc as well. Rushed like all things in ROE, but thoroughly entertaining.

It was also a little disappointing seeing how easily the Mechagodzillas were destroyed, though I still greatly enjoyed seeing a whole army of them. Very fun and unique idea.

darthzilla99 wrote: ↑Tue Aug 30, 2022 5:52 pm

Shenanigans wrote: ↑Tue Aug 30, 2022 4:25 pm
What complaining are you referring to here? The complaints about Ghidorah being used in All Hail the King? Because I don't think anybody here would complain about a Showa-style Ghidorah popping up in one of these books; its just that that doesn't appear to be happening here (though MMPR comes reasonably close to delivering that).

There was complaining about Ghidorah being used too much lately because of All Hail the King, Rivals #3, and being the final boss in Godzilla vs. MMPR. JessitriK and I were mentioning that back in the during the first idw run (everything up to Rage across Time) people were complaining that SpaceGodzilla and Destroyah were overused while Ghidorah was underutilized as a big antagonist kaiju.

I don't think its necessarily that people are objecting to Ghidorah being used too much so much as how he's being used. I think we're all more or less in agreement on Ghidorah in these comics - we either want to see the powerhouse final-boss Ghidorah or take a break from the character. Not counting All Hail the King out just yet in that regard, but even if Ghidorah is the main opponent throughout, I don't see a DAM-style battle happening to reinforce his strength.

GODZILLA MONSTERS & PROTECTORS ALL HAIL KING #4
(W) Erik Burnham (A/CA) Dan Schoening
Ghidorah is about to attack Tokyo. Cedric and his friends know they need to call on Godzilla for help, but will the King of the Monsters listen and return for a rematch against Ghidorah? And has Godzilla healed enough to put up a fight? What if it hasn't? That's where new friend Karen comes in: she's able to call another monster... another king. From the shores of Okinawa, King Caesar is summoned to help humanity! It's the penultimate chapter of All Hail the King!
In Shops: Jan 04, 2023

Not even going to lie, this solicit greatly boosts my previously waning hype for the series.

Don't remember if I've said it here before but I believe King Caesar to be one of the most underrated Godzilla kaiju. ROE handled him excellently, thankfully, but outside of that he's only gotten a couple cameos, so I've been eagerly anticipating another starring role for him. And since I liked what they did with Mothra and the Shobijin in Monsters & Protectors, I'm actually pretty confident in their ability to deliver a solid interpretation of the character with some of that unique "mystique" intact. Plus, this could be a good sign for Ghidorah being pretty tough too, if Godzilla can't fight him alone. Would be even better if a couple other monsters also joined the fray, but this is a step in the right direction all around.

Cover is a little... awkward though. Am I looking at it wrong or are we looking at part of Caesar's ass?

Nice! Not just excited storywise, Schoening"s Ghidorah continues to look good!

Shenanigans wrote: ↑Fri Sep 16, 2022 4:05 pmCover is a little... awkward though. Am I looking at it wrong or are we looking at part of Caesar's ass?

I thought the same thing, don’t worry.
Other then, ahem, I think Godzilla and Ghidorah on that cover are excellent.

I agree King Shisa is an underrated monster, and I’m looking forward to how they portray him in Monsters and Protectors. He has a lot of cultural significance behind him, and likewise potential. King Shisa vs Ghidorah is also a matchup we’ve never had, and I’m excited.

Huh, interesting. Those are pretty clearly the MonsterVerse incarnation's horns on Ghidorah's heads.

It’s funny, is it just me or does the cover make it look like Godzilla and Ghidorah are about to team up against King Caesar?

JesstrK wrote: ↑Tue Sep 20, 2022 8:31 am It’s funny, is it just me or does the cover make it look like Godzilla and Ghidorah are about to team up against King Caesar?

Yeah, I saw a couple other people take it that way as well, lol.

BOW BEFORE YOUR REAL KING

LSD Jellyfish wrote: ↑Sat Sep 17, 2022 5:05 am King Shisa vs Ghidorah is also a matchup we’ve never had, and I’m excited.

Oh yeah, hadn't realized that. In hindsight I'm actually surprised it took this long to have the two "King" monsters of the Godzilla franchise duke it out, with the "King of the Monsters" himself joining in too no less.

Now if only King Kong could show up...

Yeah I'm eager for Sesar to get some appearance. About the only good thing from that crappy mini-series was Sesar on a throne. I do love the thematic versus of Sesar vs. Megalon too. Two guardians of two ancient civilization duking it out.

New Rodan vs. Ebirah cover reveals a third (fourth?) combatant:



You know, the Mechagodzilla fatigue from these comics has been real in the past, and yet, I'm unexpectedly fine with seeing a Mechagodzilla again here. Partly because he's only a supporting character (well, hopefully at least since he's not in the title), but also because its been a while since we've seen Heisei Mechagodzilla. "A while" may be underselling it - looking it up, its actually been a full decade since Heisei MG has been the main MG in a comic, with the last being the Half-Century War. There's also fun worldbuilding opportunities that inherently come with mechs; Legends #4 remains one of my favorite comics for its focus on a mech piloting team, and I'd love to see something similar here.

Shenanigans wrote: ↑Sun Sep 25, 2022 1:50 pm New Rodan vs. Ebirah cover reveals a third (fourth?) combatant:


-snip-

I agree, it has been a long time since Heisei MG, so whatever.

Funnily enough I don’t think it’ll play such a large role despite it being on the cover. MG would be something that youd out front and center if it was a major part of the plot.

I have a funny theory: maybe MG is going to be trying to catch” Ebirah and Rodan, from colliding with the earth/ocean. The pose on the cover certainly looks like that.

I’m guessing that Rodan and Ebirah are falling to earth near a major metropolitan area, maybe into the ocean, and thanks due to their bulk and speed it might trigger a massive tsunami.

Pumped to see the Heisei MG coming back! Some of my favorite IDW panels are actually ones featuring the design:




Stokoe, Su, and Santos have all done great depicting the design’s sheer size & bulk.

Matt Frank lives! Also, don't forget - issue #1 comes out in just over a week!



Additionally, we got the full solicit for Rodan vs. Ebirah, with a new cover to boot:

https://www.kaijubattle.net/godzilla-id ... publishing

Matt Frank’s art seems to be better than ever! I think that’s one of the best pieces by him to date.

All of the Rodan and Ebirah covers are fine. Considering the abundance of the Heisei design I do wonder what Rodan we’ll actually wind up getting.