The new ‘Godzilla’ series is set in the same continuity as the old movies (at least some of them), as humanity is familiar with the rampaging monsters, who have been gone for some time, allowing humanity to recover to a certain degree. But then, without warning, the beasts return. Kumonga the giant spider attacks Mexico City and disrupts the gay wedding of Irving “Urv” Jassim, some sort of shadowy secret agent or soldier or fortune or… something. It’s not really clear. After his beloved Eduardo and most of the rest of the wedding attendees is killed when the church is razed, Urv uses his training to try and stop Kumonga, but fails and the monster continues his path of destruction. In Brazil, Rodan the pterodactyl-like creature trashes a Grand Prix car race. In Seoul, Mothra the giant moth destroys a military installation. But worst of all, Godzilla is approaching Washington DC, still devastated from its last attack.
British former soldier Jason Statham Boxer has been employed to protect the daughter of a Japanese billionaire who is in town to negotiate to fund the restoration of Washington DC. When Godzilla and the military get into it, the building in which Boxer and his charge, Gwen Murkami, are forced to flee the rapidly toppling structure. Luckily, thanks to his special training, they manage to avoid pitfall after pitfall.
SPOILERS!
They escape the devastation of the building but are turned away by the army. They encounter an armed militia who feel that the military is there to protect the government, not its citizens. When Godzilla pops up, things go south for Boxer pretty immediately. He watches as the giant destroys the Capitol building and gets buried in the rubble. Once extracting himself, he calls his old buddy Urv for backup.
Throughout everything, there are flashbacks to Boxer’s past. He apparently lost his daughter, due to his absence. These scenes are inter-cut with his escape with Gwen.
To be honest, I didn’t particularly care for this book. It’s not bad per se, but it’s just very straight forward and derivative. There just wasn’t anything original about it. I joked that Boxer was Jason Statham, but if Jason Statham were in a giant monster movie, this would be it. The action is very much like those in his movies, right down to him trying to protect a young girl. That isn’t to say they’re bad, but they certainly aren’t original. Nor is anything that happens once Boxer gets the girl out of the building.
The art was not to my liking. It’s not technically poor, but it’s very crude and rough. Art is a subjective thing, “beauty is in the eye of the beholder” and all that. Just not my aesthetic.
Maybe if all you’re looking for is giant monsters destroying stuff, you might enjoy this. There’s nothing wrong with “check your brain” entertainment. It just didn’t do it for me.
Verdict: Borrow
GODZILLA #1
Written by Duane Swierczynski
Art by Simon Gane
Cover by Arthur Adams
