An alien race has decided humanity has destroyed the Earth to the point of their civilization being able to take over the planet and wipe us out, using a weapon of mass destruction that could take down even Godzilla himself. Minor spoilers ahead.
Cover by E. J. SuWritten by Keith Davidsen
Illustrated by SidVenBlu
Colored by Valentina Pinto
Lettered by Nathan WidickHawthorne, New Jersey. 2008. Siblings Nancy and Joaquin are settling in for the night. Nancy, trying to somehow relax and watch the evening news and Joaquin continuing his countless hours of playing video games. As their day is winding down, the news broadcast is interrupted by a message from an insectial being letting it be known that they have sat idly by as humans have ruined this planet (not wrong) and it is now time for their race to kill all humans, as well as their protectors, and take the Earth for themselves.
After their last battle with Godzilla, Gigan was ravaged, maimed, and essentially dead. These aliens rebuilt him, enhancing his already formidable strength and armor with that of robotic parts. This new, cyborg, Gigan is ready for another round with the King of the Monsters, looking to take him down to help his new masters claim this world as their own.
Nancy is adamant about watching the news to see what is going to happen next, especially when Godzilla appears on the coast to take down Gigan once more, but Joaquin is less than interested, looking to stay far away from current events and in his own head as he continues with his gaming. The issue is essentially an excuse to watch Godzilla and Gigan brawl, and for all of that it does hold up its end of the bargain to give us a down and out brutal fight between the two great monsters, but I can’t help but feel like I do with most of the human stories tied to many kaiju movies, that the shoehorn may be a smidge too tight for the shoe. I have no problem with either sibling. They are rounded out enough for a story such as this. Their thoughts, characteristics, and purpose are detailed well enough to make them work within the story, but for both of them, they have abilities that are, perhaps, greatly skewed to make them the unknown heroes of this story.
Both Nancy’s technological knowledge and skills, and Joaquin’s gaming prowess allow for them to gain a grand amount of control over the kaiju and the insect aliens, both of which seem so greatly out of these young people’s orbits that it comes off more as humorous than uplifting and truly engaging. It is the fact that they are likable and by the end of the issue, understandable, that we go along for this ride, even if we are questioning some of the plot decisions. It is Davidsen’s natural and down to earth dialogue that makes this an easy and enjoyable read. Even when things feel extraordinarily unrealistic at the human level, even for a story about giant fighting monsters, the scripting is a breeze and fun to read. And liking this brother and sister are a huge part of that. Setting the issue in 2008 also adds a bit of emotional weight with ties to a great loss on 9/11, and while that is not really a necessary plot point in terms of needing to have it in a “Godzilla” title, it does paint us a more detailed picture of Joaquin’s emotional state, especially when it comes to seeing great destruction in a cityscape at the hands of something that feel so far out of their control; until it isn’t.
SidVenBlu’s work helps give the book a fun, cartoonish look, in the way of an animated series style. This doesn’t take away any of the emotion, but rather than going for a hyper realistic take, it allows us to just fall into the fiction and enjoy the story for what it is, not what it isn’t He also has a knack for drawing these monsters, how they move, act, and react. The action sequences are dynamic and a complete blast to experience. The illustrations have all the makings of a classic Godzilla flick. Pinto’s color work is bright, flashy, and while mainly pulling from decades of these movies for the palette used here, does a nice job of bringing something new to the comic. Classic colors blend and collide with a more modern sense of comics’s work. This art team brings a lot of exciting details and wonderful colors to this comic. It certainly is a treat to look at.
Fun, silly, with just a bit of heart, “Godzilla Rivals – Vs. Gigan” #1 is sure to be a good read for fans of the characters, but won’t stir those deep in the lore, or greatly attract those who already don’t gravitate towards such fanfare to begin with.
Final Verdict: 6.0, By no means a boring slump, a decent, if decidedly unrealistic story bookends some fun action and brutality as two fan favorite monsters slug it out for the fate of humanity.
