In the penultimate installment of the Godzilla vs. Marvel series of one-shots, Earth’s Mightiest Heroes explain the rambunctious tale of their encounter with Godzilla, Fin Fang Foom, and Jet Jaguar. The New Avengers had plenty of questions to answer from Maria Hill, as the bridge they attempted to save was completely destroyed. This entry has great scale and humorous kaiju action but perhaps stands as a weaker story compared to the other strong one-shots of this crossover.
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One issue is the overall nature of the story. It’s a retrospect, meaning the conclusion of the story is already well known, and the Avengers overall hardly battle against Godzilla. Rather, they just do damage control as a naively built Jet Jaguar fails to effectively mitigate a destructive clash between Fin Fang Foom and Big G. While the monsters are drawn with solid style and fit well next to each other (particularly Fin Fang Foom and the purple-crystal millennium Godzilla), there is a large amount of dialogue that takes up page-time. The story shifts from action that occurred in the past, to dialogue that is occurring in the present, a little often. This entry is a bit more humorous than previous entries, sometimes hitting well but perhaps not as clever as the rest of the crossover. The tone is consistent enough with the stories of the other one-shots, albeit a little more lighthearted. It doesn’t try to be serious and takes itself for what it
is, which is certainly fine.
Despite its flaws, there are plenty of positives. The monster action is fun and aesthetically pleasing through Frank D’Armata’s art, and Fin Fang Foom’s anthropomorphized characterization brings an interesting twist to a story that does not feature a ton of them. It crosses over an iconic kaiju of Marvel’s own creation with the King of the Monsters in an engaging way (and gleefully knows Fin Fang Foom stands no chance), and blends the new era of Marvel, The New Avengers, with figureheads of the past.
Godzilla vs. Avengers may be a slight hiccup in this stellar crossover series, but it is a fun read nonetheless that will grab the attention of Godzilla and Marvel fans alike. Godzilla vs. Marvel will finally conclude with Godzilla vs. Thor on July 2nd , 2025! Check out the great set of variant covers from Nick Bradshaw, Michael Allred, and more!
