The Godzilla franchise has introduced countless different alien races in its over 70 years of existence, but we’ve never really gotten to know any of them beyond their evil intentions. Whether it be the iconic Xilians or the formidable Simeons from Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla, they’ve always just been vague antagonists for the King of the Monsters’ human allies to face off against. Even in the medium of comics, they never get to have fully fleshed out characters or arcs, but finally, in Starship Godzilla, they get their own series! Truthfully, I was worried going in that it would feel very “Guardians of the Galaxy,” and Marvel Cinematic Universe-esque, but other than the team being thieves, it really doesn’t come off that way.
Starship Godzilla is a step further into the Kai-Sei Universe by branching out into the far reaches of the galaxy. This is actually my first exposure to the Kai-Sei series, and thankfully it’s very stand alone, so don’t worry if you haven’t picked up Godzilla’s current ongoing run or Escape the Deadzone yet! This comic isn’t full of very many revelations or lore, mainly focusing on its cast of characters and introducing them. The Mechagodzilla crew gets a good focus and it doesn’t even feel like there is necessarily ONE protagonist, but instead a whole team to get to know. Writer Chris Gooch organically weaves the narrative’s character introductions without the use of any major exposition dumps – it’s more “show” than “say.”
TM & ©Toho Co., Ltd.
The plot of this issue is also very reminiscent of the original 1979 Alien film and I adored that aspect. Despite it following a similar plotline as that film though, this story is significantly more optimistic and friendly in its execution. It’s fun seeing a new little monster in the franchise wreck some havoc! The one thing in its story that might disappoint Godzilla fans, however, is the titular starship: Mechagodzilla. The mechanical kaiju doesn’t get a lot to do and only really shows up in two exterior shots. MG is shown visually as massive in scale, taking up a whole page and having a lot of weight, but it’s still limited in full appearances.
Aside from that, it was neat to see the book stick the whole team in a high stress, live-or-die scenario where we get to learn all of their personalities and quirks. Some are chipper and use humor to cope, others are intensely optimistic, and a few are realists who understand that death has to happen. All of these characters bounce off each other spectacularly with their clashing outlooks. Starship Godzilla manages to accomplish all of this in a very breakneck pace, too. The story is so fast-paced and a breeze to read; it was shocking when it was already over. I can’t wait to binge read it when the trade releases!
TM & ©Toho Co., Ltd.
The best part of the whole issue, in my opinion, is the art. Oliver Ono does an amazing job making everything feel completely realized. Mechagodzilla is huge in its first appearance, the heist that opens the story looks like it’s moving at lightning speeds and the alien creature has a terrifying presence when it first appears. The colors always pop and blend together, beautifully making the ship and crew feel like a ragtag team. Everything feels dirty and technical and the art is incredibly immersive.
Starship Godzilla is a great addition to the Godzilla library and is a really fun read. Unfortunately, the first issue doesn’t really earn its Godzilla name quite yet, but the set up is definitely taking us there. Our new cast of characters is made up of different aliens from the Godzilla universe and it’s great to see them actually doing something. IDW’s latest Godzilla comic is shaping up to be a really fresh and new idea for the Godzilla franchise: a huge space opera featuring some of the extraterrestrial Toho Kaiju we all know and love! Hopefully these Kai-Sei books will keep giving us interesting ideas to explore and expand upon as we open up a whole new universe of monsters!
Overall Score: 8/10
Starship Godzilla introduces us to a unique cast of characters in a thrilling, Alien-esque sci-fi tale. Mechagodzilla takes a bit of a backseat, but the lightning pace still makes this a fun ride.
