‘Godzilla’ (Kai-Sei) Issue #4 Review

We’re four issues deep into the main ongoing Godzilla “Kai-Sei” run by IDW.  Time sure flies, but it really has been nearly four months since the big launch of issue 1 back in July. Kaiju United has been following along, but the reviews for anything but Deadzone have been with other individuals on staff (we each chose a book when the main three were announced).  I was curious to take on issue 4, as I’ve been reading along casually, but never really venturing too far into review territory.

So far, my thoughts with the book are pretty much summed up with “good.” It’s been fun, but it hasn’t hooked me yet, despite some pretty solid writing from Tim Seeley and some stylish, epic art by Nikola Čižmešija. Since the arc concludes with issue 6, I thought it might be high time for me to review one of these books before the climactic final battle and the “death” of Godzilla in the sixth issue, to really see if the book can rise above just being “good, but not great” in my opinion.

Happy to say things kick up a notch here. In this issue, Čižmešija lets loose, even more so than in issue 3, showing his true prowess and skill in drawing gorgeous panels, creepy monsters, and finally, a pretty spectacular Godzilla battle that isn’t just a single page. Even when in the quieter moments, such as G-FORCE exploring a cave, or swimming underwater, Nikola Čižmešija is locked in. This is his best work of the ongoing run so far, no doubt. The entire world looks interesting and when combined with Tim Seeley’s writing, especially with a certain new ally that these characters meet – it feels incredibly fleshed out. I just wish readers, especially kaiju fans that are in it more for the big monsters, would get to see his takes on these creatures beyond Anguirus and the leeches; it’s clear he’s got a pretty solid eye for blending his own style with the classic Toho silhouettes.

Seeley’s writing is fairly polished. I’m admittedly a little hard to please when it comes to characters being quippy (his work on the upcoming TMNT x Godzilla is perfectly in line with how those characters behave and suits the story), but here, it feels like a strange blend of anime and MCU that hasn’t really clicked with me quite yet, especially the childish banter about who might be sleeping with who, or Jet Jaguar’s theme song that’s getting just a little old. Now… Lament on the other hand… that entire sequence was what I wanted out of this book. His entire monologue is eerie, otherworldly, and beyond our comprehension. The way he speaks to the Captain with such intelligence and a disturbingly polite tone is fantastic. More of that creature would do wonders for this book and give it some intensity without veering into the complete insanity and repulsiveness of Deadzone’s body horror.

These new books were designed to show Godzilla built specifically for comics, and unfortunately, I’m still waiting to see that with this ongoing run. This is a story that can be a movie: everything is cinematic looking, each panel can be a frame, but there’s nothing crazy enough for me to say “Yeah, this can only happen in a comic book.” G-FORCE is very Godzilla: Final Wars, but even that movie does something a little more exciting with the idea of some of them being mutants with “Kaiser” energy. Each Kai-Sei book has a solid, foundational quality that I admire for its sheer consistency, there’s just something about this ongoing book that makes it require a desperately needed adrenaline shot. Thankfully, I think this issue was a pretty good way to do that, and it sets things up for the climactic two issues that close up this first arc pretty well. Godzilla is good, but I want this book to be great. I’m hoping soon that the main, premiere book of this new “Kai-Sei” era can really hit its stride and be the strongest amongst the three titles.