Last year, the King of the Monsters took to America to deliver fun destructive stories honoring major cities across the United States. Godzilla traveled from sea to shining sea, making landfall in Chicago, Los Angeles, Boston, and Kansas City in stories written by locals from each city. While it’s been a fun ride, I have admittedly kind of felt left out all this time. I’ve been to Chicago, but that was all I could really relate to, in terms of the cities selected for the big American tour of destruction that Godzilla got to go on. I love the local love each story gives for each city, but not being from or even visiting most of the cities featured made me feel a little alienated from the one-shots. To my delight, though, IDW announced a surprising return to Godzilla vs. America, starting with the place I grew up: Portland! As a lifelong Godzilla fan and someone who has been around Portland for over 25 years of my life, I was more than thrilled to take the time to see Godzilla stomp a city I am intimately familiar with.
Portland is famously, or rather infamously, “weird,” and I think that is something just about everyone is aware of. This comic really dives into that tone and style right off the bat with a really cool story that very well might be my favorite titled “Godzilla vs Sasquatch” that I think anyone who loves cryptids is really going to enjoy. The story focuses less on the sights and sounds of Portland, instead focusing entirely on the vibes of the city. The themes of greenery and mankind’s connection with nature are undeniably Portland and the art amplifies this. Writer, artist, and colorist Colleen Coover’s work is very simple, yet nostalgic, feeling like a newspaper comic I’d read in The Oregonian as a kid and highlighting the core setting incredibly well. The use of color by Coover is spectacular, giving a bright and eye-catching vibrance to each page. Portland has a lot of nature interwoven into the city, and that shines here thanks to the contrast the art provides between the buildings and the trees. The whole piece really excels at feeling like the titular city, even featuring a Sasquatch in disguise… one so good you will swear you have seen him in Portland if you’ve ever been.
TM & ©Toho Co., Ltd.
Of course, you can’t have a story about Portland without some wacky humor. Within its pages, there is some great comedy and punchy humor that isn’t just a bunch of inside jokes about our city, and there are punchlines present that I think Godzilla fans specifically will enjoy, such as a hilarious Mothra cameo when the residents of Portland are calling for help. Godzilla’s destructive stroll through Beervana all builds to a climactic kaiju battle between the titular kaiju and the legendary Sasquatch. I will say, the battle featured within may not be the one people would have preferred to see, but I think it embodies the feeling of the city without sacrificing the awe-inspiring size of itself either. Portland is a very “go green” city, and that is highlighted in the core of the battle, specifically with the Sasquatch’s dialogue. It’s fitting to use Sasquatch for the Pacific Northwest, but I think there could’ve been an argument for using Biollante in America’s “Rose City,” however I do think Sasquatch is more “American” culturally. The biggest weakness this story has is that it feels like the shortest of the bunch, despite having the best core idea in the lot. Other stories featured within are longer and aren’t quite as good, whereas this gargantuan (and strikingly hilarious) conflict between two icons could have been just a tad bit longer to really drive home the zaniness.
Other highlight stories in this collection include “High Score” by Caitlin Yarsky, a take on a very famous urban legend from the area, “Polybius,” as well as “Under Siege in the 503” written by Mark Russell with art by Eryk Donovan. Starting with “High Score,” I won’t go into too much detail here, but it’s a really fun take on the legend of Polybius with a fantastic ending. This story definitely works without any Portland knowledge, but if you’ve been here you will know the iconic locations the mythical arcade cabinet gets placed in. In contrast, “Under Siege” is very Portland-centric. Essentially, the country abandons the city during a Godzilla attack, and it’s up to the locals to fight it off using unconventional (and very locally sourced) strategies. This allows for some fun cameos from famous Rip City landmarks and celebrities, all culminating in a true “Godzilla vs Portland” story. I think this is the highlight story for locals, and I think non-locals can also understand most of it, but it’s definitely made for the people who “know.”
The last story I will mention is actually the second one in the comic, titled “Dog Day Afternoon” by Cat Farris. This story is really weird and fun, but it absolutely is not for anyone not in the know of the city. This entire plot focuses on two friends going to get the “Portland Hot Dog” with absolutely no emphasis on Godzilla whatsoever, save for the creature’s looming shadow in the background. I was smiling ear to ear seeing all the landmarks and I adored knowing where every panel took place, but there aren’t enough direct Godzilla happenings for anyone that isn’t charmed by city familiarity and “Oh, no! Godzilla destroyed (insert landmark).” There isn’t really a climax or a satisfying ending either, merely just a punchline of an ending. For me, the story is just a comedic comic tour of Portland for people who live there and nothing more, and it doesn’t quite work for non-locals. I liked it enough, and seeing Godzilla just in the background of panels was really lovely as a local, but this isn’t for someone outside of the area, in my opinion.
TM & ©Toho Co., Ltd.
Godzilla vs Portland was a delight, and it was definitely tailor made for me as a local that has spent over half of my life here. However, I’m here to decide whether or not a non-Portlander should get this book. Truthfully, I really think you should, as the Sasquatch and Polybius stories are worth it alone, but the rest of them can make someone see what makes the city work and why Portland is such a unique and special place. “Under Siege” has some really poignant commentary on the current political climate going on in Portland, and I think it’s a really relevant and powerful story on its own for readers to take in. Yes, there are many Easter eggs and references sprinkled throughout, but I don’t think most of the book’s tales are bogged down by them if one were to read from an outsider’s perspective.
You might not understand what “Lowell’s Books” is referencing, but you will get to feel what local life feels like in this city, and I think that is really beautiful. The shining highlight of Godzilla vs. Portland, in my opinion, is that the city feels like a living, breathing character, and that makes watching it get trashed by the King of Kaiju feel all the more grandiose, with every single page being a love letter to America’s weirdest city but without sacrificing the feel and tone of a Godzilla comic.
Keep Portland weird!
