Monster Zero x SciFi Japan - Archive Only

After more than 40 years and some recent reprints, Godzilla is returning to smash the Marvel Universe!

https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0730/6874/0913/files/GodzillaVsMarvelPromo.jpg?v=1733894832

Consisting of six one-shot stories, Godzilla vs Marvel kicks off next March with the first issue being "Godzilla vs Fantastic Four" from Ryan North and John Romita Jr., in which Godzilla will take on Galactus and his new herald, King Ghidorah!

https://godzilla.com/blogs/news/godzilla-vs-marvel-comics

I'm picking up the hardcover of Justice League vs Godzilla vs Kong for Christmas, so I'll definitely pick this up when the eventual collected edition rolls round!

Ha! I guess there was a good reason why the classic Marvel Godzilla omnibus was subtitled "The Original Marvel Years" !

I actually mused a while back, when the omnibus and the Godzilla variant covers were coming out, how funny it would be if Marvel did a big Godzilla crossover via Toho to differentiate from how DC is doing there's via the MonsterVerse. I love the sound of this crossover, which promises lots of interesting character and talent combinations. North is one of the hottest writers now, and JRjr is a legend so they're obviously pulling out all the stops!

I wonder if they'll keep the portrayal of Godzilla consistent or mix and match the different eras of Godzilla with corresponding eras of Marvel, like '60s Godzilla with '60s Fantastic Four, Heisei Godzilla with "extreme" '90s Marvel, etc.

^ I hope that's what they do. It would be fitting to see the 1964 versions of Godzilla and King Ghidorah alongside the original versions of the Fantastic Four and Galactus.

It's cool that they've got Ryan North to write the Fantastic Four story. I've been reading his online Dinosaur Comics at qwantz.com since high school.

What are the chances that they'll get Arthur Adams to illustrate one of these? Spider-Man vs. Godzilla in the '90s drawn by Adams would be mind-blowing!

I think early '90s X-Men vs. Dark Horse style Heisei Godzilla drawn by Art Adams might be too cool to exist in this universe!

https://www.scifijapan.com/news/the-king-of-monsters-battle-across-the-marvel-universe-rages-on-in-godzilla-vs-hulk-and-godzilla-vs-spider-man
https://comicbook.com/anime/news/godzilla-vs-hulk-marvel-official/
https://www.ign.com/articles/godzilla-vs-spider-man-pits-peter-parker-against-japans-greatest-monster

Godzilla vs. Hulk coming April 16, written by Gerry Duggan, illustrated by Giuseppe Camuncoli, set during the 1970s and featuring General Ross and the Thunderbolts.

Godzilla vs. Spider-Man coming April 30, written by Joe Kelly, illustrated by Nick Bradshaw, set during the 1980s after the events of Secret Wars with Peter Parker wearing the black symbiote suit.

Love the concept behind this anthology. It's literally Godzilla vs. the entire history of the Marvel Universe. I'll bet the final issue features modern heroes like Miles Morales and Kamala Khan.

... but wouldn't it be even better if they went all the way and tried to make the issues actually look like they're from their respective eras? Like they're lost media rediscovered.

^ Do you mean the cover art or the interior art? The covers do look like modern one-offs but there are some quotes in those IGN and Comicbook.com articles that suggest they're aiming to capture contemporary styles in each issue.

Godzilla vs. Hulk illustrator Giuseppe Camuncoli:
"When Marvel called with this offer, I was quite thrilled. It felt very cool to draw this titan, although the real challenge was to make the iconic ‘70s version look extra scary and dangerous. Thanks to Gerry Duggan’s blazing script, it was quite easy – lots and lots of super crazy scenes to illustrate, I knew this was going to be so much fun."

Godzilla vs. Spider-Man writer Joe Kelly:
"The second I heard that there was going to be a Godzilla x Spidey crossover set in the ‘80s, I almost leapt across the table to claim it. This book is a chance to go nuts and have a blast with two iconic characters and channel the chaos of the time period that I was actively collecting Spider-Man. Nick Bradshaw really captures the absurdity of the concept and the vibe I was going for, while at the same time giving Godzilla and Spidey (in his perfectly-normal-nothing-weird-here-black suit!) the prestige and gravity they deserve. It's a love letter served with an earth-shattering roar!"

They're giving it a retro vibe, but I'm talking about how they did with (for example) the time traveling Deadpool stuff where they meticulously recreated the look of vintage comics.

^ Yeah, that would have been cool.

https://www.scifijapan.com/godzilla-toho/the-king-of-monsters-makes-an-enemy-of-mutantkind-in-godzilla-vs-x-men

Godzilla vs. X-Men coming May 14, written by Fabian Nicieza, illustrated by Emilio Laiso, set during the 1990s and featuring Sentinels!

The collected trade paperback of this series is already available to preorder with a September 30 release date.

https://www.amazon.com/GODZILLA-MARVEL-UNIVERSE-Ryan-North/dp/1302964887

The product description also reveals the titles of the fifth and sixth issues:

"The King of the Monsters Godzilla returns to Marvel Comics to battle every Marvel legend: the Fantastic Four, Hulk, Spider-Man, X‑Men, Avengers, and Thor across the decades!

An all star talent extravaganza with Ryan North, Gerry Duggan, Joe Kelly, Fabian Nicieza, David Walker, Jason Aaron, John Romita Jr., Giuseppe Camuncoli, Nick Bradshaw, Emilio Laiso, Georges Jeanty, and Aaron Kuder

Godzilla returns to Marvel Comics at last, and will face off against Marvel's greatest heroes in a showdown that will span all eras of both the Marvel Universe and Godzilla's own long history!

Godzilla vs. The Fantastic Four (Classic Era)
The original classic Fantastic Four vs the raw power of Godzilla
Godzilla vs. The Hulk (Vintage Era)
The green skinned goliath of the 70’s vs a unique version of Godzilla
Godzilla vs. Spider-Man (Black Costume Era)
The Iconic Black Costume Spider-Man against the explosive 80s Godzilla
Godzilla vs. The X-Men (X-Men Mutant Genesis Era)
The intensity of the 90’s X-Men vs the fury of Godzilla
Godzilla vs. The Avengers (New Avengers Era)
Modern heroes the New Avengers battling the turn-of-the-new century Godzilla
Godzilla vs. Thor (Modern Era)
The immortal God of Thunder Thor will face the overwhelming adversary Godzilla in the tumultuous era of the present.

In the first round, the King of the Monsters takes on Marvel’s First family! The Fantastic Four know a thing or two about fighting titanic threats, but Godzilla is something else entirely! And then there’s an all-new version of one of Godzilla’s deadliest adversaries to contend with! You know it’ll be clobberin’ time — but for who?! Plus: Godzilla resurfaces again and again to take on the Hulk, the Avengers, the X-Men, Thor and a majorly-outside-his-weight-class Spider-Man!"

For those who live near a comic book shop, Godzilla vs. The Fantastic Four will be released this Wednesday!

Toho's Godzilla website has posted interviews with the writers of the first three issues in this series, featuring textless previews of some of the interior pages.

Godzilla vs. The Fantastic Four writer Ryan North: https://godzilla.com/blogs/news/godzilla-vs-fantatsic-four-1-interview-writer-ryan-north-marvel-comics

Godzilla vs. The Hulk writer Gerry Duggan: https://godzilla.com/blogs/news/interview-gerry-duggan-godzilla-vs-hulk-1

Godzilla vs. Spider-Man writer Joe Kelly: https://godzilla.com/blogs/news/interview-spider-man-vs-godzilla-1-writer-joe-kelly-exclusive-preview-pages

And now here's an interview with Godzilla vs. X-Men writer Fabian Nicieza: https://godzilla.com/blogs/news/interview-godzilla-vs-x-men-1-fabian-nicieza-marvel-comics-preview

Bit of a bummer that the initial collected edition of this is a paperback, considering the equivalent DC/MonsterVerse crossover has a snazzy hardcover.

... but at the same time: it's like every major Marvel and DC thing these days is constantly re-released and repackaged in deluxe formats. I'd bet you dollars to donuts there's a hardcover within a year.

^ Yeah, I'd prefer hardcover collections too. At least they're not waiting long to release the initial trade paperback.


I forgot to post Toho's official announcements of Godzilla vs. Avengers (June 18) and Godzilla vs. Thor (July 2):

https://godzilla.com/blogs/news/godzilla-vs-avengers-1-marvel-comics
https://godzilla.com/blogs/news/godzilla-vs-thor-1-marvel-comics


But now Marvel and Toho have announced an immediate follow-up to these Godzilla vs. Marvel one-shots, with a five-issue series called Godzilla Destroys the Marvel Universe launching on July 16:

https://www.marvel.com/articles/comics/marvel-and-toho-international-godzilla-destroys-the-marvel-universe-comic-event-pop-culture-showdown
https://godzilla.com/blogs/news/godzilla-destroys-the-marvel-universe-comic-book


Written by Godzilla vs. Hulk writer Gerry Dugan and illustrated by Uncanny X-Men artist Javier Garron, this miniseries will tell one continuous story rather than standalone one-shots set in different decades.

Here's Marvel's official synopsis:

"LOOK OUT NEW YORK! A previously dormant Godzilla has been angrily awoken and begun carving a path of annihilation as Earth’s Mightiest Heroes band together to try and stop its cataclysmic rampage! But when their combined efforts fail to slow the Bringer of Destruction, Earth’s heroes are forced to go to extraordinary lengths to try and bring Godzilla down – including joining forces with Earth's most devious villains! But will this be enough to stop Godzilla as it tears straight through the Marvel Universe into the Dark Dimension and other realms? Plus, how is the King of the Monsters connected to the mysterious metal, Vibranium, and what does this mean for Wakanda? In the face of an unstoppable force of nature, the Marvel Universe must come together like never before in this earth-shattering fight for Earth’s survival. It’s all hands on deck in the FIRST of FIVE electrifying chapters in this epic saga!"

Following up my previous post: once I saw the additional miniseries announcement I thought; ah, they're waiting to bundle both together as an oversized hardcover omnibus in the same style of their "Original Marvel Years" volume!

^ That would be cool. The Original Marvel Years omnibus collects 24 issues, while Godzilla vs. Marvel and Godzilla Destroys the Marvel Universe together will be just 11 issues total. Maybe they've got more planned for The Modern Marvel Years?

To promote the omnibus last year, Marvel did variant covers featuring Godzilla for a bunch of different comic titles. I hope those covers are included in the Godzilla vs. Marvel trade paperback and/or the eventual Modern Marvel Years omnibus. Here's the full list of variant covers from Marvel's website: https://www.marvel.com/articles/comics/godzilla-variant-covers

DAREDEVIL #13 Godzilla Variant Cover by Nick Bradshaw
EXCEPTIONAL X-MEN #1 Godzilla Variant Cover by Leinil Francis Yu
FANTASTIC FOUR #25 Godzilla Variant Cover by Greg Land
IMMORTAL THOR #15 Godzilla Variant Cover by Jonas Scharf
MILES MORALES: SPIDER-MAN #24 Godzilla Variant Cover by Romy Jones
SCARLET WITCH #4 Godzilla Variant Cover by Mitsuhiro Arita
SPIDER-BOY #11 Godzilla Variant Cover by Lee Garbett
CAPTAIN AMERICA #13 Godzilla Variant Cover by Phil Noto
SPIDER-GWEN: THE GHOST-SPIDER #5 Godzilla Variant Cover by InHyuk Lee
VENGEANCE OF THE MOON KNIGHT #9 Godzilla Variant Cover by Taurin Clarke
AVENGERS #18 Godzilla Variant Cover by Ario Anindito
DAZZLER #1 Godzilla Variant Cover by Elizabeth Torque
DEADPOOL #6 Godzilla Variant Cover by Paco Medina
INCREDIBLE HULK #17 Godzilla Variant Cover by Andrei Bressan
VENOM #37 Godzilla Variant Cover by Dave Wachter
X-MEN #4 Godzilla Variant Cover by Chris Samnee
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #58 Godzilla Variant Cover by Leo Romero
AVENGERS ANNUAL #1 Godzilla Variant Cover by Pete Woods
PHOENIX #3 Godzilla Variant Cover by Rickie Yagawa
UNCANNY X-MEN #2 Godzilla Variant Cover by David Baldeon
WOLVERINE #2 Godzilla Variant Cover by Roge Antonio

Wikizilla has a gallery of all of them: https://wikizilla.org/wiki/Godzilla_(Marvel_comic)#2024_Godzilla_Variant_Covers_for_other_Marvel_comics

With variant covers, sketchbooks, and other extras I feel they can really inflate that page count.

Here are the last three Godzilla vs. Marvel interviews from Toho's Godzilla website.

Godzilla vs. Avengers writer David F. Walker: https://godzilla.com/blogs/news/exclusive-interview-godzilla-vs-avengers-1-writer-david-f-walker-preview

Godzilla vs. Avengers artist Georges Jeanty: https://godzilla.com/blogs/news/exclusive-interview-godzilla-vs-avengers-1-artist-georges-jeanty

Godzilla vs. Thor writer Jason Aaron: https://godzilla.com/blogs/news/exclusive-interview-preview-godzilla-vs-thor-1-marvel-comics-jason-aaron


The trade paperback is now available with the title Godzilla vs. The Marvel Universe. The fifth issue of the follow-up Godzilla Destroys The Marvel Universe will be published on November 19 but Marvel and Toho have already announced a direct continuation with another five-issue miniseries! Godzilla: Infinity Roar will begin publication on February 6 with writer Gerry Dugan and artist Javier Garron returning!

https://godzilla.com/blogs/news/godzilla-infinity-roar-unleashes-cosmic-chaos-this-february

That will bring Marvel's new Godzilla continuity up to 10 issues and the total number of 'modern Marvel years' issues up to 16. If Marvel keeps publishing more Godzilla comics after Infinity Roar then they might end up matching their classic run's 24-issue count, all while IDW continues publishing their own Godzilla comics and while DC and Legendary are publishing their sequel to Justice League vs. Godzilla vs. Kong. How crazy is this?

Godzilla vs. The Fantastic Four is pretty good.

The art is a mixed bag. The pencils are by John Romita Jr. with inks by Scott Hanna and colors by Marcio Menyz. It's no surprise that the heroes are drawn well but it's clear that Romita isn't accustomed to drawing these kaiju. Godzilla's appearance is very inconsistent, with several different design influences visible in various panels (including the 1964 Aurora model kit). I don't mind whether Godzilla gets an existing design or a whole new design or something in between but the inconsistency doesn't look good. King Ghidorah is based on the GMK design but he lacks detail and his proportions are often wonky. Unfortunately the colors in this issue look garishly digital.

There's nothing to indicate that this is set in the '60s. There's no text heading or character dialogue referring to any year or decade. The One World Trade Center tower is even visible in the New York City skyline in several panels.

The story is a straightforward crossover, starting with the titular battle and ending with the team-up against a greater threat. Crossovers like this are all about mixing and matching elements of different franchises in interesting ways to make the most of their blended premises, and this issue only partially succeeds. On the plus side, the Fantastic Four carry the story and their banter is great. Ghidorah being imbued with the Power Cosmic and invading Earth as the new herald of Galactus is a natural fit, considering how often he was controlled by invading aliens in the Showa Series. There's even a panel that offers a glimpse of his home planet, with the Silver Surfer explaining that Ghidorah destroyed all life on that world.

On the downside, Godzilla's role in the plot is really arbitrary, and the conclusion of the final battle is inexplicably underwhelming. Godzilla shows up in NYC for no particular reason, he gets knocked out before Ghidorah arrives, he gets revived when the Silver Surfer imbues him with the Power Cosmic and then he uses it to take on Ghidorah. His appearance is unexplained and unconnected to the conflict with Ghidorah, making Godzilla's presence a matter of remarkable convenience for both the plot and the action. Once the monsters start fighting and the Fantastic Four take Godzilla's side, the action is cool but the dramatic crux is supposedly that the team needs to distract Ghidorah long enough for Godzilla to get an unexpected hit in. That's a compelling idea, and the way that Sue uses her light-bending invisibility power to make the Thing look gigantic is creative, but it simply leads to Godzilla supercharging his heat ray by blending it with the Power Cosmic (which apparently hadn't happened up to that point) and then he doesn't even use it on Ghidorah, instead just tackling Ghidorah from behind while blasting his cosmic heat ray in the air off to the side, and that's the last image of the battle. Reed says in the epilogue that Godzilla returned to the ocean after "perhaps unexpectedly" surrendering the Power Cosmic back to the Silver Surfer, which is an inspired idea that would have been cool to see and explore but that interaction isn't depicted here.

It's a fun, basic crossover with a lot of cool action but it declines to go for more than that, and the monsters could have been drawn better.