Godziburst arrives in North America with customizable Godzilla action figures, interchangeable parts, and a web series for kaiju fans to enjoy. And we got all the lists here!
For fans who love creating their own kaiju monster mash, Bandai Namco Toys & Collectibles America’s Godziburst will soon arrive in this side of world to please. Who doesn’t want to customize their favourite TOHO monster? Rather than focusing solely on screen-accurate recreations, the new product line encourages collectors to swap parts, create entirely new monsters, and build their own stories.
After its successful debut in Japan last year, these figures are preparing to land on North American shores. Pre-orders are now open through Godzilla.com and Amazon. The figures are expected to arrive at retailers later this summer. While many fans will undoubtedly dream of building a multi-headed beast, a proper King Ghidorah body would still be needed, and the socket system would have to support that level of customization.
Here, Gojira and Godzilla will be used synonymously to explore his appeal world-wide, and Godzilla Minus One shows how The East is dealing with the West(ern) threat.
Spoiler Alert
A primer is needed to help describe where Godzilla Minus One fits in the lore. Technically, not all of TOHO‘s Gojira films belong in one long continuity. Fans know his longevity is due to how he is represented over the nearly seven decades.
Throughout the Shōwa era (1954–75), he eventually became a hero who often saved Japan from other kaiju and alien invaders. During the Heisei period (1984–95), he was an anti-hero. In the Millennium (1999–2004) years, I saw the beast as neither friend nor foe (each film was standalone, save for Against Mechagodzilla and Godzilla: Tokyo SOS). The Reiwa era (2016–present) recognises how this terror is simply a force of nature. Although this studio’s animated trilogy (2017-18) is its own universe, I think they fit under the same umbrella.
Just where this Japanese studio’s latest belongs is somewhere with the first movie and Shin Godzilla. Not only do long-time fans hear Akira Ifukube’s signature score, which really defines the monster’s presence, but also we see nothing has changed in Gojira’s design. Aside from larger dorsal fins and how they activate when he’s ready to breathe fire, the outline can not be altered by much.
When a huge plate of comic book films is being offered in 2019, is it possible to make a list of movies worth seeing without mentioning a comic book (especially Marvel or DC) title? That will be a separate article but within this category, M. Night Shyamalan’s Glass deserves special mention. It’s certainly comic-book inspired. Instead, it’s set in the reality only this auteur can imagine.
Works from Asia is just as important! Not on the list, but believed to release sometime this new year is a sequel to The Mermaid (2016). This runaway hit and director Stephen Chow‘s perchance for comedy has me waiting in bated breath for an American-side release. Chinese-made films rarely get noticed, and when making my list, I had Warriors of the Future as a movie of interest.
Anime-wise, Mirai no Mirai (未来のミライ) will get wider distribution in this new year. It released during winter of last year with limited screenings. I saw a clip in the promo reel for the Victoria Film Festival 2019, and am fairly sure this will be screened locally. I will be looking forward to watching this 76th annual Golden Globe Award-nominated film.
Listed in chronological order are:
Godzilla: The Planet Eater
January 9
The final part of Toho’s animated trilogy gets its worldwide release on Netflix! While this take takes on shades of Hideaki Anno‘s Evangelion, this concept should be of no surprise when considering this creator directed the last live-action work, Shin Gojira in 2016.
Kaiju fans are in for twice the fun this year, since King Ghidorah is the villain. I’m sure the planning was coincidental since one side of the Pacific was not in constant communication with the other for plans for big G. Not even a three-headed monster can choose sides for which is best.
For a brief moment, I thought TOHO animation‘s curiously titled Gojira, City on the Edge of Battle (決戦機動増殖都市) will become a Star Trek episode. Knowing Mecha Gojira would appear, I thought about Hasbro’s Transformers and a city transforming into a figure like Trypticon than Metroplex. Thankfully, this movie is nowhere close to realizing that, but I knew Mecha Gojira was making a comeback. I wondered how?
Part two is on Netflix. While it’s tough to beat a theatrical presentation, as it was presented in Japan, anyone with a 72 inches (or more) television will be in for a treat. The surround sound mix is very good, and it requires more oomph to make the windows of my home to rattle. I bought a 7.2 audio receiver so I can have two subwoofers than one and hoped to test it out with the right movie. This film comes close to tearing down the house.
Toho Picture‘s Gojira: Kaijū Wakusei (Monster Planet) had me asking a lot of questions and I had to view it at least three times to see if any answers lay buried in the layers.
Netflix’s quiet release of the first film of the series had me excited, and the tease it made has me thankful that the wait to see part two will not be too long. When considering Kessen Kidō Zōshoku Toshi (literal translation: Decisive Battle Mobile Breeding City) arrives May 2018 in Japan, it’s safe to assume the worldwide release by Netflix will be near the end of the year — if not beginning at the start of the next, if I’m to assume there’s a pattern. For the last film of this animated trilogy, it could sedge way to new live action films, or look at an earlier chapter altogether.
Plenty of animated films will be coming in 2018 for the discerning connoisseur to consider. Disney and PIXAR do not dominate the market, and to offer enough international flavour is what makes this list different from others. While a strong anime theme persists, offered here are my picks for the 2018 year. Not every film have a set date; they are confirmed to come out within the year at least.
This list is organized into the most highly anticipated to “least.”
Godzilla: Monster Planet
Anyone living in Japan saw this movie already and the word is that this film is very good. The expectations from fans living elsewhere are high since this work is coming from the studio who birthed Gojira, and the look is epic.
Humanity had to flee the planet in order to survive this beast’s wrath, and now they want it back. Hopefully the advancements in technology can placate the behemoth! No date is given for the global Netflix release. Perhaps this movie will get a limited cinema screening first, where this film deserves to be seen, before heading to the streaming service.
For fans who love creating their own kaiju monster mash, Bandai Namco Toys & Collectibles America’s Godziburst will soon arrive in this side of world to please. Who doesn’t want to customize their favourite TOHO monster? Rather than focusing solely on screen-accurate recreations, the new product line encourages collectors to swap parts, create entirely new monsters, and build their own stories.
Spoiler Alert
By Ed Sum
