Godzilla Vs. The X-Men #1
Chad Burdette
Recap
Marvel Comics and Toho International, the Japanese studio’s U.S.-based subsidiary that has brought global sensation Godzilla to life, began an exciting new collaboration that resulted in a hit Godzilla variant cover program and long-awaited reprints and collections of Godzilla’s original Marvel comic series.
The GODZILLA VS. one-shots mix Godzilla lore with the Marvel mythos, twisting history as icons like the Fantastic Four, Spider-Man, Hulk, the X-Men and Thor face off against the King of the Monsters! A milestone pop culture event like this calls forth the industry’s greatest contemporary talent.
This week is Round 4 as the 90s X-Men face the king of monsters in Godzilla vs. X-Men #1
ROUND FOUR: VS. THE UNCANNY X-MEN!
When a robotics firm draws a kaiju’s anger, the X-Men are called in to protect a world that hates and fears them from the counterattack of… GODZILLA!
But what are the reasons for Godzilla’s attacks? And are the X-Men on the right side?
Review
Godzilla vs. X-Men #1 finds the ’90s incarnation of the X-Men tangling with the King of Monsters on his home turf of Japan after Sunfire encounters him and calls on Professor X and the team for assistance.
Writer Fabian Nicieza does a solid job of setting the stage and introducing the main conflict and dropping readers into the action as the team is practicing against the powers of Godzilla in the Danger Room. Thinking outside the box, Xavier suggests an alternative to direct confrontation, which means Gambit gets a chance to use his thievery skills (and some Pym Particles) to steal the Super Adaptoid from the Commission On Superhero Activities. While these concepts may be known by long time readers, there are plenty of editor’s notes for casual readers.
The lack of X-Men battling Godzilla one-on-one was disappointing but seeing amalgamation of the Super Android being comprised of traits of each X-Men was designed well and gave the story the feel of a Kaiju story that is found in other media. Godzilla’s nemesis this time is a Sentinel Mechakaiju developed using Bolivar Trask’s Sentinel technology to create a formatted foe for mutants and Kaiju alike. The resolution of the story is okay, and ends in a fashion befitting the ’90s Marvel Universe.
The art and colorwork are solid and captures the right aspects of the X-Men of the early ’90s in a nostalgic manner that also feels like the animated show, both original and current iteration.
Final Thoughts
Godzilla Vs. The X-Men #1 is a nostalgic return to the '90s X-Men mixed with classic Godzilla tropes and Kaiju goodness as the fourth round of this series explodes on the page.
Godzilla Vs. The X-Men #1
- Writing - 8/108/10
- Storyline - 8/108/10
- Art - 8/108/10
- Color - 9/109/10
- Cover Art - 9/109/10
