For me, issue one stumbled out of the gate due to its mishandling of the title character. While I do like the idea of a dystopian future ruined by the presence of the kaiju, I did not like Godzilla being relegated to a few panels. The book begins with a startling and thought-provoking extrapolation concerning the monsters. If the kaiju appeared, than humanity may observe them as deities. This is an idea that I hope gets some further exploration, for it merits a great deal of reflection and understanding to fathom how accurate this idea may be.

Godzilla and Biollante clash while Arata and Shiori make their way to safety through the rubble. Mothra flies in to assist Biollante with the battle. Meanwhile, the survivors suggest a sacrifice to appease the ‘gods’ and return them to their slumber. Arata reunites with his grandfather, and the young boy comments that Godzilla attacked Biollante becaue the creature would have made plants grow in the barren wastelands. Godzilla “didn’t want anything new to grow,” Arata concludes.

Through a dream, we learn that Arata’s grandfather has a deeper connection to Godzilla than just being a survivor. Arata wakes up and cherishes something he managed to keep from the monster battle earlier that day.

This should have been issue one’s storyline. The concepts presented have bold implications, and the story now takes on a bigger scope than the simple monster-of-the-month fare that had been offered up in so many previous IDW iterations of Godzilla.

Although the art got a little dicey to see at times, the presentation and detailing of the monsters made up for that in big ways. Coupled with a very imaginative and highly cerebral concept, this series now stands to be one of the best versions of Godzilla in comic form. There’s a great deal to live up to in issue three, so let’s hope this streak of brilliance persists.

Score: 5/5

Writer: Cullen Bunn Artist: Dave Wachter Publisher: IDW Publishing Price: $3.99 Release Date: 9/17/14 Format: Ongoing; Print/Digital