Shimo (Godzilla X Kong/2 pack version)

Following up on the Godzilla from the Godzilla vs Shimo 2 pack we looked at earlier this month is Shimo. Like Evolved Godzilla, Shimo is a variation of the standard retail release with an alternate paint deco. Shimo is an interesting looking ice monster who caused the last ice age 11,700 years ago. Avoiding spoilers for those who haven't seen the movie as of this writing, she's an antagonist alongside The Skar King and quite a threat. Like many others, I thought her design was really cool (no pun intended). The blue crystals against the white skin is a much different set of colors than what normally gets used for kaiju.

An ancient frost dragon type monster just makes great example of why Monsterverse is so fun. In this action figure, Shimo is fairly faithful to her onscreen appearance. A quadruped, Shimo's legs move at the hips. Her head and tail also rotate and move around as you'd expect from a toy like this. Her mouth can open which allows the blast effect to be plugged in for the FROST BITE BLAST. It's a fun toy and to make her fighting against the Evolved Godzilla complete, there's some additional included cardboard scenery (not pictured). Playschool makes great toys and this 2 pack is a lot of fun.... as is everything about Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire.

Evolved Godzilla (Godzilla X Kong/2 pack version)

I've been singing the praises of Playmates Godzilla and Kong line since they launched and for good reason. These are great toys of classic characters. Evolved Godzilla is from the newest movie, Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire and this version is specifically from the Godzilla vs Shimo 2 pack. The 2 pack is exclusive to Walmart (I believe) and features the two figures with variant decos and scenery for them to fight in. Godzilla is in his Evolved form as you've seen countless times for the marketing for the movie. It's a cool new look that comes with extra abilities that I can't tell you about yet as of this writing I haven't seen the movie yet. I will have by the time you read this and will likely be raving about it non-stop. But as of now, not yet. The wait is killing me... I love this stuff.

Godzilla is pretty much the same figure as his standard release, however with a slightly different deco. The regular version is a darker green, while this is a brighter shade with some teals thrown in. I'm sure it's meant to represent the lighting in a fight scene between Shimo and him, but even on it's own looks cool. A regular complaint I've seen about this Evolved form is the pinks in his dorsal fins. Personally I don't get it, as we all thought it looked cool in Shin Godzilla. That and I appreciate the new look. I like the Monsterverse version of Godzilla, but admit it doesn't always translate well into toys and such. This new form seemingly does pretty well. This is a pretty decent action figure of him with a fair amount of articulation... or about as much so you'd expect. Shoulders, legs, tail,and head move in the standard fashion for Godzilla toys. Also like toys before, his mouth opens and the included Atomic Breath blast effect and plug in. This is a great toy to stomp around and make 'skreeonk' sounds until someone tells you to be quiet. Between Minus One in December and Godzilla X Kong in March... it's an amazing time for Godzilla fans. I'm taking in as many monster toys as I can and this 2 pack was a great set of figures in cool colors (I got the Kong one too). I love it, now if you'll excuse me, I'm getting to work on my aftermarket bus accessory packs for Godzilla toys. To pick up and putting back down.

Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire

Empire of Old weekend saw not just yesterdays movie, but a viewing of Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire Easter Sunday (today) morning. I've been chomping at the bit for this one despite the heaping of kaiju love I've been getting lately. Since the movie just came out, I'll avoid spoilers, but it's obvious this was awesome. The Monsterverse movies are basically modern Showa era (and a touch Heisei) with big Hollywood budgets. One of the biggest gripes when watching Godzilla movies is waiting for the human scenes to end so we can get to the monsters. Monsterverse is almost all monster mayhem and it's wonderful. Godzilla and Kong (with some friends) team up to take on The Skar King and Shimo (with some friends). GxK an insane mixture of giant monsters and cool visuals. It's hard to cram 2 hours of awesome into a short post... freaking badass.

Kong with B.E.A.S.T Glove (Godzilla X Kong/Playmates)

Kong is back for another Monsterverse adventure with Godzilla in the upcoming Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire. This new action figure by Playmates represents Kong from the new film with his new gadget, the B.E.A.S.T GLOVE. Short for Bio Enhanced Anatomech Seismic Thunder, the B.E.A.S.T GLOVE was built by Monarch is a gadget that gives the King of Skull Island extra powerful punches. Strong enough to shatter a meteor! Or at least that's what Gojipedia says- as of this writing the movie won't be out for awhile. He does have it in the trailers and seemingly all the new toys, so I'm guessing Kong is packing his kaiju sized Power Glove for a good bit in the movie. Not sure what else it does, part of me likes to think he can keep up with his steps, heart rate, Spotify, and other phone apps like I do with my Galaxy Watch.

As a toy, Kong is great. Retaining most of the features that made his prior figure from Godzilla vs Kong so good. All the articulation and heft from that prior widely regarded figure returns with a new sculpt and includes a mini BIO-MIMIC HEAV, a small aircraft Monarch gets around in. Missing is the hunk of flesh that could be removed for battle damage and his Ancestral Battle-Axe. Thanks to the bio on the back of his packaging, I'd like to think there was plans to include the axe at some point. Maybe a future version will include it.  The prior figure was popular not only with kaiju fans, but several other fandoms. I recall many Masters of the Universe groups having fun with him and including it in their ranks of warriors. I'm pretty sure this new figure will as well. Like the prior figure, this Kong will probably be available in multiple variations. This is the standard release and there's also a VS 2-pack with Skar King available in a different paint deco available. Playmates makes really good toys and they've been knocking it out of the park with their Godzilla and Kong figures. This is just another great example of that.

Monsters of Monsters

 

Official pictures of some upcoming Playmates Godzilla toys were recently released and I wanted to talk about them a little. Top left is a new Shin Godzilla that looks like a big improvement over the last version Playmates put out in the lines first wave. If anything, it's a nice way to see the improvement of the line from then to now. It really looks good. To his right is Kong as he appeared in Skull Island. Seemingly another use of the Kong figure from the Godzilla vs Kong series that flies off shelves. It's a great toy and comes with the chain weapon used against the giant skull crawler at the end of the movie and one of those classic helicopters.

Bottom left is Godzilla from 2019's King of the Monsters. Specifically in his 'burning' form. I never get tired of Burning Godzilla toys and this one has a great looking new sculpt and a tank. They never come with a bus though. I mean, he could pick it up and put it back down. It really does look great and I hope several variations in different decos come from it. Let's go old-school Playmates, give me translucent glow in the dark Godzilla with a bus. Last but not least to his right is Godzilla's third form from Singular Point known as Terrestris Godzilla. Representing a more juvenile version prior to maturity he's not fully erect and hunched over. Really, it's that sharp color scheme that draws me to this toy. It's a cool design, sure, but that blue!

I'm always ready for more Godzilla and have been a steady fan of the Playmates toys. The new releases coming down the pipe are just exciting. There's nothing like getting one and just being in awe of it for the first time. I'm really looking forward to seeing these at my local stores. Playmates has really been putting out a solid line of Toho Kaiju. Here's looking forward to figuring out how to stick them on a shelf with others. Those tails can really get in the way.

Giant MechaGodzilla (Godzilla vs Kong)

 

I feel like I've been championing the Playmates Godzilla toys since they've been released. To be fair, I was initially critical like others. Some of those early photos weren't promising. I acknowledged the lines faults and have watched it improve as time went along. That's how toy lines work, the initial figures are usually a little rough and things get smoother out as the team finds it's groove. This is the Giant sized MechaGodzilla from their Godzilla vs Kong line. It was one of the Christmas gifts from the Mrs. and I'm quite fond of it.

While Kiryu is my favorite version of MechaGodzilla, this newer Monsterverse version sure is neat. I like how it looks like a robot skeleton. Kiryu is made from skeletal remains of the original Godzilla who's ghost is in there, while this Mechagodzilla is initially controlled by the skull of Ghidorah before being possessed by Ghidorah's consciousness. Mechagodzilla's can be pretty spooky. Good.

This is the giant version of Mechagodzilla. It stands 11" tall, while the standard one is 6". I wished I would have measured it from nose to tail, because that seems a little longer. Like most kaiju toys, he doesn't have a lot of articulation. Head, shoulders, legs, hands, feet, and some tail swivel. Most is pretty standard stuff for a sofubi or these sofubi inspired action figures. The hands though are pretty neat, they swivel at the wrists as well as open and close. This allows him to pick up a bus and throw it back down as well.

Godzilla vs Kong

After waiting an eternity, Godzilla vs Kong was finally released last Wednesday. Thanks to covid-19 adding a few more delays, the movie was released to theaters and streaming via HBO Max. That's how I watched it, at home with some takeout from a steakhouse Saturday night. I'd love to have watched it on release day, but as I've said before here- my work schedule makes watching movies hard during the week. Not to mention I had just got my internet back after a EF-4 tornado went through my town last week. After all the delays, a few more days didn't seem that bad.

I loved this movie. Which you probably guessed already. I've been very happy with the Monsterverse's use of Kong and Godzilla and the world they gave them to play in. Ultimately this movie was the planned culmination of the series. So depending on how the pendulum swings it could be the last movie or the start of a new phase. Considering how successful it's been so far, hopefully they'll let them fight for a few more movies.

Speaking of success, the movie is pulling the kind of box office you'd expect in a big budget Hollywood blockbuster before covid-19 changed everything. That's pretty amazing. While the toys have been selling steadily at my local Walmarts, they were completely cleared out Saturday morning. Considering the extra stock they put out a few days more and that's awesome. Finding a Mechagodzilla might prove to be a challenge. If that's due to a successful movie making people want monsters toys, then I'm happy to share in the selection.

Kong's Going To Whoop Your Ass

One of the Christmas gifts from my Mom was the Giant Kong figure by Playmates. Seeing how a certain trailer is pretty popular right now, it seems like a good time to talk about this toy. As you could guess this Kong as he appears in the upcoming movie. It's been 48 years since his last adventure in Skull Island and he's grown up quite a bit since then.

In case the 'giant' part of Giant Kong wasn't very clear, this isn't the standard figure. It's a much larger toy. The standard Kong figure has a bit more articulation and accessories, this is a big ass monkey your going to stomp around while yelling. The figure is 11 inches tall and looks really great. His head swivels as does his feet. There's basic shoulder and upper leg articulation. I'm sure he can hold something in his right hand if you put something there. This guy has a lot in common with the last Giant Kong by Playmates, but still just enough to make him different.

I had honestly figured this would be a repaint of the prior Giant Kong toy with some paint differences and maybe a new head. I was wrong, even though the figure has the same basic stature and articulation as the last one. This is a newer, beefier Kong with a big beard. In story he's bigger and older now (he was pretty young in Skull Island, they made a point to say that) so he's got to be more battle hardened looking. He's been whooping all sorts of ass in the past 48 years and now he's ready to kick that suddenly evil Godzilla's ass. *cough* 

It's a pretty good Kong toy. I've been a steady fan of these Playmates Godzilla and Kong toys as readers know. They're pretty fun and don't cost very much. It's hard to complain about that. Somebody will, but not me. This Kong costs around $20 and is exclusive to Walmart here in the states (not sure for other countries). This is a good King Kong toy. I can't say enough good about it, so let's watch that trailer again!

I Don't Say He's Got To Go

I've not been covering Playmates Godzilla vs Kong toys here much for no particular reason. So I thought I'd do something about that as I have some and plan on buying more. With the movie's release date changed again (I fucking swear...) it seams like a good time. 

I've talked about Playmates general Godzilla line here before and have been pretty positive about it. This isn't the same line, it's literally an action figure line. Not soft or hard vinyl, action figures similar to the Godzilla toys Trendmasters produced in the 90's. I can only hope these guys get Cyborg Armor too. That'd be freaking amazing. *cough*

As you can probably guess the line has multiple versions of Godzilla and Kong in it. There's also a few other kaiju from the Monsterverse thrown in for good measure. Today I'm talking about the Godzilla with Heat Ray figure. I first typed 'hat' instead of ;'heat' and now I really want to see Godzilla with a hat ray.

This figure is from the standard assortment (there's a giant/mega size class as well) and might be the same mold as the Godzilla with Radio Tower figure. I don't have that one yet, but it looks like it is. The difference would be the paint job and included accessory. 

This figure has a much darker skin with super nice looking translucent blue back plates. He comes with a 'heat ray' burst of flames meant to represent his atomic breath. The 'heat ray' part is the same colored plastic as the back plates, which looks nice. Clearly Godzilla is charging up that blast. 

His mouth is articulated to open or close. Obviously when inserting the 'heat ray' piece, you'll need it open. It doesn't just prop up in there either. There's a little ball joint that inserts into his upper mouth. Usually these companies bullshit that kinda of thing, so I found the insertion point pretty nice. 

The figures in the standard range have removable battle damage similar to older Jurassic Park toys. Just a satisfying chunk of meat that can get ripped off exposing the gore underneath. The chunk is a rubbery piece that snaps into place pretty well and doesn't fall off easily. Godzilla is reasonably articulated. Head swivels, half the tail is on a ball joint (has to be snapped on after opening package). Legs move at his hips and arms on shoulders for tearing high tension wires down.

No matter who makes the figure, you can only expect so much articulation on a Godzilla toy. Anything over that is a plus. It's a good figure, I can't really find any faults with it. For all the negativity I've seen in kaiju groups on the Playmates Godzilla toys, I've been steadily enjoying them. Each his own I suppose. The line is exclusive to Walmart here in the states. I kinda love it.

TOHO + Legendary Announce Licensees for "Godzilla vs. Kong"

Two Iconic Titans to Clash On-Screen and at Retail with Exciting Godzilla vs. Kong Global Programs

The epic blockbuster’s retail and merchandise partnerships to provide fans a robust offering of products and experiences in time for the November 20, 2020 release

BURBANK, Calif., February 20, 2020 – In anticipation of Legendary Pictures and Warner Bros. Pictures’ feature film Godzilla vs. Kong, rumbling into theaters on November 20, 2020, Legendary and Toho Co. Ltd. announced an exciting slate of licensees that will deliver a diverse offering of merchandise and experiences to fans timed to the release of the blockbuster film. International toy titan Playmates has been named master toy partner with forthcoming products themed to Godzilla vs. Kong, as well as additional product lines featuring Legendary’s Monsterverse and Classic Toho Monsters. Film partnerships also include: leading global manufacturer of licensed apparel and accessories, Bioworld; the preeminent designer and manufacturer of costumes, Rubies; leading pop culture consumer product company Funko; interactive live-action adventure escape room producer 60Out; and virtual reality content studio, the Virtual Reality Company (VRC); within the categories of toys, apparel and accessories, costumes, collectible novelty toys, escape rooms, and location-based VR experiences, respectively.

“Godzilla and Kong permeate every aspect of pop culture, and we are excited to bring them back to the forefront of the zeitgeist with our best in class partners,” said James Ngo, Executive Vice President, Franchise Management at Legendary Entertainment. “We are also working to expand this program into gaming, fashion, sports, food & beverage, and more, in order to create additional entry points for fans to engage with these two larger-than-life titans.”

“Godzilla has become a beloved international figure since its first film nearly 65 years ago,” said Keiji Ota, Chief Godzilla Officer (CGO) of Toho.  “We’re thrilled to work with these companies to bring the awesome power of Godzilla vs. Kong to life with toys and products for kids of all ages.”

Additionally, the Godzilla vs. Kong publishing program, which is being rolled out by Legendary Comics, will include two graphic novels, an art book, novelizations, and children’s books, offering fans a chance to delve deeper into the adventures of the great Godzilla and mighty Kong.

About Godzilla vs. Kong:

On November 20, 2020 comes the next chapter of the Monsterverse, Godzilla vs. Kong, which stars Alexander Skarsgård, Millie Bobby Brown, Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry, Shun Oguri, Eiza González, Jessica Henwick, Julian Dennison, Lance Reddick, with Kyle Chandler and Demián Bichir and is directed by Adam Wingard. In a time when monsters walk the Earth, Godzilla vs. Kong explores humanity’s fight for its future as the titans are set on a collision course resulting in a spectacular battle for the ages. Fans can join the conversation by using the official hashtag: #GodzillavsKong on social media.

About Legendary:

Legendary Entertainment is a leading media company with film (Legendary Pictures), television and digital (Legendary Television and Digital Media) and comics (Legendary Comics) divisions dedicated to owning, producing and delivering content to worldwide audiences. Legendary has built a library of marquee media properties and has established itself as a trusted brand which consistently delivers high-quality, commercial entertainment including some of the world's most popular intellectual property. In aggregate, Legendary Pictures-associated productions have realized grosses of more than $17 billion worldwide at the box office. To learn more visit: www.legendary.com.

About Toho:

Toho Company, Limited, is a Japanese entertainment studio focused on the development, production, exhibition, and distribution of powerful content for motion pictures, television and theater. Founded in 1932, it remains a prominent force in bringing brands and original storytelling with versatile talents to audiences worldwide. Its subsidiaries include Toho Cinemas, the highest grossing exhibition company in Japan. To learn more, visit: www.toho.co.jp/en/.

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Thanks to Rogers & Cowan for proving Zone Base readers with this news!

Godzilla vs Evangelion

Earlier today, my wife texted me a screenshot of our advance tickets for Godzilla King of the Monsters. Of course I'm excited, in just a few weeks I'll be in full giddy kaiju glee in my theater seat. Magically enough, over in Japan, Universal Studios (love that place) new attraction Godzilla vs. Evangelion The Real 4D will open. For one magic weekend, Godzilla is going to be EVERYWHERE. While I doubt I'll be able to swing by Universal in Japan anytime soon (I'd be happy just to go to Florida again), I'll be content in enjoying the new movie over here (though I'd kill for some of that merchandise they're selling over there). If you've been holding off on buying any of the great Godzilla toys for sale at your local stores... you might want to get a few soon.

I'm going to have a hard time not stomping one around in the theater while the movie's on.

Godzilla: King of Monsters new trailer

Dang, this looks wonderful.

Godzilla forever mofo

 Last week the news that Toho plans to start a new Godzilla series after 2020 hit and the kaiju fans went nuts. I've been waiting to talk about it here as I wanted to see if anymore news would come before I started talking about it. Some were upset that it was outright said there wasn't going to be a Shin Godzilla sequel. Personally, I liked Shin Godzilla, but don't want a sequel. I'd much rather have a return to traditional Toho Godzilla movies. As Monsterverse rages on, the 2020 time frame is the same as when talks of Shin Godzilla 2 were going around. I believe it's part of Toho's deal with Legendary as so the movies don't compete with one another (which would really be self defeating, all it takes is a look at the time frame between current Toho Godzilla movies and Legendary's time frame to get the idea). With Legendary's Godzilla 2 and King Kong vs Godzilla coming in 2019 and 2020 respectively, it's clear as to why the 2 year wait. Allegedly there will be a span of 1-2 years in between Toho releases, which is standard Godzilla series timing. Realistically, they're probably going to be filming the first movie during this time.

I'm very, very, very excited. It's no secret how much I love Legendary Pictures offerings in the genre, but Toho is king of the giant monster movies and a new series from them is super exciting for a life long fan. Fortunately this new era is during the modern age where watching a foreign movie isn't that much of a challenge anymore. Gone are the days of finding bootleg dub jobs on VHS while waiting for an American release that's often limited in release. As the US releases of Shin and the animated movies show, the turn around for a US release is pretty quick.

The prospect of these being on Netflix in the US like the animated movies just made me scream in excitement out loud.

Pacific Rim Uprising

Cancel the Apocalypse again!

Earlier today, at about 4:20 I saw Pacific Rim Uprising and I'm just now coming down from the adrenaline rush. Without giving any spoilers my thoughts are simple. I liked it. I liked it a whole lot. That was a damn good follow up and a worthy continuation to the Pacific Rim storyline. I really liked the developments since the last movie and how things are set to go forward assuming they make more movies. I know they plan to and before I go any further consider this a spoiler warning even though I don't consider what I'm going to say is an actual spoiler.

Potential spoilers below!

There's intention to crossover Pacific Rim in with Monsterverse (I CALLED IT), you can look the movie up on Wikipedia and see the citations for yourself. That however isn't a big issue here. Here the big issue is expanding the setting to allow the series to go forward, which they did with full robot cartoon love letter madness. I really liked some of the kaiju's methods and the evil Jaegers (that's in the trailers, so not spoilery). The final battle was amazing on an apocalyptic and insane level.

Though the cheesy dialog is often cited as a problem by critics without much sense of awareness. Point blank, this movie is 100% for it's intended audience with no apologies or compromise. Just like with the original it's chock full of homage and even has a few extremely happy Easter eggs.

The only problem I had with the movie is the story moves just a touch too fast. While I could easily keep up with what was going on, I could see where someone else might not. It does stand out from the originals more slow paced pacing leading up the final act. Though with the original masterpiece I wanted more Kaiju vs Jaeger action, something Uprising makes up for in abundance. There's crazy action everywhere with Jaegers taking center stage. So essentially the sheer amount of robot carnage made up for the breakneck pace of the storyline. I've already seen folks in toku groups compare it to Godzilla Final Wars. Which while it might come at you at a crazy pace, it's not near as crazy or as epileptic as Final Wars.

My minds a mush of colors and rovot insanity in the best of ways. Pacific Rim Uprising was an absolute blast and gets my approval as a big fan of the original movie. I want more and I want it now.

NOW!

Monster Planet of Awesome

Hold onto your seats.

I probably say the words Universal Studios about 20 times an hour. It's an amazing theme park that features some amazing experiences. Recently when I went, I rode the newly opened Skull Island: Reign of Kong ride and was both amazed and blown away by the mixture of 4D screen simulation and classic dark ride elements. It really took you into the experience of having an adventure on Skull Island and being caught between Kong and some dinosaurs. The entire ride was part of the experience, even the line was part of the attraction. That's some of the magic that only Universal Studios can bring to life. You are literally plopped out of reality and dropped into the movie each ride is based on.

So what if they made a Godzilla ride? Well, they do have an attraction at Universal Studios Japan...

As part of Universal Studios Japan's knack on making cool attractions based on various anime and video games, currently they have a 4D movie experience where you get to ride out a Godzilla attack in the new (and wonderful) Shin Godzilla setting. It's pretty awesome and I'd love to see it make an appearance at the Florida resort. Though, real talk, that's way too off the beaten path for a mainstream audience at a US theme park. So if anything, it would have to be based on the Legendary version of Godzilla. Which I wouldn't complain about. That would actually be somewhat amazing as there's already instances of Monsterverse inside the resort. Skull Island is based on the 2005 Peter Jackson King Kong. But that IS King Kong in some form. There's a Jurassic Park Island as well, which isn't technically Monsterverse, but Legendary is behind the Jurassic World series and that's pretty damn close. So, you can squint and just accept it like I do. I mean, in Jurassic World, they had a shopping area that looked ALOT like City Walk. Just humor me and imagine Universal Studios changing their tagline to 'Run for your life like you mean it!'

So as I find myself imagining the possible scenario for a USF Godzilla attraction, I find myself  thinking it would be perfect to retrofit the Shrek attraction as a 4D experience with Godzilla. It's not far from the Transformers ride, so I wouldn't have to walk far to hop from one to another (it's my daydream after all). Not to mention Monsters Café is nearby and naturally matches up with the theme on it's own (and it's really good food too). The theater could have all those seat shaking moments, blasts of water, heat, lights, and smells to go with the movie. All while the façade could be right out of Monster Island. It would be rad. Ideally, I'd love a simulator ride or a hybrid ride like Skull Island. But I'm thinking within the confines of the park already and going with the rumor that the Shrek attraction will close soon (the one in Hollywood will soon after all).

He just needs a pink bow.

Now here's where I really start reaching. You see there's a Sanrio store at Universal Studios. That's Hello Kitty and her pals. Well... Hello Kitty is a Godzilla character. As in, in the early 90's there was a Godzilla simulator ride at the Sanrio theme park in japan. Part of the ride film featured Hello Kitty as an in universe character.

The clip of Hello Kitty is edited out of the ride footage online

So, work with me here. Hello Kitty store... Godzilla attraction... get a hamburger at Monsters Café... ride Transformers. They could even sell the Hello Kitty Transformers figures because ...

Don't look at me like that.

Kong: Skull Island

The movie Toho would have made.

I don't think I'm spoiling in this post, but just incase I am, this post may contain spoilers. So there, I gave you more warning than Wikipedia.

I had been anticipating Kong: Skull Island for awhile now and with Toylanta being held on opening weekend, I had to wait a week to watch it. So last night the wife and I saw it and OMG it was great. The movie is part of Legendary Pictures Monsterverse, which so far is just Kong and Godzilla (the Legendary Pictures version), though Pacific Rim would fit right on it. It's a Legendary Pictures film series, and as I'll get to in a few sentences, fits pretty well into the ongoing story. For the record, I wish Legendary made the Transformers and Power Rangers movie.

As a long time kaiju fan, this is the King Kong movie I've wanted for a long time. I would say the King Kong movie I've always wanted, but the Toho Kong movies (King Kong vs Godzilla, and King Kong Escapes) are in the same vein. So I'll say the movie I've wanted for a very long time, because Kong as a super hero doesn't get explored often. Though, Legendary is doing it's part to contribute to that cause.

The movie is wonderful. Taking place as Vietnam is wrapping up, we see a military group of helicopter pilots provide escort for a Monarch expedition into the largely known Skull Island for testing. The testing (which includes explosions) upsets the wildlife and drives Kong out to defend his land. The surviving military and Monarch  members find their way to the pick up point for rescue and along the way discover the giant (and dangerous) wildlife Skull Island has to offer. Separated into two crews, one discovers a long lost fighter pilot and villagers were they learn about Kong and the dangerous monsters living in Skull Islands hollow core. The other crew, hellbent on revenge for the loss of their comrades get into various skirmishes with that not so friendly wildlife.

The movie establishes Kong as one of the guardians of Earth, like Godzilla. It's beautifully filmed, paying homage to Apocalypse Now, and featuring some extremely gorgeous visuals. The scenes of the villagers place of worship and Kong in the sunset are particularly impressive. It's only weak points are easy to ignore for the most part. Some of the scenes are edited in a way that seems a little clip show like. This is a common complaint I've had with a lot of recent movies, so I think it may be the result of a newer editing trend that may just not working so great with me.

While several newer movies this editing style doesn't gel so well for me, making movies seem like a series of scenes or clips and not so much like a flowing narrative. Fortunately Kong's moments like that are much fewer than other recent movies that I've found moments like this few and not so distracting. Other complaints could be found in some of the human characters seemed two dimensional. Which, in all honesty is a common complaint in most big budget movies as well as pretty common in kaiju movies. So the movies lesser parts were easy to overlook in greater sum of awesomeness.

I said above Pacific Rim would fit easily into Monsterverse, and this movie opens that door even more. The Pan Pacific Defense Corps was created in response to the 2014 kaiju attack that took the military weeks to stop. The M.U.T.O attack, which took a long time to end was in Godzilla 2014. The resulting kaiju attacks came from a portal in the Pacific Ocean. Skull Island, which is home to many giant monsters (I'm not spoiling the entirety of it) and even is hollow, providing monsters in the center of the earth a way to come to the surface. Skull Island just happens to be in the Pacific Ocean.

So, OMG IT WOULD BE SO AWESOME IF GYPSY DANGER TEAMED UP WITH KONG AND GODZILLA AND....wait...

Hey, what if we got a Legendary Pictures version of Jet Jaguar?

Hooray for Specific Jim!

Resetting the clock.

When Pacific Rim came in 2013, I was enraptured. It was this wonderful movie that captured and paid homage to the various super robot cartoons and kaiju movies I grew up watching. It was effectively a live action Saturday morning carton and I loved it. It quickly rose to replace Halloween (1978) as my number 1 favorite movie (don't worry, Halloween is still pretty high on the list).

Following seeing it, I'd approach people and talk to them about the movie like it was a new religion I had found and wanted to spread. It was just so wonderful I couldn't stop gushing over it.

So of course, I've been following the on again/off again news of the sequel. For a while they were calling it Maelstrom, which would have been a damn fine name. However, it's ultimately been named Uprising, which is a great fitting name for a follow up. Maelstrom implied an onslaught of kaiju and just a pure storm of hell on earth. Uprising is an more ominous title. It can imply both bad and good themes. The Kaiju have returned, but so have the Jaegers!

When the art first popped up, everyone was quick to figure out the new form of Gypsy Danger. The other two were a mystery. Lots of folks speculated they were new versions of Crimson Typhoon and Cherno Alpha, others (like myself) thought they were new Jaegers. Just a day later the Pacific Rim Facebook page confirmed they were version 2.0 Crimson Typhoon and Cherno Alpha (after I had already recorded my podcast episode for the week speculating they were new bots *sigh*). Making things more exciting, that's not just Gypsy Danger 2.0, it's now named Gypsy Avenger! Which is just an awesome name and really fitting for a new version.

I'm bubbling over with excitement and not being very patient waiting for this new movie to come out. I literally cannot wait, and ... you know that particular feeling of excitement you get as a fan? That mix of euphoria, excitement, and bewilderment into a feeling of joy that's next to impossible to express? Well right now I could bottle it in bulk and sell it.

I see this and want a game by Konami for my Super Nintendo.