Godzilla: Cataclysm #1 – Review

By: Cullen Bunn (writer), David Wachter (artist)

The Story: Some say the world will end in fire, some say in ice. But they all agree that it will end.

The Review: Though you wouldn’t know it at first glance, IDW’s Godzilla: Rulers of Earth is a direct sequel to its previous two Godzilla series. Particularly of late, I’ve been impressed by how that series’ writer Chris Mowry has handled the continuity, but when you’re dealing with giant monsters, it’s kind of rough knowing that nothing can change that a future series doesn’t have the option to change back. It’s a problem that most comics featuring long running characters face, but perhaps that’s why Godzilla: Cataclysm has such an innate energy about it.

Set twenty years after an all out monster invasion, Cataclysm introduces us to a world devastated by kaiju. Survivors live in shanty towns, hunting wildlife wandering through the ruins of “the world that was”. The whole thing is impressively atmospheric.

Cullen Bunn does an admirable job of giving us a taste of the monster action we came for through flashbacks, though I imagine that some readers will be disappointed with the long wait for a present day kaiju appearance. More important this issue is the human cast. Though the characterization they’re given is hardly conclusive, the attention paid to Arata and Shiori seems to imply that Bunn intends to tackle the frequent problems of human overexposure and irrelevance head on. They could become beloved figures, but for now I’m happy to see that the series has a way to give a human perspective on the age of monsters without propping up its characters like some kind of straw man observer. Of course the character who steals the show is Arata’s grandfather.

Though he appears limitedly, the unnamed old man is the one character who we get to know this issue. Clearly the same writer who gave us the beautiful, if wordy, Magneto, Bunn crafts an impressive monologue for the issue, one that immediately demonstrates the almost mystical power of the kaiju and the degree to which they dwarf human buildings, bodies, and pride. It’s a well written and intelligent way to open the series, but I hope that Bunn has some more original ideas to introduce or it may grow stale.

While the tone and characterization are resonant, it does feel like other elements were sacrificed for them. The world Bunn presents seems a little confused. Despite twenty years of silence and the claim that most people don’t even believe in kaiju any longer, Tokyo remains a ruin. It’s fun to see the gritty post-apocalyptic aesthetic applied to the daikaiju genre, but it doesn’t entirely make sense, nor does it seem the most interesting choice. At the risk of editorializing, I’d be much more interested to see how different parts of the world have dealt with the Cataclysm and the varying ways they’ve rebuilt.

Another problem is the pace. The book changes focus roughly every five pages and, while it benefits from the slow burn approach it takes, not all of these sections mesh with that decision. Particularly during action scenes it becomes apparent how significantly and unevenly decompressed this issue can be. In comics, time and space are one and the same and you only get so much.

It’s a strange juxtaposition to be both slightly padded and rushed. Bunn invests heavily in selling his world of quiet desperation and broken spirits, but then, all of a sudden, monsters are everywhere, narratively stepping on eachothers’ toes.

Drawing Godzilla for IDW is a tough gig. Taking on that responsibility instantly puts you in the shadow of Ruler of the Earth’s Matt “KaijuSamurai” Frank and The Half-Century War’s James Stokoe. Nonetheless, David Wachter carves out an admirable niche for himself. Though the look is very different, Wachter actually employs many of the same strategies as Stokoe did on IDW’s last Godzilla mini-series, deriving power from intense detail and a bold color palette.

The two major colors swap between past and present, tying them ominously together. Muted shades of red during the flashbacks give way to a tired world of sickly greens and yellows. It immediately conveys the subsistence lifestyle and decimated lives of the survivors. Thankfully, though, Wachter manages to give his reds enough of a pop to keep the present day sections from becoming monotonous.

Faces vary, occasionally teetering over the line of too simplistic or too detailed. Even so, Wachter’s style is both emotionally legible and distinctive. What’s more, the characters even look Japanese without descending into crass stereotypes! The use of lighting effects on character’s faces is superb and, when things align, the humanity in the faces can be powerful. One of my favorite panels of the whole issue is the book’s second: a sea of frantic faces, at once a single mass and a host of individuals reacting to and differently from the countless others around them. It sets the tone for the issue. It captures the fear and the struggle of disaster.

More than anything else, the detail in this book is insane. Every scale and scute on Godzilla’s body is lovingly drawn and inked, not merely in one iconic image but in every appearance. The same goes for each of the other monsters and most of the backgrounds too. If this book is ever late to ship, you’ll know why and you’ll probably be grateful. One particular transition between two sets of eyes is frankly staggering and demonstrates a much appreciated range in Wachter’s work. In fact, some of his most beautiful panels are those where he eschews the exhaustive backgrounds in favor of the soft rhythms of sunlight and shade.

I’d also be neglectful if I didn’t mention Wachter’s talent for layouts and sound effects. Usually those would be two different points, but it’s really not so here. Wachter employs very simple tricks in his panel arrangements, but they’re devilishly effective. Little things like the slight angle of a panel boarder carry huge weight under Wachter’s pen, and sound effects, increasingly perceived as a drain on realism rather than a benefit, not only do a great deal to advance the story and convey the mood but actually become a part of the visual syntax. They guide the reader, manifest tension, and communicate motion.

The Conclusion: Godzilla: Cataclysm #1 is a book of great potential, looming, fulfilled, and wasted. This first issue is a solid start, but the best part of it is the feeling that Bunn will deliver a memorable addition to the character’s legacy. It’s possible that he could falter, but, based on this, I think it’s probably worth finding out for yourself. Stunning art, gripping captions, a definite purpose, and an apparent fascination with some of Toho’s stranger creations mark Cataclysm as a unique and interesting kaiju story.

Grade: B

Some Thoughts:

• I actually rewatched Godzilla 1985 over the weekend. Especially as an older viewer, the film really stands out to me as a huge success. Clearly it defined much of my understanding of Godzilla, something that I doubt I’m alone in, but one of the other things that really stuck with me was the sense of tension in the scenes where the protagonists are trying to escape from a building in the collapsing Tokyo. Done right the struggles of humans in the monster’s wake can infuse the story with energy, provide perspective, and not only not detract from the kaiju but keep it from becoming stale or lacking consequence. It’s too early to say here, but I see a very similar tone emerging in Bunn’s handling of Arata and Shiori.
• I find it fascinating which kaiju Bunn brought along for his debut issue. The Cataclysm itself, or at least the climactic battle in Tokyo, involved Godzilla, Manda, Anguirus, Mothra, and Ghidorah. I can’t help but notice Manda’s inclusion among these titans of the industry. It also seems noteworthy that fan-favorite Gigan and Toho classic Rodan are missing. Still, the biggest surprise may be a subtle one. We can’t yet say whether this Godzilla will follow the original’s lead as the ultimate human nightmare, follow Thor and Susanoo-Wo as defender of humanity, or find himself the lesser of many evils as in the Heisei series. An interesting clue may lie in his adversary during the Cataclysm. David Wachter chooses to portray King Ghidorah using his design from 2002’s Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack, in which the three-headed monster is unusually played as a defender of Japan. It’s possible that it doesn’t mean anything but, if it’s intentional, the choice to use this design may indicate that Godzilla won’t be a friend to humanity and support my suspicions that Bunn is actively interested in using some of the lesser-utilized Kaiju.

- Noah Sharma