Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla 2 - NOT THE MOMMA!

After Godzilla vs. Mothra went on to become the highest grossing Japanese film of 1992, it was clear Toho had a bit of steam left in the Godzilla tank before TriStar began work on their upcoming American reboot of Godzilla (oh, and you can bet you ass I'm talking about that movie VERY soon). So with Mothra and King Ghidorah both rebooted, now the question was "What's next?" Easy. You bring back not only Rodan and a BabyGodzilla, but you make Godzilla have an epic rematch with the closing opponent of the first series: Mechagodzilla. And so, Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla 2 was born kicking and screaming and it is a pretty good one. This movie is notable in a few ways. It has the single most Godzilla on screen in one movie, with him appearing for a whopping 27 minutes, so you really get what you're asking for if you want a lot of Godzilla screentime. But what we also get is the movie that officially solidifies the Toho Big Five, reintroducing and reviving Mechagodzilla and Rodan to go with Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah as the only monsters to appear in all three series of Godzilla. We also get a pretty decent human plot with BabyGodzilla that culminates in a great three film arc for the young monster and Godzilla. And while it definitely is not perfect, it definitely is a strong entry of the second series.

After continued attacks from not only Godzilla, but also monsters like Biollante and King Ghidorah, Japan has had enough and has decided to make a weapon to defend itself. Using the salvaged technology from the Futurian weapon Mecha-King Ghidorah, the JSDF makes Mechagodzilla, a robot to defend themselves from the continued assaults of the monster king. While Mechagodzilla is being primed for use, Godzilla and Rodan fight over an egg carrying a BabyGodzilla. After being moved in land, Mechagodzilla will soon be deployed to fight Godzilla for a full weapons test to see who is more prepared for battle.

Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla 2 is delightfully entertaining to watch, largely because of its action and its overabundance of monster scenes. With the movie originally planned to be the final chapter of the second series, it only makes sense that they'd at least try to go out with a bang. The monsters are definitely the highlight of the movie. Starting with Mechagodzilla, this dude is just busted. Starting off, as I said in my closer yesterday, this is definitely not my favorite Mechagodzilla. He definitely looks cool and all and he gets a lot of really cool weapons and looks awesome in the Super Mechagodzilla form, but the stupid look on its face the entire time has always made him lose some points for me. It also doesn't look or sound as mean as the original Mechagodzilla. As far as Mechagodzillas go, it's good. A really solid design and effects work ensure you'll remember it for awhile, but it just doesn't scream the intimidation that the original did. Outside of just design though, it is still really cool. Shock Anchors, Mega Buster straight out of Mega Man, Paralyzer Missiles and a whole other Laser Cannon, this Mechagodzilla is decked out in weaponry. He isn't as loaded as the original Mechagodzilla, at least I don't think, with its spinning head and all. But it gets to participate in some really good action. How about the other monsters? Well, Rodan is better than ever, and honestly, this is my favorite interpretation of his character. He starts out with a relationship VERY similar to what we saw in Ghidorah, the Three Headed Monster with him just fighting with Godzilla. As the movie goes on, it becomes clear that everything he does is to protect BabyGodzilla, who he views as his surrogate brother. He even sacrifices his life at the end of the movie to revive Godzilla, because he fully realizes BabyGodzilla belongs with Godzilla and he should sacrifice his power to Godzilla so he can raise BabyGodzilla how he needs to be raised. He's just doing everything he can do to protect his baby brother. That's just cute and I love it. But honestly, Rodan and Mechagodzilla ain't nothing compared to the majesty of BabyGodzilla. There is an honest majestic and sweet nature to this incarnation of Godzilla's son. From the excellent them composed for him from Akira Ifukube, to his gentle roars and the vast improvement he is from Minilla, this is easily the best version of the son of Godzilla there ever has been and probably ever will be. Of course, I genuinely do not hate Minilla. I said this in the past, and I do mean it. But if I don't hate Minilla, then I'll put it like this: I absolutely love BabyGodzilla.

I'm not gonna go into Godzilla as much because he is the same Godzilla we've known for the last four movies, so nothing has really changed. He's the same Godzilla, so you know you love him. But I will say this, they make the absolute max out of the amount of screen time he receives in this one, because Godzilla gets some of the best character in the entire series. He gets introduced nice and early, fighting Rodan pretty well and then moving to the mainland soon after to get his son back from who views as his second enemy; humans. Every action Godzilla does in this movie is entirely focused on getting his son back so he can raise him right and safely. He just utterly wrecks Mechagodzilla because he can hear his son calling out to him, so he just wrecks it to get his son back. He fights Rodan early on because he wants to watch his son hatch himself. He starts causing massive damage in land again just so he can get his son back, because at this point he basically views the situation as his son has been kidnapped. The Godzilla of the first series has to learn through Son of Godzilla how to become a good father. But this one knew how to get it done right off the bat. He's like Liam Neeson in Taken. Just killing anybody who gets in the way of him and his child. And if you don't get out of his way, then he will kill you. Plain and simple. Man, the more and more I write, the more I realize how essential BabyGodzilla is to this movie.

But let's not stop there! If you've been watching along with me, you'd know there's a central character I haven't mentioned through this series yet: Miki Saegusa played by Megumi Odaka (pictured right). A psychic who is learning how to communicate with monsters and hopefully keep Godzilla at bay, she hasn't really had a chance to become a fully realized character. Until now! With her connection to her psychic powers, she gets a chance to really shine in this movie, forming a bond with BabyGodzilla that will be strong for the rest of the second series. She hasn't really had much of a chance to shine in any of these movies because the nature of her powers don't really let her do that much in all of the movies except for look at Godzilla with her eyes closed and kind of hope he goes away. But with her connection the BabyGodzilla, she gets a chance to explore her character and her relationship with the monsters because of how much warding off Godzilla with and without is aided by BabyGodzilla. From here her character continues to be expanded and she will be a prevalent member of the main cast until the second series ends. I'm just glad that at last she finally gets a chance to expand in this one. I've been watching these movies for years, but usually out of order, and usually the last two or three of the second series. So watching them all the way through in order has helped me see just what an amazing point this was for expanding her character. I've always liked her, but never got to see the full journey all the way through.

Now, this movie also benefits from one of the best soundtracks of the entire series. Like, no joke. This movie gets some incredible music in it. Akira Ifukube is the master of this genre, he has been since Godzilla, he always has been and always will be. But in this movie we get to hear some of his best work throughout the entire series. Of course there is the aforementioned BabyGodzilla theme, which for this adaptation of the character, it is just perfect. Minilla's theme and the music from Son of Godzilla was just like Minilla himself: goofy and childish. It's okay, because that is what the movie was aiming for, but the music for BabyGodzilla just sounds like a lullaby, or when you're caught of a moment of unfathomable beauty. And of course his landmark Godzilla theme makes a return in full swing, sounding as good as it ever has at this point in the series. But the crowning jewel of this movie's soundtrack is the introductory theme and the music of the opening narration, credits, and reveal of Mechagodzilla. It is just an incredible suite, with the opening reminder of Ghidorah and the damage he brought, rising to become a theme of incredible power at about the two minute mark. It's a fantastic piece that tells everything about the origin of this Mechagodzilla without the need for narration. And the best part? This isn't even the best soundtrack in the second series. That one is coming up real soon, so don't you worry.

In all, Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla 2 is pretty good. It doesn't have any utterly glaring issues like Godzilla vs. Mothra, it just isn't my absolute die hard favorite of the "Rematch Trilogy." But it is really good. If someone said this was their favorite movie with Mechagodzilla, I'd completely understand, because this is a really good entry. This is a really solid entry, and a great movie to recommend to newcomers, as it gives a lot of Godzilla screentime, reintroduces two of the other Big Five members and gives a masterful adaptation of the son of Godzilla. Highly recommended.

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Coming up next, a mysterious terror from space! After the "Rematch Trilogy" ended, Toho would begin to end the second series so TriStar's reboot wouldn't have any internal Godzilla competition. So make sure to witness the beginning of the end tomorrow as we watch Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla.