Comics
Review: ‘Godzilla: Rulers Of Earth’ # 1
Godzilla emerges from the deep once again in a clunky attempt to bring the spectacle of big monster battles to comics. Any fan of Godzilla knows the character itself isn’t compelling enough to tell a story. Godzilla and many other large monsters are a plot point, not a character. They have no inner motivation or really any motivation outside of destroying. So therein immediately lies the problem: a lack of character.
WRITTEN BY: Chris Mowry
ART BY: Matt Frank
PUBLISHER: IDW
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASE: June 26, 2013
Writer Chris Mowry approaches Godzilla and his other fellow monsters as characters. They explode into panels, and are shown off in spectacular pieces of art. Rodan’s entrance on page thirteen being a prime example of this exhibition. Yet, interspersed through these big monster moments are a weak myriad of characters.
We’re treated to rapid-fire introductions of several different human characters with varying perspectives on these monsters. The issue surrounds itself with a megazoology conference and a reporter: Lucy. The dialogue of the conference is bland and undercooked. Giving us something that seems derivative of Pacific Rim rather than something unique and interesting.
Lucy as a character is supposed to be interesting, but doesn’t manage to jump off the page. Especially when these lumbering monsters eat up all of her time. Her reactions to the world around her are rather stupid, and she just isn’t interesting to follow.
Matt Frank’s art with Lucy is rather uninspired. The humans look cartoonish and animated. Which adds to the mundane feeling of the real world aka the panels without monsters.
Frank’s art with the monsters is top notch. The introduction of Rodan, as mentioned before is amazing. The paneling on the page offers an incredible comparison before the reveal on the following page. The work on Godzilla Prime is top notch as well. The monsters look dynamic, scaly, and very real. It’s just a shame the humans don’t too.
Overall “Godzilla Rulers of the Earth” didn’t do much. The story doesn’t seem to have any general direction outside of large monster battles, and because of the lack of motivation behind the monsters everything feels a little empty. The end result is a character that also feels underdeveloped in comparison to its counterparts. As a whole a lack of focus and uneven pacing drag the issue into odd territory.
While the issue offers an incredible mix of Godzilla monsters and more than any other book I can think of, it does so without any reasoning or strong story. “Rulers of the Earth” is chock full of plot, but as it stands no story. Perhaps the story of Lucy will truly emerge within a couple of issues, but as it stands this debut issue failed to hold my attention.
1.5/5 Skulls
Reviewed by – Jimbus_Christ
The supernatural world of Korean folk horror movie Exhuma grows larger with the arrival of prequel spinoff webtoon Maengjong this weekend, Variety reports today.
Naver Webtoon debuts Maengjong on May 30.
The series hails from Haemuri (Olgami) and will trace the high school origins of how shaman duo Hwarim and Bonggil, played by Kim Go-eun and Lee Do-hyun in the 2024 film, came together to face occultish threats.
The story is set to begin when “Hwarim, who has been concealing her identity following a childhood encounter with a snake spirit called Jin, crosses paths with Bonggil at their school.”
Variety notes that Exhuma director Jang Jae-hyun participated in the project’s early concept stage.
“We are presenting ‘Maengjong,’ a new series capturing the appeal of the horror-occult genre, ahead of the full summer season,” said Lee Jeong-geun, Naver Webtoon’s Korea webtoon content leader. “With the high school story of Hwarim and Bonggil, who left a strong impression in the film ‘Exhuma,’ enhanced by Haemuri’s characteristic tense direction, we expect it will be a welcome work for genre fans.”
“It is meaningful that the spin-off story of ‘Exhuma,’ loved by many audiences, expands by meeting the new grammar of webtoon,” said Lee Hyeon-jeong, managing director of the film business division at Showbox, which distributed the film. “We hope it will be a fresh experience for both film fans and webtoon readers.”
Exhuma was a breakout hit in 2024, becoming the first Korean occult film to surpass 10 million ticket buyers and the country’s highest-grossing film of the year. I wrote in my review that “the intricately woven Exhuma delivers one of the year’s biggest surprises in horror so far.”
The bond between Hwarim and Bonggil was one of the film’s highlights, making this prequel webtoon a must for fans.
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