PLEASE NOTE – There may be spoilers in this post. Don’t read if this concerns you.

MePri’s Otakon panel, “Godzilla: Just A Giant Lizard?” gave me a new perspective on Godzilla. Their presentation suggested that the different portrayals of Godzilla in its movies were a barometer of society’s acceptance of nuclear energy. From a fearful destructive monster in the first American Godzilla movie in 1956 and its Japanese original, Gojira, in 1954 to afterthought in the latest Legendary Films releases.

As a poignant bit of happenstance, Godzilla x Kong was playing on the hotel cable that evening. They mention “nuclear energy” in the context of “fueling up” akin to the mundane task of putting gas in your car or charging your phone battery.

I found a more critical comment on the casual mention of nuclear energy in a Vulture post ranking the best Godzilla movies over the past 40 years. #17, their review of Godzilla: King of Monsters, points out that “what’s unforgivable is how flippantly King of the Monsters inverts the atomic metaphor that begat Godzilla. Nuclear devastation of Boston is quipped away as being merely ‘a bad day to be a Red Sox fan.’ ”

This is the antithesis of 1995’s Godzilla vs Destoroyah where the plot revolves around preventing Godzilla from having a nuclear meltdown. Vulture ranked it #6 and says the movie was marketed as the “death of Godzilla.” I saw this movie on video and remember that it started with Godzilla wading in the ocean to Hong Kong. Shortly after scientists diagnose Godzilla as being in danger of having a nuclear meltdown, the remainder of the movie was spent trying to prevent it. At least that’s what I remember about it.  My memory is vague. I don’t really remember anything beyond that, though I can see [SPOILERS!] Godzilla disintegrating into an upwards shower of silver dust.

By the time I saw Godzilla vs Destoroyah my enthusiasm for Godzilla movies had waned. I would have them on if I was having a day of ennui, where nothing seemed vaguely interesting or motivating. They had become visual background tracks to whatever household chore needed to be completed at the moment. MePri’s presentation made me want to watch all the Godzilla movies over again in chronological order and with special attention paid to mentions of nuclear energy.

My favorite Godzilla movie is Godzilla vs Hedorah (the Smog Monster) where the fear of nuclear energy was replaced by pollution. It’s not on Vulture’s list because it pre-dates it by a decade. The movie was released in 1971 and in it Godzilla fights the personification (or “monsterification”) of pollution, Hedorah (aka the Smog Monster). In the movie, a scientist struggles to stop Hedorah, who can spray a deadly, corrosive mist. The scientist’s young son dreams that Godzilla will come and burn all of the trash away, which after MePri’s panel now has a new, more interesting meaning.

I still play “Save the Earth” or the Japanese original, “Kaese! Taiyō o” (“Return the Sun”) every Earth Day and then some. I think it’s the only Godzilla movie that has a theme song with a vocal. The soundtrack to Godzilla vs Hedorah is an interesting compilation of 60’s-style rock guitar songs and familiar orchestral theme songs.

It’s also the most visually interesting Godzilla movie in my opinion. As far as I can remember, it is the only Godzilla movie that took risks with camera and sound. It integrated simple children’s drawings in its expositions about Hedorah’s origins. There were “dream sequences” (one drunken hallucination in a night club and one child’s dream). One of the scenes that still resonates with me is this wall of TV screens that randomly turn on to show headshots of people fretting over what will happen next. With each screen that turns on the din of the voices gets louder and what the people are saying becomes more garbled.

During the lockdown, the Japan Foundation held a webinar called, “Godzilla: A Pioneer in Pop Culture.” Presenters discussed the origins and growth of the Godzilla brand and its impact on American pop culture. Dr Bill Tsutsui and Dr Takayuki Tatsumi’s presentations are good appendices to MePri’s content. Both presentations delved into the development of the first Godzilla movie, its reception in the US, and the eventual popularity of the Godzilla brand and franchise.

A more recently published addition to MePri’s appendices might be Accented Cinema’s video essay, “American Godzilla is about Godzilla, Japanese Godzilla is about Life.” In the essay, the essayist thoughtfully distinguishes between the American intention behind a Godzilla movie and the Japanese intention.

He criticizes American Godzilla films for avoiding real life issues, but adds he enjoys the spectacle of an American Godzilla movie. He compares them to the drama and excitement of WWE wrestling match. He makes the observation that American Godzilla films are stuck in the late Showa Era, which is probably why – with the exception of Godzilla vs Hedorah – I can have Godzilla movie on while vacuuming the floors of my apartment.