For as long as I can remember there’s been one pop culture icon that’s never failed to amaze me. Godzilla, King of the Monsters. I can remember my mom picking me up from Jiu Jitsu practice around 4 pm on a Friday in Clarksville, TN. I was 6 at the time and my parents had just gotten divorced, so it was the first day I had gone to practice without both my parents in attendance. My mom had decided she would spoil me afterwards, I guess she thought I was having a rough time adjusting with my brothers being a lot older and us being in a new house. We went into a small book & movie shop that was inside our local mall, I think she was getting some cookbooks or another novel. As you can imagine from a 6-year olds’ perspective, I was terribly, dreadfully, bored. Then something caught my eye from all the way across the book store, my tiny eyes couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I pointed and asked my mom and she told me I could go over. I sprinted over and my jaw dropped. An entire Godzilla section. DVDs, Toys, Books, Games, Cards, I couldn’t believe what I had stumbled upon. My mom told me that after every practice if I was good, we could get some tasty food and some Godzilla stuff on the way home.
From that point onward, for every practice, at which I would try my very hardest, I would get rewarded with a Godzilla movie, and an action figure. As soon as I got home, I’d heat up my food, pop the movie in the DVD player and my eyes would be glued to the screen. He’s a hero, a villain, a true powerhouse in his fictional universe, crushing every monster that would stand in his way. Sometimes in the earlier and much goofier films, dance, make friends or perform a flying dropkick. Upon getting hired at Graham Crackers, I had read comics in the New 52 era when I was a teenager. I had no idea until I started working here about the world of Godzilla literature, and it blew me away just as much as any movie has made me feel as a kid. I immediately dove in. “Godzilla Rivals”, “Skate or Die”, “Library Collections”, etc. I needed it all. The one I’ve enjoyed the most so far is “Godzilla: World of Monsters”. It’s a collection of 3 graphic novels, by several great authors and illustrators like Cullen Bunn and Brian Churilla. Just so as it happens, a customer came in to sell comics to our store one day and he brought the entire collection of the original run of Godzilla with Marvel. I ended up working some extra shifts to acquire the entire set for myself and take them home before anyone else could. Today they’re my “comic grails” and sit proudly on a display right next to my Godzilla figurines. I will forever remain a Godzilla fan from the bottom of my heart!
Now I know we all can’t be captured by Godzilla at age six so for those of you 7 and older who want to fall for the greatest character who’s ever lived; or for those of you who already know how amazing he is and want to find a new story to enjoy…. Here’s a wide look at some tales you can find right now at your local Graham Crackers.
Godzilla’s Monsterpiece Theatre, IDW Publishing
Such classic stories are classic for a reason but you know what would make them better? Godzilla! Join Jay Gatsby as he teams up with Sherlock Holmes (and Watson), the Time Machinists, Jules Verne, and more as he makes his crush on someone else’s wife Godzilla’s problem….. err I mean as the team tries to stop Godzilla’s destructive path across Europe. Not sold yet? Ok, let’s throw in some Universal Monsters and an ancient ring that causes things to grow to Godzilla size magnitude… Overall it’s a widely ridiculously and fun tale that feels right out of a spring day when you want to be playing with your action figures but your book report is due next week.
Godzilla Vs (The Marvel Universe), Marvel Comics
Ok not going to lie VS might be a strong word here; while there are battles against our favorite Marvel characters there’s also maybe some team ups too, cause in the words of Gambit “Guess this is th’part of the show where th’enemy of our enemy becomes our friend”. Any who, 2025 brought the King of Monsters back to the Marvel-verse in a few different series but the Godzilla Vs one shots were a fun and easy way to join him on his travels as he showed our heroes why he’s king (speaking of travels also be sure to check out the IDW Godzilla vs -Insert Major City Here- series of one shots that also came out this last year). You can pick up your favorite battles in single issue form or collect all six in trade format.
Godzilla / Godzilla Escape the Deadzone/ Starship Godzilla, IDW Publishing
2025 also brought a new era of Godzilla from our friends over at IDW, the Kai-Sei Era. Kicking off with three titles we see a post nuclear world effected by kai-sei energy. Starting with Godzilla: Join the G-Force as they track a try to defeat Godzilla with their secret weapon; a G-Mutant. Surely a human given the power of Godzilla and the ability to control the Kai Sei energy, by radiation, won’t cause any problems… it’ll totally be fine…Right? Next up Godzilla Escape the Deadzone. What happens in the areas that have survived a Kaiju attack? Can you even call it surviving? And who will be there to protect those left behind? Well in this tale that would be a mysterious stranger who is half human and half *insert spoiler here* who battles any Kaijus that cross his path. But what’ll happen when he finds someone controlling a Kaiju, will they be a foe or can they be a friend? Last but certainly not least… lets go to space with Starship Godzilla. Han Solo meets Aliens with a splash of Kaiju… yep you heard right. Join a team of smugglers as they steel Kaiju eggs and learn the hard way that one was close to hatching. Can they capture it before it takes the ship or crew? Does it mean to be destructive or is it just scared? And most importantly, if they do catch it…. Then what, cause surely giant monsters and small spaceships don’t mix.
Godzilla World Of Monsters, IDW Publishing
World of Monsters is a fun, action-packed comic that delivers exactly what you’d expect with giant monsters, massive destruction, and classic Godzilla moments. Join Godzilla, Mecha Godzilla and other Kaijus as they tear though cities with great powers and epic battles. The art does a great job showing off the scale of these battles while highlighting each monster. Another thing it does especially well is bringing in a human side to the story, especially with a gangster trying to clear his name among rival gang members while navigating chaos caused by Kaijus and monsters. Overall, it is an easy, enjoyable read and my favorite starting place for anyone looking to get into Godzilla and the wider kaiju world for the first time, as well as longtime fans who just want to enjoy some monster mayhem.