@@RandolphX_96 yes? I was on the character design team for that production. As an old time fan of Godzilla, I was stoked to be on that show even though it was a less “traditional” take on the character.
I was curious about the writing staff, so I looked it up and sure enough, there are several “alumni” from all the 90s Animated Series that you probably loved: Batman: The Animated Series, Spider-Man: The Animated Series, X-Men: The Animated Series, Gargoyles, etc. That explains why it’s so good in its genre sensibilities and focuses on strong character writing.
If I heard news that someone was going to make a movie based on Godzilla: The Series, I would literally climb to the roof of my house and do the Monster Zero Dance.
Born with the shadow of his predecessor looming over him His legacy that was once one of mockery and scorn became one that showed him as not that of an instrument of destruction, but as a creature that seeks to just live in a world that fears him. He is neither savior nor destroyer, he is a protector to those he chose as his family, even when other members of their species seeks his death or imprisonment. Though stripped of his Godly name He is still a force to be reckoned. He The Prince of The Kaiju Kingdom. He is Zilla
As an Indonesia i loved that Monster i would have prefered it if they gave her(?) some sort of Venom attack as far as my recollection goes he has breath attack
Zilla featured in the Godzilla Anime prequel books. It attacked France, and was quickly killed, but its real danger was that it reproduced extremely fast, which meant that a horde of Zillas could potentially overrun the city if left unchecked. I like the idea of a weak, smart kaiju that reproduces fast (and asexually), as hundreds of giant monsters are far more terrifying (to me) than a single giant monster.
@@ethanl5527 Oh yeah I remember hearing about that! Shin was similar and I think was even more terrifying due to his grotesque nature/transforming capabilities! I like the idea too but prefer my Godzilla to be a male, a true king of course
Godzilla: The Series, did everything that the Godzilla Anime did not. This is ironic considering the 1998 Godzilla Movie is its prequel. Yes, the studios swapped places apparently. Zilla Jr. remains to this day one of my favorite kaiju.
Actually this series has no connection to the anime. Its in its own separate universe and both has its ups and downs in my opinion but still are both cool.
While the movie took the God out of Godzilla, this series managed to put it back in. I still remember seeing the movie in theaters and walking out thinking, “it’s was alright but the Japanese films are better”. When Godzilla the Series aired, nearly every episode left me thinking, “This was a better Godzilla movie than the actual movie!”
@Jeremiah Pheasant You clearly don't know anything about "Gods" other than the christian "I say I'm almighty, even tho I am not" god "God" is literally just a Title, and calling yourself as one doesn't automatically means you are Omnipotent. Actually, most of the Gods (the 4,200 or so, plus many others made recently in media like Comics) are NOT Omnipotent.
@@jvbon646 I mean, Christianity is pretty specific about what it means by God, as St.Aquinas left evidently clear in his Summa Theologia. In Christianity God is by definition omnipotent, omnipresent and omnitient, a being with out those qualities is not God. Pagans have a different concept of what gods are since they are polytheists, just like pantheists have an entirely different concept from either. Of course this dude misses the fact that godzilla is by far closer to a pagan God than the Christian God, but no need to take it out on Christians lol.
@@eldenlean5221 That's cool and all, but you're forgetting one tiny detail, Christians didn't invented the word nor do they own it to impose their own meaning of what "God" should mean. They didn't even invent the Bible, the fairy tales of that book were invented years and years before the creation of Cristhianity. There were a bazillion Gods created before someone invented the Bible's God, and the Bible's God wasn't made in one moment, it took hundreds of years for that concept to evolve into the concept that modern Bibles use. Btw, only the "new" Bible is Monotheistic. The original Bible made it pretty clear that there were *multiple Gods* and Yaweh (however it is written) was only 1 of them. And they weren't "Pagan Gods" ala egypcian Gold statues, they were recognized as equals to God. They didn't became a Monotheistic religion until after stealing the concept from another religion(the Zoroa-whatever it is called) It's called Monotraism, recognizing that there are multiple, but only worshiping one of them. There's also the Book of Judas, which shows that the "Bible's God" was nothing more than the child, of the child, of the child, of the child of the actual true supreme God. It wasn't until later that they changed to Mono, and the church decided to change that (for obvious reasons) and ignore any and all book that mentioned anything that didn't fitted well into what *they* wanted. And so many other books where made NonCanon.
@@jvbon646 condescending and hostile right off the bat, nice! I never made the claim that Christians created the concept of God, nor that they were entitled to it, what are you talking about? I was just trying to explain the distinction between God, and gods. And with a simple look at any dictionary, behold: capital letter God is the monotheistic God, lowercase gods are deities found in most other religions. As for this rant on the Bible, from deuteronomy all the way to the ten commandments to the new testament it consostantly states there is only one God, the God of Israel and Jesus is that God incarnate. In the old testament there's some confusion about translations and the way the Hebrew language itself operates. Elohim means god, it is then reffed to as yahweh Elohim:the God yawheh. Then as El, Eloah, and a lot other variations. But it all to refer to God. And you also have to take into account the culture at the time. Polytheism was the norm. It was what people knew and understood, so obviously the writers had to take that in mind. They address other gods because that's what people believed in, in no way is that an admisión of their actual existance. We can go on and on about the Bible but it's not an easy topic and at least I'm not really qualified to talk about it much. I don't know how to read ancient Hebrew, I don't know Latin, and I'm not a Bible scholar, I don't have a degree on that and by the looks of it neither do you. As for zoroastrianism, there is no conclusive evidence that either Judaism or Christianity borrowed from it. It might very well have been the opposite since the only time both cultures could have interacted are the Babylonian exile, which was before zoroaster was born. And the book of Isaiah was also written before zoroaster was born. It's more likely that it was the other way around:Judaism influenced zoroastrianism. Which is all irrelevant since in Catholicism the second Vatican council established that God reveals itself to different cultures. I don't get why you get so defensive my guy.
@@stevenalexander4721 i genuinely loved this tv show when i was a kid. i still love it, but i cant seem to find it anywhere so i can buy it. if someone could help me out, i'd love you forever
Man, I'd LOVE if someone decided to continue this series! Just imagine the stories of Godzilla Jr. and HEAT being continued with a proper overarching plot and planned conclusion! Oh, and obviously gotta retain the art style!
@@michaelmyers8596 haha! Actually I meant the Men In Black animated series. It was made by the same folks who did the Godzilla series so it slapped pretty hard too
I’m a life long G fan, and while the 98 film isn’t a real Godzilla film, I enjoyed it at the time because I was a fan of Roland Emmerich, all while I was still disappointed that it didn’t feel like Godzilla. I never watched the series. But I watched this video and got a copy of the dvd for $8! And man, it is awesome! I regret never watching this until now! Thanks for the content!
I enjoy the film because I think of it as a monster movie with the Godzilla title placed over it for marketing, much like Starship Troopers is nothing like the novel it's based on; it just takes the recognisable name. Unlike hardcore Godzilla fans who really hate it with such a passion, they really do come across as religious zealots screaming 'Blasphemy!'
God, this series just solidified my love for Godzilla when I was a kid. I never realized that the movie was pretty much a step away from Toho until years later, and yet, even now, the movie is still a guilty pleasure of mine, despite the problems and wrong steps. Zilla, in his own right, is a decent kaiju, and I hope we give him another chance, without trying to back away from why he failed and where his son succeeded.
All the hate for it tends to stem from how big of a slap in the face it was to godzilla fans. On its' own, it's a damn strong movie, but it has the title "godzilla" despite having absolutely none of the legacy and respect that is due to the godzilla series. and that is its' largest sin.
I loved the reference humor in this show. It didn’t draw attention to the references or try to force a joke, it would just slip a movie quote in now and then, and it would feel very natural. It reminds you of references you’d make in casual conversations with friends, and that’s an approach you almost never see.
Up from the depths, I think you should have added the part where a Cyber Zilla came before Kiryu/MechaGodzilla 3 in which a corpse of a old Godzilla was used as a basis for a machine.
Depends on whether you count Mecha King Ghidora, which came before Cyber Zilla. It was not a Godzilla, but it was the second most iconic Godzilla monster.
I recently rewatched the series and halfway through watching it my roommate caught an episode and really liked it and she doesn't even like kaiju movies. I ended up restarting it again so she could watch the whole series. I really wish it had gotten a 3rd season. I also would have loved some toys from the series. I know there were prototypes that were made but sadly never released. The series is so good and deserved more love.
Honestly, while I love Legendary's Monsterverse, this show is my favorite American interpretation and use of the character thus far, as well as the best animation to have Godzilla's name. It wasn't afraid of doing new things nor was it afraid of its own identity. It might have been a "simple" kid's show to many but it honestly is a greatest hits of almost everything enjoyable of the series itself, with both serious though basic concerns for our treatment of the environment, to war, to humanity's relationship to nature, and yes just fun action and science fiction. The character of Godzilla himself is unique, with his own personality and quirks, while still recognizably Godzilla. And when I hear or see people say they don't want human characters and only monster action, this is a strong example of how to write and implement human characters and story arcs well. Honestly if this series had been what the '98 movie had been, or if we had had a sequel series of this version, Tristar's Godzilla would have been remembered far more fondly.
I'd love to see a reboot series based on this slotted into the MonsterVerse on, say, Netflix. It's smart enough and mature enough on its own that it doesn't take much to make it work for a more general audience, and HEAT and their relationship with Zilla Jr. fits perfectly into how Titans are depicted in the MonsterVerse.
@@marvelanddcfan5029 Zilla's a different monster, though, and so long as he's not trying to rival Godzilla (which he wouldn't) they'd have no reason to fight. The only reason Godzilla went so hard after Kong was because Kong's species was capable of overrunning the entire planet: Godzilla spared Kong and isolated him on Skull Island as an act of mercy, so he was somewhat understandably angry when Kong left.
This series definitely made this Godzilla species worthy of the name. Once full grown, conventional weapons do next to nothing to him, and of course has the signature atomic fire breath. On top of that, he's the assassin to the original's tank, using speed, agility, and strategy in a fight as well as raw power. And as you briefly mentioned, most of the monsters had callbacks to Toho's originals. I felt Cyber-Zilla wasn't so much Mecha Godzilla as it was Mecha King Ghidorah and maybe even Gigan. The Nano creature was a mirror of Hedorah, Quetzalcoatl is almost carbon-copy Rodan and I think also ties back to a scrapped feathered Rodan design, their Nessie feels very Manda-like, you already cited the Robo-Yeti and Mechani-Kong, the Cicada and other flying insects shared a lot with Mothra/Battra and Megaguirus, and so on.
This series greatly captures the spirit of Godzilla; his ability to battle cool Monsters and creatively defeats them. This Godzilla also knew how take a punch and missle attack as he stood his ground every time! Now it is a shame Toho wouldn't let the show use their legendary monsters, but I'm proud the crew were creative enough to create their own! Absolutely love this Godzilla! More than worthy to join the brotherhood of the Gman!
Godzilla: The Series is honestly shockingly good-at least compared to its predecessor. While the 1998 Zilla was just a scared iguana who constantly ran away and ate a lot of fish, Zilla Jr is the opposite. Honestly, the only similarity between the 1998 Zilla and its child are its appearances. Everything else-from its demeanor to its powers to its overall majesty-is leagues better than Zilla could ever hope to be. While I wouldn't say that Godzilla: The Series completely makes up for the disaster of 1998 (and to be fair, that is quite a big mess to clean up for just one series), it is still a great series. I can't believe I'm saying this about a piece of Zilla media, but it truly understands and honors the franchise that inadvertently caused its creation. Although I'm sure you already knew that... Also, hope you'll be streaming again soon, the SOTC streams were really fun :) Edit: F for Nigel
I’m impressed how much genuine love was put into this Saturday morning cartoon based on an unpopular movie. It easily could have been a generic action show but the creators arrived to make something more.
I somehow consider myself an add-in character to this show. Its focus on science actually helped me come out of a really shitty phase of my life that I had been through and brought me back to improving myself. I never really had the chance to thank the creators of this show, but if this shorty comment here makes it, that should be enough. The 180 over the movie you talk in here reminded myself of my very own 180 in my life that this show instigated.
@ The person that made this video, most of this comments section, kaiju fandom and myself. The movie is not a good Godzilla movie. But the animated series is very solid overall.
4 ปีที่แล้ว
@@erictalaveramartinez4160 lol wrong. Way to lie and assume. MOST of the Kaiju fandom realizes Zilla is shit, in cartoon or movie form.
@ The numbers on this video don't support your statements: - It has more views than subscriptions (and the channel is not about Zilla, so it is not an echo chamber). - the ratio of likes and dislikes shows it has a positive reception. - The comments mirror said positive behavior. Statistically speaking, this can serve as a sample (since sample size "n" is way beyond 30) to make an assumption that Zilla Jr. is at least somewhat positively accepted. In the end, you can dislike it but I will keep enjoying this show.
I don't know if it's just me, but I always felt like Godzilla: The Series, Extreme Ghostbusters, and MIB the Animated Series were in the same universe.
This show was one of my Big Three as a kid. I'm going to be straight here: I wasn't exposed to the old Toho films as a kid (wasn't on my radar then), so I didn't have the same issues with the movie as the old school fans. I don't regret not giving the source material a look until 2014 with Godzilla 2014. My childhood just wasn't the right time for him. I grew up recognizing Zilla as his own monster and will always be grateful that his appearance in Rulers of Earth won some of his haters over. I will always go to bat for him and his design. If he were to come into the MonsterVerse, I don't think he'd have to have any adjustments just to fit in.
I am very happy that you did a video going over Godzilla: The Series. It really is a solid Kaiju show. And Zilla Jr. is also a great monster as well. If the Monsterverse continues after GvK I hope that we get a Monsterverse version of him.
I like to think I helped with this series' popularity, resurgence and ultimately its DVD release. The entire series aired on Cheez TV in Australia back in the day along with the Jumanji animated series, and I used to watch up every morning to tape them. Some years later in 2004, I noticed somebody on the old TV Tome asking if anybody had any episodes. When I left a reply saying I had the entire series recorded, he asked me to send VHS copies to his friend in the UK who would convert them to region free DVDs. He even offered to pay me and send me a copy. I did as he asked and didn't think anything more of it. But a couple years later TH-cam came along and my recordings started appearing in music videos and even as full uploads. I could tell they were my recordings from the unique VHS artifacts and Network Ten logos. When I contacted that acquaintance who wanted the episode, he told me a friend of his UK friend had uploaded them to Bit Torrent. It was my VHS recordings that went viral. Normally I don't condone privacy, but I hope my recording going viral was instrumental in the series' popularity and DVD release.
My current head canon is that this show and the other 90s-00s cartoons that shared the same gritty, over-detailed aesthetic like the Men in Black cartoon and Big Guy & Rusty are in a shared universe. If they had gone on a little longer I think MIB and Godzilla would have had a crossover.
This is my favorite cartoon series! I agree that human characters are the strongest aspect of the series, and as an adult seeing the show again it makes for all the better. I think I'm going to start a re-watch of it now.
By far my favorite animated version of godzilla! Junior and all the monsters he faced were insanely epic! They built such an interesting setting for a godzilla series, with mutants lurking at every corner of the planet that need to be kept in check. Heat as well are probably some of the best collective of human characters to grace the franchise.
The fact the original art composers who worked on Men in Black TAS also worked on Godzilla TAS is unbelievably incredible. Now the music composer for Godzilla TAS was none other than Jim Latham, who by the way was a big fan of Gargoyles TAS, wanted to incorporate the trumpet 🎺 sound with a futuristic upbeat tempo. And thus Godzilla TAS thematic opening was born.
In my opinion,the movie's only mistake was that it said it was a Godzilla movie without actually trying to be one. It was a good kaiju movie,just not a good Godzilla movie. The series actually tried to follow the classic formula without forgetting to add some new elements and thus succeeded. That's how I see it.
considering that movie was my first exposure to BigG can confirm to me it feels more like a Jurassic Park style breakout mix in with some classic monster"It's just trying to survive" gimmick
I absolutely love this series it reminds me when I was a kid and the early days of Netflix's streaming service as it was the first thing I watched on Netflix when we got it. I don't know how many times me and my siblings watched this show as it was one of our favorites. Sadly we haven't watched it since it's be taken off Netflix for years but I just ordered it on ebay and look forward to rewatching it.
While the movie may have failed at adapting the spirit of Godzilla for mainstream audiences, the animated series on the other hand is the exact opposite. Godzilla aka Zilla Jr in this movie behaves a lot more like the traditional Godzilla, sporting an atomic breath, loyalty to other Kaiju as well as fighting other Kaiju, being more resistant to military firepower and not afraid to face danger, the animated series redeems the most hated version of Godzilla into a fan favorite that captures the spirit of the Big G! I also like the human characters and plot a lot more in this series compared to most Godzilla movies, where here it’s far more engaging and interesting as the series progressed from episode to episode. Finally the cast of Kaiju, while not as memorable or iconic as the Toho Kaiju, I appreciate that they created their own Kaiju that perfectly fit in this world. So yeah, the animated series is much better the movie that came before it, though to be fair, I have a lot of nostalgia for both the movie and the animated series.
My dad doesn't remember anything he watched if it's not news or some movie he really liked, he honestly forgets quite a lot of things. He watched 1998 zilla and told me about it after seeing the series. If they could make him remember a film which he didn't like that much and make him love Godzilla so much that he would sit down with me everyday and never miss an episode means that they did their job amazingly well.
I didn’t watch this until I started getting into Godzilla in Middle School, when it had been long off the air. My only memory of the show before I actually watched it, was that promo on a Power Rangers vhs where Godzilla eats a mean teenage girl. Both the promo and the show itself were awesome as a kid.
Realizing that it's probably intentional, I like how your channel name is the first line of the theme song from the _original_ American 'Godzilla' cartoon.
I’m a little older and my Saturday morning cartoons were Ghostbusters and Transformers and ninja turtles but I’m a huge Godzilla fan but I was 18 when the 1998 movie came out. But you just did a great job on selling neon series. I honestly never had any interest in checking the animated series out after I was so let down by the movie. I just thought it was another way to shamelessly grab some money while they still had the rights to the franchise . I’m definitely going to check this series out now. Thank you for such an awesome video.
I'm hoping for at least a live-action mini-series based on the Godzilla TAS will be made, with all monsters including cyber/frankenzilla, the lizard slayer mechs, and perhaps Jean Reno reprising his role, and in that universe the creature was named after the "real" cinematic Godzilla and charles caiman thought it's a creature of Japanese folklore
One of my favorites as a teenager here in Nigeria. "TV Africa", a service that showed cartoons and foreign stuff... even FIFA 2002... via existing channels, used to make our local channels fun. They will be missed.
I love this show to death and this show respects the character and the franchise from its movie counter part being a Jurassic Park cash grab in the 1990’s of movies. I had watched Godzilla the Series like 3 times when it was on Netflix in the 2010’s and continuing watching it when I was living in Japan for two years (I know very Ironic isn’t it that one episode takes place in Japan). The characters of the show is a big set up in development from the movie and being very memorable with its original characters of the show. The kaiju of the show are amazing and very original kaijus in the show for Godzilla to fight. The animation style still holds up great after the show stopped airing and probably has the best animation art style in the 1990’s.
As an old-school G-Fan who watched the Showa-era films whenever possible as a child in the 1970s, eagerly watched the Saturday morning Hanna-Barbera cartoon, and thrilled to the return of the Heisei-era Godzilla in the mid-80s, I've been singing the praises of this series for over 20 years, and I'm glad to see that so many other people appreciate it too.
Godzilla: The Series is pretty much equivalent to a well-written anime villain's redemption arc. A series that was born for what is regarded as one of the worst things to happen to Godzilla that through hard work and a drive to improve and make right from all of its wrongs ultimately rises up as something that not only redeems the failings of its predecessor, but also become one of the most beloved pieces of Godzilla media there is. If that isn't redemption, I don't know what is.
This show was great when I was a little kid. It helped cement my love and life long passion for Godzilla with some of the best Kaiju designs you could wish for. In my opinion, the best episodes were ones that called back to the 98 film to show that they didn't just forget about the first Zilla or the events leading up to the series. For example, in what I like to call the Winter Trilogy, that egomaniac billionaire Cameron Winter creates the Zilla clone Chameleon who starts to frame Zilla Jr. for attacks he didn't do. This prompts Hicks to mobilize the same team who were used in the first Zilla attack. With the accompanying music and dark atmosphere, I legitimately felt like this was a call back to the film. There was this other episode where the HEAT Team (minus Craven) are sent back through time to a post apocalyptic future where Kaiju called the Dragma have just taken over. If it was a little more darker, I would have compared it with Same as It Never Was from Tmnt 2003. And who can forget the Monster Wars Saga? Amazing. The characters are all rounded out despite the lack of development but it works perfectly. If I had to pick a favorite Monique, she's a wonderful blend of sexy and badass that shows that she ain't no damsel in distress. If anything alot of the time she saves the team from alot of the insanity they have to deal with. If there was one thing I personally wish they could have done with her character was show her back story because we really don't know a lot about Monique other than being the French Secret Agent. While her romance with Randy was sweet, the latter of that relationship got grating for me. I can't put my finger on it but Randy is oftentimes the worst out if the team but I do like the odd couple for him and Mendel, bringing a bit of a nice dynamic we don't see in alot of media. My personal second favorite would have to be Nigel who is a great running joke of being like Kenny from South Park. Tom Kenny really had a great time making all these impersonations of celebrities and movies, he's just a hoot. In particular, Nigel was doing a fast talking Texan auctioneer when the scorpion Kaiju Ts-eh-Go tossed him in the air the quote of the day was "and I'm outta here!" Priceless! Overall, Godzilla the animated series was one of the best shows I have ever watched. It brought heart to what many fans had decried the first remake of the film the worst of the show what the fans wanted, Kaiju on Kaiju fights, wacky science that rarely makes any sense, fun monsters and villains and much more. If the Monsterverse does continue on into the Reiwa, I do hope they pull an Agents of Shield move and bring this show back to life. What a nostalgia trip that would be!
You said pretty much everything about the show I've been saying for years. Fantastic look at one of my fave Godzilla incarnations! I absolutely adore this show. GtS Godzilla is probably in my top 3 favorite Godzillas (Heisei and Showa will always be my first two), the human characters are actually really likeable, and the kaiju are all great. I love the episode Juggernaut, with the alien that absorbs technology that ends up looking like Tetsuo at the end of Akira by the time the episode is finished. Plus that episode has some prime Godzilla moments (him stopping the train and fighting the helicopters are both highlights). I love imagining this version of Nick in the 98 movie, and how much better literally all of his dialog would be with Ian Ziering's delivery. Just imagine HIM saying "That's a lot of fish". My favorite element of the show is definitely Godzilla and Nick's relationship. They gave this Godzilla so much personality, and his "must protect tiny squishy dad" moments are great. There's a couple of episodes where I can practically hear him saying "Are you TRYING to get killed?". But I agree with pretty much everything you say in your video: Great writing, great characters, great Godzilla, great show. And yes, I DO want my own giant scaly pupper.
As someone who grew up with this series with my brother, we absolutely love this series, it truly redeems this iteration of the king of monsters and deserves the name Godzilla. The Kaiju vs Kaiju action is awesome, the characters are fun, and the story is very well done. While the movie itself is a mediocre at best, this series is great fun and I absolutely recommend this any day.
As someone who actually rather likes Zilla and really loves the show the only thing i wish we couldve had for my fan dreams is seeing a crossover with this, MIB, and Ghost busters given they were all animated by amblin and very entertaining Also the monster island trilogy I think is a good curtain call for zilla 98 instead of the hilarious yet tragic end in final wars
I found this series when I was about nine while looking at cartoon options in the On-Demand section of my grandparent's cable package. I hadn't even seen the 1998 movie but was instantly drawn into the interesting cast of main characters and the concept of Godzilla as a good guy who aided in fighting giant monsters and saving the world. I had completely forgotten about the series until I saw this video recommended to me. Kinda want to buy that DVD now and relive all those memories.
A definite childhood favorite. In a way, the concept owes a lot also to Hanna-Barbera's 1978 series as well. Also, given the same creative and production teams involved, how this didn't cross over with "Men In Black: The Series" is a prime example of missed opportunity.
I sadly neglected this cartoon when it came out while I was discovering VHS tapes of the old movies after the 98 movie released. Looks like I missed out.
Such an insane flashback of nostalgia watching these clips. Thanks for reminding me this exists. I think I’ll have to go back and watch at least a handful of these episodes. I remember having my mind blown by the cyborg Godzilla.
This show was soooooo good! I’m kind of biased cuz I love the first American movie (regardless of its many, many shortcomings) as a diehard Toho fan. I bought the complete series of the tv show a year ago and damn was it worth the binge, especially the alien episodes.
Gotta say, since i like the 98 Godzilla movie (f*ck me right), i lost it when cyberzilla showed up. It was amazing moments, mirroring mechagodzilla. Damn i miss this show...
I'll never forget this show. My first exposure to it was the Monster Wars 3 part, which is also probably the best introduction to it if you're a fan of classic Showa Godzilla. They definitely did Godzilla way more justice than the Hannah Barbera cartoon, which was just another Scooby Doo rip-off like all Hannah Barbera cartoons were
I was 10 years old when the Hanna-Barbara Godzilla premiered. I thought it wacky. When this debuted in 1998, I was 30 and had long quit watching Saturday morning cartoons. However, as a big time G fan, I could not resist, so I decided to watch a few episodes and to my delight, I enjoyed them as well as the rest of the series. It was NOT wacky! If there was one good thing that the 1998 movie gave us, it was indeed this show! Roddy McDowall was also another famous star who did voice work on this series and I believe that it was the last work that he ever did.
It was his last tv role and the first of 3 projects released posthumously. McDowall is a legend. Fright Night is one of my favourite vampire movies and Planet of the Apes is amazing.
DUDE! DUDE! DUDE! Up From The Depths is ICHIBAN :) you are without a doubt #1! & without a question YOU SIR ARE MY FAVORITE, MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITE YOU-TUBER of all things kaiju & most importantly, all things GODZILLA content.. Your passion bleeds through every video you post! Thank You THANK YOU SO DAMN MUCH for everything you do!
This formula could also work REALLY well with the current Legendary Monsterverse! Introducing a new “Titan” for Godzilla to fight every episode, heck probably even getting classic Toho Kaiju to fill the gapping roster of beasts! And if they run out of money to use Godzilla, they could easily replace him with KONG from Skull Island as the new “King” and finally put that part of his name back in!
This was actually the first piece of Godzilla I ever watched. Saw it on netflix one day when I was like 5 said: "Hey that looks fun." And then ended up binging it multiple times.
I remember back in the day hoping that if they made a Jurassic Park cartoon around that time, it would be something very much like this in terms of tone and look.
Thank you for that nostalgia trip. We never had this show airing on TV, but the first few episodes were available on VHS and I checked them out regularily. I remember "playing Godzilla" as a kid, climbing on furniture and trying to imitate the roar unsuccessfully. And being so angry at the military for being "mean" whereas nowadays I can perfectly understand their reasoning for trying to shoot a fire-breating kaiju that climbs all over buildings. It's really interesting getting a glimpse at what the rest of the show looked like, since I was so curious about that as a kid.
As a character designer on the show, allow me to thank you for watching and also for your thoughtful review. 😊👍
hold up what
@@RandolphX_96 yes? I was on the character design team for that production. As an old time fan of Godzilla, I was stoked to be on that show even though it was a less “traditional” take on the character.
@@tnperkins4art Well I'd be damned!
Wow, I think it’s really cool that you enjoyed this review of Godzilla: The Series.
@@retroentertainment1340 😊🤜🤛
I was curious about the writing staff, so I looked it up and sure enough, there are several “alumni” from all the 90s Animated Series that you probably loved: Batman: The Animated Series, Spider-Man: The Animated Series, X-Men: The Animated Series, Gargoyles, etc. That explains why it’s so good in its genre sensibilities and focuses on strong character writing.
Marv Wolfman worked on both shows :)
If I heard news that someone was going to make a movie based on Godzilla: The Series, I would literally climb to the roof of my house and do the Monster Zero Dance.
I'd give it a THUMBSUP just don't do a tiktok
"A happy moment."
They have so many opponents to choose from too.
the original 1998 sequel idea was used for the series. so this could prove intresting
OMG That would be amazing!
Always loved this show as a kid. Re watched it recently and it definitely holds up.
Where’d you watch it
@@graysonsewell652 I got the DVD on amazon
Same I’m re watching it for a 3rd time
Grayson Sewell if u wanna watch the series it’s on watch cartoon.org
Same! I watched it on Netflix
Born with the shadow of his predecessor looming over him
His legacy that was once one of mockery and scorn became one that showed him as not that of an instrument of destruction, but as a creature that seeks to just live in a world that fears him.
He is neither savior nor destroyer, he is a protector to those he chose as his family, even when other members of their species seeks his death or imprisonment.
Though stripped of his Godly name
He is still a force to be reckoned.
He The Prince of The Kaiju Kingdom.
He is Zilla
Very well said.
That was beautiful
I just burst out crying
Zilla got cucked by Godzilla
That's what the Godzilla comics I read handled Zilla. Both this show & those comics I read redeemed Zilla for me.
I'm still mourning the death of zilla's mate, Komodithrax
As an Indonesia i loved that Monster i would have prefered it if they gave her(?) some sort of Venom attack as far as my recollection goes he has breath attack
I'm way too emotional over that...
@@lionelk.y7233 Indonesian too? Mah man!
Yeah it would've been cool. Komodithrax was perfect.
man, that was sad as heck
I'm convinced that if there had been a third season she would have come back.
I really liked this series...if only the film was more like this I think zilla would have been more well received.
Zilla featured in the Godzilla Anime prequel books. It attacked France, and was quickly killed, but its real danger was that it reproduced extremely fast, which meant that a horde of Zillas could potentially overrun the city if left unchecked. I like the idea of a weak, smart kaiju that reproduces fast (and asexually), as hundreds of giant monsters are far more terrifying (to me) than a single giant monster.
@@ethanl5527 Oh yeah I remember hearing about that! Shin was similar and I think was even more terrifying due to his grotesque nature/transforming capabilities! I like the idea too but prefer my Godzilla to be a male, a true king of course
The problem with Zilla is that he looks too little like Godzilla to be called Godzilla, and too much like Godzilla to be his own monster
@Moonpanther Yeah the plot and human characters were very weak, zilla coming to NY to nest made no sense too
@@depressedgojisaurusrexandc5372 In some scenes he kinda does but I think most of the time he looks original
Godzilla: The Series, did everything that the Godzilla Anime did not. This is ironic considering the 1998 Godzilla Movie is its prequel. Yes, the studios swapped places apparently. Zilla Jr. remains to this day one of my favorite kaiju.
Mine to love this guy.
He's freaking adorable and has so much character.
Actually this series has no connection to the anime. Its in its own separate universe and both has its ups and downs in my opinion but still are both cool.
Its not called zilla, its godzilla
@@pepino2009 Tell that to Toho
While the movie took the God out of Godzilla, this series managed to put it back in. I still remember seeing the movie in theaters and walking out thinking, “it’s was alright but the Japanese films are better”. When Godzilla the Series aired, nearly every episode left me thinking, “This was a better Godzilla movie than the actual movie!”
@Jeremiah Pheasant to be honest it really depends on the Godzilla
@Jeremiah Pheasant
You clearly don't know anything about "Gods" other than the christian "I say I'm almighty, even tho I am not" god
"God" is literally just a Title, and calling yourself as one doesn't automatically means you are Omnipotent. Actually, most of the Gods (the 4,200 or so, plus many others made recently in media like Comics) are NOT Omnipotent.
@@jvbon646 I mean, Christianity is pretty specific about what it means by God, as St.Aquinas left evidently clear in his Summa Theologia. In Christianity God is by definition omnipotent, omnipresent and omnitient, a being with out those qualities is not God.
Pagans have a different concept of what gods are since they are polytheists, just like pantheists have an entirely different concept from either.
Of course this dude misses the fact that godzilla is by far closer to a pagan God than the Christian God, but no need to take it out on Christians lol.
@@eldenlean5221
That's cool and all, but you're forgetting one tiny detail, Christians didn't invented the word nor do they own it to impose their own meaning of what "God" should mean.
They didn't even invent the Bible, the fairy tales of that book were invented years and years before the creation of Cristhianity.
There were a bazillion Gods created before someone invented the Bible's God, and the Bible's God wasn't made in one moment, it took hundreds of years for that concept to evolve into the concept that modern Bibles use.
Btw, only the "new" Bible is Monotheistic.
The original Bible made it pretty clear that there were *multiple Gods* and Yaweh (however it is written) was only 1 of them. And they weren't "Pagan Gods" ala egypcian Gold statues, they were recognized as equals to God.
They didn't became a Monotheistic religion until after stealing the concept from another religion(the Zoroa-whatever it is called)
It's called Monotraism, recognizing that there are multiple, but only worshiping one of them.
There's also the Book of Judas, which shows that the "Bible's God" was nothing more than the child, of the child, of the child, of the child of the actual true supreme God.
It wasn't until later that they changed to Mono, and the church decided to change that (for obvious reasons) and ignore any and all book that mentioned anything that didn't fitted well into what *they* wanted. And so many other books where made NonCanon.
@@jvbon646 condescending and hostile right off the bat, nice! I never made the claim that Christians created the concept of God, nor that they were entitled to it, what are you talking about?
I was just trying to explain the distinction between God, and gods. And with a simple look at any dictionary, behold: capital letter God is the monotheistic God, lowercase gods are deities found in most other religions.
As for this rant on the Bible, from deuteronomy all the way to the ten commandments to the new testament it consostantly states there is only one God, the God of Israel and Jesus is that God incarnate. In the old testament there's some confusion about translations and the way the Hebrew language itself operates. Elohim means god, it is then reffed to as yahweh Elohim:the God yawheh. Then as El, Eloah, and a lot other variations. But it all to refer to God.
And you also have to take into account the culture at the time. Polytheism was the norm. It was what people knew and understood, so obviously the writers had to take that in mind. They address other gods because that's what people believed in, in no way is that an admisión of their actual existance.
We can go on and on about the Bible but it's not an easy topic and at least I'm not really qualified to talk about it much. I don't know how to read ancient Hebrew, I don't know Latin, and I'm not a Bible scholar, I don't have a degree on that and by the looks of it neither do you.
As for zoroastrianism, there is no conclusive evidence that either Judaism or Christianity borrowed from it. It might very well have been the opposite since the only time both cultures could have interacted are the Babylonian exile, which was before zoroaster was born. And the book of Isaiah was also written before zoroaster was born. It's more likely that it was the other way around:Judaism influenced zoroastrianism.
Which is all irrelevant since in Catholicism the second Vatican council established that God reveals itself to different cultures.
I don't get why you get so defensive my guy.
I love this as a kid with MIB. Thanks for this video
The Ghostbusters one was good too.
I too enjoyed this one, more than the movie. I also have a digital copy of this show.
@@stevenalexander4721 i genuinely loved this tv show when i was a kid. i still love it, but i cant seem to find it anywhere so i can buy it. if someone could help me out, i'd love you forever
@@steamy9829 I'll see what I can do.
I've never watched ghost buster show but men in black was so good as well
It's a crime that this series isn't given the attention it deserves.
If we're lucky we'll get a mini series to cap off the show proper.
It was very popular when it was airing. Heck it did get a second season before it's lack of merch got it axed
Tru
Man, I'd LOVE if someone decided to continue this series! Just imagine the stories of Godzilla Jr. and HEAT being continued with a proper overarching plot and planned conclusion! Oh, and obviously gotta retain the art style!
This show and the MIB animated show were my jam back in the day
Monster Island Buddies animated show? Lol
@@michaelmyers8596 haha! Actually I meant the Men In Black animated series. It was made by the same folks who did the Godzilla series so it slapped pretty hard too
ghostbusters aIso Iit
I got both series on DVD because they still hold up.
Along with some show called... Big Robot(?) and Rusty.
Think, American Gundam with American Astro Boy.
I’m a life long G fan, and while the 98 film isn’t a real Godzilla film, I enjoyed it at the time because I was a fan of Roland Emmerich, all while I was still disappointed that it didn’t feel like Godzilla. I never watched the series. But I watched this video and got a copy of the dvd for $8! And man, it is awesome! I regret never watching this until now! Thanks for the content!
I enjoy the film because I think of it as a monster movie with the Godzilla title placed over it for marketing, much like Starship Troopers is nothing like the novel it's based on; it just takes the recognisable name.
Unlike hardcore Godzilla fans who really hate it with such a passion, they really do come across as religious zealots screaming 'Blasphemy!'
@DomWeasel I like Godzilla 98 design I like how he destroys the it was like they parody of different monster movies with Godzilla
God, this series just solidified my love for Godzilla when I was a kid. I never realized that the movie was pretty much a step away from Toho until years later, and yet, even now, the movie is still a guilty pleasure of mine, despite the problems and wrong steps. Zilla, in his own right, is a decent kaiju, and I hope we give him another chance, without trying to back away from why he failed and where his son succeeded.
All the hate for it tends to stem from how big of a slap in the face it was to godzilla fans. On its' own, it's a damn strong movie, but it has the title "godzilla" despite having absolutely none of the legacy and respect that is due to the godzilla series. and that is its' largest sin.
vla1ne I couldn’t have said it better myself.
I loved the reference humor in this show. It didn’t draw attention to the references or try to force a joke, it would just slip a movie quote in now and then, and it would feel very natural. It reminds you of references you’d make in casual conversations with friends, and that’s an approach you almost never see.
Up from the depths, I think you should have added the part where a Cyber Zilla came before Kiryu/MechaGodzilla 3 in which a corpse of a old Godzilla was used as a basis for a machine.
True!
Yoooo you're absolutely right. They did do that first!
I didn't know that, how cool
Wait what? I never knew that
Depends on whether you count Mecha King Ghidora, which came before Cyber Zilla. It was not a Godzilla, but it was the second most iconic Godzilla monster.
I recently rewatched the series and halfway through watching it my roommate caught an episode and really liked it and she doesn't even like kaiju movies. I ended up restarting it again so she could watch the whole series. I really wish it had gotten a 3rd season. I also would have loved some toys from the series. I know there were prototypes that were made but sadly never released. The series is so good and deserved more love.
Yeah I really wish they had toys from the show too
Carls Jr had toys from the series
Honestly, while I love Legendary's Monsterverse, this show is my favorite American interpretation and use of the character thus far, as well as the best animation to have Godzilla's name. It wasn't afraid of doing new things nor was it afraid of its own identity. It might have been a "simple" kid's show to many but it honestly is a greatest hits of almost everything enjoyable of the series itself, with both serious though basic concerns for our treatment of the environment, to war, to humanity's relationship to nature, and yes just fun action and science fiction. The character of Godzilla himself is unique, with his own personality and quirks, while still recognizably Godzilla. And when I hear or see people say they don't want human characters and only monster action, this is a strong example of how to write and implement human characters and story arcs well. Honestly if this series had been what the '98 movie had been, or if we had had a sequel series of this version, Tristar's Godzilla would have been remembered far more fondly.
I'd love to see a reboot series based on this slotted into the MonsterVerse on, say, Netflix. It's smart enough and mature enough on its own that it doesn't take much to make it work for a more general audience, and HEAT and their relationship with Zilla Jr. fits perfectly into how Titans are depicted in the MonsterVerse.
@@AJadedLizard but one problem
Zilla jr would get bitch slapped by legendary godzilla quickly
@@charmedfan8571 But they also have no reason to fight.
@@AJadedLizard uh legendary godzilla is very territorial
So if he sees some weird version of himself pop up hes gonna be a bit mad
@@marvelanddcfan5029 Zilla's a different monster, though, and so long as he's not trying to rival Godzilla (which he wouldn't) they'd have no reason to fight. The only reason Godzilla went so hard after Kong was because Kong's species was capable of overrunning the entire planet: Godzilla spared Kong and isolated him on Skull Island as an act of mercy, so he was somewhat understandably angry when Kong left.
This series definitely made this Godzilla species worthy of the name. Once full grown, conventional weapons do next to nothing to him, and of course has the signature atomic fire breath. On top of that, he's the assassin to the original's tank, using speed, agility, and strategy in a fight as well as raw power. And as you briefly mentioned, most of the monsters had callbacks to Toho's originals. I felt Cyber-Zilla wasn't so much Mecha Godzilla as it was Mecha King Ghidorah and maybe even Gigan. The Nano creature was a mirror of Hedorah, Quetzalcoatl is almost carbon-copy Rodan and I think also ties back to a scrapped feathered Rodan design, their Nessie feels very Manda-like, you already cited the Robo-Yeti and Mechani-Kong, the Cicada and other flying insects shared a lot with Mothra/Battra and Megaguirus, and so on.
This series greatly captures the spirit of Godzilla; his ability to battle cool Monsters and creatively defeats them. This Godzilla also knew how take a punch and missle attack as he stood his ground every time! Now it is a shame Toho wouldn't let the show use their legendary monsters, but I'm proud the crew were creative enough to create their own! Absolutely love this Godzilla! More than worthy to join the brotherhood of the Gman!
Zilla as a boss: Animated
Zilla when you unlock him: Movie
BRO IM DEAD. THATS SO TRUE.
Yeah. Cyber Zilla in the show was scary. They gave him powers and a mech enhancments after its death from 1998.
Godzilla: The Series is honestly shockingly good-at least compared to its predecessor. While the 1998 Zilla was just a scared iguana who constantly ran away and ate a lot of fish, Zilla Jr is the opposite. Honestly, the only similarity between the 1998 Zilla and its child are its appearances. Everything else-from its demeanor to its powers to its overall majesty-is leagues better than Zilla could ever hope to be. While I wouldn't say that Godzilla: The Series completely makes up for the disaster of 1998 (and to be fair, that is quite a big mess to clean up for just one series), it is still a great series. I can't believe I'm saying this about a piece of Zilla media, but it truly understands and honors the franchise that inadvertently caused its creation. Although I'm sure you already knew that...
Also, hope you'll be streaming again soon, the SOTC streams were really fun :)
Edit: F for Nigel
I Love Zilla jr so much.
I honestly think he can beat some of the other Godzillas.
He doesn't deserve the name Zilla jr. He deserves the name Godzilla jr.
@@scp096withinternetaccess.7 Godzilla NINO
@@chengyunma4497 no that's the father
@@scp096withinternetaccess.7 That will be confusing due to other Godzilla jrs.
I’m impressed how much genuine love was put into this Saturday morning cartoon based on an unpopular movie. It easily could have been a generic action show but the creators arrived to make something more.
Well, one of the reasons is definitely *he has atomic breath*
Yeah, green atomic breath that reminds me of Spawns' green hellfire attack in the comics.
I won't lie, the animated series was so good that it made me forget that 98's Zilla *didn't* have atomic breath.
The things people care about...
draketheduelist are you sure? It may not been an atomic breath, but I believe there were two instances in the movie when Zilla did spewed fire.
Karis Selmon it simply spread fire
It didn’t breath it itself
I somehow consider myself an add-in character to this show. Its focus on science actually helped me come out of a really shitty phase of my life that I had been through and brought me back to improving myself. I never really had the chance to thank the creators of this show, but if this shorty comment here makes it, that should be enough. The 180 over the movie you talk in here reminded myself of my very own 180 in my life that this show instigated.
It also had the HEAT team study Godzilla rather than kill him; an homage to Godzilla KOTM ‘54
Yeah. It's Dr. Yamane's intent taken shape, which is quite compelling
When a kids show is better than an action film
Just finished the final episode last night. Honestly loved this series immensely! There are definitely some themes that carried over to the 2019 movie
Nice! Zilla Jr. is a welcome addition to the Kaiju genre.
@ The person that made this video, most of this comments section, kaiju fandom and myself.
The movie is not a good Godzilla movie. But the animated series is very solid overall.
@@erictalaveramartinez4160 lol wrong. Way to lie and assume. MOST of the Kaiju fandom realizes Zilla is shit, in cartoon or movie form.
@ The numbers on this video don't support your statements:
- It has more views than subscriptions (and the channel is not about Zilla, so it is not an echo chamber).
- the ratio of likes and dislikes shows it has a positive reception.
- The comments mirror said positive behavior.
Statistically speaking, this can serve as a sample (since sample size "n" is way beyond 30) to make an assumption that Zilla Jr. is at least somewhat positively accepted.
In the end, you can dislike it but I will keep enjoying this show.
@ TLDR.
@@erictalaveramartinez4160 Ok tardass.
I don't know if it's just me, but I always felt like Godzilla: The Series, Extreme Ghostbusters, and MIB the Animated Series were in the same universe.
Most likely same team of animators. That style is unmistakable.
@@paolopasaol9700 there was also an episode of MiB where the leviathan aliens from godzilla the series could be seen in the background.
Considering that they were animated by the same people, yeah.
Oh damn that would be awesome.
I'd watch that
sadly that the series never got a 3rd season, I would have love to see new monsters, or new monsters being allies with godzilla.
Or a heisei version of godzilla shows up. Junior from Godzilla vs destroyer 1995. Adult junior 95 vs Zilla jr.
Awesome. Millions of dollars to me.
I would have loved it if actual BigG came in and kinda shows Zilla who's boss but by the end grow to respect him like ShowaG to Angirus
Could have done a multi-verse. So many Godzillas. Each could come from their own universe.
it would almost have never happened, but some other kaiju. a version of king ghidorah would have rocked.
@@lionelk.y7233 I would very much love that. He would be like the progenitor or first encounter to all mutations like Zilla and the others.
This show was one of my Big Three as a kid. I'm going to be straight here: I wasn't exposed to the old Toho films as a kid (wasn't on my radar then), so I didn't have the same issues with the movie as the old school fans. I don't regret not giving the source material a look until 2014 with Godzilla 2014. My childhood just wasn't the right time for him. I grew up recognizing Zilla as his own monster and will always be grateful that his appearance in Rulers of Earth won some of his haters over. I will always go to bat for him and his design. If he were to come into the MonsterVerse, I don't think he'd have to have any adjustments just to fit in.
I am very happy that you did a video going over Godzilla: The Series. It really is a solid Kaiju show. And Zilla Jr. is also a great monster as well. If the Monsterverse continues after GvK I hope that we get a Monsterverse version of him.
I like to think I helped with this series' popularity, resurgence and ultimately its DVD release. The entire series aired on Cheez TV in Australia back in the day along with the Jumanji animated series, and I used to watch up every morning to tape them. Some years later in 2004, I noticed somebody on the old TV Tome asking if anybody had any episodes. When I left a reply saying I had the entire series recorded, he asked me to send VHS copies to his friend in the UK who would convert them to region free DVDs. He even offered to pay me and send me a copy. I did as he asked and didn't think anything more of it. But a couple years later TH-cam came along and my recordings started appearing in music videos and even as full uploads. I could tell they were my recordings from the unique VHS artifacts and Network Ten logos. When I contacted that acquaintance who wanted the episode, he told me a friend of his UK friend had uploaded them to Bit Torrent. It was my VHS recordings that went viral. Normally I don't condone privacy, but I hope my recording going viral was instrumental in the series' popularity and DVD release.
That’s pretty interesting
About time a godzilla Heavy TH-cam Channel covers this show
My current head canon is that this show and the other 90s-00s cartoons that shared the same gritty, over-detailed aesthetic like the Men in Black cartoon and Big Guy & Rusty are in a shared universe. If they had gone on a little longer I think MIB and Godzilla would have had a crossover.
This show was my introduction to Godzilla and was what sparked my love for the large lizard.
This and MiB the series was the shit back then, surprisingly cool and complex with some of the coolest intros animation ever seen.
Thank Jeff Kline and DR Movie studios for both of these gems!
Adelaide Productions made best 90s-00s cartoons: Godzilla, Jumanji, MiB, Extreme Ghostbusters, Jackie Chan.
zzz Fed0t zzz I preferred the animated series versions more than the movies they are based on.
you just described my every saturday morning ritual as a kid xD xD
This is my favorite cartoon series! I agree that human characters are the strongest aspect of the series, and as an adult seeing the show again it makes for all the better. I think I'm going to start a re-watch of it now.
Probably one of the best non-film additions to the franchise of all time.
Godzilla, MiB, Extreme Ghostbusters, ...
It was nice to have that little renaissance of good cartoons based on movie franchises, no matter how short.
By far my favorite animated version of godzilla! Junior and all the monsters he faced were insanely epic! They built such an interesting setting for a godzilla series, with mutants lurking at every corner of the planet that need to be kept in check. Heat as well are probably some of the best collective of human characters to grace the franchise.
The fact the original art composers who worked on Men in Black TAS also worked on Godzilla TAS is unbelievably incredible. Now the music composer for Godzilla TAS was none other than Jim Latham, who by the way was a big fan of Gargoyles TAS, wanted to incorporate the trumpet 🎺 sound with a futuristic upbeat tempo. And thus Godzilla TAS thematic opening was born.
In my opinion,the movie's only mistake was that it said it was a Godzilla movie without actually trying to be one. It was a good kaiju movie,just not a good Godzilla movie. The series actually tried to follow the classic formula without forgetting to add some new elements and thus succeeded. That's how I see it.
considering that movie was my first exposure to BigG can confirm to me it feels more like a Jurassic Park style breakout mix in with some classic monster"It's just trying to survive" gimmick
I absolutely love this series it reminds me when I was a kid and the early days of Netflix's streaming service as it was the first thing I watched on Netflix when we got it. I don't know how many times me and my siblings watched this show as it was one of our favorites. Sadly we haven't watched it since it's be taken off Netflix for years but I just ordered it on ebay and look forward to rewatching it.
While the movie may have failed at adapting the spirit of Godzilla for mainstream audiences, the animated series on the other hand is the exact opposite. Godzilla aka Zilla Jr in this movie behaves a lot more like the traditional Godzilla, sporting an atomic breath, loyalty to other Kaiju as well as fighting other Kaiju, being more resistant to military firepower and not afraid to face danger, the animated series redeems the most hated version of Godzilla into a fan favorite that captures the spirit of the Big G! I also like the human characters and plot a lot more in this series compared to most Godzilla movies, where here it’s far more engaging and interesting as the series progressed from episode to episode. Finally the cast of Kaiju, while not as memorable or iconic as the Toho Kaiju, I appreciate that they created their own Kaiju that perfectly fit in this world. So yeah, the animated series is much better the movie that came before it, though to be fair, I have a lot of nostalgia for both the movie and the animated series.
At 17:00 the mech's blasts caused the windows of the nearby buildings to shatter. That's some good attention to detail right there.
My dad doesn't remember anything he watched if it's not news or some movie he really liked, he honestly forgets quite a lot of things. He watched 1998 zilla and told me about it after seeing the series. If they could make him remember a film which he didn't like that much and make him love Godzilla so much that he would sit down with me everyday and never miss an episode means that they did their job amazingly well.
This, Extreme Ghostbusters and the 3d Starship Troopers cartoon made my weekends. the Late 90s was a cool time to be a kid.
This series put the god back in Godzilla
I like to call this Zilla
DemiGodzilla
@@lionelk.y7233 I hope it's not in the same sense as a lich and a demilich.
@@TH3MIN3R3000 I think he means in the same sense as a god to a demigod
I’d dare say this is easily the best animated adaptation of Godzilla yet.
I love this series so much.
I spent hours just watching, embracing, falling in love with this fast paced long game.
Why I like the show:
• Apology for the 1998 film
• Same spirit as Godzilla himself
Ah man this is my childhood right here. I remember recording every episode on vhs and watching them all the time. Got the complete series on DVD.
I didn’t watch this until I started getting into Godzilla in Middle School, when it had been long off the air. My only memory of the show before I actually watched it, was that promo on a Power Rangers vhs where Godzilla eats a mean teenage girl. Both the promo and the show itself were awesome as a kid.
I enjoyed this show and I own the entire series on DVD. It's very well done and I wish they went longer and deeper with it.
Realizing that it's probably intentional, I like how your channel name is the first line of the theme song from the _original_ American 'Godzilla' cartoon.
I've literally been binging the show for the past couple of days now. XD
Haven't seen the show since I was a kid lol where am I able to watch it?
It’s on DVD
I still remember watching this everytime it came on. Being into Godzilla and all as a kid, this and the 98 movie was all I had access to at the time.
I basically rewatch the show once a year. I love it so much.
I’m a little older and my Saturday morning cartoons were Ghostbusters and Transformers and ninja turtles but I’m a huge Godzilla fan but I was 18 when the 1998 movie came out. But you just did a great job on selling neon series. I honestly never had any interest in checking the animated series out after I was so let down by the movie. I just thought it was another way to shamelessly grab some money while they still had the rights to the franchise . I’m definitely going to check this series out now. Thank you for such an awesome video.
I'm hoping for at least a live-action mini-series based on the Godzilla TAS will be made, with all monsters including cyber/frankenzilla, the lizard slayer mechs, and perhaps Jean Reno reprising his role, and in that universe the creature was named after the "real" cinematic Godzilla and charles caiman thought it's a creature of Japanese folklore
One of my favorites as a teenager here in Nigeria. "TV Africa", a service that showed cartoons and foreign stuff... even FIFA 2002... via existing channels, used to make our local channels fun. They will be missed.
I love this show to death and this show respects the character and the franchise from its movie counter part being a Jurassic Park cash grab in the 1990’s of movies. I had watched Godzilla the Series like 3 times when it was on Netflix in the 2010’s and continuing watching it when I was living in Japan for two years (I know very Ironic isn’t it that one episode takes place in Japan). The characters of the show is a big set up in development from the movie and being very memorable with its original characters of the show. The kaiju of the show are amazing and very original kaijus in the show for Godzilla to fight. The animation style still holds up great after the show stopped airing and probably has the best animation art style in the 1990’s.
This show was one of the best looking when it came out and watching this video it still holds up today
"The cameraman who most people probably recognize from the Matrix"
o.0 I never figured that out until you pointed it out
And as Ralph Cifaretto from The Sopranos.
@@GonzoCiosain Oh yeah, Ralphie.
I usually think of Pantoliano primarily for his role in the Wachowski's "Bound". Great bad guy actor.
I think of his character in "Congo".
As an old-school G-Fan who watched the Showa-era films whenever possible as a child in the 1970s, eagerly watched the Saturday morning Hanna-Barbera cartoon, and thrilled to the return of the Heisei-era Godzilla in the mid-80s, I've been singing the praises of this series for over 20 years, and I'm glad to see that so many other people appreciate it too.
Lol, I've been marathoning this show for the past few days! Great timing!
Godzilla: The Series is the best TV series that we've ever had for the Godzilla franchise, in my opinion.
Godzilla: The Series is pretty much equivalent to a well-written anime villain's redemption arc. A series that was born for what is regarded as one of the worst things to happen to Godzilla that through hard work and a drive to improve and make right from all of its wrongs ultimately rises up as something that not only redeems the failings of its predecessor, but also become one of the most beloved pieces of Godzilla media there is. If that isn't redemption, I don't know what is.
this series will always remain in my heart because it is the reason it got me into Godzilla.
Yes I do remember Godzilla
the cartoon with Godzookie
too. Paul Bacchus Esq
This show was great when I was a little kid. It helped cement my love and life long passion for Godzilla with some of the best Kaiju designs you could wish for.
In my opinion, the best episodes were ones that called back to the 98 film to show that they didn't just forget about the first Zilla or the events leading up to the series. For example, in what I like to call the Winter Trilogy, that egomaniac billionaire Cameron Winter creates the Zilla clone Chameleon who starts to frame Zilla Jr. for attacks he didn't do. This prompts Hicks to mobilize the same team who were used in the first Zilla attack. With the accompanying music and dark atmosphere, I legitimately felt like this was a call back to the film. There was this other episode where the HEAT Team (minus Craven) are sent back through time to a post apocalyptic future where Kaiju called the Dragma have just taken over. If it was a little more darker, I would have compared it with Same as It Never Was from Tmnt 2003. And who can forget the Monster Wars Saga? Amazing.
The characters are all rounded out despite the lack of development but it works perfectly. If I had to pick a favorite Monique, she's a wonderful blend of sexy and badass that shows that she ain't no damsel in distress. If anything alot of the time she saves the team from alot of the insanity they have to deal with. If there was one thing I personally wish they could have done with her character was show her back story because we really don't know a lot about Monique other than being the French Secret Agent. While her romance with Randy was sweet, the latter of that relationship got grating for me. I can't put my finger on it but Randy is oftentimes the worst out if the team but I do like the odd couple for him and Mendel, bringing a bit of a nice dynamic we don't see in alot of media. My personal second favorite would have to be Nigel who is a great running joke of being like Kenny from South Park. Tom Kenny really had a great time making all these impersonations of celebrities and movies, he's just a hoot. In particular, Nigel was doing a fast talking Texan auctioneer when the scorpion Kaiju Ts-eh-Go tossed him in the air the quote of the day was "and I'm outta here!" Priceless!
Overall, Godzilla the animated series was one of the best shows I have ever watched. It brought heart to what many fans had decried the first remake of the film the worst of the show what the fans wanted, Kaiju on Kaiju fights, wacky science that rarely makes any sense, fun monsters and villains and much more. If the Monsterverse does continue on into the Reiwa, I do hope they pull an Agents of Shield move and bring this show back to life. What a nostalgia trip that would be!
You said pretty much everything about the show I've been saying for years. Fantastic look at one of my fave Godzilla incarnations!
I absolutely adore this show. GtS Godzilla is probably in my top 3 favorite Godzillas (Heisei and Showa will always be my first two), the human characters are actually really likeable, and the kaiju are all great. I love the episode Juggernaut, with the alien that absorbs technology that ends up looking like Tetsuo at the end of Akira by the time the episode is finished. Plus that episode has some prime Godzilla moments (him stopping the train and fighting the helicopters are both highlights).
I love imagining this version of Nick in the 98 movie, and how much better literally all of his dialog would be with Ian Ziering's delivery. Just imagine HIM saying "That's a lot of fish".
My favorite element of the show is definitely Godzilla and Nick's relationship. They gave this Godzilla so much personality, and his "must protect tiny squishy dad" moments are great. There's a couple of episodes where I can practically hear him saying "Are you TRYING to get killed?". But I agree with pretty much everything you say in your video: Great writing, great characters, great Godzilla, great show.
And yes, I DO want my own giant scaly pupper.
As someone who grew up with this series with my brother, we absolutely love this series, it truly redeems this iteration of the king of monsters and deserves the name Godzilla. The Kaiju vs Kaiju action is awesome, the characters are fun, and the story is very well done. While the movie itself is a mediocre at best, this series is great fun and I absolutely recommend this any day.
As someone who actually rather likes Zilla and really loves the show the only thing i wish we couldve had for my fan dreams is seeing a crossover with this, MIB, and Ghost busters given they were all animated by amblin and very entertaining
Also the monster island trilogy I think is a good curtain call for zilla 98 instead of the hilarious yet tragic end in final wars
I found this series when I was about nine while looking at cartoon options in the On-Demand section of my grandparent's cable package. I hadn't even seen the 1998 movie but was instantly drawn into the interesting cast of main characters and the concept of Godzilla as a good guy who aided in fighting giant monsters and saving the world. I had completely forgotten about the series until I saw this video recommended to me. Kinda want to buy that DVD now and relive all those memories.
A definite childhood favorite.
In a way, the concept owes a lot also to Hanna-Barbera's 1978 series as well.
Also, given the same creative and production teams involved, how this didn't cross over with "Men In Black: The Series" is a prime example of missed opportunity.
I sadly neglected this cartoon when it came out while I was discovering VHS tapes of the old movies after the 98 movie released. Looks like I missed out.
So, this is where the idea of Nozuki/Warbat came from...
MY EXACT THOUGHT LOL
Such an insane flashback of nostalgia watching these clips. Thanks for reminding me this exists. I think I’ll have to go back and watch at least a handful of these episodes. I remember having my mind blown by the cyborg Godzilla.
I loved this series as a kid and remember the final three all monsters trilogy nostalgically
This show was soooooo good! I’m kind of biased cuz I love the first American movie (regardless of its many, many shortcomings) as a diehard Toho fan. I bought the complete series of the tv show a year ago and damn was it worth the binge, especially the alien episodes.
Gotta say, since i like the 98 Godzilla movie (f*ck me right), i lost it when cyberzilla showed up. It was amazing moments, mirroring mechagodzilla. Damn i miss this show...
That was a beautiful conclusion about the series that felt great hearing his opinion about the series and for me I feel the same way.
I have been subbed since you hade only 50 subs thank you for the content
I'll never forget this show. My first exposure to it was the Monster Wars 3 part, which is also probably the best introduction to it if you're a fan of classic Showa Godzilla.
They definitely did Godzilla way more justice than the Hannah Barbera cartoon, which was just another Scooby Doo rip-off like all Hannah Barbera cartoons were
I was 10 years old when the Hanna-Barbara Godzilla premiered. I thought it wacky. When this debuted in 1998, I was 30 and had long quit watching Saturday morning cartoons. However, as a big time G fan, I could not resist, so I decided to watch a few episodes and to my delight, I enjoyed them as well as the rest of the series. It was NOT wacky! If there was one good thing that the 1998 movie gave us, it was indeed this show! Roddy McDowall was also another famous star who did voice work on this series and I believe that it was the last work that he ever did.
It was his last tv role and the first of 3 projects released posthumously. McDowall is a legend. Fright Night is one of my favourite vampire movies and Planet of the Apes is amazing.
DUDE! DUDE! DUDE! Up From The Depths is ICHIBAN :) you are without a doubt #1! & without a question YOU SIR ARE MY FAVORITE, MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITE YOU-TUBER of all things kaiju & most importantly, all things GODZILLA content.. Your passion bleeds through every video you post! Thank You THANK YOU SO DAMN MUCH for everything you do!
This formula could also work REALLY well with the current Legendary Monsterverse! Introducing a new “Titan” for Godzilla to fight every episode, heck probably even getting classic Toho Kaiju to fill the gapping roster of beasts! And if they run out of money to use Godzilla, they could easily replace him with KONG from Skull Island as the new “King” and finally put that part of his name back in!
Ah, the memories. Thank you for this video :)
I was having a rough week. After seeing this, not anymore. Also i'm crying XD
This was actually the first piece of Godzilla I ever watched. Saw it on netflix one day when I was like 5 said: "Hey that looks fun." And then ended up binging it multiple times.
I love Godzilla: The Series!
This is my half-forgotten childhood gem. Thank you and TH-cam for making me remember :)
I remember back in the day hoping that if they made a Jurassic Park cartoon around that time, it would be something very much like this in terms of tone and look.
They almost did and even a pilot episode was even made but never aired
Thank you for that nostalgia trip. We never had this show airing on TV, but the first few episodes were available on VHS and I checked them out regularily. I remember "playing Godzilla" as a kid, climbing on furniture and trying to imitate the roar unsuccessfully. And being so angry at the military for being "mean" whereas nowadays I can perfectly understand their reasoning for trying to shoot a fire-breating kaiju that climbs all over buildings. It's really interesting getting a glimpse at what the rest of the show looked like, since I was so curious about that as a kid.
This really deserves to get more seasons
I remember that show. I loved Godzilla in all its forms. Even as a kid I did watch the 1998 Godzilla movie a lot.