The first film in the series, <\/span>Godzilla: Planet of the Monsters<\/span><\/i>, sets the stage.<\/span> Humanity, ravaged by years of monster attacks, finds they are unable to defeat Godzilla–even after two different alien races come to their aid. With no other choice, the survivors of humanity and the two alien races–the <\/span>Exif, and the Bilusaludo–build a ship and escape to the stars, hoping to find another habitable planet. <\/span><\/p>\n But after decades of searching and low on supplies, the chances of finding a new home seem slimmer than ever. Thus there is no choice but to return to Earth. But thanks to time dilation, thousands of years have passed on the planet and its hoped that Godzilla would have long since died off. If only they were that lucky.<\/span><\/p>\n Instead, they find a deadly world far different from the one they left–a world tailored to survive in the presence of its ultimate apex predator: Godzilla. Caught between the overwhelming force of Godzilla and the possibility of a slow, wasting death in space, young captain Sakaki leads an army against the King of the Monsters, hoping to achieve what the best minds of three races were unable to. <\/span><\/p>\n And though there are unexpected obstacles, his army exploits a weak point in the monster\u2019s biology and is able to kill it. It\u2019s then that the film ends on a twist: What they beat was, in effect, a baby Godzilla. The true Godzilla has only grown bigger and stronger over the past 20,000 years.<\/span><\/p>\n Godzilla: City on the Edge of Battle<\/span><\/i> continues on from this revelation as the newly defeated army is left scattered and unable to communicate with each other. Sakaki himself is found and nursed back to health by one of the Mothra twins before being reunited with the other survivors. It\u2019s then that they learn that the <\/span>Bilusaludo\u2019s greatest weapon, Mechagodzilla, survived its apparent destruction by Godzilla and has been continuing the fight for the millenium that followed–though not in a way that anyone expected.<\/span><\/p>\n While Mechagodzilla itself is in no shape to move, it has transform the surrounding area into a high tech city–a city made completely through nanotechnology. Thus Sakaki and his soldiers decide to use the city and its technology to finish off the King of the Monsters once and for all.<\/span><\/p>\n Yet, while the reimagining of Mothra twins, this new take on Mechagodzilla, and the plan to take down Godzilla are interesting enough, there\u2019s a deeper, thematic story happening in the background.<\/span><\/p>\n In this film, we get to learn a fair chunk more about the two alien races battling alongside the humans–the Exif and the Bilusaludo. When each of these races came to Earth during the height of Godzilla\u2019s original rampage, they were looking to conquer it–though not through warfare, but through offering salvation. <\/span><\/p>\n For the Exif, their plan was to conquer via religion. In a time of rampant despair, the hope of religion can be a massive strength. And if the Exif helped destroy Godzilla, then they\u2019d have a good chance to convert the planet into their religion–which would in turn be an adoption of their ideology and culture.<\/span><\/p>\n In the film, we also learn that The Exif homeworld was destroyed by a monster (reportedly more powerful than Godzilla on earth). They claim to have escaped, that now they travel the stars, sharing what they have learned from the experience and how they survived it. Of course, there is likely more to this story. After all, who\u2019s to say that the monster they escaped and the god they pray to aren\u2019t one in the same. <\/span><\/p>\n The Bilusaludo, on the other hand, planned to conquer the world through superior technology. By beating Godzilla, they hope to show the superiority of their logical thought process–and in turn inspire humanity to take up their philosophy. <\/span><\/p>\n So while this film is the battle of two monsters, it is, at the same time, so much more. Mechagodzilla represents logic and technological evolution. Godzilla, on the other hand, is natural chaos and ecological evolution. To the Bilusaludo, defeating Godzilla by using Mechagodzilla city would validate their entire way of life–show that, despite being a race of space wandering nomads, their philosophy is the only true way to live.<\/span><\/p>\n However, the Bilusaludo aren\u2019t fools. They know that Godzilla isn\u2019t going down easy. But more than that, they\u2019ve decided that no human, Exif, or Bilusaludo has a chance of taking him down–not even someone they idealize as much as Sakaki. Instead they have determined that only a monster can beat a monster. <\/span><\/p>\n Or course, this leaves the problem that there is now another, more powerful monster, wandering around. However, the Bilusaludo have found a solution to this circular problem: If you don\u2019t want to be destroyed by the monster you create, then you better become the monster you create instead. And that is their plan for the battle: let themselves be absorbed by the nanomachines–becoming one with the technology and part of the Mechagodzilla technorganic network. When Godzilla is gone, the nanites can spread out and absorb all living things on the planet–turning the world from Godzilla planet into Mechagodzilla planet.<\/span><\/p>\n However, in the middle of the climactic battle, it is Sakaki who has to choose which monster wins control of the Earth. He can take out either Godzilla–by becoming a part of Mechagodzilla himself–or he can destroy Mechagodzilla–by taking out its processing core. Now, of course, the Bilusaludo have planned for this eventuality–hell, they\u2019ve basically brought it about on purpose. They believe that there is no way Sakaki would ever choose anything over killing Godzilla. After all, they\u2019re sure he\u2019s this story\u2019s Captain Ahab.<\/span><\/p>\n Unfortunately for them, they have misread the situation. While Sakaki is indeed driven by a need for revenge against the monster that hurt him, the circumstances are quite different. Ahab always had the option of giving up on the white whale–to go back home and begin a different life far from the sea.<\/span><\/p>\n But Sakaki has no such opportunity. His back is against the wall. If Godzilla lives, all that awaits him and the remnants of humanity is a slow death in space as they futilely search for a new world on a ship already dangerously low on supplies. Thus, between two choices that all but promise certain death, he chooses the one that will let him die with pride should he fail: fighting Godzilla for control of the planet. <\/span><\/p>\n Of course, it also happens to be the choice that aligns with his need for revenge.<\/span><\/p>\n The Bilusaludo bank on his hatred of Godzilla–thinking he will do anything to defeat it. However he has a limit. While he may be willing to sacrifice himself and become a monster to stop Godzilla, he would never force that choice onto another just for his own, personal revenge–especially a close, personal friend. So when the Bilusaludo begins transforming Yuko against her will into a part of Mechagodzilla, he can\u2019t accept it. Even in the face of a Godzilla that\u2019s a hair\u2019s breadth from defeat, he would rather let Godzilla win than turn someone he cares for into the next \u201cGodzilla.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n But in the end, as Mechagodzilla city burns and Godzilla continues his rampage once again, there is no victory of any kind to be found. Their best shot lies in ruins and Yuko is left half transformed and comatose with metallic tears leaking from her eyes. <\/span><\/p>\n In the face of such despair, all Sakaki can do is scream.<\/span><\/p>\n Godzilla: City on the Edge of Battle<\/span><\/i> can be watched on <\/span>Netflix<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/biggestinjapan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/01-1.jpg?resize=960%2C540\")
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