What is the Godzilla franchise missing?

[gatorzilla]

A lot of fanboy franchises are dominating the box office these days and merchandise in the stores.
The Major ones are-
Star Wars
Marvel
DC
Transformers
Gi Joe
TMNT

Godzilla has a long running history but is not up there with those Elite ones....yes you still can find some merchandise in stores but not in bundles like you see the other stuff.
So what would you say Godzilla is missing to become an Elite major franchise like those others? We have toys, comics, clothes etc.

I say its missing an American series of movies. We came SO SO close to having that in 98 with the SONY American Godzilla trilogy and then when GINO failed it put the franchise in a major set back.
With Legendarys film officially coming it has potential to make this an Elite major franchise here in America.

But what do you think? Different opinion or idea?

[Mr. X]

What is the Godzilla franchise missing?

Non-bitchy fans.

*Ba-dum-tish!*

In all seriousness, I believe LP could revive intrest in the Godzilla franchise. We need LP's movie, IMO.

[Arbok]

With Legendarys film officially coming it has potential to make this an Elite major franchise here in America.

I think that sums it up. What Godzilla needs in America is a series of well received, box office hits that will then lead the masses to check out the other films and merchandise available.

Getting that is incredibly difficult, and even if the Legendary Pictures film is well reviewed it may not be a box office hit... but that's basically the recipe to starting a strong franchise in America, along with continued product to keep the interest (be it TV shows, new movies, or whatever).

[eabaker]

The franchises you mention are in part merchandisable because of the size of their respective universes. They're all series with recurring ensemble casts, a variety of vehicles and weapons that can be produced, and generally a lot of different potentially iconic aspects within any one entry; basically, they're ideally suited to a huge variety of merchandise.

No monster franchise in the style of Godzilla or King Kong is ever going to be suited to that kind of mass-merchandising.

[Rody]

I'll mention this while I'm thinking about it: although I would like Godzilla to become more popular, I also don't want the franchise to become as huge as some of the other franchises, like Star Wars.
I don't expect it to, but that's my two cents.

[JAGzilla]

I think Godzilla never been a huge movie franchise in the US recently because it's a Japanese franchise and Japanese stuff don't appeal to the US audience.

Given the popularity of anime in the last decade, I'd say at least some Japanese stuff appeals to American audiences.

But yes, being foreign can't help Godzilla's case much. Another significant problem is simply the age of the franchise: most of the movies are several decades old, and made with outdated effects technology. The average moviegoer today doesn't want that. If it isn't new, high-tech, and flashy, it's not likely to be popular. LP's modern Hollywood take on Godzilla stands a decent chance of getting attention, but I don't expect that Toho's movies will ever get much mainstream respect here. Best case is that LPG will spawn a successful American Godzilla franchise that respects the source material.

[JAGzilla]

^ I was including kids in my statement. Anime is obviously very big with them. And being the primary buyers of toys and a lot of other merch, kids go a long way toward making most of the big franchises (Star Wars, superheroes, etc.) as succesful as they are.

[Shadow]

More hot babes in the movies.
Akane, Miki... mooooreee bitches.

[Rody]

...................No. Not really.

[JAGzilla]

...............Yes. Really.

[Rody]

What, giant monsters aren't enough eye candy?

[Tamura]

Here's what I'd like to ask: What are the fans missing?

I'll answer it, too: You guys are missing the chance to savor a mostly wonderful franchise that hasn't swelled and become bloated like a canker as the "majors" have. Seriously, who cares? Enjoy Godzilla's current presence as it is, because popularity won't magically make him better or more acceptable to mainstream audiences.

Tired of this genre of thread.

[eabaker]

Here's what I'd like to ask: What are the fans missing?

I'll answer it, too: You guys are missing the chance to savor a mostly wonderful franchise that hasn't swelled and become bloated like a canker as the "majors" have. Seriously, who cares? Enjoy Godzilla's current presence as it is, because popularity won't magically make him better or more acceptable to mainstream audiences.

Tired of this genre of thread.

Yeah, I have yet to gather any understanding of why some posters seem to want Godzilla to become more mainstream.

[zilla-x]

Here's what I'd like to ask: What are the fans missing?

I'll answer it, too: You guys are missing the chance to savor a mostly wonderful franchise that hasn't swelled and become bloated like a canker as the "majors" have. Seriously, who cares? Enjoy Godzilla's current presence as it is, because popularity won't magically make him better or more acceptable to mainstream audiences.

Tired of this genre of thread.

What is wrong exactly with Godzilla becoming more mainstream? If anything it gives us more movies and merchandise and a bigger fan base. Please tell me where that is bad?

[Megalon-5]

I feel that the only thing the franchise is missing is Bagan.

[eabaker]

Here's what I'd like to ask: What are the fans missing?

I'll answer it, too: You guys are missing the chance to savor a mostly wonderful franchise that hasn't swelled and become bloated like a canker as the "majors" have. Seriously, who cares? Enjoy Godzilla's current presence as it is, because popularity won't magically make him better or more acceptable to mainstream audiences.

Tired of this genre of thread.

What is wrong exactly with Godzilla becoming more mainstream? If anything it gives us more movies and merchandise and a bigger fan base. Please tell me where that is bad?

I like the Godzilla franchise for what it is. The nature of the series - its style, its tone, its realization - is what keeps it from being mainstream. Becoming more mainstream would mean becoming less of all the things that I like about it, in order to appeal more to the mass audience.

There are plenty of properties out there for the mainstream audience. I don't want to see something that I love transformed to appeal to them. They don't need Godzilla.

[Rody]

I completely agree with Tamura's post. As I said before, even though it would be nice for the Godzilla franchise to gain more respectable attention, I don't want to see it become as big as Star Wars or other mainstream franchises. In my opinion, it would only get messy if that happened, and Godzilla has a couple of nasty spots already.

[JVM]

It's missing diverse entries with dependent serialized stories and recurring characters with strong personalities.

Obviously to us as fans it has all of that, but to the casual audience, it lacks all of those things, as contradictory as that sounds. To us, GFW and DAM are miles apart, but to a bunch of stupid kids who go to the movies, it's all the same shit. The little bits of monster personality are lost on these people, hurting a lot of the appeal as well.

I won't even comment on the rest of this debate, as much as I really want to.

[Dr. Johnson]

Daring directors who have the guts to challenge Toho's stupid lack of creativity.

[zilla-x]

Here's what I'd like to ask: What are the fans missing?

I'll answer it, too: You guys are missing the chance to savor a mostly wonderful franchise that hasn't swelled and become bloated like a canker as the "majors" have. Seriously, who cares? Enjoy Godzilla's current presence as it is, because popularity won't magically make him better or more acceptable to mainstream audiences.

Tired of this genre of thread.

Holy shit this!

I don't want Godzilla be like Batman or Star Wars or Transformers. I LIKE that Japanese giant monster films are a niche genre. That's one of the best things about it. Are people so insecure about their interest in these movies that they NEED Godzilla to be a blockbuster American franchise. IMHO that's pretty sad. Enjoy this franchise for what it is and not for what it isn't and probably never will be.

You know what else is sad? Fans afraid of growth and expansion in a franchise. Why shouldnt Godzilla get a blockbuster American franchise? If anything that is a WIN for us fans....but then you have the ones that are too afraid to see the franchise expand which is going to happen like it or not. Get over it and be happy for the future.