The Godzilla Treasury Edition combines Godzilla: The Half-Century War #1 and Godzilla in Hell #1 into a single publication. The common theme between them, besides both being #1s, is that they are story openers from the phenomenal James Stokoe. Re-reading the book does remind one how great the original comics were, especially the start to The Half-Century War. However, despite some cool value adds like the "try out" pages that show off an unused story with Hedorah, the book feels a bit like a sampler and leaves one hungry for the dedicated trade paperbacks around the two mini-series releases.

The first issue in the publication is on the introduction to the The Half-Century War. Lieutenant Ota Murakami, who would become the focal character of this story, gets introduced as he and fellow solider Kentaro Yoshihara attempt to survive a 1954 attack by Godzilla. As with just about everything Stokoe touches, the art work is detailed to a degree that is eons above what is the norm for a comic book. Each panel is so intricate, begging to be examined in greater detail. The story itself is also engaging, making the reader care about what happens to the two soldiers while appearing to effortlessly strike just the right balance between being serious and having a bit of fun too. While I do prefer the second issue in the series, the first is one of the best comics around the character and a highly recommended read.

Following this is the surreal journey into hell with Godzilla in Hell. While the The Half-Century War was a cohesive story, the Godzilla in Hell series was unconnected and had each author giving their own take on placing Godzilla within a hellish backdrop. The first of these, and arguably the most surreal and unworldly, was Stokoe's introduction issue in the series. The mostly text-less comic excelled at, as I noted when I reviewed the issue the first time, taking a normally exotic and fantastic creature like Godzilla and making him feel almost normal by creating such a strange and unearthly surrounding for the character to play in. While the comic is a quick read, the truly alien world combined with Stokoe's highly detailed art does give quite a bit to look at.

In terms of the value added material, this appears in between the two issues found in the book. The first of these is an unused treatment by Chris Mowry, writer on the Godzilla: Rulers of Earth series, and three pages of uncolored art by James Stokoe that depicts Hedorah fighting Godzilla. The treatment is definitely creative, showcasing Hedorah consuming the King of the Monsters before he is able to break free. This extra is followed up by five pages of colored art from Stokoe that was intended to showcase where The Half-Century War was headed following the first issue. The sample features some helicopters in Vietnam attacking Godzilla, and are related to what ended up occurring in the second issue in that series. To clear any confusion, though, this art is original and wasn't used in the final product.

As for the publication's cover, it uses a color muted version of the Godzilla in Hell #1 cover. The dreary colors actually do fit with the image a little better than the original, although it would have been nice to have gotten a new cover for this release. Speaking of covers, the publication does end with showcasing all previous James Stokoe Godzilla covers, starting from Godzilla: Gangsters & Goliaths #2 and going through the Godzilla: Oblivion series.

Overall, both issues are great, drifting from solid story telling in one to tapping into the surreal in the other. The only weakness with this release is that it's much easier to suggest that someone instead pick up the full trade paperbacks for the individual series contained in here. While the value adds are cool, they are far too brief to merit going with this release over just purchasing publications that contain the full story.