How do you view Zilla (aka Gino/godzilla 1998/etc)

[Destorogoji]

So, Zilla is an "it".
I don't get why people discuss so much about the gender of any kaiju. To me, it's not of importance unless it's an essential part of the plot (take both Zilla and Shin as example).

[godzilla5417]

Just throwing my two cents in on the subject, on the behind the scenes footage for Godzilla vs Biollante it's said that Godzilla is male.And there's actually quiet a lot of evidence pointing to Godzilla being male throughout the various films.

Added in 5 minutes 1 second:

I don't get why people discuss so much about the gender of any kaiju.

And you'll probably never get it.

[MechaGoji Bro7503]

Just throwing my two cents in on the subject, on the behind the scenes footage for Godzilla vs Biollante it's said that Godzilla is male.And there's actually quiet a lot of evidence pointing to Godzilla being male throughout the various films.

Glad you agree! Im getting off topic but I actually have quite some evidence pointing to Godzilla being male, which is a story for another time.

[Billzilla1974]

Would changing Godzilla's gender to a female do anything good for the character? not really

It would change two things: Jack and shit. And Jack left town

Godzilla is a beast, an animal condemned by the atom bomb - a victim, and a manifestation of the nuclear horror. Its gender is meaningless and entirely irrelevant to what the character is about

That shit that was changed must've become Hedorah then, and Jack is back, for like another 6 episodes.
I actually just realized that the song that plays during Shin Godzilla's rampage (I forgot the name) has a female vocalist, and the song supposedly represents what Shin is feeling, so maybe Shin Goji is female all along?
Maybe Godzilla's gender doesn't matter to some, but personally i'd rather have most of the previous Godzillas be male , I would be fine if a female Godzilla was introduced, but I don't want the Showa,Heisei, and Kiryu Goji in particular to suddenly be revealed as female after years of being called male.
Even though gender is irrelevant to the original concept, Godzilla isn't like the original most of the time, the Showa era got as far away from that concept as possible and it still counts as a relevant era in Godzilla lore. Godzilla isn't just "a beast, an animal contaminated by the atom bomb" anymore, it's become a character.
Calling Godzilla "king of the monsters" back in 1956 may have not meant anything then, but Toho has since adopted that moniker for the monster, and until they refuse to use it, Godzilla is canonically male. So yeah, Godzilla being male is a staple of his character, at least for those who grew up on the American dubs.

[godzilla5417]

I would be fine if a female Godzilla was introduced, but I don't want the Showa,Heisei, and Kiryu Goji in particular to suddenly be revealed as female after years of being called male.

If they do introduce a female Godzilla she should have here own name.

[KManX89]

What boggles my mind is not the "why do so many people still hate on Zilla after 20 years?" posts, it's the simple fact that people are (still) largely harping on it (to this day) because of its lack of respect to the source material instead of listing off the ACTUAL reasons why the film sucks: annoying AF characters, terrible CGI, boring action scenes, atrocious acting and dialogue ("that's a lot of fish" yes that's literally a quote in the film), gaping plot holes, the list goes on.

Cue the "if it wasn't called Godzilla" posts. If it wasn't called Godzilla, it'd just be another shitty Roland Emmerich film (no surprise there, he has a lot of those to his "credit") instead of the abomination and blight on Godzilla's name it actually is. It bearing the name Godzilla was just icing on the shit cake.

[ScottA]

While the G98 dialog and acting is bad in some places, and makes people cringe. Toho's dialog and acting makes people bust out laughing.
What boggles MY mind is GFans hating on G98 because it had "atrocious acting and dialog". Because compared to any of the Toho films. G98 is fracking Shakespeare.

[UltramanGoji]

"S-stop hating on G98! Toho's no better!"

Well see now you're making me hate it even more.

[Zarm]

To what are you comparing? The dubs? The subs of questionable fidelity? Or the original Japanese dialogue?

[Mr_Goji_and_Watch]

"S-stop hating on G98! Toho's no better!"

Well see now you're making me hate it even more.

Whataboutisms are the worst way to defend something lmao like whenever someone brings that up they're way less likely to get someone to agree with them.

[KManX89]

While the G98 dialog and acting is bad in some places, and makes people cringe. Toho's dialog and acting makes people bust out laughing.
What boggles MY mind is GFans hating on G98 because it had "atrocious acting and dialog". Because compared to any of the Toho films. G98 is fracking Shakespeare.

The difference is the Toho films didn't have actively annoying characters that make me wanna punch the screen.

And it wasn't just "bad in some places," it was horrible across the board, especially Audrey. Speaking of which, the actress for her (Maria Pitillo) wasn't made a movie since, coincidence?

[InnocentClarke]

Well, while I've heard good things about ("God")Zilla: The Series, the movie was honestly so offputting that I have no interest in watching it so that it can be "redeemed." I, unlike seemingly a number of people, find Zilla's design to be absolutely unappealing anyway, so having myself watch a kid's show where I have to look at it more isn't something I feel like doing. I don't really mind that other people don't mind the character of Zilla, but it definitely doesn't speak to me.

[Zarm]

The difference is the Toho films didn't have actively annoying characters that make me wanna punch the screen.

Well, not most of them. I mean, there's always Godzilla's Revenge.


Seriously, though, every time I see this thread title in the recently updated list, I want to come in with a snarky answer, like 'From as great a distance as possible' or 'To quote Han Solo, "I'm trying not to, kid."' The phrasing just sets up a punchline too well.

[ScottA]

The female photographer in G2000 was every bit as terrible and annoying as Audrey.
But I'm 100% sure nobody has ever complained about how she "ruined" the film for them. Even though she was just as awful as Audrey. If not more.
Not to mention the horrifically god awful acting from Linda Miller in KK escapes. There's nothing in G98 that remotely comes close that level of bad.
But in spite of that acting performance that would make even a soap opera actor cringe. That film is well loved. Because you guys give the actors in the Japanese films a huuuuuuge free pass that you don't give to the American films.

[Mr_Goji_and_Watch]

I'm glad we've reached the point where people cite 2 characters as to why "compared to any of the Toho films, G98 is Shakespeare".

[InnocentClarke]

The female photographer in G2000 was every bit as terrible and annoying as Audrey.
But I'm 100% sure nobody has ever complained about how she "ruined" the film for them. Even though she was just as awful as Audrey. If not more.
Not to mention the horrifically god awful acting from Linda Miller in KK escapes. There's nothing in G98 that remotely comes close that level of bad.
But in spite of that acting performance that would make even a soap opera actor cringe. That film is well loved. Because you guys give the actors in the Japanese films a huuuuuuge free pass that you don't give to the American films.

Or maybe it's just that we don't find the female photographer in G2000 that annoying? I mean, she starts off being a total bitch, but she shuts the hell up not even halfway in, pretty much, and isn't a bother for the whole rest of the film... y'know, because there's a character arc that makes her not annoying.

[Zarm]

The female photographer in G2000 was every bit as terrible and annoying as Audrey.
But I'm 100% sure nobody has ever complained about how she "ruined" the film for them. Even though she was just as awful as Audrey. If not more.
Not to mention the horrifically god awful acting from Linda Miller in KK escapes. There's nothing in G98 that remotely comes close that level of bad.
But in spite of that acting performance that would make even a soap opera actor cringe. That film is well loved. Because you guys give the actors in the Japanese films a huuuuuuge free pass that you don't give to the American films.

Or maybe it's just that we don't find the female photographer in G2000 that annoying? I mean, she starts off being a total bitch, but she shuts the hell up not even halfway in, pretty much, and isn't a bother for the whole rest of the film... y'know, because there's a character arc that makes her not annoying.

And she's kind of comically annoying at first, you know? Like she's supposed to be whiny and annoying, and she has a redemption arc that climaxes with her going back for Shinoda in the demolition-rigged building? An arc in which a character's negative trait is intentional and grown out of is different from just a really annoying character that wasn't supposed to be.

[UltramanGoji]

Boy talk about a fucking reach.

"You guys only like it because it's JAPANESE!"

[ScottA]

See what I mean.
When the actors are in a Japanese film, you make up all kinds of justifications for their bad acting. That you don't apply equally to American films.
A bad actor in an American film "ruins the film". But a bad actor in a Japanese film is part of it's "charm".
There's no acting issues in G98 that doesn't exist in the Toho films.

[Dracosaurian]

I'm okay with Zilla. Me personally, I hope he returns in the future be it films, comics or games.