Stokoe turns it all around. He brings in two of the silly elements–Mechagodzilla and Space Godzilla–but sells them through a combination of great art and great characterization of the protagonist.
The protagonist is now bitter and middle aged–a “glorified weather man” who anticipates the monsters’ landfalls and tries to get people out. Stokoe does contrive a way to combine the two monsters appearing opposite Godzilla. All he had to do to make it sell better was make the Godzilla appearances rarer.
It’s a small compliant though. Otherwise, he turns in a fantastic issue. And he’s got a great soft cliffhanger.
Stokoe does two things with Half-Century–he streamlines the Godzilla franchise (it’s like Ultimate Godzilla for the familiar fan) and tell the story of one guy’s experiences with the monster. Marvels for Godzilla.
Sometimes he gets the mix wrong, but not here. This one’s perfect.
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