Writer: Gerry Duggan
Artists: Giuseppe Camuncoli & Daniele Orlandini
Colorist: Federico Blee
Letterer: Travis Lanham
Cover Art: Giuseppe Camuncoli & Daniele Orlandini (Cover A)
Cover Price: $4.99
Release Date: April 16, 2025
Publisher’s Synopsis
“General (Thunderbolt) Ross has no tolerance for monsters in any form. With his anti-kaiju taskforce The Thunderbolts he’s taken down or imprisoned the biggest and baddest monsters on the planet: Fin Fang Foom, Mothra, Kumonga, even the Hulk. Now all that’s left is his biggest hunt of all: Godzilla. But the Thunderbolts’ efforts to bring their last monster to heel may just result in the most destructive battle royale to ever rock the earth. It’s time to figure out who’s really the strongest there is.”
Review
In this monster-filled Marvel one-shot, General Thaddeus (Thunderbolt) Ross is hunting down kaiju. With the help of Doctor Bruce Banner and the creepy Doctor Demonicus, Ross plans to lure Godzilla into a trap using captured kaiju Mothra and Kumonga as bait. Will Godzilla take the bait and if so, will they be able to take the giant kaiju down? Dr. Demonicus seems to think so and claims his kaiju-catcher will do the job. But does he have an ulterior motive behind his plan?
I picked up a copy of the previous one-shot Godzilla vs. The Fantastic Four and while that was a fun read, this comic delivers a much more satisfying kaiju experience. There is a lot more crazy kaiju action in Godzilla vs. Hulk and the fun factor is dialled up to eleven! I really did laugh out loud quite a few times reading this one-shot and it’s clear the creative team enjoyed putting this together.
And it gets even better when yet another famous kaiju enters the fray. I will avoid naming the monster in this review, but if you are looking for a hint then think about smog and pollution. How will our favourite gamma green giant react to this showdown? Will Hulk smash everything in sight? Who will be left standing when the smoke clears at the end?
As a caveat and possible spoiler, I did receive a few negative comments on my video review of this issue. They were basically complaining about the title of this comic: “Godzilla versus Hulk? It’s a lie! They don’t even fight each other in the story!” This is technically true, but I have a feeling writer Gerry Duggan did this deliberately. He transformed this issue into an incredible Hulk & Godzilla team-up instead! And I’m here for that surprising subversion of expectations.
Final Thoughts
I had a gamma-radiated blast with this comic! It goes for all-out kaiju & Hulk action as well as some laugh-out-loud moments in the narrative. It’s clear that writer Gerry Duggan was having a great time writing this issue. This is complemented by the two artists who deliver some truly explosive kaiju action scenes. If you have ever wanted to see not one but TWO Mechagodzillas flying into action against the King of Monsters, this is the comic for you.
8.5/10
About the reviewer: Wakizashi Gray has a YouTube channel where he reviews comics. It has the rather bizarre name: Wakizashi’s Teahouse. He also keeps a WordPress blog called Wakizashi Teahouse Blog.
