Enjoy the latest episode of my kaiju/tokusatsu podcast! In this one, I discuss the divisive Godzilla anime trilogy from netflix.
Hello, kaiju lovers!
Welcome to our first minisode! (Well, our second, according to my intrepid producer, Jimmy From NASA). This is the first of a series of episodes where I’ll be analyzing films I was unable to cover on my previous podcast. In this one, I’m discussing the divisive Godzilla Anime Trilogy. Fans either love it or hate it. Me? I like it—a lot. I debunk some of the unfair criticisms of the trilogy, but the meat of my analysis is focused on how each of the four races in the trilogy—the Humans, the Bilusaludo, the Exif, and the Houtua—each exemplify different philosophies and how most of them take their worldviews to the extreme.
There’s a lot of material here—so much that Monster Island’s Board of Directors calls to say I violated my contract! Listen as Jimmy acts as my agent to keep me from being shot into space (he deserves a bonus for practically being my agent).
Here are the podcast episodes I mentioned in the episode. I recommend listening to them—especially the Redeemed Otaku episodes—if you want to hear a review of this trilogy from me.
I plan to see Solo: A Star Wars Story, if not this weekend, then next week.
It’s a safe bet to say that about fifty-percent of those reading this have now stopped and branded me a traitor. Because that’s how large contingents of the Star Wars fandom works now.
In case you didn’t know, there’s been a movement to boycott the new Star Wars spin-off film about a young Han Solo. It stems from various remarks on political and social issues from Kathleen Kennedy, the new president of Lucasfilm, and what was perceived as SJW elements in Star Wars: The Last Jedi (which I’ve written about before). Adding fuel to the fire was the revelation that Han’s friend Lando Calrissian is pansexual in this film (though as far I know the only indication of this is he flirts with a droid with female features. That could honestly just be Lando being Lando).
In a tremendous display of groupthink, a huge portion of the Star Wars fandom moved as a unit to avoid Solo, which they think will eventually derail the Disney era of the franchise. One fan even went so far as to say, “Money is the only language Disney understands.”
This blog isn’t about whether their objections are accurate or not. I’m reserving that for after I see the movie. However, I am going to take the Star Wars fandom to task, despite counting myself among them. You’ve been warned.
Ever since the release of the “Special Editions” in 1997, the Star Wars fandom has become more and more fractured and difficult to please. Remember the whole “Han Shot First” meme? (I admit I was annoyed too, but I digress). They were irate that the three films they thought were already perfect were “meddled” with by George Lucas. Things were only aggravated when the Prequel Trilogy was released. The Phantom Menace was especially hated. George Lucas went from being a creative genius who could do no wrong to the most despised man in the geek community. (Personally, I think the truth is somewhere in the middle, as seen in this excellent video series). When Disney purchased Lucasfilm in 2012 and announced new movies, it was greeted with enthusiasm because fans had lost trust in Lucas. But over the last three years, especially with The Last Jedi, the sentiment has shifted to lamenting the loss of Lucas.
No other fandom, I would argue, is this fickle, demanding, and indecisive. When non-nerds/non-geeks think of the negative stereotypes associated with the nerd/geek community, I guarantee it’s based largely on the conduct of so-called “hardcore” Star Wars fans. It’s sad because it not only mars the reputation of other fans like myself, and it gives the whole nerd/geek subculture a bad name.
This is one way this fandom borders on being a religion. Think about it. Star Wars fans have sacred texts (i.e. the Original Trilogy), but they only accept certain versions of these texts (the uncut versions of the trilogy) as “canonical.” The Special Editions are rejected despite being made by the author of the sacred texts. The prequels are heresy to many (although younger fans accept them), and now the Disney era films are being labeled blasphemy. When Disney officially declared the Expanded Universe non-canonical, many fans reacted like Christian fundamentalists backlashing against atheists attacking the Bible. Never mind the fact that the canonicity, as far as I know, of these materials was never set in stone by Lucas. No, fans complained that the stories they had invested themselves in for decades had somehow been robbed of meaning. Just like now, there was a movement within the fandom to spoil The Force Awakens on the Internet to prevent people from seeing it so as to make the franchise fail and have the Expanded Universe reinstated. Guess what? It failed. To nobody’s surprise, I’m sure.
Anyone who has disagreed with these movements has been declared a “filthy casual” amongst many other horrible names. They’ve even been shunned from the fandom. In other words, excommunicated.
Is it any wonder, then, that there’s been a measurable number of people across the world who’ve listed “Jedi” as their religion in censuses? There’s even an actual religion called “Jediism,” complete with a creed, 16 teachings, and 21 maxims. Some might say they’ve taken their fandom too far.
I’m not opposed to being passionate about what you enjoy. I’m not against debating the merits of media within the franchises you love (my gosh, I co-host a podcast that does that!) Have I zealously argued against certain creative decisions and chosen to no longer follow certain series because of them? Yes, on at least two occasions. But when it gets to this point, where you’re filling the internet with click bait articles and videos full of often unsubstantiated and shallow hatred, you’ve crossed into the Dark Side of the Force.
Let’s go back to when being a Star Wars fan was fun. Before the dark times. Before the insanity.
Here’s a quick video that perfectly summarizes all of this:
What do you think? Are these fans right? Why or why not? Have fandoms gone too far? Why or why not?
This was the closest I could bring myself to photograph my Grandmother in her casket (which is just out of frame). Photo by Nathan Marchand
My Grandmother lay in that open casket like someone sleeping. She was peaceful, serene, even beautiful. It was picturesque, and I had my iPhone out to snap a few photos. But I could not bring myself to step within a few feet of her, even if it’d get me a better photo composition, because I knew the awful truth. What I saw before me wasn’t slumber—it was death. And it repelled me.
Grandma Ruth’s funeral was difficult for all the typical reasons, but also because it reminded me of a truth I’d pondered several times before: death is repulsive. While there are exceptions to this rule (like medical examiners, who’ve become desensitized to it because of their work, or certain weirdos who take perverse pleasure in it), most human beings find death to be a revulsion. It is a great mystery, a tragic loss, an unwanted end. It frightens us. We don’t usually like talking about it because it forces us to grapple with our own mortality. That’s why there are about as many euphemisms for death as there are for sex (which, ironically, involves the creation of life): “the big sleep,” “passed away,” and “bit the dust,” to name a few. We don’t even like to utter the word oftentimes.
Personally, as a Christian, I believe this revulsion is because deep down in every human’s heart, they know death is an intruder. Despite the fact that it appears to be a part of the natural world (or the “circle of life,” as a popular song once said), it was never meant to be part of God’s design. In the Garden of Eden, there was no death. Does that mean Adam and Eve were immortal? The answer to that is beyond my paygrade. Regardless, God warned them that if they ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, they would die (Genesis 2:17). I take this to mean there was no death (or at least death as we know it) before then. It was when Adam and Eve succumbed to the wiles of the Serpent in Genesis 3 that death became part of the natural order. It was a corruption of what God created as good.
So, though many human beings deny this, deep down they know it to be true. They can dress it up or joke about it, even say death can be dignified, it doesn’t change the fact that it is unnatural. Perhaps part of why death is feared is because it is an irrefutable sign of God’s existence.
I think this is why, to put it in a storytelling perspective, why many comic book readers both love and hate resurrection stories in the funny books. On one hand, there’s the thrill of seeing a beloved character return (i.e. Superman in the famous ‘90s storyline) because it shows someone defeating death (which is itself an echo of Christian theology [Revelation 1:18]), but on the other, it cheapens death. What’s the point of killing a character if they’ll just be brought back later? It kills (no pun intended) the suspense, and makes their sacrifice hallow. The joke used to be that nobody stays dead in comics except Uncle Ben, Bucky, and Jason Todd. Now only the first third of that statement applies.
Regardless, this, too, is a reflection of this idea: we want there to be meaning in death. It is an inescapable intruder, so we try to find purpose in it, even if that purpose is only to celebrate the life of the deceased or glory in their passing (I’m looking at you, Fidel Castro). That’s one reason why we have funerals: they’re occasions for us to come to grips with how we think and feel about death.
These are but a few of my thoughts. Whole books have been written on the subject. I’m an amateur philosopher at best, so I won’t pretend to have it all figured out. Indeed, I’m still trying to figure out myself. Death is a subject too large for a little blog entry here. However, I do hope I’ve inspired you to think more deeply about the subject, whether it relates to your life or your writing.
What are your thoughts on death? It is repulsive to you? Why do you people are afraid of it?
A Man from Another Time Exploring Another Universe
