Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire / YMMV

Accidental Aesop: Small children deserve kindness and understanding rather than punishment. While Suko starts as a brat — biting Kong's finger, luring him into an ambush, tricking him into almost getting eaten by the Drownviper — it's clear that it's not because he was born evil but rather just a result of the environment in which he was raised. Kong never doles out any corporal punishment on Suko (he used him as a pair of nunchucks when they first met, but that was self-defence) — instead, he acts as a positive role model for the young ape: being patient, generous and protective whilst at the same time willing to stand up for what's right and brooking no disrespect. With an example of good behaviour to follow, Suko quickly improves.
Alternative Character Interpretation: See here.
Awesome Art: Most of the official posters for this movie are nothing short of amazing.
Catharsis Factor: The Skar King getting beat down by Kong and Godzilla, frozen by the very monster he forcibly and painfully controlled, and then defiantly looked at in the eye by Kong before being smashed into pieces is sure to garner applause from viewers due to being the most loathsome kaiju villain in the Monsterverse, if not both the Godzilla and King Kong franchises as a whole.
Complete Monster: The Skar King:
- Film: The Skar King is an ancient Great Ape Titan warlord who, untold millennia ago, led his tribe in an attempt to conquer the Surface World, but was imprisoned in a lower layer of the Hollow Earth by Godzilla. Confining his tribe to a volcanic wasteland and ruling through pain and suffering for generations, the Skar King killed those who dared to defy him; gathered a harem of terrorized females to father his children; and enslaved the cryogenic reptilian Titan Shimo through torture with the intent of using her to cause another Ice Age. When he discovered humans from the surface had entered the Hollow Earth, the Skar King slaughtered Monarch's Outpost and led his army in an attempted conquest. Upon reaching the surface with Shimo, he nearly succeeded in accomplishing his goals but was killed by the combined efforts of Kong, Godzilla, the young ape Suko—implied to be the Skar King's own son—and a liberated Shimo.
- Greg Keyes's novelization: The Skar King is an ancient Great Ape warlord who corrupted his once-peaceful tribe and waged war against Godzilla and his allies in an attempt to conquer the Surface World. Defeated and imprisoned in a lower layer of the Hollow Earth—inspiring various myths of evil gods being imprisoned—the Skar King confined his tribe to a volcanic wasteland; ruled for generations through suffering and fear; took the tribe's females as his personal harem; imposed a mentality on his tribe where only the most cruel and vicious Great Apes were deemed fit for survival; and brutally killed any who dared to defy or fail him. Enslaving and torturing the prehistoric cryogenic Titan called Shimo, the Skar King plotted to use her to wipe out all life on the surface by causing a new Ice Age, while lying to his followers that they would rule together once his conquest was complete. When Suko—one of his sons—betrayed him to rescue Kong, the Skar King ordered his Red-Stripe enforcers to capture them to be executed; even attempting to kill Suko himself before being defeated by the combined efforts of Kong and Godzilla, frozen solid by a liberated Shimo, and smashed to pieces.
Crosses the Line Twice: Kong using Suko as an Improvised Weapon. It's every bit as bizarre as it sounds, but you'll probably be laughing too hard to question it.
Epileptic Trees:
- Before release, the Skar King generated a lot of theorizing, with some guessing that he's a relative of Kong's or is a Western version of Sanda or King Caeser. Some have even theorized that he has powers similar to Godzilla's!
- An internet troll harassing Bernie on his podcast has the username "Ghidorahstan64". Some fans have had wild theories implying that this is Ren Serizawa who survived, or even that Mechagodzilla's consciousness is now loose on the Internet.
Fan Nickname:
- "Emperor Kong" and "Kaiser Kong" (the latter being "emperor" in German, contrasting with King Kong) were being thrown around for the new Titan. "Scar King" is another that hit surprisingly close to the mark, with official promotional material revealing the name to be "Skar King".
- Kong's new bright yellow gauntlet has been compared to the Infinity Gauntlet, earning its wielder the moniker of "Thanos Kong" and "Infinity Gauntlet Kong".
- Godzilla's new bright pink/purple spines have seen this form dubbed "Super Godzilla Rosé", "Barben heimer Godzilla", and "Needler Godzilla".
- One of Skar King’s more prominent minions, One-Eye, has recently started earning the nickname “Homer” due to him balding, being frequently on the receiving end of slapstick, and attempting to strangle Suko in his last scene.
Fandom Rivalry: Although most Godzilla fans are simply happy for the glut of Godzilla media being released close to one another, there's a subset of Godzilla Minus One fans that dislike the MonsterVerse that threw shade at it by negatively comparing it to that film, particularly since the trailer for Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire came out around the same time as the US release of Minus One. Some fans of Minus One are less than impressed by this movie doubling down on the goofiness, and the likelihood that humans will once again be dull and uninteresting, something that the Monsterverse has been guilty of in the last couple of movies. This has arguably increased with many critics unfavourably comparing this movie to Minus One.
Fountain of Memes: The "Titan Evolution" figure from the toyline has been subject to a great number of memes thanks to the fact the figure is essentially a Godzilla Evolved figure inside an awkward rubber suit of normal Legendary Godzilla. That rubber shell has proven itself to be prime meme fodder thanks to its awkward puffiness, jiggling movements, and the whole "stretched over a Godzilla" play feature. It also brought on joking comparisons of The Man in the Suit and an early draft of Shin Godzilla that featured Body Horror, Multiple Head Case, and Self-Duplication.
Friendly Fandoms:
- With Minus One, which was released in the US just days before the teaser trailer for The New Empire debuted; largely speaking, fans of Godzilla perceived the stark contrast in tone between the two films as perfectly embodying the dichotomy of the Godzilla series as a whole. And with Monarch: Legacy of Monsters also airing concurrently, most fans seemed pleased to have such an abundance of new Godzilla material regardless of their personal preferences. A vast majority of fans of one are just happy to have more Godzilla content and are excited to see this film after viewing Minus One.
- Also with Dune: Part Two. Both films are visual spectacles with giant monsters (all of the monsters in Godzilla X Kong and the sand worms in Dune) and contrasting tones and settings that act as a good palate cleanser for one another. Plus, both movies released close enough to be in theaters at the same time, but not close enough to eat into each other's box office revenue. It also helps that both films are produced by Legendary Pictures and Warner Bros..
Harsher in Hindsight: Godzilla smashing through a couple bridges in Rome wasn't fun to watch in theaters when the movie released days after a cargo boat smashed into the Baltimore Key Bridge, completely levelling it and killing several people.
He's Just Hiding: Many fans apply this to Tiamat and Scylla, hoping that Godzilla only killed a different member of their species, or that another member of their species is still out there. In Tiamat's case, some also point out we don’t actually ''see'' her severed head or any missing vital organs, and that it's entirely possible all the chunks of her we do see came from her tail; Therefore, she could have escaped, heavily wounded but alive.
Ho Yay: Bernie and Trapper have a lot of chemistry and occasionally get a bit too touchy-feely despite barely knowing each other. Taken to its zenith when Bernie says he wants to kiss Trapper on the mouth.
Just Here for Godzilla: ...or at least the newcomers (mainly Tiamat).
Love to Hate: Skar King quickly became popular after the movie came out due to just how much he delights in his evil making him a joy to watch and audiences want to see him taken down.
Memetic Loser: Skar King got hit with this during the lead-up to the movie's release. Despite being hyped up by the marketing as the biggest threat in the series, many expressed doubts that he could compare to King Ghidorah or Mechagodzilla; This was exacerbated by trailers and TV spots, showing him getting slugged, dropkicked, and swatted around like a tennis ball by Kong and Godzilla. It turns out that most of these hits come from the finisher that killed him.
Memetic Mutation: See here.
Moe: Sure, he ain't chibi-sized or whatever but, come on, Godzilla sleeping, curled up in the Colosseum, is pretty cute.
Money-Making Shot
- Nearly every YouTube thumbnail for the first trailer shows Godzilla and Kong charging side-by-side as they roar like berserkers.
- With the second trailer, a majority of YouTube thumbnails show Godzilla and Kong simultaneously roaring into the sky with the Sphinx placed right in the middle of them in the background. The actual shot from the movie is even better, with Mothra in the center of the screen joining in.
- In the film itself we're greeted by the glorious shot of the four combatants charging at each other in a perfect mirror image, with Skar King and Shimo on the left and Kong and Godzilla on the right.
Moral Event Horizon: The Skar King goes way beyond the line by knocking Suko's caretaker into the lava pit behind them, all because she had the audacity of either not laughing alongside him and the other apes, or by protecting Suko. Especially loathsome if you subscribe to the idea that Suko was their mutual offspring.
Narm Charm: Overall, a lot of the goodwill towards the film before release is Legendary being willing to embrace the silly, colorful, and ridiculous aspects inherent in a kaiju setting rather than being deathly grim. A few examples stick out in particular:
- Is Godzilla and Kong charging side by side like they're in a superhero movie kinda silly? Yes. Is it absurdly awesome seeing two of the most iconic monsters of all time charging into battle side by side? Also yes.
- Godzilla's pink Evolved form is goofy and ridiculous, but it does connect with a previous version. Also, Real Men Wear Pink is in full effect.
- Kong using Suko like a pair of nunchucks in the fight against the other giant apes. It's so utterly ridiculous, unexpected, and silly that it quickly loops back around to being amazing and a significant number of viewers cited the moment as one of the movie's high points.
Salvaged Story:
- Many fans were displeased that the Iwi were seemingly wiped out offscreen in Godzilla vs. Kong after a storm destroyed Skull Island. This film reveals that some of them survived and now reside inside the Hollow Earth.
- Many fans disliked how quick Monarch was to turn on Godzilla and believe the worst in the previous film. This film has them one hundred per cent on Godzilla's side and instantly realise his unusual behavior is a sign something very bad is coming.
- Bernie's conspiracy theorist traits are massively toned down for this movie. He's still running his podcast but has gone mainstream enough to accept sponsorships from insurance companies. He also receives a bit of Character Development as his reaction to seeing someone die in front of him is complete shock and fear, unlike in the previous movie where he had little to no such reaction to watching people die in front of him (even if one of those people very much had it coming).
- While Mothra was very well-liked, many felt she didn't live up to the suggestion she's roughly comparable to Godzilla. In this movie, while Mothra doesn't have a ton of screentime, she's given a much better showing of essentially soloing Skar King's army during the anti-gravity fight, knocks (an upgraded) Godzilla on his butt with her God Rays, and staggers Shimo with them, showing herself as much stronger and implying her fight with Rodan was largely a bad match up and situation.
Signature Scene: The anti-gravity fight is considered not only one of the most memorable scenes of the movie, but of the Monster'Verse as a whole, due to not only being an amazing set piece, but incredibly unique.
Spiritual Successor: Some have considered this film to be the closest thing to a feature film adaptation of Primal Rage, possibly due to comparisons between Skar King's design to Chaos and the pose Kong strikes while wearing the B.E.A.S.T. Glove resembling the game's cover art.
Tainted by the Preview: While not entirely negative, many have shown outright disappointment and hatred for Tom Holkenborg's score, released a week before the film. The criticism stems from the many synth- and brass-heavy tracks, especially Mothra's new theme "Divine and Glorious", which is pretty but pales in comparison to Bear McCreary's adaptation of the Japanese films' original Mothra theme. Holkenborg's dismissive statements towards the classic themes (stating that they didn't work in modern films, even though Shin Godzilla, Godzilla Minus One and Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) all used them effectively and to great acclaim) and the older films (including Mothra vs. Godzilla and King Kong vs. Godzilla, both widely considered to be the best of the '60s films) also raised many hackles, with claims that he didn't understand the characters or how to score music for kaiju quickly following. ^note
They Wasted a Perfectly Good Character:
- A common complaint of the film is that Shimo, for all the fandom hype around her, doesn't really get to do much or have much character aside from being Skar King's weapon.
- Likewise, Tiamat and Scylla were killed by Godzilla in under fifty seconds each. Seeing as Scylla was one of the Titans who bowed to Godzilla in Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) and Tiamat gave Godzilla a real challenge in Godzilla: Dominion, both deaths feel like a waste. Tiamat is especially disappointing, as she made her first appearance on the big screen only to be unceremoniously killed off.
- This extends even to Godzilla himself, whose contributions to the entire movie could be considered arbitrary at best. While Kong carries the movie's entire plot on his back, Godzilla spends most of the movie doing little more than readying himself for a fight that doesn't feel as if he is needed. Especially as Kong went to all the trouble of getting Godzilla to come down to Hollow Earth only for the battle to go back to the surface where he would have inevitably jumped in anyway.
- Lastly, complaints that Mothra didn't do much either aside from stopping Godzilla from killing Kong and then providing support in the lead-up to the final fight.
They Wasted a Perfectly Good Plot: While no one is complaining about Mothra returning, it's rather disappointing that she and Godzilla only interact very briefly during the fight in Egypt. With her being Godzilla's "Queen of the Monsters" and Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) establishing a symbiotic relationship with the two, it feels like a missed opportunity to not have both of them meet up during the denouement. Much of this can be chalked up to licensing as the production team always intended to use Mothra but weren't sure if they had the rights to the character so they used a placeholder kaiju Phosphera before changing back to Mothra mid-production.
Unexpected Character:
- Mothra returns, but this was hidden for most of the advertising until the film debuted in China. This took many fans off guard, as Legendary has to buy the rights to each Toho kaiju they use, so Mothra's sudden return was a major curve ball.
- Tiamat was an extremely unusual surprise character for the film, even if her role and screen time in it were minor, because this is the first time a character from the tie-in MonsterVerse comics, largely considered dubiously canon at best, has appeared in the movies in any capacity.
Ugly Cute:
- Shimo's facial features are a lot more benign-looking than Godzilla's, which can border on Nightmare Retardant. Once she's set free and befriends the titular duo, her look feels more appropriate.
- Doug the Foetodon makes a reappearance, as endearingly pugnacious as ever.
- The Hellhawks make a return, though they're more colorful and parrot-like this time around, despite their wrinkly featherless bodies.
Viewer Gender Confusion: Prior to the film's release, there was a lot of confusion over whether Shimo was supposed to be male or female. Initial information indicated that Shimo was male (although the film’s main creature designer also said he had no problem with people referring to Shimo as female, and he later referred to Shimo with male pronouns). Official toy listings for some retailers used female pronouns while others used male pronouns, further muddying the issue. On February 15, a Content Leak on Twitter made it clear that Shimo is a female kaiju, clarifying Shimo was indeed supposed to be male at some point during the earlier production, which explains why all early reports were using male pronouns for the kaiju, and in the final film, Shimo is explicitly referred to with female pronouns.
The Woobie:
- Jia is going through the motions of adolescence, coupled with a crippling sense of isolation due to being (as she initially assumed), the last of the Iwi and being separated from her best friend. Her empathic abilities kicking into overdrive warning her of trouble in Hollow Earth also cause her plenty of stress.
- Shimo is without a doubt a truly powerful Titan to be reckoned with, easily being twice the size of Godzilla and having a powerful ice breath that according to supplemental material was responsible for freezing Ghidorah in ice. Sadly, she is also a benign and innocent Non-Malicious Monster kept prisoner and exploited by the Skar King as a weapon, with the crystal at the end of his whip seemingly electrocuting her and causing her great torment to enforce her obedience.

YMMV / Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire

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