10 Silliest Storylines From The Godzilla Franchise

While more recent Godzilla movies have revisited the terrifying power, threat, and majesty of the radioactive lizard, his history is still filled with silly story lines and puzzling plot choices. Toho in particular returned Godzilla to his deadly, metaphorical roots with two of the most acclaimed movies in his 70-year career on the big screen: Shin Godzilla and Godzilla Minus One. Legendary’s Monsterverse, on the other hand, has progressed from the gritty reintroduction of Big G in Godzilla (2014) to the comic book-level insanity of Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire.

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To be clear, one of Godzilla’s most important features, and a big reason why he’s remained popular for so long, is his adaptability. He can serve as a powerful symbol of the horrors of nuclear war just as easily as he can act as a family-friendly merchandise inspiration. In fact, some of Godzilla’s most memorable moments and most popular movies on the big screen have been objectively silly. In looking back through 70 years of movies, ten story lines in particular stick out above the others when it comes to sheer absurdity.

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Quick Links

The Monsterverse’s Hollow Earth
- Godzilla vs. Kong (2021)

Space Radiation From A Black Hole Creates A Doppelgänger
- Godzilla Vs. SpaceGodzilla (1994)

Mind-Melting Time Travel Mechanics
- Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (1991)

Jet Jaguar’s Nonsense Special Ability
- Godzilla vs. Megalon (1973)

Weaponized Black Holes And Massive Prehistoric Bugs
- Godzilla vs. Megaguirus (2000)

Gene Splicing A Spirit Into A Rose Monster
- Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989)

Loaning Out Monsters In Exchange For The Cure For Cancer
- Invasion Of Astro-Monster (1965)

Godzilla Somehow Reproduces Asexually
- Godzilla (1998)

Mutant Humans Gun Down A Kaiju
- Godzilla: Final Wars (2004)

A Bullied Boy Dreams About Godzilla And His Son
- All Monsters Attack (1969)

10 The Monsterverse’s Hollow Earth

Godzilla vs. Kong (2021)

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To be perfectly clear, there is nothing wrong with the direction that Legendary is moving the Monsterverse. It lacks the gravitas of Toho’s Godzilla Minus One to say the least, but it’s a fun movie series that understands the entertainment value of giant monsters beating up on each other and blasting beams across cities. There isn’t even anything wrong with the altered backstory for Godzilla and the other monsters, in that they’re ancient guardians and enemies of Earth as opposed to byproducts of nuclear fallout.

With that said, the entire concept of an entirely different ecosystem that exists at the center of the planet and is only accessible via portals that open for Titans is objectively ridiculous. It’s a tremendous narrative solution to “where have all these monsters been hiding”, but from a science perspective, it’s utter nonsense. To Legendary’s credit, they have completely leaned into the absurdity of the Hollow Earth, which is why it has continued to work with each additional entry in the series.

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9 Space Radiation From A Black Hole Creates A Doppelgänger

Godzilla Vs. SpaceGodzilla (1994)

Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla is one of Godzilla’s most skippable movies from a sheer necessity perspective, as it largely functions as a rest stop on the way to the Heisei Era’s outstanding conclusion in Godzilla vs. Destoroyah. However, many Godzilla fans consider SpaceGodzilla one of Godzilla’s greatest enemies, even if he is just another version of Godzilla with a nebulous list of powers. It’s SpaceGodzilla’s origin that begins the movie on a decidedly silly note.

All Toho Godzilla Movie Eras – Key Details
Era	Timeline	Number of Movies	First Movie	Last Movie
Shōwa	1954–1975	15	Godzilla	Terror of Mechagodzilla
Heisei	1984–1995	7	The Return of Godzilla	See more : Who are Mae Whitman Parents? Meet Jeffrey Whitman and Pat Musick Godzilla vs. Destoroyah
Millennium	1999–2004	6	Godzilla 2000: Millennium	Godzilla: Final Wars
Reiwa	2016-present	5	Shin Godzilla	Godzilla Minus One

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It’s theorized that the Godzilla cells thrown into the sky by Biollante at the conclusion of Godzilla vs. Biollante and/or Godzilla cells clinging to Mothra at the end of Godzilla vs. Mothra made their way deep into space. There they were exposed to intense radiation emanating from a black hole, which somehow gave birth to the creature SpaceGodzilla, a clone of Godzilla with crystals jutting from his shoulders and a confusing array of beam powers. While SpaceGodzilla proves to be a very real and deadly threat, he has one of the more unbelievable origin stories for a Godzilla villain.

8 Mind-Melting Time Travel Mechanics

Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (1991)

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Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah is still a highly enjoyable Heisei Era entry as long as you don’t try to actually make sense of the time travel dynamics at play. Time travelers from the year 2204 known as the Futurians (nobody pulled any muscles creatively on that one) travel back to present day claiming that in the future, Godzilla completely destroys Japan, and so they aim to go back to 1944 to remove the Godzillasaurus dinosaur that will eventually become Godzilla after hydrogen bomb testing.

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In reality, the Futurians aim to leave three small creatures called Dorats in the past so that they will merge thanks to the nuclear fallout and become King Ghidorah. The Futurians want to use King Ghidorah to destroy Japan and alter the future, in which Japan has become a dominant and oppressive global superpower. The sheer mechanics of their plan are pure nonsense, but ultimately they bring a dying King Ghidorah to the future and send back the awesome Mecha-King Ghidorah to take on Godzilla; the time travel silliness can be forgiven in exchange for the introduction of MKG.

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7 Jet Jaguar’s Nonsense Special Ability

Godzilla vs. Megalon (1973)

Godzilla vs. Megalon is the Showa Era at its absolute silliest, and features Godzilla at his most anthropomorphic. Megalon and Gigan are fun and intimidating villains, and the round-edged Godzilla that takes them on requires assistance. The previously human-sized robot Jet Jaguar, who was being used as little more than a guide to point Megalon and then Godzilla in the right direction, bafflingly becomes Godzilla’s backup in the fight.

Godzilla vs. Megalon
was the first Godzilla movie to get a primetime network TV premiere in the United States; American comedian John Belushi hosted the broadcast in a full Godzilla suit.

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The benevolent robot grows from roughly 6 feet tall to a full 164 feet, and the only explanation given is that he “reprogrammed himself” to allow for that major alteration. It’s an extremely silly explanation that is purely used to set up the two-on-two battle royale that makes up the conclusion of Godzilla vs. Megalon. Extra silliness points go to this one for featuring the Godzilla gravity-defying flying dropkick and Godzilla’s handshake with Jet Jaguar.

6 Weaponized Black Holes And Massive Prehistoric Bugs

Godzilla vs. Megaguirus (2000)

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Godzilla vs. Megaguirus is an underrated Godzilla movie, as it features some excellent monster battles along with a stripped-down story that is a welcome change of pace after the plot complexity of the Heisei Era. However, the origin story for Megaguirus is as ridiculous as ever. An experimental weapon known as the Dimension Tide fires miniature black holes, with the ultimate intent being the immediate disposal of destructive monsters like Godzilla. Predictably, things go wrong, and it rips open a wormhole to the prehistoric past, allowing a massive dragonfly to enter the present and lay an egg.

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The egg hatches and hundreds of prehistoric dragonfly larva known as Meganulon are released to cause chaos. They evolve into large dragonfly-like creatures called Meganula, which end up tangling with Godzilla. The Meganula are able to siphon energy directly off Godzilla, and inject said energy into a large cocoon; Megaguirus, the queen of the Meganula, emerges from that cocoon. It’s even more scientifically nonsensical than SpaceGodzilla’s origin story, but that’s part of the charm of most Toho Godzilla movies, to be fair.

5 Gene Splicing A Spirit Into A Rose Monster

Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989)

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Biollante’s origin is fairly straightforward compared to some of the other monsters on this list. As is the case with many of the monsters that Godzilla creates, Biollante was born from Godzilla’s cells, which a scientist spliced into a rose. He had previously spliced some of his dead daughter Erika’s cells into those same roses in an attempt to preserve her soul, and ultimately, Biollante is an amalgam of the three different types of cells. The Plant Beast form of Biollante is among the coolest monster designs in Godzilla’s universe, but its origin is truly silly.

4 Loaning Out Monsters In Exchange For The Cure For Cancer

Invasion Of Astro-Monster (1965)

Invasion of Astro-Monster is typically revered as one of the better Showa Era movies, but that doesn’t make its plot any less laughable. The movie begins with astronauts visiting the mysterious Planet X, which is on the other side of Jupiter, and encountering the Xilien alien race. The Xiliens are being tormented by King Ghidorah on Planet X, and request to borrow Godzilla and Rodan to defend them from the three-headed monster in exchange for the cure for cancer. The astronauts agree, and Godzilla and Rodan are transported to Planet X.

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However, the Xiliens’ true intentions are soon revealed: they demand that the Earth is surrendered to them, or else it will be destroyed by Godzilla, Rodan, and King Ghidorah, all of whom are being mind-controlled by the Xiliens. Their control is eventually broken, and Godzilla and Rodan fend off King Ghidorah once again, who flees into space. Bonus silliness points go to Invasion of Astro-Monster for including Godzilla’s infamous victory dance, but the entire plot deserves credit for how over-the-top absurd it is.

3 Godzilla Somehow Reproduces Asexually

Godzilla (1998)

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Tristar’s 1998 American adaptation of Godzilla is almost universally disliked, as it was criticized for horrible acting, shoddy writing, and getting Godzilla himself completely wrong. The most absurd plot point in the entire mess is the introduction of Godzilla’s off-spring, which fill Madison Square Garden after Godzilla inexplicably manages to reproduce without a partner. It’s a ridiculous pivot away from the central concept, which was sold as an exploration of the consequences of a modern Godzilla terrorizing New York City. It takes an already bad movie and makes it even more nonsensical.

2 Mutant Humans Gun Down A Kaiju

Godzilla: Final Wars (2004)

Godzilla: Final Wars isn’t going to win any awards for acting, filmmaking, or cinematography. However, that was never the intent; Godzilla: Final Wars was intended as an obnoxiously over-the-top tribute to the last 50 years of Godzilla’s history. Many familiar friends and foes make their return, including Rodan, Anguirus, Gigan, and Hedorah, among others. The entire movie could qualify for this list, but one story line in particular stands out as more absurd than the others.

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Tristar’s 1998 version of Godzilla appears in
Godzilla: Final Wars
, only for the real Godzilla to dispatch him almost instantly. In the movie, he’s recognized as “Zilla”, because as is joked about the 1998 flop, “he takes the god out of Godzilla.”

Godzilla has to fight through the monsters terrorizing the globe under the mind control of the Xiliens, who return in a callback to Invasion of Astro-Monster. Part of the group facing off against the Xiliens are The Mutants, mutant superhumans who display increased kinesthesia, speed, and strength. The Mutants are sent out against Ebirah, the lobster monster, in an industrial area of Tokai. They manage to kill Ebirah using nothing more than specialized guns, some high-flying jumps and Naruto running. It’s one of the goofiest scenes in Godzilla’s entire history, and The Mutants’ story in general is nuts.

1 A Bullied Boy Dreams About Godzilla And His Son

All Monsters Attack (1969)

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All Monsters Attack, also known as Godzilla’s Revenge in the United States, is usually near the very bottom of Godzilla movie rankings. Its messy tone, excessive use of stock footage, and annoying characters are usually the main points of criticism, but the core concept of the movie is the weirdest, silliest element of the entire project. A bullied boy named Ichiro hides to escape his tormenters, and dreams about Godzilla and his disappointing son Minilla on Monster Island.

All Monsters Attack is the silliest, and quite possibly the worst, Godzilla movie.

Minilla is also being bullied by the thankfully one-off monster Gabara, and it’s clear that he’s supposed to act as a stand-in for Ichiro. The action on Monster Island (that isn’t stock footage) is uninteresting, as is the bully monster Gabara, who gets a breathtaking beating from Godzilla. What makes it all much worse/sillier is that it takes place entirely in the mind of Ichiro; it doesn’t actually happen, and there are no consequences. It’s the silliest, and quite possibly the worst, Godzilla movie.

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Godzilla

The Godzilla franchise, spanning over six decades, follows the adventures of the titular kaiju, a colossal, prehistoric sea monster awakened and empowered by nuclear radiation. Originating in Japan, Godzilla has evolved from a destructive force of nature to a protector of humanity, battling various other giant monsters, including iconic foes like King Ghidorah, Mothra, and Mechagodzilla. The series explores themes of environmental destruction, nuclear anxiety, and human resilience. With numerous films, TV series, and an expanding universe, Godzilla remains a cultural icon, captivating audiences worldwide with its epic battles and compelling narratives.

Created by Tomoyuki Tanaka , Akira Watanabe First Film Godzilla Latest Film Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire First Episode Air Date November 17, 2023 Cast Akira Takarada , Momoko Kôchi , Akihiko Hirata , Takashi Shimura , Anna Sawai , Kiersey Clemons , Ren Watabe , Kurt Russell , Wyatt Russell TV Show(s) Monarch: Legacy of Monsters Video Game(s) Godzilla , Super Godzilla , Godzilla (1990) , Godzilla: Unleashed , Godzilla: Monster War , Godzilla: Battle Legends , Godzilla: Save The Earth , Godzilla: Monster of Monsters! , Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters Melee Expand

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