Godzilla Rivals: Vs. Hedorah

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Godzilla Rivals issues
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Godzilla Rivals: Vs. Hedorah
Godzilla Rivals: Vs. Mothra
Godzilla Rivals: Vs. Hedorah
Cover A by E.J. Su
Written by Paul Allor
Art by E.J. Su
Cover by E.J. Su (CVR A),
Jeffrey Veregge (CVR RI)
Colors by Adam Guzowski
Letters by Nathan Widick
Edits by Tom Waltz (supervising),
Megan Brown
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IDW
Godzilla Rivals
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Godzilla Rivals: Vs. Hedorah is the first installment of Godzilla Rivals. It was published on June 30, 2021. Saldapress published an Italian translation of the book on June 16, 2022.

Description

It's the 1970s, and the world's most terrifying Kaiju smash their way through New York City! As Godzilla and Hedorah do battle above, down below Todd Hopkins is racing across Manhattan, in a desperate bid to save the only scientist who can stop the chaos and drive the monsters back into the sea. But before the day is over, secrets will be revealed, and terrible choices made, to save the city from utter destruction! Writer Paul Allor (TMNT, G.I. Joe) and artist E.J. Su (Transformers, Godzilla: Legends) join forces to bring the premiere Godzilla Versus quarterly one-shot series in explosively shocking fashion! And each stand-alone issue features special wrestling poster-themed retailer incentive variants by fan-favorite artist Jeffrey Veregge (Transformers, Judge Dredd).

Plot

In New York City in 1971, Godzilla does battle with Hedorah. Todd Hopkins races through their battleground in an ambulance with an injured woman in tow. He communicates with a voice over a radio, saying that the woman he is transporting is Dr. Kovats, lead researcher for and sole survivor of the Kaiju Research Defense Center, which was destroyed earlier by the two kaiju. Hopkins insists that the voice find a bed for Dr. Kovats and save her so that she can save them all. The woman regains consciousness and addresses Hopkins, who responds that she is awake just before she tells him to watch the road. The vehicle narrowly avoids being crushed by Godzilla's foot. Hedorah launches its acidic sludge at Godzilla, while Hopkins floors it and drives right under the monster's foot. The vehicle then drives right between the two battling kaiju. Godzilla bites the top of Hedorah's head, which only serves to burn his mouth. Hedorah pushes Godzilla against a building, causing his atomic breath to fire straight up into the air. The vehicle speeds past Godzilla and Hedorah, after which the woman tells Hopkins that what he's doing isn't right. Godzilla plunges his fist into Hedorah's left eye and tears it out, badly burning his hand in the process. The woman tells Hopkins that once she is healed, they will save the city. As she holds her wound in pain, Hopkins anxiously tells her to stay with him. She then yells at him to watch the road, just before the vehicle crashes into Hedorah's disembodied eyeball. The woman is knocked unconscious by the crash, and Hopkins grabs her and takes her out of the vehicle as it fills with toxic sludge. Hopkins steps in the sludge, which begins to eat away at his shoe and prompts him to take it off. In the distance, Godzilla grapples with Hedorah, who grabs him by the neck and smashes him into a building. Godzilla punches himself free, then knocks Hedorah aside with a swipe of his tail followed by a blast of atomic breath, which passes through its body and strikes a building near Hopkins. Undeterred, he continues into the subway. There he is met by two police officers and a group of civilians. One officer instructs Hopkins to come with them to the shelter, but he responds that she needs to be taken to the hospital. The officer says the hospital is overwhelmed and not taking any more patients, but Hopkins replies that they will take Dr. Kovats. The officer tells his partner he will meet him at the shelter and leads Hopkins to through the subway toward the hospital. As they make their way through the collapsing subway tunnel, the officer is crushed by falling debris. He tells Hopkins that Dr. Kovats is more important than himself, and to keep going. Hopkins does not hesitate, and leaves the officer behind to die from his wounds. Godzilla and Hedorah continue their battle in the distance while Hopkins finally reaches the hospital.

Some time later, Hopkins awakens in a chair in the hospital next to the woman. The doctor enters the room and tells Hopkins that she has been stitched up and is healing properly. However, he asks who she really is. Hopkins replies that she is Dr. Kovats, but the doctor says he doesn't think so as a security guard appears behind him and Hopkins realizes he is handcuffed to the chair. The doctor says Kovats earned her Ph.D in the 1940s, meaning the woman is far too young to be her. He produces a picture he found in Hopkins' wallet depicting him with the woman, and asks if she is his girlfriend or wife. Hopkins finally replies that she is his sister, Suzii. He says she was a low-level assistant to Kovats. He went to save Suzii when Godzilla and Hedorah arrived in the city, and arrived at the Kaiju Defense Research Center just as the kaiju smashed through the facility and killed Kovats along with everyone else except for his sister. The doctor angrily scolds him for murdering others in the process of saving his sister and states that they are low on staff and space and working off failing generators. The loud roar of the kaiju shakes the room, causing the doctor to angrily shout at the monsters. He sighs and tells the guard to take Hopkins away, but Suzii awakens and grabs the guard's gun. She holds him at gunpoint and tells him that he is not taking Hopkins anywhere, and that he is going to let them go so they can save the city. As Suzii and Hopkins leave the hospital, he accuses her of stealing the guard's shoes, but she replies that at least she didn't get him killed. Hopkins angrily responds that he was saving her life, then suggests they get to a shelter or off of Manhattan as they approach a crater with a giant satellite dish laying in it. They hear a deafening roar as they witness Hedorah spraying more of its acidic sludge at Godzilla, who retaliates with a blast of atomic breath. Hedorah strikes back by firing more blasts of sludge, one of which hits a building near Hopkins and Suzii. Suzii looks down into the crater and says that they can stop the kaiju. She points to a cable and says if they reconnect it, the device will emit a specialized radioactive cocktail that will theoretically repel both kaiju, as well as kill anyone near it. Hopkins replies that escape is their only choice, but Suzii says it is not. Hopkins angrily says that she is going to sacrifice herself after all he did to save her, and she replies that she is not before pushing him into the crater. Hopkins tells his sister to get him out, but she says she can't. She says she would have done this herself, but in her current state was too weak to pick up the cable or even survive the drop. It has to be him, she says. She thanks Hopkins for saving her life. Hopkins lifts the cable and asks her what happens if he doesn't do it out of spite, and she replies that he will have killed them all. The battling kaiju close in, and Hedorah fires a blast of sludge at Godzilla's face that knocks him to the ground. Suzii approaches the fallen Godzilla and places her hand on him, but he quickly recovers and fires his atomic breath at Hedorah as he stands back up. Godzilla and Hedorah stare each other down just as the device powers on and emits the special radiation. Godzilla immediately walks away while Hedorah watches. Suzii thanks Hopkins and apologizes for what she did, then pulls out the gun and prepares to kill herself. However, Hopkins soon crawls out of the crater. Suzii runs to her brother and helps him up. She says that Hedorah got close enough to absorb the radiation, meaning it will leave as well. Suzii and Hopkins sit next to each other as they watch both Godzilla and Hedorah depart to the sea.

Appearances

Monsters

Characters

Locations

Gallery

Covers

Scans

Trivia

  • This comic is the first piece of Godzilla media from IDW Publishing to use a Showa design for Godzilla.
  • The final cover for this comic features an icon commemorating Hedorah's 50th anniversary. The comic is set in 1971, the release year of Godzilla vs. Hedorah, and the photo of Todd and Suzii is dated 7/24/71, the day the film was released in Japanese theaters.
  • A sign on a building in this comic reads "Anguirus Club." Another sign reads "Goji-Cola."
  • One piece of graffiti in the subway tunnel reads "Ghidorah" (ギドラ) in katakana, while another says "Kong" in English.
  • This comic ends with an advertisement for the next installment in the series, Godzilla Rivals: Vs. Mothra.
  • The Italian variant cover for this comic uses Arthur Adams' cover A art for Godzilla: Legends #4.

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