Castle Bravo: A Godzillaverse Retrospective

It's EXTREMYL not a Godzilla movie. We begin our sidebar into (echoey voice effect) SEASON X to cover the Gamera series with the 1965 black and white original Gamera, the Giant Monster. Gamera is, famously, the most enduring of Godzilla's knockoff competitors, and we'll be looking at how Gamera grew up in the shadow of the Bigger G, and whether or not it ever comes to stand fully beside him. No guests this week or for a while, as Season X is a purely Derek and Charlotte affair! Social Media Derek on Bluesky - @derekvandyke.bsky.social Charlotte on Bluesky - @dollblood.garden

With major scheduling conflicts tying up recording on the next 5 episodes (the Netflix trilogy, King of the Monsters, and Godzilla Vs Kong) we're hitting the "break glass in case of emergency" in order to keep the show on the rails. Listen in for a candid discussion between the two of us about our plans for the show going a bit off the rails, and how embracing a knockoff may be able to save us. Social Media Derek on Bluesky - @derekvandyke.bsky.social Charlotte on Bluesky - @dollblood.garde

It's... not even a Godzilla movie? Okay, hold that thought until the credits are done rolling. Following in the footsteps of Legendary's Godzilla reboot, King Kong returns to the scene with his own Vietnam War era reimagining intended to prep the stage for a future crossover. And cross over they very much would... but not yet. We're joined this week once again by podcaster and frequent collaborator Case Aiken from Certain Point of View. We've appeared on his shows Men of Steel, Another Pass, and The Word from Tomorrow. The whole CPOV network comes with a Castle Bravo endorsement at this point, go check them out! Social Media Derek on Bluesky - @derekvandyke.bsky.social Charlotte on Bluesky - @dollblood.garden Case on Bluesky - @caseaiken.bsky.social

It's... not even a Godzilla movie? We take our first ever break from the schedule to talk about Pacific Rim, a movie that ISN'T Godzilla but made such an impact on general audiences that it paved the way for Legendary's Godzilla releasing a year later. The two were basically seen as companion films for a long time, and for years many were convinced that Legendary would end up folding Pacific Rim into the Monsterverse alongside Godzilla and Kong. It's still relevant to Godzilla's history, and it's a bonus episode, and the movie absolutely rips, so why not? We're joined this week by podcaster and frequent collaborator Case Aiken from Certain Point of View. We've appeared on his shows Men of Steel and Another Pass, and Derek will be making a future appearance on new limited series The Word from Tomorrow. We've got more in the tank planned with Case for Castle Bravo as well, so go check him and his network mates out over at CPOV! Social Media Derek on Bluesky - @derekvandyke.bsky.social Charlotte on Bluesky - @dollblood.garden Case on Bluesky - @caseaiken.bsky.social

It's not a sequel to anything! Again! Following Legendary's total reimagining of Godzilla in 2014, Toho joined forces with acclaimed anime writer and director Hideaki Anno (of Evangelion fame) to direct their own completely standalone reimagining of a Godzilla movie, unconnected even to the original. What we got is an impeccably made, gripping film that has an awful lot to say about Japanese and global politics while maybe not being the most coherent about what it's getting at. It's the movie Derek has been dreading since we started, and it's finally here. We're joined this week by friend of the show Blaine Klutchko. Blaine brings necessary heat to the episode, and ended up bringing some of the best debate and disagreement the show has ever had. Man, we love when art inspires strong emotions in all of us. Social Media Derek on Bluesky - @derekvandyke.bsky.social Charlotte on Bluesky - @dollblood.garden Blaine on Bluesky - @morbidlycurious.bsky.social