Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S. (2003)

[ゴジラ×モスラ×メカゴジラ 東京SOS]

Director: Masaaki Tezuka
Starring: Noboru Kaneko, Miho Yoshioka, Mitsuki Koga

Synopsis:
Amid efforts to restore the Kiryuu to fighting condition before Godzilla makes another appearances, the messengers of Mothra appear to plead with humanity to give up their greatest weapon.

Impressions:
As this is a direct sequel to Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla, it would've been nice to see more direct continuity with the characters, but we bring in a new a crew of operators, though the attention is more on one of the Kiryuu's mechanics, the nephew of Dr. Chuujou from Mothra, who returns for this film due to the Mothra connection. There's a compelling conflict here with humanity having to choose to return Godzilla's skeleton to the sea and have Mothra act as their defender, or else continue to rely on the Kiryuu (which, as we saw in the previous film, isn't entirely reliable) and have to face Mothra as an enemy. Of course, much as I appreciate Mothra for being willing to ally with humanity, she's not all that strong and that'd have to factor in the discussion of whether it's worth putting our faith in her. (That point never comes up, though, but maybe it might've if the film was being more meta.) I feel like it's worth noting that this film felt better paced than the other ones I've seen in this round of viewing. The only real annoyance was Yoshito's lack of military bearing (and that of a number of other members of the JXSDF). Anyway, it's a pretty solid entry in the franchise and worth a watch.

Rating:
Watch It