Godzilla: Singular Point gives Jet Jaguar a welcome return, but comes at the cost of letting the King of the Kaiju really shine.
WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Godzilla Singular Point season 1, which is now streaming on Netflix.
After a big star change earlier in the year with Godzilla vs. Kong, Godzilla: singular point it feels like the other way around for the King of the Monsters. While the aforementioned live-action movie already had him in a supporting role for his primate rival, the new Netflix anime puts Godzilla even more in the back seat.
Taking the spotlight from Godzilla is the classic but dark character Jet Jaguar. Jet Jaguar’s focus on the Netflix anime gives the character a much-needed return, but is also a symptom of the overabundance of humans and Godzilla’s own close cameo status.
Godzilla Singular Point is all about Jet Jaguar
Jet Jaguar is the first “kaiju” seen in the anime, with his face plastered on the marketing materials, construction, and vehicles of the Otaki Factory. The robot is the brainchild of eccentric Goro Otaki, who wants it to act as a defender of the innocent. The towering mech is soon forced to take on this role to defend the city against the arrival of Rodan, who does quick work with Jet Jaguar in his first form.
Initially piloted by Goro himself, Jet Jaguar is later given an AI to think and act for itself. This makes it essential for defending humans against enemies like the spider Kumonga and, later, against Godzilla himself. This renewed focus on character is the first time it’s been the center of attention in years, as Jet Jaguar has basically had no major modern appearances since its debut in 1973. Godzilla vs. Megalon. This reflects the show’s presentation of several other relatively obscure kaiju from the Showa Era. Unfortunately, this comes at the expense of Godzilla himself, who is barely seen in the series.
Singular points aside from Godzilla in his own series
Much more than any of the movies, Godzilla: singular point spends an inordinate amount of time focusing on human characters. This is understandable, given that it is the first season and the status quo of this continuity must be established. It also allows Jet Jaguar to act as a kind of kaiju from a human point of view, fighting on the same level as the monsters while continuing to fight them. This essentially makes him the true hero, as humans would feel helpless without him.
Sadly, Godzilla is relegated to “final boss” duty, barely showing up, and basically not a threat. After all, cities around the world are already covered in radioactivity midway through the series, even though Godzilla himself is only seen in cameos at the time. Even the relatively weak species of Rodan are more of a horror simply because of the amount of screen time they have. Likewise, given how pathetic Jet Jaguar begins, the fact that he later fights back against Godzilla is a testament to how poorly the show treats its title monster.
To be fair this is how Godzilla vs. Megalon The movie unfolded, with Godzilla as a supporting character who simply helped Jet Jaguar. That was different though, and it was because that movie initially wasn’t a Godzilla feature at all. In this case, it only serves to undermine Godzilla and whatever threats he may pose in another season, especially with how incredible Jet Jaguar’s rise to prominence is.
Reference-www.cbr.com
