Episode 38: Eric Anderson vs. 'Godzilla vs. Kong'

The Monster Island Film Vault

Hello, kaiju lovers!

Finally, the “Kong Quest” comes to an end! After months of delays due to avoiding competition and COVID-19, Godzilla vs. Kong has been released. It’s not a fever dream—it’s real! Nate is joined by his friend, Nerd Chapel founder Eric Anderson, to discuss the epic rematch nearly 60 years in the making. They host a special premiere for the Legendary film at the newly opened Denham Theater, an event that’s been delayed and rescheduled as often as the film’s release. A cavalcade of special guests attends, including the little Iwi deaf girl Jia. She is the youngest of “Kong’s Queens,” all the surviving ladies who have captivated the Eighth Wonder over the years. Nate and Eric dive deep into the deceptively simple movie, discussing Kong’s “hero’s journey,” the Jules Verne-ian/Edgar Rice Burroughs-ian world-building, and its theme of mankind trying to control forces greater than themselves. You’ll also hear them compare the movie to Conan the Barbarian, Die Hard, and The Lord of the Rings.

The Toku Topic isn’t about the content of the movie itself but a debate raging around it: movie theaters vs. streaming services. Which do you prefer to see a movie for the first time?

Afterward, Nate and company hear that Kong had too much to drink at the after-party and has gone on a drunken rampage. MIFV’s intrepid producer, Jimmy From NASA, volunteers to handle the situation the best way he knows how: Mechani-Kong Mk. 2. That goes about as well as you’d expect, so Nate and Eric recruit one of “Kong’s Queens” for help so beauty can save the beast for once.

Prologue and Epilogue written by Nathan Marchand with Eric Anderson.

Music:
-“Here We Go” by Chris Classic
-“Pensacola, Florida (Godzilla Theme” by Junkie XL
-“Skull Island (Kong Theme)” by Junkie XL
-“A New Language” by Junkie XL
-“Main Title” by Moscow Symphony Orchestra, composed by Max Steiner

Sound effects sourced from Freesound.org (including some by InspectorJ).

We’d like to give a shout-out to our MIFV MAX patrons Travis Alexander and Michael Hamilton (co-hosts of Kaiju Weekly); Danny DiManna (author/creator of the Godzilla Novelization Project); Eli Harris (elizilla13); Chris Cooke (host of One Cross Radio); Bex from Redeemed Otaku; and Damon Noyes! Thanks for your support!

You, too, can join MIFV MAX on Patreon to get this and other perks starting at only $3 a month!

Check out Nerd Chapel and the 42 devotional books!

This episode is approved by the Monster Island Board of Directors.

Timestamps:
Intro/Prologue: 0:00-11:40
Entertaining Info Dump: 11:40-22:24
Toku Talk: 22:24-1:46:55
Ad: 1:46:55-1:47:47
Toku Topic: 1:47:47-2:14:12
Housekeeping & Outro: 2:14:12-2:23:16
Epilogue: 2:23:16-end

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© 2021 Moonlighting Ninjas Media

Bibliography/Further Reading:

• Bloom, David. “Insights: Could The Streaming Services Killing Movie Theaters Save Them Instead?”
• Bradshaw, Paul. “Streaming services have saved cinemas, but now they’re kicking them while they’re down” (NME)
• Burtch, Gordon; Cho, Daegon; Liang, Yangfan; and Smith, Michael D. “Will Movie Theaters Survive When Audiences Can Stream New Releases?” (Harvard Business Review)
• Deckelmeier, Joe. “Adam Wingard Interview: Godzilla vs. Kong” (Screenrant)
• Doyne, Shannon. “In the Age of Digital Streaming, Are Movie Theaters Still Relevant?” (The New York Times)
• Garnett, Christina. “A testament to the user experience: movie theaters vs streaming”
• “Godzilla vs. Kong” (Wikipedia)
• “Godzilla vs. Kong (2021)” (Wikizilla)
• Patches, Matt. “Godzilla vs. Kong is more of an Avengers: Endgame than a Monsterverse finale” (Polygon)
• “Preference for watching a movie for the first time at a theater instead of via a streaming service in the United States from November 2018 to June 2020” (Statista)
• Richwine, Lisa. “Cinema vs. streaming: the battle over when and where you can see movies” (Reuters)
• Whitten, Sarah. “Movie theater owners are frustrated about streaming, but their survival depends on studios” (CNBC)