Godzilla Singular Point (2021) [Anime Review]

Godzilla Singular Point; or, Kaiju;Gate
     It’s about exploring the structure of the universe. In order to truly understand the world, we must understand that which doesn’t exist within it.
At the height of Godzilla’s popularity due to recent movies, Netflix just can’t let it go at this point, so after the failed anime trilogy, they commissioned a 13-episode anime series, which debuted internationally at the end of June, 2021. My dear readers, please buckle up because this is going to be a wild one. Let’s explore the sci-fi insanity of Godzilla Singular Point.

Release Info

Directed by: Atsushi Takahashi Voice actors: Yume Miyamoto, Shoya Ishige, Taro Kikuchi

Language: Japanese Original Title: ゴジラ S.P ＜シンギュラポイント＞ No. of eps.: 13

Synopsis
Michiyuki Ashihara was a genius scientist who witnessed in his youth the destruction of home village by Godzilla. He devoted his life to studying the creature but went missing about 50 years ago. It’s now the year 2030. Yun Arikawa, a handyman working at Otaki Factory, and Mei Kamino, a researcher of imaginary creatures, find themselves on an accidental investigation of a mysterious signal in Ashihara’s abandoned household. The signal turns out to be an old Indian song which supposedly makes Kaiju monsters seep into our reality...

Destination: Predestination
The original trailer for this anime series looked really good but it did not get me hyped up. I guess I am the member of the overwhelming minority that liked the Polygon trilogy of Godzilla films for what they were. Sure, there were no Kaiju fights and a lot of talking, but I appreciated the philosophy behind the story and the attempt to ground the King of the Monsters within the sci-fi convention. Boy, oh boy, nothing prepared for hardcore science-fiction when I watched the first episode of Singular Point.

I guess in order to fully comprehend what is going on in this show, you need to be an enthusiast of mathematics and physics. Perhaps the reason for that is because the main writer himself, Toh EnJoe, has a degree in “mathematical physical study on the natural languages” (I kid you not: source). In Singular Point, you have a dozen of characters, multiple plotlines, and lots of scientific exposition thrown at you. By the middle of the season, you get so overwhelmed that your brain just switches itself off and you stay just to see the monster showdowns.

I am not sure if it is just me, but watching this show made me feel really stupid. All I could understand was that Kaiju monsters are out of this world, they bind the laws of physics, and are able to exist here because of “Red Dust”. On top of that, each monster is like an enclosed universe ready to go into supernova mode, so when they are fighting, they are actually fighting for total dominance on a molecular level, which consequently makes them all “Singular Points”. I think I am way off the mark with this interpretation, but this is coming from a person who thought that figured out all the time travel intricacies of Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (1991).

The best way to describe this show is to call it a mix between Godzilla, Inception, Lost, and Steins;Gate. It is all about the mystique behind Kaiju monsters, and the series really goes at lengths to rationalise their existence in our world.

That being said, I have to say that there is not a lot of Godzilla in Godzilla Singular Point. The series is mainly about human characters and… Jet Jaguar, who is crazy awesome here! I also liked reinterpretations of other monsters like Rodan and Anguirus. In addition, the fights are simply spectacular. The blending of hand-drawn animation with CGI effects is top notch and very reminiscent of the artstyle from Spiderman: Into the Spider-Verse (2018). In addition, make sure to stay till the end credits of each episode because these are packed with Easter Eggs referring to Godzilla's past.

With regard to human characters, honestly, there are so many of them that I did not feel any emotional attachment to particular individuals. Yun Arikawa and Mei Kamino are at the forefront because they are the protagonists, but the real unsung hero of Singular Point is Pelops II (Mei’s AI programme) who does most of the job and contributes to saving the day in the glorious finale. Huge respect to actress Misaki Kuno for voicing this character.

As for the music, the score was composed by none other than Ken Sawada. He already has enormous experience in the realm of television and anime, so it comes as no surprise that his OST for Singular Point is a solid job from beginning to the end. The score is not as epic as Takayuki Hattori’s composition for the anime trilogy, but I respect Sawada’s nods to Akira Ifukube’s original themes for Godzilla and other monsters.

Recommendations
If you want to experience a unique take on Godzilla, then I recommend Godzilla Singular Point. Just don’t try to understand it, feel it and enjoy the ride. I am positively waiting for the second season (yes, the very last scene of the series implies that there is going to be a continuation).

Overall score: 7/10

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