Godzilla Singular Point (2021) User Reviews

It is weird and kind of hard to follow, but entertaining nonetheless

[TyrantRex · 7/10 · 9 June 2021]

This show has a lot of similarities with Shin Godzilla. Especially concerning the evolution of the kaiju.

The story is full of theoretical physics, science, mythology, metaphysics, and technical stuff that can make things difficult to understand at times. Many of the conversations between the human characters will just sound like technobabble to most.

It is also very fast paced for a series that is 13 episodes long. Some things just simply aren't explained. It certainly expects viewers to already be familiar with the Godzilla mythos, even though this is an original story, as there are many kaiju from various Toho films.

Godzilla: Singular Point is good, but it demands your full attention. It is definitely not something you can follow while on in the background if you're doing something else.

All over the place but a fun ride none the less

[Bigchungus2020 · 7/10 · 17 June 2021]

While the plot is kinda all over the place and hard to follow its still an interesting take on the Toho Character and his co stars.

The originality of the story cannot be disputed

[Mysterygeneration · 6/10 · 13 January 2024]

The originality of this story cannot be disputed. It's undeniably the most cerebral-or pseudo-intellectual, depending on your perspective-Godzilla tale ever narrated. It should not be shocking that this story is being conveyed through anime rather than live action as there are scenes in the program that, if done in live action, would require millions of dollars in special effects.

The personalities really appeal to me. They are all wise and rarely take any foolish actions that make you cringe. In previous Godzilla stories, certain characters might have been written off as uninteresting villains, but in reality, they are rather complex and have valid reasons for acting in the ways that they believe are correct.

Godzilla looks more like a lizard now

[Movi3DO · 7/10 · 17 June 2021]

Another Spring anime just ended. A mystery surrounding the hurricane of red dust and the appearance of many kaiju that swept through the world.

Right of the bat, the animation was awesome. There was heavy use of CGI on the kaiju. Even though I don't like CGI animation, it was pretty well done here. Godzilla looked mighty and more like a lizard than in the live-action movies. When Godzilla used atomic breath, there's an add-on animation with multiple circles that looked very cool.

The tricky part was the story. Even though I got the general plot, the physics behind it was beyond my comprehension. Because the plot was confusing, it was hard to follow at times and invest in the overall story. However, the pacing was still fast and didn't drag out. The AI spoke at the speed of light, so I had to work my eyes more to read all the subtitles. It wasn't an issue.

The characters didn't have any backstory, which was understandable because of the urgency of the plot. I didn't invest much in any of the characters, except Jet Jaguar, because of the complicated plot.

Overall, a pretty entertaining anime despite the complicated plot. 6.5/10.

The first real sci-fi I've seen in a long time

[eastonzoey · 9/10 · 10 June 2021]

Godzilla Singular point is a delicate weave of theoretical physics and mythology which returns to the roots of science fiction.

The anime weaves together a mysterious plot through the use of real concepts which are just on the edge of public general understanding and only engages in science-fantasy when necessary for the setting or plot. The "science" part of "science fiction" is often completely ignored in sci-fi works, and just explained with made up terms and an understanding that "it just works, because it's the future".

In Godzilla Singular Point I was astonished by just how well they weaved the science into the story. I excitedly showed it to friends of mine who have experience in the field of physics and they were similarly surprised and delighted. The show spends the majority of it's time building an expertly crafted atmosphere of mystique and mystery. I invite viewers to take their time digesting the terms and concepts which are introduced and search up terms they don't understand, altho I also recognize that some may see this suggestion as a recognition of a glaring flaw.

I do think the higher level concepts limit the shows audience. It's intended viewership seems to be those who have at least been curious enough to have looked up some videos on the subjects in the past. Where I see a refreshing take on science fiction, other viewers might see an unnecessarily complex series of jargon and become frustrated.

A monster mash trying hard to be smart.

[kevinxirau · 7 July 2021]

I'm shocked Japan has made very little animation of its most iconic monster. Coming straight to Netflix is "Godzilla Singular Point", a 13-episode anime that takes Big G and his monstrous costars to a brand new direction. There was some hype from fans like myself surrounding its release, but did it live up to expectations?

Plot: Engineer Yun Arikawa and graduate Mei Kamino are individually drawn to an Indian song tied to a scientist who disappeared years ago. Shortly after, a red dust with strange properties is discovered and it spawns monsters that evolve and multiply rapidly, the worst being Godzilla. Working with their allies, the two must unlock clues to stop the upcoming catastrophe from engulfing the universe.

The art style is beautifully drawn with a stunning array of colors ranging from scenic to apocalyptic and the animation is pretty solid. The main characters are basic but fine and have good designs that make it easy to tell them apart. The standouts include Mei who's cute in a dorky way, elderly but energetic Goro Otaki who is so entertaining to watch, and brilliant but prideful Bearach "BB" Byrne. I'm a little iffy with Yun; while functional, he's mostly straight-faced and not charming. By contrast, the kaiju are done with CGI with wicked designs heavily drawn from nature. Each has time to shine with some having a little personality like Anguirus. Godzilla only becomes active in the second half. When he shows up, he does what he does best: blowing stuff up and showing others who's boss. Most surprising is the robot Jet Jaguar, once infamously known from the silly "Godzilla vs Megalon" now a badass, endearing character that develops over time with a fairly heartfelt conclusion. There's substantial destruction (some of it reminiscent of "Shin Godzilla"), plentiful monster mayhem, fun fight scenes, and a real sense of escalation. Outside the classic Godzilla theme, the music is pretty memorable from the catchy opening theme by BiSH to the several iterations of the main song "Alapu Upala". Longtime fans will also spot the numerous nods to the franchise.

For all the good here, the anime is bogged down by certain elements. The story heavily centers on theoretical physics. While a unique concept for the franchise, there are extensive lectures of how this dimensional mumbo jumbo works and what the mystery scientist did prior to the events of this series in every episode. Even when they try to explain in simplified/comparative terms, it's still very hard to follow. Some of it is delivered via rapid fire text message conversations that go on longer than needed. It messes up the pacing and leaves little room for the protagonists' development beyond their base traits, not helped by the large cast. Mei and Yun spend most of the time apart on separate quests, which almost feels like I'm watching two different anime; a sci-fi disaster with borderline Lovecraftian horror and a monster-of-the-week action show. Despite enough screen time, Godzilla isn't the center of the story, more an accessory to a larger threat and a simple final boss, which is a real bummer. What's more, his few scuffles with other kaiju are very brief. Certain questions are left unanswered by the end, magnified by an after-credit scene that appears to tease a second season.

"Godzilla Singular Point" leaves me with conflicted feelings. The monsters and action are fun, Jet Jaguar is cool, and the humans are decent enough to carry the overall good story, not to mention nice music and animation. On the other hand, the show would benefit greatly from being longer, cutting down/out the overly complicated science, developing the protagonists more, and Big G being the main focus rather than a symptom to a bigger problem. All an all, an anime with ups and downs.

Not Really a Godzilla Series

[stephensaaront · 6/10 · 29 July 2021]

This was more like the Sunrise mystery/conspiracy series'. Anything else could have replaced the kaiju and not changed the slow mostly bland story. Not bad but not good.

Nerdy & Thrilling update to Godzilla...

[lunarvision · 9/10 · 9 July 2021]

Fantastic and detailed series that re-contextualizes the Godzilla/kaiju mythos through modern quantum physics. Full on neediness that also shows the (new) origins giant robot Jet Jaguar. Due to the pacing and content - best enjoyed by hardcore Godzilla fans who appreciate the legend and science.

Hyper-detailed, fast paced and very nerdy. This anime is not for casual fans.

Boooring.

[metintatari · 5/10 · 26 June 2021]

First off dont go watching it if you want to see a lot of Godzilla action. He is in it like for 1-5 min at most (yes all 13 episodes included.) in fact they could just rename the whole series to Jet Jaguar's adventures or Jet Jaguar Singular Point. Too much sciense talk, which you dont mind at first because you think you'll see some action towards the end but then after midway through the series you realize its all there is to this anime. All talk no action. I dont need some super calculater of whatever to know disaster is coming when Godzilla is plowing through the city. Even at the end you expect some epic clash between the title character and Jet Jaguar but you never get it. Characters are somewhat likable (AI was the cutest.) plot was.... waaay over my head which I stopped trying to make sense of it after a while. Every cool thing a sci fi nerd would like is in this anime: Time Travel (not like an actual time travel but sending information back in forth in time) and Kaijus what more could you want right? But it does nothing with it. Try watching your favorite godzilla movie and time travel movie at the same time you'll have much better time and it will hurt your head less. I only give it 5 because of its opening theme.

A really good show and better then the other anime godzilla series.

[gharback · 9/10 · 21 July 2021]

Now firstly I want to say this is way better than the other Godzilla anime series by a lot. Now I haven't finished watching it but every time I watch an episode I'm dying to see the next episode it always leaves you on a part that looks really good them I'm like "ok I should watch the next episode I really want to see what's next" then when I finish that episode I really want to see the next one so I do until I decide to stop. The only reason I'm not voting a ten there's quite a bit of talking but normally important unlike the other anime godzilla show it was basically non stop talking. That what I have to say about this show it's really good and I would watch this ver and over again.

best mess that i have ever seen

[ahano-47418 · 7/10 · 1 August 2021]

While a complete mess on the story end, I believe that this show really succeeds at entertainment.

Its fun creative and it really feels like the team behind it had a real passion for the series The animation voice acting and visual presentation are all really good and impressive not to mention the mix between cgi and 2d while obvious, never distract from the show.

So, while i think It maybe deserved a 6/10 because of its at times way to complicated for its own good story. Just out of the sheer passion behind it I am giving it a 7/10 id much rather have this than the corporate mess that the monsterverse is anyway.

Confusing story, too much babbling.

[dieharddave44 · 5/10 · 2 July 2021]

I'm not sure what demographic they intended this series to be aimed at, it's too confusing for younger audiences, and not enough action to keep it interesting. The science talk is just too much out there to fully understand. The animation was just fine, but the story never quite answered all my questions. Hard to recommend for anyone who wants a monster show.

Too much filler.

[jsucie · 6/10 · 7 July 2021]

There was way too much filler in this series to extend it to 13 episodes. Probably should have been reduced to 8 at the most.

If you're a fan of the more cartoon anime, then this will be for you but if you prefer the Godzilla anime movies that recently came out on Netflix; this will probably be a hard pass. The Godzilla creature doesn't really look like what we've come to know as Godzilla so that does take away from the series personally.

It's Real-Deal Godzilla, for Better and for Worse

[mightymothra · 9/10 · 12 August 2021]

I'm a pretty big Godzilla fan. I liked the goofy 60's stuff, I liked the somber original, the heisei and millennium movies were largely a delight, and I loved Anno's Resurgence.

So I'm really pleasantly surprised to find that Singular Point is a very, very "Godzilla" show, with all the myriad of highs and lows that entails. Overall, I loved it, but I loved it for the same reason I loved Godzilla vs. Biollante or Final Wars or Godzilla vs. Hedorah... they're unashamedly goofy, they take themselves completely seriously, they have an insane cast of bizarre characters, and ultimately, the core plot collapses into a big dumb monster fight.

And brother, that's what Singular Point is.

SP is very lovingly made in that it embraces all the Godzilla-movie weirdness - it loves its source material and makes no effort to polish Godzilla down into something more edgy or "cool" or audience-pleasing.

It's got pretty much all the usual suspects - Big G, Rodan, Baragon, Hedorah, etc - but they're all re-imagined in some way to better fit into the story they're doing. In general, the design changes are really fun. I particularly love Jet Jaguar, from the MST3K-famous Godzilla vs Megalon, who they turned into a rink-a-dink mecha piloted by a crazed old man and his low-rent mechanic company. As the show progresses, they become sorta street celebrities for their tussles with various kaiju, and it's fun seeing this big hunk of junk get torn up as they cobble together one solution or another. And I loved the "city celebrity" angle for this tiny robotics company, it's very charming.

It is very much a Godzilla-movie formula, too, for all the highs and lows that brings. The cast is your standard insane collection of like, incidentally-psychic guy, genius hacker girl, goth, himbo, crazed inventor, hyperintelligent quasi-sentient dog A. I., skeevy CEO, model father politician, and so on. When it hits the halfway point, you get your standard assortment of experts in a million different scientific fields coming in to deliver truly absurd technobabble about how Baragon's mind exists in a hyperspace dimension where 6 = 9, allowing him to see into the future and deflect bullets before they're fired, etc.

Kaiju carnage doesn't really ramp up till Ep 6/7ish, which, once it happens, is all done very well. The military assault stuff is dope without getting tedious, the various battles are always fun and varied and look great, there's a lot of kaiju forms popping up to keep it fresh, and visually, the environments really go hogg-wild with color. I can't stress enough how nice it is to see a Godzilla property with some color and vibrance to it again.

Animation looks very good, which is a surprise since it does use CG for the kaiji and mecha stuff. I think the texture work is just good enough that it blends very well with the hand-drawn material, which I would say looks fantastic.

I'd say to its detriment, it's also an anime, in that, it will spend an enormous amount of screentime flooding the audience with technobabble concepts that flat-out do not matter in the long run. By the end of season 1, the plot has gone full JRPG story, and though you could sit there and probably pick apart the story to FF7 or Chrono Cross and have it make sense, here, it's a real head-scratcher. I'm disappointed that the show both did not pay off the technobabble stuff it was so obsessed with - opting instead for your standard magical deus ex machina - but also that they didn't have a particularly great giant monster fight at the end to make up for it (as it the Godzilla movie tradition). The final clash is okay, but, for all the buildup, eh.

Overall, I loved the show a lot, it's very Godzilla, but, sometimes, charm aside, I wish they could successfully tell any kind of story. One day.

Why is it called Godzilla?

[worksmart-58506 · 4/10 · 25 June 2021]

Yet another program with Godzilla in the title but not in the actual program. They introduce 'something' in ep 7 that they call Godzilla, only it looks nothing like Godzilla. Admittedly i haven't watched further yet and might not, because it's been a complete snore fest filled with the same tired old writing and annoying characters. The whiny AI, voiced by the same actress who seemingly does every AI, robot and machine character to add a childish quality to all these shows, makes me happy it's easy to fast forward on Netflix. I definitely would have preferred if this show had been taken a little more seriously pre-development. There's more than enough science and intellectualism to write it as a dramatic mystery. The forced comic relief just brings it down. I'm hoping it will get better, but not holding my breath.

Edit: so from ep 8, Godzilla does indeed look like Godzilla, and he's pretty awesome. At least that's done well. Ofc you only get to see him for 1 minute in the next 4 episodes combined.

Eschatology

[Jean-Phillipe · 10/10 · 27 July 2021]

Casual viewers, many anime fans, and most Godzilla enthusiasts probably weren't ready for this mind-bending thrill ride of philosophical banter concerning end world theory, disguised as a kaiju tale. Godzilla Singular Point is definitely in the thinking person's deep end of the pool, so if that isn't the water you usually like to swim in then this anime is not for you. But if you like big questions, inscrutable enigmas, and references about quantum computing, quantum mechanics, AI, magic squares, time travel paradoxes, MD5 hash reverse decryption, many worlds interpretation, Shiva the destroyer, and bodhisattva quotes about impending global catastrophe and the end of mankind, then this anime series is perfect for you. GSP is breathtaking in it's intellectual scope and absolutely genius how well made it is. Plus the weaving of subtle ennui, nostalgic feelings, and top notch music (Mothra's Song 1961) with cut graphics is brilliant. Apparently some people are upset that Godzilla isn't given much screen time, but honestly... I barely noticed. 10/10 Highly recommend.

Good, but missing a lot to make the show great

[falloutking-72124 · 7/10 · 30 June 2021]

First off the main issue I had was that it had horrible pacing. For instance I didn't even realize that their were huge time skip of weeks every now and then, which up until that point I thought that the time between the beginning and the middle was a week. This made it to fast paced and a little confusing.

The one thing I did like about the show was that it had the original Godzilla movies feeling to it. So not that many big fights but a good amount to have a build up. But I feel that this is where most of dislike toward this being a Godzilla arise.

Also this is very similar to shin Godzilla with it's tone and Godzilla.

A New Level of "Awful"

[sinan-dira · 2/10 · 24 August 2021]

Whether or not this passes as a good sci-fi flick, I -as a Godzilla fan- have to call the creators out on some audacious and awful decisions:

-Strapping Godzilla's name to this show: The titular character's screen time is no more than 3%; approximately 7 minutes across 13 episodes.

-Deceitful advertising: Only two of the dozen monsters depicted in the op/ed credits appear, one of which isn't even at its full kaiju scale.

-Awful narration/monologue galore: At least 50% of the narration is done via characters repeatedly watching news, doing internet research, talking to themselves and attending press/science conferences.

I swear to you, the show literally cuts from one monologue to the next, from a TV news segment to a lecture, to a person talking to themselves, back to the news again. This show has very little "kaiju" and too much "scientists and journalists talking".

-Overuse of nauseating 3D: I want you to do this experiment: put a real life basketball video and a basketball anime scene side by side, and slow the real-life counterpart to the point that the ball's up-and-down movement syncs between the two, and you will discover that anime physics actually run at half the speed of real life physics or slower. So, when you blend 3D animation into anime, you have to take more factors into account than simply lowering the 3D's framerate to give it that jerky feel. Aside from simulating anime physics, the illusion of 2D can't be achieved with 3D animations that have a continuous movement flow and idle animations, since anime characters freeze at the end of their movements and never have an idle animation. Last but not least, overuse of poorly executed visual effects only further amplifies the illusion that every scene with CG elements is just taken from a video game cutscene, which doesn't blend with the anime in the least.

It is like a sci-fi fiction and it draws a new picture of Gozilla

[s-66879-60754 · 10/10 · 25 July 2021]

I've been a Godzilla fans for a long time, and this episode is one of the best sci-fi series I've ever seen.

It's quite different from the usual Godzilla movie which demonstrates the catastrophe that Godzilla made to human society, and how do people fight it in military/political way.

I have a strong background with computer science and mathematics, so that I can catch the concepts easily. I was astonished by how the story composing those scientific concepts straightforwardly, and persuasively. Especially the part that emphasizing the tremendous futures with uncertainty, and the interactions between higher dimensions.

As another review stated that the some sci-fi movies focus on making science part working by introducing terms without strong supports. However, in this series it illustrates how to explain those concepts with our understandings, and it makes the scientific part more attractive.

Most of our knowledges are based on previous research, and just take a look back that things are changing faster than people can imagine. There is no such absolute formula or theorem fitting all the circumstances. The patterns people can understand/estimate is far from the essence of the world, and it still leaves a large part for us to explore.

I can understand why some might think it is too complicated, since it does require some understanding of math and might found tedious if could not catch the idea. For instance, as to the "Orthogonal Diagonalizer" I was thinking about reducing the computational complexity by introducing matrix symmetricity.

I would love to recommend everyone who is curious about the world to enjoy the series. Even the scores are not high as expected, it does not lower the influence to me.

The best Godzilla anime so far

[ChungMo · 7/10 · 30 December 2021]

A strange mix of high level physics discussion, kaiju action and standard anime conventions. Fortunately the design is great and they use Akita Ikufube's classic Gojira themes as he orchestrated them. The CGI monsters look great and integrate into the classic anime animation well.

While the creators made a largely successful effort to use the classic Showa monsters (even Hedorah makes a brief cameo), Godzilla itself is more from the Shin Godzilla film than the classic monster. A shape-shifting creature somehow connected to cosmic time and quantum energy. It's a lot of high level scientific babble that I have no idea if it's malarkey or actually connected to real theoretical physics. If you have no tolerance for characters discussing these things in between great action sequences than this series might be a a test of your patience.

All in all I was entertained and enjoyed this way more than any of the recent Gojia animations or the American Godzilla films. Is there a second series? The credit sequence hints at that, I'll watch it.

What a gigantic mess!

[sithlord-26 · 4/10 · 28 June 2021]

They just can't make an anime about GODZILLA that isn't a total mess!

After the three tedious animated feature films proposed a few years ago by Netflix itself, this time japanese try again with a series that, at least from my point of view, fails dramatically on almost every front.

Too complicated to be usable by an audience of children, filled as it is with pseudo notions of quantum physics, multiple dimensions, space-time continuum and incomprehensible technobabble (especially since it came to us in the original language with subtitles, impossible to follow even for one used to it, given the inordinate amount of dialogue and the speed of Japanese speech), too childish, however, for adults, with tacky characters worthy of Pokemon and girls and robots (poor Jet Jaguar, now more Boss Borot, with the voice of a child!) which are produced in assorted screams and coaxing.

In a series with the name of GODZILLA in the title one would at least expect to see it, the monster, but no, the titan only appears in the ninth episode (out of 13) and, sorry to say, that's NOT Godzilla!

A horrible look revisited for the occasion, which makes it look like a cross between a whale and a crocodile, with a very long snout, inflated with fangs (there are pointed teeth everywhere, even on the palate!), and two tiny eyes. It also doesn't help that, as all the other kaiju that appear in the series, Godzilla too is realized through a bad CGI that is badly stuck on the classic two-dimensional cartoon, with a questionable result to say the least (special effects were almost better in I-ZENBORG or BORN FREE, shot with mixed media in the Seventies!).

We could overlook the quality of computer graphic or monster design (we are used to seeing Godzilla staged by actors in bulky and very bogus suits, who move around destroying models), however we certainly cannot forgive the creators an incomprehensible plot, full of characters, some of whom have very unclear motivations, who do nothing but talk and talk and talk ...

Another missed opportunity!

Not to every Gojira-nista's taste but I liked it

[jamesrupert2014 · 7/10 · 8 February 2022]

Messages are reverberating through time and kaiju are appearing in the near future, or something to that effect. I am not a big sci-fi anime fan but as a Godzilla completist I felt obligated to watch this Netflix series. As far as animated Godzilla outings, this 13-parter is far more entertaining than the pretentious 'Godzilla: Planet of the Monsters' (2017) and its two insipid follow-ups. I didn't pay enough attention to the complex temporally-themed storyline to decide whether it actually made any sense but the imagery was worth the couch-time. As always, hearing Akira Ifukube's classic themes and leitmotifs is a treat and Toho's stable of kaiju (including old favs like Manda, Anguirus, and Kumonga) are always welcome in my living room. The series marks the first encore of Jet Jaguar, the goofy, grinning, growing Mecha last seen in the dire 'Godzilla vs. Megalon' (1973) and, for good or for bad, Gojira (who doesn't show up until well into the series) seems inspired by 2016's 'Shin Godzilla'. Some segments go on way too long (the fight with the spiders for example) and I quickly grew tired of "Pelops II's" 'cute' voice and images (for which I am clearly not the target audience). All in all, I'm not sure if the big guy will recruit new fans through this series but old fans (some, not all) should enjoy this light-weight monster mash-up. Typical of Netflix anime, the subtitles were almost impossible to read at times, so I switched to an English version after second episode.

Better than Expected

[film-82317 · 8/10 · 26 June 2021]

When I first read "Godzilla" in the title, I thought "On no, another money making scheme trying to piggy back off of an established franchise for a bunch of plotless action sequences to appease the brainless viewer." Was I wrong.

The dive into theoretical physics throughout the show kept me entertained along with the great anime style that takes you back to the classics in the 80's (minus the cgi kaiju). There was actually a good back story that dove into explaining this realm of the kaiju, instead of lazily trying to rely on the distraction of large monster fights to cover up a lack of talent in writing.

I finished the first season in two days. You get hooked, if you have enough base knowledge to follow the discussion on quantum mechanics.

I am hoping to see a season 2.

Fantastic! But don't go in expecting a monster mosh pit!

[logank365 · 9/10 · 25 July 2021]

Before watching you should know that while this show DOES have action (contrary to what some other reviews are saying) it isn't the central point. It's primarily a steady build up and solving of a mystery that does an incredible job at blending fictional science with concepts that we're only just starting to understand in modern science. Some concepts may be hard to understand but it isn't too hard to get the gist of what someone is saying. As for Godzilla himself he does appear and technically has a lot more screen time than a lot of the other reviews say he does.

I'd love to say a lot more but I want to keep this free of any spoilers at all. I'm a long time Godzilla fan and I absolutely loved it.

6=9.

Not worth your time.

[porter-64652 · 3/10 · 30 June 2021]

You see Godzilla and get excited. Not much Godzilla is in this. The story is needlessly esoteric in describing the fictional science that makes up this series. Taking long drags of boring dialogue to describe nothing entertaining nor useful in understanding the story. The beginning is rather great and entertaining. But by the time you get to the end you are wishing for more action or a useful explanation, only to be disappointed by flat dialogue and so much time spent on dialogue that ultimately means nothing to the plot.