This movie is very much in the spirit of the old Godzilla movies of the 60's and 70's, though with better effects and more chaotic. All of the returning monsters, and there are a lot of them, are from that era. Some are old favorites who I was mighty glad to see on the big screen again, while others were one-timers who I never thought I'd see again. Almost every old foe from the golden age of Godzilla cinema makes an appearance. Even Minya shows up, and at first, his presence seems pointless and strictly for laughs, but he actually becomes an important plot point later on. Also, a certain pregnant iguana shows up, and he/she is a nice enough addition to the roster of lesser monsters. Of course, this impostor Godzilla must finally meet the real thing, and what follows is my favorite moment in the movie. I said it was going to be a short fight, and it was. It's not every day that you get to see an annoying CGI character that everyone hates get beaten and killed onscreen. If only the same thing had happened in Star Wars...

Final Wars is loud, fast and energetic. It's constantly shifting from one action sequence to another, with just enough dialogue and story to keep things interesting. It's over two hours long but it seemed to go by pretty fast. There are plenty of monster fights, but they don't tend to last very long. Godzilla is so ferocious that he rips through many of his opponents with a single attack. It's cool to see him easily tear his way through old foes that once gave him so much trouble, but at the same time, I wish I could have seen more of certain monsters. Hedorah's appearance is only a few seconds, barely long enough to get a good look at him. Too bad.

This is a Godzilla movie that doesn't take itself too seriously. One of the main characters is a big, burly American named Captain Gordon who looks like Sergeant Slaughter and speaks all his lines in English. His delivery of one-liners at the end of scenes is so hilariously bad that you can't help but love him. The leader of the Xiliens is also quite memorable, very over-the-top evil, but still not above throwing temper tantrums when Godzilla kills one of his monsters.

The plot doesn't make a whole lot of sense. It is never really explained where all the monsters came from, or why the leader of Planet X wants to kill all the humans who are supposed to be his food supply. It is, however, full of references to past Godzilla movies and other Toho sci-fi films. Captain Gordon pilots a flying submarine warship that fans will recognize as "Atragon" in the U.S. or "Goten" in Japan. There is mention of a fiery planet called Gorath on a collision course with Earth. An American actor is named Glenn. Several actors from the old days appear and even have the same names as their characters from the classic movies. Music themes from 60's and 70's G-movies pops up now and then, but not enough if you ask me.

I'm disappointed in some fans' reactions to this movie. They say it is the worst Godzilla movie ever, blah blah blah. It seems some fans say that about every new Godzilla movie that comes out. As for me, I'd much rather have this than "Godzilla vs. Mothra vs. King Ghidorah vs. Mechagodzilla." This is a popcorn movie, all about fun and spectacle. This one really made me nostalgiac for some of the old, classic 60's Godzilla flicks. Even more so than Fraudzilla did. And while I don't really believe that this is the last Godzilla movie, just as Destroy All Monsters, Terror of Mechagodzilla and Godzilla vs. Destroyah were not really the last ones, it is a satisfying enough note to end on for now. In the meantime, we can hope that the new King Kong or Gamera creates a giant monster fever that Toho can cash in on. If not, I'm sure we'll be seeing the big G again in a few years. Long live the king!