Baragon vs Gezora | Kaiju War Chronicles Review | Godzilla Island Archive

This Kaiju War Chronicle I’m reviewing from the Toho Kingdom library is Baragon vs. Gezora by Forrest Freund. Forrest has written several Kaiju War Chronicle stories, and this is another great one. Be sure to check out TohoKingdom.com for more stories — and if you haven’t yet, go read the story first before diving into this review.

The Story

This battle starts off with a bunch of whales washed up on the shores of Birth Island. Gezora picks up the scent of the decaying carcasses and comes to feed. Nearby, a sleeping Baragon wakes up to the same smell and decides to grab a bite as well.

When Baragon arrives, the two monsters immediately clash. At close range, Gezora has the upper hand — once Baragon is caught in his ice-cold tentacles, there’s no easy escape. But Baragon breaks free by blasting Gezora with his volcanic breath, burning him badly.

Realizing Gezora is vulnerable to heat, Baragon begins tunneling underground and attacking from a distance. Gezora, with no long-range abilities, is forced to retreat back into the ocean. Thinking he’s won, Baragon starts feeding on the dead whales — but Gezora isn’t done yet.

Gezora sneaks back, grabs Baragon, and tries to drag him into the ocean to drown him. Things look bad for Baragon as Gezora’s grip tightens, but in desperation, Baragon spots a burnt patch of skin on Gezora. He drives his horn into the wound, ripping it open and exposing Gezora’s insides. Baragon then unleashes a final volcanic blast directly into Gezora’s body, killing him instantly.

Baragon is victorious not only does he get the whales, but he also feasts on Gezora as an extra meal.

My Thoughts

This was another entertaining story written by Forrest Freund over at Toho Kingdom. I’ve really enjoyed Forrest’s Kaiju War Chronicle stories — the last one I reviewed was Zilla vs. Titanosaurus, and this one delivers just as much fun.

What I love about this story is that it focuses on monsters that never got much screen time. Baragon first appeared in Frankenstein Conquers the World and made a few brief appearances in the Godzilla series. Gezora only appeared in Space Amoeba and briefly in Godzilla: Final Wars, though he’s shown up more recently in Godzilla: Rulers of Earth.

Baragon has always been one of my favorite native monsters of Monster Island. He’s got the burrowing and jumping abilities of Anguirus, combined with the fiery breath of Godzilla, making him a fast and dangerous opponent. Gezora, on the other hand, is a giant squid-like creature. In this story, Forrest refers to him as a giant cuttlefish — which is a pretty accurate description, since cuttlefish are closely related to squid.

Gezora’s biggest disadvantage here is that his only real power is his freezing grip and ability to ensnare enemies with his tentacles. Against another close-range brawler like Gorosaurus, Gezora might have had the advantage. But Baragon’s ability to attack from a distance while tunneling underground gave him the edge. Gezora’s subzero temperature is only useful up close, and Baragon’s horn and ranged blasts made this fight his to win.

Imagining this battle play out in my head while reading was awesome a fiery burrower taking on an icy sea monster.

Kaiju War Chronicles are always a blast to read, and I highly recommend heading over to TohoKingdom.com to check them out. If you’ve never heard of Toho Kingdom, it’s probably the best Godzilla site on the web, packed with incredible content for kaiju fans.

Huge thanks and shout-out to Forrest Freund for another great monster battle — and for keeping the Kaiju War Chronicles alive and entertaining for fans like us.