I did not know what to expect and I was surprised at the story.
It is very absurd, silly, and intertextual.
Gatsby crosses Godzilla crosses, well, the whole world?
The art was excellent.
I probably did not get all the jokes.

I didn't find the story to be very engaging. The selection of characters was ok. The end is quite unfulfilling. The art was reminiscent of the time period.

The story was very different and unique. It definitely wasn’t what I was expecting. I give the story itself 3/5 but I added an extra star for the illustrations which were really good.

IDW is doing their part to release as many unhinged Godzilla comics as possible. The King of the Monsters has met everyone from founding fathers to Australian skater punks. And in Tom Scioli’s Godzilla’s Monsterpiece Theatre, he’s facing off against the finest characters the public domain has to offer.

What happens when a kaiju legend goes toe to toe with the Great Gatsby, Sherlock Holmes, and Dracula? Read on to find out!



A Classic Tale

Godzilla’s Monsterpiece Theatre starts out with a narrative every English major will recognize: the early events of The Great Gatsby. But F. Scott Fitzgerald’s legendary story of the Jazz Age and the crumbling American Dream takes a sharp left turn when Long Island is attacked by Godzilla.

In the face of the kaiju attack, Jay Gatsby must backseat his party lifestyle and longing for Daisy. He sinks his wealth into establishing the G-Force: a squad dedicated to saving the world from the massive lizard. And, of course, only the best need apply.

A Star-Studded Cast

Godzilla’s Monsterpiece Theatre is stacked with recognizable figures from the literary canon. Sherlock Holmes is here, albeit much older and in his beekeeping era. Jules Verne joins the fray, depicted here as a genius inventor. And H.G. Wells’s nameless “Time Machinist” also makes an appearance, bearing dire news of the future from which he hails. Even Dracula gets in on the action. Initially, he’s lured by the beautiful Daisy Buchanan. But he also realizes that, should he bring Godzilla under his thrall, he could have immense power at his disposal.

Before the story ends, we also see the appearance of a younger Dr. Frankenstein, accompanied by his forebear’s Monster. Will they be enough combined to stop Godzilla’s rampage? It may take a little bit of divine intervention, but this league of extraordinary gentlemen is more than up to the task.



But How Is It?

One could argue that Godzilla’s Monsterpiece Theatre exists largely to deliver one visual gag in its final issue… and honestly that would be fine because it’s a good one. Fans of classic literature and early 20th century comics will enjoy this pastiche, especially coupled with Tom Scioli’s retro-style artwork. It really does feel like reading a century-old comic.

If there is one flaw, it’s that later issues feel very crowded with characters. The more public domain heroes and villains Scioli squeezes in, the more frantic the pace gets. And the more frantic the pace gets, the less time we have to appreciate what Scioli is doing well. That aside, it’s a great deal of fun. It’s like a better Pride and Prejudice and Zombies—more grounded in its many influences, and clearly taking inspiration from its era as well as its characters. It’s definitely a unique title in IDW’s Godzilla range, and one you’ll have to see to believe.

As both a literature major and a long time Godzilla fan, this had me cackling! The mashup is a lot of fun, with classic characters trying to figure out what Godzilla is and how to stop him. The art style just pops, and the story feels like a fun crossover throwback. I just had a good time with this! It takes a goofy idea and runs with it in the best way.

Deeply deeply silly, but also a lot of fun, with an astonishing visual pun at the end that was probably the raison d'être for the whole book. I can well imagine Scioli cackling to himself as he put each new demented idea down on paper.

A super fun and creative book! I really liked the colourful and detailed illustrations—they bring the characters to life. The clever references to classic literature made it even more enjoyable. A perfect mix of monsters, humour, and famous stories. 5 out of 5 stars!

The Time Machinist, Great Gatsby, and Sherlock Holmes take on the iconic monster, GODZILLA!

When I first saw the description of this comic, I was excited. As a lover of classics and Godzilla, I felt the mashing of the genres would be right up my alley! Unfortunately, that was not the case.

While the artwork was really well done and an ode to old styles, the story was just too disjointed for me. There are multiple scenes that I felt were jumping way too fast and the dialogue felt stilted. I thought the artist could have spent a little bit more time making it flow a tiny bit better.

When it comes to the the chaos of each scene, they were all extremely well done! However, at the end, there were more characters that, truthfully, did not need to be added. It was as if Tom Scioli wanted to create a big universe with this, but not want to have it span over more than 3 issues.

All in all, while there were enjoyable parts, I did not like this as much as I hoped I would.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this early.

Rating: 1 / 5
Release Date: 22 July 2025

What do you get when you put Gatsby, Sherlock Holmes, the Time Machine’s main character, and more literary characters and mix them up with Godzilla? You get GODZILLA’S MONSTERPIECE THEATRE.

This unique graphic novel, written and drawn by Tom Scioli, is my newest review book from Net Galley. I read it on Net Galley’s Reader on their website and before going into my feelings about the book, I just want to say this was not the best way to read this book. The Net Galley Reader is very good for regular books but its lacks proper zoom and page expansions that make reading graphics novels comfortable. I hope Net Galley will work to improve the graphic novel aspect of their e-reader. That said, I still enjoyed the heck out of Godzilla’s Monsterpiece Theatre!

The core concept of his book, teaming up Gatsby with Sherlock Holmes and more is absolutely ridiculous, campy, corny, and a complete joy. This is a wonderful book that you have to go on a ride with. You can’t over think whats happening. Just sit back and enjoy this story. And most of all, enjoy Tom Scioli’s artwork which is completely jaw-dropping. The big two-page splash pages didn’t work well digitally and I think would be amazing in physical form.

Honestly if you are going to get this book, make sure you get a physical copy! You are going to want to hold this book in your hands. The splash pages are amazing. But also panel to panel you don’t know what to expect. The book panels twist and turn, the coloring changes are masterful and the amount of detail packed into this book is breathtaking. The story is a lot of fun, but I do truly believe that is the artwork that makes this book a masterpiece. Oh I’m sorry, a MONSTERPIECE.

As a fan of Godzilla, I got plenty of awesome fights, destruction, and cool moments with the big guy. It was also fun to see how Gatsby, Holmes and more react to the situation. This book is such a treat. I loved every second of it.

Godzilla’s Monsterpiece Theatre is so much fun!

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for providing a digital copy of this book for review. Godzilla’s Monsterpiece Theatre will release on July 22nd, 2025. Hey thats one day before my birthday! GODZILLA FOREVER

Godzilla's Monsterpiece Theatre was unhinged chaos featuring several classic lit characters. It was over the top and crazy. I loved it. The classic comic art style was really fun and the incorporation of so many famous characters was really entertaining. I was nervous based on the description of this book, but I do recommend it to people who are interested in genre-blending to the extreme.

This is like a mushroom-fueled fever dream and I adored it. It's just too weird to dislike! The art is fantastic and very evocative of early comics. As many others have remarked, this feels like a lighter version of the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. But with Godzilla. Scioli also did a great job parodying F. Scott Fitzgerald's prose and he really leaned into Daisy's inability to commit to ... literally anything.

My thanks to NetGalley and IDW Publishing for an advance copy of this graphic novel that tells a story of a man who in his quest to win back the love of his life, takes on the King of all Monsters, with a cast of characters that are drawn from the real world, and the world of imagination.

My father always said I was reading cartoons from birth pulling the weekend funnies out of his hand the first Sunday I was home from the hospital and just looking at the colorful pages in joy. As such I have seen things many can't imagine, though I don't think I could have imagined this story even with Hunter S. Thompson drug filled Cadillac. Usually one knows what to expect from Intellectual Property comics. Fan-service. The characters do what they are known for destroy cities, fight the Empire, the story begins, ends and a pleasant time is had by all. I'm not sure what blackmail material Tom Scioli has on the owners of Godzilla, but it most the some horrible stuff. For that is the only reason I could think of allowing Scioli to do what he has done. Crafted the most outrageous, intriguing, and mix-of-character stories about a giant lizard, a world-renowned detective, a self-made millionaire, in a story that is pure city wrecking havoc, and about the strength of the human heart. Godzilla’s Monsterpiece Theatre by written and illustrated by Tom Scioli take Godzilla to new places, which he destroys, pursued by a mix of characters mostly gentleman, with one extraordinary lady.

This is a hard comic to try and summerize so I won't write spoilers, I promise. Honestly I could write a thousand words and not touch on some of the weirdness present. The time is 1922, and the man known as Jay Gatsby is ignoring the party going on in his massive estate, as he stares across the water at the house occupied by the only woman he has loved. The party is interrupted by something rising from the depths, 30 stories high breathing fire, and reducing his mansion and guests to ash. Jay and his companion Nick cross the water, saving Daisy, Jay's love, but are swamped by the creature, taking Daisy away. Jay wants revenge on this huge creature, turning to Thomas Edison for help in developing weapons to fight this King of All Monsters. Daisy is found, but New York is lost, the creature turning towards Europe. For allies Jay approaches the world's greatest detective, Sherlock Holmes. Joined by the man known only as the Time Machinest and others Jay leads the efforts to save the Earth, but other forces work in the shadows, for they also have plans for the one known as Godzilla.

I can say this is like no other Godzilla story. I don't know how Scioli got this passed, but what a great story. I wish more owners of IP's would not be afraid of making fans write mean letters, and stop giving fans what they want, give them what they need. Comics needs more stories like this. One does have to know who the characters are, both fictional and nonfictional. And maybe there are too many to keep track of. However the story is rollicking and never really slows down. Godzilla destroys lots of cities, blows a lot of smoke and does some bad wrestling. No flying drop kicks, but I don't want to ruin anything. I love that a lot of dialogue is adapted from the works the characters came from, mainly in the first issue. A lot of work went into this, one can tell, and love. The art I enjoyed. A washed out look befitting black and white, and the way we look at the past. Godzilla is seen seldom, eyes, tail, fire, until near the end, which I liked, giving Godzilla a sense of scope and majesty.

I really loved this story, one I couldn't tell where it was going, nor who might appear next. I can't recommend this enough, and wish that more publishers allowed their writers this kind of leeway in writing the same old characters. New can be good. This is the first thing I have read by Tom Scioli, but I will be looking for more after I finish this review.

I figured this was in my wheelhouse with Gatsby, Sherlock Holmes and The Time Machinist all taking on the Big G but it ended up being even better and more Wold Newtonian than I could have possibly imagined.

Special Thanks to IDW Publishing and Netgalley for the digital ARC. This was given to me for an honest review.