This book enters an established area in film studies with a formal analysis of the first six Godzilla films produced by Toho Studios in the years 1954–1965. Through the analytical tools of poetics of fiction, this book uncovers how the kaiju series stayed attractive for its viewers throughout the examined years. The main argument lies in a dialectical relationship between narrative and stylistic continuity and discontinuity. Certain aspects of the series stayed in place, others would undergo transformations and variations. The main appeal did not come simply from the fist-fighting monsters but cultural assimilation of popular genres, foreign influences, topics and narrative patterns.
