Godzilla Singular Point is a Japanese series that released on Netflix on 24th June 2021. I had never bothered to venture into the genre of anime before this, finding it a bit overrated, but Godzilla Singular Point was a pleasant surprise.
The anime series is a Netflix original, with a total run time of approximately 5 hours. It is divided into 13 episodes, all 24 minutes long. This makes it the perfect show to binge-watch in a single sitting. And believe me, when I say, you wouldn’t want to press pause anyway.
Godzilla Singular Point is set 9 years into the future, that is, in the year 2030. It is set mainly in Japan and India. It most accurately falls into the genre of Science Fiction and Dystopia. The anime revolves around mythical creatures arising out of distant skies and deep oceans, apparently attracted by radiowaves. Although the initial onslaught of these creatures is intense enough, things get progressively worse.
In fact, as each new creature that emerges is stronger than the ones that preceded it, people begin to think that this may be the end of the universe as we know it. Netflix summarises it as:
Brought together by a mysterious song, a graduate student and an engineer lead the fight against an unimaginable force that may spell doom for the world.
Although this description does no actual justice to the anime series, Godzilla Singular Point is much more than just another sci-fi dystopian series. The science involved can get a little difficult to understand at times, considering that it talks about time travel and prophecies, but the creators do their best to illustrate their point. They use simplified animation and metaphors to try and explain the complications of space-time and its distortions. Once you get into the show, they become easier to understand and follow as the anime series progresses.
It follows two different students, one who specializes in AI design and robotics and the other in the biological study of mythical creatures. Although they never meet, they seem to work in sync to save the world from “The Catastrophe” that was predicted by an eccentric genius, 50 years ago.
India and its culture seems to play a huge role in this anime series. The main laboratory dedicated to the research around these strange creatures is located in India. And while we don’t want to spoil too much in our Godzilla Singular Point review, a particular Indian folk song is featured multiple times throughout the anime series.
In fact, one of my favorite parts about Godzilla Singular Point is the way it mixes in equal parts Japanese mythology and science.
The show, from its very beginning, introduces an adaptive AI with a personality, and an ability to synthesize human emotions. While this may seem like a recipe for disaster, (*cough cough* Stanley Kubrick *cough cough*) the anime series avoids the whole “AI going rogue and going on a killing spree” trope, and we’re grateful for it. Here, the AI plays a pivotal role, almost like a character in itself.
Final Verdict: Godzilla Singular Point Season 1
Although I had been staring at a screen continuously for the last 5 hours, my back hurt, and I had another assignment to finish, I was sorry to see Godzilla Singular Point end. This has quickly become one of my favorite animated shows to watch. It was nothing like I expected, but hey, I’m not complaining. One last thing to keep in mind before streaming the show: This anime series is not related to the previous Godzilla movies in any way, shape or form.
The English subtitles are very badly translated on Netflix, and so you can switch to an English dubbed version too. Don’t miss this one. Stream Godzilla Singular Point here on Netflix.
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