G-Fan #88 strikes a thoughtful tone with well-researched and finely written articles throughout. Of particular interest were articles by Jeromy Van Paassen on "Yokai and Obakemono" folklore of Japan and Allen Debus' "Komodo--Ancestral Kaiju?" Both articles had me happily saying "I never heard that before," and lend depth to the human desire to tell scary stories to each other, sometimes involving really big creatures!The highlight of the issue is totorom's interview of Ryuji Honda, son of renowned Godzilla director Ishiro Honda. Detailed and expansive, it offers a glimpse into the Toho backlot that most fans can only dream about. It was especially intriguing to get a sense of Ishiro Honda's personality from his son's perspective. His insights regarding his father's moviegoing habits and relationship with Akira Kurosawa were of great interest and could really not have come from another source besides a family member. Interviews are normally not the first thing I turn to in G-Fan, but this article represents the fanzine at its best. This article was absorbing from beginning to end and well worth the price of a subscription (yes, I meant subscription).
Armand Vaquer's articles about the Diet Building (a magnet for kaiju activity) and Bireley's orange soda (glimpsed in Mothra) provide wonderful background information to the casual and hardcore fan alike. With no Godzilla film on the horizon, G-Fan continues to deepen and broaden our appreciation of this special movie genre.
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