Godzilla would (and should) kick King Kong’s hairy butt
Leveling the playing field
The fact is that Kong, at least as he was originally created, wouldn’t last two seconds against Godzilla. Whether you’re going by the 1933 classic, the 1976 update, or the 2005 remake, it’s no contest. He’s a fraction of the size, and he’s easily felled by a few bullets.
This would be offset if he had any special abilities. Sadly, though, he doesn’t. To quote another oversized (yet underrated) ape flick, he’s just “a giant gorilla with a mean backhand.”
Meanwhile, Godzilla has always been portrayed as virtually indestructible. He’s taken bullets, bombs, missiles, electric shocks, and attacks from other monsters and walked it off like it was nothing. You usually have to get creative in order to faze him; solutions range from freezing him to obliterating all the oxygen in the area to creating Mechagodzilla to match him.
The only major deviation from this came with Roland Emmerich’s 1998 reimagining, where Godzilla was basically a giant iguana with no atomic breath and who was killed by a few fighter jets. Fans hated this film’s changes, although it did spawn a pretty fun TV series that restored the power (and bad breath) of the lizard king. Considering the warmer reception this show got from audiences, it’s safe to say that these are staples of the monster’s move set.
The people making the MonsterVerse doubtless knew that they would be limited by these characteristics. As such, they’ve taken steps to even the odds.
For one thing, Godzilla comes off as noticeably weaker than his Japanese counterpart. Though conventional weapons still don’t have much effect, he’s not nearly as tough when combatting other colossal creatures. Sure, he can hold his own against one. However, he’s quickly put on the back foot when outnumbered.
Plus, when it comes to the more powerful opponents like King Ghidorah, he’s even at a disadvantage during one-on-one fights. This is partially because his atomic breath isn’t nearly as devastating. Finally, no matter the match, the battle often leaves Godzilla tired and occasionally on the verge of death.
On the other hand, Kong has been beefed up to an insane degree. He’s now stands upright at several stories tall, roughly the size of the other kaiju. In addition, he’s a lot sturdier, able to take huge amounts of abuse from both the napalm-spewing Vietnam troops and the other creatures on Skull Island with little issue.
It’s clear that the two iconic monsters were changed in this way to prevent their royal rumble from being so one-sided, and that seems like the logical option from an entertainment perspective. After all, it wouldn’t be a very thrilling fight if Godzilla simply stepped on Kong. Despite these additions, though, our reptilian ravager still has a clear advantage.
Godzilla still outclasses Kong in every way.
First of all, he likely has a tougher hide; lizard scales and armor are often stronger than primate skin and fur. Any tools or objects that Kong hits him with would likely be ineffective. Plus, the spiked plating on his back makes it difficult to get him from behind without injuring yourself.
Second, he has an extra limb in the form of his tail, providing another angle of attack. Third and most importantly comes his atomic breath, capable of setting the area ablaze, grievously wounding enemies, and reducing even the biggest building to rubble.