What is the Kai-Sei Era? IDW’s new Godzilla shared universe!

By Zoey Willshire | June 3 2025 | Comics

The start of IDW’s new Godzilla interconnected universe—the Kai-Sei Era—and the first ongoing Godzilla comic in a decade, goes on FOC this coming Monday, 6/9. Written by Tim Seeley (Grayson, Hack/Slash, Local Man) and illustrated by Nikola Čižmešija (Sword of Azrael, Batman and Robin)—who also designed the new Godzilla—Godzilla #1 is the best jumping-on point for the king of the monsters in years.

“In 1954, experimentation with a mysterious energy source known as Kai-Sei awakened Godzilla and a host of immortal kaiju. In the years that followed, humanity has been pummeled by near-constant monster attacks. While Japan has begun to treat the kaiju like natural disasters, understanding that their attempts to fight Godzilla only make the threat worse, the American G-Force is going to fight, fight, fight.

The Americans have just discovered the ultimate tool in the fight against kaiju: a young boy named Jacen with the power of Godzilla. Able to harness the mysterious Kai-Sei in the same vein as the King of the Monsters, this boy will either save the world…or bring about its doom.”

Interior Art from Godzilla [Kai-Sei Era] #1

IDW is calling their new shared universe the Kai-Sei Era, following in the tradition of the Toho film series. Fans know and love to discuss the franchise through these eras, and IDW is elevating Godzilla comics to the same level of prestige and importance.

Godzilla Eras:

Showa (1954-1975) – The original run of 15 films that span from the harrowing and dark original Godzilla in 1954 to the wacky monster brawls of the 60s and 70s.

Heisei (1984-1995) – 7 interconnected films featuring big kaiju fights and science fiction elements like space travel, time travel, psychic children, and super weapons.

Millennium (1999-2004) – A reboot of Godzilla for the 2000s, featuring the last of the classic “suitmation” films before the modern CGI-era.

Reiwa (2016-present) – The current era of Godzilla films, featuring critically-acclaimed masterpieces like 2016’s Shin Godzilla and 2023’s Godzilla Minus One

And now…

Kai-Sei (2025-present) – IDW’s new line of comics, featuring three currently announced series, the mainline ongoing Godzilla, and the miniseries Godzilla: Escape the Deadzone and Starship Godzilla. All three connected titles have distinct storytelling styles and settings. Centered on a mysterious energy source known as Kai-Sei, that connects the monsters with the heroes.

Featuring all-star creative teams on every title, the Kai-Sei Era is shaping up to be 2025’s premiere Godzilla story. Thanks to the talent of writers Tim Seeley (Godzilla vs. America: Chicago), Griffin Sheridan and Ethan S. Parker (Kill Your Darlings)Chris Gooch (In Utero), and artists Nikola Čižmešija (Batman and Robin), Pablo Tunica (TMNT/Ghostbusters 2), and Oliver Ono (Godzilla: Monster Island Summer Camp), there’s no limit to where this universe could go!

Godzilla #1 has received rave reviews from notable outlets like AIPT, ComicBook.com, CBR, and more. IDW is supporting the launch of the Kai-Sei Era with a 1:25 ratio incentive pin pack for Godzilla #1, featuring a 1-inch tall pin of Nikola Cizmesija’s new Godzilla design.

Godzilla has been everywhere in comics in recent years, including with IDW’s own series like Godzilla: Heist, Godzilla: Here There Be Aliens, Godzilla’s Monsterpiece Theatre, and Godzilla vs. America. Combined with the recent blockbuster and critical success of the films Godzilla Minus One and Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, and the AppleTV series Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, the king of the monsters has never been more popular in its 70-year history!

For more on the Kai-Sei Era, check out the overview on Godzilla.com.

Retailers: Godzilla #1 goes on FOC this coming Monday, 6/9. Godzilla: Escape the Deadzone #1 goes on FOC 6/30. Starship Godzilla is coming later this fall.

Fans: Be sure to pre-order all three upcoming Kai-Sei Era titles at your local comic shop!

View all covers for Godzilla #1 and Godzilla: Escape the Deadzone #1 below:

82771403433200111
THE KAI-SEI ERA, IDW’S NEW GODZILLA UNIVERSE, STARTS HERE!In 1954, experimentation with a mysterious energy source known as Kai-Sei awakened Godzilla and a host of immortal kaiju. In the years that followed, humanity has been pummeled by near-constant monster attacks. While Japan has begun to treat the kaiju like natural disasters, understanding that their attempts to fight Godzilla only make the threat worse, the American G-Force is going to fight, fight, fight.The Americans have just discovered the ultimate tool in the fight against kaiju: a young boy named Jacen with the power of Godzilla. Able to harness the mysterious Kai-Sei in the same vein as the King of the Monsters, this boy will either save the world…or bring about its doom.Join Tim Seeley (Grayson, Hack/Slash, Local Man) and Nikola Čižmešija (Sword of Azrael, Batman and Robin) on the ride of a lifetime!
On sale Jul 23, 2025
FOC Jun 09, 2025
Comic Book
44 Pages
IDW Publishing

82771403433200121
THE KAI-SEI ERA, IDW’S NEW GODZILLA UNIVERSE, STARTS HERE!In 1954, experimentation with a mysterious energy source known as Kai-Sei awakened Godzilla and a host of immortal kaiju. In the years that followed, humanity has been pummeled by near-constant monster attacks. While Japan has begun to treat the kaiju like natural disasters, understanding that their attempts to fight Godzilla only make the threat worse, the American G-Force is going to fight, fight, fight.The Americans have just discovered the ultimate tool in the fight against kaiju: a young boy named Jacen with the power of Godzilla. Able to harness the mysterious Kai-Sei in the same vein as the King of the Monsters, this boy will either save the world…or bring about its doom.Join Tim Seeley (Grayson, Hack/Slash, Local Man) and Nikola Čižmešija (Sword of Azrael, Batman and Robin) on the ride of a lifetime!
On sale Jul 23, 2025
FOC Jun 09, 2025
Comic Book
44 Pages
IDW Publishing

82771403433200131
THE KAI-SEI ERA, IDW’S NEW GODZILLA UNIVERSE, STARTS HERE!In 1954, experimentation with a mysterious energy source known as Kai-Sei awakened Godzilla and a host of immortal kaiju. In the years that followed, humanity has been pummeled by near-constant monster attacks. While Japan has begun to treat the kaiju like natural disasters, understanding that their attempts to fight Godzilla only make the threat worse, the American G-Force is going to fight, fight, fight.The Americans have just discovered the ultimate tool in the fight against kaiju: a young boy named Jacen with the power of Godzilla. Able to harness the mysterious Kai-Sei in the same vein as the King of the Monsters, this boy will either save the world…or bring about its doom.Join Tim Seeley (Grayson, Hack/Slash, Local Man) and Nikola Čižmešija (Sword of Azrael, Batman and Robin) on the ride of a lifetime!
On sale Jul 23, 2025
FOC Jun 09, 2025
Comic Book
44 Pages
IDW Publishing

82771403433200141
THE KAI-SEI ERA, IDW’S NEW GODZILLA UNIVERSE, STARTS HERE!In 1954, experimentation with a mysterious energy source known as Kai-Sei awakened Godzilla and a host of immortal kaiju. In the years that followed, humanity has been pummeled by near-constant monster attacks. While Japan has begun to treat the kaiju like natural disasters, understanding that their attempts to fight Godzilla only make the threat worse, the American G-Force is going to fight, fight, fight.The Americans have just discovered the ultimate tool in the fight against kaiju: a young boy named Jacen with the power of Godzilla. Able to harness the mysterious Kai-Sei in the same vein as the King of the Monsters, this boy will either save the world…or bring about its doom.Join Tim Seeley (Grayson, Hack/Slash, Local Man) and Nikola Čižmešija (Sword of Azrael, Batman and Robin) on the ride of a lifetime!
On sale Jul 23, 2025
FOC Jun 09, 2025
Comic Book
44 Pages
IDW Publishing

82771403433200151
THE KAI-SEI ERA, IDW’S NEW GODZILLA UNIVERSE, STARTS HERE!In 1954, experimentation with a mysterious energy source known as Kai-Sei awakened Godzilla and a host of immortal kaiju. In the years that followed, humanity has been pummeled by near-constant monster attacks. While Japan has begun to treat the kaiju like natural disasters, understanding that their attempts to fight Godzilla only make the threat worse, the American G-Force is going to fight, fight, fight.The Americans have just discovered the ultimate tool in the fight against kaiju: a young boy named Jacen with the power of Godzilla. Able to harness the mysterious Kai-Sei in the same vein as the King of the Monsters, this boy will either save the world…or bring about its doom.Join Tim Seeley (Grayson, Hack/Slash, Local Man) and Nikola Čižmešija (Sword of Azrael, Batman and Robin) on the ride of a lifetime!
On sale Jul 23, 2025
FOC Jun 09, 2025
Comic Book
44 Pages
IDW Publishing

82771403433200161
THE KAI-SEI ERA, IDW’S NEW GODZILLA UNIVERSE, STARTS HERE!In 1954, experimentation with a mysterious energy source known as Kai-Sei awakened Godzilla and a host of immortal kaiju. In the years that followed, humanity has been pummeled by near-constant monster attacks. While Japan has begun to treat the kaiju like natural disasters, understanding that their attempts to fight Godzilla only make the threat worse, the American G-Force is going to fight, fight, fight.The Americans have just discovered the ultimate tool in the fight against kaiju: a young boy named Jacen with the power of Godzilla. Able to harness the mysterious Kai-Sei in the same vein as the King of the Monsters, this boy will either save the world…or bring about its doom.Join Tim Seeley (Grayson, Hack/Slash, Local Man) and Nikola Čižmešija (Sword of Azrael, Batman and Robin) on the ride of a lifetime!
On sale Jul 23, 2025
FOC Jun 09, 2025
Comic Book
44 Pages
IDW Publishing

82771403433200181
THE KAI-SEI ERA, IDW’S NEW GODZILLA UNIVERSE, STARTS HERE!In 1954, experimentation with a mysterious energy source known as Kai-Sei awakened Godzilla and a host of immortal kaiju. In the years that followed, humanity has been pummeled by near-constant monster attacks. While Japan has begun to treat the kaiju like natural disasters, understanding that their attempts to fight Godzilla only make the threat worse, the American G-Force is going to fight, fight, fight.The Americans have just discovered the ultimate tool in the fight against kaiju: a young boy named Jacen with the power of Godzilla. Able to harness the mysterious Kai-Sei in the same vein as the King of the Monsters, this boy will either save the world…or bring about its doom.Join Tim Seeley (Grayson, Hack/Slash, Local Man) and Nikola Čižmešija (Sword of Azrael, Batman and Robin) on the ride of a lifetime!
On sale Jul 23, 2025
FOC Jun 09, 2025
Comic Book
44 Pages
IDW Publishing

82771403433200191
THE KAI-SEI ERA, IDW’S NEW GODZILLA UNIVERSE, STARTS HERE!In 1954, experimentation with a mysterious energy source known as Kai-Sei awakened Godzilla and a host of immortal kaiju. In the years that followed, humanity has been pummeled by near-constant monster attacks. While Japan has begun to treat the kaiju like natural disasters, understanding that their attempts to fight Godzilla only make the threat worse, the American G-Force is going to fight, fight, fight.The Americans have just discovered the ultimate tool in the fight against kaiju: a young boy named Jacen with the power of Godzilla. Able to harness the mysterious Kai-Sei in the same vein as the King of the Monsters, this boy will either save the world…or bring about its doom.Join Tim Seeley (Grayson, Hack/Slash, Local Man) and Nikola Čižmešija (Sword of Azrael, Batman and Robin) on the ride of a lifetime!
On sale Jul 23, 2025
FOC Jun 09, 2025
Comic Book
44 Pages
IDW Publishing

82771403442400111
THE KAI-SEI ERA, IDW’S NEW GODZILLA UNIVERSE, STARTS HERE!In 1954, experimentation with a mysterious energy source known as Kai-Sei awakened Godzilla and a host of immortal kaiju. In the years that followed, humanity has been pummeled by near-constant monster attacks. While Japan has begun to treat the kaiju like natural disasters, understanding that their attempts to fight Godzilla only make the threat worse, the American G-Force is going to fight, fight, fight.The Americans have just discovered the ultimate tool in the fight against kaiju: a young boy named Jacen with the power of Godzilla. Able to harness the mysterious Kai-Sei in the same vein as the King of the Monsters, this boy will either save the world…or bring about its doom.Join Tim Seeley (Grayson, Hack/Slash, Local Man) and Nikola Čižmešija (Sword of Azrael, Batman and Robin) on the ride of a lifetime!
On sale Jul 23, 2025
FOC Jun 09, 2025
Comic Book
36 Pages
IDW Publishing

82771403433200171
THE KAI-SEI ERA, IDW’S NEW GODZILLA UNIVERSE, STARTS HERE!In 1954, experimentation with a mysterious energy source known as Kai-Sei awakened Godzilla and a host of immortal kaiju. In the years that followed, humanity has been pummeled by near-constant monster attacks. While Japan has begun to treat the kaiju like natural disasters, understanding that their attempts to fight Godzilla only make the threat worse, the American G-Force is going to fight, fight, fight.The Americans have just discovered the ultimate tool in the fight against kaiju: a young boy named Jacen with the power of Godzilla. Able to harness the mysterious Kai-Sei in the same vein as the King of the Monsters, this boy will either save the world…or bring about its doom.Join Tim Seeley (Grayson, Hack/Slash, Local Man) and Nikola Čižmešija (Sword of Azrael, Batman and Robin) on the ride of a lifetime!
On sale Jul 23, 2025
FOC Jun 09, 2025
Merchandise
IDW Publishing

82771403436300111
What’s going on inside the Deadzone?! Find out in the second book of the KAI-SEI ERA, IDW’s new connected Godzilla universe!Inside the new IDW Godzilla universe, there exists a mystery larger than any other…what is the Deadzone? Inhabitants of this new world know the Deadzone to be a walled-off portion of the Pacific Northwest, sequestered after the most disastrous Godzilla attack the country has ever faced. The government would have its citizens believe that nothing is still alive inside the Deadzone…but do you believe that?There are stories of a man. Or rather…a half kaiju, half man…who travels freely throughout the Deadzone. Some say he can even kill a kaiju. Some say…he’s not the only of his kind.Journey into this mysterious new world in Godzilla: Escape the Deadzone with the Eisner-nominated writing duo Griffin Sheridan and Ethan S. Parker (Kill Your Darlings) and fan-favorite artist Pablo Tunica (TMNT/Ghostbusters 2, Sea Serpent’s Heir).
On sale Aug 06, 2025
FOC Jun 30, 2025
Comic Book
32 Pages
IDW Publishing

82771403436300121
What’s going on inside the Deadzone?! Find out in the second book of the KAI-SEI ERA, IDW’s new connected Godzilla universe!Inside the new IDW Godzilla universe, there exists a mystery larger than any other…what is the Deadzone? Inhabitants of this new world know the Deadzone to be a walled-off portion of the Pacific Northwest, sequestered after the most disastrous Godzilla attack the country has ever faced. The government would have its citizens believe that nothing is still alive inside the Deadzone…but do you believe that?There are stories of a man. Or rather…a half kaiju, half man…who travels freely throughout the Deadzone. Some say he can even kill a kaiju. Some say…he’s not the only of his kind.Journey into this mysterious new world in Godzilla: Escape the Deadzone with the Eisner-nominated writing duo Griffin Sheridan and Ethan S. Parker (Kill Your Darlings) and fan-favorite artist Pablo Tunica (TMNT/Ghostbusters 2, Sea Serpent’s Heir).
On sale Aug 06, 2025
FOC Jun 30, 2025
Comic Book
32 Pages
IDW Publishing

82771403436300131
What’s going on inside the Deadzone?! Find out in the second book of the KAI-SEI ERA, IDW’s new connected Godzilla universe!Inside the new IDW Godzilla universe, there exists a mystery larger than any other…what is the Deadzone? Inhabitants of this new world know the Deadzone to be a walled-off portion of the Pacific Northwest, sequestered after the most disastrous Godzilla attack the country has ever faced. The government would have its citizens believe that nothing is still alive inside the Deadzone…but do you believe that?There are stories of a man. Or rather…a half kaiju, half man…who travels freely throughout the Deadzone. Some say he can even kill a kaiju. Some say…he’s not the only of his kind.Journey into this mysterious new world in Godzilla: Escape the Deadzone with the Eisner-nominated writing duo Griffin Sheridan and Ethan S. Parker (Kill Your Darlings) and fan-favorite artist Pablo Tunica (TMNT/Ghostbusters 2, Sea Serpent’s Heir).
On sale Aug 06, 2025
FOC Jun 30, 2025
Comic Book
32 Pages
IDW Publishing

82771403436300141
What’s going on inside the Deadzone?! Find out in the second book of the KAI-SEI ERA, IDW’s new connected Godzilla universe!Inside the new IDW Godzilla universe, there exists a mystery larger than any other…what is the Deadzone? Inhabitants of this new world know the Deadzone to be a walled-off portion of the Pacific Northwest, sequestered after the most disastrous Godzilla attack the country has ever faced. The government would have its citizens believe that nothing is still alive inside the Deadzone…but do you believe that?There are stories of a man. Or rather…a half kaiju, half man…who travels freely throughout the Deadzone. Some say he can even kill a kaiju. Some say…he’s not the only of his kind.Journey into this mysterious new world in Godzilla: Escape the Deadzone with the Eisner-nominated writing duo Griffin Sheridan and Ethan S. Parker (Kill Your Darlings) and fan-favorite artist Pablo Tunica (TMNT/Ghostbusters 2, Sea Serpent’s Heir).
On sale Aug 06, 2025
FOC Jun 30, 2025
Comic Book
32 Pages
IDW Publishing

82771403436300151
What’s going on inside the Deadzone?! Find out in the second book of the KAI-SEI ERA, IDW’s new connected Godzilla universe!Inside the new IDW Godzilla universe, there exists a mystery larger than any other…what is the Deadzone? Inhabitants of this new world know the Deadzone to be a walled-off portion of the Pacific Northwest, sequestered after the most disastrous Godzilla attack the country has ever faced. The government would have its citizens believe that nothing is still alive inside the Deadzone…but do you believe that?There are stories of a man. Or rather…a half kaiju, half man…who travels freely throughout the Deadzone. Some say he can even kill a kaiju. Some say…he’s not the only of his kind.Journey into this mysterious new world in Godzilla: Escape the Deadzone with the Eisner-nominated writing duo Griffin Sheridan and Ethan S. Parker (Kill Your Darlings) and fan-favorite artist Pablo Tunica (TMNT/Ghostbusters 2, Sea Serpent’s Heir).
On sale Aug 06, 2025
FOC Jun 30, 2025
Comic Book
32 Pages
IDW Publishing