Gamera 3: Revenge of Iris (1999)

The final entry in the Heisei era Gamera trilogy is the best of the lot. Of course there’s kaijū fights, but even better is the story. It explores, from the perspective of one orphaned girl, what it means to have been in the thick of the action during GOTU (1995) and watched everything you love be destroyed: the cold and callous name for which is collateral damage.
The visible enemy resembles something from a JRPG. There’s tentacles that admittedly would be more challenging (however not impossible) to do without CGI, but I wish they’d been less liberal with it elsewhere, because it's the only stain on an otherwise astonishing display of super-detailed models and guys in rubber suits being awesome.

4 steps toward extinction out of 5

Gamera 2: Attack of Legion (1996)

The second Heisei era Gamera is a sequel to GOTU (1995).  A meteor shower over Sapporo brings with it some unwelcome visitors that quickly begin killing hapless civilians. The JSDF, still on the alert from the year before (see first film), are equally as quick to pull out the big guns but when has that ever been any use against a kaijū?
The turtle is needed once more. And while we’re at it let’s bring back Asagi Kusanagi in case we need another quick plot resolution.
With 60+ years of kaijū history to study and learn from it’s perhaps not surprising that the villainous Legion creature is spectacular. It towers over the townspeople and leaves a trail of destruction in its wake.
We got short-changed when it came to cover art. The Japanese theatrical poster is much better. You can check it out HERE.

3½ one-eyed bandits out of 5

Gamera: Guardian of the Universe (1995)

Gamera's ninth outing is the first of three in the Heisei era reboot. It's a kaijū movie that builds tension in the usual way by having a small group of humans tracking the destruction left by the beast(s) before the eventual reveal. The beasts are familiar giant, carnivorous, featherless birds.
There’s an ecological message beneath the chaos, but it’s the destruction of model cities that most people want to see and it doesn't disappoint.
Gamera (the creature) is awesome. He looks like a fat, stumpy turd on radar but when he surfaces he’s towering and menacing with none of the bad comedic decisions that were forced upon him in some of the previous films.

3½ shadows of evil out of 5