Sank the series for non-Japanese adult critics with 50+ years of hindsight, perhaps. During the mid-to-late 1960s, the films were still successful box office in Japan (and the US), despite the shrinking number of moviegoers and theaters by the end of that decade in Japan. In 1968, Toho decided to put their monsters to rest, but a decision was made to retool the films and make them expressly for children, starting with GODZILLA'S REVENGE in 1969. The next five annual films produced for their "Toho Champion Festival" kiddie matinee programs through TERROR OF MECHAGODZILLA (1975), were aimed directly at kids, not general audiences, as the films up through DESTROY ALL MONSTERS had been. So, REVENGE, HEDORAH, GIGAN, MEGALON, MECHAGODZILLA and TERROR were indeed "goofy", and made on smaller budgets, because they were Kiddie Films. In reality, the soaring cost of film production, caused by the global Energy Crisis of the '70s, was ultimately one of the several elements which brought the original series to a close in 1975 (including stiff competition from similarly-themed television programs). It's all about context. 

As Harlan Ellison said, "Everybody has opinions: I have them, you have them. And we are all told from the moment we open our eyes, that everyone is entitled to his or her opinion. Well, that’s horsepuckey, of course. We are not entitled to our opinions; we are entitled to our informed opinions. Without research, without background, without understanding, it’s nothing. It’s just bibble-babble. It’s like a fart in a wind tunnel, folks."

Last Edited By: Hachigatsu Jun 5 11 2:56 PM. Edited 2 times.