Kong couldn’t take down the King of the Monsters, but he did land a victory over Mechagodzilla in Godzilla vs. Kong; why could he beat one but not the other? Designed by APEX, the mecha-Titan was built to be superior to Godzilla in every way. Thanks to the Hollow Earth expedition, APEX was able to arm him with the same energy source that fuels Godzilla too.
At the end of the MonsterVerse movie, Godzilla found himself overwhelmed by Mechagodzilla’s colossal strength, speed, and an arsenal of high-powered weapons. When the two clashed, what followed was a lopsided fight that nearly ended in Godzilla’s death. After being revived by the HEAV, Kong shifted the odds in their favor by teaming up with the alpha, but Mechagodzilla wouldn’t go down easily even then. After downing Godzilla again, Mechagodzilla fought Kong one-on-one, and with a little help from Josh (Julian Dennison) who poured alcohol on APEX’s controls, Kong prevailed over Mechagodzilla. The battle ended memorably, with Kong ripping his body apart with his Godzilla-charged ax.
Kong beating Mechagodzilla is impressive, especially since he couldn’t beat Godzilla. When it comes to why he could defeat one and not the other, several things should be kept in mind. First of all, one of the key reasons Godzilla lost was Mechagodzilla’s energy-charged punches. He landed numerous hits on Godzilla this way, but Kong was fortunately spared these devastating blows. He was only dealt one during the bout. It was Godzilla, and not Kong, who had taken the brunt of Mechagodzilla’s attacks. Kong, who is physically weaker than Godzilla, likely would have fallen if he had endured as many of these energy-charged punches as Godzilla did.
It should also be noted Mechagodzilla was designed specifically for fighting Godzilla. So though he was stronger than Kong, he still had a few disadvantages against him, such as the ape’s agility. Admittedly, Kong nearly was overpowered by Mechagodzilla, but the brief technical malfunction caused by Josh gave him the opportunity he needed to win. Plus, it certainly helped that Kong was recharged by the HEAV.
Not unlike the burst of lightning that got him back on his feet in Toho’s King Kong vs Godzilla, the HEAV gave Kong his second wind. Kong fought like he was bursting with energy against Mechagodzilla, whereas Godzilla was drained from the extensive use of his atomic breath and two tiresome fights with Kong. If circumstances were different, it may be that Godzilla would have beaten Mechagodzilla without any help. Thankfully though, that wasn’t necessary. Godzilla vs. Kong left no doubt that Godzilla is the true King of the Monsters, but it also proved on no uncertain terms that Kong is a force to be reckoned with in the MonsterVerse.