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Godzilla (ゴジラ, Gojira) is a kaijū (fictional Japanese monster) from the Godzilla series of science fiction films. He was first seen in the 1954 film Godzilla and, to date, has appeared in 28 films, all of which were produced by Toho Co. Ltd. Being one of the most iconic characters in film history, Godzilla has also appeared in numerous comic books, video games, novels, and in popular culture.

In 1998, TriStar Pictures produced a remake set in New York City. The film's name was simply Godzilla; however, the character had been completely redesigned and only had superficial characteristics in common with the original Godzilla. The remake was met with mainly negative reception by long-time Godzilla fans and film critics alike. The American remake monster was later identified by Toho as Zilla in Godzilla: Final Wars.

Name

"Godzilla" Gojira (ゴジラ) is a combination of two Japanese words: gorira (ゴリラ, lit. "gorilla") and kujira (鯨 (くじら), lit. "whale"). At one planning stage, Godzilla was described as "a cross between a gorilla and a whale," alluding to his size, power and aquatic origin. A popular story is that "Gojira" was actually the nickname of a hulking stagehand at Toho Studio. The story has not been verified, however, because in the more than 50 years since the film's original release, no one claiming to be the employee has ever stepped forward, and no photographs of him have ever surfaced.

There is disagreement as to exactly how the monster's name should be pronounced. While purists often use the Japanese pronunciation listen, most favor the anglicized rendering of its name, (with the first syllable pronounced like the word "god", and the rest rhyming with "vanilla"). Back in the 1950s when Godzilla was created (and Japanese-to-English transliteration was less familiar) it is likely that the kana representing the second syllable was misinterpreted as being pronounced . Had the more conventional Hepburn romanization system been used, Godzilla's name would instead have been rendered as "Gojira". This argument receives a nod in the TriStar "Godzilla" film when a newscast of a Japanese sailor's repeated pronunciation of "Gojira" is immediately Anglicized to "Godzilla" in the very next frame by an American news reporter. Watching the newscast in a local bar, another reporter shouts, "It's Gojira, moron!"

Design

Godzilla's character has been tweaked and reinvented many times over the separate continuities of the Toho films. To date, there have been eight distinctive versions of the monster (12 if Hanna-Barbera's Godzilla, Marvel's Godzilla, Dark Horse's Godzilla, and TriStar's Godzilla are taken into account as well). However, these non-Japanese incarnations of Godzilla are not widely recognised as being canonical. His iconic design is composed of a mixture of various species of dinosaurs; the body structure of a Tyrannosaurus rex, the dorsal fins of a Stegosaurus, and the arms of an Iguanodon.

Appearances

Godzilla is the primary anti-hero and hero, in all of the Godzilla films, though there are numerous different incarnations of the monster. The silver screen is not the only place Godzilla has appeared; there have been literary sources that have expanded the universe of Godzilla. It has also been a cartoon show.

Films

Showa Era

Godzilla made his first appearance in the original 1954 film Godzilla. In the film, as a result of testings of the hydrogen bomb, Godzilla is awakened and mutated. Near the beginning of the film, Godzilla rampages through Oto Island, causing the deaths of various natives during when the scientists' inquiry of the events that occurred from the boat incident lead them to there. The American version titled Godzilla, King of the Monsters! contained scenes from the Japanese film with narration by and reshot footage of Raymond Burr's character Steve Martin.

A new Godzilla appeared in Godzilla Raids Again, though Godzilla was called Gigantis in the American release. This is the first film in which Godzilla battled another monster, named Anguirus who was defeated. He would continue to play the role of an antagonist until Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster, in which Godzilla took on the heroic personality which he would wear for the remainder of the series. (Indeed, a translated conversation between Godzilla, Mothra and Rodan in said film reveals that Godzilla's anger towards humans is merely due to what he perceives as unprovoked attacks towards him). He would team up with Mothra, Rodan, and Anguirus along with other monsters to battle Ebirah, Kumonga, Kamacuras, Hedorah, Gigan, Megalon, Mechagodzilla, and, most frequently, King Ghidorah in different films. He even gained a son in the form of Minilla. The series ended with Terror of Mechagodzilla in 1975.

Heisei Era

In the Heisei era, Godzilla not only returns after more than a decade's absence, but marks a transition between the Shōwa era (the reign of Hirohito) to the Heisei era (the reign of Akihito). This would be the first of many times the Godzilla film series would see a continuity reboot. In The Return of Godzilla, all Godzilla films through Godzilla Raids Again and Terror of Mechagodzilla would be retconned, with The Return of Godzilla being a direct sequel to the original film and featuring a brand new Godzilla. The Godzilla of the Heisei era would be portrayed in a less anthropomorphic manner than the Showa Godzilla, depicted as a violent, insatiable force of nature and the personification of the Atomic Bomb rather than a campy superhero. However, despite being a threat to humanity, Godzilla would continue to fight other monsters, battling Biollante, King Ghidorah, Mothra, Battra, Rodan, Mechagodzilla, Spacegodzilla, and Destoroyah over the course of the series, and even adopted a son named Godzilla Junior. Heisei Godzilla would eventually meet his demise in the final film of the series, Godzilla vs. Destoroyah, melting down after defeating the titular villain, with Godzilla Junior mutating to full-size to carry on his legacy.

Millennium series

The Millennium series is unique because rather than creating a single continuity that all the films would follow, the series would instead comprise a number of discrete narratives, each using only the original Godzilla film as a backdrop. The Millennium series would consist of Godzilla 2000, Godzilla vs. Megaguirus, Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack, Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla, Godzilla: Tokyo SOS and Godzilla: Final Wars. Each film would feature its own incarnation of Godzilla. Throughout the series, Godzilla would fight both new opponents such as Orga and Megaguirus, as well as classic opponents such as Mothra and Mechagodzilla. The majority of the films in the series featured a revamped Godzilla design. This Godzilla had a wilder appearance, with spikier skin, more massive, jagged dorsal fins, and a fiercer, more saurian face than the Godzilla featured in the Heisei series. Due to the disconnected nature of the Millennium series, the character's portrayal varied more than it did in the Showa and Heisei series, with some films depicting him as a sympathetic and heroic character (Godzilla 2000, Godzilla vs Megaguirus, and Godzilla: Final Wars), and others depicting him as pure destructive force (GMK, Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla, and Godzilla: Tokyo SOS.)

Overall, Godzilla has starred in 28 films (excluding the American remake). Toho plans to revive the Godzilla franchise in 2013-14 (around Godzilla's 60th anniversary).

Television

In Japan, Godzilla was an oft-seen guest star on the tokusatsu series Zone Fighter. He fought alongside the titular hero against other kaiju, including Gigan and King Ghidorah. Toho has gone on the record saying that the events in Zone Fighter are part of the Godzilla series, taking place between Godzilla vs Megalon and Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla.

Godzilla made his American series debut in the 1978 Hanna-Barbera Saturday morning show The Godzilla Power Hour, in which he gained a sidekick, Godzooky, described as his nephew. In addition to his trademark atomic breath, (retooled as flame breath), he was also given the power to shoot laser beams out of his eyes. He was routinely summoned by his human friends using a signaling device or by the cry of Godzooky. Godzilla cartoons were paired with cartoons featuring Jana of the Jungle. The series ran, both as part of the hour and with the Godzilla segments airing as a separate half-hour show, until 1981.

In the Hanna-Barbera cartoon, Godzilla's roar was not the same as his trademark roar. Instead, it was provided by Ted Cassidy.

The second cartoon series, which aired on Fox Kids, was based on the events of the 1998 American movie. Godzilla: The Series featured a juvenile Godzilla from the 1998 American remake which had grown to full size. In a similar fashion to earlier animated works, Godzilla traveled around the world with a group of humans called H.E.A.T, including scientist Nick Tatopolas (which the new Godzilla believed to be its parent), battling monsters. The offspring not only had the abilities and physical forms of his parent, but the creators of the show gave him even more powers and attitude more resembling the Japanese Godzilla.

Literature

Godzilla has been featured in the occasional comic book, most often in American production (from Marvel Comics in the mid-1970s and from Dark Horse Comics in the 1980s and 1990s). Japanese Godzilla comics do exist, however.

The Marvel series told original stories and attempted to both fit into the official Toho continuity and avoid referencing it too directly. It also integrated Godzilla into the Marvel Universe, making use of many of its main regular characters such as the Avengers. It was published from 1977 to 1979, neatly fitting between the Showa Period movies and the Heisei Era. This series described the adventures and confrontations of Godzilla while he wandered in various regions of the United States, from Alaska to New York City.

The general situations of the series were fairly similar to those of the Showa Period movies, but other than Godzilla himself all characters were new creations, albeit in sometimes strangely familiar roles (for instance, Red Ronin somewhat resembles Jet Jaguar and Mechagodzilla in its story role). Likewise, the JSDF are absent, but S.H.I.E.L.D. pretty much fills its role in the story, complete with a Behemoth IV Helicarrier in an eerie foreshadowing of the Super X.

Characteristics

Godzilla's appearance has changed over the years, but many of his characteristics have remained constant. One characteristic that has remained stable is his roar. It was first created by Japanese composer Akira Ifukube by rubbing a resin glove over the strings of a contrabass. Other characteristics that have remained constant across all the Japanese films have been: Godzilla being depicted as a giant, mutant dinosaur with rough, bumpy charcoal grey scales, a long powerful tail, and jagged, bone colored dorsal plates. Although his origins vary somewhat from film to film, he is always described as a prehistoric monster, who first appeared and attacked Japan at the beginning of the Atomic Age. In particular, mutation due to atomic radiation is presented as an explanation for his size and powers.

Godzilla has also been shown to possess many special abilities granted to him as a result of his irradiation and subsequent mutation. He is generally considered to be the most fearsome and powerful of kaiju, earning the character his entitlement as "The King of the Monsters". Godzilla's atomic ray is his most powerful and distinctive weapon. When he uses it, Godzilla's dorsal fins glow ominously, and then he releases a concentrated blast of radiation from his mouth, which can vary in intensity from a superheated vapour to a beam with concussive and explosive properties. Godzilla is also depicted as being highly resistant to damage thanks to a tough hide and an advanced healing factor known as Regenerator G1. He is known to have a high degree of physical strength and dexterity, often utilizing martial arts techniques in combat. Described as a transitional form between aquatic and terrestrial vertebrates by Doctor Yamane in the original film, Godzilla is able to survive in the ocean for extended periods of time and is as adept a fighter underwater as he is on land.

These particular abilities are portrayed consistently among Godzilla's many incarnations, though he also possesses a multitude of other skills, often employed as weapons of last resort that are only seen on rare occasions, such as his spiral ray, nuclear pulse, magnetic powers, and even the ability to fly.

In popular culture

Godzilla is one of the most recognizable action/fictional symbols of Japanese popular culture worldwide and remains an important facet of Japanese films, embodying the kaiju subset of the tokusatsu genre. He has been considered a filmographic metaphor for the United States, as well as an allegory of nuclear weapons in general. The earlier Godzilla films, especially the original Godzilla, attempted to portray Godzilla as a frightening, nuclear monster. Godzilla was a representation of the fears that many Japanese held about the nuclear attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, as well as the fear of those types of attacks occurring again. As the series progressed, so did Godzilla, changing into a less destructive and more heroic character as the films became increasingly geared towards children. But today, the character has fallen somewhere in the middle, sometimes portrayed as a protector of the Earth (notably Japan) from external threats and other times as a bringer of destruction. The usual explanation of Godzilla's character is that the reason he defends Earth from other kaiju is not because of any loyalty or affection towards humans, but because he perceives other monsters as threats to his territory, in addition seems to possess a natural hostility toward those other monsters, and might be classified as being rather serious. Godzilla is also the second of only three fictional characters to have won the MTV Lifetime Achievement Award, which was awarded in 1996.

See also

• King Kong
• Gamera
• Clover
• Yonggary

References

1. ^ Godzilla (1954)
2. ^ Godzilla (Heisei)
3. ^ Takeo Murata (writer) and Ishirō Honda (writer/director) (2006). Godzilla (DVD). Classic Media.
4. ^ Al C. Ward (writer) and Ishirō Honda, Terry Morse (writers/directors) (2006). Godzilla, King of the Monsters! (DVD). Classic Media.
5. Gojira Media. Retrieved 2006-09-23
6. Godzilla on My Mind: Fifty Years of the King of the Monsters, by William Tsutsui
7. The Monster That Morphed Into a Metaphor, By TERRENCE RAFFERTY, May 2, 2004, NYTimes
8. "Godzilla wins MTV's Lifetime Achievement Award". AOL.com. Retrieved 2008-03-29.

External links

• Official Website of Toho
• Godzilla Official Website (Japan)
• Template:Imdb character
• Sony's Godzilla Website
• Godzilla on DVD
• Godzilla at the Wikizilla
• Kaiju HQ
• The Godzilla Shrine
• Godzilla wikia

• Articles needing cleanup from November 2007
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• Fictional dinosaurs
• Animal superheroes
• Film characters
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• 1954 introductions
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• Hollywood Walk of Fame
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• Kaiju