Tokyo

Tokyo (東京,   Tōkyō), formally Tokyo Metropolis (東京都,   Tōkyō-to) is the capital and biggest city of Japan, as well as one of the nation's 47 prefectures. Due to its importance as the capital city of Japan, it has appeared in countless Japanese and foreign films, as well as a majority of kaiju films, whether as a primary location or simply through a reference.

Name

Tokyo was originally known as "Edo", meaning "estuary." Its name was changed to Tokyo (Tōkyō: tō (east) + kyō (capital)) when it became the de facto imperial capital in 1868.

History

Showa Series

Godzilla (1954)

Godzilla, after being discovered on Odo Island, was the subject of a discussion held at the National Diet Building by Kyohei Yamane and a group of islanders. Yamane explained to members of the Japanese government that Godzilla had been resting below the waters of the South Pacific since the Jurassic period, and had likely been awoken by nuclear tests conducted in the region.

Unknown to everyone there, Godzilla had began journeying towards Japan after the JMSDF attempted to use depth-charges to kill him. Unfortunately, these weapons failed to injure the kaiju, and instead only angered him. Several days after the expedition to Odo Island concluded, Godzilla rose out of Tokyo Bay at night, terrifying a group of people aboard a cruise ship, before sinking back below the water. The following evening, Godzilla left the water again and this time came ashore, attacking the neighboring city of Shinagawa, causing much destruction and death before returning to the bay. A barrier constructed from thousands of high-voltage pylons was then placed around the city in an attempt to defend it should Godzilla surface again, but these proved ultimately useless when Godzilla rose out of Tokyo Bay once more and melted the pylons with his atomic breath. Godzilla then entered Tokyo and quickly began to destroy it, reducing it to a sea of flames in a matter of hours.

After Godzilla left much of the city in ruins, two F-86 Sabres were mobilized in a last-ditch attempt to drive Godzilla back. The jet fighters unloaded their arsenal of missiles on Godzilla, but the giant monster gave no reaction to the counterattack. With no ammunition left and barely enough fuel to return to base, the jets were forced to fly away as Godzilla returned to the ocean yet again. The death toll from the attack was massive, but the residual radiation left behind by Godzilla's assault on the city would go on to kill many more.

Gallery

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  Godzilla attacks Tokyo in Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S.