FinalGoji
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- This article covers the 2004 Godzilla design. For the Godzilla incarnation, see Godzilla (Godzilla Final Wars).
The FinalGoji (ファイナルゴジ Fainarugoji) is the Godzilla suit design used in the 2004 Godzilla film Godzilla Final Wars. It was reused in two of Kazuhiro Nakagawa's short films for Godzilla Fest.
Name
FinalGoji's name comes from Godzilla Final Wars's title, specifically the word final (ファイナル fainaru), and Goji, which comes from Godzilla's Japanese name, Gojira (ゴジラ). Prior to the release of Final Wars, fans referred to this design as the FiGoji (ファイゴジ Faigoji), a shortened combination of "final" and "Goji."[2] Modeler Shinichi Wakasa instead suggested 50Godzilla, after Godzilla's 50th anniversary.[2] It is also commonly called Final Godzilla (ファイナルゴジラ Fainaru Gojira).[1]
Development
For Godzilla's 50th anniversary film, director Ryuhei Kitamura aimed to emphasize monster battles, wishing to portray "a more powerful Godzilla."[3] Camera tests were conducted using an SOSGoji suit from the previous Godzilla film, Godzilla: Tokyo SOS, but Kitamura and monster modeler Shinichi Wakasa concluded that its movements were not suitable.[4] Wakasa recalled a Godzilla fighting game his child had played and showed it to Kitamura, who agreed that it was closer to what he was looking for.[5]
Though Yasushi Nirasawa and Yoji Shinkawa submitted concept art of the new Godzilla,[6] neither of their designs were selected;[1] instead, Wakasa designed the new Godzilla himself[7] with input from Kitamura and special effects director Eiichi Asada.[2] In designing Godzilla's face, Wakasa thought it appropriate to combine characteristics of several prior suits for the character's 50th anniversary, namely the ShodaiGoji, MosuGoji, and Heisei Godzilla designs.[2] Godzilla's muscles and facial expression were emphasized to align with Kitamura's vision.[8] His dorsal fins were also made smaller so as not to interfere with the choreography,[1] and the whites of his eyes were removed so that he would not seem willful.[3]
The FinalGoji was realized by Wakasa and his company MONSTERS, Inc.[3] Three total suits were produced: the main suit for close-ups, another for "action," and one for "super action."[5] Wakasa sculpted the suits' heads,[7] while the body of at least one was patterned by Naoto Nishikawa and sculpted by Akira Yamada.[9] All of the suits' body parts from the waist down were not sculpted, but rather fabricated by gluing together pieces of urethane.[3] The modeling team took care to keep the suits lightweight and easy to act in; though the materials used were no different than on previous suits, the space inside was not filled with latex, ensuring Tsutomu Kitagawa's movements wouldn't be restricted.[5] The suits' arms were the only parts which fit snugly, and they had a dual joint at the armpit to increase their range of motion.[5] Also different from previous suits was a lack of internal lighting in Godzilla's dorsal fins, both to reduce weight and to accomodate the fins' reduction in size.[2] The only lighting installed in any of the suits were in their mouths for Godzilla's atomic breath.[2] The head of each suit was attached to a helmet-like "skullcap" worn by Kitagawa, allowing his neck movements to translate to Godzilla's.[3][1] The suits' eyeballs were created by Shigeaki Yoshida,[9] and the close-up suit also possessed a radio-controlled jaw.[10]
Either the action or super action suit was reused close to two decades later in Kazuhiro Nakagawa's short film Godzilla vs. Hedorah,[10] while the action suit appeared in its sequel, Fest Godzilla 3: Gigan Attacks.[11] It was donned by Naoya Matsumoto both times.
Detail
The FinalGoji's arms and legs are slimmer than usual, and its thighs are also one size smaller. The FinalGoji has much more noticeable ears than many previous suits. The small dorsal fins resemble those of the Showa series: a single prominent row with smaller surrounding fins.
The suit used in the Godzilla vs. Hedorah short is very similar to the close-up suit, but had some noticeable differences. Its skin was darker and its dorsal fins were white instead of a bone-white color, these fins also being more pointy. The head was flatter and had bright orange eyes and a longer lower jaw. The torso was slightly shorter, and the toes, toenails, and tail were elongated. This suit was also considerably smaller than the close-up suit. This or another suit appeared during a Hollywood Walk of Fame event, for which a device that could shoot smoke was put in its mouth.
Use in other media
Video games
Comics
- Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters #6 (Cover B)
- Godzilla #13 (Cover B by Matt Frank)
Short films
Gallery
Production
Godzilla Final Wars
Godzilla vs. Hedorah (short film)
Screenshots
Godzilla Final Wars trailers
Godzilla Final Wars
Godzilla at Sydney
Godzilla walks past the Opera House
Godzilla challenges Zilla
Godzilla gets tangled in Kumonga's web
Godzilla passes by the dying Kamacuras
Godzilla vs. Hedorah (short film)
Fest Godzilla 3: Gigan Attacks (short film)
Post-production
Godzilla holding a bouquet at the premiere of Godzilla Final Wars
NHK 2014 documentary
The FinalGoji suit with Kumi Mizuno
Merchandise
Covers
The cover for the soundtrack of Godzilla Final Wars
A Godzilla Final Wars disc
Toys
Bandai Godzilla: High Grade Set 11 Godzilla 2004
Bandai 2004 Movie Monster Series Godzilla 2004
Bandai 2004 Movie Monster Series Theater Exclusive Godzilla 2004
Bandai 2004 Movie Monster Series Ito Yokado Exclusive Godzilla 2004
Bandai 2004 Movie Monster Series HMV Exclusive Godzilla 2004
Bandai 2005 Movie Monster Series Godzilla 2004
Bandai America Godzilla 2004
Hazawa-Gumi Godzilla 2004
Monster Heaven Godzilla 2004
Bandai America Tokyo Vinyl Godzilla 2004
X-Plus Godzilla 2004 Large Monsters figure
X-Plus Godzilla 2004 30cm figure
Bandai America Comic-Con Exclusive "Burning Godzilla 2004"
Bandai America Comic-Con Exclusive "Burning Godzilla 2004"
Bandai America Comic-Con Exclusive "Burning Godzilla 2004" box set
Bandai King of the Monsters Series Godzilla FINAL WARS
S.H. MonsterArts Godzilla (2004)
Playmates 12" Godzilla (2004)
Playmates 6.5" Godzilla (2004)
Microman Godzilla 2004
Bandai Ultimate Monster Collection Godzilla 2004
Bandai Ultimate Monster Collection Godzilla 2004 (atomic breath version)
Bandai Real Action Godzilla 2004
Roto-Cast Godzilla 2004
Bandai Museum Godzilla 2004
Bandai Godzilla Complete Works Godzilla 2004
Bandai Godzilla Chronicles set
Bandai Shokugan Godzilla 2004
Bandai Shokugan Godzilla 2004
Models
Box for 20cm original concept Godzilla 2004 model by D-Tech
D-Tech 20cm Godzilla 2004 model based on the original concept design
T'sFacto original concept design Godzilla 2004 model kit
Alpha Godzilla 2004
B-club Godzilla 2004
Daimos Godzilla 2004
Daimos Godzilla 2004 vs. Kumonga
D-Tech chibi Godzilla 2004
G-Tempest Godzilla 2004
Image Godzilla 2004
Image chibi Godzilla 2004 vs. Monster X
KOC Godzilla 2004
Material Models Godzilla 2004 and Minilla
Road Impact Godzilla 2004
Shinzen Godzilla 2004
Chibi Godzilla 2004 and Minilla
Godzilla 2004 vs. Zilla by T'sFacto
VS C-Project Godzilla 2004
VS C-Project chibi Godzilla 2004 and Minilla
West Kenji Godzilla 2004
West Kenji chibi Godzilla 2004
Yamakawa Godzilla 2004 vs. Keizer Ghidorah
Godzilla 2004 by Yuji Sakai
Cards
Morinaga Godzilla's 50th Anniversary Transparent Card #55
Books
Magazines
References
This is a list of references for FinalGoji. These citations are used to identify the reliable sources on which this article is based. These references appear inside articles in the form of superscript numbers, which look like this: [1]
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Bibliography
- Matsui, Satoshi, ed. (1 March 2005). Godzilla Final Wars Super Complete Works (2nd ed.). Shogakukan. ISBN 4-09-101498-4.
- Ozawa, Ryoko; Tomoi, Taketo; Nakamura, Satoshi, eds. (4 September 2016). All Toho Monsters Pictorial Book (4th ed.). Yosensha. ISBN 978-4-8003-0362-2.
- Wakasa, Shinichi (21 October 2017). Godzilla - King of Monstermaker. Yosensha. ISBN 978-4-8003-1343-0.
- Holland, Edward L. (January–February 2021). "Fifty Years Later, Godzilla and Hedorah Clash Again". G-FAN.
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