Godzilla (First Generation)
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Godzilla (ゴジラ Gojira) is a Template:Kaiju created by Toho that first appeared in the 1954 Godzilla Template:GFilmC, Godzilla.
Name
The name "Godzilla" is a transliteration of Gojira (ゴジラ), a combination of two Japanese words: gorira (ゴリラ), meaning gorilla, and kujira (鯨 or クジラ), meaning whale. At one planning stage, the concept of "Gojira" was described as "a cross between a gorilla and a whale." The two words "whale" and "gorilla" describe Godzilla's traditional characteristics. The word whale represents his aquatic lifestyle and his bulky size. The word gorilla represents his sheer strength and the strategic thinking he uses when fighting against other monsters.
Since Godzilla is neither a gorilla nor a whale, the name had to be devised in a different way for the original film's story. Godzilla's name was originally spelled in kanji as 呉爾羅 by the Odo Island natives. However, Toho chose these characters for sound only.
Contrary to popular belief, the name "Godzilla" is not the idea of the American distributor. Before Toho sold the film to US distributors, Toho's international division had originally marketed an English-subtitled print under the title of Godzilla, King of the Monsters!, which was shown briefly in Japanese-American theaters. Toho came up with "Godzilla" as an English transliteration of the name "Gojira." The Japanese-to-English translation method of the Americans in the 1950's also proved that Godzilla was the correct English translation of Gojira.
Appearance
- Main article: ShodaiGoji.
Personality
Godzilla, in the original Godzilla, is a creature whose underwater habitat was completely destroyed by a hydrogen bomb test which also killed his family and burned and scarred him. Enraged and driven from his home, Godzilla took out his rage upon humanity, destroying any boats that he encountered and later laying waste to the city of Tokyo.[2]
Origins
In the original 1954 Godzilla, it is proposed that Godzilla was a type of prehistoric intermediary reptile related to both land and sea reptiles that slept deep underwater for millions of years feeding on deep sea organisms before being disturbed and enhanced by an American hydrogen bomb test. Dr. Yamane proposes that the original Godzilla might have been living among others of his kind prior to the detonation, but the H-bomb completely destroyed his home and drew him out. This idea is supported by official artwork of the 1954 Godzilla living with other Godzillas underwater before a huge explosion destroys his habitat, killing his companions and burning and enraging Godzilla and drawing him to the surface.[2] After the original Godzilla is killed, Yamane proposes that other Godzillas may have survived to the present day and could be awakened by future nuclear tests. This explains how in the various continuities that encompass the series, multiple individual Godzillas have appeared.
History
Godzilla (1954)
Following an American hydrogen bomb test in the Pacific Ocean, a giant prehistoric reptile was disturbed from its underwater slumber and heavily irradiated. The monster began attacking various ships in the waters off Japan, prompting a search party to be sent to Odo Island, where some of the survivors had washed ashore. The islanders believed the shipwrecks were caused by Godzilla, a giant sea monster from their folklore which they believed would come ashore to feed on humanity. One night, a typhoon struck the island, leaving it devastated. However, it was apparent most of the damage was causedby something other than a typhoon, as houses in the village appeared to have been crushed from above. A research team headed by Kyohei Yamane was sent to the island, and discovered a giant radioactive footprint on the island, with a Trilobite embedded in it. Suddenly, the monster that was responsible for the shipwrecks and the damage on the island appeared over a hill on the island. The people fled, realizing the creature was 50 meters in height. Back in Japan, Yamane named the creature "Godzilla" after the monster from Odo Island folklore, and proposed it was an transitional organism from the Jurassic Period, related to both land-living dinosaurs and sea-dwelling reptiles. Yamane believed that Godzilla was exposed to a recent American H-bomb test, hence the radiation found in his footprint, and stressed the monster should be studied to see how he survived to this point. The J.S.D.F. sent battleships to destroy Godzilla with depth charges, declaring him dead. However, Godzilla soon surfaced in Tokyo Bay completely unharmed, plunging Japan and the international community into a state of emergency. One night, Godzilla came ashore in Tokyo, destroying the outskirts of the city before returning to the bay. In response, the J.S.D.F. erected a barrier of power lines around the heart of Tokyo, with 300,000 volts of electricity passing through them, in the hopes they would halt Godzilla. When Godzilla came ashore again one night, he tore through the power lines and melted them with a beam of radioactive heat fired from his mouth. The J.S.D.F. fired on Godzilla with artillery, but their weapons had no effect. Godzilla proceeded into downtown Tokyo, transforming the Japanese capital into a sea of flame overnight. With his rampage concluded, Godzilla returned to the bay, where he was attacked by F86F Sabre fighter jets before finally disappearing beneath the waves.
In the aftermath of Godzilla's raid, Tokyo was an uninhabitable wasteland, burned to a crater and contaminated with deadly radiation. The Japanese government was at a loss in combating the monster and preventing future attacks. Scientist Daisuke Serizawa was approached by his former fiance Emiko Yamane and her boyfriend Hideo Ogata, who asked for him to use his experimental chemical weapon, the Oxygen Destroyer, against Godzilla. Serizawa was horrified by the idea of revealing his invention to the world and refused at first, but was convinced after watching a television program showing Japanese schoolchildren singing a song praying for peace. Serizawa burned his notes on the Oxygen Destroyer and handed it over to the J.S.D.F. A boat was sent to Tokyo Bay, using a Geiger counter to locate Godzilla underwater. Serizawa and Ogata donned diving suits to go underwater and detonate the device. Once they reached Godzilla, who was sitting on the ocean floor, Ogata was pulled to the surface while Serizawa severed his line and activated the device, sacrificing his own life to stop Godzilla and prevent his weapon from ever falling into the wrong hands. After a few moments, Godzilla rose to the surface and roared defiantly at the boat before sinking under the waves to his death. While the people on the boat both celebrated Godzilla's demise and mourned Serizawa's sacrifice, Dr. Yamane solemnly warned that it was unlikely Godzilla was the last member of his species, and that if mankind continued nuclear testing, another Godzilla would almost certainly appear.
Godzilla vs. Megaguirus
- Main article: Godzilla/Godzilla vs. Megaguirus.
Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack
Godzilla Against MechaGodzilla
In 1954, Godzilla appeared and laid waste to Tokyo before being killed by Daisuke Serizawa's Oxygen Destroyer. In the decades that followed, Japan was frequently attacked by giant monsters, including Mothra and Gaira. The Anti-Megalosaurus Force (AMF) was formed to combat these creatures, armed with advanced space-age weapons known as Maser Cannons. In 1999, a second Godzilla suddenly came ashore at Tateyama during a typhoon. The AMF was deployed, with their new Type 90 Maser Cannons, to stop Godzilla's rampage. To the AMF's shock, Maser Cannons had no effect on Godzilla, and only served to further enrage him. Godzilla destroyed most of the Maser Cannons attacking him and roared victoriously into the air, with lightning striking his Template:Scutes. In the aftermath of the attack, the Japanese government was scrambling to find a new way to fight Godzilla. When the first Godzilla's intact skeleton was discovered off Boso Peninsula, it was decided to use it to construct a mechanical Godzilla to fight the new one. Recruiting the assistance of Japan's greatest scientific minds, the Japanese government began construction on the Godzilla robot. By 2003, four years after construction began, the weapon, codenamed Kiryu, was completed. Just after the mech was exhibited to the international community, Godzilla landed in Japan once again. Kiryu was launched and confronted Godzilla near the coast. Kiryu launched its rockets and fired its oral Maser beams at Godzilla, causing him to step back. Kiryu prepared to fire its ultimate weapon, the Absolute Zero Cannon, but Godzilla roared and caused the first Godzilla's soul within Kiryu to awaken. Kiryu, believing itself to be Godzilla once again, went berserk, destroying the surrounding city with its payload of weapons. Godzilla retreated in the confusion, while the AMF raced to find a way to shut Kiryu down. Once Kiryu's power was depleted, the project was shelved indefinitely, with AMF and the government reduced to a laughingstock.
Meanwhile, Godzilla resurfaced in Tokyo Bay, demolishing the AMF forces attacking him and coming ashore. As Godzilla drew closer and closer to the city center, AMF and the Prime Minister had no choice but to launch Kiryu again, believing whatever caused it to run wild before had been repaired. As Godzilla approached a hospital and charged his atomic breath, Kiryu dropped from the sky and knocked Godzilla into a nearby building. Godzilla got up and attacked Kiryu. The monsters appeared equally matched as they pushed each other back and forth through the city. Kiryu stabbed Godzilla with its plasma sword and electrocuted him. Godzilla responded by kicking Kiryu into a building and stomping on it. Kiryu regained its footing and grabbed Godzilla's tail, swinging him in the air and tossing him across the city. Kiryu charged the Absolute Zero once again, but Godzilla fired his atomic breath and sent Kiryu hurdling through the sky, with the Absolute Zero beam hitting three skyscrapers instead. When Kiryu hit the ground, it was rendered inoperable. The AMF distracted Godzilla while Kiryu's operator Akane Yashiro manually took control of the machine and got it back in working order. As Kiryu stood back up, Godzilla blasted it in the back with his atomic breath until it collapsed to the ground again. Kiryu stood up once more, as Godzilla charged his atomic breath. This time, an AC-3 White Heron flew into Godzilla's mouth, buying Kiryu time to fight back. Kiryu grabbed the jet's cockpit and tore it from Godzilla's mouth, then threw it to safety. Kiryu grabbed Godzilla and held his mouth shut as it took flight, charging the Absolute Zero. Kiryu crashed into Tokyo Bay and fired the weapon, causing water to erupt out of the bay and freeze solid in the air. The ice shattered, and Godzilla rose from the water with a gaping wound in his chest. As Godzilla began wading out to sea, Kiryu surfaced as well, missing an arm and unable to move. Godzilla looked back at Kiryu and growled before continuing on his way back out to sea. While Kiryu failed to kill Godzilla, it did expel him, meaning humanity finally had a weapon to defend itself against Godzilla.
Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S.
Just one year after Godzilla and Kiryu's epic battle, Mothra's Shobijin appeared to Shinichi Chujo and warned him that the first Godzilla's bones must be returned to their resting place in the sea, and that it was blasphemous to use them as a weapon. The Shobijin stated that Mothra would have to declare war on humanity if the bones were not returned, and that she did not want to do that. Chujo spoke to the Japanese Prime Minister Hayato Igarashi, who stated that too many resources had been sunk into the Kiryu project for it to be scrapped now. He expressed his hope that Kiryu would one day kill Godzilla, after which the project could finally be scrapped. Meanwhile, the corpse of Kamoebas, a giant sea turtle, washed up on a beach, with claw marks in its neck. The AMF declared it to be the work of Godzilla, and Kiryu's repairs were sped up to prepare for the monster's return. Soon, Godzilla arrived in Tokyo, and appeared to be heading for Kiryu's hangar. Igarashi began to worry that Kiryu itself was what had been attracting Godzilla. Chujo's grandson Shun used school desks to recreate Mothra's sacred symbol, drawing her to Tokyo. Mothra attacked Godzilla, but in her old age was outmatched. Unwilling to let Mothra continue the fight alone, Igarashi ordered for Kiryu to be deployed. Kiryu arrived during Mothra and Godzilla's battle and attacked Godzilla after Mothra's wings had been destroyed by Godzilla's atomic breath. On Infant Island, Mothra's egg hatched into two twin larvae, which swam to Tokyo to assist their mother. Back in Tokyo, Godzilla used his atomic breath to blast off the side of Kiryu's face, knocking it out of commission. When Mothra's larvae arrived and began speaking with their mother, Godzilla fired his atomic breath at them. Mothra used the last of her strength to fly in front of the beam, causing her to be set ablaze and explode. Determined to avenge their mother, the larvae attacked Godzilla while Yoshito Chujo, an AMF mechanic, attempted to repair Kiryu from inside. When Kiryu was repaired, it engaged Godzilla again near the National Diet Building. The Diet Building was destroyed in the monsters' confrontation, but Kiryu managed to stab Godzilla's chest wound from their previous battle with its drill hand. Kiryu rotated the drill, causing Godzilla immeasurable pain. Mothra's larvae covered the wounded Godzilla in silk until he fell over, too injured to continue fighting. AMF ordered Kiryu to finish Godzilla, but Godzilla's pained cries reawakened the first Godzilla's spirit inside Kiryu. Unwilling to kill a member of his kind, Kiryu simply grabbed Godzilla and flew out to sea, sinking himself along with Godzilla in the Japan Trench. Igarashi declared the battle to be a hollow victory, and ordered the Kiryu project officially scrapped. However, AMF was secretly holding the DNA of several monsters in a lab, including Godzilla, to construct more weapons to defend against future monster attacks, possibly Godzilla again should he break free from Kiryu's grip.
Abilities
Over the years Godzilla has possessed many powers and abilities to use against his foes. Godzilla is generally considered to be the most powerful Template:Kaiju, as is expressed by his title, "the King of the Monsters."
Atomic Breath
Godzilla's signature weapon is his distinctive atomic breath. Godzilla's Template:Scutes glow ominously, and then he lets loose with a concentrated blast of radiation from his mouth. This power is commonly mistaken for breathing literal fire, which Godzilla only does in the Marvel comics, The Godzilla Power Hour and other non-film media such as the Recommend! Godzilland OVAs.
The intensity of Godzilla's atomic heat ray has changed over the course of his film appearances, varying from a stream of superheated vapor, such as in the 1950's and 1960's, to a beam with explosive and kinetic properties, in the 1970's and onward. In the Heisei series, Godzilla's atomic breath is portrayed as a powerful focused blue laser capable of causing large explosions and severely wounding some monsters such as Rodan and Battra when fired at point-blank range. According to the book Godzilla 1954-1999 Super Complete Works, the temperature of Godzilla's standard atomic breath in the Heisei series is 500,000 degrees Celsius.[3] The ray is usually portrayed as being neon blue, though in Godzilla 2000: Millennium and Godzilla vs. Megaguirus, it is a reddish orange to signify an increased level of power.
Durability
In the first Godzilla film, Godzilla displayed an immunity to conventional weaponry, virtually impervious to everything the JSDF threw at him. Dr. Yamane states that the very fact Godzilla survived exposure to a hydrogen bomb explosion is a testament to his durability.
Amphibiousness
Though technically a reptile and not an amphibian, Godzilla has an amphibious lifestyle. He spends half of his life in water and the other on land.
Oxygen Destroyer
The Oxygen Destroyer was a weapon that contained a chemical compound designed to remove all oxygen from water when put into contact with it, causing living creatures to die of asphyxiation as their remains are liquefied by the now-highly corrosive surrounding water. The Oxygen Destroyer was the first, and in many ways only, weapon to defeat Godzilla, completely disintegrating him in the original film.
Filmography
STOCK FOOTAGE
- Godzilla (1954)
- The Return of Godzilla
- Godzilla vs. Biollante
- Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah
- Godzilla vs. Mothra
- Adventure! Godzilland
- Godzilla vs. MechaGodzilla 2
- Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla
- Godzilla vs. Destoroyah
- Godzilla: The Series
- Godzilla 2000: Millennium
- Godzilla vs. Megaguirus
- Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack
- Godzilla Against MechaGodzilla
- Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S. (Stock Footage)
- Godzilla: Final Wars (Stock Footage)
Godzilla 1954 Bio
"The original king of the monsters, this towering behemoth was the first post-war radioactive monster unleashed upon the world. Godzilla '54's atomic-powered body was so powerful that each footprint he left was a crater seeping with lethal radiation. The infamous day that Godzilla rose from the sea to conquer Tokyo will be remembered as the beginning of the humanity's epic struggle against the reign of giant monsters."
In the Wii version of Godzilla: Unleashed, all three Godzilla incarnations are playable, each with a few differences between them, but all are fairly alike. Godzilla is simple to control, and with many different fearsome attacks, he is able to easily floor multiple monsters at once. Although his combat ability might be lacking in some regards, he still retains the deadly atomic breath ray which is an easy attack to execute and deals a lot of damage.
In the Wii version of the game, Godzilla 2000 is the only incarnation that can be played in story mode. Godzilla 1954 and Godzilla 1990's are only playable in Brawl mode, although Godzilla 1990's is playable in story mode in the PlayStation 2 version of the game.
Kaiju Guide
Godzilla, King of Kaiju (Showa Series)
Godzilla originated as the relict species of an organism whose evolution from an oceanic reptile into a land animal was interrupted by thermonuclear testing in the Pacific Ocean, the effects of which caused it to turn into a monster. Its name is derived from the legendary "Gojira" beast of Odo Island. It has the ability to shoot a shining, bluish-white radioactive heat ray from its mouth that decimates all in its path while causing its dorsal plates to glow.
The first Godzilla came ashore in Tokyo and wreaked havoc in the metropolitan area as though to send a warning to the human race, which had become complacent in modern civilization. It was eventually brought down by the "Oxygen Destroyer", an underwater oxygen disrupting agent developed by Dr. Serizawa.
Later, one of the same species was identified on Iwado Island in the north and ran rampant in Japan again. However, the second Godzilla became an ally to mankind, protecting it when the space monster King Ghidorah invaded Earth.
Although it was somewhat hastily planned and produced, "Godzilla" (1954) became an explosive hit that broke through Japan's borders to an eventual release in America and Europe, where it was heralded as a fresh new take on the monster movie. The entire Showa series of 15 movies would go on to enjoy lasting popularity."
■ Specifications
● Showa Series (Original second generation)
Height:
50 meters
Weight:
20,000 tons
Abilities:
Atomic breath
Appearances:
"Godzilla" through "Terror of MechaGodzilla"
Gallery
- Main article: ShodaiGoji.
Sightings
- Main article: Godzilla in popular culture.
Roar
Godzilla's roar is a famous sound effect. Over the years, it has changed considerably, sounding different almost every time and having many variations for the different emotions.
The sound effects team originally tried to create Godzilla's roar by using animal roars that had been edited. They sampled all kinds of birds and mammals, but nothing seemed to be the right match for the reptile-like noises a monster like Godzilla would make. Akira Ifukube, who was the film's composer, proposed stepping away from using animal samples. He took a string off of his contrabass and rubbed it with gloves soaked in pine tar. The sound that came from it was used as Godzilla's roar. This roar would later be altered for use as the roar of other monsters in the Showa era, including Varan, Baragon and Gorosaurus.
Godzilla's roar can be written in readable characters and has been done so in comics, and not only by a simple "roar." In Japanese, the official onomatopoeia for Godzilla's roar is "Gyaoon" (ギャオーン Gyaōn)--additionl "o"s can be added to extend the roar.
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References
This is a list of references for Godzilla (First Generation). 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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External Links
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