Rodan (Singular Point)
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Rodan (ラドン Radon) are flying reptilian kaiju who appear in the 2021 animated series, Godzilla Singular Point.
Name
Rodan's Japanese name, Radon, is a truncation of "Pteranodon." It may also have been chosen to suggest radiation. The name was changed to "Rodan" in English-speaking markets, possibly to avoid confusion with the element Radon. Toho eventually trademarked the name "Rodan," making it the monster's official English name. Within the series, Rodan carcasses were found to give off traces of radon gas, likely inspiring the name.
A feudal depiction of a flock of hat-wearing Rodan fighting against a samurai refers to them as Radon Tengu (羅甸天狗), equating them to the tengu of Japanese folklore: often birdlike humanoids who wear black boxes atop their heads. After it was concluded that the Rodan emit radio waves, they were given the nickname Radio Wave Monster (電波怪獣 Denpa Kaijū) The creatures are also referred to as "Space Monsters" (宇宙怪獣 Uchū Kaijū) due to a theory that they are extraterrestrial in nature.
While the pinkish and giant Rodan do not have official names, the second Rodan was initially labeled "Rodan Adult" on the official Godzilla Singular Point site.[1]. On June 4, it was renamed "Rodan Second Form".[2]
Design
This incarnation of Rodan has a physique closely resembling a real pterosaur, sporting a large head and walking on its wings. The juvenile Rodan's beak is long and curves upward towards the tip, and its inside is completely covered in teeth, which can be seen on the upper beak even when the mouth is fully closed. In between the top and bottom of the upper beak is a row of uniform blue scales starting a quarter of the way from the tip and ending at the eye. On the back of its head is a singular, Pteranodon-like crest, covered in a yellow and white pattern which runs along its back to the end of its long tail. Along Rodan's long neck is a blue dewlap, where the color spreads along the bottom jaw and lower beak. On its forehead, back, and tail are blue fins, with blood veins running up each one. Along its chest are rows of spikes which come to an end along its stomach. Rodan is mainly light red, with the previously mentioned blue highlights and white and yellow back patterning.
Adult Rodans are brown, with the back patterning becoming mainly white and blue highlights being dark red. The beaks on these Rodans are straight, with similar but unexposed teeth. The keratin of the head envelops most of the head, only stopping at the back of the head and beginning of the neck. The scales leading up to the eye start three quarters up the beak. These Rodans lack fins on their heads, instead they have a crest that starts on the head and ends in the traditional double crests.
The giant Rodan in episode 10 has the same body shape and design as the adult Rodans, but is mostly pitch black in color, with grey scales leading up to its eyes. The inside of the giant Rodans mouth glows yellow. A black mist emanates from this Rodan's body, as well as what appears to be embers.
Origins
The Rodan are peculiar creatures, the origins of which are shrouded in mystery. They were not found to have any digestive organs or homeobox genes and emit electromagnetic radiation in a manner similar to the way electric eels generate electricity. Furthermore, Rodan carcasses were found to give off radon gas, giving them their name. Swarms of Rodan appeared spontaneously from the sea, the color of the waters shifting to red following their first attack. Theories as to the creatures' origins include that they are extraterrestrial, or linked to the supernatural Radon Tengu of Nigashio legend.
Personality
The juvenile Rodan was quite clumsy and slow to thought, smashing into objects as it attempted to land and not noticing its perch cracking and falling under its own weight until it was thrown off by the falling billboard. In spite of this, it was also quite curious and playful, preferring to simply watch the town from its perch and stare at Yun Arikawa when it initially cornered him and playing with Jet Jaguar's limp head after defeating the robot.
Adult Rodan are more single minded, heading directly towards their desired destinations and attacking anything in their way, though they are shown to be able to coordinate group attacks.
History
Reiwa era
Godzilla Singular Point
"Terzetto"
During the Summer Monster Festival, a juvenile Rodan appeared and perched on a billboard until it collapsed under the kaiju's weight, sending the Rodan falling to the ground. As it got up, it noticed Yun Arikawa helping a fallen child and began investigating them.
"Gamesome"
As the juvenile Rodan stared at them, Goro Otaki in Jet Jaguar came to their defense, provoking the kaiju into attacking the mech. After a brief fight, Rodan managed to heavily damage the mech and force Goro out, whom it began chasing until Yun directed Jet Jaguar to do a dance that hit the Rodan and distracted it long enough for Goro to retreat. Once again dispatching the mech, Rodan turned its attention toward nearby onlookers, charging them and destroying vehicles until Yun made enough noise to grab its attention and get the kaiju to chase him. As it closed in on Yun, Goro rammed into Rodan with his truck and a reprogrammed Jet Jaguar attacked it. Instead of continuing the fight, Rodan flew into the sky where it began panicking until it suddenly died and slammed into the ground. Over the next few days, 7 more Rodan carcasses were discovered. In the ocean, a swarm of adult Rodan began flying out of the red tide and towards the mainland.
"Tigerish"
The swarm of Rodan attacked multiple coastal cities in Japan as they were drawn to the radio waves they emitted. Goro, Yun, and Haberu Kato attempted to lure away the flock using their Gyro Z, and successfully attracted a group of them, only to crash when a crashed bus blocked the road. Goro hid inside the truck alongside a school girl and the driver, while Yun and Haberu made it to an off-road shelter alongside another school girl and two others. As they were hiding, a radio inside the bus caught the attention of a Rodan, who smashed through the front window and destroyed the radio before entering the bus itself. As the Rodan investigated the bus the school girl offered to distract it with her bow, accidentally drawing the Rodan further in before they could move along with the idea. As the Rodan moves in, Yun precisely cut some water bottles and had the other school girl shoot them on arrows, the noise distracting the Rodans long enough for him and Haberu to reach their Gyro and turn begin luring the Rodan once again, eventually picking up a large number of the swarm. By the time the Gyro begins running out of power, the Rodan once again begin dropping dead, eventually killing or knocking out most of the swarm.
"Gadabout"
With most of the swarm dead, Rodan carcasses are gathered up and either disposed of or shipped off for research. Some of these Rodan were still alive and attacked the workers, only to be killed by them and other staff. One of these carcasses was stolen and eaten by Anguirus.
"Theorist"
Flocks of adult Rodan appeared along the Pacific Rim, attacking coastal cities.
"Enfatico"
A large flock of Rodans invade and overwhelm New York City while spreading large amounts of Red Dust across the city.
"Omniarch"
Large swarms of Rodans manage to overwhelm several inland cities and spread out their Red Dust to the point civilians have to wear masks.
"Erumpent"
A large flock of Rodans attack a traffic jam of evacuating civilians in London, Makita, Mei, and Li being among them. During the chaos, a flock of Rodans descend on Li while Mei can only watch helplessly as they rip her apart.
"Ecipher"
During Godzilla Terrestris' rampage in Tokyo, a gigantic shadowy Rodan charged at him, only to be seemingly destroyed by a single blast from its mouth-beam. The JSDF unsuccessfully tried to locate the giant Rodan's carcass soon after, their progress halted by Godzilla and the Red Dust.
"Relaunch"
While trekking through a channel on their way to Godzilla, the Otaki crew encountered a juvenile Rodan resting near by which proceeded to attack them only to be killed by Jet Jaguar. Flocks of Rodan were later seen flying around Godzilla Ultima.
"Explorer"
A few Rodans chased a group of soldiers around the ruins of the city. As they circled in for the kill, Jet Jaguar intervened, killing five and causing the others to retreat.
"Together"
As the Otaki crew prepared to end Godzilla once and for all, a large flock of Rodan attacked them, which chased Yun and Jet Jaguar soon after. Jet managed to kill several but they kept on coming, before the flock could finish them they stopped as they had gotten too close to Godzilla Ultima. Godzilla, who was awoken by the disturbance, proceeded to fire his atomic breath, completely vaporizing the flock.
Abilities
Physical Capabilities
In their juvenile form, Rodan were strong enough to tear off Jet Jaguar's arms and throw him around. Adult Rodan can crash vehicles and, in swarms, easily dispatched Harvey.
Durability
While not as durable as an average kaiju, the juvenile Rodan was left completely uninjured after both its fighting Jet Jaguar and being slammed into by Goro's truck.
Flight
Although slower than previous incarnations, the Rodans are capable of flight and can also hover in the air for extended periods of time.
Radio Wave Emission
The Rodans passively emit radio waves from their bodies.
Swarming
The Rodans travel in large groups and will swarm any attacker they find. This was shown when Harvey tried to subdue a Rodan only to get jumped and dispatched by the others, and when they where chasing Yun and Jet Jaguar through Tokyo.
Weaknesses
Unlike other kaiju, Rodan are susceptible to conventional weapons. They were shown being killed by machine gun fire and Jet Jaguar's spear easily cut through them. The Rodans are also dependant on the Red Dust to survive and will die if they stay without it for too long.
Filmography
- Godzilla Singular Point (TV 2021) [episodes 1-13]
Gallery
- Main article: Rodan/Gallery.
Video games
- Godzilla Singular Point: Escape!! Radio Wave Monster Rodan! (2021) - iOS, Android, PC
Rodan sprite in Escape!! Radio Wave Monster Rodan!
Rodan sprite in Escape!! Radio Wave Monster Rodan!
Trivia
- Rodan is the only kaiju to appear in every episode of Godzilla Singular Point.
- This incarnation of Rodan shares its subtitle (電波怪獣 Denpa Kaijū) with the Ultra Kaiju Beacon from Return of Ultraman. In Tigerish during the recovery of the Gyro Z after a Rodan attack a musical cue similar to MAT's theme the Defense team from the same show plays.
References
This is a list of references for Rodan (Godzilla Singular Point). 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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