Dogora
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Dogora (ドゴラ Dogora) is a mutant space cell kaiju that first appeared in the 1964 Toho film Dogora.
A single-celled organism living in Earth's atmosphere, Dogora was mutated after coming into contact with a radiation pocket over Japan. The creature began destroying satellites before descending to Earth to feed on sources of carbon, primarily diamonds and coal. Dogora grew at an accelerated rate as it fed, eventually growing into a colossal tentacled monster. The JSDF were able to blow Dogora apart with their missiles, but this only induced the creature to undergo cellular fission and reproduce into countless more Dogora cells. Fortunately, it was discovered that wasp venom caused a chemical reaction within Dogora's cells which caused them to crystallize, and so chemical plants around the globe worked to synthesize artificial wasp venom. The JSDF attacked Dogora using this compound, crystallizing all of its cells and finally ridding the world of the space monster.
While it debuted outside of the Godzilla series, Dogora began to cross over into Godzilla media beginning with the 1988 video game Godzilla: Monster of Monsters!, in which it appeared as an enemy. Dogora went on to appear in other media such as the 1997 television series Godzilla Island. Dogora made its first appearance in a Godzilla film during the intro of the 2017 film GODZILLA: Planet of the Monsters, which briefly depicted Dogora attacking London. Dogora's role in the continuity of the anime trilogy is explored in greater depth in the film's official prequel novel, GODZILLA: Monster Apocalypse.
Name
In Godzilla Island, Dogora's business card reads, "Shiryō-kai Eigyō Ikkaku Kakarichō Hosa Kokoroe Dogora" (死霊界営業一角係長補佐心得 ドゴラ), which GODZILLA OFFICIAL by TOHO's English subtitles translate as Spirit Realm Sales Department, First Division Deputy Assistant Manager Dogora. However, the "Sales Department, First Division" portion can be seen as erroneous, as the word 一角 (ikkaku), though containing the kanji for "one" (一 ichi), simply means "section" or "part." Therefore, a more accurate translation might be simply "Sales Department" or "Sales Section." When introducing himself in episode 70, Dogora tells Zagreth that she may also call him "the Reaper" (死神 shinigami, lit. "god of death"). Zagreth applies this epithetically as Dogora the Reaper (死神ドゴラ Shinigami Dogora) in episode 71, but refers to him as Mister Reaper (死神さん Shinigami-san) in episode 74. In episode 78, when speaking to Zagreth remotely from Godzilla Island, he uses the call sign Checkmate King 2 (チェックメイト・キング・ツー Chekkumeito Kingu Tsū), possibly a reference to his plotting against King Caesar.
Development
The idea for Dogora originated with Jojiro Okami's 1962 story proposal Space Mons, which was picked up by Toho to be adapted into a film in 1964.[5] The screenplay did not give the space monster a name, and went under the working titles Earth Martial Law or just Space Monster.[5] The premise of Dogora was to be be a truly alien lifeform with an unconventional design that stood out from more conventional movie monsters. The design for Dogora came from a 3D illustration by Shigeru Komatsuzaki for the Shogakukan publication Weekly Shonen Saturday.[6] The monster's design used protozoa for reference. The process of creating Dogora's onscreen prop was very time-consuming and characterized by trial-and-error in every step, from searching for the correct material to determining the method in which to shoot it.
After seeing the design for Dogora, Keizo Murase thought about using soft vinyl, a material which had recently become available on the market. Murase visited a factory in Chiba and purchased a soft vinyl mold for 200 thousand yen. While the mold was rather expensive, special effects director Eiji Tsuburaya agreed with Murase's decision to use soft vinyl.[5]
Next, Kanji Yagi created a 1-shaku clay mold for Dogora and brought it to the aforementioned factory where it was used to create a soft vinyl miniature for Dogora. However, there was concern that attempting to operate the prop through the normal method of suspending it in the air with piano wire could risk breaking it. Murase came up with the method of placing the prop in a tank of water and manipulating it with fishing line. When Murase showed this to Tsuburaya, he was very pleased that they had finally found a successful method to manipulate the prop.
When shooting began, the Dogora prop was placed in the tank and made to "dance" through the water using water flow from a valve fixed at the bottom of the tank. This had the unintended effect of producing bubbles which became visible in the finished take. According to Teruyoshi Nakano, the water from the local Waterworks Bureau on the day of filming was white and cloudy, meaning the staff had difficulty keeping the tank transparent enough for filming and was unable to shoot very much footage of the Dogora prop.[7] As a result, Dogora's full jellyfish-like form only appears briefly in a single sequence in the finished film despite being heavily featured in marketing and promotion.
Dogora's single-celled form, which was the primary state the creature appeared in onscreen, was created by sandwiching liquid organic glass between plates of solid glass, which was then synthesized into live-action footage.[5] To depict Dogora's cells crystallizing, a light bulb was attached to a 15 centimeter polyvinyl chloride miniature. An electrical current was sent to the bulb through piano wire, causing it to illuminate and giving the effect of the miniature flashing and emitting light.
Design
Dogora initially resembles a bluish amoeba-like blob. Dogora can take the form of a bluish-green vapor, or even be invisible at times. After growing substantially from consuming carbon, Dogora takes the form of a colossal light green jellyfish-like creature with long thin tentacles, and an opening on its underside through which it can absorb sources of carbon. When Dogora is struck by missiles, it undergoes cell division and splits into countless smaller blob-like forms. When Dogora comes into contact with wasp venom, its body undergoes a chemical reaction that causes it to crystallize into hardened multicolored rocks.
Origins
According to Dr. Munakata, Dogora is a space cell that lived in the Earth's upper atmosphere. The cell was exposed to a huge cloud of radiation located in the atmosphere over Japan, causing it to mutate rapidly. The cell then began to require large amounts of carbon to sustain itself, and so descended to Earth to feed on carbon sources such as diamonds and coal.
History
- Dogora (1964)
- Godzilla Island (TV 1997-1998) [episodes 69-71 and 73-83]
- GODZILLA: Planet of the Monsters (2017)
Showa era
Dogora
Dogora first appeared in space, feeding on radiation. It destroyed a television satellite, causing it to mutate further. It came to Earth and began eating diamonds and coal. A professor created a synthetic diamond, and Dogora was attracted to it. It melted the safe doors and ate the diamonds. It attacked a coal plant, and it was discovered that it feeds on carbon. Defense forces thought they detected Dogora in the sky over Kyushu, but it was a swarm of bees. The bees flew into a cloud, and dozens of multiple-colored rocks fell out. Dogora was detected again as it attacked Fukuoka, now taking the form of a colossal jellyfish-like creature with long tentacles. Dogora began to feed on coal and diamonds, but was confronted by the JSDF, who blew it to bits with their missiles, but not before hurling a bridge at the humans in an attempt to ward them off. The pieces of Dogora regrew into their own cells, and attacked again. It was discovered that Dogora was weak to wasp and bee venom, as it caused its cells to crystallize. The JSDF released large amounts of wasp venom onto the Dogoras, causing them to harden and die.
Heisei era
Godzilla Island
Dogora was a trickster alien who offered his services to Zagreth after the Xilien endured a chewing-out by her boss, the Giant Dark Emperor. His plan was to summon SpaceGodzilla's ghost to possess Godzilla, who would then pick off the other monsters of Godzilla Island one by one. As the haunted Godzilla wreaked havoc, Dogora tried to use various illusions to keep Torema lost in the woods as she attempted to reach King Caesar. She dissipated Dogora with a shot of her laser pistol, but he quickly reformed and fled. As King Caesar traveled with an ofuda to exorcise Godzilla, Dogora ran interference again, causing an explosion atop a nearby mountain to bury him in rubble. After Godzilla Junior freed King Caesar, allowing him to administer the ofuda, and SpaceGodzilla failed to defeat all of Godzilla Island’s monsters, Dogora was sent to heaven, presumably by his superiors for his failure.
Reiwa era
GODZILLA: Planet of the Monsters
Dogora attacked London in September 2002, causing 3.9 million deaths.[8]
Abilities
Flight
After Dogora entered the Earth's atmosphere, both of its forms were capable of hovering in the sky. Dogora can also travel through space in both forms, and attacked satellites in its cellular form in space before traveling down to Earth.
Corrosive touch
Dogora's cells give off a special type of energy which gave them the ability to burn through objects. A single Dogora cell was able to burn through the steel door of a safe.
Consumption
Dogora can vacuum up sources of carbon through a tube inside of its body. Other objects such as cars and rocks would occasionally get sucked up as well, often during its feeding of carbon.
Tentacles
When Dogora had reached its mature jellyfish form, it sported four elongated tentacles that dangled from its body. Dogora's tentacles lifted the two-kilometer Wakato Bridge with ease.
Cell fission
Due to Dogora consuming a vast amount of carbon and turning into its jellyfish form, it had become more tangible. This allowed the JSDF to blast Dogora's mature form to pieces with surface-to-air missiles. However, each individual piece of Dogora lived on, and possessed the capability to grow into another massive kaiju.
Spiritual powers
In Godzilla Island, as an employee of the Spirit Realm, Dogora possesses spiritual abilities. He was able to summon the spirit of the deceased SpaceGodzilla, which possessed Godzilla.
Business Card Shuriken
In Godzilla Island, Dogora can materialize business cards. He uses these as projectiles against Torema in episode 76, referring to them as Business Card Shuriken (名刺手裏剣 Meishi Shuriken).
Illusions
In Godzilla Island, Dogora was able to project illusions of fake yen in front of Torema to lower her guard during a staged negotiation.
Regeneration
After being shot by Torema's gun in Godzilla Island, he exploded into circular fragments, but was able to immediately reform himself.
Time bomb
In Godzilla Island, Dogora planted an Xilien time bomb given to him by Zagreth, which created a landslide that buried King Caesar.
Weaknesses
Dogora's main weaknesses were bee and wasp venom, exposure to which would solidify its body. Potentially other types of venom containing hyaluronidase such as snake, spider, or scorpion venom could have also weakened the cellular beast.[9]
In Godzilla Island, he fled after Torema shot him. When SpaceGodzilla's ghost failed to defeat the monsters of Godzilla Island, Dogora's superiors in the Spirit Realm forcibly "transfer[red]" him to Heaven.
Video games
- Godzilla: Monster of Monsters! (1988) - Nintendo Entertainment System / Famicom
- Godzilla: Heart-Pounding Monster Island!! (1995) - Sega Pico
- Godzilla: Trading Battle (1998) - Sony PlayStation
- Godzilla Generations (1998) - Sega Dreamcast
- Collect Godzilla: Giant Monster Assembly (1998) - Sega Dreamcast VMU
Godzilla: Monster of Monsters!
Dogora appears in three different ways in the Godzilla game for the NES. It appears in its own hyperspace type, and can first be encountered on Earth. Dogora first appears in its classic, large jellyfish form in the stage's background, and doesn't attack.
Dogora's other two versions appear as smaller enemies in the stage. One version is dark purple while the other is a bright orange/yellow. The differences between the two colors dwell upon the damage they deal and the items they drop. Purple Dogora deal no damage and drop health power ups when they are destroyed. Orange Dogora deal a small amount of damage and drop energy power ups when destroyed. This is also the only time in the game that the energy power ups can be found.
Dogora in Godzilla: Monster of Monsters!
The larger Dogora, seen in the background of its stage, plus two Dogora Cells in Godzilla: Monster of Monsters!
Dogora's sprite in Collect Godzilla: Giant Monster Assembly
Books
GODZILLA: Monster Apocalypse
Dogora was the second kaiju to appear on Earth. It first made contact with the Russian space station Mir in the atmosphere, then appeared over London in September 2002. Dogora absorbed thermal energy from the attacks of the British military and moved on to Manchester. Dogora was eventually defeated when chemical plants throughout the United Kingdom and European Union mass-produced chemicals containing active ingredients from wasp venom and sprayed them into the air. By the time Dogora was defeated after two days, major landmarks such as the Tower of London and Big Ben were destroyed and an estimated 3.9 million people were wounded or killed.[10]
Comics
- GODZILLA: Planet of the Monsters Episode #1 (2018)
- Godzilla: Monster Island Summer Camp (2024) [mentioned]
GODZILLA: Planet of the Monsters
Dogora appeared in the 21st century to wreak havoc on humanity, along with other kaiju such as Kamacuras, Rodan, Anguirus, Baragon, and Biollante, with Dogora targeting London. However, all of these monsters were no match for Godzilla, who proceeded to kill many of them and was the cause of humanity fleeing Earth in a search for another habitable planet.
Gallery
- Main article: Dogora/Gallery.
Roar
Dogora's sound effects were created by capturing the sounds of clams using a special respiratory sound pickup microphone.[5] These sounds were combined with other sound effects which would later be used for the Lady Guard alarm in Invasion of Astro-Monster the following year and for the monsters Alien Baltan and Bullton in Ultraman in 1966.
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Trivia
- When summoning SpaceGodzilla's ghost in Godzilla Island, Dogora chants, "...ero ero azarashi" (エロエロアザラシ). This is a reference to the title of the tokusatsu television series Eko Eko Azarak which, like Godzilla Island, was shot by Tsuburaya Eizo, aired on TV Tokyo from 1997 to 1998, and featured the appearance of actor Jiro Dan.
References
This is a list of references for Dogora. 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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