Godzilla and Godzilla Raids Again (1955)
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Godzilla and Godzilla Raids Again, originally published as Godzilla in Tokyo and Osaka (ゴジラ 東京・大阪篇 Gojira: Tōkyō, Ōsaka-hen, lit. "Godzilla: Tokyo and Osaka Editions"), is a 1955 book containing novelizations of the first two Godzilla films, Godzilla and Godzilla Raids Again. Written by the films' storywriter Shigeru Kayama, the book was printed by the Joyo Printing Company on July 10, 1955, and published by Shimamura Publishing that July 20. It is Kayama's second Godzilla publication after the 1954 novel Monster Godzilla, which was instead based on a radio drama of the same name.
The novels have since received numerous reissues. The first was by Kisotengai on September 10, 1976, with a second edition published January 5, 1977. Kisotengai released them again on August 10, 1979, and this version also had a second edition in 1980. Shogakukan and Chikumashobo released two more versions on December 12, 1993, and November 10, 2004, respectively, with the latter receiving a second edition on September 25, 2016. Nearly 70 years after the book's initial publication, an official English translation by Jeffrey Angles was published by the University of Minnesota Press on October 3, 2023.
Plot
Godzilla: Godzilla in Tokyo
The Eiko Maru, a cargo ship returning to port in Yokohama from Okinawa, inexplicably sinks when it is set ablaze by a flash of white-hot light from the ocean. The Maritime Safety Agency and South Seas Steamships receive the ship's SOS, and send the rescue vessel Bingo Maru to search its last known location for survivors. However, this ship too meets the same fate. A fishing boat from Odo Island rescues three survivors, but it too mysteriously sinks. Shinkichi Morita, a young employee of South Seas Steamships who hails from Odo Island, returns to his home fearing that his brother Masaji may have been on the missing fishing boat. When he reaches the island, he witnesses Masaji wash ashore, in shock from something destroying his ship. When fishing in the nearby waters becomes poor, the island's elders begin to believe that this is all the work of Godzilla, a huge aquatic monster from the island's folklore. In the past, when fishing was poor, the islanders would sacrifice a young woman aboard a raft to appease Godzilla so that he would not come ashore to eat them. Hagiwara, a newspaperman from Tokyo, visits Odo Island to interview the locals, including Masaji, but dismisses their beliefs as mere superstition. He later witnesses an exorcism ceremony in the island's forest to ward off Godzilla, which is interrupted by a sudden violent windstorm. The islanders flee back to their homes, but Masaji and his mother are both killed when their home is crushed by some massive force.
An emergency meeting is convened in Tokyo to assess the damage. Attending is Professor Kyohei Yamane, Japan's leading paleontologist and the father of Shinkichi's childhood friend Emiko. Dr. Yamane organizes a scientific expedition to Odo Island to investigate the disaster and investigate the claims of a giant creature being responsible. On the island, Dr. Yamane and his assistant Dr. Tabata discover the radioactive footprint of a giant creature, with a perfectly intact trilobite embedded within. An alarm sounds, alerting the party that Godzilla has appeared nearby. The group runs to a nearby hill and witnesses Godzilla appear overhead with a bloody cow in his mouth. The monster roars and grabs a young girl, then turns his attention to the group which flees. Emiko trips and falls and is nearly caught by Godzilla, but Shinkichi pulls her to safety.
In the aftermath of this encounter, Dr. Yamane presents his findings to the government. He hypothesizes that Godzilla stands 50 meters tall and is an intermediary creature from the Jurassic and Cretaceous Periods related to both aquatic reptiles and land-dwelling dinosaurs. Godzilla must have been living in a deep underwater pocket in relative peace for millions of years, only for recent hydrogen bomb tests to completely destroy his natural habitat and drive him to the surface. He supports this theory by citing the trilobite and sediment from the Jurassic found in Godzilla's footprint, which contained high levels of strontium-90 found in H-bombs. The assembled representatives and citizens argue about whether or not to reveal this information to the public, fearing mass panic and straining of Japan's fragile diplomatic relations.
The JSDF carries out an unsuccessful depth charge attack against Godzilla, after which the monster suddenly surfaces in Tokyo Bay. The authorities ask Dr. Yamane for advice in killing the monster, but he is adamantly against doing so. Godzilla withstood the immense heat and radiation of the hydrogen bomb, he says, therefore his incredible vitality should be studied. This causes tension between the professor and Shinkichi, who desires vengeance against Godzilla for the deaths of his family. Meanwhile, Hagiwara approaches Emiko to ask her to set up a meeting between him and Dr. Daisuke Serizawa, her longtime friend and her father's protégé. Hagiwara wants to learn about an important new project Serizawa is working on, but the scientist refused to see him. Emiko accompanies Hagiwara to Serizawa's lab, but they find him unwilling to discuss his work. After Hagiwara leaves, Serizawa agrees to show Emiko his work under the condition she doesn't reveal it to anyone.
Godzilla emerges from Tokyo Bay, destroying a lighthouse and coming ashore in Shinagawa. The enraged monster grabs a passing train in his mouth, then throws it to the ground and crushes it underfoot. Godzilla returns to the sea after a brief rampage, forcing authorities to scramble to form countermeasures. The Anti-Godzilla Task Force, with researchers from Japan and abroad, forms a plan to encircle the coast with a perimeter of huge electrical lines carrying 50 thousand volts of electricity. Amid the panic, posters and letters claiming to come from the "Tokyo Godzilla Society" spread fear and profess that Godzilla is a deity. Some citizens begin to believe that Godzilla is actually a robot controlled by Dr. Yamane, which troubles those close to him.
Godzilla comes ashore again, and surprisingly tears through the barricade and melts the pylons with a white-hot heat ray fired from his mouth. Artillery fire has no effect on the monster, who enters the heart of Tokyo and begins setting it ablaze. Firefighters and emergency crews rush to combat the blaze and evacuate citizens, but are unable to keep up with the spreading devastation. Godzilla reaches Ginza and destroys its iconic clock tower, then smashes the National Diet Building. After flipping over the Kachidoki Bridge, Godzilla enters Tokyo Bay once again. A squadron of fighter jets opens fire on Godzilla, but he is unaffected by their rockets and simply vanishes beneath the waves.
Emiko volunteers at an emergency hospital in the aftermath of the attack, where the number of dead and injured is staggering. Upon seeing Shinkichi, Emiko breaks her promise to Serizawa and reveals that his invention was a chemical weapon he called the Oxygen Destroyer which instantaneously asphyxiated and disintegrated an aquarium full of fish. Believing this weapon might be the only hope in destroying Godzilla, the pair visit Serizawa and beg him to use his device. He vehemently refuses and tries to destroy his invention, but relents after witnessing a televised nationwide prayer for peace. Deeply moved, he agrees to use his weapon one time only against Godzilla, and destroys his research notes to ensure it can never be recreated and used as a weapon of mass destruction by global politicians.
Aboard the Seagull, a small party locates Godzilla beneath Tokyo Bay using a Geiger counter. Serizawa asks for a diving suit so that he can activate the Oxygen Destroyer himself underwater. As a trained diver, Shinkichi insists on accompanying him. Both men are lowered to the sea floor, where they see Godzilla resting. After locating the monster, they use a flashlight to lure him in their direction. As Shinkichi is raised to the surface, Serizawa activates the Oxygen Destroyer and throws it in front of himself. Godzilla passes into the weapon's wake as it reacts violently with the water and generates a maelstrom of bubbles. Seeing Godzilla thrashing about as he is enveloped by the Oxygen Destroyer, Serizawa severs his own lifeline in order to ensure the secret of his terrible weapon dies with him. Summoning the last of his strength, Godzilla struggles to the surface and angrily attempts to sink the Seagull, but succumbs to the Oxygen Destroyer and sinks to his death. Shinkichi and Emiko mourn Serizawa's death as others celebrate Godzilla's defeat. Dr. Yamane solemnly warns that so long as nuclear testing continues, another member of Godzilla's species will likely emerge to threaten them again.
Godzilla Raids Again: Godzilla in Osaka
Shoichi Tsukioka, a scout pilot working for Marine Fisheries in Osaka, receives word that fellow pilot Koji Kobayashi's plane has crash-landed on the uninhabited Iwato Island. He hurries to the island and sees Kobayashi's wrecked plane and Kobayashi himself signaling on the shore. Tsukioka lands and reunites with his colleague, but the two suddenly witness a huge monster who Tsukioka recognizes as Godzilla appear over a cliff. The two run into a crevice, but Godzilla gives chase and reaches his hand in to try and grab them. Before he can, his attention is diverted by a second monster who suddenly comes ashore behind him and attacks. The two monsters square off before the second monster returns to the water with Godzilla giving chase.
When the pilots return to Osaka to report their story to the authorities, it becomes clear that continued nuclear testing roused a second member of the same species as the Godzilla who devastated Tokyo the year before. Furthermore, it has also awakened an Ankylosaurus, commonly known as Anguirus, an ancient enemy of Godzilla's kind. Dr. Yamane tells those in attendance that without the Oxygen Destroyer, there is no conceivable way to defeat Godzilla and that their best option is to use his instinct towards light to lure him away. Hypothesizing that light enrages Godzilla because it reminds him of the H-bomb tests that destroyed his home, Dr. Yamane proposes enforcing a blackout in Osaka and using flares to lure him away if he approaches. The plan is put into effect when Godzilla appears in Osaka Bay, and succeeds in drawing him away from the city.
As evacuations proceed in Osaka, a group of prisoners escapes a police van that is transferring them. Three of the escapees hijack a gasoline truck that is chased by police cars and Tsukioka and Kobayashi's car. The prisoners lose control of the truck in a fuel depot, after which it catches fire and explodes, igniting the nearby fuel and creating a massive cloud of fire that draws Godzilla's attention. As Godzilla comes ashore, he is attacked from behind by Anguirus, who was drawn there by the same flares used to draw Godzilla away. The two kaiju battle viciously, devastating the port area as they wrestle and spit their heat rays at each other. Tsukioka and Kobayashi arrive at the Marine Fisheries office just in time to convince the owner, Mr. Yamaji, to evacuate.
Godzilla and Anguirus's duel spills into the heart of Osaka, toppling buildings and causing the underground subway to collapse and flood with water. When the two kaiju near Osaka Castle, they each summon the remainder of their strength for a final fight to the death. Godzilla and Anguirus viciously exchange blows, and when Anguirus's strength begins to waver, Godzilla pummels him continuously in the neck with his tail. With Anguirus vulnerable, Godzilla delivers a devastating kick that propels both kaiju into Osaka Castle and reduces it to rubble in an instant. The impact mortally wounds Anguirus, after which Godzilla sets his carcass and the surrounding area ablaze with his heat ray. Content with his victory, Godzilla returns to the sea and vanishes.
With their home office destroyed, Yamaji reassigns Kobayashi to the Hokkaido branch of Marine Fisheries overseen by his subordinate Shigaki, while Tsukioka stays behind with Yamaji's daughter Hidemi to rebuild. After some time, Yamaji, Hidemi, and Tsukioka travel to Hokkaido to check in on Kobayashi. They meet him at the Yayoi restaurant, where the employees celebrate a recent successful catch. There, Tsukioka reunites with his war buddies Tajima and Ikeda as well as his former superior officer Captain Terazawa, all currently in the JSDF and stationed in Hokkaido. As they reconnect and celebrate over drinks, they receive the news that Godzilla has sank one of the company's ships. Tsukioka rushes into action to search for Godzilla aboard his plane, and discovers the monster coming ashore on the icy Kamiko Island. Kobayashi arrives in his plane to distract Godzilla while Tsukioka returns to the JSDF's airbase to inform them of Godzilla's whereabouts.
Tsukioka accompanies Tajima in his fighter jet as he and his squadron bomb Godzilla. The bombs have no effect on Godzilla, who begins making his way back to the shore. Kobayashi's plane loses altitude and flies directly in front of Godzilla, who sets it ablaze with his heat ray and sends it crashing into the icy slopes behind him. Despite his shock, Tsukioka notices that the crash has triggered an avalanche of ice and snow that partially buries Godzilla. He proposes that if they bomb the slopes, they could entomb Godzilla in the falling ice. Tajima agrees and returns to base to load up on rockets, while a few planes remain behind to occupy Godzilla. Ikeda leads a group of soldiers ashore in Landing Crafts to stack a wall of fuel barrels, then ignite them with machine gun fire. The resulting wall of flame deters Godzilla from exiting the island long enough for the fighter jets to return. Now piloting his own fighter, Tsukioka joins the squadron in a daring assault, narrowly avoiding Godzilla and firing rockets at the slopes. Despite the loss of a few planes, the plan succeeds and Godzilla is completely buried in the avalanche of ice. Tsukioka emotionally remarks that they were only able to defeat Godzilla because of Kobayashi's selfless sacrifice. At the Hokkaido office, Hidemi, Yamaji, and Shigaki all mourn Kobayashi together.
Differences from the films
Godzilla
- The romantic subplot is removed. Because of this, Emiko and Dr. Serizawa are simply friends.
- Shinkichi Yamada is renamed "Shinkichi Morita" and is portrayed as a childhood friend of Emiko's who is roughly the same age as her, rather than several years younger as in the film. Like in the film, Shinkichi hails from Odo Island and has a fisherman brother named Masaji who is killed during Godzilla's first rampage. However, he is now an employee of South Seas Steamships and fills the majority of Hideto Ogata's role in the film. Ogata still appears in the novel, but is relegated to a side character.
- Dr. Serizawa is described as having long hair that obscures his missing eye and the scarred part of his face.
- Ogata is the president of South Seas Steamships and described as an older man than how he appears in the film, and is Shinkichi's boss rather than simply his mentor.
- Dr. Tanabe's surname is changed to Tabata.
- There is an extended scene on the Eiko Maru where the crewmembers banter amongst each other before dying at the hands of Godzilla.
- There is additional backstory about Emiko and Shinkichi's childhoods, which reveals they were both evacuated to the same town as children during the Allied air raids in World War II. As they were roughly the same age, they became friends, but hadn't seen each other since then before reuniting in Tokyo years later.
- Shinkichi rushes to Odo Island after learning a fishing boat from the island went missing, fearing Masaji was aboard. He initially visits his mother at her home before heading to the beach where he witnesses his injured brother wash ashore.
- There are additional scenes of the older Odo Islanders discussing the superstitions about Godzilla from their youth.
- Hagiwara unintentionally offends the Odo Islanders during their kagura ritual by laughing at its perceived absurdity. The ritual also features dancers in a large lion costume, rather than wearing Tengu masks as in the film.
- Godzilla's movements generate powerful winds, and thus he arrives in a sudden violent windstorm on Odo Island rather than in a typhoon.
- Shinkichi visits his mother and brother's graves on Odo Island with Emiko, a scene which was cut from the film.
- Godzilla reveals himself while eating a cow, a scene that was cut from the film. He also grabs a young girl in his hand, and later attempts to reach out and grab Emiko before she is pulled away by Shinkichi. His first appearance takes place during nighttime.
- Godzilla's body is described to continuously glow with a whitish-blue light, even when not using his heat ray.
- Dr. Serizawa accompanies Dr. Yamane in his car along with Emiko and Shinkichi on the way to deliver his report on the events on Odo Island. He drops Serizawa off at his home first, where he is greeted by his elderly maid, a character not present in the film.
- The Yamane household has a maid named Okimi.
- There is a minor human antagonist who spreads fear of Godzilla under the guise of a faction known as the Tokyo Godzilla Society. He is later found trampled to death in the aftermath of Godzilla's attack, his criminal record crisscrossed with similar schemes.
- After learning about the Tokyo Godzilla Society, Professor Yamane questions if Godzilla is really an animal, or a machine controlled by humans. Citizens later begin to question if Dr. Yamane himself is controlling Godzilla, due to his opposition to the monster being killed.
- Dr. Yamane states that he believes Japan should research Godzilla's vitality in order to make amends to the rest of the world for its aggression during World War II.
- Shinkichi gets into an argument with Professor Yamane about how he would feel if he had lost Emiko to Godzilla.
- When Godzilla first appears in Shinagawa, he destroys a lighthouse.
- During Godzilla's attack on inland Tokyo, Shinkichi and Ogata chase down the Tokyo Godzilla Society before they are forced to take cover from Godzilla.
- It is mentioned that the plan to blockade Tokyo with high-tension wires was proposed by a foreign scientist named Dr. Hopman, implied to be from the United States.
- Rather than pushing the Wako clock tower over as in the film, Godzilla tears it off with his teeth and spits the wreckage onto the ground.
- Godzilla blasts the National Diet Building with his heat ray before stomping through it.
- Rather than biting the television tower, Godzilla breaks it off with his hand and then crushes it in his grasp. There is also no mention of a doomed TV crew being on this particular tower, though a crew was mentioned covering Godzilla's rampage earlier.
- Godzilla destroys three jets when they attack him at the end of his rampage.
- Emiko is holding an orphaned baby in her arms when she reveals the existence of the Oxygen Destroyer to Shinkichi.
- Serizawa attempts to destroy his invention with an axe, and accidentally strikes Shinkichi in the head when he intervenes.
- Serizawa shakes Shinkichi's hand as he burns his research notes.
- A row of patrol boats lines the port near Tokyo as the Seagull sets off with the Oxygen Destroyer.
- Dr. Yamane hugs Serizawa before he begins the dive.
- Rather than simply surface and emit a death cry, Godzilla furiously attempts to sink the Seagull with the last of his strength, forcing those aboard to drop to the ground.
- The press reporting on Godzilla's defeat are not aboard the Seagull but rather on a patrol boat following close by.
- Shinkichi comments on Serizawa's motive for committing suicide, saying he couldn't trust anyone, even himself, to ensure the Oxygen Destroyer could never be used as a weapon of mass destruction.
- The Seagull returns to port, with the nearby patrol boats firing celebratory shots into the air.
Godzilla Raids Again
- Instead of Shoichi Tsukioka and Koji Kobayashi finding Godzilla already in battle with Anguirus on Iwato Island, Godzilla initially attacks the pair when they take cover between the rocks. As he attempts to grab them in his claws, Tsukioka accepts his fate and lights a cigarette. At this point, Anguirus emerges from the sea and attacks Godzilla from behind.
- Rather than falling into the sea together, Anguirus retreats from the first battle and Godzilla gives chase.
- Tsukioka and Hidemi are shopping at a store when Godzilla is sighted in Osaka Bay and the blackout is enforced, rather than in a dance hall.
- The chase between the police and the escaped prisoners plays out somewhat differently. Instead of simply crashing into a refinery, the fuel truck falls on its side while swerving to avoid a police car, with the sparks igniting the leaking fuel and causing it to explode.
- Anguirus emerges from Osaka Bay behind Godzilla and pounces on him as he approaches the city, rather than landing on a different shore.
- Anguirus has his own heat ray, which he uses in his battle with Godzilla.
- Godzilla notices soldiers that were shooting at him attempt to flee during his fight with Anguirus and deliberately fires his heat ray at them, after which Anguirus does the same.
- The conclusion of Godzilla and Anguirus's battle at Osaka Castle unfolds differently from the film. Godzilla batters Anguirus in the neck with his tail, causing him to weaken. Seizing the opportunity, Godzilla delivers a devastating kick to Anguirus's chest that sends both monsters crashing through Osaka Castle. Anguirus dies from his wounds in the castle moat, after which Godzilla incinerates his body with his heat ray.
- Hidemi, Yamaji, and Shigaki collectively mourn Kobayashi in the Hokkaido branch office after Godzilla is defeated.
Gallery
-
Front cover of the 1979 reprint -
Front cover of the English translation
Trivia
- Godzilla's attack on the lighthouse in the first of the two stories is reminiscent of the Rhedosaurus' attack on a lighthouse in The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms.
See also
External links
Comments
Showing 15 comments. When commenting, please remain respectful of other users, stay on topic, and avoid role-playing and excessive punctuation. Comments which violate these guidelines may be removed by administrators.
|
|
|
|