Toraryu

MechaTo-Lucky (Toraryu) Alternate names Toraryu, To-Lucky Subtitle(s) Fabled Ultimate Weapon (幻の究極兵器,   Maboroshi no Kyūkyoku Heiki) Species Giant mechanical mascot Place(s) of emergence Koshien Stadium, Hyogo, Japan Controlled by Teruaki Sato Relations Koji Chikamoto (developer) Enemies Godzilla Conceived of by Toshifumi Shimizu First appearance Godzilla vs. the Tigers

MechaTo-Lucky (メカトラッキー,   Mekatorakkī), nicknamed Toraryu (虎龍,   Toraryū, lit. "Tiger Dragon"), is a giant humanoid robot who appears in the 2022 April Fool's short Godzilla vs. the Tigers.

Name

Both of MechaTo-Lucky's names are a play on those of Kiryu. "MechaTo-Lucky" is an allusion to "Mechagodzilla" and is derived from the name of the Hanshin Tigers' mascot, To-Lucky. "To-Lucky" (トラッキー,   Torakkī) is a portmanteau of tora (虎)—the Japanese word for "tiger"—and the English word "lucky," which is spelled in Japanese as rakkī (ラッキー). MechaTo-Lucky is referred to simply as To-Lucky both in dialogue and in on-screen text during Godzilla vs. the Tigers. The nickname "Toraryu" (虎龍,   Toraryū) is a combination of tora and the Japanese word for "dragon," ryū (龍), in a clear reference to Kiryu.

Design

Toraryu appears identical to the baseball mascot To-Lucky, with a fuzzy yellow tiger head and Hanshin Tigers uniform.

Origins

In-universe, Toraryu was developed by Hanshin Tigers outfielder Koji Chikamoto and secretly built beneath Koshien Stadium. Dubbed the MT Development Project, the construction was deemed too dangerous and the robot was therefore never fully completed. Despite being unfinished, the mech was deployed by Toraryu Squad commander-in-chief Ryutaro Umeno to protect the Koshien against Godzilla.

History

Reiwa era

Godzilla vs. the Tigers

When Godzilla suddenly appeared in Nishinomiya, the Hanshin Tigers baseball team had no choice but to use their secret weapon Toraryu, which had been kept docked beneath Koshien Stadium. Ryutaro Umeno appointed Teruaki Sato to pilot the robot into battle. Using a pair of giant baseball bats, Toraryu blocked and absorbed a blast of Godzilla's atomic breath, firing a ball of energy back at the monster. At other points in their fight, Toraryu grappled with Godzilla after failing to hit him with his bats, and produced weapons on either of his arms to attack him. Because the short is in the style of a trailer, the outcome of the battle is left a mystery.

Weapons

Baseball bats

Toraryu's baseball bats blocking Godzilla's atomic breath

Toraryu can produce a pair of baseball bats from his shoulders. When held in a cross formation, these blocked Godzilla's atomic breath and absorbed energy which could be fired back at him as a projectile.

Arm attachments

Toraryu's arm attachments

Toraryu could materialize a drill attachment on his right arm and a wrist-mounted pair of blades on his left. Though the left arm attachment resembles one of Kiryu's railguns, it was not demonstrated to fire projectiles.

Gallery

Main article: Toraryu/Gallery.

Trivia

• The manner in which Toraryu's baseball bats appear, sitting on his shoulders and sliding past his head, may be an homage to Super Mechagodzilla's formation sequence.

References

This is a list of references for Toraryu. 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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