|
Gigan
is a kaiju from Toho's ''Godzilla'' franchise who first appeared in ''Godzilla vs. Gigan''. Gigan is a space monster resembling a species of reptile who was turned into a cyborg by the Nebulans. Gigan sports a huge buzzsaw in its frontal abdominal region and large metallic hooks for hands. Gigan is considered one of Godzilla's most brutal and violent opponents, and the first kaiju in the Toho sci-fi series to make him bleed. ''Complex'' listed the character as No. 2 on its "The 15 Most Badass Kaiju Monsters of All Time" list. Overview Gigan debuts in the 1972 film ''Godzilla vs. Gigan'', in which it and King Ghidorah are summoned to Earth by the M Space Hunter Nebula aliens, insect-like aliens whose planet had been ravaged by another race and wish to subjugate the Earth in order to create a utopia of "perfect peace". However, the monsters are challenged and defeated by Godzilla and Anguirus.''Godzilla vs. Gigan'' (1972). Directed by Jun Fukuda. Toho In the 1973 film, ''Godzilla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jet Jaguar
is a 1973 Japanese ''kaiju'' film directed by Jun Fukuda, written by Fukuda and Shinichi Sekizawa, and produced by Tomoyuki Tanaka, with special effects by Teruyoshi Nakano. Distributed by Toho and produced under their effects subsidiary Toho–Eizo, it is the 13th film in the ''Godzilla'' franchise, and features the fictional monster characters Godzilla, Megalon, and Gigan, along with the mecha character Jet Jaguar. The film stars Katsuhiko Sasaki, Hiroyuki Kawase, Yutaka Hayashi, and Robert Dunham, alongside Shinji Takagi as Godzilla, Hideto Date as Megalon, Kenpachiro Satsuma as Gigan, and Tsugutoshi Komada as Jet Jaguar. ''Godzilla vs. Megalon'' was released theatrically in Japan on March 17, 1973. It received a theatrical release in the United States in the summer of 1976 by Cinema Shares. Due to this release and subsequent home media, the film has become one of the most well-known kaiju films in the United States. The film's popularity might also be a major contributor to w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Godzilla Raids Again
is a 1955 Japanese ''kaiju'' film directed by Motoyoshi Oda, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. Produced and distributed by Toho Co., Ltd., it is the second film in the ''Godzilla'' franchise. The film stars Hiroshi Koizumi, Setsuko Wakayama, Minoru Chiaki, and Takashi Shimura, with Haruo Nakajima as Godzilla and Katsumi Tezuka as Anguirus. In the film, Japan struggles to survive Godzilla's return, as well as its destructive battle against its ancient foe Anguirus. Executive producer Iwao Mori instructed producer Tomoyuki Tanaka to immediately commence production on a second ''Godzilla'' film, fearing to lose the momentum of the first film's success. Oda was chosen to direct the film as Ishirō Honda was busy directing '' Lovetide''. ''Godzilla Raids Again'' was released theatrically in Japan on April 24, 1955. A re-edited, English dubbed version was released theatrically in the United States on June 2, 1959, by Warner Bros. Pictures, under the title ''Gigantis, the Fir ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Godzilla (franchise)
franchise is a Japanese media franchise created and owned by Toho, Toho Co., Ltd., centered on the fictional ''kaiju'' character Godzilla. It is the longest-running film franchise, having been in ongoing production from 1954, with several hiatuses of varying lengths. The film franchise consists of 38 films; 33 produced by Toho, one produced by TriStar Pictures, and four produced by Legendary Entertainment, Legendary Pictures. The first film, ''Godzilla (1954 film), Godzilla'', was directed by Ishirō Honda and released by Toho in 1954. It became an influential classic of the genre. It featured political and social undertones relevant to Japan at the time. The original introduced an acclaimed music score by Akira Ifukube, reused in many later films. The 1954 film and its special effects director Eiji Tsuburaya are largely credited for establishing the template for ''tokusatsu'', a technique of practical special effects filmmaking that would become essential in Japan's film indust ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mothra
is a fictional monster, or ''kaiju'', that first appeared in the 1961 film '' Mothra'', produced and distributed by Toho Studios. Mothra has appeared in several Toho ''tokusatsu'' films, most often as a recurring character in the ''Godzilla'' franchise. She is typically portrayed as a colossal sentient larva (caterpillar) or imago, accompanied by two miniature fairies speaking on her behalf. Unlike other Toho monsters, Mothra is a largely heroic character, having been variously portrayed as a protector of her own island culture,'' Mothra'' (1961). Directed by Ishirō Honda. Toho the Earth'' Godzilla vs. Mothra'' (1992). Directed by Takao Okawara. Toho and Japan.'' Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack'' (2001). Directed by Shusuke Kaneko. Toho. Mothra's design is influenced by silk worms, their imagos, and those of giant silk moths in the family Saturniidae. The character is often depicted hatching offspring (in some cases, twins) when approaching ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anguirus
is a fictional monster, or ''kaiju'', which first appeared in ''Godzilla Raids Again'' (1955), the second film in the ''Godzilla'' franchise. Anguirus is the first monster to be shown engaging in combat with Godzilla in a film. Since then, the character has appeared conversely as an enemy and an ally of Godzilla in numerous films produced by Toho, including ''Destroy All Monsters'', ''Godzilla vs. Gigan'', ''Godzilla vs. Megalon'', ''Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla'', and '' Godzilla: Final Wars''. He has also appeared in other media, including comic books and video games. Overview Appearance Anguirus is a quadrupedal giant or irradiated dinosaur that resembles an ankylosaurus. His head resembles a cross between that of a ceratosaurus and a styracosaurus. He has several horns on the top of his head and a single horn above his nose. His face is long and drawn out, has rows of long, serrated teeth and has two tusks on his lower jaw. His carapace is studded with long, sharp spikes. Angui ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kenpachiro Satsuma
, born is a Japanese actor who portrayed Godzilla in the Heisei films, from 1984 to 1995. Born in Kagoshima Prefecture, Satsuma began his acting career in the 1960s with small roles in samurai films. In 1971 he was offered the role of the smog monster antagonist Hedorah in '' Godzilla vs. Hedorah'', opposite Haruo Nakajima as Godzilla. He went on to play Gigan in two further Godzilla films. When Nakajima retired from the Godzilla role in 1972, substitutes were hired between 1973 and 1975 until Satsuma took over permanently in 1984. His portrayal took the character away from the humour of the character's portrayals over the past decades, returning to the more animalistic Godzilla persona of the original 1954 film. While filming ''Godzilla'' movies, Satsuma would regularly pass out on the set due to lack of oxygen while wearing the poorly ventilated and rubber suits; this was especially a problem during production of ''Godzilla vs. Destoroyah'', in which the steam effect on the suit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Toho
is a Japanese film, theatre production and distribution company. It has its headquarters in Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is one of the core companies of the Osaka-based Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group. Outside of Japan, it is best known as the producer and distributor of many '' kaiju'' and ''tokusatsu'' films, the Chouseishin ''tokusatsu'' superhero television franchise, the films of Akira Kurosawa, and the anime films of Studio Ghibli, CoMix Wave Films, TMS Entertainment and OLM, Inc. All nine of the highest-grossing Japanese films are released by Toho. Other famous directors, including Yasujirō Ozu, Kenji Mizoguchi, Masaki Kobayashi, and Mikio Naruse, also directed films for Toho. Toho's most famous creation is Godzilla, who is featured in 32 of the company's films. Godzilla, Rodan, Mothra, King Ghidorah and Mechagodzilla are described as Toho's Big Five because of the monsters' numerous appearances throughout the franchise, as well as spin-offs. Toho has also been involved in the pro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Godzilla Vs
is a fictional monster, or '' kaiju'', originating from a series of Japanese films. The character first appeared in the 1954 film ''Godzilla'' and became a worldwide pop culture icon, appearing in various media, including 32 films produced by Toho, four American films and numerous video games, novels, comic books and television shows. Godzilla has been dubbed the "King of the Monsters", a phrase first used in ''Godzilla, King of the Monsters!'' (1956)'','' the Americanized version of the original film. Godzilla is an enormous, destructive, prehistoric sea monster awakened and empowered by nuclear radiation. With the nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the '' Lucky Dragon 5'' incident still fresh in the Japanese consciousness, Godzilla was conceived as a metaphor for nuclear weapons. Others have suggested that Godzilla is a metaphor for the United States, a giant beast woken from its slumber which then takes terrible vengeance on Japan. As the film series expan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Godzilla
is a fictional monster, or '' kaiju'', originating from a series of Japanese films. The character first appeared in the 1954 film ''Godzilla'' and became a worldwide pop culture icon, appearing in various media, including 32 films produced by Toho, four American films and numerous video games, novels, comic books and television shows. Godzilla has been dubbed the "King of the Monsters", a phrase first used in ''Godzilla, King of the Monsters!'' (1956)'','' the Americanized version of the original film. Godzilla is an enormous, destructive, prehistoric sea monster awakened and empowered by nuclear radiation. With the nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the '' Lucky Dragon 5'' incident still fresh in the Japanese consciousness, Godzilla was conceived as a metaphor for nuclear weapons. Others have suggested that Godzilla is a metaphor for the United States, a giant beast woken from its slumber which then takes terrible vengeance on Japan. As the film series expan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zone Fighter
''Zone Fighter'', known in Japan as , is a tokusatsu science fiction superhero television series. Produced by Toho, Toho Company Ltd., the show aired on Nippon Television from April 2 to September 24, 1973, with a total of 26 episodes. This was Toho's answer to not only the popular Ultra Series, but the ''Henshin Hero'' phenomenon started by shows like ''Kamen Rider'' and ''Kikaider, Android Kikaider''. The previous year, Toho had just made their first successful superhero show, ''Warrior of Love Rainbowman, Rainbowman''. The series was also notable for its guest appearances by Toho's own Godzilla, as well as two other Toho monsters, King Ghidorah and Gigan. Supplementary materials published by Toho have confirmed ''Zone Fighter'' to be part of the Showa era of the ''Godzilla'' series, taking place in between ''Godzilla vs. Megalon'' and ''Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla''. Characters Sakimori/Zone family The Sakimori/Zone family resembles a normal Japanese family, but they are an al ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kaiju
is a Japanese media genre that focuses on stories involving giant monsters. The word ''kaiju'' can also refer to the giant monsters themselves, which are usually depicted attacking major cities and battling either the military or other monsters. The ''kaiju'' genre is a subgenre of ''tokusatsu'' entertainment. The 1954 film ''Godzilla'' is commonly regarded as the first ''kaiju'' film. ''Kaiju'' characters are often somewhat metaphorical in nature; Godzilla, for example, serves as a metaphor for nuclear weapons, reflecting the fears of post-war Japan following the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the '' Lucky Dragon 5'' incident. Other notable examples of ''kaiju'' characters include Rodan, Mothra, King Ghidorah and Gamera. Etymology The Japanese word ''kaijū'' originally referred to monsters and creatures from ancient Japanese legends; it earlier appeared in the Chinese ''Classic of Mountains and Seas''. After ''sakoku'' had ended and Japan was opened to for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
King Ghidorah
is a fictional monster, or ''kaiju'', which first appeared in Ishirō Honda's 1964 film ''Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster''. Although the name of the character is officially trademarked by Toho as "King Ghidorah", the character was originally referred to as Ghidorah or Ghidrah in some English markets. Although King Ghidorah's design has remained largely consistent throughout its appearances (an armless, bipedal, golden and yellowish-scaled dragon with three heads, two fan-shaped wings and two tails), its origin story has varied from being an extraterrestrial planet-destroying dragon, a genetically engineered monster from the future, a guardian monster of ancient Japan, or a god from another dimension. The character is usually portrayed as an archenemy of Godzilla and a foe of Mothra, though it has had one appearance as an ally of the latter. Despite rumors that Ghidorah was meant to represent the threat posed by China, which had at the time of the character's creation jus ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
_Anguirus_head.jpg "Click for more on -> Anguirus")
_Atomic_ray.png "Click for more on -> Godzilla Vs")
