Species | Mutant godzillasaurus
Alias | Gojira
King of the Monsters
Gigantis the Fire Monster
Form(s) | Godzillasaurus (unirradiated form)
Super Godzilla (as seen in Super Godzilla)
Burning Godzilla (as seen in Godzilla vs Destoroyah)
Shadow Godzilla (as seen in Godzilla Island)
Height | 50 -100 meters (164 - 328 feet)
Weight | 20,000 -60,000 tons
Abilities |Atomic breath/ray
Nuclear Pulse
Enhanced regeneration
Spiral Fire Ray
Magnetic manipulation (Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla only)
Flight (Godzilla vs Hedorah only)
Origins | Bikini Atoll
Bering Sea (Heisei series)
Enemies |Humans
King Ghidorah
Mothra
Mechagodzilla
Gigan
Hedorah
Megalon
Monster X
Megaguirus
Ebirah
SpaceGodzilla
Titanosaurus
Destoroyah
Orga
Gabara
Kamacuras
Kumonga
Giant Condor
Zilla
Baragon in GMK
Bagan
the Garanga army
Krystalak
Allies | Mothra (at times)
Rodan
Anguirus
King Caesar
Jet Jaguar
Varan
Gorosaurus
Kumonga in Destroy all monsters
Zone Fighter
Baragon in Destroy All Monsters
Manda
Minilla
Godzilla Junior
Moguera
Miki Saegusa only human ally
Controlled by | Xiliens (only in Invasion of Astro-Monster)
Kilaaks
Vortaak (in Destroy All Monsters Melee)
Relationships | Godzilla Junior (Adoptive son in Shōwa, Heisei,& Millennium series)
Biollante & SpaceGodzilla(Brothers in Heisei series)
Orga
(half brother in Millennium series) Mechagodzilla (Robotic Replica /Brother)
Godzooky (Nephew)
First appearance | Godzilla (1954 film)
Created by | Tomoyuki Tanaka
Shigeru Kayama
Ishiro Honda
Eiji Tsuburaya
Portrayed by: | Shōwa series
Haruo Nakajima
Katsumi Tezuka
Shinji Takagi
Isao Zushi
Toru Kawai
Heisei series
Kenpachiro Satsuma
Millennium series
Tsutomu Kitagawa
Mizuho Yoshida

Godzilla (ゴジラ, Gojira?) is a kaijū (fictional Japanese monster) and has become one of the world's most recognized movie characters. He was first seen in the 1954 film Godzilla, produced by Toho. To date, Toho has produced 28 Godzilla films. In 1998, TriStar Pictures produced a remake, set in New York City. Titled "Godzilla", it featured a heavily modified plot and completely redesigned Godzilla, to mixed critic reviews and negative reviews by long-time Godzilla fanatics. The Godzilla from the American remake is was later identified by Toho as "Zilla" in the film Godzilla: Final Wars, in attempts to separate the American-made beast from Toho's original creation.

Appeal
Godzilla is one of the most recognizable symbols of Japanese popular culture worldwide and remains an important facet of Japanese films, embodying the kaiju subset of the tokusatsu genre. He has been considered a filmographic metaphor for the United States. The earlier Godzilla films, especially the original Godzilla, attempted to portray Godzilla as a frightening, nuclear monster. Godzilla was a representation of the fears that many Japanese held about the nuclear attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, as well as the fear of those types of attacks occurring again. As the series progressed, so did Godzilla, changing into a less destructive and more heroic character as the films became increasingly geared towards children. Today, the character has fallen somewhere in the middle, sometimes portrayed as a protector of the Earth (notably Tokyo) from external threats and other times as a bringer of destruction. The usual explanation of Godzilla's character is that the reason he defends Earth from other kaiju is not because of any likeness towards humans, but because he perceives other monsters as threats to his territory, as well as being a natural hostility toward those other monsters. Godzilla is portrayed as a villain, a hero and an anti-hero.

Godzilla's appearance has changed over the years, but many of his characteristics have remained constant. One characteristic that has remained stable is his roar. It was first created by Japanese composer Akira Ifukube by rubbing a resin glove over the strings of a contrabass. Other characteristics that have remained constant across all the Japanese films have been: Godzilla being depicted as a gigantic dinosaur with rough, bumpy charcoal grey scales, a long powerful tail, and bone colored dorsal plates shaped like maple leaves. Although his origins vary somewhat from film to film, he is always described as a prehistoric creature, who first appeared and attacked Japan at the beginning of the Atomic Age. In particular, mutation due to atomic radiation is presented as an explanation for his great size and strange powers. Godzilla's iconic design is composed of a mixture of various species of dinosaurs; specifically, he is based on a Tyrannosaurus Rex, augmented with the dorsal fins of a Stegosaurus and the forelimbs of an Iguanodon.

Name
The name "Godzilla" is a rough romanization of Gojira (ゴジラ, Gojira?), a combination of two Japanese words: gorira (ゴリラ, lit. "gorilla"?) and kujira (クジラ, lit. "whale"?). At one planning stage, the concept of "Gojira" was described as "a cross between a gorilla and a whale," alluding to Godzilla's size, power and aquatic origin. A popular story is that "Gojira" was actually the nickname of a hulking stagehand at Toho Studio. The story has not been verified, however, because in the more than 50 years since the film's original release, no one claiming to be the employee has ever stepped forward, and no photographs of him have ever surfaced.

There is disagreement as to exactly how the creature's name should be pronounced. While purists often use the Japanese pronunciation [godʲʑira] listen (help·info), most favor the anglicized rendering of its name, [gɑd'zɪlə] (with the first syllable pronounced like the word "god", and the rest rhyming with "vanilla"). Back in the 1950s when Godzilla was created—and Japanese-to-English transliteration was less familiar—it is likely that the kana representing the second syllable was misinterpreted as being pronounced [dzi]. Had the more conventional Hepburn romanization system been used, Godzilla's name would instead have been rendered as "Gojira".

Incarnations
Godzilla's character has been tweaked and reinvented many times over the separate continuities of the Toho films. To date, there have been eight distinctive versions of the character—11 if the Hanna Barbara Godzilla, Marvel's Godzilla, and Zilla are taken into account as well. However, these non-Japanese incarnations of Godzilla are not widely recognised as being canonical.

Shōwa series (1955-1975)
Godzilla again surfaced at first as a menace in Godzilla Raids Again (shown in the U.S.A. as Gigantis, The Fire Monster, in which Godzilla is referred to as Gigantis and Anguirus as Angurous or Angurousaurus). Setting the tone for future Showa-series films, Godzilla's fate is uncertain at the end. His next film was 1962's King Kong vs Godzilla. In 1964 the Showa series saw the final film to feature a menacing Godzilla, entitled Godzilla vs. The Thing (that being the original American release title, but since known by the Japanese and international title, Mothra vs. Godzilla). Starting with Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster, Godzilla took on the heroic personaitly in which he would wear for the remainder of the series. (Indeed, a translated conversation between Godzilla, Mothra and Rodan in said film reveals that Godzilla's ire towards humans is merely due to what he perceives as unprovoked attacks towards him). He would team up with Mothra, Rodan, and Anguirus along with other monsters to battle Ebirah, Kumonga, Kamacuras, Hedorah, Gigan, Megalon, and, most frequently, King Ghidorah in different films. He even gained a son in the form of Minilla. The series ended with Terror of Mechagodzilla in 1975. However, Destroy All Monsters, the 1968 movie, took place in 1999; therefore, this Godzilla would be living peacefully on Monsterland up to this date.

The Toho sentai series Zone Fighter is notable in that it features Toho Kaiju from the films, such as Gigan, King Ghidorah and Godzilla himself. Produced during the 70s, Toho has gone on record stating that the events depicted in the Zone Fighter television series are actually part of the Showa era, taking place between Godzilla vs. Megalon and Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla.

VS, 90s or Heisei series (1984-1995)
The VS series is in the era known as the Heisei Period when Godzilla not only returns after more than a decade's absence, but marks a transition between the Shōwa era (the reign of Hirohito) to the Heisei era (the reign of Akihito).

The Return of Godzilla, ignoring all previous films in the series aside from the original, makes Godzilla taller and more powerful, at 80 meters tall (262 feet) and weighing 50,000 metric tons and with a ray beam rather than breath. The new Godzilla is either a product of, or ressurected by Atomic bomb testing during the cold war, the film never explains weather it is the original godzilla, although in for the american version, in which Raymond Burr reprises his role as a reporter from the first film, Burr says that "thirty years ago, they never found any corpse". Hungry for nuclear energy, the new Godzilla attacks a Soviet nuclear submarine before turning towards Japan as its predecessor in 1954 did. This causes soviet and american intervention, which leads to the accidental launching of a soviet missle aimed towards japan. Meanwhile, Godzilla battles the Super X, a state-of-the-art flying battleship built to protect the capital. (as described in the dubbed version of the film) The ship is loaded for bear with a variety of missiles and bombs, the pilots are able to poison and temporarily neutralize Godzilla with a number of cadmium bombs launched directly into his mouth. The Soviet missle is intercepted, but the resulting radiation storm revives Godzilla and causes city wide power failure. Exhausting it's arsenal and low on power, the now depleted Super X is easily destroyed by Godzilla when it is forced to land. As Godzilla resumes his rampage, a sonic trap is activated, luring Godzilla to a volcano where he falls in and presumed destroyed.

During his slumber, Japan develops an underfunded agency, designed to track any and all of Godzilla's future sightings and corporations develop Anti-Nuclear Energy Bacteria (ANEB) in order to protect the country from nuclear accidents or attacks.

Reawakened by explosions detonated during a failed terrorist ransoming, Godzilla heads for Lake Ashino where he does battle with Biollante in Godzilla vs. Biollante. After their first battle, a new Super X-2 confronts Godzilla and distracts the monster so soldiers can administer the ANEB through rocket-propelled grenades. Super X-2 is badly damaged during the battle, unable to further engage Godzilla. In an attempt to activate the ANEB, Godzilla is lured to a site with experimental lightning generators intended to increase Godzilla's core temperature so the bacteria can function properly. At the site, a new form of Biollante arrives and besieges the weakening Godzilla. The ANEB takes effect and forces the battle to a draw. Biollante is wounded (however, she is immortal and cannot die) and retreats into space by turning into an energy form, and Godzilla falls into the ocean, where he is believed to die from the ANEB. However, the cold waters of the Pacific lower Godzilla’s body temperature, negating the effects of the ANEB and allowing Godzilla to live on. In his weakened state, Godzilla swims back to the area of his origin, the Bering Sea.

In Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah, time-travelers from the future come to warn japan that Godzilla will soon reawaken and destroy japan. The japanese government agrees to alow the time travelers to teleport the Godzillasaur from 1944 (before it was irradiated) to the present. The plan succeds, but the time travelers(known as futurians) left in its place on Lagos island their own creation—three tiny Dorats—mutating and combining them into a three-headed golden abomination, King Ghidorah. In an effort to stop King Ghidorah's rampage, an extremely wealthy corporate developer plans to send a nuclear submarine into the Bering Sea (where Godzilla was teleported) in an attempt to create a second Godzilla. Instead of finding the Godzillasaurus, the submarine would come face to face with Godzilla himself, who has somehow manifested in his more familiar form. (One of the characters, Miki, who is telepathic, states that Godzilla is back, but no concrete evidence for how he regained his Godzilla state is given, though one of the secondary characters states the possibility that Godzilla may have been mutated by nuclear waste.) Godzilla absorbs the power of the nuclear sub, purging his system of the bacteria and increasing his size further to 100 meters (328 feet), becoming big and powerful enough to defeat King Ghidorah. Godzilla proceeds to attack Japan itself, but is stopped when Emi, one of the Futurians who had turned on her fellows, resurrects Ghidorah as a cyborg in the future and returns to the past to battle Godzilla with the new Mecha-King Ghidorah. The two battle in Tokyo, with both falling into the sea, but Godzilla is still alive.

The next three films show mankind's efforts to defeat Godzilla while also being challenged by other monsters such as Mothra, Rodan, and SpaceGodzilla. In "Godzilla vs. Mothra: The Battle for Earth", Mothra, a being who protects tiny humanoids who become known as the Cosmos, and Battra, mothra's counterpart who is the fighting spirit of Earth itself, battle each other, with Godzilla thrown into the mix. Eventualy the two moth monsters join forces to defeat Godzilla, tossing him into the sea. Battra dies in the process, and Mothra heads into space to destroy a meteor headed for earth, which Battra was stated as having intended to do. The meteor would have impacted with Earth, and presumably destroyed it, in 1999. "Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II" introduces a specialized organization of monster-combating soldiers and engineers called G-Force. Several of the ways G-Force plan to stop Godzilla include the construction of two "mecha-kaiju", Mechagodzilla (who would battle both Godzilla and Rodan) and M.O.G.U.E.R.A, also called Moguera (vs. SpaceGodzilla). Like in the previous series, Godzilla eventually adopts a "son" that is discovered by scientists in Rodan's nest, this time simply called "Baby Godzilla", "Little Godzilla," and "Godzilla Junior," simply referred to as "Junior." Both Rodan and Godzilla have a natural drive to want to be close to the monster, much to the tactical benefit of G-Force. Also by studying the Baby Godzilla, G-Force is able to discover that the Godzillasaurus species has a secondary brain in their abdomens and by using this knowledge, the pilots of Mechagodzilla are almost able to kill Godzilla by terminating this brain. However, Rodan, who was also on the verge of death, released the radiation in its body to heal Godzilla, causing his secondary brain to heal and giving him the ability to use a red-hued spiral atomic breath, which Godzilla uses to gain the upper hand and use as a finishing blow against his next foe, Space Godzilla. In "Godzilla vs. Space Godzilla", a Godzilla dna sample makes it's way into deep space (either from Biollante or Mothra), and after being sucked into a black hole and emerging from a white hole, mutates into Space Godzilla, which posseses telekinetic abilities and was depicted as being wholly malicious. Godzilla and Moguera wound up joining forces to battle the alien, and Godzilla destroyed both using his crimson energy ray.

Ultimately, this Godzilla meets his end in the finale of the versus series, Godzilla vs. Destoroyah. Everything comes full circle when Godzilla is faced with a monster, Destoroyah, created by the Oxygen Destroyer, which was used to kill the first Godzilla in 1954. Godzilla's end comes when his internal radiation becomes too intense for his body to control, and he finally succumbs to a total nuclear meltdown. This is not the end of Godzilla's legacy, however; the previously wounded Godzilla Junior (who is killed by Destoroyah earlier) absorbs all of the radiation from Godzilla's meltdown and fully matures into an adult Godzilla.

Godzilla (1998 film)
Originally an unhatched iguana egg in French Polynesia, it would heavily mutate due to a nuclear test. It first attacks a Japanese fishing ship and is named "Gojira" by the sole survivor (the name was later mistranslated as "Godzilla" by the U.S. media). It then travels across Panama, leaving giant footprints. After traveling to New York City, it asexually lays over two-hundred eggs in Madison Square Garden. A trio of F-18s bomb the Garden, killing Godzilla's offspring. When Godzilla appears at the Garden's remains, it sees its dead offspring and begins to chase a taxi occupied by the film's protagonists. They lure Godzilla to the Brooklyn Bridge, where it becomes entangled and immobilized by the suspension cables. Godzilla is then killed by the same F-18s that killed its offspring. One unhatched egg, however, had survived the earlier bombing deep within the subway and hatches; beginning Godzilla: The Series.

X, Shinsei, or Millennium series (1999-2004)
The Millennium series is unique because rather than creating a single continuity that all the films would follow, the series would instead comprise a number of discrete narratives, each using only the original Godzilla film as a backdrop. It is often called the "Shinsei" (新生) series by Western fans (meaning "rebirth") however the name is not recognized by Toho. In Japan, rather, many call it the "X" series, due to the Japanese titles containing "X" instead of "Vs". The majority of the films in the series featured a revamped Godzilla design. This new "Millennium Godzilla" had a wilder appearance, with more massive, jagged dorsal fins and a fiercer, more dinosaur-like face than the Godzilla featured in the Heisei series.

Godzilla 2000: Millennium
As a direct sequel of the original movie, the Godzilla, 100 meters tall (328 feet) and 56,000 metric tons, depicted in Godzilla 2000: Millennium is the same Godzilla films seen previously.But... he is stated to be much, much smarter than before. It is unclear whether this Godzilla is the same as the original, but what is known is that he has been attacking and feeding off of Japan’s energy plants for some time, and the character Yuki mentions that he has defended earth in the past. On Godzilla’s latest rampage an alien is found which attacks Godzilla and steals his Organizer G1 (in the English dubbed version this is called "Regenerator G1") in order to adapt to Earth’s atmosphere and becomes the monster Orga. The beast has great strength and although he is slow, Orga has a weapon formed of alien energy which is capable of knocking Godzilla back several hundred feet. Godzilla destroys his opponent by unleashing his inner-radiation blast, called a nuclear pulse (not seen since the 90's series and not seen again until Godzilla Final Wars) as Orga attempts to swallow him whole.

Godzilla vs. Megaguirus
Godzilla, as portrayed during the early Millennium series. (Godzilla vs. Megaguirus, 2000)
Though Godzilla looks nearly the same in this film as he did in Godzilla 2000: Millennium, this movie takes place in an alternate universe from the previous film. The Godzilla in Godzilla vs. Megaguirus attacked Tokyo in 1954, the Tokaimura Power Plant in 1966, and Osaka in 1996. In 2000, Godzilla would be the first to encounter the Meganula threat. However, shortly after this, Godzilla would be lured to Kiganjima Island where he would fall victim to a top secret weapon, the Dimension Tide. The attack would be interrupted by the Meganura allowing Godzilla to engage their queen, Megaguirus in combat. After Godzilla's victory he would fall victim once again to the Dimension Tide and be buried deep underneath the city. Shortly after the credits, however, a child feels a tremor and hears Godzilla's famed roar.

Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack
Again this movie disregards the continuity of previous films of the millennium series. Godzilla is depicted as a demonic beast possessed by the souls of those who died in the Pacific in World War II.He is stated to be the original Godzilla from 1954. This film returns Godzilla to his roots of being a genuinely malevolent being who deliberately seeks to punish Japan for having forgotten the people that were lost in the war. Godzilla would do battle with the kaiju Baragon, Mothra, and King Ghidorah but would be nearly destroyed by the actions of General Tachibana, who piloted a submersible down Godzilla's throat. The next two times Godzilla attempted to use his thermonuclear ray it shot out of his wound, and eventually tore him apart from the inside, reducing him to a disembodied, yet still living, heart.

Interestingly enough, this version of the Millennium Godzilla resembled the Heisei Godzilla to a greater extent than the other Millennium Godzillas.

Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla/ Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S.
Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla and Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S. are unique in the Millennium series because they are the only two films that follow a continuity. In the movie Godzilla X Mechagodzilla, a second Godzilla goes on a rampage in Japan. After that incident, the Minster of Science decides to make a bio-mechanical robot from the bones of the Godzilla of 1954. After a few years, Kiryu (pronounced Key-re-you) aka MechaGodzilla is born. Kiryu is deployed against Godzilla when the creature makes landfall, but Godzilla's roar causes Kiryu to start attacking the city himself, until he runs out of power. Kiryu is shut down and readjusted. Kiryu is sent again to fight Godzilla. At the end of the battle, Kiryu carries Godzilla and both crash in Tokyo Bay. Kiryu utilizes it's greatest weapon the Absolute Zero, and freezes the water. The battle ends in a draw, with Kiryu running out of energy and Godzilla retreating.

In the movie Godzilla x Mothra x Mechagodzilla: Tokyo S.O.S., the two shobijin fairies warn that using the original Godzilla's bones as part of a weapon is a sin against nature, because the bones of the monster contain at least part of the original Godzilla's soul, thus disrupting the balance between life and death, and his continued use will continue to attract the current Godzilla to Japan. The Prime Minister refuses to stop Operation: Kiryu, despite the fact that shobijin claim that in exchange for ending Kiryu's use, Mothra would be willing to become Japan's protector. Partly because, as revealed in Godzilla against MechaGodzilla, Mothra was one of the creatures the Japanese built Kiryu to defend against as Mothra and the War of the Gargantuas films are considered part of the continuity of these two films. Then Godzilla arrives in Tokyo and Mothra arrives to come to the country's aid after she is summoned through the use of an insignia used in the original film Mothra. The Prime Minister launches Kiryu in order to save the dying Mothra, as Kiryu's last act as a weapon of Japan. An egg on Infant Island eventually hatches and two larvae attempt to save their mother. Mothra is destroyed by Godzilla's nuclear ray. This now pits Godzilla against the two larvae and Kiryu. Kiryu eventually overrides it's controls, and brings Godzilla, wrapped in silk to the ocean, where the two sink into an enormous trench, returning the bones back to the Sea of Japan. While Kiryu permanently shuts down, Godzilla is able to sleep in the depths, though he was depicted as being held in a steadfast grip by Kiryu. At the end, the last of the DNA of the 1954 Godzilla is placed into cold storage, presumably never to be seen again.

Godzilla: Final Wars
This is the last Godzilla film as of 2004; Toho has decided to retire the franchise for a period of 5-10 years to renew interest in the future, possibly returning with a new film in 2013 or 2014 as Godzilla's 59th or 60th Anniversary. Decades before the main story starts, Godzilla is buried in ice at the South Pole by the Earth Defense Force’s aerial battle ship Gotengo. When the Xilians, an alien race, use many of Earth's own monsters in an attempt to conquer it, the EDF is forced to free Godzilla from the ice to fight for mankind. This Godzilla is lured towards the Xilians' mothership in Tokyo while he fights the Xilians' monsters along the way, defeating/destroying each one in his path including Gigan, Zilla, Kumonga, Kamacuras, Rodan, King Caesar, Anguirus, Ebirah and Hedorah. He arrives in Tokyo to get rid of a meteor, but it unleashes a new alien kaiju, Monster X/Keizer Ghidorah. The two slug it out and at the end, Godzilla wins. He goes back to the ocean with his son Minilla, leaving behind 50 years of glorious triumph.

Godzilla 3-D to the Max
A short 3-D feature is officially announced to show Godzilla battle a new monster named Deathla. Yoshimitsu Banno, the director of Godzilla vs. Hedorah, is set to direct.

Powers and abilities
Main article: Powers and abilities of Godzilla Godzilla unleashes his Atomic Breath. (Godzilla: Final Wars, 2004)
Godzilla is shown to possess many special abilities granted to him as a result of his irradiation and subesquent mutation. He is generally considered to be the most fearsome and powerful of Kaiju, earning the character his entitlement as "The King of the Monsters".

Godzilla's most powerful and iconic weapon is his Atomic Breath. When he uses it, Godzilla's dorsal fins glow ominously, and then he lets loose with a concentrated blast of radiation from his mouth, which can vary in intensity from a superheated vapour to a beam with concussive and explosive properties. This power is commonly mistaken for breathing fire. He is also depicted as being highly resistant to damage thanks to a tough hide and an advanced healing factor. He is also shown to have a high degree of physical strength and dexterity, often utilizing martial arts techniques in combat. Described as a transitional form between aquatic and terrestrial vertebrates by Doctor Yamane in the original film, Godzilla is able to survive in the ocean for extended periods of time and is adept a fighter underwater as he is on land.

These particular abilities are portrayed consistently among Godzilla's many incarnations, though he also possesses a multitude of other skills, often employed as weapons of last resort that are only seen on rare occasions, such as his Nuclear Pulse, and Magnetic Powers, and even the ability to fly.

Animated series
Godzilla made his American series debut in the 1978 Hanna-Barbera Saturday morning show The Godzilla Power Hour, in which he gained a sidekick, Godzooky, described as his nephew. In addition to his trademark atomic breath, (retooled as flame breath), he was also given the power to shoot laser beams out of his eyes. He was routinely summoned by his human friends using a signaling device or by the cry of Godzooky. Godzilla cartoons were paired with cartoons featuring Jana of the Jungle. The series ran, both as part of the hour and with the Godzilla segments airing as a separate half-hour show, until 1981.

In the Hanna-Barbera cartoon, Godzilla's roar was not the same as his trademark roar. Instead, it was provided by Ted Cassidy.

The second cartoon series, which aired on Fox Kids, was based on the events of the 1998 American movie. Godzilla: The Series featured a juvenile Godzilla from the 1998 American remake which had grown to full size. In a similar fashion to earlier animated works, Godzilla traveled around the world with a group of humans called H.E.A.T, including scientist Nick Tatopoulos (which the new Godzilla believed to be its parent), battling monsters. The offspring not only had the abilities and physical forms of his parent, but the creators of the show gave him even more powers and attitude more resembling the Japanese Godzilla. There were even references to the Japanese Godzilla series.

Godzilla in popular culture
Main article: Godzilla in popular culture Godzilla's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
As an enduring and iconic symbol of Japanese cinematic history, Godzilla, the King of the Monsters, has been referenced and parodied numerous times in popular culture. Details can also be read in the full article.

In 1977, Blue Oyster Cult released the song "Godzilla" which is named after and dedicated to Godzilla.
The Canadian band Arrogant Worms also released a song called "Godzilla" in which a man sings about how his girlfriend was crushed by Godzilla before he finished his proposal.

Rapper Yukmouth is an avid fan of the Godzilla movies; he even nicknamed himself Godzilla, named his 3rd album Godzilla, and until July of '07 had a record label called Godzilla Entertainment (he was forced to close it after the Godzilla creator sued him for name likeness).
In 1995, Godzilla was given a lifetime achievement award by MTV.
Godzilla also appeared on the cover of a 1998 Disney Adventures magazine.

The hip-hop hit song "Simon Says" by artist Pharaohe Monch features Godzilla's signature theme music remixed into the songs main beat.
Godzilla was also the first kaiju to get his star in the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
In the anime Mini Goddess there is a rat that changed into a Godzilla-like monster.

The R32 series Nissan Skyline GT-R was nicknamed Godzilla by Wheels magazine for its performance and Japanese exclusivity (neglecting Grey Markets).
Hideki Matsui, the N.Y.Yankees outfielder who began his career in Japan with the Yomiuri Giants, is nicknamed Godzilla due to his hitting power. He also had a cameo in Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla.

Godzilla was the original name of French metal band Gojira, who later changed the name to their current one(the original Japanese name of the monster,) due to legal disputes.

Video games
Main article: Godzilla video games There have been many video games based on Godzilla over the years:

* 1983: Godzilla by Codewords for the Commodore 64.
* 1984: Godzilla vs. 3 Major Monsters by Bandai for the MSX. Japan only.
* 1985: Godzilla by Bandai for the MSX. Japan only.
* 1986: The Movie Monster Game by Epyx for the Apple II and Commodore 64.
* 1986: Monster's Fair by Toho for the MSX.
* 1988: Godzilla - Monster of Monsters! by Toho for the Nintendo Entertainment System.
* 1990: Godzilla by Toho for the Game Boy.
* 1992: Godzilla 2: War of the Monsters by Toho for the Nintendo Entertainment System.
* 1993: Kaijuu-Oh Godzilla by Bandai for the Game Boy. Japan only.
* 1993: Super Godzilla by Toho for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System.
* 1993: Godzilla: Battle Legends by Toho for the Turbo Duo.
* 1994: Godzilla by Toho for the Turbo CD. Japan only.
* 1994: Godzilla: Kaijuu Daikessen by Toho for the Super Famicom. Japan only.
* 1995: Godzilla by Sega for the Game Gear. Japan only.
* 1995: Godzilla by Sega for the Sega Saturn. Japan only.
* 1998: Godzilla Generations by Sega for the Dreamcast. Japan only.
* 1998: Godzilla Trading Battle by Toho for the PlayStation. Japan only.
* 1999: Godzilla: The Series by Crave for the Game Boy.

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* 1999: Godzilla Generations - Maximum Impact by Sega for the Dreamcast. Japan only.
* 2000: Godzilla: The Series - Monster Wars by Crave for the Game Boy Color.
* 2002: Godzilla: Domination! (Heisei) by Atari for the Game Boy Advance.
* 2002: Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters Melee (Heisei and Millennium) by Atari for the GameCube and Xbox.
* 2004: Godzilla: Save the Earth (Heisei and Millennium) by Atari for the Xbox and PlayStation 2.
* 2007: Godzilla: Unleashed (Showa, Heisei, and Millennium) by Atari for the Wii and PlayStation 2.
* 2007: Godzilla Unleashed: Double Smash (Heisei/Millennium hybrid) by Atari for the Nintendo DS.

Godzilla and Kiryu in an old screenshot of the Wii version of Godzilla Unleashed.

Comics
Main article: Godzilla (comics) Godzilla has been featured in the occasional comic book. Perhaps surprisingly, most of those seem to be of American production (from Marvel Comics in the mid-1970s and from Dark Horse Comics in the 1980s and 1990s). Japanese Godzilla comics do exist, however.

The Marvel series told original stories and attempted to both fit into the official Toho continuity and avoid referencing it too directly. It also integrated Godzilla into the Marvel Universe, making use of many of its main regular characters such as the Avengers. It was published from 1977 to 1979, neatly fitting between the Showa Period movies and the "VS Series" of the Heisei Era. This series described the adventures and confrontations of Godzilla while he wandered in various regions of the United States, from Alaska to New York City.

The general situations of the series were fairly similar to those of the Showa Period movies, but other than Godzilla himself all characters were new creations, albeit in sometimes strangely familiar roles - for instance, Red Ronin somewhat resembles Jet Jaguar and Mechagodzilla in its story role. Likewise, the JSDF are absent but S.H.I.E.L.D. pretty much fills its role in the story, complete with a Behemoth IV Helicarrier in an eerie foreshadowing of the Super X.

Godzilla has also been a recurring character in the popular webcomic, MegaTokyo. In the comic, there is a company dubbed "Rent-a-Zilla" where anyone can go and rent a Godzilla.

 

The article "Godzilla" is part of the Wikipedia encyclopedia. It is licensed under the terms of the GNU FDL.

modified: 2008-01-10 04:28:29