Previously: In 1954, almost ten years after the end of
World War II, the world was introduced to the ultimate Atomic Nightmare,
Godzilla. After a groundbreaking feature
debut, Toho Studios would continue to build his legacy through clashes with new
Kaiju who have since joined Godzilla’s ranks as Legends. Though it was belived that 1968’s Destroy All
Monsters would bring Godzilla’s rampages to a close, Toho retracted that
decision…for now.
Destroy All Monsters was as big a finale as
Godzilla could have gotten for the
Showa Era.
However, despite once saying the franchise
was running out of ideas, Toho decided to pivot in a new direction.
Godzilla had become popular with the children
of Japan and would soon begin a metamorphosis from Atomic Force of Nature to a
force for good.
Toho was also looking to
make Godzilla films faster and on the cheaper side.
The first end result of this new approach was
1969’s
All Monsters Attack.
Though to most Godzilla fans, it’s less of a movie and more like an
extended clip show centered around a talking
Minia and a young boy
escaping to Monster Island to avoid his chaotic homelife.
It was such a step down from the massive
Destroy All Monsters (even if that was the intention), it’s a surprise that All
Monsters Attack, widely considered one of if not the worst Godzilla movie ever
made, didn’t kill the franchise then and there.
Toho continued on and their next entry would be the first
of a series of annual title matches for the King.
The first of these bouts was 1971’s
Godzilla
vs. Hedorah.
While on the more
psychedelic side (cause the 70s), the films heavy environmentalist themes are
displayed prominently in
Hedorah himself, one of Godzilla’s more unique
adversaries.
Hedorah’s toxic rampage was
also shown off in rather graphic fashion, making his film one of the more
darker Godzilla entries since the original.
Then, in 1972, Godzilla would meet another of his most prominent
villains for the first time, the Alien Cyborg
Gigan in
Godzilla vs. Gigan.
Armed with a buzzsaw in his belly and hooks
for hands, plus a cool visor over his face, Gigan became an instant favorite,
so much so he was brought back a year later in 1973 for
Godzilla vs. Megalon,
teaming up with the titular
Megalon to take on Godzilla.
Godzilla had his own back up however, in the
form of
Jet Jaguar, the result of a contest Toho held for young children
to create the next big Kaiju superstar.
Sadly, Jet Jaguar’s big debut didn’t result in Godzilla sized fame and
probably the only major claim to fame for Godzilla vs. Megalon is its famous
appearance on an episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000 in 1991 (personally I
cant see the famous Godzilla tail kick and not think of the MST3K theme song
playing over it.
In 1974, twenty years after he first appeared on the
silver screen, Godzilla faced his most challenging foe yet…himself? No it was in fact the first appearance of his
robotic doppelganger, a major selling point for Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla. Armed with enough advanced weaponry and
strength to fight Godzilla on an even playing field, Mechagodzilla
joined the ranks of King Ghidorah and Mothra as one of Godzillas
most prominent adversareies. The film
also introduced the loveable King Ceaser (one of my personal
faves). Like Gaigan, Mechagodzilla’s
popularity would see him return a year later in 1975 for Terror of
Mechagodzilla. However, low box
office and the decline of the Monster Genre as a profitable movie venture would
see this becoming the unceremonious end of the first era of Godzilla. Still, 15 films over 21 years is nothing to
sneeze at and Godzilla’s own legend would continue to grow even after he had
stopped appearing in new films.
It was this interest that would lead to a resurgence over
a decade later and it’s that new era, the Second Age of Godzilla, aka the Hesei
Era, that we’ll be exploring in full Next Friday when we return for more
Hail
to the King Baby!!! A Godzilla Retrospective right here at the Gundam Anime
Corner.
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