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Let us call this creature... Godzilla, according to the legend of Odo Island.
Overview

The 1954 Godzilla (ゴジラ,   Gojira?) is a daikaiju created by Toho that makes its first appearance within the 1954 Godzilla film, Godzilla.

This Godzilla was later succeeded by a second Godzilla during the events of the 1955 film, Godzilla Raids Again and the rest of the Showa series.

Name[]

The name "Godzilla" is a transliteration of Gojira (ゴジラ?), a combination of two Japanese words: gorira (ゴリラ?), meaning gorilla, and kujira (鯨 or クジラ), meaning whale. At one planning stage, the concept of "Gojira" was described as "a cross between a gorilla and a whale." The two words "whale" and "gorilla" describe Godzilla's traditional characteristics.

Since Godzilla is neither a gorilla nor a whale, the name had to be devised in a different way for the original film's story. Godzilla's name was originally spelled in kanji as 呉爾羅 by the Odo Island natives. However, Toho chose these characters for sound only, as the combined characters mean "give you net."

Before Toho sold the film to U.S. distributors, Toho's international division had originally marketed an English-subtitled print under the title of Godzilla, King of the Monsters!, which was shown briefly in Japanese-American theaters. Toho came up with "Godzilla" as an English transliteration of the name "Gojira"."

Design[]

Appearance[]

ShodaiGoji[]

The ShodaiGoji design is the designation for the 1954 kaiju's design. This suit featured a heavy lower body, small arms and a large, round head. The face had pronounced brows while the eyes were completely round with tiny pupils, a feature unique to this costume.

For close-up shots, a hand-held puppet and the prototype suit were used. As a result, when the camera focuses on Godzilla's head in such close-ups, such as when he is firing his atomic breath, Godzilla appears to have larger, more glossy-looking eyes.

The suit also included several features particular to itself and to the 1955 incarnation, the GyakushuGoji: fangs, four toes, a rough underside for the tail and pointed tail tip, and staggered rows of dorsal plates. These features would reappear with the Heisei and Millennium series of Godzilla films from 1984 to 1999. The dorsal plates for both the ShodaiGoji and the GyakushuGoji were dynamic in design and unique to the two costumes. During filming, a separate pair of Godzilla legs were used for close-up shots of Godzilla's feet.

The ShodaiGoji was recreated through computer generated imagery and a large puppet for new flashback scenes in Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla in 2002, namely where the original Godzilla is shown being reduced to a skeleton by the Oxygen Destroyer rather than completely disintegrated as in the original film.

Portrayal[]

The ShodaiGoji suit was the first of its kind - being fully operated by a man inside of it. As there were no established procedures on how to build or operate a suit like the original Godzilla suit, Godzilla special effects artist Eiji Tsuburaya and the production staff had to pioneer a new technique that would later be known as suitmation.[1] The ShodaiGoji suit and the original pre-ShodaiGoji suit were built by Eizo Kaimai.

The ShodaiGoji was portrayed by Haruo Nakajima, who would go to portray Godzilla in almost every subsequent film up to Godzilla vs. Gigan. Nakajima has said that he made Godzilla walk like an elephant from observations he made by watching an Indian elephant called "Indira" back around the time of Godzilla's production,[2] so that Godzilla would not look vulnerable and to portray his massiveness.[3] According to Nakajima, temperatures inside the suit reached up to 60 degrees Celsius, and he couldn't move Godzilla's left hand whatsoever in the ShodaiGoji suit.

Roar[]

Godzilla's roar is a famous sound effect. Over the years, it has changed considerably, sounding different almost every time and having many variations for the different emotions.

The sound effects team originally tried to create Godzilla's roar by using animal roars that had been edited. They sampled all kinds of birds and mammals, but nothing seemed to be the right match for the reptile-like noises a monster like Godzilla would make. Akira Ifukube, who was the film's composer, proposed stepping away from using animal samples. He then took a string off of his contrabass and rubbed it with gloves soaked in pine tar. The sound that came from it was used as Godzilla's roar.

This roar would later be altered for use as the roar of other monsters in the Showa era, including Varan, Baragon and Gorosaurus. Godzilla's roar was increased in pitch starting in King Kong vs. Godzilla, and would remain mostly unchanged for the rest of the Showa series.

Personality[]

Godzilla, in the original Godzilla film, is a creature whose underwater habitat was completely destroyed by a hydrogen bomb test which killed his entire family and left him burned and scarred, ultimately mutating him. Enraged and driven from his home, Godzilla took out his rage upon humanity, destroying any boats that he encountered and later laying waste to the city of Tokyo, sparing no one.[4]

Origins[]

In the original 1954 Godzilla film, it is proposed that Godzilla was a type of prehistoric intermediary reptile related to both land and sea reptiles that slept deep underwater for millions of years feeding on deep sea organisms before being disturbed and enhanced by an American hydrogen bomb test. Dr. Kyohei Yamane proposes that the original Godzilla might have been living among others of his kind prior to the detonation, but the H-bomb completely destroyed his home and drew him out.

This idea is supported by official artwork of the 1954 Godzilla living with other Godzilla's underwater before a huge explosion destroys his habitat, killing his companions and burning and enraging Godzilla and drawing him out to the surface.

This Godzilla would also later become a template for many other Godzilla continuities, with this individual specifically reappearing in the Godzilla 2000, Godzilla vs. Megaguirus, GMK, and Godzilla: Final Wars continuities (more on those appearances in their respective pages). He would also go on to become Kiryu in the Kiryu Duology.

History[]

Godzilla[]

MovieSuit1 10

Godzilla in Godzilla

Following an American hydrogen bomb test in the Pacific Ocean, a giant prehistoric reptile was disturbed from its underwater slumber and heavily irradiated. The monster began attacking various ships in the waters off Japan, prompting a search party to be sent to Odo Island, where some of the survivors had washed ashore. The islanders believed the shipwrecks were caused by Godzilla, a giant sea monster from their folklore which they believed would come ashore to feed on humanity. One night, a typhoon struck the island, leaving it devastated. However, it was apparent most of the damage was caused by something other than a typhoon, as houses in the village appeared to have been crushed from above. A research team headed by Kyohei Yamane was sent to the island, and discovered a giant radioactive footprint on the island, with a Trilobite embedded in it. Suddenly, the monster that was responsible for the shipwrecks and the damage on the island appeared over a hill on the island. The people fled, realizing the creature was 50 meters in height.

Back in Japan, Yamane named the creature "Godzilla" after the monster from Odo Island folklore, and proposed it was a transitional organism from the Jurassic Period, related to both land-living dinosaurs and sea-dwelling reptiles. Yamane believed that Godzilla was exposed to a recent American H-bomb test, hence the radiation found in his footprint, and stressed the monster should be studied to see how he survived to this point. The J.S.D.F. sent battleships to destroy Godzilla with depth charges, declaring him dead. However, Godzilla soon surfaced in Tokyo Bay completely unharmed, plunging Japan and the international community into a state of emergency. One night, Godzilla came ashore in Tokyo, destroying the outskirts of the city before returning to the bay. In response, the J.S.D.F. erected a barrier of power lines around the heart of Tokyo, with 300,000 volts of electricity passing through them, in the hopes they would halt Godzilla. When Godzilla came ashore again one night, he tore through the power lines and melted them with a beam of radioactive heat fired from his mouth. The J.S.D.F. fired on Godzilla with artillery, but their weapons had no effect. Godzilla proceeded into downtown Tokyo, transforming the Japanese capital into a sea of flame overnight. With his rampage concluded, Godzilla returned to the bay, where he was attacked by F86F Sabre fighter jets before finally disappearing beneath the waves.

In the aftermath of Godzilla's raid, Tokyo was an uninhabitable wasteland, burned to a crater and contaminated with deadly radiation. The Japanese government was at a loss in combating the monster and preventing future attacks. Scientist Daisuke Serizawa was approached by his former fiance Emiko Yamane and her boyfriend Hideo Ogata, who asked for him to use his experimental chemical weapon, the Oxygen Destroyer, against Godzilla. Serizawa was horrified by the idea of revealing his invention to the world and refused at first, but was convinced after watching a television program showing Japanese schoolchildren singing a song praying for peace. Serizawa burned his notes on the Oxygen Destroyer and handed it over to the J.S.D.F.

A boat was sent to Tokyo Bay, using a Geiger counter to locate Godzilla underwater. Serizawa and Ogata donned diving suits to go underwater and detonate the device. Once they reached Godzilla, who was asleep on the ocean floor, Ogata was pulled to the surface while Serizawa severed his line and activated the device, sacrificing his own life to stop Godzilla and prevent his weapon from ever falling into the wrong hands. After a few moments, Godzilla rose to the surface and roared defiantly at the boat before sinking under the waves to his death. While the people on the boat both celebrated Godzilla's demise and mourned Serizawa's sacrifice, Dr. Yamane solemnly warned that it was unlikely Godzilla was the last member of his species, and that if mankind continued nuclear testing, another Godzilla would almost certainly appear.

Godzilla Raids Again[]

Following Godzilla's death, footage of the monster's attack would be revealed during a discussion on how to stop the newly risen Godzilla.

Abilities[]

Amphibious lifestyle[]

Though technically a reptile and not an amphibian, Godzilla has an amphibious lifestyle. He spends half of his life in water and the other on land. He is as adept a fighter underwater as he is on land. Capable of marching on the seafloor or swimming by undulating his tail like a crocodile, Godzilla is displayed as being able to breathe underwater, or occasionally hibernating in the ocean depths between movies.

Atomic breath[]

Godzilla's atomic breath, called the Incandescent Light (白熱光,   Hakunekkō?) or Radioactivity Extrusion (放射能噴出,   Hōshanō Funshutsu?)[5] has typically been shown to set entire city blocks ablaze and easily obliterate most military weaponry. Within the events of the 1954 film, his atomic breath was presented as a white, mist-like blast.

Durability[]

Starting in the first Godzilla film, Godzilla displayed an immunity to conventional weaponry, virtually impervious to everything the JSDF threw at him. Dr. Yamane states that the very fact Godzilla survived exposure to a hydrogen bomb explosion is a testament to his durability.

Bite[]

Very similarly to a Tyrannosaurus Rex, Godzilla has very short arms and large teeth and jaws. Godzilla has been shown to use his jaws, teeth and fangs to bite down on buildings.

Tail[]

While not as flexible as the second Godzilla's tail, the original Godzilla's tail has still been shown to be able to destroy buildings in one strike.

Weaknesses[]

Oxygen Destroyer[]

While Godzilla was impervious to all weapons that were fired on him he couldn't withstand the Oxygen Destroyer which was strong enough to kill him in most iterations of the character.

Video games[]

This section is a stub. You can help expand this section by adding some information.

Monster Strike[]

The 1954 Godzilla appeared within the mobile title Monster Strike as a playable character.

Godzilla: Unleashed[]

The original king of the monsters, this towering behemoth was the first post-war radioactive monster unleashed upon the world. Godzilla '54's atomic-powered body was so powerful that each footprint he left was a crater seeping with lethal radiation.

The infamous day that Godzilla rose from the sea to conquer Tokyo will be remembered as the beginning of the humanity's epic struggle against the reign of giant monsters.
― Godzilla Godzilla: Unleashed bio

In the Wii version of Godzilla: Unleashed 1954 is a unlockable character, he is locked behind a hefty wall of unlocking all characters in the game or putting a certain amount of hours into the game, in terms of gameplay he is similar to the 1990's Godzilla in moveset with the only difference being different colored atomic breath (he has white atomic breath) and different stats.


He is also only playable in the games Brawl mode.

Godzilla (2014 video game)[]

Godzilla originated as the relic species of an organism whose evolution from an oceanic reptile into a land animal was interrupted by thermonuclear testing in the Pacific Ocean, the effects of which caused it to turn into a monster. Its name is derived from the legendary "Gojira" beast of Odo Island. It has the ability to shoot a shining, bluish-white radioactive heat ray from its mouth that decimates all in its path while causing its dorsal plates to glow.

The first Godzilla came ashore in Tokyo and wreaked havoc in the metropolitan area as though to send a warning to the human race, which had become complacent in modern civilization. It was eventually brought down by the "Oxygen Destroyer", an underwater oxygen disrupting agent developed by Dr. Serizawa.

Later, one of the same species was identified on Iwado Island in the north and ran rampant in Japan again. However, the second Godzilla became an ally to mankind, protecting it when the space monster King Ghidorah invaded Earth.

Although it was somewhat hastily planned and produced, "Godzilla" became an explosive hit that broke through Japan's borders to an eventual release in America and Europe, where it was heralded as a fresh new take on the monster movie. The entire Showa series of 15 movies would go on to enjoy lasting popularity.
― Godzilla 1954's Kaiju Guide bio

The 1954 Godzilla receives a mention within the game's kaiju guide, but isn't a playable monster within the game itself. The segments of the game taking place in 1954-era Japan replace the original Godzilla's aesthetic with that of the Heisei Godzilla.

Godzilla: Kaiju Collection[]

The 1954 Godzilla made an appearance within the Kaiju Collection mobile title.

Godzilla Battle Line[]

1954 appeared in Season 8 of Battle Line costing 6 Energy, on death he is capable of transforming into one of your Godzilla Pieces matching its level, if you do not have the Godzilla it transforms into then it will be rented at Level 1, the Godzilla's it can turn into are:

  • Godzilla 89
  • Burning Godzilla
  • Godzilla Terrestris
  • Kiryu
  • Godzilla 2004

When it transforms it will also reduce the cost of the Godzilla in question by 2 (so a Godzilla 2004 normally costs 7 energy but if 1954 transforms into it then it will cost 5 energy).

Trivia[]

  • This Godzilla would be referenced, and appear within, the Millennium series timelines of Godzilla films with differing continuations to his fate:
    • In Godzilla vs. Megaguirus, Godzilla went into hiding after destroying Tokyo and never seen again until 1966, when he appeared at Tokai and attacked the nuclear power plant there. His next appearance was in 1996, when he fed on a plasma reactor in Osaka.
    • In Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack, Godzilla was mentioned by various characters several times, some of whom cited how much his existence faded into myth up until the emergence of his kin who embodied the vengeful spirits of those who perished during World War II.
    • In Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla, and its sequel, Godzilla's skeleton was grafted into Kiryu, allowing his spirit to possess its mechanical body.
    • In Godzilla: Final Wars, Godzilla was buried alive in an avalance at Antartica during the confrontation against Gotengo instead of exposed to Oxygen Destroyer.
  • This is the only known Godzilla to have been brown scales, since all future incarnations of the Godzilla and its suits were charcoal black, and much later, green.
  • The ShodaiGoji suit was 6.5 feet tall and weighed 200 pounds.
  • In the 2002 film Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla, the ShodaiGoji design is replicated in part through CGI. Shinichi Wakasa's Monsters, Inc. also created a prop for some of the new footage of the original Godzilla.[6]
  • The ShodaiGoji design heavily influenced later Godzilla designs, most noticeably the 84Goji, SokogekiGoji, the 2016 design utilized in Shin Godzilla, and the updated MonsterVerse Godzilla utilised in Godzilla: King of the Monsters.
  • In the film Godzilla vs. Megaguirus, the ShodaiGoji design was digitally replaced by the MireGoji in stock footage from the original film.
  • This Godzilla, the Heisei Godzilla, Godzilla Filius, and Dagon are the only Godzillas that are confirmed to be deceased.
  • The picture of this Godzilla appeared on a book in the 1991 Godzilla vs King Ghidorah

List of appearances[]

Films[]

Showa era[]

Heisei era[]

  • 1991 Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (Briefly shown on a book)

Millennium series[]

Video games[]

Novels[]

References[]

  1. Godziszewski, Ed (December 24, 2010). Making of the Godzilla Suit! Youtube. Retrieved May 12, 2017
  2. Nakano, Kenji (September 27, 2014). Learning to stomp: The man inside Godzilla Tokyo Reporter. Retrieved May 12, 2017
  3. Hongo, Jun (October 30, 2014). Godzilla Was Very Different 60 Years Ago The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved May 12, 2017
  4. Godzilla 1954 Toho Origin Art
  5. 東宝特撮映画大全集 2012, "怪獣図鑑"
  6. Brett (August 12, 2011). Stopping by Monsters, Inc. Blogspot. Retrieved May 12, 2017
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