Template:Tabber2Showa Template:Infobox MonsterTitanosaurus (チタノザウルス Chitanozaurusu?) is a giant, aquatic dinosaur kaiju created by Toho that first appeared in the 1975 Godzilla film, Terror of Mechagodzilla. Template:TOC
Name
Titanosaurus shares his name with a real dinosaur genus, though they do not share many similarities other than that. Interestingly, the real genus was discovered several years after the creation of Titanosaurus.
Appearance
Titanosaurus is a deep-sea dwelling creature who sports a fin on his tail and along his back. He also has a rather a long neck.
Roar
Titanosaurus' roars are modified Brocken roars. They're akin to Gabara's roars in that they sound like a cackle, or laugh.
Personality
Titanosaurus is technically not evil since he was mind-controlled in Terror of Mechagodzilla. Some of the characters in the film also mention that Titanosaurus has a calm nature and would normally not attack.
History
Terror of Mechagodzilla
An amphibious dinosaur found in the Pacific Ocean, the character appeared only once, as one of two antagonists in the film.
In Terror of Mechagodzilla, a mad scientist named Shinzo Mafune becomes so obsessed with studying the brain patterns of marine life that he loses his academic credentials and is cast out from the scientific community. Quickly, descending into madness, Mafune is able to gain mental control of Titanosaurus, with the help of aliens from Black Hole Planet 3, after he attacks a submarine investigating the remains of the destroyed Mechagodzilla, from the previous film. The normally peaceful Titanosaurus becomes a frightening, intense monster, and when Dr. Mafune rebuilds Mechagodzilla, both monsters combine their forces, to begin Mafune's revenge on humanity.
Titanosaurus is unleashed on Tokyo, where he begins to menace buildings and create large fires that begin to consume the city. Mechagodzilla arrives shortly afterwards, and the duo send people running for their lives.
At first, Godzilla arrived at Tokyo to save the people and help the military, thinking that he can take down Titanosaurus more easily without the robot Mechagodzilla. However, Titanosaurus was even more powerful than anyone could have imagined without superpowers. The international police agency, INTERPOL found out if Titanosaurus is exposed to supersonic waves, then Titanosaurus will be easier to beat, and in the process, help save Godzilla the time and energy he needs to defeat Mechagodzilla.
The findings thus prompt the creation of the Supersonic Wave Oscillator. After Katsura committed suicide, Mechagodzilla was no longer operative, and Titanosaurus was no loner a slave to the Simians. Godzilla immediately destroyed Mechagodzilla by throwing the cyborg's remains into a deep ditch and aimed his atomic breath at the robot's body, destroying it. He then defeated Titanosaurus by shooting him with two shots of atomic breath after the dinosaur was shot by several waves from the Supersonic Wave Oscillator, which was mounted on a helicopter. After getting shot by the second of Godzilla's beams, Titanosaurus fell down an ocean-side cliff, never to be seen again.
Abilities
Titanosaurus lifting Godzilla with his jaw in Terror of Mechagodzilla
Physical abilities
Physically, the monster's able to match Godzilla's own strength, being extremely strong and capable of hefting massive weight. This was shown in Terror of Mechagodzilla where he lifts Godzilla into the air and even swings him around, despite Godzilla weighing at least 20,000 tons in the film.
To add to this, the creature's an extraordinary jumper, and can swim in an adept fashion.
Sonic wave
Within the video game Godzilla: Unleashed, Titanosaurus can release a sonic wave from his mouth.
Tail
Titanosaurus can whip up a cyclone with his tail by opening the fin from the tip of his tail and swinging it back and forth.
Weaknesses
Supersonic waves
Titanosaurus cannot stand supersonic waves as they effectively stun and weaken him.
Video games
Titanosaurus was cut from Godzilla: Save the Earth. This was due to licensing errors, so Megaguirus took Titanosaurus' place. He can still be seen in the concept art though, wading in the water of an icy level. Titanosaurus appears as a playable character in Godzilla: Unleashed.
Godzilla: Unleashed
Though not specifically evil, Titanosaurus holds no allegiance to any particular ideology, and would not hesitate to secure additional power for himself should the opportunity arise. This frequently places himself in opposition to Earth Defenders and the Global Defense Force.
Titanosaurus employs his towering height, powerful tail, and sonic waves to intimidate or subjugate any beings who dare to disrupt his ancient lifecycle.
Godzilla Unleashed: Double Smash
Titanosaurus appeared within the game Godzilla Unleashed: Double Smash.
Godzilla (2014 video game)
Titanosaurus was subsequently used as a vanguard by the Black Hole Planet 3 Aliens to lay waste to Tokyo. It has strong claws that can tear up the outer shell of a deep-sea submarine, and when it spreads its tail into a fan shape, it can produce wind gusts of up to 320 meters per second. Ultimately, it was driven away when it was discovered that the ultrasonic waves of its control device were weak.
Based on the academic theory that dinosaurs had garishly colored bodies, every bump on its body is colored differently.
Godzilla: Kaiju Collection
Titanosaurus appeared within the mobile game Godzilla: Kaiju Collection.
Comics
Godzilla: Gangsters and Goliaths
Titanosaurus appears in issue #4 of the miniseries Godzilla: Gangsters and Goliaths as one of the monsters that attacks Tokyo when the Elias are captured. In issue #5, once the Elias are retrieved, Titanosaurus leaves peacefully along with the other monsters.
Godzilla: Legends
Titanosaurus is the focus of issue #3 of IDW's miniseries Godzilla: Legends. In this issue, a psychic boy named Travis is enrolled in an academy for psychics run by Miki Saegusa and the mysterious Mugal. Travis unwittingly forms a psychic link with Titanosaurus and draws the monster to civilization, where he causes major destruction. It is later revealed that Mugal is a member of the Black Hole Planet 3 Aliens, an alien race whose homeworld is dying. Mugal had intentionally manipulated Tristan to form a link with Titanosaurus so that the Black Hole Planet 3 Aliens would be able to use Titanosaurus along with their fleet of Mechagodzillas to conquer Earth.
Godzilla: Ongoing
Titanosaurus first appears in Godzilla: Ongoing #4 attacking Tokyo, where he is attacked by Boxer and his "Kaiju Kill Crew." Rodan soon appears in the city and does battle with Titanosaurus. Boxer's team manages to detonate a building and topple it onto the two monsters. Rodan flies away, but Titanosaurus is captured and taken to Monster Island.
Later in issue #10, the now-free Titanosaurus joins forces with Battra and battles SpaceGodzilla in London. Despite the two Earth monsters' efforts, they are defeated and SpaceGodzilla escapes.
Godzilla: Rulers of Earth
Titanosaurus, along with fellow monsters, Gezora and Manda attacked a fleet of aircraft carriers in the ocean. The attack was halted by Godzilla, who sent the three into retreat. Godzilla gave chase but couldn't catch up with them. It was revealed by Mothra's fairies that Titanosaurus and his two allies, were not actual alien kaiju, but were three water monsters that upheld the natural balance.
Titanosaurus was later seen being transported to new Monster Islands, but joined the brawl between Godzilla, Gezora, Manda and the newly revived Destoroyah. The military intervened and sent the three aquatic monsters into retreat with a blast from their new sonar guns, only with Godzilla grabbing onto Titanosaurus' foot, dragging him down. Titanosaurus suffered a broken arm in the fight, but he went on to destroy the Cryogs' spaceship, before retreating to heal his injuries. Titanosaurus is later seen in the oceans of the Monster Islands.
It was revealed later that the Trilopods captured Titanosaurus and took on his characteristics, then imprisoned him in their hive. When King Caesar went on a rampage in the Trilopod hive, Titanosaurus was among the monsters set free. Titanosaurus and the other monsters then joined with Godzilla to battle the Trilopods in Los Angeles. Titanosaurus briefly battled his Trilopod clone before Zilla stepped in and mauled it. He later took part in the battle against Magita, but did little but annoy the massive Trilopod. After the defeat of Magita, Titanosaurus and the other monsters followed Godzilla back the ocean.
In other languages
- Italian: Titano Kong
- Spanish: Titanosaurio
- Russian: Титанозавр
Trivia
- The name "Titanosaurus" was also given to a sauropod dinosaur.
- With his colorful, dinosaurian design and (though weakly defined) personality, Titanosaurus is unique for a 1970s monster, most of which were space monsters with strange, unnatural and illogical body designs, and is an obvious throw-back to the more successful dinosaur monsters of the 1960's like Baragon and Gorosaurus.
- Titanosaurus' fate is not known. After being weakened by Interpol's supersonic transmitter, the creature is hit directly in the chest by Godzilla's atomic ray, and falls backwards off of the cliff into the sea. It is unknown if Titanosaurus died in the battle, or recovered and swam away. Some believe that, since Titanosaurus was not among the monsters living in Monsterland in 1999, the creature did indeed perish. However, as the film Destroy All Monsters, which features Monsterland and takes place in 1999, was produced in 1968, seven years before Terror of Mechagodzilla was produced, this theory holds little water. After all, other monsters from films made before Destroy All Monsters, such as King Kong, the Giant Octopus and Ebirah are not seen living in Monsterland, either.
- Titanosaurus' name is imprinted on a fish tank during Godzilla's appearance at a festival in Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla.
- Godzilla and the INTERPOL agents with the Supersonic Wave Oscillator still tried to harm Titanosaurus after Katsura committed suicide, but due to her death, Titanosaurus' mind control would be broken, and thus reverted Titanosaurus back to his normal, harmless, state. It is possible that they were unaware that he was brainwashed and still thought that he was a threat.
- In Godzilla: Final Wars, a boy is seen playing with Godzilla monster figures, including a toy figure of Titanosaurus.
- Titanosaurus is one of the few monsters that was beaten both by Godzilla and humans.
- Titanosaurus' roars were reused for the bosses Crocomire, Phantoon, Kraid and in the Metroid series.
- Owing to the fact that Titanosaurus is defeated after Mechagodzilla, Titanosaurus is the last kaiju to be defeated on screen in the Showa Godzilla films.
- Titanosaurus was the last completely original main monster to appear in the series until M.U.T.O., if Shockirus, who isn't a main monster, is excluded. The remaining enemies that appear in the Heisei and Millennium series are linked to Godzilla or another monster (Biollante-Godzilla, Battra-Mothra, Destoroyah-Oxygen Destroyer-Godzilla, Orga-Godzilla, Megaguirus-Meganulon, Monster X-Keizer Ghidorah-King Ghidorah) in some way. Titanosaurus was not a previously used monster, and his backstory and design were in no way influenced by Godzilla's or another previously existing monster.
List of appearances
Films
- Terror of Mechagodzilla (First appearance)
Video games
- Battle Soccer: Champion of the Field
- Godzilla, King of the Monsters
- Godzilla Movie Studio Tour
- Godzilla: Trading Battle
- Godzilla: Unleashed
- Godzilla Unleashed: Double Smash
- Godzilla (2014 video game) (Kaiju Guide)
- Godzilla: Kaiju Collection
Comics
References
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