Being a Godzilla fan for a large part of my life, I've come to enjoy a fair amount of his looks over years for better or for worse, and that means his ever-changing look took some getting used to. Here, then, are where I've come to land on the various costumes for The Big G over the years with my Top 10 Godzilla Costumes and why.
10. 1975 [Terror of Mechagodzilla]
This one has always been an overlooked design in my eyes. Known as Meka-Gyakshu Goji, there's a lot to really enjoy with this look. A lot of that is especially his face which has some really nice designs around the eyes which make him look a lot more fearsome than the rest of his 70's outings. The smaller look fits nicely into Godzilla's brawler style behavior throughout his appearances and it has quite a lot to like. Although it still looks somewhat silly with the rather over-inflated back plates which still look like they're filled with helium and haphazardly arranged on his back, this is an underrated look that should be mentioned more.
9. 1994 [Godzilla vs. Space Godzilla]
Yet another underrated design, the Mogegoji tends to get overlooked because of the film he's present in which is a shame as this is one of the highlights. The Heisei face and body here still look impressive and the overall look of the beast is impressive especially with the scenes of it in action on Birth Island during the first fight as well as the scenes of it marching across Japan to get to Space Godzilla. While it would've been cool to see his feature in the film where it can turn his head left to right which is mostly cut out of the finishing product, this is an unnecessarily maligned look that deserves more consideration.
8. 1984 [The Return of Godzilla]
This is an incredibly underrated design and one that has grown on me over the months as more rewatches of the recent Blu-Ray has made me more accustomed to the look. The evil eyes and a return to more of the original's design of the face makes this quite imposing, and the attitude does make a nice comparison that gives this a wholly enjoyable look and feel. While it would be nice to know that the big guy has shoulders, that minor look is the only real hindrance to this costume as this is a really enjoyable look.
7. 1962 [King Kong vs. Godzilla]
This might be a bit of surprise to be this high on the list, but the Kingoji costume I feel has several minor detractions. The main thing that irks me about it is the hands, which look swollen and misshapen as if he suffered a bee-sting prior to a battle or something. It looks awkward along with the odd look of the face as it's never all that consistent in appearance. However, there's still a like to like here as the large, lumbering body is imposing, when it looks right the face is quite expressive and the increased screentime makes it noticeable how flexible it is so it does look good. Still, not as enjoy as some of the others.
6. 1995 [Godzilla vs Destoroyah]
There's not much to say here, but the Desugoji is basically the Heisei design but with molten energy erupting from the chest, thighs, legs and the fins while the eyes glow bright red. This is admittedly impressive as well as a nice bit of storyline continuity within the series as it's the final buildup throughout the Heisei run, yet that's it. It doesn't really do much else and really only relies on it's impressive visual so while that does earn it some points there's still other, better designs out there.
5. 1968 [Destroy All Monsters]
One of the most impressive and enjoyable designs, the Shoshingekigoji is a real winner here. With the rounded face, human-like body and yet overall reptillian features being employed, there's an innately endearing quality to the costume that has a muppet-like quality to The Big G. His lovable expression and flexibility to create a wide range of movement has some impressive qualities to it and by being the design to further the savior of the Earth format the series was going towards is especially important with these features. Though it doesn't look like he's all that massive, this is an impressive and enjoyable design.
4. 1991 [Godzilla vs. King Ghidora]
Granted, a lot of the reasoning for my love of the Ghidogoji costume has less to do with the look of the costume than it does for the actual sense of realism imbued to it during filmming. Physically, it's indistinguishable from the previous film but you can tell several key differences throughout here between the two which denotes where the suit was cutup in order to undergo repairs which is just strikingly odd and noticeable especially in the numerous close-ups during the fights. However, the actual practical creation of the guy on-screen is what seals this one as there's such an incredible life to him with the slow movements, the thunderous footsteps and the lifelike behaviors make a lasting impression.
3. 1954 [Gojira]
The first, the original, the beginning. It's almost impossible not to love the Shodaigoji look, with those dinosaurian features, evil expression and just uniquely original design that creates a memorable impression. The first time it appears in full, at the first attack in Tokyo Bay on through the series of rampage footage showing this lumbering behemoth in action it just creates an indelible impression. Despite the stiffness of the costume as it looks like it takes great energy just to bend and twist even just slightly, there's not much to dislike with this impressive look and it's one of the best of the series for a reason.
2. 1964 [Mothra vs. Godzilla]
A personal favorite being the first G film I ever saw in color, the Mosuogji look is still one of the series' best ever creations. The muzzle look alongside the reptillian features is quite impressive, the evil face is striking and the body looks like it's capable of far more violent activities than what was initially shown with a slimmed-down yet still massive frame. The scaled-down fins and hands also come into play here and it creates an incredibly imposing and lovable look, and it also doesn't hurt that the films this costume is featured in are among the best in the series.
1. 1989 [Godzilla vs. Biollante]
And here it is, the most impressive and defining look of the series. The Biogoji design is just incredible, with the strong muscled body, appropriate level of lower-body bulk that doesn't look awkward and a truly fearsome face that looks both dinosaurian and serpentine that's enhanced by the utterly incredible special effects used to help bring him to life. Given all the on-set creations from the puppets to the secondary suit and all the fun setups that were used to bring it to life that this has an unduly realism to The Big G that's mostly carried along throughout the rest of the series. This has earned the best costume award quite handily and is the one impression I get whenever I think of "Godzilla."
Comments
Post a Comment