It’s so nice to watch these early Toho projects. The Showa era is where we truly get to know these Kaiju, who they are, where they came from, and what they represent.
These films have so much soul and so many metaphors packed into them (plus, Showa is my absolute favorite era lol).

I’ve always loved Rodan. I love how he’s consistently portrayed as such a loyal kaiju, like here, or in Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II where he literally sacrificed himself to save his bro Goji. This movie was much darker than I expected, tho. There’s a lot of blood and some genuinely creepy moments that were pretty rare for that time, but that’s exactly what sets this film apart.

I can’t even put into words how tragic and heartbreaking the ending was. Watching Rodan witness his partner literally burning alive in the molten lava… and then choosing not to live without them and flying straight into the fire to die together? Bro, don’t do this to me rn 😭. That scene perfectly symbolized loyalty and love, making these Kaiju so much more than just "monsters", they are tragic characters with real hearts.

In my opinion, this moment is probably why they started showing him as "Fire Rodan" later on, it’s a callback to their tragic death in the flames. I just love this movie so much, it’s peak storytelling

P.s. the sounds of Meganulons will haunt me in my nightmares ngl…

It’s so nice to watch these early Toho projects. The Showa era is where we truly get to know these Kaiju, who they are, where they came from, and what they represent.
These films have so much soul and so many metaphors packed into them (plus, Showa is my absolute favorite era lol).

I’ve always loved Rodan. I love how he’s consistently portrayed as such a loyal kaiju, like here, or in Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II where he literally sacrificed himself to save his bro Goji. This movie was much darker than I expected, tho. There’s a lot of blood and some genuinely creepy moments that were pretty rare for that time, but that’s exactly what sets this film apart.

I can’t even put into words how tragic and heartbreaking the ending was. Watching Rodan witness his partner literally burning alive in the molten lava… and then choosing not to live without them and flying straight into the fire to die together? Bro, don’t do this to me rn 😭. That scene perfectly symbolized loyalty and love, making these Kaiju so much more than just "monsters", they are tragic characters with real hearts.

In my opinion, this moment is probably why they started showing him as "Fire Rodan" later on, it’s a callback to their tragic death in the flames. I just love this movie so much, it’s peak storytelling

P.s. the sounds of Meganulons will haunt me in my nightmares ngl…

Dang I didn’t expect the ending to be so tragic

Dang I didn’t expect the ending to be so tragic

I29 Selections #23 | Week 9: Kaiju Classics

Cool idea to try and implement “plot” and “characters” into these Kaiju movies but my boy Rodan doesn’t show up til 55 minutes into this 72 minute movie

I29 Selections #23 | Week 9: Kaiju Classics

Cool idea to try and implement “plot” and “characters” into these Kaiju movies but my boy Rodan doesn’t show up til 55 minutes into this 72 minute movie

Starts out interesting and just loses steam. Rodan is pretty cool though

Starts out interesting and just loses steam. Rodan is pretty cool though

I really liked this one. From stunning backdrops, to great special effects and miniature work Rodan is perfects the closest the franchise gets to the feel of the original Godzilla. 

Whilst both movies don’t share the exact same theme, they do both have an ending that’s clearly not meant to be interpreted as happy. With the original movie we get to stop Godzilla’s ramp with yet another weapon of mass destruction. Whilst here, the death of both Rodans comes with the sacrifice of the forest and valley of the area. AND the loss of life for all three Kaiju isn’t seen as a true victory as well.

It honestly feels so depressing to see the surviving Rodan choose death over having to live a life without its friend.

I really liked this one. From stunning backdrops, to great special effects and miniature work Rodan is perfects the closest the franchise gets to the feel of the original Godzilla. 

Whilst both movies don’t share the exact same theme, they do both have an ending that’s clearly not meant to be interpreted as happy. With the original movie we get to stop Godzilla’s ramp with yet another weapon of mass destruction. Whilst here, the death of both Rodans comes with the sacrifice of the forest and valley of the area. AND the loss of life for all three Kaiju isn’t seen as a true victory as well.

It honestly feels so depressing to see the surviving Rodan choose death over having to live a life without its friend.