Hello, Kaiju Lovers! “Godzilla Redux” kicks off with not one but two “gatekeepers” in the kaiju fandom: Jack “GMan” Hudgens and Elijah Thomas (Kaiju Conversation). They along with Nate spend nearly four hours(!) talking about why they effing love the final Showa series film, Terror of Mechagodzilla. It was Nate and Elijah’s first G-film and is one of Jack’s perennial favorites. While many regard it as Ishiro Honda’s weakest Godzilla film and barely give it more credit than the rest of the 1970s G-films, your hosts unpack...
Hello, Kaiju Lovers! “Godzilla Redux” kicks off with not one but two “gatekeepers” in the kaiju fandom: Jack “GMan” Hudgens and Elijah Thomas (Kaiju Conversation). They along with Nate spend nearly four hours(!) talking about why they effing love the final Showa series film, Terror of Mechagodzilla. It was Nate and Elijah’s first G-film and is one of Jack’s perennial favorites. While many regard it as Ishiro Honda’s weakest Godzilla film and barely give it more credit than the rest of the 1970s G-films, your hosts unpack a laundry list of deep themes and potent symbols. They sing the praises of the wonderful script by Yukiko Takayama (the only woman to write a full Godzilla screenplay), the exciting explosions of Teruyoshi Nakano (who considered this some of his best work), the grossly underrated kaiju Titanosaurus, and the nuanced performance of Akihiko Hirata as Dr. Mafune, among many other things. No stone is left unturned in this epic discussion! Then in the most entertaining Patreon shout-outs segment ever of all time, a certain Mr. Trump (by way of Elijah) appears….
Additional Music: “Main Title [Terror of Mechagodzilla]” by Akira Ifukube
“Meister Titano’s Counterattack”: https://www.tohokingdom.com/blog/2075-meister-titanos-counterattack-story-translation/
Check out Nathan’s spinoff podcasts, The Henshin Men and The Power Trip, and Henshin Power V3!
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This episode is approved by the Monster Island Board of Directors.
Timestamps:
- Introduction: 0:00-18:25
- Main Discussion (synopsis, background, analysis): 18:25-3:44:22
- Culture Box Ad (Geek Devotions): 3:44:22-3:45:29
- Outro (listener feedback and housekeeping): 3:45:29-3:58:34
- Credits: 3:58:34-end
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Bibliography/Further Reading:
- Barr, Jason. The Kaiju Film: A Critical Study of Cinema’s Biggest Monsters. McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. 2016.
- Brothers, Peter H. Mushroom Clouds and Mushroom Men: The Fantastic Cinema of Ishiro Honda. AuthorHouse, 2009.
- Commentary by Keith Aikan and Bob Thomas (Classic Media DVD).
- Galbraith IV, Stuart. Japanese Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films: A Critical Analysis and Filmography of 103 Features Released in the United States, 1950-1992. McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. 1994.
- Kalat, David. A Critical History and Filmography of Toho’s Godzilla Series (2nd edition). McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. 2017.
- Lees, J.D. and Marc Cerasini. The Official Godzilla Compendium. Random House. 1998.
- LeMay, John. The Big Book of Japanese Giant Monster Movies, Volume 1: 1954-1982 (2nd edition). Bicep Books, 2017.
- LeMay, John. Writing Japanese Monsters. Bicep Books. 2020.
- Ryfle, Steve, and Ed Godziszewski. Ishiro Honda: A Life in Film, from Godzilla to Kurosawa. Wesleyan University Press, 2017.
- Skipper, Graham. Godzilla: The Official Guide to the King of the Monsters. Welbeck Publishing Group. 2022.
- “Terror of Mechagodzilla.” IMDb. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0073373/.
- “Terror of Mechagodzilla.” Toho Kingdom. https://www.tohokingdom.com/movies/terror_of_mechagodzilla.htm.
- “Terror of Mechagodzilla.” Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terror_of_Mechagodzilla.
- “Terror of Mechagodzilla (1975).” Wikizilla. https://wikizilla.org/wiki/Terror_of_Mechagodzilla.
The post Episode 109: ‘Terror of Mechagodzilla’ | Ft. Jack “GMan” Hudgens and Elijah Thomas | Godzilla Redux appeared first on The Monster Island Film Vault.
