In 1954, Toho Studios in Japan release the movie Godzilla and started a string of monster movies that would number in the hundreds. Over the years, Toho has been responsible for creating some of the most popular movie monsters in the history of cinema. Many of the more popular monsters appeared in the Godzilla series of movies, but Toho has created an entire list of monsters that have captivated worldwide movie audiences for years. Here is a list of the top five Toho movie monsters of all time.
5) Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster
Ghidorah has many names that include King Ghidorah, Mecha-Ghidorah, Desghidorah and Grand King Ghidorah. He is a three-headed golden monster that flies at super sonic speeds and is said to come from various planets in outer space. He has appeared in the Godzilla series of movies and the Rodan series as well. His primary weapon is a lighting-type laser that shoots from the mouth of each of his three heads. He also uses his tremendous weight to his advantage as he often prefers to knock his opponent down and step on them.
4) Mechagodzilla
Although Mechagodzilla is not a monster in the truest sense, he is an important character in the Toho series. Represented initially as a robot under the control of evil aliens, Mechagodzilla in his later forms was one of the few opponents that was temporarily able to kill Godzilla. Mechagodzilla first appeared in the 1974 film Godzilla Versus Mechagodzilla. He was so popular that Toho rushed a sequel out called Terror of Mechagodzilla in 1975. Later versions of Mechagodzilla removed the alien angle and had humans controlling him from inside.
3) Rodan
Rodan’s importance to the Toho line-up of monsters can sometimes be overlooked because he did not appear in as many Godzilla movies as some of the other Toho monsters. This was because Rodan has his own successful franchise of movies going and his own plot lines that included other monsters such as Ghidorah. Rodan was also the second Toho monster to appear in the series as the movie Rodan was released in 1956, only two years after the original Godzilla.
2) Mothra
Mothra is an incredibly popular Toho monster that first gained popularity with the 1961 release of the movie Mothra. She is accompanied by the Twin Faries, which are pocket-sized keepers of Mothra’s legend. Mothra has died and been reborn several times in the Toho universe. She exists in larvae form in several of the movies, and appears in full moth form infrequently. She has been plated with armor, and has sacrificed her life more than once to protect the Earth and any monster also fighting to protect the planet.
1) Godzilla
The only thing keeping Mothra from being the most powerful monster in the world of Toho is the kind of the monsters himself, Godzilla. Godzilla started it all in the 1954 release of the movie Godzilla. He was brought into the international spotlight with the campy 1962 release King Kong Versus Godzilla, and has been able to stand on his own ever since.
Godzilla has been portrayed as a friend to mankind, an enemy, a protector and a destroyer. He was considered immortal until he finally died in the 1995 movie Godzilla Versus Destoroyah. The Godzilla we see now is the son of Godzilla that absorbed all of Godzilla’s powers after Godzilla had a nuclear meltdown at the end of the movie.
Godzilla has been re-booted three times, and another re-boot is probably on the way. Toho discontinues the series every 10 years or so, and then brings the king back when the time is right. Godzilla is the one that started it all, and he stands as the top Toho monster of all time.
“Monster Bios,” TohoKingdom.com
