Monster Zero x SciFi Japan - Archive Only

Poll time. I peeked back at the older posts and (at a decent glance) didn't see this up anywhere.

Needless to say, the millennium results are all in. Which is your favorite suit and why?

The 2000 MAQUETTE does NOT count. Movies only, please.

GMK was my choice for the longest time, having reasserted Goji's power and awe in its execution, but these days I'm going with the X Mechagodzilla/SOS design. I definitely think the X Mechagodzilla/SOS suit(s) doesn't get its proper acknowledgment, being shelved between the mighty (and kinda dumpy) GMK, and the AWFUL Duckzilla from Final Wars, and not to mention the stigma associated with it, as it was featured in some of the more "been there, done that" lackluster movies in the 3rd series.

But the more I look at 2003/2004 design... I dunno... it just does it for me. Smaller head to body ratio exudes mass and power like the 90's G. The spines are the updated millennium flavor and the silver color works well against the darker colored suit. The face was very expressionistic (especially in SOS), more-so than any suit before it. I like the sharp, pointed end of the tail and the overall sleekness of the design, yet it's not too skinny like the Final Wars suit. The neck is great with the frilly scales on each side. To me, it gives Godzilla a very regal look. The chest and legs are very well pronounced/proportioned and defined. His belly is great too, streamlined in a angled ridge. Arms/ shoulders/claws, just great and perfect for the ridgy, reptilian theme of the suit.

On the down side, I'm not always crazy about the snout from certain angles, but it doesn't really detract from the whole package. Also, the eyes can appear a little too benign at times, but definitely quite fierce and animalistic at others. They have a very unique look all of their own compared to all other suits (like ever) and look especially fierce when the the bottom eyelids are raised upwards a little (like when the audience sees him getting his 1st look at Mothra), or when his head is angled downward and he's glaring out from under his brow (like when he's coming ashore in the same movie).

SOOOOO what's your favorite if you had to choose (Showa diehards are welcome ).

I didn't know the 2000/Megaguirus and Kiryu/Tokyo SOS suits were different.

Interesting point really. However, I truly feel that the Kiryu/Tokyo SOS suit was the improved upon design of the 2000/Megaguirus. Just 10X more refined. Less brutish, more sleek animal.

Yeah, I admit that I'm no big fan of the Anguirus '68. The only thing that it added was a better arrangement of spikes on his back (more random I guess), otherwise his big ol' eyes and and more compact snout didn't really thrill me. I like the final wars version better than the '68, but both fall short to the '55 to me.

I found those 90's suits pretty stiff really, I have to say, though visually just beautiful (Godzilla anyway). I like Satsuma, but he seems kinda bi-polar at times. Maybe like bi-polar disorder. I wonder if it affected his performance as he famously clashed with Koichi Kawakita over time. In fact, I'd say that his Biollante performance was probably the one that stood out the most to me. Yeah, I felt he could have done tons better in Destroyer too.

Really though, I think cinematography is probably the biggest deciding factor in determining the range of expression and effectiveness for a given suit. Take Godzilla '54. The stiffest suit of all. But with the right lighting and camera angles, and hell, maybe because it was in black and white as well, that particular suit conveyed absolute volumes of terror and horror and awe and poignancy.