GODZILLA: Tristar Godzilla Film (1998)

[Terasawa]

Zilla was just a separate version of the Godzilla character, used in GFW and Rulers of Earth, just as Kiryu is a separate version of Mechagodzilla used in several properties.

That's definitely an interesting way to look at it, but I think Zilla's technically (or was) its own entity.

I wasn't disputing that Zilla was trademarked as its own character. I'm saying that it was spun off from an existing character (Godzilla) just as Kiryu or Super Mechagodzilla was spun off of Mechagodzilla. Zilla is a separately trademarked version of Godzilla (specifically the design created for the TriStar version; there is no distinction between TriStar's Godzilla and Toho's as far as USPTO is concerned).

How is Super Mechagodzilla not its own entity? Like Zilla (had), it has a trademark icon separate from Mechagodzilla, and is likewise listed separately in trademark disclaimers. Kiryu had a trademark at one time but according to Wikizilla (the good one, not the plagiarized one) it was cancelled.

Some Zilla/Godzilla stuff from SciFi Japan: GODZILLA Unmade: The History of Jan De Bont’s Unproduced TriStar Film – Part 4 of 4

In creating “Zilla” for FINAL WARS, Toho continued a decades-old tradition of assigning unique names, trademarks and copyrights to the different incarnations of their monsters, including such favorites as Mechagodzilla (Mechagodzilla 2, Super Mechagodzilla, Mechagodzilla Kiryu), Mothra (Mothra Leo, Fairy Mothra, Aqua Mothra, Armor Mothra, Eternal Mothra) and King Ghidorah (Mecha-King Ghidorah, Cretaceous King Ghidorah, Grand King Ghidorah, Monster X II, Kaizer Ghidorah). This practice allows the studio to both maintain the original brand while also offering a “new” version for additional films and merchandising.

In America, Zilla appeared in the Godzilla: Rulers of Earth comic book series from IDW Publishing in 2013. The monster’s return ignited another round of fan debates, with G:ROE artist Matt Frank stepping in to set things straight. “For the record,” he wrote, “Toho makes zero distinction between ‘Zilla’ and ‘Godzilla 1998’ with the exception of title alone. The film itself is recognized as GODZILLA, as is the animated series. Ever since 2004, Toho’s official stance has been that any future incarnations of the character be referred to hereafter as ‘Zilla’.” Frank also shot down speculation that Zilla was the same as the Godzilla from Sony’s animated show GODZILLA: THE SERIES, stating that the cartoon Godzilla was its own character, “not within [IDW’s] net of licenses, nor do I think we would be able to obtain it.”

[KManX89]

People generally just think 'fire breathing lizard/dinosaur' when they think of Godzilla, y'know? And technically speaking, that's what G'98 is, so in a way it IS Godzilla to the average person (beyond the whole trademark thing).

No he's not. He breathed GAS at the cars and they exploded. Not once did GINO breathe fire in that movie.

You can't sell me on "this is what the average person sees", either when even people who aren't Godzilla fans know then and now that that's not how he's supposed to look.

[Kaiju-Killer 751]

People generally just think 'fire breathing lizard/dinosaur' when they think of Godzilla, y'know? And technically speaking, that's what G'98 is, so in a way it IS Godzilla to the average person (beyond the whole trademark thing).

No he's not. He breathed GAS at the cars and they exploded. Not once did GINO breathe fire in that movie.

You can't sell me on "this is what the average person sees", either when even people who aren't Godzilla fans know then and now that that's not how he's supposed to look.

Alright that's fair-I may have been overly simplistic in my presentation. You are right in the fact GINO didn't really breathe fire, just a really flammable roar/breath attack rather than actual fire; But I'm not sure if a lot of people could tell the difference. And you are also right in regards that GINO isn't really how Godzilla is supposed to look, and in hindsight I may have been very wrong. Sorry KManX89

Zilla was just a separate version of the Godzilla character, used in GFW and Rulers of Earth, just as Kiryu is a separate version of Mechagodzilla used in several properties.

That's definitely an interesting way to look at it, but I think Zilla's technically (or was) its own entity.

I wasn't disputing that Zilla was trademarked as its own character. I'm saying that it was spun off from an existing character (Godzilla) just as Kiryu or Super Mechagodzilla was spun off of Mechagodzilla. Zilla is a separately trademarked version of Godzilla (specifically the design created for the TriStar version; there is no distinction between TriStar's Godzilla and Toho's as far as USPTO is concerned).

How is Super Mechagodzilla not its own entity? Like Zilla (had), it has a trademark icon separate from Mechagodzilla, and is likewise listed separately in trademark disclaimers. Kiryu had a trademark at one time but according to Wikizilla (the good one, not the plagiarized one) it was cancelled.

Some Zilla/Godzilla stuff from SciFi Japan: GODZILLA Unmade: The History of Jan De Bont’s Unproduced TriStar Film – Part 4 of 4

In creating “Zilla” for FINAL WARS, Toho continued a decades-old tradition of assigning unique names, trademarks and copyrights to the different incarnations of their monsters, including such favorites as Mechagodzilla (Mechagodzilla 2, Super Mechagodzilla, Mechagodzilla Kiryu), Mothra (Mothra Leo, Fairy Mothra, Aqua Mothra, Armor Mothra, Eternal Mothra) and King Ghidorah (Mecha-King Ghidorah, Cretaceous King Ghidorah, Grand King Ghidorah, Monster X II, Kaizer Ghidorah). This practice allows the studio to both maintain the original brand while also offering a “new” version for additional films and merchandising.

In America, Zilla appeared in the Godzilla: Rulers of Earth comic book series from IDW Publishing in 2013. The monster’s return ignited another round of fan debates, with G:ROE artist Matt Frank stepping in to set things straight. “For the record,” he wrote, “Toho makes zero distinction between ‘Zilla’ and ‘Godzilla 1998’ with the exception of title alone. The film itself is recognized as GODZILLA, as is the animated series. Ever since 2004, Toho’s official stance has been that any future incarnations of the character be referred to hereafter as ‘Zilla’.” Frank also shot down speculation that Zilla was the same as the Godzilla from Sony’s animated show GODZILLA: THE SERIES, stating that the cartoon Godzilla was its own character, “not within [IDW’s] net of licenses, nor do I think we would be able to obtain it.”

I see what you mean now, and I apologize for misunderstanding the licensing and trademark debacle-I've always tried to understand the trademarks and legal bindings when and where I can to actually PREVENT making the same mistake of the whole Godzilla/Zilla name debate. Honestly, I just want Zilla to have some form of atomic breath or something similar-heck, in the novel Godzilla:Project MechaGodzilla continuity, it's theorized that Zilla was some sort of subspecies or offshoot of the main Godzilla, like the Servum, Orga, or even Biollante. I don't think it'd be too out of the question to say that Zilla as a species are some Atlantic subspecies of the main Gojira 'genus' (maybe call it Gojira Tatopolous or something similar...a bit silly I realize but, I'unno)

[SoggyNoodles2016]

This whole conversation is just reminding me how often fanon is mistaken for actual canon/legal rights in this fandom.

[Kaiju-Killer 751]

This whole conversation is just reminding me how often fanon is mistaken for actual canon/legal rights in this fandom.

I apologize if I'm derailing the conversation-I have been sort of getting off topic haven't I?

[SoggyNoodles2016]

This whole conversation is just reminding me how often fanon is mistaken for actual canon/legal rights in this fandom.

I apologize if I'm derailing the conversation-I have been sort of getting off topic haven't I?

?

That wasn't directed at you or anyone, that was just a general comment, you're completely fine.

[Kaiju-Killer 751]

This whole conversation is just reminding me how often fanon is mistaken for actual canon/legal rights in this fandom.

I apologize if I'm derailing the conversation-I have been sort of getting off topic haven't I?

?

That wasn't directed at you or anyone, that was just a general comment, you're completely fine.

Ah okay-I was also trying to reference the Anime Series novel and then maybe tie it into some sort of 'route' that GINO could henceforth take.

One thing that kinda bugged me about them was their inconsistent durability and reputation for 'frailty'-


Admittedly, I'll just get this out of the way and say Godzilla really should never DIE to conventional weaponry, barring very specific or rare circumstances; and even then it should show he shrugs it off. So yeah, GINO dying to the military was kinda 'meh' in all fairness. But I don't think they were quite as squishy as we tend to give them credit for.

For starters, let's look at some basic durability feats- They survive two torpedoes hitting them (the film itself goes into detail noting they managed a 'direct hit', and even as it digs away we watch the torpedoes blast into its sides), then later on it dies to what I'm fairly certain to a dozen Harpoon missiles after the fact. Admittedly, dying to mere missiles SOUNDS fairly wimpy, but Harpoons are anti-ship missiles, and are designed to blast a pretty big hole into the armored sides of a battleship-this was after he survived two torpedoes, tank shells, and high caliber bullets. Granted, Kaiju as a whole shouldn't really be that easy to fell by conventional weaponry, but it's not TOO too bad I don't think.

However, a torpedo's warhead is MUCH bigger than a harpoon missiles, so if the former only stunned him how did the latter manage to kill him? I think in one of the 1998 film's novelizations it mentions that the torpedoes blasted off Godzilla's 'armor' a bit, and the scales or osteoderms or whatever hadn't grown back yet; Of course, the novels have a LOT of weirdness (Nick's a psychic or something, Godzilla can change color like a chameleon, etc)

Here's the excerpt that mentions Zilla's armor having been blasted off from the torpedoes from GODZILLA by Stepehen Molstead
https://pasteboard.co/Jx2mfJt.png

All things considered, it's not TERRIBLE for Kaiju, considering how a fair number of other Kaiju can be kinda wimpy sometimes.

[DragonZord13]

I always liked the movie had this monster "hum" right before Godzilla attacked in the water scenes. It's Zilla's version of 54's echo stomps. I think that gives a air of fear to the monster. Cool little touch there

[Gigantis]

For starters, let's look at some basic durability feats- They survive two torpedoes hitting them (the film itself goes into detail noting they managed a 'direct hit', and even as it digs away we watch the torpedoes blast into its sides), then later on it dies to what I'm fairly certain to a dozen Harpoon missiles after the fact. Admittedly, dying to mere missiles SOUNDS fairly wimpy, but Harpoons are anti-ship missiles, and are designed to blast a pretty big hole into the armored sides of a battleship-this was after he survived two torpedoes, tank shells, and high caliber bullets. Granted, Kaiju as a whole shouldn't really be that easy to fell by conventional weaponry, but it's not TOO too bad I don't think.

However, a torpedo's warhead is MUCH bigger than a harpoon missiles, so if the former only stunned him how did the latter manage to kill him? I think in one of the 1998 film's novelizations it mentions that the torpedoes blasted off Godzilla's 'armor' a bit, and the scales or osteoderms or whatever hadn't grown back yet; Of course, the novels have a LOT of weirdness (Nick's a psychic or something, Godzilla can change color like a chameleon, etc)

Here's the excerpt that mentions Zilla's armor having been blasted off from the torpedoes from GODZILLA by Stepehen Molstead
https://pasteboard.co/Jx2mfJt.png

All things considered, it's not TERRIBLE for Kaiju, considering how a fair number of other Kaiju can be kinda wimpy sometimes.

I mean, i'll always give 98 Goji this much: He survived more than one bullet. That can't be said for the Giant Claw.

[Kaiju-Killer 751]

For starters, let's look at some basic durability feats- They survive two torpedoes hitting them (the film itself goes into detail noting they managed a 'direct hit', and even as it digs away we watch the torpedoes blast into its sides), then later on it dies to what I'm fairly certain to a dozen Harpoon missiles after the fact. Admittedly, dying to mere missiles SOUNDS fairly wimpy, but Harpoons are anti-ship missiles, and are designed to blast a pretty big hole into the armored sides of a battleship-this was after he survived two torpedoes, tank shells, and high caliber bullets. Granted, Kaiju as a whole shouldn't really be that easy to fell by conventional weaponry, but it's not TOO too bad I don't think.

However, a torpedo's warhead is MUCH bigger than a harpoon missiles, so if the former only stunned him how did the latter manage to kill him? I think in one of the 1998 film's novelizations it mentions that the torpedoes blasted off Godzilla's 'armor' a bit, and the scales or osteoderms or whatever hadn't grown back yet; Of course, the novels have a LOT of weirdness (Nick's a psychic or something, Godzilla can change color like a chameleon, etc)

Here's the excerpt that mentions Zilla's armor having been blasted off from the torpedoes from GODZILLA by Stepehen Molstead
https://pasteboard.co/Jx2mfJt.png

All things considered, it's not TERRIBLE for Kaiju, considering how a fair number of other Kaiju can be kinda wimpy sometimes.

I mean, i'll always give 98 Goji this much: He survived more than one bullet. That can't be said for the Giant Claw.

The only 'kaiju' I can think of squishier than Ms Carcagne is Dogorah, or maybe The Blob

But yeah, TriStar Godzilla ain't too frail or feeble; He smashes through buildings, dredges up freighters and guts their hulls, pulls down fishing trawlers without problem, and can burrow through cement and steel. He also tanks normal missiles fairly easily, at least in the official novelization
https://ibb.co/nCMC7gW

Heck, the novelization is actually FAR superior to the movie, at least in how it portrays and explains TriStar Godzilla: It goes into in-depth explanations on its appearance, abilities, and how or why they happen while managing to deal with at least some plot points. I'd even go so far to say that TriStar Godzilla in the novel is portrayed as way more dangerous, aggressive, and capable than the movie made it out to be.

[realinvaderdesign]

regardless, novel isnt canon, regardless how much people try to make the tristar godzilla look tough, its still weak as mince

[Kaiju-Killer 751]

regardless, novel isnt canon, regardless how much people try to make the tristar godzilla look tough, its still weak as mince

^ Fair enough, the novel isn't necessarily canon, so we'll stick with the Movie for feats instead. I apologize, but this is going to be a serious wall

For starters, we see him plow through tank-shells and mounted rocket launchers without any issue in the film proper.
https://imgflip.com/gif/4mdeyh
These are M270 MLRS, M1 Abrams Tanks, and HMMWVs he's blowing through; All of which appear in the movie (https://wikizilla.org/wiki/HMMWV, https://wikizilla.org/wiki/M1_Abrams, https://wikizilla.org/wiki/M270_MLRS) and are present in a big firing line right before he dives into the Hudson River -He dodges some of the fire, sure, but we still see some of it hit him without him slowing down before he dives into the Hudson River. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4IsISIQpKTc

(stats on the vehicles in question-contains links to armaments and weapon stats such as warhead size, etc) https://fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/land/m270.htm https://fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/land/m1.htm https://fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/land/m998.htm

Plus just before he ambushes the Apaches, they blow up the building he's hiding in and we hear him holler while still in the building, suggesting that even as he was digging away he was getting torched. https://youtu.be/f_LDdElm9fc?t=68. and I sincerely doubt he can 'throw his voice' like a ventriloquist. So he was being riddled with enough chain-gun rounds and missiles to turn the inside of a skyscraper into a budget fire-works display before he managed to flank around them and attack from behind.


Finally, he pops up from the ground like a friggin' daisy only mere moments after his nest had been reduced to a smoldering wreck by LGBs (although the movie shows the pilot deploying Harpoon Missiles-ironically LGBs would work in turning the Garden into a crater) opening the possibiltiy he might have been inside the Madison Square Garden during the subsequent fire-bombing, considering he shows up not 30 seconds AFTER everyone escapes

This one's a bit more questionable, as he could have tunneled in after the bombing, but even if he did show up at the last second, he still tore through rubble, fire, and shrapnel without any duress (unlike, say, Skull Island Kong, who despite being from a far superior movie was badly wounded by extreme heat via Napalm and had his hands shredded by helicopter blades while 'Zilla was chomping through Apaches like potato chips )

In regards to exactly what he's up against, it's fair to note missiles aren't made equally-an AIM-9 Sidewinder and AIM-7 Sparrow Missile's warhead are only 21 lbs to 88 lbs respectively (standard armaments on an F-18 Hornet, which are the jets that take him down at the end of the film) However, they are also able to be equipped with Harpoon Missiles, which are anti-ship missiles with a whopping 488 lb warhead. And the TriStar Godzilla survives an Ohio Class Submarine's Mk-48 Torpedoes, which have warheads of about 650 lbs! (sources http://www.joebaugher.com/navy_fighters/f18_3.html http://www.seaforces.org/wpnsys/SUBMARI ... orpedo.htm)

And we know in the film that the Hornets have these Harpoon missiles as part of there armament here , which are then promptly deployed when TriStar Godzilla is caught in the cables on the Brooklyn Bridge (without re-supplying, but that's just more of the movie's abysmal writing). And Harpoon missiles ain't weak https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oxpwIsZCgtM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gt9IigGidG4

And it's not even that he would have necessarily been killed by the first round of these missiles either-he keeps moving and struggling after the first six are deployed, and the pilot points out to Hicks that "Godzilla" is wounded, but not dead-Hicks then has the jets circle back around and shoot him with another six. Even then "Godzilla" still manages to linger for a little longer despite being pumped full of bloody holes. This twunk of a Godzilla dies by slowly bleeding to death in the cold and rain after being shot with twelve anti-ship missiles, two torpedoes, rockets, tank shells, and high caliber bullet fire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JcFaIDdphE.

I'm sure a major counterpoint would be 'Well if he was so resilient against most of what was being thrown against him, why'd he run?'

1. Emmerich and Devlin didn't give a Deutalios' rump about Godzilla's spirit or themes or message, which only makes the movie suffer all the more for it by having "Godzilla" act like an animal (an intelligent one, but still just an animal)

2. Adding onto the above, even if an animal is resilient or even immune to harm, TriStar Godzilla was at the end of the day just a big animal trapped in a loud, tightly packed place with bright lights and weird itchy things that these small things that screamed at him shot at him a bunch; An animal's instincts would be to run away from the noise and chaos even if it's not necessarily wounded (much) by what's attacking it, unless the animal is cornered, provoked, or acting territorial.

Also, it's unfair to say Godzilla's ever COMPLETELY immune to conventional weaponry-Here, Legendary Godzilla is driven back by normal conventional weaponry; Granted, it doesn't kill him, but he's being driven back and we can hear him screeching and recoil from being shot in the gills by one missile https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFYP8O-YwpE despite the fact he's WAY bigger than TriStar Godzilla in height and mass. Granted, it didn't kill him or even make him bleed, but it's still notable. Heck, GMK Godzilla, despite being one of the biggest powerhouses we've ever seen, gets done in by a missile-a fictitious super missile with a drill on it that makes a wound he exacerbates by trying to use his Atomic Breath and making the wound bigger, but still (plus the fact that even the biggest, strongest missiles in GODZILLA 1998 don't explode the way they're supposed to)
-
I'm going to try and wrap this up by stating a few things

(a) This isn't meant to be me dissing the OG Godzilla; I love the Japanese Godzilla, from his laws-of-physics bending and heroic Showa incarnation to his dark, gritty Heisei anti-hero phase and his sleek, flashy and shiny Millenium era. I love the original Gojira and the menace he creates whenever he's onscreen, and I love how Shin Godzilla harkens back to that sense of creepiness and uncanniness while being unique in design and with a new flashy moveset. I adore the Japanese Godzillas, and I will love them until the day I die.

(b) I'm not trying to say the movie is some masterpiece either that people aren't 'big-brained' enough to love or whatever; I love this Godzilla and I have clearly shown I'll die on the hill of defending it, but it's not a good movie. The only parts of this movie I genuinely like/can stand are the opening, the twelve minutes ToraGoji is on the screen, the practical FX (and later the Blu-Ray edition fixing the crummy lighting on the CG model), and maybe like five characters (Phillip Roache, Animal, Sergeant O'Neal, Major Anthony Hicks, and Elsie). Everyone and everything else is either corny and makes me go 'eh' or is TERRIBLE. The writing is terrible, the pseudo-science is terrible, pretty much everyone else is unlikable or annoying or a cheap parody, and the Godzilla is barely even a Godzilla. Is it the WORST Godzilla flick? Well that's debatable, but it's not a good movie overall.

The point of all of this is to try and show that the TriStar Godzilla, even if not able to be considered a proper incarnation of the King Of The Monsters (except for the Animated incarnation) is still not some complete weakling like everyone plays it up to be; In terms of durability, this thing was a juggernaut for most of the film, only getting hurt when the plot needed it to be hurt (blood for the pregnancy test and the ending). It's still by no means the tankiest kaiju around, but I think we give the Tuna Head too little credit for what they managed to shrug off.

[GojiDog]

Tristar Godzilla is weak by Godzilla standards. We're used to Godzilla getting bombarded constantly and barely flinching, so to see the military do damage to and even kill him is jarring.

But by Giant Monster Movie standards, Zilla 98 isn't any weaker than the likes of King Kong or the Rhedosaurus.

[Kaiju-Killer 751]

Tristar Godzilla is weak by Godzilla standards. We're used to Godzilla getting bombarded constantly and barely flinching, so to see the military do damage to and even kill him is jarring.

But by Giant Monster Movie standards, Zilla 98 isn't any weaker than the likes of King Kong or the Rhedosaurus.

That's fair; Sorry if I went kind of on a tangent. Just trying to give it some sense of justice seeing as I feel everyone downplays what it was capable of doing. Of course, anything it did, its offspring and future incarnations did better, that much I'm willing to admit.

[Spuro]

Missiles, shmissles. Doesn't matter how big or how powerful the warhead is, it defeats the purpose of what Godzilla is supposed to be.

"If Godzilla had been a dinosaur or some other animal, he would have been killed by just one cannonball. But if he were equal to an atomic bomb, we wouldn't know what to do. So, I took the characteristics of an atomic bomb and applied them to Godzilla." – Ishiro Honda.

[Gigantis]

Pretty much everything said above. Emmerich tried to apply realism to a fictional character who thrives off being nonrealistic in almost every way, and it fell flat on it's face.

[JAGzilla]

Strangely, perhaps, seeing ol' GINO defended so meticulously warms my heart. It's a nice change of pace from the usual abuse. I never realized that he was killed by anti-ship missiles; I guess that does make it marginally more tolerable, even if any Japanese Godzilla would take those without changing his expression.

[Kaiju-Killer 751]

Missiles, shmissles. Doesn't matter how big or how powerful the warhead is, it defeats the purpose of what Godzilla is supposed to be.

"If Godzilla had been a dinosaur or some other animal, he would have been killed by just one cannonball. But if he were equal to an atomic bomb, we wouldn't know what to do. So, I took the characteristics of an atomic bomb and applied them to Godzilla." – Ishiro Honda.

Pretty much everything said above. Emmerich tried to apply realism to a fictional character who thrives off being nonrealistic in almost every way, and it fell flat on it's face.

I agree, I guess I just like to play Bagan's advocate now and again especially when it comes to doing some research on Godzilla

And, to be fair, it's not like he hasn't been wounded by missiles before

Showa
https://imgflip.com/gif/4mhxl0
https://youtu.be/FduP45p-o6k?t=361

Heisei




Millenium:
https://imgflip.com/gif/4mhyvx
https://imgflip.com/gif/4mi0ti

Reiwa:


Granted, space age missiles rather than humdrum everyday missiles, but he's still been wounded by 'conventional weaponry', especially considering that these can be considered as such within the universe Showa, Heisei, and Millenium take place in, what with aliens, mutants, gods and more all being somewhat commonplace. Heck, Shin Godzilla is, at least in his debut film, more or less meant to be real life, and we see he gets wounded by bombs-but then again these are MOPs, which have friggin' MASSIVE warheads, up to 6,000 friggin' pounds! Even the LGBs that levelled the Madison Square Garden (or were supposed to, as Emmerich mistakenly shows them arming Harpoon missiles) can only reach up to 2,000 lbs for their biggest warhead per bomb (source http://www.joebaugher.com/navy_fighters/f18_3.html); Even IF TriStar Godzilla survived being firebombed by LGB Paveway Bombs (assuming he was in the nest when it was blown up, and he only might have been) I'll still admit he almost definitely would have been turned into a splatter then and there if he was up against MOPs.

Granted it can be argued how 'conventional' any of these weapons are even within their respective universes (Cadmium Missiles from the Super, the Mecha themselves, and of course the Oxygen Destroyer). Hell, to an extent, the missiles used in TriStar Godzilla's film don't explode half as big as they do in real life; 22-88 lb warheads don't level entire buildings, Emmerich. Bombs can, and Bunker Busters (ie Tomahawk Missiles) can as well, but ordinary missiles don't blow off half a skyscraper with two shots. And we do later on see in the TriStar Universe via the Series that there IS space age tech (laser guns, genetic weapons, energy missiles and laser beams etc) but we never see how the OG ToraGoji fairs against them, and honestly probably not nearly as well as his offspring did.

But, as Kaiju-King42 and Gigantis mentioned-in the end, the Japanese Godzilla survives all these high-caliber volleys, whereas the TriStar Godzilla, much as I may love them...doesn't. All of the Godzillas required these barrages and ordinance strength to do damage, but it's only the latter where it was truly fatal. Plus, the Japanese Godzilla recovered and retaliated against what shot him up in the first place.





And, it bears mentioning that Godzilla in Tokyo SOS, Godzilla tanks Type 88 Surface-to-Ship Missiles, which are comparable to Harpoon Missiles...and responds thusly
https://imgflip.com/gif/4mhzqv

Strangely, perhaps, seeing ol' GINO defended so meticulously warms my heart. It's a nice change of pace from the usual abuse. I never realized that he was killed by anti-ship missiles; I guess that does make it marginally more tolerable, even if any Japanese Godzilla would take those without changing his expression.

Thanks! I'm not trying to argue that the (live action) TriStar Godzilla is statistically better than the ANY Japanese Godzilla or anything (except maybe Chibi Godzilla, Godzilland Godzilla, and the ones from Go!Go!Godzilli-kun!) Of course he isn't! I'm merely trying to show that he's not nearly as feeble as he's made out to be. Even if he IS just an animal by comparison to GODzilla, he and his species is still well deserving of the moniker of 'Kaiju' rather than simply 'monster' or 'animal', considering everything that was thrown at him didn't do much until it was convenient for him to be hurt-but again, just more lousy writing.

[GigaBowserG]

play Bagan's advocate

Gonna have to remember to use that one of these days...

Really, this talk of G1998's durability has been interesting! It's easy to use the "died by missiles" argument, but also easy to forget some of the feats it was able to accomplish in other scenes, such as chomping down on spinning helicopter blades. Even if it's not in the extremes as Japanese Godzilla and company, G1998's ability to tank certain conventional weaponry is higher than it appears.

[Kaiju-Killer 751]

play Bagan's advocate

Gonna have to remember to use that one of these days...

Really, this talk of G1998's durability has been interesting! It's easy to use the "died by missiles" argument, but also easy to forget some of the feats it was able to accomplish in other scenes, such as chomping down on spinning helicopter blades. Even if it's not in the extremes as Japanese Godzilla and company, G1998's ability to tank certain conventional weaponry is higher than it appears.

Bagan, Destroyah, King Ghidorah, any 'Luciferian' Kaiju can be used for a kaiju themed play on words!~

And thank you, I try to be as factual and evidence based as I can be about Diet Godzilla! He isn't in the extremes, but he's not nearly as much as a pushover in terms of durability.

As for strength, he

-Walks (or lunges https://imgflip.com/gif/4mj37l) through buildings on the regular

-Drags down three fishing trawlers simultaneously and earlier had demolished a Japanese Fishing Ship https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bsCrGDVTTLM (what was left of it https://i.imgur.com/L0rEQ.png


-Cuts through an Ohio Class Submarine with his scutes https://imgflip.com/gif/4mjd75\ and bites through or swats down Apache Helicopters like flies

-A glancing blow from his tail can tear through concrete https://imgflip.com/gif/4mj4zf and later https://imgflip.com/gif/4mj4sc

-Tunnels through solid concrete and metal on a regular basis



(This video basically compiles a majority of his strength feats above https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8s_yaSUf7Lc)


Also, one thing I had been thinking about was his 'Power Breath'....and how I think it might be even worse than Godzilla's Atomic Breath; With the latter, you're basically fried by like, nuclear plasma. It's instant death, your brain probably doesn't have time to register it.

https://imgflip.com/gif/4mj2yj
The Power Breath, meanwhile, isn't an atomic ray of ionized death, but it is probably radioactive, given that it's incredibly flammable and is produced by a giant mutated reptile. One spark and the entire city block is torched by a jet of draconian flame, and being incinerated by normal fire is a LOT more painful than just being immediately vaporized, especially if you're partially shielded from the flames; so you're not burned to ash, just severely burned via convection of heat in the air.


Even without being ignited, his Power Breath is likely capable of sustained wind speed/pressure of around at least an EF-3 Tornado's because it sends vehicles flying through the air (source https://weather.com/storms/tornado/news ... e-20130206), which means in turn it could actually cause damage to buildings and the environment by itself. And as we mentioned, it's flammable, so possibly radioactive-have fun with the horrid chemical burns and molecular damage! And if it's just flammable but not radioactive, the wind speed would still probably kill or severely cripple you, if you're not impaled by a flying pylon or turned into a splatter by a car.

TL; DR-Diet Godzilla still has enough muscle on him to do some serious damage, and while the Atomic Breath is more destructive and more impressive the 'Power Breath' would still be devastating irl