Sometimes an entire genre of fiction can be dominated by one franchise or one character. The world of giant monster movies only has a few big celebrities, and everyone else is either a member of their entourage or a pretender to the throne. But, one massive beast has stood just beneath that throne since the beginning, and he’s about to have a big return.
When you say kaiju, the world is almost always picturing Godzilla, King Kong, or both. However, the simple concept of a monster the size of a skyscraper is bigger than two or three franchises. Gamera, the Guardian of the Universe and friend to all children is here to continue his never-ending climb to the top.
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In 1954, the world was changed forever by the release of Ishiro Honda’siconic kaiju classicGodzilla. The film’s production was inspired by earlier works includingThe Beast from 20,000 FathomsandKing Kong, but its allegory and atmosphere captured the hearts of audiences.Godzillaobviously wasn’t the first kaiju film, but it was the catalyst that caused the explosion of other similar films.Godzillawas, and still is, owned by Toho, leading countless other studios to create their take on the concept. The now-defunct company Daiei Film set to workdeveloping their own massive monsterawakened by radioactive energy. Their take on the concept was called Gamera, and he’s since taken on a life of his own.
Gamera, the Giant Monsterpremiered 11 years after the film that obviously inspired it. Theeponymous kaiju is aprehistoric giant turtle with prominent tusks and the ability to breathe fire. He can melt steel, tear apart buildings, and even fly by retreating into his shell and ejecting flames from every opening, causing him to spin like a flying saucer. He’s initially a hostile beast who wantonly destroys everything he encounters. He eats petroleum and fire for sustenance. From the earliest film, however, Gamera has a clear and wholesome bond with human children. Over the years, much like Godzilla, thedangerous kaiju evolved into a defenderof mankind against greater threats. His backstory, established decades after his introduction, states that he was created by the people of Atlantis to defend them from other monsters. He’s fueled by magical energy known as mana that allows him to do incredible things. Gamera is an inconsistent character at the best of times, but he still has all the lovable aspects of a kaiju hero.
Godzilla has been around for only a decade longer than Gamera, but they have a pretty huge discrepancy in the films released. There are 38 commercially released Godzilla films, along with a cartoon series and countless comics and video games. The King of the Monsters is one of the most enduringly popular fictional characters of all time. Gamera, on the other hand, only has 12 commercially released feature films. Even the films that did make it to the big screen didn’t usually succeed. Sincerely, fans of Gamera owe a massive debt of gratitude to the good peopleatMystery Science Theater 3000, because their parodies of five of the twelve films led to a massive bump in popularity in the 90s. This is hilarious, because both Sandy Frank, the American producer who owned the films, and Kadokawa Pictures, the company that bought Daiei, tried to killMST3K’sepisodes on the subject. Some people just can’t take a joke, even when it’s saving their career.
As of November 16th, 2022, Kadokawa has announcedGamera -Rebirth-. This will be the firstGameraproject to hit the screen since 2006. The most recent trilogy ofGamerafilms was directed by Shūsuke Kaneko, who will be returning to the franchise withRebirth. Kaneko is also known for his two Japanese live-action adaptations ofTakeshi Obata’sDeath Noteand his 2001 kaiju filmGodzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack. Little is known about the upcoming project. Kaneko’sGameratrilogy, but his upcoming work could be an anime. It’s also unclear whetherRebirthwill be a film or a series. It is clear, however, that it’ll be released worldwide on Netflix sometime next year. Given almost two decades without a word about Gamera, fans are on the edge of their seat for anything the studio will put out.
Newcomers to the world of Gamera can seek out his entire film history. The twelve titles are scattered across services includingAmazon Prime, Tubi, and Pluto, but they’re almost all easily accessible. Hardcore Gamera fans are almost undoubtedly vibrating with excitement to see their favorite Guardian of the Universe finally return. Gamera has lived for half a century in the shadows of the icon that inspired him, but, whateverGamera -Rebirth-turns out to be, the character will always have a history worth looking into. Gamera is back, and the world is better for his return.
