Sci fi Legends

I tried to find a picture of him that wasn't from 1954 or 2014, but I just couldn't help it. First dropping in Japan in 1954, just 9 years after the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, his name was forged from a combination of Gorira; Japanese for gorilla, and Kujira; Japanese for whale, and with a roar that is in fact a Violin. It is Godzilla. My love for the big lizard has been a part of me for my entire life, I don't know exactly when it started, but I am told that it began when I was a baby, and I saw Godzilla vs Hedorah on TV, as unsure as I am of this myself, I have proof that it is probably true, since I still have the shitty video my mum and dad taped for me of the film from the TV, and the first Godzilla film I remember watching is indeed Godzilla vs Hedorah. Since then I have had frequent phases of being obsessed with Godzilla, and each time I have been more and more in love with him.

Godzilla is a fascinating creature, there are many different versions of events in which he was or could have been created. But the one that is most generally accepted is that he was an ancient prehistoric sea monster that was awoken by the American nuclear tests in the 1950's. Something that was brought up in 1954 and I hope will be brought up in the 2018 film is that to some, Godzilla is a god; the Godzilla franchise isn't shy of the idea of gods, after all, one of his greatest allies/enemies is literally a god. But it's interesting to look at the big lizard in the same way, given his age, size, power, etc, it wouldn't be surprising that, just like in the 54 film, talk of a giant sea monster had been passed from father to son for generations, and had spawned a legend, or that the people of the small fishing community that worships Godzilla have always worshiped him, even to the point of performing ritual sacrifice to keep his rage and hunger for mankind at bay.

What Godzilla actually is is an interesting subject. He is considered to be a metaphor for the destruction caused during the atomic bombings on Japan, and Japan's fear of atomic power, which is why his timing of only 9 years after the bombings is so relevant. He is an embodiment of the fear that gripped Japan after the bombings. But in the 2014 film he became more than that; director Gareth Edwards wanted Godzilla to be as grounded as possible, and he tried his hardest to portray Godzilla not as a monster that can be fought ad killed, but as a force of nature. Like what Charlie Hunnam said in Pacific Rim; "There are things you can't fight, acts of god, you see a hurricane coming, you get out of the way." Godzilla is the act of god, and there are no Jeagers to fight him, until they make that Godzilla Pacific Rim crossover, please please please.

Godzilla is appealing for several notable reasons. The first and most basic is people like watching things get destroyed and that is what Godzilla does, people like seeing giant monsters going head to head, and I do like seeing that too. But there are more complex reasons for the appeal. For example; Godzilla is a metaphor, as I said in the previous paragraph, it's possible that some of his appeal comes from what he stands for; which is unimaginable destruction and a nation gripped with fear. We can keep going with this, he may be a metaphor for the arrogance of man; with the American nuclear tests, not giving a thought to what kind of effect their scientific advancements could have, and how big of a threat said effect could pose, this is something the 2014 movie dabbles with a lot. Finally there is the appearance, he's enormous, which is both awe inspiring and terrifying; going back to my fearfully interesting post, monsters can be many things, and giants are one of those things, the fear of something that could squish us like ants is a very natural fear, as it's something we cannot fight or escape from, an "act of god". Alternatively, he's a dinosaur, and dinosaurs are cool.

I've called this post sci fi legends because I want to do this regularly, single out something I like from Science fiction and  talk about what I find cool about it and whatever deeper meanings can be squeezed from it if any. I hope this post was at least kind of interesting, as ever, apologies if you were bored by it.