Zilla (Godzilla)
- For the plant named Zilla, see Zilla (genus). For the internet phenomenon of websites named [something]zilla, see Zilla (Internet phenomenon). Zilla is also the name of the major antagonist in Shadow Warrior.
Zilla (ジラ, Jira) is Toho Studios' official name for the title creature of the 1998 TriStar Pictures film Godzilla.
Characteristics
In the film, an iguana in Polynesia was irradiated and mutated as a result of French nuclear testing in the South Pacific, causing it to grow in size. Zilla's durability is far less than that of most kaiju (it could be hurt by standard military hardware), which it compensates with a greater agility. It is also one of the few kaiju seen capable of running, but its overall speed is disputed.
Zilla also lacks the atomic fire Godzilla is best known for, but can expel a powerful blast of air capable of knocking cars and military vehicles into the air. A combustion effect is also seen, but wether or not it was a second ignition stage, or secondary explosions is also hotly debated. (in the animated series, this ability is given to him, albeit, it is a green atomic flame) Zilla also has burrowing capabilities—he used the New York subway system to travel underground undetected—and is as adept a swimmer as the Millennium era Godzilla.
Film appearances
Template:Spoilers The beast first attacked a Japanese fishing ship and was dubbed "Gojira" by the sole survivor (later mistranslated as "Godzilla" by the U.S. media). After travelling to New York City, the reptile laid several hundred eggs in Madison Square Garden. (a trivia book released in time for the movie claims that 229, and not the 200 that Tatapolous claims in the film, hatched and were destroyed, meaning that, counting Zilla and the surviving hatchling who appeared in the animated series, there were 231 of these creatures grand total.) A trio of F-18s bombed the Garden, slaying the newborn Zillas. When an enraged Zilla appeared at the Garden's remains, it began chasing a taxi occupied by the protagonists. They lured it to the Brooklyn Bridge, where it became entangled and immobilized by the suspension cables. Zilla was then killed by the same F-18s that had destroyed its offspring. One egg, however, deep within the subway, had survived the earlier bombing, and hatched.
Later, Godzilla: The Series, a Saturday morning cartoon, continued the story of Zilla's surviving baby in a role reminiscent of the Japanese films of the late Shōwa era. A human team of researchers, known as H.E.A.T., composed out of most of the movie's protagonists, follow Zilla and investigate various new monsters around the world. The Zilla in this series was a lot closer to the original Godzilla in terms of strength and durability, and also had the atomic fire Godzilla is known for (albeit a green blast instead of blue), but still resembled its predecessor.
This incarnation of Zilla is mentioned briefly in the prologue of Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack (2001), where it is suggested that American scientists had mistaken it for the real Godzilla.
In 2004, Zilla appeared in Godzilla: Final Wars (2004), finally taking an official place in the ranks of Toho's kaiju and being given the official name "Zilla". (According to Ryuhei Kitamura, the monster was given this name because the American movie had taken the "God" out of "Godzilla".[1]) Under Xilian control, Zilla attacks Sydney, Australia, and is later defeated by the real Godzilla. There was another reason for the fight according to Toho besides showing their Godzilla was a better monster. Toho created Zilla in Final Wars exclusively using CGI to prove their suitmation superior (in Japan, Godzilla is always portrayed by an actor wearing a suit). Surprisingly, Zilla was seen apparently eating two people in Final Wars, something few other Toho Kaiju have done. Zilla himself, despite the destruction of Apache helicopters in Godzilla was not shown to have a taste for human flesh and actually seemed almost curious about humans, or at the very least Niko Tatopolous, with whom the creature came virtually eye-to-eye with, so to speak. The creature only attacked humans when it was attacked in the TriStar film.
Also in Godzilla: Final Wars was a reference to the TriStar Godzilla Movie. When Godzilla defeated Zilla, the Controller of Planet X says the line "I knew that tuna-eating monster was useless." This is a reference to all the fish that Zilla ate in the TriStar movie. The fish that Zilla ate were, in fact, tuna.
Fan Criticism
Before being given the name of Zilla, this creature was (and still is) often referred to by disapproving fans as GINO, an acronym for "Godzilla In Name Only." This acronym was coined by Godzilla fan Richard Pusateri. Other nicknames used to distinguish it from Godzilla include "American Godzilla", "Godzilla USA", "TriStar Godzilla", "Godzilla 1998", "Ginozilla", "US Godzilla" and "Deanzilla" (after the film's producer, Dean Devlin). (Zilla has also been denoted "Godzilla" to contrast it with "Gojira", the Japanese creature; contrarily, in the film novelization the creature is itself called "Gojira".)
Filmography
Zilla also makes another appearance in a 2006 Doritos commercial. The reason that it appears in the commercial is currently unknown, and rather odd, given the fact that the film it starred in came out eight years ago.
Vital Statistics
GODZILLA (1998)
- Height: 60 meters/196.848 feet/2362.176 inches
- Mass: 500 metric tons/550 tons/1,100,000 lb.
Godzilla: Final Wars (2004)
- Height: 90 meters/295.272 feet/3543.264 inches.
- Mass: N/A (for reasons unknown, the mass was never revealed)
