Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II

Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II:

Directed by: Takao Okawara Produced by: Tomoyuki Tanaka, Shogo Tomiyama Written by: Wataru Mimura Starring: Masahiro Takashima, Ryoko Sano, Megumi Odaka Music by: Akira Ifukube Cinematography: Yoshinori Sekiguchi Editing by: Miho Yoneda Distributed by: Toho Release date(s): 1993 Running time: 108 min. Country: Japan Language: Japanese Preceded by: Godzilla vs. Mothra Followed by: Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla

Godzilla vs. MechaGodzilla II (ゴジラVSメカゴジラ, Gojira VS Mekagojira?, Godzilla VS Mechagodzilla) is a 1993 film. Part of the Toho studio's Godzilla series, it was directed by Takao Okawara with special effects by Koichi Kawakita. It was written by Wataru Mimura.

Plot
In 1992 (only several months after the battle between Godzilla and Mecha-King Ghidorah), the United Nations form the U.N.G.C.C. (United Nations Godzilla Countermeasures Center). After declaring their first counter-Godzilla weapon, the air-ship Garuda, a failure, the U.N.G.C.C. recover the remains of Mecha-King Ghidorah from the ocean and convert the 23rd century armor and other components to cerate the ultimate weapon: Mechagodzilla. By 1994, two years after it's construction began (and 40 years after Godzilla first attacked Japan), the giant robot is compleated and prepaired for action.

Meanwhile, on an expedition to an irradiated island called Adonoa in the Berring Sea, a Japanese team comes across a gigantic nest containing two large eggs, one hatched and one still intact. They remove the unhatched egg from the nest and bring it to their camp for further study. However, their actions are being observed by the former occupent of the second egg: Rodan, a giant Pteranodon. The mutated pterosaur attacks the scientific team in an attempt to protect its unborn kin. As the team flee from their destroyed camp, they notice that the sea is begining to glow blue and, several seconds later, Godzilla rises and lumberes ashore. Rodan violently attacks the King of the Monsters, pecking at him and razing him with his sharp tallons and spiked chest. While the two ancient beasts fight, the team quickly secures the intact egg and escape onboard a helecopter. On the ground, Rodan is defeated by Godzilla and aparentely killed. Godzilla then turns his tail and begins to persue the helecopter, and the egg, back to Japan. Once there, the unhatched egg (presumed to contain another pteranodon) is brought to Kyoto to be monitered and studied. There, a strange vine-like plant found growing on the shell is descovered to contain a strange kind of psychic music. When it is played, the egg begins to hatch, and from out of the fractured shell emerges not a baby pteranodon, but a Baby Godzilla. Professor Omae, one of the scientists who dicovered the egg on Adonoa Island, speculates that the Godzillasaurus (the un-irradiated dinosaur species that gave rise to Godzilla himself) are animals that lay their eggs in the nests of other dinosaurs, thus explaining the presence of a Godzillasaurus egg in the nest of a Pteranodon. Unfourtunatly, no sooner has the Baby Godzilla pushed its self from it's egg then the adult Godzilla appears off the coast of Japan, heading toward Kyoto with great spead. At the U.N.G.C.C. headquarters, the G-Force (the military arm of the U.N.G.C.C.) scramble and prepare Mechagodzilla for battle. The 120 meter tall mechanical monster is launched from it's underground base and quickly flies towards Godzilla. Once it lands, it begins to unleash a barrage of weapons against it's organic counterpart, including a Mega-Buster beam, a powerful Plasma Laser system, and shock cables designed to pierce Godzilla's hide to deliver a powerful electric shock. However, when these are fired into Godzilla durring the battle, the atomic titan unleashes a nuclear pulse that sends the energy flying back towards it's source. The violent influx of energy begins to send Mechagodzilla's systems haywire, and the machine's engine room soon erupts into flames. With the robot paralized, the crew can only watch helplessly as Godzilla rises and shoves them aside. With it's mechanical doppleganger defeated, the Monster King heads once again towared Kyoto, destroying everything in it's path. It soon arives at the science institute where the Baby is located. However, the scientists within had previously realised that Godzilla had come to Japan to find it's newborn kin, and had taken the infant to the basement of the building in an attempt to isolate it from the adult monster. The plan works, and Godzilla, sad and angry, is forced to leave, unable to locate the young Godzillasaurus.

Soon after, the U.N.G.C.C. places the Baby Godzilla in a specially-built enclosure at their H.Q., the G-Center, for safe keeping. There, the dinosaur is studied and X-rayed. However, after analizing the X-rays, the scientists at G-Center discover something unexpected: the Baby has a large muscle-like organ, or "sacral brain", in it's hip, presumably used to control lower body functions. The U.N.G.C.C.'s top brass, the Counter G Bureau, assume that the adult Godzilla, being the same species as Baby (albiet much more heavily mutated), must also posess such a "second" brain. Armed with this new information, the Bureau, along with the G-Force Commander Aso, develop a new plan of action. They plan to outfit Mechagodzilla with a new weapon: The G-Crusher System. The system will be designed to fire high-powered cables into Godzilla's sacral brain and deliver an electric shock powerful enough to destroy it. This, it is hoped, will paralize Godzilla's lower half and make it impossible for him to stand on his own two feet. The conflict, the Bureau decides, will take place on the uninhabited Ogasawara Islands, far from any city. However, in order to lure the nuclear behemath to the desired location, U.N.G.C.C. Director Segawa and Comander Aso decide to use the Baby Godzilla as a decoy, as the Monster King had previously displayed an ability (and willingness) to persue and locate the younger monster. Although protests arise from both Baby's human guardian, Asuza Gojo (whom Baby had imprinted on both before and after his hatching), and psychic Miki Saegusa (who had also grown quite attached to the young kaiju as well), the plan goes ahead and Baby is loaded into a canister to be flown, via helecopter, to the site of the opperation. However, the complete success of said opperation is not in the books. Unbeknownst to the U.N.G.C.C.'s top brass, an incident had previously occured that would place the entire plan in jeopardy. A few days earlier, Miki had brought a group of young students from the Psyonics Center (where she had previousy been a student(See Godzilla vs Biollante)) to visit Baby. Once their, the young girls sang a song for him... the same song that had eminated from the mysterious plant that had grown on Baby's eggshell. Apon hearing the melody, Baby suddenly turned very violent, roaring and slaming his body against the fence around his enclosure. Miki surmised that the music from the plant, when played, gives any creature that the plant has effected (in this case, Baby as it had grown on his egg) a boost of power and of energy. Unfourtunatly, Baby was not the only monster to recieve energy from the ancient plant's song. Back on Adonoa Island, under a pile of rocks and debris, the eyes of Rodan flicker open as the creature regained consiousness. Realizing that it's "brother" had been taken away, the prehistoric reptile spreads it's huge wings and, as the energy granted to it by the plant's music flowed through it's body, transforms into a new, crimson-shaded, nuclear-powered, form: Fire Rodan. The huge pterosaur then departes the island and flies to the aid of it's "sibling".

Back in Japan, the J.S.D.F. helecopter transporting the canister that contains both the Baby Godzilla and his guardian Asuza heads toward the Ogasawara Islands. Suddenly, Fire Rodan drops out of the sky and destroyes the helecopter, grabs the canister in his tallons, and promptly flies off towards the coast of Japan. In an instant, the U.N.G.C.C.'s plan has completely disintigrated, and the G-Force is forced to launch Mechagodzilla in an attempt to intercept Rodan. Also launched is the U.N.G.C.C.' first counter-Godzilla mech: Garuda. At the same time the G-Crusher system was being integrated into Mechagodzilla, both the giant robot and it's airship predicessor were upgraded to literally combine into one, powerful machine dubbed Super Mechagodzilla. By nightfall, Rodan arives in Tokyo, and Mechagodzilla is not far behind. Not long after the flying reptile lands, it begins to break open the container with it's sharp beak in an attempt to reach the Baby Godzilla inside. Fourtunately, Mechagodzilla lands and prepairs to confront Rodan. However, the latter had no intention of surrendering it's only family and unleashed it's new Uranium Heat Beam (an energy beam similer to Godzilla's famous Atomic Ray) apon the former. Mechagodzilla quickly retaliates and the two titans exchange energy beams. After a few minuites, Garuda arives and persues Fire Rodan through the air above the city. Unfourtunatly, a flyby and strike from Rodan's chest spikes quickly sends the arial mech crashing to the ground. Mechagodzilla soon retaliates and blasts Rodan out of the sky and into a building. As the huge robot approches the downed reptile, Rodan suddenly rises and begins to violently peck at Mechagodzilla's eyes, succesfully pecking one out of commision. However, with a blast of the immense machine's Plasma Laser Cannon, Fire Rodan is sent flying backwards into a group of buildings, where it lies with a huge bleeding wound in it's chest, unconsious and both foaming and bleeding from the mouth. Godzilla then shows up and starts to battle Mechagodzilla. Mechagodzilla uses G-Crusher and Godzilla is taken down. Rodan transfers his remaining energy to Godzilla which revives him. Godzilla uses his new Spiral Heat Beam to defeat Mechagodzilla. Godzilla and Baby Godzilla swim away, to find a new home. Their new home reveals to be Bass island in the next film.

Trivia

 * The original ending for Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II was that Mechagodzilla killed Godzilla, therefore ending the VS series. But, Godzilla transfers his energy to Baby Godzilla who grows into an adult Godzilla. This new Godzilla would be used in Tristar's version but Sony decided that they wanted to make a standalone film  of their own. Instead, the scenario was used two years later in Godzilla vs. Destoroyah.
 * Another ending considered is that Godzilla is killed by Mechagodzilla, but not after damaging the ship Garuda. The nuclear engine inside irradiates Godzilla, giving him new strength to defeat his mechanical clone.
 * In the release of the international dub of the movie they referred to Rodan as his Japanese pronunciation, Radon.
 * The airship Garuda is named after a Japanese mythical bird spirit.

Box Office
The film sold approximately 3,800,000 tickets in Japan.

DVD Releases
Sony Pictures:


 * Released: February 8, 2005
 * Aspect Ratio: Widescreen (1.78:1) anamorphic
 * Sound: Japanese (2.0), English (2.0)
 * Supplements: Trailers for Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S., Mirror Mask, Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid, and Steamboy
 * Note: The subtitles for the Japanese track are really 'dubtitles', or subtitles that follow the dubbed version of the film, rather than the original Japanese.