Gorosaurus

Gorosaurus (ゴロザウルス, Gorozaurusu) is a dinosaur created by Toho that first appeared in the 1967 Toho film, King Kong Escapes.

Name
Gorosaurus' name is derived from the Japanese word "goro," meaning fifth or approximate, and the Greek word saurus, meaning lizard or reptile, so the name Gorosaurus means "approximate lizard." The origin of his name also fits since Gorosaurus is the fifth reptilian monster to appear in the Toho lineage, after Godzilla, Rodan, Anguirus and Manda.

Appearance
Gorosaurus is a gray color all over, though in some highlights the color can change from a greenish tint or even a form of teal and blue, and has skin with pronounced scaly bumps. Gorosaurus has a row of triangular plates running down his back, as well as a bipedal stance, strong legs, fairly short arms, and a big head.

Origins
According to the Godzilla Movie Studio Tour, it said in Gorosaurus' bio that he is an abrupt descendant of Allosaurus. This is relevant to Gorosaurus' design, as most Allosauroid dinosaurs have a triangular-shaped head. It is also possible that Gorosaurus could be a part of the dinosaur group Carcharodontosauridae, which are closely related to the Allosaurus and succeeded their cousins in the later Cretaceous periods. This could mean that Gorosaurus survived the Cretaceous extinction event.

King Kong Escapes
Gorosaurus was a dinosaur living in Mondo Island. He attacked and attempted to devour Susan Watson. King Kong soon appeared, saved her, and fought Gorosaurus. Gorosaurus was a formidable opponent due to his powerful kangaroo kick. Each time King Kong tried to stand, he would be grounded once more by Gorosaurus. However, King Kong snapped Gorosaurus' bottom jaw and successfully defeated Gorosaurus.

Destroy All Monsters
Gorosaurus then moved to a new island that was artificially created by humans. Monsterland was meant to be an environment for the giant monsters of Earth.

He lived with other monsters including Kumonga, Minilla, Varan, Mothra, and Manda. But all was not well, as a race of aliens called Kilaaks invaded the planet. They captured and mind-controlled the monsters, releasing them in cities throughout the world. Gorosaurus was released in Paris, France, where he attacked and destroyed the city. However, the humans retaliated and broke the mind control. The aliens were not finished, and used King Ghidorah to destroy the Earth monsters, who were now being controlled by the humans.

Gorosaurus at first was knocked back twice by the Gravity Beams, once when he charged forward alone, and the second time when he and Godzilla charged together. He later played an important role in the battle, as he snuck behind King Ghidorah during the dust rumble, created by Rodan, and used his powerful Kangaroo Kick to knock him down. Then Gorosaurus and the other monsters successfully destroyed the space monster once and for all. After the fight, Gorosaurus and the other monsters were returned to Monster Island where they lived in peace to this day. Gorosaurus later appeared in All Monsters Attack in Ichiro's dream.

Go! Godman
Gorosaurus also appears in the series Go! Godman.

The Gorosaurus suit here is in such poor shape that the inner support seems to be deteriorating. It makes Gorosaurus' torso look like its caving in.

Abilities
Aside from the usual tooth and claw, Gorosaurus has been noted for using a "kangaroo kick" against foes like King Kong and King Ghidorah. This is Gorosaurus' most popular trait. Also, in the 1968 film Destroy All Monsters, Gorosaurus is shown with the ability to burrow underground. This is the only incident where this ability is shown.

Gorosaurus' battle against King Ghidorah showed his strategies. While fighting, Rodan made a large dust cloud, which Gorosaurus used to sneak behind King Ghidorah, his blind spot. Gorosaurus kicks King Ghidorah down to the ground, where the other kaiju pin him down and finally kill him. Gorosaurus is also known for being just as strong or even stronger than Godzilla when it comes to muscle strength.

Filmography

 * King Kong Escapes
 * Destroy All Monsters
 * All Monsters Attack
 * Godzilla vs. Gigan (Stock Footage)

Video Game Appearances

 * Kaiju-Oh Godzilla
 * Godzilla Trading Battle
 * Godzilla Generations

Roar
In King Kong Escapes, much like Baragon, Gorosaurus' roar is also another modified Varan roar, but was more sped up and pitched.

In Gorosaurus' protagonistic role in Destroy All Monsters, Gorosaurus still was the same, but this time Toho had edited the roar and deepened, plus slowed the roar, to make the new Gorosaurus sound older. Gorosaurus is one of the very few monsters to be gifted with one of Godzilla's roars, during the fight with King Ghidorah. Gorosaurus also had several roars from other Toho monsters in Destroy All Monsters. Toho blended and higher pitched a particular chirp from Ebirah at the beginning of the roar. Coincidentally, Gorosaurus had one of Varan's unaltered roars at the time it destroyed the Arc de Triumph in France.

In Other Languages

 * Spanish: Gorosaurio

Trivia

 * Gorosaurus was strangely shown to be burrowing in Paris in Destroy All Monsters. This role was originally intended for Baragon, however the Baragon suit was on loan to Tsuburaya Productions for use in the Ultraman series. Toho instead replaced him with Gorosaurus, having Gorosaurus "borrow" Baragon's burrowing ability. Gorosaurus was even referred to as "Baragon."
 * Gorosaurus is one of the three monsters that have "saurus" in their names. The other two are Titanosaurus and Godzillasaurus.
 * Gorosaurus' role in King Kong Escapes is similar to the Tyrannosaurus that fought King Kong in the 1933 film.
 * According to Nobuyuki Yasumaru, the creator of Gorosaurus, Gorosaurus was one of Eiji Tsuburaya's favorite monsters.
 * Gorosaurus was the first monster Nobuyuki created. He later went on to creating suits for Ultraman and Ultra Q.
 * Originally in the production King Kong Escapes, suit maker Ryosaku Takayama was assigned in making Gorosaurus, but his concept of the monster was too pure and seemed at most wouldn't best fit Toho's special effects, as implied by Nobuyuki. Nobuyuki decided to create the Gorosaurus suit in his own concept.

Poll
Do you like Gorosaurus? Yes! No. Kind of.