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17 hours ago · Among the many kaiju to have emerged amid the success of the Godzilla franchise, Gamera has become an icon in his own right and is frequently referenced and parodied in popular culture. Gamera and many kaiju in the Gamera franchise have appeared in a variety of mediums ranging from cartoons, films, literature, television series, comics and video games. The following is a list of such ...
- Japanese Spider Crab
- Blue Whale
- Frilled Shark
- Sika Deer
- Amami Rabbit
- Okinawa Habu
- Ryukyu Flying Fox
- Ussuri Brown Bear
- Japanese Giant Salamander
- Japanese Giant Hornet
Kaijū Equivalent: Ebirah
Japanese spider crabs have the longest leg-span of any living arthropod (the phyla that contains crustaceans, insects, and arachnids) with some specimens reaching up to 3.8 meters. That’s twelve feet of either terrifying spider legs or good eating depending on your level of arachnophobia. They are most common on the southern coasts of Honshū at shallows of 160 feet all the way down to 2,000 feet or more, usually preferring trenches and dark crevices. They typically scavenge the ocean floors f...
Kaijū Equivalent: Godzilla
This one’s a bit of a cop-out, but I would be remiss not to include the largest living animal in the world and the heaviest creature to have ever existed in a list of giant monsters. This monstrous creature has a large range of habitats with subspecies existing in all major oceans. In Japan, these gigantic creatures have inspired awe for a long time—not only are they half of Godzilla but they are the inspiration for many bakekujira(monster whale) myths. In waters near Japan, whaling has decre...
Kaijū Equivalent: Zigra
After this we’re done with the deep sea kaijū and we’re setting foot on the dry land. Considering that a common thread of kaijū movies is mutation from prehistoric creatures, I figured a species that can be considered a living fossil would be fair game. The first one to be videotaped alive in approximately all of human historymade quite a splash in 2007, no pun intended, when it was captured off the coast of Japan. He was pretty sickly looking, which makes sense as he was so far from home. Th...
Kaiju Equivalent: Cowra
Kaijū just means “strange beast”, it doesn’t mean “giant beast”. When it comes to strangeness and quirkiness, these deer can definitely be considered kaijū in their own right. Take into account, for example, that these are some quintessentially Japanese deer. Their English common name comes from the Japanese shika 鹿（しか） meaning deer. They’re so Japanese that, in Japan, they are called simply nihonjika 日本鹿（にほんじか）. They used to be common all over Eurasia from Russia to China and back again but,...
Kaijū Equivalent: Hanejiro
This is another kaijū that might take some convincing to be seen as such, but there is something truly remarkable about this living fossil. It is now only found in two small islands, Amami Ooshima and Toku-no-Shima in Kagoshima Prefecture. This rabbit contains many characteristics from Miocene-era fossils of rabbits and hares such as small eyes and a long snout. The Amami rabbit’s appearance is so primitive and distinct from modern day rabbits that, if you happened to see one hopping about, y...
Kaiju Equivalent: Dai Umi Hebi
Habu is a common name given to venomous snakes in Japan, particularly pit vipers. The Okinawan Habu is the largest snake species in Japan and tied with the mamushi for the most venomous. Ranging from 4 to 8 feet long, this snake is several times larger than the Japanese rat snake, which is the largest Japanese snake outside of Okinawa. On islands where these vipers are plentiful, they are commonly collected for making awamori (a traditional Okinawan alcohol similar to sake). The resulting hab...
Kaijū Equivalent: Kyuranos
Whenever the term flying fox gets thrown around, I get excited. Some flying foxes can be as large as medium-sized dogs, so the term flying fox is very apt. If a dog-beast flying on leathery wings isn’t kaijū enough for you I don’t know what is. Unlike Kyuranos, however, the only flesh these guys want to sink their teeth into is that of a pear, or perhaps the occasional insect. Flying foxes are large fruitbats that are considered to be megabats. They are important pollinators in the wilds of R...
Kaijū Equivalent: King Caesar
The story of the Ussuri brown bear in Japan is probably the closest thing to a giant monster movie that one will encounter in real life. And why not? This ancestor of the grizzly bear can weigh up to 1,400 pounds and is the largest land animal that inhabits Japan. It is currently considered endangered due to loss of habitat, but it was once the terror of Hokkaido. The indigenous Ainu people of Japan worshipped the Ussuri bear because of its strength and vigor. In a festival called Iomantea ne...
Kaijū Equivalent: Japanese Giant Salamander
The Japanese giant salamander is one of the true natural wonders of Japan’s rivers and streams. These suckers can grow to sizes of around 5 feet in length and weigh up to 60 pounds. In fact they are the second largest amphibian in the world, the only thing bigger than these guys is their Chinese subspecies. They are so large that they were once fished as a food source by the local people. Now they are protected by law, but it’s bizarre to think of using a salamander as a primary food source w...
Kaijū Equivalent: Battra
Finally, the most monstrous beast in all of Japan is the Japanese giant hornet. You might be wondering, why out of all the crazy animals we’ve seen on this list, the number one kaijū is only two inches long. Because it is two inches long!Sporting a two and a half inch wing-span and quarter-inch (or longer) stinger, Japanese giant hornets are a nightmare. While the venom they inject isn’t the most deadly of hornet venoms, it is quite a lot considering their size. Yes, the Japanese giant hornet...
- Rudy Barrett
- Writer
- hello@tofugu.com
- 7 min
Sinemys Gamera, an extinct turtle with weird wing like structures on its shell (not for actual flight, likely for defense or display.) There's a real Titanosaurus, but he was named long before the Toho version. 40 votes, 11 comments. 254K subscribers in the GODZILLA community. Welcome to /r/GODZILLA, a place to admire the King of the Monsters ...
Oct 7, 2024 · BabyGodzilla (ベビーゴジラ, Bebīgojira) is a young Godzillasaurus kaiju who first appeared in the 1993 Godzilla film Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II.The character returned as LittleGodzilla (リトルゴジラ, Ritorugojira) in the 1994 film Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla, and again as Godzilla Junior (ゴジラジュニア, Gojira Junia) in the 1995 film Godzilla vs. Destoroyah.
Oct 30, 2019 · MOTHRA. The flying savior of Japan, Mothra is one of the most recognizable of all kaiju, in terms of real-world equivalents. Godzilla's name (Gojira) was derived in part from the word "kujira," meaning whale, a reference to his size. Mothra's name is derived from adding the same suffix, "-ra," to moth. In short, she's a gigantic moth. Mothra.
- Cassidy Ward
Prehistoric monster [ 28 ] Family. Minilla and Godzilla Junior (adopted sons) Godzilla (Japanese: ゴジラ, Hepburn: Gojira, / ɡɒdˈzɪlə /; [ɡoꜜ (d)ʑiɾa] ⓘ) is a fictional monster, or kaiju, that debuted in the eponymous 1954 film, directed and co-written by Ishirō Honda. [ 2 ]
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Oct 8, 2021 · The Complete History of Kaiju. Movies like King Kong, The Lost World, and The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms left a massive impact on the film industry. Their massive monsters were larger than life on the big screen. But Japan broke the mold in the 1950s with the creation of kaiju — much bigger, more colorful, and more exciting monsters.
