PODZILLA 2000

Hey, you know what's almost as scary as nuclear power? Genetic engineering! That's right, the Godzilla franchise moves onto another hot-button bit of science-fear that could only come from the late eighties! Some classic mad science is afoot, and G-Force partners Science Man and Japanese Peter Falk are on the case! But will they be able to defeat the machinations of Saradian Shia Lebeouf? And what about all these psychic children??? Moose tries to keep track of the plot devices, Quark recalls her love of Galaxy Quest, and everybody jams out to dope beats from Dragon Quest composer, Koichi Sugiyama. The Heisei era rolls on, and it's only getting sillier!Movies discussed:GODZILLA VS BIOLLANTE (1989)Written and directed by Kazuki OmoriProduced by Shogo Tomiyama and Tomoyuki TanakaStory by Shinichiro KobayashiStarring Kunihiko Mitamura, Yoshiko Tanaka, Masanobu Takashima, Megumi Odaka, Toru Minegishi, Yasuko Sawaguchi, Toshiyuki Nagashima, Yoshiko Kuga, Ryunosuke Kaneda, and Koji TakahashiMusic by Koichi SugiyamaCinematography by Yudai KatoEdited by Michiko Ikeda

What's that sound? It can't be... but it is! Yes, Godzilla is back, and someone must have soaked him in vinegar and maple syrup for a couple days because he is BIGGER THAN BEFORE here in the Heisei era! Your hosts dig into the first Godzilla movie released in major US theaters since '54, and despite some pretty wild differences, it's a heck of a flick! Moose gives a brief synopsis of the revamped Halloween film series continuity, Quark reveals she's never seen Ducktales, and we all thank Raymond Burr for taking a very important stand. Not even a locked metal shutter can stop this train, folks!(Thanks to 2 Mello for the use of his track for our new intro/outro! You can find him on Twitter @mellomakes, Bandcamp at 2mellomakes, and Soundcloud and Youtube as 2Mello!)Movies discussed:THE RETURN OF GODZILLA (1984)Directed by Koji HashimotoProduced by Tomoyuki TanakaScreenplay by Shuichi NagaharaStory by Tomoyuki TanakaStarring Ken Tanaka, Yasuko Sawaguchi, Yosuke Natsuki, Keiju Kobayashi, and Kenpachiro SatsumaMusic by Reijiro KorokuCinematography by Katsumi HaraEdited by Yoshitami KuroiwaGODZILLA 1985 (1985)New footage credits:Directed by R. J. KizerProduced by Tomoyuki Tanaka and Tony RandelWritten by Lisa Tomei. Uncredited: Tony Randel and Straw Weisman.Starring Raymond Burr, Warren J. Kemmerling, James Hess, Travis Swords, and Crawford BinionMusic by Christopher YoungCinematography by Steven DubinEdited by Michael Spence

Your lovable cohosts are between eras, and so return with the first installment of their side-gig: Shin Podzilla! Your source for Godzilla-adjacent materials and other kaiju ephemera! And where better to start than one of the more famous off-brand (and off-model) bits of Godzilla canon, the pretty awful Hanna-Barbera cartoon! Moose and Quark cover a pair of episodes, including "The Breeder Beast" and -- okay no forget that, you wanna talk about Superman movies for half an hour? Because that's what we're doing. Can you believe how no one has gotten that character right on film in over forty years?? What's that about?? Oh, and I guess we talk about this lousy cartoon, too. Listen, neither of us are Hanna-Barbera scholars, so if you're a big Scooby-Doo or Yogi Bear fan, we apologize. Hopefully you can agree this is a lesser entry in the canon.Discussed in this episode:GODZILLA (1978)Developed by Dick Robbins and Duane PooleDirected by Ray Patterson and Carl UrbanoMusic composed by Hoyt CurtinSUPERMAN RETURNS (2006)Directed by (ugh) Bryan SingerStarring Brandon Routh, Kate Bosworth, and (double ugh) Kevin SpaceyMAN OF STEEL (2013)Directed by Zak SnyderWritten by David S. GoyerStarring Henry Cavill, Michael Shannon, Kevin Costner, Diane Lane, Amy Adams, and Laurence Fishburne

It's been a long time, gentle listeners, but make no mistake: Moose and Quark are back in the kaiju-sized saddle again with their longest episode yet! In this feature-length Showa sendoff, your lovable hosts cover the Mechagodzilla duology as it swings from one tonal extreme to the other -- from summoning giant lion-dogs by singing their own theme music, to doomed lovers commiting ray-gun-based suicide to save the world, this final set of films from the 70's is a real journey. Moose digs on some bombastic tunes and even more bombastic pyrotechnics, Quark wonders at the magnetic properties of space titanium (completely different from regular titanium!) and our hosts summarize their feelings on the Showa era of Godzilla films and their artistic, cultural, and historic value. Right after ranking which of the many alien races is the coolest, of course. Are you ready to mumble? 'Cause we sure are!Movies discussed:GODZILLA VS MECHAGODZILLA (1974)Directed by Jun FukudaScreenplay by Hiroyasu Yamamura and Jun FukudaStory by Shinichi Sekizawa and Masami FukushimaStarring Masaaki Daimon, Kazuya Aoyama, Akihiko Hirata, and Hiroshi KoizumiMusic by Masaru SatoCinematography by Yuzuru AizawaEdited by Michiko IkedaTERROR OF MECHAGODZILLA (1975)Directed by Ishiro HondaProduced by Tomoyuki Tanaka and Henry G. SapersteinWritten by Yukiko TakayamaStarring Katsuhiko Sasaki, Tomoko Ai, Akihiko Hirata, Katsumasa Uchida, Goro Mutsumi, Tadao Nakamaru, and Toru KawaiMusic by Akira IfukubeCinematography by Sokei TomiokaEdited by Yoshitami Kuroiwa

This week, your hosts only cover one movie, but oh, what a movie it is! We introduce the best, strongest, and most amazing character in the entire Godzilla franchise that isn't named Godzilla! That's right, y'all -- it's Jet Jaguar's time to shine! Moose color commentates a kaiju big battle, Quark learns the sordid history of the Jet Jaguar design contest, and we all enjoy the relationship of our two gay dads, Goro the Science Guy and Rex Dart, Eskimo Spy. Rev up your Baby Riders, folks, because Robert Dunham and the Seatopians are out to getcha!Movies discussed:GODZILLA VS MEGALON (1973)Directed by Jun FukudaProduced by Tomoyuki TanakaScreenplay by Jun FukudaStory by Shinichi SekizawaMusic by Riichiro ManabeCinematography by Yuzuru AizawaStarring Katsuhiko Sasaki, Hiroyuki Kawase, Yutaka Hayashi, Shinji Takagi, Tsugutoshi Komada, Hideto Date, Kenpachiro Satsuma, and Robert Dunham

It's time for us to save the Earth this week on PODZILLA 2000 as your plucky hosts dig into some very silly entries in the Godzilla canon! A giant biomechanical monster shows up to smash Children's Land on behalf of giant cockroaches, and somehow that's not the weirdest movie we watched this week! Quark meets her new favorite character in Corncob Hippie, Moose has childhod nostalgia flashbacks, and both our hosts experience the most bonkers Godzilla scene yet! Remember kids: give a hoot! Don't pollute!Movies discussed:GODZILLA VS HEDORAH aka GODZILLA VS THE SMOG MONSTER (1971)Directed by Yoshimitsu BannoProduced by Tomoyuki TanakaWritten by Yoshimitsu Banno and Takeshi KimuraMusic by Riichiro ManabeCinematography by Yoichi ManodaEdited by Yoshitami KuroiwaStarring Akira Yamauchi, Toshie Kimura, Hiroyuki Kawase, Keiko Mari, and Toshio ShibaGODZILLA VS GIGAN (1972)Directed by Jun FukudaProduced by Tomoyuki TanakaWritten by Takeshi Kimura and Shinichi SekizawaMusic by Akira Ifukube and Kunio MiyauchiCinematography by Kiyoshi HasegawaStarring Hiroshi Ishikawa, Tomoko Umeda, Yuriko Hishimi, Minoru Takashima, Zan Fujita, Toshiaki Nishizawa, and Kunio Murai

Our hosts return from a long absence for an episode jam-packed with three movies! Or, well, two and a half. Listen, sometimes you have to know when to tap out, okay? From a giant lobster impaling a pair of humans with its giant claws to the far more terrifying visage of Godzilla's misshapen progeny, ending with the catharsis of a big ol' Avengers-style throwdown at the foot of Mt. Fuji, this episode is a genuine emotional roller coaster! Truly, the Godzilla series of films touches upon every genre of film—including "bad."Movies discussed:EBIRAH, HORROR OF THE DEEP (1966)Directed by Jun FukudaProduced by Tomoyuki TanakaScreenplay by Shinichi Sekizawa?Music by Masaru SatoCinematography Kazuo YamadaStarring Akira Takarada, Kumi Mizuno, Chotaro Togin, and Hideo SunazukaSON OF GODZILLA (1967)Directed by Jun FukudaProduced by Tomoyuki TanakaScreenplay by Shinichi Sekizawa and Kazue ShibaMusic by Masaru SatoCinematography Kazuo YamadaStarring Akira Kubo, Tadao Takashima, Bibari Maeda, and Akihiko HirataDESTROY ALL MONSTERS! (1968)Directed by Ishiro HondaProduced by Tomoyuki TanakaScreenplay by Takeshi Kimura and Ishiro HondaMusic by Akira IfukubeCinematography by Taiichi KankuraStarring Akira Kubo, Jun Tazaki, and Yoshio Tsuchiya

In this episode your beloved hosts only cover a single movie, but what a movie it is! Invasion of Astro-Monster has it all -- doomed love, goofy-looking aliens, a toymaking poindexter, a bunch of big monster fights, Rodan, and two daring heroes named Glenn and Fuj! Moose falls in love with production design, Quark feels bad for a pair of giant monsters, and our heroes don't hate the token American for once. Now join us as we journey into another dimension, or the future, or blow ourselves up, or whatever!Movies discussed:INVASION OF ASTRO-MONSTERDirected by Ishiro HondaProduced by Tomoyuki TanakaScreenplay by Shinichi SekizawaMusic by Akira IfukubeCinematography by Hajime KoizumiStarring Akira Takarada, Nick Adams, Kumi Mizuno, and Akira Kubo

Big G is back, but that doesn't mean he gets top billing! It's a big ol' monster bash-em-up in this episode as Godzilla, Mothra, Rodan, and King Ghidorah all smash into each other, while the humans deal with giant eggs, nasty businessmen, tiny faeries, assassination plots, and Venusian princesses. Buckle up, folks, because this is where things get wild! Our hosts discuss the relative size of eggs, Moose revels in the Crossfire-style debate between Godzilla and Rodan, and Quark laments how unfair that one fisherman gets treated. (He didn't even get to keep the bracelet! What's up with that?!)Movies discussed:MOTHRA vs GODZILLA (1964)Directed by Ishiro HondaScreenplay by Shinichi SekizawaStarring Akira Takarada, Yuriko Hoshi, The Peanuts, and Hiroshi KoizumiMusic by Akira IfukubeCinematography by Hajime KoizumiGHIDORAH, THE THREE HEADED MONSTER (1964)Directed by Ishiro HondaScreenplay by Shinichi SekizawaStarring Yosuke Natsuki, Hiroshi Koizumi, Yuriko Hoshi, and Akiko WakabayashiMusic by Akira IfukubeCinematography by Hajime Koizumi

We here at Podzilla 2000 Inc. would like to apologize on behalf of the nations of Japan and the United States for this episode. Prepare for bizarre carnie sideshows, incoherent editing, hilarious scene transitions, and a whole lot of talk about narcotic persimmons. Oh, and racism. So, so much racism. But hey, Godzilla is back! That's... that's something!Movies discussed:MOTHRA (1961)Directed by Ishiro HondaScreenplay by Shinichi SekizawaCinematography by Hajime KoizumiBased on a story in Asahi Shimbun by Shin'ichiro Nakamura, Takehiko Fukunaga, and Yoshie HottaStarring Frankie Sakai, Hiroshi Koizumi, Ky?ko Kagawa, and The PeanutsKING KONG vs GODZILLA (1962)Directed by Ishir? HondaWritten by Shinichi SekizawaMusic by Akira IfukubeCinematography by Hajime KoizumiStarring Tadao Takashima, Kenji Sahara, Y? Fujiki, Ichir? Arishima, Mie Hama, Shoichi Hirose, and Haruo Nakajima

In this episode, Moose and Quark spend seventy eight interminable minutes with Motoyoshi Oda's chintzy low-quality sequel, and then meet Quark's new favorite kaiju! They also discover that prisoners don't count as people, discuss how Hidemi deserved a better movie (and how Kiyo deserved a nicer one) and learn that surprise giant bugs are the best giant bugs. ALL HAIL GIGANTIS THE FIRE MONSTER.Movies discussed:GODZILLA RAIDS AGAIN (1955)Directed by Motoyoshi OdaWritten by Takeo Murata and Shigeaki HidakaStory by Shigeru KayamaCinematography by Seiichi EndoStarring Hiroshi Koizumi, Setsuko Wakayama, Minoru Chiaki, and Takashi ShimuraRODAN! (1956)Directed by Ishiro HondaWritten by Ken Kuronuma (original story) Takeshi Kimura and Takeo MurataCinematography by Isamu AshidaMusic by Akira IfukubeStarring Kenji Sahara and Yumi Shirakawa

In this inaugural episode, Moose and Quark introduce themselves, dig deep into historical context, take note of subtleties in character and framing, marvel at a pull-no-punches narrative, and just generally gush about a great movie. Then they watch fifteen minutes of Raymond Burr and call it a day!Films covered:GOJIRA (1954)Directed by Ishiro HondaScreenplay by Takeo Murata and Ishiro HondaStory by Shigeru KayamaMusic by Akira IfukubeCinematography by Masao TamaiEdited by Kazuji TairaStarring Akira Takarada, Momoko Kochi, Akihiko Hirata, and Takashi ShimuraGODZILLA, KING OF THE MONSTERS! (1955)American scenes directed and edited by Terry MorseAmerican scenes written by Al C. WardStarring Raymond Burr