Article: 7
Date: 5/18/08
Year: 1989

Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989)  Company: HBO Video (1992)  Country: United States  Category: Slip Cover This VHS box cover features one of the most spectacular pieces of poster art from the franchise. A menacing Godzilla stands alone before a vicious Biollante rose (who looks soooo much cooler than the movie prop) while four other roses rise up in the background. The back cover simply showcases a small picture of Godzilla during his Osaka rampage. The synopsis gets the general jist of the action part of the movie, but fails to mention anything about Biomajor, Saradia, or any of the politcal/ethical dilemmas presented in the film. In addition, it's wording makes Biollante seem like a heroine rather than the anti-hero that actually she is.

Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989)  Company: Manga Home Video (1998)  Country: Spain  Category: Clam Shell Following the procedure used in The Return of Godzilla (1984), Manga Home Video's cover for Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989) uses one of the film's posters for the front, with Godzilla facing the rose-form Biollante. The image is expanded to fit the back cover perfectly. As you might imagine, there are some stills from the film that highlight the most important scenes. The synopsis on the back, while elaborate, has one noticeable inaccuracy; but it's only a minor flaw. Mount Mihara is referred to as "a volcano in Tokyo Bay". Though Oshima Island is within one hundred kilometers of Tokyo, it is technically not within in the bay proper. Also, the description of Japanese scientists creating "super plants" is somewhat of a hyperbole, considering the idea of making them desert dwelling may be a bit below the necessary descriptive parameters of the adjective, "super". Much like similar Spanish releases, we get the uncut widescreen version of the film (with rather bad dubbing).

Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989)  Company: Videomax (1998)  Country: Mexico  Category: Clam Shell Exploding with pastel shades of ceruleans and vermilions, Godzilla emerges as a shadowy monolith on the front cover of this 1998 Videomax release of Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989) (here labeled by its alternate title: Godzilla 2). The back, meanwhile, is a humdrum collage of low light shots with an all-caps synopsis near the top. Though the summary is vague in nature, it features a rather curious line that can be roughly translated as: "In order to halt the creature, scientists would elect to use everything from deadly nuclear weapons to a massive beast that has been created especially for Godzilla's destruction." First of all, nuclear weapons were not really of prominent consideration by the characters of this film as a means to rid the world of the nuclear saurian. Second, Biollante was not created for the sole purpose of Godzilla's destruction. Needless to say, the case has its flaws, but the front and side are certainly colorful eye candy.

Kiss to Moonlight (1989)  Company: Toho Video (Unlisted) [Rental]  Country: Japan  Category: Slip Cover This is the cover to the rental only version of the 1989 movie Kiss to Moonlight. Released by Toho Video, the box features production stills from the movie, including the same one in the background of both the front and back with different color tints applied. Regrettably, the case lists no date for this specific release, just the year of the movie on the back while the running time is slotted on the spine.

Gunhed (1989)  Company: A.D.V. Films (1996)  Country: United States  Category: Slip Cover One of A.D.V.'s early forays outside of Anime, this release was the first commercial one for the 1989 movie Gunhed in the United States. The cover design for this VHS box is fairly attractive and well constructed overall. The front in particular is a great meshing of several different photos, including a shot of the full size Gunhed prop, and has been adapted from one of the Japanese posters for the movie. The back features a lot of smaller stills from the feature while the whole design is nicely complimented with a futuristic overtone. The descriptions of the movie are also well done, while the back also has a rather generous listing of credits related to the production.