Rolisica & other fictional Toho Nations

[KaijuDuke]

You notice how Toho's created a number of fictional countries for their films over the years? Rolisica, Selgia, Saradia etc (kinda reminds ya of DC & Marvel comics in a way). What do you think of them? Would you like to see more of such places in the future? Or just stick to real countries? Personally, I think it might be fun to revisit some of these places, especially if the main antagonist of a film came from one of them.

BTW, does anyone have any images of the Rolisican flag from the original Mothra film? Need it as a reference for a commission lol

[The Question]

Rolisica was such a cop out it wasn't even funny. For a great movie such as Mothra the only really unenjoyable part of that movie was them basically doing America and calling it "Rolisica".

[Tapkaara]

I'd love to see Toho do a remake of Lawrence of Arabia and call it...wait for it...Lawrence of Saradia.

[Pkmatrix]

Eh, I always prefer movies/books to use real countries instead of making up fictional ones. Otherwise you end up with the fridge logic problem of "Wait, where IS it?"

[Rody]

I certainly don't mind the fictional countries. I suspect Toho used them to avoid offending real nations, even if the fictional ones might be closely based on reality.

[KaijuDuke]

I certainly don't mind the fictional countries. I suspect Toho used them to avoid offending real nations, even if the fictional ones might be closely based on reality.

Yeah, that's what I always figured as well, if you want a villainous government involved in a storyline best to make up one rather than risk offending a real life place. I mean, its one thing to make up a rogue group like the Bio Major corporation from Godzilla Vs Biollante in comparison to having actual govt agents stirring up trouble in foreign countries.

[Missingno.]

I like having those fictional countries/places/organizations in the films because it makes it much more fun to watch to see this fictional country's attitude to other nations and it's weapons like the Atomic Heat Ray Gun or Red Bamboo Fighter Jets.

[The Robber]

Rolisica was such a cop out it wasn't even funny. For a great movie such as Mothra the only really unenjoyable part of that movie was them basically doing America and calling it "Rolisica".

It was an amalgam of America and Russia from what I understand.

Didn't the Rolisican flag have an Islamic crescent on it as well? It seems like they were going for a mishmash of different countries, not just doing America and calling it something else. Arguably still a cop out, since Nelson is such a clear emissary of Western capitalism.

[HannibalBarca]

I certainly don't mind the fictional countries. I suspect Toho used them to avoid offending real nations, even if the fictional ones might be closely based on reality.

Saudi Arabia was originally gonna be where Agent SSS-9 came from in Godzilla vs Biollante but then the Gulf War happened and they changed it to Saradia.

The Gulf War happened in 1990-1...GvB was out in 89. Do you mean the Iran-Iraq War?

[three]

^ you are not...the posterchild for the success of american education. or maybe you are, because there's no way they'd teach the children here about how we totally goofed that up, too.


i love these fictional places. it gives you something else about the world of Godzilla to explore and immerse in. that is something the franchise has always had, and it continues to be a strong point. the details of such places can be poured over, the comparisons abound, all the while clever allusions to real place exist that only a perceptive viewer can truly appreciate...you almost feel like you're reading a very layered novel as opposed to watching a movie about giant monsters and how people react. it's beautiful.

[three]

^ you are not...the posterchild for the success of american education. or maybe you are, because there's no way they'd teach the children here about how we totally goofed that up, too.

I got two wars that were close together mixed up, so what?

Doesn't make me wrong about the name change, Toho did chnage the name to a fictional country because tensions were rising at the time the film was being made so they decided to try and not offend anyone.

they should really ban the whole "hide your online status" thing. this bugs me. (sorry bling, i had to do that).

it's fine. i'm playing with you is all. more importantly i understood your point. i don't necessarily agree with why they did it, but i do find where it ended up appealing and more malleable for the viewer to interpret.