Monster Discussion #8: Meganulon (Showa)

[JVM]

So I figured I'd finally continue after a brief break from the boards outside the Toys section.

I couldn't find a pic, so here's the one on the main site linked

I completely skipped the little Meganulon, sadly.

Mothra's thread was put up by Mike, so you can go see it there. I'll count it as #9, and resume with #10, Maguma tonight, to make up for taking so long.

[HayesAJones]

They played their role well in Rodan. Monsters who feed the greater monster.

[Toxic Toast]

Like a Horta, only meaner.

[edgaguirus]

They created a good start for Rodan. They could easily have starred in a horror film of their own. The slashing of miners and strange warble as the miner tries to call for help were masterful in creating tension and fear. The big reveal works well, too.

[Guardian7]

NSZ said: Terrifying, nightmarish brutes. God, if THEM! was any indicator, these guys could have had their own movie.

The Meganulon made Rodan one of the few films where they were a distraction to the real monster, running their little horror-fest side show!
As NSZ said... terrifying, nightmarish brutes is an apt description of them.
The Horror movie element these creatures brought to Rodan and the confusion and destruction they caused on humans was incredibly well done.

Yes there were certain scenes with them in it that weren't all that well done. But those are pretty moot to the fantastic use of its shadowed stalking and terrorizing of the Mining community.
Certainly one of the most under appreciated Monsters.

I too think the Meganulon could have held their own film. Though it would be a tough pull for them to match "THEM!" which is probably one of the best done 50's horror/mutant Monster flicks EVER!!!!!
But I am sure a well done film could have given "THEM!" a run for their money!

Cya
G7

[Mulder]

They could've really have made a movie about them and just them.

[KaijuSapian]

Those beasts are indestructible! Only thing that can kill them are mine carts and Rodans!

[Guardian7]

It is not.
How can you even say that it is boring?
It was a pretty scary sub-monster for the time and did an excellent job of distracting from the coming threat.
Sure some of the scenes of it didn't look great... but there were others (such as when it it moving away in mining village in the Japanese version) where it looked amazing.
If your not going to explain why it is boring... why post?

G7

[Mulder]

It is not.
How can you even say that it is boring?
It was a pretty scary sub-monster for the time and did an excellent job of distracting from the coming threat.
Sure some of the scenes of it didn't look great... but there were others (such as when it it moving away in mining village in the Japanese version) where it looked amazing.
If your not going to explain why it is boring... why post?

G7

Was just about to say that.

[Chimpbot]

A terribly boring lot of monsters.

Considering Rodan was released in '56, these guys were about as technologically advanced as you could hope to get; of course the execution is lacking by today's standards.

Honestly, the only thing that really annoys me about them is the damn noise they make. It's high-pitched, it never ends and I really just want to punch out my eardrums with a screwdriver halfway through their scenes.
Whoever thought that sound was a good idea was wrong. Very, very wrong.

[Showa Gyaos]

I loved them, though they really should have gotten their own movie. But, needless to say, I'm still happy.

[pta917]

How strong is Meganolun's armor???

[Rody]

It's Meganulon, FYI.

obviously, it's very strong. A Meganulon was capable of withstanding heavy machine gun fire, as well as the full force of a loaded coal rack.

[pta917]

Watch the movie and find out:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jvsjr0O53l0

Thanks

[Rody]

Are you sure you wanted to post that here? Apparently Toho does watch this site.

[Arbok]

Scariest Toho monster ever.

Yeah, they freaked me at as a kid as well... not Hedorah level freak out, but are one of the scarier monsters Toho has created. The film does a really good job of building the mystery of the monsters and their attacks, and quite frankly the scene where the people are dragged underwater and killed, forcing the remaining miner to cut the rope and run, is pretty damn terrifying in terms of concept.

The Millennium versions did a decent job of still showing them as menacing, but the mystery was lacking that made the build up to their reveal in the original Rodan so memorable.

[eabaker]

Yeah, it's definitely a mixture of the mystery, the claustrophobia of the mines, and those creepy noises that make the maganulon so tremendously creepy, for me.

[JAGzilla]

Much as I love the '56 Rodan's design, I actually like the Meganulons' part of the movie better. Rodan works better as a co-star alongside other kaiju, while these things could easily have carried the whole movie themselves. They were very unnerving, and the movie did an excellent job of selling them as a terrifying threat for the miners and village. The execution of the props might've been better, but the atmosphere and everything works so well that you don't even care. It's sad how overlooked and easily-forgotten these guys are.

[Arbok]

It's sad how overlooked and easily-forgotten these guys are.

I don't know if I would say overlooked. They might not have a lot of merchandise, but clearly someone at Toho loved them enough to base a headlining Godzilla villain around them in 2000.

[edgaguirus]

Judging from responses here, they're not overlooked by fans. They're not city destroying giants, which may be why Toho has only used them twice, but they are effective creature on their own.