And lobsters, like Anguirus, are armored and posses tremendously powerful claws. We only assume it's not as much of a threat because we as humans are used to lobsters being small, but when everything is scaled up to 50 meter monsters, all bets are off. Entirely ignoring on-screen feats, a giant lobster as an opponent for Godzilla, this early in the Showa era, isn't an unusual concept.godjacob wrote: ↑Thu Jan 07, 2021 11:46 am Anguirus was an armored dinosaur, King Kong an icon of the genre and Mothra an actual goddess. There is a bit step down from them to a giant lobster.
Though I hold the view Godzilla losing to the Mothra Larva is the most embarrassing defeat he ever had. So...
Talkback Thread #7: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
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Re: Talkback Thread #7: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
eabaker wrote: You can't parse duende.
Breakdown wrote: HP Lovecraft's cat should be the ultimate villain of the MonsterVerse.
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Re: Talkback Thread #7: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
I consider Showa Kumonga to be a threat and it is from an even smaller creature. Plus we were 7 movies into the Showa era by this point, just under halfway through the Showa era so it isn't "early" by a stretch. We already had a three-headed space dragon as an antagonist for the previous two films only for the next antagonist to feel more Giant Octopus tier than something Godzilla fights as the main bad guy.Kaiju-King42 wrote: ↑Thu Jan 07, 2021 11:51 amAnd lobsters, like Anguirus, are armored and posses tremendously powerful claws. We only assume it's not as much of a threat because we as humans are used to lobsters being small, but when everything is scaled up to 50 meter monsters, all bets are off. Entirely ignoring on-screen feats, a giant lobster as an opponent for Godzilla, this early in the Showa era, isn't an unusual concept.godjacob wrote: ↑Thu Jan 07, 2021 11:46 am Anguirus was an armored dinosaur, King Kong an icon of the genre and Mothra an actual goddess. There is a bit step down from them to a giant lobster.
Though I hold the view Godzilla losing to the Mothra Larva is the most embarrassing defeat he ever had. So...
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Re: Talkback Thread #7: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
Oh, come on. You got Anguirus right, but Kong is a giant (electric) ape and Mothra is a giant moth*. You could call Ebirah a horror of the deep or something if you wanted him to sound more dramatic and worthy. Anyway, what's wrong with a lobster? They're predators, and well-armed and armored. They never stop growing, and apparently don't die of old age, so actually that makes Ebirah almost semi-believable as kaiju go. Who knows, maybe there could really be a thirty-thousand-year-old lobster crawling around out there somewhere that got freakishly big. Maybe.
*In the 1964 movie, at least. None of her 'goddess' aspects figured into her battle with Godzilla, she just used her wings, claws, and poison powder.
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Re: Talkback Thread #7: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
An electric ape who kills dinosaurs and lives in the lost world. Showa Kong least beat up a giant octopus prior to fighting Godzilla. Mothra was literally worshiped as a deity in the film even if her offense was limited to flapping wings. I'll take either of these over a sea creature battling another sea creature who shoots literal atomic death out of its mouth lol.JAGzilla wrote: ↑Thu Jan 07, 2021 12:03 pmOh, come on. You got Anguirus right, but Kong is a giant (electric) ape and Mothra is a giant moth*. You could call Ebirah a horror of the deep or something if you wanted him to sound more dramatic and worthy. Anyway, what's wrong with a lobster? They're predators, and well-armed and armored. They never stop growing, and apparently don't die of old age, so actually that makes Ebirah almost semi-believable as kaiju go. Who knows, maybe there could really be a thirty-thousand-year-old lobster crawling around out there somewhere that got freakishly big. Maybe.
*In the 1964 movie, at least. None of her 'goddess' aspects figured into her battle with Godzilla, she just used her wings, claws, and poison powder.
If a real giant lobster rises up to kill us all, maybe I'll raise Ebirah's threat level a notch higher. Maybe.
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Re: Talkback Thread #7: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
Fixed that for ya.
Also, Electric Ape would make a good band name. Or a username, at least.
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Re: Talkback Thread #7: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
Maybe a user here will adopt Electric ape XD
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Re: Talkback Thread #7: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
The main point of Ebirah is the direct threat he presents to the protagonists.
Tokyo, a smoldering memorial to the unknown, an unknown which at this very moment still prevails and could at any time lash out with its terrible destruction anywhere else in the world.
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Re: Talkback Thread #7: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
Except Ebirah wasn't much of the direct threat to the human protagonists. That was the Red Bamboo's job. Ebirah was merely the means to keep them on the island while they worked to free the slaves and sabotage their efforts.
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Re: Talkback Thread #7: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
Well, yes, the focus of the plot is the heroes trying to escape the island and stop the Red Bamboo. Ebirah fulfills a function on one side of that narrative - keeping them on the island - and Godzilla is introduced as means of helping to overcome both Ebirah and the Red Bamboo. But both Godzilla and Ebirah, while (along with Mothra) the major selling point for the audience, are ultimately secondary to the story.
Tokyo, a smoldering memorial to the unknown, an unknown which at this very moment still prevails and could at any time lash out with its terrible destruction anywhere else in the world.
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Re: Talkback Thread #7: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
Which is fine, I just feel of all the main Kaiju villains we've had in the story, Ebirah is the weakest. Doesn't create much tension as it doesn't interact with the protagonists much and as a direct opponent against Godzilla seems a bit too undermatched especially given Godzilla is more heroic. Hell I feel similar about the Red Bamboo being among the weaker human villains, being hilariously incompetent in spite of being a terrorist organization.
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Re: Talkback Thread #7: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
Part of what I like about Ebirah (the film) is that when Godzilla wakes up the bad guys are absolutely screwed. Red Bamboo spend most the movie being on top of everything. Almost killing the protagonists, smugly enslaving innocent people with complete confidence that they are untouchable. Then Godzilla wakes up and they can only delay the inevitable. And it serves as a strong reminder of what happens when Godzilla turns his wrath on humans. By this point there are other kaiju that can give him a run for his money (Mothra, Rodan) or are outright more powerful (King Ghidorah), but he's still more or less unstoppable when he decides to go after people.
And I'm not sure if I said it here or elsewhere, but I think the film has one of the best Godzilla awakens scenes in the entire franchise. It's incredibly satisfying.
And I'm not sure if I said it here or elsewhere, but I think the film has one of the best Godzilla awakens scenes in the entire franchise. It's incredibly satisfying.
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Re: Talkback Thread #7: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
And yet, despite Godzilla awakening and destroying the Red Bamboo the film still feels tense with the destruction of the Island and everyone trying to escape! Godzilla waking up isn't the end of the movie or any of the tension. It's great!Kaltes-Herzeleid wrote: ↑Thu Jan 07, 2021 2:20 pm Part of what I like about Ebirah (the film) is that when Godzilla wakes up the bad guys are absolutely screwed. Red Bamboo spend most the movie being on top of everything. Almost killing the protagonists, smugly enslaving innocent people with complete confidence that they are untouchable. Then Godzilla wakes up and they can only delay the inevitable. And it serves as a strong reminder of what happens when Godzilla turns his wrath on humans. By this point there are other kaiju that can give him a run for his money (Mothra, Rodan) or are outright more powerful (King Ghidorah), but he's still more or less unstoppable when he decides to go after people.
And I'm not sure if I said it here or elsewhere, but I think the film has one of the best Godzilla awakens scenes in the entire franchise. It's incredibly satisfying.
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Re: Talkback Thread #7: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
This movie didn't deserve to be on MST3K...
Megalon, sure, but not this one.
Megalon, sure, but not this one.
eabaker wrote: You can't parse duende.
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Re: Talkback Thread #7: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
I think not all movies that are on MST3K need to be bad...Kaiju-King42 wrote: ↑Thu Jan 07, 2021 11:14 pm This movie didn't deserve to be on MST3K...
Megalon, sure, but not this one.
That being said, the film had a lot of qualities that make it more comedic in certain contexts. Ebirah and the giant condor for example...And the original Japanese film has a lot of humor, which the dub has as well. Makes sense why it was on there.
I kinda wanna watch this now.
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Re: Talkback Thread #7: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
Yes, that awakening scene is one of my favorites, too. One thing I really liked was Godzilla's dorsal plates sparking before his eyes opened. That was a nice touch.Kaltes-Herzeleid wrote: ↑Thu Jan 07, 2021 2:20 pm Part of what I like about Ebirah (the film) is that when Godzilla wakes up the bad guys are absolutely screwed. Red Bamboo spend most the movie being on top of everything. Almost killing the protagonists, smugly enslaving innocent people with complete confidence that they are untouchable. Then Godzilla wakes up and they can only delay the inevitable. And it serves as a strong reminder of what happens when Godzilla turns his wrath on humans. By this point there are other kaiju that can give him a run for his money (Mothra, Rodan) or are outright more powerful (King Ghidorah), but he's still more or less unstoppable when he decides to go after people.
And I'm not sure if I said it here or elsewhere, but I think the film has one of the best Godzilla awakens scenes in the entire franchise. It's incredibly satisfying.
Last edited by mikelcho on Fri Jan 08, 2021 8:16 am, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Talkback Thread #7: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
There are films I consider good that have ended up on the show.Kaiju-King42 wrote: ↑Thu Jan 07, 2021 11:14 pm This movie didn't deserve to be on MST3K...
Megalon, sure, but not this one.
One of the main strengths of this movie is how the human parts are just as thrilling as the kaiju parts. Most of the movie is about them and their struggle, and then the kaiju get their moments to shine. If you were to redo certain scenes, and film a couple of new ones, you could remove the kaiju and still have a great movie. The kaiju add an increased level of danger, which is well integrated into the human events and enhances the story.
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Re: Talkback Thread #7: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
Deserved or not, thirty years ago today:
寺沢. He/him/his, etc.
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Re: Talkback Thread #7: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
Loved this film, I actually really enjoyed the human characters in this a lot.
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Re: Talkback Thread #7: Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
One of the interesting things about this movie is that it has you rooting for a criminal. He's a bank robber, but his leadership and experience prove vital to our group of heroes.
The secret of life is honesty and fair dealing. If you can fake that, you've got it made.
The strength of the vampire is that people will not believe in him.
The strength of the vampire is that people will not believe in him.