Moguera モゲラ [Heisei]

The Mobile Operation Godzilla Universal Expert Robot Aero-Type, or MOGUERA, was built around 1994. It was developed for G-Force under the supervision of Professor Alexander Mammilov of the United Nations Godzilla Countermeasures Center (UNGCC).

Moguera was constructed in order to replace the wrecked Mechagodzilla as the new anti-Godzilla mech. Due to being built in response to Mechagodzilla, several of it's weapons were benched against it for performance. In fact, some of it's weapons were several times more powerful than it's predecessor, such as it's laser cannons located in the "eyes". For armor, the machine was coated in a synthetic blue diamond layer. While this didn't allow the mech to charge a weapon, in the way that Mechagodzilla could charge it's Plasma Grenade with it's diamond coating, it did grant Moguera minor reflective properties to help protect it from Godzilla's atomic heat ray.

Finally, Moguera was also an amalgam of the aerial attack plane Star Falcon, and the burrowing ground-based weapon Land Moguera. The machine was able to split into the various crafts, or join to form Moguera, depending on battle circumstances. To power the great machine, two laser fusion reactors were utilized. One reactor was contained in the upper part of the body, while the second was located in the lower half. This allowed the mech to split into the two crafts and have each take a reactor for it's own power source.

Soon after it's creation and docking system checks, the NASA Interplanetary Research Vessel disappeared during a routine collection of samples. Shortly thereafter, the G-Force Countermeasures Division discovered an unidentified object on their space radar. Though Moguera was built to contend with Godzilla, the United Nations asked that the machine be deployed to fight off this new anomaly. Despite minor opposition that the mech be reserved to tackle Godzilla, Moguera rocketed off into space to intercept the UFO.

Using it's tremendous speed, the machine quickly advanced on it's target before unidentified object could reach Earth. Flying through the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, Moguera suddenly came face-to-face with the mysterious space creature. Just being in proximity to it, the instruments onboard the giant craft begin to suffer from interference. In retaliation, the giant mech quickly fired it Plasma Laser Cannons at the space monster, scoring several direct hits. The beams did little to slow the mysterious creature's advance, though, as it did a running pass against Moguera. The assault damaged the fuselage of the craft, yet the crew turned the ship around to make another attack run.

Before Moguera could use it's weapons further, the enemy countered with a corona beam and electromagnetic energy rings. The attack knocked out the Plasma Laser Cannon, and furthered degraded the mech's internal systems. The three crew members aboard struggled to turn the mech around, combating barely responsive controls. With the Plasma Laser Cannon out, the crew resorted to using the auto-tracking laser cannons. Lifting it's arms, Moguera tracked onto the space creature, lacing the beast with laser beams. Angering the monster, the space creature let loose with another electromagnetic energy ring. The attack disabled the last of the mech's weapon systems, while Moguera's controls went haywire. The crystal formed monster then landed the killing blow, slamming into the machine with it's gigantic crystal body. The strike severed one of Moguera's legs, and the craft was sent spinning out of control. With the machine downed, it's alien opponent continued, victoriously, toward Earth.

• The Heisei series version of Moguera was designed by Minoru Yoshida.
• This version of the mech was widely known as MOGERA, as seen in English during the film. This was an abbreviation standing for: Mobile Operation Godzilla Expert Robot Aero-Type. Toho later decided they wanted the mech to match the English name for the machine that debuted in The Mysterians (1957). Consequently, Toho retroactively added "Universal" to the abbreviation so it spells Moguera, yet it still appears without the U during the movie.
• In the film, Moguera is abbreviated further as MGR on radar read outs and the outfits that the pilots wear.
  
  

With Moguera damaged, the UNGCC (United Nations Godzilla Countermeasures Center) began to focus on a remodeled version to combat the new space monster. Although identical in most respects, the repaired machine was equipped with a jamming system named MECM. This interferes with electromagnetic waves, a direct response to what allowed the space monster to easily defeat Moguera the first time. With this improvement, the craft was christened with a new name as Mogeura II - SRF.

It didn't take long at all for the space monster, now called SpaceGodzilla, to appear on Earth. Akira Yuki now piloted the craft, and as he led Moguera to SpaceGodzilla, Godzilla suddenly appeared in Kagoshima. Yuki had long had a vendetta against Godzilla, since his friend had been killed by the monster in 1990. Defying orders, he turned the craft around to confront the nuclear menace, but his crew mates Koji Shinjo and Kiyoshi Sato put a stop to it. They knocked Yuki out and turned the craft back around so they could face SpaceGodzilla, the more imminent threat.

Moguera approached SpaceGodzilla's crystal fortress in Fukuoka, and shot it's Spiral Grenade Missiles. The explosives scored a direct hit, as the giant machine followed up with it's Plasma Maser Cannon. Utilizing the treads on it's feet, Moguera moved in for close range combat. Using it's Crusher Drill, the mecha ran it's spinning drill nose into the monster's shoulder. However, the robot was quickly knocked back by SpaceGodzilla's Corona Beam. Moguera began to roll backwards, firing its chest beam all the while. SpaceGodzilla gathered more energy and fired its Corona Beam again, knocking Moguera over. The force of the fall knocked out both pilots Koji Shinjo and Kiyoshi Sato.

In a state of defenselessness, Yuki awoke to see SpaceGodzilla slowly advancing on the fallen Moguera. Immediately, Yuki shouted at his copilots to wake up and resumed command of the vessel. The crew were forced to use the main thrusters to make a hasty retreat, narrowly avoiding another blast of the Corona Beam. SpaceGodzilla surveyed the situation, just as Godzilla arrived and entered the battle.

With SpaceGodzilla busy fighting the King of the Monsters, the crew observed SpaceGodzilla seeming to protect Fukuoka Tower from Godzilla's attacks. They theorized that the tall structure was being used alongside the crystal field as a power source. Moguera proceeded to separate into Star Falcon and Land Moguera, in order to execute a new plan of attack.

After the two separate machines led an offensive against SpaceGodzilla's power supply, aiding Godzilla in destroying Fukuoka Tower, they combined once more to form Moguera. The mech reentered the fray and fired all of its weapons on the space monster. It used its Spiral Grenade Missiles to destroy SpaceGodzilla's shoulder crystals, but in the process lost it's left hand to the Corona Beam.

Filled with rage, SpaceGodzilla used it's tail as a spear. It lodged it directly into the mech's Plasma Maser Cannon, a weak point in the armor. The crystal fused monster then quickly twisted it's body, using the force to whip Moguera forward as his tail dislodged, sending the giant machine flying through the air and into a building. Moguera was almost wrecked, and Yuki told his crew mates to escape. Secretly, Yuki still had revenge against Godzilla on his mind, attempting to elevate himself outside a hatch to attack the nuclear menace with a self-created blood coagulant. The ploy was interrupted by SpaceGodzilla nearby, as the two monsters engage each other again. In response, Yuki frantically tried to move the mech, only to have it's engines roar to life. The sudden acceleration sent Yuki flying, knocking him out against the hull. The giant machine was sent crashing straight into SpaceGodzilla in the process, but ultimately rammed head first into a nearby building. The impact rendered the once brilliant mech inoperable.

Miki Saegusa and Koji Shinjo saved Yuki just in time, as Godzilla shot its spiral fire ray. The immense energy ray destroyed SpaceGodzilla once and for all. The ray also annihilated Moguera in the process, the powerful beam tearing through the thick armor that had intended to protect it from Godzilla's normal atomic ray. The crew of Moguera survived and SpaceGodzilla was no more, but Godzilla lived on...

• The giant robot was portrayed by suit actor Wataru Fukuda. While the suit was used to portray the Moguera in the film during the hanger sequences, Fukuda only appears on screen as Moguera II - SRF for the final battle at Fukuoka.
• Moguera is rarely mentioned with the "Moguera II" or "Moguera SRF" denotation. An early example of one that does is the CD-Rom title Godzilla Movie Studio Tour, which also notes this as being a "new" Moguera. While other sources use the "new" branding for it, others denote it as a remodel. In general, more sources indicate that Moguera was damaged and revamped rather than there being multiple Moguera in the 1994 film. In terms of naming conventions, the character appears as "Mogeura 2" in the 2004 video game Godzilla: Save the Earth. While this could be in reference to the improved version, it's also likely it's just using it to separate it from the Showa version, as "Mechagodzilla 2" in the game is the Heisei series version rather than the rebuilt Mechagodzilla II from Terror of Mechagodzilla (1975). While most sources don't break out the listings, a few newer publications do, such as the 2014 book the Toho Special Effects: All Kaiju Illustrated Encyclopedia, which has a separate listing for each and uses the name "MOGERA II - SRF".
• On the CD-Rom title Godzilla Movie Studio Tour, Moguera's chest ray is spelled as "Plasma Mazer" cannon.
  
  

Powered by a laser fusion reactor, Star Falcon was one of two separate mechs that Moguera could change into. Able to transform within 60 seconds, this craft formed aerial support while Land Moguera focused on ground warfare. Although built with aerial combat in mind, Star Falcon was not as fast as the fully formed Moguera.

Although tested in docking system checks before, Star Falcon saw it's first field combat in the battle against SpaceGodzilla. During the skirmish, pilot Akira Yuki called for the separation of Moguera's two segments in order to attack SpaceGodzilla with a new plan. He took Star Falcon, as his crew mates took the Land Moguera.

Drawing a first strike, Yuki fired Star Falcon's lasers at SpaceGodzilla. In return, he felt the full force of the monster's Corona Beam counteroffensive. The synthetic blue diamond layer armor kept the ship airborne, though, able to fend off the damage enough to permit further attacks. The Star Falcon continued to fire its lasers and, again, was hit by the Corona Beam, although the flying ship was a diversion for the true offensive. Luckily, Land Moguera soon destroyed Fukuoka Tower, key to SpaceGodzilla's energy supply. The super attack jet continued to fire upon SpaceGodzilla, as it prepared to merge with Land Moguera once again. As the two vehicles formed once more, Moguera joined Godzilla in attempting to destroy the space monster.

• In Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla, during the separation sequence, a monitor is seen denoting that the "FS" of the Star Falcon is Mach 3. FS is believed to stand for flight speed. All publications, however, have stated that the craft is only able to fly at a fraction of the speed of sound, rather than three times it.
• In early screenplays for the 1994 film, Star Falcon was called "Garuda II". The name would imply it was at one time considered a successor to the Garuda warship from Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II (1993). This fact can be found in the 2004 Godzilla Large Dictionary (ISBN: 4773002921) publication.
  
  

Within a minute, Moguera could transform into both the Land Moguera and Star Falcon crafts. The Land Mogeura was the upper portion of the mech. The tank-like vehicle was a ground based machine, able to travel on the surface at 120 kilometers an hour. The craft was armed with a variety of weapons, while defensively it was protected by a synthetic blue diamond layer casing. Land Moguera was also able to burrow underground, allowing it and Star Falcon to confront foes on diverse and multiple fronts.

These capabilities were tested when Moguera and Godzilla were waging a war with SpaceGodzilla. In the midst of the fierce battle with the space monster, Moguera separated into Star Falcon and Land Moguera in order to execute a new plan of attack. As Star Falcon flew above, Land Moguera, piloted by Koji Shinjo and Kiyoshi Sato, used the tank's immense Buster Drill to dig below. It shot through the soil and rock, ever approaching Fukuoka Tower that SpaceGodzilla was so desperately guarding. The monster had instilled in this building a cosmic power through which it would conduct energy. Land Moguera fired on the building and the structure started to lean. Godzilla finished the job by bringing the tower crashing to the ground. With Fukuoka Tower destroyed, Land Moguera returned to the surface and fired on SpaceGodzilla, as Star Falcon attacked from the sky. Sensing an opportunity, Land Moguera and Star Falcon reunited once more. The pilots now eager to finish the battle alongside Godzilla.

• In Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla, screen read outs state the name of both "Land Mogera" and "Rand Mogera" for the craft.
• During the course of the 1994 film Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla, an on screen read out denotes the "FS" of the Land Moguera as Mach 1. "FS" is assumed to be flight speed. However, no publication has stated a similar figure, and the same FS mentioned for the Star Falcon was much faster than the craft is reported to be able to fly at.
• In an early screenplay, Land Moguera was originally called "Mole Tank" (モールタンク - Moru Tanku). This fact can be found in the 2004 Godzilla Large Dictionary (ISBN: 4773002921) publication.