Mothra Leo 新モスラ


Mothra Leo Larva - Mothra Leo - Rainbow Mothra - Aqua Mothra - Light Speed Mothra - Armor Mothra - Eternal Mothra
Mothra Leo Larva
Mothra Leo Larva

Length : 25 meters
Mass : 3,000 tons

Powers / Weapons

Excel Strings; Small Rail Gun; Fake Reflection

Appearances

Rebirth of Mothra (1996)

Series // HeiseI (Rebirth of Mothra)

Sound Effect

Description

The last of its kind, Leo was conceived by its aged mother Mothra in the twilight years of her life. Focusing her remaining energy into birthing its mammoth egg, Mothra settled down to live out her days in peace. However, the evil Elia Belvera, in a plot to destroy what she felt were the "worthless humans," released the world destroyer Desghidorah from his ancient prison.

When the two Elias Moll and Lora learned of this they called in the aged Mothra to battle the armageddon beast. However, when she began to lose, the young Leo stirred in its egg. The two shared a strong psychic bond and sensing its mother was in danger Leo hatched prematurely. The small larva then left Infant Island, heading toward Hokkaido where Mothra was struggling in its battle with Desghidorah.

Born with increasable power, the new Mothra selflessly charged into battle with Desghidorah. Using stinging strings and mutating a chest beam, the larva caught the three-headed beast off guard. However, Desghidorah quickly gained the upper hand, sinking its sharp teeth into the larva and drawing blood. This time the adult Mothra came to the aid of her child, engaging Desghidorah. The armageddon beast overpowered the mother, but this enabled the larva to escape. Cloaking itself through using its prismatic tissue, the small Mothra Leo went undetected in the vicinity.

Desghidorah's rage, though, caused him to destroy the area with his flames, striking the larva in the process. No longer cloaked, Desghidorah, at the urging of Belvera, focused his dreaded attention solely on the larval Leo. Its mother once more intervened and eventually the battle moved toward a nearby dam. Using this to her advantage, the mother coaxed the three-headed creature into firing on the dam while trying to strike her. This caused the dam to rupture, momentarily washing Desghidorah away. Before the larva could be swept in the same waters, Mothra grasped the larva in its legs and ferried it to safety.

The two Mothra flew a great distance away from Hokkaido, far away from Desghidorah. However, this final, selfless act of saving her only child drained the last strength from the old Mothra. As her energy gave out, she plummeted into the ocean, dropping the larva in the process. Try as it might, Leo could not save its mother. The larva watched helplessly as its only family slowly sunk beneath the icy waves of the ocean.

Now the last of its kind, Leo instinctively swam to Yakushima island in the Kagoshima Prefecture. Locating an ancient and gigantic Yakusugi tree, the larva begin to prepare a cocoon. Once inside, the larva started to absorb the knowledge and power of the Earth, undergoing a powerful metamorphosis.


Powers / Weapons
Excel Strings

Excel Strings

Mothra Leo could release sticky strings from its mouth, which were stronger than steel.

The strings appeared to have a mild stinging effect, as they pulsed and caused Desghidorah harm when he was struck with them.

   
Small Rail Gun

Small Rail Gun

Through developing a sudden mutation, the larva was able to fire a blast from its abdomen.

Generated through using a magnetic field, Mothra Leo would try and stand up so it could direct the beam toward its enemies.

   
Prism Beams

Fake Reflection

The larva features prismatic tissue in its skin that can adjust and mimic light from its surrounding, causing it to take on a reflection of the area around it. Used in moments of distress, this would make the larva nearly invisible in its surroundings.

This camouflage technique could be interrupted if Mothra Leo was injured, as seen when Desghidorah struck the larva with its flame and it became visible.


Background and Trivia
  • In Japanese the new Mothra name in its first form is roughly "New Mothra Larva" (新モスラ 幼虫). This form is rarely referenced in English material, although an exception is Mothra Super Complete Works (ISBN: 4091014569) which lists "New Mothra - Larva" as the name. Toho Kingdom elected to use Mothra Leo Larva for the name, to align it with the first imago form.
  • In most media iterations, Mothra is depicted as female. Mothra Leo is a bit of an enigma. While Toho is not definitive on its gender, the name Leo is generally masculine. The more feathery antenna shared by Leo's later stages is also in most moth species associated with males who use this to attract a mate, as females have thinner antennas. Several staff members have also likened Mothra Leo to having masculine qualities. This includes special effects director Koichi Kawakita who, in an interview in Special Graphix Mothra (ISBN: T1065429731804), mentioned that the original Mothra had a "motherly" quality and to contrast the new Mothra with the old they pictured Leo as a "mischievous, boy-like" Mothra.
  • The Giant Picture Encyclopedia of Godzilla: Toho Special Effects Movie World (ISBN: 4873765587) cites Mothra Leo's powers in its larval form as "Excel Strings" (エクセル・ストリングス - Ekuseru Sutoringusu), "Small Rail Gun" (プチ・レールガン - Puchi Reiru Gan) and "Fake Reflection" (フェイク・リフレクション - Feiku Rifurekushon).
  • Leo's Excel Strings were stated to be stronger than steel. Referenced in Mothra Super Complete Works (ISBN: 4091014569).
  • Special Graphix Mothra (ISBN: T1065429731804) cites that Leo's Small Rail Gun releases a blast of energy from Leo using a magnetic field. It also notes this ability is the result of Leo going through a sudden mutation to acquire it.
  • Leo's Fake Reflection technique is achieved through prismatic tissue in its skin that can adjust and mimic light from its surrounding. Noted in Special Graphix Mothra (ISBN: T1065429731804).
  • During production, several different names were given for Leo's beam attack. This includes "Abdomen Beam" (ハラビーム - Hara Bimu), "Larva Beam" (ヨウチュウビーム - Youchu Bimu) and "Insect Beam" (ムシビーム - Mushi Bimu). Mentioned by assistant special effects director Kenji Suzuki in Toho SF Special Effects Movie Series Volume 11 Mothra (ISBN: 4924609668).
  • Can move at 40 kilometers per hour with a maximum speed of 60 kilometers an hour on land. Also able to move at 140 kilometers an hour when swimming. Cited in Mothra Super Complete Works (ISBN: 4091014569).
  • Can communicate telepathically with its mother, Mothra, no matter the distance. Noted in Mothra Super Complete Works (ISBN: 4091014569).
  • To evolve, Leo actually ventures to Yakushima island, which is one of the Osumi Islands in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. This is actually very far away from Hokkaido where Desghidorah is located, basically on the other side of Japan. This is depicted in a map in Special Graphix Mothra (ISBN: T1065429731804) that also shows that Mothra flew the Leo Larva all the way out to sea in an area parallel to Aomori city.
  • Cocoons itself near a gigantic Yakusugi (屋久杉) tree, also translated as Oyakusugi, and is said to absorb 10,000 years of knowledge from the Earth during this process. Mentioned in Godzilla and Toho Tokusatsu: Official Mook (ISBN: 9784065302231).
  • Mothra Leo's larva form was originally going to be white like its imago form, which is noted this way in the script. Special effects director Koichi Kawakita was the one who suggested it be brown instead. Cited in Toho SF Special Effects Movie Series Volume 11 Mothra (ISBN: 4924609668).
  • The Mothra larva prop is 1 meter long and has built in mechanisms so it can move on its own. This includes radio controlled mouth and eyes. Referenced in Special Graphix Mothra (ISBN: T1065429731804).
  • To create Mothra's webbing the production crew melted styrofoam, same as was done for the webs of the Mothra larva from Godzilla vs. Mothra (1992). Noted in Special Graphix Mothra (ISBN: T1065429731804).
  • The egg that Leo hatches from had to be remade by the special effects staff four times. This was due to the egg not breaking right during filming. Brought up in Toho SF Special Effects Movie Series Volume 11 (ISBN: 4924609668).
  • Leo's cocoon was made of fibre-reinforced plastic (FRP) and featured lights located inside of it. In addition, a CGI version was also created and layered on the frame sometimes depending on the scene. Discussed in Special Graphix Mothra (ISBN: T1065429731804).


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Mothra Leo
Length: 24 meters
Wingspan: 53 meters
Mass: 5,900 tons
  Powers/Weapons: Flight at mach 15.5; fires three multicolored Cross Heat Laser beams from his forehead; Jade Bolts fire from wings; fires Mega Breast Cannon from chest; able to break apart into thousands of smaller 30.5cm Mothras; can perform a Excel Pileload by flying straight up and spinning to release several jade rings from his body; able to release Reflective Green Powder from his wings which weaken and cause pain; can do Sparkling PryeRoad, a series of cascading shafts of blue energy that split the earth as bolts flicker across its wings; can perform an Excel Dash by charging itself with energy and flying at mach 85 for up to 65 seconds; able to perform a Sun Strike Buster by raining down powder in a circle and then, from the center of the circle, a giant beam of blistering emerald energy will burst forth from the sky; able to speed the growing process of plants
First Appearance: Rebirth of Mothra (1996)
Other Appearances: Rebirth of Mothra II
Series:  Mothra (Heisei)  

Description

After cocooning himself in the heart of an ancient forest, Leo emerged into his adult form as a swarm of multi-colored butterflies. As the butterflies coalesced into one massive insect, Leo took to the air and headed back towards Desghidorah, righteous furry burning in his wake. Arriving in a hail of energy beams, Leo relentlessly blasted his mother's murderer, throwing wave upon wave of searing beams and energy blasts at Desghidorah, who could only feebly attempt to defend himself against this, the most powerful Mothra of all time. Drawing upon an ancient legacy, Leo relentlessly assaulted Desghidorah, eventually renewing the seal that bound the world destroyer beneath the soil of the earth.

Yet, his work was not done with the end of the fight. Drawing upon the power of life that filled his very being, Leo restored to balance the blasted region deforested that was during the assault of Desghidorah. His work done for the time being, Leo retreated to his ancestral home.

A year later, Leo was called back into action when a toxic being, Dagarha, awoke from his ancient slumber. Fed by the poisons dumped into the oceans by humankind, Dagarha created thousands of Berums, acidic starfish that would consume all life in the sea. With righteous might on his side, Leo valiantly charged into battle with the toxic one, unleashing his ancient powers on the foul being. For a while it seemed like Leo had the upper hand, until Dagarha managed to force Leo underwater, where Dagarha was in his element, and Leo, lacking the ability to effectively move in the dense liquid, was caught at a severe disadvantage. Dagarha turned insult into injury when he created a cyclone of Berums, covering the noble Leo from head to abdomen in monstrous sea-stars. In pain and incapable of defending himself, Leo landed on the summit of an ancient temple that had arisen from under the sea, and waited for his foe to land the final blow.

Yet, just as all seemed lost, a small group of children, with the aid of Moll and Lora, managed to release the power of the ancient spirit Ghogo, empowering Leo once more and transforming him into the new, powerful, Rainbow Mothra.


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Rainbow Mothra
Length: 24 meters
Wingspan: 53 meters
Mass: 5,900 tons
  Powers/Weapons: Flight at mach 15.5; fires three multicolored Cross Heat Rainbow Laser beams from his forehead; Jade Bolts fire from wings; fires Mineral Chest Beam from chest; able to break apart into thousands of smaller 30.5cm Mothras; able to release Reflective Rainbow Powder from his wings which paralyzes and cause pain; has the ability to emit two Sparkling Rainbow Buster blasts of energy from his wings; can create a Pressure Field, which is an invisible force field that is able to deflect enemy energy beams; able to create a Levitation Field by surrounding an enemy with multicolored energy rings that lift it off the surface; can change into Aqua Mothra
First Appearance: Rebirth of Mothra II (1997)
Other Appearances: Rebirth of Mothra III
Series:  Mothra (Heisei)  

Description

After being beaten and encrusted with Berums by the toxic one, Dagahra, Leo landed on an ancient temple, awaiting his foe to end the fight. Yet, when a group of children, aided by Moll and Lora, released the power of an ancient water spirit, Ghogo, Leo was healed and transformed into the powerful Rainbow Mothra. Suffused with the water spirit's ancient magic, Leo re-entered the fray, relentlessly assaulting Dagarha. Yet, when the toxic one retreated below the waves, Leo followed suit and dove under the water, transforming himself into his new aqua form and finishing off Dagarha. With his foe defeated, Mothra once again flew off into the horizon, the world once again safe.

Leo's rest was interrupted again a year later, though, by the return of an ancient foe, the legendary King Ghidorah. Called into battle by his friends Moll and Lora, Leo valiantly fought the King of Terror, but to no avail, as even his extraordinary power was not enough to penetrate the wicked king's ancient defenses. Battered and weakened, Mothra was forced to retreat and come up with a new plan of attack.

Leo eventually hit on a new strategy to assault the King of Terror. Convincing Moll to use what was left of her powers, Mothra planned to send himself back through time to fight King Ghidorah when he was younger. Despite her protests, Moll eventually gave in, and, with the help of the triangle of wisdom, used her power to aid Leo in his journey back in time.

Arriving in the cretaceous period, Leo quickly located the younger King Ghidorah. Drawing upon all of his power, Mothra assaulted the young King of Terror relentlessly. Yet, without the power supplied by his contact with Moll and Lora, Leo was at a severe disadvantage against the brutal king. Just as it seemed that King Ghidorah was going to win, Lora managed to send her power to Leo, giving him enough strength to seize the immature King of Terror and drop him into an active volcano. However, the act took its toll on him, and Mothra was severely injured in the process. His quest completed, Leo crashed onto the hard cretaceous ground, his life slowly draining from him. As the light began to fade from his eyes, the larval forms of his ancestors surrounded him. Seeking to preserve their descendant, they encased him in a cocoon of silk, preserving his life and preparing him for his final, most powerful transformation.


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Aqua Mothra
Length: 24 meters
Wingspan: 30 meters
Mass: 3,500 tons
  Powers/Weapons: Flight; able to release a "V" shaped Cresent Dash Beam from its antennas; can create a Pressure Field, which is an invisible barrier around its head that deflects energy beams; able to release three separate Cross-heat Pulser Beams from its forehead in rapid succession; can break apart into thousands of smaller 30.5cm Aqua Mothras; able to leave a aura like light in its wake when emerging from the water, which will act like a tractor beam and levitate other objects; can change into Light Speed Mothra, with the help of an Elias, or back to Rainbow Mothra; adept swimmer that can move underwater at 200 knots
First Appearance: Rebirth of Mothra II (1997)
Other Appearances: Rebirth of Mothra III
Series:  Mothra (Heisei)  

Description

When Dagahra fled beneath the waves during their battle, Leo, instead of waiting for his foe to reappear, used the power gained from Ghogo to transform himself into his powerful Aqua form. Diving into the ocean, Leo pursued the toxic beast, bombarding him with streams of brilliant energy. Then, in a surprising move, Mothra broke apart into his micro form, and actually dove inside the belly of the beast, lacerating his insides with pulse after pulse of surgically precise energy bolts causing the destruction of the monster's toxic Berums and flaying his internal organs. As the toxic one fell, Leo reemerged from the bowls of the beast, returning to his single form and emerging from the ocean before returning to his Rainbow form and dragging the carcass of Dagarha from the ocean.

Later, during the battle against King Ghidorah, Leo once again called upon his Aqua form, using its power as a springboard to transform himself into his time streaming form: Light Speed Mothra.


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Light Speed Mothra
Length: 25 meters
Wingspan: 30 meters
Mass: 5,900 tons
  Powers/Weapons: Flight; able to travel through time; can change back into Rainbow Mothra
First Appearance: Rebirth of Mothra III (1998)
Series:  Mothra (Heisei)  

Description

After Mothra Leo is defeated by King Ghidorah, the giant moth convinces Moll to help send him back 130 million years, so that he can defeat the King of Terror while the creature is in a much weaker form. The small Elias reluctantly agrees, and Leo flies off while Moll starts chanting to begin the process. Leo changes to Aqua Mothra, and then, with the help of Moll, changes to Light Speed Mothra and sends himself millions years back in time.

Though the plan worked, Mothra was stranded in the past, and Moll crystallized, due to spending the last of her vital energy to send him through time, Leo had to make sure that her sacrifice was not in vain as he prepared to fend off a younger Ghidorah.


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Armor Mothra
Length: 25 meters
Wingspan: 50 meters
Mass: 5,900 tons
  Powers/Weapons: Flight at mach 15.5; able to fire a Armor Heat Laser from forehead, which can penetrate King Ghidorah's barrier; has thick armor encasing his body; razor sharp wings; able to do Transcending Fate by building up enough energy so that Mothra will pass through an enemy's body in a blinding flash of speed, causing the body to slowly crystallize and then explode; can change into Eternal Mothra
First Appearance: Rebirth of Mothra III (1998)
Series:  Mothra (Heisei)  

Description

Emerging from the cocoon his ancestors created for him back in the cretaceous, Leo broke free from the time capsule transformed him into his most deadly form: Armor Mothra. Spreading his razor edged wings, Leo took to the sky to fight the reborn King Ghidorah. Yet, this time the tables were turned, as his new armored shell reflected every assault King Ghidorah threw at him. Bombarding King Ghidorah with pulse after pulse of his energy bolts, Leo relentlessly battered the monstrous king, eventually severing one of the King of Terror's wings with his own razor sharp wing. Then, charging himself with the power of his ancestors, Leo flashed through the air, striking King Ghidorah and destroying him once and for all. The battle done, Leo released his armor, becoming Eternal Mothra.


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Eternal Mothra
Length: 25 meters
Wingspan: 50 meters
Mass:
  Powers/Weapons: Flight
First Appearance: Rebirth of Mothra III (1998)
Series:  Mothra (Heisei)  

Description

After winning his fight with King Ghidorah, Leo transformed into this final form. Using the power of the Elias triangle, Mothra managed to revive his fallen ally, Moll. Then, after healing the small Elias, Leo flew off into the horizon, finally able to retire from battle permanently.