Gigan ガイガン [Godzilla Fest]

Hours after the fight between Godzilla and the Smog Monster, night had fallen, and the King of the Monsters had reached the city of Tokyo on his way back to the ocean. But as the reptile made his way through the bustling metropolis, a bright light caught his attention as a strange phenomenon began to take place high overhead. A blinding sphere of light shone in the night sky, bursting into a storm of energy, unleashing bolts of lightning in all directions. As the energy faded, the light changed shape and gave birth to a horrifying new form of life: A cyborg from the depths of outer space known as Gigan!

Descending from the sky, Gigan caused devastation as he landed and set foot on the pavement of Tokyo. Brandishing his hammer-claw hands, the cyborg locked eyes with Godzilla and the two monsters stared each other down. Godzilla immediately opened fire with his atomic ray, but to his shock, Gigan was able to block the blast, crossing his hook-like appendages in front of him, causing the ray to explode harmlessly against their metallic surface. The alien beast immediately returned fire, launching a laser beam from a cannon on his forehead. The beam hit Godzilla hard, sending him staggering back. When the reptile recuperated and charged, Gigan opened fire with laser again, strafing Godzilla repeatedly as he made his way towards him. As soon as his foe was close enough, Gigan attacked with a swipe from his right arm, slashing open Godzilla's cheek. Gigan brandished his deadly hooks once again, mocking his opponent's pain.

Gigan swiped at the Monster King with his hammer-claw once again, but this time Godzilla avoided the attack, and the two beasts collided, trading blows with one another. Their grappling caused destruction as they battled across Tokyo, Gigan's razor sharp claws slicing through whole buildings as if they were made of paper. Putting some distance between the two of them, Godzilla attacked with a vicious punch to Gigan's face. In retaliation, the cyborg charged his laser cannon... only for it to malfunction and spark, damaged beyond repair by Godzilla's fist. With his opponent's weapon broken, Godzilla charged, but Gigan rushed to meet him, incensed by the loss of his laser. As the two ran at each other, Gigan activated the Universal Cutter housed within his stomach, the weapon's saw-like teeth whirring to life. As soon as Godzilla was close enough, Gigan snatched him within his hammer-claws and held him close, pressing him against the deadly blade. Godzilla cried out as the alien's buzzsaw tore through his flesh, leaving a nasty gash in his chest and stomach. Overwhelmed with agony, Godzilla fell back and crashed through an overpass, his movements growing still.

All but victorious now, Gigan approached the fallen Godzilla, honing his hammer-claws against one another as he drew closer. Though the reptile was beaten and bloody, he was still showing signs of life, and so Gigan decided to finish him off once and for all. Raising his arms into the air, he prepared to bury their razor hook tips deep into the Monster King's flesh and swung them down... But to the extraterrestrial's great shock, Godzilla reached up and caught his claws in his hands, stopping the attack cold. Angrily, Godzilla kept his grip on Gigan's arms and rose to his feet, charging his atomic ray. With his laser broken and Godzilla too far away for his Universal Cutter to be of any use, the cyborg could do nothing but watch as the reptilian monster brought his atomic breath to full power and unleashed it point blank into Gigan's face.

Hit with the full strength of Godzilla's radioactive might, Gigan was sent reeling back and let out one last shriek of defiance as he toppled over backwards, erupting into a massive explosion. As Gigan's golden scales began to flutter down from the sky, the King of the Monsters declared his victory with a mighty roar.

• Portrayed by suit actor Hikaru Yoshida, utilizing a brand new Gigan suit sculpted by Shinichi Wakasa.
• On April 1st, 2022, Toho launched The Gigan Suit Activation Project on the Japanese crowdfunding website Ubgoe. Its goal was to collect ¥15,000,000 (roughly $122,480) in order to help fund the new Gigan suit sculpted by Wakasa as well as Gigan Attacks (2022) as a whole. By the time the campaign ended on May 31st, it came short of its ultimate goal, finishing at only ¥11,504,405 with 642 people having pledged.
• This marks the second time that the Showa design of Gigan, portrayed with a brand new suit, has gone up against Godzilla, portrayed by a visibly aged suit made for a completely different project. The same thing happened in the character's debut film, Godzilla vs. Gigan (1972).
• This short is the first time that the Showa design Gigan has been shown utilizing his planned-but-ultimately-scrapped laser beam, which until now had only been seen used in posters, video games, and comic books.
• It isn't entirely clear if this Gigan has the same diamond transformation ability as the original incarnation. Given the way he first appears in the short, the intention seems to be that he does, but the distance and lightning storm make it borderline impossible to see a diamond, if there even is one.
• Although this Gigan's design is based on the Showa incarnation as seen in Godzilla vs. Gigan (1972), Godzilla vs. Megalon (1973), and Zone Fighter (1973) this Gigan shares no continuity with that version of the character.