Godzilla

HISTORY

From the creative minds of executive producers William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, their version of Toho's Godzilla was born and premiered on NBC's Saturday morning lineup in 1978. The show, simply titled Godzilla, was initially featured during The Godzilla Power Hour and enjoyed crossovers with other programs during its two-season run and in subsequent reruns. These pairings included shows like Johnny Quest, Jana of the Jungle, The Super Globetrotters and Dynomutt.

In terms of plot, from the very first episode the series dives straight into action without fully explaining how Godzilla, Godzooky, and the Calico crew came together. According to Hanna-Barbera, the ship's crew discovered the little Godzooky, trapped in coral, and after witnessing the humans rescue him, Godzilla pledged his loyalty in gratitude. Whenever danger struck, a call from Godzooky or a signal from Captain Majors' electronic device would summon Godzilla to the rescue.

Monsters

EPISODE GUIDE

DVDs and Blu-rays

Background and Trivia

• The show was never broadcast in Japan.
• Noted as "Godzilla '78 Animation Series" (GODZILLA '78年アニメーションシリーズ - '78 Nen Animeishon Shirizu) in the Godzilla 1954-1999 Super Complete Works (ISBN: 9784091014702).
• Discussions over the promotional background information on the show, such as the fact that Godzilla became the Calico ship's protector after the crew rescued Godzooky from a coral reef, are referenced in Japan's Favorite Mon-Star (ISBN: 1550223488).
• Executive producer Joseph Barbera has gone on record saying he originally wanted to do the show as more or less a straight adaptation of the Godzilla movie series. However, he got pressure at the network level with this concept. He was quoted saying: "The problem with the show was simply this: when they start telling you in Standards and Practices, 'Don't shoot any flames at anybody, don't step on any buildings or cars,' then pretty soon they've taken away all the stuff that he represents. That became the problem, to maintain a feeling of Godzilla and at the same time cut down everything that he did." Found in Japan's Favorite Mon-Star (ISBN: 1550223488).
• In 1999, a short titled Godzilla vs. Y2K Bug aired as a bumper during commercial breaks on both Cartoon Network and its sister station Boomerang. The short features the same characters and recycles animation from the 1978–1979 show. Although Godzilla is mentioned, he does not appear in the short except for the opening title card.