Godzilla gegen Mechagodzilla II

Toho was on a role bringing back some of their famous monsters to costar with Godzilla throughout the 90s. First King Ghidorah, then Mothra, and now not one but three classic characters: Baby Godzilla, Rodan, and, of course, Mechagodzilla. What results is a full on monster war!

Plot: By reverse-engineering futuristic technology from the remains of Mecha-King Ghidorah, the Japanese government creates what they believe is the ultimate anti-Godzilla weapon: Mechagodzilla! Meanwhile, scientists recover an egg from a Pteranodon nest only for the egg to hatch later and out comes Baby Godzilla, who sees one of the scientists as its mother. With this baby hatched, both Godzilla and Rodan are out to retrieve it as their own and Mechagodzilla is sent in to take them both out. Will Godzilla/Rodan succeed in their mission or will Baby Godzilla end up being orphaned?

The dilemma of this entire situation makes for a great story as loyalties and logics are pitted against each other between man and monster alike. It causes the viewer to choose sides and that makes this movie even more great. The action scenes are awesome as these monsters really beat the living crap out of each other and the surrounding environment gets torn apart by their very might. The suit designs and puppets are pretty good, particularly Baby Godzilla who's able to express certain emotions. The music is absolutely impressive, which complements how intense the action is and how emotional some of the interactions between characters is. Human characters are at least likable, from the scientists to Miki Saegusa, the psychic who empathizes Godzilla and his son.

My only complaint seems to be Mechagodzilla being a little too powerful like in his first movie. Other than that, this is one of the best and most iconic entries in the Godzilla series. It has everything you'd expect in a film like this: great action, wonderful music, character development, and, of course, lots of explosions. Definitely recommended that you check this flick out. All hail the King of the Monsters!

This is the best of the new Heisei Godzilla series made. For one it features the return of many favorites including MechaGodzilla (bigger and badder than ever), Rodan (although he is called "Radon" which is his Japanese name) Baby Godzilla (who could kick Minya's @$$ in 5 seconds) and Godzilla (who who could kick the Tristar Godzilla's @$$ in about 1 second!). The story has characters that you care about, the effects are wonderful, the fight scenes are great, Rodan looks really cool as Fire Rodan, Garuda and MechaGodzilla are really awesome, and the dubbing matches 75% of the time! The story says that an egg, which hatches into a Baby Godzillasaur, is Godzilla's son. However, it was found in Rodan's nest so he thinks that it's his baby too. The UNGCC (United Nations Godzilla Countermeasures Center) takes Baby away for studying. Godzilla and Rodan go to Kyoto to find baby but instead find a huge battle with MechaGodzilla. Rodan is seriously injured and near death. Discovering Godzilla's 2nd brain, MechaGodzilla destroys it, paralyzing Godzilla. Then...you'll have to see it to find out what happens at the end. This a must for any true Godzilla nut like myself. Buy it, and you won't regret it at all!

The 1993 version of Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla is one of the best "kaiju" (giant monster) films ever made and is an action-packed, exciting film in general. Full of great effects as well as drama and fun, this film delivers where other films of its type fall flat. For the price of admission, you get Godzilla, the updated version of Rodan, the new and improved MechaGodzilla and the introduction of Baby Godzilla. Not to be missed not only by Godzilla fans, but any serious science fiction/fantasy lover.

Godzilla has a really busy time again: fighting the winged Radon, trashing a huge tin can named Mechagodzilla, and looking for his baby. The little monster is as cute as his predecessor in `Gojira No Mosuko', but better designed, with evil glowing red eyes. One novelty in the 90s Godzilla movies is the creation of a special group of experts called `G Force' who try not to let Godzilla wreck Japan as badly again as he did in the 60s. With little success, though - to sum it up, not one of the best movies of the series, but a good deal of chaos and destruction again. Voted 6/10.

Despite the 'II' in the English title, "Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II (1993, 20th film in the franchise) is not a sequel to "Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla" (1974) or "Terror of Mechagodzilla" (1975) and the fact that there has already been a gigantic robotic version of Godzilla seems to have been lost to the kaiju amnesia that affects Japan every decade or so (Rodan, on the other hand, is remembered by name). This time around, Mechagodzilla is not created by sneaky aliens, but rather by the 'UN Godzilla Countermeasures Center', a multinational, anti-kaiju taskforce. Why the robot needs to look like Godzilla is never explained, but it is bristling with weapons from laser eyes to a belly mounted 'pulse grenade' to assorted missiles to electrified grappling hooks. Needless to say, all get deployed during titanic battles with Godzilla and Rodan (who has been upgraded to field some kind of energy weapon to supplement flapping his wings and pecking with his beak). In the background of the mayhem, an egg has been found from which hatches a tiny (relatively) 'Godzillasaurus', promptly christened "Baby" by imprinted scientist Azusa Gojo (Ryoko Sano). The series continues to embrace new-age spirituality, as Miki Saegusa is back, and 'psychic links' and 'life forces' play pivotal roles in the plot. "Baby", as can be guessed, was included in an attempt to woo female viewers (who allegedly prefer 'creation and life' to 'destruction and death') and, while not as obnoxious and irritating as "Minilla" (i.a. "Son of Godzilla" 1967), this iteration of Godzilla's offspring is still pretty cloying. The special effects, which includes traditional suit-mation/puppetry and early CGI, looks pretty good, with an excellent Godzilla suit and some outstanding miniature work. Mechagodzilla looks OK, although it spends a lot of time flying/hovering or standing still, so I assume that the suit was not very mobile. Rodan still looks awkward and Baby has a toy-frog face with big, fake looking puppy-dog eyes. The film also features the 'Garuda', another in a line of highly improbable looking flying-tanks sent against the monsters, which in keeping with the 'transforming mecha' trend popular in the '90s, can attach to the Mechagodzilla to create a "Supermechagodzilla'. I watched a sub-titled Japanese version (although a lot of English is spoken in the film) and the acting is par for kaiju epics. The script is full of silly observations (e.g. despite having nothing but sharp teeth, Baby is confidently identified as a plant eater), quantum leaps of logic, and dramatic conclusions based on essentially no data, but that's nothing new for the genre. The battle scenes are good, as is the music, and, if you are the correct demographic (which I am not), you can coo over the baby Godzilla. Although not as good as the loopy "Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah" (1991), this incarnation of Godzilla fighting his robotic doppleganger is an entertaining enough time-waster.