Rodan
Rodan | |
---|---|
In-universe information | |
Alias | Radon Monster Zero-Two The Fire Demon Titanus Rodan |
Species | Irradiated Pteranodon |
Rodan (
Rodan is depicted as a colossal, prehistoric, irradiated species of
Overview
Name
The Japanese name Radon is a contraction of Pteranodon. The spelling of Radon in Japanese also corresponds to the name of Ladon, the dragon guarding the Hesperides in Greek mythology - since there is no distinction between "l" and "r" in Japanese.
It was changed to Rodan for English-speaking markets in order to avoid confusion with the element
Development
As with Godzilla, writer Ken Kuronuma turned to prehistoric animal for inspiration in developing the character, though unlike the former, whose species is largely left ambiguous, Rodan is explicitly stated to be a kind of Pteranodon.[5] Just as Godzilla was conceived as a symbol of an American nuclear threat, Rodan was seen as an embodiment of the same danger originating from the Soviet Union.[6]
Rodan debut appearance was the first and only time that the character was given a
Rodan was revived in 1993's
MonsterVerse (2019 - present)
In 2014,
Rodan appears in a post-credits scene of Kong: Skull Island. It is in the depicting cave paintings showing him, Mothra, King Ghidorah, and Godzilla in the footage that is shown to James Conrad and Mason Weaver.[12]
A casting call confirmed that Rodan, Mothra, and King Ghidorah would be featured in Godzilla: King of the Monsters.[13] Viral marketing describes him as a titanic kaiju with the skeletal structure of a Pteranodon and magma-like skin serving as plate armor. The film's promotional website, Monarch Sciences, identifies the fictional island of Isla de Mara off the eastern coast of Mexico as Rodan's location and describes him as being 154 ft (46.94 m) tall with a weight of 39,043 tons and a wingspan of 871 ft (265.48 m), making it the shortest version of the character, yet also the heaviest and the one with the greatest wingspan, though part of the short height is this version of Rodan being a quadruped like a real pterosaur as opposed to an upright biped like the Toho versions. It is also stated to be powerful enough to level cities with thunderclaps generated by its wings.[14][15][16]
In King of the Monsters, Colonel Alan Jonah uses Dr. Emma Russell to have the ORCA device awaken Rodan from Monarch's Mexican outpost 56. With Rodan awoken, Monarch's jets lead it into fighting King Ghidorah where it is defeated. After Godzilla is (seemingly) killed by the Oxygen Destroyer, Rodan sides with Ghidorah before being defeated by Mothra in
Reiwa
The skeletal remains of an individual Rodan appears in the prologue of Godzilla: Planet of the Monsters, having been killed in China. This is expanded upon in the prequel novel Godzilla: Monster Apocalypse, in which it is revealed the Rodan emerged from Paektu Mountain on November 2005, attacked China, and battled Anguirus before they were both killed by a bio-weapon created by the Chinese military called Hedorah. In 2036, a flock of Rodans took over Siberia, competing against a swarm of Megaguiruses to prey on European refugees on the Trans-Siberian Railway. In Godzilla: City on the Edge of Battle's prequel novel Godzilla: Project Mechagodzilla, a second Rodan was said to have attacked Kyushu in 2029 while another flock of Rodans attacked Rome to prey on humans and eventually took over the Italian Peninsula in the mid-2030s. While enacting "Operation: Long March" and "Operation: Great Wall" in 2044 and 2045 respectively, United Earth forces faced attacks from an individual Rodan, among other monsters, in North Africa as well as a third flock of Rodans feeding on Meganulon in China.
A flock of Rodans appear in
Roar
The character's shriek was created by sound technician Ichiro Minawa, who sought to replicate the "contrabass technique" composer Akira Ifukube used for Godzilla. He layered it with a sped up human voice.[17] The sound would be remixed and reused for several other Toho monsters, including the second incarnation of King Ghidorah[18] and Battra.[19]
Appearances
Films
- Rodan (1956)
- Valley of the Dragons (1961, stock footage cameo)
- Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster (1964)
- Invasion of Astro-Monster (1965)
- Destroy All Monsters (1968)
- Godzilla vs. Gigan (1972, stock footage cameo)
- Godzilla vs. Megalon (1973, stock footage cameo)
- Terror of Mechagodzilla (1975, stock footage cameo)
- Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II (1993)
- Godzilla: Final Wars (2004)
- Godzilla: Planet of the Monsters (2017, skeleton corpse)
- Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019)
- Godzilla vs. Kong (2021, stock footage cameo)
Television
- Godzilla Island (1997 - 1998)
- Godzilla Singular Point (2021)
- Godzilland (1992 - 1993)
- Godziban (present)
Video games
- Godzilla / Godzilla-Kun: Kaijuu Daikessen (Game Boy; 1990)
- Circus Caper (NES; 1990)
- Godzilla 2: War of the Monsters (NES; 1991)
- Battle Soccer: Field no Hasha (SNES; 1992)
- Kaijū-ō Godzilla / King of the Monsters, Godzilla (Game Boy; 1993)
- Turbo Duo; 1993)
- Godzilla Giant Monster March (Game Gear; 1995)
- Godzilla Trading Battle (PlayStation; 1998)
- Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters Melee (GCN, Xbox; 2002/2003)
- Godzilla: Domination! (GBA; 2002)
- Godzilla: Save the Earth (Xbox, PS2; 2004)
- Godzilla: Unleashed (Wii; 2007)
- Godzilla Unleashed: Double Smash (NDS; 2007)
- Godzilla: Unleashed (PS2; 2007)
- Godzilla: The Game (PS3/PS4; 2015)
- Godzilla Defense Force (2019)
- Godzilla Battle Line (2021)
Literature
- A version of Rodan appears in the 1986 novel It by Stephen King, in which the eponymous creature takes the form of the bird-like kaiju.
- Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II (1993)[20]
- Godzilla King of the Monsters (1994)
- Godzilla vs. Gigan and the Smog Monster (1996)[21]
- Godzilla on Monster Island (1996)[22]
- Godzilla Saves America: A Monster Showdown in 3-D! (1996)[23]
- Godzilla 2000(novel; 1997)
- Godzilla at World's End(novel; 1998)
- Godzilla vs. the Robot Monsters(novel; 1998)
- Godzilla: Journey to Monster Island(novel; 1998)
- Godzilla vs. the Space Monster(novel; 1998)
- Godzilla Likes to Roar! (1998)[24]
- Who's Afraid of Godzilla? (1998)[25]
- Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters (comic; 2011 - 2012)
- Godzilla: Gangsters & Goliaths (comic; 2011)
- Godzilla: Legends (comic; 2011 - 2012) featuring Baby Rodan
- Godzilla (comic; 2012)
- Godzilla: The Half-Century War (comic; 2012 - 2013)
- Godzilla: Rulers of Earth (comic; 2013 - 2015)
- Godzilla: Cataclysm (comic; 2014)
- Godzilla in Hell (comic; 2015)
- Godzilla: Oblivion (comic; 2016)
- Godzilla: Rage Across Time (comic; 2016)
- Godzilla: Monster Apocalypse (novel; 2017)
References in music
- The monster is mentioned in UMC's"Blue Cheese".
References
- ^ Minow, Nell (July 23, 2018). "Comic-Con 2018: Jason Liles on Playing the Beasts of Rampage and Godzilla: King of the Monsters". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
- ^ Berry 2005, p. 452.
- ^ Hawker, Tom (May 15, 2014). "Top 10 Japanese Movie Monsters". IGN. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
- Complex(May 18, 2014)
- ^ a b c Harry Edmundson-Cornell (March 24, 2015). "Tsuburaya Does Colour: Rodan". Sequart Organization.
- ISBN 0748689478
- ^ ISBN 1550223488.
- ISBN 978-0-7864-47-49-7.
- ISBN 1550223488.
- ISBN 978-0-7864-47-49-7.
- ^ Jeffries, Adrianne (July 26, 2014). "Gareth Edwards returns to direct 'Godzilla 2' with Rodan and Mothra". The Verge. Retrieved 2014-08-19.
- ^ Goldberg, Matt (March 11, 2017). "'Kong: Skull Island' Post-Credits Scene Explained". Collider. Retrieved April 27, 2018.
- ^ Barkan, Jonathan (May 31, 2017). "These Three Kaiju Appear to Be Confirmed for Godzilla: King of the Monsters". Dread Central. Retrieved May 31, 2017.
- ^ "Here's Every Hidden Secret on Godzilla 2's Viral Website". Screen Rant. 19 July 2018.
- ^ "Godzilla vs. Kong | Official Site". Monarchsciences.com. 2021-03-31. Retrieved 2022-09-04.
- ^ "GODZILLA: KING OF THE MONSTERS | ORCA Communicator". orca.monarchsciences.com. Retrieved 2019-06-12.
- ^ Erik Homenick, "Biography: Part IX - Myths, Monsters and Laments" Archived 2016-02-09 at the Wayback Machine, Akiraifukube.org (accessed May 30, 2016)
- ISBN 1550223488.
- ISBN 978-0-7864-47-49-7.
- ^ "Manga: Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla". Tohokingdom.com. Retrieved 2015-09-27.
- ^ "Book: Godzilla vs. Gigan and the Smog Monster". Tohokingdom.com. Retrieved 2015-09-27.
- ^ "Book: Godzilla on Monster Island". Tohokingdom.com. Retrieved 2015-09-27.
- ^ "Book: Godzilla Saves America: A Monster Showdown in 3-D!". Tohokingdom.com. Retrieved 2015-09-27.
- ^ "Book: Godzilla Likes to Roar!". Tohokingdom.com. Retrieved 2015-09-27.
- ^ "Book: Who's Afraid of Godzilla?". Tohokingdom.com. Retrieved 2015-09-27.
Further reading
- Berry, Mark F. (2005). The Dinosaur Filmography. McFarland & Company. ISBN 978-0786424535.
- "Miniatures" by ISSN 1038-5657.
External links
- Media related to Rodan at Wikimedia Commons