Gamera: Difference between revisions
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{{quote|''"Gamera is really neat.
''Gamera is filled with meat.
''We are eating Gamera!"''
In 1965, a black-and-white movie was made in order to cash in on the success of [[Godzilla]]. That would star a legendary friend of all children known as ''Gamera''.
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It all started with the Showa series. Aside from the first movie, the movies were in color and usually had Gamera fight other monsters. While not as popular as Godzilla, Gamera managed to become a moderate success. The series abruptly stopped in 1971 when Daiei Film, the company that was making them, filed for bankruptcy. Apart from a disappointing entry that was little more than a [[Clip Show]], the Gamera franchise would be dormant for a couple decades.
The legacy of Gamera modestly carried on however, particularly in America. The first six films were shown constantly on local television stations in the 70s and 80s. The [[Clip Show|aforementioned]] eighth film ''[[Gamera: Super Monster]]'' aired on [[MTV]] at time when they rarely showed movies and was also released to local television. In the late 80s the seventh film ''[[Gamera vs. Zigra]]'' had its [[Missing Episode|long overdue]] release along with differently edited/dubbed versions of four other ''Gamera'' films via airings on [[USA Network]] and local stations as well as video releases from new distributor Sandy Frank. Gamera was introduced to a new audience when the Sandy Frank versions aired as episodes of the series ''[[Mystery Science Theater 3000]]''. On the show, it was derided for having too many [[Narm|cringe-worthy Gamera moments]] (One infamous scene had Gamera swing up and down a pole, [[Gymkata]] style), bad dubbing, and [[The Scrappy|too much emphasis on the kids]].
Then, the Heisei series came. After a long wait, it was decided that the ''Gamera'' series should be revived. A man named Shusuke Kaneko, currently famous for the [[Death Note]] movies, was chosen to direct a new ''Gamera'' trilogy. What we got was a drastic change from the previous series. The movies became much darker in tone. The monsters ended up becoming much more abstract than anything seen in a [[Kaiju]] movie. The trilogy has been praised by critics from both sides of the Pacific.
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* ''[[Gamera vs. Jiger|Gamera VS Jiger]]'' (1970) (a.k.a. ''Gamera vs. Monster X'')
* ''[[Gamera vs. Zigra]]'' (1971)
* ''[[Gamera: Super Monster]]'' (1980)
'''Heisei Series (1995 - 1999)'''
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* [[Actor Allusion]]: The scene near the end of ''Gamera vs. Guiron'' with Kondo's glasses falling down his nose was a reference to a trademark pose the actor, Kon Omura, did in his comedy routines and ads. Since these all aired in ''Japan'' and he is very obscure outside of his home country, most people outside Japan just tend to see the scene as bizarre.
* [[Adults Are Useless]]: Embarrassingly so.
* [[Alien Invasion]]: ''Destroy All Planets'', ''Gamera vs. Zigra'' and ''Gamera: Super Monster''. Subverted in ''Gamera vs. Guiron'' when a pair of kids "invade" an alien planet, forcing Gamera to come and rescue them.
* [[Artistic License Physics]]: Gamera is 60 meters tall, but weighs only ''80 tons''. This mass ratio is ridiculous when compared to other Kaiju, such as [[Godzilla]], who is at least 50 meters and weighs at ''least'' 20,000 tons.
* [[Atlantis]]: Where Gamera comes from. Only briefly implied in the first movie.
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** Even more so with Jiger.
* [[Breath Weapon]]: Gamera breathes flamethrower flames from his mouth, Barugon unleashes a freezing mist from his tongue, Gyaos can spit a sonic beam that slices things like a razor and Jiger spews an "exo-skeletonizing ray."
* [[Captain Ersatz]]: The Xenon/Zanon mothership in ''Gamera: Super Monster'' isn't even a Captain Ersatz of an Imperial Star Destroyer from ''[[Star Wars]]'', it just IS one.
* [[Darker and Edgier]]: The first sequel, ''Gamera vs. Barugon'', didn't feature any children, opting instead for a plot that starts out with three men trying to recover a giant opal (which is actually {{spoiler|Barugon's egg}}) from the New Guinea jungle, and ultimately had some pretty grim material including a graphic death by scorpion sting.
* [[Death by Materialism]]: Onodera in ''Gamera vs. Barugon.''
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** In ''Gamera vs. Viras'', there is a scene where the Virans watch stock footage of Gamera's fights in previous films in order to find out his weakness. Later, they mind-control Gamera and make him destroy things. Nearly all of the footage of Gamera rampaging is taken from the first two films.
** In ''Gamera vs. Guiron'', the space babes probe a kid's mind in order to find out who Gamera is. Stock footage ensues.
** All of ''Gamera: Super Monster'''s fight scenes are taken from the older movies. And unlike ''Godzilla's Revenge'', there aren't any new fights mixed in. The film also manages to incorporate footage from ''[[Space Battleship Yamato]]'' and ''[[Galaxy Express 999]]''. Wait, what?
* [[Swiss Cheese Security]]
* [[Too Dumb to Live]]: Onodera from ''Gamera vs. Barugon.'' That's right: Try and snatch the giant diamond... ''The one explicitly being used as monster bait.''
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* [[Combat Tentacles]]: Iris.
* [[Comic Book Adaptation]]: From [[Dark Horse Comics]] in the mid '90s. Taking place after ''Guardian of the Universe'', it featured Gamera fighting another Gyaos and new versions of Zigra and Viras.
* [[Continuity Reboot]]
* [[Dangerous Forbidden Technique]]: Gamera's Mana Beam. While his most powerful weapon and capable of completely destroying the powerful Legion in one shot, utilizing it drains the Earth's life energy and will result in the Gyaos' numbers skyrocketing to massive levels.
* [[Darker and Edgier]]
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* [[Oh Crap]]: Gamera when Legion gets mad and wields energy whips.
* [[Parental Abandonment]]: It is revealed through a flashback that Ayana's parents were killed in Gamera's final battle with Gyaos in ''Guardian of the Universe''. By the third movie, she swears revenge and ends up releasing Iris.
* [[Red Eyes, Take Warning]]: When Legion gets its head pincers ripped off it gets pissed and uses energy whips.
* [[Sealed Evil in a Can]]: Iris.
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[[Category:Films of the 1970s]]
[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]
[[Category:Film]]
[[Category:Cult Classic]]
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