NAME: 
SpaceGodzilla (スペースゴジラ SupēsuGojira)
FIRST APPEARS IN:
Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla, 1994
DESIGN FEATURES:
– crystallised shoulder pads
– a flamboyantly purple and navy blue exterior
– a shining yellow headpiece
SKILLS:
– a Corona Mouth-Beam with mid-air control
– gravity control
– shooting bolts of energy from his shoulder-crystals
– crystal fortress construction
– a general love of crystals
MONSTER SOUNDS:
Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla (1994) is generally considered one of the worst entries in the Heisei era Godzilla films. Personally, I quite like it, but yes, it’s certainly one of my least favourite Godzilla films of the 90s. (It’s ahead of 1992’s Godzilla vs. Mothra – sorry, Mothra fans.) Still, it’s not the bad film that some make it out to be, and SpaceGodzilla is an enjoyable adversary. His reason for existing is appropriately absurd (he’s formed from Godzilla cells, brought by either Mothra or Biollante, in space, where celestial fission creates the spacey Godzilla clone), and his design – despite its obvious similarities to Godzilla – is excellent (although a definite product of the 90s). You just have to love that purple tint and heartwarming smile.
A grin from SpaceGodzilla
Appearing only once in the Godzilla universe, SpaceGodzilla makes the most of his time on Earth. SpaceGodzilla kidnaps (!!) Godzilla’s son, creating a crystal cage to hold him in. SpaceGodzilla then sets up base in Fukuoka creating a space crystal fortress (that Godzilla will inevitably smash to pieces). A powerful and lumbering force, you can really see the glee SpaceGodzilla gets out of ruining Godzilla’s life. Yes, he is a real bastard, giving him an edge over some of Godzilla’s more down to earth opponents.
Family portrait
SpaceGodzilla is a lot of fun. My only complaint about the big guy is that he is directly responsible for the lack of a ghost Godzilla in the final Heisei entry. From IMDB:
An original idea for this movie had Godzilla fighting the original 1954 Godzilla in ghost form. The project, “Godzilla vs. Ghost Godzilla”, was scrapped because the producers thought Godzilla didn’t need to fight a clone version of himself for three movies in a row, following Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla and Godzilla vs. Space Godzilla. They opted for this idea [Godzilla vs. Destoroyah] instead.
The brilliant poster for Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla
Shit! How amazing would have Ghost Godzilla been?! I’d take that over Destoroyah any day. I suppose I’ll have to satisfy my Godzilla lookalike cravings with Mechagodzilla and SpaceGodzilla. If you’re new to Godzilla films, don’t rush out to see Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla – enjoyable as it is, it’s one of the lesser entries, of both Heisei and Showa eras. If you’re already a fan of SpaceGodzilla and require another fix, I believe he appears in a few console games for the Wii and PS2.
