NAME: 
King Kong (キングコング Kingu Kongu)
FIRST APPEARS IN:
King Kong vs. Godzilla, 1962
DESIGN FEATURES:
– permanently delighted expression
– ratty costume hire exterior
– managing to look dustier than his counterpart of three decades prior
SKILLS AND QUIRKS:
– murdering Gorosaurus
– being charged by electricity
– enjoying a gentle balloon ride
– being a pawn in military plans
– beating the snot out of Godzilla
– sliding down hills with great comic timing
MONSTER SOUNDS:
I’ve said it before on Mondo Exploito, King Kong vs. Godzilla is not my favourite Godzilla film. But it is a lot of fun. The main reason for that fun is the titular King Kong, or, more accurately, Kingu Kongu. Kingu Kongu is not the King Kong we know and love from the masterful ’33 original. No, Kingu Kongu is a little bit more… well… just look at him…
Toho’s incarnation of King Kong could well be their funniest and dodgiest monster design. Kingu Kongu looks absurd. His face is permanently frozen with a look of utter delight whether he be fighting a giant octopus or being transported via balloons by the Japanese military. Yes, King Kong being transported by balloons actually happens, and yes, it’s fucking amazing.
King Kong vs. Godzilla is a monumental film for both monster franchises. It was the first time both characters were featured in colour. It was an enormous hit and allowed Godzilla to flourish into the incredible money earner he is now. If these two had not been pitted against each other, we would likely only have two Godzilla films instead of twenty-eight (and I’m only talking Toho efforts).
Though King Kong vs. Godzilla was a huge commercial hit, Kingu Kongu would only make a singular theatrical followup appearance in King Kong Escapes (1967). King Kong Escapes is not a sequel to King Kong vs. Godzilla. Instead, rather oddly, it’s an adaptation of a cartoon show, The King Kong Show. King Kong Escapes is enjoyable enough. Its highlight by far is Kingu Kongu’s horrendous annihilation of Gorosaurus.
The Kingu Kongu suit would be dredged up from the Toho dungeons one last time in the 70s for Go! Greenman, a tokusatsu television program. Kingu Kongu, due to a copyright issue, was given the very creative new name of “Gorilla” and became the punching bag of the heroic Greenman in episode 38.
King Kong works better as a stop-motion creation rather than a man in a suit, or at least the suit Toho used. But there’s a charm to Toho’s Kingu Kongu that is undeniable. It’s hard not to take some pleasure from that frozen expression of joy on his mangy face.
