NAME: 
Jiraiya (自雷也)
FIRST APPEARS IN:
The Magic Serpent, 1966
DESIGN FEATURES:
– nose-horn
– bubble-pocked toad-like exterior
– gammy, green and orange eyes
– a gaping canyon of a maw
– a spiky butt
SKILLS AND QUIRKS:
– transforming from handsome human form to hideous toad form
– fire breathing
– annihilating castles
– yeah… that’s kind of it
MONSTER SOUNDS:
Okay. This is a weird one. I struggled to even choose what to title this article. You see Jiraiya, played by Hiroki Matsukata (who will perhaps be better known to western audiences from his role in Takashi Miike’s remake of 13 Assassins), spends most of The Magic Serpent‘s running time in handsome heroic human form. His name isn’t even Jiraiya. He’s the son of Lord Ogata and has taken on the Jiraiya pseudonym because… um… it’s a cool name… at least according to the film’s jealous antagonist, the evil Orochimaru (Ryūtarō Ōtomo). But in the final moments of The Magic Serpent, Jiraiya, rather unexpectedly, turns into this…
To make things more confusing, he also, at one point, has an odd out of body experience with his semi-transparent human form standing on top of the above monster, but yes, that giant horned toad-like thing is Jiraiya.
The Magic Serpent is a tasty mixed grill of 60s Japanese cinema. At its core, it’s a tale of revenge with Jiraiya battling those who took his parents’ lives. Mix magic-fueled martial arts and a handful of kaijū into that pot of vengeance and you’ve got yourself something fabulously out of control.
The Magic Serpent‘s Japanese title is The Mystic Dragons’ Decisive Battle. Not only does its original title sound way better, it’s also more appropriate being that the film ends with a battle between three giant monsters. Jiraiya transforms into his horny toad form, the film’s villain becomes a water-spewing sea serpent, and the film’s love interest becomes a giant spider, giving the serpent a facial of jizzy web while Jiraiya fries him.
Out of the three kaijū, Jiraiya’s megatoad is by far my favourite. Weirdly enough, he brings to mind Gamakujiru, Ultraman’s lamest foe, in his design. Only Jiraiya works far better. His gaping mouth, bubble-smeared body, and soulless eyes all suggest something a villain would more likely turn into, but his foulness only adds to his charm.
The Magic Serpent is amazing stuff. Don’t go in expecting a flat out kaijū brawl though. Most of the film focuses on magic-fuelled battles between Jiraiya and his rival in martial arts sorcery. There’s relentless fighting, ninjas who use spinning wall partitions as hypnoses devices, a cackling villain riding a mass of lighting, and a decapitated head that floats free from its body. Chances are if you’re a Mondo Exploito reader, you’re gonna dig it.
