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Thursday, May 15, 2014

Top 5 Godzilla Villains - Number 3

Written by Stu Cooper

We are in the midst of the most villainous countdown in monster history. Today we discuss the number 3 entry in the Top 5 Godzilla Villains countdown. Today's entry is actually the least villainous monster in the countdown, but I still consider this monster a villain. This creature originally started as a nemesis and eventually became an ally, much like Rodan or Anguirus. So clean out your linens and turn off your porch lights, for the number 3 entry I chose...MOTHRA!

Starring in a whopping 13 monster movies, Mothra is staple in the sci-fi monster community. Mothra made her debut in 1961 in the film "Mothra" (modeled after a serialized story written in Japan) in which she was a giant moth like monster that was worshipped on an island as a deity. After making her debut in a solo film, Mothra became quite recognizable and people we're interested. This led to the Godzilla vs. Mothra film which is considered by many to be one of the best Godzilla films. The story in that film revolves around Mothra laying an egg which humans try to take, then Godzilla shows up and battles Mothra. Mothra fails to defeat Godzilla but her two children are born and they battle Godzilla in larva form. It's an incredibly entertaining film and shows off what an interesting monster Mothra is. It also introduces you to the now famous Mothra twins. The Mothra twins are two tiny women who have some kind of psychic link with Mothra. They often sing to Mothra in order to wake her up or give her a command. It's very odd.

After the original Godzilla vs. Mothra, Mothra would go on to be in almost every other Godzilla film. Usually Mothra would show up to help Godzilla but there are a few occasions where Mothra remains neutral. She would go on to appear in several awesome Godzilla flicks including another film devoted to just Her vs. Godzilla, which is also another excellent film. If you're a fan of Mothra then there are plenty of opportunities to see her in battle. She was so popular in Japan that TOHO actually gave her a series of her own called "Rebirth of Mothra". Unfortunately I have not seen that trilogy because they always looked a bit too weird to me, but I'm sure I will give them a chance eventually. I know part 3 in the series features Ghidorah, so it can't be that bad.

Mothra would also appear in several video games including the original NES game, Gameboy game, both SNES and Famicom games, all of the monster battle games, and the list goes on. It's pretty safe to say Mothra ranks among the most successful and popular Godzilla creations. I know technically Mothra is not a villain, but she provided some of the best fights against Godzilla and is one of the few monsters to put Godzilla in his place. Technically BATTRA would be the evil Mothra but with such a small role in only one film, I couldn't really consider Battra to be one of the best. Even tho she is essentially just a giant butterfly/moth, Mothra sports some pretty dangerous moves including the ability to cocoon Godzilla, use some type of pixie dust, wing attacks, and she has no issues picking up Godzilla by the tail and dragging him around. We may not have seen the last of Mothra. It's rumored that the new film features some kind of Mothra related Easter Egg, tho I'm told the flying monster in the trailer has nothing to do with it sadly. I guess time will tell. We may hear those goofy little women sing again someday.

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