Godzilla (animated series)

For animated series based on the 1998 TriStar film, see Godzilla: The Series.

Godzilla
Original title card for Godzilla.
Format	Animated television series
Country of origin	Japan United States
No. of episodes	26
Production
Running time	30 minutes
Distributor	Warner Bros. Television Distribution
Broadcast
Original channel	TV Tokyo NBC
Original run	September 9, 1978 (1978-09-09) – May 16, 1981 (1981-05-16)

Godzilla is a 30-minute animated series co-produced between Hanna-Barbera Productions and Toho in 1978 and aired on NBC in the United States and TV Tokyo in Japan.

The series is an animated adaptation of the Japanese Godzilla films produced by Toho. The series continued to air until 1981, for a time airing in its own half-hour timeslot until its cancellation.

Format

The series follows the adventures of a team of scientists on the research vessel called the Calico, which is headed by Captain Carl Majors. The rest of the crew include Dr. Quinn Darien, a female scientist; Brock, her assistant and Carl's first mate; and her teenage nephew Pete. Also along for the ride is Godzuki, the son of Godzilla and Pete's best friend who has a lighthearted role in the show. Godzuki can fly using the small wings under his arms, though his father Godzilla is unable to fly. Whenever Godzuki tries to breathe fire, he just coughs up smoke and he never seems to have the ability to shoot laser beams from his eyes. (He breathed fire once in the episode, "The Beast of Storm Island".) Probably not by coincidence, Pete and Godzuki's relationship is very similar to Pete and Elliot's in the Walt Disney feature film, Pete's Dragon (1977).

The group often call upon Godzilla by using a special communicator when in peril, such as attacks by other giant monsters. If the communicator is not present, or lost, Godzuki uses a special howl to summon him. Godzilla's size in the animated series shifts radically, sometimes within a single episode or even one scene. For instance, Godzilla's claw can wrap around a large ship, and only minutes later the team of scientists fit rather neatly on Godzilla's palm. In addition, Godzilla's trademark atomic breath is altered so he breathes simple fire. He can also shoot laser beams from his eyes much like Superman's heat vision.

Hanna-Barbera was unable to use Godzilla's trademark roar, so they cast Ted Cassidy to voice the character, similar to his role in the live-action series The Incredible Hulk. In Japan, Godzilla's trademark roar was added and replaced the Ted Cassidy sound effects. Godzuki is voiced by Don Messick. (The American remake Godzilla (1998) could not use the trademarked Godzilla roar for legal reasons so they had to call in Frank Welker to create a different, yet similar, sounding roar for their Godzilla monster.)

The basic formula of a scientific team and research vessel in league with Godzilla investigating strange phenomena was revived in another cartoon, Godzilla: The Series, which acts as an animated sequel to the 1998 Godzilla film.

Each episode would include a brief exposition on a scientific instrument or phenomena, thus providing an educational segment for the show.

Voices

• Ted Cassidy - Godzilla
• Jeff David - Captain Carl Majors
• Al Eisenman - Pete
• Hilly Hicks - Brock
• Brenda Thompson - Quinn
• Don Messick - Godzuki

Series monsters and villains

• The Fire Bird (Episode 1)
• The Earth Eater (Episode 2)
• The Stone Creatures (AKA The Guardians of Ramal, Episode 3)
• The Megavolt Monsters (Episode 4)
• The Seaweed Monster (Episode 5)
• The Energy Beast (Episode 6)
• The Colossus of Atlantis (Episode 7)
• The Cyclops Creature (Episode 8)
• The Chimera (Episode 9)
• The Minotaur (Episode 9)
• The Sirens (Morphea is the only one named, Episode 9)
• The Magnetic Monster (Episode 10)
• The Breeder Beast (Episode 11)
• The Watchuka (Episode 12)
• Great Watchuka (Episode 12)
• Diplodocus (Episode 13)
• Carnivorous Plant (Episode 13)
• Time Dragon (Episode 13)
• Godzuki Clone (Episode 14)
• Voltrang's Clone Monster (AKA The Giant Squid, Episode 14)
• Giant Fly (Episode 15)
• Giant Octopus (Episode 16)
• Axor (Episode 17)
• The Power Dragon (Episode 18)
• The Cyborg Whale (Episode 19)
• Magma Lizards (Episode 20)
• Moon Monster (AKA 'Gravity Goliath', Episode 21)
• The Golden Guardians (Episode 22)
• Flying Manta Ray (Episode 23)
• Spider Crab (Episode 23)
• Jellyfish (Episode 23)
• Sea Turtle (Episode 23)
• Tropical Fish (Episode 23)
• Sharks (Episode 23)
• Squids (Episode 23)
• Electric Eels (Episode 23)
• Giant Black Widow (Episode 24)
• Venus Flytrap (Episode 24)
• Ants (Episode 24)
• Giant Beetle (Episode 24)
• Giant Antlion (Episode 24)
• Bees (Episode 24)
• Dragonfly (Episode 24)
• COBRA group (a fictional terrorist group armed with modern weapons technology, not to be confused with the group of the same name from the G.I. Joe franchise) (Episode 25)
• The Ice People of Frios (Episode 26)

Broadcast history

Title card from The Godzilla Power Hour

Godzilla originally aired in the following formats on NBC:

• The Godzilla Power Hour (September 8, 1978 – October 28, 1978)
• The Godzilla Super 90 (November 4, 1978 – September 1, 1979)
• Godzilla (September 8, 1979 – October 13, 1979)
• The Godzilla/Globetrotters Adventure Hour (October 20, 1979 – September 20, 1980)
• The Godzilla/Dynomutt Hour (September 27, 1980 – November 15, 1980)
• The Godzilla/Hong Kong Phooey Hour (November 22, 1980 – May 16, 1981)
• Godzilla (May 23, 1981 – September 5, 1981)

The Godzilla Power Hour consisted of half-hour episodes of Godzilla and Jana of the Jungle. A total of 13 original episodes were produced in 1978, with the first eight airing as part of The Godzilla Power Hour. In November 1978, the show was expanded to 90 minutes with the addition of Jonny Quest reruns and retitled The Godzilla Super 90.

For the second season beginning in September 1979, the show was separated from its package programs and aired in its own half-hour timeslot as simply Godzilla. The original plan was to keep it as part of another 90 minute arc. Only it was to be paired up with episodes of The Shmoo and The Thing. The planned title was Godzilla Meets the Shmoo and The Thing. However these plans dissolved, and the show was simply aired on its own in its own half hour timeslot. Hanna-Barbera would pair episodes of The New Fred and Barney Show with the Shmoo and the Thing instead as Fred and Barney Meet the Shmoo. A month later, new episodes of Godzilla and The Super Globetrotters were packaged together as The Godzilla/Globetrotters Adventure Hour which ran until September 1980.

On September 27, 1980, after 26 half-hour episodes, the show went into reruns and Godzilla was once again teamed up with other Hanna-Barbera characters: The Godzilla/Dynomutt Hour ran until November 1980, followed by The Godzilla/Hong Kong Phooey Hour which ran until May 16, 1981. On May 23, the show returned to the half-hour format as Godzilla and the last regular showing aired on September 5, 1981 (to be replaced by The Smurfs, which would last 3x as long). Throughout the 1980s until the late-1990s, the series rested in limbo (with the exception of a limited videocassette release of two episodes). Since 1993, it has been rebroadcast on TNT, Cartoon Network and Boomerang.

Episodes

Season 1 (1978-1979)

1. "The Fire Bird" (September 9, 1978)
2. "The Earth Eater" (September 16, 1978)
3. "Attack of the Stone Creature" (September 23, 1978)
4. "The Megavolt Monster" (September 30, 1978)
5. "The Seaweed Monster" (October 7, 1978)
6. "The Energy Beast" (October 14, 1978)
7. "The Colossus of Atlantis" (October 21, 1978)
8. "The Horror of Forgotten Island" (October 28, 1978)
9. "Island of Lost Ships" (November 4, 1978)
10. "The Magnetic Terror" (November 11, 1978)
11. "The Breeder Beast" (November 18, 1978)
12. "The Sub-Zero Terror" (November 25, 1978)
13. "The Time Dragons" (December 2, 1978)

Season 2 (1979-1980)

1. "Calico Clones" (September 15, 1979)
2. "Micro Godzilla" (September 22, 1979)
3. "Ghost Ship" (September 29, 1979)
4. "The Beast of Storm Island" (October 6, 1979)
5. "The City in the Clouds" (October 13, 1979)
6. "The Cyborg Whale" (October 20, 1979)
7. "Valley of the Giants" (October 27, 1979)
8. "Moonlode" (November 3, 1979)
9. "The Golden Guardians" (November 10, 1979)
10. "The Macro-Beasts" (November 17, 1979)
11. "Pacific Peril" (November 24, 1979)
12. "Island of Doom" (December 1, 1979)
13. "The Deadly Asteroid" (December 8, 1979)

Production credits

• Executive Producers: William Hanna and Joseph Barbera
• Producer: Doug Wildey
• "Godzilla" was developed for television by: Dick Robbins, Duane Poole
• Creative Producer: Iwao Takamoto

Spoof

• In response to the Y2K hype, a cartoon was made where the crew fought the Y2K Bug (who claims he prefers the name "Millennium Bug"). The Y2K Bug renders their Godzilla caller useless. It is implied that they forgot to "update the embedded computer chips."

• Professor Quinn Darien appeared as Dr. Gale Melody in the Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law episode "Shoyu Weenie" voiced by Grey DeLisle.

DVD release

All 13 Godzilla episodes from the first season have been released on DVD, in 3 separate volumes titled Godzilla The Original Animated Series. Volume 1 contains the first 4 episodes, volume 2 contains the next 4, and volume 3 contains the next 5. As of 9 November, all episodes of season 1 are also streaming on Netflix and available to view on Hulu.

External links

• Godzilla at the Internet Movie Database
• Godzilla at TV.com
• Internet Hanna-Barbera Fashion Database: Godzooky
• tvshowsondvd.com news for Godzilla DVD releases