In 1954, a massive irradiated dinosaur emerged from Tokyo Bay and rained death and destruction on the Japanese capital. Since then Godzilla and other monsters, such as Mothra and Gamera, have gained cult status around the world. This book provides a new interpretation of these monsters, or kaiju-ū, and their respective movies. Analyzing Japanese history, society and film, the authors show the ways in which this monster cinema take on environmental and ecological issues--from nuclear power and industrial pollution to biodiversity and climate change.

Bigger, badder, and more durable than Hollywood's greatest action heroes, Godzilla emerged from the mushroom cloud of an H-bomb test in 1954 to trample Tokyo. More than 40 years later, he reigns as the undisputed monarch of movie monsters, with legions of fans spanning several generations and countless international boundaries.

Nessie. Bride of Godzilla. Gamera vs. Wyvern. Mothra vs. Bagan. Batman Meets Godzilla. All fans have heard of these tantalizing lost films, but few know of their full histories...until now. With information straight from the Japanese sources learn how Gamera was made in 1965 to make use of miniature sets made for a disastrous movie about giant rats called Giant Horde Beast Nezura which was partially shot in 1963. Marvel at a blind Godzilla's battle with the invisible monster Chamelegon in Tokyo S.O.S.: Godzilla's Suicide Strategy! Watch in amazement as Godzilla and Kong battle in the flames of Mt. Aso in Continuation: King Kong vs. Godzilla! Explore the tortured history of the Toho/Hammer team-up Nessie about a kaiju-sized Loch Ness Monster. Recoil in horror at the sights of Great Prophecies of Nostradamus, a 1974 film so controversial that a self-imposed ban was placed on it by Toho. Baffle at Hanuman, the monkey monster of Thailand's Chaiyo Studios which teamed with Ultraman and his brethren in 6 Ultra Brothers vs. the Monster Army. Puzzle over a psychedelic Italian colorized version of Godzilla, King of the Monsters! code-named "Cozzilla." Then uncover the $100,000 fan made epic Legendary Beast Wolfman vs. Godzilla! But that's not all-this book also contains essays by kaiju fan experts such as Dr. Ayame Chiba, Stan Hyde, Mark Jaramillo and Ted Johnson on subjects as diverse as unmade Kong films to heretofore unknown independent films like Atragon 2 and Wanigon vs. Gamaron!

During the 2010s, science fiction's immortal adversaries King Kong and Godzilla, representing our conflicts per Carl Sagan's "dream dragons" analogy, made comebacks in American cinema. The blockbuster Kaiju resurged onto the screen, depicting these protectors of an Earth plagued by mankind's hubris and folly. With Earth's future hanging in the balance, their climactic 2021 staging settled a score between the two giant monsters, resolving Toho's classic 1963 film King Kong vs. Godzilla. As formidable creatures emerging from Time's Tomb on Mother Earth, metaphorical Kong and Godzilla are considered here in light of new millennial environmentalism's stark reality. This book, nostalgic in tone, explores the meaning of Kong and Godzilla as planetary saviors--titanic protectors of a theoretical "living Earth" Gaia--defending the globe from a prehistoric plague of adversaries.

Monsters, ghosts, fantastic beings, and supernatural phenomena of all sorts haunt the folklore and popular culture of Japan. Broadly labeled yokai, these creatures come in infinite shapes and sizes, from tengu mountain goblins and kappa water spirits to shape-shifting foxes and long-tongued ceiling-lickers. Currently popular in anime, manga, film, and computer games, many yokai originated in local legends, folktales, and regional ghost stories. Drawing on years of research in Japan, Michael Dylan Foster unpacks the history and cultural context of yokai, tracing their roots, interpreting their meanings, and introducing people who have hunted them through the ages. In this delightful and accessible narrative, readers will explore the roles played by these mysterious beings within Japanese culture and will also learn of their abundance and variety through detailed entries, some with original illustrations, on more than fifty individual creatures. The Book of Yokai provides a lively excursion into Japanese folklore and its ever-expanding influence on global popular culture. It also invites readers to examine how people create, transmit, and collect folklore, and how they make sense of the mysteries in the world around them. By exploring yokai as a concept, we can better understand broader processes of tradition, innovation, storytelling, and individual and communal creativity. Ê

This collection of Japanese fairy tales is the outcome of a suggestion made to me indirectly through a friend by Mr. Andrew Lang. They have been translated from the modern version written by Sadanami Sanjin. These stories are not literal translations, and though the Japanese story and all quaint Japanese expressions have been faithfully preserved, they have been told more with the view to interest young readers of the West than the technical student of folk-lore.... In telling these stories in English I have followed my fancy in adding such touches of local color or description as they seemed to need or as pleased me, and in one or two instances I have gathered in an incident from another version. At all times, among my friends, both young and old, English or American, I have always found eager listeners to the beautiful legends and fairy tales of Japan, and in telling them I have also found that they were still unknown to the vast majority...

This is a smart and succinct guide to the rich tradition of Japanese mythology, from the earliest recorded legends of Izanagi and Izanami, their divine offspring and the creation of Japan, to medieval tales of vengeful ghosts, through to the modern-day reincarnation of ancient deities as the heroes of mecha anime. While many around the world love Japans cultural exports, few are familiar with Japans unique mythology - enriched by Shinto, Buddhism and regional folklore. Mythology remains a living, evolving part of Japanese society, and the ways in which the people of Japan understand their myths are very different today even from a century ago, let alone over a millennium into the past. Offering much more than any competing overview of Japanese mythology, The Japanese Myths not only retells the ancient stories but also considers their place within the patterns of Japanese religions, culture and history, helping readers to understand the deep links between past and present in Japan, and the ways these myths live and grow. Joshua Frydman takes the very earliest written myths in the Kojiki and the Nihonshoki as his starting point, and from there traces Japans mythology through to post-war State Shinto, the rise of the manga industry in the 1960s, J-horror and modern-day myths. Reinventions and retellings of myth are present across all genres of contemporary Japanese culture, from its auteur cinema to renowned video games such as Okami. This book is for anyone interested in Japan, as knowing its myths allows readers to understand and appreciate its culture in a new light.

Norman England's gutsy and insightful stories will do more than just entertain. This is the first and only book in English to take you on a deep dive into the Japanese film industry. You will join well-known directors, cast, and staff for tales of backroom set dealings. The author's own unlikely story starts with joining the Japanese crew on a George Romero-directed TV commercial shot in Los Angeles. Afterward, in Tokyo, Norman England learns to navigate the sets of giant monster icons Gamera and Godzilla. The book concludes with the premiere of Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack. This diary from the front lines is essential reading for Japanese cinema enthusiasts and filmmakers everywhere.

A goblin with no body and a monster with no face. A resourceful samurai and a faithful daughter. A spirit of the moon and a dragon king. This collection of 15 traditional Japanese folktales transports readers to a time of adventure and enchantment. Drawn from the works of folklorists Lafcadio Hearn and Yei Theodora Ozaki, these tales are by turns terrifying, exhilarating, and poetic. • Striking illustrations by contemporary Japanese artist Kotaro Chiba • Special gift edition features an embossed, textured case with metallic gold ink, and a satin ribbon page marker • Part of the popular Tales series, featuring Nordic Tales, Celtic Tales, Tales of India, and Tales of East Africa Fans of Ghostly Tales, and Japanese Notebooks will love this book. This book is ideal for: • Fans of fairytales, folklore, ghost stories, Greek mythology, roman mythology, Chinese mythology, and Celtic mythology • Anyone interested in Japan's history books and culture studies • People of Japanese heritage • Collectors of illustrated classics