Gamera
Encyclopedia
| Daiei's Gamera series | |
|---|---|
| Gamera | |
| Species | Giant turtle Turtle Turtles are reptiles of the order Testudines , characterised by a special bony or cartilaginous shell developed from their ribs that acts as a shield... |
| Alias | The Invincible Super Monster The Guardian of the Universe The Brave The Friend of All Children |
| Height | 60–80 metres |
| Weight | c. 5,500 tons |
| Air speed | Mach 3 |
| Origins | Arctic Arctic The Arctic is a region located at the northern-most part of the Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean and parts of Canada, Russia, Greenland, the United States, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. The Arctic region consists of a vast, ice-covered ocean, surrounded by treeless permafrost... (Showa Showa era (daikaiju eiga) In the terminology of daikaiju eiga the Shōwa Era refers not to the actual reign of the Shōwa emperor but to all daikaiju eiga made between 1954 and 1980... ) Atlantis Atlantis Atlantis is a legendary island first mentioned in Plato's dialogues Timaeus and Critias, written about 360 BC.... (Heisei Heisei is the current era name in Japan. The Heisei era started on 8 January 1989, the first day after the death of the reigning Emperor, Hirohito. His son, Akihito, succeeded to the throne... ) Egg Egg (biology) An egg is an organic vessel in which an embryo first begins to develop. In most birds, reptiles, insects, molluscs, fish, and monotremes, an egg is the zygote, resulting from fertilization of the ovum, which is expelled from the body and permitted to develop outside the body until the developing... (Millennium Millennium A millennium is a period of time equal to one thousand years —from the Latin phrase , thousand, and , year—often but not necessarily related numerically to a particular dating system.... ) |
| Major enemies | Barugon Gyaos Gyaos , is the name of several daikaiju from Daiei's Gamera film series, introduced in their 1967 production Gamera vs. Gyaos and one of Gamera's most famous opponents... Viras Guiron Space Gyaos Gyaos , is the name of several daikaiju from Daiei's Gamera film series, introduced in their 1967 production Gamera vs. Gyaos and one of Gamera's most famous opponents... Jiger Zigra Gyaos Gyaos , is the name of several daikaiju from Daiei's Gamera film series, introduced in their 1967 production Gamera vs. Gyaos and one of Gamera's most famous opponents... (Heisei) Super Gyaos Gyaos , is the name of several daikaiju from Daiei's Gamera film series, introduced in their 1967 production Gamera vs. Gyaos and one of Gamera's most famous opponents... Legion Symbiotic Legion Iris Hyper Gyaos Gyaos , is the name of several daikaiju from Daiei's Gamera film series, introduced in their 1967 production Gamera vs. Gyaos and one of Gamera's most famous opponents... Zedus Gyaos Gyaos , is the name of several daikaiju from Daiei's Gamera film series, introduced in their 1967 production Gamera vs. Gyaos and one of Gamera's most famous opponents... (Millennium) |
| Allies | Children of Earth Asagi Kusanagi Toru Aizawa |
| First appearance | Gamera Gamera (film) is a 1965 daikaiju eiga about a giant turtle named Gamera. The film is similar in nature to the popular Godzilla films, and is also the first in a series of films about Gamera... |
| Created by | Yonejiro Saito |
| Portrayed by: | Showa series Teruo Aragaki Umenosuke Izumi Heisei series Naoaki Manabe Jun Suzuki Jun Suzuki Jun Suzuki may refer to:* Jun Suzuki , Japanese football player currently playing for Avispa Fukuoka* Jun Suzuki , former Japanese football player currently coaching Japanese club Omiya Ardija... Akira Ohashi Akira Ohashi is a Japanese actor.-Films:* 1991 - Zeiram * 1994 - Zeiram 2 * 1996 - Gamera 2: Attack of Legion * 1999 - Gamera 3: Awakening of Irys... Hirofumi Fukuzawa Hirofumi Fukuzawa is a Japanese actor. He is an affiliate of Red Action Club and a former affiliate of Japan Action Enterprise. He is most known for his work in the Super Sentai series as a suit actor... Mireniamu series Toshinori Sasaki |
is a giant, flying turtle
Turtle
Turtles are reptiles of the order Testudines , characterised by a special bony or cartilaginous shell developed from their ribs that acts as a shield...
from a popular series of kaiju
Kaiju
is a Japanese word that means "strange beast," but often translated in English as "monster". Specifically, it is used to refer to a genre of tokusatsu entertainment....
(Japanese giant monster) films produced by Daiei Motion Picture Company
Kadokawa Pictures
is a Japanese movie studio.-History:One of the most famous studios in Japan and founded in 1942 as , it is best known for having produced the giant monster Gamera film series and the Daimajin Trilogy. It also produced the Zatoichi and Nemuri Kyoshiro film series and the television series Shōnen Jet...
in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. Created in 1965 to rival the success of Toho Studios' Godzilla
Godzilla
is a daikaijū, a Japanese movie monster, first appearing in Ishirō Honda's 1954 film Godzilla. Since then, Godzilla has gone on to become a worldwide pop culture icon starring in 28 films produced by Toho Co., Ltd. The monster has appeared in numerous other media incarnations including video games,...
during the daikaiju boom of the mid-to-late 1960s, Gamera has gained fame and notoriety as a Japanese icon in his own right.
In the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Gamera attained prominence during the 1970s due to the burgeoning popularity of UHF television stations featuring Saturday afternoon matinee showcases like Creature Double Feature
Creature Double Feature
Creature Double Feature was a syndicated horror show, broadcast in the Boston and Philadelphia area during the 1970s and 1980s. It sometimes also aired under names like Sci-Fi Flix and Creature Feature...
and later in the 1990s when several Gamera films were featured on the television program Mystery Science Theater 3000
Mystery Science Theater 3000
Mystery Science Theater 3000 is an American cult television comedy series created by Joel Hodgson and produced by Best Brains, Inc., that ran from 1988 to 1999....
.
Appearance
Gamera has the general configuration of a turtle, albeit a tremendously large one that is capable of walking on two legs and flying, though he occasionally walks quadrupedally in his first three films. Gamera demonstrates the ability to manipulate objects with his forefeet. He possesses a pronounced sagittal crestSagittal crest
A sagittal crest is a ridge of bone running lengthwise along the midline of the top of the skull of many mammalian and reptilian skulls, among others....
on top of his head and his mouth is filled with teeth, with a pair of large tusks protruding upward from the lower jaws, a precedent unheard of in turtles, save perhaps for the prehistoric turtles Proganochelys
Proganochelys
Proganochelys quenstedti is the second oldest turtle species discovered to date, known only from fossils found in Germany and Thailand in strata from the late Triassic, dating to approximately 210 million years ago...
and Odontochelys
Odontochelys
Odontochelys semitestacea is an extinct turtle species, the oldest known one. It is the only known species in the genus Odontochelys and the family Odontochelyidae. O. semitestacea was first described from three 220 million year-old specimens excavated in Triassic deposits in Guizhou,...
.
Origins
In the Shōwa eraShowa era (daikaiju eiga)
In the terminology of daikaiju eiga the Shōwa Era refers not to the actual reign of the Shōwa emperor but to all daikaiju eiga made between 1954 and 1980...
series Gamera was a titanic, fire-breathing, prehistoric species of tortoise
Tortoise
Tortoises are a family of land-dwelling reptiles of the order of turtles . Like their marine cousins, the sea turtles, tortoises are shielded from predators by a shell. The top part of the shell is the carapace, the underside is the plastron, and the two are connected by the bridge. The tortoise...
who fed on petroleum-based material presumably giving him the ability to breathe fire and fly by "jets" ignited when the monster retracts its legs - it can propel itself by spinning through the air with all 4 legs in and (shown in later films) can fly straight with just the rear legs drawn inside its shell. The original movie begins showing bombers of the U.S.S.R. being intercepted by American fighters over U.S. air space in the arctic (the intrusion may not be intentional). The Soviet pilots refuse to be forced down because of the presence of atomic bombs onboard their aircraft so they attempt to leave the area. However, the fighters launch an attack and one of the bombers crashes into the ice. A nuclear blast ensues as does the release from suspended animation in the ice of a 200 foot long turtle. The incident unfolds over the heads of a Japanese research team who have stumbled upon an Eskimo tribe in possession of an artifact, an ancient stone etching, that suggests the giant turtle (maybe more than one) had been observed and duly noted at some earlier time in mankind's history. The moniker "Gamera" has already been given to the beast as the tribal chief relates to the researchers. The body of the film gives the impression that Gamera is a creature whose unusual adaptions must have somehow evolved in the latter part of Earth's early ammoniac, carbon-dioxidal atmosphere.
In the Heisei era
Heisei era (daikaiju eiga)
In the context of Japanese monster cinema the Heisei Era refers not to the current era in Japan but to all kaiju eiga made between 1984 and 1999...
series, however, the origin of Gamera was tweaked to make the theme much more directly heroic: a bio-engineered Guardian of the Universe created by Atlantis with the purpose of defeating Gyaos
Gyaos
, is the name of several daikaiju from Daiei's Gamera film series, introduced in their 1967 production Gamera vs. Gyaos and one of Gamera's most famous opponents...
, another ancient creation capable of killing all human life. The giant turtle is found floating adrift in the Pacific
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
, encased in rock and mistaken for an atoll. Within the rock, investigators discover a large monolith explaining Gamera's purpose, as well as dozens of magatama
Magatama
Magatama , are curved beads which first appeared in Japan during the Jōmon period.They are often found inhumed in mounded tumulus graves as offerings to deities . They continued to be popular with the ruling elites throughout the Kofun Period of Japan, and are often romanticised as indicative of...
, which allow a psychic link between Gamera and humans. In the third film of the series, an undersea graveyard is found with many other Gamera fossils, suggesting Gamera was not the only member of his kind created. One character in the film refers to these fossils as "beta versions" of Gamera, possible failures in Atlantis' attempts to create the final version. Another scene provides Gamera with a link to Asian folklore, with a character relating a story in which a giant tortoise is considered the Guardian of the North, with separate, rival creatures defending the East, West
White Tiger (Chinese constellation)
The White Tiger is one of the Four Symbols of the Chinese constellations. It is sometimes called the White Tiger of the West , and is known as Baihu in Chinese, Byakko in Japanese, Baekho in Korean and Bạch Hổ in Vietnamese...
and South.
Gamera's continuity was rebooted again in the only film of the Millennium era
Mireniamu era (daikaiju eiga)
In the terminology of daikaiju eiga the Millennium Era refers not to the third millennium but to all daikaiju eiga made since 1999, beginning with Toho's Godzilla 2000, which was jump-started in response to the America Godzilla film. The most recent film of the era is Daiei's Gamera the Brave...
. The film begins with the original Gamera sacrificing himself to destroy several Gyaos
Gyaos
, is the name of several daikaiju from Daiei's Gamera film series, introduced in their 1967 production Gamera vs. Gyaos and one of Gamera's most famous opponents...
in 1973. 33 years later, a young boy finds a strange, glowing red rock near his home, with a small egg lying on top of it. A fairly normal looking baby tortoise soon hatches from the egg, but begins to grow at an alarming rate. The turtle, now named "Toto" by his preadolescent owner, quickly develops Gamera's classic abilities to breathe fire and fly, and attempts to ward off another attacking monster, Zedus, but is too weak to succeed. Only after eating the glowing rock found with his egg does the new Gamera achieve his full power, defeating Zedus and flying off into the sky.
Capabilities
Gamera's shell is extremely resilient and strong. Missiles and other weaponry merely bounce off it, along with most of his opponents' attacks. There have been a few times where his shell has faltered, most notably when the alien Guiron hammered at the same spot several times and began cutting through. The flying monster GyaosGyaos
, is the name of several daikaiju from Daiei's Gamera film series, introduced in their 1967 production Gamera vs. Gyaos and one of Gamera's most famous opponents...
' sonic beam, the alien shark Zigra's paralyzing beam, and the mutant lizard Barugon's rainbow ray cannot penetrate Gamera's shell, shown in the films when he withdraws into his shell to avoid the attacks. Gamera's underbelly, however, is softer and not as resilient, and he has been cut and gouged in his stomach to the point of bleeding.
In the Showa series, Gamera fed on fire and was attracted by other heat sources, such as power plants and Barugon's rainbow ray attack. He could breathe intensely hot streams of flames from his mouth when caught in a more serious situation. The Heisei version, on the other hand, could blast off mighty plasma fireballs from his mouth, usually very quickly, and with varying accuracy; they were highly explosive. The Heisei version could also absorb a great deal of mana
Mana
Mana is an indigenous Pacific islander concept of an impersonal force or quality that resides in people, animals, and inanimate objects. The word is a cognate in many Oceanic languages, including Melanesian, Polynesian, and Micronesian....
, or the living essence and energy of life on Earth, and release an extremely powerful stream of pure plasma from his chest. In the final film of the Heisei series, Gamera blasted his own arm off and absorbed plasma fireballs shot by the mutant Gyaos Iris and used his stump to grow back his arm in a plasmic form.
Gamera also has the ability to fly. Generally, Gamera pulls in his arms, legs, head, and tail into his shell, fires flames out of his arm and leg cavities and spins around like a flying saucer. This mode of flight had an added advantage in the later films, where he used the sharp edges of his shell to cut enemies while spinning, similar to a circular saw. He has a second way of flying, where he only pulls in his legs and/or tail, fires flames from the leg cavities, and flies like a jet. In the Heisei era films, Gamera's arms would extend and stretch out into wings similar to the flippers of a sea turtle whilst using this form of flight, giving him added aerodynamics and control.
The Heisei films gave Gamera one more additional weapon: a pair of sharp spikes protruding from his elbows. In his first Heisei appearance, these spikes were hidden during the majority of the film, extending only when needed in battle. In later appearances they were permanently extended.
When seriously or gravely injured, Gamera can enter a coma-like state in order to heal. This often fools his opponents into thinking that he is dead. This ability has been used in almost every Gamera film.
Gamera's only major weakness is cold. Barugon was able to achieve success against Gamera using his freezing spray, and scientists nearly defeated Gamera during his first appearance using special freezing bombs. This weakness was only shown in Gamera's earliest films.
Showa series
Gamera made his first appearance in 1965's GameraGamera (film)
is a 1965 daikaiju eiga about a giant turtle named Gamera. The film is similar in nature to the popular Godzilla films, and is also the first in a series of films about Gamera...
, which was also the only Gamera film to be in black-and-white. In 1966 the movie was reedited and recut and released in America as Gammera the Invincible. Subsequent films, usually directed by Noriaki Yuasa
Noriaki Yuasa
was a Japanese director, most notable for his involvement in the Gamera film series. Yuasa was a special guest at G-Fest in 1999, 2000, and 2003, and was the recipient of the Mangled Skyscraper Award at the latter. He died on June 14, 2004 after suffering a stroke.-Directing Credits:* Shiawasa nara...
and written by Nisan Takahashi, quickly became a big hit with children, who loved watching Gamera fight monsters. A seventh sequel was slated for a 1972 release, tentatively titled Gamera vs. Garasharp. Gross mismanagement of Daiei, however, put the company into bankruptcy
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
, and the Gamera films were forced to cease production.
After Daiei was purchased by Tokuma Shoten
Tokuma Shoten
is a publisher in Japan, that was established in 1954.The company was also the parent company for the film studio Daiei Motion Pictures, bought in 1974, and the record label Tokuma Japan Communications, bought in 1972, until both were sold off when Yasuyoshi Tokuma, who established this company,...
in 1974, the new management wanted to do a new Gamera film in 1980, so Gamera: Super Monster
Gamera: Super Monster
, a 1980 kaiju film, was the belated final entry in the Shōwa Gamera series, and the last Gamera film written by Nisan Takahashi and directed by Noriaki Yuasa. It relied heavily on stock footage from previous Gamera films. This movie was made when Daiei was brought out of bankruptcy by the Tokuma...
was produced. The majority of the film used stock footage
Stock footage
Stock footage, and similarly, archive footage, library pictures and file footage are film or video footage that may or may not be custom shot for use in a specific film or television program. Stock footage is of beneficial use to filmmakers as it is sometimes less expensive than shooting new...
(with limited new scenes of Gamera flying), and acted as a "recap" of Gamera's history. However, Yuasa and Takahashi felt that they had done all they could with the monster, so they respectfully killed off Gamera at the end of the film.
Heisei series
This series began with Gamera: Guardian of the UniverseGamera: Guardian of the Universe
, is a 1995 Kaiju film directed by Shusuke Kaneko. It is a reboot of the Gamera film franchise. It is the ninth entry in the Gamera film series and first in Shusuke Kaneko's Gamera trilogy. It was followed by Attack of The Legion and Revenge of Iris....
.
During the course of the first film, three Gyaos
Gyaos
, is the name of several daikaiju from Daiei's Gamera film series, introduced in their 1967 production Gamera vs. Gyaos and one of Gamera's most famous opponents...
are discovered on a remote island. The Japanese government discovers that they are all female, and decides that since they are the last of their kind, they should be captured and studied. So a trap is set for them. Meanwhile, a search has been assembled for a moving atoll in the Pacific. They find it, staying still and search the surface, finding many small gems made of an unknown metal. They also discover a stone sticking up out of the center of it, and they attempt to dig it out. They manage to take pictures and collect some of the strange gems, but the stone crumbles and the atoll takes off towards Japan at high speeds. It ends up that the atoll is actually an ancient monster, made by the Atlanteans, called Gamera. He attacks the Gyaos, killing two, but one escapes. It feasts on the other newly born Gyaos and grows to Gamera-like proportions. The two battle and Gamera manages to defeat it, heading back to the seas.
In Gamera 2: Advent of Legion, Earth was attacked by an alien force known as the Legion.
In Gamera 3: Awakening of Irys
Gamera 3: Awakening of Irys
is a 1999 Kaiju film. It is the third and last film in the Gamera Heisei series, and the last to be distributed by Toho. It was released in the United States on DVD in 2003 under the title Gamera: Revenge of Iris.-Plot:...
, Gamera had to face hordes of Gyaos and his ultimate foe, Iris.
Millennium series
Gamera the BraveGamera the Brave
Gamera the Brave, released in Japan as , is a kaiju film released in 2006, produced by Kadokawa Pictures. This is the 12th and final Gamera film and the first produced by Kadokawa Pictures after they purchased a percentage of the remaining assets of Daiei Motion Picture Company, the original...
returns Gamera to his Showa roots, but with a modern twist. In the film, Gamera is first seen defending Japan back in the 1970s from the Gyaos, but sacrifices himself to destroy them by self-destructing. In the present, the child of a man who witnessed that battle finds a turtle egg that hatches into a baby Gamera that he names Toto. When a giant lizard monster named Zedus appears, Toto tries to fight the beast, but ends up being gravely wounded and taken by the military for study. He ends up escaping and growing to a larger size to try and fight Zedus again, this time succeeding against the monster.
Films
- GameraGamera (film)is a 1965 daikaiju eiga about a giant turtle named Gamera. The film is similar in nature to the popular Godzilla films, and is also the first in a series of films about Gamera...
(1965) - Gamera vs. BarugonGamera vs. Barugonis a 1966 daikaiju eiga featuring the giant turtle Gamera produced and distributed by Daiei Motion Picture Company. The film is the second to feature Gamera. Gamera vs. Barugon was released in the United States by AIP-TV as War of the Monsters, and then later by Sandy Frank as Gamera vs. Barugon...
(1966) - Gamera vs. GyaosGamera vs. Gyaosis a 1967 daikaiju eiga featuring the giant turtle Gamera by the Daiei Motion Picture Company. Gamera vs. Gyaos was released in the United States by AIP-TV as Return of the Giant Monsters, and later by Sandy Frank as Gamera vs. Gaos...
(1967) - Gamera vs. VirasGamera vs. Virasis the fourth entry in the original Gamera film series.-Plot:A deadly alien force approaches earth. Gamera intervenes and destroys the alien vessel; but before the ship is destroyed, the aliens broadcast a warning to their world stating Gamera as their enemy....
(1968) - Gamera vs. GuironGamera vs. Guiron, is a 1969 kaiju film, the fifth entry in the original Gamera series. It was one of five Gamera films to be featured as episodes of movie-mocking television show Mystery Science Theater 3000.-Plot:...
(1969) - Gamera vs. JigerGamera vs. Jigeris a 1970 kaiju film by the Daiei Motion Picture Company. It is the sixth entry in the original Gamera series.-Plot:In Gamera vs. Jiger, Gamera has his hands full right from the very beginning. Japan is preparing for the 1970 World's Fair, to be held in Osaka. Construction of the various buildings...
(1970) - Gamera vs. ZigraGamera vs. Zigrais a 1971 kaiju film starring Gamera created by Daiei Motion Picture Company. Unlike previous Gamera sequels, Gamera vs. Zigra was not released by AIP-TV. Sandy Frank released the film to television and home video in the 1980s. It is one of five Gamera films featured on Mystery Science Theater...
(1971) - Gamera: Super MonsterGamera: Super Monster, a 1980 kaiju film, was the belated final entry in the Shōwa Gamera series, and the last Gamera film written by Nisan Takahashi and directed by Noriaki Yuasa. It relied heavily on stock footage from previous Gamera films. This movie was made when Daiei was brought out of bankruptcy by the Tokuma...
(1980) - Gamera: Guardian of the UniverseGamera: Guardian of the Universe, is a 1995 Kaiju film directed by Shusuke Kaneko. It is a reboot of the Gamera film franchise. It is the ninth entry in the Gamera film series and first in Shusuke Kaneko's Gamera trilogy. It was followed by Attack of The Legion and Revenge of Iris....
(1995) - Gamera 2: Attack of LegionGamera 2: Attack of Legionis a 1996 Kaiju film directed by Shusuke Kaneko. It is a sequel to Gamera: Guardian of the Universe and the tenth Gamera film in the series.-Plot:...
(1996) - Gamera 3: Awakening of IrysGamera 3: Awakening of Irysis a 1999 Kaiju film. It is the third and last film in the Gamera Heisei series, and the last to be distributed by Toho. It was released in the United States on DVD in 2003 under the title Gamera: Revenge of Iris.-Plot:...
(1999) - Gamera the BraveGamera the BraveGamera the Brave, released in Japan as , is a kaiju film released in 2006, produced by Kadokawa Pictures. This is the 12th and final Gamera film and the first produced by Kadokawa Pictures after they purchased a percentage of the remaining assets of Daiei Motion Picture Company, the original...
(2006)
DVD
In 2010, Shout! FactoryShout! Factory
Shout! Factory is an entertainment company founded in 2003 that was started by Richard Foos , Bob Emmer and Garson Foos initially as a specialty music label...
acquired the rights from Kadokawa Pictures for all eight of the Showa Gamera films to release the uncut, Japanese versions on DVD for the first time ever in North America. These "Special Edition" DVDs were released in sequential order, starting with Gamera: The Giant Monster
Gamera (film)
is a 1965 daikaiju eiga about a giant turtle named Gamera. The film is similar in nature to the popular Godzilla films, and is also the first in a series of films about Gamera...
on May 18, 2010, followed by Gamera vs. Barugon
Gamera vs. Barugon
is a 1966 daikaiju eiga featuring the giant turtle Gamera produced and distributed by Daiei Motion Picture Company. The film is the second to feature Gamera. Gamera vs. Barugon was released in the United States by AIP-TV as War of the Monsters, and then later by Sandy Frank as Gamera vs. Barugon...
and two double-features: Gamera vs. Gyaos
Gamera vs. Gyaos
is a 1967 daikaiju eiga featuring the giant turtle Gamera by the Daiei Motion Picture Company. Gamera vs. Gyaos was released in the United States by AIP-TV as Return of the Giant Monsters, and later by Sandy Frank as Gamera vs. Gaos...
/Gamera vs. Viras
Gamera vs. Viras
is the fourth entry in the original Gamera film series.-Plot:A deadly alien force approaches earth. Gamera intervenes and destroys the alien vessel; but before the ship is destroyed, the aliens broadcast a warning to their world stating Gamera as their enemy....
and Gamera vs. Guiron
Gamera vs. Guiron
, is a 1969 kaiju film, the fifth entry in the original Gamera series. It was one of five Gamera films to be featured as episodes of movie-mocking television show Mystery Science Theater 3000.-Plot:...
/Gamera vs. Jiger
Gamera vs. Jiger
is a 1970 kaiju film by the Daiei Motion Picture Company. It is the sixth entry in the original Gamera series.-Plot:In Gamera vs. Jiger, Gamera has his hands full right from the very beginning. Japan is preparing for the 1970 World's Fair, to be held in Osaka. Construction of the various buildings...
. On March 15, 2011 Shout! Factory released the last of the series in a double feature of Gamera vs. Zigra
Gamera vs. Zigra
is a 1971 kaiju film starring Gamera created by Daiei Motion Picture Company. Unlike previous Gamera sequels, Gamera vs. Zigra was not released by AIP-TV. Sandy Frank released the film to television and home video in the 1980s. It is one of five Gamera films featured on Mystery Science Theater...
/ Gamera: Super Monster
Gamera: Super Monster
, a 1980 kaiju film, was the belated final entry in the Shōwa Gamera series, and the last Gamera film written by Nisan Takahashi and directed by Noriaki Yuasa. It relied heavily on stock footage from previous Gamera films. This movie was made when Daiei was brought out of bankruptcy by the Tokuma...
. Shout Factory later released MST3K vs. Gamera, a special twenty-first volume of Mystery Science Theater 3000
Mystery Science Theater 3000
Mystery Science Theater 3000 is an American cult television comedy series created by Joel Hodgson and produced by Best Brains, Inc., that ran from 1988 to 1999....
episodes featuring all five Gamera movies from the show's third season. The first three films of the Heisei trilogy are set to be re-released on Blu-ray from Mill Creek Entertainment for a September 27, 2011 release.
Comic books
Dark Horse ComicsDark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent American comic book and manga publisher.Dark Horse Comics was founded in 1986 by Mike Richardson in Milwaukie, Oregon, with the concept of establishing an ideal atmosphere for creative professionals. Richardson started out by opening his first comic book...
published a 4 issue miniseries based on Gamera called Gamera The Guardian of the Universe in 1996.
Science
The University of Maryland Gamera Human Powered HelicopterUniversity of Maryland Gamera Human Powered Helicopter
|-See also:right|thumb|The 1907 Breguet Gyroplane with a quad rotor design-External links:***...
took its name from Gamera. Since the University mascot is a Diamondback Terrapin, the craft would be a flying turtle.
In July 2011 Washington State University Veterinarians successfully fixed a prosthetic hardware store caster onto a African spur-thighed tortoise named Gamera who was a single amputee.