History Main / Kaiju

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%% This page has been alphabetized. Please add new examples in the correct order. Thanks!

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[[quoteright:180:[[Film/Godzilla1954 https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Gojira_poster.jpg]]]]
[[caption-width-right:180:[[Music/BlueOysterCult Oh no, there goes Tokyo.]] [[TheTokyoFireball Again.]]]]

!!Examples with Sub-Pages:

!!Examples without Sub-Pages:

* ''Series/TheLordOfTheRingsTheRingsOfPower'': The Balrog of Moria, much like in the trilogy.

* Ted from ''WesternAnimation/MonstersInc'' is a monster so large that a GentleGiant like Sulley, who is about 7'6" according to supplementary materials, only comes up to half Ted's leg. While arguing with Mike about walking to work, Sulley cites Ted as someone who's willing to walk to work, but Mike says it's no big deal for Ted; he's so big he could take five steps and arrive.

Skyscraper-sized monsters that assault {{Tokyo|IsTheCenterOfTheUniverse}} (though other cities like UsefulNotes/SanFrancisco and UsefulNotes/HongKong are also popular choices lately), hapless island explorers, or each other are called ''Kaiju'' (怪獣).[[note]]literally translated, "strange creature"; the more accurate name for these things would be ''Daikaiju'', "great strange creature"[[/note]] Although they have no ''specific'' form even in their own mythology, by Japanese standards they are traditionally monstrous, scaly water elementals of [[AttackOfThe50FootWhatever about 50 feet and taller]] that commonly though not universally resemble dinosaurs (due to those being the largest known land vertebrates in real life).

** Another is the much [[OvershadowedByControversy controversial]] ''Bruhathkayosaurus''. Due to the only fossil material ever found of this sauropod being destroyed by a monsoon shortly after being found in the 1980s (with only a crude sketch confirming they ever existed), debate raged for years as to whether this dinosaur was just misidentified petrified wood or completely faked by its discoverers until the discovery of archived photographs of the fossils in the 2020s. That aside, ''Bruhathkayosaurus'' was around 37-44.1 meters long, and weight estimates for it vary as low as 30 tons to as ridiculously high as ''220 tons'', with a 2023 estimate placing it at a just-as-ridiculous ''[[https://www.idunn.no/doi/10.18261/let.56.2.5 110-170 tons]]'', giving the largest blue whales a run for its money. If we take the upper measurements at face value, Bruhathkayosaurus would be the largest animal ''PERIOD''.

** ''Maarapunisaurus'' (formerly ''Amphicoelias'') was by some estimates the single largest land-based animal -- never mind dinosaur -- on record. 40 to 60 metres (130 to 200 ft) in length, and may have had a mass of up to 122 metric tons (135 short tons). Unfortunately, it's only known from a single piece of vertebrae that was mysteriously lost over a century ago. Regardless, it still remains the largest terrestrial animal that we know off that is not from a controversial background. A 2018 paper has suggested that ''Maraapunisaurus'' may have belonged to a different family of dinosaurs than was traditionally believed, and if so, it would have been closer to 35 metres (117 ft) and 80 metric tons (88 short tons).

** The ''Manga/GiantRobo'' live-action series, better known in the west as ''Johnny Sokko and his Flying Robot'', which along with the ''Series/AmbassadorMagma'' live-action series (known as ''The Space Giants'' for its American release) and ''Ultraman'', were the very first entries in the genre.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TurningRed'', [[spoiler: Ming Lee's red panda form is ''[[AttackOfThe50FootWhatever massive]]'', and harbours an UnstoppableRage. Ming unleashes it in the film's climax after her daughter Mei openly defies her by remaining bound to her own red panda spirit, then running off to the 4*Town concert to reunite with her friends. Ming, in her panda form, proceeds to stomp through the streets of Toronto and tear open the roof of the [=SkyDome=] to attack the concert, intending to bring her daughter back by force.]]

* Many icthyosaurs could get pretty big, but the "Lilstock specimen" may very well take the cake. Much like ''Maarapunisaurus,'' it's only known from fragmentary remains, but when scaled based on its close relative ''Shastasaurus'' - itself growing up to 21 meters long - the Lilstock specimen is estimated to be up to 27 meters long, rivaling the aforementioned blue whale. Though, like the blue whale, it's destructive power is up in the air - assuming it was close to ''Shastasaurus,'' it lacked teeth and probably sustained itself off soft-bodied cephalopods.

** ''Maarapunisaurus'' (formerly ''Amphicoelias'') was by some estimates the single largest land-based animal -- never mind dinosaur -- on record. 40 to 60 metres (130 to 200 ft) in length, and may have had a mass of up to 122 metric tons (135 short tons). Unfortunately, it's only known from a single piece of vertebrae that was mysteriously lost over a century ago. Regardless, it still remains the largest terrestrial animal that we know off that is not from a controversial background.

* The status of the Blue Whale being the biggest have been thrown into doubt in August 2023 with the release of Perucetus, a truly, ''massive'' chonker. Perucetus was an ancient whale that likely behaved as a herbivorous grazer. It was shorter than the Blue Whale but much ''denser''. Weight estimates range from 85 tons to an absolutely ridiculous ''340 tons''. Most however, believe the max to be an extreme overestimate and that the median weight would hover around 180 tons, which is still larger than the average Blue Whale of a 110 tons.
* Quite a few dinosaurs fit this trope. In particular ''Maarapunisaurus'' (Formerly assigned to ''Amphicoelias'') was by some estimates the single largest land-based animal -- never mind dinosaur -- on record. 40 to 60 metres (130 to 200 ft) in length, and may have had a mass of up to 122 metric tons (135 short tons). Unfortunately, it's only known from a single piece of vertebrae that was mysteriously lost over a century ago. Recently, Amphicoelias had a name change to the abovementioned Maarapunisaurus after recent re-examinations asserts that rather than a diplodocid, it was a rebbachisaurid. Whilst this made Maarapunisaurus ''much'' shorter than its previous estimates (40 meters is still ridiculously long mind you), as a rebbachisaurid, Maarapunisaurus is also much stockier and heavier, which means that its weight difference didn't change that much (120 tons). Maarapunisaurus still remains the largest terrestrial animal that we know off that is not from a controversial background.
** On a more complete basis, ''Argentinosaurus'' and several other enormous sauropods could have broken 100 short tons in weight and been over 30 meters long. Several species like ''Diplodocus'' could get longer, but they weren't as robust.
* Another dinosaurian example is the much ''[[OvershadowedByControversy controversial]]'' Bruhathkayosaurus. Famous more because of its controversy on whether it ''exist'' or not than the creature itself, since the original founder ''somehow'' mistakened it for a ''theropod'' of all things, and then he promptly lost it in a monsoon. Plenty of folks felt it was fake due to a lack of photographic evidence other than a amaturish sketch for ''decades'' until archives were miraculously found. Now. Controversy aside, Bruhathkayosaurus was a enigmatic super-Titanosaur of around 37-44.1 meters long. Its weight estimates was equally as ''extreme'' as its existence, varying as low as 30 tons to as ridiculously high as ''[[JustForFun/HolyShitQuotient 220 tons]]''. But most put the weight somewhere in the middle at around 126 tons. More recent estimate in 2023 actually ''bumped up its weight'' to a just-as-ridiculous ''[[https://www.idunn.no/doi/10.18261/let.56.2.5 110-170 tons]]'', giving the largest blue whales a run for its money. If we take the upper measurements at face value, Bruhathkayosaurus would become the largest animal ''PERIOD''.
* At half a meter long, ''Anomalocaris'' wouldn't qualify as a kaiju today, but considering it lived in an era when the largest non-''Anomalocaris'' animals tended to be measured in a few inches, it certainly was at the time.

* Many icthyosaurs could get pretty big, but the "Lilstock specimen" may very well take the cake. Much like ''Maarapunisaurus,'' it's only known from fragmentary remains, but when scaled based on it's close relative ''Shastasaurus'' - Itself growing up to 21 meters long - the Lilstock specimen is estimated to be up to 27 meters long, rivaling the aforementioned blue whale. Though, like the blue whale, it's destructive power is up in the air - Assuming it was close to ''Shastasaurus,'' it lacked teeth and probably sustained itself off of soft-bodied cephalopods.
* The Titanoboa. With a length of 12.8 meters it was the bigger snake ever.

* The status of the Blue Whale being the biggest have been thrown into doubt in August 2023 with the release of Perucetus, a truly, ''massive' chonker. Perucetus was an ancient whale that likely behaved as a herbivorous grazer. It was shorter than the Blue Whale but much ''denser''. Weight estimates range from 85 tons to an absolutely ridiculous ''340 tons''. Most however, believe the max to be an extreme overestimate and that the median weight would hover around 180 tons, which is still larger than the average Blue Whale of a 110 tons.

* In a way, blue whales, being the largest known animal ever to live. Adults can reach lengths of up to a hundred feet and weigh over 175 tons, and even a newborn is nearly as long as a bus and weighs as much as two elephants! Thankfully, the blue whale is a GentleGiant who's more content with placidly feasting on swarms of krill than causing mass destruction. Which, of course, means they play this trope totally straight from the ''krill's'' perspective.

Compare DisasterMovie, AttackOfTheKillerWhatever, {{Robeast}}, and AttackOfThe50FootWhatever. Has its roots in {{Toku}}satsu and {{Mon}}s.

* Another dinosaurian example is the much ''[[OvershadowedByControversy controversial]]'' Bruhathkayosaurus. Famous more because of its controversy on whether it ''exist'' or not than the creature itself, since the original founder ''somehow'' mistakened it for a ''theropod'' of all things, and then he promptly lost it in a monsoon. Plenty of folks felt it was fake due to a lack of photographic evidence other than a amaturish sketch for ''decades'' until archives were miraculously found. Now. Controversy aside, Bruhathkayosaurus was a enigmatic super-Titanosaur of around 37-44.1 meters long. Its weight estimates was equally as ''extreme'' as its existence, varying as low as 30 tons to as ridiculously high as ''[[JustForFun/HolyShitQuotient 220 tons]]''. But most put the weight somewhere in the middle at around 126 tons. If we take the upper measurements at face value, Bruhathkayosaurus would become the largest animal ''PERIOD''.

Skyscraper-sized monsters that assault {{Tokyo|IsTheCenterOfTheUniverse}} (though other cities like UsefulNotes/SanFrancisco and UsefulNotes/HongKong are also popular choices lately), hapless island explorers, or each other are called ''Kaiju'' (怪獣).[[note]]literally translated, "strange creature"; the more accurate name for these things would be ''Daikaiju'', "great strange creature"[[/note]] While they have no ''specific'' form even in their own mythology, by Japanese standards they are traditionally monstrous, scaly water elementals of [[AttackOfThe50FootWhatever about 50 feet and taller]] that commonly though not universally resemble dinosaurs (due to those being the largest known land vertebrates in real life).

Typically, they arrive from somewhere Far Away. Whether that means space, BeneathTheEarth, or a [[TropicalIslandAdventure South Pacific island]] varies. Expect lots of StuffBlowingUp to result, but, since GiantEqualsInvincible, don't expect the explosions to actually hurt them. ''Do'' expect at least one case of HelicopterFlyswatter. Examples of this genre can range from straight-up DisasterMovie (''Film/{{Cloverfield}}'', the first ''[[Film/{{Gojira}} Godzilla]]'' movie) to all-out wrestling matches between PeopleInRubberSuits (most of the later ''Franchise/{{Godzilla}}'' movies, every ''Film/{{Gamera}}'' movie but the first), and the characterization of individual kaiju can range from [[BenevolentMonsters guardian hero]] to force of nature to NonMaliciousMonster to EldritchAbomination to TragicMonster. As this genre features a judicious application of RuleOfCool, expect the MST3KMantra to be in full effect. Often, you'll only watch this kind of movie [[JustHereForGodzilla to see the monsters fight]], which can often involve an UltimateShowdownOfUltimateDestiny (such as ''Film/KingKongVsGodzilla'').

* In ''WesternAnimation/TurningRed'', [[spoiler: Ming Lee's red panda form is ''[[AttackOfThe50FootWhatever massive]]'', and harbours an UnstoppableRage. Ming unleashes it in the film's climax after her daughter Mei openly defies her by remaining bound to hers, then running off to the 4*Town concert to reunite with her friends. Ming, in her panda form, proceeds to stomp through the streets of Toronto and tear open the roof of the [=SkyDome=] to attack the concert, intending to bring her daughter back by force.]]

Typically, they arrive from somewhere Far Away. Whether that means space, BeneathTheEarth, or a [[TropicalIslandAdventure South Pacific island]] varies. Expect lots of StuffBlowingUp to result, but, since GiantEqualsInvincible, don't expect the explosions to actually hurt them. ''Do'' expect at least one case of HelicopterFlyswatter. Examples of this genre can range from straight-up DisasterMovie (''Film/{{Cloverfield}}'', the first ''[[Film/{{Gojira}} Godzilla]]'' movie) to all-out wrestling matches between PeopleInRubberSuits (most of the later ''Franchise/{{Godzilla}}'' movies, every ''Film/{{Gamera}}'' movie but the first). As this genre features a judicious application of RuleOfCool, expect the MST3KMantra to be in full effect. Often, you'll only watch this kind of movie [[JustHereForGodzilla to see the monsters fight]], which can often involve an UltimateShowdownOfUltimateDestiny (such as ''Film/KingKongVsGodzilla'').

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheSeaBeast'', the titular beasts certainly qualify. They're massive, aggressive, and very dangerous. History books state that they used to come right up to shore and destroy whole towns, until the royal family funded monster-hunting crews to drive them back. [[spoiler: As it turns out, the sea beasts are actually [[NonMaliciousMonster content keep to themselves unless provoked]]. The history books [[HistoryIsWrittenByTheWInners were rewritten]] and the public lied to in order to promote the hunting campaigns, which in turn would drive the monsters to extinction and allow the royal family to [[EvilColonialist engage in conquest and expansion]] without worrying about the sea beasts destroying their ships by accident or due to territoriality.]]

* Another dinosaurian example is the much ''[[Main/OvershadowedByControversy controversial]]'' Bruhathkayosaurus. Famous more because of its controversy on whether it ''exist'' or not than the creature itself, since the original founder ''somehow'' mistakened it for a ''theropod'' of all things, and then he promptly lost it in a monsoon. Plenty of folks felt it was fake due to a lack of photographic evidence other than a amaturish sketch for ''decades'' until archives were miraculously found. Now. Controversy aside, Bruhathkayosaurus was a enigmatic super-Titanosaur of around 37-44.1 meters long. Its weight estimates was equally as ''extreme'' as its existence, varying as low as 30 tons to as ridiculously high as ''[[JustForFun/HolyShitQuotient 220 tons]]''. But most put the weight somewhere in the middle at around 126 tons. If we take the upper measurements at face value, Bruhathkayosaurus would become the largest animal ''PERIOD''.

* Another dinosaurian example is the much ''[[Main/OvershadowedByControversy controversial]]'' Bruhathkayosaurus. Famous more because of its controversy on whether it ''exist'' or not than the creature itself, since the original founder ''somehow'' mistakened it for a ''theropod'' of all things, and then he promptly lost it in a monsoon. Plenty of folks felt it was fake due to a lack of photographic evidence other than a amaturish sketch for ''decades'' until archives were miraculously found. Now. Controversy aside, Bruhathkayosaurus was a enigmatic super-Titanosaur of around 37-44.1 meters long. Its weight estimates was equally ''extreme'', varying as low as 30 tons to as ridiculously high as ''[[JustForFun/HolyShitQuotient 220 tons]]''. But most put the weight somewhere in the middle at around 126 tons. If we take the upper measurements at face value, Bruhathkayosaurus would become the largest animal ''PERIOD''.

* In a way, blue whales, being the largest known animal ever to live. Adults can reach lengths of up to a hundred feet and weigh over 200 tons, and even a newborn is nearly as long as a bus and weighs as much as two elephants! Thankfully, the blue whale is a GentleGiant who's more content with placidly feasting on swarms of krill than causing mass destruction. Which, of course, means they play this trope totally straight from the ''krill's'' perspective.
* Quite a few dinosaurs fit this trope. In particular ''Maarapunisaurus'' (Formerly assigned to ''Amphicoelias'') was by some estimates the single largest land-based animal -- never mind dinosaur -- on record. 40 to 60 metres (130 to 200 ft) in length, and may have had a mass of up to 122 metric tons (135 short tons). Unfortunately, it's only known from a single piece of vertebrae that was mysteriously lost over a century ago.

* Most of the Targaryen dragons in ''Series/HouseOfTheDragon'' qualify as a GiantFlyer being big enough to ride, but the status of Kaiju certainly applies to Vhagar: a nearly-200 year-old BadassGrandma who is the last survivor of Aegon's Conquest a century ago, and towers way above Drogon, the largest of the dragons from the original ''Series/GameOfThrones''.

Skyscraper-sized monsters that assault {{Tokyo|IsTheCenterOfTheUniverse}} (though other cities like UsefulNotes/SanFrancisco and UsefulNotes/HongKong are also popular choice lately), hapless island explorers, or each other are called ''Kaiju'' (怪獣).[[note]]literally translated, "strange creature"; the more accurate name for these things would be ''Daikaiju'', "great strange creature"[[/note]] While they have no ''specific'' form even in their own mythology, by Japanese standards they are traditionally monstrous, scaly water elementals of [[AttackOfThe50FootWhatever about 50 feet and taller]] that commonly though not universally resemble dinosaurs (due to those being the largest known land vertebrates in real life).

Typically they arrive from somewhere Far Away. Whether that means space, BeneathTheEarth, or a [[TropicalIslandAdventure South Pacific island]] varies. Expect lots of StuffBlowingUp to result, but, since GiantEqualsInvincible, don't expect the explosions to actually hurt them. ''Do'' expect at least one case of HelicopterFlyswatter. Examples of this genre can range from straight-up DisasterMovie (''Film/{{Cloverfield}}'', the first ''[[Film/{{Gojira}} Godzilla]]'' movie) to all-out wrestling matches between PeopleInRubberSuits (Most of the later ''Franchise/{{Godzilla}}'' movies, every ''Film/{{Gamera}}'' movie but the first). As this genre features a judicious application of RuleOfCool, expect the MST3KMantra to be in full effect. Often, you'll only watch this kind of movie [[JustHereForGodzilla to see the monsters fight]], which can often involve an UltimateShowdownOfUltimateDestiny (such as ''Film/KingKongVsGodzilla'').

This is actually one of the oldest genres in film, dating back to the early days of cinema when special effects were new. Pioneers of the genre were ''Film/TheLostWorld'', ''Film/KingKong1933'' and ''Film/TheBeastFromTwentyThousandFathoms''. The idea probably originates from thinking of [[DinosaursAreDragons dinosaurs as fantastic beasts]] or ideas about giant [[OurDragonsAreDifferent dragons]]. As for why it's so popular with Japanese media: Japan is quite earthquake and tsunami-prone, and you could think of a kaiju as a sentient natural disaster, so it may feel more meaningful to them. (Consider how Godzilla, like a wave, rises from the sea.) The word ''kaiju'' became [[MagicFranchiseWord more mainstream]] and used in western works after the release of ''Film/PacificRim'' in 2013, when before they were usually and simply called "[[BuffySpeak big Japanese monster]]" (even to the point of its origin being often WrongfullyAttributed to this film).

Skyscraper-sized monsters that assault {{Tokyo|IsTheCenterOfTheUniverse}} (though other cities like UsefulNotes/SanFrancisco and UsefulNotes/HongKong are also popular choice lately), hapless island explorers, or each other are called ''Kaiju''.[[note]]literally translated, "strange creature"; the more accurate name for these things would be ''Daikaiju'', "great strange creature"[[/note]] While they have no ''specific'' form even in their own mythology, by Japanese standards they are traditionally monstrous, scaly water elementals of [[AttackOfThe50FootWhatever about 50 feet and taller]] that commonly though not universally resemble dinosaurs (due to those being the largest known land vertebrates in real life).