Know Your Monster: 22
MOTHRA
No Kaiju other than Godzilla has appeared in more movies than Mothra. She has an 
enduring fan base, especially among women. Perhaps this is because Mothra doesn’t seem as terrifying as other Japanese movie monsters. After all, she is a giant lepidopteran, part butterfly and part moth, summoned by miniature fairies to serve as a protector of the natural world. She is slow to rise up in anger, only going on the offensive if someone threatens her worshipers or one of her brightly colored blue and yellow eggs.
But make no mistake about it. When Mothra loses her cool, all hell can break loose. She has racked up many victories over Godzilla himself, although admittedly, usually doesn’t face him alone, but in tandem with other monsters. Conversely, she also has appeared as an ally with Godzilla, most often defending the Earth against alien invaders and their robot monsters such as Mechagodzilla.
Mothra made her debut in 1961 in a Toho featured based on the novel The Luminous Fairies and Mothra. Three years later, she was pitted against Godzilla for the first time. She has appeared in six additional Godzilla movies over the years, plus her own trilogy back in the 1990s.
She uses a silken spray to freeze-dry her opponents. She also can release a poisonous yellow powder, but rarely does so, as that seems to impede her flying abilities and signal her own impending death. A divine aura surrounds Mothra. She can foresee the future and sometimes tweak fate. But she’s not always so high-minded, and has been known to chomp on the tails of her foes. She can appear fully grown or in larval form.
The original trailer from the 1964 film Mothra Vs. Godzilla, released in the United States as Godzilla Vs. The Thing.
ARVE error: need id and provider
Tomorrow’s featured monsters: The Mysterians
