The Kaiju genre has always fascinated audiences worldwide, with Godzilla arguably being the most noted, but another monster franchised competed with him. While not as famous as the king of the monsters, Gamera was still able to build his own fanbase.
Related:Best Anime To Watch On Netflix
Gamera first made his debut in 1965 during Gamera, The Giant Monster. Awakening from his icy slumber after American and Russian forces free him during their battle, Gamera terrorizes Japan. The kaiju would appear throughout his franchise, depicted as a savior while fighting off multiple monsters to defend the planet. This list will feature every kaiju presented in the Heisei and Showa eras of the Gamera series.
The ocean is a mysterious place that strikes fear even in the hearts of the bravest souls as humanity has only begun to learn what lies below the murky depths. Zigra is the very last kaiju that battles Gamera in the Showa era. This underwater monstrosity came from another planet intending to take over the Earth to feed on the inhabitants, using a mind-controlled woman to enact his plans.
Gamera hesitated to battle with the shark-like kaiju due to his hostages, but he eventually freed them and defeated Zigra once he was brought on land. Zigra is arguably the weakest Kaiju Gamera has beaten, as his only real advantage was his speed underwater.
Like Zigra, Viras was another aquatic-like kaiju from space that came to Earth intending to conquer it before Gamera inevitably defeated him. After studying Gamera, the alien squids learned of the turtle’s fondness for children and decided to take hostages to capture him.
Their plan for controlling him ultimately failed, and several Viras were forced to combine into one singular kaiju in a last effort for world domination. While Gamera successfully defeated his foe, he was almost mortally wounded when Viras used his head to pierce Gamera’s tough shell. Viras may be physically inferior to the other kaiju, but what he lacks in power, he makes up for in cunning.
During the peak of the Heisei era, Gamera, unfortunately, sacrificed himself to destroy a swarm of Gyaos after defeating the monster Iris and faded into myth. Years later, a young boy named Toru discovered an egg at the site where Gamera self-destructed. After hatching, the young Kaiju would battle a lizard-like monster dubbed Zedus to defend Japan.
Zedus is a cruel monster with the upper hand throughout the film until the child throws a stone at Gamera, granting him more power. Ultimately, Zedus was no match for the friendly Kaiju as Gamera flew down, blasting a fireball into its mouth and blowing it up from the inside.
Initially, the Japanese military had thought they had seen the last of giant monsters after blasting Gamera into space, and they couldn’t be more wrong. Not only did Gamera escape his confinement, but another beast, dubbed Barugon by the natives from where it originated, arrived. This chameleon-like kaiju was taken from its resting place when thieves mistook its egg for opal and became the first of Gamera’s foes.
Related:Best Mecha Anime, Officially Ranked
Gamera was unprepared for his foe, which became evident during their first battle when Barugon froze him with its tongue. Barugon could also wipe out mass landscapes with a rainbow beam from the monster’s hide. In the end, Gamera was able to utilize Barugon’s weakness by dissolving him in a nearby lake.
Gyaos is the most iconic of Gamera’s foes as he is the only Kaiju to be featured in over five films apart from the lovable turtle monster. Gyaos first appeared in the Showa era when scientists discovered the beast nesting in a cave, while a second appeared on a foreign planet. The Heisei incarnation was an abomination brought to life by the Altaians that ran amok before they decided to create Gamera to combat them.
Throughout the series, Gyaos is depicted as a menace to life, as its primary function is feeding and reproducing. In addition to having unique regenerative abilities, it could emit a laser-like beam that can cut through anything. The nocturnal beast proved to be a worthy rival of Gamera.
Most antagonists in the Gamera franchise are usually aliens that intend to take over the planet for its resources, such as the brain controlling Terrans. After kidnapping two children from Earth, the two hostages witnessed the alien kaiju Guiron in action when it battled a space Gyaos. Guiron quickly defeated this foe by deflecting his laser beam before decapitating Gyaos with its knife-like head.
When Gamera arrived, their battle was short-lived as Guiron had the upper hand by being able to match the former physically. Ultimately, Gamera could only defeat Guiron by placing a bomb in the area of his head where Shuriken shot out from.
One of the few kaiju from Earth, Jiger was discovered after a corporation had moved a sacred object that kept the monster at bay. Under normal circumstances, Gamera would usually face another kaiju twice to learn from its previous battle, but he was forced to fight Jiger on three occasions. On the first occasion, Jiger incapacitated Gamera by piercing him with spikes in his limbs so he couldn’t go into his shell.
Their second battle proved deadly as not only was Jiger physically a match for him, but he infected Gamera with a parasite that nearly cost him his life. Yet, Gamera could only beat the demonic creature by plunging the sacred object into Jigers head, killing him.
After destroying the Gyaos in the first film of the Heisei era, Gamera was forced to battle a new monster that crashed on the planet in the form of Legion. Fans had no idea what to expect from the insect kaiju as this was the first overall appearance in the franchise. At the film’s beginning, swarms of small creatures began draining energy from the cities they attacked until Gamera arrived.
The queen was not only physically larger than Gamera, but she could shoot out an EM-beam in addition to summoning small creatures at will to swarm her prey. She was only defeated when Gamera utilized a new ability, a mana blast that shot out from his chest.
During the events ofGamera: Guardian of The Universe, a young girl named Ayana Hirasaka was orphaned during one of the battles. She would discover a stone in a cave near her village that was said to seal an ancient demon that terrorized the land years ago. Upon finding an amulet and moving the stone, a baby monster named Iris emerges and bonds with the young girl.
Through their shared hatred, Iris terrorizes Japan to draw out Gamera. The creature uses its powerful tendrils to overpower Gamera and can even absorb the mana from his body to mimic his mana blast. Iris was eventually destroyed when Gamera used his severed hand and plasma blast to plunge through his enemy’s chest to kill him.
With the release of thenew Netflix seriesGamera: Rebirth, it is time to discuss the only kaiju that even remotely came close to the popularity that Godzilla has received. Throughout the franchise, there have been two incarnations of the defender of the youth. As previously mentioned, the first iteration of Gamera was featured in 1965 after Russian and American forces freed him from his frozen prison.
The second variant was a creation by the people of Atlantis that made Gamera combat Gyaos. Gamera is a versatile beast that can fly when contracted into its shell and breath fire. His profound powers have defeated many foes throughout his career, making his position the strongest kaiju in the franchise.
