I was recently on UK Anime Network going through news with regards to anime and manga when I came across a review for the 1954 Godzilla movie, part of a bigger box set. Upon doing some research, I quickly found out that it was on offer on Amazon and, having had the first Godzilla on my wishlist since 2013, I quickly bought it and posted an unboxing video of it. Having watched a few Godzilla movies now, I have suddenly whetted my appetite for the wondrous world of tokusatsu. Considering how obscure tokusatsu can be compared to anime and manga, I thought it might worth examining what tokusatsu is, the history and some of the more notable entries in the medium.
First, it is worth noting that the word “Tokusatsu” is made up of the characters 特撮 which can be translated as “special effects” but now also refers to a genre of Japanese live-action films or TV series that are heavily reliant on special effects. I confess that I was initially confused as to how, beyond the fact that they were Japanese, this differentiated them from the films produced in other countries that also rely on special effects. The difference lies in the reliance on practical effects during filming rather than creating the special effect through editing such as stop-motion.
One of the most famous genres of tokusatsu, and the genre I’m currently interested in, is Kaiju. Made up of the characters 怪獣 which means “Strange Beast”, these films feature giant monsters that either attack human society or end up fighting each other in kaiju on kaiju action. While there existed some previous kaiju films prior to 1954 such as The Great Buddha Arrival (1934) and King Kong Appears in Edo (1938), the genre was popularised by the financial success of the 1954 Godzilla film. In contrast to the stop-motion effects used in American monster films such as the 1933 King Kong or the 1953 The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, Godzilla saw special effects director Eiji Tsuburaya use a man in a suit and miniature buildings to achieve the effect of a giant monster rampage.
The success of Godzilla not only created the longest running film franchise in the world but also saw a variety of other kaiju films developed to emulate the success of Godzilla. Toho, the film company responsible for the Godzilla franchise, released Rodan in 1956 and Mothra in 1961 who would later become recurring kaiju within the Godzilla franchise. Meanwhile, rival film company Daiei developed both the Gamera franchise with the release of the first film in 1965 as well as the Daimajin trilogy in 1966.
Of course, the wondrous world of tokusatsu doesn’t solely consist of kaiju films. Notably, there are many superhero tokusatsu franchises that primarily run on TV but also see films released as well. Some of the most notable tokusatsu superhero series include Ultraman which began airing in 1966, Kamen Rider which began airing in 1971 and was co-created by legendary mangaka Shotaro Ishinomori as well as the Super Sentai series which was first released in 1975 which was notably adapted into the Power Rangers franchise in 1993.
Considering how popular and noteworthy so many tokusatsu series are in Japan, it continues to surprise me how difficult I have found it to find releases in the English speaking world. While the release of the MonsterVerse has helped see more kaiju films such as the Gamera franchise and the original Mothra film get releases over here as well as rereleases of Godzilla films, there are still plenty of kaiju films that remain either unavailable or exceedingly expensive to acquire. In addition, the superhero tokusatsu series are both niche in the English speaking world and embroiled in layers of complicated legal troubles due to various licensing deals and adaptations.
Given how popular and influential the medium of tokusatsu has been on Japanese popular culture, I think it’s a shame that it has proven to be difficult to watch and collect these media legally in the West. The popularity of the MonsterVerse has certainly helped when it has come to seeing kaiju films released but even then there are many glaring omissions. That’s not even saying how complicated it would be from a legal standpoint to release the superhero tokusatsu series over here either! Let me know your thoughts on the wondrous world of tokusatsu, which tokusatsu films/TV series you have seen, which you have enjoyed or not enjoyed and any additional information you might have on the topic.
Hopefully you have found this article interesting and informative and, if you wish to seek any of the works I mentioned, don’t hesitate to use amazon.co.uk or amazon.com for all of your needs!