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| Species: | Ancient Shisa |
| Height: | Showa: 50 Meters Millennium: 100 Meters |
| Weight: | Showa: 30,000 Metric Tons Millennium: 50,000 Metric Tons |
| Appearances: | Godzilla vs. MechaGodzilla (1974) Godzilla: Final Wars (2004) |
Summary
King Caesar (Kingu Shīsā) is an ancient shisa kaiju who first appeared in the 1974 Toho Godzilla film, Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla.
The ancient guardian of the royal Azumi family of Okinawa, King Caesar could only be awakened by a mystical statue. The Black Hole Planet 3 Aliens attempted to recover this statue so that King Caesar could not stand in the way of Mechagodzilla, but their attempts failed when Saeko Kanagusuku and a group of humans used the statue to awaken the guardian monster. King Caesar attempted to battle Mechagodzilla, but was outmatched by the mechanical monster. Thankfully, Godzilla arrived and aided King Caesar in the battle. Together, the two Earth monsters successfully destroyed Mechagodzilla, after which King Caesar returned to his slumber in a cliffside. King Caesar's second film appearance came 30 years later in Godzilla: Final Wars, where he was one of the Xiliens' many mind controlled monsters. King Caesar attacked Okinawa at first, then was deployed alongside Rodan and Anguirus to battle Godzilla at Mount Fuji. Godzilla triumphed, and left his enemies stacked unconscious in a pile. King Caesar also appeared in GODZILLA: Project Mechagodzilla, the second official prequel novel to the GODZILLA anime trilogy, in which he appeared from Cape Manzamo in Okinawa to defend the island from Megalon, ultimately defeating his foe in battle.
Name
King Caesar's Japanese name, "Kingu Shīsā," was created by combining the words "king" and "shīsā," and refers to a creature prevalent in Okinawan mythology.
Toho's original romanization of the name was King Seeser, as seen in Toho's English trailer and official synopsis for Godzilla vs. Mechagdzilla. Upon the film's release in the United States, several contemporary reviews and publications referred to the character under the erroneous mondegreen King Seesaw. Toho eventually settled on "King Caesar" as the kaiju's official English name.
The King Caesar featured in Godzilla: Final Wars is known as King Caesar (2nd Generation) Kingu Shīsā Nidaime).
Design
King Caesar's appearance was inspired by the shīsā, a mythological beast resembling a combination of a dog and a lion. In Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla, King Caesar had red, gemstone-like eyes. In his appearance in Godzilla: Final Wars, King Caesar's design was altered; while he still closely resembled his initial design, his skin became more detailed, with a very pronounced red brick-like texture. He also had much longer ears and human-like eyes with orange irises.
Origin
In Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla, King Caesar is the legendary guardian monster of the Azumi royal family of Okinawa. Long ago, he appeared and helped the Okinawans to drive off invaders from the mainland. Though never mentioned in the film, an anatomy drawing in Godzilla Monster Diagrams Super Encyclopedia suggests he is some sort of mystical construct rather than an organic creature, with bones made of gold, "concrete brick-like body reinforcements", and energy crystals as an apparent power source.
In Godzilla: Final Wars, King Caesar's origins are unexplained, and he simply appears in Okinawa under the control of the Xiliens.
History
Showa Era
Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla (1974)
King Caesar, the ancient guardian of the Azumi family, was sleeping in a mountain, waiting to be awoken. The Black Hole Planet 3 Aliens heard of this monster, and after failing to recover the statue required to awaken him, sent their own creation to destroy him. As Mechagodzilla raced to destroy King Caesar, the ancient song required to awaken King Caesar was sung by Nami, the last remaining member of the Azumi royal family. King Caesar erupted from the mountainside and took on Mechagodzilla. King Caesar fought the best he could, but he was overwhelmed by Mechagodzilla's power. Godzilla arrived to battle his mechanical doppelganger, and joined forces with King Caesar. Both monsters were nearly defeated as Mechagodzilla unleashed his full payload of weaponry against them, but Godzilla managed to reach Mechagodzilla and force him to retreat. Godzilla was able to draw Mechagodzilla back to him using special magnetic powers he had gained, then held him still, allowing King Caesar to attack him. Finally, Godzilla twisted off Mechagodzilla's head, destroying him. Mechagodzilla soon exploded along with the aliens' base, sending Godzilla falling into the ocean below. Godzilla surfaced shortly afterward, then swam away as King Caesar returned to his rest inside a cliff.
Millennium Era
In 20XX, King Caesar was seen attacking Okinawa, until he was teleported away by the Xiliens. Once the trust between the aliens and humans was broken, King Caesar was released once again. Alongside Rodan and Anguirus, King Caesar was one of the final monsters controlled by the Xiliens to confront Godzilla as he neared Tokyo. Transported to the Japanese countryside with his allies by the Xilien UFOs α, ß and γ, King Caesar proved to be an agile and intelligent opponent, coordinating his attacks with Rodan and Anguirus to try and defeat Godzilla. He was eventually thrown by Godzilla into his two allies, leaving them all unconscious and stacked on top of each other.
Trivia
- In King Caesar's first on-screen appearance in Godzilla: Final Wars, a traditional Japanese style roof can be seen in the foreground with a shisa statue on it.
- King Caesar was the last monster to be Godzilla's ally in the Showa series.
- In Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla, King Caesar is the savior of Okinawa, but ironically in Godzilla: Final Wars, he attacked the city he protected for generations. However, it should be noted that Godzilla: Final Wars isn't a part of the Showa continuity, and that King Caesar was under the control of the Xiliens, and therefore was not acting as he should have been.
- King Caesar is the third monster with the word "King" in his name to appear in the Godzilla series, after King Kong and King Ghidorah.
- King Caesar has his own theme song, used to awaken him if sung by a member of the Azumi royal family.
- In Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla, Black Hole Alien Leader Kuronuma remarks that, "We'll be in trouble if King Caesar brings other monsters to life." This ability is never elaborated upon.
