KAIJUOLOGY: MAGUMA

Subject: Maguma

Documentation: Gorath (1962)

History: In 1982 our world faced one of the gravest perils in history. A star hurtling through space was discovered by a brave team of astronauts. Through as yet unknown circumstances this star, code named: Gorath, was dislodged from whatever orbit it once held and now streaked through space on a collision course with Earth.

The world united to combat this threat. Many plans were enacted, one such plan was to move our planet out of its own orbit and thereby moving it out of Gorath's path. The plan commenced, construction of massive nuclear powered thrusters upon the earth's poles had begun. An equal number of thrusters were constructed on both poles, one set to move us out of range and the other to move us back into position once the threat of Gorath had passed.

An unforeseen problem occurred during a test of the south pole thrusters. The intense heat produced by the construction as well as the thrusters themselves resulted in massive ice melts, literally changing the face and terrain of Antarctica. Many prehistoric fossils  and unique land formations were discovered beneath the snow and ice.

Odobenus Rosmarus Magumadon, a.k.a. Maguma. A colossal prehistoric ancestor to the modern day walrus. The melting of the ice revealed a massive subterranean cavern in which the great beast emerged. The beast, sensing the severe climate changes to it's environment, acted to preserve its habitat and attacked the thrusters. Maguma succeeded in disabling several thrusters.

The great creature, although only acting on instinct to save its home, threatened the success of Earth's survival. An aircraft equip with high yield laser tools, used in constructing the thrusters in extreme temperatures, was used against Maguma. Initially Maguma survived the attack, having been buried under a mountain of rubble. The kaiju began climbing it's way out. It moved on the rockets once again. Nothing seemed to dissuade the beast from attacking. The men piloting the aircraft were forced to fire the laser until this rare, long thought extinct creature was killed.

Art by Yasushi Torisawa

Once the threat to Earth was over and Gorath had passed the Earth by, scientists returned to Antarctica to investigate more on this prehistoric animal. What they discovered was that the cavern from which Maguma emerged opened up into the sea at another end. They also discovered fossils of multiple Odobenus Rosmarus Magumadon and evidence suggesting more might yet exist... alive. These claims cannot be substantiated due to the collapse of the cavern before any evidence could be recovered.

Art by Yasushi Torisawa

Maguma, in addition to its enormous size, is different from its Walrus descendants. The animal is a far greater developed quadruped, possessing two far longer and stronger back legs and front legs, to allow for a greater movement and of course necessary to move such a large body. The gigantic tusks are believed to be the kaiju's primary weapons along with incredibly sharp claws on its front two feet. Since the encounter was so brief it is not known if Maguma possesses any other means of attack or special abilities. Should we encounter another of its kind greater care will be taken to study this unique kaiju.

Review: It's a walrus. But it's more than that too. It's a kaiju from the golden age of Tokusatsu (Japanese special effects genre), portrayed by the legendary suit actor himself, Haruo Nakajima (the man who played Godzilla and just about every kaiju from the original films). And Maguma is a kaiju from director Ishiro Honda (the Stan Lee of kaiju films). True, not every creation of Stan Lee's is a gem, but they're still deserving of note.

Maguma was the kaiju that almost wasn't. Ishiro Honda didn't intend to have a kaiju in the film GORATH, but producer Tomoyuki Tanaka (another of the men responsible for Godzilla and kaiju in general) insisted upon Maguma's inclusion. He's a rare kaiju and a very briefly seen kaiju. He falls into the category of kaiju designs that are in keeping with real life animals and prehistoric creatures. And his origins are very reminiscent of the Rhedosaurus from The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms (a classic origin for sure).

There's not much to be said about this kaiju other than he's as big as Godzilla and probably has a ton of strength (like a real walrus) so a smackdown with him would be pretty tough. Although he's probably greatly susceptible to energy attacks. All in all it would be cool to see him return in a new movie and expanded upon. He was considered as another kaiju to be included in Destroy All Monsters but ultimately didn't make it into the film. So close...

Threat Level: 4 out of 10

Early draft art for Destroy All Monsters featuring Maguma, Ebirah, and Odako