Godzilla has starred in 38 feature films, at least nine TV shows, dozens of video games, and countless comics. Many of his appearances introduce a new foe to challenge the King of the Monsters. The film franchise created a beloved stable of kaiju allies and enemies. While some examples become familiar favorites by emerging again and again across the decades, figures like Biollante have to make do with a single film.
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, the latest entry in Legendary Pictures' Monsterverse, introduced two new antagonists to face the titular titans. While previous entries, like Godzilla: King of the Monsters and Godzilla vs. Kong, revitalized familiar favorites, the 2024 outing crafted a new ape and lizard. This, along with their Apple TV series, suggests a future full of new faces. This has upsides and downsides. Fans will always cry out to see their favorite kaiju return with the new franchise's glorious modern presentation.
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Where did Biollante first appear?
First Appearance | Godzilla vs. Biollante |
|---|---|
First Appearance Date | December 16, 1989 |
Designed By | Shinji Nishikawa |
Written By | Shinichiro Kobayashi |
Played By | Takegami Akio, Shigeru Shibasaki, and Yoshitaka Kimura |
Subtitles | Bio Monster, Giant Plant Monster |
Biollante, sometimes called Bio Biollante, is the antagonist of the seventeenth Godzilla film. To date, Godzilla vs. Biollante is her only official cinematic appearance. Biollante is a lab-grown genetic cross-breed between Godzilla, a rose, and a human woman. The concept behind the character emerged from the mind of Shinichiro Kobayashi. In his day-to-day life, Kobayashi is a dentist and professor. However, production studios like Toho frequently opened their doors to fan suggestions, turning many amateur scripts into entries in the beloved franchise. He submitted a pitch that made it into an episode of Return of Ultraman before contributing the story premise for Godzilla vs. Biollante. Early concept art imagined a flower monster that would evolve into a reptilian monster. The finished suit required more than 20 trained professionals to operate—more than almost any other kaiju in the franchise.
In fiction, botanist and bioengineer Genichiro Shiragami created Biollante. Shiragami lost his beloved daughter, Erika, to a terrorist bombing while working on his dream to help roses bloom in deserts. Devastated, Shirigami fused Erika's cells with those of a rose he was cultivating, intending to help her soul live on beyond her physical body. Meanwhile, the Japanese military enters an international battle for the possession of Godzilla's cells. They call upon Shiragami to help modify the stolen DNA into a virus that could kill the King of the Monsters. He initially refuses, but a natural disaster damages his rose bushes, prompting him to desperately accept the government's offer. He secretly fuses the Godzilla cells with his daughter's rose, inadvertently creating a plant monster. He dubs his creation Biollante after a Norse deity he seems to have made up or misremembered. Biollante slips into Lake Ashi and gradually evolves into a towering monstrosity.
What is Biollante capable of?
Biollante has two forms. After emerging from Lake Ashi, Biollante is a tall, slender rose with a set of small teeth inside her petals. This is her Flower Beast Form. Her most notable weapon is her tentacles, of which she has several. Many of her tentacles have mouths full of sharp teeth. She can spit a corrosive sap, which binds her opponents while dealing considerable damage. After her first bout with Godzilla, Biollante breaks apart into millions of spores and floats into the sky. This appears to be a defense mechanism, barely saving her from Godzilla's atomic breath. When she returns, Biollante enters her Plant Beast Form. This transformation equips Biollante with a crocodile-like head, horrific flesh underneath her plant-like exterior, and a glowing sack in her gut. This evolution also equips several of her tentacles with spear-like protrusions. Plant Beast Biollante gains the ability to spit massive quantities of radioactive sap. Her body regenerates from most damage, especially after breaking into spores. Most of her techniques involve binding her foes to destroy them with her acid sap. Biollante is probably immortal, but she is far from invulnerable.
What happened to Biollante?
Biollante soundly lost her first bout with Godzilla. Her exterior burned after exposure to Godzilla's atomic breath. Her escape allowed her to return with a vengeance, but her second attempt offered little improvement. She launched a successful attack, aided by the Japanese government's anti-Godzilla virus, but Godzilla dealt a near-fatal blow with a blast of atomic breath into Biollante's mouth. While the virus incapacitated Godzilla, Biollante split into spores and floated into space. Her body formed a massive rose in orbit above Earth. Some parts of her returned when SpaceGodzilla reached Earth, as scientists theorized that the bizarre organism emerged due to Biollante's Godzilla cells entering a black hole.
Biollante is a tragic figure and a living embodiment of the film's message. If Shiragami had the strength to move on and let his daughter rest, Biollante never would have attacked. On the grand scale of Godzilla monsters, Biollante looks much more evil than she is. Biollante remains iconic for her design and unique presence as one of few plant-based kaiju. She may never return, but she enjoys a rare happy ending among those who challenge the King of the Monsters.
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