In our previous tiny use cases, we examined the occurrence and co-occurrence of tropes in kaiju works within the TV Tropes community. The aim of these previous use cases was to examine the relationship of tropes to genre to find out how the kaiju genre is defined within fan communities and whether tropes are a reliable approach to define/understand a specific genre. In this tiny use case, we examine the potential of fan-databases, in this case TV Tropes, for transcultural and historical data analyses. Besides exploring the data provided, we also investigate how historical data (here: release dates) and cultural data (here: country of origin) about kaiju works are handled on TV Tropes and how to deal with incomplete data. Additionally, we examine how fan-curated data can contribute to a data analysis of the transculturality and history of the kaiju genre.
Our dataset comprises all kaiju works tagged on TV Tropes, which includes some works from other tokusatsu (jap. 特撮, “special effects”) subgenres, such as mecha (e.g., Neon Genesis Evangelion), henshin hero (e.g., Super Sentai), and kyodai hero (e.g., Ultraman). This dataset comprises 318 works. The retrieval of necessary data for a transcultural (country of origin) and historical analysis (release year) was met with a lot of issues, since a lot of data could not be retrieved automatically from TV Tropes as the respective data was incomplete. When it comes to the country of origin 58 works (18.24%) have no data. When it comes to the year of release 69 works (21.70%) have no data. To complete the data, we referred to other sources, such as Wikipedia, WikiZilla, UltramanWiki, IMDb, and Amazon, where it was necessary.
Another problem we faced were self-published literature, comics, and fan-fiction, which were published online. On TV Tropes, the country of origin for these works were not disclosed and we refrained from inferring the national origin of the work from the author’s name or content of the work. Therefore, we assigned these works as online uploads (“WEB”) for their origin. We also stumbled upon varying categorizations when it comes to fan fiction, as some are categorized into other media categories, such as Literature or Web Comics. The missing data also raises the question of who is visible and who is not and even who is invisibilized. Contributors to the pages are only visible behind an avatar when one is logged in on TV Tropes. Is the country of origin not important anymore in a more digital, internet-oriented age, especially on online fan-databases?
Kaiju is predominantly understood as a Japanese genre category that encompasses monster films produced in Japan, but its cultural origin is much more complicated. Alongside mecha and kyodai hero, it is systematically subsumed as a subgenre under the tokusatsu (special effects) genre (Kim 2017) and often compared to the monster genre in other cultural contexts. In research, other perspectives, interpretations of “kaiju” and explanations for its complex origin are discussed (see Kim 2017; Barr 2023, Schauer 2023)—especially in relation to King Kong (1933). While King Kong (1933) and its success inspired further independent works, such as Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (1953), which was in turn highly successful in East Asia, especially in Japan and thus inspired Toho Studios producer Tomoyuki Tanaka to come up with the concept and film for Godzilla (1954, aka Gojira, taken from the Japanese words for “gorilla” and “whale” [kujira]), the tremendous transnational success of Godzilla and subsequent kaiju productions led to the establishment of kaiju-eiga as the preferred production category (Schauer 2023). The retroactive categorization of King Kong (1933) as kaiju in fan-communities and research has to be seen in this light (see Kim 2017). But transcultural interpretations from either Japanese productions interpreting Kong, e.g., in King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962), or U.S.-American productions interpreting Godzilla, e.g., in Godzilla (1998), and even the influence of King Kong (1933) on the production of Godzilla (1954) have complicated the origin of kaiju and culture essentialist definitions along national-cultural borders are either “too firm or too soft” (Barr 2023). This undermines preconceptions of solely viewing the kaiju genre as a Japanese genre and challenges East-West dichotomies (Kim 2017: 19).
The data from TV Tropes also reveals that not only Japanese works, especially after the first official kaiju film Godzilla (1954), but also works from other countries and from even before 1954, e.g., King Kong (1933), are classified as kaiju. In Figure 1, we see that most kaiju works originate or are produced in Japan (56.6%), but other countries also made contributions to the genre, such as the United States (23.3%), establishing the genre as a transcultural phenomenon. Its transculturality is furthered established through international cooperation, where Japan and the United States also take up a leading role and sometimes collaborate with each other creating works jointly produced in both countries, for example in works like Ultraman: Rising (2024) or King Kong Escapes (1967). The dataset suggests that works from different cultures are categorized under the genre “Kaiju,” even though kaiju is originally a Japanese idea that found its way into global jargon due to the success of Japanese monster films.
A surprising finding is the inclusion of the artwork Carta Marina from Italy made in 1539 in the dataset. The genre boundaries of kaiju are highly malleable and different perspectives, e.g., in fan discourses and even in kaiju research, stretch their definitions from very rigid understandings to very broad ones, for example by including depictions of giant humans, like kaiju researcher Jason Barr: “[…] I will use the more reductive logic of ‘big creature’ and leave it at that, with little more explanation to come. This allows me some comfort in drawing broader inferences at times when I need to, such as discussing the Italian/Canadian Yeti: Giant of the 20th century and films such as Colossal.” (see Barr 2023: 9). While certain motifs overlap between the Carta Marina, e.g., the depiction of giant dragons, and kaiju tropes, a deeper semiotic and historical analysis is necessary to examine the connection and to be able to conclude whether this categorization is reasonable or not.
Countries that also produced kaiju works encompass South Korea, Canada, Hong Kong, Thailand, United Kingdom, and France. But as the amount of works from each of these countries does not even exceed 1%, their genre-defining impact – according to the data – is minuscule. The data in Figure 2 reveals a decent amount of international collaborations (21 works, 6.6%), especially between Japan and the United States (10 works, 3.2%), thus strengthening the position of both countries when it comes to produce works that further define the kaiju genre.
In the historical data (Figure 3), we see an overall increase of kaiju works produced over the last decades. This increase can be divided into phases where kaiju works’ production was increased. From our perspective, we divided the phases as follows: The first phase around 1966 to 1967; the second phase are the 1970s; the next phase from 1993 to around 2010; and the most recent phase from 2012 to today. This division of phases is oriented at waves of production releases and production peaks, which might reflect an increased interest in kaiju motifs in certain periods. This historical division based on the number of productions vastly differs from in kaiju-fan discourse, e.g. documented in kaiju-related fan-curated databases like Wikizilla, and established historical periods, e.g., in the case of the Godzilla franchise. The terminology of these periods was adopted from the Japanese calendar, which derives its historic periods from the reigns of the Japanese emperors. A comparison can be found in table 1.
| TV Tropes dataset | Wikizilla | Japanese calendar |
| 1966 – 1967 | 1954 – 1975 (Showa series) | 1926 – 1989 (Shōwa era) |
| 1970s | 1984 – 1995 (Heisei series) | 1989 – 2019 (Heisei era) |
| 1993 – 2010 | 1999 – 2004 (Millenium series) | 2019 – today (Reiwa era) |
| 2012 – today | 2016 – today (Reiwa series) |
In comparison, the historical periods on Wikizilla reflect economic decisions from Toho studios, the Japanese production and distribution company for Godzilla works. The Showa series encompasses kaiju films, where kaiju are portrayed as antagonists to humanity, bringing destruction and spreading fear. It is also in this period, where Godzilla turns from antagonist to benevolent protector of humanity, which functions as the foundation for the period of kaiju battles. 1984 Toho rebooted the Godzilla series, retrospectively called the Heisei series, and is predominantly focused on Godzilla and its battles against other kaiju and ends with Godzilla vs. Destoroyah (1995). A planned 10-year hiatus, due to a planned American Godzilla-trilogy, was suspended as Godzilla (1998) was not well received from fans. Toho thus rebooted the franchise again, this time earlier than planned, with Godzilla 2000: Millenium (1999) starting the Millenium-series, which lasted only five years. This time is, other than the Showa and Heisei period, characterized by stand-alone works without a clear narrative timeline. The most recent reboot of the Godzilla franchise started with Shin Godzilla (2016) heralding the Reiwa series.
After the successes of 1933’s King Kong (United States) and 1954’s Godzilla (Japan), kaiju saw its first boom in production around 1966 to 1967, which is characterized by the advent of the Ultraman franchise with the live-action TV series Ultraman (1966). As we have discussed in our previous tiny use case on the transmediality of the kaiju genre, it is highly debatable whether the Ultraman Series, usually categorized as “kyodai hero”[1], could also be considered a kaiju work, but referring to the TV Trope dataset, it indicates a step away from an exclusively live-action film genre to a transmedia genre. Nevertheless, the 1960s are also characterized by the emerging cooperation between the kaiju powerhouses, Japan and the United States (see Figure 3), cementing their central role when it comes to kaiju works.
The 1960s and 1970s were characterized by the dominant role of Japanese kaiju productions that started to dominate the domestic and international markets (see Figure 3). But it was also at this time that the genre saw an increase in international productions from other countries, such as Thailand, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Italy, and South Korea. Due to the popularity and expansion of the Ultraman franchise in Japan, the live-action TV series productions increased to the level of live-action films at that time, rivaling the significance and influence of films on defining the genre. But the decade also saw the beginning of kaiju depicted in other media, such as comic books, western animation, literature, anime, manga, and even tabletop games, establishing kaiju as a transmedia genre. Works of that time revolved predominantly around fights between various kaijus reminiscing a fighting sports arena format (title: “versus”). For example, Godzilla was pitted against King Kong (1962), Mothra (1964), Hedorah (1971), Megalon (1973), and Mechagodzilla (1974), and Gamera was seen fighting against Barugon (1966), Gyaos (1967), Viras (1968), Guiron (1969), Jiger (1970), and Zigra (1971) among many more.
After a decade of a relatively low number of productions in the 1980s, the release of kaiju works started to increase from 1993 with peaks in 1996 and 1998 (Figure 2). This period is characterized by relatively regular releases, which indicates a stable interest in kaiju works. Additionally, while the United States have been a major contributor to kaiju productions, from the 1990s onwards, we see an increase in productions, positioning the United States as a significant contributor to shaping and exploring the kaiju genre and its characters. For example, Roland Emmerich’s Godzilla (USA 1998) and Gareth Edwards’ Godzilla (often referred to “Godzilla (2014)”, USA 2014) are highly successful Hollywood productions that diverge from Japanese productions in tone and meaning, for example regarding Emmerich’s Godzilla that is characterized by an inert malignance (see Barr 2023). As Shin Godzilla (Japan 2016) producer Akihiro Yamauchi remarked: “Hollywood has to look to the global market, but our situation is different. The first priority for us is the audience in Japan. In a way this movie is our response to Hollywood—an attempt to show the world what Godzilla means to Japan today.” (Nippon.com 2016) Thus, kaiju productions—and here specifically the Godzilla franchise—are not cultural monoliths but exist in a transcultural dialogue where different interpretations can co-exist to make sense of recurring kaiju themes of natural and man-made disasters, helpless dread but also humanity’s awe and resilience in the face of sublime forces.
From 2012 onwards, kaiju productions reached new heights. This peak could be attributed to a franchization of kaiju, for example in the United States with the establishment of the MonsterVerse, “an American multimedia franchise featuring Godzilla, King Kong and other characters owned and created by Toho Co. Ltd.” (Wikipedia 2025). In Japan, on the other hand, a new interest in kaiju productions has been the result of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami disaster and the ensuing Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster (Wong 2024). For example, Shin Godzilla (2016) producer Akihiro Yamauchi explained in an interview with Nippon.com what inspired the concept and artistic direction of the movie emphasizing its real-world connection: “I think the experience of that disaster changed Japan more than anything else in the past 12 years. Escaping into fantasy would have been one option, I suppose, but [director Hideaki] Anno-san and I talked it over and we both agreed that an approach like that would be meaningless.” (Nippon.com (2016).
The case of Shin Godzilla (2016) serves here as an example of how future research can build upon the data analysis of fan-curated data and analyze this data more comprehensively in larger historical contexts and how this perspective provides new insights, diverges from or approves contemporary research or the positions of other more specialized fan communities, such as Wikizilla. For example, future research could take the aforementioned interviews as starting points to explore further the role of data analysis or could dig deeper into possibilities of correlating ecological and other catastrophes with the historical data, reflecting their cultural impact.
Additionally, the data from TV Tropes also includes planned future works, which have not yet been released at the time of writing this blogpost. In contrast to conventional historical analysis, this data provides insight into near future developments and thus the prospective interconnection of past, present, and future. It also makes visible and can serve as an archive for failed projects and thus provide a more comprehensive view on historical developments, that is not only written by the “winners” but also takes failed projects into account. This inclusion has also its downsides, as some prospective works are not up to date, such as Daikaiju Daikessen, which is still listed as a planned work, although already released in 2020.
Conclusion
The kaiju genre is predominantly shaped by productions from Japan and the United States, but a small amount of works has also been produced in other countries, thus establishing kaiju as a transcultural genre. However, while national origins still play a significant role in popular culture, the emergence of online platforms, e.g., for the distribution of fanfiction, challenges this status.
As we have seen in our previous case studies on the kaiju genre, the genre is fluid and shows significant overlaps with other tokusatsu subgenres, such as mecha, henshin hero, and kyodai hero. This fluidity has also to be considered and examined in its historical dimension – a question raised by the inclusion of the artwork Carta Marina from 1539. Additionally, the inclusion of planned works suggests an ongoing evolution of the genre but also reveals data inconsistencies in tracking unreleased works. We have seen that in kaiju’s fan culture and research, the history of the genre is organized in eras, which TV Tropes did not provide. These eras are not based on the quantity of releases but on the economic decisions of Toho Studios to reboot Godzilla and kaiju productions. Thus, they do not serve as markers of a historical development but as a thematical and also industrial orientation of Godzilla productions. This case exemplifies how fan-curated databases, here TV Tropes and Wikizilla, can vary in scope and depth and, depending on the case, provide complementing data and perspectives.
The goal of this tiny use case was to examine the potential of fan-curated databases, here TV Tropes, for transcultural and historical insights through data analysis. While we faced several challenges, such as missing data on country of origin or release year, we were still able to get interesting insights about historical developments of releases and how the United States caught up with Japanese productions, establishing itself as an additional kaiju powerhouse. From a media studies perspective, data analysis also provoked more questions than it solved. For example, how quantitative historical data relates to qualitative data, what role the fan-perspective and fan-curated data in historicizing media genres takes, or how data on national origin is related to confining (trans-)cultural phenomena and genres to national boundaries. Thus, data analysis can serve as a fruitful ground for the reexamination of definitions of kaiju and genres in a broader context, to question pre-established canons of works, and to consider the scope and depth of a fan-curated database in a data analysis.
References
Barr, Jason (2023): The Kaiju Connection: Giant Monsters and Ourselves, Jefferson, NC: McFarland.
Kim, Seyong (2017): Kamen Rider vs. Spider-Man and Batman. American Superheroes as Kaiju Villains, in: D.G. Mustachio & Jason Barr: Giant Creatures in Our World: Essays on Kaiju and American Popular Culture, Jefferson, NC: McFarland.
Nippon.com (2016): Resurgent Godzilla Back to Trample Tokyo, Article link: https://www.nippon.com/en/views/b04005/ (uploaded: 29 July 2026; accessed: 12 November 2025).
Schauer, Bradley (2023): Kaiju Film, in: J. P. Telotte: The Oxford Handbook of New Science Fiction Cinemas, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Wikipedia (2025): MonsterVerse, (accessed: 23 October 2025).
Wong, Tobias Chun Wai (2024): A Rebuild of History: Anno Hideaki’s Shin Godzilla And Evangelion, University of Minnesoty ProQuest Dissertation & Theses, 2024.31559365. Link: https://www.proquest.com/dissertations-theses/rebuild-history-anno-hideakis-em-shin-godzilla/docview/3105715810/se-2?accountid=10957.
[1] As kyodai hero and kaiju are both tokusatsu subgenres, they overlap in themes and tropes.