SAPPORO TV TOWER! Visiting an Iconic Heisei-Era Location!

Sapporo TV Tower. Photo by Brett Homenick.

One of my goals in visiting Sapporo was to visit the Sapporo TV Tower, which is memorable from its inclusion in Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (1991). Though it can also be seen in Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla (1994) and Gamera 2 (1996), nothing can surpass Godzilla's destruction of the tower at 7:00. 

While I didn't enter the observation deck (maybe next time!), it was impressive seeing the landmark in person. Here are the photos!

Sapporo Scenes in December!

Welcome to Sapporo! Photo by Brett Homenick.

On Friday, December 5, I spent the night in Sapporo, Hokkaido, which was my first time to visit the city. While most of it was pretty simple -- eating at Saizeriya, shopping at Book Off -- I did have the opportunity to see and do quite a few cool things. Let's take a look at the highlights!

Spending an Afternoon with the Modern-Day Master of Monsters!

Fuyuki Shinada. Photo by Brett Homenick.

This afternoon (Sunday, January 7), I was privileged to spend a couple of hours in the company of Fuyuki Shinada, a legendary kaiju suitmaker who has made some of the most impressive monsters in Japanese film history.

Among many others, Shinada-san made Biollante in Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989), Godzillasaurus in Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (1991), Legion in Gamera 2 (1996), Irys in Gamera 3 (1999), and the title monsters in GMK: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack (2001).

Shinada-san became particularly animated when discussing the kaiju productions he grew up watching. As you'd imagine, he's as much a Monster Kid as any you've ever read about in the pages of Famous Monsters.

One amusing moment came when Shinada-san asked if I was married, to which I replied that I wasn't. He seemed a bit surprised and commented that I was handsome but then reason that I'm probably single because I'm an otaku. In any case, I got a kick out of the fact that the maker of Biollante called me handsome! 

It was a fun afternoon with a true legend of the genre and an all-around nice guy. Couldn't have had a better Sunday if I tried!

A Great Evening with a Great Kaiju Suit Actor!

Mizuho Yoshida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Today (Wednesday, November 1) marked another great meeting with a Toho luminary. After we met Yasuhiko Saijo, my friend Jacob and I made a beeline for kaiju suit actor Mizuho Yoshida's stunt gym for our next appointment. Jacob had arranged to meet with Yoshida-san and invited me to join him. With an offer that good, how could I say no?

We met Yoshida-san at the gym where his suit-acting colleague Akira Ohashi was leading a class. Stuntman and action director Makoto Yokoyama was also there and greeted us, too. I was particularly impressed by Yokoyama-san's English-language skills. Yoshida-san recommended that we go to a quieter place to continue the conversation, so we went to a nearby cafe.

I assisted Jacob with his questions, and we had a fun and informative conversation. Yoshida-san was quite thoughtful and candid in his answers. Yoshida-san signed a couple of things for Jacob, and we posed for a few more photos. 

But that wasn't all! Yoshida-san recommended that we eat dinner together. We agreed on the type of dinner we wanted, and Yoshida-san chose a restaurant in Akihabara that we walked to. We ended up having a delicious shabu-shabu dinner with Yoshida-san essentially making it for us at the table. (That's the second Godzilla suit actor to make dinner for me and Jacob!) During the dinner, Yoshida-san talked more about his career, such as suit-acting onstage alongside Hiroshi Fujioka, as well as his appearance in a Wonda coffee commercial, which was filmed after GMK (2001) wrapped. 

Mizuho Yoshida and his kaiju counterpart. Photo by Brett Homenick.

But that still wasn't all! After dinner, Yoshida-san took us inside Akihabara Station, which was hosting a Godzilla pop-up store. Coincidentally, there was a GMK-themed jacket on sale, which was too good a photo opportunity to pass up. We arrived just before closing, so we had just enough time to look around the store. 

Suffice it to say, today was full of surprises. I had no idea that we'd be hanging out with Yoshida-san in a grand total of four different locations. But that's a testament to the kind of person he is. I'm certainly grateful for the hospitality Yoshida-san showed us today. Many thanks!

An Incredible Day with the King of the Monsters!

Mizuho Yoshida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Today (Wednesday, February 1), I had the distinct privilege of spending the afternoon with suit actor Mizuho Yoshida. It was a great opportunity to chat with him at length about his legendary career bringing monsters to life on the screen.

Mizuho Yoshida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Yoshida-san portrays Zeiram in both Zeiram (1991) and Zeiram 2 (1994), Legion in Gamera 2 (1996), Death Ghidorah (a.k.a. Desghidorah) in Rebirth of Mothra (1996), Dagahra in Rebirth of Mothra 2 (1997), Godzilla in GMK: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack (2001), and Zedus in Gamera the Brave (2006), among other suit-acting roles. 

The chat went a lot longer than I expected, which of course is a good thing! But Yoshida-san couldn't have been any more hospitable. If only more people could be as friendly as he is!

Godzilla may be a monster on the screen, but he's a heck of a nice guy in real life. Many thanks to Yoshida-san for making my afternoon something special!

Heisei Gamera Tokusatsu DNA, Part II!

Legion is ready to attack! Photo by Brett Homenick.

The second part of my pictures from the Heisei Gamera Tokusatsu DNA exhibit at Tokyo Tower. Enjoy!