A Space Godzilla Chapter 2 – “Return to the Planet”

It’s time for the conclusion of Nobuhiko Obayashi’s insane space odyssey, A Space Godzilla. I think we covered most of the backstory last time, so this time we’ll just leap directly into the text itself, supplemented by speculative translation notes for when things get… weird. Again, many thanks to Amanda’s valiant translation efforts. And same as last time, make sure to support an official release of this story if it ever happens.

Also, potential NSFW warning, because of copious alien bosoms.

Translation notes:

• Inari is the patron god/goddess of warriors, prosperity, and foxes, among other things.

• 小岩石の群（syouganseki no gun) lit.  group of small rocks, as in geology/earth’s crust rocks, not the birds (rocs).  However, it specifically says that they have beaks (text:  嘴をもった), and 群is only used when describing a group of living things.  This leaves me a bit…perplexed?  Maybe they were going for bird-like creatures that appear to be made from stone?
• Manto (マント) literally means cloak.  Additionally, 870 Manto is a minor planet orbiting the Sun named after after a prophetess in Greek mythology.  I assume that a Manto in this case is an alien from the planet Manto that likely resembles a black cloak in appearance, although there are no images to back this up.

• Yes, it really says Godzillas are pacifists and are never supposed to be violent.  The whole destroying various cities thing is even referenced at one point but the discrepancy isn’t really explained.  I think we’re just supposed to assume that everything was our fault somehow.  Or maybe Godzilla’s diabetes just made her really angry.  I don’t even know.
• The “wave motion virus” (波動ウイルス, “hadou virus”) may be a play on the Wave Motion Gun from Space Battleship Yamato. The term has been used as an association with devastating power, e.g. Ryu’s signature attack from the Street Fighter video game series.
• It’s not clear if the elder is referring to gods in the plural or a singular God, but since the Japanese usually use the term “kami” in a polytheistic sense, that’s what we went with.

Thus concludes our translation project for A Space Godzilla! I hope you enjoyed; it’s been a blast shedding some light on this obscure, bizarre entry in Godzilla’s publication history. Now you can let Bandai know you want MonsterArts of General Gamoni, trading cards with Ririn and Momo, and a swarm of rocks with beaks in the next fighting game!