Gamera vs. Jiger

·1 hr 19 min·5 clips

Nathan and Brendan improvise a skit about a dog costume bankrupting a friend, leading to a plan to make a Gamera movie.

Nathan and Brendan host an episode of 'What Were They Thinking?' focused on Gamera vs. Jiger, a 1970 Japanese kaiju film. The episode begins with an improvised skit where Brendan's character, Tekahashi, is in financial trouble due to a dog costume, leading to a plan to make a Gamera movie using a stolen script. They transition to discussing the actual film, noting it's part of their 'Gameraversary' tradition. The plot involves an archeology dig on Western Island unearthing a statue that releases monster Jiger, with Gamera emerging to fight it. The hosts criticize the film's racist portrayal of an island emissary, which they compare to headhunter stereotypes. They highlight the movie's padding with Expo 70 footage, which they joke was added to promote the event. Nathan and Brendan debate whether Gamera or Jiger is the victim, with Brendan sympathizing with Jiger for just wanting a drink and Nathan defending Gamera's profiling. They describe key scenes, such as Jiger implanting larvae into Gamera, which they humorously call sexual assault, and the kids entering Gamera's body in a mini-sub to remove the larvae, referencing 'Fantastic Voyage'. The hosts mock the child characters, particularly a British girl who hates Gamera, and note the poor dubbing and repetitive fights. They end the review with low haikus, one criticizing Gamera as a bully and another hoping the bird monster Gauss eats the annoying child. The episode includes a segment where they read audience and critic reviews, with mixed opinions, and recommend the film for a silly, drunk watch. They close with 'What You're Watching Bud', where Brendan recommends Gattaca and Nathan recommends Megan 2.0, and a cameo from Montrose Monkington.

As heard by us

A kaiju oddity gets picked apart through a mini sub, suit logistics, and one grimly silly cancer scare.

What Were They Thinking? treats Gamera vs. Jiger as a study in kaiju-movie decision-making, tracking the boys as they borrow Hiroshi's dad's mini sub, turn the sister into a distraction, and enter through Gamera's mouth while the adults contribute surprisingly little.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

You want a Gamera night where the plan somehow becomes a mini sub through the mouth, a precision costume fall, and one extremely bleak cancer theory.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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