GOJIRA - GODZILLA by E.C. McMullen Jr. and Kelly Parks
GOJIRA MOVIE REVIEW GODZILLA MOVIE REVIEW GODZILLA REVIEW PAGE GOJIRA MOVIE TRAILERS GOJIRA & GODZILLA Toho GOJIRA SciMo - 1954 GODZILLA SciMo - 1956

SCIENCE MOMENT BY E.C.MCMULLEN JR.

GOJIRA - 1954
The weapon that could destroy Gojira is Dr. Serizawa's Oxygen Destroyer. A weapon of mass destruction so fearsome that Serizawa is afraid to use it because world leaders, once they have knowledge of this weapon, would use it against people.

But just how bad can an Oxygen Destroyer be?

Serizawa claims that his invention splits Oxygen into fluid. Let's be forgiving of the writers and pretend that Serizawa may have been trying to speak in layman's terms for his betrothed, Emiko, because that explanation doesn't make any sense.

Oxygen isn't a molecule but a single atom: an element. You split it and you have 8 newly freed protons and X number of neutrons and no small amount of energy. But the demonstration of what the weapon does can't be denied. It instantly removes the oxygen from the water and then, before the fish even have a chance to asphyxiate, it vaporizes the flesh from their bones, and then evaporates their bones.

How can a mere "Oxygen Destroyer" do all that?

Consider that fish can be as much as 99.8% water (jellyfish for example). Consider that an animal like Gojira, who survives just nicely in water or on land, could be as much as 60% water, like humans. And that figure is not an entirely accurate statement. For example: Our brains are up to 70% water, our blood is up to 83% water and our lungs are up to 90% water. And all water is comprised of the molecular composite of H2O (two hydrogen atoms bound to every one Oxygen atom). It's easy enough for scientists to separate hydrogen atoms from oxygen atoms in the lab. In fact, its so easy that you can do it at home. But Dr. Serizawa makes it clear that with his invention,

"Just a tiny piece can turn Tokyo Bay into a graveyard."

So what we're talking about here is an invention that starts a molecular chain-reaction, destroying every water molecule in its path until it reaches equilibrium (the moment where it don't do that no more). But it doesn't merely free the Oxygen atom from the Hydrogen, it splits the Oxygen like an atomic bomb splits the atom. Oxygen is smashed into its smaller particles of free electrons and neutrons.

Then the water, H2O, becomes a bath of hydrogen liquid first (hang on, I'll get back to this) as in nano-quick succession. Any oxygen existing within the water is ripped apart. And in a bunch of creatures that, to some degree are mainly water, this would blast the flesh into vapor, as we witness happen to the poor fish in the tank.

Whew! That's my worst Oxygen Destroyer yet!
Here, Emiko, shield me.

It would truly be a horrific weapon... but not like it is shown here.

All of that Oxygen split at once? There'd be no Tokyo and then some. The chain reaction? Without Oxygen, Hydrogen doesn't have liquid properties - unless it's kept at an extremely low temperature - and that's not happening in a free standing bay of water with the immediate heat of trillions to an X power of Oxygen atoms split apart. When oxygen is destroyed in the bay, the bay itself should have exploded both by the split plus all of the hydrogen being abruptly released. Any ships on the water would have been thrown sky high (and by sky-high, the "sky's" the limit!).

Then what was left of Tokyo after the shockwave would have been utterly destroyed by the resulting mass of remaining ocean (there was only enough Oxygen Destroyer to turn Tokyo Bay into a graveyard.). Imagine the rest of the Pacific Ocean rushing in like the awesome tsunami it would be. If you are going to go and drop an Oxygen Destroyer into Tokyo Bay, you may want to be somewhere safer than a boat IN that bay. Say, on top of Mount Fuji. . . all covered with cheese.

Footnote - aren't there areas of ocean starved of Oxygen? You bet! While the water itself is an oxygen bearing molecule, the amount of free oxygen in the water is very low; so low it may not be able to support multi-cellular life. Believe it or not, this can be both a good thing and a bad thing at the same time.

ScienceNews.org

ScienceDaily.com

SCIENCE MOMENT BY KELLY PARKS

GODZILLA - 1956
Once Godzilla shows himself the movie scientists place him as a Jurassic creature that has somehow survived to modern times. They mention the Jurassic as being 2 million years ago, which isn't even close. The Jurassic Era (the middle portion of the Mesozoic Eon) was from 144 million to 208 million years ago. The trilobite that was apparently living between Godzilla's toes is even more of an anachronism. They became extinct 300 million years ago, before there was any such thing as dinosaurs.

Which is all minor quibbling compared to the fact that Godzilla is supposed to be 400 freakin' feet tall and breathe radioactive fire. Unprecedented in nature doesn't begin to describe it. But that's okay with me. As I've mentioned elsewhere (see my review of GODZILLA [1998] vs. GODZILLA 2000) Godzilla is plain and simple inexplicable. He just is.

This article copyright 2004 E.C.McMullen Jr.

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