There are only a handful of rivalries in pop culture as iconic as the feud between Godzilla and King Ghidorah. In the history of kaiju films, these two monsters are a testament to strength, power and destruction. Yet only one can carry the nickname King of the Monsters, which has led to some deadly brawls over the years.

Humans often worship Godzilla and King Ghidorah as gods, one for his destructive nature and the other for his ancient origins. But their actions do not always resemble those of God. Death follows them everywhere because human civilization does not matter to them. As the Godzilla franchise celebrates its 70th anniversary this year, CBR takes a closer look at the timeless struggle between a God and a king.

13 Godzilla Takes on a Different Kind of Ghidorah

Godzilla’s fight with Keizer Ghidorah ends up at the bottom of this list because it’s not the same thing that Ghidorah fans admire. But it is nevertheless the same species and therefore deserves a place. 2004 Godzilla Final Wars is famous for its extensive roster of monsters. The final boss, Keizer Ghidorah, was an interstellar kaiju brought to Earth by the Xiliens to end Godzilla forever.

Keizer Ghidorah initially appears before Godzilla as Monster X. However, when their fight ends in a stalemate, the humanoid kaiju transforms into Ghidorah’s infamous three-headed form. Kaizer Ghidorah easily clears the battlefield with Godzilla until the Gotengo gives the latter some extra juice to turn the tables. It’s one of the most destructive kaiju fights ever seen on the big screen.

12 Godzilla and King Ghidorah are ancient enemies

Since its introduction in Ghidorah, the three-headed monster (1964), King Ghidorah has been a constant thorn in Godzilla’s side. Its immense power and size rival that of Godilla. 2017 Godzilla: King of the Monsters alludes to the fact that the two men are engaged in a centuries-old battle for supremacy.

The film is littered with scenes of murals and ancient hieroglyphics depicting Godzilla and King Ghidorah in battle. From all this evidence, it’s easy to guess why Godzilla feels so threatened when the eco-terrorists break Ghidorah from his ice prison. The footage also proves that ancient men built entire cities to worship Godzilla, proving that he or his ancestors were in constant contact with King Ghidorah.

11 Godzilla and Rodan fight King Ghidorah on Planet X

The villainous Xiliens debuted in the 1965 Toho film. Astro-Monster Invasion. They pose as peaceful aliens from outer space who want Earth’s kaiju, Godzilla and Rodan, to fight the monster that is terrorizing them. It turns out to be King Ghidorah, making this his second appearance in the Godzilla franchise.

Upon awakening from their space journey, Godzilla and Rodan immediately engage in a three-way battle with King Ghidorah. Earth monsters team up to defeat their alien enemy. Rodan’s speed and Godzilla’s strength do the trick, leading the latter to do his iconic “Sheeh” pose dance inspired by the Osomatsu-kun manga. For a brawl of this scale, the battle takes place halfway through the film and ends too quickly, even if the audience likes the result.

10 King Ghidorah has a rematch with Godzilla and Rodan

After his defeat against Godzilla and Rodan in Astro-Monster InvasionKing Ghidorah gets a second chance to thwart his enemies near the end of the film. The Xiliens show their true colors when they attack Earth, eliminating the trio of Godzilla, Rodan and King Ghidorah using mind control. Once humans break this connection, beasts revert to their basic animal instinct to fight.

Just like the first round, the rematch is a quick battle. Astro-Monster Invasion It’s everything you could want from a Showa-era film. More ridiculous than Godzilla and Rodan kicking and throwing rocks at the alien dragon is the shock ending of the three falling into the sea. This might very well be the shortest final fight in a Godzilla film.

9 Godzilla makes a fragile alliance with his enemies to fight King Ghidorah

King Ghidorah first appeared in 1964. Ghidorah, the three-headed monster – arguably the first film in the Godzilla franchise to introduce science fiction into the fray. Ghidorah arrives on Earth in the form of a mysterious meteor until it transforms into a pillar of fire and the beast itself emerges.

To thwart the imminent threat, Mothra attempts to rally support from Godzilla and Rodan but to no avail. She takes a bossy approach to stopping the two kaiju from throwing tantrums, telling them to use that energy against King Ghidorah instead. The resulting battle starts furiously but quickly descends into regular Showa-era shenanigans. Godzilla needed help from his enemies to save the day, paving the way for more teams.

8 Godzilla leads the Kaiju of Monsterland against King Ghidorah

Destroy all monsters (1968) had an intriguing premise. The United Nations has confined all kaiju to an island called Monsterland. It was supposed to bring peace until monsters started appearing all over the world, destroying historical sites. An alien species called Kilaaks uses mind control to force monsters to do their bidding.

Destroy all monsters (1968) had an intriguing premise. The United Nations has confined all kaiju to an island called Monsterland. It was supposed to bring peace until monsters started appearing all over the world, destroying historical sites. An alien species called Kilaaks uses mind control to force monsters to do their bidding.

After the humans successfully free Godzilla and the other inhabitants of Monsterland from mind control, the Kilaaks release King Ghidorah onto the world. Anguirus, Rodan, Mothra, Kumonga, and many other groups of kaiju teamed up with Godzilla to defeat King Ghidorah. A fierce battle begins with neither side giving up. The fight takes a turn when Godzilla’s atomic breath finally injures his prey, and the others jump at the chance to defeat King Ghidorah once and for all.

7 Neither King Ghidorah nor Godzilla backs down from a fight

To prevent the Japanese government from becoming a tyrannical superpower in the future, a group of time travelers plan to erase Godzilla from history and unleash King Ghidorah on the country. However, their plan fails when Godzilla emerges from the ocean, unaffected by the alterations of time, and heads straight for King Ghidorah’s throat.

The fight becomes more and more brutal as it lasts. Ghidorah responds to Godzilla’s atomic breath with his gravity beams. Things go wrong when King Ghidorah takes flight and crushes the King of the Monsters. It takes help from humans to free Ghidorah from the Futurists’ control, prompting Godzilla to do what he does best: kill mammoth monsters. This may be the first time Godzilla has fought Ghidorah solo, but it won’t be the last.

6 When an interdimensional Ghidorah meets a planet-sized Godzilla

For the fans that matter, GODZILLA: The planet eater would be the second solo meeting between the two behemoths. But this time, events are taking place on a planetary scale. Godzilla Earth, already a 1,000-foot-tall monstrosity, confronts a higher-dimensional King Ghidorah. The power imbalance is made even more terrifying when the film reveals that King Ghidorah is a planet destroyer who is also intangible because of the Metphies Crystal.

As none of Godzilla’s attacks physically reach King Ghidorah, the titan falls into deep trouble to the point that the interdimensional dragon begins to suck Godzilla’s life force away. The breakthrough comes when Haruo Sakaki shatters the magic crystal, trapping King Ghidorah’s physical form in this dimension. With the tables turned, Godzilla unleashes his wrath on his nemesis.

5 Two Titans resurrect an age-old rivalry

The third time Godzilla and King Ghidorah fight solo occurs this side of the century under the banner of Legendary Pictures’ MonsterVerse. In only the third film in the Hollywood franchise, Godzilla: King of the Monsters pits the main character against the three-headed menace in a grudge match for the ages.

The two titans engage in a deadly battle, trading bites and energy blasts. Freed from his ice cage by eco-terrorists in the middle of Antarctica, King Ghidorah angrily lashes out at the Monarch’s security forces before Godzilla enters the scene. Godzilla uses his size and aggression to good effect, but King Ghidorah is trickier than he looks. He easily embarrasses the King of Monsters and sends him back to the hole he came from.

4 Mecha-King Ghidorah faces his archenemy

After King Ghidorah’s death at the hands of Godzilla in Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (1991), futuristic rebel Emmy Kano travels back in time in a final attempt to stop the King of the Monsters. As Godzilla continues his rampage, she returns with a robotic enhancement of King Ghidorah’s corpse. Renamed Mecha-King Ghidorah, the mechanical monstrosity levels the playing field with its arsenal of weapons.

It’s not an easy fight for either Mecha-King Ghidorah or Emmy, as Godzilla turns out to be much more powerful than expected. But the mecha has a few tricks up its sleeve, including the Godzilla Grip system. Mecha-King Ghidorah manages to hold on to Godzilla and takes him to the sea, where he ultimately suffers a catastrophic system failure.

3 The Monster King’s Tag Team Fight with the Three-Headed Monstrosity

Godzilla vs. Gigan (1972) were released at the end of the Showa era. The film introduced Gigan to the big screen, who would eventually become a fan-favorite kaiju. Even though it starts out as a science fiction film, Godzilla vs. Gigan has one of the most gripping kaiju fight scenes of that era.

While checking a signal, Godzilla and Anguirus encounter two alien monsters: King Ghidorah and Gigan. What follows is a barrage of kicks, thrusts and energy attacks with the usual combination gimmicks. Ghidorah and Gigan make a great couple and cause a lot of trouble for the monsters of Earth. The tonal shift in the battle occurs when Gigan cracks open Godzilla’s skull. It takes a lot of teamwork for Godzilla to defeat King Ghidorah.

2 King Ghidorah and Mothra try to stop Godzilla’s killing spree

Godzilla is a metaphor for man-made disasters and has always been a destructive force. But Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: all-out attack of giant monsters gave fans an entirely different King of the Monsters, an evil king to the core. The film’s portrayal of King Ghidorah as a guardian monster is just icing on the cake.

In the film, King Ghidorah teams up with Mothra to defeat Godzilla, but that’s easier said than done. Godzilla repels each of their attacks. His atomic breath is so strong that it kills Mothra and nearly finishes off King Ghidorah until Mothra’s spirit gives the latter renewed energy to continue the fight under Tokyo Bay. However, Godzilla barely seems bothered in the underwater fight and even blows King Ghidorah into smithereens in a shocking twist.

1 Godzilla and King Ghidorah fight for the title of King of the Monsters

At the climax of Godzilla: King of the MonstersMadison lures an enraged King Ghidorah to Fenway Park using Orca sonar. Everything goes according to his plan as Godzilla arrives in time with Monarch’s forces behind him. The two titans face off one last time to decide the fate of the planet.

Mothra and Rodan also join the fight, with the benevolent kaiju moth siding with Godzilla and the Fire Demon coming to King Ghidorah’s aid. A tag team battle ensues that leaves the entire city of Boston in rubble. Godzilla’s showdown with King Ghidorah in the MonsterVerse is considered one of the most epic kaiju encounters in cinematic history. A charged Ghidorah is no match for a fired-up Godzilla, forever giving up the king’s crown in his name.