Anguirus (アンギラス Angirasu) is a giant Ankylosaurus kaiju who first appeared in the 1955 Toho Godzilla film, Godzilla Raids Again.
Anguirus was Godzilla's first-ever opponent, and battled him to the death in Osaka in Godzilla Raids Again. Anguirus was ultimately killed by Godzilla, but a second individual debuted in the film Destroy All Monsters in 1968. This Anguirus became a friend and ally to Godzilla, loyally fighting alongside him to fend off alien monsters such as King Ghidorah and Gigan. Anguirus' final appearance in the Showa series of films came in 1974's Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla, where he had his jaw broken by the alien machine Mechagodzilla, who was masquerading as Godzilla. Anguirus' next film appearance came 30 years later in Godzilla: Final Wars, where he was a mind-controlled pawn of the Xiliens in their invasion of Earth. While not as popular as the likes of Rodan, Mothra or King Ghidorah, Anguirus has become a popular monster in his own right, and has earned a reputation as being both Godzilla's closest friend and as a tenacious fighter even when severely outmatched.
The original English name given to Anguirus by Toho was Angilas, as seen in the company's 1955 international sales booklet.[11] When Godzilla Raids Again was released in the United States by Warner Bros. in 1959 as Gigantis, the Fire Monster, advertising materials spelled the monster's name as Angurus, which was also how it was pronounced in the English dub. In the mid-1970's, Toho copyrighted the new revised English name Anguirus, making it the official Anglicization of the monster's name for all subsequent media. However, only the English dub of Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla uses anything resembling this spelling. The English dubs for Destroy All Monsters, All Monsters Attack, and Godzilla vs. Gigan all call him "Angilas," while in Godzilla: Final Wars, the pronunciation sounds like "Angweenus." Another alternative name, Anguillas, appears in the German theatrical trailer for Destroy All Monsters[12] and the American version of the Godzilla Game Boy game.[13] The tag for the Anguirus figure in Bandai's Godzilla Island Monster Series toy line combines the romaji for Anguirus' subtitle, Fierce Dragon (暴竜 Bō Ryū), with his English name, giving the figure the English name Bōryu Anguirus.