kaijutegu:

The quick answer is teeth like a T. rex, but we don’t do quick here. We do long, over-thought answers- and if you look at Godzilla’s life history (such as it is throughout the divergent canon), T. rex teeth don’t actually make sense. 

However, it’s hard to pin down exactly what does make sense. Godzilla as an entity spans more than thirty films from several different studios. The Japanese films are divided into three different stylistic eras, and then there’s the three American films. There’s also the cartoons, various comics, I think there’s a manga… but which is the correct Godzilla? Is there one Godzilla? Many Godzillas? Are all of the daikaiju known as Godzilla actually the same species? They often look radically different from each other, have different emergence patterns, different rampage/hunting strategies, and different motivations. If we only talk about Godzilla classique, the 1954 Godzilla, we miss out on the way that Godzilla has changed and evolved over the years- and I think that’s a shame, because every aspect of the Godzilla story helps build the allegory. 

I like to think that every Godzilla is an aspect of the True Godzilla; Godzilla is akin to a mythical figure in that the creature’s existence and motivations are hard to pin down. Godzilla is a force of nature, but also a force of supernature; he is a metaphor for the destructive power of radiation, but also a hero in defense of earth. His origin, like many other mythological figures, is in the sea; in nearly all canons, Godzilla rises from the depths of the ocean to teach humanity a lesson, and his defeat is never truly final; he returns in one form or another. In a sense, his physical form, as mutable as it is, reflects well on his presence as the king of all monsters, the ultimate daikaiju, the strangest of beasts. All Godzillas, no matter how flawed, show something of That Which Is Godzilla. Godzilla’s oceanic origin is vital to his presence as a creature of modern mythos. Plenty of allegorical figures arise from the sea; in world mythology, it usually indicates that parentage isn’t particularly important, as well as that which arises from the sea being unstoppable or irresistable. It makes a lot of sense, really- we know more about deep space than we do about the deep ocean.

And from a practical standpoint, an oceanic origin means that whatever evolution the creature went through, it was definitely eating marine resources. On land, Godzilla isn’t really shaped correctly for going after prey; in the water, his thick tail, powerful neck, and upright posture could easily translate to an elegant swimmer. When I look at the original Godzilla, I’m reminded of a marine iguana in many ways. 

Even after the rubber-suit era, Godzilla still maintains a vertical posture on land. Obligate terrestrial bipedalism doesn’t really suit a fast hunter; if Godzilla was any good at catching terrestrial prey, he’d be a persistence hunter. But Godzilla isn’t interested in hunting for food, really; typhoons don’t chase down one person in particular. No, when Godzilla eats, it’s in the water- and I would go so far as to suggest that Godzilla has far more in common with other piscivores than he does with any terrestrial dinosaurs. Specifically, I think Godzilla’s teeth would be something of a mix between alligator teeth and the elongated teeth of predatory fish like gar and barracudas, and this dentition would change over time as the need for these teeth change. 

Like many other mythological beings, Godzilla doesn’t really need to eat, or at least eat food as we understand it. He draws energy from radiation (consuming our sins and turning them against us- seriously, there’s a lot of cool allegorical stuff when you look at kaiju eiga as a whole), but Godzilla clearly has teeth, and his juvenile forms/offspring are seen eating. Given this, one might surmise that like many insects, eating becomes redundant in the fully adult form, and perhaps might only be necessary for younger/smaller/weaker Godzillas. The most recent film to depict an immature Godzilla was Shin Godzilla, and if you look at the immature forms, you’ll see long, thin teeth that look the same throughout the jaw.

Teeth like that are simple and peg-like; they’re not rooted and replace themselves throughout the animal’s lifespan. The length, sharp points, and lack of curvature or serration remind me very much of the type of teeth you see in an alligator gar.

They also don’t really align- this isn’t an animal that can chew well, and it’s likely the alveolar margins are thin. But it’s likely that Godzilla doesn’t really need to chew well; the atomic breath weapon is substantial enough for destruction, and when Godzilla bites down, chewing is less important than the initial chomp- much like you see with piscivorous animals, as well as aquatic predators like alligators. 

It’s the bite and hold and then throw using those powerful neck muscles that makes Godzilla a threat to vehicles- not his ability to chew them up! 

Interestingly enough, the fully matured Godzilla’s teeth are often homodont- the same shape and general size throughout the mouth- with the exception of the canines, which are enlarged. This is often seen in mammals, but the homodont dentition is more like a reptile (or a toothed whale). Teeth like this aren’t always for hunting and eating, though- they are sometimes simply for combat or display. In Godzilla’s case, this is clearly for combat with other daikaiju. This is in line with the general depiction of a large reptilian carnivore, which are often adapted for surviving territorial conflict with other large reptilian carnivores. Crocodilians are a perfect example of this. Their osteoderms and highly vascularized bone (it helps distribute bite pressure), coupled with their robust immune systems help them survive bloody conflicts and the risk of infection they see afterwards. Godzilla’s aggression and conflict towards other daikaiju actually rarely involves teeth- like, look at this fight from GMK in 2001, where Godzilla fights King Ghidorah.

When Godzilla does use his mouth, it’s to hold, not to tear or rend. If he was fighting in the water, perhaps a hold and roll (what crocodilians do) would be useful for combat; as it is, his elemental powers are more useful versus a flying opponent. 

Godzilla’s teeth are both like and unlike any living creature’s, which makes sense, as Godzilla (and all kaiju) are Strange Beasts. They don’t have to make total sense- that’s part of their majesty and part of their purpose.