Mothra vs Godzilla: Battle for the Beads

Even though I love how my first Mothra combo turned out, I still couldn’t stop thinking about the Blue Deserts that I started with. I decided to revisit my original idea and see what I could do.

I had toyed with the idea of adding Godzilla to my previous Mothra bracelet since he was my gateway to Mothra. But, as perfect as the Faerybeads Coiling Dragon was to represent Godzilla, I just couldn’t get it to work last time. This time, I stripped away Mothra’s brighter colours and focused on the darker Blue Desert beads and Godzilla seemed more at home.

My Japanese monsters bracelet was born.

The Japanese monsters are an interesting bunch that fall on both sides of the good vs. evil divide. Mothra pretty much sits on the side of good, defending Earth against other monsters. Godzilla is … undecided. Sometimes he’s portrayed more as a villain, and sometimes as a hero. I think that he wants to be good. But he hates people shooting at him! And, good or bad, he’s not afraid to destroy anything in his way!

Without Mothra’s bright colours to fill in the bracelet, I had to think of a few other beads that matched the theme. I considered Ohm’s Kimono as a general representation of Japan, but most of the movies take place in urban cities, like Toyko, where the attire isn’t quite so traditional. I thought about Ohm’s Atomic, since Godzilla was created by nuclear radiation, but I wondered if the size would work with my other beads. Then, I realized that one of Born of Fire’s beads would work well! I had considered it for my Galapagos bracelet and then ran out of space for it. I had also considered it for another project that I’m working on, so when I realized that it would also work here, I figured that was the sign that I should finally buy it! The pattern reminds me of an island chain and here it represents Japan and the other islands that the monsters inhabit.

Although Godzilla ravages the land, he’s actually a prehistoric sea monster who returns to the water to rest and recover from injuries. So, I added the navy glass bead to represent his deep, watery home.

I also wanted a bead to represent the buildings that Godzilla destroys. I thought about getting the Trollbeads Sacred House from the Japan World Tour set, but I didn’t think I’d use it for anything else; I didn’t think it made sense to buy it for one theme. Next, I thought of making the one building that features in all of the Godzilla movies and the one building that Godzilla always destroys: Toyko Tower! Even though I don’t like to buy beads that will be used only in one theme, I don’t seem to have an issue making a bead that will only get used in one theme :D But, I just couldn’t get it to work. So, for now, the Picasso Jasper and Transformation bead represent the twisted metal and rubble that Godzilla leaves in his wake.

I plan to expand this further and explore more of Godzilla and Mothra’s stories at some point. Until then, I’m happy with where it is!

Artisans: Islands: Born of Fire || night sky: Na0sGlass on Etsy