Setagaya-ku

Above, the Godzilla statue at the main entrance of Toho Studios.  Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Setagaya-ku is a residential area adjacent to Tokyo.  In the middle of a residential neighborhood is Toho Studios, famous for producing the Godzilla series along with other daikaiju eiga such as Mothra, Rodan, War of the Gargantuas and King Kong Escapes.  Toho also produced such horror classics as H-Man, Matango (known in the U.S. as Attack of the Mushroom People) and science-fiction epics including Gorath, Battle In Outer Space and Atragon.

The easiest way to get to Setagaya and Toho Studios is to take the Odakyu train line from Shinjuku and exit at the Seijo Gakuen-mae station.  If one has never trekked to Toho Studios and doesn't know the way through the neighborhood surrounding the studio, their best bet is to catch a taxi at the station and be driven to the studio entrance.   The Monster Movie Fan's Guide To Japan has a map to Setagaya-ku on page 21.

Above, the Mothra mural down the driveway from the main
entrance to Toho Studios.  Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Toho Studios is a working movie studio and does not offer tours, but visitors can view the man-sized Godzilla statue and Seven Samurai mural at the main entrance.  Down the driveway from the main entrance, a Mothra mural can be seen (photo above). 

Nearby to Toho Studios is the Soshigaya neighborhood where the Ultraman Shopping District can be explored.  There, characters of the Ultraman Universe adorn storefronts and streetlamp posts.

Visitors to Setagaya-ku can also see Todoroki Valley, known as the "oasis of the city" where a riverside promenade provides views of lush greenery.  It is one of the few areas where nature can be experienced in the city.