Bye-Bye Shibuya Station (As We Know It)

Above, a nighttime shot of Shibuya Station in 2010. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

It was announced last year that Shibuya Station will be undergoing a multi-year redevelopment. The project is expected to be completed in 2027. Go here to get an idea what changes will be made.

Shibuya Station is familiar to kaiju fans for being a battleground for Gamera and Gyaos in Gamera 3:Revenge of Irys (1999). Once completed, the station will not look as it did in the movie. Now is the time for fans to visit Shibuya Station if they want to see it before most of the present structures are demolished. Shibuya is featured on page 27 of The Monster Movie Fan's Guide To Japan.

As I mentioned above, Shibuya Station was featured in Gamera 3. The sequence begins with a burning Gyaos falling from the sky onto the section of the station housing the JR Yamanote Line. This sequence, by special effects director Shinji Higuchi, features some of the most effective usages of actual locations and landmarks in a kaiju movie since Godzilla (1954). 

Gamera 3 was released 15 years ago, but no other kaiju movie using "suitmation" and miniatures has yet topped its special effects. It is difficult to tell when the actual buildings end and the miniatures begin, they're that good.

Here is part one of a documentary on the making of Gamera 3:

Here's some photos of the Shibuya Station sequence:

Above, a burning Gyaos falls onto Shibuya Station.

Above, a JR Yamanote Line train is about to be demolished by the crashing Gyaos.

Above, after landing, Gamera heads over to Shibuya Station to finish off the badly wounded Gyaos.

Above, in finishing off the Gyaos, Gamera also blasts apart Shibuya Station.