Rodan, a mutated dinosaur like Godzilla, first appeared in 1956 when he and his mate emerged from Japanese coal mines near Mount Aso. The two Rodans first snacked on a swarm of giant, dragonfly larva dubbed Meganurons before beginning their reign of terror across nations bordering the Pacific Ocean. After attacking the Japanese city of Fukuoka, the two Rodans flew to the volcanic Mount Aso to rest, but were attacked by the JSDF. The JSDF’s weapons caused the volcano to erupt, the lava consuming both mutated pteranodons. However, the male Rodan managed to survive the molten lava and went dormant until 1964, when he reappeared from Mount Aso and battled with the returning Godzilla along the Japanese countryside. Meanwhile, the three-headed monster, King Ghidorah, was attacking Japan, laying waste to the country. Knowing the threat that King Ghidorah was to Japan as well as the entire planet, the Twin Fairies of Infant Island called Mothra to try and persuade the battling Godzilla and Rodan to fight King Ghidorah. The two monsters wouldn’t cooperate at first, but finally they came together along with Mothra to defeat the space monster, forcing King Ghidorah to retreat back into the blackness of space. A year later, aliens from the newly discovered Planet X tricked the Earth into trading Godzilla and Rodan to them so they could rid their world of King Ghidorah, in exchange for a miracle drug to cure all disease. The Xians took control of Godzilla and Rodan and sent them to destroy Earth along with King Ghidorah. However, scientists discovered a way to defeat the Xians by crippling them with a high-pitched sound while using A-Cycle Light Rays to free Godzilla, Rodan, and King Ghidorah from their control. After the Xians were destroyed, Godzilla and Rodan attacked King Ghidorah, the three battled until they all fell off of a cliff and into the ocean. Only King Ghidorah emerged, fleeing back into space.
After defeating King Ghidorah, Rodan was not seen until he was lured to Ogasawara Island and imprisoned there by a magnetic wall. Rodan seemed quite happy with this new environment, until the alien Kilaaks came and took control of all the monsters on the island. Rodan was sent to destroy the Russian capital of Moscow and then obliterated Tokyo with the help of Godzilla, Mothra, and Manda. Later, the monsters were freed from Kilaak control by the crew of the Moonlight SY-3 and gathered at Mount Fuji to attack the Kilaaks. King Ghidorah appeared and took on all the monsters, Rodan fought valiantly and then took to the skies, watching his kaiju companions destroy King Ghidorah. Rodan then returned with the other kaiju to Ogasawara Island, where he remains to this day.
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