It’s been five years, but Godzilla is finally back. And he’s not alone.

As Warner Bros. builds on the shared “MonsterVerse” they started with 2014’s Godzilla and 2017’s Kong: Skull Island — that the original Toho series pioneered in 1954 — Godzilla: King of the Monsters is bringing three more iconic Titans to the big screen. Here’s all you need to know about Rodan, Mothra, and the big bad King Ghidorah.

Rodan

Feature Film Debut: Rodan (1956)

(Credit: WB)

Originally called Radon, Rodan is a giant Pteranodon who stands with a wingspan of 871 feet. The Titan’s wings are so big, they can come together to create thunderclaps strong enough to shatter whole cities. Yup, this guy is not messing around.

He first met Godzilla in 1964’s Ghidorah, The Three-Headed Monster, where the two monsters battled each other in between waging a small war on the same city. Eventually, they were convinced by Mothra to put aside their differences and fight for the greater good against Ghidorah. It’s your classic superhero team-up trope: Enemies become friends and allies just in time to take out the real threat. We’re not sure how closely King of the Monsters’ Rodan will follow this arc, but the trailers hint that a team-up isn’t out of the question.

Mothra

Feature Film Debut: Mothra (1961)

(Credit: WB)

As Titans go, Mothra is arguably the most interesting and complex. This giant moth is the Queen of the Monsters, and people in her and Godzilla’s world worship her like a goddess.

As glimpsed in the trailers for the new movie, Mothra possesses bioluminescent wings that can harness powerful energy rays that she can then shoot. Mothra is an ally to both Godzilla and Earth, and while she may initially tussle with Godzilla in King of the Monsters, expect the two of them to team up for an epic showdown opposite the three-headed menace threatening to turn our world into his chew toy. Speaking of three-headed menaces…

King Ghidorah

Feature Film Debut: Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster (1964)

(Credit: WB)

Antagonists don’t get much bigger (literally) than this guy.

Ghidorah and his energy-spewing triple heads have been a thorn in Godzilla’s side for over 50 years. The monster’s three heads and two tails give him a formidable edge over Godzilla — as many an innocent bystander caught in the middle of one of their epic brawls can attest to. In his debut movie, Ghidorah was a creature who came to Earth to destroy it. It fell upon the shoulders of Godzilla, Rodan, and Mothra to combine their forces and defeat him.

King of the Monsters is changing up his origin story. He is considered “Monster Zero” of this world, the first Titan ever. Frozen in ice for hundreds of years, a rogue agent of MONARCH — the agency charged with tracking and monitoring these beasts — seems to have thawed Ghidorah out and it’s up to Godzilla to stop him and save us. If Ghidorah wins, the human race loses. And King of the Monsters does not seem to shy away from the thematic richness of monsters coming to save a world full of people that fear them.

Expect lots of epic kaiju-punching-kaiju action when Godzilla hits theaters May 31. Get your tickets here.

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