Maser tank

The Maser Cannon (メーサー兵器 Mēsā Heiki, lit. Maser Weapon) is a fictional weapon featured in many of Toho's sci-fi and fantasy films, making its first appearance in the 1966 film The War of the Gargantuas. There have been several varieties, but each function in a similar way and have a similar appearance. Variations of the Maser have appeared in 13 films thus far. Since their inception, Maser Cannons have typically been employed as anti-kaiju weapons, due to the ineffectiveness of conventional military weaponry against them.

Name
Maser Cannons are named after real-world maser devices, an acronym for microwave amplification by stimulated emission of radiation. However, the Japanese katakana spellings for the fictional Masers (メーサー Mēsā) and the real-world maser (メーザー Mēzā) technology differ by one character.

origins
The Maser Cannon bears a strong resemblance to the Markalite Cannon from 1957's The Mysterians. This gigantic satellite-like weapon fired a ray from its center, and proved to be very effective against the Mysterians' advanced alien forces. A similar weapon also appeared in its 1959 sequel Battle in Outer Space. In 1961, the movie Mothra featured the famous Atomic Heat Ray Gun, a Markalite-like weapon that took the basic design that was featured in the previous films and placed it on wheels. This tank-like design was refined five years later in The War of the Gargantuas, which finally introduced the Type 66 Maser Cannon. After proving effective against Gaira, Maser Cannons would be used to combat Gigan and King Ghidorah, although with less success, in 1972's Godzilla vs. Gigan.

In the Heisei series, a predecessor to the Maser Cannon called the Hyper Laser Cannon was employed against Godzilla in The Return of Godzilla. The sequel Godzilla vs. Biollante introduced the MBT-MB92 Maser Cannon, and numerous other ground and aerial models were developed from this weapon.

In the continuity of the Kiryu Saga, the Atomic Heat Ray Gun from Mothra canonically influenced the development of Maser Cannons which were introduced against Gaira in 1967. The Type 66 Maser Cannon saw use against many other kaiju from that point onward, and was eventually replaced with the improved Type 90 model.

overview
Although there are several different types of Maser Cannons, most have a similar appearance and typically function in the same way. A Maser Cannon is consists of a satellite dish-like head which projects a steady blue beam of atomic energy that resembles a bolt of electricity. A Maser Cannon can be mounted on a variety of machines, but it is usually affixed to large tanks. A Maser tank supports its laser firing system in the form of a large arm ending in the rounded head that fires the beam. Usually, the arm lowers down when the tank is moving, and rises to take aim at the intended target. In comparison to the vast majority of military weaponry, the Maser Cannon has proven to be very effective against some monsters, the best example being Gaira.

In Destroy All Monsters, the Moonlight SY-3's Exploration Car was equipped with two small Maser Cannons which it used to assault the Kilaaks' Moon base. Beginning in the Heisei series, the JSDF began experimenting with the placement of Maser Cannons. While the MBT-MB92 resembled the classic design of a tank with a large satellite dish affixed to it, the subsequent MBAW-93 model replaced this with dual Maser cannons that were much smaller in size. Godzilla vs. Mothra introduced the ASTOL-MB93 Maser Attack Aircraft, which marked the first use of Maser Cannons by an aerial vehicle. G-Force's Garuda aircraft in Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II was equipped with powerful long-range High Power Maser Beam Cannons. In Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla, the anti-Godzilla mecha MOGUERA possessed a Plasma Maser Cannon mounted inside its chest. Godzilla vs. Destoroyah introduced CLT-95 Maser tanks, which returned to the classic design but now fired an ultra-low temperature (ULT) cryolaser in place of the typical atomic heat laser. Several MBT-MB92 units were modified to use these cryolasers as well.

The Millennium iteration of Mechagodzilla, Kiryu, was equipped with a dual mouth-mounted Maser Cannon which functioned similarly to Godzilla's own atomic breath. After being modified by the JXSDF, Kiryu's Absolute Zero Cannon was replaced with a chest-mounted Triple Hyper Maser Cannon.

In Godzilla: Final Wars, the New Gotengo could fire a Maser Cannon from its drill that was capable of freezing targets. The Earth Defense Force's Mutant soldiers were also armed with hand-held Maser rifles, which were used in combat with Ebirah