was part of a syndication package of kaiju films acquired and released by AIP-TV, which included Majin, the Monster of Terror, Monster from a Prehistoric Planet, and Godzilla vs. the Thing. Gamera vs. Barugon was one of the few films featured twice on Mystery Science Theater 3000, the first time as part of the initial KTMA series (episode 4) and again in Season 3 (episode 4), where the hosts commented on the awkward dialogue and Gamera's lack of screen time. Critical response In a contemporary review, Variety reviewed the film in Tokyo, noting that the special effects in the film were not up to standards of Toho's Eiji Tsuburaya and that Gamera "did not have the winning appeal of the Toho stable 'Godzilla', 'Radon'[known in English dubs as Rodan], etc." Christopher Stewardson from Our Culture awarded the film three stars out of five, praising the monster scenes and human drama, but criticized the pacing and military meetings, stating, "Gamera vs. Barugon presents an entertaining story with interesting themes. Some of its characters may be thinly constructed in their motives and morality, but that also allows the film to really embellish just how cruel and villainous they are. The monster sequences are mostly very engaging, and that the film’s human drama matches their quality is great." James McCormick from Criterion Cast praised the film's miniatures, cinematography, and Kōji Fujiyama's portrayal of Onodera. Kurt Dahlke from DVDTalk criticized the film's lack of monster battles but praised other elements, stating, "there are still plenty of sweet moments (including a giant tongue lashing) and stomped buildings, plus a generally serious tone, that marks this as a high-point in the Gamera franchise." Home media In the late 1980s, the export English version by Axis International debuted on VHS in the United States via the Sandy Frank Film Syndication and Celebrity Home Video. In 2003, a public domain, pan and scan version of the AIP-TV English dub was released on DVD by Alpha Video. In 2010, the Japanese version was released on DVD by Shout! Factory. In 2011, Shout! Factory included the Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode featuring the Sandy Frank version of the film on the MST3K vs. Gamera DVD collection. In 2014, the Japanese version was released on Blu-ray and DVD by Mill Creek Entertainment, packaged with other Gamera titles. In 2020, the Japanese version, the Axis English dub, and AIP-TV English version were