Byrd, Tom and Lux are back to take a look at the 1982 semi-obscurity The House Where Evil Dwells. This haunted house shocker is a co-production made with assistance from the legendary Toei studios. It was directed by Kevin Connor (The Land that Time Forgot) and stars Edward Albert, Susan George, and the incomparable Doug McClure. Based on an unpublished novel of the same name, it tells the story of an American family that moves to Japan and the vengeful ghosts that inhabit their house (and bodies). There's killer crabs, zen monks, Sentai on the TV, and more in this oddity that blends American and Japanese ghost movie tropes. Relax and enjoy the conversation!

Byrd, Tom and Trev kick off our annual October horror series with the Italian creature feature Alien From the Deep, directed by Antonio Margheriti (Cannibal Apocalypse).  Although seemingly made to cash-in on both Aliens and the Abyss, the actual plot is anything but.  It tells the story of some Greenpeace activists who attempt to expose a corporation for illegally dumping radioactive waste into a nearby volcano.  But the radiation has attracted a giant alien who has started wreaking havoc in the area.  We have pervy snake farmers, industrial espionage, a giant claw with a mind of its own, and some neat miniature effects in this silly 80s obscurity.  Relax and join the fun!

Byrd and Matt discuss the Asylum's latest monster mockbuster, Ape X Mecha Ape: New World Order.  The third film in the "Ape vs." series sees the giant ape Abraham and his mechanical doppelganger Mecha Ape go up against Kulalu, a Cthulhu knockoff summoned by a doomsday cult to wipe out humanity.  How does this compare to other Asylum efforts?  Listen and find out!  But first Matt gets us caught up with his thoughts on Godzilla x Kong and gives an update on the state of the podcast.  Listen and enjoy the show!

In the lead up to Godzilla vs. Kong, Byrd, Matt, and Tom are joined by author John LeMay (The Lost Films, Kong Unmade, Jaws Unmade) to talk about the original classic showdown!  On this audio commentary, we talk about the surprisingly tragic way the film came about, the sad life of Willis O'Brien, the battle for Kong's rights, the rise of commercialism in post-war Japan, the aborted sequels to this film, Toho's attempts to use Kong in the Heisei series, differences between the Japanese and American versions, and more!  This commentary is loaded, so whether you decide to listen to it along with the movie or by itself, we hope you enjoy the discussion!

Byrd, Matt and Maser Patrol's Kevin Derendorf scrape the bottom of the barrel for more King Kong rip offs and come back with tales to tell!  This time, we discuss the Italian-Canadian film Yeti: Giant of the 20th Century (1977), the Asylum's King of the Lost World (2005) and Bigfoot (2012), the uber obscure The Abominable (aka Ice Kong, 2006), and the recent micro budget reboot, Konga TNT (2020)!  As always, we'll give our reviews and a fair bit of trivia.  Relax and enjoy!

Byrd and Matt are joined by Kevin Derendorf (Maser Patrol/Kaiju For Hipsters) and Justin Mullis (Man Creates Dinosaurs blog) to talk about King Kong's animated forms, with a spotlight on four "unofficial" animated films that were made without the permission of Kong's rights holders.  We discuss the animated musical The Mighty Kong (1998), two Kong Animated Series sequels Kong: King of Atlantis and Kong: Return to the Jungle, and the feature length pilot episode of Kong: King of the Apes.  But first we discuss the original 60s "King Kong Show", and how the convoluted legal rights to King Kong allowed the original films' novelization go into the public domain, and how that lead to these animated productions being made in the first place.  We also bust some very commonly repeated myths about the availability of the rights to King Kong.  Relax and enjoy the conversation!

In 2018, Byrd and Tom joined up with the Movie Graveyard Podcast for an audio commentary for 1961's UK classic Gorgo!  We talked about the state of the giant monster genre at the time, how it would go on to influence kaiju cinema, its origins as a Japanese/British co-production and more.  Listen along and enjoy the discussion!

Byrd and Matt get together with Kevin and Ultra superfan Connor to discuss the most recent Ultraman show, 2020's Ultraman Z!  We talk about its troubled production history, our favorite and least favorite moments, and more!  But first we have a huge kaiju news roundup, as we give our thoughts on the latest for Godzilla vs. Kong, Shin Ultraman, Cloverfield 2, Pacific Rim: The Black, and the upcoming Monsterverse King Kong Netflix cartoon, and Byrd reveals why he's Team Kong!

Byrd and Matt are joined again by Trev and Tom to discuss the 2020 film Love and Monsters!  The film takes place seven years after a giant monster apocalypse, as our protagonist Joel travels across a monster filled terrain to find his high school sweetheart.  The film stars Dylan O'Brien, Michael Rooker and Jessica Henwick, and was directed by Michael Matthews and written by Matthew Robbins and Brian Duffield (Underwater, Spontaneous, and the upcoming Monsterverse Kong animated series on Netflix).  How does the film stack up?  Listen to us argue about it!

We're back with something a little different this time as we're joined by Trev and Tom to discuss some Japanese flavored takes on everyone's favorite caped crusader.  We talk about the heavily anime and kaiju influenced Batman Unlimited animated film, Mechs vs Mutants, and the completely bonkers anime film Batman Ninja!  We're gonna talk giant monsters, giant robots, giant monkeys, giant Batmans and giant... castles!  But first, we discuss the announced Prince of Space remake, and Batman's popularity in Japan, including an aborted crossover film with Godzilla!

Byrd, Matt, and Kevin are joined by Jared Foust (Xenofauna on Twitter/Instagram) to discuss modern artist Takashi Murakami's 2013, film debut, Jellyfish Eyes.  Mostly known for his artwork and design work (including for artists such as Billie Eilish and Kanye West), Murakami decided to try his hand at making a children's film that would combine his aesthetic with other inspirations from kaiju/tokusatsu and video games to tell a story about kids and their monster pets (called FRIENDS) in a post-Fukushima Japan (complete with a rampaging kaiju).  We discuss Murakami's career, why most of the film's practical tokusastsu effects were scrapped, the recently canceled sequels, religious cults in Japan, the film's Criterion release, and more!

Byrd, Matt and Tom discuss the recent indie kaiju spoof, Notzilla.  After circling Hollywood and going through different hands for years, director Mitch Teemley decided to make his affectionate kaiju parody independently with a tiny budget in Cincinnati, OH.  What happens when kaiju and 50s American b-movie tropes combine with parody?  Join us as we review the film and discuss its origins and the state of the spoof genre.

If you're still not over the end of October, Byrd, Tom and Kevin are here to help with your Halloween hangover by talking about the horror-action mashups of director Ryuhei Kitamura.  Before directing Godzilla: Final Wars, Kitamura had humble beginnings making low budget genre films.  We discuss his early efforts, including the zombie/yakuza film Versus, the sci-fi/horror manga adaptation Alive, and the samurai/yokai battle Aragami.  We also discuss some of his short films as well.  But first, we talk about Kitamura's transition from the world of low budget horror films to Godzilla to mainstream Hollywood films, as well as whether or not he deserves his maligned reputation among Godzilla fans.

With a new Planet of the Apes movie in theaters, Byrd, Tom and Kevin decide to take a look at Japan's attempt to cash-in on the franchise.  This Sandy Frank Entertainment-produced compilation film was made up of footage from Tsuburaya Productions 1974-1975 series, Time of the Apes, about a group of children and a scientist who find themselves shot forward in time to a future taken over by apes.  We'll discuss this forgotten oddity as well as the series that spawned it.  But first, we give our thoughts on the Planet of the Apes series as well as the latest Monsterverse news and the new Godzilla arcade game.  Relax and enjoy the show!

For this October horror episode, we get into some werewolf shenanigans by talking about screen adaptations of manga legend Kazumasa Hirai's strange Wolf Guy franchise.  First up, we have Toho's 1973 film, Horror of the Wolf, directed by Masashi Matsumoto and co-written by Godzilla veteran Jun Fukuda.  Next up, we discuss Toei's 1975 Wolf Guy, starring Sonny Chiba as an older version of the character.  Then we follow it up with JC Staff's six part anime series.  The world of Wolf Guy a bonkers one full of murder, rape, gore, martial arts, questionable romances, and overall sleazy exploitation.   But first we discuss the first trailer for Godzilla: Singular Point and our first look at Pacific Rim: The Black. Tune in and join the conversation!

For our first October horror episode of 2020, Byrd, Matt, and Tom are joined by Trev (Failure To Franchise, Days of Future Podcast) to discuss two shockers from exploitation maestro, Teruo Ishii.  First, we discuss Toei's controversial mad scientist tale, Horrors of Malformed Men, which was pulled from theaters and languished for decades under a studio imposed ban.  Then we discuss the Nikkatsu yakuza/horror/action mashup, Blind Woman's Curse, starring the iconic Meiko Kaji.  In addition to our movie reviews, we also discuss Teruo Ishii's tokusatsu beginnings, atomic age anxiety, Butoh dance, Japanese societal taboos, Edogawa Rampo, pink cinema, the badassness of Meiko Kaji, ghost cats, and more!  But first, we have news about SRS' upcoming blu-ray release of the Korean oddity, the Flying Monster, Takashi Miike's Yokai sequel, and our reactions to the Monster Hunter trailer.

Byrd, Matt, Tom and resident Ultra superfan Connor discuss 2013's series Neo Ultra Q.  This 12 episode update of the series brings a diverse and more heady science fiction spin on Ultra Q, with some of the best genre talents behind the camera.  Listen as we discuss each of the 12 episodes and our favorite moments from the series!  But first, we deliver some news on the next Godzilla project and a thank you to everyone who tuned in for the Kaiju Masterclass online convention!

Byrd and Matt are joined by frequent guest Kevin Derendorf (Kaiju For Hipsters), as well as first time guests Jared Foust (Xenofauna) and translator Amanda Whalen to discuss 1990's Ultra Q the Movie: Legend of the Stars!  This film update of the classic 60s television series has languished in obscurity for decades.  Frustrated with the lack of a translation, this group of friends threw in money to have the film translated so this lesser discussed piece of Ultra history could finally be seen in the West.  We discuss our efforts to get the film subtitled, and our overall impressions of the film itself.  We'll also give our usual history, trivia and more!  Relax and enjoy the discussion!

In April of 2020, author Steve Ryfle approached us about being involved in organizing an online tokusatsu convention he wanted to hold in the wake of the pandemic.  Of course we said yes, and joined the rest of the team, which also includes Patrick Galvan, John DeSentis, Erik Homenick, and Kyle Gilmore.  Here we have the whole team (minus Kyle Gilmore) discussing who we are, what this convention is, our amazing guest lineup, and what to expect!  Kaiju Masterclass will be a free online convention that will be held on October 2-4th, 2020. 

Byrd, Matt and Tom review Norman England's 2006 science fiction film, the iDol!  This film features a lot of tokusatsu veterans both in front of and behind the camera.  The film follows Ken, a toy collector who quite literally ends up being controlled by his hobby.  We'll get into the film's commentary on collector culture in fandom, the new blu-ray release from SRS Cinema and more!

Byrd and Matt welcome writer/director Mitch Teemley to the show to discuss his new kaiju comedy, Notzilla!  This loving send up of classic kaiju films had a rocky path to being made.  We discuss the original script, how it had interest from Hollywood studios and stars, and the decision to rework the film and complete it as an independent feature years later.  We also get into the special effects techniques and challenges, filming in Matt's town of Cincinnati, what makes a good spoof movie, how the fandom has received the film, and Ohio chili preferences!  Tune in and enjoy.

Byrd and Matt are joined by frequent guest host Kevin, as well as Justin Mullis (the Man Creates Dinosaurs blog) to talk about the recent Netflix anime series, Japan Sinks 2020.  This new adaptation of the Sakyo Komatsu disaster novel (which got two tokusatsu adaptations from Toho) takes a new approach to the material with a new storyline, new characters, and a lot of commentary on the current state of Japan.  We'll review the series, as well as discuss how the themes relate to the current climate.  We talk about neo-religions, Fukushima, nationalism, and much more!

Live streamed as part of Kaiju Con-Line, Byrd and Kevin held a panel on Takashi Miike's 2005 Yokai epic.  Before Kadokawa rebooted Gamera to be more Brave or gave Daimajin a brand new Kanon, they revived their third most-popular monster franchise: Yokai Monsters. The resulting picture, The Great Yokai War, has an interesting history tying together Japanese mythology, manga, and popular culture in a way that hasn’t been replicated before or since. Join Kaiju Transmissions’ Kyle Byrd and Kaiju for Hipsters’ Kevin Derendorf as they unpack this maze of monsters, Miike, Mizuki, and Megolopolises.

Byrd and Matt are joined by Trev (Days of Future Podcast/Failure to Franchise) to take a deep dive into Starship Troopers, a Western series with many ties to Japanese sci-fi.  We discuss the original novel, the 1980s anime mini-series, the three live action films, and the two recent Japanese-American animated sequels.  We will examine the novel's influence on Japanese science fiction, how the subtext of Paul Verhoeven's film differs from the novel, our favorite giant bugs, and just how the franchise stacks up as a whole.  Would you like to know more?

Byrd is joined by Lux, Tom (of the Final Forum Dragonball Podcast), and Trev (of the Failure to Franchise Podcast) to talk about the new film Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire!  This new entry in Legendary Pictures' Monsterverse is another crossover between the two monster icons, as they go up against the threat of the evil ape Skar King and his army of apes and the frost monster Shimo.  Along the way, Kong forms a bond with the young ape Suko.  We'll talk about the production history as well as give our thoughts on the film.  But first, we discuss Godzilla Minus One's recent Oscar win!  Kick back and enjoy!

Byrd and Matt are joined by author John LeMay (Jaws Unmade/The Lost Films) and Connor Anderson (Easter's Kaiju Kompendium blog) to discuss and review the fourth show in the Ultra series, the Return of Ultraman!  We discuss the show's early concepts, Ishiro Honda's involvement, our favorite and least favorite episodes, why the MAT are terrible at their jobs, and more!  Tune in and join the conversation!

Byrd and Matt are joined by artists Nick Shev and John Bellotti to take a detour into an American monster franchise and discuss all six (!) Tremors films (to date).  We start with the origins of the classic original film and go through the entire series, including some brief talk about the canceled television series, the actual television series, the problem with Shriekers, the OTHER canceled television series, and more!  Get on top of the nearest rock and tune in!

Byrd and Matt welcome Norman England back to the podcast, this time to reflect on his directorial debut film, 2006's the iDol!  The iDol is an independent Japanese science fiction film that features plenty of prolific tokusatsu veterans both in front of and behind the camera and is just now finding a release in the United States.  It tells the story of an obsessive toy collector whose reality is warped when he adds a mysterious alien figure to his collection.  Norman tells us all about his memories making the film including the script, the casting process, working with such genre veterans as Kiyotaka Taguchi, Takashi Yamazaki, Takako Fuji, Ko Otani, Bob Eggleton, Yukijiro Hotaru, and more!  We also talk about the toy collecting culture and how its changed over the years, the importance of a good run time, and its recent USA blu-ray release from SRS Cinema! The iDol can be ordered here: http://srscinema.com/home/?p=2301

Byrd and Matt are joined by director/editor Brandon Smith to discuss his upcoming crowdfunded film The Legend of the Bear Lake Monster!  Described as "The Goonies + Jaws," the film is based on the cryptid that allegedly resides in the titular lake in Utah.  We talk about a variety of topics such as the appeal of cryptozoology in a post-smart phone world, the history of the Bear Lake Monster, what makes a good horror movie for kids, the leap from documentaries to features, the strange career of Peter Jackson, using Kickstarter and more!  The Legend of Bear Lake Monster's crowdfunding page is still active, so be sure to support it here: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-legend-of-the-bear-lake-monster

Byrd and Matt are joined by indie creature creator Rashaad Santiago to talk about his upcoming crowd funded monster film, Terror From Beyond Beyond!  In addition to discussing the genesis of Rashaad's new project, we also talk about his work on the Godzilla fan film, Godzilla: Heritage, his directorial debut Beast of the Water, winning season six of SyFy's competitive series Face-Off, and advice for anyone looking to break into the art of monster making!  Relax and enjoy the conversation!  The Terror From Beyond Beyond Kickstarter is still active!  Be sure to support it here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/146385329/terror-from-beyond-beyond

Byrd and Matt are joined by Kyle Yount of the Kaijucast/Collect All Monsters to take a plunge into the world of Japanese mythology!  Here, we discuss the Shinto legends of Yamato Takeru, Prince Susanoo, and the slaying of the eight headed dragon, Yamata no Orochi.  We will talk about the original stories, as well as three feature film adaptations:  The Three Treasures (1959), Little Prince and the Eight Headed Dragon (1963), and Yamato Takeru (1994).  We will discuss the productions, review them, compare them to the original Japanese legends, talk about how they tie into the Godzilla series, and more!  Relax and enjoy the discussion. 

Byrd, Matt, Tom and Kevin take a deep dive (no pun intended) into Shinpei Hayashiya's indie Deep Sea Monster trilogy!  These low budget kaiju films include Reigo: The Deep-Sea Monster vs. the Battleship Yamato (2008), Deep Sea Monster Raiga (2009), and the new God Raiga vs King Ohga (2020) and were from the director of the famed elusive Gamera 4 fan film.  Thanks to SRS Cinema, these films are available in the United States for the very first time.  We will take a look at all three films as well as discuss Hayashiya's day job as a Rakugo performer, his early Godzilla and Gamera fan films, the historical references in Reigo, what we would like out of a fourth entry, and much more!  So how do these micro budget kaiju flicks fare?  Listen and find out!

Byrd and Matt are joined by Ron Bonk of home video label SRS Cinema to talk about their history and recent kaiju film releases.  SRS has been an established video label for obscure independent genre films for years and just recently they have dipped their toes in the world of tokusatsu/kaiju with the Reigo/Raiga Trilogy, Attack of the Giant Teacher, and their upcoming release of Norman England's film the iDol.  We talk to Ron about the origins of SRS, his work as a director, his love of horror, SRS' recent line of kaiju home video releases, and much more.  Relax and join the conversation!

Byrd, Matt and Tom join up with the Movie Graveyard podcast to take on one of the most controversial Godzilla movies ever made!  Of course, we're discussing the 1998 Tristar reboot!  We give a full audio commentary and dive into a variety of topics including the film's long development process, the massive marketing campaign, the fallout after its release, whether the film did more good or bad for the franchise all these years later, and much more!  So listen along and enjoy the discussion!

Byrd, Matt, Tom and Kevin review the recent short film Howl From Beyond the Fog.  Directed by Daisuke Sato and with a creature built by legendary monster maker Keizo Murase, this period piece is about a blind girl and the monster who protects her, as greedy developers threaten to take over her family's land.  Using an all puppet human cast and a fantastic monster suit, it offers a new aesthetic in the world of kaiju films.  So what did the gang think of it?  Listen and find out!

Our pals Trev (frequent KT guest) and Chris over at the Failure to Franchise podcast had Matt and Byrd on their show to discuss Godzilla 1998!  We discussed how it came to be, memories of living through the marketing and release of the film, the backlash to it, and the lasting effects it had on the franchise.  Did the movie impact the series for good or bad?  Is it as bad of a movie as people say?  How does it hold up all these years later?  Listen and find out!

Join Byrd, Tom, Matt, and Kevin (of Maser Patrol/author of Kaiju for Hipsters) for an audio commentary on 1964's Ghidorah, The Three Headed Monster!  Join us as we discuss some trivia, history, and even do some myth busting on Ishiro Honda's Showa classic.  There's not much to do in quarantine, so why not watch a movie with us?  Listen in and enjoy!

Byrd and Matt emerge from COVID-19 quarantine to discuss Kinji Fukusaku's pandemic panic film Virus, arguably the most ambitious Japanese film ever made.  Along for the ride are authors John LeMay (The Lost Films) and Kevin Derendorf (Kaiju for Hipsters, Maser Patrol blog).  The film shows how a fast acting virus spreads across the globe and wipes out all of the human race except for a small population in Antarctica. Based on a novel by Sakyo Kumatsu (Submersion of Japan), Virus had the largest budget of any Japanese film at the time and had a star studded cast of international stars including Glenn Ford, Masao Kusakari, Olivia Hussey, George Kennedy, Sonny Chiba, Chuck Connors, Henry Silva, Bo Svenson, Robert Vaughn and more.  So how does the lofty disaster film fare?  Listen and find out!

On July 12, 2019 at G-Fest, Steve Ryfle and Ed Godziszewski held a retrospective panel on Bringing Godzilla Down to Size, the documentary feature film that they wrote and produced for Classic Media.  Directed by Norman England, this eye opening documentary went to great lengths to highlight the history and enduring legacy of Japanese special effects films.  Join Ed and Steve as they share highlights of the film give a behind the scenes look at how it all came together!  Thanks to Ed and Steve for letting us share this and to Christopher Marti for recording the audio.

On July 14, 2019, Akira Ifukube student Reiko Yamada and pianist Patrick Godon performed a piano concert of the composer's music at G-Fest 2019.  Following that concert, Ifukube's biographer Erik Homenick hosted a panel discussion with Yamada as well as conductor/composer John DeSentis (Kaiju Crescendo concert), film historian Patrick Galvan, and Japanese film fan Tyler E. Martin. The panel discussed Akira Ifukube‘s life and career as one of Japan‘s foremost composers. Several of the maestro‘s film scores, such as Godzilla (1954) and Rodan (1956) were closely analyzed.  Enjoy!

Byrd and Matt are joined by Chris Marti to discuss two apocalyptic Toho disaster films. First up, we talk 1961’s harrowing The Last War, a story chronicling the events leading up to World War III and the helpless civilians stuck in the middle.  Featuring excellent performances by Akira Takarada, and Frankie Sakai and some of Eiji Tsuburaya’s very best effects work. We follow that up with the banned end of the world epic Prophecies of Nostradamus from 1974.  This bizarre film shows us giant slugs, nuclear explosions, food shortages, cannibals, mutants, giant bats, and everything in between!  We’ll discuss both films, as well as numerous real life nuclear scares throughout history, Nostradamus, aborted sequels, Toei’s rare apocalypse drama The Final War, and more!  Join us as we talk about the more depressing corners of Toho science fiction in this stacked episode!

More of Byrd's appearance on blogger/author Keven Derendorf's Maser Patrol Podcast with Justin Mullis sees the trio review Criterion's recent Showa Godzilla box set.  Also discussed is the complicated history behind why the set turned out the way it did and what content did/did not make the cut.  The two also discuss Mill Creek's massive and ambitious Ultraman release slate, as well as discuss the Ultra Q and Ultraman blu rays.  It is a good time for tokusatsu on home video, so enjoy the discussion!

Byrd appears on author/blogger Kevin Derendorf's Maser Patrol podcast with blogger Justin Mullis (Man Creates Dinosaurs) to discuss the history of the Godzilla series on home video in North America.  We go through the various VHS, DVD, and Blu-Ray releases, all leading up to Criterion's long anticipated box set (which will be reviewed in detail in part 2 of this podcast).  So relax and get ready to take a trip down memory lane!

Byrd and Matt wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving with a review of the 2004 Thai film, Garuda!  (Look, there aren't a lot of movies about giant birds so this was the best we could do this time).  We discuss the film's themes and give our full review, as well as its oddly popular status as a "kaiju" movie.  But first, we talk about the news of Godzilla vs. Kong's delay and Marvel's upcoming Ultraman comics.

For this very special edition of the podcast, we are joined by director and prolific special effects legend, Steve Wang!  Steve directed the Guyver 1 and 2 (among other films) and has created special effects and monsters for Predator, Evil Dead 2, the Monster Squad, Beetlejuice, Gremlins 2, and WAY more.  Steve joins us for a candid discussion where he talks about a variety of topics, including his early love for monsters, breaking out with Predator, quitting the first Power Rangers movie, the hardships of the Guyver films, his work on the 1998 Godzilla movie, transitioning into directing, producing Kamen Rider: Dragon Knight and more!  We also bust some LONG standing myths about Robocop, Ultraman, and Primus (yes, the band)!

Byrd, Matt and Tom have a cure for your Halloween hangover with this look at several Japanese films that took a different approach to two of the most famous monsters of all time- vampires and the Frankenstein monster!  First up, we have the 1991 oddity The Last Frankenstein, based on the stage play of the same name.  Then we have Takashi Shimizu's surreal 2004 low budget Marebito.  And finally, we have the insane crossover, Vampire Girl vs. Frankenstein Girl, directed by exploitation mavericks Yoshihiro Nishimura and Naoyuki Tomomatsu.  Along the way, we discuss monsters watching porn, hollow earth theory, the Shaver mysteries, ganguru culture, and laffy taffy.  Join us and get through your post-Halloween blues!

Byrd and Matt discuss Daiei's 1962 period monster movie, The Whale God (aka The Killer Whale).  Directed by Tokuzo Tanaka (Zatoichi series), with a script written by Kaneto Shindo (Onibaba, Kuroneko) based on the novel by Koichiro Uno, it tells the story of a whaling village in the early Meiji period being terrorized by a gigantic whale.  Two men, Shaki (Kojiro Hongo of the Gamera films) and Kishu (Shintaro Katsu of the Zatoichi films) to compete to be the one to kill the whale.  For decades, this film was obscure to American audiences, but it just saw its first blu-ray release stateside.  We'll give our review, as well as talk about whaling in Japanese culture, the awesome Akira Ifukube score, the themes of forgiveness and obsession, the influence of Moby Dick, and more!  But first we have a news roundup with our thoughts on the new Godzilla x Kong trailer, Godzilla Minus One's Oscar nomination, and the passing of suit actor Ken Satsuma.  Relax and enjoy the show!

For another October horror edition of the podcast, Byrd, Matt and Tom discuss the directorial work of Japanese special effects maverick, Tomoo Haraguchi!  Primarily known as a makeup artist and monster maker on films such as the Heisei Gamera trilogy, Ringu 0, Ultraman Mebius, and others, he also directed a handful of horror films.  We discuss his straight to video debut Mikadroid: Robokill Beneath Disco Club Layla, his Yokai spectacle Sakuya: Slayer of Demons, and his Yokai westerns Kibakichi and Kibakichi 2.  We also discuss his prolific career, partnership with Shinji Higuchi, and more!  But first, Byrd reports back from the Nightmares Film Festival in Columbus, we discuss our October horror viewings, and we follow up on some confusion on Beware the Blob!

Welcome back to another October horror edition of the show.  Byrd, Matt and Tom delve into the snake girls of famed manga writer Kazuo Umezu.  We take a look at two adaptations of Umezu's "snake girl" stories.  Daiei's 1968 horror film Snake Girl and the Silver Haired Witch (directed by Gamera creator Noriaki Yuasa!), as well as "Snake Girl," an episode of the 2005 anthology television series, "Kazuo Umezu's Horror Theater" directed by exploitation guru Noboru Iguchi.  We also discuss Umezu's original manga stories that inspired these obscure kid friendly horrors!

First up for our October horror series this year, Byrd, Matt and Tom discuss everyone's favorite hungry glob of goo, the Blob!  We discuss the original 1958 indie sensation, its completely bonkers 1972 sequel Beware the Blob, and the gore drenched 1988 remake from Chuck Russel and Frank Darabont.  We discuss the history of all three films, the real life inspiration for the Blob, and the canceled Blob films that almost were (including remakes from Rob Zombie, Joe Lynch and Simon West).  Enjoy the conversation!