The Kaiju Transmissions Podcast

Happy Halloween!  Byrd, Lux, Tom and Kevin get together to discuss Rankin-Bass' stop motion Halloween feature, Mad Monster Party.  Dr. Frankenstein (voiced by Boris Karloff) is about to retire and invites the classic monsters to his castle for a party where he will announce his successor.  Among the guests are the Frankenstein Monster and his bride, Dracula, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, the Wolf Man, the Gillman, the Hunchback, the Inv...

Byrd, Tom and Lux discuss three classic horror films from Daiei Studios (recently released in the excellent Daiei Gothic blu-ray set from Radiance Films).  Ghost of Yotsuya, Snow Woman, and Bride From Hades are all based on famous folk horror stories that have been adapted many times over the years (and would influence much of the J-horror movement later on).  These three films take those stories and apply Daiei's iconic art direct...

We kick off another spooky October at KT with Byrd, Kevin, Tom and Lux having a discussion of several films featuring murderous gill-men.  Ever since 1954's classic Creature From The Black Lagoon, the trope of a murderous half man/half fish has been entertaining filmgoers on a semi regular basis.  We take the opportunity to discuss three such films; Roger Corman's schlockfest Humanoids From The Deep, the Japanese b-movie obscurity ...

Byrd, Matt, Kevin and Lux come together again to talk about the recent anime film Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League.  The sequel to 2018's Batman Ninja sees the Caped Crusader and his allies in an another dimension in which Japan is ruled by a Yakuza consisting of evil versions of his Justice League allies.  The film sees director Junpei Mizusaki return, with new co-director Shinji Takagi (Ranma 1/2, Japan Sinks 2020) and returning sc...

Another year, another G-Fest in the books.  Byrd, Kevin and returning guest Connor recount their experience at this years G-Fest convention.  G-Fest XXX (!) was the thirtieth in the convention's long running history and as always we talk about the panels, the guests, and our overall opinions of how the show fared this year. We also touch on the film festival lineup including the recent Ishiro Honda documentary, Hot Springs Shark At...

Byrd, Matt and Kevin discuss and review the recent comic book crossover Godzilla vs. Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers II (written by Cullen Bunn and drawn by Baldemar Rivas).  The follow up to IDW and Boom!'s 2022 crossover once again sees the Power Rangers in a multiversal adventure as they once again cross paths with Godzilla and other Toho monsters as they go up against Rita Repulsa as she threatens to destroy rangers in all dimens...

After a Spring hiatus, Byrd and Matt come back to discuss Jurassic World Rebirth, the newest entry in the Jurassic Park franchise directed by Gareth Edwards (Godzilla 2014, Monsters, Star Wars: Rogue One).  This entry follows a group of mercenaries (led by Scarlett Johansson and Mahershala Ali) tasked with gathering dino DNA for medical research by going to an island used for genetic experimentation.  Along the way they meet up wit...

Byrd, Tom, Kevin and Trev discuss a trio of tokusatsu superhero films from acclaimed director Takashi Miike (Great Yokai War, Ultraman Max, Audition, Ichi the Killer).  First we have 2004's Zebraman, a parody of Japanese superhero shows that sees a father in a mid life crisis take up the mantle of the titular character to fight crime and fend off an alien invasion.  We then move onto 2010's gonzo sequel set in a dystopian future wh...

Byrd, Matt, Lux and Kevin discuss Shinji Higuchi's recent Netflix film Bullet Train Explosion.  Higuchi's latest revamp of an old tokusatsu IP is a remake/sequel to Toei's 1975 classic disaster film The Bullet Train.  Like its predecessor, the story revolves around a bomb on a bullet train, which will explode if the train slows down under 100kph.  Show how does Higuchi's latest fare in comparison to the original film and his other ...

Byrd, Lux and Matt reach back down into the bottom of the barrell to discuss three obscure recent King Kong knock-offs from China, made to cash in on the recent Monsterverse films.  In recent years, China has been churning out dozens and dozens of low budget straight to TV/streaming cheapie creature features.  For this episode we'll discuss 2021's Monster Island, 2023's King Kong vs Giant Serpent (aka Battle of Snakes), and 2024's ...

Back from the holiday break, Byrd and Matt set their sights on Ray Harryhausen's classic series of Sinbad films; the 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1957), the Golden Voyage of Sinbad (1973) and Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger (1977) are still among the most celebrated fantasy films of all time.  After getting tired of monsters tearing down landmarks, stop motion animator Ray Harryhausen decided to make a different kind of monster movie by d...

Byrd sits down with author Joseph Palinkas to discuss his new book, the History of Carnosaur.  The book covers the history of the  franchise, which was launched by Roger Corman to cash in on Jurassic Park.  We talk about the conception of the book, the background of the Carnosaur films, living through the post-Jurassic Park dino-boom of the 90s, the complicated rights issues keeping the films from rediscovery, differences between t...

Byrd, Lux, and Kevin nurse their Halloween hangover with another episode covering everyone's favorite yokai boy-hero Kitaro!  The long running franchise created by Shigeru Mizuki catapulted Japan's folkloric creatures into pop culture and still runs strong to this day.  We look at another sampling of GeGeGe No Kitaro material from over the years.  We discuss the first two episodes of the 1970s anime series, 2008's film Japan Explod...

Byrd, Trev, Lux and Kevin take a deep dive into Sadako's well to discuss the first four Japanese theatrical films in the Ring franchise: Ring (1998), Spiral (1998), Ring 2 (1999) and Ring 0: Birthday (2000).  In addition to a lively talk about all four films and the film makers involved, we discuss the origins of the series as a series of novels by Koji Suzuki, the birth of the J-Horror boom at the turn of the century, and how the ...

Our October horror shows roll on as Byrd, Tom, and Kevin are joined by Chris Marti (musician alias "Cosmic Monster" and co-writer of The Author vs. the Werewolf) to discuss the fantasy/horror of Wicked City!  Based on a series of novels by Hideyuki Kikuchi (Vampire Hunter D), Wicked City is about the rift between humanity and a secret society of interdimensional demons.  We start with 1987's cult classic anime film from Yoshiaki Ka...

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 ...

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...