The Monster Island Film Vault

Hello, Kaiju Lovers! Hello, MIFV MAX members! First-time guest Rob Buck of The Power Chamber Podcast joins Nate for "The Ultra Journey" to discuss the first of its kind in the Ultra Series: Ultraman Tiga & Ultraman Dyna: Warriors of the Star of Light. This was the first wholly original tie-in film for a then-current Ultraman show on TV. While the title promises a crossover, behind-the-scenes shenanigans kept it from being as ep...

Hello, Kaiju Lovers! It’s been six years since Eric Elliott published issues one and two of his fan comic, Batman Meets Godzilla, but now the epic conclusion is out! He makes good on his promise to return to MIFV in this special interview to discuss the reasons for the delay, the artists who made it possible, and POW-ZAP-ZOOM shenanigans that happen in this comic. Celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Adam West Batman series ...

Hello, Kaiju Lovers! We meet now...at the end of all things. Or at least the end of Monarch: Legacy of Monsters season 2. Nate gushes over what might be the best episode of the series, discussing the Kong vs. Titan X fight, the show's trademark "drama logic," and the unfortunately spoiled surprise at the end. (Hint: It ties to one of MIFV's most popular episodes). Then Nate concludes with his theories about where season 3 could pot...

Hello, Kaiju Lovers! In part 2 of the originally Patreon-exclusive weekly coverage of season 2 of AppleTV+’s Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, the show’s valleys start manifesting—but this stretch episodes also includes Godzilla. For one episode, Nate had to look up a Japanese children’s song he’d never heard, for one thing. There is a character death, an obvious revelation, and a gimmicky “meeting&rd...

Hello, Kaiju Lovers! In this compilation of originally Patreon-exclusive weekly coverage, Nate (and Jimmy From NASA) dives into the first four episodes of season two of AppleTV+’s Monarch: Legacy of Monsters. Nate argues it starts off strong and starts hitting some valleys relatively soon. He ends up a little disappointed that Titan X isn’t quite like H.P. Lovecraft’s Dagon as much as he wanted. What did you think...

Hello Kaiju Lovers! Because Matt Walsh (no, not that Matt Walsh) is a crazy man who just happened to be on the Island to play Super Mario at a kids party, he jumped to the joke tier on our Patreon called “Jimmy’s Intern” (again). This time, it’s to discuss a 1979 movie directed by John Frankenheimer (The Manchurian Candidate, 1962) that has a pseudo-kaiju bear voiced by Megatron and played by the Predator an...

Nate, the secretly resentful host for Ultraman Nu, tries to get back into as normal a life as Monster Island will allow by visiting the Sekizawa Library to conduct research. There, he meets (and is smitten by) Jane, a lovely new librarian, who tells him a notorious T-rex is on display for the library’s “Dinosaur Day.” Nate goes outside to see it, meeting M.A.K.O.’s leader, Captain Darke, just in time for the...

Hello, Kaiju Lovers! Nate (technically) reaches the Heisei Era of "Godzilla Redux" with The Return of Godzilla (aka "Godzilla 1984"). He's joined by kaiju author Neil Riebe (who saw it in the theatre!) and the "unapologetic apologist" for the Heisei series, Andrew Wynja "The Ninja." They get into how this is the only true "Cold War" G-film and offers a uniquely Japanese perspective that was almost completely lost in Roger Corman's ...

The infamous Rito Revolto (or Rito Bandora, depending on who you talk to) and some dude named Wade once again invade the MIFV podcast feed! They bicker and banter as they read all the important news stories from Monster Island, and then they get a phone from the Island’s resident Ultra Hero, Ultraman Nu. Rito hates it, because he’s had…an altercation with Mr. Nu. Is anyone surprised?

Starring:

• Nathan Marchan...

Hello, Kaiju Lovers! You’re not only getting a double feature in this episode of “The Ultra Journey” but also the long-awaited return of one of MIFV’s first guests, Nick Hayden. Nate also returns to one of MIFV’s original conceits: showing a kaiju/tokusatsu movie to someone who hasn’t seen it. This time, it’s the Ultraman Zearth duology. These quirky parodies feature an Ultraman trying to c...

Coming soon from MIFV and Moonlighting Ninjas Media: Ultraman Nu: An Unofficial Audio Drama! A 12-episode saga coinciding with MIFV’s season five theme, “The Ultra Journey,” with episodes written by Nathan Marchand and special guest writers. Featuring the voice talents of Shane Cochrane, Jenessah Schlatter, Ryan “The Omni Viewer” Collins, and more! Coming soon to a podcatcher near you!

Ryan “The ...

Hello, Kaiju Lovers! “Godzilla Redux” kicks off with not one but two “gatekeepers” in the kaiju fandom: Jack “GMan” Hudgens and Elijah Thomas (Kaiju Conversation). They along with Nate spend nearly four hours(!) talking about why they effing love the final Showa series film, Terror of Mechagodzilla. It was Nate and Elijah’s first G-film and is one of Jack’s perennial favorites. While ...

Hello, Kaiju Lovers, and welcome season five! It kicks off with the appropriately-titled Ultraman: The Adventure Begins, an animated movie produced in 1987 by Hanna-Barbera. Yes, the studio that brought you Superfriends and Scooby-Doo made the first all-original Ultraman movie! Nate could think of no better guests for this than Drew Dodgen and Jacob Heron (who also created the cover art for this episode) from The Cel Cast. Given th...

The Ultra Series is celebrating its 60th anniversary, and MIFV is throwing a year-long own party! Join Nate Marchand as he gives on friends new and old to discuss the greatest cinematic outings of Japan’s favorite superhero, Ultraman. Not only that, you get more “Godzilla Redux” and an amazing assortment of Patreon-sponsored episodes! Now, if only Nate can figure out what’s giving him such a headache…...

Nate finds himself floating in oblivion. Terror’s teeth tear into his very soul. A bright silhouette reaches for him, and he takes his hand—and wakes up surrounded by Uber-Moguera’s burning wreckage, unscathed. His rescuer, Jet Jaguar, takes him to the Island’s infirmary. Aside from piercing headaches, he has a clean bill of health. But something haunts him. Something that saved him…something that sha...

Rebecca Reynolds is living the life, as far as I care: she gets to write middle grade books about Japan's favorite superhero, Ultraman. Book 1 of The Ultra Academy, entitled Beware the Baleful Baltan, was published last fall by Sky Turtle Press as part of Tsuburaya Productions push to make the Ultra Series an international brand. I discuss the writing process and why Ultraman is more important than ever with Rebecca and her publish...

Jimmy From NASA breaks out of Uber-Moguera's last escape pod, which floats in the Pacific near Monster Island. He is rescued by Kaguya on the HEAT Seeker. She tells Jimmy his mecha crashed on the Beta Site, and he demands to be taken there—to find Nate.

Check out Nathan’s spinoff podcasts, The Henshin Men and The Power Trip, and Henshin Power V3!

We’d like to give a shout-out to our MIFV MAX pa...

Nathan sits down with Dr. Jeffrey Angles for a conversation on his next upcoming kaiju novel translation: The Luminous Fairies and Mothra. This short three-part book was the world's introduction to the "Queen of the Monsters," and it has a potent place in Japanese history and literary tradition. Learn about this and more in this interview!

Order the book: https://a.co/d/016Tybg.

Watch the original video version of this interview on...

Hello, Kaiju Lovers. Jimmy From NASA here. I’m writing the shownotes for this episode, because, as you’ll hear, Nate had a hard time during this broadcast. In fact, he’s been having a hard time all season; he was just good at hiding it on the air. I wanted to let you know before hearing this. Anyway, Nate discusses a Patreon-sponsored double feature from former (and future?) MIFV MAX member Brad “Batman&rdqu...