Byrd and Matt discuss two creature features from South Korean director Bong Joon-ho. First we discuss 2006's The Host and dissect the film's themes and the real life incidents that influenced the film. Then we discuss the recent film Okja, which just dropped as a Netflix Original. We go deep into the themes of each film, and discuss the hot topic of what the original content created by Netflix and other streaming services means for theatrical films and big studios.
Aug 04, 2017•1 hr 37 min•Ep. 44
Byrd, Matt, and guest Trev (of If It Bleeds We Can Kill It and Days of Future Podcast) take KT's first dive into the Giant Robot genre by discussing what is arguably the biggest giant robot franchise in the world. We discuss all five of Michael Bay's Transformers movies, as well as the Japanese roots of Transformers (which many seem to forget), our memories of the original animated series, and why Bay's blockbusters seem to grab audiences more than the recent kaiju films have. The "Bayformers" s...
Jul 27, 2017•2 hr 31 min•Ep. 43
Byrd and Matt are back home from G-Fest XXIV and they're ready to talk all about it! We discuss interview recordings gone horribly wrong, meeting KT listeners, highlights and new information learned from various panels including those from Shinji Higuchi, Kiyotaka Taguchi, and Yuji Kaida, seeing Kong: Skull Island in 70mm, meeting director Jordan Vogt-Roberts (and what we learned from his Q and A), being a kid again at the Field Museum's Jurassic World exhibit, and more!
Jul 20, 2017•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 42
On a very special episode, Matt and Nick Poling (of The Monster Report) sat down with suit actor and stuntman Tom Kitagawa! Kitagawa is best known for playing Godzilla in five of the six Millennium series films, playing King Ghidorah in Mothra 3, and playing many of the heroes in Toei's Sentai series. Recorded at the Days of the Dead convention in Indiana, Matt and Nick chat with Mr. Kitagawa about his start in Battle Fever J, stunt work on the Sentai shows, the challenges of playing Godzilla, w...
Jul 05, 2017•39 min•Ep. 41
Byrd and Matt take a look at Toho's disaster epic, SUBMERSION OF JAPAN. What happens when Toho decides to make destruction spectacle without giant monsters? We take a look at Shiro Moritani's SUBMERSION OF JAPAN (1973), Shinji Higuchi's SINKING OF JAPAN (2006), and Minoru Kawasaki's parody film THE WORLD SINKS EXCEPT JAPAN (2006). We compare and contrast the films by talking about their political themes, effects, and how each version is a product of their times.
Jun 24, 2017•1 hr 27 min•Ep. 40
Byrd and Matt are joined by very, very special guest, G-Fest organizer Jeff Horne! With G-Fest 2017 on the horizon, Jeff talks to us about a variety of topics, including the history of the convention, how it has evolved over the years, online fandom vs real life, convention guests, movie screenings, favorite G-Fest moments, and all the work that goes into organizing a convention every year. We also talk about what first time attendees can expect. We also announce that Kaiju Transmissions will be...
Jun 10, 2017•1 hr 43 min•Ep. 39
Byrd, Matt, and Eric take a deep dive into Daiei's OTHER kaiju franchise, Daimajin! In 1966, Daiei released not one, not two, but THREE films all starring the gigantic stone god Daimajin. A combination of the Japanese daikaiju and jidaigeki (period drama) genres, these are some of the most unique and interesting giant monster films to date. We discuss the three films and we also touch on the Daimajin reboots that got cancelled over the years, the TV series Daimajin Kanon, how Daiei never quite t...
Jun 03, 2017•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 38
Byrd and Matt are joined by Hedorah superfan Chris (of the musical project Cosmic Monster) to discuss the life and career of Yoshimitsu Banno, who passed away on May 7th, 2017. Banno is most well known for writing and directing Godzilla vs. Hedorah, but he did quite a bit more in his career. We discuss his life and career from his early days as an assistant director for Akira Kurosawa to writing/directing Godzilla vs. Hedorah (1971), writing/assisting on Toho's Prophecies of Nostradamus (1974), ...
May 20, 2017•1 hr 23 min•Ep. 37
For our MOTHER'S DAY SPECIAL, we take a look at a angry kaiju mothers! We start by talking about 1961's GORGO out of Britain. Then we talk about Nikkatsu's GAPPA: THE TRIPHIBIAN MONSTER (1967) and the long forgotten Fox television movie GARGANTUA (1998). We also touch on other angry gigantic mothers. Mothra, Jurassic Park's T-Rex, Baby: Secret of the Lost Legend, and more! We also touch on the part our own mothers played in our hobby, Byrd's daddy issues and the latest King Kong, Jurassic Park a...
May 13, 2017•1 hr 56 min•Ep. 36
Byrd and Matt are joined by Trev (Days of Future Podcast/If It Bleeds, We Can Kill It) to discuss the recent giant monster indie COLOSSAL directed by Nacho Vigalondo. We discuss male entitlement, alcoholism, dissociation from foreign violence, toxic relationships, and giant monsters as an externalization of real life personal problems. Of course we also touch on the now infamous Toho lawsuit that held up the production. Colossal is a very different type of movie in the giant monster landscape. S...
May 06, 2017•1 hr 21 min•Ep. 36
On this episode, Byrd and Matt are joined by frequent guest Eric to discuss and celebrate the Shochiku studio's lone kaiju Guilala, one of the genre's oddest creations! We discuss 1967's "The X From Outer Space" and the 2008 comedy sequel "Monster X Strikes Back" (which turns into one of our most contentious reviews and leaves Byrd speechless). In addition to Byrd having a meltdown, you'll also hear us discuss Guilala's bizarre non-film career, how to pronounce "Guilalanium," possible racist und...
Apr 28, 2017•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 35
In celebration of Mystery Science Theater 3000's brand new season on Netflix, Byrd and Matt are joined by MST superfan Trev (Days of Future Podcast/If It Bleeds We Can Kill It), this time to discuss the phenomena that is MST3K! Although the show's reputation among kaiju fans is rather split, there are a great many who got their first taste of the genre through MST, spawning a life long obsession with all things tokusatsu. We start by discussing the genesis of MST and the misconceptions about it ...
Apr 18, 2017•1 hr 29 min•Ep. 34
At long last, we finally have the results from our Godzilla movie ranking poll! Over the winter, we conducted a survey asking listeners to rank all 31 Godzilla movies and Byrd, Matt, and Tom have the results. We give some predictions and then discuss what we found. Do certain age groups prefer certain eras of the franchise? Where do strange outliers like Godzilla (1998) fall? Where did the recent Legendary film and Shin Godzilla place overall? What movies are the most loved/hated? We have the an...
Apr 08, 2017•1 hr 55 min•Ep. 33
At 3:00AM, an exhausted Byrd and kinda drunk Matt consider rebooting the podcast as ORCACAST, where we will dedicate each episode to the 1977 masterpiece, ORCA. What better way to start such an experiment than with a full blown audio commentary on the movie? We'll talk stiff whale props, aborted rubber whale fetuses, how an Orca would know how to start an explosion, how the Orca could have fought King Kong in the aborted sequel, Blackfish, globsters, exploding whale carcasses, and more! Byrd's s...
Apr 01, 2017•1 hr 49 min•Ep. 32
Byrd and Matt are once again joined by Trev (of If It Bleeds We Can Kill It, Days of Future Podcast) as we discuss the new big budget Hollywood Power Rangers reboot. The film was met with a lot of doubt by a lot of fans, so how did the movie hold up? Listen and find out! We also talk about the film's origins, the original Max Landis script, the sequel graphic novel, and what we'd like to see in the next movie. But first, we have some news on the Godzilla anime, and Byrd and Trev give their impre...
Mar 29, 2017•1 hr 59 min•Ep. 31
Byrd and Matt are joined by guests Trev (of If It Bleeds, We Can Kill It and Days of Future Podcast) and the Goat (Hillbilly DVD Reviews, 1980s Movie Graveyard) for a casual and nostalgic look at the original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers series. We discuss its Super Sentai origins, growing up with Power Rangers, our favorite episodes and characters, the two theatrical films (1995's Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers: The Movie and 1997's Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie), and what we hope to get out of t...
Mar 21, 2017•2 hr 35 min•Ep. 30
Our Kongathon comes to an end with the release of Legendary Pictures' Kong: Skull Island. Matt and Byrd are joined by Trev (of If It Bleeds, We Can Kill It and Days of Future Podcast) to discuss the latest King Kong film. We give an in-depth discussion of the film's pros and cons and decide if it lives up to the hype. We also give our personal rankings of all of the King Kong movies and discuss how the new film compares to Legendary's other kaiju films. So how does the second entry in Legendary'...
Mar 11, 2017•1 hr 35 min•Ep. 29
Our last episode leading up to the release of Kong: Skull Island sees us looking at the 2005 King Kong remake directed by Peter Jackson. In addition to our review, we talk about how the movie came to be, the differences between the theatrical and extended editions, and the career of director Peter Jackson. It's hard to believe this movie is nearing 12 years old, so how does it hold up after all these years? Listen and find out!
Mar 06, 2017•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 28
The next installment in our lead-up to Skull Island has us taking a detour to have a sleep deprived look at five King Kong rip-offs from around the globe. With King Kong being so popular, everyone wanted a piece of the action. We'll discuss Britain's KONGA (1961) and QUEEN KONG (1976), America's THE MIGHTY GORGA (1969), South Korea's A*P*E (1976), and Hong Kong's MIGHTY PEKING MAN (1977). We also touch on the obscure 2010 Kong remake from Bangladesh and some of the unlicensed animated versions o...
Feb 27, 2017•1 hr 28 min•Ep. 27
On the next installment of our King Kong recap, we examine the Dino De Laurentiis remake from 1976, and its 1986 sequel King Kong Lives. But before reviewing the films, Byrd exhausts himself by recalling King Kong's convoluted legal rights history and the extremely troubled production of the 1976 remake. For some, these films bring a nostalgic sense of joy. For others, they represent a giant black eye on the franchise. What side of the fence do our hosts fall on? Listen and find out!
Feb 20, 2017•1 hr 44 min•Ep. 26
In the latest in weekly series leading up to Kong: Skull Island, we take a quick break from the King of the Apes to talk about his spiritual little brother, Mighty Joe Young! We discuss the Willis O'Brien/Ray Harryhausen classic from 1949, as well as the 1998 Disney remake. We'll discuss both films, Willis O'Brien, Ray Harryhausen, Rick Baker, and the advantages of practical effects over CGI. How do the adventures of Mr. Joseph Young of Africa hold up? Listen and find out!
Feb 13, 2017•58 min•Ep. 25
To kick off our weekly King Kong spectacular to lead up to the release of Kong: Skull Island, we set our sights on the Japanese King Kong films. Join us as we discuss Toho's King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962) and King Kong Escapes (1967) at length. We also touch on the two lost Japanese Kong films, the American/Japanese cartoon The King Kong Show, Kong's appearance on Toho's Go! Greenman, unmade Japanese Kong films, and even some of the many King Kong manga! The King of the Apes has a rich history wi...
Feb 06, 2017•1 hr 36 min•Ep. 24
For the second part of our interview, director/writer/critic/translator/photographer Norman England tells us all about the art of subtitling, working with Takashi Miike on the film Yakuza Apocalypse, his time working with Sushi Typhoon, being an American film critic in Japan, Japan's treatment of foreigners, the Japanese film industry, why he isn't currently directing another film, and the amount of effort that goes into making a movie. We also touch on Star Trek, Planet of the Apes, and the tim...
Jan 28, 2017•1 hr 44 min•Ep. 23
Kaiju Transmissions welcomes its first Guest of Honor by welcoming (all the way from Japan!) writer/director/critic/translator/photographer Norman England to the show! As many fans know, Norman wasn't only the director of the Bringing Godzilla Down To Size documentary, but he's also spent MANY hours on Japanese film sets, including Gamera 3 and many of the Godzilla films (in addition to countless other Japanese genre films). In this first part of a two part interview, Norman shares many stories ...
Jan 24, 2017•1 hr 59 min•Ep. 22
Byrd and Matt are joined by musician and film music connoisseur Chris Marti of Cosmic Monster to discuss the music of kaiju films! We go discuss the various composers of kaiju films, our favorite composers and scores, and just how important music is in kaiju films. We follow that up with a monster music playlist that Chris put together for us, which includes well known tracks and oddball obscurities! Intro music: -Cosmic Monster- "Up From The Depths" -Marasu Sato- "The Appearance of MechaGodzill...
Jan 08, 2017•1 hr 54 min•Ep. 21
In the holiday spirit, Byrd, Matt and Eric give the gift of an intro to the world of kaiju collecting! They discuss what their first Godzilla collectibles were, and how their collecting habits have evolved with age. Matt and Eric talk their love of kaiju toys and Byrd discusses why he loves Japanese kaiju books that he can't read. Matt and Eric also give advice for people new to collecting kaiju toys. They also discuss their favorite items in their collections, and the ones that mean the most to...
Dec 25, 2016•1 hr 42 min•Ep. 20
To celebrate the release of a new Star Wars film this coming weekend, Byrd and Matt got together at 2:00 AM to take a delirious, sleep deprived look at two completely bonkers Japanese Star Wars knock-offs from the 1970s. Toho's War in Space (1977) and Toei's Message From Space (1978) were both put into production to capitalize on the success of the original Star Wars, which was going to be released in Japan in the summer of 1978. Listen as the two exhausted hosts discuss horned wookiees, flying ...
Dec 12, 2016•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 19
On our very first audio commentary, Byrd, Matt and Tom tackle Ishiro Honda's Godzilla's Revenge (aka All Monsters Attack)! This oddball kids movie is far and away one of the most maligned entries in the Godzilla series. We'll discuss the history and sociopolitical themes of the film, as well as the pros and cons. Does this movie deserve its reputation as one of the worst kaiju movies ever or should it get more credit? Listen and find out! We might just surprise you!
Nov 28, 2016•1 hr 36 min•Ep. 18
On this special post-Election Day episode, Byrd and Matt are joined by Japanese culture guru and musician Chris Marti (of the one man band Cosmic Monster) to discuss the loaded messages behind Shin Godzilla. Arguably the most politically charged Godzilla film to date, what exactly is the film trying to say? And how much of it has been overlooked or misinterpreted by fans outside of Japan? What made Prime Minister Shinzo Abe so attracted to the film? Join us as we answer those questions and discu...
Nov 13, 2016•2 hr 6 min•Ep. 17
Our October horror series concludes with our Halloween episode! Byrd and Matt are joined by Trev (of If It Bleeds We Can Kill it and Days of Future Podcast) to talk about Nobuhiko Obayashi's HOUSE, one of the oddeste genre films in Toho's Showa filmography. Based on a story by his ten year old daughter, Obayashi's film is truly one of the most unique cinematic experiences one could hope to see. HOUSE remains a cult classic to this day due to its carefree childlike spirit and its use of every pra...
Oct 31, 2016•1 hr 23 min•Ep. 16
