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!
Oct 12, 2020•2 hr 12 min•Ep. 229
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...
Sep 28, 2020•1 hr 37 min•Ep. 228
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 th...
Sep 20, 2020•39 min•Ep. 227
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!
Sep 12, 2020•58 min•Ep. 226
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 ...
Sep 03, 2020•1 hr 20 min•Ep. 225
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...
Aug 25, 2020•1 hr 45 min•Ep. 224
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 ...
Aug 17, 2020•56 min•Ep. 223
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 franchi...
Aug 10, 2020•2 hr 56 min•Ep. 222
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!
Aug 03, 2020•2 hr 18 min•Ep. 221
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!
Jul 26, 2020•2 hr 38 min•Ep. 220
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...
Jul 18, 2020•1 hr 32 min•Ep. 219
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 Pet...
Jun 27, 2020•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 218
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 Terr...
Jun 21, 2020•1 hr 26 min•Ep. 217
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, co...
Jun 13, 2020•2 hr 22 min•Ep. 216
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...
Jun 03, 2020•2 hr 35 min•Ep. 215
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, SR...
May 11, 2020•1 hr 22 min•Ep. 214
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!...
Apr 26, 2020•2 hr 42 min•Ep. 213
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!
Apr 13, 2020•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 212
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!
Apr 02, 2020•2 hr 3 min•Ep. 211
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 bu...
Mar 26, 2020•1 hr 16 min•Ep. 210
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 l...
Mar 10, 2020•51 min•Ep. 209
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 fi...
Feb 19, 2020•1 hr•Ep. 208
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, ...
Jan 26, 2020•2 hr 32 min•Ep. 207
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...
Jan 05, 2020•1 hr 43 min•Ep. 205
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!
Dec 29, 2019•59 min•Ep. 204
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.
Nov 28, 2019•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 203
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 har...
Nov 14, 2019•1 hr 46 min•Ep. 202
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 Yosh...
Nov 06, 2019•1 hr 26 min•Ep. 201
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...
Oct 30, 2019•1 hr 54 min•Ep. 200
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 origin...
Oct 24, 2019•57 min•Ep. 199
