Hello, Kaiju Lovers! It’s a full house (“full mecha”?) in today’s Godzilla Redux episode on the infamous but now-popular-to-like G-film, Godzilla vs. Hedorah (aka Godzilla vs. the Smog Monster). Daniel DiManna (Godzilla Novelization Project), Ben Avery (Strangers and Aliens; Welcome to Level 7), and Matt and Gratton of Giant Monster BS all return to discuss the strangest yet arguably most auteur film in the franchise. To say it kicked off the ‘70s G-films with a strange bang would be an...

Nate’s cloned “pseudo-sister,” Jessica Shaw (aka Crystal Lady) takes some specially-selected tourists on a, well, tour of Monster Island, and on their last stop at the Denham Theater, a smelly, frumpy girl literally bumps into her. She is Fausta Bevan, a missing member of Jessica’s tour group. She’s annoying but also kind. Unfortunately, she’s also a Bug Lady—who isn’t here at the behest of the Nachfalter and the Church of Mothrianity, and for the first time, Jessica doesn’t want to destroy...

Having been “military volunteered” during the broadcast, the Omni Viewer’s neat-freak of a dinosaur-lizard-thing sidekick, Snazzy Chapeau, accompanies Jimmy From NASA into the Seoul sewers to bag-and-tag Gwoemul. Shenanigans ensue. Meanwhile, Omni tries to get Nate to open up about what’s got him down in the dumps. It goes about as well as you’d expect.

Hello, Kaiju Lovers! After several months in Seoul, Nate finally reaches the point where Korean kaiju cinema comes into its own: Bong Joon-ho’s The Host (2006). He’s joined by YouTuber and author Omni Viewer and his ”kaiju” sidekick, Snazzy Chapeau, to discuss this momentous film. While it arguably has more in common with Jaws than Godzilla (1954), its effect on Korean culture was as significant as the latter was for Japan and King Kong (1933) was for America. It was inspired by a uniquely...

A tired Nate returns to Uber-Moguera from a film curation trip in Seoul and overhears a conversation between Jimmy and Kaguya. Jimmy sounds uncharacteristically nervous, but not because things have been a little tense between him and his girlfriend the last few months. No, it’s because he pops the question.

Hello, Kaiju Lovers! This film was popular to hate and now it’s popular to “reevaluate” it: All Monsters Attack (aka Godzilla’s Revenge). Nate is joined by not one but two fellow kaiju authors to unpack this grossly misunderstood G-film: Neil Riebe (who’s practically Nate’s new co-host) and the most-cited man on MIFV, John LeMay. They get into the cultural contexts that birthed this strange kids’ movie (starring the first Godzilla “Kenny”) set in the “real world” and not the “Showa-verse,”...

Jimmy may have secretly recaptured Yonggary (aka “Double G”) by his sheer awesomeness, but that victory is short-lived. The nefarious (and rubbery) Galaxions return and unleash an upgraded Cykor protected by an energy shield projected by their ship. Now, only the combined might of Jimmy with a jetpack and Elijah’s powers of argumentation can save Seoul and the world!

In this excerpt from a Patreon-exclusive livestream, Nathan interviews James Santana, a comic nerd and tokusatsu fan who combined his passions by starting his own comic book label, TokUSA Studios. His goal is to bridge the gap between tokusatsu/manga fans and comic readers by offering them books inspired by the likes of Super Sentai and Ultraman, among others. He’s currently spearheading a Kickstarter for The World of Nebulon, a preview book showcasing several of the characters and titles in...

Hello, Kaiju Lovers! In what might be the most subversive and inspirational episode of MIFV yet, Elijah Thomas (Kaiju Conversation) joins Nate to discuss the infamous South Korean “kaiju” (notice the air quotes?) movie, Reptilian. This is, in fact, a “remake” of Yongary, Monster from the Deep, and it’s often called “The Room of kaiju films.” But Elijah says it’s more than that. He even goes so far as to say that if it wasn’t for this movie, the world wouldn’t have BTS or Squid Game. How?...

Hello, Kaiju Lovers! It’s time to unpack the biggest kaiju release of 2024—Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire! For such a momentous occasion, Nate called upon YouTuber Donny Winter (Growing Up with Godzilla) and a “mystery guest”…who didn’t make it. Darn. So, he got the next best option: The Omni Viewer and his monster sidekick, Snazzy! They dive deep into the fifth entry of Legendary Pictures’ MonsterVerse series, unveiling its connections to classic pulp fiction and ‘80s pop culture—all...

In yet another impromptu “bonus” episode, Nate is joined by Daniel DiManna (Godzilla Novelization Project) to discuss a film that was finally unleashed upon the world by SRS Cinema: Space Monster Wangmagwi. As you can see, this one actually fits the season theme of The Monster Island World Tour. As mentioned in the Yongary episode, this was also released in the “Year of the Kaiju,” 1967, beating Yongary by a few months. But like many South Korean kaiju films, the story around this one exceeds...

Ever wonder what would happen if Rito Revolto and Deadpool had a radio show? No? Well, you’re gonna find out, whether you want to or not! The Board replaces Nate’s radio show in his absence—without telling him—with a new one hosted by Nate’s hated old roommate...and some dude named Wade. They report some local Monster Island news, take a music request from Bonnie Lass, and get into all kinds of shenanigans.

Hello, Kaiju Lovers! Our first Patreon episode of season four—courtesy of executive producer Damon Noyes—is also MIFV’s first double feature and includes our first Roger Corman movie! First, we tackle Corman’s 1957 “classic,” Attack of the Crab Monsters, which could be called a “B-movie to a B-movie.” While it starts off as a typical atomic age creature feature, to Nate’s surprise, it goes full-tilt crazy at the halfway point. Then he and Damon get to Island Claws, a 1980 “pseudo-remake” that...

With Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire upon us, friend of the podcast Ryan “The Omni Viewer” Collins is holding another “One Monstrous Moment” series, the “Year of the Dragon Edition.” I’m going about as “on brand” with it as you can with a discussion of the ending of Godzilla vs. Kong (2021). I was struck by it when I first saw it, and I’m struck by it now. It’s exemplifies pacifism, the so-called “sigma male,” and a proper understanding of meekness (strength under control). What say you?

Nate and Jimmy fly Uber-Moguera to Panmunjom intent to recapture Yongary, but the Korean kaiju scores a couple lucky hits that disable the mecha’s weapons system. Desperate to find a new tactic, they get unlikely help from an unlikely source: Neil Riebe! His solution: a dance-off! Shenanigans ensue.

Hello, Kaiju Lovers! The South Korea leg of the Monster Island World Tour begins with arguably the first true Korean kaiju film: Yongary, Monster from the Deep. Author Neil Riebe, who might very well be this film’s biggest fan, pays yet another visit to MIFV’s mobile studio in Uber-Moguera to enlighten us with his copious research on the movie. Released in the “Year of the Kaiju,” 1967, it borrows some from Showa Godzilla films but way more from Showa Gamera—complete with a Korean Kenny!...

Hello, Kaiju Lovers! According to MIFV’s analytics, King Kong (and not Godzilla) is good for business right now, so in this excerpt from our Patreon-exclusive livestream, we’re filling in one of the “gaps” from season 1’s The Kong Quest (ba-dum-tsh!) Brendan Morley joins Nathan to discuss the almost-forgotten animated musical (you read that right), The Mighty Kong (1998). It’s not only the first Kong musical, it’s arguably the best—which isn’t saying much. Still, it has an all-star talent...

Hello, Kaiju Lovers! In yet another impromptu episode (because reasons), Nate is joined by Daniel DiManna (Godzilla Novelization Project) and Elijah Thomas (Kaiju Conversation) to discuss the semi-obscure Daiei proto-kaiju film, The Whale God. Released in 1962, it was largely unseen outside of Japan until it was released by SRS Cinema this past January. The boys unpack the tremendous talent behind and in front of the camera--including Takashi Shimura, Kojiro Hongo, and Akira Ifukube, among...

Nate, Drew, and Jacob decide to test their mettle by going to a haunted tourist spot in Seoul: Yangma Land, an abandoned theme park. After exploring the place until midnight, they come to a carousel that moves by itself—because it’s being ridden by the little girl ghost who haunts the place! She hears Jacob bark like a dog and chases after him, thinking he’s a puppy. The boys hide in a ride, only to barely escape a nine-tailed fox! But is the solution getting these two supernatural beings to...

You might be wondering, “Aren’t you supposed to cover Destroy All Monsters for Godzilla Redux, Nate?” Yes...but I’m not. For reasons. Anyway, we have the next-best thing: the three-part epic from Godzilla: The Series—“Monster Wars”! And who else could be the guests for animated kaiju shenanigans other than Drew and Jacob from The Cel Cast. They and Nate go through each episode beat-for-beat and analyze everything from the writing to the voice acting to the animation. You’ll also hear some...

Nate and Jimmy set their sights on wrangling Utam Goliathon (aka “Ah-Wang”) from the top of Jardine House—only to be interrupted by a confused Kaguya wearing a risqué cosplay bought by Jimmy! This gives Nate the idea to have her talk Goliathon into climbing down the building. But she’s not happy about any of this!

Hello, Kaiju Lovers! The most cited man on MIFV, John LeMay, returns for his all-but-mandatory-at-least-once-a-season appearance to discuss the second Shaw Bros. film we’ve covered this season: Mighty Peking Man. This infamous cult classic was a favorite of director Quinton Tarantino, and it’s easy to see why: it’s sleazy yet weirdly artsy. It feels like an exploitation film at points—especially with the gorgeous Evalyn Kraft running around in nothing but a goatskin bikini—but the special...

Hello, Kaiju Lovers! In this excerpt from the latest episode of the (usually) Patreon-exclusive livestream podcast, Nathan invites his creative team (plus Elijah Thomas, who crashes the show later) on to discuss the new black-and-white edition of Godzilla Minus One. Is it a different enough experience from the original—or is it even better? These questions are answered in yet another Minus One-fueled blockbuster episode of MIFV!

Hello, Kaiju Lovers! You know him and you probably hate him—our guest today is none other than Matt Walsh! Okay, it’s not that Matt Walsh. This one shaves and isn’t a millennial curmudgeon. Anyway, because this Matt Walsh is a madman, he jumped on the joke tier on Patreon, “Jimmy’s Intern,” to discuss 1957’s The Abominable Snowman, making this MIFV’s first Hammer film…and its third yeti film. (Nate only had a mild case of PTSD). Nate was pleasantly surprised to see that this film, which stars...

Nate decides to do some film curation in Hong Kong--with Hannibal Chau. Jimmy escorts him to the Bone Slums to meet the black market dealer and discovers a reel containing the 1999 cut of Reptilian. So, he does what any kaiju film curator would do: he steals it. But Chau won’t have any of that!