Seven decades after Godzilla first stomped onto the big screen, Kaiju fans are still feeling the reverberations of the King of Monsters, and Monstrous Books is celebrating the timeless legacy of Godzilla and other colossal creatures (including Konga and Gorgo) with Monstrous: The Kaiju Issue, brimming with retrospective essays, new comics featuring massive monsters, and all kinds of other Kaiju goodies for readers to devour!
With the special issue of Monstrous Magazine now on Kickstarter, we caught up with James Aquilone, Patrick Macias, Samuel Sattin, and Itaru Kinoshita in a roundtable Q&A feature to discuss their unique contributions to Monstrous: The Kaiju Issue, and we also have a look at the issue’s killer covers, preview pages from James’ MegaSquatch story (featuring artwork by EV Cantada), and Itaru’s shellfish Kaiju sketches!
You can read our full Q&A below, and to learn more about Monstrous: The Kaiju Issue, visit:
Thank you all for taking the time to answer questions for us, and congratulations on Monstrous: The Kaiju Issue! For each of you, what were your favorite Kaiju growing up? Did you have any favorite films, video games, or comics featuring colossal creatures?
James Aquilone: My first exposure to kaiju was with the animated series The Godzilla Power Hour, which included Godzooky, Godzilla’s nephew. It was goofy, but I was only five so I thought it was awesome.
Patrick Macias: My first exposure to Kaiju films was seeing Godzilla, King of the Monsters! on UHF TV in 1979. I immediately became obsessed with all things Kaiju and Tokusatsu. These days, my favorite film in the series is Invasion of Astro-Monster, though my favorite Kaiju design is still the Godzilla suit from the original film.
Samuel Sattin: My Kaiju introduction didn’t come from Godzilla, but Gamera—Gamera vs. Guiron, to be exact. I can still hear the “Song of Gamera” in my head when the beast’s name surfaces. Gamera led me down the Godzilla rabbit hole. I’m a longtime lover of both Godzilla vs. Hedorah and Mothra vs. Godzilla, but I have a soft spot for Final Wars, and the Reiwa films are top-notch.
Itaru Kinoshita: I grew up with the Heisei Godzilla series, but my favorite was always the first American Godzilla in 1998. Patrick Tatopoulos’s beautiful Godzilla design (especially the shape of the jaw and the direction of the dorsal fins) grabbed my heart and never let go. It is my favorite Kaiju design even today.
Patrick, in this issue of Monstrous you celebrate the King of Monsters with Godzilla at 70. Why do you think Godzilla has not only survived but thrived through multiple mediums and generations over these past 70-plus years?
Patrick Macias: Godzilla has lasted this long because he’s never just been a guy in a rubber suit smashing buildings. Every generation finds something new in him, whether it’s fear, fun, or spectacle. He keeps changing with the times, but that sense of awe and power has always stayed the same.
Itaru, what can you tell us about your new Kaiju design (which I absolutely love, by the way) that you created for Monstrous: The Kaiju Issue? Were you inspired by any other creatures while making this new design?
Itaru Kinoshita: Yes, absolutely. One of my favorite Godzilla movies is Ebirah, Horror of the Deep. I was inspired a lot by Ebirah and the kaiju of Pacific Rim. I went to see it several times and I still listen to the theme music when I create manga.
Actually, this is the second time that I have created shellfish Kaiju. I designed a shellfish Kaiju once in 2014, but it was not a sophisticated design because of my lack of skill. So I wanted to update it with my current skills.
Samuel, you wrote A Brief History of Kaijus for this new issue of Monstrous. Is there anything in particular about the history of colossal creatures that readers might be surprised or shocked by?
Samuel Sattin: Colossal creatures come from a creative sandbox that has enough room for everyone to play in. They can be serious metaphors for revenge, destruction, or penance as much as they can be action figures throwing each other through buildings and mountains while passersby cheer. The consequence can’t be separated from the camp, and that’s exactly what makes the genre so great.
Just like the creatures it features, this new issue of Monstrous Magazine will be super-sized to an 8.5-x-11-inch format. James, how important was it for you to make this issue available in a bigger size to help showcase these massive monsters?
James Aquilone: Some fans had expressed to me that they wanted a bigger-sized magazine, and it was something I had wanted to do eventually, so when I decided to do a kaiju issue, it was the perfect time and very fitting.
James, you teamed up with Dave Swartz for a new Konga vs. Gorgo comic, featuring the iconic creatures from 1960s films released by American International Pictures. Despite being giant creatures themselves, sometimes Konga and Gorgo can get lost in the shadows of their colossal counterparts like Godzilla, King Kong, and Mothra. How important was it for you to highlight some of the overlooked massive monsters?
James Aquilone: Godzilla certainly dominates the conversation when it comes to Kaiju, so it was important for me to highlight the deep history of the genre and explore other characters. Konga and Gorgo are really fun to work with. I had already done a Konga story for Kolchak Meets the Classic Monsters and that definitely got me thinking about doing more stories with big monsters.
James, what can you tell us about Kaiju MegaSquatch, whom readers will be introduced to in a new comic book story by you and EV Cantada?
James Aquilone: MegaSquatch is a giant Sasquatch who terrorizes the Pacific Northwest, though I see him more as an anti-hero. One thing I wanted to do with MegaSquatch was to make things more personal. With Godzilla, he usually just stomps nameless people with no thought. With MegaSquatch it’s personal. He doesn’t stomp. He looks you in the eyes when he kills you, usually by pulling off your limbs. It’s a feel-good story! You’ll have to read it.
Even though kaiju have been around for a long time in pop culture, they have a timeless quality that makes them as relevant now as they were when they first stomped onto the big screen and ran rampant through the panels of comics. What is it about kaiju that make them so appealing and fascinating to generations of fans?
James Aquilone: Kaiju are larger than life, but they also tap into something deeply human. They can represent our fears, our struggles with nature, or even the consequences of our own creations. At the same time, there’s an undeniable sense of wonder and fun in watching these massive creatures clash. That mix of awe, metaphor, and pure spectacle is what, I think, keeps them timeless and continues to captivate new audiences.
With the crowdfunding campaign for Monstrous: The Kaiju Issue kicking off on September 8th, what types of goodies can supporters of the Kickstarter look forward to?
James Aquilone: There’s the oversized Monstrous: The Kaiju Issue that comes in three covers, exclusive art prints, a MegaSquatch T-shirt, the first issue of my new comic book series Monstrous Presents, and a limited-edition Konga – Gorgo Challenge Coin.
Ultimately, what do each of you hope readers take away from their time spent within the pages of Monstrous: The Kaiju Issue?
James Aquilone: I hope it’s just as much of a blast as watching Godzilla give King Kong a suplex.
Patrick Macias: I hope readers come away with a sense of how vast and fascinating the world of kaiju can be. Each creature carries the imprint of the era and the creators who brought it to life. If Monstrous inspires people to dig deeper into that history, then I think we’ve done our job.
Samuel Sattin: I hope it inspires people to go back and watch some of the Showa era films, where all this stuff really took wing. And I hope it leads them to appreciate the analog setbuilding that shows just how far the films’ creators went to immerse viewers. We are both blessed and cursed by modern filmmaking technology. Kaiju films are a breath of the freshest air one can take.
Itaru Kinoshita: I want readers to enjoy imagining Kaiju battles in their heads. Which one would win or lose? That’s what kaiju fans always do when we look up buildings, go across bridges, or look out the window of an airplane. It always gives us a little happiness.
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From the Press Release: Bram Stoker Award-winning editor and writer James Aquilone’s Monstrous Books has celebrated the traditions of pulp fiction and classic movie monsters with MONSTROUS MAGAZINE, an acclaimed black-and-white magazine-format comic book anthology which features some of the most interesting and inventive genre writers being published today. Now MONSTROUS MAGAZINE will look east for the inspiration for its next all-star anthology: MONSTROUS: THE KAIJU ISSUE will celebrate the legendary monsters from Japan, just in time for the ongoing global celebration of Godzilla’s 70th anniversary.
MONSTROUS: THE KAIJU ISSUE features a fantastic line-up including:
- Godzilla at 70, a celebration of the King of Monsters by Patrick Macias (The Essential Anime Guide: 50 Iconic Films, Standout Series, and Cult Masterpieces).
- A Brief History of Kaijus by Samuel Sattin (Unico: Awakening).
- An all new kaiju design by Dinosaur Sanctuary mangaka Itaru Kinoshita
- An all-new Konga vs. Gorgo comic, featuring the creatures from the cult 1960s American International Pictures movies and Charlton Comics, written by James Aquilone and illustrated by Dave Swartz (Confederate Monster)
- The first appearance of the Kaiju MegaSquatch, in a comic book story by James Aquilone and EV Cantada (Joe Ledger, Grimm Fairy Tales)
- Three iconic covers — a Konga vs. Gorgo cover by Larry Tuason (Knightingail: The Legend Begins), a MegaSquatch cover by EV Cantada and colorist Zac Atkinson and a Godzilla cover.
Just like the creatures themselves, this magazine (previously digest size) will be enlarged to a full-size 8.5-x-11-inch format. “When I decided to do a Kaiju issue of MONSTROUS MAGAZINE I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to do a Kaiju-size magazine, so we’re going from 5.5 x 8.5 to 8.5 x 11 inches,” said James Aquilone. “And that’s just the beginning. We’re resizing the MONSTROUS MAGAZINE back issues, too, and now, for a limited time, they will be available in the new collectible, oversized Kaiju format.”
Previous issues of MONSTROUS MAGAZINE, feature a mix of comics, prose stories, and articles. The debut issue includes:
- A collectible cover by Colton Worley (Kolchak: The Night Stalker 50th Anniversary Graphic Novel, The Shadow)
- An essay by Elvira Mistress of the Dark writer David Avallone about the legacy of his father, pulp legend Michael Avallone
- A reprint of pulp legend Michael Avallone’s first short story “The Man Who Walked on Air, ” originally published in Weird Tales in 1953
- The very first Dead Jack comic, “Dead Jack and Oswald Meet Frankenstein,” written by James Aquilone and illustrated by J.K. Woodward
- “Monster Rally,” a comic story by Nancy A. Collins with art by Zac Atkinson
Other rewards for the MONSTROUS: THE KAIJU ISSUE campaign include the debut issue of MONSTROUS PRESENTS, a 32-page comic reprinting “Rise of the Morlocks” and “Dead Jack and Oswald Meet Frankenstein,” both by James Aquilone and artist J.K. Woodward.
The Kickstarter campaign for Monstrous Kaiju Issue is now live:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/manbomb/kaiju?ref=b0vv2s
For updates, follow Monstrous Books on Facebook, Instagram and X.
ABOUT MONSTROUS BOOKS
Monstrous is an independent publisher focused on dark fiction and action-packed stories. Owned and operated by Bram Stoker Award-winning editor and writer James Aquilone, Monstrous Books is dedicated to creating high-quality print and digital comics, graphic novels, and prose books that aim to entertain with its stories and delight with its aesthetics. Monstrous is the new home of Kolchak: The Night Stalker. Its other titles include Monstrous magazine, Dead Detectives Society, Shakespeare Unleashed, and The Omega Eleven.
Aquilone’s first two anthologies — both of which were crowdfunded on Kickstarter — recently won Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards (Best Graphic Novel or Collection for KOLCHAK and Best Graphic Novel or Collection for CLASSIC MONSTERS UNLEASHED). Both books were also nominated for an Imadjinn Award this year, and KOLCHAK was nominated for the Best Graphic Novel Bram Stoker Award.
For updates, follow Monstrous Books on X/Twitter, Facebook and MonstrousBooks.com.
Cover by Artist Larry Tuason:
Cover by Artist EV Cantada and Colorist Zac Atkinson:
MegaSquatch Preview Pages:
Itaru Kinoshita’s Shellfish Kaiju Sketches:
