Toku Tuesday Catch-Up

2021 has been a difficult year to say the least; having had a serious stroke in September of 2020 this entire year thus far has been an arduous process. If I’m not having trouble...

Reptilian (2001): A Good-Bad Time

The term “good-bad movie” has come under some fire as of late. How can a movie truly be bad if you find yourself enjoying the experience? If you leave with a smile, regardless of...
Ultraman Z

Toku Forgiveness

One of the greatest recurring themes in Tokusatsu is the act of forgiving oneself after contemplating your own actions or upon discovering a sin you never knew you were being complicit in. Various Ultra...

American Tokusatsu: A Look At Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers: The Movie

The year is 1995 and one Tokusatsu show rules North America. The Power Rangers. Rangermania didn't last long (it was eventually usurped but for a few years), but the show was so incredibly popular...

Monster Movie Pool Party

So you’ve found yourself blessed with being fully vaxed and ready to get back into the world this summer. There is no better time to put together a pool party. But not just any...

The Weird World of Kongsploitation: From 1933 to 2020

This week for Toku Tuesday we are delving into a truly bizarre subgenre in the world of giant monsters, Kongsploitation. This is a subgenre of a subgenre since Man-in-a-Gorilla-Suit is a subgenre all of...
Guyver

THE GUYVER (1991): A Movie at War with Itself

In 1990, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie became the most successful independent movie of all time. It would hold onto this honour until 1999’s The Blair Witch Project stole the crown. The turtles...

Reevaluating Godzilla 2: War of the Monsters

In the realm of Kaiju fandom, there is a lot of stigma and critical assumptions you have to combat. People write off the films because they have appeared on various Riff shows like Mystery...
morphin time

Mighty Gamin’ Power Rangers

The super Nintendo is truly the perfect retro console. The sprites and the capabilities of the system allow GOOD games to attain a timeless quality. Sprite art ages better than many of the early...
drunk emeniem at liquor store with godzillas

Get Down with Godzilla: Big G’s Music Video Appearances

Godzilla has meant a lot of things to a lot of people. If his recent appearances in the realm of music videos are of any indication, the things that Godzilla can mean vary A...
Ginza

A kaiju author’s travel memoir: HOW TO HAVE AN ADVENTURE IN NORTHERN JAPAN by...

Travel is one thing that no responsible person is participating in this year. However, just because you are trapped inside does not mean your mind cannot wander streets in countries far beyond your own....

Reading Project Nemesis: the Comic

Project Nemesis began life as a novel by Jeremy Robinson written in 2012 and it has become one of the most popular entries in Kaiju fiction. There are a total of six books in...
The Morgow Rises

Horror Paperbacks for Giant Monster Fans

I made the mistake of re-reading Grady Hendrix’s amazing history of horror paperbacks “Paperbacks from Hell”. Using the word ‘amazing’ may conflict with the word ‘mistake’ to you, but if you were my bank...
our hero, kamen rider waves to us

The Heartfelt Absurdism of Kamen Rider Build (2017-18)

Kamen Rider is one of the pillars of Tokusatsu. Along with Ultraman and Super Sentai, it remains in production to this day. We briefly delved into the Rider universe when we talked about Kamen...

An Appreciation for the Tokusatsu Fanbase in 2020

This year has been a hard one for all of us. As the year ends it feels like a good time for reflection. Despite the seemingly unending darkness that was 2020, there were bright...

Exploring Eugene Lourie’s The Giant Behemoth (1959)

The Giant Behemoth (1959) is the third giant monster flick by filmmaker Eugene Lourie. Lourie is much more well known for The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (1953) which inspired the original Godzilla (1954) and...