Bram Stoker Award-winning editor James Aquilone and Monstrous Books are going big—Kaiju big—with the oversized MONSTROUS: THE KAIJU ISSUE. And today we’ve got an exclusive look at one of its showstopping new creations: Zarigazami, a brand-new Kaiju designed by acclaimed manga artist Itaru Kinoshita.
The creature will appear in MONSTROUS: THE KAIJU ISSUE and will also be available as a standalone print. Since Zarigazami’s reveal, fans have been buzzing about the meaning behind its name and design, so Kinoshita created a special bilingual graphic that digs into the etymology and inspiration for the monster, an exclusive debut you’ll see only here.
A Celebration of Monsters, East and West
MONSTROUS MAGAZINE has built a reputation for honoring pulp traditions and classic horror with stylish black-and-white comics, stories, and essays. Now, the series is turning its gaze to the East for inspiration. MONSTROUS: THE KAIJU ISSUE is a full-color, oversized 8.5” x 11” special dedicated to celebrating the titans of Japanese monster cinema, arriving just in time for Godzilla’s 70th anniversary.
“When I decided to do a Kaiju issue of MONSTROUS MAGAZINE, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to do a Kaiju-size magazine,” Aquilone explained. “We’re going from 5.5 x 8.5 to 8.5 x 11 inches. And that’s just the beginning—we’re resizing the back issues, too, so they’ll be available for a limited time in this new collectible, oversized Kaiju format.”
Check out the graphic below.
Inside MONSTROUS: THE KAIJU ISSUE
The upcoming anthology is packed with new stories, comics, and artwork from across the monster multiverse, including:
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“The Colossus From the Crater” — A brand-new sci-fi short story from Greg Cox, the novelist behind the official prose adaptations of Godzilla (2014) and Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019).
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Konga vs. Gorgo Comic — Written by James Aquilone and illustrated by Dave Swartz (Confederate Monster), pitting two cult-favorite titans from the 1960s American International Pictures films and Charlton Comics against one another.
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Three iconic covers, including a Konga vs. Gorgo cover by Larry Tuason, a MegaSquatch cover by EV Cantada and Zac Atkinson, and more.
And, of course, the spotlight-stealing debut of Kinoshita’s Zarigazami, complete with its etymological origins and stunning design.
More Monsters, More Rewards
Alongside MONSTROUS: THE KAIJU ISSUE, backers of the upcoming campaign can also grab MONSTROUS PRESENTS #1, a 32-page comic reprinting “Rise of the Morlocks” and “Dead Jack and Oswald Meet Frankenstein,” both by Aquilone and J.K. Woodward. Previous MONSTROUS MAGAZINE issues featured everything from essays by Elvira writer David Avallone to classic pulp reprints and new horror comics, all of which will be available in the collectible Kaiju-sized format.
Pre-Launch Now Live
Fans can sign up for launch notifications at the pre-launch Kickstarter page, now live: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/manbomb/kaiju?ref=3wor0y.
With an oversized new format, a roster of legendary creators, and an exclusive new Kaiju born from the mind of Itaru Kinoshita, MONSTROUS: THE KAIJU ISSUE is shaping up to be the monster magazine event of the year.
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