Monstrum

In the first episode of Monstrum, Dr. Emily Zarka reveals the mythological origins of iconic dragons from Game of Thrones and The Hobbit, and explains...

Now celebrating its 200th anniversary, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein was a revolutionary text that pioneered the sci-fi genre. On the surface, it’s a no...

Stories of blood-sucking monsters have been around for centuries. But the one who have outlived them all is Dracula! Revisit the Count and other vampi...

Meet the Headless Horseman and his terrifying cousin, the Irish Dullahan, in this episode of Monstrum.

Legend has it this monster could take down ships, grab sailors off decks, and create whirlpools. Meet the Kraken in the latest episode of Monstrum fro...

Medusa has inspired art for centuries, whether as a symbol of protection or a monster. Explore her literary and cultural history in this episode of Mo...

What do the Sagas of the Icelanders and Game of Thrones have in common? Dr. Zarka answers this question and explores how the draugr, Nordic undead mon...

Did you know there are two different types of chupacabras? Or that these bloodsucking monsters only starting popping up 25 years ago? Sightings of el...

Godzilla is one of the most recognizable monsters in film, and he should be. After all, he is part of the longest running film franchise in the world,...

The impossible, three-headed monster of Ancient Greek mythology, the Chimaera, may have started off as a fantasy, but today, the word “chimera” can be...

The legend of La Llorona, the “weeping woman,” has terrified generations. This female ghost wanders in the darkness, crying as she searches for her ch...

Made from clay and animated by the sacred word of G-d, the golem of Jewish origin has evolved from a 6th-century meditation of creation, to a source o...

From the invading, high-tech aliens of ‘War of the Worlds’ to post-world war escapism literature and even real-life scientific exploration today, the...

Explore the symbolic interpretations of the windigo with Dr. Zarka as she explains how this Native American legend can teach us about the spiritual be...

Dr. Zarka shows how this wailing female ghost connects to the very real Irish tradition of keening— a rhythmic wailing and mourning performed by women...

In this episode, you’ll hear all about Homer’s Polyphemus and Hesiod’s one-eyed blacksmiths, but also a little about the role paleontology has played...

Connected to witchcraft, sexual predation, and mischief, the tokoloshe is a dominant myth in South Africa. There are different kinds of tokoloshe/tiko...

One of the Phillipine’s most dangerous and bizarre aswangs, the viscera-sucking, self-segmenting monster hunts at night. A beautiful woman by day, thi...

Dr. Z travels to the town of Point Pleasant, WV to research the complicated history of the flying creature and how the town was forever changed by the...

Christmas isn’t just a time for presents, cookies, and holiday cheer, but the hunting period of Iceland’s murderous monster feline, the Yule Cat. This...