Trevor Thomson

Mediocre obscurity: Musing over King Kong Lives (1986)

With the relative success of Paramount’s 1976 King Kong remake, a sequel was sure to follow. What no one expected was the sequel that ultimately became King Kong Lives. For anyone who may have not noticed over the course of my writings & the subjects contained therein (or is just now dropping in), I’m somethingContinue reading “Mediocre obscurity: Musing over King Kong Lives (1986)”

Despised Inspiration: An Ode to King Kong (1976)

Though the race between Hammer, Universal, and Paramount went on into the 1970s, it was Paramount that won the rights to remake RKO’s 1933 epic King Kong. And in 1976, that remake was released to theaters. The face of a beautiful, blonde, white woman comes into focus. She appears conscious, yet also absent, not aContinue reading “Despised Inspiration: An Ode to King Kong (1976)”

Universal’s promising unmade Kong: The Legend of King Kong (1975)

Last time, we talked a bit about an unmade British remake of King Kong. But Hammer Studios wasn’t the only major film company of the 1970s attempting to remake RKO’s classic. I thought I’d take a moment to shed some light on the cancelled (and fairly obscure) Kong film that competed with the ’76 remakeContinue reading “Universal’s promising unmade Kong: The Legend of King Kong (1975)”

A disappointing second act?: Son of Kong (1933)

In the Depression-era United States, Merian C. Cooper’s 1933 cinematic epic King Kong was so popular that RKO higher-ups demanded a sequel be made right away. Unfortunately for the production team, “right away” meant “about as long as it takes a baby to gestate.” We’re doing a bit of an ensemble piece, here, as Mike,Continue reading “A disappointing second act?: Son of Kong (1933)”

Princess Salno & The Ymir

A Toho-Harryhausen Fantasy As imagined by Trevor Thomson, with story elements by Charlott Knight, Bob Williams, Christopher Knopf, Shinichi Sekizawa, & Beverley Cross. Cover illustrated by Elden Ardiente. Internal illustrations by studio Lungga Creative. As folks who have read my previous writings may know (& even if you don’t, now’s a fine time to learn),Continue reading “Princess Salno & The Ymir”

Queen of the Monsters Part II: Mothra’s Journey Through the Heisei Era

A Retrospective covering Godzilla vs. Mothra (1992), Mothra (1996), Mothra 2: The Battle Under the Deep Sea (1997), & Mothra 3: Invasion of King Ghidorah (1998) (The “Rebirth” Trilogy) And so dear readers, as “KaiJune” winds down and “KaiSummer”–a summer-long look at kaiju-related films–picks up, we take one last look at Miss Mothra’s final continuousContinue reading “Queen of the Monsters Part II: Mothra’s Journey Through the Heisei Era”

Queen of the Monsters Part I: Mothra’s Journey Through the Showa Era

A Retrospective Covering Mothra (1961), Mothra vs. Godzilla (1964), Ghidorah, The Three-Headed Monster (1964), & Ebirah, Horror of the Deep/Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster (1966) Long time no see, ladies & gents. Last time we saw each other, I stepped out of my comfort zone a little bit, (writing-wise anyway) & dared to dream upContinue reading “Queen of the Monsters Part I: Mothra’s Journey Through the Showa Era”

Tremors: Chaos Effect

I initially balked at the idea of a Tremors & Jurassic Park crossover, thinking there was no real story, & just a handful of quick imagination snapshots like a Graboid attacking a T. Rex or Shrieker & Raptor packs at war with each other. But then, some thoughts occurred to me. I thought about whatContinue reading “Tremors: Chaos Effect”

Frosting the Cake of Krull (1983) — And the Harryhausen-Inspired Ingredients to Do It

As I write this we near the end of January, but since it is my first diatribe of 2020 (& thus the new decade), I’d like to wish all my readers a Happy New Year! And, a quick disclaimer before we dive in: all four of the films in discussion here today are fine littleContinue reading “Frosting the Cake of Krull (1983) — And the Harryhausen-Inspired Ingredients to Do It”

Christmas Time with Bond: Assorted Musings on the 007 One-Shot

As Christmas Day dawns upon us, I reflected on what’s been occupying my television for nearly two months. One of the select few streaming services to approximate the cable & satellite TV experience, PlutoTV, just so happened to be the culprit. But more specifically, the many exploits of a certain British super-spy were what seemedContinue reading “Christmas Time with Bond: Assorted Musings on the 007 One-Shot”