#3 - Werewolf

Werewolf legends have been around for quite a while and in cultures across the globe. One of the earliest werewolves (and probable root of the term lycanthrope) was King Lyacon, who was transformed into a wolf in retribution for attempting to serve his own son to Zeus for dinner (see below). This early tradition was very different from the modern werewolf form. There were two main types of werewolves, the voluntary and involuntary. Voluntary werewolves had taken proactive steps (usually a deal with the devil or some form of herbal potion) to gain the ability to turn into a wolf. Involuntary werewolves were cursed by some outside force, either through witchcraft or in retribution for evil deeds (ala Lyacon). The contagious bite theory and the silver bullet method of destroying a werewolf did not appear until modern retelling of the werewolf legend. Traditional folk legends prescribed wolfsbane, prayer, or cleansing to rid oneself of a werewolf curse.

The modern werewolf story began in the Universal Monsters line of films. The first werewolf film was 1935's Werewolf of London, but this film stayed more true to the eastern European tales, with the curse coming from an herb and none of the contagion theory. In 1941's the Wolf Man, however, Lon Cheney's character is infected by a bite and is killed by a silver walking stick. These details have been repeated in popular culture as canonical rules so frequently that the original folk tales have morphed into a legend informed by the germ theory of disease.

The popular culture references to werewolves are too numerous to count. There are hundreds of books and films with either werewolf characters or references to lycanthropy. Numerous songs deal with the concept and characters are present in music videos. There are references in the genres of horror, comedy, drama, fantasy, and television. The widespread nature of these cultural references likely stems from the extreme popularity of Universal's big three monsters - Frankenstein, Dracula, and the Wolf Man - which tapped into unconscious fears of disfiguration and anti-social behavior. These three characters tapped into these collective fears and gave birth to the blockbuster macabre film, informing popular culture ever since.

Next week: another biblical monster that dwarfs all the monsters so far.

#2 - Hydra

The Hydra is a Greek mythical beast, an aquatic serpent with many heads (the number varies, but it's a lot) that grow back double when cut off. The Hydra was the offspring of a woman-snake hybrid named Echidna and a giant man-snake hybrid named Typhon (a son of Gaia and a participant in the war of the titans). Echidna and Typhon had 9 other monsters in their brood, two of which (Cerberus and Chimera) are also represented in the MIMP series.


After Echidna and Typhon attacked Zeus in retaliation for his treatment of the Titans (Typhon's family), their children were placed as challenges for heroes (aka Hercules). According to the legend, Hydra was placed on Lerna to protect a entrance to the underworld, where Hercules was sent on his second labor. When Hercules realized he could not just use brute force, his nephew started to cauterize Hydra's necks to keep heads from growing back. When Hera saw this, she sent the crab Cancer to attack Hercules as well. Long story short, Hercules killed the monsters and stole a bit of Hydra's poisonous blood for a later task. Hera memorialized the monsters and the battle as constellations next to each other.

Popular culture abounds with references to the Hydra myth. The most direct are the multiple accounts of the Hercules myth, from the animated to the stop motion (see above). As always, Hydra is frequently referenced by rock bands (Hydra Head records, an album by Satariel, an album by Toto, and the band Hydra). The name is also frequently referenced in connection with secretive organizations (Marvel comics, the Dharma Initiative on LOST). There is also a microscopic aquatic anima nicknamed Hydra for it's ability to grow back from even the smallest fragment.

Ultimately, the first two monsters in the series are fairly similar (scaly, multiple heads, dragon looking), but next week we go mammal.

#1 - The Great Beast

Morrison Entertainment Group kicked off the Monster in My Pocket Series with some intensity. The first monster in the first series is the Great Beast, essentially a dragon form of the Antichrist. Compare the MIMP version to the medieval woodcut below.

The Antichrist, predictably, originates in the Bible, referred to as an opponent to Jesus or a false messiah, a tradition borrowed from Judaism (see Armilus). Most of the biblical references come from John and may have been written in an attempt to consolidate Christianity into one tradition -- specifically focusing on cutting off the Gnostic tradition -- or to personify Satan more concretely to make him more of a physical threat.

It's really hard to clarify who the Antichrist is. John states that there were multiple Antichrists at that time and that the main Antichrist would arrive in the future. Paul also discusses a "Man of Sin" that some have read to refer to John's Antichrist, but it is unclear what their relationship is. People have also tried to determine whether the Antichrist is Satan or a separate entity, but there are so few references within the text that it is almost impossible to conclusively determine anything.

Despite all of this, the Antichrist has a strong tradition in popular culture. Aliester Crowley referred to himself as the Great Beast. Johnny Rotten combined the Antichrist concept with fashionable anarchism. Nietzsche's rant on religion is titled the Antichrist. Especially despised politicians are often labeled Antichrist. The Omen is based on a child Antichrist. Not to mention multiple metal albums, films, and television shows with title or show references. Even in these representations, there is no consensus as to the imagery or meaning of the Antichrist other than a force for evil. Even within religious art, there seems to be confusion as to the Antichrist's nature. Some show the Antichrist as a demon, some as an animal hybrid, and some as a mirror image of Jesus (see below).

Ultimately, this confusion is likely intentional, created to cause a sense of paranoia and fear of authority to help propagate a young religion during tyrannical regimes. All in all, pretty heavy stuff for the opener of a line of toys.

Next Week: more slithery serpents from an ancient tradition.