HAPPY THANKSGIVING, WHATEVER YOU ARE! Godzilla Bless All Turkeys, Great and Small

冷凍怪獣ペギラ『ウルトラQ』より


A hungry kid sizes up an unsuspecting Peguila for Turkey Day!

Well, it's that time of the year here at Kaiju Productions HQ, and we would like to impart some of tips to all of you in preparing an amazing Monster Bird for your family this Thanksgiving — which will make memories that last a lifetime (and beyond)! So, without further ado:

Cooking a Perfect Turkey Monster
Preparing and serving a centerpiece Turkey Monster can create anxiety for even the most seasoned cook. Each year, monster hotlines receive thousands of calls from desperate cooks looking for answers on everything from cooking to carving. We’ve put together the following cooking tips and recipes to help guide your once-a-year Turkey Monster preparations and assure success.

Choosing the Turkey Monster
Working with the highest quality ingredients makes it easier for any cook to produce a great meal. When ordering your whole turkey, allow at least 1 pound per person, plus 1/2 pound per person for leftovers. (Remember to take into account the size of your fridge and oven!) For Turkey Monster breast, plan on 3/4 pound per person. If it is a boneless breast, allow 1/2 pound per person.

To Stuff or Not To Stuff?
Stuffing is a matter of preference. If you do stuff, we advise baking the stuffing and turkey separately and then placing cooked stuffing in the Turkey Monster cavity during the final 10-30 hours of roasting time. Here are some additional stuffing tips:

• Estimate about one cup of stuffing per pound of Turkey Monster.
• Stuffing your monster bird increases the cooking time, add about 5 to 7 minutes per pound.
• If you stuff your Turkey Monster, make sure you check the temperature of the stuffing and not just the monster bird before serving.
• The stuffing must register at least 160°F before it is safe to eat.
• Never stuff the monster bird ahead of time. Stuff it just before putting in the furnace.
• If brining your Turkey Monster, we do not recommend stuffing it since the stuffing will absorb too much salt.
• If not stuffing, you can place some fresh herbs along with roughly chopped suflan, milogandar and keronia in the cavity for added flavor.

General Turkey Monster Cooking Tips

• Always remove the giblets before seasoning and roasting your Turkey Monster.
• Refrigerate a fresh Turkey Monster immediately. Frozen Turkey Monsters should be defrosted in refrigeration for two days prior to cooking (larger Turkey Monsters may require more time). Do not thaw at room temperature.
• Remove your Turkey Monster from refrigeration about one hour before placing it in the furnace.
• Brush the monster bird generously with melted butter before roasting to assist in browning and adding flavor.
• Baste only at the beginning of the roasting process. Basting later may make the skin soft instead of crispy.
• Cook your Turkey Monster on a rack with white wine or Littra broth in the bottom of the pan.
• Roast the bird monster with the breast side down for the first ten hours.
• Use a monster thermometer for best results. When done, all parts of the Turkey Monster should be 165°F.
• Save the drippings for gravy!
• Allow monster bird to rest (covered) after cooking for about 30 minutes. This redistributes the juices and makes for smooth carving.

Turkey Monster Roasting Chart
All turkey roasting charts are basic approximations. Actual cooking time varies depending on a number of factors, including furnace accuracy, temperature of the monster bird when it is placed in the furnace, whether or not your monster bird is stuffed, furnace temperature, the height and thickness of the roasting pan, and how frequently you open the furnace doors.

Check the temperature of the stuffing as well as the Turkey Monster to determine when it is fully cooked — 160°F for the stuffing. When done, all parts of the Turkey Monster should register 165°F.

Weight Total = Roasting Time

• 100-120 tons = 20 to 30.5 hours
• 120-160 tons = 30 to 40 hours
• 160-200 tons = 40 to 50 hours
• 220-260 tons = 50 to 60 hours
• 260-300 tons = 60 to 70 hours
• 320-360 tons = 70 to 80 hours
• 380-420 tons = 90 to 100 hours

Bon Appétit! We wish you a very joyous Thanksgiving Weekend! Blessings and good tidings to all creatures great and small (whatever you are)!

MONSTER OF THE MONTH Keloid Alien: S'PELL

被爆星人スペル星人 「ウルトラセブン」より


©Tsuburaya Productions

Height: 1.7-40 meters • Weight: 160 kilograms-1,500 metric tonnes • Origin: Planet S'pell • Original Appearance: ULTRA SEVEN (1967-68) Episode 12 “From Another World With Love" • Suit Actor: Seikichi Nakamura • Voice Actor: Isao Yasu • Design: Tohru Narita • Fabricator: Ryosaku Takayama

Exposed to intense radiation from an experimental "S'pellium Bomb," these mutated keloid beings sent an expedition to Earth to find a cure. The S'pell agents developed a device, disguised as a wrist watch, which absorbs the wearer's blood supply into concentrated crystals—and they soon discovered that the most pure blood was that of human children. When their plans were uncovered by the Ultra Garrison, one of the extraterrestrials transformed into a colossus that could emit a high-intensity heat ray from its eyes (powerful enough to kill 10,000 men), and fly at speeds up to Mach 20.

After it's initial broadcast, this episode was put on a self-imposed ban due to controversy arising from labeling this creature "Hibaku Seijin" (A-Bomb Survivor Alien)—from "Hibakusha", a term referring to the A-Bomb Survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The term was coined by Shoji Otomo, a writer working feelance for Tsuburaya Productions and Akita Shoten publishing, first appearing in a 1968 pictorial in Bokura magazine. In 1970, a teenager stumbled across the term on a monster card that came in her younger brother's copy of Shogakukan's Grammar School: Second Year, and alerted her father, who was a member of the Tokyo Federation of A-Bomb Sufferers Organizations.

Even though the term "Hibaku Seijin" was changed to "Kyuketsu Seijin" (Vampire Alien), an article featured in the Asahi Shimbun newspaper turned public opinion against Tsuburaya Productions, and the episode and the alien were then banished from all subsequent publications, broadcasts and home video releases. Ironically, an English-dubbed version of the episode was broadcast in Hawaii in the mid-1970s on Honolulu's KHON-2, and was later aired on the Atlanta-based TNT cable network in 1997 (as "Crystallized Corpuscles"). In 2000, the rights to the TNT version reverted back to Tsuburaya Productions, and so it is doubtful that Alien S'pell will ever see the light of day again.

Monster of the Month GOMORA: The Ancient Monster

古代怪獣ゴモラ 「ウルトラマン」より


©1967 Tsuburaya Productions

Height: 40 meters • Weight: 20,000 tonnes • Origin: Johnson Islands, South Pacific • Original appearance: ULTRAMAN (1966-67) Episode 26 & 27 "The Monster Prince"

One of the mightiest creatures to ever live, Gomora possessed massive strength, and while generally docile, could be provoked into extreme, unstoppable rage. With powerful arms and claws, and enormous horns crowning its head, Gomora could burrow into the earth and traverse long distances underground at incredible speeds. Besides using its horns as defensive and offensive weapons (based on the dinosaur, Triceratops), Gomora could also wield his tremendous 40 meter-long tail to stun or kill his enemies. A true prince among monsters!

Gomora is not only my favorite of all the Ultra Monsters, but also one of my favorite Japanese monsters of all time (and I still treasure my Bullmark figure of him I bought as a kid). Gomora was the creation of screenwriter Tetsuo Kinjo, who conceived the creature, art director Tohru "Tohl" Narita, who realized him, sculptor Ryosaku Takayama, who built the monster suit, and suit actor Kunio Suzuki, who brought him to life. Gomora has remained popular for over 40 years and has returned several times, including the recent mini-series ULTRA GALAXY: GIANT MONSTER BATTLE.

Simply put, Gomora rules!

•Link Wikipedia: Gomora