Giant monsters rampaging through cities, things with names that we dare not say, machines that want nothing more than to wipe out all organic bad life, and those elusive creatures that we only catch fleeting glimpses of.

Capricon 39: Strange Beasts Arise is a celebration of these entities and the lasting effect that they’ve had on us and our culture.

Why do they fascinate us so much? Why do we enjoy watching a man in a rubber suit destroying toy tanks and cardboard buildings? Why are there several shows dedicated to searching for sasquatch and their like across the globe?

The fact our children can sing the Mothra song just as readily as any Disney song isn’t strange to us. We don’t question this, we accepted as something we’ve grown up with. Just as we can recognize the sound of the Martian heat ray firing as readily as the sound of our own phones.

They are a part of us, and together we will find out why.