Monstrous Good Guys

Monsters on our side
By Alex Ness
October 16, 2022

WE ARE PUNY HUMANS, THANK YOU MONSTERS

In comic book we tell stories of gods and heroes in exalted forms. But an avenue of story telling that works, is when there is Bryonic Hero, a flawed beast who has traits of good, or whatever they feel and are driven by, they act in ways that help others and protect the general population. This article shares a few of the monsters who fight for good. The term monster is used softly here, as a being humans might see as being a monster. While Adolf Hitler was responsible, in the most part, for unleashing a war where 30 million+ likely died, he was human. (But in reality, he was a true monster.) (Thanks to Rich Chapell for assistance.)

THE CREATURE COMMANDOS

Born of need, in the Second World War, Allied Command directed all forces to cooperate and create Project M. Part psychological warfare, part direct bestial violent combat, it was composed of the beast of human fear's imagination. A creation similar to Frankenstein's monster, Wolfman and others of similar monstrous origins, all joined forces to fight Nazi and Japanese Empire military units.

BLADE

Initially perceived as a human hunter of vampires, Blade was later revealed to be half vampire, so half mortal half immortal in nature. As a partial vampire, and part "monster" he is aware of the danger of his blood relative's dangers to other humans. Or in the words of the comic book cover copy, It takes one to kill one. And Blade has made it his duty to kill vampires, of all descriptions and varieties. I am less of a fan of the movies, but the comics were solid.

GIANTKILLER

In the messed up world shown, Kaiju, or, giant monsters, have caused great disasters, destruction and violence upon that world. And to fight it, the scientists of the day have tried to fight fire with fire, DNA selecting matches, with Kaiju, in order to breed a monster killer, out of both monsters and humans.  The result is a great comic.

COVERT VAMPIRIC OPERATIONS

If you were a commander and needed stealth and cold hearts to kill or achieve dark operation goals, vampires would be the kind of being you'd choose to be your agents. In this series the vampires are on the good side, supposedly, and are used to achieve operational goals where humans might not be able to do so.  But, I should say, however clever the concept, it was not as good as the concept was clever.  It was ok.

SWAMP MONSTERS: The Heap, Swamp Thing, Man Thing

With variations, The Heap, Swamp Thing, and Man Thing all have common roots.  A thinking mind human, cast into the swamp, receives new life and powers as a result. The Heap and Swamp Thing have no mercy for criminals. Man-Thing has a little more, but, not altogether much. Each is a monster with the outlook towards justice and good versus evil of a thoughtful human. Swamp Thing was later argued to be an elemental of nature, or, basically, a god or spiritual force... A fun run by Alan Moore made the most of the character, and changed the swamp's children forever.

THE LEGION OF MONSTERS

This union of forces, was truly that of monsters joining forces, but, unlike most comic gatherings, the Legion of Monsters doesn't have a secret handshake or a permanent structure to meet with members.  The characters over time went from a joint action to save others, to being dedicated to helping other monsters. In any event, we can be happy they don't join forces to hurt humans.

DEVIL DINOSAUR

Maybe I am a fool, but I don't see dinosaurs as monsters. I see monsters as corrupt or changed from their original nature. Or, add to their vile outlook, a corrupted form, changing them from innocence or at least, non malevolence, to evil. Having said that, Devil Dinosaur fought with the human side against aliens and greater monsters. He went toe to toe with Godzilla, a monster. So, if he is a monster so be it.  I loved the original run by Jack Kirby. It might not have been scientifically accurate, but it isn't like most of comic books are. Take mutants for example... no real mutant had the ability to gain invisibility or grow wings. Mutants basically suffer from cancer as their cells mutate. So take things for what they are.

MAN-BAT

Over time he evolved, but Man-Bat began as a true monster. His beginnings were as a scientist who was going deaf, trying to isolate and use the sonar of a bat to replace his hearing. Taking the extract he became a beast, a human sized bat, with no knowledge of his humanity. But various efforts return him to human form. When the scientist develops a better ability to control the form of the bat, he attempts to use it for good. Others manipulate his "ability" and try to use the serum and use it for other than good purposes.

THE THING, HULK, GROOT

We can see in how they are written, The Thing, The Incredible Hulk and Groot, from Marvel Comics, are meant to be monsters who have sided with humanity in their conflicts. The Thing is the most normal member of the Fantastic Four, a working class hero, who becomes changed from his exterior of gruff human, to powerful creature of rock. The Hulk was initially explored as Frankenstein's monster, or Dr. Jekyll's other side, Mr. Hyde. Groot began as beast who threatened all human civilization, but was later understood to be good at heart, childlike and innocent. In each of these characters, society will have views of them, that seem to be at odds with what is at the heart of each of them. So is the monster what others see, or is the monster what is in the heart of the being you are looking at? What is the deeper understanding of a human, but for their intentions and hopes, rather than at their darkest moments and sins?

About Getting Reviews from Me

I can be found on Facebook, Twitter or through email Alexanderness63@gmail.com. I accept hard copies, so when you inquire at any of these places, I'll follow through by telling you my street address. I no longer have a post box, although I regret that.  It was a crushing defeat to no longer have a p.o. box, when I came to realize I was getting so little product it made no sense to pay for the privilege to not receive mail at both my home and at the post office. If you send hard copies for review I will always review them, but if you prefer to send pdf or ebooks to my email, I will review these at my discretion. I don't share my pdf/ebooks, so you can avoid worry that I'd dispense them for free to others.



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