Watch Monsters

TV-14
1988
3 Seasons
7.3 (1,872)

Monsters is an anthology horror series that aired from 1988-1990. Produced by Lionsgate, the show was one of the earliest examples of horror TV and was known for its unique approach to storytelling and the quality of its special effects. Each episode of Monsters tells a different story, oftentimes taking inspiration from classic horror tales like Frankenstein or The Wolfman. However, what sets the show apart from other horror series is its willingness to experiment with different genres and storytelling techniques. Some episodes take a comedic approach, while others are more dramatic or suspenseful. Some episodes are set in the present day, while others take place in the past or future. One of the show's strengths is its willingness to take risks. This is evident in episodes like "The Cocoon", which features a creature that's never fully seen on screen, or "The Moving Finger", which focuses on a man who becomes possessed by a mysterious entity. The show's willingness to tackle unconventional subject matter and storytelling gimmicks kept viewers on their toes and ensured that no two episodes were exactly alike. Another highlight of Monsters is its use of practical effects. Due to the show's low budget, the producers relied heavily on practical creature effects rather than CGI or other digital techniques. While some of the effects may seem dated by modern standards, they are an impressive feat for a late-80s television series. From rubber monsters to prosthetic makeup to puppetry, Monsters employed a wide array of techniques to bring its various creatures to life. Although the show's format didn't allow for recurring characters, each episode featured a different set of actors and actresses. Some well-known faces that appeared on the show include Linda Blair, Tony Todd, and David Warner, among others. However, the real stars of Monsters are the various creatures that populate each episode. From aliens to vampires to mutated creatures, there is no shortage of terrifying monsters to keep viewers on edge. Despite its low budget and experimental approach, Monsters was well-received by critics and audiences during its initial run. Roger Ebert praised the show's "surprisingly effective" blend of horror and humor, and the series was nominated for several Emmy awards over the course of its run. Today, Monsters is remembered as a cult classic and a noteworthy example of early horror television. While some aspects of the show may seem dated to modern audiences, its inventive storytelling, impressive practical effects, and enduring sense of suspense and terror continue to captivate viewers today.

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Seasons

3 2 1

24. The Maker

April 26, 1991

In an abandoned hotel, Mack meets a happy drunk named Freddy who can create anything he wants out of thin air, but everything he creates ends up having some critical flaw.

23. Hostile Takeover

April 18, 1991

Greedy corporate executive, Lawrence Bauer has taken over from ethical, older CEO Tom Hart. He's successful because he's been consulting voodoo priestess Matilde for the past year. The voodoo gods now demand that he sacrifice body parts for giving him wealth, but he refuses to do so. Instead, he kills Matilde when she threatens to send zombies after him.

22. The Moving Finger

February 24, 1991

A man is pushed to the brink of insanity as he battles a large finger that rises out of the drain of his sink.

21. Talk Nice to Me

February 17, 1991

Martin Lander is a womanizer and newspaper columnist with a beautiful girlfriend, Linda. He's being stalked by a woman with a sultry voice who keeps calling him and leaving messages on his answering machine. Even though he changes his phone number, she keeps calling and leaving messages. When Linda comes over, the woman calls and embarrasses Martin.

20. Werewolf of Hollywood

February 10, 1991

A frustrated and ambitious scriptwriter plans to use the information that one of the top producers at the Hollywood studio he's working for might be a werewolf to finally advance his career.

19. A Face for Radio

February 3, 1991

A sleazy, late-night, radio talk show host brings in a beautiful, mysterious guest who claims to have an alien that might be the answer to all of the hatred and violence in the world.

18. Desirable Alien

January 27, 1991

To pass the U.S. citizenship test, a Greek lothario with a big secret must first agree to a physical, which he desperately wants to avoid. Instead of taking the test, he tries to seduce the female immigration officer in charge of his case to get a free pass.

17. Leavings

January 20, 1991

Two beat cops tell their boss about the strange occurrences in the city. They've recently witnessed normal people being turned into surgically reassembled freaks. He offers to show the two what's really going on.

16. The Waiting Room

January 13, 1991

Ben suggests that his newlywed son, John, and daughter-in-law, Kate, spend their wedding night in the same hotel room where he spent his honeymoon. When a mysterious woman kidnaps John in "the dark room," Benjamin refuses to save his son.

15. The Space Eaters

January 6, 1991

Two old, gentlemanly friends are playing a game of chess when a sinister, telepathic alien invader shaped like a giant tentacled eyeball arrives to eat their brains.

14. Household Gods

December 30, 1990

A modern, independent wife and mother is about to learn that no woman can defy the misogynistic household gods, who have the power to turn the life of any housewife who refuses to submit to them into a living nightmare.

13. Malcolm

December 23, 1990

An unhappy wife asks her depressed, workaholic husband to play his clarinet for her like he did in their youth. When the music causes severe pain in his abdomen, he's taken to surgery. What they find trapped in him is beyond bizarre.

12. A New Woman

December 16, 1990

A greedy wife tries to get her dying, rich husband to give her control over his buildings for the poor so that she can sell them. Inspired by Dicken's Christmas Carol, the husband's strange doctor tries to scare her straight.

11. Sin-Sop

December 9, 1990

A nice, young, southern faith healer uses the miraculous cleansing ability of the corpse of the most evil man in the world to run a small, popular, sin-extraction business. A female reporter and a cynical psycho-killer try to debunk him.

10. The Waiting Game

December 9, 1990

After a nuclear war, only two factions remain: the soldiers who launched the nukes in their small locked shelter and the nuclear holocaust vampires led by their vampire messiah outside. Only a short digital door code keeps the monsters out.

9. The Young and the Headless

November 25, 1990

Jealous, wheelchair-bound Edward kills his wife Victoria's long lost, alpha male ex, Hunk, who has suddenly returned for her. Being scientists, the two use microchips that mimic the human mind to rebuild Hunk.

8. Shave and a Haircut, Two Bites

November 18, 1990

Two teenagers think the barber shop across the street may be a secret meeting place for vampires in town. The two friends break into the barber shop at night but are caught by two older men. The older men do everything they can to convince the kids they are not vampires, but the kids discover their real secret.

7. Small Blessings

November 11, 1990

Black comedy about two normal, loving human parents who are constantly trying to keep their cute, demonic, cannibalistic mutant baby boy from devouring the neighbors. Meanwhile, a wannabe serial killer is stalking the area.

6. The Hole

November 4, 1990

During the Vietnam War, two US marines and their allied South Vietnamese guide end up trapped in a maze of underground Vietcong tunnels haunted by the undead restless spirits of the soldiers killed in the war.

5. Outpost

October 28, 1990

A female representative of a space mining corporation visits the company's mining facility located on an uninhabited planet and run by a mutant slave to see why his output is behind schedule.

4. Cellmates

October 21, 1990

A young man ends up in a South American jail for killing a kid with his car. He counts on his rich father's lawyer to get him out, but a weird old political prisoner tells him he's been placed in "the bad cell" that no one ever leaves.

3. Bug House

October 14, 1990

A woman visits her estranged sister in their family's remote cabin and discovers that she is pregnant and living with a mysterious man. After the mysterious man seduces her as well, she discovers his real insectoid nature too late.

2. Murray's Monster

October 7, 1990

A psychiatrist attempts to use a man who can turn into an unstoppable monster whenever his repressed anger is let loose to murder his wife through hypnosis.

1. Stressed Environment

September 30, 1990

A female scientist who spent 12 years raising rats in a stressed environment in the hopes of evolving their intelligence faces the terrifying results of her experiment.

Description

One of the show's strengths is its willingness to take risks. This is evident in episodes like "The Cocoon", which features a creature that's never fully seen on screen, or "The Moving Finger", which focuses on a man who becomes possessed by a mysterious entity. The show's willingness to tackle unconventional subject matter and storytelling gimmicks kept viewers on their toes and ensured that no two episodes were exactly alike.

Another highlight of Monsters is its use of practical effects. Due to the show's low budget, the producers relied heavily on practical creature effects rather than CGI or other digital techniques. While some of the effects may seem dated by modern standards, they are an impressive feat for a late-80s television series. From rubber monsters to prosthetic makeup to puppetry, Monsters employed a wide array of techniques to bring its various creatures to life.

Although the show's format didn't allow for recurring characters, each episode featured a different set of actors and actresses. Some well-known faces that appeared on the show include Linda Blair, Tony Todd, and David Warner, among others. However, the real stars of Monsters are the various creatures that populate each episode. From aliens to vampires to mutated creatures, there is no shortage of terrifying monsters to keep viewers on edge.

Despite its low budget and experimental approach, Monsters was well-received by critics and audiences during its initial run. Roger Ebert praised the show's "surprisingly effective" blend of horror and humor, and the series was nominated for several Emmy awards over the course of its run.

Today, Monsters is remembered as a cult classic and a noteworthy example of early horror television. While some aspects of the show may seem dated to modern audiences, its inventive storytelling, impressive practical effects, and enduring sense of suspense and terror continue to captivate viewers today.