Giants From Japan Archive

Giants From Japan was a kaiju fanzine by Mike Martin. Two issues were published, in 1979 and 1980.

Giants From Japan Issue 1 cover
Giants From Japan Issue 1 Mike Martin · 1979 Open PDF
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Giants From Japan Issue One. 1979. Mike Martin, editor and publisher. All articles by Mike Martin unless noted.

  • Cover: Destroy All Monsters drawn by Mike Martin.
  • Page one: Table of Contents.
  • Page two: Editorial.
    Angilas drawn by Kevin Grays.
  • Page three: Mechagodzilla drawn by Mike Martin.
  • Page four - six: Part one of Terror of Mechagodzilla filmbook.
  • Page seven - eight: The Rodan Films.
  • Page nine - eleven: Rodan Blueprints. Art and text by Kevin Grays.
    Rodan drawn by Bill Gudmundson.
  • Page twelve - fourteen: Rodan and Company ... the Allies of Godzilla.
  • Page fifteen: Gigan drawn by Mike Martin.
  • Page sixteen - eighteen: Space Monsters from the Stars ... At War With ... Godzilla on Monster Island.
    Gigan drawn by Kevin Grays.
  • Page nineteen: Next issue preview.
  • Back Cover: Godzilla vs. King Kong drawn by Kevin Grays.
Giants From Japan Issue 2 cover
Giants From Japan Issue 2 Mike Martin · 1980 Open PDF
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Giants From Japan issue two. Cover indicates July 1980, page two indicates January 1980. Mike Martin, editor and publisher. All material by Martin unless noted. Issue scanned is number 23.

  • Cover: Still from War of the Gargantuas.
  • Page two: Dedication and writing credits. Issue dedicated to Father King of Welsh Jesuit High School.
  • Page three: Art credits, Table of contents. Page numbers do not always correspond to content.
    Art: Mechagodzilla by Mike Martin. Mechagodzilla by Kevin Grays.
  • Page four: Editorial, history of fanzine.
    Art: Godzilla by Mike Martin.
  • Godzilla Talk: Letters from Readers. Kevin Grays, Steve Oliverio.
  • Page six: Foes of Gamera.
    Art: Baragon, Gyoas, Jigar by Kevin Grays. Guiron by Mike Martin. Gamera by Kevin Grays. Gamera battles Gyoas by Kevin Grays. Gyoas by Kevin Grays.
  • Page ten: Terror of Mechagodzilla filmbook conclusion.
    Art: Titanosaurus in several panels by Kevin Grays. Godzilla by Kevin Grays. Titanosaurus by Joe DeGiorgio.
  • Page twenty-seven: The Bandai / Mattel Giant Shogun Warrior Toys by Kevin Grays.
  • Page thirty-one: 8mm Film Review. Destroy All Monsters.
  • Page thirty-two: The Godzilla Comic.
    Art: Godzilla vs. Batragon by Mike Martin.
  • Page thirty-four: Shogun Warrior Comics.
  • Page thirty-seven: The Mothra Movies.
    Art: Mothra larvae by Mike Martin. Mothra by Bill Gudmundson. Mothra larvae by Kevin Grays.
  • Page forty-three: The X from Outer Space.
  • Page forty-four: Ghidrah and Company. The Enemies of Godzilla.
  • Page forty-eight: The Space Giants by Kevin Grays.
    Art: Goldar and foes by Kevin Grays. Rodak by Kevin Grays.
  • Page fifty-two: Monster Zero.
  • Page fifty-four: Monster from a Prehistoric Planet.
  • Page fifty-six: Yog. Monster from Space!
  • Page fifty-seven: Those Giant Japanese Robots.
    Art: Jet Jaguar by Mike Martin.
  • Page sixty: MechaKong Blueprints.
    Art: MechaKong by Mike Martin.
  • Page sixty-two: Last issue corrections.
    Art: Rodan by Kevin Grays.
  • Page sixty-three: Advertisement for the Japanese Fantasy Film Society.
  • Page sixty-four: Fanzine advertisements. Demonique by Barry Kaufman, Japanese Fantasy Film Journal by Greg Shoemaker, Giantdom by Joe DeGiorgio.
  • Page sixty-five: Next issue preview.
  • Back cover: Rodan still.

Origins of Giants From Japan

The origins of Giants From Japan go back to 1976, when Mike Martin and future Giantdom editor Joe DeGiorgio each had ideas for Japanese monster fanzines, before either had much familiarity with fanzines. Martin's planned title was Japanese Giants. In 1977, after learning about Japanese Giants through Famous Monsters, Martin changed his title to Monsters From Japan. An advertisement for that planned fanzine appeared in Giantdom Issue 1.

In 1978, Martin learned about Barry Kaufman's similarly titled Monsters of Japan. To avoid confusion between the two names, he changed the title again to Giants From Japan. In 1979, Father King of Walsh Jesuit High School allowed Martin to use the school's copying machine to print the fanzine. Martin wrote in Issue 2 that Giants From Japan Issue 1 was sent out in 1980, making a project that had begun in 1976 a reality four years later.

Giants From Japan Archival Material

Giants From Japan in Print

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