Monsters have been a mainstay in entertainment for as long as there has been movement in pictures, and with what is seemingly a second golden age of television, the variety of storytelling that is being offered and showcased is both stellar and astounding. Leading the foray of that charge is the horror genre, which has seen a resurgence in the lasts few years in both film and television. There are several shows that are horror based and explores the darker side of matters, stoking those primal survival instincts and energies that exist within the human condition. Indeed, the resurgence and resurrection of the absolute terrifying and the macabre over the last decade, especially within the past five years have been nothing short of a work of art. For both film and television.
However, while film has been the big ticket market for the scaries, boasting some of the most iconic monsters known in the entertainment industry, equally, television has brought some of the biggest scares to the small screen over the last few years, monsters and ideas of monsters that rivals that of those on the big screen. But what is unknown to many is that premium and peak horror has always been a part of televised storytelling, often times showcasing delightfully scary monsters of both the supernatural variety as well as malicious beasts.
Here are some iconic tv monsters that could be found weekly on television.
9 Weeping Angels (Doctor Who)
Doctor Who is a staple in British television and consistently and continuously delivers on the thrills and adventure on a weekly basis as the latest Doctor explores the universe, often encountering some villain or adversary that can very much be a monster. One of the most terrifying monsters that a Doctor had to face was the Weeping Angels. The Weeping Angels are sentient statue beings that were humanoid creatures with god-like powers. With a menacing celestial look, these creatures had the ability to trap victims in different time periods and live off their energy or in one fell swoop, snap someone’s neck. Another terrifying aspect of the Weeping Angels is that as long they are looked at in the weeping pose, there’s safety, but the minute eyes remove from them, death comes in a horrible way; just think of them as the opposite of Medusa and the Gorgon Sisters.
8 The Flukeman (X-Files)
There have been some extremely terrifying events, characters, and monsters through the duration of X-Files televison show. For a show known for its aberrations and out of the world plots and storylines, X-Files made sure that its monsters were frightening in a way that felt real, even plausible. But that was one of the shows tenets, to make the otherwordly real and just waiting, hidden behind a veil or curtain. The reveal of one of the show’s most memorable monsters is that of the Flukeman. The Flukeman is the product of nuclear fallout and waste. From its skin to its obtuse and gapingly twisted mouth to its cold dead eyes, the Flukeman as a monster was eerie and almost undefeatable.
7 Chimera (Fringe)
Similarly to X-Files, Fringe boasted of the strange and otherworldly as well. Often times, the show’s rag tag team/trio would face off with some figure or monster that was beyond the norm of reality and also beyond the scope of what was supposed to exist. Again, much like X-Files, Fringe dealt with “the what if,” but in a way that wasn’t conspiracy, but rather on the fringe of acceptance. Even their monsters were a part of that possibility. One of those monsters was the Chimera. The Chimera was genetically altered beast that had a lion’s head, a goat’s body, a serpent’s tail with rhinoceros skin. What the monster could do was just as horrific as its appearance; projectile larvae that could rip through a person’s body.
6 Famine (Supernatural)
Supernatural is known for its longevity as one of the longest running prime-time television series and within that time there were some amazingly extraordinary obstacles and antagonists for Dean and Sam to face. Similar to Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Supernatural dealt with the darkness of ideas and characters found within different religions. One of those characters was Famine. Famine was the embodiment of hunger, and as one of the Horseman of the Apocalypse desire to feed on the souls of humans. Despite Famine’s undercover appearance as an old man in a wheelchair, Famine’s twisted pursuit of souls could also cause others to feel hunger and act, gorging on what they desire most.
5 The Gremlin (The Twilight Zone)
The Twilight Zone is one of the most popular shows of all time when it comes to the weird, horror, and the out there. During the shows seven year run as an anthology series, there were nothing short of a plethora of oddities and monsters that had to be faced and/or come. One of those monsters was the Gremlin. In the “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet” episode, William Shatner’s character sees something on the wing the plane but no one believes him. What happens next is one of the memorable jump-moments of television as the Gremlin gets closer and closer to the window and us. The fact that no one else saw it and the potential for what could do to the unknowing passengers on the plane leads into the build up of terror that the Gremlin provides.
4 The Gentlemen (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)
Buffy the Vampire Slayer is part of pop culture lore and legend and while it has some of the most memorable television moments for a paranormal/supernatural television series, it also dealt with some really tough emotional moments. Part of the reason why Buffy is so well-loved is how intrinsically and intimately the show dealt with the object of religion in a relatable and palatable way. In addition to the show’s framework, there were also some iconic weekly monsters that the slayer and her friends had to deal with. One of the creepiest instances was The Gentlemen. The Gentleman were four entities that were zombie-like with the ability to steal people’s voices. In the episode titled, “Hush,” the Gentleman use an eerie lullaby to steal the voices of victims so that they can harvest their hearts. Buffy and her crew are left voiceless, unable to communicate, as they try to survive the terror and panic is silence.
3 Ebonites (The Outer Limits)
Villa DiStefano Productions
United Artists Television
The Outer Limits boasted of some of the most cutting edge horror and existential pontification when it came to network television, especially during its tenure in the 1960s. Within its storytelling wheel audiences got the chance to experience many different creatures, ideas, monsters. One of which were the Ebonites. The Ebonites were creatures that had the ability to steal people voices, mess with minds to the point of breaking them, and the technology to destroy human beings without very much effort. Not to mention that they had horrific features, long shaped heads and sharp nails. Despite their capability to destroy humanity and Earth, as it turned out, they were actually working with some people on Earth.
2 Tyler Randall (Smallville)
Smallville captured the hearts and minds of many viewers in the early 2000s when the CW depicted the saga of Superman but as a teenager named Clark Kent, who struggled with his true identity and the harrowing experiences of being a hormonal teenager at the same time. In the midst of this new rendition of the Superman story, viewers got a chance to interact with weekly baddies, “freaks” as they would be called in the show early on, who were affected by the same meteor shower that brought Kal-El, also known as Clark, to earth years before. These freaks were sometimes monstrous and other times they were just monsters. One of those monsters were Tyler Randall. In Season One, in the episode titled, “Reaper,” Tyler was attempting to euthanize his mother when he was almost caught. He then fell out the window and landed on some meteor rocks that gave him the ability to turn anyone into ash he touched them. From there, Tyler became a serial killer, only ending the lives of those who he felt was suffering.
1 Pere Malfait (Kolchak: The Night Stalker)
Kolchak: The Night Stalker helped set the standard for the monster of the week storytelling format. It is widely understood that without Kolchak there would be no Fringe, X-Files, Buffy, etc. The series itself follows a wire service reporter, Carl Kolchak, who investigates mysterious crimes with unlikely causes. Needless to say, Kolchak’s investigations leads him to face down some pretty intense and terrifying monsters. One of those is the Pere Malfait, a Creole Boogeyman, who squeezes the life out of its victims in the sewer.
