If the cancellation of "MonsterQuest" has left you jonesing for a new monster-hunting show, then Syfy's "Beast Legends" premiering September 9th might fill the void and give you the cryptozoologists finding nothing or inconclusive evidence fix that you're still craving.
"Beast Legends" will send a team of investigators in search of creatures of myth and legend. But so as to not come across as a total knock-off of "MonsterQuest" or even Syfy's own "Destination Truth", the program will also take a page from "Animal Face-Off" and "Clash of the Dinosaurs" by having them build a scientifically accurate replica of the beast and then showing us what the creature in action would have been like via computer animation.
Here's Syfy's press release to explain more about this Canadian pick-up:
Syfy will premiere "Beast Legends", a new six-part series which journeys around the world using scientific data to reconstruct what mythological monsters, from Krakens and Griffins to Fire Dragons, would have looked like.
The debut of "Beast Legends" on Thursday, September 9, at 10PM (ET/PT) follows the fourth season return of "Destination Truth" at 9PM (ET/PT).
In each of the hour-long episodes, "Beast Legends" uncovers historical and eyewitness accounts by zeroing in on archaeological and other physical evidence to assemble the most accurate picture possible of these monsters, from where they might have lived to how they would have behaved.
"Beast Legends" then moves to the "Beast Lab" to build the creature, first as initial sculpts and wire-frame forms, before finally bringing it to life in stunning 3D CGI.
The investigations are conducted by the "Beast Seekers," an expert team of specialists:
- Stephen Leonard: Adventurer and Veterinary Surgeon based in Bristol, England
- Kathryn Denning: Myth expert, anthropologist, archaeologist and professor at Toronto's York University
- Scott Edwards: Professor of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology and Curator of Ornithology at the Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University
- Francis Manapul: Philippine-born, now Toronto-based, renowned comic book artist
This season "Beast Legends" will explore:
The Kraken - Thursday, September 9, at 10PM (ET/PT)
The Beast Seekers investigate the sailor's legend of the Kraken, a terrifying multi-tentacled sea monster that snatches men from ships' decks and crushes entire vessels, sending them to the ocean bottom.
Fire Dragon - Thursday, September 16, at 10PM (ET/PT)
The Beast Seekers venture deep into the primeval forests of Poland in search of the truth behind ancient legends of a terrifying, fire-breathing dragon called Smok.
Megajaws - Thursday, September 23, at 10PM (ET/PT)
The Beast Seekers travel to Fiji to learn about Dakuwaqa, an all-seeing, all-knowing Shark God - a huge beast that can change shape at will.
Winged Lion - Thursday, September 30, at 10PM (ET/PT)
The Beast Seekers explore Mongolia's Altai (Golden) Mountains in search of a massive, legendary creature with the head of an eagle, razor-sharp talons and the body of a gigantic lion - the vicious beast known as the Griffin.
Wildman of Vietnam - Thursday, October 7, at 10PM (ET/PT)
The Beast Seekers explore the remote, unexplored jungles of Vietnam in search of the Wildman, a giant, hairy, bloodthirsty beast similar to North America's Bigfoot or Sasquatch.
Bird Monster -- Thursday, October 14, at 10PM (ET/PT)
In the ancestral Navajo lands of New Mexico, the Beast Seekers investigate the legend of a giant bird predator the size of a small airplane.
