Bug-eyed monster

Bug-eyed monster is an early convention of the science fiction genre. Extraterrestrials in science fiction of the 1930s were often described (or pictured on covers of pulp magazines) as grotesque creatures with huge, oversizedor compound eyes and a lust for women, blood and general destruction. The term is now often abbreviated to "BEM".

In the contactee/abductee mythology whichgrew up quickly beginning in 1952, the blond, blue-eyedand friendly Space Brothers of the 1950s were quickly replaced by small, unfriendlybug-eyed creatures, closely matching in many respects the pulp coverclichés of the 1930s, which have remained the abductor norm since the 1960s.

Popular Culture

*The most frequent "bug-eyed monster" in pop culture is the Daleks from Doctor Who. When the show was created, the BBC producers stated that Doctor Who would be a "hard" scifi show, and there would be no bug-eyed monsters. Writer Terry Nation created the Daleks in the show's second serial. These have frequently been referred to as a bug-eyed monster since that time. [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/classic/news/briefhistory/daleks.shtml BBC - Doctor Who - A Brief History of the Daleks] URL accessed April 26, 2007]
*A 1968 Japanese anime called Yōkai Ningen Bem () is based on this concept. [http://www.bem-tv.com/]

See also

*Little green men
*Stock character
*Cliché

References