True Monsters

The gates of Hell are unlocked to reveal the surprising truths and devilish secrets of Satan, demons, and other powerful rulers of the Underworld. In the 17th century, a beastly devil is born deep in the woods of New Jersey and is said to still wreak havoc in a place called the Pine Barrens. Plus, from evil Jinn, whose power a nuclear physicist tried to tap, to a Christmas devil that takes naughty kids to Hell, to a two-faced female demon named Hel who presided over the dead in the icy North, there's a lot to learn about our devils and the history that inspired them.

This episode takes us into the belly of the beast to find the surprising truths behind history's most mythic cannibals and killers. Does a banshee born during the Revolutionary War still curse the North Carolina woods? Plus, a medieval clan of cannibals out for blood in 16th century Scotland, and did a fairy tale villain named Bluebeard inspire a notorious Chicago World's Fair serial killer? And, could real zombies walk among us, created by a potion from puffer fish?

Greek and Norse mythologies are the source of epic tales of gods and monsters battling it out to rule the world. But could any of these celebrated heroes and villains have been real? Thunder god Thor was a central figure in Scandinavian folklore, but was he based on a real warrior? And, if he was, could his hammer called Mjolnir really harness lightning? Plus, new evidence suggests the discovery of the birthplace of the legendary god Zeus, atop a mountain in Greece. Why does Medusa have a head of snakes, and what atrocity did she endure that still affects women today? And, could the true myth of Prometheus solve an ancient medical mystery?

Stories of giants and beasts permeate our past and fascinate us in the present. From the Bible's Goliath to the Cyclops of Greek mythology, our colossal adversaries inspire tantalizing tales of terror. Now, new evidence suggests that many of these mythical creatures may have been anything but made up. Could the real labyrinth of a man-bull named the Minotaur have been discovered? Do fossils prove Cyclops legends are true? Could a monster named Grendel from the famous tale of Beowulf actually have stalked a banquet hall in Denmark? New evidence suggests many of our giants and beasts were real - but in ways you've surely never imagined.