Dino Diego Digs Up Dinosaur Horror You’ve Never Heard Of [New Blood Drops]
Giallo Julian
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Dinosaurs. There were a lot of ‘em. Tarbosaurus, Styracosaurus, Ceratosaurus, Coelophysis, Rhedosaurus, just to name a few of the “terrible lizards” that once ruled the Earth. And ruled they did, being around for millennia before so graciously handing the reins to the mammals through mass extinction. On the plus side, said extinction allowed humans a chance to move in and dazzle the place up, for better or worse. Still, try as we might, the fact is we’ll never be quite as cool as a Dimetrodon. I mean, look at her. It’s not even a contest!
Despite their corporeal forms being a product of ages long past, dinosaurs have found new (figurative) life in the zeitgeist ever since humanity conducted our first examinations on their fossilized bones. Granted, our initial assumptions were just broad strokes, but we got better about it. Upon the realization that giant, scaly behemoths roamed our ancient land, scientific foundations caught extreme cases of dino fever. People were fascinated, wanting to learn more about the mysterious beasts and find as many of their skeletal remains as possible… for profit. Hell, there’s a whole conflict called the “Bone Wars”, where a pair of paleontologists lied, stole, and outright sabotaged each other to get the fat stacks and clout that came with dino-discovery. There’s gold in dem thar hills, indeed.
For those not wanting to deal with those perils, bones were not the only way to earn a reputation off our saurian ancestors. Dinosaurs also migrated to the minds of creatives the world over. Artists drew scenes of humid swamps filled with vicious creatures that were once called “dinosaurs”, writers sought to weave flesh-hungry theropods into their adventures at any opportunity, and sculptors erected intricate statues to serve as attractions for visiting patrons. This primeval enthusiasm carried to the film industry, with some of the earliest features showcasing dinosaurs in all shapes and sizes. Within the span of a century, dinosaurs found a seat among the most popular movie monsters, alongside vampires and not-vampires.
But who’s cataloging all the movies and books and music and erotica out there? Fortunately for us, there are more than a few heroes up to the task, using their time to ensure all these creativities aren’t lost to time like the antediluvian animals they’re inspired by. I’m talking about numerous authors, documentarians, media distributors, and YouTubers that’re keeping tabs on anything dino-related. Today we’ll be exhibiting someone as dedicated to the cause as they come—Dino Diego!
Diego’s channel sunk its serrated teeth into me a while back, resulting in a multi-hour binge of lost media, foreign features, overlooked literature, and so much more. Since then, his library of content has grown to somewhere just shy past A LOT. It seems like he’s making a new video every other week or two.
But I’m getting ahead of myself. For some of you, this might be the first you’ve ever heard of Dino Diego. In that case, let’s fill you in on what he’s all about, starting with his first experience with the prehistoric animals that serve as his namesake.
Diego said:
“I’ve always loved dinosaurs! It’s hard to pinpoint what exactly started it. I know I was about three when I first watched Jurassic Park. It was probably something my parents had on in the background and I just fell in love with it. Whether or not the interest was already blossoming before I watched the movie, I have no idea. But, I know for sure that my love for dinosaurs only grew from there. As kids, we’re so fascinated by giant monsters and animals of fiction and fantasy. For me, the beauty of dinosaurs is that they were real at one point. So as a kid, anything that included them no longer felt like fantasy.”
An origin I’m sure many of us dino fans can relate to! For those who crave more knowledge about prehistoric media, YouTube can seem pretty slim on the pickings to supply such information. Turns out, that’s not necessarily the case. But, there was enough of a vacuum for Diego to take matters into his own hands.
Diego said:
“Believe it or not, there are actually several dinosaur-related channels out there on the platform. What was lacking, to me at least, was the coverage of lesser-known dinosaur media that’s been overshadowed by the mainstream stuff. For the longest time, I’ve wanted to see something like that on YouTube. Deep dives and retrospectives on obscure/rare/forgotten dinosaur media. I eventually realized I didn’t need to wait. I could just make it myself.”
And “make it himself” he did! No paleo-stone is left unturned in his pursuit to showcase dinosaur media new and old.
He said:
“I do my best work with what I have, but generally, I’ll do extensive research on a project. Carnosaur was actually one of my biggest projects in terms of research. A lot of time went into obtaining various magazines and DVD materials that contained information that was nowhere on the internet. And then, of course, there was help from Joey Palinkas, who managed to get several interviews with people who worked on Carnosaur and get even more exclusive information that he generously gave me for those videos.
But in terms of what I work with, I use everything I can get my hands on, both digitally and physically. News articles, magazines, and even dinosaur film history books. There’s plenty of them out there that document all sorts of information that’s just waiting to be covered in a video. At the end of the day, though, I just cover whatever I like or find interesting. All of it just happens to be about dinosaurs!”
Ah, he said the magic word! Did you see it? We’ll be back to it in a moment. Before we do, though, I had to wonder and I’m sure you all do too: after covering such a plethora of material, some must have stood out to Diego, right?
Diego said:
“I have lots! One of my favorite videos I made was on a book series known as the Quintaglio Ascension Trilogy, which is about a race of sapient Tyrannosaurs living on an Earth-like moon. Researching the world and lore of that series was extremely fun! Along with that, iceberg chart videos are a big thing that I love covering on my channel, as it allows me to look through multiple topics rather than focusing on just one. And of course, the Carnosaur franchise was an absolute blast to go through, especially when it came to learning about its development!”
He said it again! It wasn’t a fluke! A certified Carnosaur fan—I feel like we’re brothers already. Not a surprise given how we both wrote for Joey Palinkas’s upcoming History of Carnosaur book, which will be the most important piece of literature written in the past millennium. In any case, this gives me the perfect opportunity to ask a very important question: What’s Diego’s favorite scene from the Carnosaur trilogy?
Diego answered:
“There are so many golden moments from that franchise to choose from! But if I had to choose a favorite, it would be the Deinonychus attack scene from the first movie. To this day, “Greetings Green Brother” is a quote that rings through my head. Also, I’m going to counter your refusal to include the spinoff movies in this question by giving you my favorite scene from The Eden Formula anyway! I love the scene where the T.rex gets blown up into the air with the dynamite. Hands down, the funniest scene in the entire franchise.”
YES! That’s my favorite scene, too! So much dino-mayhem accumulating in faces being eaten and legs being mauled perfectly encompasses the series in glorious displays of gore and teeth. I’m glad to see we’re so in sync… Or I would be if he didn’t insist on throwing The Eden Formula into this primordial mix. Granted, the mentioned scene is ridiculous, so I can’t be too mad about it. In good faith to Diego, I went ahead and rewatched the ENTIRETY of The Eden Formula in an attempt to find a scene I could loosely deem as my “favorite” — it’s any time Tony Todd shows up, he alone makes this movie halfway watchable. There you go, just for you, Diego!
Now, I know y’all have a question that’s just burning in your minds at the moment, and I’m here to say not to worry. I was sure to ask it, to quell all our curiosity: What’s his favorite dinosaur?
Diego answered, “First off, I appreciate you for asking. Second off, my favorite dinosaur is the Brachiosaurus.”
My pleasure, Diego! It doesn’t get asked enough anymore. Good choice, too! My favorite used to be Tyrannosaurus rex, but over the years, Allosaurus has been winning me over. Glad we were able to clear the air on that!
You can watch Dino Diego’s videos on his YouTube channel here! He’s put out some great content recently, including a video about unmade King Kong films and a two-parter about Lost World adaptations. And, of course, be sure to check out his EXCELLENT Carnosaur retrospective! You can also support Diego through his Patreon right here, which includes exclusive commentaries as he works his way through a multitude of dino-cinema.
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