in other well-known literature such as Percy Bysshe Shelley ’ s Prometheus Unbound and Moby-Dick . Throughout time , fear of the Demogorgon has never wavered .
Fast forward to 1976 , when the Demogorgon first appeared in Dungeons & Dragons . Known as the “ Prince of Demons ”, this creature is considered to be one of the greatest villains in D & D history . Modeled after the monsters : the dreaded Demogorgon , who they are unable to defeat in the game . After discovering more about the origins of the evil Demogorgon , it ’ s easy to see why the kids of Hawkins , Indiana , give this moniker to the mysterious creature terrorizing their small town . When an unknown force starts capturing townspeople ( including Will ) and transporting them to the realm of the Upside Down , the boys refer to it as the “ Demogorgon ”.
“ AROUND 350-400 AD , WE SEE THE FIRST APPEARANCE OF THE SPELLING DEMOGORGON ALONGSIDE A DESCRIPTION OF THE DEMON AS A SUPREME GOD WHOSE NAME IS TABOO AND MUST NOT BE SPOKEN - PERHAPS THE ORIGINAL , “ HE WHO MUST NOT BE NAMED ”?”
pagan god of Christian lore , in the D & D universe the Demogorgon is described as an 18-and-a-half foot tall reptilian antagonist with a somewhat human-like form .
This Demogorgon is bluish-green in color , covered in scales like a lizard or snake . Two mandrill heads sprout from his snake-like necks , each of which has its own mind and personality . D & D legend says that these two personas continuously attempt to kill each other , but are unable to since they are aspects of one another .
In 2016 ’ s Stranger Things , the Demogorgon made a comeback . As the show ’ s main characters Dustin , Lucas , Will and Mike play a spirited Dungeons and Dragons campaign , they suddenly encounter the most terrifying of all
Unlike previous iterations of the monster , the Stranger Things creature looks like a cross between a Venus flytrap and a humanoid creature like a werewolf - with just one single head . In fact , it ’ s nothing like the Demogorgon found in D & D or Ancient Greek lore .
Though it is not a true Demogorgon , the Stranger Things demon undoubtedly adds a sufficiently scary element to the show . But it ’ s unlikely that we ’ ve seen the last of the Demogorgon . Despite its apparent destruction at the end of season 1 , the creature ’ s mythical backstory and dualistic nature leaves a lot of room to wreak havoc on the residents of Hawkins in the future .
NERD BLOCK MAGAZINE • 11