Science fiction and horror stories have long been used to tackle subjects that more realistic genres might have trouble being so blunt about. The original Godzilla is a warning about the dangers of nuclear weapons. Carmilla, Dracula, and other vampires are frequently seen as allegories of queerness. And, comic book superheroes with “monstrous” powers, such as the mutant X-Men and even androids, have been treated as comparable to real marginalized groups.

In their new graphic novel Middle School Monsters, Robin Easter uses monsters as a metaphor for teen/preteen loneliness and awkwardness, especially the social unease often experienced by queer and neurodivergent kids who don’t always fully understand themselves yet or why others treat them differently.

“From my own experience and talking to others,” they told me via email, “sometimes it’s easier to believe that there’s a simple explanation for why you just can’t seem to fit in. Maybe you’re an alien, or a robot, or from another dimension, but for some reason it seems like you just can’t get on the same page as all your peers […] As the de facto ‘other’ in media, it makes sense, then, that many outsiders relate so strongly to monsters.”

Middle School Monsters follows the growing friendship between Jamie, a werewolf, and Vera, a vampire. While Vera is willing to be herself no matter the social cost, Jamie longs to fit in with the “normal” kids, even when that means disavowing her fondness for Vera. While Easter considered focusing on other kinds of monsters — “Earlier versions of the project included a mermaid, a witch, an alien, and a lake monster,” they said — in the end, vampires and werewolves made the most sense:

“Werewolves and vampires have frequently been pitted against each other, so I wanted to play on that assumption. I also just think werewolves and vampires lend themselves exceptionally well to explorations of so many topics and themes.”

Historically, monsters have been a way for creators to tackle thorny subjects without fear of censorship. The Twilight Zone, for example, was created after Rod Serling attempted to write a TV movie about Emmett Till, only to realize the sponsors and networks were too worried about offending racist viewers to let him do so without some heavy metaphors. But not every story that uses monsters as a metaphor does so simply as a means of getting past the censors or sneaking through the mental defenses of an audience that might otherwise reject its message. Sometimes, the monster-as-metaphor is simply the most effective way to tell a story. Such is the case with Middle School Monsters.

“I think,” Easter said, “there always needed to be a metaphorical element for me to do this topic justice. I could just say ‘Jamie feels weird and alone,’ but in a graphic novel especially, it’s so much nicer to have that take on a very visible form […] She doesn’t just feel like her peers won’t accept her, she feels like it’s a matter of survival.”

This helps to explain the enduring popularity of monsters: they speak to everyone who has ever been made to feel like fitting in was a life-or-death situation.

And, of course, monsters are just plain cool. Whether they’re duking it out Godzilla vs. Kong-style or learning to accept themselves for who they are, as Jackie does, monsters make our magic-less world a little more fun.