{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2020}}

{{Cleanup rewrite|date=January 2024}}

{{more citations needed|date=May 2014}}

{{Infobox television

| image =

| caption =

| camera =

| runtime = 45–50 minutes<br /> 89 minutes (US Version)

| creator =

| executive_producer =

| starring =

| narrated = [[Ian Holm]] (UK Version)<br />[[William Hootkins]] (US Version)<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/land-of-lost-monsters/285067|title = Land of Lost Monsters}}</ref>

| country = United Kingdom

| network = [[BBC Four]]<br>[[Animal Planet]]

| first_aired = {{Start date|2003|04|08|df=yes}}

| last_aired = {{End date|2003|04|22|df=yes}}

| num_seasons = 1

| num_episodes = 3

| list_episodes =

}}

'''''Monsters We Met''''' is a documentary produced by the [[BBC]] that later aired as a special on [[Animal Planet]] in 2004 (under the title, '''''Land of Lost Monsters''''') which also included footage from ''[[Walking with Beasts]]'' and ''[[Walking with Cavemen]]'' (both also made by the BBC). The show used [[computer-generated imagery]] to recreate the life of the giant animals that lived during the [[Last Glacial Period|last ice age]] and explains how early [[humans]] encountered them. It also features humans as the main reason for the extinction of all great animals.

==Episodes==

===Episode 1: The Eternal Frontier ([[Montana]], [[United States]], [[North America]], 11,000 years ago)===

Original air date: April 8, 2003<ref>{{citation|url=web=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p008d9v8}}</ref>

The episode starts with mammoths living during the [[Last Glacial Period|Ice Age]]. It also shows how early indigenous Americans became top predators and started hunting them. Early Americans also had to compete with other predators like the Short-faced Bear and the Saber-toothed Cat. They destroyed them by depleting their food supply and making them starve to death. The episode ends with how there were no more extinctions following the Ice Age and that it remained that way until the [[European colonization of the Americas|European colonization]].

Note: This episode used most of the extinct mammal models from ''[[Wild New World]]'', as well as some archive footage. The episode also shows an archive footage from [[Walking with Beasts]].

===Episode 2: The Burning ([[Australia]], 65,000 years ago)===

Original air date: April 15, 2003<ref>{{citation|url=web=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p008d9w5}}</ref>

It starts by showing how early Aboriginal Australians migrated to Australia. They also hunted the native wildlife, encountering large birds and the giant monitor lizard, megalania. The reptiles kill two humans and they plan on burning the fields to kill the giant lizard. The episode then ends with how the burning of the forests changed the landscape of Australia.

===Episode 3: The End of Eden ([[New Zealand]], CE 1280)===

Original air date: April 22, 2003<ref>{{citation|url=web=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p008d9x1}}</ref>

It starts with the [[Māori people|Māori]] populating New Zealand during the [[Middle Ages]]. They encounter the giant moa and start to see that it was harmless. They then discover Haast's eagle, which hunts moas and starts to target them. They then start to steal the moa's giant eggs and go after the adults for food. The program then goes into human evolution and goes over how humans have led to the extinctions of the megafauna and how they are still affecting modern animals. The program ends with a scene of space and starts to ask the question about the environmental impact of humanity stating "that if we can't live with these monsters, are we monsters ourselves?".

Note: This episode used footage from the previous two episodes, ''[[Walking with Cavemen]]'', ''[[Walking with Beasts]]'' and ''[[Wild New World]]''. The episode also showed a footage from one episode of [[Walking with Dinosaurs]].

==See also==

*''[[Paleoworld]]''

*''[[Dinosaur Planet (TV series)]]''

*''[[When Dinosaurs Roamed America]]''

''Monsters We Met'' is part of a series of BBC documentaries that also include:

*''[[Walking with Dinosaurs]]'' (1999)

*''[[Walking with Beasts]]'' (2001), depicting life after the dinosaurs

*''[[Walking with Cavemen]]'' (2003)

*''[[Walking with Monsters]]'' (2005), depicting life before the dinosaurs

The following are ''Walking With... series'' specials:

*''[[The Ballad of Big Al]]'' (2000)

*''[[Chased by Dinosaurs]]'' (2002)

*''[[Sea Monsters (TV series)|Sea Monsters]]'' (2003)

The following are similar programs, produced by the BBC:

*"[[Wild New World|Prehistoric America]]" (2002)

==References==

{{reflist}}

==External links==

* {{BBC programme}}

* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110120152555/http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/programmes/tv/monsterswemet/ BBC official website (via Wayback Machine]

* [https://web.archive.org/web/20040612223320/http://animal.discovery.com/convergence/lostmonsters/lostmonsters.html Animal Planets Official website (Via Wayback Machine)]

* [http://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/land-of-lost-monsters/285067 TV Guide]

* {{IMDb title|id=0442878}}