History Main / BrainMonster

Subtrope of EvilIsVisceral and BodyHorror, and thusly, is always played for NauseaFuel. Compare with {{Oculothorax}}, where the monster is a giant eye.

* BigBad Dr. Wheelo of ''Anime/DragonBallZTheWorldsStrongest'' had his [[BrainInAJar brain preserved in a jar]] by his assistant before he died, and is currently searching for [[TitleDrop the world's strongest warrior]] to serve as [[GrandTheftMe a host body]]. [[FridgeLogic For some reason]], the process also made his brain gigantic; how he expects to transplant it into a human-sized skull is unknown.

** The Gil'Dishpan or Gil'Dan, who have fought ComicBook/{{Superboy}} and the ComicBook/LegionOfSuperHeroes and were part of the Alien Alliance in ''ComicBook/{{Invasion|DC Comics}}'', look like misshapen brain-tubeworm things in tentacle-covered bubbles.
** ''ComicBook/TheEarthwarSaga'': The leader of the Resource Raiders, one of the enemies of the Legion of Super-Heroes, is a huge floating brain with a pair of bulging eyes and four prehensile tentacles.
** Some incarnations of the ''ComicBook/{{Superman}}'' villain [[Characters/SupermanBrainiacCharacter Brainiac]] have an exposed brain beneath his skull-diodes. The heroic Brainiac 417 of ''Comicbook/DCOneMillion'' is a disembodied brain encased in a humanoid force-field.
%%** The giant squid monster from ''ComicBook/{{Watchmen}}''. '''ZeroContextExample'''

* In Creator/EdmondHamilton's "Literature/TheManWhoEvolved", the protagonist [[EvolutionaryLevels evolves]] (after several intermediate passages) into a giant brain with tentacles, and ''[[SerialEscalation then]]'' into a giant brain with PsychicPowers that no longer even needs tentacles.

* ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends'': The [[Literature/NewJediOrder Yuuzhan Vong]] use a semi-telepathic creature called a yammosk to coordinate their forces. (Yammosk actually communicates through gravity pulses.) A massive yammosk, the World Brain, is introduced to manage the Vong-forming of Coruscant.

* The GreaterScopeVillain from ''Series/PowerRangersSPD'' turns out to be "Omni", a massive brain with an eye on a stalk who's [[TheManBehindTheMan been controlling Gruumm for some time]]. His real plan was to turn Gruumm's massive spacecraft into a [[AttackOfTheFiftyFootWhatever giant body for itself]], "the Magnificence".

[[folder:Puppet Shows]]
* Fern, the female monster in ''Series/TheJimHensonHour'' "Hurting Something" skits, had an exposed brain with tendrils of skin holding it in place.
* Craniac in the ''Series/MuppetsTonight'' "Pigs In Space: Deep Dish Nine" skits has a head that looks like a brain with eyes and a mouth.
[[/folder]]

* ''TabletopGame/GeniusTheTransgression'' also throws in its own version of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boltzmann_brain Boltzmann Brains]]; this time, as super-intelligent and super-insane giant floating brains that, due to how Boltzmann Brains come into being, remember things that ''never'' happened, including massive crimes that the targets of their aggression never committed -- and being geniuses of their own, and quite insane at that, they tend to [[RealityWarper superimpose their own version of events over nearby reality]]. Notably, the thought experiment about them existing was what actually caused them to exist; disproven theories always leave a Mania-infused trace.

* ''TabletopGame/EclipsePhase'': One of the usual adversaries are the Exhumans, a rather diverse group of radical body modificationists, {{evilutionary biologist}}s, and wannabe evil overlords, having very little in common besides all agreeing that (trans-) humanity has run its course and will be replaced by them. "Brain on spider legs {{diabolical mastermind}} with a God complex" is common enough to be an in-universe category in itself.

* ''VideoGame/Ashes2063'': Haunts, hostile [[OurGhostsAreDifferent ghost-like entities]], are actually a somehow-living brain and spine disguised behind a projection of a corpse, as can be seen when you kill one. Presumably, they're a type of {{mutant}} like the Cannibals.

* ''VideoGame/ChaosHeat'' has a ''massive'' brain monster as a boss in the lab, as large as the pool it's spawned from with neural veins sticking out the pool's edges and its sole facial features being a single protruding eye. It's a difficult SequentialBoss that needs to be killed thrice to boot.

* The final form of Neibiros, the FinalBoss of ''VideoGame/DragonBlaze2000'' (it's a SequentialBoss, you'll need to defeat his draconic, behemoth and monster form first) is a massive brain-like form with Neibiros' head growing out from its side. Said giant brain also has horns, a giant central eye, and the ability to spam fireballs all over the screen. Upon defeat, it turns into a smaller, ''winged'' brain and continues fighting before finally going down for good.

* These are featured in the first, third and fifth ''VideoGame/{{Gradius}}'' games. Many final bosses of the series are usually giant, brain-like beings. As a RunningGag through the series, they are often ridiculously easy to defeat.
** ''VideoGame/{{Salamander}}'', its SpinOff, has the Brain Golem, a giant brain with an eye attached to the end.
** A frozen-over version of Brain Golem appears in the UsefulNotes/GameBoy version of ''VideoGame/{{Parodius}}'', '''another''' SpinOff of Gradius.

* The Lickers of ''Franchise/ResidentEvil'' are [[OurZombiesAreDifferent T-Virus zombies]] which have mutated further and have had their brain extend out of their cranium. Despite the (relative) boost in intelligence, they also become more bestial, crawling on all fours and attacking based on sound with an [[OverlyLongTongue elongated tongue]]. Contrary to its [[RemovingTheHeadOrDestroyingTheBrain previous forms]], the brain of a Licker is not a particularly weak spot.
* The demon [[http://megamitensei.wikia.com/wiki/Omoikane Omoikane]] from ''Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei'' series isn't evil, but is a floating brain with tentacles nevertheless.

* ''VideoGame/SpiderTheVideoGame'' ends with its last boss being a gigantic, floating brain with two eyes and a metallic spine resembling a tail. The subsequent boss battle has the giant brain alternating between using EyeBeams and TailSlap on you.

* ''VideoGame/XCOMUFODefense'' game features the Alien Brain on Mars as the BigBad.

* In a ''Webcomic/SequentialArt'' arc parodying ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'', Pip is mistaken for an agent of Vault One Eleven and is brought to Spankaton Academy in a post-apocalypse London. There, he's brought before its administrator -- a ButterFace with a shapely body, one eye, and a huge, exposed brain. Her name is Dot, according to [[https://www.collectedcurios.com/sequentialart.php?s=964 strip #964]]. In a world of barbaric moo-tants (sic) and {{Action Girl}}s with {{Multiboobage}}, Dot fits right in. Fortunately for Pip, it's all a DreamApocalypse.

[[folder:Web Original]]
* {{Lampshade|Hanging}}d in ''WebVideo/DragonBallZAbridged'''s [[Recap/DragonBallZAbridgedM10 version]] of ''Anime/DragonBallZTheWorldsStrongest''. Dr. Wheelo is unaware and has to be told that his brain has absorbed a lot of the embalming fluid it's suspended in, which caused it to grow, much to his dismay.
-->''"Why is it the size of a greyhound?"\\
"'''THE BUS?!'''"''

* ''Website/{{Neopets}}''
** The [[http://images.neopets.com/halloween/braintree.gif Brain Tree]], which gives out quests in the form of questions you must answer. The rationale behind this behavior is that the Brain Tree loves knowledge, but being rooted to the spot, it must rely on others to find information.
** Mutant pets were subjected to a PainfulTransformation by the site's BigBad. As their name implies, their main trait is BodyHorror of all sorts, and two of them have their brain exposed, in different ways. [[http://www.sunnyneo.com/rainbowpool.php?species=kacheek&colour=mutant#info Mutant Kacheeks]] have theirs so swollen that it melds through the top of their heads. [[http://www.sunnyneo.com/rainbowpool.php?species=draik&colour=mutant#info Mutant Draiks]] have it showing through a visible skull fracture.

%%* Big Brain (that's his name) from ''WesternAnimation/FairlyOddParents''. '''ZCE'''

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Tigtone}}'': The villainous Brainbow, who is a former human whose brain and nervous system were magically separated and act independently. He has an enmity with his other half, a [[DemBones rainbow colored skeleton named Rainbone]].

* One boss in ''VideoGame/IronMeat'' is a tank coated with meat from the mutant spread; besides having flesh-like organs growing on its sides, it also a gigantic, exposed brain growing out of the cockpit, which controls it into attacking the players.

* ''VideoGame/ChaosHeat'' have a ''massive'' brain monster as a boss in the lab, as large as the pool it's spawned from with neural veins sticking out the pool's edges and it's sole facial features being a single protruding eye. It's a difficult SequentialBoss that needs to be killed thrice to boot.

* ''VideoGame/GunBuster'' inexplicably have a human-sized brain in a cylindrical tube as the mastermind of the cyborg villains and the game's last boss. The brain even taunts you verbally as you approach it.
* ''VideoGame/IronMeat'' has a boss being a tank coated with Meat from the mutant spread, where besides having flesh-like organs growing on it's sides, also have a gigantic, exposed brain growing out of the cockpit, which controls it into attacking the players.
* ''VideoGame/IsolatedWarrior'' have a giant, throbbing, floating brain as the third boss, who managed to construct a gigantic mechanical head for itself. It automatically encasing a shell around it as soon as you enter, and you'll need to bypass it's defenses to shoot the brain until it blows up.

* ''VideoGame/SpiderTheVideoGame'' ends with it's last boss being a gigantic, floating brain with two eyes and a metallic spine resembling a tail. The subsequent boss battle have the giant brain alternating between using EyeBeams and TailSlap on you.

ZeroContextExample

* In Creator/EdmondHamilton's "Literture/TheManWhoEvolved", the protagonist [[EvolutionaryLevels evolves]] (after several intermediate passages) into a giant brain with tentacles, and ''[[SerialEscalation then]]'' into a giant brain with PsychicPowers that no longer even needs tentacles.