Titans collide as the Apple TV original series “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” returns for its second season.
“Monarch” Season 2 brings the legendary massive gorilla Kong into the fold, along with plenty of new creatures to fill out the MonsterVerse. The premiere kicks off a season that retains the dual narrative structure present from the series’ beginning, depicting different time periods within the MonsterVerse. This all creates an expansive narrative tapestry that builds out the shared cinematic universe punctuated by hit movies like 2021’s “Godzilla vs. Kong.”
If you need a refresher: “Monarch” follows the fallout of Godzilla’s battle in San Francisco as depicted in the 2014 movie “Godzilla.” The series began with protagonist Cate Randa (Anna Sawai) learning that her estranged and presumed-dead father, Hiroshi (Takehiro Hira), had been involved with the study of Titans, or colossal monsters. Teaming up with Kentaro (Ren Watabe), the half-brother she never knew, Cate tried to learn more about the history of the Titans, working with family friend Lee Shaw (Kurt Russell). This storyline was juxtaposed with a younger Lee (Wyatt Russell) investigating Titan activity decades before with Hiroshi’s parents, Bill Randa (Anders Holm) and Keiko Miura (Mari Yamamoto).
Now that you’re caught up, read on for a quick recap of “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” Season 2, Episode 1, “Cause and Effect.”
Back to Skull Island
Season 2 picks up right where the twist-filled Season 1 finale left off, with Kong rampaging through Monarch and Apex’s base camp on Skull Island. The assembled characters evacuate to an operating base off the coast of the island, safe from Kong. Frustrated that Apex isn’t mounting a rescue mission, Cate convinces her family and friends to do so themselves. As the group hijack a vehicle and return to Skull Island, Cate has a tense conversation with Hiroshi airing her resentment about his double life, maintaining a second family, and faking his death.
Back in the MonsterVerse’s Hollow Earth, Lee survives dropping off the launch vehicle, landing relatively safely on the ground. Reopening the dimensional rift into Hollow Earth, the impromptu rescue team repurposes gear Apex left behind to return the vehicle to extract Lee. As he fends off predators with a knife, Lee makes a mad dash to escape from Hollow Earth with the experimental craft. He emerges on the surface just as Kong returns to the scene, with Keiko having previously noticed the Titan had been trying to defend them from another monster.
Another Titan expedition
The Season 2 premiere also continues to shed light on Lee, Keiko, and Bill’s shared past prior to her disappearance in 1959. This time, the trio are investigating Titan activity in South America after hearing rumors of a river monster in Chile. Arriving at a remote town, it quickly becomes clear that the locals are not friendly to outsiders, especially those poking around and asking the wrong questions. Despite this, the group forges ahead to see if reports of a Titan in the area are true.
As Bill awkwardly dances with a local woman at a cantina, Keiko has a heart-to-heart conversation with Lee. Though their chat starts out flirty, Lee expresses his doubts that he’ll ever settle down, because he is committed to his life as a soldier. The discussion is tabled when Bill’s dance partner agrees to take them to the Titan on the condition that the trio leave her village and never return. Even under these conditions, the group agrees and sets off into the night to locate the monster.
And with that, “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” is back offering big-budget spectacle in its second season in another globe-trotting adventure spanning generations.
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