Another series of the epic Monarch: Legacy of Monsters debuts on Apple TV this Friday, and we’ve had the privilege of checking out the entire season ahead of its release. In this non-spoiler review we’re going to share our thoughts on the Monsterverse’s second outing in the live-action space. It’s safe to say this season was awesome!
It’s no secret that Brad and I were big fans of the first season of MLoM. Rather than focussing on the large-scale Titans and fauna which make the Monsterverse what it is, the series chose to dive deep into character-rich stories and plot lines which really set the epic Titans as a backdrop to a much more emotive and human story. I’m happy to say that the second season of the show navigates this tonal balance even better - creating something which had some of the most emotional moments we have seen in any outing in the Monsterverse to date. There were moments where I cried, moments where I had a big beaming smile on my face, and everything in-between.
What works particularly well with this season is the interplay between organisations. As the end of Season 1 of the show set up, MONARCH and APEX are now working side-by-side in an often complicated and messy relationship. The series does a fantastic job of exploring how these relationships work, and how they are often to the detriment of the former organisation and their ability to respond to the Titans effectively. More than this though, MLoM Series 2 takes parallel storytelling to a new high point throughout its second season - often putting characters on similar trajectories, and then dealing with the emotional fallout that comes from them choosing to make differing decisions. Some of the parallels which play out this season - particularly in the handling of Hiroshi and Keiko’s stories - are phenomenally well written.
As a fan of Jurassic, I found it really interesting that another core theme of this series is the fact that humans often manipulate animals. There are some beautiful moments throughout the second season of the show which really convey a sense of emotional depth and intelligence in the Titans, something which feels akin to portrayals of these animals which we have seen in the latter films in the franchise. These are not movie monsters. They are real living and breathing animals from another era who are multi-faceted and have layers and depth to their behaviours. I have to admit that ‘Titan X’ is handled particularly well here - with a fantastic design for the new creature paired with an interesting and compelling narrative plot thread which unfolds in meaningful ways during the course of the season.
A stand out addition to Series One of the shows for me was the inclusion of brand-new animals and fauna throughout the duration of the show - with the Frost Vark in particular being one of the coolest additions to the Monsterverse to date and a very intriguing creature by its own right. I’m happy to report that Season Two brings more interest to the creature department - taking the opportunity to show us new and interesting fauna during the time we spend on Skull Island which feel in-line with the designs used in the titular film of the same name. I really enjoyed spending more time on the island and felt that the cinematography in particular was gorgeous for the interpretation of the island we see in the show.
The time spent on Skull Island but also the rest of this season more broadly does a really nice job of tying into the wider lore of the Monsterverse, and MONARCH we have seen in the films. We get multiple fun moments which are name-drops of characters we know and love, hints at where other characters and events may have intersected with the locations and events we see in this show, and even some direct aftermath from events we have seen in the films. The way the show ties into the legacy of the films is handled beautifully. One moment in the finale will really pull on the heart-strings of long-term fans of the franchise, bringing the story of one character completely full-circle in a way which recontextualises when we last saw them in the films. I had the biggest grin on my face when these sequences were playing out on screen in the show. Whilst the second season has a bit of a slow start, it soon hits a break-neck speed which has you consuming new episodes quicker and quicker. I think the wait between episodes this time around is going to be excruciating in the best possible way, because there are episodes here where you wanting more.
One thing I also want to touch on here is the mythology of the show. Without saying too much, it is fair to say that Axis Mundi has a huge role to play this season, and makes the creation of a new space between the Hollow Earth and our own world feel a lot more earned. There are some insanely well-written moments in Episode 7 of the show which utilise Axis Mundi incredibly well and had me sat on the edge of my seat. On that note - Episodes 7, 9 and 10 are my absolute standouts this season - with some seriously fantastic writing. I think one of MLoM’s strengths has always been the way it interweaves multiple story threads and character arcs in a way which feels effortless for the viewer to keep track of, and that continues here. We get story arcs which feel like they reach a natural crescendo towards the end of the season, and equally, we get surprise developments for some characters which feel like they could propel them in interesting new directions in a third season of the show. Many of the more revelatory moments here are paired with fantastic variations of the MONARCH score - helping to amplify the impact of these scenes and really drive home their emotional weight.
If it isn’t obvious - I absolutely adored the second season of Monarch Legacy of Monsters. I really enjoyed how the first season slowly unravelled the story of MONARCH and wasn’t sure how well this season would be able to build on that foundation. Whilst the earlier episodes felt a little bit slower pace-wise, the series quickly snapped into something interesting and engaging - with a real sense of a ticking clock which made each episode accelerate well. I said with Season One that this show fundamentally proved that big-screen creature flicks can work on the small screen, and Season Two solidifies it. This is a fantastic second outing for a MONARCH crew, with some incredible set-up for a potential third season, alongside some sprinkled information which makes me excited for the upcoming prologue. If you’re a fan of Godzilla, Kong or monster flicks more broadly, do not sleep on this show. You’ll regret it if you miss it.
Huge thanks to Apple TV and Legendary for providing early access to Monarch Legacy of Monsters Season 2. You can start streaming new episodes weekly on Apple TV from February 27th.
Written by: Tom Jurassic