Created by Chris Black (“Severance”) and Matt Fraction (“Hawkeye”), the limited series “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” is an intelligent extension of the blockbusters-sized big-screen franchise where it came from. At the heart of Legendary’s Monsterverse are monsters, sure, but a mystery rooted in human complication. And ‘Legacy of Monsters’ is wise enough to lean into the human-scale dramas behind those legacies, those mysteries, and what compelled them to take shape. It is TV, after all, with a focus on character.
That said, as our review of the show has suggested, ‘Legacy Of Monsters’ has done a great job of balancing the needs of everything the franchise has to offer: giant monsters, big set pieces, big mysteries, and complicated people behind them.
“Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” centers on two generations of people connected to the mysteries of the Monarch organization, directly and indirectly, those in the past in the 1960s (played by Wyatt Russell, Anders Holm, and Mari Yamamoto) and those in the present (Anna Sawai, Kiersey Clemons, Ren Watabe, Joe Tippett, Elisa Lasowski, and Kurt Russell) and the secrets that tie these generations together.
The truth lies ahead somewhere in the series as the mystery unravels and a new mid-season trailer hints at where it’s all headed.
Here’s the official synopsis:
Following the thunderous battle between Godzilla and the Titans that leveled San Francisco and the shocking revelation that monsters are real, “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” tracks two siblings following in their father’s footsteps to uncover their family’s connection to the secretive organization known as Monarch. Clues lead them into the world of monsters and ultimately down the rabbit hole to Army officer Lee Shaw (played by Kurt Russell and Wyatt Russell), taking place in the 1950s and half a century later where Monarch is threatened by what Shaw knows. The dramatic saga — spanning three generations — reveals buried secrets and the ways that epic, earth-shattering events can reverberate through our lives.
Directors on the series include Matt Shakman (“Wandavision”), Julian Holmes, Mairzee Almas, Andy Goddard, and Hiromi Kamata. Five of ten episodes of “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” have aired now, and given the perfect mid-way mark, Apple TV+ has released a mid-season trailer. The final episode wraps up on January 12, 2024. Watch the new trailer below.
