Aftermath – The episode opens in Skull Island in 1973, with William “Bill” Randa (John Goodman) recording a message for his son whom he wanted to leave a legacy. He flees into the forest to the water’s edge, where he comes face-to-face with a massive Titan. On the edge of a cliff, he tosses his bag into the sea. As the Titan approaches, another Titan emerges from the ground. A fight ensues and ends when the two Titans fall into the sea. Looking over the cliff’s edge, Randa sees his bag floating away.

2013 Sea Of Japan – A trawler a net full of fish out of the sea and dumps it on deck. A Japanese fisherman (Kengo Hashimoto) removes Randa’s bag from the pile of fish.

Tokyo April 2015, Cate Randa (Anna Sawai) reads a document as her plane arrives in Tokyo. Two workers dressed in hazmat gear spray the cabin. Cate has a flashback of G-Day. A male passenger (Takeshi Kurokawa) doesn’t believe the parasitic fumigation will prevent another monster attack. Later, a passport officer (Hiroko Yano) asks Cate the purpose of her visit. Cate claims she is there to settle her deceased father’s affairs. The officer stamps her passport. Cate hails a taxi. The driver (Hiroshi Ikushima) asks if she is involved in “monster prep”. She assures him that some people profit off of other’s tragedies. He describes what happened in San Francisco as a “hoax” created by CGI. He tells her about his podcast before pulling up to her destination, where she enters an apartment building. Hurriedly ending her mother’s call, Cate unlocks the door to apartment #504. She is staring at a wall of family photos with her father when Emiko Randa (Qyoko Kudo) is startled by her presence. Kentaro Miura (Ben Watabe) rushes in asking what she is doing there. Pointing at a photo, Cate says he is her father, Hiroshi Randa (Takehiro Hira).

Kazakhstan 1959 – Young Lee Shaw (Wyatt Russell) claims children were never in his life plan. Keiko “Kei” Miura (Mari Yamamoto) reminds him that at one time, he considered it. Young William “Bill” Randa. (Anders Holm) suggests Lee has never met the right woman. At their destination, they don their gas masks before breaking into a secured area. Walking along a path, a young hunter (Anton Markelov) jumps out in front of them with a gun. Speaking Russian, Kei says they are scientists before warning that his dead rabbits could make his family sick. The boy assures her that the contamination is not real, it frightens away people who are curious about the hole created by the government. The boy lets them pass. Lee, Kei, and Bill continue walking until they approach a facility in the distance. Kei tests for radiation but the meter reads zero. She tells Lee and Bill that there is no radiation in the area. Lee removes his gas mask while Bill reluctantly follows suit. They head toward the facility.

Tokyo – Kentaro demands Cate prove that Hiroshi is her father. Holding up a family photo, she says it was taken at the Redwoods, where Hiroshi had an allergic reaction to poison oak. May tells her that Hiroshi has gone missing. Refusing to tell them about Hiroshi’s death, Cate leaves

Kazakhstan – Kei, Lee, and Bill plant explosions all around the facility. When Lee detonates the explosions, the meter reads activity below ground. Elated, Kei embraces Bill when the ground begins to open up.

Tokyo – Cate is speaking to her mother on the phone when the line is interrupted. An alarm sends people racing toward the subway. Cate is knocked down. Kentaro helps her up before rejoining Emiko and the others. Inside the subway, Emiko asks if Hiroshi was with Cate in San Francisco. Cate questions if it would have made a difference before denying she was with him. In a flashback, Cate comes face-to-face with a large monster. She helps several people off the school bus before it falls through a crevice in the road. Back to the present, Cate is hysterical trying to leave the subway but Emiko convinces her to stay.

Kazakhstan – Standing on a platform, Kei, Lee, and Bill look down at what they believe is a nursery of embryos. Lee warns that the mother is nearby. Bill stresses the need to collect a sample of the genetic material. Kei and Lee descend below while Bill remains on the platform.

Tokyo – Authorities clear the emergency alert. Outside the subway, Emiko invites Cate back to their apartment for tea but she declines. Kentaro escorts Cate to Hiroshi’s office. He believes their father created satellite software. Pulling down a satellite map, she exposes a safe. She cracks the code to open the safe. Inside is Bill’s bag filled with tapes. A Monarch symbol on the bag triggers a memory from G-Day in San Francisco.

Kantaro asks May Olowe-Hewitt (Kiersey Clemons) if she can help them access the tapes. When he offers to pay her, she walks away. Catching up with her, he suggests keeping it professional. She scolds him for showing up after months of ignoring her. He eventually convinces her to help them. May escorts them to her apartment, where she removes the film from the plastic case. The encrypted data appears on her computer screen. Elsewhere, a system alert appears on Collins’ (Camille Legg) computer screen. She informs Tim (Joe Tippett) that someone tried to decrypt encrypted data with an embedded Monarch recognition code. She suggests several megabytes of the data was decrypted before it was taken down. Tim asks if she got the individual’s location. She says it was Tokyo. He agrees to deal with it. She reminds him that Verdugo is demanding to see everything. He rushes her out of his office before calling someone.

Tokyo – Cate tells Kentaro that Monarch officials were taking photos in San Francisco. She suggests they were expecting what happened. May questions if Hiroshi was working for Monarch. Cate says Japanese was her and Hiroshi’s secret language. Kentaro accuses her of deceiving them. She assures him that it was not on purpose.

G-Day San Francisco 2014 – Cate receives a call from Hiroshi asking where she is at. When she tells him, the call ends. Seconds later, he is racing toward her. He gives her bus tickets to Reno. She urges him to go with her and her mom but he refuses. He confesses to love them before hurrying away. Back in Tokyo, Cate tells Kentaro that the Fairbanks, Alaska state police notified of Hiroshi’s death a week later. She says after his bush plane disappeared, it was never found, not even the wreckage. A photo of their grandmother, Kei standing in the center of a monster paw print appears on May’s computer screen.

Kazakhstan – Kei and Lee reach the nursery. Staring at the embryo, she identifies it as insectoid, with its multiple appendages. When the ground tremors, the embryos crack open. Lee starts pushing himself up the rope. Bill pulls on the rope when the insects grab Kei until she is forced to let go. The episode ends.

 

Monarch: Legacy Of Monsters XAR

• William “Bill” Rands (John Goodman)
• Young William “Billy” Rands (Anders Holm)
• Cate Randa (Anna Sawai)
• Emiko Randa (Qyoko Kudo)
• Kentaro Miura (Ben Watabe)
• Hiroshi Randa (Takehiro Hira)
• Lee Shaw (Kurt Russell)
• Young Lee Shaw (Wyatt Russell)
• Keiko “Kei” Miura (Mari Yamamoto)
• May Olowe-Hewitt (Kiersey Clemons)
• Collins (Camille Legg)
• Tim (Joe Tippett)
• Duvall (Elisa Lasowski)
• General Puckett (Christopher Heyerdahl)

Monarch: Legacy Of Monsters Review

The CGI is subpar, if not laughable. The characters and props look distorted at times. The pace is slow, with not a lot going on. The story developed very little in the pilot episode.

The acting is not always believable. The exposition is vague at best. The writer(s) expect all viewers to know the story of Godzilla. The show focuses more on Hiroshi’s cheating and Cate and Kentaro’s struggle to come to terms with it than the Monarch.

The episode deserves a 6. Get more Monarch: Legacy of Monsters recaps here. Support Reel Mockery by donating. Our onsite advertising builds brand awareness, click the link to learn more. Join our newly established forum to discuss the latest TV shows and movies.