Monarch: Legacy of Monsters

➤Rated TV-14
➤Apple TV+

While Godzilla movies are marked by massive monsters toppling skyscrapers (and mostly ignoring the insignificant people scrambling beneath them), Apple’s new series, set in the MonsterVerse, tries to humanize the franchise by taking the action to the street level.

Monarch: Legacy of Monsters explores the aftermath of the destruction of San Francisco that occurred in Godzilla (2014). The world still reels from the knowledge that these Titans exist, and governments have developed disaster plans to cope with future attacks. Despite the global stakes, the series’ main action involves untangling a family drama.

Cate Randa (Anna Sawai) and her half brother Kentaro (Ren Watabe) try to solve the mystery of their father’s disappearance, even though he was a pretty terrible dad. Their search leads them to Monarch, a shadowy government agency that’s been tracking Godzilla and the other Titans for decades.

The series jumps back and forth in time, fleshing out the Randa family legacy and the history of Monarch. Kurt Russell and his son Wyatt both play Army officer Lee Shaw, one of Monarch’s founders, in the ­present and in flashbacks.

Despite the big money Apple spent, the series has problems. Adding a more human element to the MonsterVerse is a nice touch, but Monarch suffers from overwrought melodrama and occasional cringe-inducing dialogue. We also don’t get enough monsters. The Titans lie low for most episodes.

The series sticks to PG-13 language, and there’s no nudity. But halfway through the 10 episodes, an LGBTQ subplot appears out of the blue. Did Apple delay revealing the main character was gay because they were afraid the show won’t find an audience without the bait and switch?

The MonsterVerse films and TV series

• Godzilla / 2014
• Kong: Skull Island / 2017
• Godzilla: King of the Monsters / 2019
• Godzilla vs. Kong / 2021
• Skull Island / 2023
• Monarch: Legacy of Monsters / 2023
• Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire / 2024