‘Monarch’s TV Spin-Offs Need To Fill These Godzilla-Sized MonsterVerse Gaps

The Big Picture

• The MonsterVerse expands with multiple spin-offs of
  Monarch: Legacy of Monsters
  after the deal between Toho and Legendary via Apple TV+.
• These spin-offs should focus on the importance on Godzilla and Kong films as the primary narrative backbone.
• Titans have rich untold stories pre and post-
  Godzilla vs Kong
  that spin-offs should explore to enhance the MonsterVerse.

With the announcement of a deal between Toho and Legendary, confirming that Apple TV+ will continue to expand the MonsterVerse, the world of the Titans is about to get even bigger. Monarch: Legacy of Monsters has been renewed for a second season, with multiple spin-offs to follow. The latter opens up plenty of exciting opportunities for the franchise, and a few gaps within the narrative are ripe and waiting to be explored. While Monarch has a clear set of characters and stories that it can resume with its second season, we don’t yet know what ground the spin-offs will cover. So far, everything’s been running smoothly for the MonsterVerse, but, now more than ever, the franchise should choose its course carefully.

First and foremost, Legendary should note some of the MCU’s post-Endgame missteps. Allow the films of the MonsterVerse to be the driving force of the larger narrative, rather than creating an onslaught of shows that get ahead of the greater arc. Don’t back the movies into a corner or force them to play catch-up with a slew of new characters and storylines. 2014’s Godzilla and 2017’s Kong: Skull Island made for a perfect pair, setting up separate entities that would converge in 2021’s Godzilla vs Kong. Before that, we had Godzilla: King of the Monsters, which introduced the notion of an entire roster of Titans spread across the Earth. If the upcoming spin-offs focus on the gap between Godzilla: King of the Monsters and Godzilla vs Kong, they’ll fortify the MonsterVerse as the new King of the Franchises.

‘Godzilla: King of the Monsters’ Set the Stage for Titans To Freely Walk the Earth

In King of the Monsters, set five years after Godzilla’s battle with the MUTOs, the humans of the world are beginning to take a more proactive approach to their handling of the Titans. G-Day, as the first film’s climactic clash would be called, brought absolute devastation to the surface. Mark and Emma Russell (Kyle Chandler and Vera Farmiga, respectively) lost their son, leading Emma to eventually collaborate with a group of eco-terrorists led by Alan Jonah (Charles Dance). Aiming to bring balance to the world and right the wrongs of humanity, the group set out to release Titans from captivity, which includes awakening Ghidorah from his frozen slumber.

Of course, we also witnessed the release of Mothra and Rodan, but they weren’t the only Titans to become active. The rogue group’s plan did not go as anticipated. Ghidorah (also known as Monster Zero) is not of this world, so balance is not a part of the three-headed monster’s motives. Bent on domination, Ghidorah let out what’s referred to as an alpha call, and the Titans responded. We know from quick snippets and companion comics that various monsters began to wreak havoc, and this is where Monarch‘s spin-offs should first set their sight. Generally, our favorite aspects of the MonsterVerse are, well, monster-focused. Let’s get to know these supporting Titans better. Whether we follow some yet-introduced behemoths or catch up with favorites like Rodan during his time off-screen, there’s no wrong answer.

Why Didn’t Kong Answer Ghidorah or Godzilla’s Alpha Call?

After Godzilla and Mothra defeated Ghidorah, Godzilla let out an alpha call of his own, and the Titans responded. They all gathered and bowed at the feet of the true King of the Monsters. Even Rodan, barely surviving his fight with Mothra, would submit. However, there was one massive exception — Kong. Of course, it’s no surprise that Kong didn’t answer Ghidorah or Godzilla’s alpha call. “Kong bows to no one,” as Ilene Andrews (Rebecca Hall) aptly remarks in Godzilla vs Kong. Five years have passed between the events of King of the Monsters and Godzilla vs Kong, but it’s been nearly fifty years since Kong: Skull Island. As Kong has drifted further to the forefront with each film, becoming a clear protagonist and the most human-like of the Titans, presenting Kong’s perspective on the world-shifting effects of King of the Monsters‘ plot would be a fitting task for the spin-offs.

Skull Island Has Seen Lots of Changes Before the Events of ‘Godzilla vs Kong’

The Apple TV+ side of the MonsterVerse has given us a bit of Kong, which is a promising start. At the end of Monarch‘s finale episode, the characters who survived and escaped Axis Mundi return to the surface, where two years have passed. It’s now 2017, two years before the events of King of the Monsters. They’re on Skull Island, where Monarch’s outposts have strengthened and the emerging company Apex Cybernetics, the villainous corporation that will eventually create Mechagodzilla, now holds a presence. We’re given a quick glimpse of Kong, and this would be a prime spot for Monarch‘s second season to resume its story.

The spin-offs would then have room to explore Skull Island a few years later, between the events of King of the Monsters and Godzilla vs Kong. In Kingdom Kong, Legendary Comics’ graphic novel prelude to Godzilla vs Kong, a bat-like Titan called Camazotz responds to Ghidorah’s alpha call and reigns terror upon San Diego. After Ghidorah was defeated, Camazotz, unlike most other Titans, did not submit to Godzilla. Instead, he turned toward Skull Island. You may remember the massive swell of a storm created by Ghidorah in King of the Monsters. Well, that storm would eventually merge with Skull Island’s treacherous system, creating the terrible climate we’re introduced to at the beginning of Godzilla vs Kong.

With that storm also came Camazotz, and the battle between him and Kong would be a sight to behold in Monarch‘s spin-offs. It would bolster the narrative of Godzilla vs Kong, further justifying the need to move Kong from Skull Island to Hollow Earth, and there’s the potential to show more of Ilene Andrews’ backstory, fleshing out her connection to Jia (Kaylee Hottle) and enriching the lore surrounding the Iwi people.

There’s More to the Titans Than the Movies Have Shown

However, you can’t leave Godzilla out of the picture, and this gap in the MonsterVerse has plenty worth exploring around the top Titan. If fans were disappointed by the brevity of appearances by Titans such as Scylla and Tiamat in Godzilla vs Kong: The New Empire, there’s no need to worry; these Titans were plenty active in the years following King of the Monsters. Godzilla Dominion, another graphic novel prelude from Legendary Comics, offers a heap of opportunities centered on Godzilla’s misadventuresbefore his eventual clash with Kong. Simply looking at Legendary’s synopsis stirs anticipation. “[T]he graphic novel brings new insights into the King of the Monsters: his habitats, ancient rivalries, challenges, and encounters with new Titans,” it reads. “As his new era of dominance is tested, a coming confrontation with another King looms.”

Scylla (the tentacled, crap-like monstrosity killed by Godzilla during The New Empire‘s opening credits), submitted to Godzilla at the end of King of the Monsters, but has since grown hungry and seeks the sustenance of nuclear bombs off the coast of Savannah, Georgia. Then there’s Tiamat (the serpentine Titan dwelling in the Arctic). Godzilla’s swift attack in The New Empire, killing the Titan to evolve to his most powerful form, may have seemed rash. However, Godzilla Dominion reveals Tiamat’s history of rebellion and aggression against the King.

Scylla, Tiamat, Behemoth, Rodan, or any of the yet unseen monsters — the spin-offs should stick to the Titans. More importantly, they should situate themselves within the timeline that’s already been established. Fill in these gaps, and the structure of an already blossoming franchise will only be strengthened, rather than spread too thinly, as is often the case with cinematic universes.

Season 1 of Monarch: Legacy of Monsters is streaming on Apple TV+.

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