This episode was way more drama than anything else, yes it was cool Titan X show up and they gave us ton of context but I feel the drama on episode 3 went over the board between Keiko and Lee, honestly I would never though she would fall for Lee like that I was like damn girl. Overall this was a fantastic episode that really focused on the human side of the chaos, which is a nice change of pace since the Monsterverse usually goes way too over the top and goofy like some FF movie, but this show actually keeps things serious and grounded, especially with Kate and her mom, it is pretty dope how they are showing Kate in total self destruct mode because she does not know how to handle her grief after witnessing Godzilla wreck the Golden Gate Bridge and seeing her just drinking and partying to forget that trauma feels like she finally taking on the guilt and not just asking others, yeah she screw up and got to take it to the chest, even if her mom is probably pissed that she has not picked up a phone in three years, I was not expecting this after all the drama that went down with the first season but this is lands better, the way they show her spiral is just so relatable because who would not lose their mind after seeing a giant lizard flatten their city and then you allow a second titan into Earth, talk about a fucked up life, she is out here hitting the clubs and trying to drown out the screams while her mom is just trying to get her to come home to San Francisco, btw I dont understand why the hell they havent rebuild the bridge?? G day happen long time ago besides Kentaron already said he spend 2 years while they were at Hollow Earth so that sounds about a couple of years and they havent fully rebuild or at least the bridge?? think there is a plot hole here but thats fine with me.
- IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt17220216/
- Platform: APPLETV
[Source](https://tv.apple.com/us/show/monarch-legacy-of-monsters/umc.cmc.62l8x0ixrhyq3yaqa5y8yo7ew)
The APEX bs I kinda like it because they are been really sneaky like taking control ONLY when its on their favor, we have seen them throw the towel when they against the wall and their as on fire but its like how much leverage they must have on MONARCH high ranks at Washington so they can go in and out of MONARCH operations just like that. Like seeing them break into the office to steal the device for Titan X shows exactly how dirty and corrupt they are before the events of the movies and now Tim is putting May in as a mole to be his eyes and ears because MONARCH is making some shady choices and Im not so sure if she will really commit, lets remember that May at first was one of the sneaky players against the wall on this series and lie her ass to everyone including Kate and Kentaro just to save herself. The best part of the episode was definitely the past with Young Shaw and Keiko, you can just feel the sexual tension between them in that cabin and even though Shaw tries to lie and blame the feelings on the alcohol, we all know he is full of shit and has been eyeballing her from the start, they finally get into bed and it was a short intense moment ngl, but then that letter Keiko wrote basically destroyed everything when Billy found it and man, my jaw dropped at that cliffhanger, it was freaking genius how they built up the drama of why Billy abandoned Hiroshi. This season is absolutely cooking right now, the way they handle the time jumps is solid and it does not feel like a mess, we are getting these answers about the family legacy that we wanted for a long time.
I am telling you that the way they show the early days of MONARCH is the most interesting part because it feels like a real spy movie mixed with monster hunters, Shaw and Keiko are in the Chile and they are just trying to find a moment of peace while the world is ending around them, the scene in the cabin was so well done because it did not feel like some cheap romance, it felt like two people who are genuinely terrified and looking for something real to hold onto like the world is about to end but who would blame them, first here is an old spark between them, second they got kinda drunk and then not only survive Titan X showing up with its minions but also survive been hunt down by the town ppl. Billy just get caught between the fire and its kinda sad because he is a good guy, in fact for the most part feels like Keiko is with him because of that because he is a good guy but not really because there is a desire for him, just like her story about Hiroshi's father how he was a good husband and a provider but was never enough and I thought thats the kind of woman she turn and the reason why she was with Billy, turns out she really love him, its that damn letter that send everything to hell in the past and the present latter on with Hiroshi once indirectly and a second time in the present directly, she is talking about her feelings for Shaw and how she cannot come home and then Billy just finds it on the floor, it was such a gut punch because Billy is a good guy and he was just trying to be a dad to Hiroshi, now we finally see the spark that caused the whole family to fall apart and why Hiroshi grew up feeling like his dad did not give a damn, it is a heavy story that hits hard because it explains so much of the pain we saw in the first season.
Meanwhile in the present day things are getting intense with the corporate side of things because APEX is not playing around, they want that Titan X technology and they will kill anyone to get it and by "technology" they mean control it, that coexist bullshit is just taking over and controlling all this creature and that has to click on everyone in the audience and SCREAM!!! "Jurasic Park" or Titans Park???!, Thats most likely why many online are saying that Titan X is not the real villain in this series, its just a matter of time before APEX stab MONARCH on the back when things go south, just like how they trash the office and threaten people shows that they were always the real villains even before they built Mecha Godzilla, Tim is being a total badass by trying to stay ahead of them but he knows MONARCH is compromised and got to admit May does a good job at "pretending" to do the dirty work because until this moment Im not buying it yet, she is going back into the belly of the beast and you can tell she is scared but she has no choice if she wants to protect her friends, the show does a great job of making you care about these characters even when they are doing questionable things, Kate is still trying to find her footing in the middle of all this and it is cool to see her mom being a part of the action too, it is a real family drama disguised as a monster show and that is why it works so well for me, the production quality is top notch and everything looks expensive which is what we want from a TV Series that has such a great connection with the Monsterverse movies.
I feel like the series on season two has really found their sweet spot because they are giving us the character moments we need without forgetting that giant monsters are the reason we are watching this series because lets be real its Godzilla and now Titan X on season 2, dont nobody care about Kate, Kentaro and Hiroshi drama though, thats just a bonus but so far a good addition working better on this season. The most dark move of the episode is how Billy Randa leaving that letter and walking away from his son is such a dark move but it makes so much sense now and gets stronger when latter on they found all his work on an APEX basement and Keiko realize Billy did finish his work and draw the entire migration path of Titan X around Earth so if you think about it that was time Hiroshi was almost growing up on his own, I hope they give Billy the opportunity to give out more context about why he did it and its was not so intentional as revenge or not knowing what was the smart decision to take knowing Hiroshi was just a kid who had no dad or mom and you are the closest human he has as a parent, ironically Hiroshi grows up under MONARCH. This show is proving that it can stand on its own without needing a Godzilla fight every five minutes to be interesting and THAT is something impressive because I though if this was a one man army situation meaning Godzilla been the one man then how far could they stretch the story?? I am giving this one a solid 8 out of 10 because it is one of those rare times where the story actually lives up to the noise people are making online, it is a banger and I am telling you that if you are not watching this you are missing out on the best part of the whole Monsterverse right now.
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