There are so many things to cover regarding the second season of the heavily promoted Apple TV franchise Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, so let’s start from the beginning.
As Apple TV prepares for Season 2, it has posted snippets and trailers across its socials, showcasing an awe-inspiring, action-packed series that awaits viewers for this Friday’s premiere. In reality, these clips are grossly misleading as, I state in the headline, the season is more about Monarch than it is about monsters (Titans). The first three episodes, “Cause and Effect,” “Resonance,” and “Secrets,” feature the most titans, and then fans will be without monstrous action until mid-April.
This season, Cate (Anna Sawai), May (Kiersey Clemons), and Kentaro (Ren Watabe) are making even worse decisions than they made last season. May was always unpredictable, leaving without notice and then showing up unexpectedly, but Cate was by far the worst. Her recklessness and negligence put everyone around her at risk multiple times, and her rashness sealed the fate of a prominent character this season. Towards the end of the season, choices are skewed, dialogue is poorly written, and the number of poor transitions becomes noticeable.
Season 1 mainly focused on siblings Cate and Kentaro as they uncovered their connection to Monarch. The closer they get to finding their association with the secret organization, the more people they meet. Army officer Lee Shaw (Kurt Russell and Wyatt Russell), Dr. Keiko Miura (Mari Yamamoto), and Bill Randa (Anders Holm) are just a few of the people they discover as they continue down the rabbit hole of Monarch lore. Now in Season 2, a host of important decisions will decide the fate of Monarch and the world. There’s a deep dive into the past that explores relationships, discoveries, and forgotten events in Axis mundi. What begins on Skull Island, ends on Skull Island, and a mysterious new village plays host to an all-new Titan from the sea. Blurring the lines between past and present, Season 2 carries heavy fan expectations and will soon decide whether a third season is warranted.
Now that you’ve heard all the bad (misleading marketing, more dialogue than action, bad transitions), let’s get to the good. A few additions were made to honor the legion of fans who wanted more from the Monsterverse. Details that wouldn’t matter to the lay viewer will be appreciated by hardcore fans (like the addition of the Psychovulture). There’s a lot of backstory provided this season as well, so audiences will learn everything about Dr. Miura, Bill, and Lee. Cate makes a game-changing self-discovery that affects how the group searches for Titans, and Tim (Joe Tippett) grows in confidence and charisma (his dialogue is still corny, but that’s just his character).
Ultimately, the season was weak. After a fierce opening in Episode 1, the suspense and excitement decline with each episode. There’s room for backstory, but there is such a thing as too much backstory. Poor decision-making by most of the cast was both bad writing and very annoying. By the last two episodes, the story and the editing felt lazy. Too many characters go rogue, the new characters were a waste of presence in a very Game of Thrones-like manner, and it’s unfair to everyone to have the most action-packed episodes at the beginning and the end, with a low-effort plot lodged in the middle.
Monarch: Legacy of Monsters Season 2 gets a 6.5 out of 10. The 10-episode season will premiere on Feb. 27 on Apple TV. Its TV-14 rating is appropriate for the language, violence, and mature themes. Even though it gets a low rating, it’s still worth watching, as you deserve answers to all your questions from the first season.
-Jon Jones
Photos: Courtesy of Apple TV
Genre: Action/Adventure/Sci-fi
Rating: TV-14
Runtime: 10 Episodes | 45 mins.
Trailer: Watch
U.S. Release Date: February 27, 2026