A Fiery Titan Returns – Monarch: Legacy Of Monsters Season 2 Finale Explained

Warning! This article contains SPOILERS for Monarch: Legacy of Monsters season 2, episode 10.Monarch: Legacy of Monsters season 2 is finally over, and the show’s latest episode does a great job of closing storylines, while teasing there is more to come from the Monsterverse series, including a giant return. In Monarch: Legacy of Monsters season 2, episode 9, the Apple TV sci-fi series revealed Isabel’s plans for the Monsterverse. The daughter of Apex’s Walter Simmons wants to control the Axis Mundi so that she can freely use it for time travel and profit off it.

As for Kentaro, his goal in helping Isabel achieve that is to bring his father back to life. Hiroshi’s death was one of the most devastating moments of the show, and earlier in the season, he told his son in a flashback that he had entered the Axis Mundi through a rift, which is why he disappeared from Cate and Kentaro’s lives for a year. There is a version of him in the Axis Mundi that could be saved.

Additionally, Lee and Keiko realized in the present that Billy had discovered that Skull Island served as the control hub of the Axis Mundi. Finally, in order to gain access to that, Apex wanted to use Corah’s code to force Titan X into fighting and killing Kong, which would leave the island without its protector, making it safe for the company to set roots there. The season 2 finale sent those storylines into overdrive, with major reveals.

Who Is Rodan? Monarch’s New Titan & It’s Monsterverse Timeline Explained

The most shocking moment of the Monarch: Legacy of Monsters season 2 finale comes at the very end. After the situation with Titan X and Apex is resolved, Kurt Russell’s Lee Shaw finds another Titan in Thailand. While meeting an old acquaintance, Lee shows the man a drawing of a Titan. He then discovers that a Japanese man and an American woman — Kentaro and Isabel — had come to the man and asked him about the same Titan. Their belief is that the Titan could hold the key to what they want.

As such, the Titan could open the door to the Axis Mundi, leading to Isabel being able to access it to study and control time travel, and Kentaro to use it to bring Hiroshi back. Lee’s friend says, “They’re willing to risk burning the world down to get it.” Later, they venture into the jungle, with Lee walking alone after a certain point, being the sole character to see the return of a massive Titan, Rodan, who stands atop a volcano. Lee then claims he will see the Titan soon.

While the Monarch season 2 finale marks Rodan’s debut in the Apple TV series, the character has appeared before in the cinematic side of the Monsterverse franchise. Rodan debuted in 2019’s Godzilla: King of the Monsters. The fiery monster was one of the kaijus who fought under King Ghidorah in the movie. However, after Ghidorah was killed, Rodan, now free of the beast’s control, bows to Godzilla, acknowledging the true Monsterverse alpha. Like in his Monarch season 2 appearance, Rodan first showed up in the movie lying in a volcano.

Is Young Lee Shaw Gone For Good?

Before the show got to Rodan, Monarch season 2’s finale wrapped up the core part of its time travel storyline. After the old and young versions of Lee Shaw managed to interact through a radio under specific conditions, Wyatt Russell’s Lee returns physically in the final episode. First, Keiko realizes that Lee was in the Axis Mundi at the same time she was, so he could have saved her and prevented Kei from losing so many years with her family. Initially mad, she comes to understand his choice.

Before the rift closes, the young version of Lee can be seen in its beam. Because the older Shaw and Dr. Suzuki had used him as a conduit to test their Titan phone, the rift’s residual energy, Titan X’s return to the Axis Mundi, and old Lee’s presence lead to a final quantum distortion. Keiko gets her moment to say goodbye to one of the men she loved, as the older Lee is far from the one she knew, and even though both characters can’t hear one another, Kurt Russell’s Shaw now remembers that he was saying goodbye to her.

Titan X’s Ending Explained

In the end, Titan X was really no threat to anyone. All she wanted was to keep her egg safe and go home. Thanks to Billy having found the hub of the Axis Mundi, with Monarch season 2 revealing that he never really abandoned Hiroshi or gave up on his family, but rather chose to try until the die he died to find a way to open a rift into the Axis Mundi and save Keiko, the team was able to send Titan X back home.

Sure, Titan X and Kong initially fought, as the former was under Apex’s control and stuck in aggressive mode. However, merely looking at its egg allowed Titan X to break free from the shadowy company’s grasp, which shows that the kaijus are not really the monsters that many think they are. Understanding that Titan X did not wish him harm, Kong just let the kaiju go.

What’s Next For Monarch’s Human Characters In Legacy Of Monsters Season 3

Image courtesy of Apple TV

At this time, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters season 3 has yet to be announced. However, with Lee Shaw finding Rodan at the end of the episode, it is clear that Apple TV is setting up more stories to be told in a future season. Part of that comes through most of the team sticking together at Monarch, going back to basics. These include Keiko, Cate, Corah, and Tim. Additionally, Keiko’s return from the dead is being kept a secret by Monarch.

It makes sense, as if her survival was revealed, everyone would be looking for the Axis Mundi to use it for the same time travel agenda Isabel has. Monarch 2.0, as Tim puts it, is a new version of the organization that will focus on science and discovery, like originally intended. Their mission is to track down Kentaro and keep the Axis Mundi away from the wrong hands. Given how Cate’s brother and Isabel were looking for Rodan, which Shaw has already found, all the characters’ paths should cross based on the returning Titan in Monarch: Legacy of Monsters season 3.

Release Date

November 16, 2023

Network

Apple TV

Showrunner

Chris Black, Matt Fraction

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  Kiersey Clemons

  May Hewitt

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