Monarch: Legacy of Monsters roared back onto Apple TV+ with a vengeance in its season 2 premiere, introducing us to new monsters great and small, one of which seems like it was pulled right out of one of the greatest sci-fi franchises ever. The companion show to Legendary’s connected cinematic Monsterverse hit the ground running in episode 1, unleashing the mysterious Titan X along with several other monsters.
Season 2 of Monarch has already focused on Kong given that some of the events take place on the Great Ape’s home, Skull Island, before it was swallowed up by a storm system that wiped out the native Iwi tribe at some point prior to the events of Godzilla vs. Kong. Kong will do battle with Titan X at some point this season, but in the first episode we were introduced to creatures that appear to be either offspring or perhaps symbiotes of the massive new monster.
The Scarabs That Accompany Titan X Are Reminiscent Of Alien’s Facehuggers
As Titan X is unleashed from its dormant state by a rift opened by Cate Randa’s attempt to rescue Lee Shaw from the energy-riddled Axis Mundi, a swarm of smaller creatures emerges from the forest where Lee Shaw finds the still-functional Monarch pod that will allow him to pass through the rift. One of the creatures, which are known as “Scarabs”, finds its way into the pod, leading to a familiar face-off from elsewhere in science fiction.
The tentacled, shelled Scarabs are eerily similar in design and ick factor to the Facehuggers of the Alien franchise. Facehuggers are the second stage of the xenomorph’s development (after the initial egg), and their core function is to find an organism to attach themselves to and implant a juvenile xenomorph in.
Like the Scarabs, Facehuggers look like arachnids or perhaps crustaceans, and are all scuttling legs and waving tendrils. The Scarab even acts somewhat like a Facehugger in its interaction with Lee, trying to jump directly at his face. However, the Scarab’s mouthful of razor-sharp teeth bely murderous intent, not the prospect of a parasitic invasion.
Monarch: Legacy Of Monsters’ Minor Monsters Are A Huge Highlight
As exciting as the massive Titans like Godzilla, Kong, and Titan X are to see on both the big and small screens, one of the most entertaining and interesting parts of Monarch: Legacy of Monsters is how many smaller monsters they’ve introduced to the greater Monsterverse. In just the first episode of season 2, we were introduced to the Scarabs, a huge and horrifying rodent known as a Vinerat, and the hideous hunter known as the psychovulture, which crossed over from the Monsterverse comics.
In season 1, monsters like the Frost Vark, Endopede, and Brambleboar carried some of the show’s most memorable scenes. These monsters serve an important function for the show: they elevate the action and stakes without constantly needing to rely on supermassive Titans who can’t exactly move around the world undetected.
The lesser monsters are an important part of Monarch: Legacy of Monsters‘ identity. The show exists to fill in some of the backstory and expand the lore of the Monsterverse, and monsters like the Scarabs help make it a much richer connected cinematic universe. Episode 1 seems like it’s just the tip of the iceberg in what should be an action-packed second season.
- Release Date
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November 16, 2023
- Network
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Apple TV
- Showrunner
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Chris Black, Matt Fraction
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Kiersey Clemons
May Hewitt