Monarch: Legacy Of Monsters Season 2 Finally Resolves A Season 1 Mystery

Titan alert! Spoilers for "Monarch: Legacy of Monsters" season 2, episode 6 ahead.

Let no one claim that "Monarch: Legacy of Monsters" isn't interested in its human-sized protagonists. As much as the Apple TV series sells itself on the strength of its story's Titan spectacle, showrunner Chris Black and his writers clearly have a soft spot for the individuals living among these monsters. While some (like yours truly) may argue the melodrama goes a little too far in "Monarch" at times, there's no denying their intentions. This is a show about people, and season 2 has just shed further light on a crucial character dynamic by resolving a longstanding mystery.

Remember how season 1 was mainly concerned with the whereabouts of Hiroshi Randa (Takehiro Hira), the Monarch employee who led a double life and inspired his two children from two different marriages to track him down at all costs? Cate (Anna Sawai) and Kentaro's (Ren Watabe) estranged father vanished for over a year after "G-Day," leading both on a wild goose chase around the world. While his absence was never quite explained, viewers intuitively understood that this was a result of Hiroshi prioritizing his obsession with work over family.

But what if there's more to it than that? Season 2, episode 6, titled "Requiem," picks up after Hiroshi tragically dies as a victim of Titan X's rampage in Santa Soledad. In an opening flashback set two weeks prior on Skull Island, however, we see Hiroshi and Kentaro sharing a quiet bonding moment (and a beer) on the eve of rescuing Cate and her friends from Axis Mundi, a realm in-between the surface and the Hollow Earth. Here, we learn that Hiroshi was once trapped there as well ... which finally explains why he went missing for so long.

When season 2 began, it wasn't immediately clear how the series would continue its split timeline featuring characters from two very different time periods. In a deft bit of retconning, "Monarch" simply decided to backfill an entire storyline set in the 1950s and beyond, none of which we witnessed in the first season. This is where Bill Randa (Anders Holm), Keiko Randa (Mari Yamamoto), and Lee Shaw (Wyatt Russell) first encounter Titan X, which returns to wreak havoc in the present-day narrative. The show takes a similar approach with Hiroshi's arc by filling in some significant details from his past, though to somewhat less effective results.

It's interesting timing to include one more Hiroshi flashback one week after we watched him die, but even more so to resolve the mystery of his disappearance at such a late point in the show's run. As we know, Hiroshi abruptly left both Kentaro and Cate behind and traveled to Alaska in the immediate aftermath of Godzilla's attack on San Francisco. What we didn't know, as it turns out, is that he discovered a rift there and spent a day or two in Axis Mundi. When he reappeared in Africa, of course, this translated to a full year out on the surface. This adds some nuance to his relationship with Kentaro, who assumed that Hiroshi simply left him in favor of Monarch.

But was it the right move to make us wait this long for that answer? This neatly ties into Kentaro's emotional state, as he thinks back to this moment during his late father's funeral. But this seems like too little and too late. Consider this one of the perils of "Monarch" being a flashback-heavy mystery-box show.

Give "Monarch" this much credit, though: The heartbreaking ending of last week's "Furusato" casts a heavy pall on the events of "Requiem." Hiroshi may not have been the model father figure or the ideal family man, but there's something to be said for abruptly removing characters from the action just as their arc runs its course and exploring how their absence affects the rest of the story. "Requiem," in turn, lives up to its title by memorializing Hiroshi — not just through his funeral, but by having the remaining protagonists wrestle through their feelings about him and come to terms with his death.

Take the scene roughly halfway through the episode, when Cate and Keiko share a quiet moment to themselves (not unlike the opening scene between Kentaro and Hiroshi) and gaze at the stars above. Comparing the light of nighttime stars long gone to their lasting memories of Hiroshi is a source of comfort to these grieving family members. Again, for a show that only just revealed our first real look at Titan X the episode prior, this is exactly the kind of moment that grinds its narrative's momentum to a halt. In this case, though, it's worth reminding us of the stakes involved and the very real human heart beating at the center of this story.

There's sure to be more monster mayhem in the season's remaining episodes, and episode 6 even ends on a cliffhanger hinting at some seriously zany timeline shenanigans to come. For now, though, it makes sense to slow down and linger on the biggest death yet. 

New episodes of "Monarch: Legacy of Monsters" stream on Apple TV every Friday.