AppleTV has crafted an excellent sci-fi series that bucks the trend of cinematic universes. AppleTV’s sci-fi catalog is excellent, featuring revered shows like Severance and true sci-fi space epics like Foundation. The former may even go on to be counted among the best sci-fi shows of all time, if it continues its current trajectory.

However, one show specifically moves away from these standalone stories by being part of a cinematic universe. Since the dawn of the MCU’s movie timeline, cinematic universes have become more commonplace than ever. Oftentimes, stories that look as if they are not part of any franchise at all can be tied into other, completely different projects.

AppleTV, though, has created a sci-fi TV show that manages to do the opposite, all while still standing on its own.

Monarch: Legacy Of Monsters Is A Vital Part Of The MonsterVerse

That show is Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, which is part of the MonsterVerse’s timeline that began with 2014’s Godzilla. Monarch is a standalone show, at its core, but it is also a vital part of the MonsterVerse’s wider storytelling. Perhaps the biggest way in which this is the case is the exploration of the lore, world-building, and titans of the franchise.

Monarch delves into the history of the MonsterVerse’s main titans like Godzilla and Kong, while also introducing others, like season 2’s upcoming Titan X. Moreover, it explores the science behind these titans, such as their origins, as well as their habitats, like Hollow Earth, which was introduced in the movie series.

All of this makes Monarch, in many ways, a vital part of the MonsterVerse franchise. While the main movies will make sense to those who have never seen Monarch, the show provides sme key history, background, and context to important parts of the overall universe created.

Monarch: Legacy Of Monsters Rewrites MCU & DCU Rules

Photo courtesy of Apple TV

In this sense, Monarch has rewritten the rules of pre-existing cinematic universes like the MCU and DCU. The latter two franchises have become so widespread that they include projects that can be skipped without missing a story beat regarding the overarching narrative. To exemplify this, the DCU officially began with Creature Commandos, a show that is yet to tie into any other franchise story.

In recent years, MCU shows like Hawkeye, Echo, Secret Invasion, She-Hulk, and Moon Knight, to name only a few, have been released. Thus far, essentially none of the plot points or character arcs in these shows have been necessary for any other shows or movies. The ones that do are minor and are easily recapped in the other projects in question, such as Daredevil: Born Again.

As explored above, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters is different, as it provides vital world-building context to the MonsterVerse franchise.

Monarch: Legacy Of Monsters Still Sets Itself Apart From The MonsterVerse

Despite that, the show still manages to set itself apart from the MonsterVerse. Perhaps the biggest way in which it does so is via Monarch‘s cast of human characters. The human characters and their storylines have been the biggest issue with the MonsterVerse’s movies since the franchise began, but Monarch changes that.

The TV format allows the human characters to be fleshed out in a much more complex way, making them better-rounded individuals than those in the movies. Almost all of the human characters in Monarch eclipse any of the MonsterVerse’s movie characters in terms of writing, providing the biggest difference the show has to the franchise it is part of.

Therefore, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters manages to have a foot in both camps; it both rewrites the rules of modern shared universes by having elements deemed unskippable to the franchise at large, while also employing deeper storytelling and characters that allow it to stand firmly on its own.

Release Date

November 16, 2023

Network

Apple TV

Showrunner

Chris Black, Matt Fraction

Directors

Julian Holmes, Matt Shakman, Mairzee Almas, Andy Goddard, Hiromi Kamata

Writers

Al Letson, Karl Taro Greenfeld, Chris Black, Mariko Tamaki, Amanda Overton, Andrew Colville, Matt Fraction, Milla Bell-Hart

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  Kiersey Clemons

  May Hewitt