In Review: Monarch: Legacy of Monsters (S2 – EP6) Requiem

Synopsis: In Requiem, Shaw and Suzuki test a “Titan phone” designed to summon Godzilla, but the experiment triggers an unforeseen event that places Shaw on a collision course with his own past.

The Story

Picking up from last week’s episode, we open with a brief flashback to Kentaro and Hiroshi’s time on Skull Island, offering a quiet bonding moment between father and son.

From there, the action shifts back to 2017 and the funeral service for Hiroshi, who tragically died in the previous episode while saving Cate from Titan X.

After the service, Lee, Keiko, and Cate decide to follow Dr. Suzuki, a disgraced Monarch scientist who once found a way to contact Godzilla back in the 1950s before being cast out when his experiment went wrong. We learn that Hiroshi had secretly been working with Suzuki in recent years, helping refine his invention.

Lee and Suzuki head to the site where Lee first reappeared after his trip to Axis Mundi, intending to test a new version of the device. Keiko and Cate are far less convinced, questioning Lee’s plan to summon Godzilla as a weapon against Titan X.

Meanwhile, Cate and Keiko make a breakthrough of their own, deciphering the signal Cate has been receiving. Cate, who appears to have developed a strange empathy with Titan X, comes to believe the creature isn’t attacking out of aggression, but panic. It’s lost.

Elsewhere, Kentaro goes on a brief bender with May, but the night takes an awkward turn when he tries to kiss her. Left on his own, he encounters a mysterious young woman named Isabel, who seems to know more about him than she initially lets on.

In 1958, Bill and Keiko Randa settle into one of Monarch’s first complexes, meeting their secretaries and getting a look at their new offices. A younger Lee Shaw, however, chooses to step away from Monarch, uneasy about continuing to work alongside Keiko after their past together.

That decision doesn’t last. Realising that life outside Monarch isn’t what he wants, Lee ultimately asks for his job back by the episode’s end, as Keiko and Bill prepare to travel to Kazakhstan, where unusual activity may signal the emergence of another Titan.

The Acting

Anna Sawai and Mari Yamamoto both deliver strong performances in this episode as we begin to see Cate and Keiko genuinely bond. Cate, who isn’t a scientist, starts to connect with Keiko, her remarkably young-looking grandmother, on a deeply human level.

I particularly enjoyed the scene where they both chastise Lee (Kurt Russell) over his plan to try and bring Godzilla through the portal.

However, their standout moment comes when they realise Cate is receiving a message from Titan X. What follows is a great blend of instinct and science, as they work together to decode the signal and uncover what it might actually mean.

Overall

Another enjoyable episode that stirs a little more mystery into the mix, particularly with the introduction of Isabel, who already feels like a wildcard worth watching.

I’m also really enjoying the growing tension between Keiko and Cate and Lee, especially when it comes to his plan to bring Godzilla into the equation. It adds a welcome layer of conflict that feels both personal and high-stakes.