Monarch: Legacy of Monsters Episode 8 Recap With Spoilers

Monarch: Legacy of Monsters has two episodes left in its first season, raising the stakes as the Monarch civil war takes some surprising turns. Following the heroes’ meeting with Godzilla in the present, Cate, Kentaro, and May attempt to come face-to-face with Lee once again and turn him back from his present course of action which might be doing more harm than good. Luckily, the flashback sequences also have some major developments for Monarch as this latest chapter of the MonsterVerse unfolds. 

Warning. If you have yet to watch episode 8 of Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, be forewarned that we’ll be diving into spoiler territory. 

Present

We return to the past to see Keiko and Billy side-by-side, talking about their future children in quite the departure from the previous episode, since Lee Shaw was pining for her affections. The scene slam cuts back to the Lee of the present, imagining the scene as he wakes up and talks with Michelle to see if she has any regrets when it comes to their Monarch coup. The scene reveals that they are in Kazakhstan in 2015 before smashing to the opening credits.

Tim comes back into the frame, leading Kentaro, Cate, and May to one of Monarch many headquarters. The head of Monarch lays down the current circumstances, informing the trio of Shaw’s current moves and the gamma rays that have been tracked. Stating that the levels of gamma are only a little below those of “G-Day”, the day wherein Godzilla first emerged in the 2014 film, it looks like Monarch is going to have its hands full. Unfortunately, it seems that Shaw’s actions might lead the way for an event comparable to, or bigger than G-Day.

Lee and Michelle arrive at their current destination, the locale that saw the death of Keiko in the first episode. Back to Kentaro, Cate, and May, they discover Tim’s office, which just so happens to be the basement that Billy Randa found himself in for taking a swing at his “commanding officer” at Monarch. Kentaro and Cate discover that Monarch, in essence, cost them both their father and their grandparents. The three discover that Michelle and Lee are set for the locale where Keiko died, and while Monarch can’t send all their forces to the establishment, Cate, Kentaro, May, and Tim get approval to be on their way. 

Cate tries to convince Monarch that only the trio should confront Shaw at first, hilariously dubbing the organization as “Monster Nerds” in the process. The trio and their Monarch escorts walk their way into the uninhabitable locale, registering low levels of radiation, but discovering that “something” is absorbing the radiation. The heroes come across the exoskeletons of the creatures that helped cause Keiko’s demise, coming to the terrifying conclusion that this means the insect kaiju are most likely getting bigger via molting.

The trio and the Monarch agents come across what can be described as “a portal” in the depths of the locale, with Kentaro wondering if it is really that crazy that Shaw wants to close the entryway. Coming across a number of explosives, they are ambushed by Michelle and her forces, as Lee arrives to ask whether the trio now wants to talk. Before they can respond, Lee clarifies that he just wants to talk to Cate.

Lee tells Cate that he believes Godzilla isn’t a destructive force, but instead knows what it’s doing. Revealing the idea of Hollow Earth, Shaw reveals that he’s actually been there and begs for Cate to believe him. Shaw reveals that Godzilla isn’t actually trying to hurt mankind, but is instead trying to keep humanity on the surface and the kaiju in the Hollow Earth, which is why Lee is attempting to destroy the “portals” to the underworld. 

The meeting is cut short as the ground begins to shake, with May falling into the portal and much larger iterations of the insect kaiju making a comeback. Looking far more terrifying than their initial appearances in first episode, Lee attempts to save Cate but sees her fall into the hole to the Hollow Earth as well. The explosives go off as the installation falls around them and the portal seemingly closes to end our episode. 

Past

We return to 1955, as Lee, Keiko, and Billy stand before their new boss at Monarch, with the military replacing Shaw thanks to his recent unexpected absence. The new captain in charge admonishes Lee for wasting military resources on studying kaiju rather than exterminating them, as the trio has been keeping Godzilla’s survival close to their chests. Hatch wonders how Keiko was ever able to receive a security clearance, making light of the “juicy tidbits” that were discovered in her background check, eliciting a punch from Billy. 

Billy finds himself placed in the basement for taking a swing at Hatch, with Lee stating that it was all he could do to make sure Randa wasn’t “thrown onto the street”. Shaw tries to come to a compromise to keep Monarch in operation, asking Keiko and Billy to compile all their notes on kaiju, as they only have three days before the budgetary meeting that might shut them down permanently. As Keiko and Billy work their hardest to save Monarch, the two share a heartfelt moment as Randa reveals he knew he could trust her no matter what. 

In the basement of Monarch, Randa comes to a conclusion that the Titans must live underground, immediately taking his discovery to Keiko at her home. The pair work their way toward discovering the “Hollow Earth”, the location inside of the planet that has been featured in the Monsterverse’s past. In a shocking twist, Keiko is unable to hide her son from Randa, who is Hiroshi, the father of Cate and Kentaro. Keiko then reveals the situation of her family, who she was working to bring to America via her work as a part of Monarch. Billy states that he’ll always have her back, furthering the love triangle that is a part of past Monarch. 

Lee finds himself going directly to his former commanding officer, giving him the maps and studies that Monarch has created so far in a bid to keep them open. Shaw also reveals the terrible truth that Godzilla is still alive after having a nuclear bomb detonated at point-blank range. Lee states that Hatch did not discover this fact, hoping to make sure that Billy and Keiko remain in charge of the organization.