Skull Island is the first television series based on the Monster Verse franchise and it’s an enjoyable take on the IP. It’s an anime-esque type animation, reminiscent of the Jackie Chan Adventures. 8 episodes with a level of depth not usually associated with such a show…
The show follows 2 adventurers who travel with their sons, Charlie, and Mike, on expeditions to discover new worlds and creatures. After saving a young girl, Annie, at sea they are infiltrated by soldiers who are trying to get to her then shortly attacked by a sea monster. They are then shipwrecked at what we come to learn is Skull Island. Annie is revealed to be familiar with the island as she has been stranded in the area since a toddler. We meet her best friend and giant man-eating lion/dog named Dog. Together, they are forced to fight for survival amidst the dangers of the island from gigantic to small and venomous creatures to mercenaries to the king of the titans himself, Kong.
The voice cast is stellar, and they do well to capture both the fun and emotional moments. Nicholas Cantu plays Charlie who is kind of the main character here. A bold and dynamic American boy who is bored of the sea adventures and just wants to be “normal”. Wants to go to college and meet girls etc. hes funny, shy and over time we get to see his character develop into a courageous survivalist. Annie is a brilliant personality in the show. She’s brave, strong, aggressive, and fearless. There’s a gentleness to her and this is displayed by how oblivious she is to mainland dialogue and mannerisms. Being stranded on the island has left her concealed regarding emotions and all, through the show we see her growth and its enjoyable watch, Mae Whitman does an amazing job. Darren Barnet plays Mike the braver half of the 2 best friends. After suffering some misery early on he adapts this attitude of just diving headfirst into danger especially for his loved ones. His energetic and spirited bond with Charlie is what makes the bulk of the show and provides some excellent comedic humour. The veterans of show are Benjamin Bratt as Cap, super adventurer, and father of Charlie. Phil LaMarr as Sam, one of the mercenaries there to support Irene on her expedition to find Annie. She is played by Betty Gilpin. All 3 are brilliant additions and compliment the young folks effectively.
It’s a cool nice, clean animated style here. It’s like half anime and half 2D/3D style. The action scenes reflect the more anime style combat whilst the chasing scenes add that layer of 3D to it. It comes together neatly with its bright and vibrant colours. The innovative designs of the livestock on the island are fresh and creative. It’s the way each creature has some inventive way of luring its prey to its death. One to mention is the crocodile that at first gallops like a horse then suddenly it stands upright like a human, that even caught me off guard. Theres displays of gore and violence which comes as no shock given the kind of universe we are in; the blood show did still carry a shock factor as the season starts of fun and kind of jolly.
One thing I really liked about the show was the lack of Kong in the first half of the season. It would have been an already played out formula where we follow a giant monster just fight random other monsters’ episode after episode.
The focal point is on the humans and specifically the island. They give the show a lot of heart and story. Everyone seems to have huge story links to each other, and it all comes together well. Charlie is the protagonist, and his journey is fun to watch. Its personal, engaging and most of all its relatable. His relationship with his father is touched on a bit with expectations of Charlie following into his footsteps whilst Charlie has other plans. We get to see that evolve into a more equal partnership. Cap being an explorer is one character we see really enjoy the islands essence. He tends to burst into tears everytime he sees a new monster (despite it most likely being a danger to his health LOL). Mike somewhat takes a back seat to the story although he presents the most potential for an appealing narrative. Dealing with grief, loss, survival, and illness… he’s dealing with a lot. I’m intrigued to know more and how he deals with it more, so I hope it explored in latter seasons. Their brotherhood is cute and although childhood friends you can feel their bond magnify amid survival. Together they are spirited and bounce off each other well. Annie is the glue that holds it all together. With such an emotional engaging back story and future story to unveil this is one character that’s due to be pivotal to the whole show. I’d welcome her to a live action movie. Her connection to the island and her skillset makes for some good plot telling. Her relationship with her dog is hilarious and how it spreads to the others makes for some good content. Her story reveal is a big revelation and ultimately links everything together. We watch as her development with Irene grows and grows. Kong’s involvement although minimal its impactful. His presence is felt in drips and drabs, and it was the right creative decision. He features heavy in the last few episodes with a heart-warming story. You come to understand he too also has a family and is dealing with loss and grief hence his decision to be secluded. Its an angle of Kong we have seen in different mediums. Despite minimal screentime he is the star of the show and delivers the best action scenes. Through all 8 episodes we get glimpses of Kong and the big bad villain. So, everything in between is just a build up to the all-out fight, and it’s a good one. Its not just a monster vs monster, the humans are used as tools to bring it all into fruition. It’s well done.
Overall, it’s a decent watch. I think if you’re not familiar with the universe you could struggle to make it to the end, but I’ll encourage you to stick to it as there is a juicy cliff hanger. If you’re looking for mindless monsters fighting episode after episode, then this show isn’t for you. There is action here but there is more heart and emotion. 25-minute episodes, 8 episodes… I’ll say go for it.
Do you want to see more seasons from this? Would Dog be a fan of yours? Do you think you could survive Skull Island? What do you think of this Monster Verse animation world? React and below…
