By Daniel Paiz

Initially a show that didn’t get the attention it deserved in 2021, Marvel’s Hit-Monkey returns for a season 2 with so much to tackle. Marvel TV had a wide array of shows out there prior to Disney buying everything and the shows getting cancelled. While most cancelled shows were on Netflix before being absorbed by the Mouse, Hit-Monkey and M.O.D.O.K were a few of the Marvel TV shows shown on Hulu.

Things shift for Hit-Monkey in season 2 as the story moves from Japan to New York City, and there’s a whole new world to figure out for Hit-Monkey and Bryce. In case you’re unfamiliar with how season 1 unfolded, here’s a brief recap with some spoilers (it’s been out since 2021, you can catch up through the ten episodes pretty quickly).

Season 1 Recap

An introduction to this show requires viewers to be open to unusual character pairings, and that violence is ever present. Hit-Monkey is a Japanese macaque, also known as a snow monkey in the show’s description; his troop lives in the mountains of Japan and are found in hot springs in the winter. Bryce is an American assassin hired to kill a candidate running for prime minister, and after doing his job, gets double-crossed by the Japanese military and runs into the snowy mountains to escape. He heals and for a time, is part of the troop.

Unfortunately, the military doesn’t let him off the hook, killing Bryce and then taking out the macaque troop as well. This ties Hit-Monkey and Bryce together. Bryce then returns as a demon spirit to play Monkey’s… mentor of sorts? His role fluctuates as the season unfolds. Monkey learns quickly how to shoot guns, fight, kill, and generally become an assassin of sorts. These two work to find who ordered the hit on Bryce and by extension Monkey’s troop.

The dysfunctional duo works their way through the list of people involved in the hit. They take out the Accountant, the Rooster, deal with Lady Bullseye multiple times, the Bonsai Master, Silver Samurai and then finally reveal Shinji’s role in the death of his friend and colleague. Akiko doesn’t seem able to grasp what Shinji and Bonsai Master did and turns on Monkey.

More besides that happens, but to go over each episode would take another 1300 words or so (or three-four pages of notes while watching these 10 wonderful episodes). Part of the more that happens which is important to note is, detectives Ito and Haruka are along a similar path of uncovering corruption. Haruka joins up with Bryce and Monkey after the death of Ito.

There are basically three arcs that take place in season one. For Hit-Monkey, those stages are:

• learning the role of assassin/killer 
• trying to figure out why he was picked for this, why he has the role of taking out bad guys and exacting justice and what’s right 
• accepting the role of being a killer of killers 

For Bryce, his three stages are:

• Accepting that he is dead and has to learn how to move through the astral realm
• That everything does not revolve around him, that he has to accept and take responsibility for his actions, and help others to undo the harm he’s committed thus far
• to be a mentor to Hit-Monkey and to give him tips and tricks of the trade, and advise how to navigate the world of humans, which Monkey is continuously learning
• A redemption tour of sorts where he helps others and rights past wrongs

Season 1 is about learning from your past. It’s about taking accountability for what led one to this point, and that until you change yourself, you can’t really change anything. People get comfortable with where they are in life, and in order to undo and unlearn bad habits and behaviors, it takes honesty with self. It will take time. It will require uncomfortable conversations and uncomfortable realizations.

New info will lead to taking new actions, and things will be fluid. Vengeance isn’t everything, and it won’t give the solace one seeks. Coming to terms with what leads one to seeking revenge and a selfish, idealized version of justice will break the cycle of behavior. Trauma can be compartmentalized only for so long. It will surface in unexpected ways. 

Season 2 Predictions

Hit-Monkey likely will find out where his connection to righting wrongs and killing the killers comes from. Bryce will continue to right wrongs, even reconnecting with his daughter. Haruka will look for a new life but seemingly has Bonsai’s powers in some capacity. Akiko is now on her path of self-serving vengeance and justice. New players will add to the paths these four are on and will likely explore the ideas of good and evil, corrupt and just, and vengeance and healing.  

Hopefully, there’s also more comic connections and universe-building of this anti-hero macaque who is fighting his way through pain and loss. New York City will present a whole new set of challenges, and perhaps audiences get to see more Marvel characters as well. Since Hit-Monkey appears to be outside the MCU, anybody might show up.

It also appears that Haruka and Akiko’s paths might cross, and these two will also play key roles to the overall plot. New characters like Bryce’s old agent, Eunice Jones, will also be intriguing to see how they impact season 2. There’s always the chance for a double cross from someone trusted, a la Shinji in season 1. It seems like a new character would be rife for that role of dirty shenanigans. However, it might be unlikely due to it being too repetitive and too reminiscent of season 1. Only time will tell how this monkey madness unfolds, but luckily season 2 releases in just a few hours at the time of this publication.