While 2014’s Godzilla brought the legendary Japanese monster back to American screens to set up the Monster-Verse, it’s sequel Godzilla: King of the Monsters truly proves that Godzilla is the true king of action sequences and epic fights.

The film follows a group of crypto-zoologists that work under the name Monarch that have been searching for god-likes monsters for decades. While Godzilla seemed to be the king to rule them all, the appearance of a three-headed creature, King Ghidorah, sets to create a battle for dominance between the two. With other creatures, including the fierce volcanic bird Rodan and the mystical Mothra, causing destruction around the world, this group of scientists won’t let Godzilla fight alone and join the fight to stop King Ghidorah and help Godzilla truly become King of the Monsters.

Now, an easy complaint for me with Godzilla films and other giant monster films has always been with its human characters. Personally, these films always have human characters that generally leave no impression, make dumb decisions, and/or just come off as annoying filler between fights. This isn’t fully the case, though, with King of the Monsters as I actually really enjoyed seeing them being a part of fight and playing a bigger part in the film. While the motivations of Vera Farmiga’s Dr. Emma Russell are pretty questionable and a little ridiculous, her family relationship with her ex-husband Mark (Kyle Chandler) and her daughter Madison (Millie Bobbie Brown) is nicely delved into. Chandler actually puts in one of the best performances of the film as he’s charming, fun, and show Mark’s capable attitude at every turn. Ken Watanabe also has a strong performance returning as Dr. Serizawa and he actually has some of the most emotional moments in the film.

Honestly, everyone puts in solid performances and this is probably some of the best human characters in the Godzilla franchise. Their all pretty fun and involved in what’s happening and I can’t really think of many times that they really bugged me, except maybe with Bradley Widford’s Stanton and Thomas Middleditch’s Coleman. Neither of them gave bad performances nor are their characters bad or anything like that, it’s just that I felt like they were too much of comedic relief at times with cringe-worthy lines mixed with jokes that didn’t always land for me. What makes these characters better, though, is how they desire to be involved in the fight and it created a great sequence with a mid-air fight against Rodan. Having the human characters be more involved made their moments feel less like filler between fights and was a nice change that will hopefully continue in the franchise.

Now, if you’re just wondering if King of the Monsters brings the adrenaline pumping fights and visually stunning versions of classic Godzilla monsters to the big screen, you are in for an absolute treat. All of the monsters are truly a sight to see on the big screen and each has a unique presence. King Ghidorah is an immensely menacing foe and it was kind of funny to see each of its heads have its own personality to it. Even other monsters make their own marks on the big screen: Rodan easily has my favorite design with his opening appearance and destruction of a small Mexican city being some of the best parts of the film, Mothra adds a sense of mysticism to the film, and Godzilla has some absolutely epic moments in the film’s finale. These monsters are exactly what fans would want to see and the film delivers memorable moments that fans will need to see. Also, as a side note, I loved how in the credits all of monsters are listed as playing themselves; it’s a great touch.

What impressed me the most though was how the film sets up some great possibilities for the Monster-Verse to explore in the future. While there’s clearly some set-up for Godzilla to face off against King Kong. However, there’s definitely some other routes and other iconic foes that we could be seeing in the future of the Monster-Verse, like Mechagodzilla and Destoroyah, that I think fans would be excited to see. The film even introduces some new monsters to the Godzilla universe that could be making a stronger appearance in the future.

King of the Monsters provides fans with the intense fights they would want to see as well as a bright future for the Monster-Verse. For those that are looking for some of the biggest monster brawls you can see on the big screen, you surely won’t leave disappointed. It’s a pure blast from start to finish and is easily the first big summer blockbuster that you won’t want to miss. Also, if you can, King of the Monsters is definitely worth watching on the biggest screen possible. You won’t regret it.

Watch the Trailer Here: