Say hello to the “first damn family” of country music! After a long-awaited premiere, FOX’s soapy new country music drama “Monarch” is finally here. And this multigenerational family saga is basically “House of the Dragon” with guitars, “Succession” with rhinestone cowboy boots or “King Lear” by way of Reba McEntire (as played by Susan Sarandon).
MONARCH: L-R: Susan Sarandon and Trace Adkins in the series premiere of Monarch. CR: FOX © 2022 FOX Media LLC.
We also learn that Dottie may have had some extra motivation to take her own life: She’s been paying off someone nefarious in monthly installments that are set to extend for the rest of her life — all in the hopes of getting back some mysterious documents after she’s gone. The most abstract mystery, meanwhile, involves a barn fire that happened 40 years ago, back when Dottie and Albie were a newly married couple who had just moved into their big country home. It seems like the fire is something Dottie intentionally set . And it might have something to do with Albie’s one brief bout of infidelity.
Given that Dottie reveals she knew about the affair the whole time, could she have started the fire to threaten her husband’s beau? Also, what are the odds that Albie’s former mistress shows up later in the season with a fourth Roman half-sibling in tow? Is that who he’s burying in the ground?!?MONARCH: L-R: Beth Ditto and Anna Friel in the series premiere of Monarch. CR: FOX © 2022 FOX Media LLC.
This premiere is jam-packed with country music performances, and there are no shortage of contenders for the top spot — from Nicky’s opening performance of the catchy original song"Family Tradition."