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SPOILER WARNING: This section may contain major plot and/or ending details. Proceed at your own discretion. |
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Keiko Randa (née Miura) is a character created by Legendary Pictures who made her first appearance within the 2023 MonsterVerse series, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters.
Personality[]
Keiko is a brilliant scientist who surpassed expectations and barriers set in place for an immigrant woman in the 1950s. She is strong-willed, resilient, stubborn, and dedicated to finding the truth no matter the risks. She knew the Titans are real and does not waver or back down when things become uncertain. Instead, she doubles down on her research efforts. Keiko struggled to work with a team, specifically Lee Shaw and the American military, as she did not trust them or their intentions. The more she got to know Lee, the more she began to trust him. However, her trust went easily to William Randa, a fellow scientist who was more openminded than anyone she knew. Despite being raised in a society that did not value her opinion or worth, Keiko forged her own path and knew her intellect. She navigated racism and Anti-Japanese sentiments with dignity, though she lets her opinion of close-minded people known to those in her trusted circle. To those who knew her, Keiko has a strong wit and sharp tongue laced with blunt honesty.
Keiko understands the importance of her work with Monarch and never let her personal desires get in the way - not even for love. She values life of all kind, including those of the Titans. She was devastated and outraged when the military planned to kill Godzilla. She fought to protect him and was relieved when their efforts were futile. One of Keiko's fears is that the military will use the Titans as an excuse to build a powerful weapon that would later kill something, or someone else. Outside of her scientific career, Keiko wanted to be a loving mother who could give her son Hiroshi a better life, and she fulfilled that wish after her marriage to Bill. She wasn't a mother very long, as she became stranded in the pursuit of scientific research and curiosity before her son was old enough to remember her.
History[]
Monarch: Legacy of Monsters[]
Early Life[]
Keiko was married to a Japanese man and had a son with him named Hiroshi. After her husband died, Keiko studied in Berkeley and had her mother care for Hiroshi. She eventually became fluent in English and Russian during her time in the United States.
1952[]
Keiko travels to the Philippines to study strange readings of airborne radioisotopes on Mindanao. Upon arriving at the docks, she introduces herself to her security escort Lee Shaw, who initially mistook her as the daughter of the Japanese scientist he was supposed to be protecting. After arriving in the middle of the jungle, Keiko and Lee cross paths with William Randa, a cryptozoologist who was following the trail of a creature that inspired local Filipino folklore about a dragon that carves a path of fire across the sky by emitting radiation. Keiko then dismisses Lee from her service due to his inability to trust Billy before realizing that the trails of the creature and the airborne radioisotopes are an exact match. As they trek deeper into the jungle, Keiko and Billy discover what remained of the USS Lawton.
Keiko follows Billy in exploring the Lawton before he revealed that he was the only one who survived when the Lawton was attacked by a massive unidentified terrestrial organism. The exploration takes a darker turn when they come across bodies of sailors encapsulated in nacre. Keiko and Billy decide to escape the Lawton and are rescued by Lee before they take cover in the jungle to watch an Ion Dragon claiming the Lawton as its own.
1954[]
Keiko, Billy, and Lee managed to discover and create an impression of Godzilla's footprint in Indonesia before they present it to General Puckett in order to gain funding from the United States Army so that Monarch can resume its activities. Although they succeed in obtaining the funding, they are frustrated to find Puckett to deploy an atomic bomb to lure Godzilla out to the Bikini Atoll. Keiko believes that Godzilla is more valuable alive than dead and attempts to thwart the operation before she is stopped by Lee. Back at their headquarters, Billy comforts the grieving Keiko as Lee inform them that the American government is willing to give Monarch further funding in case of future Titan emergences. Keiko and Billy agree to keep some Monarch secrets with Lee so that they can study the Titans without outside interferences.
1955[]
Keiko attends the annual summer military ball in Washington D.C. alongside Lee. Keiko feels uncomfortable in wearing a formal dress and that the military personnel look down on her for being a Japanese. Lee decides to comfort Keiko by dancing with her and the pair starts to enjoy each other's company. However, a telegram from the Monarch Headquarters causes them to travel there and they learn from Billy about another Titan sighting in Japan. Keiko and Billy choose to travel together to Hateruma Island where they meet a scientist named Suzuki who created a Gamma Radiation Simulator that will act as a Titan bait. Keiko is surprised that Lee chose to rendezvous with her out of concern for her safety instead of maintaining his station. Keiko and Lee have a heart-to-heart talk about their future and share a kiss when the Gamma Radiation Simulator suddenly shuts down and is destroyed by Godzilla. Keiko is relieved that the atomic bomb in the Bikini Atoll did not kill or even injure Godzilla. When they return to the Monarch Headquarters, Keiko is insistent on keeping Godzilla's survival a secret to prevent the military from continuously trying to hunt him down. However, she grows more frustrated when she learned that Lee had been demoted for insubordination.
Keiko, Billy, and Lee present their findings to Lieutenant Hatch, who remains unconvinced if running Monarch is more prioritized over battling communist spies. When Hatch starts to make disdainful remarks about Keiko, the furious Billy is about to accost the lieutenant as Lee holds him back. Lee plans to tell General Puckett about Godzilla surviving the atomic bomb, but Keiko disagrees since the military will start to build a more powerful bomb in response. Keiko and Billy then comply with Lee's order of creating a map that will show where the Titans are hiding in order to have their former positions reinstated and the government's continued funding. After decorating the office with paper lanterns, she and Billy go through Monarch's field notes as they attempt to discover how the Titans manage to travel across the world without being noticed by humans, but with no success.
Keiko is in her home when Billy arrives and presents his tunnel theory, which suggests that the Titans are using subterranean tunnels to move across the globe. Keiko is gratified by the idea before she introduces her young son Hiroshi to Billy. Keiko eventually reveals her family's history to Billy, who then offers to help Keiko in raising Hiroshi.
1959[]
Keiko, Billy, and Lee are on a M.U.T.O. hunt in the Kazakh countryside with Lee praising Keiko and Billy for being able to raise Hiroshi as a married couple and work for Monarch simultaneously. They then put on masks to protect themselves from the radiation before they run into a boy who is hunting in the supposedly contaminated area. Keiko translates the boy's Russian to Lee and Billy before they discard their masks since the air around the abandoned nuclear power plant is clean. The trio then place seismic charges around the power plant that Lee detonates, which results in them discovering the hollow bedrock. As Keiko, Billy, and Lee delve deeper, they come across an Endoswarmer nursery that she wishes to study, despite concerns from Billy and Lee. Keiko and Billy share a kiss before she and Lee climb down to collect genetic materials. However, the unstable ground slowly awaken the Endoswarmers, prompting Keiko and Lee to climb back up to Billy. Billy attempt to pull Keiko up while Lee provide cover fire with his gun. However, the Endoswarmers' numbers prove too much for Keiko and they appeared to be successful in pulling her to her death into the darkness of the hole. However, Keiko was able to survive her fall and was forced to live in Axis Mundi alone for 57 days. She managed to set up camp as well as craft a bow and arrows to protect herself from hostile creatures such as Brambleboars. She eventually comes across the Monarch reconnaissance pod and the Gamma Radiation Simulator that was left behind by Lee's reconnaissance team and reconfigures the simulator so that she can use it to send a form of S.O.S. to the surface.
2015[]
Keiko shoots an arrow from her bow to scare off a Brambleboar that was about to kill her granddaughter Cate Randa. At first, Keiko believed that Monarch managed to respond to her S.O.S. and have sent a rescue team to bring her back to the surface. She leads Cate to a safer place before crossing paths with May Olowe-Hewitt. Keiko then hears Lee talking from behind a tree as she notices his somewhat different voice. When Lee reveals that Keiko had been trapped in Axis Mundi for 56 years, she breaks down into tears and embraces her aged friend. Keiko is heartbroken upon learning that Billy had died but becomes somewhat comforted after learning that Hiroshi is alive and that he is the father of Cate. Keiko then brings the group to her camp as they decide to build a makeshift wooden barrow to transport the Gamma Radiation Simulator to the reconnaissance pod. Keiko and Lee then talk about how much Monarch and the world have changed in the past decades before continuing their journey. Upon reaching the reconnaissance pod, Keiko becomes more reluctant in returning to the surface since she will be a person out of time. However, Lee and Cate are able to convince her to join them since Hiroshi will be happy if he learns that his mother is still alive. Lee then activates the reconnaissance pod and the Gamma Radiation Simulator to lure and make a Titan stabilize the Axis Mundi portal. However, the Ion Dragon is drawn to their activities and starts attacking the reconnaissance pod. The Ion Dragon's attack causes the Gamma Radiation Simulator to be unplugged, which forces Lee to exit the reconnaissance pod and reconnect the wires. Keiko is about to help Lee in fixing the damage when Godzilla arrives and fights the smaller Titan. Keiko witnesses Lee getting knocked away during the chaos before he runs towards the reconnaissance pod as Godzilla stabilizes the portal after he threw the dismembered Ion Dragon into it. Although Keiko is able to hold onto Lee with the aid of Cate and May, Lee realizes that his weight is bearing them down. Knowing that the inevitable must happen, Lee thanks Keiko for everything and tells her to live before he releases his hold from her as he falls to his assumed death. Keiko is devastated when Lee seemingly falls to his death, though Cate and May manage to convince her to strap in as the reconnaissance pod soars back to the surface.
2017[]
Keiko, Cate, and May succeed in returning to the surface, though their reconnaissance pod lands in an Apex Cybernetics station on Skull Island instead of the Kazakh nuclear power plant. They are soon escorted by Apex personnel before Keiko reunites with and embraces Hiroshi in a tearful hug. She is then introduced to her grandson Kentaro Randa and becomes acquainted with both Tim and Brenda Holland. Kentaro reveals to Keiko, Cate, and May that they are now in the year 2017 as they begin to take shelter inside the research station because of Kong approaching the facility.
Gallery[]
List of appearances[]
Television[]
- Monarch: Legacy of Monsters
- "Aftermath" (First appearance)
- "Departure"
- "Secrets and Lies"
- "Parallels and Interiors" (Mentioned)
- "The Way Out" (Footage)
- "Terrifying Miracles"
- "Will the Real May Please Stand Up?" (Mentioned)
- "Birthright"
- "Axis Mundi"
- "Beyond Logic"