Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez story was released on September 19th and is available to stream on Netflix. Following the success of Monster the Jeffrey Dahmer story, the show was renewed for a second season. Creator Ryan Murphy decided to make the second season of Monsters about the Menendez brothers. Watching True crime stories is never easy, but Monsters Season 2 is worth a watch with its strong cast with amazing acting and awareness on harsh themes like abuse. However be aware that this series is not accurate, so it’s best to not judge this case from this series alone since it is made for entertainment rather than documenting. There are things that the series could have fixed such as not exploiting rumors that were made on the real life brothers.

This true-crime drama series is about Lyle Menendez (Interpreted by Nicholas Alexander Chavez) and Erik Menendez (Interpreted by Cooper Koch) who in August 20th, 1989, murdered their parents, Jose Menendez (interpreted by Javier Merdram) and Kitty Menendez (Interpreted by Chloë Sevigny). They were arrested in March 1990, and what would follow was a long 6 year battle with their Lawyer, attorney Leslie Abramson (Interpreted by Ari Graynor) with their 1st trial ending in a mistrial and in 1995 their second trial a flawed trial. During the 2nd trial only Erik testified as Lyle refused due to a book being released spilling all the details on how he felt on the 1st trial. The Jury convicted the brothers of 1st degree murder and sentenced them to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

One of the best parts of this show was the talented actors who portrayed the brothers. For starters Cooper Koch who is relatively new to the big screen did an amazing job portraying Erik Menendez. In real life Erik was described as shy and quiet by people close to him, and it’s very obvious that Koch did his absolute best to portray Erik in the correct light and the prime example is episode 5, The Hurt man. This episode is unlike the rest in this series, this episode revolves on Erik Menendez describing the abuse and effect of the abuse he suffered from early childhood. What makes this episode very special is that it is shot in a single take.  Koch’s ability to express emotional vulnerability was very good and the one shot was genius as it makes viewers feel that they are in the room with Erik listening to his experiences. Though the depiction of Lyle is questionable due to his aggression, what is undeniable is the acting he gave. This becomes noticeable during episode 6, Don’t Dream it’s over, this episode dives deep into the emotional and physical abuse their father did to them. Chavez’s best moment was when he was able to keep Erik from suffering at the abuse his father wanted to cause him, he showed a lack of fear and depicted bravery to protect his younger brother. He was also able to demonstrate complex emotions because when Lyle is on screen with his dad, Chavez is able to depict Lyle as scared and shy with his dad.

Something that is overlooked in the series is that the set design and clothing choices were very appropriate for the 90’s. Erik, Lyle, and Jose are seen wearing polo shirts through various episodes, which were popular in the late 80’s and early 90’s and occasional sweaters with graphics printed on them. The clothing design also helps show the aspect that they were rich as along with the polo shirts they wear sweaters over their shoulders which is something that was usually seen in rich people. Something that made the series more entertaining to watch was the soundtrack choices, songs by popular 90’s musical artists like Vanilla Ice and Milli Vanilli were chosen. The song that became more popular with this show is without a doubt, is Girl I’m Gonna Miss You. Even though the song is about two lovers who are parting their way, the song was still a great choice for the brothers. The song is 1st played during the memorial service of Kitty and Jose Menendez as Lyle chose this song to say goodbye to them. The song fit okay here as Lyle wanted to let the people know that he was emotionally detaching himself from his parents due to their death. The song was also played when Lyle and Erik were being transferred to state prison, but sadly they were put in different prisons. The lyrics “It’s a tragedy for me to see the dream is over” fit the emotional separation as the brothers had dreamed of ending their long life abuse and in hopes of a new life, but with their conviction that dream could no longer be.

Creator Ryan Murphy recently admitted that in this season he included multiple perspectives, so viewers could know the opinions from people like lawyers and the public at the time of the crime. Though it’s understandable as to why this decision was made, its execution was not the best. One of the worst aspects of the show is that Murphy decided it’d be a good idea to depict the brothers having an incestuous relationship, During the trial, prosecutors brought up the theory that the brothers might have had an incestuous relationship, and the motive for killing their parents was to hide their relationship. During the trial there was absolutely no evidence for this. The brothers did not have an incestuous relationship, they had a protective bond and Lyle was only trying to protect Erik from the abusive parents that they had. The portrayal of Lyle Menendez is also very questionable as he is portrayed as rather aggressive and mean-spirited. Throughout the series Lyle curses multiple times and even goes as far as yelling at Erik for crying and insults him for being sensitive about the murder of their parents. In a way Lyle’s trauma from abuse was overlooked and at times he didn’t show signs of being scared or worried, instead he is depicted as being filled with enthusiasm to kill his parents. 

During the second episode, the Menendez brothers seem like horrible individuals when they go on a spending spree. This happened in real life as in 1989 following the murder of their parents they spent approximately 700,000 dollars.This money was spent buying cars, Rolex watches, staying in fancy and expensive hotels. This is portrayed in the series, but the writing makes them seem like spoiled brats who are enjoying this and they even threw a party with dozens of people, despite this never happening in real life. This was a very disrespectful portrayal as instead of portraying them as victims who went on a spending spree to drown their conscience, they were depicted as brats who killed their parents to inherit their money. Speaking of which, the brothers are also focused on finding the will of their dad, as they suspected that they were left out of will after robbing neighbors houses, which once again happened in real life. However, what didn’t happen in real life was the brothers being so worried about destroying the will, making them come off as evil people. The Menendez brothers are not evil or spoiled brats, they are victims of sexual abuse and physical abuse who deserve some respect for being willing to speak up about their trauma. The show even caught the attention of the real Erik Menendez who said the show was full of lies about him and his brother.

On the bright side, Thanks to the popularity of the series, several people have taken to instagram to express their opinions. As mentioned before Nicholas Alexander Chavez has taken over instagram and tik toks as various fan girls have expressed their interest over him and express their attraction towards them. Thanks to the series he has become known as the latest internet’s boyfriend. However the biggest influence that the series has had is that this generation has pushed for their release. On tik tok and instagram there are multiple accounts advocating for their release saying they are the real victims and deserve a chance at freedom.