In this series, the scientist Jeredy Suno has discovered an odd form of energy that, when combined with technology and DNA, can actually bring a monster to life. This ability to store and release one of these monsters, named Monsunos, is all self-contained in a little cylinder called a core.
When Jeredy goes missing, his son, Chase, and the son's two friends, Bren and Jinja, start looking for the man. When they get to one of the scientist's labs, they find that S.T.O.R.M., a paramilitary group that Jeredy partnered with, is there waiting for them. S.T.O.R.M. shows Chase to a vault that only the younger Suno can open, and inside, he finds a core containing a polar bear-like beast called Lock, as well as a computer that belonged to Jeredy. When S.T.O.R.M. attempts to take Chase's gifts from his father, the three kids fight their way to freedom.
This is only the start of Chase's journey. Over the next few episodes, he will not only gain a few more enemies, but his friends will get their own Monsunos. Bren joins forces with a highly experimental creature called Quickforce, while Jinja gets one that looks like a giant moose named Charger.
As for Chase's enemies, S.T.O.R.M. is always on the trio's trail, but it seems some other organization is after Chase and Lock. They seem to believe that the two are the key to something, but we don't know what.
In the last episode in the collection, Chase, Bren and Jinja travel to an ancient library in hopes of learning more about Monsunos since it seems Jeredy also visited this location. Upon arriving, they realize that not everything is as it seems, but they do leave with a new friend, a monk named Beyal who has his own Monsuno to summon.
As for special features, this first volume, Monsuno Destiny, comes with character bios for both Chase and Lock. For those, like myself, that haven't watched the series live on TV, these actually reveal a bit of the overall plot of the series, at least a lot more than these first five episodes reveal. Then again, what it reveals is pretty predictable stuff for a show like this.
I have to say, as far as first impressions are concerned, there isn't really anything super impressive about Monsuno. I've seen enough of these shows over the years to know pretty much what to expect. That being said, someone in the Monsuno culture will probably really enjoy this show as a complement to the toyline. Unless you are already a fan of either the show or the toys, then this collection of episodes is best left behind.
