Moon Knight is the latest addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe and focuses on a former U.S Marine with a dissociative identity disorder and powers bestowed upon him by an Egyptian Moon God. The series has begun streaming on Disney+.
Recap
A strange man goes through a peculiar ritual of breaking glass and then placing the broken shards inside his shoe before wearing them out on a walk. The main has a tattoo of weighing scales on his right arm which looks intriguing.
Steven Grant wakes up in a dazed state. He investigates his ankle brace that is attached to a pillar near his bed. There is an untouched circle of sand surrounding the bed and a strip of tape stuck on the crease of the door and frame.
Steven rushes to work at the museum in London where he works. His colleagues belittle him and call him by the wrong name, except for one girl who says that she is excited about their date. A date he does not remember asking her out on.
He heads back home and begins his ritual to help him stay awake, but he eventually falls asleep. When he wakes up, he finds himself in a random field near a small village. He has people shooting at him and a disembodied voice scolding him and calling him an idiot.
In a bid to escape them he wanders into the village where all the people are gathering in the square around the strange man from the beginning. He goes by the name Harrow, and he passes judgement on people based on what his tattoo tells him.
The scales decide whether a person has been good or bad and when an old woman is found to be bad, Harrow appears to take the life out of her. His attention is drawn to Steven who has a golden scarab in his pocket. He tries to return it to them but something keeps stopping him.
As he tries to run away from the men, he seems to be floating in and out of consciousness and soon after these bouts, he sees that everyone around him is dead. An exciting car chase ensues down the mountain where the disembodied voice continues to berate him and keeps referring to someone named Marc.
He survives the ordeal before waking up once again in his bed. After noticing some strange things around him, he realizes that he’s almost three days of his life. He goes back home all worried and while he’s there, he comes across a phone and some keys.
The phone rings and someone named Layla talks to him from the other side, referring to him as Marc and then disconnecting when he isn’t able to comprehend what is happening.
That’s when the situation truly gets out of hand as Steven begins to hear his voice and see his reflection moving independently. He also sees a terrifying creature that haunts him before yet again waking up on his way to work with no recollection of how he got there.
This time he notices that the man named Harrow is following him and catches up to him in the museum. Harrow seems to be devout to the Egyptian deity, Ammit, whose reason for existence is to pass judgment on sinners.
Harrow is still after the scarab and decides to wait for his moment. Later that night as Steven is taking inventory, he hears the sounds of a dog in the museum. It is a ferocious dog-like creature coming for Steven unless he returns the scarab.
Steven runs into a washroom where he is confronted by his reflection. Marc talks to him across the divide, insisting that he be given control so that he can save them. Just as the creature breaks in, the switch takes place and the next we see the creature it is being taken down by the Moon Knight.
Review
- The background score and soundtrack show early signs of promise with some inspired choices.
- Oscar Issac’s acting ability is on full display and even his British accent sounds spot on.
- The car chase and the implication that Marc is taking control before switching back to Steven were truly exciting to watch.
- The final reveal of the Moon Knight was wonderfully done, with a sublime build-up before the impactful appearance.
Rating: 3.5/5
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