Plot: When Steven Grant, a mild-mannered gift-shop employee, becomes plagued with blackouts and memories of another life, he discovers he has dissociative identity disorder and shares a body with mercenary Marc Spector. As Steven/Marc’s enemies converge upon them, they must navigate their complex identities while thrust into a deadly mystery among the powerful gods of Egypt.
Review: If you hadn’t noticed before, all of Marvel Studios’ series on Disney+ have focused on existing characters from the MCU’s big-screen projects. While WandaVision and Loki offered unique spins on secondary players from the feature films so far, Moon Knight represents the first small-screen endeavor to introduce a new superhero to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. A risky move considering that most mainstream audiences likely have no clue who Moon Knight is and how he factors into Marvel mythology, this limited series is a bold and exciting new branch of the MCU that utilizes long-form storytelling to introduce this character without rushing the complex backstory but also doing so in a way that defies the expected formula of an origin story. Moon Knight is dark, funny, and cool in every way.
Most of the footage seen in the trailers for Moon Knight comes from the first two episodes of the series. We are introduced early to Steven Grant, a bumbling gift shop clerk with a penchant for Egyptian mythology. Suffering from sleep-walking, Steven suddenly finds himself thrust into a confrontation with Arthur Harrow, a charismatic cult leader searching for the location of the Egyptian goddess Amit. Steven begins to realize that his sleep issues are in fact the presence of an alternate personality called Marc Spector who reveals their connection to the Moon-god Khonshu for whom Marc is indebted as his servant, the titular Moon Knight. Very quickly, Steven must learn how to harness the voice of Khonshu in his head, the presence of Marc, the threat of Arthur Harrow, and Layla (May Calamawy), a woman with a connection to Marc.
The first four episodes of Moon Knight, the first and third directed by Mohamed Diab and the second and fourth by Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead, are in no direct way connected to the MCU, at least overtly. I did not see or hear a single reference to any existing Marvel character or event. While this may be concerning for some who are worried that this series does not exist in the same universe as the rest of the MCU, I did find it refreshing to not have to look for easter eggs or try and determine how this story plays into the larger tapestry that Marvel Studios is weaving. It reminded me quite a bit of the first season of Daredevil which created its own dark and brutal type of storytelling. But, unlike Daredevil, the budgetary scale of Moon Knight is significant with a very cool mountain-top chase sequence and the roof-hopping night sequence that were both teased in the trailers. There is also a great use of editing in the early fight scenes to show the shifting between Steven and Marc. Most of the action is made up of hand-to-hand combat scenes that really deliver, even when the opponent is fully CGI.
The highlight of this series is absolutely Oscar Isaac who portrays the dueling personalities of Steven and Marc as wholly distinct characters. Many times, when acting opposite himself, Isaac manages to make it feel as if they are two completely different actors playing the roles. At the very least, I hope subsequent seasons or movies featuring Moon Knight will allow for Isaac to explore additional personalities. Much was made of Isaac’s odd British accent, but it works to distinguish Steven from Marc. Isaac also performs a substantial amount of the action work, both in and out of costume, which lends some realism to this fantastical tale. Isaac also works well opposite the fully CGI Khonshu, voiced by the legendary F. Murray Abraham. Abraham brings a snide and powerful performance to the bird-skulled diety which differs from how I interpreted it in the comics but which I still loved. May Calamawy is also quite good as Layla. Joining Marc/Steven on his adventure, Layla is a formidable character and one who holds her own rather than playing a mere love interest.
Ethan Hawke is intimidating as Arthur Harrow, based on a minor villain from the pages of Marvel Comics. Many theories have abounded about just which character Hawke is playing and I am glad to say that through the four episodes I watched, that answer remains ambiguous. It was a bold decision by showrunner Jeremy Slater to create an innovative and original nemesis for Moon Knight but it works because you cannot look it up on Wikipedia and compare and contrast Hawke’s choices. Harrow is a zealot and one we see capable of anything from lying to murder. Harrow has a calm and deliberate presence that makes him all the more frightening to behold. While the end game of Moon Knight remains to be seen, but this series never feels like it overstays its welcome and makes great use of the series format.
There are a lot of other actors in this cast, notably Gaspard Ulliel who died tragically earlier this year, but they all appear in varying if minor capacities. Moon Knight travels from London to Egypt and visits sites we have never seen in an MCU project to date. The tone and style of the series also shift a lot with the early episodes feeling almost like a horror movie or psychological thriller to the middle chapters echoing the Indiana Jones franchise with a rollicking adventure vibe. By the end of the fourth episode, you will feel completely upended as the series takes a very risky move and shifts into something altogether unexpected that I cannot divulge her without spoiling the literal insanity of what you will see on screen. Let’s just say that if you are familiar with Jeff Lemire’s run in the comic books, you will be very happy.
Director Mohamed Diab makes an impressive Hollywood debut after his Egyptian language films Clash and Cairo 678 which are tonally very different than Moon Knight. Diab still evokes a distinct style for this series that still works within the overall structure of the MCU. His colleagues Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead, who directed the excellent horror movie Spring and sci-fi indie Synchronic as well as helming the upcoming season two of Loki, are well-versed in genre storytelling but the trio works seamlessly to make Moon Knight a balanced production that doesn’t waste any screen time at all. Coupled with the score by composer Hesham Nazih and cinematography from Gregory Middleton and Andrew Droz Palermo, Moon Knight looks every bit as good as any big-screen MCU endeavor.
There will be nit-pickers who are going to complain about some of the CGI in this series, notably the Egyptian hellhounds and some moments in the premiere episode care chase. Yes, I will admit that there are some weak spots with those effects, but they are more than made up for with the excellent work on Khonshu as well as with the transformation sequences hinted at in the trailers. In costume, both Moon Knight and Mr. Knight outfits look great and the work on the glowing eyes is one of my favorite effects to date. I love how un-MCU this series is while still feeling right at home in the comic book universe from Marvel Studios. Oscar Isaac is a great addition to this mythos and Ethan Hawke already ranks as one of the best Marvel villains yet. My only complaint is that six episodes are not nearly enough Moon Knight and I already want more.
Moon Knight premieres on March 30th on Disney+.