Marvel's Moon Knight is a wild rollercoaster ride. Very chaotic, but also very entertaining. Unlike Disney+'s previous Marvel series, Marvel's Moon Knight showcases an all-new character. This character, Moon Knight, is an alter ego of the museum employee Steven Grant (Oscar Isaac, Scenes from a Marriage (US)). Steven suffers from voices in his head, which occasionally take over his body. Then he wakes up in the strangest places and has no idea what he did exactly. One of those voices comes from Marc Spector, a mercenary who has supernatural powers thanks to the Egyptian moon god Khonshu (F. Murray Abraham, Homeland). As the superhero Moon Knight, Steven and Marc take on Arthur Harrow (Ethan Hawke, The Good Lord Bird), a cult leader who worships the goddess Ammit.
Marvel's Moon Knight is an incredibly entertaining series, but also a chaotic one. As a viewer, you are thrown around and the series has little rest. From museums in London to Egyptian tombs, even the edge of the underworld is explored. On the one hand, this chaos fits well with the series and the themes that come along. It's confusing, and it should be; Steven himself has no idea what is going on and where those voices in his head come from. On the other hand, a breather is nice every now and then. Because there are only six episodes, there is little room for this and watching all episodes in a row can be quite exhausting.
Moon Knight is chaotic, but a lot of fun
And yet it is extremely entertaining. Once you understand what binds Steven and Marc and how the relationship between the two works, it is fun viewing. It looks good, the action is tight and the constant twists and turns make it exciting. What makes the series chaotic but also strong is a multitude of different styles. It's a classic superhero story, but at the same time we see an Indiana Jones-esque adventure, psychological drama and a little bit of horror. Not every element works equally well, but the mix is very nice.
Oscar Isaac plays several fantastic roles
The big attraction here is Oscar Isaac, who knows how to play both Steven and Marc with verve. He portrays both characters and distinguishes enough between the two. He looks a bit like James Nesbitt, who played the lead role in the series Jekyll. The acting is a bit exaggerated at times, but that's fine. Harrow proves to be a formidable and memorable opponent, and Marc's wife Layla (May Calamawy, Ramy) is a nice addition to the mix.
Moon Knight is a completely new character for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and partly because of this, this first season has hardly any connections with the other films and series from the film universe. On the one hand, it's a shame, because all those connections to the rest of the universe are nice. But at the same time, the series also knows how to stand on its own two feet.
The first truly new superhero from Marvel's Disney+ stable is an entertaining, if chaotic, experience. However, a strong leading role for Oscar Isaac goes a long way. Although the series doesn't seem to be really connected to the rest of the Marvel Cinematic Universe yet, the series is making a name for itself. Disney has not yet announced whether there will be a second season of this, but I think there is a good chance that we will see Moon Knight in other projects.
About the writer, Karzal
Mike (1995) has been a member of MySeries since 2016 and is mainly active on the English version of the site. Since 2018, he has been actively translating news articles, columns, reviews and basically everything that ends up on the Dutch site. The original articles, columns and reviews were actually written by others. During the week Mike can be found at IKEA, where he is a national systems specialist and occasionally also in the classroom to teach an English lesson. In addition, Mike logically enjoys watching series and has actually been spoon-fed this from an early age. The genre doesn't matter, there is a place for everything in the otherwise busy life.
