***SPOILER WARNING***
Marvel Studios’ latest superhero outing finally arrived on Disney+. Moon Knight, starring Oscar Isaac, officially entered the MCU early Wednesday morning. I grew up reading Marvel Comics but Moon Knight was a title I never delved into so I was really excited when they announced a live action iteration coming to Disney+. I’m pretty well versed in pop & nerd culture so when a title I don’t know about comes into the spotlight it excites me a great deal as it’s something new to nerd out on. I’m a fan of Oscar Isaac as an actor and as an individual so this concept was a no-brainer for me .
Isaac plays, Steven Grant, a rather meek average gift shop employee who suffers from frequent blackouts while also having memories from a different life. The bulk of the pilot episode focuses on establishing Steven’s character and plays like a psychological mystery. We, the audience, are with Steven on his journey of discovery as he loses time while shifting to his alternate personality, Marc. While these shifts are happening Steven is hearing an unfamiliar voice in his head. The voice of an Egyptian god of course.
The primary antagonist of the series is Ethan Hawke as Arthur Harrow. The opening scene of the show features the character pouring broken glass into his slippers before putting his bare feet in them and walking off. I felt his presence unsettling as a dude who is not right in the head. Arthur seems rather interested in a scarab Steven somehow has in his possession. Arthur feels like a creepy supernatural cult leader who, using his cane and powers/abilities, passes judgment on his followers. He also has the power to quickly drain the life out of someone. Nbd.
The pilot presents a lot of mysteries and questions about Steven that will no doubt unravel as the series progresses. This first chapter is light on showing action but that doesn’t mean action isn’t happening. Part of the way they’re telling the story involves Steven blacking out and coming to. When he returns things have changed the most common being henchmen having been dispatched by his alter ego. There is a car chase, with questionable cgi at times, with intermittent action shown between blackouts.
Mysterious voices, flashes of ancient gods, and lost time all play into the mystery of Steven/Marc. We, of course, know during this lost time he has shifted to his alternate mercenary personality who has the ability to transform into Moon Knight. But how and when he acquired the abilities remains to be seen. Only during the final moments of the episode do we see Steven speak directly to Marc and relinquish control to become our titular hero before the credits roll.
The episode felt like a great character piece into personality disorders. Steven’s blackouts disrupt the order of his life and he begins to lose sight of what is real and what might have been a dream. The blackout scenes are cleverly executed though could’ve used a little more render time on some of the effects. While I would’ve liked to have seen more of Moon Knight in costume I like that the series didn’t rush into the transformation or feel obligated to populate the runtime with bombastic action. I really enjoyed the first episode and I’m looking forward to the unveiling of the mysteries the pilot has set up.
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