REVIEW: New Disney+ Series Moon Knight, Is One Mind Trip Through Time, Space, and Multiple Personas

Marvel Studios released the first episode of the new series Moon Knight exclusively for Disney+. The series stars Golden Globe winner Oscar Isaac (Show Me a Hero, Star Wars Trilogy) as both Steven Grant/Mr. Knight and Marc Spector/Moon Knight, alongside Ethan Hawke (The Good Lord Bird, Before, Trilogy) as Arthur Harrow and May Calamawy (Ramy, The Long Road Home) as a smart and witty Layla El-Faouly. 

The creators pulled from their favorite elements of the original versions of the comics, which gives you a unique superhero who is also battling to understand his own mental health with a dissociative identity disorder. This Moon Knight story is a brand new one, and according to the showrunners, not connected to MCU, so it’s a fresh start on a Marvel Super Hero that no one has seen before. We see the series paying homage to the original comics with supernatural aspects, including the Egyptian god Khonshu, who manipulates Marc (a former mercenary and brutal avatar of Khonshu) to do his bidding but with a remarkably modern twist.

The first four episodes of Moon Knight will not disappoint. Issac is an acting tour de force, although at times it feels like he’s carrying the entire series because he is; he’s that incredible. Ethan Hawke’s character is interesting as this somewhat cult leader that Steven runs into after one of his blackout identity rides, but is a bit subdued by default, contrasted with Oscar’s acting masterclass playing numerous personas. When you think the series becomes a bit predictable, episode four won’t let you down with a terrifying mind twist between Issac and Hawke’s characters in a psych ward.

Moon Knight pulls you in with its stunning cinematography, sound, and numerous dynamic performances by Issac. He is introduced in the series as a quirky but smart British museum gift shop employee, Steven Grant, who is nervously placing blue tape on the door hinges of his bedroom at night. He’s poured a stream of sand around his bed, terrified of dozing off with self-inflicted ankle restraints, as he doesn’t know what to expect next when he does eventually fall asleep.

Grant is dashing through alternative realities, bombarded with a sacred scarab in one situation and outrunning gang members in another, all of which he didn’t sign up for. He forgets a steak dinner date while dodging death and bullets, and before he blinks, he’s transported out of sticky situations into various time periods that could have caused his demise.  He also realizes he has special Egyptian god powers that transform him into a superhero enabling him to kick some butt.

Steven continues to be thrust into treacherous situations and complicated identities while being thrown into a deadly mystery among the powerful gods of Egypt. Spector is an avatar and Grant learns that he is indeed one too, hearing a deeply disturbing baritone voice in his head, Khonshu (a CGI character voiced by Academy Award winner F. Murray Abraham), that literally bounces into your soul each time as he advises Grant and convinces him to let go while taking over his body. Grant also sees visions in his reflection, including his own vision by another name, Marc Spector (also played by Isaac). 

Creator Jeremy Slater and directors Justin Benson, Mohamed Diab, and Aaron Moorhead get to experiment with this series and aren’t constrained to a two to three-hour movie, so they get to dive deeper into the mind of Steven/Marc in these 45 minute plus episodes. The stunts are incredible, and the direction is immersive; you’re glued to Issac’s compelling performance the entire time and buckled in along for the ride. Isaac was quoted by Marvel as stating, “you are within the eyes of Steven and experiencing this thing that’s happening to him. And it’s quite terrifying.” We couldn’t agree more; Moon Knight is an adrenaline-filled, gripping, visual, and pulsating experience.

The executive producers include Kevin Feige, Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Brad Winderbaum, Grant Curtis, Oscar Isaac, Mohamed Diab, and Jeremy Slater, with Trevor Waterson and Rebecca Kirsch serving as co-executive producers. 

Moon Knight is a fantastic series with humor, wit, adventure, and a well-thought-out story that will have you invested. The series launches on March 30 exclusively on Disney+.