The newest member of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Moon Knight has arrived on Disney+ with a six-episode series and a talented cast and crew. With award-winning Oscar Isaac and Ethan Hawke in the leading roles and directing split between Egyptian director Mohammed Diab and the indie-filmmaking director duo Justin Benson and Aaron Moorehead, this newest entry into MCU has some unparalleled talent both behind and the front of the camera.
The show’s protagonist, on the other hand, is a lesser-known figure. Moon Knight is a C-level Marvel superhero at best. Since 1980, he’s had a lot of solo series, but none of them have lasted more than 40 issues. Moon Knight only appears in company-wide crossovers, and his time with the Avengers was limited to the West Coast squad.
Who is Moon Knight?
Marc Spector is a mercenary who primarily operates in Egypt and is killed beneath the statue of Khonshu – the Egyptian Moon God – during one of his operations when he strikes a deal with him to become Khonshu’s fist of vengeance and deliver vengeance on those who do evil while also protecting the vulnerable. Marc brings the statue home and uses the meager fortune he acquired as a mercenary to combat crime, taking on the identities of Steven Grant, a businessman, Jake Lockley, a taxicab driver, and most recently Mr. Knight, a consultant.
Moon Knight first appeared in August 1975 in Werewolf By Night #32 as an enemy, but he was eventually granted his series after becoming a fan favorite. Doug Moench and Don Perlin designed him. Due to the close parallels between the two characters and how Moon Knight has proven to be a highly interesting individual in his early days, much like Gotham’s caped crusader, the caped hero has been dubbed “Marvel’s Batman” by comic fans all over the world.
With two of the episodes already released on the 30th of March and the 6th episode, here is a list of the top 10 comics that you should read while waiting for the third episode.
Moon Knight: Bad Moon Rising (1980)
Okay, this is where the fun begins. This compilation contains the first installment of the solo Moon Knight series. It’s a significant alteration in the character and presents Marc Spector’s origin, first published in 1980 by writer Doug Moench and artist Bill Sienkiewicz.
Spector’s origin story is intriguing and unconventional for a Marvel superhero. He’s a henchman for a mercenary named Bushman, but a few issues in, when Bushman is about to kill innocent people and his employer strikes him down, he has a sudden attack of conscience. The Egyptian deity Khonshu brings him back to life, and he begins his career as a superhero, implementing the god’s wrath.
Moon Knight: From the Dead (2014)
If you only read one Moon Knight novel, make it this one. Although writer Warren Ellis and illustrator Declan Shalvey’s run is just 17 issues long, it is one of those character-defining runs that is excellent for both longtime fans and newbies. Each issue is mostly self-contained, experimenting with panel layouts and genre narrative in ways reminiscent of classics such as Grant Morrison’s Animal Man and Alan Moore’s Watchmen.
It’s this series that introduces “Mr. Knight,” a costume alteration that was significantly featured in the production of the Disney+ series.
Moon Knight (2005)
The 2006 series, with Charlie Huston writing and David Finch, Danny Miki, and Frank D’Armata on art, should be the go-to for anyone looking for good Moon Knight stories, second only to the 2014 run. Marvel put several of its heroes through the wringer in the mid-2000s. Huston’s Moon Knight, like Bendis’ Daredevil, is a hero on the verge of extinction. He’s lost his friends, his love, and Khonshu’s sponsorship. If you’re looking for a series that’s brutally raw and lavishly gritty, this is it.
Moon Knight (2010)
Moon Knight fans have differing opinions: I enjoy the Bendis and Maleev Moon Knight mini-series. It doesn’t have the best reputation among fans, since it marks the beginning of Bendis’ star waning from his celebrated Daredevil run to his widely panned Guardians of the Galaxy run, but there’s enough of Daredevil’s creative spark to make this run enjoyable. Maleev also doesn’t miss, which is evident in his work on Moon Knight.
Spector has returned to the West Coast and appears to be back in the big leagues, as he partners up with some of the Avengers’ biggest names to take down a crime ring. Without giving anything away, it’s not that straightforward.
Moon Knight (2016)
Following in the footsteps of Warren Ellis is a tough job, but writer Jeff Lemire and illustrators Greg Smallwood and Jacob Thomas succeed wonderfully. Moon Knight has a reputation for being one of the most psychologically disturbed characters, and Lemire takes advantage of that by putting Spector in a facility where he can’t tell the difference between his dreary surroundings and Khonshu’s fanciful illusions. The tale is nice, but the art is the real star, as it flawlessly merges everyday New York with a fantastic vision of Egyptian legend.
Moon Knight: Crazy Runs in the Family (2017)
Following Jeff Lemire’s run on the character, writer Max Bemis and illustrators Jacqui Burrows and Mat Lopes focus on the character’s mental health with a new nemesis who serves as a dark mirror to Spector. Moon Knight is battling not only the fight between his identities, but also a new foe known as The Truth, a mental patient who can see into other people’s brains and drive them insane. Bemis takes a more thoughtful approach to the subject than some of the others on this list, and the result is a moving arc. Bemis also manages to make some big adjustments in Moon Knight’s life, which provide Spector with new opportunities and difficulties.
Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man (1976)
This isn’t the first time the Moon Knight has teamed up with the good guys; that honour belongs to Defenders #47, but this arc is a lot less complicated than that. The plot is fairly standard, with a good guy who doesn’t kill fighting a good guy who does kill, as seen in crime-fighting contemporaries like Daredevil and Punisher, but it’s an effective setup that helps Moon Knight sell himself as a gritty counterpoint to Spider-Man, despite his outlandish costume.
Marvel Knights (2000)
There have been previous Moon Knight team-ups, and he was even a member of the West Coast Avengers in the 1980s, but he really finds his feet with this totally-not-Defenders organisation comprised of diverse street-level characters such as Punisher and Daredevil. Recent seasons have carefully avoided emphasising Spector’s wealth, but in this case, Spector serves as the operation’s financier and electronics expert. It’s a specialised function that he excels at.
Avengers: Age of Khonshu
Khonshu’s powers are boosted by a supermoon, and the deity appears to be aiming for world dominance. Moon Knight is obligated to fulfil the Egyptian god’s wishes as his earthly agent, which puts him in direct conflict with his Avengers friends and supporters. It’s Moon Knight in full strength, battling the likes of Thor in some epic battles.
Is it, however, good? Even if it squanders some of that promise, it’s still a really interesting and unique set-up for a Moon Knight narrative.
A concept known as “blue-orange morality” describes a character’s moral spectrum being so different from “normal” that what’s good or evil for them isn’t comparable to anything on the black-and-white spectrum. Age of Khonshu is at its best when it focuses on the Egyptian god’s inability to recognise good and evil in the same way that modern superheroes do, but it loses some of that as the story ultimately concludes with a return to the status quo.
Moon Knight: The Midnight Mission (2022)
Trying to right some of the wrongs from Age of Khonshu, the Mr. Knight personality opens a shelter for those in need and starts to take on the “duties” of the wayward Egyptian god, but the new mission leaves Moon Knight contending not only with gangs and other traditional enemies but with rival worshippers of Khonshu who view this new imperative as heresy. Like the eponymous hero, writers Jed Mackay and artists Alessandro Cappuccio and Rachelle Rosenberg also work through the unenviable task of rehabilitating the scorned hero, and it makes for a quality series.
The CineSquad 