Could a weirder take be what the MCU needs?
The internet was awash with curiosity and excitement when the new trailer for 'Moon Knight' dropped last week.
Most of the discussion was based around Oscar Isaac's dodgy English accent however, and not on the character himself. And while the accent was a bit off in the trailer, the comics suggest that it might not be his only accent in the show.
Who is Moon Knight?
Originating from the first standalone Moon Knight comic in 1980, Marc Spector, the son of a Chicago rabbi, is a mercenary working in Egypt with a terrorist named Raoul Bushman. However, Spector turns on Bushman after he killed an innocent archaeologist but is left for dead in the desert after being defeated.
He then comes across an ancient tomb, dying from his wounds in front of a statue of the Egyptian moon god Khonsu. The god then resurrects Spector with the intent for him to become a knight of vengeance, essentially being a vessel for the god. So Spector does just that and returns to his native New York to fight some crime. One can assume that an ancient Egyptian god always wanted to spend a holiday in the Big Apple.
Spector then starts to develop dissociative identity disorder, where he inhabits multiple personalities and characters including the new show's very own Steven Grant, played by Oscar Isaac.
Are there any differences from the comics?
In the comics, most of Moon Knight's escapades take place in New York. Spector's alter-ego of Steven is also more of a Bruce Wayne-type billionaire businessman rather than a gift shop worker in London. So there's clearly a big change on that front.
Spector's other alter ego is that of a cab driver named Jake Lockley. We don't see or hear any hints that Lockley is involved at all in the first season but it could definitely be an alley to go down in later seasons.
Another possibility is that the two identities are being forged into one to make the storyline fit a bit better on screen, but we'll have to wait and see on that.
Will we see any familiar faces?
There's nothing the MCU doesn't love more than a crossover and we very rarely, if ever, get a movie or show that doesn't feature another character from the MCU making an appearance.
That being said, there is a lot of space for Moon Knight to create his own story here and he isn't too prominent throughout the MCU. However, there are some characters we may see knocking about in storylines down the road.
Doctor Strange is probably the most logical crossover character, as there's potential tie-ins to multiverses going on with Moon Knight. He could also provide a lot of answers to the character's backstory and his relationship with the Egyptian god.
On a less logical and more aesthetic thread, Mahershala Ali's Blade would be a brilliant link up. Both have a dark and supernatural element about them and it would probably be Moon Knight's best opportunity to get as close to bats without literally just being Batman.
This guy sounds a bit like...
You might have guessed by now that Moon Knight shares a lot of similarities to DC comics' Batman.
Their billionaire socialite alter-egos are nearly indistinguishable. Their fighting style is also quite close. Neither really have any superhuman physical abilities. But their endless pockets seem to more than make up for that with tonnes of gadgets and weapons.
It has led to speculation that Moon Knight is Marvel's attempt at recreating their own version of the Gotham Knight. And whether or not that's true, there's still plenty of space for Moon Knight to carve out its own path.
Should we be excited?
It's hard to say whether or not 'Moon Knight' will be a success or not. It's definitely a more left-field series than we are used to. But if the latest Marvel releases are anything to go by, they seem to be leaning more into the weird. And that's definitely not a bad decision.
There was a growing inertia setting in with Marvel TV and film. But now, in its new phase, they've introduced a host of new storylines which are definitely more experimental than previous generations.
'Moon Knight' will definitely be different. With the release of Matt Reeve's 'The Batman' coming out the same month, it feeds into the demand to get back to grittier superhero storylines. It's a hard angle to nail, but the upcoming show has a lot of potential, and despite the accent, it's in safe hands with a brilliant actor like Oscar Isaac.
I guess we'll just have to find out if it fulfils that potential when 'Moon Knight' hits our screens on Disney+ on March 30.