‘Moon Knight’ Episode 3 Review
WARNING: SPOILERS FOR MOON KNIGHT EPISODE 3 “The Friendly Type”
This week’s Moon Knight cold opens with Layla and a relative forging her an Egyptian passport so she can return to Cairo for the first time in over a decade. We learn that she is a Robinhood type who returns artifacts and antiquities to their rightful place and that her deceased father was an archeologist. As a character, Layla appears to be based on a combination of Marlene from the Moon Knight comics and Rachel Wesiz’s Evelyn from The Mummy. Later in the episode, it is hinted that Marc may have killed Layla’s father or known more about the circumstances surrounding his death. This is something to keep an eye on as it could break their already fragile and damaged relationship.
We then jump over to a desert outside of Cairo where Harrow leads his followers to Ammit’s tomb in an Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade sequence. At the same time, Marc is searching for information on Harrow’s dig team back in the city. We get a great couple of knife fight sequences where we see Marc and Steven communicating with each other, focusing on the relationship that is at the heart of the show. There is an altercation between Marc/Steven and a group of assailants. Just as Marc is about to kill one of the men, Steven forces a takeover of the body and Marc eventually comes to in a cab on the way to the airport. Marc resumes his pursuit of the assailants but is then knocked unconscious. When Marc comes to again, he is now on a cliffside, having stabbed the two adult assailants, leaving only the kid. Marc accuses Steven of the violence, only for him to deny it. This leads us to believe that there may be a third more violent identity inhabiting their body. The sequence may be pointing to a rework of the Jake Lockley identity from the comics where Jake becomes a cab driver and develops connections with spies in the underground parts of cities. It may also lend itself to Steven’s connection to the living statue street performer Crowley from episodes one and two, who is one of Jake’s informants in the comics. Eventually, Marc brings the boy to the ledge to force information out of him at Khonshu’s request. However, in a Hail Hyrda-style suicide, the boy proclaims his devotion to Ammit and falls to his death.
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At this point, Marc and Khonshu desperately try to stop Harrow, with Khonshu going as far as causing a lunar eclipse to get the attention of the Egyptian gods. Marc is then transported inside the great pyramid of Giza where he and Harrow are brought in front of the avatars of some of the gods including Yatzil, the avatar of Hathor. During the trial, Harrow uses Marc’s dissociative identity disorder to mislead the gods and ultimately is able to continue his quest for Ammit’s tomb. This is the first time in the series that we have seen anyone openly use Marc’s disorder against him in ways many people in the real world have their mental disorders used against them in everyday life. We also see the Egyptian gods take a very similar stance to that of the Eternals in that they do not interfere with the affairs of man. This could be a connection or hint at a future conflict involving Gorr the God Butcher, who we know will be portrayed by Christian Bale in Thor: Love and Thunder. I’m going to take a shot in the dark here and predict that one of the gods we see during this trial is somehow involved. After the trial, Yatzil tells Marc to look for a stolen sarcophagus, which will help him get to Ammit’s tomb.
Marc fails to get information on the sarcophagus from a black market informant in Cairo. He runs into Layla and the two agree to put their disagreements aside and work together in search of the sarcophagus. Layla has tracked it down to do a certain collector named Anton Mogart. This may be our first real connection to the greater MCU. Just before Marc/Steven is able to get information from the sarcophagus, Harrow shows up. Marc summons the Moon Knight suit. We then are treated to more demonstrations of Moon Knight’s powers including his ability to stop bullets and healing abilities. Ultimately the fight sequence feels like a return to standard MCU action as opposed to the earlier knife fighting scenes, which are more fresh and unique for the show.
Marc and Layla return to the desert in an attempt to put the constellation map from the sarcophagus together. They ultimately need Steven’s knowledge. In what may be the most impressive performance by Oscar Isaac thus far, we see him flawlessly transition from Marc to Steven without any time jumps.
By far, the most interesting aspect of the show is the relationships between each character and identity. Obviously, the relationship between Marc and Steven is central to the show, and we see that development in episode 3. We also see how Layla’s relationship with both Marc and Steven is very different. There is clearly baggage between her and Marc, especially something in regards to her father’s death. On the other hand, Layla and Steven have great chemistry together. I am guessing this budding love triangle may come into play down the road.
While I think this relationship and character development in the episode were great, it felt like a transitional episode, especially with that lackluster fight sequence at Mogart’s estate. Now that everybody knows the location of Ammit’s tomb, Moon Knight is poised for a great back half of the season with all conflicts coming to a head.
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