Moon Knight Episode 2: Unraveling the Minds of Marc/Steven
Episode 2 of Marvel’s Moon Knight series enters Tyler Durden/Unnamed Narrator territory as audiences are questioning if anything protagonist Steven Grant is encountering is real.
Oscar Issac continues a dazzling performance on the new internet’s boyfriend, Steven Grant. In this episode, he displays incredible acting as Steven finds himself at battle with his personality of Marc. Any scenes between Issac’s bumbling Steven and Ethan Hawke’s sinister Arthur is the gift that keeps giving.
Like its premiere episode, this one barely scratches the surface of the mystery of Marc/Steven. The puzzle begins to come together but the full picture never comes into view. The small glimpses of Marc never take the time to explain to our main character what is happening to leave him and the viewers in the dark.
Marc Spector serves as an avatar for the moon god Khonshu, after the deity saved Marc in Egypt. Marc is not fond of serving the god especially when Khonshu has his eye on Layla as his next servant.
The main objectives for Marc/Steven in the series are to stop Arthur from unleashing Ammit on the world and protect Layla, his wife, from Khonshu. It seems that the Ammit stuff can be wrapped within the next two episodes while Marc has to battle himself. His powers of Moon Knight and DID leave him in a complicated place that causes no good for anyone.
Marc is back in control of the body and lets his Steven personality know he will vanish once he finishes the mission he is set on. The series has yet to explain the Marc/Steven dynamic other than Marc is the dominant personality. One of the cool elements of this episode was the mirror shots of Marc and Steven speaking face to face. Issac is giving the performance of a lifetime. The series does a good job at distinguishing the two, specifically in their takes on what a hero is. Steven takes on the dapper Mr. Knight persona in a sleek white suit while Marc summons the caped Moon Knight.
The second outing of Moon Knight continues to bring the action, intrigue, and powerful performances into the MCU. The Marc/Steven conflict has entered a stopping point and sets up the series to go into a different path as it continues to unravel.
We are all trapped in the mind prision of Moon Knight.