Not a big fan of this episode.
The transition between Marc and Steven (and also their suits) during the episode was definitely something else that I'll be obsessed with for the rest of the year.
And thank you, Mohamed Diab for finally showing Egypt without the "Hollywood yellow filter". He’s doing an amazing job directing this show, I absolutely love the soundtrack and the visuals.
The first two episodes were fairly decent about introducing the character and providing intrigue to keep you going. This episode was kind of boring. Seeing Marc have a blackout instead of Steven was novel, but that was only a tiny bit of the runtime. Rest of it was lackluster - even the fight scene was mostly uninteresting. The star map looking like a 1st grader's art project was laughably stupid.
This new episode shows some amazing shots, the story moves forward and shows a better understanding between Marc and Steven.
Let me preface this with this - I ABSOLUTELY LOVED every Marvel TV Show before this one.
BUT - This show is just so incredibly weak. I keep watching trying to care about the Characters, plot or anything and its yet to do so... The pacing is so random. Motivations of Characters is non-existent and so much stuff is happening "JUST BECAUSE". The fighting and CGI are the weakest out of all the shows too & the writing is just so many steps below the previous Marvel Series....
When they were in the room of gods and they all just shrugged off Khonshu's alligations ( weather he's banished or not) was just baffling. They didn't even attempt to look or anything and it was just like "YUP, MEETINGS DONE!" - horrifically bad writing. THEY'RE LITERALLY GODS
Then at the very end when They were turning back the stars I burst out laughing. It looked SO BAD and GOOFY I thought it was fake. How this was OK'ed by Marvel is beyond me. Such an incredibly stupid looking scene.
I really don't understand the hype to this one. Its low quality all across the board... Its at the half way mark with this episode and there is genuinely nothing to talk about.
After the fight with the guys that Marc was trying to get info from, when Marc comes back and two of the guys are down, he looks surprised and Steven is saying from the mirror that he didn't do this, and since he lacks fighting skills, that would be true and there may be a possible third personality involved. In the comics Moon Knight does have a third personality, Jake Lockley, and that may be the case in this series as well and that Marc and Steven are not yet aware of this third persona. And the Egyptian Gods don't really seem that wise seeing taht they just accept Harrows claims without any proof when his people are digging up a site just a few miles away. Also, it's not the time for Gods, just for men, do they know that the Thunder God Thor is running around out there?
why is it so dumb... How can they put so much money on FX, location, casting, costumes etc and so little on direction, script and dialogues. I just don't understand if they simply don't care or if they are proud of it?
Almost nothing works in this show. I don't care about the plot, and I don't care about any of the characters. 3 episodes were enough for me.. I won't even read how it ends
After being very excited after episode 1 and eager to learn more after episode 2, i find myself almost not caring by the end of episode 3. How can this happen? It feels like Disney are trying to make this too much of a super production. Look! Pyramids! Egypt! Gods! (who get bamboozled by an average human, sure) Moon Knight is supposed to by Marvel's unhinged and brutal vigilante hero., but right now, this feels more like someone is trying to redo the Mummy (1999) by using the Mandalorian playbook than a back story to an alternative Batman or Rorschach (from Watchmen). Less grandiose, more main character development and gritty fights. Isaac's acting is brilliant and very fun, but you can only do so much with a script that's all over the place.
Episode actually put me to sleep. That hasn’t happened in any other Marvel movie except Eternals… pretty telling I’d say :weary:
:white_check_mark:82% :thumbsup:14 :thumbsdown:3
STORY: 3
That opening scene re-establishes Layla as a fine new addition to the MCU as well as being a pretty effective method to immediately capture the viewer's attention (forging a passport while casually chatting, yay!).
The mystery around our protagonist deepens, with what looks like another unknown personality causing trouble for Marc/Steven. Despite this, the script still switches between the different identities in an engaging but clear way
CHARACTERS & ACTING: 5
In a Marc Spector-focused episode, we get to see the former mercenary fare very well on his own without the Moon Knight suit, showing just the kind of confident, broken persona he is.
I love how the writers finally allow Marc and Steven to work together, leaning on each others' individual strengths to solve problems that come their way - it allows for some unique problem-solving.
Khonshu's role in the series keeps growing, and F. Murray Abraham truly gives him a memorable personality
ATMOSPHERE: 4
Episode 3 ramps up the action and adventure considerably across an Egyptian backdrop - it's less the MCU and more James Bond, Jason Bourne or Indiana Joens - but this is just the right time to do that.
The Moon Knight fight scene towards the end is a cool one, particularly how it switches into Mr Knight and back again mid-sequence.
PRODUCTION: 2
There are some nice visuals in that final sequence, which feels like an epic bridge between the first and second halves of the show.
:thumbsup::thumbsdown::thumbsup::thumbsdown::thumbsup::thumbsdown::thumbsup::thumbsdown::thumbsup::thumbsdown::thumbsup::thumbsdown::thumbsup:
STORY: -2
There's still a sense of urgency in the plot, almost as if the writers were keen on cramming in as much as possible before their six episodes are up. That means that it's sometimes difficult to keep up, while you sit there wishing they'd focus on one or two main points instead of several smaller things.
While I technically like the idea of the council of gods (or whatever it's supposed to be), it feels so weird and left-field even for the MCU that I'm not sure what to think of it.
CHARACTERS & ACTING: -1
I'm still not sold on the characterization of Mr Knight. I don't mind characters from the comics changed for MCU projects, but I don't want to see another Deadpool copy.
this episode was kinda boring even though there was some story and action. not very appealing as the first two.
Unknown: "Have a good trip, love."
Steven: [In the knife's reflection] "Marc. Don't do it, Marc. Stop it. Stop."
Thug: "Just let us go, man."
Steven: "I swear, that wasn't me."
Marc: "Then who was it?"Khonshu: "Take him to the ledge."
Marc: "He's just a kid."
Khonshu: "He'll talk."Kid: "Praise Ammit."
Marc: "No, kid."
[Kid cuts the garment and falls.]
Khonshu: "Conspiracies to release Ammit!"
Harrow: "Take action now before it's too late."
God: "This man has committed no offence. This matter is concluded."
Marc: "So what exactly are we gonna do here? What's the plan?"
Layla: "Oh. It's not pleasant being left in the dark, is it?"
Marc: "...Okay."
6/10
I think Oscar Isaac amazingly just surpasses Elizabeth Olsen as my favorite performance in any MCU show now, which is no small feat and also lucky because I'm finding the show's superhero lore exposition starting to drag it down for me now, and he helps counter it quite a bit. Fun action though. I also forgot till this ep that Gaspard Ulliel was in this, so his scene hit hard.
Its amazing how little Moon Knight is in Moon Knight.
What a terrible episode. This episode lost me completely. Legit I burst out laughing at the whole star map location.
Great episode, a few hints towards the Jake Lockley personality which I like, would love to him on screen soon
Show trial aside, WTF was up with the fake solar eclipse and "turning back the sky"? Did a flat-earther write this shit? Do they not know that the sky is not a dome?!? And that the stars' positions have drifted over time because of the Earth's and solar system's motions? "Turning back the sky" would require Khonshu to shift the entire solar system (and Earth with it) a gazillion miles, producing unimaginable forces due to inertia. You know, we have apps that can show you how the night sky looked at any date, right?
Also, Layla was soapboxing about museums keeping artifacts away from their place of origin (which is indeed a very real and serious, albeit complex, issue), art preservation and rich guys hoarding stolen artifacts but what does she do? She grabs a 5000-year old artifact with her bare hands, stuffs it into her pants and then together with Marc/Steven they SCOTCH-TAPE it!! :anger:
love the Arabic vibes, actors and cinema
Really a waste of time. One of the most dull episodes, filled with lousy developments. Characters are doing very little to make the plot move forward, and are serviceable to the lazy narrative.
I really don’t get the hate. I think this show is great. Lots of stuff unfolding in this one. I like the slow burn.
Two good scenes in the complete episode are the only reason why I didn't rate this absolute trash.
7.5/10 - It's getting very interesting. Layla is cool and Marc and Steven are finally starting to work together (tiny steps though).
If Marc and Steven could manage to trust and rely on each other they could make a great team.
Khonshu is slowly becoming "relatable" and cool. He and Marc seem too tempered but their goals seem much better than what Harrow and Ammit have in mind.
Without the suit, Marc and Steven will have a harder time now though... :o I hope their style/coolness won't suffer... :D
I really like the end credits btw :)
PS: I want to see more of Layla and Steven.
Did this episode frustrate anyone else? Khonshu / Marc poorly attempting to plead their case to the gods was mind-numbing. Same thing when they were trying to get the location from the sarcophagus. I absolutely hate when characters can easily explain a situation to get them out of trouble and, for the sake of conflict, don’t.
Also, are we going to ever learn why Marc/Steven’s personalities ever split? And why was he even hesitating to summon the suit? Seems pretty helpful lol. Is there a downside to it? What exactly did Harrow do/prove by blowing up the sarcophagus?
I dunno… I just have so many questions and frustrations that feel far from being resolved. And they’re preventing me from simply being entertained.
Seriously, every time it starts to get good they bring back the idiot. What a load of crap. Typical of Hollywood to ruin a good idea. This is just one screw-up after another with some FX action in between.
absolutely loving the transitions that happen when they switch over the control of the body;
& the sahara / night sky was beautiful, plus that effect to bring back the way the night looked 2000 years ago was incredible, my favorite episode so far
more shows taking place in egypt please
Unsure if this is my favourite episode (Episode 2 is hard to beat) but I love me some good treasure hunting. Marvel has pitched Moon Knight multiple times as Indiana Jones meets superheroes meets psychological thriller and this episode makes good on that promise while also keeping it's story focused on the internal struggles of Marc and Steven. In a nice change of pace, Marc is at the center of most of this and while Steven is still the heart of the series you get a lot of great character stuff for Marc here, particularly in regards to his relationship with Layla.
Egyptian mythology in general has always been some of my cup of tea so seeing the show dive headfirst into it as much as it can is pretty great, particularly in the council scene which is just great stuff. The ending with Khonshu and the stars is one of the most visually stunning sequences on the show so far and while the implications of it have yet to be fully revealed, it does set the stage for some fun tomb raiding - which, might I add, is the reason why I was so excited for this show to begin with. Fantastic stuff once again!
ok, this was a great episode. everything was on point. maybe my biggest problem is with steven. marc spector should always be in command.
OH, and this definitely should be a movie. for streaming only maybe, but it would be a GREAT mcu movie, instead of this 'ok' show. maybe the mcu has made a mistake in making all these tv show projects (except for wandavision and loki, these aren't movies. even "what if...?" would be great if reformuled as a 90-minute streaming only animation about the guardians of the multiverse)
This was Gaspard Ulliel’s (Hannibal Rising) last role. Since he just died in January in a skiing accident. I was thinking his character died already but apparently he has more appearances.
A good story wasted in the hands of a bad director. That trial.. enough said.
Error 501 : Connection to characters not met
55 | Marc Spector has a boring personality for this show. This show could bring him as a smart and serious character but instead, he was useless except for fighting. On other hand, Steven was the one who entertained and gave this show story progression. Besides that, the other ancient Egypt Gods are shown as unwise creatures with how they made rapid decisions. They easily trust Harrow without any second thought. This episode was worse than before but it still has its charm.
•••••••••••••••••••••••
Rating: 54.21
Plot
P1: 1.1
P2: 1.0
P3: 1.1
P4: 0.9
Director: Mohamed Diab
Favorite Characters
1.2: Oscar Isaac as Marc Spector, Steven Grant, Moon Knight
1.1: May Calamawy as Layla El-Faouly
1.0: Ethan Hawke as Arthur Harrow
0.9: Díana Bermudez as Yatzil
0.8: Khalid Abdalla as Selim
0.5: Gaspard Ulliel as Anton Mogart
Written by Kornelius Harda Wicaksana
THIS is the episode that's made a few of you turn around and say "Meh!" Shit, I really wasn't feeling the first two, this was the first one that made me think "Okay, I'm at least interested enough to see where this goes now."
That being said, it's important to remember this is also the first origin story show Marvel is attempting on Disney +, so I'm giving it a bit of allowance while also keeping in mind I probably liked the first installment of most of the Marvel movies less than I liked the follow ups. It takes a while for a character to grow on you, but I'm starting to like the dude now.
Sure wish I could say I liked anyone else on the show at all. I don't.
They show us a little bit more of the story and I like the action in this episode. Did Marc kill Layla's father ? Is that what Arthur was hinting at ?
Overall I still wonder if those stories would make a better two hour movie instead of a mini series.
Still struggling to care about this one. Also a whole room of gods couldn't see what Arthur was really up to? Instead they were talked out of it by him saying that Khonshu's host had 'issues'. Bit wishy washy imo.
For now (and it hurts me to say this), Moon Knight is the worst Marvel's tv show (Inhumans does not count)
Oscar Isaac’s performance here is great, but how the Avatar’s can’t see past Arthur’s BS is beyond me. Overall, it’s extremely right now.
Steven as a character made more sense when he was the protagonist. His begging Marc not to kill the mercenaries shooting at them is just a tad too dumb. Like, read the room dude
I will say Layla is falling into the superhero girlfriend zone. no matter how badass and competent superhero girlfriends are you always get the sense they exist only to be in peril so the hero can worry over/save them. This wouldn't be as much of a problem if there were a bevy of female superheroes but when the only role women seem to get in this genre is girlfriend the limitations of it start to become blindingly obvious.
Really? They couldn't take modern machinery to dig up the grave?
Ohhh my this one was good I like it. Especially how Marc and Steven are like working together that’s so cool. Can’t lie tho the Gods are so stupid like cmon you believe this weirdo over there own like fuck off. I loved the scene when they moved the stars that was cool.
How is he jumping on moving trucks as the nerdy version. Apparently they’re switching so now we dont even get to know when they’re switching?
So the bad guy has all the power and help and he couldn’t get some bulldozers out there to dig lol we just using buckets and man power.
So humans get blamed for abandoning the god and their solution is to be pissy and act like children? No wonder the human stopped believing or caring, who wants to serve assholes.
This whole shit show is boring as fuck. ending it here.
[7.4/10] There’s some elements I really like in this one. The downright bizarre love triangle between Marc, Layla, and Steven has a surprising amount of heft. You get the sense of regret from Marc, the sense of betrayal from Layla, the sense of appreciation and an innocent crush from Steven, in a way that feels unexpectedly human given the sheer amount of magical mumbo jumbo at play.
I also like the council of Egyptian gods as a concept, including Khonshu’s status as an outsider. Deities who observe the human world, have hidden cabals to decide whether and how to intervene in it, and avatars who stand in for their broader deliberations is mystical and cool, in a perfectly comic book-y sense.
Hell, I even like Khonshu here. Well, like may be too strong a word, but I appreciate that even this vengeful god fets a little more shading. So far, he’s largely been a tormentor. The idea that he is the one Egyptian deity who refused to turn his back on humanity, who is known for his flashiness and showy qualities, and who is willing to let himself be trapped in stone in order to help save the day, fleshes spooky “pidgeon” out in a way I hadn't anticipated.
The only catch is that the Egyptian gods seem like dummies. Khonshu accuses Harrow of trying to revive Ahmet, which the audience knows he is. I get that Khonshu doesn’t have the most credibility with this crowd, and that he doesn’t exactly make the best case, but the other gods seem too easily duped. Surely, given something of this magnitude, they could check, ask some basic questions, do something other than take the word of the bad guy at face value.
That said, I continue to like Ethan Hawke’s performance as Harrow. He is almost frighteningly convincing as a guy with plainly malevolent plans but who can sound reasonable and even fair in the criticisms and justifications he presents. He’s not wrong when he tells the council of gods that Khonshu is angry and Marc Spector is unwell, even if he uses those facts in a misleading, self-serving way.
At the same time, I continue to be truly impressed with Oscar Isaac’s performance. His ability to jump from Marc to Steven, make them look and feel like entirely different people based on how he carries himself, and even switch from one to the other without one of the fancy cuts is mesmerizing.
I particularly like Steven here. Thus far, the show has more or less presented him as a well-intentioned nebbish who’s along for the ride. But here, Moon Knight reveals that he (1.) has a moral compass, something that makes him that much more likable even if it gets in the way sometimes and (2.) has valuable knowledge about Egyptian artifacts which makes him useful to the cause. He proves himself a vital member of the effort, decoding sarcophagi and sharing knowledge of constellations, which gives the poor fella a nice boost.
My problem is that the action and the major set pieces here suffer a fair bit. There are some cool scenes, but I am so tired of the rapid cut, zero sense of geography fights that seem to pop up in 95% of action films/shows these days. “The Friendly Type” adds a little bit of character with the knife-wielding bad guys doing some silly stuff along the way, but it’s hard to be too invested beyond the gimmickry of Marc/Steven’s switches.
Likewise, I couldn’t care less about the confrontation at the compound of the guy who looks like Andy Samberg’s character from the “Dick in a Box” video. The sense of Layla having a checkered past in her home country is a little interesting, but otherwise the whole thing comes off like an unavailing retread of The Mummy or a cheap Bond film or some other 1990s blockbusters. There’s some decent character stuff before and after, but it’s otherwise a cheesy set piece.
Overall, there’s a lot of good elements worth saving here, but I’m still waiting for the show to put them all together in a compelling way.
It just feels a bit mediocre. Whereas earlier MCU shows had shown that Disney+ can bring the heat, Moon Knight is fighting to get going. There’s more heavy lifting being done by this series than any of the others. This is an entirely new character and mythos for the MCU, one that feels radically different and therefore fresh. But it’s hard not to feel like the focus of the show is placed away from where it might best benefit.
At this point in the era if superhero hegemony, we have developed a negative connotation to origin stories and so most of our first entries at this point sidestep origins so as to get going quicker. Think about how Spider-Man was introduced to the MCU, or how The Batman functions very deliberately after Bruce takes up the cowl. These are examples of how you can forego the origin to exemplary results, but in Moon Knight it’s a completely different story. I don’t know this character or his origin, it might be good to learn it. Shang-Chi did the origin story extremely well. But it also had something Moon Knight lacks: the best fight choreography in the MCU.
I am infinitely less interested in the action oriented sections of this show and saddened how up to this point there is a deemphasis placed on the lore-related aspects. I am a sucker for adventure stories and Moon Knight feels prime territory to let this run wild.
None of this is to say I am disliking this show. I just feel like the flat direction and mismanagement of story focus are making for something more middling.
Also it feels weird the gods in the show are so scared to make themselves known when the Norse gods are proven to exist AND aliens have invaded earth twice already in the MCU. Can’t say they’re going to be too shocked the Egyptian gods exist too.
Moon Knight still failing to hook me. I mean so far the most interesting part of the show has been it's biggest joke. Mr. Knight. I believe that's the name for the variation on the persona that wears a suit. While I kinda think it's more sensical for Moon Knight to be able to adjust his outerwear when appropriate, I do think it's make for good drama and hook for the suit to shift with the personalities. Mr. Knight is so far the only part of the show I care about not named Ethan Hawk. I like Ethan Hawk as an actor. I think he's excellent and I think he's excellent here. He even makes a great villain. It's just that he has nothing to villain against properly. The Protagonist isn't doing anything interesting. We're officially three episodes in and I'm officially calling it a disappointment. The last episode was so not hook-y i keep walking away while it's on. I've had to watch the thing three times and I don't like it any better. I hope it'll get better, but the pace it's going right now is putting it below The Falcon and the Winter Soldier and that's a low bar because it had some great hooks even if I can't remember anything that happens in that show BUT the hooks.
How many tribunals of ancient gods have already sworn off earth in this universe? To borrow some DC phrasing, this show is reminding me of Swamp Thing meets Shazam.
Shout by ABSTRACTlegendVIP 6BlockedParent2022-04-15T06:26:08Z
a lot of good and bad in this episode. Overall though, I just don't care anymore. hopefully that changes in episode 4