Moon Knight Volume 2: Dead Will Rise (Marvel NOW!) Review

How many faces do you think we can fit on
one cover?

Writer: Brian Wood
Artist: Greg Smallwood
Collects: Moon Knight #7-12

Background info:

Marc Spector was shot in front of a statue of the ancient Egyptian god, Khonshu. When he awoke, he had within him the spirit of Khonshu, the charge to become a guardian to all night travellers as Moon Knight and a case of dissociative  identity disorder (henceforth DID, which is a lame acronym). Throughout the years, his DID has manifested itself in different ways. At one point, he thought he was Wolverine, Spider-Man and Captain America. In the previous volume of this run, his personalities have manifested themselves as the vengeful Moon Knight, the more sophisticated Mr. Knight, and Khonshu himself (at least, that's how it appears).

Review (spoilers ahead):

No, this is really a comic

One of the main advantages to Moon Knight's previous volume, From the Dead, was the book's Dead Will Rise, this formula is done away with in favour of a six-issue story arc, and it weirdly comes off as just a good.
structure of multiple stand-alone stories. It was great to see a book that was focussed on telling great stories within the 18-pages of a single issue- something that hasn't really been seen much since the golden age of comics. In

When the ruler of an African country comes to New York, Wahalla, Marc's psychiatrist, sends an assassin to kill him. Marc now must match wits with her not only to save the leader's life, but to keep the spirit of Khonshu. What happens in these pages is the best character development seen in this iteration of Moon Knight.

Brian Wood has taken writing duties over from Colin Bunn, and it's clear that he's built significantly on that solid foundation. Nowhere is this more clear than the relation between Marc and Khonshu. Where the previous volume saw Khonshu standing over an otherwise obedient Marc we start to see real conflict between the two. What is especially interesting is the implication the Marc might not be best choice for Khonshu's powers. Nonetheless, it seems Marc needs the Moon Knight personally.

Just as good, though, is Wahalla's development. She's given a reason for wanting to kill the leader, but Wood goes deeper; giving multiple layers to her hatred. Make no mistake, the good doctor is far from virtuous and credit goes to Wood for resisting the urge to make her a sympathetic villain. When you discover her real reasons for wanting the leader dead, you're well and truly ready for her to be punished by Moon Knight.

So, Moon Knight is a villain, too.

The art has also shifted duties, with Greg Smallwood taking over from now until Secret Wars. Smallwood continues the series style that remains iconic even after the relaunch. The pure, uncoloured white of Moon Knight's costume stands starkly against the darker colours of the backgrounds and supporting cast.

My only problem with Dead Will Rise is that it seems to end WAY too abruptly. I would love to see how this event changes Marc's life and his relationship with Khonshu, but the final issue in this volume doesn't give any hints to it.

Overall, though, this is a strong start for the new Moon Knight team, which earns it four and a half out of five lame acronyms.

Yeah, I DID that...

Okay, a lame pun, too.

**** 1/2

Moon Knight vol.1: From the Dead (Marvel NOW!) Review

Moon Knight vol. 1: From the Dead

... PEEKABOO!

Writer: Warren Ellis

Artist: Declan Shavely

Collects: Moon Knight #1-6

Background information:

See… Moon Knight… y’know what? I’ll just let the comic do the talking;

“Mercenary Marc Spector died in Egypt, under the statue of the ancient deity Khonshu. He returned to life in the shadow of the moon god, and wore his aspect to fight crime for his own redemption. He went completely insane, and disappeared.

This is what happened next.”

Review:

Let me make this totally clear; Moon Knight isn’t a Batman ripoff.

let's add "knocking" to the list of skills that Mr. Knight doesn't
have.

See, on top of having Khonshu’s power, Marc is a total psycho. A schizophrenic with multiple personalities, he’s actually three different people in one. He’s Marc Spector; a human seeking redemption, Moon Knight; a pathological vigilante mutilating bad guys in the most brutal manner imaginable and Mr. Knight; a detective and concerned citizen who can liaise with cops at will, and wear what can only be described as a white bag on his head.

Okay, let’s get the bad stuff out of the way; there’s no real story to this volume. It’s six issues that are only connected by the characters in the book. It’s unconnected, pointless and does nothing to advance the character.

And you know what?

I don’t care.

I don’t care because this is one of the most entertaining bunch of “done in one” stories the 2010s have to offer. Moon Knight/Marc Spector/Mr. Knight take on a range of varied bad guys, from sick Frankenstein monsters, to ghosts, to dream creatures, to gangs and serial killers. Each story feels radically different to the one preceding it, making Moon Knight feel like a superhero for all stories. It indicates a great potential for sticking power in the series and I certainly hope it sticks around.

Moon Knight, like I said, is radically different from comparable characters such as Batman. Whereas Batman prefers to skulk in the shadows, Moon Knight wears all white with the express purpose of being seen by his enemies. Batman is a master strategist, Moon Knight seems to do everything by instinct. He’s his own character, and Warren Ellis lets him jump right off the page.

Well, you're in a fungus room with dead bodies flying overhead,
so... maybe.

That, of course is helped by Shavely’s art. He’s got this great visual technique where Marc Sepctor’s costume is the only thing in the panel that isn’t coloured. It sounded lazy when I first heard it, but looking at the book itself, it lets Moon Knight stand out in ways that I couldn’t imagine was possible. Coupled with some really smart panelling, and you have the best-looking book Marvel has ever produced.

Overall, though, I think this series works better as single issue than it would have in trade. Trade-waiters wait for trade for really one reason- they want the whole story; and since there’s no whole story to be had, it does rather feel like I could have saved a lot of time and money simply by buying this in single issues when the price drops online and be none the worse off for it. That’s not enough to discredit the book however, which gets a four and a half out of five white head bags.

**** ½

+ Moon Knight becomes a hero for all purposes.

+ An entertaining bunch of “done in one” stories.

+ Art is fantastic.

- Story goes nowhere.

Alternate Option: Hawkeye: My Life as a Weapon

Much like this volume of Moon Knight, the first Hawkeye volume features fun, standalone stories.