It’s Marvel Wednesday and it’s already time for the season finale of Moon Knight – Spoilers ahead for episode 6, which is rumored to be titled “Gods and Monsters”, although my Disney+ accounts just shows it as “Episode 6”!
What was it about?
Layla has to find a way to stop Harrow, while Marc has to make a decision about his afterlife.
My thoughts?
So … this was the shortest episode of the season (effectively about 35 minutes long) and followed the traditional Marvel show formula of needing a big fight in the finale. I can’t help but feel disappointed?
I have trouble putting my thoughts into words, but there was so much they had to wrap up and I didn’t think they would even attempt at addressing all of it, yet here we are. They rushed through all the loose ends in 35 minutes and it’s hard for me to truly feel satisfied with that, because I don’t think a lot of the things were properly explained to the viewers. But let’s break down the episode:
- We are back in Ammit’s tomb, where Harrow gets his goddess’ totem from Marc’s dead body. He can now magnify Ammit’s power in his staff and is ready to free her from the other gods.
- Layla witnessed all of that and is still determined to stop Harrow.
- Meanwhile, Marc cannot enjoy the eternal peace he was granted, knowing that Steven is petrified in the desert. Instead, he forsakes his afterlife (which Taweret warns him, he cannot return to if he leaves) and brings his full heart to Steven, opening the gates back to Earth.
- While this has been going on, Layla followed Harrow back to the pyramid the gods meet at. These gods and their avatars were really the most disappointing addition to the show. They furthered Harrow’s plans without question and were then surprised he betrayed them? And then they have the audacity to be completely useless in a fight and get taken down by one wave of Ammit’s power. It’s kind of ridiculous. So, to no one’s surprise, Harrow manages to free Ammit.
- However, Layla simultaneously manages to free Khonshu, but refuses to become his new avatar. Avatars are needed to bind Ammit again though, so Layla chooses Taweret as her god instead.
- As Marc/Steven come back to life, seemingly being able to switch personalities with ease now, a fight between the gods and their avatars ensues. I love the spotlight that Layla got in those fight scenes, because she was a true badass. When she saved some people on the streets of Cairo, they asked her “Are you an Egyptian superhero?” and she replied with a proud “Yes!”. This better have been only the beginning of her story of becoming the new Red Scarab of the MCU. I’m serious, I’ll be very salty if they bench her and not use her in the rest of the shows and movies moving forward.
- Ultimately, Marc and Steven pass out and their secret third identity ends the battle. They manage to trap Ammit within Harrow’s body, but Marc refuses Khonshu’s order to kill him. Instead, he asks to finally be let go off his contract with the god.
- Next thing we know, Marc/Steven are back in the psych ward with Dr. Harrow. This time, they don’t accept this reality though and even manage to shake this version of Harrow’s faith, because of his bloody footprints. Again, Marc and Steven wake up (still sharing on body) in Steven’s London flat, tied to their bed, just like in episode 1. Seemingly bringing everything full circle.
Post-credit scene: Obviously, this is not the end though. Harrow is shown to be a patient in a psych ward now, when he gets picked up by no one other than the ever elusive Jake Lockley, Marc’s most unhinged and thus far unknown identity. Khonshu has made him his new avatar and in his service, Jake shoots and kills Harrow.
Well, that was season 1 of Moon Knight. I very much expected this to be a limited series, with Oscar Isaac not being contractually obliged to take on the role again in the future, but they left it completely open. While Marc and Steven have come to terms with each other, they are likely going to still loose time, because of Jake’s errands for Khonshu. We don’t know if Layla is still in the picture and whether she remained Taweret’s avatar.
Moon Knight has definitely proven to house itself in the “weird” corner of the MCU and that is a fun place to be in, but the season mostly just teased lore and characters rather than fully immerse the viewers in them. I’m not sure I can claim to fully understand anything, least of all the psych ward scenes that were clearly not real. Most of all, I’m confused by the role of the gods in our world and what they’ve been up to. Their avatars seemed mighty useless …
I wish the finale had been given more time, that the ending didn’t feel so abrupt. Oscar Isaac’s ability to shift between personalities (no matter if the accents were good or bad) is phenomenal and elevated the show by a lot. They also gave me Layla, who has quickly become one of my new favorite characters. All in all, the show was far more interesting than I expected. But it only feels like a beginning rather than an end to a show and I worry about its uncertain future and it’s place within the MCU. Maybe I just don’t want to get my hopes up, because it would be intriguing to continue with it all, but we can’t be sure that they can make it happen.
PREVIOUS MOON KNIGHT REVIEWS:
- Episode 1: “The Goldfish Problem”
- Episode 2: “Summon the Suit”
- Episode 3: “The Friendly Type”
- Episode 4: “The Tomb”
- Episode 5: “Asylum”
Life and Other Disasters 
I was honestly a little disappointed by how quickly they tried wrapping all this up, the pacing wasn’t my style at all and I feel like they undid a lot of the cool uniqueness of the show by ultimately following the usual MCU Big Fight script. I was totally checked out emotionally during most of the fight scenes lol. I love Layla too and I really hope we get her back!! This finale definitely sets up a bigger story and I’d be super disappointed if they don’t follow through with that in some way.
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I totally get it and feel very similarly. As far as finales go, this one really wasn’t it. I’m watching Doctor Strange 2 later today to hopefully cleanse my palette and feel more optimistic for the overall storytelling again.
The thing is, Oscar doesn’t have to come back to play this character. I’m not saying he won’t or that he doesn’t want to, but he was smart in not getting tied down contractually like most MCU actors, who bind themselves to these roles for sometimes 5-7 years. There’s just this anxiety within me that thinks “what if they never continue? What if it doesn’t tie into anything??” and that gives it a bitter aftertaste too.
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I’m a little behind on the MCU right now (still haven’t seen the newest spiderman and never finished Loki and Hawkeye) but I’m curious where they’re taking all this! So far the TV shows have had space for some interesting stuff and I’d hate for that to be wasted. But good for Oscar Isaac, that was a smart choice! But yeah, I really hope he comes back to finish this off in a way that’s satisfying.
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I wasn’t the biggest fan of the Loki show in the end (although that’s what my secret fic account’s most popular fic is about), but Hawkeye was lovely and kind of ended properly? I just know Doctor Strange will tie into WandaVision, but I tried to stay away from all clips and featurettes. I want to go in with as fresh and open a mind as possible. Also, Spiderman was fun, but I always see it as a separate entity?
Let’s keep our fingers crossed for Moon Knight!
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I was actually quite satisfied with the season finale. Sure, I would have loved if the fan theory that Harrow was actually Anubis in human disguise was true, and I’m wondering where Layla is at the end of the episode. And I think Jake Lockley’s reveal could have used darker music. But it was such a great end fight and I loved seeing Layla as the Scarlet Scarab. Hell, I want to be Taweret’s avatar now. We could do some good together and then chill out for movie nights (I have a feeling she’s not a fan of horror movies despite her job ferrying the dead, but I can hope).
Anyway, I do hope that Halloween special I’ve been hearing about comes soon, because there’s a chance Moon Knight might show up for it. And Scarlet Scarab. And Tawaret.
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Well, as my post shows, I have to disagree. While it had some overall good scenes and interesting characters, the overall storytelling of the season and this episode in particular did not impress me and definitely didn’t leave me satisfied.
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Well, Ms. Marvel is just over a month away. Hopefully you’ll like that better.
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I’m already salty they changed her power. We’re off to a rocky start haha
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Well, at least Doctor Strange 2 and Thor: Love and Thunder look fantastic.
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I watched Doctor Strange 2 yesterday, but I’m not ready to comment on it yet.
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I see it tomorrow. I can’t wait!
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I think I’m fairly alone in feeling like this was more-or-less wrapped up pretty neatly. Yes, I do wonder where Layla is, and of course they added Jake in the end-credit scenes, but otherwise it felt pretty self-contained and I thought most of my questions were answered.
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I think I was just miffed because the psych ward stuff felt very inconsistent and putting that in there shortly before the end made no sense to me. It wasn’t a completely open end, but it was rushed and I just think it could have been handled better.
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The show was definitely uneven in tone, but I wonder how much of that is because of the subject matter…the filmmakers trying to get us into Oscar’s multiple minds. But I loved it, loved Layla’s evolution, and I have gotten my hopes way, way up for a second season. You never know what they are thinking (or not) at Marvel HQ, but I hope the ending was the “ending” because there is a plan to have a Season 2. Your criticisms here are all legit to me…but I did love it even with its flaws.
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That is totally fair. I think around the time of Moon Knight was when my superhero fatigue first set in. It’s very much possible that this had a role to play in why I wasn’t head over heels into the show, but I still enjoyed it and its characters. But as you also said, it does have its flaws.
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