Moon Knight S1, Ep. 4-5: Mind Games at Play

Just when Steven and Layla reached the end of their Indiana Jones escapades as they survive through a giant Egyptian tomb at the end of the fourth episode of Moon Knight, Harrow shows up and finally puts a bullet through Steven.

But as he falls to his perilous death, the magic of the show's story kicks into high gear.

Steven is alive, and out of nowhere, he perplexingly finds himself in the oddest of places: an asylum. Marvel pulled a fast one on us by revealing the fact that the entire first half of the six-episode show all has been in his head (at least, that's how it appears now). Steven is merely a patient dealing with Dissociative Identity Disorder. It was a wild curveball I had no idea would hit such a large scope. We all knew mind games were going on between Steven and Mark, but unless you previously read an obscure comic line from like the late '80s or early '90s, you were shocked to discover the depth to which this twist reaches.

This week's episode, the penultimate before next week's finale, took it a step further by revealing the true nature of Mark and Steven's relationship. We are taken on a wild journey to Mark's past as we learn about the tragedy - his younger brother died while they were playing outside near a watery cave, and his mother blamed Mark for his brother's death - that sparked this entire character arc. We even see Mark "transform" in Steven while sitting in front of a mirror, which fills in that gap we've been wondering about.

The arc has similar vibes to WandaVision. We see an intimate, somewhat sullen moment for young Mark, and he decides to hide away his true self and create a different persona, one that would pleasing to his angry mother. It turns out that Steven is merely a different personality of Mark's. In the same way characters in sci-fi movies like The Matrix realize they are not in the real world, Steven has the epiphany he isn't a real person, but just a part of Mark's psyche. Much in the same way Wanda learned how to confront her grief instead of turning Westview into her safe zone, Mark had to learn to forgive himself and face the difficulty of his situation head-on instead of passing it off to Steven. Even the journey Mark takes Steven on this week felt reminiscent of Wanda's journey to her past, when she was kid watching sitcoms.

Dealing with real, hard-hitting emotions and traumas is a story beat that Marvel movies tend to get criticized for not handling well or selling short in favor of CGI-laden crowd-pleasing combat (which I also love, don't get me wrong). But WandaVision, Hawkeye to a smaller extent, and now Moon Knight are great examples of how the Marvel TV shows are approaching these real-life issues while underlying a typical superhero backdrop.

Of course, the acting has to sell it, and Oscar Isaac is pure gold. He is so brilliant throughout this week's episode as he manages the back and forth between his two different personalities. He makes them feel polarizing when needed, and watching the two personalities work in tandem was simply entrancing to watch, especially when they are walking through the asylum after Steven realizes what's happening. It's an incredible performance that should garner Emmy consideration for sure.

The final shot of the episode was a sweet redemptive moment as Mark seemingly has shed the torture and guilt he put himself through for so long. He basks in the sunlight as if it was the dawning of a new day. In some ways, it felt like the finale of the show.

Instead, with one episode left, I'm curious to see how much more we'll get from the Egyptian gods storyline. After all, Mark was actually Moon Knight with the powers that we've seen, so I'm curious if he will resolve his mental struggles and retain the fullness of Moon Knight's powers. This would imply he really has been working as Konchu's avatar, but will Mark break free of this deal somehow and roam freely on his own as Moon Knight? Or will that not be so simple?

Piggybacking off that point, how will Moon Knight connect to Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness? The timing of wrapping up the show next week, right before the movie's release, is obviously intended. Might we see some cameo or mention of characters that the show's viewers will know, much like we did with Hawkeye leading into Spider-Man: No Way Home? Let's hope it all is still connected!

Notes:

-I was glad to see the nods to his Jewish heritage in this week's episode.

-the comedy is pretty sparse, but the few punch lines are still hilarious; the line Steven shouts as he starts attacking the dead on the flying ship was great.