Moon Knight Trailer Breakdown: Between Waking Life And Dreams
That's no moon. That's "Moon Knight," the next Disney+ series from Marvel Studios. Starring Oscar Isaac as the titular hero and Ethan Hawke as a previously unnamed antagonist, the first trailer dropped during the NFL playoffs on Monday night. And though not much was known about the upcoming six-episode tale, this first look has already thrown True Believers for a loop.
Well, technically there is a moon if you looked outside last evening. Apparently, Monday evening brought the first full moon of 2022, which sounds like the absolute perfect time to drop this trailer. Clocking in at only 1:57, it still brings up a multitude of questions, especially if you're a fan of the hero steeped in Egyptian mythology. In an effort to better understand what might be going on in the highly anticipated, let's break down a few things from the next chapter of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Day And Night
When the trailer opens, we see "Inside Llewyn Davis" and "Ex Machina" star Oscar Isaac in bed with a Rubik's cube. There is a multitude of locks on his door and he has to tether himself to his bed. As we see his bedroom, we hear him say, "I have a sleeping disorder. I can't tell the difference between my waking life and dreams." If you thought you had trouble sleeping, this guy brings it to a whole new level.
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In this scene, if you look closely around his bed when his alarm goes off, you'll notice sand around his bed. At this point in the trailer, we don't know the name of Isaac's character. But in the comics, mercenary Marc Spector is the man behind the Moon Knight mantle. In his origin story, he is ruthlessly killed by fellow mercenary Raoul Bushman in the Sudan while on a mission. Since his dreams and reality merge together, could this be a dream that references Marc Spector's death?
Case Of The Mondays
Isaac's character eventually gets out of bed and makes his way to the British Museum in London. Clearly he's not a fan of his morning commute. While in the museum's gift shop, a coworker named Donna berates him and calls him "Stevie." He corrects her, "It's Steven." Wait. Steven? Isn't this supposed to be Marc Spector's story?
An important detail about Spector is that he has dissociative identity disorder and one of his personalities is named Steven Grant. It's possible that we join Marc in the middle of a DID episode and come to know all of his identities in due time throughout the series.
Moon Man
Though it's only a few quick glances, we get to see the Egyptian moon god Khonshu in all his glory. This deity brings Spector back to life (on multiple occasions) and chooses him to be his avatar on Earth AKA the Fist of Khonshu. In the MCU version, it appears that "Steven" needs a little bit more convincing since the god seems to be chasing him down a long hallway. Once it reaches the elevator that "Steven" planned to use as an escape, a nice older woman appears instead. Could this be more dream/reality mash-ups?
This is also a good point to mention that Moon Knight's superpowers are complicated. In some stories, he's more like Batman because he uses his athleticism, his detective skills, and various gadgets in order to fight crime. In other stories, his strength and resiliency are enhanced by the phases of the moon. It's unclear what the MCU version of the character will have in terms of powers, but based on this trailer, things definitely appear to be taking a more supernatural twist.
Phone Home
"Steven" finds an older Motorola Razr phone. When it rings, he answers to the person on the other end saying, "Oh my god, you're alive. What's wrong with you, Marc?" He responds with "Why did you call me Marc?" Finally! Now business is about to pick up. In addition to potentially exploring the supernatural, there will probably be a mystery surrounding Marc's origin story.
Also, who is the woman on the phone? Could it be the character played by May Calamawy of Hulu's "Ramy?" And could this character turn out to be Marlene Alraune, a colleague and love interest of Spector's? The subtitles reveal the character's name to be Layla. While this Layla may have been created for the show, there's a character in Moon Knight's history named Lyla DeCriscio. She is the daughter of the head of the Chinatown Triads that was raised by a prolific hitman for the Italian Mafia. She meets Marc when they try to join a cult-like secret society known as Société des Sadiques. Speaking of cults, didn't someone reveal on a talk show that their character is based on notorious cult leader David Koresh?
Look, it's Ethan Hawke!
Oh right! It was Ethan Hawke who said that to Seth Meyers. And here we see him presenting the latest in cult leader chic. Thanks to the subtitles once again, we can confirm that Hawke's character is named Arthur Harrow. In his one and only appearance in Marvel Comics, Dr. Harrow was a candidate for the Nobel Prize in medicine, but his work involved conducting World War II Nazi experiments on people. By focusing his procedures on the pain centers of the human body, he hoped to cure his own disfigurement. Judging by the looks of Hawke in the trailer, Harrow will likely be reimagined for the MCU like many other characters before him.
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Also, this scene reminds me of Loki in "The Avengers" in the town square. After he crashes a party, he commands the people outside to kneel. An older man in the crowd refuses and declares, "There are always men like you." As Loki prepares to blast the man, Captain America swoops in to save the day. Marc Spector is certainly no Steve Rogers, but it's possible that he saves these people in his own way.
There's Chaos In You
After seeing Marc and Arthur Harrow come face to face, we get a taste of action. Marc is involved in a high speed chase and he's surprised to be holding a gun. As mentioned, he has a history in the comics of being a mercenary, so if the MCU counterpart follows suit, he should know how to use it. The scene quickly switches to him falling off of a cliff, then to pyramids. This whole thing has been a wild ride so far.
Embrace The Chaos
As suspense builds along with the music (which is a very interesting rendition of Kid Cudi's "Day 'n' Nite"), we come to what I call the "Sailor Moon Knight" moment. Just like the way Serena (or Usagi) transforms into the Guardian of Love and Justice, Marc Spector is enveloped by what looks like mummy wrappings in order to become Moon Knight.
A Waning Moon
The trailer ends with a fully suited up Moon Knight beating the crap out of a creature that resembles the Egyptian god Anubis. This whole thing is much, much darker than we might've expected from Marvel Studios on Disney+, but that's pretty much Moon Knight in a nutshell. Assuming that Kevin Feige, showrunner Jeremy Slater of "The Umbrella Academy," and the rest of the team haven't altered the character too much, we could potentially be exploring some pretty dark and heavy territory. Considering that "WandaVision" was a success by presenting an exploration in death and grieving, it's possible that the studio is ready to open the floodgates on more adventurous material than we've seen in the past.
Time will tell exactly how the MCU will approach this story, but we'll find out for sure when "Moon Knight" premieres on March 30, 2022.