Last week I stated that Moon Knight’s third episode “The Friendly Type“ stuck too close to the MCU formula and outstayed its welcome. I was afraid that would be the trend for the upcoming three episodes. Thankfully, Moon Knight delivered a more intense horror-like experience with a heavy dose of mystery, excitement, and uncertainty throughout. Though the side characters are still of little interest, mainstays Steven, Mark, and Harrow all get a chance to shine.

“The Tomb” picks up with Steven unconscious after using Khonshu’s final act and setting the stars back thousands of years to find the tomb of Ammit. This leaves Steven in control of the body and without Khonshu’s suit, as the god has been trapped within stone by his fellow gods. This forces Steven into a state of vulnerability and uses his expertise in Egyptian mythology.

This is where I found myself to be enthralled by Moon Knight for the first time since it began, seeing Oscar Issac bounce between Steven and Mark as they fought for control and Layla’s affection was a true test of his acting range. I’d say he nailed it, aside from the occasional dropped accent of Steven. Seeing Steven and Mark use their wits and skills without the powers Khonsu granted helped this episode feel like the characters were in danger, a feeling often lost in many superhero properties.

Layla was again the weakest aspect of the episode. The showrunners don’t spend enough time fleshing her out for the audience to care about her backstory. There isn’t enough detail for us to care about her father and how Mark (her husband) watched her father die. I honestly didn’t see the importance to her with the actions, just words and the script telling us we are supposed to care for her.

Harrow is a villain that I always forget is there. He will show up for a few minutes in the episode and then disappear without a trace. As it stands right now his motivations are a bit shaky. However, when Harrow does show his face, he steals the show and captures every second of screen time with ease. Here he delivers the news that Marc helped kill Layla’s father. This monologue of his was captivating but never cemented him as a threat to our heroes.

The biggest villain of the show was a sorcerer who has been hiding in the tomb of Pharos and mummifying everyone who broke in. This led to an extreme cat and mouse game that left me on the edge of my seat. It was dark, scary, and above all atmospheric.

The Tomb ended with a bit of a twist and leads to lots of questions. I am looking forward to finding out the answers in another week’s time. “The Tomb” was a great mix of horror and Marvel really showing off some of what made the MCU great all those years ago. I hope next week brings us the same sort of quality in the final two episodes.

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Moon Knight

8

Score

8.0/10

Pros

• Vulnerable Main Characters
• Game-changing plot elements

Cons

• Layla's Character isn't interesting
• Harrow's motivations are shaky at best