So the Moon Knight finale is here! I for one, am sad to see this show come to an end. It is one that I've had so much enjoyment watching every Wednesday evening for the past 6 weeks. Although, I'm not left feeling empty at the end of the series, as I often do for season finale episodes. We were given a pretty satisfying ending.
Let's Recap - Here is your spoiler warning for those of you that have not yet seen the finale!
The opening scene shows Marc's (Oscar Isaac) body laying in the water where he was left for dead by antagonist Arthur Harrow (Ethan Hawke) at the end of episode 4 in Alexander's tomb. Aptly, once again, the soundtrack works perfectly within the series as Earl Grant's 'The End' is playing in the background. Harrow is seen approaching the body before retrieving the stone figurine that Ammet is imprisoned in and then placing the scarab that he has in his possession (to navigate to her location) onto Marc's chest while expressing the following sentence "Marc Spector, Steven Grant, whoever else might be in there" - this leads directly into the post credit scene at the end of the series.
Layla (May Calamawy) cries over Marc's body and then takes the scarab from his chest. This is a relevant point to remember as it leads onto another role for her later in the episode. She then discreetly takes out one of Harrow's disciples and disguises herself in their clothing so she can follow Harrow across the desert undetected in an attempt to stop his plans to resurrect Ammet. Upon arrival of at the location of The Great Pyramid there are moments of humour as Taweret attempts to communicate with Layla as requested by Marc from the afterlife. I say moments of humour as random corpses from the pavement just randomly jolt to speak in the Goddess' voice.
Harrow storms into the pyramid, either not noticing or just not giving a damn at this point that Layla is present as he is well on his way to bring Ammet back to life. Of course he suceeds and we see Ammet appear (with brilliant CGI may I add with her crocodile scales and bandages that dangle from her jaw and sway as she moves). She immediately begins judgement of Harrow and express that his scale is not balanced and she had hoped for an avatar that is. however as he was the being to save her then she chooses him instead of one of Harrow's pure hearted disciples.
After connecting with Taweret, Layla is on a mission to find and destroy Khonshu's Ustabi (stone figure he is incarcerated within) in order to restore the moon god once more. This is when Layla is able to physically see Khonshu for the first time as these gods do not appear to the eyes or mortal beings except for their connected avatars. I think the reason that Layla can see him now is because his current avatar (Marc Spector) is dead and Khonshu offer's the role to Layla. To which she outright refuses after seeing her spouse being taken advantage of by the bird like god in the past.
Now this is where that golden scarab comes into play (the one she retained from her husband's chest). In prior episodes, Layla can be seen wearing a plaster (or band aid) on her finger that seemingly appeared to show a red coloured scarab beetle on it. Many fan theories out there suggested that this might lead to the character gaining special abilities so she can become a Moon Knight villain within the comics known as 'The Scarlet Scarab'. If you predicted this, then congratulations! Your theory was, sort of correct. The name isn't actually acknowledged in the show, however it has been confirmed by Marvel Studios. Layla does indeed gain super powers after agreeing to become Taweret's avatar. Although she as yet is not portrayed in a villainous role (yet). This could be something that Marvel Studios have decided to completely change about The Scarlet Scarab persona, or it could require some character development to become he villain that is featured in the Moon Knight graphic novels. Much like the development of Elizabeth Olsen's Scarlet Witch in the MCU. Bare in mind also, that the role of Layla was created especially for the series so there is a lot of freedom to expand on her role.
Furthermore to Layla taking on this superhero alter ego, the costume looks awesome with the inclusion of the golden scarab on her chest, rose gold coloured metallic wings and pincers that are reminiscent of the scarab beetle. This also gives the MCU it's first Egyptian superhero, which is nicely pointed out in the episode. Good job on the ethnic diversity addition Marvel!
Moving on, we are back with Marc in the field of reeds standing next to Taweret as she insists that he enjoys the peace and enlightenment that he himself is geminating and manifesting. Of course feeling lost without his alter ego Steven Grant (who was left as a statue in the Duat) he decides to return to try to save him. Marc finds his British counterpart right where he was left at the end of episode 5 in the sands and gives a heartfelt speech before then placing his own heart into Steven's outstretched stone hand and also turning into stone himself. The heart glows yellow and signifies a balance between the their two souls coming together as one. This breaks both Steven and Marc out of the stone that their bodies had been encased in and allowed them both to pass through the gates of Osiris to be given a second chance at life (technically a third for Marc).
By this point, the action is really levelling up a notch (or two) as we see Marc and Steven take on Arthur Harrow in their avatar suits (Moon Knight and Mr Knight). We see some really badass fast paced combat moments, especially as Marc and Steven allow their personas to tag in depending on the combat style that is needed at the time. We even get to witness Mr Knight wielding batons in combat which is taken straight from the graphic novels. At the same time Khonshu is conflict with Ammet while she has grown in size as she consumes souls of those she has judged. I'm not going to lie but this reminded me of a part of Pirates of the Caribbean 3: At World's End where the witch Calypso grew in size rather suddenly. This goes back and forth between the conflict of the Gods and humans.
Khonshu agrees to free Marc and after doing so, Marc returns to the bright white mental hospital back into the office of Dr. Harrow, almost like a subconscious. A place where Marc is imagining beings or scenarios into existence, much how he was able to bring Steven Grant to life. To close the finale we see Marc laying on a bed in Steven's London apartment in the same way that the first episode launched the series with the same music and the same scenario where he attempts to get off of the bed to stand and falls due to being cuffed to the bedpost. The camera then spans across to the fish tank where two fish can now be seen symbolising both Marc and Steven living harmoniously as one.
Don't turn off at this point, just wait, there's more! We have been treated to a post credit scene where we get to see Harrow as a patient in a hospital environment where he knocks over a cup of coffee that he perceives to be a cup of sand. A random character is shown approaching a nurse that is responsible for the care of Arthur Harrow and convinces her in fluent Spanish to let him discharge Harrow and remove him from the premises. This is most definitely a ladies man, who doesn't need work hard in his efforts to swoon. The character succeeds and wheels Harrow out to a limousine parked outside the front of the hospital before then throwing him into the back seat. It is looking pretty clear at this point just who this mystery man is as he wears a flat cap that the character is also known for sporting in the graphic novels. However we still don't see his face before he then gets into the driver's seat of the limo. The camera pans to the back of the vehicle where we are shown Khonshu dressed in a white suit intimidating Arthur Harrow before then introducing him to his friend, yup you guessed it... Jake Lockley! The third of Marc Spector's alter egos from the comics. We all knew it was coming but it's still great to have it confirmed.
The Moon Knight series has indeed been a wild ride as a Marvel fan to watch. I love that it has kept me guessing week after week. It has also opened my mind to numerous things including expanding my love for Egyptian mythology and history, but more importantly, it's encouraged me to discover more about DID (Dissociative Identity Disorder) in which the main character of the show has. It's a brilliant way to make a bigger awareness of this mental health condition that affects so many around the world. Well played Marvel! And again a huge hats off to Oscar Isaac in what I feel is his best acting role to date. A brilliant series and I am already looking forward to seeing more from these characters and their untold stories in the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Comments