Moon Knight [2021] #3 - Marvel Comics

MOON KNIGHT No. 3, November 2021

Predominantly fixating itself with a seriously good bout of brutal fisticuffs between the titular character and the holier-than-thou Hunter’s Moon, Issue Three of “Moon Knight” certainly packs plenty of punch. Indeed, the repeated blows, kicks, throws and barbed comments exchanged by this comic’s two lead antagonists arguably makes for a mesmerising read, especially when despite his best efforts Marc Spector’s alter-ego actually appears to be slowly losing the battle against Khonshu’s second high priest; “Even a man has two fists… How arrogant you must be to assume a God. Our God. Would have only one.”

Enjoyably however, rather than simply hook its audience with a publication-long spell of pugilism, Jed MacKay’s script also provides plenty of stimulating spotlight upon the burgeoning secondary cast's development, with the super-hero’s Midnight Mission quickly building up a support team of its own in the shape of Ted, Reese, Soldier and Terry. This mix of humans and vampires seeking the building’s safety once Doctor Badr decides to “remove the distractions” from Mister Knight’s life actually provides the former American marine with an intriguing element of vulnerability and clearly demonstrates that the “Crescent Crusader” is no longer just fighting for himself, but for his local community.

In addition, “Two-Fisted” provides a few more titillating clues, or potential well-penned red herrings, as to the identity of the unknown malevolent force trying to break the “apostate priest.” The Canadian author initially implies that this shadowy, faceless threat could be either Moon Knight’s latest therapist, Andrea Sterman, or even the multi-faceted vigilante himself, and only much later on seemingly rules out Badr when Spector rather amusingly completely befuddles the self-centred worshipper of Khonshu by erroneously accusing him of being his “mysterious enemy”.

Adding plenty of awesome bang for one's buck are Alessandro Cappuccio’s layouts, which during the aforementioned fight sequence are as dynamically-drawn as any fan of comic book smackdowns could debatably hope for. The design of Hunter’s Moon is especially noteworthy, with the villain’s costume being just different enough to mark the criminal out during the frantically-paced fracas, and yet still disconcertingly similar to that worn by the true Fist of Khonshu.

Writer: Jed MacKay, Artist: Alessandro Cappuccio, and Color Artist: Rachelle Rosenberg