Not insane, just damaged!
When I first heard the Moon Knight announcement, I honestly didn't really care, not because that Moon Knight is a bad character or anything, but mainly because I haven't really been interested in him. I will admit that the creative team did raise my interest in the title but at the end of the day It was still either a hit or miss option for me, because as good as Ellis can be at times he can really make a sudden bad turn. A prime example of this would be the Avengers Endless Wartime graphic novel, which I found very poorly written, both story and characterization wise. The point I'm trying to make is that, if it weren't for some of the users on here, I would have never given this series a chance, but as you can see from the score, I'm happy that I did.
Now before discussing the contents of this issue more thoroughly, I'd like to point out that this is a relaunch, meaning that it has to appeal both to previous fans as well as newcomers such as myself. As someone who has never read a Moon Knight comic before, I have to see that Warren Ellies does an excellent job of intriguing the audience. He manages to explain moon knights background in a way that fits in to the story, it's not just a listing of random facts. It's also worthwhile to mention that I did some superficial research on moon knights character, so while it wasn't entirely clear, the elements Warren added were somewhat visible even to me. For example, as it appears that Moon Knight shifts through 4 different aspects, Mark Specter is probably creating various personas in order to fit the state in which he is in. THIS is something I find very intriguing, because while it's stated that Marc isn't flat out crazy, it's still shown the influence of another being within his mind is making him unstable, which can lead to a lot of stories. Besides, Warren only gave us a small glimpse, which is great because this presents an opportunity to explore and make a full analysis of Marks mental state.
Moreover, I loved the detective approach towards the story. I really enjoyed how mar...I mean, Mr. Knight gathers clues from the crimes scene and makes a perfect deduction. If this is the direction Warren wants to take then I am fully on board with this idea, because it can lead to a lot of mentally puzzling stories. What I also picked up from this issue, is that deduction and reasoning doesn't only help you with case/puzzle solving, considering that it also grants you a chance to think of elaborate ways to best you foes. I absolutely loved the way Moon Knight handles the situation when facing the Slasher in question. Speaking of which, while the villain was a bit generic and lacked any sort of depth, I still didn't mind because the purpose of this slasher was to demonstrate and emphasize the new tone and atmosphere of the moon Knight title, which, by the way, Warren ellis displayed it perfectly.
Furthermore, Shalvey's art is actually superb. I remember loving his work on venom, and I think he managed to capture the essence of Moon Knights style. When you read the issue, the tone doesn't only strike you from the words and dialogue, but the visuals speak to you as well, which strengthens the experience. Shalvey has that dark, gritty and gruesome style which really fits what Ellies is trying to portray.
In Conclusion, As a newcomer to the legacy of the moon knight, I was really pleasantly surprised , because I didn't expect this to be so good. Granted, I am obviously excited for what's going to come next. I honestly think that this detective-noir style is exclusive to moon knight in the current marvel, so if you are a fan of detective type stories, you'll definitely enjoy this.
