Episode 14 – Lemire’s Last Issue – Into the Knight

Episode 14:

The High Priests of Khonshu wade through a quagmire of news this week – in stark contrast to the week before! Plenty of news and rumours to satiate the appetite here, and Connor and Rey just can’t stop talking!

We also have another fantastic guest narrator – Sparky Mularkey, host of YouTube channel ‘Comics, Cosplay and More’ and she lends her vocal talents to take us through this week’s OVER THE MOON comic reviews!

In a monumental episode, we review the last of Lemire’s Moon Knight, issue #14. It’s sad to see it go, but boy does it go out with a BANG!

There’s also the Totally Awesome (no, not Hulk) issue #20 written by Mike Benson and drawn to the extreme by Mike Deodato Jr! Werewolves and supernatural violence abound!!

Strap yourselves in, because here we go again!!!

Moon Knight Vol. 8, Issue # 14- “Death and Birth – Part 5 of 5”

Bare Bones:

In the past, Marc Spector, mercenary, is left for dead in the Egyptian desert and as he makes his way across the sands, his other identities begin to speak to him. Steven and Jake comfort Marc and ask him to rest. They also assure him that HE will be coming soon.

As night falls, Marc starts to hear Khonshu’s voice and it’s as if by the light of the moon, Marc is led towards a great temple. A dying Marc pleads for life and strikes a bargain with the apparition of Khonshu, who dubs him Khonshu’s Knight.

Back in the present, Mr. Knight walks through the hospital in search of Khonshu. He hears a scream at what appears to be Marlene but as he enters one of the rooms, he is greeted with Ammut and one of her Jackals. Mr. Knight is drugged and laid out on the table in the room. Ammut has rigged him up for shock therapy and in a strange display of parallel lives and realities, Khonshu is also shown laying the dying Marc onto an altar in the temple.

As the switch is flicked and a jolt of current surges through Mr. Knight, it does the same to Marc (in the past) and Marc finds himself resurrected in the temple, where he made a deal with Khonshu. He sees Marlene there and to his surprise she says that he was dead only moment ago. Marc – now having been reborn by Khonshu – has a clarity of purpose and he describes himself as, “ …a ghost. A Specter of the Moon. The Moon’s Knight of Vengeance”. He grabs the robe off the statue of Khonshu, proclaiming he has work to do.

Marc’s resolve is reflected in Mr. Knight and all of a sudden, Mr. Knight breaks free of the shock therapy restraints and overcomes Ammut and her Jackals. He heads to the rooftop of the hospital and finds Khonshu there, waiting for him. Khonshu throws illusion after illusion at Marc but none can overcome him. Left with only Khonshu in fornt of him, Marc refuses to be afraid anymore, and it’s this determination that weakens Khonshu. Marc combines all his identities and in one final act of defiance, he crushes Khonshu into dust.

With Khonshu gone, there is a peaceful calm over Marc and he looks up at the moon and relishes the silence. As it begins to rain Marc questions a little the reality he is in, but he doesn’t let it worry him for too long. The rain on his face feels real enough, and for Marc, that’s good enough for him.

Moon Knight Vol. 5, Issue #20 – “In the Company of Wolves”

Deep in the sewers of New York, Crawley returns to check up on an exhausted Marc Spector who is currently in hiding after recent events against the Black Spectre. Marc awakens at Crawley’s arrival and discovers several days have already come and gone since he passed out. It is upon awakening that Marc remembers of a time when he hunted a man who would have felt as he does now – hunted and caged – a man named Jack Russell.

Back in 1994 we see Russell as a prisoner in an unknown location and his captors visit periodically to extract some of his blood. Not far away, on the nocturnal streets of the New York city, Moon Knight apprehends a man who appears far more terrified of someone else other than the Moon Knight. The unlucky man is shot dead by an unknown assailant from an adjacent rooftop and although Moon Knight gives chase, he’s unable to catch a glimpse of the unknown assassin.

Meanwhile, Detective Flint is having a hard time cracking a case involving a series of grisly murders. It’s apparent that it is the work of a serial killer, so the detective ventures into the seedy side of the city to try and get some answers. As hard as he pushes, Detective Flint can’t find any and it’s not until he comes across a heavily mutilated body which he has autopsied, that he starts to consider something more supernatural. The mutilations appear to have been inflicted by a large animal – a huge dog…or maybe a werewolf. With this in mind, he reaches out to the one person he knows who may have some experience with the matter – Moon Knight.

Across town a mysterious limousine pulls up to a group of homeless people and the silver haired man inside (the very same man who had been visiting Jack Russell and taking his blood) offers money and a job to one of the homeless men.

Back near the Brooklyn Bridge, Detective Flint meets up with Moon Knight and discusses his findings. Moon Knight denies any knowledge of ‘wild dogs’ or otherwise, but Flint knows better.

Acting upon their discussion, Moon Knight changes to his Jake Lockley identity and hits the streets in his cab, hoping to come across some information regarding Detective Flint’s case. He’s led to a bar “Lu ‘ Pine” after dropping off some shady men there and so decides to investigate later.

Using his billionaire persona, Steven Grant, Moon Knight returns to Lu’Pine with Marlene. It’s Marlene who makes a breakthrough after chatting with the local clientele within the bar – she finds that there is an underground fight club where bets are taken and where wolves fight to the death. Steven Grant changes to Moon Knight and although Marlene is keen to join the fight, Moon Knight tells her to stay behind and to call Detective Flint.

Moon Knight discovers the subterranean dungeons below the bar, where Jack Russell is kept. He manages to incapacitate the guards but not before Jack Russell’s cage is accidentally opened. Now with Jack Russell – the Werewolf – on the loose, Moon Knight is forced to run. He discovers in another part of the dungeon, others who have been infected with Jack’s blood – turning them into werewolves themselves, and he sets them free to serve out justice to their captors.

It’s not long, however, before Moon Knight comes face-to-face with Jack Russell – a hulking 8-feet tall werewolf and a pure killing machine. They fight and although Moon Knight manages to evade the Werewolf’s claws, the pure instinct and ferocity of the Werewolf’s attack gets the better of him. Marlene shows up in time to stop the Werewolf from delivering the killer blow and it’s enough distraction for Moon Knight to put in one last, final effort and in a unrelenting series of savage blows, Moon Knight is able to defeat the Werewolf.

Knowing that Jack Russell is innocent of the crimes that his alter ego – the Werewolf – commits, Moon Knight allows Russell to escape. Shortly after, Frenchie arrives in the Moon Jet to pick up Moon Knight and Marlene from ‘Lu’ Pine’ and the dungeons below.

The memories of Jack Russell and the adventure in Lu’ Pine stick with Marc as we see him again in the present day. Finally rested from his encounter with Black Spectre and not wanting to live like an animal, Marc picks up his gear and walks out. He’s ready to face the consequences…no matter what they are.