The Good
The great thing about a C or B-list characters, especially in comics, is the versatility that a creator can have with them. Not JUST because there’ll be far less fanboy backlash if they try something new or outside the box, but because many times these characters were created, intentionally or otherwise, with an incredible amount of vagueness or holes in their narrative and backstory. So when creators as different as Warren Ellis and Brian Wood decide to write Moon Knight in such close proximity and write him so very differently, it still feels consistent and like they’re both writing the same character. While this issue feels disconnected from the previous one, something I didn’t expect, by the end it’s all brought around by a great twist, one that’s narratively consistent, and one that makes me actually a little giddy to see where this story is going. Wood gives us a return not only to the different personalities of Moon Knight, but the idea that each of those personae has certain “specialties.” Wood gives us a pretty good cycle through and doesn’t take the easy way out by having “this one” be the intel specialist, “this one” by the hand-to-hand guy, etc., but actually having Moon Knight’s body language, speaking mannerisms and even costume change with each shift. This elevates it from mere “gimmick” to an actual character conceit and he does a great job fleshing each one out in just a few pages.
Greg Smallwood handles the linework and, I assume, the extremely fascinating panel layout of this issue. I’ll get to the nitty-gritty in a moment, but this issue is an example of how the “weirdness” and strange, stylistic flairs didn’t leave with Ellis and Shalvey, though this is a very different flavor of them. There aren’t any word balloons nor narration blocks until the issue’s end, or when the “mission” concludes. There aren’t even the usual comic sound effects! Instead what we get are a series of screens, each one with its own HUD, from various devices and colored text off to the side. The result is an engrossing series of images that draw the reader in and make them a part of the world. The details inside these images are fantastic. The imagery is gritty and jagged, complete with filters of various kinds depending on the device viewing through. The unstoppable Jordie Bellaire colors this issue with an incredible level of nuance and subtlety. A lot of this issue takes place in darkness and the use of shadowing is excellent.
The Bad
As a result of the narrative conceit and panel layout, this is a QUICK issue in terms of reading it from front to back. There’s plenty of dialog, but some pages contain only a few panels. I personally think the story is good enough and it’s a unique, interesting enough stylistic choice that the reader still gets their money’s worth, but I could see being disappointed in so much unused space on every page.
The Verdict
The last couple of pages let us know that something very strange is brewing in this comic, and that something MIGHT just be an ongoing storyline. I’m not sure if these stylistic flairs will continue, but I’d love to see what else these creators have up their sleeves for how to present that story in different, unique and even bizarre ways. If you liked what MOON KNIGHT was before, there’s no reason not to stay right on and see where it’s going from here.
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