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Tags: REVIEW: MOON KNIGHT #193 (Written by Max Bemis with art by Jacen Burrows)
When the avatars of the sun and the moon get ready to do battle, there can be only one winner. The avatar of Ra has already prepared his final ritual, and the Fist of Khonshu is broken in mind and body. Who will be the victor?
Moon Knight #193, on sale today in comic shops, features the end to the six-part story arc “Crazy Runs in the Family” by Max Bemis and Jacen Burrows. The creative team handles it nicely and with as few of the “happy ending” sighs as they possibly could.
Marc Spector has essentially been defeated. There’s hardly any fight left in him, and the new residents of Isle Ra where Marc has been taken are eager to see Ra ascend and Khonshu’s avatar defeated once and for all.
Most of the exposition in this comic book is Marc Spector heading off to the chopping block. We even get a look at his daughter, Diatrice, who is at home with Frenchie praying to Khonshu for the safety of her dad. The religious part of me isn’t a fan of the kid kneeling down in bedtime prayer fashion and making a plea to Khonshu; but this is all the little girl has known, and she’s heard Khonshu is a god, so it makes sense in the context of the storyline.
Marc even gets to see Marlene, presumably to say his goodbyes. For a few moments, they talk about Diatrice, exchanging some niceties. But even Marlene knows that this mess isn’t something Marc will come out of unscathed…or at all.
As Marc faces the avatar of Ra – the Sun King– he’s tremendously outpowered, beaten down, and ready to give up. How can the Fist of Khonshu survive?
Once again, writer Max Bemis takes us into the into the darkness of Spector’s mind; but this time, its a defeated Spector. Even the voices in his head – including Khonshu – are afraid he’s given up the ship and this will be his final battle.
Bemis explores this well, and his writing is excellent. This is rapidly shaping up to be my favorite Moon Knight run since Doug Moench and Bill Sienkiewicz tackled the character in the 1980s. It’s different, it’s captivating, and it keeps Moon Knight out of the mess that’s been made of much of the Marvel Universe.
Penciler Jacen Burrows is excellent with open space on the page – he knows just what perspective is needed to achieve a proper mood or theme and he excels at panel transitions. The duo of Bemis and Burrows is shaping up to be one of my favorite Marvel creative teams.
Add to this the quality inks of Guillermo Ortego and the coloring of Mat Lopes, and you’ve got a winner. It’s a good ending to an interesting storyline that neatly avoids most of the cliches found in comic writing these days.
Rating: 7.4 out of 10
As always, I am – Wally (AKA Paint Monk)
