Deron Generally
Deron GenerallyMoon Knight
Disney Plus
Season 1 Episode 1
The Goldfish Problem
Steven Grant learns that he may be a superhero, but may also share a body with a ruthless mercenary.
The first episode has an interesting opening that is guaranteed to be disturbing for some viewers as it reveals Ethan Hawke’s Arthur Harrow and what he does in service to the power he wields. It’s a great intro to the character and gives you a tease of the tone of the series.
The episode opens with Steven Grant (Oscar Isaac) living an unusual life where he wakes up with his leg cuffed to a nearby post, duct tape along his doors and the area under his bed covered in sand. The production design is brilliant and does a beautiful job of showcasing the disjointed personal world of the character. We get a sense that Steven is not sleeping and has issues with waking up and not knowing where he’s been or what he’s done.
The character’s dissociative identity disorder is handled brilliantly in the first episode as Steven finds himself dealing with not only waking up in strange locations, but also not knowing why there is a voice in his head. He finds himself being shot at and chased by agents of Harrow and those moments are some of the most tension filled. Isaac delivers these moments beautifully and you feel his fear and confusion as moments change and move as Steven finds himself both being attacked and in the aftermath of that attack covered in blood. I love that the series trusts the viewer to fill in the banks instead of force feeding us the action.
The episode builds on every moment as Steven begins to discover things about his own home that grow the mystery and when his life as Steven clashes directly with Harrow, the episode leads to an action packed ending that both reveals the Moon Knight character as well as just how dangerous he can be.
The first episode of Moon Knight delivers great story, character, atmosphere and action. Everything strikes the right tone and nothing feels forced. It feels like its own entity and not just part of the bigger MCU and that makes it work.
Moon Knight S01XE01 Review
