Moon Knight has been nothing short of interesting, complex, and a great return to form for the character under Jed MacKay. The latest and third trade paperback is out this week to catch trade-waiting fans up, and it features some of his most introspective adventures yet. Meanwhile, he’s dealing with a rising gang of vampires in New York, and if Moon Knight should take any advice from Hunters Moon, it’s that you kill monsters, you don’t save them.
Moon Knight Vol. 3: Halfway to Sanity collects Moon Knight (2021) #13-18, and Moon Knight Annual (2022) #1, so it’s a touch thicker than the usual trade paperback. This collection opens with Taskmaster being asked for information about Moon Knight. MacKay uses Taskmaster as a narrator of sorts not only to hype up Moon Knight through Taskmaster, but to establish a vampire leader’s role in the story. It’s a smart move, as Taskmaster ends up being like a hypeman to get readers excited while adding some validity to Moon Knight’s badassery without having to show it.
New readers will appreciate some cutaways to Mr. Knight getting therapy or his Midnight Mission helpers and friends chatting. Readers have everything they need to carry forward from here and may be enticed to go back and read since there are some colorful elements. Much of the first half of this collection is Marc coming to grips with his other personalities. There are some revelations about Marc’s tough exterior that break away a bit. MacKay has something to say about Marc’s relationship with the others, and it feels important to the growth of the character.
Moon Knight is a total badass throughout this book. He’s ruthless, and while he’s a hero, he’s willing to do damage to accomplish his goals. That includes a rather clever idea to entice vampires to give up information in the first issue. There’s a good action scene as well, drawn by Federico Sabbatini, showing readers he has no trouble cutting through many vampires. As the story progresses, Hunters Moon takes quite a beating, and the collection culminates in a finale that’s a good end to an ongoing fight against a vampire overlord. MacKay and artist Alessandro Cappuccio (who draws issues #14-17) understand dramatic pauses.
It’s interesting – the idea of Moon Knight having powers is brought up in the first issue, but in a way, his ruthlessness is a kind of power. He’s unpredictable, and that’s apparent via Taskmaster’s thoughts on the hero and also some of the action here. This connects well later in the collection when he defeats two enemies and uses fear to take them down, further showing Moon Knight’s arsenal is vast and more than just punching.
That’s cruel. Even for vampires.
Credit: Marvel
Rachelle Rosenberg continues to do an excellent job with colors, giving the book a supernatural and otherworldly look and feel. The opening shot of Taskmaster, for instance, casts him in a green glow that’s sickly and unnerving. Glowing effects, light sunlight, or even a laptop look great. The dramatic lighting when Moon Knight delivers a speech to vampires is also incredibly well-lit.
Thrown into the mix is the Moon Knight Annual, reminding us Moon Knight is a father. The Werewolf by Night has kidnapped her and hopes to enact a prophecy. Hunters Moon isn’t having any of it and wishes to take out the daughter, which logically puts them at odds. In some respects, this tale reminds us Moon Knight has cursed himself never to be the father he hopes to be.
My only gripe with this book is the overly used dialogue scenes, which can run too long or crosscut with each other too much. The therapy sessions are intriguing, but some of the action scenes cutting between them can feel stale or uninteresting. I felt like I was begrudgingly going through some portions internally, wishing things would move on faster than they were.
This third volume is a great example of how Moon Knight’s corner of the Marvel universe is as strong as ever. He’s the boss of the Midnight Mission, won’t take kindly to monsters of any kind, even vampires, and has a tight crew to back him up. It’s also a great showing of how badass this hero is – there’s no one else like him as he reveals himself and his relationship to his other personalities.
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