Moon Knight has definitely taken a different approach when it comes to entering the MCU since from the idea of Egyptian deities to the fragmented psyche that the character possesses, one can’t help but think that Marc is a truly messed-up individual that in some ways might not be entirely responsible for the way he turned out. But that doesn’t erase the choices he made in his life since the direction he went after the death of his younger brother was anything but positive, but before he left the house it was seen that his life had become a type of living dread that explains the creation of Steven and the path that Marc began to travel. The overall feeling of Asylum comes off as an announcement akin to “Marc Spector, this is your life”, since it happens that Taweret, the hippo-headed goddess that has been on the minds of many fans for the past week, is ferrying Marc and Steven to their final destination. Whether they get tossed off her boat or are allowed to head on to the afterlife is in question as their hearts are out of balance for much of the episode.
One would need to know at least a little bit about Egyptian mythology when it comes to understanding how the Moon Knight series has been constructed, since it does help with certain moments, such as the weighing of the heart. Essentially, this is to make certain that a person is heading in the right direction on their way to the afterlife since if they’re found wanting then they’re headed for eternal torment, while if they’re in balance, then they’ll head on to the afterlife, in whatever form it might take. The lack of any proper balance between Marc and Steven’s hearts though earns an explanation that feels kind of long-winded since it travels back into Marc’s past, which is also Steven’s past as it’s seen through moments during his life that become more and more painful as each moment is unveiled.
Many have already commented that much of what’s seen during the episode feels as though it’s justifying Marc’s violent life as a mercenary, as his childhood wasn’t the best and his life took several interesting twists and turns as he continued forward. After the death of his younger brother, his mother’s behavior apparently stands as a big reason why he would go on to kill people as a mercenary and as the avatar of Khonshu. This even points out that Khonshu is a bit of an opportunist since while Marc lay dying beneath his statue, Khonshu took it upon himself to offer Marc a way to stay alive, but it came with the type of servitude that doesn’t feel entirely wrong, though it doesn’t feel right either. Khonshu is definitely a deity that took advantage of Marc for his own ends, and yet compared to Ammit, Khonshu is kind of preferable considering that he doesn’t judge people based on a possible future that might happen if a person makes the wrong decisions. This becomes an issue during the episode when those being judged by Ammit are seen to pepper the landscape surrounding Taweret’s boat as she navigates through the underworld.
So far the series has decided to lean heavily into the mental issues that Marc Spector and Steven Grant have experienced for so long, and the act of bringing them together has created a sudden revelation that has catapulted them both into the past that Marc tried to bury by creating another persona that was, in a way, his escape as well as his buffer between the world he couldn’t control and the life he desired. The sudden revelation that Steven is nothing more than a figment of Marc’s imagination is a huge shock to Steven no doubt since thinking you’re real, only to find out that you’re the product of another human being’s need to escape their less than pleasing existence has to be disorienting in a way that can’t be fully explained. But now that things have been aired out, some think that it’s the simplest way to do things, which is kind of accurate. There are a lot of issues to deal with and thorny discussions that would need to happen to truly reconcile the matter of how disturbed Marc really is, but given that the show is only an hour-long, time is of the essence.
Seeing as how the episode ended in a manner that could have serious ramifications for the finale, one can only hope that the mental aspect of this series will either wrap up or fold into the final confrontation that’s needed since it does appear that Marc desperately needs to free Khonshu to stop Ammit. Then, it might be wise to sit down and speak to an actual doctor about his problems, since Marc would need a great deal of time on a psychiatrist’s couch when all is said and done.
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