The finale of Moon Knight continued to be vacant of references to the overall Marvel Cinematic Universe, leaving its audience torn between captivation and dissatisfaction.
Spoilers: Moon Knight
As of May 4th, 2022, Disney has closed up shop on Moon Knight, coming out with the finale on Disney+. This series was a display of intrigue in many ways, likely in correlation to the similar thematic range of the wildly successful WandaVision. The intrigue of Moon Knight blisters in several forms. Who is in control at any given moment? Who is actually good versus evil? When will we see the final personality that they allude to throughout the show? However, there is one unavoidable intrigue that comes with being apart of the overall Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). What will this entry connect to in the overall scope of the Avengers? This is a question that Moon Knight purposefully fails to answer and, while intentional, can leave any long-time Marvel audience feeling a bit deflated after finishing the finale.
All deflation aside — this series works. Being Marvel Studio's second most watched TV premiere episode and the most in-demand series globally for weeks on end, Moon Knight strives for watchability. The slow growth of confusion being quenched episode by episode, just to be undermined by a slew of new questions; it works. It keeps the audience guessing independently from the other worlds that Marvel has built. It is all-encompassing. There was no need to toss in Jimmy Woo or Yelena Belova, and there was no intention to do that by the team behind the series. In interviews, several staff members maintain awareness and integrity in that Moon Knight should not need to be directly affected by the MCU just yet. Oscar Isaac himself states, "[It] doesn’t matter so much, [...] If it goes somewhere else, that’s great," in correlation to the Avengers' universe. If it ain't broke, don't fix it; and Moon Knight is far from broken. Albeit, Marc Spector may be.
The challenges that arise with the Marvel mentality, are not caused by the series — they are caused by the cinematic universe in itself. Audiences for almost 15 years have sat down to watch entry after entry, to see one connect to another, connect to another. No longer do we scramble to our phones to see if the movie has a post-credits scene; we just assume it will. We assume that after sitting through the short Disney+ credits sequence, Moon Knight is going to be seen facing off against or alongside characters such as Daredevil, or Blade, or Kang the Conqueror. However, in this case, we don't get the satisfaction. Yes. There is a mid-credits scene, but it does not introduce any Avengers or a familiar setting; it quickly sets up the future of Marc Spector's personalities and, from there on out, Moon Knight is left alone. This conclusion would be perfect for most shows creating a nice send-off for season two, but it is stifled by the MCU mentality that one thing must lead to the next. As far as we are aware of, Moon Knight is not even going to receive a season two as it is categorized as a "Limited Series".
So... where will Moon Knight go next? Who will he face up against? When will he join the Avengers? The entire intrigue of the series is now also its primary downfall because, for the first time, the audience is left with no allusions to the MCU whatsoever. The questions are left utterly unanswered. While the finale may seem more conclusive than any other entry into the universe, it somehow leaves us with less than anything that came before it. Even Eternals, gave us a glimpse into the upcoming Blade. Even The Incredible Hulk got initiated into the Avengers (before the actor got cast out of the universe). Moon Knight, however, gives the audience nothing. It leaves the show's output split between an honest, independently-developed show and a jarring, inconclusive trench that the audience is forced to find a way out of. Some will say that this is the best thing for a series to do, leaving the audience wanting more and, yet, not completely knowing what that 'more' is. Others will say that this series flounders on the unspoken promise Marvel makes with each entry.
The finale of Moon Knight is undoubtedly conclusive. We finally meet the third personality, we get closure with Harrow, we are left with no more questions on this one-season series. That is, until we realize that Marvel is a chess game and we have no idea what their next play is. But that is exactly what Moon Knight stands for, and this is exactly what the team behind the series was hoping for. Leave viewers confused and divided, even when they think that their questions are being answered. Viewers get to turn every stone and then, in conclusion, realize that the stones are only covering an entire quarry underneath. The web that Marvel weaves is endless, and Moon Knight is the perfect representation of successfully forcing the audience to forget that, until the final credits conclude.
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