It has been a little over a year since the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) expanded from being just a sharped movie universe into a fully interwoven movie-and-television project. From WandaVision to Hawkeye, these Disney+ releases have been smash hit successes. Among the four live-action Disney+ shows, they are all helmed by familiar characters. The most recent members of the MCU among the headliners on the Disney+ Marvel shows are the Scarlet Witch and Vision. Still, they have been in the MCU since 2015’s Avengers: Age of Ultron, so they are not exactly foreign entities in the MCU.
The next MCU project is about to take a brave, fresh step forward. That would be the Disney+ series, Moon Knight, which debuts on Wednesday, March 30th. Moon Knight promises to be a different direction for Marvel Studios. The show’s tagline is, “embrace the chaos,” and the content in the trailers matches this slogan. The show appears dark, shrouded in mystery, and deeply psychological.
However, MCU projects have previously been somewhat formulaic. This matured interwoven fictional universe is now 14 years old, so it makes sense that there would be some kind of a formula. However, if Marvel Studios does not want its fans to become complacent, it should keep Moon Knight fresh by having it stand alone from the rest of the rapidly-evolving MCU.
No Need to Reference Past Films and Television Shows
In WandaVision, there are many references to the events of Avengers: Age of Ultron. Loki covers practically the entirety of Loki’s activities, even his death, across his entire MCU existence. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier deals with the fallout of the return of some 4 billion human lives following the events of Avengers: Endgame. Lastly, Hawkeye pays specific attention to the events of the breakout 2012 film The Avengers.
Moon Knight should avoid being so referential with the MCU. So many references to past MCU events lately have felt somewhat gimmicky, and require a broad amount of knowledge of the shared universe across several television shows and movies. It would be wiser to simply have Moon Knight take part in other Marvel projects, particularly crossover films. But in his own show, in the inaugural season, Moon Knight should be a fairly stand-alone project in the MCU.
No Need to Include Other MCU Superheroes and Supervillains
In Marvel Comics, Moon Knight occasionally crosses paths with other superheroes. This is most true for New York City-based superheroes such as Daredevil and Spider-Man. Within the past decade, he has even been a member of the Secret Avengers.
However, the Moon Knight television show should avoid including other major superheroes and supervillains that the general public is well-accustomed to at this point. If Moon Knight is supposed to take Marvel in a new, spooky, mysterious direction, it cannot be predictable and formulaic.
Not Everything has to be Tied to the Thanos or His ‘Snap’
Each of the four live-action Disney+ television shows that preceded Moon Knight were deeply tied to Thanos. The Mad Titan killed Vision (twice) and Loki in Avengers: Infinity War. Both Falcon and the Winter Soldier were brought back from death and fought against Thanos and his invading army in Avengers: Endgame. Hawkeye largely evolved around how Hawkeye became Ronin in Avengers: Endgame, laying waste and bringing death to criminal enterprises around the globe.
Moon Knight should be its own event. After all, Moon Knight is the Fist of Khonshu (Egyptian god of the moon), and the Protector of Night Travelers. These concepts are going to be brand new in the MCU, and would be overshadowed if the show had ties to Asgard or Wakanda. Let Moon Knight’s world be his own, at least in the beginning.
Lean Into Moon Knight’s Mental Maelstrom
Moon Knight should embrace the chaos with a full throat and no apologies. In Marvel Comics, Moon Knight has Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID). This essentially means he has multiple personas, and is an intensely paranoid man.
The Moon Knight trailer expressly states that Moon Knight has trouble discerning when he is awake and when he is asleep. The prospect of such a condition would terrify anyone. Coupled with his DID, this could be a real chance for Marvel to give representation to those with mental health conditions while simultaneously educating and entertaining its audience.
Not Everything has to be Explained by Science or Magic
In the MCU, almost everything can be explained by science or magic. If Tony Stark cannot fix a problem scientifically, then Doctor Strange will do it by means of the mystic arts. Moon Knight should zig where the MCU zags by alluding to neither science nor magic for the purposes of the Fist of Khonshu’s origins. It would be both interesting and fascinating to leave some things, and perhaps reality itself, up to the viewer’s interpretation.
Moon Knight has a real chance to be something different for the MCU and to subvert viewer expectations. By avoiding the regular MCU pitfall of referencing other happenings in the shared universe, Moon Knight can keep the MCU fresh and have fans yearning for more.
Moon Knight streams on Disney+ March 30th.