Moon Knight #3 Review

Written By: Jed MacKay
Art By: Alessandro Cappuccio
Colors By: Rachelle Rosenberg
Letters By: VC’s Cory Petit
Cover Art By: Steve McNiven, Frank D’Armata
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: September 22, 2021

Moon Knight #3 finally shows the right hand …err, fist what the left fist is doing as Hunter’s Moon arrives to put Moon Knight back on Khonshu’s path. when vampires under Mon Knight’s protection are attack, Moon Knight searches for the culprit and learns there’s more than one enemy in town.

Was It Good?

Well, it’s better than the last issue with the creepy guy who mind controls people by making them drink his sweat (seriously, check out issue #2). That said, this issue and the series so far feels off somehow. It feels like MacKay is putting out ideas and concepts, but they haven’t gelled into an actual story.

Issue #1 was almost all re-introduction to Moon Knight for new readers. Issue #2 was a gross/weird/creepy fight with a low-level bad guy. Issue #3 gets right in Moon Knight’s face with Hunter’s Moon in full costume for a Fist-on-Fist smackdown. Each issue has a concept or point it’s trying to make, but there’s no flow, no sense that MacKay’s telling an arc with complete chapters. And there’s certainly not much build-up to get from one happening to the next. Things just happen.

To be fair, the pieces readers do get are good. The fight scene in this issue is excellent, and Hunter’s Moon is set up as a formidable antagonist (maybe not quite a villain) to push Moon Knight. There’s even a few hints dropped during their fight that suggest Moon Knight has the potential to level up in ways he wasn’t aware of before now. Character growth and change is always exciting, so the revelation that Moon Knight could evolve is a big plus for this issue.

Cappuccio’s art is excellent in this issue, particularly during the main fight. The action here is some of the better examples of street-level fighting, and I’d be interested to see what Cappuccio could do with Batman or Daredevil.

Final Thoughts

Moon Knight #3 presents the second Fist of Khonshu in all his glory to act as foil to push Moon Knight in new directions. While the issue is rife with potential, the series doesn’t’ seem to be following any story or cohesive narrative. So far, it’s just things happening. Therefore, this issue is fine for what it is in isolation, but readers may struggle to find anything compelling that keeps them coming back for more.