Vengeance Of The Moon Knight #1 Review

Written by: Jed MacKay
Art by: Alessandro Cappuccio
Colors by: Rachelle Rosenberg
Letters by: VC’s Cory Petit
Cover art by: David Finch
Cover price: $5.99
Release date: January 3, 2024

Vengeance Of The Moon Knight #1 mourns the death of Marc Specter after an explosion put an end to Black Spectre’s doomsday plan but at the cost of Moon Knight’s life.

Is Vengeance Of The Moon Knight #1 Good?

Well, that didn’t take long… or did it? Jed MacKay shifts gears into an introspective first issue as each member of Moon Knight’s Midnight Mission team, primarily Reese, focuses on life without Moon Knight. Vengeance Of The Moon Knight #1 is a slow, thoughtful catchup, but the last page twist kicks the arc into high(er) gear.

When last we left Moon Knight, he stopped the latest Black Spectre’s attempt to activate a resonance machine that would drive NYC residents insane. The rationale behind such a plan was admittedly weak, but Jed MacKay kept up the tension throughout Moon Knight’s gauntlet climb to the top of an abandoned building to stop the machine and end Black Spectre’s plans. The resulting explosion supposedly cost Moon Knight his life.

Watch our Vengeance Of The Moon Knight #1 Video Review

Now, Reese narrates how everyone is doing during a therapy session with Dr. Sterman. Ben Grimm steps in to coordinate a Shiva (a Jewish period of mourning). Reese, Soldier, and Hunter’s Moon get on with the business of protecting the neighborhood around the Midnight Mission. Tigra commences a revenge hunt to find Black Spectre. It’s all very “life goes on” stuff until 8-Ball is thrown through the Midnight Mission’s front window by Moon Knight(?) in an updated costume.

Let’s get the speculation out of the way. Is Reese the new Moon Knight? No. Do we know the identity of the “new” Moon Knight? No, and the mystery of MK’s identity is likely to be the hook to get readers coming back. Is that hook strong enough? TBD.

What’s great about Vengeance Of The Moon Knight #1? The one and only reason to pick up this issue is the last page reveal of the “new” Moon Knight in his predominantly black costume.

What’s not so great about Vengeance Of The Moon Knight #1? MacKay wastes a lot of time getting to the part that matters. At the risk of sounding callous, nobody picks up a Moon Knight comic to find out how Tigra is dealing with her grief. MacKay should have led with the reveal right away and then let the different displays of grief turn to surprise or something else (fear? anger? hope?).

How’s the art? Cappuccio and Rosenberg are in top form on Moon Knight. The characters look great, even the assorted cameos of Marvel heroes paying their respects, and the new costume looks fantastic.

About The Reviewer: Gabriel Hernandez is the Publisher & EIC of ComicalOpinions.com, a comics review site dedicated to indie, small, and mid-sized publishers.

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Bits and Pieces

Vengeance Of The Moon Knight #1 has one big wow moment that matters (the “new” Moon Knight in a new costume), but the issue is largely a waste to get to the last page. Unless you have a deep need to know how Reese and Tigra are dealing with their grief, you could skip this issue and not miss anything. Recommended for speculators only for the new costume reveal.