So as Marvel moves into the next phase of its cinematic universe, it’s been left with a lot of scope to start introducing characters that although popular, aren’t as well known as perhaps the Avengers. These include; Ms Marvel, She-Hulk and Moon Knight. Oscar Isaac has been cast in the titular role and it’ll be interesting to see how he steps up. But I thought it was time that I returned to the comic books. The first novel, ‘Lunatic’ left me extremely confused and I was hoping that this novel would finally return to some sense of normality!
The second novel in the series, ‘Reincarnations’, almost acts as an anthology series, with several stories occurring at once. Initially, you have Steven Grant, a movie producer in Hollywood who is making the ‘Moon Knight’ film. We then shift into the story of Jake Lockley, a cab driver in New York, before shifting into the third story of Marc Spector, a pilot for a space force that is attempting to stop Space Werewolves from taking over the Earth. The three stories weave into each other, and it appears that the three main characters are all the same person because they find the shift into each reality quite difficult. At the same time, you get very small moments that allude to the previous novel, ‘Lunatic’ where it seems that the original Marc Spector may still be in the asylum that he always was in. Just who are these three other people and how do they fit into Marc story and his attempt to clear his mind and take up the mantle of the Moon Knight again?
Okay, so when I read ‘Lunatic’ I found it quite difficult to figure out what was going on. ‘Reincarnations’ takes that to the next level to the point that I had literally no idea what I was reading at all. A part of me wonders if I should have started with older Moon Knight novels in order to perhaps get a better grasp of the story. Although the switching between different storylines seems interesting, there were parts where I was like this is way too disorienting. I also found that it had very little to do with the actual Moon Knight storyline because, at the end of the novel, you realize that all of this has not been happening in real-time. I know that may seem like a confusing analysis, but trust me, if you read the novel, you’ll see yourself.
Again, the artwork was clearly made in order to reflect the different storylines that were occurring but I really didn’t like some of the styles, especially the Space Werewolves issue artwork. I thought that the covers ideally could have been better but this variant I found I really liked. Overall, this is not the start I would have wished for, in order to learn about a character that I’ve never read before. I may resort to reading older novels in order to get a better sense of the character.
Favourite Panel:
This panel is so meta. So meta.
Favourite Character:
Um… Marc Spector. The real one.
Rating:
Story Arc: ★★½
Character Development: ★★★½
Artwork: ★★
Enjoyability: ★★
Re-readability: ★
Level: Impossible