"Moon Knight (Disney+ Limited Series)" Talkback (Spoilers)

[Yojimbo]

A third personality ?

Technically we already had that with Black Panther and Bast, but this is the first time we've really seen a back-and-forth like this...I wonder if Panther would be able to see the Jackals ?

Yeah, this makes Bast look she she ascribes to laissez-faire. Eh, cats.

 

[Medinnus]

A third personality ?

Jake Locksley is the third character (and Mr. Knight was another, not Steven Grant)

 

[Yojimbo]

In ep. 1, there was an Asgard and Wakanda easter egg.

 

[Frontier]

In ep. 1, there was an Asgard and Wakanda easter egg.

For anyone who thought there were no shared universe references .

 

[Yojimbo]

Episode 3 "The Friendly Type"

With Marc in the forefront and Harrow ahead, Marc and Layla navigate Cairo for intel.

 

[Fone Bone]

Moon Knight "The Friendly Type"

The show is much less fun when it's from Marc's perspective.

Harrow did almost nothing but spew b.s. at his trial, but I think he was probably right about something. I very much believe Marc and Steven are unwell, and that Khonshu is taking advantage of their unwellness. That's the specific reason I never mind Steven throwing a wrench in their plans when he takes over.

There's a third personality? This one seems like a psychopath.

It was all right, but I liked last week less than the first, and I liked this episode even less than that. ***.

 

[Yojimbo]

I can see why Khonshu was banished. The Ennead are dolts and helped make the situation even worse. At least the Hathor avatar had some sense.

And not making things any better, an unidentified psychopathic third personality and Harrow seemed to imply Marc killed Layla's father at that dig site massacre mentioned last week. I'm curious if it something cosmic like the Snap and the Blip is what led to Marc starting to lose control of his disorder as he said it started happening "recently" or it was the secret he was keeping from Layla that was eating away at him.

Thumbs up with another small MCU reference, this time to Madripoor.

3 episodes left. I suspect Marc gets captured by the tails and Harrow has him put in an asylum so a bottle episode of him and Steven arguing and coming to an understanding then escaping. An episode that's probably a flashback revealing the truth behind the dig site massacre and how Marc became an avatar then the Ennead realize the mistake they made and Khonshu is released. Big fight in episode 6.

 

[Neo Ultra Mike]

"The Friendly Type" -*Sighs* Man I heard that this show went downhill in the third episode and was hoping for the contrary since hey it was doing good so far and honestly thought now that the focus was more on Marc we'd really get a lot of interesting things from his perspective on what's going on but... yeah no. Though before we talk about that let's talk about by far not only the worst thing in this episode and in the entire show by far, but quite honestly the biggest problem in the entire MCU and a problem Marvel needs to nip in the bud NOW because it can no longer be tolerated; the super secret "we've been here and not interfered even though the entire planet/universe has been at stake and we still refuse to help because oh we no longer can associate with basic humanity" group that we find out about here. I was perfectly fine in believing that Khonshu as this spirit of vengeance being banished for being extreme and still wanting to enact justice and wanting to stop this other god from coming aboard and thought that was an interesting even if not the most unique set of circumstances to explore... but now you're telling me that there are other gods with other Avatars that can be gathered but just on meetings that point out "oh we don't interfere we just observe because humanity no longer worships the Egyptian gods so we aren't going to help" and... yeah no. It made sense when you had the Mandarin's 10 Rings forces because he was in retirement. And I was barely, BARELY able to get the rationale of The Eternals since at least they had the time to explain their motivations and how untethered they are but... no. It's incredibly stupid and eye rolling that these gods can be summoned talking all about how they don't want to interfere or be known about in the world anymore. When they should know by now that the general populous is totally okay with aliens and magical creatures and pantheons of OTHER GODS so just having these guys here bring in Harrow but go "eh there's no proof so he's free to go but you're wrong Khonshu cause you are so out in the open" is so stupid and eye rolling. Look I know the comics have tons and tons of these sort of groups but yeah you can't do that in a movie universe more generally overseen. if this was set in it's own world I might understand but the idea the MCU still thinks it can bull off this crap is inexusable. Not to mention these guys here that Ammit someone they all DON'T WANT TO COME BACK from a guy who was banished and even his Avatar and they don't like look into it at all? If they were able to summon Harrow can't they all like go to where they summoned him and see "hey wait a minute you are trying to uncover Ammit!" And then stop him? But no they do nothing except when the sky is moved back thousands of years and they take away Khonshu's powers because these guys are pretty much here to just be more obstacles. But not interesting or well constructed obstacles but just "eh Moon Knight's a little OP right now to just be taking on regular guys and we can't just have Marc or Steven fight a demon in every single episode so uh hey no more Moon Knight for awhile powers" and yeah why would you want to watch a show about Moon Knight who can't even be Moon Knight anymore? Plus they bring back Harrow to the tied up Khonshu just so he can give his own little villain speil and.... ughhhhhhhhhhhhhh so annoying how idiotic these jerks are. I guess this does make me realize why Khonshu hates them so much and why he'd break away from these fools but having them be such blots on the plot is annoying and insulting quite frankly.

And you know speaking of Harrow i admit I am kind of getting sick of the guy constantly walking in to like now it seems every other scene and giving speils. I did compliment last week how it is nice having a villain constantly there and constantly a threat but if he's only got so much rhetoric and is just hammering in the same point or you know not doing anything interesting it is obnoxious seeing him pop in over and over again especially when now you're just wondering if he knows all about Marc trying to stop him, why doesn't he just kill him? Like he shows up in the scene with Anton but if he has all of his followers why not just like take Marc and Layla out? Is it because he doesn't take out people who aren't properly able to be judged because then why shoot at Marc to begin with all those other times in the last few episodes? And why didn't Marc seeing Harrow just go full Moon Knight on the spot and take him out? Like he does when surrounded later but if he knows Harrow is going to unleash Ammit and how bad that is why not just do so when you have the chance? instead "oh let me talk about how you're lying to Layla and Layla's own issues" so they can have personal drama about it later? it's not interesting especially when we still aren't really diving into Marc at all who is just being stand offish and not interesting and honestly Harrow isn't doing anything. I think I liked the idea of him admitting he did enjoy as a sin committing acts in Khonshu's name and wanting to pay him back for driving him to the point of insanity but that's really it from the guy in terms of enjoyment this time around. This is a guy we either need a lot of info for now or needs to be spaced out better which man are we not getting here. Plus not to mention none of his entourage are interesting either or have anything that can threaten Marc/Moon Knight really especially if they aren't pulling out any more demon monster creatures.

And yeah like I hinted at earlier, Marc Spector isn't nearly as interesting a protagonist as Steven Grant is. Though Steven taking over at the worst times did get a bit annoying (though I do like the hinting of probably another personality of Marc's coming out and Mr. Knight trying to get everyone to stop before getting stabbed) I at least like the fact his knowledge is useful and Marc has to rely on him and yeah him helping out shows that charm but... we're mostly left with Marc. Who honestly I thought at least would be this more seasoned hardened sort of professional mercenary sort of character you dont' want to cross but... I don't really get that. Issac's really good at playing Steven Grant and Marc was good when he was on the other side but yeah now that we've had a full ep focused on the guy I don't feel like I know him at all or want to. And granted I guess the point is he's supposed to be this more guarded kind of character but you need more then that to form an investment in someone and though we get all of these vague hints we don't get anything meaty. Hell why doesn't Marc at least tell Layla "hey Khonshu wants you to be the next spirit that's why I'm pushed away from you" but no he doesn't and... honestly it feels like we're stuck with this bore whose trying to be more tough and cut throat but without the chops to really back it up. And I feel like that's a bad call on the director's part then Issac's fault since say what you want about his take on Apocalypse but at least he could sell the idea of having the powers of ancient egypt and feeling at least somewhat threatening. Issac here though feels like Poe Dameron without the charm because that charm went to Steven and we're left with this isolating sort of drab grump. I mean at least he's more teamed up with Layla but eh even she's not too interesting. There was some charm in her opening with her mom but so much of that felt like exposition (and yeah what's with these sort of characters who need to be in these sort of scavenger or relic hunter jobs because their family was into it? Why is that the cliche they always always ALWAYS go with?) nor did she have any interesting lines or observations or even jokes to throw out. Plus yeah this is the "indiana jones" part of the story I guess of the heroes trying to go around and solve clues but with indiana jones the sets and mysteries are far more interesting then we got here.

I will admit not everything in this one was bad. The action chase in the beginning was well done especially in how Marc/Steven/probably third guy handled those guys and the one killing himself in the name of Ammit worked. And the big spectacle scene at Anton's place (BTW I guess since Anton died we aren't going to see Midnight Man really so... sucks for the fans who wanted to see him) when Moon Knight came out was good. As I really liked the idea of Moon Knight being stabbed so many times and stabbing other people through his own blades and going around with his moon a rangs to take out all the punks and even Layla's fight with that one guard to get the map piece was good so... the action worked. Admittedly little else did and yeah this is easily the worst episode of the show so far and one of the worst eps I've seen of an MCU series. I think only Loki episode 3 annoyed me more and yeah seems like a lot of these six episode shows have their third episode as the worst with Hawkeye being a rare exception (though maybe because that show started out slower then these other ones) but with Moon Knight that's true. Eh hopefully the show will pick up after since this must be the low point plus at least after next week we'll be caught up with the people who got sneak peaks about the show who say there's a big twist next week... don't know what it is but hope it makes for better stuff then this did.

 

[Frontier]

Layla is surprisingly photogenic! I thought for a second she was just randomly taking mugshots but it was just passport pictures. But she got into taking those on a dime, so I'm guessing she's had to take a lot of those in her travels...with her moms' help, I assume .

So Layla basically finds lost/stolen treasure and returns it where it belongs? As an extension of her fathers' career as an archaeologist. Of course, seems like she keeps a few for herself .

Did Harrow literally drag his entire flock with him to Egypt? Is that all the same people we've seen the two times we've seen his cult ?

It was an interesting contrast seeing Marc in the drivers' seat of the body with Steven in the back of his head and seeing what happens when Marc is forced to give back control. Although while Marc only possessed Steven's body to complete the mission and basically save them, Steven takes over so he can basically screw the mission and bail back to the UK .

"He'll talk!" Khonshu doesn't know religious zealots as well as he thinks .

Marc totally stiffed that poor cabbie...speaking of cabbies, Jake Lockley as the third personality that's more violent than even Marc? A homicidal split-personality? Kind of wondering when we'll meet him .

So Steven is basically Marc's "conscience" who tries to restrain him and knows more about Egypt and archaeology, which is especially useful here, but Steven doesn't seem as invested in stopping Ammet and Mr. Knight is still basically useless so there's only so much Steven can really do .

Khonshu isn't entirely useless, he can effect the night sky using his godlike powers, but he's limited because the Egyptian Gods are very strict about interfering in the world of humanity, and Khonshu's always been seen as interfering too much, even if it's only in the service of saving/helping others. It got so bad he was banished from the pantheon, and his attempts to stop Ammet and the other Gods' complete ignorance of what's really going on basically screws Khonshu and leaves our protagonist without the power of Moon Knight .

The Egyptian Gods are still involved in the day-to-day world, but in a limited form via their avatars and in acts so insignificant you'd probably never knew they were there. It seems like all of them except Khonshu (in his own way) had given up on humanity, or at least trying to do anything more with them, which I guess puts Khonshu in a slightly better light even if his true motivations are a bit murky .

So Oscar Isaac has three personalities and now Khonshu possessing Marc's body...a little over-dramatic, especially compared to Khonshu's actual voice, but at least he's having fun with it .

That "trial" was basically a joke with the protagonists not really making any significant attempt to prove Harrow was working for Ammet. Like, tell him to lift his sleeve up or something, but you would think they'd have better evidence than just spoken word, and Harrow basically turns the Gods' against them by gaslighting Khonshu and Mark by making Khonshu look like he's trying to free Ammet and using Marc's own mental instability against him. What a D-bag .

So...the death of Layla's father might not have gone the way she thought it did, and Marc (or his alters) might have been more involved than she thought. I don't know if they'd have Marc outright kill her dad (which would probably be a marriage breaker), but there's definitely something he's not telling her .

Why didn't Marc transform when everybody was telling him to use the suit? Like, they literally could have stopped Harrow right there. I know we need Moon Knight to have dramatic entrances, but they're lucky Harrow didn't actually burn the map. Which is also kind of incompetent on Harrows' part .

Sucks for the private security that Marc and Layla were playing for keeps and Steven's too inept to actually do anything .

How durable is Moon Knight? Like, he can tank and deflect bullets and was only momentarily held back by all those spears through his body. Can he even really die while wielding the power of Khonshu? I know Khonshu said he basically saved Marc from dying, so is he effectively immortal as an avatar ?

Is Layla falling for Steven? Is Marc losing his wife to his split personality? Does it really matter when they're all technically the same guy ?

Steven and Khonshu kind of got a moment! I guess that's what it was between the two as they finally worked together, although it was the last thing Khonshu was able to do before being imprisoned...will they try to stop Harrow or free Khonshu first? Like, without Moon Knight they don't have as good a chance on their own .

 

[Yojimbo]

The Egyptian Gods are still involved in the day-to-day world, but in a limited form via their avatars and in acts so insignificant you'd probably never knew they were there. It seems like all of them except Khonshu (in his own way) had given up on humanity, or at least trying to do anything more with them, which I guess puts Khonshu in a slightly better light even if his true motivations are a bit murky .

4/13:And notably, Bast and Sekhmet were absent. I guess they don't do the avatar thing and just guide the current Black Panther.

EDIT: What if, it wasn't Marc by the 3rd personality/probably Jake who killed the archaeologists and Layla's dad? Hence why Marc avoided the question because it's complicated.

4/17: It appears there was a Kang variant easter egg in the past episode.

 

[Frontier]

4/17: It appears there was a Kang variant easter egg in the past episode.

I guess Rama-Tut was probably going to come up at some point...

 

[Yojimbo]

Episode 4 "The Tomb"

Marc & Steven must find balance as supernatural threats ahead look to stop them.

 

[Neo Ultra Mike]

"The Tomb" - Okay this is better then the last episode and I will say for those who said that the last part of this is a mind screw... yeah I admit was not expecting the direction they went with this but talk about that in a minute I want to discuss the rest of the episode first. Which was though nothing that great or anything was at least decent. We didn't get really any grand action sequences but that makes sense since this one doesn't have moon Knight in it at all but I do like that sneaky one with Layla taking out that truck and then managing to take out that creature with the flare and chucking it off a cliff. Though I admit something about her scream afterward really completed that scene like it made it feel much more realistic admitting to the fear and horror and out there ness of the situation after conquering it. I'm not much of a fan of solving the mystery of the tomb and what not but I did dig Steven's excitement for it. And I admit Marc actually managing to punch Steven after he kissed Layla and Steven saying "what you going to try drowning us next?" was funny. I'm still not into the whole love triangle idea though I do appreciate Mark finally coming clean about what happened (I really did expect that third personality to be the one who killed Layla's dad. Maybe that still happened Marc is just assuming it was the partner before they all died but probably not) because of Harrow who yeah works better here since he's at least showing up in a place where it makes sense for him to be in. He's looking for where Ammit is buried not being randomly summoned by the other Egyptian gods who don't stupidly ask really any follow up questions or where never got to be Midnight Man was up and at least him talking about Marc's pain to lure Layla in and her reaction to her were acted well. Plus I do appreciate that Ammit in a sense was found in this episode and though we're likely going to see Harrow get that in the next episode and end with her being released and Marc getting Moon Knight powers again I do appreciate the whole tomb solving puzzle stuff was well done. I also like how Marc actually takes out a few of Harrow's men before being gunned down which... yeah leads to the whole other part of the episode.

For those who thought Moon Knight was getting a bit too standard and becoming too stereotypical Indiana Jones, boom now we got a "maybe this was all in Marc's imagination as he's gone insane in a psych ward and is just imagining all of this happening based on context clues" which... you know if that was just all there was to the ending tag would be rather obnoxious. Like yeah we know that Moon Knight and him being a super hero is real you're not going to swerve us on that writers but the ending we did get for that made this whole trip worth it. And I do admit it is creepy seeing Marc in this ward stuck to that chair and Layla just being a fellow crazy within the loom and Harrow being portrayed as the psychologist talking to Marc about this adventure movie he thinks it's a part of especially since yeah I was trying to figure out what exactly was the other twist and what else was happening. So i appreciate Marc managing to crawl away and meet up with Steven and the two for the first time ever seem generally happy seeing one another as it's a sign to them "no we aren't crazy we remember what happened to us" and then getting the stinger of... I think Taweret appearing before them. I did a bit of research and found out that not only is this whole "Marc is put in this psychological mental ward" something from an actual moon knight comic but who this character likely is. This is the Egyptian Goddess of Fertility "Mistress of Pure Water" who also cleanses and purifies souls before they can pass into the afterlife. So yeah pretty clear she was purifying the souls inside of Marc and Steven and they're going to have to make a deal with her to get Khonshu back since I doubt she wants Ammit to be released as well which says to me "Yeah Steven did die but found yet another way to cheat back to life" which hey works with this whole Egyptian god motif and I do appreciate how seemingly friendly she is compared to the appearance. Having all that as the final bit makes it work and makes this a more solid episode. Plus hey now people who watched ahead can't spoil anymore what happens which should hopefully make the last third of this more interesting to view now that we're all more in the dark about it.

 

[Yojimbo]

On one hand, I was glad to see a strong focus on Layla this episode but on the other, I grimaced at how easily she played into Harrow's hands which then led to her inadvertently stalling Marc long enough for Harrow and his cult to catch up to them at Alexander the Great's tomb and well...

Not surprised Khonshu was one of many Egyptian gods imprisoned by the Ennead. But loved the twist that Ammit's last avatar was an actual historical figure, Alexander the Great. Or little bit more of the supernatural side of things with the Heka priest was an exciting sequence. The Indiana Jones/The Mummy aspect of getting through the maze was fun enough and it turning out to be based on the Eye of Horus was clever.

Regarding the dig site massacre, I'm still on the fence if the partner Marc was alluding to was the third personality/probably Jake/probably who's in the second sarcophagus OR like the comics, will turn out to be Bushman. Considering an actor's audition tape of the latter happens to show up online this week can't be a coincidence. Hmm. Also whether a coincidence or not, Layla's dad's name does sorta match up to a name character Abdul Faoul.

Definitely a wacky end to the episode but so surreal. I think just MCU fans in general might be reminded of WandaVision but yeah, definitely something for the comic book fans. On one hand, felt like this could be the mindscape used by all the personalities and Khonshu to communicate (kinda similar to the ancestral plane seen in Black Panther) OR a nod to the Jeff Lemire run in 2016 OR something new. But yes, Marc and Steven's reaction to Taweret was a given and still hilarious. "Hello!" I agree I feel like she might be playing the role of grim reaper in a way here considering the last thing they both remember is being shot. But presumably next week, they're forced to come to mental balance with each other, maybe even with Jake too. I think once that's done, she will allow them cheat certain death and heal them gunshot wounds. I suspect she will be a member of the Ennead and in mythology, is essentially the direct polar opposite of Ammit. Nice touch for her to appear given Marc falls into the pool of water which she is associated with and that place to be based on the Putnam Psychiatric Hospital from Marc's backstory in the comics.

 

[Frontier]

That's...a lot of sealed up Gods. Have they all been acting up more than we previously assumed? Are we meant to find it suspicious that they have so many of their brethren sealed up like that? Will Marc have to free more than just Khonshu ?

Marc's only good point is the suit? Come on Layla, give him more credit than that .

So the big question...does it count as cheating when it's technically a split-personality of yourself? I think even Layla and Steven are really unsure what their feelings for each other mean. At least Steven had the decency to try to explain Marc's position on the main thing Layla was mad about, even if it didn't stop the kiss or Marc punching him .

"It was his choice" - I mean, in a way it was more Khonshu's choice and how Marc reacted to that, but I guess Layla has to process it in her own way .

What...what are those things? Are those like...meant to be guarding Ammet's tomb and kill/harvest anyone who tries to go in? Are they even human ?

Layla really knows how to effectively use those flares .

So the truth comes out...Marc was there when Layla's father died. Not that he actually participated it, it was presumably MCU!Bushman, and he died trying to make it right...but it does put a more morbid cover of Marc and Layla's entire romance that her fathers' death has been hanging over it since he met her. And basically makes her Marlene from the comics. I do wonder if we're going to see the origin proper in the next episode .

I honestly thought for a second they were going to mention Rama-Tut in the tomb...

Is Marc suicidal? It feels like he's torn up with so much guilt in himself over what happened, and his ultimate endgame was always fading away so Steven could be the dominant personality, that I wonder if this was basically a means of killing himself as penance .

What does it take for Jake to come out? They haven't seemed to properly address what makes him take over the body, other than I guess high stress situations that require even more violence than Marc can dish out. We obviously saw his sarcophagus in the mental space, and I'm assuming we'll free him next episode, but I'm just really interested to see what his deal is .

Well, points for trying Marc, but without the suit he can't tank bullets and he and Steven both die in real time. Although I guess this gives them an opportunity to finally sort through their differences and have another "rebirth" .

I was honestly expecting them to end on Marc waking up in the institution and spend longer in it before he escaped and found Steven, thus indicating it's some kind of mental purgatory that they (and Jake) are stuck in, but I guess we've got to get the plot moving .

I love how, despite how often they snipe at each other or work against each other, the first thing Marc and Steven do when they're reunited is hug .

I know that the mental institution wasn't exactly real and was trying to re-frame everything Marc knew as being a delusion, but did he actually get the inspiration for Steven's identity and personality from that B-movie ?

Looks like Marc and Steven are going to need the Hippo Goddess/Taweret's help to find life again and get back to stop Harrow, free Khonshu, and revive Moon Knight .

 

[Yojimbo]

What...what are those things? Are those like...meant to be guarding Ammet's tomb and kill/harvest anyone who tries to go in? Are they even human ?

I think they used to be human priests who served the god Heka (i.e. think like sorcerers in ancient Egypt) and practiced alchemy to extend their lives, albeit as zombies. Another flag that the supernatural has been going on under our noses in the MCU for a long time. And I guess the priests were harvesting organs in deference to Alexander like that was the base drive keeping them going. I think Ammit and Alexander the Great was secretly put in a tomb inhabited by them as an extra security measure in addition to the Eye of Horus maze and keeping the Ennead ignorant of the location. On a side note, Heka even appeared in 2 comics in the past 13 years.

 

[Fone Bone]

Moon Knight "The Tomb"

I was going to say this was the first good episode of the series since the Pilot. But that's underselling it. It's the first great episode of the series.

I don't much care for scenarios where a hero is trapped in a mental institution and it's suggested their entire adventures and the entire show have been a hallucination. However, aside from the great bright female hippo god saying "Hi!" ending, I feel like it's possible the series put in the proper legwork for that premise. Captain Sisko and Buffy Summers are not in mental institutions because we've seen a LOT of stuff on both DS9 and Buffy not from their perspectives that they'd have no way of knowing. Therefore the entire conceit is clearly fake. I was trying to remember if this show has actually shown us any proper scenes without either Mark or Steven in them and I'm coming up blank. Is it possible the series had enough foresight thing entire time to make the "real life is the delusion the crazy person is suffering" trope actually plausible (or at least POSSIBE) for once? It seems so. I don't like the trope, but at least it hasn't been unearned like in every other project that uses it.

But the thing that interested me most is that Steven is clearly falling in love with Layla, and Mark can't stand it. For good reason. Aside from having that horrible, unforgivable secret hanging over them, Steven is actually a good guy, a more compatible fit for Layla, and less likely to put her in real danger. Mark's pissed because he can totally see her falling for HIM too. And we see that's sort of what's happening. Far be it for me for advocating a marriage breaking up, but her and Mark's entire relationship was founded on a lie. Why SHOULDN'T she prefer someone as honest and open as Steven to the man who knew who killed her father and stayed silent while taking her to bed and then marrying her? THAT'S why Mark is pissed. It's not a harmless crush. It's something that could potentially upend his entire life. And frankly, I'm on Team Steven as far as Layla goes. I'm on Team Steven for every aspect of this show if we're being honest. And that includes resisting being Moon Knight.

This has not be a show that has been generous in showing the viewer caped superheroics, but it IS noticeable Moon Knight isn't in the suit once for the entire episode.

Man, I loved that. It was crazy, confusing, and perhaps put in some real previous effort to be alarmingly credible. Good stuff. *****.

 

[Frontier]

Moon Knight "The Tomb"

But the thing that interested me most is that Steven is clearly falling in love with Layla, and Mark can't stand it. For good reason. Aside from having that horrible, unforgivable secret hanging over them, Steven is actually a good guy, a more compatible fit for Layla, and less likely to put her in real danger. Mark's pissed because he can totally see her falling for HIM too. And we see that's sort of what's happening. Far be it for me for advocating a marriage breaking up, but her and Mark's entire relationship was founded on a lie. Why SHOULDN'T she prefer someone as honest and open as Steven to the man who knew who killed her father and stayed silent while taking her to bed and then marrying her? THAT'S why Mark is pissed. It's not a harmless crush. It's something that could potentially upend his entire life. And frankly, I'm on Team Steven as far as Layla goes. I'm on Team Steven for every aspect of this show if we're being honest. And that includes resisting being Moon Knight.

The irony being that Marc probably projected Layla into Steven's personality which is why they're so compatible. Marc on some level wanted Steven to be a better man and a better fit for Layla than him because he loved her so much, which is why he was always intending to basically "die" after they finished the mission so someone like Steven could live instead of him because he hates himself so much.

Personally I don't think there's any point in picking a side in an individual with multiple personalities because they're both ultimately the same person or just an extension of themselves. Which will probably be true for the 3rd personality, no matter how violent it is.

 

[Neo Ultra Mike]

I don't much care for scenarios where a hero is trapped in a mental institution and it's suggested their entire adventures and the entire show have been a hallucination. However, aside from the great bright female hippo god saying "Hi!" ending, I feel like it's possible the series put in the proper legwork for that premise. Captain Sisko and Buffy Summers are not in mental institutions because we've seen a LOT of stuff on both DS9 and Buffy not from their perspectives that they'd have no way of knowing. Therefore the entire conceit is clearly fake. I was trying to remember if this show has actually shown us any proper scenes without either Mark or Steven in them and I'm coming up blank.

So far there technically have actually been two. I'm not counting stuff like Layla fighting the mummy because that's adjacent to what's happening to Mark. However we see in the first episode Arthur Harrow putting the glass in his shoes and the third episode with Layla getting that passport so we have seen elements of this series outside of Mark/Steven's perspective. IMHO the mental institution works here because they aren't trying to fool you for the entire episode or end on trying to suggest it wasn't real as that would of been the wrong choice.

 

[Yojimbo]

Episode 5 "Asylum"

Marc & Steven search through their memories to find their truth or become left behind.