Marvel’s Moon Knight is easily one of the most complex series Disney+ has put out thus far. Based on comic books written by Dough Mench, the series is a distinctly inventive superhero origin story that uses a caped crusader and Egyptian mythology to discuss mental health.
The series, starring Oscar Isaac, explores the two alter egos of Marc Spector/Steven Grant, who is suffering from dissociative personality disorder and discovers that one of his alter egos has been moonlighting (pun intended), as Moon Knight, a super-powered being channeling the powers of the Egyptian moon god Khonshu. What follows is a series of incredible adventures that test Marc’s willpower as he confronts his own demons and fills us — and Steven — in on how he became the vessel through which the moon god is now enacting his justice in the world. And while the finale ends with Marc and Spector finally melding as one in complete harmony and seemingly being free of Khonshu, the end credit scene shows that Marc’s fight for autonomy isn’t quite over.
Marc & Steven
Across six episodes, we became familiar with the inner workings of Marc Spector/Steven Grant. The first season of the show begins with Steven discovering that not only is he not the only resident in his mind, but he is also an avatar for an Egyptian god. His chief mission is to stop Arthur Harrow (Ethan Hawke), a religious zealot on a mission to summon the Egyptian goddess Ammit. The goddess wants to punish people on the basis of their future sins, rather than any acts they've already committed. It is also revealed that Arthur was Khonshu’s avatar prior to Marc. There's also Marc’s wife Layla (May Calamawy), who is unaware of his Steven persona but knows about his status as Moon Knight.
Steven is our entry point into the show, and it’s through him that we learn how disorienting his dissociative personality disorder can be. Steven is a hapless employee at the British Museum in London, where he hopes to become a tour guide one day, due to his endless knowledge and interest in Egyptian culture. However, one night, he randomly wakes to find himself in the Austrian Alps on the run from Harrow’s hitmen. This sets the tone for Steven and Marc as they struggle to regain control of their body from one another, all the while serving Khonshu.
It becomes exceedingly clear to Steven and the audience that Khonshu isn’t exactly the good guy here, even if his plan to stop Arthur is needed. Khonshu even blackmails Marc, saying that he would take over Layla if Marc failed his mission, establishing their rocky relationship. It is also made clear in the penultimate episode that the reason Marc created his Steven persona was to cope with his physically abusive mother, who blamed Marc for the death of her second child. This is important because it allows us to understand why Marc may have subconsciously created a third alter.
Ammit and Scarlet Scarab Revealed
Moon Knight delivered on its promise of a jam-packed finale, with there being many resolutions for the overarching character and story arcs. Layla's journey from being second in command to Marc to fully being her own leader came to a head in the finale with her allowing Taweret to use her as an avatar. This gave Layla her own superpowers, complete with Wonder Woman-esque gold wings, and she was able to use her newfound agility and skills to take on Harrow and his men. Of course, even the combined forces of Moon Knight and Layla, now aka the Scarlet Scarab, were not enough to defeat Harrow.
All of this is happening as Khonshu and Ammit engage in a Kaiju inspired battle next to the pyramids, and Khonshu seems to struggle as much as Moon Knight does. It took Marc's third alter Jake Lockley's arrival as a deus ex machina to ultimately save the day, even if it wasn't shown to us. Where this leaves both Marc and Layla is yet to be seen. Layla's new powered skill set also brings with it the cool new name, Scarlet Scarab, an Egyptian superhero in the comics. While the series doesn't use this name to address her, we do have a sweet moment of a child asking if she's an Egyptian hero, to which she replies yes. There's also the scarab that's a part of her costume, indicating that her female superhero is a gender-bent version of that character.
Who is Jake Lockley?
So who exactly is Jake Lockley? Although fans have been sitting with bated breath for the arrival of Marc’s third alter Jake Lockley for some time, his arrival was nonetheless shocking, given the way he was introduced. In the end credit scene of the show, Harrow finds himself in a mental ward after being defeated by Moon Knight. However, he is soon escorted out by a man wearing a flat cap into a limo. There, Harrow learns that Khonshu is still going around having humans do his bidding and shockingly, he is still using Marc as a conduit — except it’s not really him behind the proverbial (and literal) wheel here, but a secret third alter, Jake Lockley.
This version of Marc seems even more violent than Marc Spector, which is saying something since Marc is the actual mercenary and Jake is just a cab driver in the comics. In the Disney+ show, Jake appears when Marc has to do a violent act that is far removed from the good ethics and morals of Steven. In a way, he is the direct opposite of Steven and represents the bad in Marc the same way Steven represents all that is good. This is why Jake seems to almost enjoy killing Harrow, whereas Marc made the decision not to after apprehending him. The Moon Knight version of the character also speaks Spanish, which is a nice touch and links to Oscar Isaac’s Guatemalan heritage. Khonshu tells Harrow that Marc doesn’t realize just how troubled he truly is considering he is unaware of the existence of Jake Lockley.
All along, the series has dropped clues leading fans to speculate that Jake was coming soon. In Episode 5, Marc copes up to creating Steven in a bid to compartmentalize his anguish and feel some moments of peace in a household where he was constantly abused. Going by that logic, Jake could be an answer to Marc’s anger at the world. He has appeared at times of great duress and unlike the other two alters, hidden himself completely from himself. This is why Khonshu is happy to let Marc and Steven go when Steven naively asks that the two of them be set free from the god. Because he knows that at the end of the day, one version of Marc will still be at his beck and call. However, it is important to note that Layla has now seen Jake Lockley, being thus far our only witness to Lockley. There is also a great likelihood of Jake having his own costume and skill set, considering that Steven has Mr. Knight and Marc has Moon Knight. So it is unlikely that she missed his transformation into Lockley while they were fighting Harrow and his goons.
With all these revelations, it would be criminal for Marvel to not continue the story of Marc and explain the emergence of Jake and how Marc and Steven are going to deal with this twist, as well as dive into Layla's own budding superhero journey.