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Marc Spector’s recent return as Moon Knight has drawn some very unwanted attention, and his latest nemesis is putting the hero through a gauntlet.
WARNING: The following contains major spoilers for Moon Knight #2, available now from Marvel.
Marc Spector’s most recent return to the streets has been a contentious one. Ever since turning his back on his patron god Khonshu, Moon Knight has been working his way back to his roots as the protector of those who travel at night. While the people under his purview are certainly appreciative, not everyone has such a high opinion of the work being done at the Midnight Mission. In fact, Marc Spector’s latest critic has already begun working against him by putting him through a gauntlet of threats.
Moon Knight has been quick to embrace the place he has carved out for himself since walking away from Khonshu. While he might not be fighting alongside the Avengers anymore, he has discovered that fulfilling his most basic duties come with just as much gratification, if not more. Apart from wrangling errant vampires and feral Vermin, Marc Spector has found himself facing off against far more capable enemies. The scars left on his mind by an ancient god prove to be more than enough to overcome the psychic threat at hand, but Moon Knight has chosen to embrace everything that has happened to him in life, which has brought so much trouble to his doorstep in the first place. As it turns out, Marc Spector isn’t the only Fist of Khonshu in town, and the Hunter’s Moon is already testing Moon Knight’s faith in every way he knows how.
When last seen, Doctor Badr, aka Hunter’s Moon, was preparing himself to go to war with Moon Knight if necessary, all in a bid to return him to his “proper” place at Khonshu’s side. As far as the Hunter’s Moon is concerned, what Marc Spector has done is tantamount to blasphemy or worse.
In Badr’s eyes, the only way to deal with this is to break Moon Knight physically, mentally and spiritually, although all of that is far easier said than done as evidenced by the events of Moon Knight #2 by Jed MacKay, Alessandro Cappuccio, Rachelle Rosenberg and VC’s Cory Petit. Of course, Badr isn’t the first villain to decide to put their nemesis through the wringer in such a manner.
In 2010, Amazing Spider-Man #612 by Mark Waid and Paul Azaceta kicked off in the form of “The Gauntlet.” Following the death of Kraven the Hunter, his family began a campaign of terror against Spider-Man in an effort to weaken him in as many ways as possible, all in an effort to resurrect their patriarch in a gruesome ritual. To do this, they enlisted as many of the wall-crawler’s foes as they could by way of manipulation or outright payment, beginning with Electro’s attack on the former Daily Bugle and culminating in the “Grim Hunt.” Along the way, Peter Parker lost his career, some friends and almost his life on more than a handful of occasions. Ultimately, Spider-Man was able to prevail over his enemies, but the experience had a lasting effect on Peter Parker for years to come, and it seems as though Moon Knight may already be embroiled in a similar situation without realizing it.
None of the threats that Moon Knight has faced off against recently have been known to him. As unlikely as it is that Vermin was planted where he was with any real purpose, the picture has been made quite clear that Hunter’s Moon was at least behind Hawley’s mass brainwashing and assault on Moon Knight. It is also clear that this was far from the only trial in store for the hero courtesy of his newest rival. It might not be a gauntlet in the traditional sense, but there is no doubt that this is going to be one of the longest fights of Marc Spector’s life.
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