LEFTOVER NINE
A black screen with sounds of snarling and fighting, over. Coming into focus is sand, and then the camera races up the foot of Steven’s bed to him as he flies awake. It seems that in his mind he’s still in the fight. He dashes forward, stumbling out of bed, and is yanked short by the connected ankle brace. Crash, face plant.
ONE
That wakes him entirely. Realizing everything, he slumps back to the floor.
At his bathroom mirror, Steven tries to talk to Mark. No response.
Steven crosses the street, a red double decker bus passing in front of him, and walks toward the museum. As he approaches the front entrance, the overhead shot flips upside down to follow him in.
Repair tools. Cordoning tape. Steven slows and looks around. The security man says he’s just about to review the video footage. He takes Steven into the “arena”, a desk with multiple feed displays. Steven admits he might have information about what happened, and he warns the man: What you’re about to see will melt your brain.
TWO
The footage shows Steven doing all that he did, but nothing else is there. He’s alone in the museum, running and crying like a lunatic. Wait, Steven says, fast forward to when I come out of the bathroom. Walking into the coverage is Steven, or so the security man thinks. We know, because of the direct stare right into the lens, and Steven knows, that this is Mark.
THREE
Cut to a gentle, desktop water feature.
FOUR
Steven meets with someone official at the museum. It’s HR. The museum won’t be pressing charges, but here’s a pamphlet for a clinic of psychiatrists. Oh, and have you got any property to return before you’re fired? Steven finds the flip phone and key in his jacket pocket. The HR man indicates, and Steven removes his nametag. As he sets it on the glass-topped, reflective desk, his name and his face — whose name and whose face? — make a lovely moment.
Haha! Cut to Steven chatting with the gold-statue performer again. Close on the man’s frozen face as Steven pours out his woes. We continue a shot of the man’s petrified blue eyes as Steven talks what sounds like pure crazy. When Steven thanks him and hugs him, only the eyes move.
Steven, mystery key in hand, finds the building with the same logo. He approaches the desk guard and asks if he might see a storage locker under the name Steven Grant, or . . . just Mark. The guard, friendly, says sure. He knows him and knows his locker number by heart.
Walking back through a long hallway, lights thump on as they’re motion activated. It’s a disquieting, moving block of light. After unlocking the door, the guard leaves. Steven steps into darkness, and then the light clicks on. A cot, some storage boxes, and a wardrobe make a clean, uncluttered apartment. The metal walls of the locker cast a blurry reflection. Next to the bed is a duffle bag that Steven unzips. We only see his reaction as he cringes. Then he lifts out a handgun and stacks of money. A U.S. passport for Mark Spector. And, underneath it all, the gold scarab. Holding it, Steven says, “It’s real.” Its wings open and it elevates from its little pedestal. Watching it, Steven wonders if it’s a compass.
His Mark reflection interrupts. (Steven, bless his heart, waves hello.) “Am I supposed to be some kind of mad secret agent?” Mark, focused on business, tells Steven to lay down on the cot and sleep so that he can continue his mission. Steven, of course, refuses and demands to know what Mark is.
“I serve Khonshu. I’m his avatar. Which means you are, too. We deliver his justice.”
(For a beat, we struggle to suspend our disbelief. It’s a hard sell. But then Steven saves it by knowing who that is. The Egyptian god of the moon. “That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard.” He blames the steak dinner, haha.)
Sitting on the cot, Steven has a panic attack. Mark wants the body. Instead, Steven packs up the duffle and says he’s taking it to the authorities, who will, thankfully, then put him away. The lights flicker as Steven exits the locker. In the hallway, the lights ratchet, showing the scythe dude coming closer. Steven screams and runs. The halls become a labyrinth, and Steven runs in slow motion, until he comes face to face with the creature. The beak head, towering over him, turns and says, “Give it back, you fool.” Freeze frame of Steven screaming.
Cut to outside as Steven runs from the storage facility. He trips into the road, dropping the duffle. A motorcycle stops short of hitting him, and the rider says, “Mark?” Her face in the helmet, from Steven’s POV, is upside down, but he recognizes her voice. “Layla?”
An establishing shot of the city. Steven rides double behind Layla as she upbraids him. She found him by tracking his phone once he turned it on. (Mostly we see his face, overwhelmed by the moment but also staring at his hand gripping her shoulder. We see her in the side mirror as she’s oblivious to Steven’s distress.) Worried about Mark, Layla also clearly knows a ton of details. She talks about his suit. When she tells him to stop holding her shoulder — “I feel like I’m riding with a Victorian duchess” — and she jostles over a bump, he ends up pressed against her back, hand at her waist. (Lol, what’s a Victorian duchess?)
And then she says, “I’m still your wife.” He wonders if that’s just a joke. She tells him to stop talking with that ridiculous accent. Her face in the side mirror starts to show doubt.
At Steven’s apartment, Layla gravitates toward the fish tank. Oh! Mark is in the reflection! “Get her out of here,” Mark orders. (Layla doesn’t see him.) Steven and Layla speak at cross purposes as she looks around. We learn that Mark is estranged from his mother, and that Layla is surprised to hear French from Steven. His favorite poet is hers; his reading of Egyptian hieroglyphics is also her skill. She doesn’t buy “Mark’s act” and pulls out the unsigned divorce papers he sent to her. Steven, who says he’d never divorce Layla, tries to explain his duality. From the mirror Mark argues against him. In the middle of opening the duffle bag, Steven stops short when Mark says, You’ll get her killed if you show her the scarab.
Haha! Layla tosses him aside and sees for herself. She holds the scarab and recognizes it. While Layla’s angry, still thinking that Mark has ditched her partnership, Steven tries to convince her. He’s in real danger, and she might be the only person who can help him. Now she’s coming around, realizing that this Steven remembers nothing about their adventures or their life. A knock at the door, a voice calling, “Steven Grant,” interrupts them. (Steven gives an “aha!” face at Layla and gestures toward the door, triumphant.)
Two people displaying badges push into his apartment when he answers the door. (Layla has faded into a corner.) He thinks this is an investigation into the museum’s bathroom destruction. The “cops” — we have doubts — snoop about his place. Hearing a noise, one looks out the window, and we see Layla hiding on the ledge. The cops find the Mark passport and take him away.
In the car at night, the cops discover information about Mark on the computer. An international fugitive. Meanwhile, Steven in the back seat tries to deny it. A mercenary, Mark hit an Egyptian dig site and shot someone in the back of the head, which horrifies Steven.
The car arrives at some warehouse that is obviously not the police station. As the “cops” leave, Steven calls for help. A young woman passing by looks at him. Her wrist has the scale tattoo.
SWITCH
Steven spasms, struggling. In the car window reflection, Mark demands his body. Upset about the computer report, Steven swears to never give Mark control again. He says aloud, “Do you hear me!” A walkie talkie on the car dashboard says it hears him loud and clear. The voice is Arthur’s.
FIVE
He’s pulled from the car, landing on the ground. The cane stops next to his head, then Arthur crouches beside him. He uncuffs him and helps him stand. He’s sympathetic, and somehow he knows that Steven contains two personalities. “No wonder your scales wouldn’t balance.” His gentle understanding is underlaid with threat. “Do you think that Khonshu chose you as his avatar because your mind would be so easy to break, or because it was broken already?”
Steven denies that he’s broken. He just needs some help. And then he tenses, and his breathing quickens. Standing behind Arthur is the scythe dude, Khonshu. Immediately Arthur says, “Do you see him right now?”
Haha! Khonshu says, “Kill him!” Arthur says, “Is he telling you to kill me?” (Poor Steven.) The wind gusts and Steven wails. (Ethan Hawke is magnificent at striking a balance between malevolence and sincere friendship) Arthur calms him and leads him through the alley to show him around his community. Peace and harmony, along with a reverence for their cult leader, pervades the people and neighborhood. When the camera tilts up, we see Khonshu perched on a shed roof, watching.
Inside (it’s the building from the show’s opening), Arthur, showing an uncanny insight into Steven’s character, offers him a lovely vegan lentil soup that he made himself this morning. When Khonshu shakes the room, Arthur leans in and says, “You don’t have to listen to him.”
(This is the first person who tries to explain to Steven what’s happening. Everything and everyone else, including Mark himself, has been confusing, hectic, and unbelievable. We can see Steven opening to Arthur because he needed this.)
How can Arthur guess what Khonshu is saying? “I was his former avatar.” Khonshu punishes those “who’ve already walked an evil path. His retribution comes too late.” (Now we know the dichotomy, the battle of perspectives between the two gods.) Arthur wants to resurrect Ammit so that her justice can pull out evil by the root, before it has a chance to act.
When Steven expresses doubt, Arthur mentions the scarab, and the peaceful community stands as one and looks on. The scarab is a compass to Ammit’s tomb. (Arthur’s level of crazy begins to ramp up now.)
Steven doesn’t have the scarab. And then a wobbly reflection in the metal bread dish (HAHAHA!) tells him not to say Layla’s name. Probably to distract from the question, Steven starts asking about Ammit’s philosophy. Would they kill a child? (The camera goes into extreme close-up on Arthur’s face during Steven’s moral certainty.)
Arthur picks up his cane, and his followers slowly back away. As Steven also retreats, Arthur repeatedly asks, “Where is the scarab?” Steven won’t answer. A voice at the back of the room says, “I have it,” and a hand holds the scarab in the air. Layla walks forward, the crowd closing around behind her. Khonshu pushes against Steven and demands that Mark fix this. Layla, now next to Steven, says, “Summon the suit.” He has no idea what she means. She hands him the scarab, grabs his arm, and runs.
SIX
Arthur slams down the cane, a purplish light emanating from the impact. He chants, while Layla fights their way up the stairs. The purple lattice on the floor becomes a portal, and a skeletal claw pulls itself out from inside.
SEVEN
In a room with the door bolted, Layla tries to persuade Steven to use the suit. A reflection of Mark argues to be let out. Quick, moving shots express how conflicted and tormented Steven is. He kneels down, hands over his face, and tells them to leave him alone. Layla, calling him Steven, accepts his refusal. They’ll find another way out.
EIGHT
And then the door bursts open and the skeletal beast enters. Steven backs up, warning of the jackal, but Layla can’t see it. It attacks, and Steven is knocked through the window, falling from three or four stories up. We hear Khonshu yell, “Summon the suit!”
Landing safely on the ground is the Moon Knight.
No, lol, he falls over. It’s Steven in the costume. Instead of a hood, the head covering is only a stretched fabric. The eyes, though, glow moon-white. Hahaha! His reflection says, “Steven, what are we wearing?” Steven, who thinks he looks sharp, pats his pockets for the scarab and pulls out, instead, double truncheons. As Layla climbs down into the alley, Mark and Steven fight for control of the body. Oh, oops! No, it’s the invisible jackal attacking him. When Layla throws a bottle near Steven, the shattered glass outlines the monster’s form.
Magical fighting ensues. Steven, tossing aside the coat and rolling up his sleeves, dances about like a boxer. With one, massive punch, he downs the wolf. Cheering to Layla, Steven feels wonderful until the jackal returns and throws him into traffic. Passersby, who only see Steven’s antics, wonder if he’s having a seizure. A car hits him, knocking him and the jackal apart. As Steven stands, he sees Mark in the window of the double decker bus. Someone’s going to get hurt, Mark says. Steven gives him control. His eyes roll up, and the suit rebuilds itself into Mark’s version. Layla, watching the transformation, recognizes him.
Mark leads the jackal up to the rooftops. The Moon Knight, fast and strong, jumps across buildings and eventually kills the jackal, which then dissolves into dust. The suit reforms into street clothes, and Mark pats the jacket’s pockets. The scarab, though, is gone.
A rough hand picks it up from the paving stones. Layla, on her motorcycle/scooter at the end of the alley, watches. Arthur approaches the homeless man and asks for the scarab back. Taking it, he kills the man by (magically) removing his life force. He sees Layla as she drives away.
NINE
Cut to the Thames, and then back to Mark as he recovers. Steven’s voice says, “This is what it’s like, being on the inside.” Steven’s reflection doesn’t like it and wants the body back. Mark refuses.
They speak. Some of the Rules of the Magic are explained. Mark is in servitude to Khonshu. When he’s done with his task, he’ll give back the body. Steven’s life has been ruined by Mark, and he’s upset. They argue over Layla, becoming more and more angry until Mark kicks at the glass repeatedly to break the reflection. (He looks, well, insane.)
Wind, chiming church bells, and Khonshu appears. “You were nothing more than a corpse when I found you.” He doesn’t like that Mark’s changing the terms of their agreement. They speak face to face (and we get a really good look at Khonshu’s design). Mark wants to finish the job and be free; Khonshu threatens to take Layla as his next avatar if Mark leaves. With a wave of his cape, Khonshu transports Mark.
He’s now in a desert (probably Egyptian) apartment or hotel room. Steven watches from the mirror as Mark drinks alcohol and wanders to the window. Yep, he opens the curtains, and we see his view: the Pyramids of Giza. Roll credits.
CRITICAL NOTES
First, I feel I should apologize for my ignorance about Moon Knight canon. I don’t know his powers, his weapons, or his villains. It took me over an episode to learn how to spell Ammit (which may still not be correct since the internet isn’t consistent). Let me say, though, that this is the first Disney series (I’m looking at you, “Loki” and “Wandavision”) where my lack of knowledge didn’t diminish my viewing. With no story prep I was still able to enjoy all aspects of the show.
Like Episode One, the structure here is a little wonky. The Four is long. Steven unraveling the mystery of Mark goes on more than it should. At this point, Steven is our hero and Mark is, in many ways, our antagonist. He disrupts Steven’s life and causes distress. Mark is the Two Trouble (again), which resolves at the Eight in a way that makes us happy for Steven (he’s such an exuberant superhero) until Mark usurps the body. Too much time spent with Mark detracts from our enjoyment of Steven.
At the Five, though, we’re back on track. The real villain, Arthur, teams up with Steven. It’s brilliant writing, and the acting is superb. Let Arthur explain some of the Mark information. His mix of psychosis and sympathy delivers endless tension and suspense. The Four needed to keep its focus on Layla. Steven, who longs for a girlfriend, suddenly has a wife; he’s so charmingly loyal to her without knowing her at all.
The Seven is wonderful. (Layla believes him!) The Eight and Nine are fantastic.
The Three and Six are a figurative car crash. At the Six, Arthur calls forth the jackal. Okay, think about it: he must have done something similar last episode in the museum. We didn’t have the information at the moment we watched, but we learn later that the creature comes from Arthur’s cane power. What if, while Steven watches the security footage, he sees a purple glow behind a door? Only he would see it, but it would be information he didn’t have yesterday. That’s all it would take, that mystery of the faint magical light, and we’d have a perfect juxtaposition of information at each beat. The hint of the magic at the Three — and new information for us and Steven — and then the resolution at the Six when we learn what the glow means.
That’s my Three fix, for what it’s worth.
The actual Three, the water feature, is an unsuccessful choice. Someone knew that a pause was needed at this point, that the flow of the story needed a breath (in other words, a Three), but they had nothing to stick in its place. They let the fountain run for an extra length of time, but it really means nothing to us during this episode. If it has resonance later (I can’t remember, specifically) then it needed to be planted outside of the Three slot.
Overall, then, I have a little disappointment with this episode’s structure. The whole storage unit thing was too long and difficult to summarize. The beats became murky. I love the Layla stuff, though. Their common interests are sweetly exciting to Steven, and mysteriously suspicious to Layla. Good character development.