Moon Knight Episode 5 Review: Fantastic, dark origin revealed in Asylum

Five episodes in and Moon Knight finally delivers a dark, character-revealing episode in Asylum , which is the best episode of the series.

Oscar Isaac delivers an acting masterclass in Asylum, an episode that dives headfirst into Marc’s backstory. This very well could be the best performance by an actor on an MCU show, period. The creation of Steven, meeting Khonshu and other issues Marc kept buried are finally brought to light. I understand Marc’s burden more in Asylum than in any of the other episodes up to this point.

Following the shocking ending at the end of The Tomb, Marc and Steven wake up in a mental institution. Dr. Arthur Harrow insists everything that’s happened in the show is in Marc’s head. Marc and Steven run into the Egyptian goddess of childbirth and fertility, Taweret. She makes it clear that Marc is dead. The mental institution is one of Marc’s choosing and is a form of purgatory.

Steven and Marc must balance their souls by unburdening themselves to one another. Steven is an open book, which leaves Marc to provide backstory. A twisted, sad story that shows how physical and emotional abuse by his mother caused the emergence of Steven. Layla is absent from the episode, which allows the relationship between Steven and Marc to grow.

Asylum is a nearly perfect episode of television. The CGI on Taweret, a hippo-looking creature, was fantastic. Action hasn’t been a strong point in this series. Luckily, there’s not much action in the episode, which allows the series to focus on its biggest strength, Isaac and creepy tension-filled imagery.

The episode doesn’t negate Moon Knight‘s problems up to this point. There are way too many threads dangling heading into the finale. The penultimate episode just aired and I’m just now caring about Marc, which isn’t great for a protagonist. This series excels when it focuses on psychological thriller elements than it does as an escapist, treasure hunting show. Unfortunately, Asylum is really the only episode that’s given us a deep character-focused story.

With the overview out of the way, let’s dive deeper into the elements that stood out in Asylum. There may be some minor spoilers. Moon Knight is available to stream on Disney Plus.

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Welcome to the Asylum

Asylum dives deeper into Marc and Steven’s new setting. Ethan Hawke continues to shine with this new direction for Harrow. This take on Harrow as a therapist who uses sarcasm to force Marc to take stock of his situation is much better than Harrow as the prophet of Ammit.

Asylum does a great job of keeping you guessing. Were the globetrotting adventures all in Marc and Steven’s heads? Probably not. Does this mental hospital only exist in Marc’s mind? Not sure. This unsettling, tension-filled episode is a much better fit for the series.

Harrow and Taweret are the only characters who interact with Marc and Steven in the present day. Tawerent catches Marc and Steven up. Marc and Steven are in fact dead. Steven believes Taweret right away, Marc needs some convincing. He opens a door and immediately walks onto a moving ship sailing across the desert. Marc and Steven are heading towards the Duat (Egyptian afterlife. The ship is a form of purgatory. Marc and Steven must balance their hearts or risk damnation.

Scales of Justice

Taweret weighing the hearts finally provides some much-needed background on Marc. First, Marc and Steven enter a room full of people, frozen, not moving. These are all of the people Marc killed, with most of them occurring under the service of Khonshu. Marc remembers everyone he’s killed. It’s the first time we’ve seen Marc have a true conscious.

Suddenly, a child runs into the room. Steven follows and Marc tries to stop him from following. Steven eventually locks Marc out. The boy is Marc’s younger brother, Randall. Wendy Spector, Marc’s mother, asks Marc to look out for Randall. The boys head into a cave. Water quickly rises. Randall drowns. In a terrifying scene, Wendy blames Marc for Randall’s death.

Wendy doesn’t celebrate Marc’s birthday. Her verbal abuse eventually turns physical due to alcohol. The abuse eventually leads to the creation of Steven. Marc’s father, Rey is too genial and doesn’t do anything to stop the abuse from occurring.

The flashbacks are broken up by returning to the ship. All of a sudden a lot of souls start breaking through the dimension.

A Man Apart

During a harrowing scene, Wendy bangs on the door. Just as she breaks in, Steven, Marc’s kind personality takes over. Marc’s physical abuse can be heard but isn’t shown. Steven is shocked but isn’t broken by this reveal.

Asylum also reveals how Marc met Khonshu. Marc elaborates on the ambush that killed Layla’s father and should have killed him. Khonshu intervenes. He makes Marc an offer. Marc can live and carry out Khonshu’s form of justice or he can die. Marc chooses to live. Steven has compassion for Marc’s choice. From Steven’s point of view. Marc was forced to accept Khonshu’s offer in a moment of weakness. F. Murray Abraham comes across more terrifying and conniving than at any other point in the series.

The final big reveal takes place right outside Wendy’s Shiva. Marc’s mixture of grief and anger overwhelms him to the point he can’t move. Suddenly, for the first time in years, Steven reemerges. Steven confused by his surroundings picks up the phone, talks to his mother who he believed was still alive and walks away while his father looks on. Steven can’t believe that his mother is dead. It takes a session with Harrow for the truth to set in.

Marc and Steven reconcile. Meanwhile, souls are heading to Duat in large numbers. Marc and Steven convince Taweret to change course towards the living called the “Gates of Osiris.” Marc and Steven don’t balance their hearts in time. Zombie-like creatures begin boarding the ship. Marc and Steven try fighting off the creatures. Steven more than holds his own. In an attempt to help Marc, Steven falls overboard into the sand and turns to stone before Marc’s eyes.

Marc’s heart is balanced. Golden amber hues and fields of wheat greet Marc, this appears to be the “Field of Reeds,” an Egyptian paradise similar to heaven. The scene is visually stunning and looks like director Mohamed Diab took inspiration from Ridley Scott‘s Gladiator.

Asylum Final Thoughts

Isaac is just incredible throughout this whole episode. The range of emotions he has to carry while playing two distinct characters is remarkable.

Moon Knight finally realizes its potential with this episode. Asylum is a brilliant episode of television that should have come earlier in this series run. There are still so many questions to answer in the finale. I doubt they will be able to answer all of them.