A New Style Of Ghostbusting — Reviewing ‘Moon Knight: Fist Of Khonshu’ #13

Supervillains tend to leave varying levels of death and destruction in their wake as they move through the Marvel Universe. The construction-themed Wrecking Crew are known for their beyond destructive ways.

As the spirits haunting the crowbar wielding Wrecker intensify, Moon Knight: Fist Of Khonshu #13 adds some new wrinkles to the case. Dark magics are in the air in the latest issue from Jed MacKay, Domenico Carbone, Rachelle Rosenberg, and Cory Petit.

Damn do I love this series. Hell, this overall encompassed set of Moon Knight runs have been deeply loved.

No matter what the threat or the characters involved, MacKay pulls leaves no stops unpulled. He taps into all the right character depths and developments to keep things intriguing and moving. I haven’t even read the mini that brought the Scarlet Scarab (Layla El-Faouly) into the Marvel Universe, but I already feel a connection with the character. Her back and forth with Moon Knight, and Clea Strange, are informative.

Love that there is a continuity connection dropped here. It’s not in any way that requires the reader having to dig up a Doctor Strange issue. No, MacKay, per usual, uses the vast canon of Marvel Comics to spice up the work without ever being a drag on reading. This gives the richness of a connected world without the overwhelming “Gotta know it all” that can happen at times.

There is so much that Carbone is given to play with in this issue because of the story choices that MacKay made in writing. There’s an inherent baked-in rough to the touch texture that permeates the artwork really sets a tone. It pairs perfectly with the softer textures that make up many of the character elements. Their emotional depth and language are always clear in how they are presented, as the world is given such a dense and detailed presentation.

Those spreads of Moon Knight and Scarlet Scarab gazing upon the world as magicians see it were alone enough to jaw drop. That type of awe follows through the whole of the issue.

Colors that range from cold and natural to vivid and bright are tradition for this series so far. Rosenberg delivers a palette befitting the character as well as the varying artists who have worked on the series. This allows the different tonal ranges to swirl together into something even grander, adding to the dense power of the world.

Varying characters means varying voices that need to feel unique in their own ways. Petit has mastered that over the years. Rising and falling volumes, emotional resonance, and tones are flowing through the displayed lettering. Shifts to the colors, style, and bubbles give things even more distinct flavor along the way.

I am loving that this series is finding time to do smaller adventures like this still, really doing wonders with the big arc, smaller arc, and one-off adventures format that is beautiful for comics. It’s a modern style throwback that works.

Moon Knight: Fist Of Khonshu #13 is now available from Marvel Comics.