The following contains spoilers for Moon Knight Episode 3, "The Friendly Type," now streaming on Disney+.
Moon Knight’s first two episodes were notable in the way they quietly ignored the remainder of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, preferring instead to flesh the character out in a self-contained corner. That slowly changed with Season 1, Episode 3, “The Friendly Type,” and while the Easter eggs remained subdued by MCU standards, they began to fill in a number of blanks. One of them has become a perennial question during Phase 4: Did the hero survive The Snap?
Normally, the answer would be a straightforward “yes” or “no,” and while the MCU has delivered some terrific visual variations on the theme – think of Spider-Man: Far From Home's sudden return of the marching band, or Hawkeye’s depiction of the event from Yelena’s point of view – it’s still a simple matter to pin down. Marc Spector, however, is a little different. He’s not alone in his body, after all, and that makes the question of what happened to him after The Snap much more complicated than normal.
The Blip, of course, was the universe-defining loss of half the galaxy to Thanos’ mad plans at the end of Avengers: Infinity War, sending the victims into oblivion for five years before the time heist in Avengers: Endgame restored the Infinity Stones and the Hulk undid The Snap. Many of the MCU’s heroes were accounted for at the time, but not all -- leaving the question of their fate during The Blip a surprisingly key part of their background. It’s a central component of the MCU’s world-building, especially with figures like Moon Knight who are only now making their first appearance.
“The Friendly Type” answered the question about Marc Spector’s status during The Blip, albeit with characteristic subtlety. The sharp-eyed people at New Rockstars spotted the dates on his passport. He got it in December 2018, months after the Snap took place, which confirms that he was alive and well to get it. Furthermore – and this is pertinent to the question – it demonstrates that he had control of his body, since he posed for the passport’s photo.
However, while Spector survived, his fellow travelers might not have. If Steven Grant is indeed a second soul living in the same body, then he’d be subject to The Snap too, and he might not have survived. How that affected Spector is up in the air, though it would certainly explain a great deal about their current awkward partnership. One intriguing notion is that Grant vanished with The Blip, and that Spector became Moon Knight in his absence. His return after The Snap gave Spector an ideal cover to hide in the event of trouble. That’s speculative, but it demonstrates just one of the ways that Spector’s experience with The Blip was far from ordinary, and how the specifics could better define the event.
Regardless, it almost certainly complicates Spector’s past to the point where it could become a factor in the remainder of the season. His ability to operate during The Blip could either be simplified or complicated to the point of danger, depending on Grant’s fate. And with the possible presence of additional personalities in the body, the question becomes exponentially more complicated. Considering the importance of Spector’s past to Moon Knight’s storyline, a great deal could hinge on it.
Moon Knight has demonstrated a need to steer clear of the larger canon, which gives its own story room to breathe. But The Blip is the MCU’s elephant in the room, and sooner or later, most active characters will likely need to answer the question. Spector’s unique circumstances are a reminder not only of how all-encompassing Thanos’ madness was, but the kinds of interesting stories that can develop from it when applied to the right character.
New episodes of Moon Knight debut every Wednesday on Disney +.
