Moon Knight vol 3 TPB: God & Country

Man, Moon Knight is crazy. I mean, I've been digging this take on the lunar hero, so I knew he was crazy, talking to Konshu and seeing him as the de-faced (literally) dead foe Bushman, but this story takes it to new heights. It turns out Spector has actually kept Bushman's face and when he's feeling down, he puts it on over his own face. That is CRAZY! The story follows MK as he operates at ultraviolent levels while retaining his registered hero status. We all know he shouldn't have his registration, but Iron Man is trying to track down how he got approved. While this is happening, old MK foe the Black Spectre re-enters the picture, planning on using old SHIELD tech to make everyone follow his commands. Naturally this leads to a confrontation holographically projected at enourmous size to the public. When Moon Knight goes even further than usual in dealing with the Spectre, well Iron Man is out for the cowl now. This trade is the last of the former status quo, since it seems Moonie has now abandoned his old life. He's pushed everyone away and he's burning out at this point. The final chapter was a fantastic flashback to a confrontation with the Werewolf-by-Night. I never read any Werewolf stories, so maybe he was always this powerful, but man, he seems like a force of nature when he goes up against Moonie here. I'm looking forward to the upcoming MK on the run story where I believe he faces off with the Tbolts.

Most of the art is by Tex and Javier Saltares, and they bring their normal gritty style. It works well for the book. But the final chapter by Mike Deodato is awesome. Setting the story in the past lets Deodato do a more heroic Moon Knight, making him look much more respectable. Overall, I'd say I still prefer the Marc Spector: Moon Knight series by Chuck Dixon from the 90s, even if it wasn't as challenging as this. It was easier to root for Spector as a clear hero in that title. Now it is more like watching a train wreck as MK destroys his world, alienates his friends, and physically punishes the guilty as he wreaks his vengeance. I'm also still amused at how similar the current take on MK is to my submission to Epic (where MK led a new team called the US Marvels. Like US Marshalls, get it? :) ). Mine wasn't this dark, but it was very similar in the large Konshu percentage to the story.

Fair