WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Marvel’s Iron Fist Season 2, streaming now on Netflix.
One of the most intriguing aspects of Season 2 of Marvel's Iron Fist is how the Netflix series adapted Typhoid Mary. Played by Alice Eve, the show set the character up as a villain (as she usually is in the comics) hunting Danny Rand (Finn Jones), before transforming her into a temporary ally who helped Danny stave off Davos (Sacha Dhawan).
But more interesting than her arc was how effective the character's dissociative personality disorder played out. Not only did Iron Fist create an unpredictable aura surrounding Mary, it also proved just why a television series for a similar character, Moon Knight, can actually work.
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Iron Fist's second season blends action and mysticism pretty well, which is what Moon Knight comics are about. We saw Danny coming to New York and fighting off evil ninjas from the Hand, the Triads, and a myriad of gangsters and thugs wielding everything from guns to knives to swords -- and that's just the action. Perhaps more interesting and intriguing is the insight we've gotten into the mystical realm of K'un Lun.
The ancient city itself, the trial of the Iron Fist facing off against the dragon Shou-Lao, and come this season, things like the Crane Sisters transferring the "Heart of the Dragon" via a secret tattoo ritual, Colleen Wing becoming the new Iron Fist with a powered-up katana, and last but not least, Danny himself using "gun-fu" (mystically-powered pistols), all highlight how well Marvel Comics' supernatural stories can be brought to life.
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Moon Knight requires a similar touch in his adventures. Marc Spector trained as a mercenary before taking part in an Egyptian archaeological dig that saw the villainous Bushman try to loot it after valuable relics were discovered. Spector ended up near-death after the attack and was brought to an ancient temple by mysterious disciples where the moon-god Khonshu made a deal with him, gifting him life if he promised to become the avatar for the god on Earth; a deal he accepted.
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Now known as the "Fist of Khonshu," Spector turned into a violent vigilante, driven by vengeance when he returned to the United States. It's a somewhat similar narrative to Iron Fist: someone gets supernatural powers thanks to a cult-like entity and comes back to America to fight crime, while trying not to become corrupted by the power he holds within. In other words, the template's already there in terms of tone and direction for Moon Knight who, just like Danny, has cleaned up New York in the comics with the Defenders and Heroes for Hire.
Even more importantly, Iron Fist showed what a Moon Knight series could look like by the way it handled Mary's dissociative personality disorder, something Spector has as well. For television, Mary's character was tweaked, making her an ex-special ops soldier displaying two distinct personalities; the shy “Mary,” and the lethal combatant “Walker.” Her mental illness was due to an almost year-long imprisonment in Sokovia, where she was tortured and raped. This led to her developing one more personality, an even more savage killer that may be the "Bloody Mary" persona from the comics. All these elements combined to produce a complex person who swings from hero to anti-hero to villain -- again, a conundrum Spector often finds himself in.
Spector's personality disorder also gave way to three personalities in his early days. Moon Knight is one, and he also created the identity of millionaire entrepreneur Steven Grant, using the money accumulated from his mercenary days. To remain in touch with the streets and criminals running loose, he developed the third identity of cab driver Jake Lockley.
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As things got progressively worse, he began losing himself, struggling to move from identity to identity, an issue we saw Eve's Mary struggling to cope with. The different personalities she became threatened everyone she met, and she was also a danger to herself. This is exactly what would make Moon Knight resonate, drawing viewers in to see his Jekyll-and-Hyde brand of justice being meted out, and how it impacts on his sanity. Ultimately, just like Mary, he'd be an interesting statement on mental health that superhero adaptations don't usually focus on.
Available now on Netflix, Marvel’s Iron Fist Season 2 stars Finn Jones as Danny Rand, Jessica Henwick as Colleen Wing, Sacha Dhawan as Davos, Tom Pelphrey as Ward Meachum, Jessica Stroup as Joy Meachum, Simone Missick as Misty Knight and Alice Eve as Mary Walker.