Spider-Man/Moon Knight Fusion is Marvel’s REAL Answer to Batman
Moon Knight has a lot of personalities floating around in his head which means there’s at least room for one more, like Spider-Man, and combining the two heroes creates Marvel’s true answer to DC’s Batman. Marvel Comics recently released a slew of Spider-Verse variant covers for upcoming titles, including Moon Knight #23 with the variant cover design by Declan Shalvey.
Created in order to celebrate the return of the series Edge of Spider-Verse, this variant cover shows an amalgamation of Spider-Man and Moon Knight swinging through the night sky, high above the rooftops of New York City. This amazing concept art perfectly combines elements of both the wall-crawler’s costume with that of the Fist of Khonshu, with a webbed cape flowing behind a skin-tight bodysuit complete with mummy-wrapped arm bandages. Perhaps the greatest element is how Spider-Man’s symbol is giving him a more crescent and moon-curved look, emblazoned on his black outfit. Shalvey is able to effortlessly blend the aesthetics of these two heroes into something completely new and utterly cool. It would not be surprising at all, to see this Moon-Spider within the multiple universes of the Spider-Verse.
Moon Knight & Spider-Man are the Spider-Verse Version of Batman
The multidimensional Spider-Verse concept first began with 2014’s Amazing Spider-Man #9 by Dan Slott and Olivier Coipel, which brought together different variants of the web-head from across multiple dimensions. Now, it is returning to Marvel with this May’s Edge of Spider-Verse anthology limited series that will introduce new Spider-People and all-new stories. To celebrate this upcoming release, a range of titles from Thor to Captain Marvel to Moon Knight have received amazing variant covers by some of the best and brightest artists in the industry today, and even though these variants are not canonically part of the Spider-Verse they really inspire fans to imagine the possibilities.
For instance, a wall-crawling Moon Knight offers a host of possibilities, and one of the most exciting is that the Moon-Spider could finally be the better version of Batman that Marvel has always been looking for. Both Marc Spector and Peter Parker share similarities with DC’s Dark Knight. Spider-Man has the analytical mind and propensity for gadgets that makes the Caped Crusader so formidable. Meanwhile, Moon Knight has the dark brooding warrior-by-night gimmick of Batman and the successful billionaire persona of Bruce Wayne. In fact, Moon Knight has frequently been called « Marvel’s Batman » due to their many similarities, from their supernatural imagery to their boomerang-like weapons. Throw in the resourceful scientific genius and ability to swing from building to building of Spider-Man and you get a cooler version of all three characters.
At the moment this variant cover for Moon Knight #23 is nothing more than just a non-canonical and amazing piece of artwork by Declan Shalvey, but in the Spider-Verse almost anything is possible. Maybe fans will one day see a Moon Knight/Spider-Man amalgamation in action and finally prove why he is the best version of Batman that fans have been missing.
Moon Knight #23 will be on sale from Marvel on May 3, 2023.
