Marvel's Very Strange Moon!- Renegade Capes #19
Tonight on Renegade Capes, Captain Kaye, Organoid Zero, Neoplasmic, Teresa, and The Director & Krystal band together to discuss Marvel's Disney+ series Moon Knight and their new theatrical film Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness!
Hello, everybody! It’s The Streamin Demon here once again to welcome you to a new Renegade Capes, which has Mike, Keona, Josh, Krystal, Brock, and Teresa looking at two recent Marvel Cinematic Universe titles, Moon Knight and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Both of which, in my opinion were solid horror entries in the franchise, Doctor Strange revealing the horrors of sympathetic but bloodthirsty wannabe moms, and Moon Knight being an exploration on the pains of mental illness, particularly dissociative personality disorder. But what does Captain Kaye have to say?
Moon Knight
“Overall, I enjoyed Moon Knight! I wish it could have been extended to maybe 7 or 8 episodes to iron out all the bugs, but at least the main reason I wanted to see this show, Oscar Isaac as the titular hero, delivered! If you wanted more action, the finale has you covered. If you wanted a mid credits scene that certainly leaves the door open for more stories, the finale has you covered. I hope this isn't the last we get to see him in the MCU, especially if they're leaning more into the supernatural side of things.”- Captain Kaye
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
“Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is the 28th entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, based on the character created by Steve Ditko. Directed by Sam Raimi from a screenplay written by Michael Waldron, the film follows up on the events from both WandaVision and Spider-Man: No Way Home, in which Dr Stephen Strange casts a forbidden spell that opens a portal to the multiverse. However, a threat emerges that may be too big for his team to handle. I know this may be a bold claim, and I do not say it lightly, but I think Sam Raimi might be the only director I trust to handle Steve Ditko's creations. The reason I say this is because he understands the character on a fundamental level. Stephen Strange is more than just "Tony Stark but with magic," despite sharing similar traits on the surface. He's stubborn and persistent, but the two things that drive him the most are love and loss. Fear is another factor at play, and that's where Raimi really got to strut his stuff behind the camera. Yeah, the Bruce Campbell cameo was cute, but I really loved how deep the film dipped into Raimi's horror sensibilities, striking that fine balance between playful yet terrifying. I also love that this movie doesn't necessarily have a traditional villain. Said villain may have an avatar throughout the majority of its runtime, but if we're being honest, that's only just an excuse to stage some wildly creative magic fight sequences. If you thought the first film looked amazing, this one's visuals were cranked up to eleven. All the performances were great, from Benedict Cumberbatch effortlessly commanding the screen as the titular master of the mystical arts, to Benedict Wong's snarky, yet genuinely badass turn as Sorcerer Supreme Wong, to Xochitl Gomez's rock solid first impression as America Chavez. But the scene stealer of course is Elizabeth Olsen, delivering some of her best work as Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch! I personally do not have a single bad thing to say about the movie, but I would like to address a few common criticisms I've seen from others. First off, I understand that with the MCU now expanding beyond the silver screen, there is the fear that homework will be required in order to "understand" each succeeding entry. With this film, sure, it would be to your benefit that you enter having watched WandaVision beforehand, but the film provides just enough information in case you haven't. I mean, if the director himself isn't 100% up to speed on the MCU, it's not expected of you either. Speaking of Raimi, another criticism I've heard is that his style clashes with the MCU at large, and even if that were true (which it isn't), is that supposed to be a bad thing? The last time I heard a complaint like that was regarding Iron Man 3, which felt more like a Shane Black film than a Marvel movie, and yet that remains one of my all-time favorites. I may concede with those who miss Michael Giacchino's score and the iconic theme he wrote for Doctor Strange, but I'm not gonna lie and say I didn't enjoy Danny Elfman's musical interpolation. The fact that he and Raimi are on speaking terms again means he didn't just phone it in. One of my favorite action sequences is a magical duel with weaponized musical notes, and it's that level of silliness that only these two could have brought to life. Either the timing was merely a coincidence, or someone at Disney made the inspiring choice to release this movie on Mother's Day weekend, because "Multiverse of Madness" is not the least bit subtle as an acronym. This is a movie I'll be thinking about for a while, and I will have at least a couple more opportunities to gush about it very soon.”- Captain Kaye
