When you’re the Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, you collect quite a rogue’s gallery of powerful enemies but it hits particularly hard when your enemy used to be a former ally. Under the direction of writer Jason Aaron, the Avengers return from their recent adventures in space to face their former colleague Marc Spector aka Moon Knight who apparently isn’t afraid to make some truly bold moves in his actions against the Avengers, especially the current Ghost Rider Robbie Reyes.
This current volume of the Avengers has reunited Iron Man, Thor and Captain America with a new line-up consisting of spokesperson Black Panther, Captain Marvel, She-Hulk, Blade, Ghost Rider and notable appearances by Doctor Strange and Black Widow. Marc Spector was offered a second chance at life by the Egyptian god Khonshu in exchange for agreeing to be his avatar on Earth. He complied and armed with new powers and costume, he became Moon Knight where his career in super heroics would be upended by his commitment to Khonshu and his deteriorating mental state which often put him at odds with other Marvel heroes.
In Avengers #33 by Jason Aaron and artist Javier Garron starts The Age of Khonshu with a bang as a dedicated and focused Moon Knight battles and depowers both Iron Fist and Doctor Strange before we even reach the mid-point of the issue. Disregarding the banter and loyalties to his superhero brethren, it would appear Marc is acting more on the motives of his benevolent employer Khonshu. When it came to Robbie Reyes, who’s already had a rough year due to fallout from the previous "Challenge of the Ghost Rider’s" arc, the unwell Avenger hopes a drive might help him feel better. But to his shock and surprise, he finds that his 1969 Dodge Charger is gone, stolen by Moon Knight who appears to have taken it for more than a joyride.
Robbie Reyes broke the archetypal stereotype of Ghost Rider riding a matching motorcycle with his unique relationship with his so-called Hell Charger, which has granted the automobile an array of awesome but terrifying power. Although Robbie can imbue any machine with the same powers that his Hell Charger has, the fact that Moon Knight was not only able to acquire and use the car would most likely suggest that he has stolen a significant amount, if not all of Robbie’s power as the Ghost Rider.
Aaron easily weaves through a story that could have been stretched out to be two or three issues into one concise issue that shows Moon Knight impressively battle and depower some of the current Avenger powerhouses. While the last page suggests that this abrupt betrayal is somehow an act of heroism according to Khonshu, one can only expect that the rest of the Avengers will be ready to retaliate soon enough. In the case of Robbie Reyes, its one thing to take away his Spirit of Vengeance but when you mess with someone’s car, some guys take that really personal.