In Moon Knight #9, Marvel’s Fist of Khonshu moves into an accursed home that once plagued Doctor Strange and may eventually migrate to the MCU.
WARNING: The following contains major spoilers for Moon Knight #9, available now from Marvel Comics.
Although he is primarily depicted as a street-level character, Moon Knight, as the Fist of the Khonshu, is no stranger to matters of a more paranormal nature. This has seen him facing mystical, otherworldly threats usually reserved for the likes of Doctor Strange. That’s certainly the case in Moon Knight #9 (by Jed MacKay, Alessandro Cappuccio, Rachelle Rosenberg, and VC’s Cory Petit), where an old foe of Stephen Strange’s from the Silver Age returns to become Moon Knight’s newest… headquarters?
The House of Shadows is a location stripped from Lovecraftian horror that is very much akin to a mystical version of the X-Men’s Krakoa, both in powers and premise. Likewise, its connection to two characters who are currently or about to be featured in the Marvel Cinematic Universe could see the house join the MCU at some point in the future. Here’s a look at the Marvel Universe’s strangest not-so-humble abode.
How Moon Knight Recruits the House of Shadows
The issue begins with Moon Knight being trapped in the living House of Shadows while searching for a number of people who had mysteriously disappeared. Unsure of what kind of magic was at work, Moon Knight soon realizes that the not-so-happy home was indeed alive. Intent on reconvening later, the vigilante uses his own methods to force the House of Shadows to spit him out through a window.
Now realizing what he’s up against, Marc Spector returns to the house later with a proposition. Feeling a sort of kinship with the Multi-room of Madness, he offers to give it a guiding mission and purpose. Having recently lost the building used for his Midnight Mission, Moon Knight suggests that the House of Shadows take its place in exchange for letting the people trapped there go free. The mysterious house complies, becoming a sort of Midnight Mansion for Moon Knight and his operatives to work out of. This is certainly a change of heart (or hearth) for the old-school villain, reflecting another recent change in Marvel Comics.
What Is Marvel’s House of Shadows – and Could It Show Up in the MCU?
The House of Shadows was created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, debuting in Strange Tales #120. There, Doctor Strange had one of numerous encounters with the supposedly haunted house, which was actually a construct from another world. Having come from its world to observe humanity, the creature would trap those who entered its doors in its native pocket dimension near Limbo.
This new evolution of the house into a more functional role for Moon Knight reflects a similar change in the sentient island Krakoa. Once an enemy of the X-Men, the island now serves as a home to them and the other mutants of the world. The island provides its inhabitants with food, shelter and other needs, much like what the House of Shadows now does for Moon Knight. This just goes to show how unconventional Silver Age concepts can be rebranded in the modern era in ways that actually help the heroes of the Marvel Universe.
Doctor Strange is currently a well-known figure in the MCU, with the Fist of Khonshu set to debut in the upcoming Moon Knight TV series. It’s certainly possible that one of them could encounter the House of Shadows during the course of their adventures. In fact, there’s a promo image of Doctor Strange and America Chavez walking through a dungeon-type of environment, and this could very well be the shadowy house. Either way, while the House of Shadows might start out in a villainous role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it now appears to have officially taken up a new, more benevolent role in the comic book universe.
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