Issue(s): Moon Knight #41, Moon Knight #42, Moon Knight #43
Cover Date: Aug-Oct 92
Title: "The dark doppelgangers descend" / "Mutiverse madness!" / "Multiple maniacs"
Credits:
Terry Kavanagh - Writer
Gary Kwapisz - Penciler
Tom Palmer / Tom Palmer, Klaus Janson, Kelley Jones, John Beatty, Norm Breyfogle, James Fry, Karl Kesel, and Ty Tempelton / Jimmy Palmiotti - Inker
Sarra Mossoff - Assistant Editor
Joey Cavalieri - Editor

Review/plot:
Note all the inkers on issue #42, including the first appearance of Ty Tempelton in my project. This isn't the sign of a rush job that a large number of inkers often is; it reflects the unusual nature of that issue.

There are four Moon Knight tie-ins to Infinity War. The fourth one, not included here, is really an epilogue. Of these three, the middle two are typical of the crossover, featuring Moon Knight fighting doppelgangers while advancing some of the book's subplots. The middle issue, though, is very weird in terms of the themes of either the crossover or the Moon Knight series, but kind of fun for fans of comics in general.

Of interest for the Infinity War series, it looks like Terry Kavanagh got the same memo as Gerard Jones on the Wonder Man book, saying that the Iron Man doppelganger was explicitly trying to split the heroes among mutant/non-mutant lines.

I love that Moon Knight is the voice of reason here. Everyone's the hero of their own book.

During the fight, Moon Knight is hit by Psylocke, and she sees what's happening to his body.

As we already know from the main Infinity War series, this fight is ended with the explosion of the gamma bomb. What we didn't know is that right after that and the appearance of the Magus is the moment that Cap chose to chew Moon Knight out over lying to him about Dr. Doom last issue.

Later, Moon Knight goes to Alicia Masters and asks if she'll help him connect the Fantastic Four's computers to his Shadow Cabinet, and he has a brief meeting with them.

He mainly gets information about "this 'Infinity War'" (they're calling it that already?) and he sends data on Alicia and Franklin Richards to Sheriff for some reason. Then he's interrupted by the attack of the doppelgangers. The new information is that Moon Knight slips away during the fight to protect Franklin Richards.

Moon Knight defeats a Franklin Richards doppelganger, but his own doppelganger absorbs its powers. And that's when things get weird. The Moon Knight doppelganger, Moon Shade ("Moon Knight to the highest power"), takes Moon Knight on a tour of the multi-verse, where we meet all sorts of variants of Moon Knight, many if not all based on other comics properties. The first is Darkmoon, who i think might be a Dark Knight Returns Batman. I base this partially on the name and the art, and also because of the talking head reporter that precedes his appearance.

The next one has got to be Spawn.

Then Moonfang, a vampire (not sure if it's based on anything specific).

Then a Crescent Moon, who is part of the same world as the vampire.

Then there are more, based on the Spirit, Space Ghost, and even a cowboy dinosaur.

An aquatic version.

And then a more classic version of Batman and Robin. Or Moonman and Moonboy.

Moonman is killed by the doppelganger. It's not said if Moonboy subsequently teams up with the dinosaur, but obviously he should.

Moon Knight is eventually returned to the real world, as the fight against the doppelgangers in Four Freedoms Plaza continues.

So we're back to just paralleling scenes from Infinity War. After the doppelgangers are shut down remotely by Galactus, Gambit tries to talk to Moon Knight about what Psylocke saw in his brain, but he's interrupted when everyone on Earth is entranced by Magus' attempt to create a duplicate universe.

There's also something in issue #43 about Templars and Frenchie.

We also see Frenchie and the Shadow Cabinet working on a cure for Moon Knight (see References). And, in case that fails, Frenchie is ready to activate a Legacy Quest Scenario. Because we all know that the world just couldn't handle the loss of Moon Knight, and we'd need an immediate replacement.

Issue #42 is cute but obviously irrelevant. The surrounding issues are mostly filler.

Quality Rating: C-

Historical Significance Rating: 1

Chronological Placement Considerations: This begins with the fight between heroes in Infinity War #2 but continues through the doppelganger attack on Earth during Infinity War #4. I did my best tracking the Shadow Cabinet people but they are not always identified. There is a new one here named Junior Birdman. The Shadow Cabinet say that Demogoblin is being held in prison (see References). See the comments regarding that. It looks like just Marvel Comics Presents #112 will have to take place prior to this.

References:

• The doppelganger attacks began in Infinity War #1 and Infinity War #2.
  
• A later footnote pointing to Infinity War #4 tells us that the Infinity War at the very edge of the universe continues to rage.
  
• A member of the Shadow Cabinet analyzes data pertaining to Moon Knight's condition and says that it's due to a gash that he received "months ago". We learn that the gash came from the Hobgoblin in Moon Knight #32-33.
  
• Hobgoblin and Demogoblin split into separate entities in Web of Spider-Man #86. The Shadow Council start working on a plan to get a DNA sample from Demogoblin to cure Moon Knight.

Crossover: Infinity War

Continuity Insert? N

My Reprint: N/A

The aquatic version apparently comes from Disney's Little Mermaid.

If only the pastiche issue was done later, it could have included his Japanese counterpart, Sailor Moon.

"The Shadow Cabinet say that Demogoblin is being held in prison (see References), which means that this story has to take place after the Hobgoblin Reborn storyline in Web of Spider-Man #93-94 and the Spirits of Venom crossover that follows it."
Fnord, I'm confused- Demogoblin is sent to prison in between the Demogoblin story in Marvel Comics Presents 112 and is freed by Doppleganger in Web of Spider-Man 93-94. So why can't this story take place in between Marvel Comics Presents 112 and Web of Spider-Man 93-94?

Well, i guess i shouldn't have taken the MCP's word for it, since they have the Marvel Comics Presents story, then Web of Spider-Man #93 through Spirits of Venom, and then Moon Knight #45-46. If i can push Hobgoblin Reborn and Spirits of Venom back, that will be much better.

The Marvel Appendix has a list of what all the alternate realities were parodying:
http://www.marvunapp.com/Appendix/moonshad.htm

#41 depicts Banshee and Jubliee at the gathering of heroes at Four Freedoms Plaza. Banshee is up front on the double splash page (hard to miss) and Jubilee is quite prominently doing nothing of any use whatsoever underneath the credits. She also appears really prominently on panel again on pg. 7. They weren't shown in Infinity War, but I don't see anything preventing them from actually being there. You've already got Forge listed (and he was the least obvious) and similarly wasn't there in Infinity War.

The art is so shoddy that it's impossible to make out characters sometimes. I have NO IDEA who Crystal is meant to be fighting on the double splash. I think that's Sersi on Pg. 10 behind Iron Man on panel #5. The less said about about 50% of the characters depicted at the bottom of pg. 9 the better.

You're also missing a tag for Alicia Masters and Frenchie.

Thanks AF. Added all these characters.

I think Crystal is fighting someone off panel but that's a severely deformed Invisible Woman that she's standing near (based on the collar, which looks like the high white collars the FF uniforms have). Since it's not in the entry, here's the image.

Why would Banshee be there? He hadn't rejoined the x-books (even as a supporting character) at this point.