When you think of Moon Knight’s nemeses, you don’t think of Arthur Harrow. Ask any Moon Knight fan and they’ll rattle off the likes of Bushman, Midnight Man, Moon Shade, Morpheus… but who is Harrow and why has he been chosen as the show’s big baddie?
To begin with, you should know that the Harrow we see on the screen is completely different from the one in the comics.
Arthur Harrow in the comics is an evil scientist who has only one encounter with Moon Knight. The show has switched this up to make him a zealous cult leader, who’s also an avatar of the Egyptian goddess Ammit.
Let me give you a quick summary: Harrow makes one sole appearance in Moon Knight Volume 2 Issue 2, which lasts only six issues. Suffering from a paralytic issue that keeps him in constant pain drives him to find a cure for pain itself. He doesn’t mind resorting to any level of cruel experiments to achieve this.
Pain seems to be a common thread trying this character to its on-screen rendition. It sure was painful to watch Moon Knight’s opening scene, as Harrow slipped his feet into shoes with broken glass.
Harrow Helps Moon Knight’s Exposition
In the comics, Harrow’s evil actions are done to get rid of pain, but in the show, he embraces it. While this is a fine way of re-inventing the character, why do it in the first place?
If you pair this reinvention with the fact that Harrow is such an obscure, almost unknown villain, you see that it provides for the perfect blank slate. Harrow as Ammit’s avatar not only makes him a more interesting villain but also gives Steven a segue into discovering what his true origins are.
Tackling both an origin story and a famous villain in six episodes would be too ambitious, and too liable to disappointment. Harrow is just the villain Moon Knight needs to launch himself into the MCU, setting up his bigger fights for later.
What are Harrow’s abilities/powers?
Harrow’s abilities in the show can be traced back to his master goddess, Ammit. In Egyptian mythology, she’s known as the Devourer of Souls, who consumes those with impure hearts.
A person’s goodness is measured against the feature on the scales of Osiris, which looks exactly like that edgy tattoo Harrow and his cult followers sport.
In Moon Knight’s universe, Harrow explains, that Ammit was betrayed by the other gods and banished. Had she been alive, she could’ve stopped great atrocities. (Notice how he does not mention Thanos?) She’s now back to continue her work of righteousness by ridding those with evil intentions. To be honest, Ammit isn’t really a villain as she doesn’t consume good souls.
Ammit, too, has a comic book version known as Ammut. But both in real Egyptian mythology and the comics, she’s less of a goddess and more of a paper shredder who has to get rid of bad souls who are actually judged by the god Anubis.
Whether Moon Knight is yet again creating a new version for the character or will make big reveals later is left to be seen.
About Moon Knight
Moon Knight is an American superhero television series created for Disney+ based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. The 6-episode series is directed by Mohamed Diab and the team of Justin Benson & Aaron Moorhead. Jeremy Slater is the head writer for the sixth MCU Show.
The series follows Steven Grant, a mild-mannered gift-shop employee, who becomes plagued with blackouts and memories of another life. Steven discovers he has dissociative identity disorder and shares a body with mercenary Marc Spector. As Steven/Marc’s enemies converge upon them, they must navigate their complex identities while thrust into a deadly mystery among the powerful gods of Egypt.
Oscar Isaac, May Calamawy, and Ethan Hawke star in the Disney+ series.
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