The Goldfish Problem

"The Goldfish Problem" is the first episode of the American television miniseries Moon Knight, based on Marvel Comics featuring the character Moon Knight. It follows Steven Grant as he begins to learn of his dissociative identity disorder (DID) and the deadly mystery involving Egyptian gods his other identity, Marc Spector, is involved in. The episode is set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), sharing continuity with the films of the franchise. It was written by head writer Jeremy Slater and directed by Mohamed Diab. Oscar Isaac stars as Marc Spector / Moon Knight and Steven Grant, alongside May Calamawy, Karim El-Hakim, F. Murray Abraham, and Ethan Hawke. Slater joined the series in November 2019 to serve as head writer and executive produce, while Diab joined in October 2020 to direct four episodes of the series. Filming took place at Origo Studios in Budapest, with location filming throughout Hungary and in Slovenia. "The Goldfish Problem" was released on Disney+ on March 30, 2022. The episode received mostly positive reviews from critics, who praised the performances of Isaac and Hawke and its tonal departure from the MCU, but some pointed out its lack of plot developments. Plot British Museum worker Steven Grant occasionally suffers from blackouts. After going to sleep one night, he finds himself waking up in the Austrian Alps, witnessing a cult meeting led by religious zealot Arthur Harrow, who demands a scarab Grant unknowingly had in his possession. He escapes from Harrow and is nearly killed, but is saved by a mysterious voice in his head.