Lot #2: Moon Knight Showcase
5 books, together valued at $100
Moon Knight #37 (RARE ISSUE)
Moon Knight #38 (VERY RARE ISSUE)
Moon Knight #194
Moon Knight #5
Vengeance of the Moon Knight #1
Collection ID#: 186
Marvel Comics
Moon Knight (Vol. 1) (1980 - 1984)
Moon Knight #37 (RARE ISSUE)
Published: January 1984
JEWISH ORIGIN STORY OF MOON KNIGHT
This issue is the origin story of Moon Knight establishing him as a Jewish character, the son of an Orthodox rabbi. The writer is Rabbi Alan Zelenetz, who at the time was a junior high school principal at the Yeshiva of Flatbush, an Orthodox Jewish school in Brooklyn. He is the only rabbi known to have written for mainstream comics. The story reveals how Mark Spector became estranged from his father, disagreeing about his pacificst approach to antisemitism. A new villain, named Zohar (seriously!), seeks to acquire the great rabbi's power derived from knowledge of Kabbalism.
(The part 2 to this story, is an even more rare issue that completes the entire series. That issue IS available, and will part of the Premium Auction at 5pm, Lot #2: Moon Knight Showcase.)
Collection ID#: 187
Marvel Comics
Moon Knight (Vol. 1) (1980 - 1984)
Moon Knight #38 (VERY RARE ISSUE)
Published: January 1984
JEWISH ORIGIN STORY OF MOON KNIGHT - 2nd part CONCLUSION AND SERIES FINALE
"“Final Rest"
An electrifying second chapter, also written by Rabbi Alan Zelenetz, Moon Knight #38 plunges us deeper into mysticism and madness as the mysterious Zohar invokes the ten sefirot and ancient divine names to resurrect a terrifying truth: justice, as he sees it, must burn. Rabbi Elias Spector’s corpse is reverently laid out—only to be transformed into a vessel of esoteric power. Hebrew letters blaze like amulets, scrolls are stolen from yeshiva shelves, and sacred wisdom is weaponized.
Marc Spector, still resisting his Jewish roots, faces not just a supervillain, but a theological crisis. As Marlene begins to unlock the secrets of Kabbalah, Marc confronts a man who quotes Torah mid-attack and raises the dead in the name of purification. Is Zohar a lunatic… or a prophet?
Drawing on sources like Megillah 21a, Heichalot literature, and Hilchot Teshuvah, this issue is a whirlwind of golem lore, divine electricity, and midrashic depth. With artwork echoing mystical diagrams and a villain who believes he’s the hand of God, this may be the most authentically Jewish comic Marvel ever published.
When truth is spelled on the forehead, one wrong letter can mean the difference between life, death, and redemption.
Collection ID#: 188
Marvel Comics
Moon Knight (Vol. 7) (2016 - 2018)
Moon Knight #194
Published: April 2018
Creator Context
Max Bemis:
Known as the lead singer of the pop-punk band Say Anything, notable for his openly Jewish identity and exploration of Jewish themes in music.
Songs like "Alive with the Glory of Love" (about his grandparents’ Holocaust survival) and tracks from In Defense of the Genre highlight Jewish experiences.
Bemis describes himself as having a "New Age metaphysical" view of religion, identifying as both Jewish and Christian.
Previously wrote a critically acclaimed X-Men series (Worst X-Man Ever).
Key Themes
Jewish Identity:
Deeply integrated into Mark Spector’s backstory and psyche.
Jewish humor, theology, and Holocaust trauma all play central roles.
Includes visual and narrative elements emphasizing Judaism, such as the panel of Moon Knight in a tallit-adorned superhero costume.
Childhood Trauma and Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID):
The issue provides an origin story for Mark Spector’s DID, rooted in a harrowing childhood event involving Rabbi Yitz Perlman.
Trauma is portrayed as a shattering of childhood innocence and the foundation for Mark's disconnection from Judaism.
Holocaust Education and Reflection:
A graphic recounting of Holocaust atrocities through the perspective of the antagonist, Ernst (disguised as Rabbi Perlman).
Bemis uses this segment to educate readers on the Holocaust's horrors, juxtaposing fictional terror with historical reality.
Collection ID#: 189
Marvel Comics
Moon Knight (Vol. 8) (2021 - 2023)
Moon Knight #5
Published: November 2021
Moon Knight explains to a therapist how he regrets abandoning his Judaism because he saw his father as weak for loving peace. He expresses how he now realizes that his father’s willingness to die for his faith was, in fact, a strength that he didn’t come to appreciate until losing his soul to an Egyptian God.
Collection ID#: 273
Marvel Comics
Vengeance of the Moon Knight (Vol. 2) (2024)
Vengeance of the Moon Knight #1
Published: January 2024
Several pages devoted to the shivah setting, and honouring Moon Knight’s death by holding a shivah. The Thing is there wearing a kippah, strongly visible in many panels. This becomes more significant considering the strong contrast with the marginalized Jewish representation in the TV Moon Knight series, recalling the brief shivah scene in Ep. 5.