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THE PERFORMER | Oscar Isaac
THE SHOW | Disney+’s Moon Knight
THE EPISODE | “Asylum” (April 27, 2022)
THE PERFORMANCE | It’s easy to “ooh” and “ahh” about dual roles, but take a moment and consider the fact that for the bulk of 43 minutes this week, Oscar Isaac did a whole lotta acting opposite himself. And not just ain’t-it-cool standing beside himself in a scene, but as Marc and Steven (…and even a hint of Jake Lockley, in the cold open) ran through gamuts of emotions.
Not that Marc himself didn’t have things to process; faced with a diorama of those he killed as a merc, he took zero pride but instead lamented, “I kept wishing I’d fail, and one of them would kill me instead.” The healing power granted by the Egyptian god Khonshu “ended up being a curse,” he attested.
Ultimately, Steven found his way into a memory of Marc’s childhood, where the death of kid brother Randall thrust their mom into a dark af spiral. “Why are you remembering her like that?” wondered Steven, Isaac’s face and voice conveying the urgency of his inquiry. “What are you hiding…?!” Marc refused to illuminate further, as Isaac channeled a different kind of intensity.
“I’m begging you, don’t make us go there again…. It’s not worth it,” Marc insisted. But Steven nudged. And nudged. “I won’t do it!” balked Marc, slapping himself silly as he roared, “You! Can’t! Make me!”
Yet return to the scene of the proverbial crime they did, where Steven witnessed how their mother’s abuse of Marc led him to disappear into the identity of movie hero “Dr. Steven Grant.”
“You made me up…,” Steven realized, and the way Isaac barely got those words out were a gut punch. “All this time I thought it was the original,” but in actuality was Marc’s “stress ball,” Steven grumbled.
The hits kept coming, as Marc disclosed that the mother Steven believes he calls every week is no longer alive. Steven disputed the claim, only to have the reality hit him while in “Dr.” Harrow’s office. “My mum… My mum is dead,” he admitted. That set the stage for the gents’ revisiting of Marc’s heartbreaking breakdown outside the shiva he refused to attend, as Isaac capped his tour de force outing.
THE PERFORMER | Michael Mando
THE EPISODE | “Rock and Hard Place” (April 25, 2022)
THE PERFORMANCE | AMC’s Breaking Bad prequel has been a treat for fans who want to see more of Saul Goodman and Mike Ehrmantraut and Gus Fring, but it’s also introduced to a new slate of compelling characters. Mando’s conflicted criminal Nacho Varga has been the heart and soul of Saul for six seasons now, and though — spoiler alert! — he met his demise this week, he went out in a blaze of glory with a beautifully moving episode that saw Mando hit new dramatic heights.
Nacho knew his number was up, and after narrowly escaping the bloodthirsty Cousins, he placed a poignant final phone call to his father. Though Nacho tried to play it cool, we could see the emotions welling up in Mando’s eyes as his character’s tragic fate began to settle in. With his time running out, Nacho traded his own life for his father’s safety by turning himself over to the Salamancas, and Mando’s grit and determination during the negotiation just underlined how noble this lowly crook had become. As his execution loomed, a beaten but not defeated Nacho used his final breaths to tear into the Salamancas in a scorching monologue, saying he would’ve killed Lalo for free “because I hate every last one of you soulless sacks of s–t.” And then — in a real Olenna Tyrell moment — he twisted the knife by telling Hector he’s the one who put him in that wheelchair, with veins furiously pulsing in Mando’s head as he spat out that anytime Hector struggles, he hopes “you think of me, you twisted f–k.”
Nacho ended up taking his own life by stealing a gun and firing it into his own skull, and though we had a bad feeling he wouldn’t survive Saul‘s final season, it’s at least a small comfort to see him go out on his terms. Nacho may not have lived long enough to share the screen with Breaking Bad‘s Walt and Jesse — but with Mando’s truly exceptional performance this week, he’s more than earned the right to share the screen with anyone.
HONORABLE MENTION | Throughout Netflix’s stunning Heartstopper, Kit Connor and Joe Locke taught a master class in chemistry, playing the romance of high-schoolers Nick and Charlie with a mixture of hesitation and elation that was pure magic. And in the finale, as we all but sobbed in hopes of a happy ending, the actors delivered everything we could’ve wanted and more. As Nick beseeched Charlie not to break up with him, Connor radiated a sincerity that would’ve been impossible to deny. (Did anyone not melt hearing the earnestness with which he cried, “You’re my favorite person!”?) Locke, as always, rose to the occasion, then took it a step further later, when Charlie innocently asked if he and Nick were now boyfriends. The vulnerability on display, not to mention the unbridled joy, was beyond sublime, miraculous.
HONORABLE MENTION | From Gaslit‘s first few seconds, we knew Shea Whigham‘s Gordon Liddy was going to be a trip. As the former FBI agent who took lead on the Watergate espionage operation, the actor served raw determination as Liddy pitched his shady plans to John Mitchell and his cronies. Whigham tapped into his primal nature and unleashed the character’s insane rants with aplomb. And after his far-out ideas were deemed “too ambitious,” the actor piloted Liddy through a full-on meltdown, flipping furniture and smashing glass. In almost the same breath, the zealot sought a balm for his insecurities, comically clinging to John Dean’s flimsy compliments, and allowing an entirely different tone to seep through. Whigham never took his foot off the gas, as he pinned a colleague to a wall, karate kicked a napkin dispenser and solidified an upspoken loyalty with a fellow “soldier.” Thanks to Liddy’s borderline psychotic quirks, Whigham put forth a performance that was both uninhibited and unhinged in the best possible way.
HONORABLE MENTION | It’s impossible to fully convey with words the depth, the vulnerability and the guttural conviction that makes up Andrene Ward-Hammond’s moving performance in 61st Street. Embodying the agonizing pain and unrelenting determination of a Black mother who refuses to let her son be swallowed up by Chicago’s criminal justice system, Ward-Hammond again shone this week with a heartfelt performance that saw Norma grapple with the possibility that her son could be put away for life. Ward-Hammond’s ability to conjure silent tears in one moment and then quickly throw up a mask of strength in the next are a testament to her limitless range. She delivered with every inch of her soul, and it was incredible to watch.
Which performance(s) knocked your socks off this week? Tell us in Comments!
Oscar Isaac easily delivered the best performance in any Marvel property. He deserves to get his flowers and I hope people remember him come Emmy time.
Love the inclusion of Kit Connor and Joe Locke, they were absolutely lovely in Heartstopper.
Oscar is all over the place in the Moon Knight role. A great showcase for his talent.
Jeez, you fan guys and gurls will watch anything the Marvel machine throws at you! I LOVE Oscar Isaac but I found Moon Knight unwatchable. From badly rendered CGI monsters to that absurd British accent, this show was NONSENSE. There is no need to share the Performer of the Week: Michael Mando was AMAZING. Period. Done. Thank you.
There is no such thing as a British accent. If you had watched the show (or even read the article above) then you would know that Stephen was created in Marc’s mind, and the accent was based on a childhood TV show.
Exactly. Which is what some of us already knew when people were complaining about it from the trailer. Yes. It’s a bad British accent. Because he’s not really British. He’s an American kid who endured trauma and created an alternate personality. . . which is why he sounds like an American trying to do a British accent rather than an actual Brit.
Opinions are like a**holes, everyone has one. Yours is your own, others might pick Natasha Lyonne or hell, even Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin instead. But I digress. Moon Knight is a good show, Isaac is doing amazing work, and you can have your own ideas. Period. Done, You’re WELCOME.
Genuinely hilarious that you’re complaining about Oscar Isaac’s accent (completely uninformed, as there’s a narrative reason for it) in the same breath that you’re praising Michael Mando with his unintelligible “Spanish.” You found Moon Knight unwatchable yet clearly either didn’t actually watch it or were too dense to understand what was going on, which would be hilarious given that it’s a Marvel property. Anyway, based on performances Mando is the one coattailing here, he was not and will never be on Oscar Isaac’s level.
I am a Native Spanish speaker and I understood everything Michael Mando said.
he’s understandable but his accent is bad. between him and giancarlo esposito, would it kill the bb/bcs casting people to cast someone with GOOD spanish?
Mando has a gringo Spanish accent that’s largely attributed to Spanish not being his first language. it’s something that many bilingual speakers can relate to.
his accent is attributed to the fact that he is bilingual.
Sorry bilingual is not it. He speaks as someone who doesn’t speak or ever spoke spanish.
He has the accent of someone that learned Spanish in high school, not of a Hispanic person.
Having a crush on an actor, it doesnt mean you can forget the reality. For someone who should be native spanish speaker, that was horrible.
They should cast someone who speaks spanish.
For instance, Gina Rodriguez has no idea of spanish at all… and its funny when the actors who play her as a younger does…. it has not sense.
Cry
I agree to a certain extent that the Marvel TV shows have received praise that is (IMO) far in excess of their quality, but I can have no complaints about the award for Oscar Isaac’s performance, nor indeed for Michael Mando’s.
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I have to say as well what a great job Mark Margolis does as Hector Salamanca when he can’t say anything.
Oscar Isaac is the best thing about Moon Knight so he deserves some praise for carrying that mediocrity. That said there’s nothing particularly gripping about his work in the past episode. If anything he was a little too hammy in it.
Whereas Michael Mando was far more deserving of recognition for his final scenes as Nacho. Just a terrific emotional performance in the tragic end of his character.
there was nothing hammy about oscar isaac’s performance and there was nothing that michael mando did that any average actor wouldn’t be able to do. if anything, a tie was generous.
The Steven Grant persona is frequently buffoonish and ridiculous, with a wide-eyed Isaac exaggerating it to his fullest porcine ability.
And if you think Mando’s performance was average, then you may need to stick to the live-action cartoons of the spandexworld cause you can’t appreciate the subtlety of acting that’s required in actual dramas.
Michael Mando has never and will never give a performance on the level of what Oscar does in “spandexland” or in Inside Llewyn Davis, A Most Violent Year, Ex Machina, or Card Counter no matter how hard you try to will this into existence. And just to match your snooty energy, classically trained, Juilliard alumnus Isaac >>> Michael Mando. But hey, look forward to Mando returning to the MCU to play a character no one remembers.
You don’t even get how your comment reinforces mine. All of Isaac’s lesser roles have involved disney/marvel products. Whether it was a career worst moment like his Apocalypse in X-Men:Apocalypse, the Star Wars sequels, or poorly scripted mush like Moon Knight, he’s been better served doing actual acting with more grounded material.
But hey, keep reinforcing the stereotype of the classy and fragile marvel zombie by insulting Mando…
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Don’t like it? Don’t watch it. And don’t come here to complain to those of us who DO enjoy Marvel’s material.
I LOVE rattling you Marvel-ites cages! “Unwatchable” means I could not continue to watch the foolish thing. And a**holes and opinions? Isn’t that what these forums are for? Opinions . . . ??
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Nacho basically recreated the Olynna Tyrell and Tyrion scenes from GOT. He was good. But Oscar Issac is in a different zone since last episode
Andrene Ward-Hammond was so good in Showtime’s Your Honor last year too, so she will be my reason to test out AMC+ for this new show!
Michael Mando is amazing.
That was easily one of the top 3 moments from the BB/BCS universe.
We knew it was bound to happen, he’s mentioned once in passing in Breaking Bad. Nacho showed such dignity and maturity as he moved towards his inevitable death. His final speech was as moving as Hank’s last words.
Well deserved for Oscar Isaac. Watching him in this episode I thought he deserve all the award starting Performer of the week and ending with Emmy. His was amazing it every ep, but this one top it. Marc and Steven’s story is heartbreaking and Oscar really delivered it at his best,
Shea Whigham is always amazing no matter what role you give him.
I’d like to see some recognition for Allison Pill from Picard. From being a ditzy scientist, to belting out a song in a formal gown to being inhabited by the Borg queen while retaining her own personality, Pill has exhibited a fabulous range of emotion and character. Sci-fi traditionally doesn’t get much love, but her performances are outstanding.
Oscar Isaac was PHENOMENAL. Send all the awards his way. Also send us a second season of Moon Knight because I need more.
Happy to see Michael Mando on the list!
So Moon Knight vs. the Scorpion?
Mandy Moore had an amazing week as Rebecca Pearson in This is Us. She continues to portray her sad slide into Alzheimer’s with absolute believability. I hope she finally earns an Emmy for this role!
2 amazing performances! Such heartbreaking moments, from Nacho’ phone call to his dad to the reveal of Mark/Steven’s dark childhood. Hats off to the Better Call Saul writers for coming up with such an epic send off for Nacho.
Some more Heartstopper love! It’s electricity is so strong.
I don’t care if Oscar Isaac hasn’t done anything musically he deserves an EGOT!!! That man is incredibly talented.
Sherry Cola’s performance this week, dealing with a traumatic experience, was really moving (especially for a character that we usually see as comedic in nature). I would’ve expected to find her somewhere on this list.
Brilliant work in Moon Knight by Oscar Isaac!!! Insert 🏆 award here.
👏👏👏