One of the ways Marvel’sMoon Knighthas driven engagement among its most ardent fans is through the use of QR codes. Keen-eyed viewers can spot some of these codes just sitting in the background of shots for four of the show’s six episodes with each sending viewers to a website that allowed them toread freeMoon Knightcomicsprovided weekly by Marvel. It was all a fun way to let fans explore the history of a character that, to those outside the comic sphere, likely had next to no knowledge of. The inspiration for all of it though comes from an unlikely source. According toVariety, the team behind the show, mainly executive producerGrant Curtis, were actually replicating the formula fromBob’s Burgerswhen creating the free weekly comic QR codes.
In an interview, Curtis said it was a love of the show, specifically its “Burger of the Week” gag and ever-changing title sequence, that partially inspired them to place weekly easter eggs in their own project. Rather than shoehorn in ancient Egyptian-themed puns orMoon Knightjokes though, they decided to use the opportunity to teach viewers about one of Marvel’s more underappreciated superheroes from its comic catalog with issues that tied into the episode released that week. “It was a way to introduce a character to most of the population that would not have had the chance to read those issues otherwise,” Curtis said. “It was really trying to show the true tapestry that isMoon Knightthroughout the ages.”
The other half of the idea came courtesy of the House of Terror museum in Budapest. Curtis remembered seeing QR codes around the museum that allowed visitors to read the captions in their language or provide supplementary information. With Steven Grant' holding down a job in a museum, Curtis and the crew put two and two together and used the QR codes around the building as an organic way of implementing their comic of the week. It also explains why not all episodes —namely episodes three and four — lacked a code as it would’ve been out of place.
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Overall, it was a bigger success than Curtis even intended. The site reached over 1.5 million visits and the comics within were read completely over 500,000 times. In fact, when creating the easter egg, there was no goal in mind for Curtis outside of putting something free and fun out there for fans. All he really knew was that it was inevitable that someone would check out the code and find the neat surprise ofMoon Knightcomics waiting for them. They even included one last treat for fans who participated in the hunt: a digital poster commemorating Steven Grant/Marc Spector’s journey through the show. It also helped thatMoon Knighthas been a well-beloved treat from Disney+ with the show receivinghigh marks from critics and viewers alike.
Still, that show of support may spell the beginning of future engagement campaigns in other Marvel products. MaybeShe-Hulkwill sneak in little court reports from some of the character’s most famous comic book cases. Curtis teases the future of similar references in Marvel media:
I think it was greeted with a lot of positivity, you know, in terms of the numbers that we’re seeing. And as long as you can do it organically, I think it’s a pretty cool way to extend the engagement and to go from screen to page and vice versa. As the guy who enjoys the engagement that ‘Bob’s Burgers’ gives me, I think it can be a very interesting aspect for the MCU to explore in the future.
With episode six now out,Moon Knightcan now be streamed in its entirety on Disney+.
