Master of Kung Fu

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Master of Kung Fu Volume Two Issue 4

Posted by John Klein III on March 20, 2016
Posted in: Review. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

Master of Kung Fu V2 4

Writer Haden Blackman

Penciler Dalibor Talajic

Inker Goran Sudzuka

Colorist Miroslav Mrva

Letterer VC’s Travis Lanham

Issue opens with Shang Chi giving us his origin story.  Emperor Zu forged his heart out of the ebon blade, his eyes are made of infinity gems, his mind is a cosmic cube, he was baptized in in the River Styx.  Shang Chi was still born, until his father breathed the Phoenix force into his lungs.  His training was intense – If he wanted some water, he had to fight foes, every time.  Every night, was a terror.  Every playmate was an assassin.  He grew to be the greatest student.

Master of Kung Fu V2 4 Kitten 1

I like how, after three pages of amazing art – he just shrugs this off.  He mostly likely was born from one of Zu’s many women.  Why he is explaining this to Red Sai and Iron Fist, is beyond me.  Iron Fist comes at Shang Chi hard and fast.  He’s still upset that Chi killed his master.

Master of Kung Fu V2 4 Kitten 2

Shang Chi reveals Zu’s master plan, to have Chi and Iron Fist beat each other, so that they are weak for Zu.  Red Sai gets a cheap shot, as Red Sai’s blade slices Shang Chi’s forehead.

Master of Kung Fu V2 4 Kitten 3

Shang Chi falls to his knees.  Red Sai states that the blade has poison on it.

Master of Kung Fu V2 4 Kitten 4

I can’t believe, that I didn’t see this reveal coming . . . Red Sai is Elektra!  She is the other most famous fighter in the Marvel Universe, who hadn’t been in this series.  Elektra was suppose to kill Tuan, the Master of the Iron Fist, but she couldn’t.  Zu threatened to kill her but Shang Chi stepped up and did the deed.  It is a pretty awesome reveal.  Red Sai, it was so obvious but I wasn’t thinking about it.

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Kitten pleads with Iron First to heal Shang Chi, as he had no choice but to kill Tuan.  Iron Fist states that there must have been another way.

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Iron Fist knows that Shang Chi is the best hope for K’un Lun, so he does heal him.

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This drains Iron Fist, good thing he isn’t needed for the rest of the issue.

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With Elektra’s head band, for luck, Kitten and Shang Chi enter the Thirteenth Chamber.

The fight between father and son, is rather intense.  The art team out does themselves here.  Neither Zu or Shang Chi hold anything back.  Zu makes the mistake of making fun of Shang’s new school, the Lower Caste (the X-Men).  This inspires Shang Chi to just wail on Zu.  There may be ten rings but he has learned an eleventh!

Master of Kung Fu V2 4 Kitten 9

This new move is very much like Grey Gargoyle’s power, to turn a living thing to stone.  He has learned this move, so that he can turn Kitten solid, again.  As she is like a sprite, or a shadow.  Haden has worked all of Kitty Pryde’s nicknames, into one sentence!  Well, I guess, Ariel, isn’t used but that’s okay.

Master of Kung Fu V2 4 Lock 1

Issue ends with Shang Chi as the emperor.  This was a very great series, probably my third favorite behind Star Lord & Kitty Pryde and Years of Future Past.  Inferno and Giant Size Little Marvel AvX are up there too, I guess I just made a top five list.  The only other series I’m reading, thus far, is X-Tinction Agenda.

This creative team should be given a shot at the X-Men, or a Kitty Pryde solo series!

Lock shows up on the last page too!

Master of Kung Fu Volume Two Issue 3

Posted by John Klein III on March 5, 2016
Posted in: Review. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Master of Kung Fu V2 3

Writer Haden Blackman

Penciler Dalibor Talajic

Inker Goran Sudzuka

Colorist Miroslav Mrva

Letterer Travis Lanham

The issue opens with another flashback to the beginning days of K’un Lun.  The Iron Fist school was the first.  Quan Yaoiu was the first Iron Fist, the school was always the first, at everything – realizing that the war will ruin the region and the first to win the Thirteen Chambers.  Danny Rand, the current Iron Fist, knows that Zheng Zu had Shang Chi murder Lord Tuan.  Rand wants to defeat Zu, in the Thirteen Chambers, so that he can be the emperor – then Shang Chi would have no place to hide.

Zheng Zu opens the doors and addresses his people.  Today is the day of the Thirteen Chambers tournament, apparently it is only suppose to last one day.  The other masters of the schools are – Wise T’Challa of the Panther Clan / Brave Ava of the House of the Jade Tiger / Savage Lord Namor from the Halls of Atlantis / Mysterious Drew of the Spider Cult / Unyielding Karnak of the House of the Terrigen Mists / Noble Creed of the Tooth and Claw / Shattered Spector of the Faces of the Moon / Most Deadly Lady Mandarin of the School of Spirit Blades / Loyal Red Sai of the Red Hand and Rand-K’ai of the Iron Fist.

If Zu wins this day, he will be the first emperor to rule K’un Lun for one hundred years.

Master of Kung Fu V2 3 Lock 1

Like a pimp, Shang Chi arrives, claiming he is the Master of the Lowest Caste.  Rand is not thrilled by this and Zu is surprised.

Master of Kung Fu V2 3 Lock 2

Shang Chi states, according to ancient rule, he is allowed to participate as he has a school and students.  Zu has to allow his son to enter the tournament.

Master of Kung Fu V2 3 Lock 3

Zu dictates who Shang Chi’s opponents will be.  Zu raises the stakes, once he defeats his son, he will kill all of his students!  So we need Shang Chi to win (or at least Zu, to not win) so that Kitten and Lock survive!  Rand looks forever to facing Shang Chi in the tournament.

Zu raises his hand and a giant statue comes out of the ground.  Everyone enters through the giant mouth of the head and. IT. IS. ON!

For a seqeunce that this series has been leading up to, for three issues, this does not disappoint!

Master of Kung Fu V2 3 Kitten 1

Shang Chi feels that Kitten has been following him, and asks her to come out of the shadows.  There are no rules to observers, but none survive – which I’m super curious why that is.  The issue doesn’t explain that but the battles are pretty intense, so I imagine that it is due to either debris falling on the audience or bodies being thrown into them.  Shang Chi explains that no one really knows how the Thirteen Chambers, really work or how they came to be.  It changes every year.

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Round One!  Namor v Shang Chi!

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Namor gets the early advantage in the fight, as he can breath under water.

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Since Namor can breath underwater, that means his lungs are making that possible.  Shang Chi has the ability, the Mortal Blade, to turn his hand into a blade (get it?) and he punctures both lungs of Namor’s.

I like how the tournament doesn’t require the deaths of the masters, that way, they can get better and stronger AND there isn’t a new one every year.

Master of Kung Fu V2 3 Kitten 5

We get a montage of the other fights.  Which is disappointing, only in that I was expecting maybe two issues dedicated to the tournament.

Shang Chi defeats several masters – the Spider Clan person, Karnak, White Tiger, Lady Mandarin (maybe?), Moon Knight, maybe Sabretooth (who wanted to fight Iron Fist first, which has to be a reference to his first appearance being in Iron Fist, right?) and Black Panther.  Black Panther reveals that he has fought in more tournaments than any other great master – which I had to reread twice as I was thinking how he could have fought more than Zu but he is the Emperor and not a mere master.

Shang Chi isn’t fueled by desire of power, he just wants to unseat his father.  No one else can do it, but him.

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I wish we got more of the Black Panther fight, besides the two panels, as Shang Chi tells Kitten that T’Challa ruptured something of his.  Shang Chi has nothing else left, in the tank.

Of course, the issue ends, with his next opponent revealed . . . IRON FIST! dun Dun DUN!

I like how Iron Fist promises to make this, not quick.  This series keeps getting better!

Master of Kung Fu Volume Two Issue 1

Posted by John Klein III on December 27, 2015
Posted in: Review, Websites. Tagged: , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Master of Kung Fu 1

Writer Haden Blackman

Penciler Dalibor Talajic

Inker Goran Sudzuka

Colorist Miroslav Mrva

Letterer VC’s Travis Lanham

I don’t have much experience with Shang-Chi.  I’ve read the few appearances he had when he was on the Marvel Knights team and I’ve read the various team-ups he has had with Spider-Man over the years.  And now, this series.

Issue opens with some world building, to explain how we got here.  Which is nice that Doctor Doom saw fit to include thousands of years of back story, for this region of Battleworld called – K’un Lun.  All of the Great Masters went to war.  Every school was represented – Red Hand, Panther Clan, House of the Jade Tiger, and the poor bastard from the Spider Cult, is it worth being included if it is only to be insulted?  I imagine some Spider-Fan would have been offended if the Spider Cult was left out.

The battle boiled down to Ten Rings (which makes me think of the Mandarin) and the Iron Fist – who we should mostly associate K’un Lun with.  The two Masters practically destroy the region.  They decided to make a truce.  They created a tournament called, Thirteen Chambers, the winner will rule K’un Lun.  Shang-Chi’s father – Zheng Zu – has been the ruler for a hundred years.  The next tournament of Thirteen Chambers is about to begin.

We start the present day story with a very drunk, Shang-Chi, in the park with his dog.  This Shang-Chi is a very funny drunk.

Three goons from the Ten Rings arrive to escort Shang-Chi out of the park.  Shang-Chi jokes that they are trying to get rid of the dog.  They threaten to burn the pet and Shang-Chi jokes that he is the pet to the dog.  A bald young lady witnesses the commotion.  As she watches, Shang-Chi starts taking out the goons so easily.  Even drunk, he makes short work of them.

Master of Kung Fu 1 Kitten 1

The lady runs off to tell Callisto what she was watching.  Callisto calls the young lady, Kitten, so we know this is the Shadowcat – which makes sense as we’ve seen from the promo piece –

Secret Wars 2015 Shang-Chi Kitty Lockheed

Kitten tells Callisto that someone is finally fighting back.

Master of Kung Fu 1 Shadowcat 1

The goons finally recognize him as Shang-Chi.  The audience can’t believe he has return!  We see a very pale fellow, who is Caliban.  Caliban reveals all of Shang-Chi’s nicknames or titles – The Rising Spirit / Son of Emperor Zheng Zu / Seven-Time Winner of the Dragon Cup.  He is cut off after saying, “Nine-Time Winner of” so we don’t learn that one.  He does finish with the reason why no one has seen Shang-Chi for a while.  He is wanted for the murder of Lord Tuan, Great Master of the Iron Fist.

Shangi-Chi knocks down the goons.

Master of Kung Fu 1 Lockheed

The goons start getting up, and Shang-Chi asks them to stay down.  He tells them that he is no longer a killing man, so now he has a weakness and they press him on it.  Just then, this region’s X-Men (I’m not sure what they are going to be called here) show up to even the score.  Lockheed is the dragon in green!  I rather he was purple but I guess green is a more traditional color for dragons.

Master of Kung Fu 1 Lockheed 2

This page, we get Callisto calling him by his name in this region, Lock.  Which is all the confirmation I need.  You can add this character to your favorite list over at comicbookdb!

http://comicbookdb.com/character.php?ID=81962

Master of Kung Fu 1 Lockheed 3

Lock surrounds the goons with high flames as the heroes make their escape.  Callisto tells Shang-Chi that they are outcasts, which works for who the X-Men are.  Outcasts and rejects, which also works for the Morlocks.  They all go inside a statue to their secret hideaway.

The goons try to catch up and once they realize that they lost Shang-Chi, they know they will have to beg for sweet mercy.

Temple of the Ten Rings.  Great Master Zheng Zu recruits a Laughing Skull.

The Halls of the Red Hand.  Red Sai is also recruited.

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The Citadel of Emperor Zheng Zu.  The Emperor is not happy that his son has returned to K’un Lun.  Iron Fist is okay if Laughing Skull and Red Sai kill Shang-Chi’s accomplices but he wants the honor of killing Shang-Chi, as he killed Iron Fist’s Master.

Hopefully we keep getting lots more of Kitten and Lock throughout this series.