Post by davidb on Jan 14, 2010 7:44:54 GMT -5
The Cast: Shang-Chi, Clive Reston, Leiko Wu, and Black Jack Tarr
Antagonists Faced: Fu Manchu
Stand-Out Character: Leiko Wu
Best Moment: Shang-Chi reflecting on the foes he had faced with his allies in the past.
I loved the fact that as I was reading this it felt like I was being thrust into a martial arts movie. It was like at the very beginning where you tend to get all your exposition through flashbacks. Yes, that can come off a bit cliche at times but it worked here because it showed that David had a grasp of atmosphere and the characters he had at his disposal. You have all the right elements. The tortured hero, the femme fatale, and the grand schemer.
While I like the idea of the grand schemer being in the mix I just wish he could have been someone other than Fu Manchu. It just seems like such familiar territory and I much prefer to read something that is trying to tread something new. I would like to see a villain from the greater Marvel universe be put in Shang-Chi’s path. I remember fondly enjoying the story where he teamed up with the X-Men against Sebastian Shaw and The Kingpin.
Fu Manchu should definitely be involved in the title, but he shouldn’t have been there from the start. Be that as it may, I see that David has a clear kind of atmosphere he’s trying to establish and he did a good job with it in his prose. I eagerly look forward to the future challenges that The Master of Kung-Fu and his friends deal. Perhaps a mad god or demon from Chinese mythology?
Antagonists Faced: Fu Manchu
Stand-Out Character: Leiko Wu
Best Moment: Shang-Chi reflecting on the foes he had faced with his allies in the past.
I loved the fact that as I was reading this it felt like I was being thrust into a martial arts movie. It was like at the very beginning where you tend to get all your exposition through flashbacks. Yes, that can come off a bit cliche at times but it worked here because it showed that David had a grasp of atmosphere and the characters he had at his disposal. You have all the right elements. The tortured hero, the femme fatale, and the grand schemer.
While I like the idea of the grand schemer being in the mix I just wish he could have been someone other than Fu Manchu. It just seems like such familiar territory and I much prefer to read something that is trying to tread something new. I would like to see a villain from the greater Marvel universe be put in Shang-Chi’s path. I remember fondly enjoying the story where he teamed up with the X-Men against Sebastian Shaw and The Kingpin.
Fu Manchu should definitely be involved in the title, but he shouldn’t have been there from the start. Be that as it may, I see that David has a clear kind of atmosphere he’s trying to establish and he did a good job with it in his prose. I eagerly look forward to the future challenges that The Master of Kung-Fu and his friends deal. Perhaps a mad god or demon from Chinese mythology?
Thanks for the kind words. In going into #1, I really had doubts about the way I was going to do it. I just knew that there was a lot of history for Shang-Chi that I wanted to get out there and figured flashbacks would be the quickest and easiest way to cover it and move on from there. I'm glad that it worked so well.
There's a lot more I want to say but can't without blowing something that's coming up shortly. All I can say is check out issue 3 when it goes up. Thanks again!