Shang Chi, Master of Kung Fu
Marvel MAX.
The Hellfire Apocalypse (6-issue mini; w Doug Moench; a Paul Gulacy
& Jimmy Palmiotti). [From Marvel Comics: Son
of an international crime lord, Shang-Chi had mastered the martial arts
by age 19. Only then did his father send him out into the world to assassinate
an old enemy. Naively believing his father to be a great humanitarian and
his foe to be evil, the idealistic Shang-Chi murdered the man—only
to discover that the mission had been a test of his loyalty. Learning his
father's true nature, a shocked and disillusioned Shang-Chi vowed to topple
the criminal empire he had unwittingly served. After being forced to shoot
his father to prevent him from activating a cache of nuclear weapons, Shang-Chi
resolved to play the games of deceit and death no more. He wanted nothing
but the peace so long denied him. Yet even though the man is gone, the legacy
of his evil persists—forever compelling Shang-Chi to atone for the
sins of his father. Three decades later, the renowned writer-artist team
of Doug Moench and Paul Gulacy return to the scene of their greatest success
with Shang-Chi: Master of Kung Fu #1-6.] Old Book of the Week 10/26/05: OK, this pick really should be from the original series...but that's never been collected, largely due to copyright issues. But while this mini didn't completely recapture the magic from 30 years ago, it was a nice nostalgic romp, with all the old characters back, along with Gulacy's distinctive film-noir action scenes and Steranko-inspired rendering.