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Post by Hoosier X on Jul 28, 2014 13:57:06 GMT -5
I am not aware of any actual meeting between Fu Manchu (or Shang Chi) and Yellow Claw. But there was an odd event in the War of the Super-Villains (Remember that? The glorious War of the Super-Villains of the 1970s, that was won by ... Firebrand?) in Iron Man.
The Yellow Claw was one of the big name villains in the War, along with dudes like M.O.D.O.K., The Mandarin and The Mad Thinker, but there was a section that seemed to be explaining why some of the really bad dudes in the Marvel Universe weren't involved. One of the participating villain (I think M.O.D.O.K.) had a bunch of agents that he interrogated, and some of them had been planted where they could spy on the big villains. So there were several flashback panels where the agents reported on what they heard when the big villains all responded to the Black Lama (he was the dude doing the recruiting for the War of the Super-Villains).
It was Dr. Doom, the Red Skull ... and Fu Manchu! And they all rejected the offer of the Black Lama. (I think the Red Skull shot at him.)
So Fu Manchu missed his chance to take on the Yellow Claw and the Mandarin.
I wonder how he would feel about taking on Dr. Tzin-Tzin. That would be a fight for the ages!
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Post by Hoosier X on Jul 28, 2014 13:59:16 GMT -5
And, yes, the Maneely art is unbelievable. I used to have my own copy of Yellow Claw #1 and it was a prize possession for a while. I'm glad I have the MOKF reprint just to look at the Maneely art! Look at Suwan! Hubba hubba!
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Post by Phil Maurice on Jul 29, 2014 16:39:04 GMT -5
Giant-Size Master of Kung Fu #1 (continued from here) "Yellow Claw" writer: (unknown)pencils/inks: Joe Maneely colors: (unknown) letters: (unknown) Joe Maneely's tenure on Yellow Claw ended after the first issue. The writer of that first issue, if you can believe it, was Al Feldstein. It was his only work for Stan Lee before being summoned back to EC to helm MAD following Kurtzman's (ahem) departure. Feldstein is the co-creator (along with Maneely) of all the characters who make their first appearance in that book. |
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Jul 29, 2014 19:29:58 GMT -5
Giant-Size Master of Kung Fu #1 (continued from here) "Yellow Claw" writer: (unknown)pencils/inks: Joe Maneely colors: (unknown) letters: (unknown) Joe Maneely's tenure on Yellow Claw ended after the first issue. The writer of that first issue, if you can believe it, was Al Feldstein. It was his only work for Stan Lee before being summoned back to EC to helm MAD following Kurtzman's (ahem) departure. Feldstein is the co-creator (along with Maneely) of all the characters who make their first appearance in that book. Thanks for this! You might want to inform the GCD. |
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Post by shaxper on Aug 4, 2014 9:01:43 GMT -5
Master of Kung Fu #21  "Season of Vengeance" writer: Doug Moench pencils: Ron Wilson inks: Al Milgrom letters: John Costanza colors: Stan Goldberg editor: Roy Thomas grade: B- Though Giant-Size #1 hit stands prior to this, the story in this issue clearly occurs directly before the events of those stories, as Shang Chi is still leaving the yacht he was on last issue and first arriving in Miami, where he'll be for most of the stories in Giant-Size #1 (though there's still that lead story where he was back in Manhattan...). To be fair, Doug was thrown into all of this very quickly, asked to produce an insane amount of content on the fly while also juggling several other highly demanding new writing jobs at Marvel, and the Giant-Size format and publication schedule was new to everyone. What's nice to see is that Moench is getting a little closer to figuring out what he wants to do with this series. We have a new synopsis at the top of this issue that encapsulates the focus of the series better than any of Moench's stories have done thus far (it's the only place, for example, that Dr. Petrie has been mentioned, and Moench seems to be unaware of Nayland Smith entirely thus far) and, more importantly, after story after story of watching Fu Manchu flutter around in his helicopter or not be seen at all, he finally LANDS and makes a damn well memorable appearance, saving Shang-Chi from death, and explaining: " Know this, Shang-Chi!. I have slain this man for but one reason. Only Fu Manchu may choose the moment of your death. And that moment shall arrive when it best amuses me."It's an impressive moment, and Ron Wilson conveys it well in pencils. I'm on the fence about this choice for Fu Manchu, though. On the one hand, we have to assume that if he tried his hardest each week, with his resources and intellect, eventually he WOULD kill Shang-Chi, so the toying with him like a cat and mouse thing makes sense. On the other, someone as brilliant as Fu Manchu must understand that Shang-Chi already came close to killing him once when he infiltrated the Council of the Seven. Toying with him like this is incredibly dangerous. I'd personally love to see Fu Manchu slowly and painfully disarm Shang-Chi, maybe having an assassin strike a critical muscle or bone next time, having him put on the FBI most wanted list the month after, etc -- both toying with Shang-Chi and also minimizing his ability to be a threat, but I suppose I'm not the one writing this thing. Of course, Fu Manchu has pointed out before that Shang-Chi will never willingly kill, and if he's right about that, and thus can toy with Shang-Chi, having no reason to fear him, then what can we ever expect Shang-Chi to accomplish in this series? He still has no decisive goal/course of action. Is he going to find some non-lethal way to bring down Fu Manchu's empire that Manchu has not considered, or is it going to be month after month of ambling around, getting messed with by his father's assassins? Back to the story: the ending was amazing, but the in between was...silly. Shang-Chi visits a legal-department approved knock-off of Sea World, turns on the philosophy a bit too strong again as he watches a dolphin swim, and then Moench seems to play with the setting/concept as much as possible (something he will do to better effect on Planet of the Apes), having Shang-Chi uses his martial arts underwater on a shark. Worse yet, we get a moment that can't decide whether it's utterly poignant or ridiculous, as Shang-Chi watches the dolphin leap for him, and an assassin misses him, shooting the dolphin instead. So Moench still hasn't quite found his momentum with this series but, after all, it's only been three months, and he's had A LOT to produce with very little time to do it. I know Nayland Smith returns soon and, hopefully, Moench will continue to find his footing with the rest of the series as well. Minor Details: - If Fu Manchu eliminated the mafia boss gunning for Shang-Chi this issue, and if the Si-Fan are there in Miami, then why does Shang-Chi have ordinary assassins going after him for Fu-Manchu in the Giant-Size #1 stories that follow? - Shang-Chi decides that a cowardly assassin bringing back-up is wise where I would have expected him to call it dishonorable. This character certainly defies the stereotypes, even if Moench's depiction is still characterized very differently from when Englehart was writing. - Lucky that assassin missed. I mean, seriously. End of series. Moench has got to stop depending upon conveniences like this. Will we return to Shang-Chi having heightened senses and an ability to detect another's chi? That guy shouldn't have been able to sneak up on him in the first place. - The letter column first acknowledges that Moench is the new writer of this series, as well as the fact that Conway was supposed to take over but essentially didn't want to. There's also mention of what a great job Gulacy did on the series, but no indication yet that he'll be returning. plot synopsis in one sentence: Shang-Chi leaves the yacht from last issue and decides to visit the Marvel version of Sea World, the crime lord from last issue swears revenge and sends his assassins after Shang-Chi for the death of his girlfriend (actually caused by the assassin hired by him to kill Shang-Chi), after a prolonged battle including a fight with a shark, Shang-Chi is captured, but Fu Manchu arrives at the last moment to kill the crime boss, reminding Shang-Chi that only he gets to decide when Shang-Chi dies. |
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Aug 4, 2014 20:13:36 GMT -5
That's the first MoKF comic I bought off the newsstand. Good memories! (But I was so sad when the dolphin was shot. It was almost a Real Bambi moment).
Oh, and my dear shaxper, you'll be happy to know that thanks to the great interest of your reviews, I've just felt compelled to order Giant-sized MoKF 1-4 at a fair, but not exactly bargain, price. (Please don't let my wife learn about it)!
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Post by shaxper on Aug 4, 2014 20:16:55 GMT -5
Oh, and my dear shaxper, you'll be happy to know that thanks to the great interest of your reviews, I've just felt compelled to order Giant-sized MoKF 1-4 at a fair, but not exactly bargain, price. (Please don't let my wife learn about it)! I aim to corrupt  |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 4, 2014 20:18:54 GMT -5
Oh, and my dear shaxper, you'll be happy to know that thanks to the great interest of your reviews, I've just felt compelled to order Giant-sized MoKF 1-4 at a fair, but not exactly bargain, price. (Please don't let my wife learn about it)! I aim to corrupt Time for Shax to change the avatar to Mephisto now..... -M |
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Post by shaxper on Aug 4, 2014 20:19:59 GMT -5
I aim to corrupt Time for Shax to change the avatar to Mephisto now..... -M No no no. You're the staff member who changes his avatar every other day. I'm the one who changes it every other month  |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 4, 2014 20:23:41 GMT -5
Fine then, just for you....
-M
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Post by shaxper on Aug 4, 2014 20:25:51 GMT -5
Fine then, just for you.... -M "Now that the Monthly Model Member Society vote is clinched, it's time to reveal my TRUE face!" -- mrp |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 4, 2014 20:33:32 GMT -5
Fine then, just for you.... -M "Now that the Monthly Model Member Society vote is clinched, it's time to reveal my TRUE face!" -- mrp Ta-da.....  -M |
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Post by shaxper on Aug 4, 2014 20:49:03 GMT -5
"Now that the Monthly Model Member Society vote is clinched, it's time to reveal my TRUE face!" -- mrp Ta-da..... -M Agh! Put it back! Put it back!! |
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Post by shaxper on Aug 7, 2014 7:55:42 GMT -5
Special Album Edition: The Deadly Hands of Kung Fu (Indica title is "Kung Fu Special")  writers: Doug Moench (Iron Fist and Shang-Chi), Chris Claremont (Sons of the Tiger) art: Frank McLaughlin and "The Crusty Bunkers" (Iron Fist), Herb Trimpe (Sons of the Tiger), Mike Vosburg and Dan Adkins (Shang-Chi) grade: C+ An ambitious attempt to unify the three ongoing Deadly Hands of Kung Fu features into one cross-over event with Fu Manchu as the villain. The intention is ambitious but, at the end of the day, Iron Fist and Sons of the Tiger had no real impact on the outcome at all. It all came down to Shang-Chi. Speaking of which, what is most apparent from this issue is the odd contrast that, one the one hand, Marvel was putting its bets on Shang-Chi as the most popular/successful of its kung fu characters. On the other, Doug Moench, writing both Iron Fist and Shang-Chi here, seems to give a lot more thought and passion to the Iron Fist story, making the lengthy, heavy, deeply introspective narration we've seen him try with Shang-Chi fully connect with Daniel Rand, while the Shang-Chi story is clumsy, overly simplistic, and illogical at times. I know Moench was writing on an insane marathon pace at this point, but it's odd to see him put so much heart into one Kung Fu feature here (and do it so well), while pretty much just getting through the other. Important Details: -Moench's Shang-Chi still can't sense another's Chi where Englehart's could. Fu Manchu toying with the heroes by passing himself off as a beggar is amusing until you consider this when he approaches Shang-Chi and is not detected. -First time Moench has ever utilized Nayland Smith and Black Jack Tarr. -Though it's a given that sequence/continuity is utterly dysfunctional among Shang-Chi's appearances in four titles as of late, he is back in New York here. Minor Details: -Was this the plot suggested at the end of the first Giant-Size Master of Kung Fu story, where Fu Manchu was to "...journey to the heart of America...to still it forever"? I doubt that the UN would constitute the heart of America, though perhaps the heart of the world. -Moench always seems to go to one impressive visual in his stories, regardless of the artist, and this time it's having Shang-Chi launch himself out of a submarine torpedo chute. -How does Shang-Chi know how to defuse torpedoes? -Once again, Moench depends far too much on coincidence. Fu Manchu flees and then waits a really long time before blowing up the ship, coincidentally right after the good guys have escaped. Was he waiting until he was a safe distance from the boat, intentionally deciding to let Shang-Chi live again, etc? You've got to show/explain this stuff so that it doesn't all look like bad coincidence, Doug. plot synopsis in one sentence: Iron Fist, the Sons of the Tiger, and Shang-Chi all get involved in different aspects of attempting to thwart the kidnapping of Chinese and American delegates from the UN, though they neither work with, nor are aware of the involvement of, the others; Shang-Chi ends up being the one to liberate them from Fu Manchu, who attempted to use their abductions to play the Americans against the Chinese (and, really, that's as intricate as his plan gets -- disappointing), Shang-Chi manages to sneak aboard the boat where it's happening and then cause enough of a disruption to cause Fu Manchu to flee, Nayland Smith and Black Jack Tarr arrive to assist, and they get off the boat with the delegates just as Fu Manchu blows it up, while Shang-Chi returns to the docks to discover a note from Fu Manchu, letting Shang-Chi know he'd been a beggar that had approached him earlier on in the story. |
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Post by paulie on Aug 7, 2014 8:28:52 GMT -5
Deadly Hands of Kung Fu has nothing to do with the Master of Kung Fu title. Trying to establish connections between the two mags is tilting at windmills.
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