Hi everyone,
Today I'll be writing about the thirty-first issue of Marvel's The Hands of Shang-Chi, Master of Kung Fu. The cover showed Shang trying to fend off a large war wagon from running over him and an unidentified female behind him. The story was titled "Snowbuster." The issue had a cover date of August 1975.
The tale began back in Carlton Velcro's secret headquarters in the south of France, where Shang-Chi, Clive Reston, and Black Jack Tarr had just stumbled upon the villain's hidden cache of nuclear missiles, soldiers, and other vehicles and armaments. Shang found a rope and used it to leap toward one of the guards. The image of Shang in the soldier's lighter is an amazing artwork example by penciler Paul Gulacy.
Unfortunately, the man Shang-Chi attacked fired his gun as he was struck. The noise alerted other guards in the area. Reston and Tarr joined in the firefight while Shang joined the fray. After defeating all of the soldiers, the trio then ran to a nearby tank.
Inside Velcro's quarters, the leader was continuing to track the heroes. He was talking to a striking young woman named Pavane, who held the reins of a black panther in one hand and a whip in the other. She swore to her love that the infiltrators would be stopped.
Meanwhile, the tank that Shang-Chi, Tarr, and Reston were riding in broke through an interior gate. They trudged on until Shang saw something that made him leave the vehicle. Shang-Chi slowly made his way to a small space that held several plants and allowed birds to fly freely. The silence was soon broken, as Pavane's whip lashed out at the young warrior.
Shang had been caught unaware, but was only off his feet for a brief moment. He was able to take the whip away from his attacker, and a swift slap left her unconscious. Shang-Chi noticed the arrival of Razor Fist right before Velcro and his guards entered the room. The soldiers soon opened fire. Shang evaded the bullets, but Razor Fist did not, and seemingly met his demise that day.
Minutes later, Tarr and Reston's tank burst into the room. Shang carried the unconscious Pavane to safety before rejoining his companions. The tank drove headfirst into the water, even after it had been doused by the blasts emitted by several flamethrowers.
As Tarr and Reston swam toward Smith and Petrie's waiting seaplane, Shang-Chi made his way to the large boat that Smith had called for, one that was laden with a cargo of heavy explosives. He piloted the craft toward Velcro's headquarters. The boat flew into the air and directly into the fortress, where it exploded spectacularly.
Shang-Chi abandoned the ship before its dive, and soon resurfaced in the water. A ladder rope from Smith's seaplane carried him to rejoin his friends. As the plane flew away, Smith and his friends realized that the aftermath of the battle would require some extensive cleanup.
This was a very satisfying conclusion to the three-part epic. I loved Gulacy's artwork, and the new characters that he and writer Doug Moench introduced in this storyline were impressive. My only concern was what happened to Pavane and Velcro, but I'd learn about their fates sooner rather than later.
Well, that's all for now. Next time, I'll recap the thirty-second issue of Master of Kung Fu. Our pal Sal Buscema takes the penciling reins on this tale that sort of serves as a bridge between multiple issue story arcs. Shang and his comrades take a boat trip and learn that not everything is what it seems. Until then, have a great week and don't forget to be kind to one another.
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