Good morning,
Today's topic is the sixty-eighth issue of The Hands of Shang-Chi, Master of Kung Fu. The cover showed Shang squaring off against Shen Kuei, as a mysterious set of cat's eyes looked on. The story was called "Final Combats." The issue had a cover date of September 1978.
The tale began with Shang-Chi offering to join Kogar's cause for mutual profit. He stated that he'd grown tired of Juliette and could no longer protect her. As Leiko Wu, Melissa Greville, and Clive Reston watched from a safe distance, the warlord accepted Shang's proposal and instructed one of his guards to show his new employee to his quarters. Black Jack Tarr, in his guise as Black Jack Blue, was just as confused as the rest of his friends about Shang's change of heart.
Meanwhile, Pavane and Kuei were about to go through the hidden waterfall entrance of Kogar's base. Kogar knew that Shang-Chi and Black Jack had worked together before, but Tarr had no clue that his ally had been led into a trap and that he was about to be asked to slay his friend. Before Tarr could answer that request, Kuei jumped down to face Kogar.
Kogar was not surprised by the appearance of his former employee. He challenged Kuei to battle his best man, Shang-Chi. It was obvious from the look on Kuei's face that he and Shang knew each other. Shang-Chi did not want to fight, but Kogar's threat of harming Black Jack forced the issue.
Each warrior fought bravely. During their struggle, they began to realize who the real villain was. At one point, Kogar claimed that Shang had put the crate that killed Kuei's brother in the back room of the Jade Peacock nightclub. Kuei knew that only Kogar would know that because he was responsible for the crate being placed there.
Just then, Juliette arrived, offering to trade her crates for Shang-Chi's life. Her appearance led to a gun battle between Kogar's men and their opponents. Shang led Juliette to safety after Kuei fled. They soon rejoined Tarr, Wu, Greville, and Reston as they ran into a tunnel that led to the outside of the mountain. On the way, Reston and Tarr spilled the beans about the neutron bomb plans that were hidden in the microdots that were attached to the blocks of hashish in the crates.
Once they were outside, Shang-Chi leapt down to meet Kuei once more. This time, they united in tossing grenades at the boats that carried the crates. Kogar went to attack them, but was felled by conveniently placed shrapnel. Kuei thanked Shang for his assistance before going to find Pavane. The rest of the heroes decided to escape in two boats. Shang-Chi took Juliette in one vessel, while Greville, Tarr, Reston, and Wu took the other.
This issue was dedicated to Milton Caniff. It was a nice resolution for the Kogar storyline, one that brought most of the supporting characters back together. I liked how Kuei realized that Shang was not responsible for his brother's death, and figured out that they were both on the same side.
Well, that's all for now. Next time, I'll discuss the sixty-ninth issue of Master of Kung Fu. Even though the Kogar situation was resolved, that doesn't mean that there aren't any loose ends to tie up. We'll find out where Shang-Chi and Juliette went, and what happened to them afterward. There will also be the return of another character from this storyline. Until then, have a great week and don't forget to be kind to one another.
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