Good afternoon everyone,
Today's focus is the ninety-first issue of Marvel's The Hands of Shang-Chi, Master of Kung Fu. The cover showed the titular character engaged in what appeared to be a gang war. The story was named "Triumphs of the Spirit." The issue had a cover date of August 1980.
The tale began with a recap of the previous issue, where Shang and Leiko Wu chose to remain in New York while their colleagues departed for London. The duo met Leiko's brother, David, at his embassy office. Afterward, Shang decided to venture out on his own and was soon embroiled in a battle with a local gang.
Shang-Chi was now in the headquarters of the Joy Boys gang, who had just elected him to be their new leader. They wanted him to join them on a gun raid, so that they could take on their rival gang, the Golden Claws, in a fair fight. Shang reluctantly agreed and followed them to the gun shop.
Before he could reach the destination, Shang-Chi was attacked from behind by Chen, one of the gang members. Chen wanted to test Shang's abilities, and soon found he was more than capable of leading them. By the time their scuffle was over, the rest of the group had already broken into the gun shop.
Shang went over to persuade the Joy Boys to put the weapons down. As he did so, Chen ran for the closest police car and informed the officer that the gun shop had just been broken into. Minutes later, the cop car arrived at the shop and arrested everyone standing inside, including Shang-Chi.
The officer delivered Shang and the gang members to the station, where they were fingerprinted, charged, and booked. Meanwhile, back at the Hong Kong embassy, Wu realized that Shang-Chi was gone. By that time, Shang had already been photographed and placed in a cell.
An officer opened his cell the next morning and said that Shang-Chi was free to go. He made his way to the front of the station, where Leiko was waiting for him. She'd called their former employer, Sir Dennis Nayland Smith, who pulled some strings and gained Shang's release. The officer on duty understood that Shang-Chi was trying to infiltrate the gang and offered his apologies for the mix-up.
Outside, Shang, Leiko, and David Wu met outside David's limousine. Shang-Chi asked to be taken to Battery Park by nine p.m. He stated that the Joy Boys gang was going to attack the Golden Claw gang members there, and that one of the Joy Boys had escaped the shop with a gun.
Shang-Chi argued against involving the police, thinking he would have a better chance of handling things by himself. Shang asked his friends to let him settle this alone, and soon came across the rival gangs. Before anything could happen, he stood on top of a hill and asked them to stop.
Shang said that fighting wouldn't solve anything and reminded both groups to think about their heritage. Leiko and David stepped in, and Leiko agreed with Shang's sentiment. She pointed out how both factions had been used by mobsters to serve their own purposes.
Chen and his crew were less than convinced, and a fight soon broke out. Leiko and Shang-Chi fought defensively, trying to stop the fracas with as few injuries as possible to the participants. It wasn't until Chen shot and wounded Shang that people saw how right the outsiders were.
Shang-Chi wasn't seriously hurt, but Leiko still rushed to his side to support him. One by one, gang members began abandoning Chen. He was still confident that people would see his side, but that confidence shrank with each passing minute as he eventually found himself all alone.
This was a short storyline, but nonetheless impactful. It addressed the growing gang violence concern in America at the time and made readers think more about the core causes. I appreciated how Shang, Leiko, and David handled things, and I agree that the answers begin with things like dignity, individual morality, and basic respect for life. Well done, Moench, Zeck, Day, and company!
That's all I have for today. Tomorrow, I'll cover the ninety-second issue of Master of Kung Fu. Shang-Chi, Leiko, and David are still in New York. A call for help comes from a small family-owned business, where the heroes encounter a danger that none of them would ever expect. Until then, have a great week and don't forget to be kind to one another.
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