Good morning,
This morning's topic is the ninety-second issue of The Hands of Shang-Chi, Master of Kung Fu. The cover showed Shang and Leiko Wu in a sewer, preparing to face off against a mostly unseen menace. The story was called "Shadows of a Silent Past." The issue had a cover date of September 1980.
The tale began on a rainy day in New York City. The panels pan to a newspaper with the headline "Chinatown Gang Violence Cooled" (referring to the events of the last two issues) floating down into a sewer grate, where it swiftly disappears, moments before we see a large hand open the grate.
Readers are then taken to a small family-owned store. Inside the establishment, a young girl and her grandmother are counting inventory when they are interrupted by an intruder. All we see of the stranger is its shadow, and the fact that it has obviously terrified the store's two inhabitants.
The sun returned the next day. At the Hong Kong embassy, Shang and Leiko spent time with Leiko's brother David. David thanked the couple for their assistance with the city's gang problem. He asked Shang-Chi what they'd been doing the last several days. Shang replied that Leiko had been showing him more of the city. He admitted that the world did now look a bit better to him.
They were talking about extending their stay at the embassy for a few more days when a young girl barged in. She was the same girl that we saw earlier, and had arrived to ask for help, stating that her grandmother's store had been attacked by a monster the night before.
Shang-Chi and David were skeptical about the girl's claim, but they knew that they had to do something. Leiko and Shang arrived at the shop with the young girl later that evening and noticed that the front window had been smashed. They walked through the wreckage inside to a back room, where the grandmother was resting in bed. A friend was there to assist her.
The grandmother repeated the story of the monster attacking their shop. The girl, who we soon learned was named Angela, soon pointed to others outside the store when asked about reports that others had also seen the creature. Several citizens were standing on the street when Shang-Chi and Leiko looked outside.
Each resident had their own story to tell. The reports were similar, with multiple people reporting break-ins and having items stolen. Leiko noticed a nearby manhole and decided to investigate, while Shang tried to calm the people who had gathered.
Leiko was distracted by several rats before something larger approached from behind. The monster lashed out. Leiko defended herself, but the creature was strong and powerful. Minutes later, she ascended the manhole steps to rejoin Shang-Chi.
Shang rushed to her side when he saw that his love had been injured. Leiko confirmed the story that something was down in the sewer, and returned to check it out further with Shang-Chi. The pair ventured further until Shang noticed a loose stone above them.
He pushed the stone over, and they climbed up into what appeared to be the skeleton frame of a building. They began to climb up the wooden steps, where the creature was waiting. On the ground floor, a man dressed in green introduced himself as a dweller in darkness. He admitted that he served Fu Manchu and refuted Shang-Chi's claims that his father was gone and perhaps dead.
The warrior asserted that Fu Manchu could never die before detonating explosives that took out the bottom set of steps. The couple had no choice but to continue up the stairway. They found the assassin's living quarters at the top, and had been followed by what we now saw was a giant ape.
Leiko warned Shang not to harm the helpless animal, which was easier said than done. They continued to scuffle as the flames grew ever higher. Shang-Chi was finally able to knock his foe to the floor, where his master savagely kicked him and demanded that he kill the intruders. The ape then turned on its master, and they appeared to be caught in the wreckage as the building collapsed in on itself.
Shang-Chi and Leiko escaped before firetrucks arrived, and recounted their experience to the old woman back at the shop. When told that her attacker was an ape who'd escaped from the zoo, she insisted that the monster was gone only because it had been scared off by a great warrior, as an old legend once foretold. Leiko and Angela knew that the legend was just a story, but the group was amused by the shadow play that briefly contributed to the believability of the old wives' tale.
This was a fun, lighthearted story. I like how writer Doug Moench incorporated old tales and legends into what the townspeople believed was threatening their quiet community. It was a nice break from the frenetic pace of recent multi-issue storylines. I'd recommend this issue to anyone new to the title or its characters.
Well, that's all for this blog post. Later today, I'll recap the ninety-third issue of Master of Kung Fu. Black Jack Tarr returns to catch up with his friends. The trio will embark on another caper to assist someone in need. Until then, have a great week and don't forget to be kind to one another.
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