Good morning everyone,
Today's focus is the ninety-sixth issue of Marvel's The Hands of Shang-Chi, Master of Kung Fu. The cover showed the titular character engaged in battle with a trio of opponents in a warehouse. All of the elements were colored in various shades of blue. The story was called "Carter's Super Midnight." The issue had a cover date of January 1981.
The tale began at a professional karate match in London, where a one-eyed man known as "Midnight" Carter was the favorite to win the match in progress. Shang-Chi and Leiko Wu are among those in attendance. The couple were gifted tickets to the bout by a stranger after they'd stepped out following their first mission with Sir Dennis Nayland Smith's new organization, Freelance Restorations Limited.
During the match, Shang-Chi became involved in a fight of his own with a man who tried to falsely claim that the duo were in his seats. Both Carter and Shang were the champions of their own individual fights. Shang-Chi's altercation caught the attention of Carter, who invited them both backstage after mentioning their new organization.
Curious, Wu and Shang followed the fighter back to the dressing room. He introduced himself and explained that he'd trained in Philadelphia. Carter went on to describe how the loss of sight in one eye didn't hamper his fighting ability. He added that he also ran an antiques business, which local gangs expected protection money from.
Police weren't able to assist him, so he sought Freelance Restorations' help. Shang-Chi and Leiko refused money for the job, but promised to check things out. They arrived just in time to prevent several thugs from causing havoc. The trio defeated the men, but at the cost of a few valuable items' destruction.
The would-be robber that Carter caught only revealed that their employer was named Onyx. Wu made a call to their headquarters at Stormhaven. Clive Reston answered and promised that he and Melissa Greville would work on it. The pair was indeed dedicated to the cause, as we soon saw them working until the following morning on the mystery.
Meanwhile, Melissa's sister Mandy was admiring the sunrise with her longtime friend, Black Jack Tarr. She now knew that the Dawning Light cult that she'd been a part of was nothing but bad, and was searching for what to do in the next chapter of her life. She then got the idea of setting up a safe haven for blind children at the castle. She hadn't worked all the details out yet, but the castle's owner, Sir Dennis Nayland Smith, overheard the discussion and thought that it sounded like a fine idea.
Melissa later phoned Leiko with the news that Onyx was a man named Jeremiah Winston. He operated out of a warehouse that was located on the Thames River docks. Wu then phoned Carter, not knowing that their new acquaintance wasn't alone when he took the call.
Shang-Chi and Leiko then went to a movie and rejoined Carter as they drove to the warehouse together. Carter rushed in when he peered into a window and saw a man perusing his red ledger book. A fight swiftly broke out, and Carter was injured during the melee.
Shang tended to his friend and noticed a wallet dropped from his pocket. It opened to reveal that Carter worked for the CIA. He asked Leiko to get medical assistance for Carter while he ran off to find Winston. Winston had just left the dock via motorboat when Shang-Chi jumped onboard. They fought for the book, which Shang quickly recovered.
With his foe unconscious, Shang-Chi paged through the book. It was nothing more than a compilation of information about Samisdat, who had been defeated already (in the last issue). The next day, Shang arrived at the hospital where Carter was staying. He was met by the man who'd gifted him and Wu the tickets earlier.
The man was a government agent. He admitted that the antiques store was merely a front for French intelligence and that Onyx had worked for the Yugoslavs. Shang-Chi had been targeted for the mission because of his past work and split with MI-6.
After receiving the agent's apology, Shang entered the room to visit with his friend and return his CIA ID card. Carter told the truth and realized that he didn't like government work that much anyway. He burned the card with a lit cigar and tossed it into an ashtray. He thought about becoming a freelancer like his new friend Shang-Chi, since the two of them were both champions in their own right.
To me, this issue seemed kind of like one of those television episodes where a new character is introduced in the hopes that they would generate enough interest to spawn a spinoff starring that new person. Carter was interesting, but he didn't stay in MOKF for very long. I liked the idea of the karate championship, which had boxing mixed in, since boxing was a very popular sport in America in the 1980s.
Well, that's all for now. Later today, I'll cover the ninety-seventh issue of Master of Kung Fu. Leiko and Shang return home to join their boss on what, on the surfac,e should have been a routine function. However, it was anything but ordinary, and in fact was a rather creative method of storytelling. Until then, have a great day and don't forget to be kind to one another.
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