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Preview art by
Terry Pallot |
By Marc Strom
Wolverine comes fist-to-furious-fist with
Shang-Chi, Master of Kung Fu, in the pages of WOLVERINE: FIRST CLASS #9 on November 26, giving fans a healthy dose of awesome martial arts action.
According to writer Fred Van Lente, Shang-Chi makes his appearance at the behest of Wolverine, who's found himself in something of a bind.
"Wolvie's arch-nemesis,
Sabretooth, has kidnapped
Kitty Pryde," the writer reveals. "So he goes to Shang-Chi to try and learn some new fighting techniques to defeat [Sabretooth], which he's never done before in this continuity—when they met in WOLVERINE: FIRST CLASS #2, it was Kitty who defeated him. He may be getting more than he bargained for, though."
Though many of the guest stars Van Lente has used previously in the series were characters he'd written in the past, his association with Shang-Chi only began with this issue.
"I knew nothing about Shang-Chi before this," Van Lente confesses. "I'm a huge fan of kung fu movies and Zen Buddhism, though, and it was great to explore those themes in this story. I glommed onto the character almost immediately, it was great."
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Preview art by
Terry Pallot |
And while Van Lente had no connection to the character prior to writing this issue, he teases that his newfound relationship may not have ended just yet.
"I had such a blast with the character [that] those Shang-Chi fans out there should look for more MoKF stuff from me sooner rather than later," Van Lente promises. "In April, I believe..."
Van Lente's self-described "personal obsession with the B-listers" has led him to utilize a number of fan favorite characters who don't always occupy the spotlight in the pages of WOLVERINE: FIRST CLASS.
"I've kind of been a militant non-conformist since the day I was born," Van Lente jokes. "I didn't read UNCANNY X-MEN, I read ALPHA FLIGHT; I didn't read AVENGERS, I read DP7; and so forth. I liked to get 'in on the ground level' of things, so I tended to avoid the established characters in favor of the new, different stuff. And since I read all the classic stuff in reprint, that's where I got my fill of Spidey, Prof. X, Cap, Ben and the gang."
As far as why Van Lente thinks FIRST CLASS lends itself to using those types of characters, he finds it almost necessary to stay away from using more mainstream guest stars.
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Preview art by
Terry Pallot |
"Since this series is set 'between' the actual continuity of
X-Men, I can't use a lot of X-characters without risking contradicting events in the Chris Claremont/John Byrne run," Van Lente relates. "It's a great blessing, because it lets Wolverine—who appears in a number of different comics, from what I understand—interact with unexpected characters, letting us keep the stories fresh and exciting."
However, Van Lente will shortly bring the X-Men into the series, as he promises a few more special co-stars in upcoming issues.
"The best 'guest' will be the return of
Cyclops to the X-Men [from] around UNCANNY X-MEN #150, which will itself bring WOLVERINE: FIRST CLASS back into that stage of X-history," Van Lente tells fans. "Remember that gigantic Cthuloid island
Magneto used as a base for his earthquake-making machine in [UNCANNY] #150? Well, I do. And now we're going to learn where it came from and what its purpose is."
That story will also mark a significant change in the WOLVERINE: FIRST CLASS roster.
"I suppose this as good a time as any to say that I'll be leaving the title with issue #12," Van Lente announces. "I've accomplished what I wanted to accomplish
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WOLVERINE:
FIRST CLASS #9
cover by
Roberto
De La Torre |
and other commitments mean my swan song will be the Cyclops story I outlined above. The only thing that nearly changed my mind was the wonderful fan mail I keep getting from X-fans about the series from day one. I really appreciate it, since I had never played in the X-Men sandbox before, and I hope they keep enjoying the book for years to come.
"Although I guess I'll be back with my frequent artistic collaborator Scott Koblish to pen the Free Comic Book Day 2009 Wolvie story, so it ain't quite over yet!"
Before that, though, Van Lente has a few more stories to tell, and he left us with a single hint of what else fans can expect coming up:
"Starting with issue #10, things get...hairy."
WOLVERINE: FIRST CLASS #9 slashes into stores on November 26.
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