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Monkey Prince sees DC’s new simian teen hero battling ancient Chinese demons with a taste for chowing down on superhero flesh.
DC’s Monkey Prince has his work cut out for him in April, as he comes face-to-face with spirits who want to eat the superheroes around the world in order to absorb their powers.
Monkey Prince #3, written by Gene Luen Yang with art by Bernard Chang, features its titular main character working alongside his mentor, Shifu Pigsy, as they encounter a cannibalistic penguin demon with its sights set on digesting the caped denizens of the DC Universe. Ironically, two of DC’s most famous heroes without powers — Batman and Robin — make an appearance, and Chang’s cover promises a clash between the Dynamic Duo and the son of the Monkey King.
Hints regarding the cannibalistic demon plot can be found in “The Monkey Prince Hates Superheroes,” which ran in DC Festival of Heroes: The Asian Superhero Celebration #1. The one-shot served as an ode to DC heroes of Asian descent, including fan-favorites like Cassandra Cain, as well as lesser-known characters like Element Woman. The story introduced the Monkey Prince in a fight against a possessed Dr. Sivana, who was under the control of a deer-faced demon that attempted to devour Shazam. The demon, originally trapped in a Yuan Dynasty gourd, claimed that humans had “defiled” their realm, leaving demonkind with “no choice but to consume the best of them, become immortal, and overthrow their rule.”
Created by Yang and Chang, the Monkey Prince is Marcus Sun, a teen with the ability to transform into a super-strong, lithe monkey form. Inspired by Sun Wukong, the Monkey King of legend who starred in the 16th-century Chinese story Journey to the West, Marcus appears to be the son of the famous hero and a disciple of Pigsy.
Marcus’ father, who battled Darkseid in the free Monkey Prince #0 prologue, is missing at the onset of the series. Despite Pigsy’s best efforts, Marcus is none too keen on following in his dad’s footsteps, preferring the company of his adoptive parents. Marcus also thinks little of other superheroes, considering them overrated — despite the fact that one of his few high school friends is Billy Batson, Shazam’s alter ego.
MONKEY PRINCE #3
- Written by GENE LUEN YANG 楊謹倫
- Art and cover by BERNARD CHANG 張伯納
- Variant cover by INHYUK LEE 이인혁
- 1:25 variant cover by KIM JACINTO
- $3.99 US | 32 pages | Variant $4.99 US (card stock)
- ON SALE 4/5/22
- The bat’s out of the bag as Monkey Prince and Pigsy both realize what all the demon spirits around the world are after—eating specific superheroes in order to gain their powers! And this penguin demon has his eyes on…Batman! Uh-oh, Monkey Prince, it’s bad enough you have to keep hiding your tail when you’re Marcus, and how your circlet keeps returning latched onto your body as something else every time you try to get rid of it—but now cannibalism is also on the menu? YEOW!
Monkey Prince #3, written by Gene Luen Yang, illustrated by Bernard Chang with cover art by Chang and variant covers by In-Hyuk Lee and Kim Jacinto, hits comic book store shelves on April 5. The title debuts on Feb. 1, the beginning of Chinese New Year.
Source: DC
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