The "Shangqi" paper comic ranks an average of 900,000 yuan in sales on Amazon in the United States.
By Mikoto & Dkphhh
On the 21st, at the SDCC Comic Con in San Diego, Marvel announced the name of its first Chinese protagonist superhero movie , "The Legend of Shangqi and the Ten Commandments", which is expected to be released on February 12, 2021.
After the news was announced, the heat directly overshadowed Loki's single-player drama.
The reason behind this is that it is Marvel's first Chinese hero movie, and the role of Liang Chaowei as the villain "Mandarin" has caused controversy, as well as the audience's doubts about Shangqi:
"Even Hawkeye and Loki can only make TV dramas, why can Shangqi enjoy the treatment of single-player movies?"
Unlike characters such as Captain America, Iron Man, and Thor, who themselves have a certain degree of popularity in the comic book era, Shangqi's popularity in the Marvel comic book era is not high.
According to Amzscout data, the product corresponding to the keyword "Shang-Chi" ranks an average of 900,000 yuan outside the sales volume of Amazon in the United States, of which the top sales ranking is "Shangqi: Kung Fu Master Volume 1", which ranks 390,000.
Captain America's comic book sales ranked around 220,000 on average, with the top selling line being Captain America Vol. 1: Winter In America, which ranks at 25,000 unit sales.
Marvel has not made superheroes that have no popularity in the home country, but most of these superheroes appear as supporting characters in movies, such as Mantis Woman, Valkyrie and War Machine, and these characters are unlikely to enjoy the treatment of single-player movies.
Shang-Chi is a Chinese superhero owned by Marvel Comics, alias Master of Kung Fu, who is 5 feet 10 inches (1.78 meters) tall and weighs 175 pounds (79 kilograms), and debuted in Special Marvel Edition #15. In the comics in which he appears, Stan Lee himself comments on Shangqi: "The most amazing and attractive debut of the most amazing and attractive new hero this year or in recent years".
In the comic strip, Shangqi was born in Henan Province, China, and lived an isolated life from an early age, training martial arts by his father and master and becoming a kung fu master. Marvel's official interpretation of the name "Shang-Chi" as "rising of the spirit" can be translated as ascending essence, and "Shang-Chi" is therefore more translated as Shangqi than Shangqi. At the same time, the ability to ascend qi is also related to "qi".
Shangqi is one of the strongest martial artists in the world, specializing in freehand combat and cold weapon combat. Commonly used weapons are long sticks, double sticks and Chinese swords. He is proficient in a variety of martial arts and martial arts techniques and has received almost all forms of martial arts training. Shangqi is an ordinary person who has no special ability, but Shangqi can use the power of "Qi" very skillfully. Through the control of "qi", shangqi can obtain physical abilities beyond ordinary people.
Why does such a character appear in American comics? This has to mention the craze for martial arts in the United States in the 1970s.
In the 1970s, the rapid development of Hong Kong's economy provided good conditions for the export of Hong Kong's cultural products. During this period, Bruce Lee turned out to be a world, and his films and television series such as "Blind Pursuit" and "Big Brother Tangshan" swept the United States, which not only made him famous in the United States, but also made kung fu film and television dramas popular in the United States.
In 1972, the Tv series "Kung Fu" produced by Warner was broadcast, in which white actor David Carradine starred as a mixed-race Shaolin monk who walked the Continental United States with mysterious martial arts from the East. The series became one of the most popular TV series of the 70s in the United States, receiving widespread acclaim and shooting for three seasons.
That same year, Bruce Lee and Warner collaborated on the film "Dragon Fights tiger fights", which was Bruce Lee's first simultaneous release in the United States, and it is said that it cost nearly a hundred dollars to publicize it. The film, which cost only $850,000 to produce, grossed $25 million in the United States and $90 million worldwide. Since the 1970s, many foreign dictionaries have seen the emergence of a new word: Kung Fu (transliteration of kung fu), and the fiery heat of kung fu can be seen.
Marvel has always been good at creating new superheroes from the needs of the hot spot and the public, and they naturally do not miss this kung fu boom with a keen sense of smell. In 1972, Marvel wanted to buy the rights to The Kung Fu, a popular Warner-owned television series, in order to create a kung fu-based superhero image. However, Warner is the parent company of Marvel's main rival DC, and this offer was rightfully rejected. In this case, Marvel, eager to catch up with the boom, turned to Sachs Romer, who had failed to invest many times, and obtained the comic adaptation rights of the "Fu Manchu Series" from him, setting the kung fu character he had planned to play as Fu Manchu's son, and the role of "Shang-Chi" was born.
Inspiration for Bruce Lee's 1973 film Dragon Fight was invested by Warner Pictures and was a global success and was named one of the "25 Most Important Films in the History of American Cinema" by the U.S. Congress.
Shangqi is not the only superhero with Chinese ancestry, and there is no shortage of superheroes born and raised in China in Marvel Comics. Among them, the more famous ones are the superhero group "Fengshen Shen" and wanzhongxia, which belong to the Divine Spear Bureau.
The Divine Spear Bureau is Marvel's corresponding S.H.I.E.L.D. Chinese organization, with more than 150,000 agents and more than 16 airships. The "Fengshen" is an important superhero group under the Divine Spear Bureau, whose members include: Red Star, Weather Witch, Vector, Ravager, Monkey King, and Swordsman.
Among them, Sun Wukong is a character based on the protagonist of "Journey to the West", Sun Wukong, who is a martial arts master who can turn into an animal to fight. The Shenmao Bureau is strong, and under its management, China has basically not suffered from alien attacks.
Debuting in The Incredible Hulk #250, Wan Zhongxia is a five-brother mutant from China, whose real names are Tao Yuhan, Tao Yuzhang, Tao Yulin, Tao Yusun, and Tao Yuhe. Wanzhongxia can simultaneously modify their own atomic structure through spiritual communication, so that they can merge into one person, after the ability is enhanced, Wanzhongxia can be infinitely divided, and can merge the fractals again into a giant with super powers, he can also obtain and call on the knowledge, endurance and strength of all chinese compatriots (including mutants), so that he has immeasurable abilities.
In the case of Chinese local superheroes and more well-known heroes, Marvel chose Shangqi as the first Chinese superhero to produce an independent movie, perhaps based on the creation of its own movie universe.
In Marvel comics, most of the positive Chinese superheroes form independent groups on their own, such as the Shenmao Bureau, which do not have a strong connection with other superheroes and rarely participate in Marvel's major events. At the same time, many Chinese heroes and American heroes are antagonistic relationships, just like Wan Zhongxia once beat up American secret agents and clashed with the X-Men, such an antagonistic relationship makes them difficult to join the Marvel cinematic universe.
As a mixed-race Chinese hero, although Shangqi is mostly used as a supporting role and a cutscene, it has also appeared many times in Marvel events. Shangqi has been in contact with Marvel's popular characters Spider-Man, Doctor Strange, Captain America, Iron Man, etc., and is also a member of the new Avengers, which also makes it possible to appear more naturally in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
"Shangqi and the Legend of the Ten Commandments" will be the second film of the fourth phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and Marvel chose Shangqi, perhaps to better construct a new phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Shangqi's design was inspired by kung fu superstar Bruce Lee
Shangqi's positioning among Marvel heroes is the "King of Kung Fu". If you don't use superpowers and only win or lose with fists and feet, Shangqi's combat power is top-notch, and its fighting skill score is the highest 7 points in Marvel. He helped Spider-Man train in martial arts so that Peter Parker, who had temporarily lost his superpowers, could save a small life on the battlefield. During a mission to Kobe, Japan, Shangqi also accidentally gained a super power that could split into tens of millions.
In Marvel's comic book universe, Shangqi is not a well-known first-line character, but compared to other Marvel-related Chinese heroes or villains, Shangqi's appearance frequency is still relatively high. Shangqi was invited by Iron Man and Captain America to join the new Avengers, and he often played in Marvel events.
But even so, it is true that "Mandarin" has caused controversy. Will this first Chinese hero movie discount Marvel's influence in the Chinese market? It is not yet known.
But what is certain is that what Chinese audiences want to see is content that truly embodies Chinese culture, rather than malicious distortion and tampering with labeling. If Marvel wants to further expand its influence in the Chinese market, it needs to truly understand Chinese culture and show greater sincerity.
Original content, reproduction without consent is strictly prohibited.