The Legendary Couple

(ComicsOne, 2003)
™ and © ComicsOne

As strange as it may sound to us, the kung fu novel is a legitimate Chinese literary form that, it’s to be hoped, will one day be translated into English. Until then, we have comics like The Legendary Couple, and, if it’s any indication, the novels are like Dickens—with lots of kicking. It’s a sprawling, picaresque story whose vast cast of characters weave in and out of the plot.

Here, artist Tony Wong works with kung fu novelist Chuo Lee, who gives the proceedings more of a lyrical pace, something readers don’t usually associate with Wong’s brand of non-stop action. The villain, Chuo Lee (you know she’s “bad” because, unlike the other women who are dressed like monks, she has the audacity to expose her collar bone), is motivated by jealousy, which makes her a vast improvement over the just plain evil kung fu clan leaders we usually get for bad guys. But, sadly, a third of the way into Vol. 1 she disappears, to be replaced by a plot involving “toad fu.” Hopefully, she’ll be back in Vol. 2.

— S.A. Bennett

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