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November 29, 2006
White Tiger is Purty Good
Written by Cousin Dick: I already had lots of respect for Tamora Pierce, after she dissed the Sue Richards scene in Civil War (where she leaves her kids in Reed's care). After readin' White Tiger #1, I have even more, because it's a darn good read. Angela Del Toro's story continues from Daredevil, where she inherited the amulets that make her a kung fu superstar. This is a comin' of age type of story, which pays respect to past events and current continuity, with a nod to Danny Rand impersonatin' Daredevil. Beyond fightin' gangstas in the ghetto, she takes on the Cobra, and gets drunk with Natasha Romanov (the Black Widow). What I liked most about this issue was that it was packed with lots of story--you can't just flip thru it in five seconds.
Angela Del Toro's the niece of the original White Tiger, Hector Ayla. I remember first seein' the White Tiger in Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #20. The lead story in Deadly Hands was always Shang Chi or Iron Fist, but the second series, The Sons of the Tiger, were by a couple of newcomers called Bill Mantlo and George Perez. I knew these boys were destined for greatness, especially Perez, whose artistic skills grew with each story. The Sons of the Tiger were a trio of kung fu fighters, each empowered by a Asian amulet. In Deadly Hands #19, they had a falling out and threw the amulets in the trash. Hector picked 'em up and was transformed into the mysterious White Tiger, probably the first Chicano superhero in the Marvel Universe. Perez had such a great enthusiasm for this character, as you can see in the splash page above, where he painstakingly drew a New York City skyline forming the logo (in Deadly Hands #21).
I kinda miss Hector--he was killed in Daredevil by Bendis (naturally). But at least Angela refers to her uncle a lot in the new story. Now I'm thinkin' if there was a White Tiger movie...would Jessica Alba be a perfect fit? Nuff said.
