By Harrison Stewart — Monkey Prince #1 arrives at a time when the market is heavily saturated by superheroes. Virtually every publisher has at least one super title, many of them too opaque or overplayed to set themselves apart from the pack. None of this is unusual, because it’s been like this for years. But what is unusual is that a new hero has managed to stand out. With Monkey Prince #1, writer Gene Luen Yang and artist Bernard Chang deliver an origin story with enough fun and whimsy to count Marcus Sun as a worthy addition to DC’s superhero pantheon.

Marcus is a high schooler who suffers from frequent panic attacks. And, high school being the cruel place that it is, he finds himself frequently tormented by classmates when his anxiety is triggered. Enter the mysterious janitor, who not only takes an interest in Marcus but seems to know an awful lot about him. Including one all-important detail: he is the son of the mythical Monkey King.

Imbued with magical powers, Marcus has the ability to master his fear as never before. Where Yang once again excels is in giving us heroes that feel the need to comically overcompensate for their newfound strength. As with Kong Kenan in New Super-Man, Marcus’ Monkey Prince persona is smug and overconfident, the polar opposite of his normal self. The dichotomy serves as both the set up for amusing villain interactions as well as a deeper meditation on how teenagers tend to go a little overboard when trying to find their own confidence.

Visually, this book is a knockout. Chang’s panel work alone is as imaginative as it is dynamic. I was frequently delighted by marvelous designs, hilarious visual gags (see above) and double page spreads that simply kick ass. Accompanied by vibrant colors from Sebastian Cheng with top-tier lettering by Janice Chiang, the art is a true standout amongst its superhero peers.

One issue is rarely enough to establish the full history of a character, but Yang and Chang have an impressive introduction with the given space. They establish pathos, running jokes and solid character foundations with the utmost attention to detail. Bottom line: I will absolutely be back for issue #2.

Overall: Monkey Prince #1 is a very strong new superhero debut, in which the creative team establish pathos, running jokes and a solid character foundation that will bring readers back for Monkey Prince #2. 9/10

REVIEW: Monkey Prince #1

Monkey Prince #1
Writer: Gene Luen Yang 楊謹倫
Artist: Bernard Chang 張伯納
Colorist: Sebastian Cheng 鍾偉傑
Letterer: Janice Chiang 蒋慧珍
Publisher: DC Comics
Introducing the newest hero in the DCU, the great sage, equal to the heavens, better than his predecessor the legendary Monkey King, even better than the Justice League-and definitely the Teen Titans-(actually, all the heroes combined), everyone put your hands together for…the Monkey Prince! Marcus Sun moves around a lot because his adoptive parents are freelance henchpeople, so this month he finds himself as the new kid at Gotham City High School, where a mysterious man with pig features asks Marcus to walk through a water curtain to reveal himself as who Marcus really is…someone who has adventured through The Journey to the West, can transform into 72 different formations, can clone himself using his hairs, and is called…the Monkey Prince!
Price: $3.99

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Harrison manages a comic shop by day and writes comics by night. You can find more of his writing at @stewart_bros