Issue(s): Master of Kung Fu #121
Cover Date: Feb 83
Title: "Passing strangers"
Credits:
Steven Grant - Writer
David Mazzucchelli - Penciler
Vincent Colletta - Inker
Denny O'Neil - Editor

Review/plot:
This is a Steven Grant fill-in with early pencils by David Mazzucchelli. It's a pretty standard spy story that fits a little uncomfortably in a period where Sir Denis Nayland Smith and Shang-Chi aren't working for MI-6 any more and Shang-Chi especially doesn't have any real motivation to be doing this kind of stuff. But it's nonetheless a fun "get the codebook before the Soviets do" type of story with several turnabouts. Shang-Chi's main competitor isn't the Russian agents but a freelance mercenary named Vienna.

Mazzucchelli art is looking stiff here...

...but it has its moments (and it's nice to see Shang-Chi wearing some shoes).

Grant will use Vienna again in his Power Man & Iron Fist fill-ins, including issue #91 which comes out next month.

Quality Rating: C

Historical Significance Rating: 1

Chronological Placement Considerations: N/A

References: N/A

Crossover: N/A

Continuity Insert? N

My Reprint: N/A

David Mazzucchelli had apparently been active in fandom for a while before this; his art can be seen as early as Fandom Funnies #3 in 12/76.

Even the stiffest art and plainest MOKF stories were still considered worthy of imitation by Wildstorm.

Vienna is one of my favourite obscure characters.

Favorite obscure character: Mint Julep, from Killraven / War of the Worlds - alternate future mutant ninja assassin named after a tasty girly drink. Dresses like Madame Hydra. Possibly part plant. Sadly outside of the scope of this site.

Steven Grant replied to a Twitter thread that Kurt Busiek had started about writing fill-ins. Busiek brought up Vienna and Grant briefly explained why he created her. The Vienna part of the thread starts here:

https://twitter.com/KurtBusiek/status/992213493465010176