MONKEY KING
Real Name: Sun Wukong (see comments)
Identity/Class: Human mutate (Chinese citizen)
Occupation:
Adventurer;
formerly prisoner;
formerly crimelord
Group Membership: Ascendants (Devastator, Saber, Vector, Weather Witch), S.P.E.A.R.
Affiliations: Agents of Atlas (Brawn (Amadeus Cho), Crescent (Dan Bi), Pele (M41 Zu (android)), Shang-Chi, Silk (Cindy Moon), Sword Master, White Fox, Jimmy Woo), Bride of Nine Spiders, Codec (Japanese team) (loose), Dog Brother #1, Falcon (Sam Wilson), Fat Cobra, Iron Fist (Daniel Rand), Iron Man 2.0 (Jim Rhodes), Prince of Orphans, Sun Wukong/Monkey King (deity), Tiger's Beautiful Daughter, Triumph Division (Philippine team) (loose), Xian Zheng
Enemies: Absorbing Man (also as Greithoth), Bravest Panda Foot and other demons of the Eighth City, Gorgon, the Hand, Hydra, Lion, Lion's bodyguards, Madripoor (as dragon), Malekith, the Serpent (indirectly), Sindr and her Fire Goblins, Titania (as Skirn)
Known Relatives: None
Aliases: Handsome Monkey King, Sun Wukong
Base of Operations:
mobile in China;
formerly Eighth City;
formerly Beijing, China
First Appearance: Iron Man 2.0#5 (July, 2011)
Powers/Abilities: Originally an accomplished and clever thief, Sun Wukong was also extremely adept in martial arts. His soul was later merged with that of the Monkey King deity and he acquired the powers and memories of the true Monkey King. These powers include enhanced strength, dexterity and agility, as well as morphing powers that allow him to change into various animals, including an eagle (for flight), frog (for climbing) and lion. He is armed with the Monkey King deity's mystical rod, Ruyi Jingu Bang, which incorporates a hidden chain extension and which channels the Monkey King's power, although the staff disappears while he is transformed in animal form. He appears to have super strength, alhough it is unrevealed if this is limited to mystical beings/items only. He is very nimble, able to jump high and far to give the appearance of flight, but can also summon a flying disc (although this may be technological in nature). He can be brash, boastful and overconfident.
History:
(Fear Itself: Monkey King#1 (fb) - BTS) - Also dubbing himself the Monkey King, the man calling himself Sun Wukong was originally a master thief who carved himself a criminal empire in Beijing, China.
(Fear Itself: Monkey King#1 (fb)) - Sun Wukong confronted a rival called Lion, who instead offered him a gift in the Wudangshan Mountains, showing him a small cavern where the Monkey King deity had been buried a long time ago. Sun Wukong intended to kill him but was tempted by Lion's story of gold and treasure. Sun Wukong was able to get past booby traps to stand before the mystical staff when Lion activated a secret panel that sealed him inside. Holding the staff, Sun Wukong fell down a long way until the captive giant Monkey King deity caught him in his hand. Angered that his identity had been taken but impressed that the thief had held onto the rod, the Monkey King deity decided instead to cast him into the extradimensional Eighth City (also called Hell) with the judgment that he could only leave once he had realized the good that lay within him.
(Fear Itself: Monkey King#1 (fb) - BTS) - His soul merged with that of the Monkey King deity and he gained the deity's powers and memories, as well as his magical rod. He settled into the hellish realm of the Eighth City, enjoying himself while he fought and thieved.
(Iron Man 2.0#5) - About 15
years later, Monkey King stole the meal of a leading demon, Bravest
Panda Foot, fighting him and other demons when one of the mystical
hammers of the Asgardian fear god, the Serpent, broke through and
smashed into the ground; Monkey King intended to steal it.
(Iron Man 2.0#6) - The breach summoned the Immortal Weapons, Iron Fist, Fat Cobra, Bride of Nine Spiders, Dog Brother #1, Prince of Orphans and Tiger's Beautiful Daughter, along with Iron Man 2.0, but also allowed demons to escape; Monkey King remained to take the mystical hammer but could not lift it. The Serpent-empowered Titania (now Skirn) arrived and recognized the name and thievery of the Monkey King from a past existence, and knocked him aside so that Absorbing Man could claim the hammer and become another of the Serpent's servants, Greithoth.
(Iron Man 2.0#7) - Recovered, Monkey King saw the two hammer wielders leave and told the Immortal Weapons and Iron Man 2.0. He also declared that he smelt Iron Fist to be under an evil influence before bounding away to reclaim apparent lost treasure.
(Fear Itself: Monkey King#1 (fb)) - Monkey King let himself be pulled across the portal which led back to Beijing.
(Fear Itself: Monkey King#1) - Monkey King made his way to the Lion's headquarters, sneaking in using the form of a frog before transforming back, and relished the combat as he quickly defeated the bodyguards including armed female ninjas. He then confronted the crimelord Lion, declaring that he wanted to atone for his past sins. Turning into an eagle, Monkey King carried him to the mountains where he pushed Lion into the same cavern he had once been trapped in, watching in human form as it closed in around Lion. He resolved to use his powers for good and to round up those demons that had escaped the Eighth City.
(Avengers World#14 (fb)) - Monkey King was recruited by Weather Witch to S.P.E.A.R. (China's version of S.H.I.E.L.D.), headed by Xian Zheng, to join its super-team, the Ascendants, with the promise of adventure.
(Avengers World#7) - Gorgon and the Hand, riding atop the giant dragon that held up the otherwise island of Madripoor, sent ninjas riding dragon steeds against the S.P.E.A.R. ship, the Circle. The Falcon watched as the Ascendants, including Monkey King, engaged the Hand warriors before joining them in the fray. Video footage was broadcast and seen by S.H.I.E.L.D., Maria Hill and Captain America.
(Avengers World#10) - Alongside the Falcon, Monkey King and the Ascendants continued their fight in the air against Gorgon's forces over China.
(Avengers
World#14) - Although the Circle had been downed by Gorgon's
forces, it was raised again so that it could transport the Ascendants
closer to Gorgon's forces. Monkey King, disregarding the damage it
caused, tossed a dragon steed away by its tail, thereby rescuing
Vector and Weather Witch.
(Captain America: Steve Rogers#18) - Monkey King stood beside the rest of the Ascendants, ready to defend the Circle, their floating base, from Hydra forces.
(War
of the Realms: New Agents of
Atlas#3) - Representing China and the Ascendants, Monkey King
collaborated with Jimmy Woo's impromptu Atlas agents, plus the Japanese
Codec team and the Philippine Triumph Division, on how to best stop
Sindr of Muspelheim, part of Malekith's broad assault on Earth. Later,
Monkey King greeted Woo and his agents, as well as Pele (secretly an Atlas android), as they
teleported from Seoul into northern China in expectation of Sindr's
attack. Initially arrogant, he was impressed by Shang-Chi's martial
arts skills and, keen to learn, he complied with training with the others.
(War of the Realms: New Agents of Atlas#4) - Sindr
was weakened in her attack with the Pele android's detonation, allowing
the distraction that Monkey King needed to impale Sindr with his staff.
He laughed, knowing it was a suicide mission, but that he would save
the world. He disappeared, apparently incinerated.
Comments: Created by Nick Spencer (writer) and Ariel Olivetti (artist).
The Monkey King deity may be associated with the Xian (Chinese pantheon).
I'm not convinced that Sun Wukong is this guy's real name, but rather an identity he took on prior to becoming the Monkey King .
Some researchers say that Sun Wukong was inspired by Hanuman.
--Quiof Thrul
Profile by Grendel Prime.
CLARIFICATIONS
:
Monkey King has no known connections to:
Lion sought to encroach Monkey King's criminal empire in Beijing and set a trap for Monkey King's that he easily fell into, locking him in a hidden cavern in remote mountains. With Monkey King imprisoned elsewhere, Lion secured more power by selling drugs, guns and women. When Monkey King escaped 15 years later, he targeted Lion, eliminating his bodyguards. The newly empowered Monkey King then transported him to the same cavern and tossed him in where it closed around him.
--Fear Itself: Monkey King#1
images:
(without ads)
Fear Itself: Monkey King#1, p14, pan2 (main image holding his cowl)
Iron Man 2.0#7, p4, pan5 (headshot)
Iron Man 2.0#5, p3, pan2-4 (transforming)
Captain America: Steve Rogers#18, p13, pan3 (on disk)
War of the Realms: New Agents of Atlas#4, p14, pan3 (amid flames)
Fear Itself: Monkey King#1, p4, pan4 (Lion - young)
Fear Itself: Monkey King#1, p18, pan3 (Lion - aged)
Appearances:
Iron Man 2.0#5 (July, 2011) - Nick Spencer (writer), Ariel
Olivetti (art), Alejandro Arbona (editor)
Iron Man 2.0#6 (August, 2011) - Nick Spencer (writer), Carmine Di
Giandomenico & Ariel Olivetti (art), Alejandro Arbona (editor)
Iron Man 2.0#7 (September, 2011) - Nick Spencer (writer), Carmine Di
Giandomenico & Ariel
Olivetti (art), Alejandro Arbona (editor)
Fear Itself: Monkey King#1 (November, 2011) - Joshua Hale Fialkov
(writer), Juan Doe (art), Alejandro Arbona (editor)
Avengers World#7 (August, 2014) - Nick Spencer (writer), Stefano
Caselli (art), Wil Moss (editor)
Avengers World#10 (September, 2014) - Nick Spencer (writer), Marco
Checchetto (art), Wil Moss (editor)
Avengers World#14 (November, 2014) - Nick Spencer (writer), Raffaele
Ienco (art), Wil Moss (editor)
Captain America: Steve Rogers (August, 2017) - Nick Spencer & Donny
Cates (writers), Javier Pina (pencils), Andres Guinaldo (inks), Tom
Brevoort (editor)
War of the Realms: New Agents of Atlas#3 (August, 2019) - Greg Pak
(writer), Gang Hyuk Lim (pencils & inks), Mark Paniccia (editor)
War of the Realms: New Agents of Atlas#4 (August, 2019) - Greg Pak
(writer), Gang Hyuk Lim (pencils), Moy R. & Pop Mhan (inks), Mark
Paniccia (editor)
First posted: 05/16/2012
Last updated: 08/11/2020
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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