MEET THE MONKEY PRINCE: YANG AND CHANG INTRODUCE DC’S NEWEST HERO
This month, DC celebrates Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in style with DC Festival of Heroes: The Asian Superhero Celebration, a one-shot anthology featuring 100 pages of all-new material starring DC’s Asian characters, written and illustrated by Asian creators. But along with familiar heroes and villains including Cassandra Cain, Emiko Queen, the New Super-Man and Katana, the issue also introduced a brand-new DC character: The Monkey Prince.
The Monkey Prince debuts in “The Monkey Prince Hates Superheroes,” the final story of DC Festival of Heroes , written by Gene Luen Yang ( Superman Smashes the Klan , Batman/Superman and so much more) and illustrated by Bernard Chang ( Teen Titans , Batman Beyond and, again, so much more). The Monkey Prince is a unique addition to DC’s roster of characters, taking direct inspiration from the Monkey King, the mythological character from the 16th-Century Chinese novel Journey to the West , but given a modern spin and firmly rooted in the DC Universe of today (down to attending Fawcett High School alongside Billy Batson).
Both Yang and Chang spoke in-depth about the Monkey Prince, and how their childhood affection for Monkey King stories helped shape the character—who, given how his introductory story ends with “the adventures of the Monkey Prince continue later this year,” appears to be sticking around DC far beyond this initial tale.
Click here to read the full interview
DC Festival of Heroes: The Asian Superhero Celebration, featuring 100 pages of new material including “The Monkey Prince Hates Superheroes” by Gene Luen Yang, Bernard Chang, Sebastian Cheng and Janice Chiang, is now available in print and as a digital comic book.
