The Marvel Cinematic Universe welcomes Marvel's top martial artist on September 3 with Shang-Chi and the Legends of the Ten Rings, and it appears people are excited to meet him - so excited that there's been a run on his comic books.
Marvel Comics recently released three Shang-Chi comic collections as the ideal entry points for new (and old) readers alike, and in each case, the books have promptly sold out at the distributor level. The publisher is rushing back to print more copies of the collections before the movie arrives - although in one case, they may not make it.
The first collection of Gene Luen Yang and Dike Ruan's current Shang-Chi run sold out back in May, after just two months on shelves. A second printing of Shang-Chi by Gene Luen Yang Vol. 1: Brothers and Sisters is already on its way to comic and bookstores though, with an August 4 on-sale date.
From new to classic, a new collection of '90s, '00s, and '10s comics under the name of Shang-Chi: Earth's Mightiest Martial Artist trade paperback went on sale in March and also sold out over the summer. A second printing of this throwback collection is anticipated to return to shelves August 11.
For completists, Shang-Chi: Earth's Mightiest Martial Artist collects:
- X-Men (1991) #62 - #64
- Heroes For Hire (1997) #18 and #19
- Shadowland: Spider-Man
- Secret Avengers (2010) #18
- Avengers (2012) #11
A more kid-oriented collection, Marvel-Verse: Shang-Chi also debuted this summer and sold out just as fast. This collection includes more recent stories, such as:
- Wolverine: First Class #9
- Marvel Adventures Spider-Man (2010) #2
- Free Comic BOok Day 2011: Spider-Man
- Masters of Kung Fu (2017) #126
- The Legend of Shang-Chi #1
Unfortunately, Marvel-Verse: Shang-Chi won't be back in print until after the film debuts: September 15 to be exact.
In addition to these three collections, the second volume of the current run - collected as Shang-Chi by Gene Luen Yang Vol. 2: Shang-Chi vs. The Marvel Universe - is expected to go on sale on December 8. If you can't wait on that, the first three issues are available now, with the next issue (Shang-Chi #4) expected on September 8. The master of kung fu will also appear in the AAPI star-studded anthology Marvel's Voices: Identity #1, on-sale August 25.
Of course, if you read comics digitally then these comics remain available on most all major digital comics platforms.
Learn everything you need to know about Shang-Chi and the ten rings.
