Lei Kung (Marvel)
Lei Kung is a male comic character who features in Marvel Comics.
Contents |
Biography
Lei Kung was a male human inhabitant of the mystical city of K'un-Lun.
He stated that his father had taught him numerous killing strikes which made him learn to armor his body to protect his heart with this being the secret of living forever. (Iron Fist: The Living Weapon v1 #3)
At one point, a plague struck K'un-Lun that killed hundreds and leaving thousands too ill to move. As the ten year convergence with Earth that was weeks away, Lei Kung knew that someone would have to face Shou-Lao to become K'un-Lun's new champion. With all of his top students sick or dead, there were only two choices, Li Park and a six-year-old. Lei Kung visited the unaffected Li Park and pushed him to focus; with the timing of the challenge of Shou-Lao only two days away, he told Li that K'un-Lun would not throw away its chance for a champion. Tricking Shou-Lao into thinking him eviscerated via some berries and noodles, Li was able to distract the dragon sufficiently to wrap himself around the dragon's heart. Lei Kung passed out after succeeding. Lei Kung, Yu-Ti, and others watched over Li as he recovered. Lei Kung sent Li Park to Earth to stop the slaughter of innocent villages by General An Lushan. After he told Li that he must do so to fulfill his destiny as an Immortal Weapon, Li asked to settle things with words instead of violence, but Lei Kung told him that words were fine when the other party was listening, after which he gave Li an hour to dress and prepare. After half of the village perished when Li's efforts to misdirect the attackers via illusions eventually failed, Li led the survivors to K'un-Lun. Lei Kung welcomed Li Park home. The people Li brought helped repopulate K'un-Lun. (Immortal Iron Fist v1 #24) Around 1545, he was journeying in the city when he witnessed a young Wu Ao-Shi where he saw the girl being beaten by a street vendor for stealing when she struck against him. He took interest in the girl either because he took pity on her or because he saw the fire in her eyes. She agreed to listen to Lei Kung by becoming his apprentice with the Thunderer vouching for her to prevent the guards from arresting her. Afterwards, he instructed her in the way of martial arts as she proved to be an excellent pupil and was groomed to become the Iron Fist. In 1227, Lei Kung watched as Wu Ao-Shi dispatched Shou-Lao more swiftly than any before her, gaining the power of Iron Fist. Lei Kung dictated the story of Wu Ao-Shi who as the Iron Fist became known as the Pirate Queen of Pinghai Bay with this being told to a scribe who entered them into the Book of the Iron Fist. (Immortal Iron Fist v1 #7) Lei Kung became legendary among Tibetan monks as the Thunderer. (Marvel Premiere v1 #18)
In 1878, the Iron Fist Kwai Jun-Fan was slain by Zhou Cheng who was serving as the host of the demon Ch'i-Lin. All this was part of an effort to access K'un-Lun through the Iron Fist's heart with the goal of slaying the Shou-Lao embryo. Lei Kung led an army of warriors to confront the Ch'i-Lin outside Shou-Lao's cave to protect the embryo. Telling his troops that their Immortal Weapon was dead and that they were the only line of defense, he instrcuted them not to let it past. (Immortal Iron Fist v1 #19) As the Ch'i-Lin fought past the armies of K'un-Lun into Shou-Lao's cave, Lei Kung confronted it alongside a few other warriors, telling the creature it did not belong there and that it should go back to its own city. Though they pierced the creature multiple times through the chest and abdomen with their swords, the creature continued to fight. Lei Kung ordered the others to pierce its heart, but the creature swatted Lei Kung and the others back and continued on to Shou-Lao's egg against the Ch'i-Lin. Before the Ch'i-Lin could crush the egg in its jaws, however, Lei Kung rushed forward and sliced off the creature's lower jaw. The Ch'i-Lin collapsed and vanished back to Earth, but Lei Kung knew they could only discourage, but not kill, it, and it would repeatedly try again and again in the future. (Immortal Iron Fist v1 #20)
Many years ago, he was tasked by the Yu-Ti to train a young red-headed woman to be the next Iron Fist in order to combat a great prophecised threat. The girl named Fongji refused to speak and was angry at life leading to her being an undisciplined fighter who did not learn the lessons taught to her by the Thunderer. This was until one session where after losing a fight she manifested he powers of a Firebird. Afterwards, her training continued until she was ready with Lei Kung accompanying the Yu-Ti and Leonardo da Vinci in seeing Fongji enter the cave of the dragon Shou-Lao the Undying. They waited for two days when she emerged having become the new Iron Fist who was ready for the coming danger. (New Avengers v2 #26)
Years ago, he witnessed the journey of the young Wendell Rand finding K'un-Lun and had the unconscious boy brought into the city. During this time, he witnessed his fighting skill and noticed the similar style to Orson Randall. Thus, he concluded that Wendell Rand had been in the company of Orson Randall who was still alive and had taught the boy martial arts. Lei Kung then took the boy to meet with the Yu-Ti but not before cautioning him to hide the fact that Randall was still alive on Earth. Afterwards, Wendell Rand was allowed to stay in K'un-Lung where he learnt martial arts from Lei Kung where he met the Thunderer's own son Davos who was training. (Immortal Iron Fist v1 #8)
After seeing the corruption of Nu-An, Lei Kung decided to stage a secret rebellion to overthrowing the reigning Yu-Ti. The Thunderer came to believe that the men of K'un-Lun would be loyal to the Yu-Ti and thus he set forth training the women of the city to be warriors for the rebellion where they came to be known as the Army of Thunder. (Immortal Iron Fist v1 #12)
When the young Danny Rand was given shelter in K'un-Lun, the young boy wanted revenge against the people who took the life of his parents. Thus, the Yu-Ti introduced him to Lei Kung with the Thunderer charged with being the boy's martial arts trainer. (Marvel Premiere v1 #16) He came to test the child to see his will to live and fight where he named him Daniel Rand-K'ai. (Iron Fist: The Living Weapon v1 #3) The next level of training for him was bringing the boy to the Raksasa ko Jela (Translation: The Prison of Demons) where he was to confront his inner demons and fears. (Power Man and Iron Fist v3 #7)
The Thunderer Lei Kung remained to help rebuild the city but came to grow concerned over a startling change in his pupil the Iron Fist's behaviour. He recalled an old fable from K'un-Lun that was tied to the H'ylthri and broke the edict of travelling outside the city to investigate. During this time, he was captured by the H'ylthri and fell under their sway. The plant race then proceeded with abducing all the citizens of K'un-Lun who were trapped within pods which slowly fed on them. (Namor the Sub-Mariner v1 #22)
During the rebuilding of K'un-Lun, he came to send brother Kon-Shi and his men in search for the shattered pieces of the Anomaly Gem. (Iron Fist v2 #1)
Alongside the Yu-Ti, he travelled to Earth in a portal where he arrived to take Danny Rand for the coming Tournament in Heaven. Whilst there, he saw the deceased body of Orson Randall who had been killed by Kung's son Davos who had become the Steel Serpent. (Immortal Iron Fist v1 #6)
Later on, Danny Rand and Lei Kung both looked to offer their aid during the crisis with the Phoenix where they offered to take Hope Summers to K'un-Lun for safety and training. (Avengers vs. X-Men v1 #7) They managed to depart just as the Phoenx-empowered Namor had attacked Wakanda. (Avengers vs. X-Men v1 #8)
In the aftermath, the rebuilding of K'un-Kun began with Iron Man offering his aid in the effort. (AvX: Consequences v1 #3)
The headless corpse of Lei Kung was left by the Tree of Immortality as K'un-Lun was left burning where it was found by his student Danny Rand upon his return to the city. (Iron Fist: The Living Weapon v1 #3)
Overview
Personality and attributes
He was known by his title of the Thunderer. (Marvel Premiere v1 #16)
He said that his father had taught him the secrets of forever. These included; decapitation, asphyxiation, blunt trauma, strangulation and any number of paths to a single result that allowed one to stop the enemy's heart to stop beating. Lei Kung learnt that these were all strikes to the heart and that meant he had to armor the body but keep the heart soft. As such, he believed that by protecting the heart one could never truly die. (Iron Fist: The Living Weapon v1 #3)
He had prayed to the gods that his son would be found worthy of the garb of the Iron Fist. (Marvel Team-Up v1 #64)
Lei Kung was said to had turned the child into a living weapon. (Iron Fist: The Living Weapon v1 #3)
Powers and abilities
Lei Kung the Thunderer had taught that a person had five physical senses and that a warrior had to learn to use them all. This meant that the loss of sight allowed the other senses to compensate meaning that a warrior was not as a disadvantage in a fight such as if they were blinded. (Iron Fist v1 #14)
He claimed that none ever heard him approach thus allowing him to surprise others by the silence of his movements. (Immortal Iron Fist v1 #8) The Thunderer had also said that a warrior was useless if they could not find their enemies. To the trained eye, nothing was invisible and that no trail was impossible to find. Thus, he was a skilled tracker and came to teach this art to Danny Rand. (Iron Fist v1 #3)
Lei Kung was noted for being a skilled tutor in the martial arts. (Marvel Premiere v1 #16)
Notes
- Lei Kung was created by Len Wein, Roy Thomas, and Larry Hama where he made his first appearance in Marvel Premiere v1 #16 (July, 1974).
In other media
Television
- In Iron Fist, Lei Kung the Thunderer appeared in the live-action Netflix television series where he was portrayed by actor Hoon Lee.
Video games
- In Avengers Academy, Lei Kung appeared in the setting of the mobile video game.
- In Marvel Battle Lines, Lei Kung appeared as a playable card within the setting of the video card game.
Appearances
- Marvel Premiere v1: (1974)
- Iron Fist v1:
- Deadly Hands of Kung-Fu v1:
- Power Man and Iron Fist v1:
- Namor the Sub-Mariner v1:
- Iron Fist v2: (1996)
- Immortal Iron Fist v1:
- Power Man and Iron Fist v2:
- New Avengers v2:
- AvX: Consequences v1:
- Iron Fist: The Living Weapon v1:
- Power Man and Iron Fist v3:
External Links
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