Free Comic Book Day 2024- Street Fighter VS Final Fight

By Mark Rodriguez

Every Free Comic Book Day there's one or two issues in particular that I'm looking for that catch my interest, and they're usually tied to the Ninja Turtles and Street Fighter. I picked this one up over at a comic shop called Stories, so let's check it out. 

The story opens some time ago at the Metro City Pier. Eagle entertains his guests at the Metro City Bay with a match between Ryu and Lee. Ryu isn't interested in the 'circus act' or the money, but Eagle says he did agree to take on the challenge. 

Elsewhere, Haggar and Guy are staking out the docks. The police captain wants them to move in, but Haggar says it's too soon and money hasn't been exchanged yet. They can't afford to mess this up of the ones behind the gambling ring will be out of their reach. Haggar says the man running the fight is named Eagle, but he's just a front man. The gambling ring is run by one of the big crime families but they're not sure which one yet.

Just then Cody runs into the scene claiming a 'citizen's arrest' and starts attacking Eagle, Lee and Ryu. Cody smashes Eagle and Lee's heads together and tells them to either give themselves up on their own or he'll drag their bodies to the police station personally. 

Ryu jumps in with his Tatsumaki-Senpukyaku which knocks everybody back. He says he didn't sign up for this and is leaving. Eagle holds onto Cody as Lee starts attacking him. Just when things looked bad for Cody, Haggar and Guy jump into action. Haggar and Guy quickly take out Eagle and Lee. The police show up and tell everyone to freeze.

Later on, Eagle gets off scott free. Haggar is angry that Cody's interference cost them months of surveillance. Cody says Haggar is wasting his time while crime keeps getting worse. He says it seems to be only a hurry when it's his daughter that's in danger. Haggar says their fight against the Mad Gear changed Cody, and now he's running around beating up everyone he thinks is a bad guy like a crazed vigilante. Haggar says he needed Cody's patience today. Cody throws a punch saying the punks don't deserve patience. Haggar catches his fist and says he's lucky he's showing him some patience now. Cody walks off and says he'll go back to cracking heads and tells Haggar to out his shirt and tie back on.

Months later, Chun Li and Guile are the Metro City police station looking for Cody. The chief says they're been looking for Cody and Chun Li says they haven't. She says she knows Cody is considered a folk hero and he's been given a long leash since he brings in faster results than the police, as well as being friends with the Mayor. Guile says he's gotten more violent recently and crossing lines. Chun Li says he recently almost beat a member of the Mad Gear to death, only he was an undercover agent working for them. Now some very important people want Cody arrested. Chun Li says time has run around and they need the police to help find him. Chun Li and Guile will bring him in, the police will arrest him.

Later on Haggar meets up with Cody in Urban Park. He wanted to meet in person since Cody's phone might be compromised. Haggar tells him that people from Interpol has been sent after him, and the Mad Gear gang member he sent to the hospital was one of their undercover agents. Haggar tells him he can't help him this time since this has become bigger than him and Metro City. He offers him time to run.

Just then Chun Li and Guile show up and want Cody to go with him. Cody thinks Haggar betrayed him. Chun Li says she knew Haggar would want to meet with him eventually, so they followed him. Guile suggests Cody go with them without a fight and also tells Haggar to stand by. Cody decides to rush them.

Cody fights off Guile and Chun Li, saying they're after him while Metro City has become a cesspool. Guile kicks Cody in the face, saying they're denying what Metro City has become. Chun Li launches Cody in the air with a high kick saying they're also not blaming him for the crime in the city, they're just saying he's under arrest. Guile and Chun Li pin him down and cuff him.

Later on, Chun Li and Guile are trying to convince Cody to take their plea deal which would guarantee him a year in prison. Cody won't plead guilty, and they tell him if he takes this court he could face a five year minimum. Cody asks for his one phone call. He calls Jessica.

Cody tells Jessica he never understood why she broke up with him. He figured she'd understand the most why he's doing what he's doing considering that the Mad Gear kidnapped her. Jessica says Cody saved her, but he's been reliving that fight with the Mad Gears over and over again. Jessica says he has become obsessed with them and she tells him that this their last goodbye. She hangs up. Cody goes back to Chun Li and asks her where to sign.

Years later, in the Metro City Penitentiary, Cody picks a fight with Balrog, while the boxer is lifting weights. Balrog doesn't remember Cody and says he might be one of the losers he beat at the tournament. Cody says he almost cost him his life at the World Street Fighter Tournament, and how he wants some payback. Unfortunately for Cody, Balrog beats the living hell out of him. Balrog says he stepped up to him and didn't even throw a punch. 

The medical team arrives and takes Cody out in an ambulance. They recognize him as Cody Travers and says he had already escaped four time. Cody take a gun from one of the cops and demands they pull over and let him out. Cody runs off saying this makes it five times. 

Three weeks later, Cody is thrown back into prison with another year added to his sentence. Balrog says Cody played him and he got a week in solitary because of him. Cody says it wasn't too difficult to make him angry. Balrog agrees and he learned that sometimes the best punch is the one you don't throw. Cody says time in prison has also taught him to be patient. Balrog asks if he escaped five times, how he was caught this time.

Cody says he let them catch him, which is how they catch him all the other times. Balrog asks why he would do that. Cody says he escapes but then remembers there's nothing for him out there and comes back, but then he sees there's nothing for him in prison either. He lives for the challenge. Balrog says that's the dumbest thing he ever heard. The boxer says Cody just purposely getting more years added to his sentence is shadowboxing. He advises him to find a purpose that will keep him out of jail once and for all.

And so, in modern day Metro City's China Town, someone approaches a man that sells herbs. He asks him for the herbs on the list and was told if he doesn't have them, they can't be found. The man checks the list and says those types of herbs should never be mixed together. They heighten the senses but also emotions and it takes a certain type of man to handle what happens next. The shopkeeper can't sell him this, but after getting a handful of money he decides that the customer is always right.

Later on, the TV news is lambasting the current mayor for releasing a former Mad Gear gang member due to the new rehabilitation program. The reporter says he misses when the previous Mayor would go out there and kiss ass in the streets. He asks who will keep the current day youth sick. Jamie watches the news and says he will.

At Urban Park, Cody, as current acting mayor, is checking the refurbishment of the park with his secretary. Jessica shows up and can't believe he's currently mayor of Metro City. Cody says going from vigilante to a convict to the mayor is a heck of a story arc. He says there's nothing he can do to pay Haggar for what he did for him in prison as well as helping become the current mayor.

Jessica loves the plan he has for the new park and thinks it's beautiful.  She feels bad for breaking up with Cody and says there were times she wanted to visit him but she couldn't. Cody says he understands he needed to change first and she needed to move on. He knows it's not her fault they broke up. Just then someone calls for help and Cody leaps into action. Jessica tells him to go and that some things should never change.

Cody sees Jaime putting the Mad Gear gang member that was recently released earlier in a headlock. The gang member, Two P, says he hasn't done anything wrong. Cody tells Jamie to let him go. Jamie tells him he was the one that put him in jail not too long ago. Cody says he'll put him in jail again when he commits another crime. Two P served his time and is clean until he's not. Jamie says those guys never learn but a few broken bones might teach him a lesson, as he smacks Two P towards Cody. Cody says this ironic. 

Jamie leaps into Cody, who sends him back with an uppercut. Jamie drinks from his gourd that powers him up and he throws rapid strikes towards Cody. Cody says he reminds him of himself but the path he's on will only lead to confusion. Jamie says then he know what he'll say, to get out of his way of he'll knock him out of it. Cody and Jamie hit each other at the same time and both of them fall.

A crowd forms and the people of the city cheer for Cody but wonder who the 'street punk' is. They call for Cody to lock up Jamie. Cody tells the crowd that he was having a sparring match against one the city's young protectors. Jamie is surprised Cody is letting him go. Cody says he will, but he wants him to remember two things. The first thing is that if he catches him fighting indiscriminately in the streets again, he won't be so nice. The second is something Cody learned too late, one doesn't have to fight forever to fight for justice forever. Jamie runs off and Cody looks up at a statue that was created to honor Mike Haggar.

My thoughts-

Of all the characters in the Street Fighter universe, none has had a clearer three-part arc than Cody. The hero from Final Fight, the jailbird from the Street Fighter Alpha and Street Fighter 4 games, and now the Mayor as of Street Fighter 5. The comic shows us the different parts of Cody's life, as he ran into several Street Fighters along the way. Even though we saw Cody run into Eagle, Lee, Chun Li, Guile, Balrog and Jamie, Ryu was in it for a super brief cameo. I guess we needed Ryu in this comic somehow.

While the games never clearly explained exactly WHY Cody was in jail, the comic version goes with 'he beat up and undercover Interpol agent'. It was always implied that Cody just never stopped picking fights even after he took down the Mad Gear, the exact event that landed him in prison was never specified like it is here. The Alpha games definitely never mentioned that Guile and Chun Li took him down, but it works for the Udon series.

Of course the most interesting part of the story was seeing Cody running into the latest hero of Metro City, who is also a brash and headstrong vigilante like he was back in the day. Whoever saw Jamie and decided to make the connection with the Cody from Final Fight deserves some kudos for sure.

Another thing to note is how Cody seems to have adjusted into the mayor role in the Street Fighter 6 era. While Cody hasn't yet appeared in the latest Street Fighter game, in SF5 he was portrayed as being bored with the paperwork and still wanting to kick some ass. Here he seems way more proactive in cleaning up the city in a much more legal way. I found it gunny that when Cody was defending Two P from Jamie, he still pretty much treated him like he was already expecting him to break the law again.

A fun read as always. I noticed the art would shift through each phase of Cody's life, which just shows how many people wanted to get involved in this one. If that's not enough, Udon advertises a 4-part Final Fight coming soon! I'll be checking this one out for sure!!