Udon Street Fighter # 5

 By Mark Rodriguez

After a deadly fight with Vega in which both Ken and Eliza got injured, Guile and Chun Li arrive to inform them that Shadaloo Agents have been sent after Ryu. Ken finds Ryu in their shared master's old dojo and tells him that they have to leave. Ryu senses a powerful ki approaching. Ken thinks it's Akuma, but Ryu opens the door to see Sagat. What will happen now?

I originally bought the full first Street Fighter run back when I was living in Mexico with Johnny. While I would sometimes find copies of the American issues during trips, I only have the Mexican version of issue 5, so please don't mind the Spanish in the screenshots. 

 

The last time I covered the first Street Fighter run (before they switched from the Image label to the Udon brand) was back in 2023, so here are the links to the first issues to make them easier to find.

Udon Street Fighter # 1 Review

Udon Street Fighter # 2 Review 

Udon Street Fighter # 3 Review 

Udon Street Fighter # 4 Review

The issue opens with Agent Shadow pondering on his name, Charlie Nash, as he looks at his dog tags. He looks at the Shadaloo symbol on the back of his jacket, asking what Bison did to him, and what he has become. He rips the symbol off his jacket.

Over at Gouken's dojo, Sagat stands before Ryu and Ken. Ken steps in but Ryu says this is his fight. Sagat lunges forward and knees Ryu in the face, hard enough to send him flying back. As Ryu falls back, he manages to swing his foot to kick Sagat across the face. Both fighters regain their footing as Ryu ponders that Sagat has gotten a lot stronger than the fight they had at the tournament.

 

As Ryu leaps towards Sagat, he wonders if he was strong enough to have had killed Master Gouken. Sagat clenches his fist but then says 'not like this' and side-steps Ryu's attack. Ryu asks why Sagat pulled back. Sagat says as much as he wants to, he doesn't want to fight Ryu, at least not now. Ryu asks why he showed up if he didn't want to fight. 

Ryu asks if he had something to do with Gouken's death. Sagat says his business is with Ryu and Ryu alone. He came to warn him that Bison has set his sights on him and wants to make him one of his men. Ryu says he's not easily convinced. Sagat says that Bison's scientists have ways to change his mind, cowardly methods that he does not approve of. He warns Ryu to leave the dojo since it is no longer safe. 

Ryu asks Sagat why he's warning him if he's one of Bison's men. Sagat says there is no satisfaction in fighting one of Bison's puppets. The only way to reclaim his title and his honor is to face Ryu in the next Street Fighter tournament. Ryu says he's looking forward to it. Sagat tells Ryu to train hard because he will face the full power of the real Sagat and not the man he once defeated. As Sagat leaves, Ken tells Ryu that they should head for the sanctuary as the people from Interpol are probable on their way. 

Meanwhile, two kilometers (1.2 miles) away, Sakura and Kei are near the Miyazaki Sanctuary. Sakura remembers it from a field trip a few summers ago. Kei says they should be studying and Sakura says their parents think they are. Kei laments that her grades are dropping and asks Sakura what's her deal with fighters. She says Sakura is always getting in trouble at school. Sakura asks what she means and Kei says she's fighting with Karin every other day. Sakura says this is why she needs a new master, so she can never lose a fight. Kei just sighs. Sakura says the only thing she needs is just a glance at Ryu to see if he's the real deal.

Chun Li and Guile are on their way to the sanctuary. Chun Li wonders what Bison would want with Ryu. Guile says it might be the same thing that he did with Charlie. Chun Li asks what he means. Guile says that Charlie would never follow Bison, unless they found some way to brainwash him. Guile says that Shadaloo has been recruiting the best scientists in the world that specialize in neurology, genetics and AI. He ignored the rumors, but after seeing Charlie, he's no longer sure.

Just then a helicopter flies over head, making Chun Li stop the car. They step out as some approaches them. Guile and Chun Li prepare themselves and Chun Li asks Agent Shadow if he's ready for the rematch. Guile's friend says the last time he checked, his name was Nash. Guile looks at Charlie, who is now smiling and wearing the dog tags. Charlie is back.

Guile asks what happened. Charlie says he's not completely sure. He says he can't believe the things he saw. Bison has some sort of power or energy that he can't describe. He used that power to change him. Charlie laments that he killed many people for Bison. He was so deep under Bison's control that he almost assassinated Guile. He says they should return to their superiors immediately.

Chun Li asks Charlie about one of his objectives, which was to find her father. She asks if he was successful. Charlie laments that Chun Li's father is dead and he saw it with his own eyes. Charlie says her father went down fighting. Bison used him to test out a dozen special agents called the Shadaloo Dolls. These young women were trained in ballistics, hand to hand combat and espionage. He never seen any of Bison's other agents fight as brutal and efficient as they did. They were sent after Chun Li's father like hunting dogs. Chun Li's father fought the best he could but was overwhelmed by their numbers. In the end the one called 'The Killer Bee' was the one to end his life. Charlie wish he could have stopped them by by that time he was already captured by Bison. We see that Bison was holding Charlie up by the face on a hilltop as the Dolls were killing Chun Li's father. 

Just then another helicopter shows up and starts to open fire. Charlie dives and shove Guile and Chun Li out of the way as he takes the bullets for them. Guile holds onto Charlie's now lifeless body. Bison steps out of the chopper and tells Chun Li and Guile that Charlie was a failed experiment. He gave him a bit of his power and he developed so miserably. He then tells Chun Li that even a scarecrow would have been a better training dummy for his Dolls than her father was. Guile and Chun Li are both enraged and charge towards him.

Chun Li and Guile both deliver flying kicks at Bison, but he catches both of their legs. He then smiles as he violently slams them both into the ground. Bison says they're both children that don't deserve to see his true power, but he is feeling generous. Bison starts to levitate and with a flick of his wrist, their car starts to levitate and explodes. Bison tells them to witness first hand the power that both Chun Li's father and Nash saw upon their deaths, Psycho Power. I'm not sure getting gunned down by ordinary bullets count as Psycho Power, but I'm not about to argue with Bison. 

Bison is suddenly hit in the back with an explosive Sonic Boom. Charlie can barely stand and says that Bison's experiments were a success. With his arm glowing with Psycho Power, Charlie tells Guile to get away since he won't be able to help in this fight. Bison launches himself towards Charlie saying that he will delight himself in his pain.

Bison uses his Scissor Knee Press, which Charlie manages to block and push off. Charlie asks if that was supposed to hurt and starts throwing punches and kicks that Bison manages to avoid. Bison then takes to the sky and prepares and dive down upon him with his Psycho Crusher. Charlie does a Moonsault Slash and the collision between the two fighters causes a huge explosion. Charlie coughs up blood as he falls back. Bison says that Charlie is almost entertaining, as suddenly a chunk of his shoulder armor falls off.

 

Bison tosses his cape aside and asks Charlie if he honestly thought he would survive this. Charlie says he wasn't trying to. He was trying to put himself into a position where when he dies, he'd take Bison and his Psycho Power with him. Guile tells Charlie to stop. Charlie uses his Somersault Justice against Bison and the intense force shatters the ledge they're on. Bison and Charlie fall into the ocean below.

Guile laments that Charlie sacrificed himself to save them. Chun Li wonders if Bison could have survived since he had all of that Psycho Power. She wonders if it's really over. Guile turns to see Charlie's dog tags lying on the ground nearby.

Ryu and Ken arrive the the sanctuary. Ken says they should rest until the Interpol agents show up. Ryu senses that they are not alone and walks towards the surrounding forest. Ryu senses the one that murdered his master, but doesn't sense that Sakura and Kei are resting up against some tree trunks beneath him. Ryu calls out his enemy, asking if he's afraid to face the pupil of the master he killed. Ryu yells out for the man to show himself. Ken tells Ryu to relax when he notices that the sky is getting dark. Ryu and Ken turn to see Akuma, glowing with an evil red energy, saying "As you wish, Ryu. As you Wish."

 

Second Story

A year ago, in Bison's Shadaloo general cartel, Bison commends the Killer Bee on succeeding in every small mission he's given her. She says she exists to serve Commander Bison. Bison has a final test for her, to test her skills against Vega. Bison tells Vega not to hold back. Vega says it will be a pleasure to dance with this beauty, even though her beauty does not compare to that of his own.

Vega leaps into the air using his Flying Barcelona Attack, slicing Killer Bee's face and body with his claw. Vega says it's a shame that the battle ended so soon... but it surprised to see Killer Bee rushing him. She hits Vega in the stomach with her Cannon Spike, launching him into the air. Killer Bee, now with a scar across her cheek, lands on her feet while Vega lands on his back. Bison says this is excellent work and she will begin with full missions immediately.

Later on, Killer Bee is being held in a stasis pod in a restricted area as her memory is being wiped. Vega watches on and calls Bison an ugly fool for thinking that this Shadaloo Doll compares to him. He says that soon they'll find out who's really the strongest between them.  

My Thoughts- 

I'll never get tired of saying how much I love the Udon comics and the art style. The fast-paced fights and interpretations of the special moves are always on point.

Charlie came back but sadly it was very short-lived. Kudos to them keeping that blue-ish hue to his Psycho Power enhanced moves, which is how Shadow Charlie was portrayed in Marvel Super Heroes VS Street Fighter. Chun Li barely got to know the real Charlie, but he did give some information that will factor in later in the series. The first issue opened up with Bison holding Charlie over the ledge with Balrog, Sagat and Vega flanking him. Now we know that Bison was holding Charlie over the ledge... as the Shadaloo Dolls were killing Chun Li's father on the terrain below with Cammy being the one to land the finishing blow.

It's been a while since I read this, but it's safe to assume that Bison's presumed death is a fake out since we we still have eleven issues to go. I do wonder what will happen now as Bison was originally going to go after Ryu but then this fight happened. Instead of Ryu and Ken facing off any other Shadaloo agents... they're going to be fighting with Akuma instead. Sakura and Kei are in the area. What's going to happen to them?

Not too much I can say about the back up story except that we see a bit of Killer Bee while she was still working for Bison, and we see that Vega was the one that gave her that iconic scar. It's been a while since I played every single Street Fighter game out there, but I don't recall if that was ever mentioned in any of the actual games. We also have to keep in mind that Cammy had her scar since her introduction in Super Street Fighter II, and that was way before the Shadaloo Doll stuff was a concept. The brainwashed Cammy first appeared in the SF II animated movie, then appeared in her Shadaloo Doll outfit in X-Men VS Street Fighter before finally appearing officially in SF Alpha 3.

 

Two things stood out with the Mexican edition. One thing was when the comic mentioned that Sakura and Kei were 'two kilometers' away, which reminded me that Mexico uses the metric system. I wonder if the original version just said 'two miles away' just keeping the number two without literally converting it, or just said 'several miles away' or 'a few miles away'. I seriously doubt the comic originally said '1.5 miles away'.

The other thing was a personal pet peeve of mine where several anime and manga keep the Japanese attack names just fine (HadoKen, Sho Ryu Ken, etc) but feel the need to translate the English names. It always irked me how they had to translate Vegeta's Final Flash and Big Bang Attack into Resplandor Final and El Ataque Big Bang when they could have kept them in English. The same thing happened here, and I had a heck of a time looking up Charlie's Alpha moves to properly name them for this review. I was mostly confused because they called Charlie's Moonsault Slash into the Somersault Slash. I guess they couldn't find a good enough Spanish translation for Moonsault and just called it a Somersault.

Also they had Bison say 'Psycho Derrotar' which translates to Psycho Defeat or Psycho Defeater. I guess they couldn't find a good Spanish word for Crusher? If they're not going to translate HadoKen, let Bison keep his Psycho Crusher.

Just for random sake, I decided to look into good ol' Grupo Editorial Vid, which brought several comics and manga to Mexico such as Street Fighter, Spawn, Tomb Raider, Dragonball and Death Note, as well as the Marvel and DC titles. They eventually went out of business, losing the rights to Marvel and DC in 2005 and stopping manga distribution in 2011 before finally shutting its doors in 2012. Other than the Street Fighter comics, I still own all 12 Death Note volumes and some of the 2002 He-Man comics from Grupo Editorial Vid,

It seems the current big publishing company is Editorial Kumite which publishes several titles like the IDW Sonic and Ninja Turtles and manga like Another, Konosuba and Card Captor Sakura. I have no idea what company would be publishing the newer Udon Street Fighter stuff in Mexico nowadays.