Street Fighter (Malibu Comics)
Street Fighter, the Malibu Comics series published from August to November 1993, arrived at a moment when the video game franchise was at the height of its cultural reach. Three issues. That was all it got before complications with Capcom brought it to an abrupt end. But what those three issues contained, and what the cancelled fourth would have revealed, raises a question that lingers: what happens when a beloved game franchise meets a comics publisher with its own ideas? The series planted seeds for romantic storylines, moral redemption arcs, and a conspiracy involving evil doubles of every fighter on the roster. None of it was ever resolved. The epilogue in the third and final issue spelled out what would have happened, had anyone been allowed to continue. The story of how it got there, and why it stopped, begins with a box marked "for Ryu".
Ryu's victory over Sagat in the previous Street Fighter World Tournament set the entire series in motion. Sagat had held the world championship title for a decade before Ryu defeated him. That loss left Sagat humiliated enough to join the Shadaloo organization, trading his pride for the promise of enough power to reclaim what he had lost. Meanwhile, Ryu continued to train and pursue the warrior's path. Chun-Li had joined Interpol, using the organization to pursue her father's killer. Ken had gone in a different direction entirely, retiring from street fighting, marrying, and appearing in commercials. Ryu had not seen Ken in a year by the time the series opens.
Balrog, identified in the series as M. Bison's right-hand man, confronted Ken in the comic's opening conflict. Balrog had apparently joined Shadaloo to repay Bison for getting him off smuggling charges, and he had already lost to Ken once in the previous tournament. The rematch went badly for Balrog again, with Ken overwhelming him despite taking a beating. Armed thugs arrived to cover Balrog's retreat. What followed was worse. Sagat arrived next, fought Ken in a long encounter, and stabbed him with a knife, leaving him apparently dead. A driverless car then crashed through Ryu's garden in Japan, carrying Ken's scalp and pieces of his bloodied clothes in a box addressed to Ryu. Bison also had one of his agents poison Sheng Long, Ryu and Ken's former master, leaving him paralyzed on the island of Okinawa.
Okinawa was where Sheng Long had made his home, and it was where a fighter named Nida was nursing him back to health. Nida had traveled from the Philippines to Okinawa specifically to learn Shotokan karate under Sheng Long's instruction. When she told him about an approaching street fighter tournament, she suggested Ryu and Ken might be training for it, explaining why they had not visited. Sheng Long promised to teach her Shotokan once he recovered. Nida feared the poison might prevent that. Alone in another room, she destroyed a training dummy bearing Ryu's photo, with a vow that after she dealt with Ken's killer to restore her master's honor, Ryu himself would face her. The source of that grudge against Ryu was not revealed until the epilogue of the final issue.
The third issue's epilogue functioned as a capsule summary of a story that would never be told. Ken would have survived. Ryu and Chun-Li, who had shown romantic feeling for each other in the first issue but had not gone beyond kissing, would have eventually ended up together. Sagat would have redeemed himself for siding with Bison. The conspiracy Bison had constructed with what the epilogue called "dark forces" would have been exposed: he had arranged the creation of evil doubles of every street fighter in the world. One of those doubles, a copy of Ryu, had killed Nida's father, which was the reason for her grudge against the original Ryu. The epilogue attributed the cancellation directly to complications with Capcom and their dislike of the comic, and it closed by expressing hope that someone would eventually continue publishing the series.
Up Next
Common questions
Why was the Street Fighter Malibu Comics series cancelled?
The series was cancelled due to complications with Capcom and their dislike of the comic, according to the epilogue published in the third and final issue. The comic ran for only three issues, from August to November 1993.
How many issues did the Street Fighter Malibu Comics series run?
The Street Fighter Malibu Comics series ran for three issues, published from August to November 1993. The third issue included an epilogue describing what would have happened had the series continued.
What happened to Ken in the Street Fighter Malibu Comics?
Ken was confronted by Balrog and then defeated by Sagat, who stabbed him with a knife and left him apparently dead. The epilogue in the final issue revealed that Ken would have been shown to have survived had the series continued.
Who is Nida in the Street Fighter Malibu Comics series?
Nida is a street fighter from the Philippines who traveled to Okinawa to learn Shotokan karate from Sheng Long. She harbored a grudge against Ryu because an evil double of Ryu, created by Bison, had killed her father.
What role did M. Bison play in the Street Fighter Malibu Comics storyline?
M. Bison served as the primary antagonist, directing Shadaloo operations to eliminate threats to his world domination plans. He recruited Sagat, had his agents poison Sheng Long, and had conspired with "dark forces" to create evil doubles of the world's street fighters.
What was the relationship between Ryu and Chun-Li in the Street Fighter Malibu Comics?
Ryu and Chun-Li showed romantic feelings for each other in the first issue but had not gone beyond kissing by the time the series ended. The epilogue in the third issue stated they would have eventually ended up together had the comic continued.
All sources
1 references cited across the entry