Shou-Lao

Shou-Lao
Shou-Lao, Lei Kung, and Hope Summers as depicted in Avengers vs. X-Men #10 (August 2012). Art by Adam Kubert.
Publication information
Publisher	Marvel Comics
First appearance	Marvel Premiere #16 (July 1974)
Created by	Len Wein (writer) Roy Thomas (writer) Larry Hama (artist)
In-story information
Species	Chinese dragon
Notable aliases	Shou-Lao the Undying
Abilities	Superhuman strength, durability, and speed Flight via wings Fire breath Color changing Immortality

Shou-Lao (alternatively spelled Shao-Lao) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Appearing primarily in association with Iron Fist, he is the source of power for him and other holders of the name.

Publication history

Shou-Lao first appeared in Marvel Premiere #16 (July 1974) and was created by Len Wein, Roy Thomas, and Larry Hama.

Fictional character biography

Shou-Lao is an immortal Chinese dragon who became the source of power in K'un-L'un. During a performance of the dragon riders of K'un-Lun for the entertainment of Yu-Ti, Shou-Lao went berserk and attacked the city's leader. He was slain by Quan-St'ar, who cut out the dragon's heart. Enraged at this, Yu-Ti banished Quan-St'ar from the city and revived Shou-Lao by melting his heart and placing it in a sacred cavern. Following his death, Shou-Lao is repeatedly killed and resurrected as part of a trial undergone by holders of the Iron Fist mantle to gain his power. ^{[1] [2]}

After she is busted for training three cavemen, Fan Fei is chained up and watched as the cavemen are fed to Shou-Lou by Lei Kung. After breaking out with the hope that she will die fighting Shou-Lou, Fei punches Shou-Lou in his chest tattoo and gained his powers. ^[3]

When Danny Rand is training to become Iron Fist, he defeats Shou-Lao by burning the dragon-shaped tattoo off his chest. After defeating Shou-Lao, Danny plunges his hands into the brazier containing Shou-Lao's heart, charging him with the power of Iron Fist. ^[4] During the Avengers vs. X-Men storyline, the X-Men battle the Avengers in K'un-L'un. Hope Summers and Lei Kung arrive on the back of Shou-Lao, who blasts the Phoenix Force-empowered Cyclops. Hope unleashes a combination of dragon energy, fire, and chaos magic to banish Cyclops to the Moon. ^[5]

During the A.X.E.: Judgment Day event, Lin Lie is instructed to kill Shou-Lao, but refuses, and instead gains his power by having him give it willingly. ^[6]

Powers and abilities

As a dragon, Shou-Lao possesses superhuman physical abilities and the ability to fly and breathe fire. Additionally, he does not age and possesses resistance to disease and the ability to camouflage himself.

In other media

Television

• Shou-Lao appears in Ultimate Spider-Man , voiced by Mark Hamill via Nightmare. ^[7] This version lacks wings.
• Shou-Lao makes a non-speaking cameo appearance in a flashback in the Iron Fist episode "Dragon Plays with Fire". Finn Jones, who portrays Iron Fist, stated that Shou-Lao could not be shown onscreen due to budgetary constraints and would appear in future seasons, though this never came to pass. ^{[8] [9] [10] [11] [12]} Additionally, The Defenders reveals that the bones of Shou-Lao's species contain a substance with resurrective properties, which is used by the Hand.

Video games

Shou-Lao appears in Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2 . ^[13]

References

1. Moench, Doug  ( w ), Pollard, Keith  ( p ),Vohland, Duffy; Tartaglione, John  ( i ),Goldberg, Petra ( col )."The Fortress of S'ahra-Sharn!" Master of Kung Fu Annual,vol. 1,no. 1(April 1976).Marvel Comics.
2. Dodge, John (September 7, 2021). "Shang-Chi's Great Protector Isn't Marvel's Only Dragon". Comic Book Resources . Retrieved September 26, 2024.
3. Aaron, Jason  ( w ), Sorrentino, Andrea  ( p ),Sorrentino, Andrea ( i ), Ponsor, Justin ; Arciniega, Erick ( col )."The Girl Who Punched The Dragon" The Avengers ,vol. 8,no. 13(March 2019).Marvel Comics.
4. Wein, Len ; Thomas, Roy  ( w ), Hama, Larry  ( p ), Giordano, Dick ; Janson, Klaus  ( i ), Wein, Glynis  ( col )."Heart of the Dragon!" Marvel Premiere ,vol. 1,no. 16(July 1974).Marvel Comics.
5. Brubaker, Ed  ( w ), Kubert, Adam  ( p ),Dell, John ( i ), Martin, Laura ; Molinar, Larry ( col )."Avengers Vs. X-Men (Part Ten)" Avengers vs. X-Men ,vol. 1,no. 10(October 2012).Marvel Comics.
6. Brooks, Nicholas (February 2, 2023). "Marvel's New Iron Fist May Face Danny Rand's Greatest Challenge - Thanks To Judgment Day". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved September 26, 2024.
7. "Shao Lao Voice - Ultimate Spider-Man (TV Show)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved September 26, 2024. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.
8. Sobon, Nicole (February 26, 2017). "Iron Fist: Dragon Shou-Lao Confirmed For Netflix Series". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved September 26, 2024.
9. Melrose, Kevin (March 13, 2017). "Iron Fist: Sorry, But the Dragon Shou-Lao Won't Appear On Screen". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved September 26, 2024.
10. "New Image from Iron Fist, Shou-Lao Confirmed to Appear". MCU Exchange. 25 February 2017. Archived from the original on 27 February 2017.
11. Peters, Megan (March 12, 2017). "Iron Fist: Shou-Lao Will Not Appear on Screen". ComicBook.com .
12. Leston, Ryan (March 11, 2017). "Marvel's Iron Fist won't feature his epic dragon-fight with Shou-Lao (EXCLUSIVE)". Yahoo.
13. Kooistra, Darik (November 14, 2017). "K'un-Lun Konundrum - LEGO Marvel Super Heroes 2 Guide". IGN . Retrieved September 26, 2024.