Monkey Prince #10: It’s a Motherflippin’ Lazarus Planet Tie-In!

Just to address the elephant in the room, the solicitation on DC’s website for this issue is wrong. If you read it then it will definitely spoil a major plot point from this issue. In addition, this book is not a tie-in for Batman vs Robin; it is a tie in for Lazarus Planet. Now, with that out of the way, here is a short summary of what happened in Monkey Prince #10.

This issue picks up with The Ultra-Humanite jumping into the fight between Marcus and Supergirl. Marcus has had a rough time getting along with other heroes until this point but ultimately wins over Supergirl when he protects her from a blast from Ultra-Humanite. The issue then goes full-blown Lazarus Planet when the Lazarus rain starts coming down and forces Marcus and Supergirl to protect the citizens of Metropolis. Marcus starts putting the pieces together and learns that his grandfather is the Ultra-Humanite and is forced to push that to the back burner so that he, Supergirl, and a group of heroes can go figure out what’s causing all of the Lazarus rain.

Normally, tie-in issues can feel like needless filler; however, since Gene Luen Yang is part of the Lazarus Planet creative team, this issue seamlessly fits into the narrative of its own ongoing plot as well as the event. The emotional crux of this series so far has been Marcus’s inability to accept that his adoptive family are villains. He’s been slowly coming to terms with that, but this issue forces him over the edge when he figures out that his grandfather is more than just a henchman like his parents. Monkey prince is only a twelve-issue run so it will be interesting to see how Marcus grows from this revelation over the final two issues.

The majority of this issue focuses on the effects of the Lazarus rain and how it affects everyone. For those not reading the main event, Yang does a great job in explaining this in only a few short pages. Yang’s depiction of Supergirl is also a strong point in this issue. His depictions of Aquaman and Robin earlier in this series seemed a bit off but he feels very at home with Kara. This is likely because Yang is very familiar with working on Superman with his award winning series, Superman Smashes the Klan. Supergirl is often depicted as juvenile in comparison to her cousin, but Yang writes her as a point of authority, while also differentiating her from his Superman. This makes for a great dynamic between her and Marcus throughout the issue. So far, Marcus has not gotten along with most of the superheroes he’s encountered so it’s nice to see his relationship with Supergirl blossom into something completely different.

Bernard Chang continues to deliver gorgeous art in this issue. One of the high points here is when he draws the small clones that develop from Monkey Prince’s hair. These little guys are drawn with an art style that feels a lot different from what we have seen here but they also fit in perfectly. Chang is able to stretch his drawing skills out here and show us all the diverse things he’s capable of doing. Everything else in this issue is up to par with what he’s been doing with this series so far. Hopefully DC has it in their heart to continue this series past #12 so that we can keep seeing Chang’s beautiful work.