Do you know Wong Fei-Hung? Do the 10 Tigers of Canton ring a bell? What about Butcher Lam? Or the legend of “the no-shadow kick”?
Does the words “once upon a time in … China” grab the imagination?
A Dr Who novel
Published 01-05-2004, BBC imprint, Random House Australia.
Paperback $14.95.
Do you know Wong Fei-Hung? Do the 10 Tigers of Canton ring a bell? What about Butcher Lam? Or the legend of “the no-shadow kick”?
Does the words “once upon a time in … China” grab the imagination?
If not, why the hell not, “gwaillo”?! The legend of Wong Fai-Hung, Master of Kung Fu, Chinese militia-patriot, Doctor & super-patriot, has been the subject of more movies than any other human being (unless you argue that Vlad Tepes was an actual human being )(the jury is still out on Sherlock Holmes & Dr. Watson)!
This is the adventures of William Hartnell, Barbara, Ian Chesterton & Vicki - Shaw Brothers style! That’s right - Dr. Who & company in a wide-screen kung fu epic, circa 1865, complete with an extraterrestrial invasion, Shaolin monks & the resurrected Ist Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huangdi!!
If you loved the original Dr. (my favourite, along with Tom Baker) this is a real treat - you can easily imagine William Hartnell being “crotchety” & equally curious, the Tardis travellers acting heroically & the dialogue being appropriate to the time, or should I say the times?
The extraterrestrial angle is treated subtlely & comes across more like possession & a case of very bad feng-shui, than an invasion of solid space-travelling creatures.
The character of young Wong Fei-Hung is treated sympathetically, indeed all the Chinese characters, bar one, are given the heroic treatment.
If you ever wanted to see Barbara propose to Ian or witness Dr. Who beat up a kung fu master, this is the epic for you. The heroes even recite (not sing) the words of that immortal hit song “Everybody was kung fu fighting”!
Reviewed by Brian Walls.
Last updated 17th March 2005