Magical Fortune Cookie Martial Arts Shark Hero Returns in ‘Sharknife ZZ’ [20-Page Preview]

This week, Oni Press has released Sharknife Volume 2: ZZ, the long, long, long-awaited sequel to Corey "The Rey" Lewis's 2005 rip-roaring story of video game-style action about a busboy who transforms into a martial arts hero/shark thanks to a magical fortune cookie. I was a huge fan of the original book, and while it's certainly taken some time, I'm happy to report that ZZ keeps all the manic energy and excitement in place for a new adventure. And to prove it, we've got a 20-page preview of Sharknife ZZ, featuring a flashback that shows you the arduous trial of how he got his powers, with all the skateboarding, monster-fighting action you demand in your comics.Sharknife is hands down one of the most energetic comics I've ever read, and the first volume is easily one of my top ten graphic novels of the past decade. I love the high concept, and Lewis essentially approaches his story like that one bonus round in Final Fight where you have to beat up a car in under a minute, getting downright frantic about it. It's easy to catch his excitement just from looking at it, because his excitement is barely restrained on the page.

The story focuses on Cesar Hallelujah, a busboy at a massive five-story Chinese restaurant called the Guangdong Palace. In addition to being a beacon of hope for the people of Red Ranger Street, the restaurant provoked the wrath of local gangster Ombra Ravenga and he has decided -- as one does -- that the best way to destroy the Guangdong Palace is to infect its walls with monsters that come out and start tearing the place up during the lunch rush. Fortunately, when Cesar's girlfriend Chieko gives him a magic fortune cookie, he has the ability to turn into a martial arts super-hero named -- you guessed it! -- Sharknife, complete with a shark-shaped knife.

I might've mentioned there's a high concept.

The only problem is that it's been seven years since the first volume, and just to give you an idea of how long that is, one of the characters in the original offers to console another by buying her a GameCube. But now, the wait is finally over. It's finally here. And now it has skateboards.

Sharknife ZZ clocks in at a hefty 225 pages with a cover price of $11.95, and it's available today -- for real! -- at your local comic book store, or you can pick up both volumes for $5.99 each at Comixology!