The Weapon (comic book)

The Weapon was a martial arts/superhero comic book published by Platinum Studios in 2007. It was written by Fred Van Lente and illustrated by Scott Koblish.

Publication history

The Weapon was released as a limited series from June–September 2007.

Plot

Martial arts enthusiast Tommy Zhou invented a means to create solid objects from light—and invented a superhero persona to promote it: The Weapon. He even concocted an origin story for himself based on ancient Chinese legends that his grandfather told him as a child. What Tommy never suspected, though, were that his grandfather's legends were real—and now an all-too real millennia-old assassin cult, the Lin Kuie, (Forest Demons) is after him, convinced he's unlocked ancient mystical techniques of Order of Wu-Shi — "The Way of the Weapon" — and they're sending waves of killers after him to steal it back.

Tommy was born in Honolulu, in Hawaii's Chinatown, a third-generation Chinese American, raised by his grandfather. Tommy accuses his grandfather of clinging to the old ways of a country they could never return to, knowing they would never be accepted by the racist society they have entered. His family name of Zhou may be a reference to the Zhou dynasty.

Film adaptation

Platinum Studios has partnered with Disney Channel star David Henrie (who is Italian American) to star as the Chinese-American character in a theatrical adaptation of The Weapon.