Chun-Li

For the member of Morning Musume, see Li Chun.

Chun-Li
Street Fighter series character
File:Chunli sf4.png Chun-Li as she appears in Street Fighter IV. Illustration by Daigo Ikeno.
First game	Street Fighter II

Chun-Li (チュンリー, Chun-Rī, based on Chinese [simplified: 春丽 traditional: 春麗] Chūn-Lì) is a video game character created by Capcom. First introduced in Street Fighter II: The World Warrior, she has since appeared as a player character in each subsequent Street Fighter title. Her name is Mandarin (chun 春 "spring", lì 丽 "beautiful"), meaning "spring beauty".

An undercover Interpol agent, Chun-Li enters Street Fighter II 's fighting tournament as a way of getting to its founder, M. Bison. She seeks to avenge her father, who was murdered while investigating Bison's crime syndicate, Shadaloo. Her signature move is the Hyakuretsukyaku (Hundred Rending Leg, commonly known as the Lightning Kick), which involves repeatedly kicking her opponent from a tilted standing position. Chun-Li is notable for being the first female to appear in a single-player fighting game, and has acquired the nickname "First Lady of Video Games" among enthusiasts.

Fictional character biography

Chun-Li's first chronological appearance occurs in Street Fighter Alpha 2. Although she appears as a player character in Street Fighter Alpha, the storyline is essentially identical in both games. She is an ICPO agent who is mourning the recent death of her father. Following a friendly spar with an old teacher and friend of her father, Gen, Chun-Li is given her a lead into who might have killed her father—the crime syndicate Shadaloo. Chun-Li locates and confronts its founder, M. Bison, and demands to know what happened to her father. To her surprise, Bison makes quick work of her. Before he leaves, Bison gloats that if Chun-Li ever comes near him again, he will kill her just like he did her father.

Street Fighter Alpha 3 takes place two years after the events of the previous game. Chun-Li is introduced to Guile, a United States Air Force officer, through his partner-in-arms Charlie. Guile was dispatched to Thailand under orders to retrieve Charlie, who has been infiltrating M. Bison's unit. Upon discovering the true nature of Shadaloo, Guile is swayed into joining forces with the two vigilantes. Unfortunately, their combined efforts to destroy Bison's base are for naught; Bison has tricked the Air Force into canceling its bombing raid on his headquarters. Chun-Li rushes inside and plants the explosives herself. In the wake of Shadaloo's destruction, Chun-Li flees into the surrounding woods and find one of Bison's bodyguards, who is suffering from amnesia. This girl is Cammy White, one of the women brainwashed and trained to serve Bison.

In Street Fighter II, Chun-Li receives an invitation to the second World Warrior tournament, which is being hosted by Bison. Realizing that Bison has apparently survived the Thailand base's destruction Chun-Li (along with Guile) enters the fighting competition with the goal of reaching the Grandmaster himself, M. Bison. Although it is possible for the player to defeat Bison with Chun-Li, it is not the canonical outcome; during the final round, Akuma usurps Bison's place as Grandmaster by killing him with the notorious Shun Goku Satsu.

Having made her peace, Chun-Li retires from street fighting to teach martial arts to young children. She briefly returns to law enforcement after one of her students is abducted by Urien. Chun-Li catches up to Urien and challenges him to a fight; impressed by his opponent's fighting spirit, he agrees to let the child go. Since then, Chun-Li has continued to raise her adopted kids.

Pocket Fighter

This is a non-canonical story where Chun-Li hears of an escaped zoo animal. She apprehends Felicia by mistake and despite Felicia's protests she is sent to the zoo. The next day she hears of an entertainer's (Felicia) mysterious disapperance.

Characteristics

In the majority of her appearances, Chun-Li wears a qipao, an early 20th century Chinese dress. The dress, which is blue with gold accents, is modified to allow a far wider range of movement than a generic qipao. Her outfit also includes a pair of white combat boots and brown pantyhose. In the beta version of Street Fighter II, Chun-Li was originally depicted wearing an orange qipao instead of blue.

Chun-Li wears her hair in "ox horns". During the Alpha series, she chooses to wear them unadorned, while in later appearances, she uses silk brocades and ribbons to cover them, signifying the mourning of her father. During the timelime depicted in Street Fighter Alpha series of games, Chun-Li wears an embroidered vest, a unitard, athletic shoes, and studded wristbands. While Chun-Li has a lean but toned upper body, her lower body (her legs and buttocks) are extremely muscular -- almost disproportionately so.

Chun-Li's signature move is the Hyakuretsu Kyaku, a flurry of vicious kicks which are performed while standing on one leg. Its easy accessibility (bluntly pressing a kick button over and over again) has become a staple in many games. For her Spinning Bird Kick, Chun-li spins through the air while kicking in a propeller motion. Chun-Li can also leap off nearby walls; while performing a wall jump, she is able to backflip and stomp on her opponent's head.

Appearances in other media

Live-action

Street Fighter (1994)

Chun-Li was portrayed in the 1994 action film Street Fighter by actress Ming Na. She poses as a television reporter in order to infiltrate the nation of Ŝadoluo and kill M. Bison, a warlord who murdered her father during a peasant uprising. Chun-Li's surname in the film is Zang/Xiang, though Capcom has not officially recognized it.

Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li

Main article: Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li

In October 2006, Hyde Park Entertainment and Capcom announced its intention to produce another film adaptation with the storyline to focus on Chun-Li. This film will be more character-centered and story-based rather than following a "nebulous plot." Also, apparently it won't be just a Street Fighter movie with Chun-Li as the main character, along the lines of Guile in the first one, but it will be an actual Chun-Li film. Screenwriter Justin Marks was attached to write a script for the adaptation. Street Fighter is set for a 2008 release for the 20th anniversary of the fighting game series. The film adaptation is part of Capcom's multi-platform launch for 2008 that will also launch video games and a potential TV series in 2008. It's been recently confirmed on Comingsoon.com that Smallville actress, Kristin Kreuk will be playing Chun Li in the 2008 adaptation.

Animation

Street Fighter Television series

Chun-Li was a regular character in the USA Network's animated television series Street Fighter. She was voiced by Donna Yamamoto.

Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie

Chun-Li is a central character in Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie. An Interpol agent, she is investigating M. Bison's organization of Shadowlaw, which is suspected of murdering several diplomats. She requests to work with Guile to investigate Bison's organization. Guile is initially reluctant to work with her, more eager to pursue Bison himself. By the end of the movie, however, they have become inseparable. Chun-Li is voiced by Miki Fujitani in the Japanese release. In the English dub, she is voiced by Lia Sargent.

In an famous instance of fan service, an explicit scene shows Chun-Li showering in her apartment while a Shadolaw assassin, Vega, arrives to kill her. Although she manages to drive Vega off—kicking him through a wall and sending him hurtling several stories to the ground—Chun-Li succumbs to her injuries and slips into a coma; she remains hospitalized for the rest of the movie. A distraught Guile promises her that he will make M. Bison pay. The shower scene has been censored to varying degrees in versions of the American release.

Following Bison's defeat at the hands of Ryu and Ken, Chun-Li pulls a prank on Guile by making it appear as if she has died while he was away. As Guile grieves beside her empty bed, she surprises him with a newspaper headline announcing the downfall of Bison's operations. Chun-Li and Guile celebrate with some playful roughhousing.

Comics

Street Fighter II V

In the 29-episode anime series, Chun-Li appears as the spirited tour guide to Ken and Ryu. Her character in this adaption is a far cry from The world's strongest woman, since she's mostly a Kung-Fu student under the guidance of her father, the highest-ranked police chief in Hong Kong. Chun-Li plays a sizeable role in the finale when she is brainwashed by Bison's psycho power.

Street Fighter II manga

In a Street Fighter II manga published in the 1990s (written by Masaomi Kanzaki), Chun-Li remains in her established role of an interpol agent investigating Bison, but she constantly references and reflects a desire to earn the critical praise of Ryu as a fighter, she is also portrayed as a more emotional person.

As the Manga progresses, she eventually participates in a tournament arranged by Shadaloo, and outlasts many of the other warriors, eventually coming up against Vega, portrayed here as her father's killer. Chun-Li defeats Vega, but as in the SF II movie, she cannot continue, and she is pulled from the tournament. Her injuries prevent her from doing much when Ryu and Bison confront one another, except call off an air strike by Interpol as the two fight.

Chun-Li appears one final time in the closing pages of the final issue of the Manga in a panel illustration depicting her arrest of a drug peddler, she remains eager to prove herself to Ryu, and sends him a letter conveying that determination.

Much like the anime SF II movie, the story stands alone from the established canon. Chun-Li's hero worship of Ryu was later used for the character of Sakura in the Alpha games.

Street Fighter Alpha anime and manga

In the anime and manga based on Street Fighter Alpha, Chun-Li is again an agent of interpol as she is in almost all iterations save for the live action film. In the anime, she begins tracking down Ryu because of his battle with Sagat and Shadaloo's apparent interest in Ryu. Believing this information will in some way lead to further dismantling of Shadaloo, she seeks out Ryu and becomes involved in his struggle to defeat the temptation of the Dark Hadou.

In the manga, she encounters Ryu, who has fallen from grace when he began to give in to the Dark Hadou, and had hired himself out as a bodyguard to some drug smugglers. She winds up befriending Ryu and Birdie as well as Ken (which also happens in the anime), and Chun-Li, Ken, and Ryu begin trying to deal with the Dark Hadou, though Chun Li plays mostly a minor role in that regard. However, the three friends encounter members of Shadaloo, and Chun-Li, at the end of the first volume of the manga, rescues Cammy from being captured (or possibly killed, the manga doesn't say which, only that losers are 'stored' somewhere) after having her hand apparently crushed or at the least injured in some way by Sodom. Shadaloo in the manga is once again responsible for the death of her father, though the exact identity of the killer has yet to be revealed.

In comics

In the 1990s, Malibu Comics produced a short-lived series of Street Fighter comics, which featured Chun-Li as having known Ryu and Ken since at least their later teens, along with her having either a romantic involvement with or interest in Ryu. So far, it's the only comic or manga known to have shown Chun-Li with her hair down. The comic primarily focused not on Chun-Li or Ryu in particular, but rather on the reaction of several of the characters to the murder of Ken Masters. As this comic was never finished (it was cancelled after only three issues), the storyline was never resolved, and no mention was made of Chun-Li's father or of her connections to Interpol. This series was apparently produced sometime before the release of Super Street Fighter II, as none of the characters introduced in that game appeared in it.

When Udon comics picked up the comic book license for the Street Fighter franchise for American distribution, Chun-Li again became a central character, involved in the hunt for Bison and Shadaloo. However, in the new comic, it is not Bison or Vega who is the killer of Chun-Li's father, but rather Cammy, prior to her being freed from Bison's control. Chun-Li battles Cammy when they meet face to face for the first time. Chun-Li winds up forgiving Cammy for her actions due to the fact that, as she was a brainwashed servant of Bison's at that time, she wasn't really responsible for the murder of Chun-Li's father, Bison was. As a result, she has turned her sights onto Bison in the hopes of attaining her revenge. Chun-Li's mode of dress changes several times throughout the Udon comics, from outfits worn in Street Fighter Alpha, to her more traditional qipao from the Street Fighter II games. She has received an invitation from Shadaloo to enter a tournament being held by Bison. The comic appears to be mixing elements of the various games together. The story is currently on going, though Udon has yet to release the next volume of the series.

Cameo appearances

File:RPG Chunli.PNG

Chun-Li as she appears in the Capcom RPG Breath of Fire

Chun-Li has made cameos in various settings from the manga Faeries' Landing to a background scene in the U.S. cartoon Jackie Chan Adventures. She is also a regularly-used cameo character in other Capcom games, such as the RPG Breath of Fire (series) and in the first stage of Final Fight 2. She is a playable character in the crossover game Namco x Capcom, eventually pairing up with Cammy.

Media influences

Music

Chun-Li has inspired some influence on the music industry. The British rock band Arctic Monkeys have an instrumental song titled "Chun Li's Spinning Bird Kick" and was nominated for a Grammy for Best Rock Instrumental Performance. Wyclef Jean sings in his version of the song Guantanamera: "If your name was Chun-Li, we'd be playin' Street Fighter." The Japanese rap/rock band Orange Range mentions Chun-Li in the Japanese side of Viva Rock. Nerdcore hip-hop artist Beefy dedicated a song to Chun-Li.

Films

In the Jackie Chan live-action movie City Hunter, Chan's character magically transformed to Chun-Li and fought against his adversaries (he was first transformed into E. Honda).

There is a fight scene in the Shrek 2 movie where princess Fiona performs Chun-Li's Spinning Kick against her opponents. She also performs a Shoryuken, a special move of the Ken, Ryu and Akuma characters.

Comic Books

Issue #5 of the widely acclaimed comic book series Demo deals with a young woman whose physical appearance changes to match the desires and perceptions of those around her. In one scene, her body and clothing briefly change to match those of Chun-Li from the Street Fighter Alpha series.

Appearances

Over the years, Chun-Li has appeared in almost all of Capcom fighting games. After the release of Street Fighter III 3rd Strike, she became the only character besides Ryu, Ken and Akuma to appear in all three major Street Fighter incarnations (Street Fighter II, Street Fighter Alpha and Street Fighter III) and has appeared in all crossovers involving the series (i.e. Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes and SVC Chaos: SNK vs. Capcom). Chun-Li was also confirmed as a playable character for Street Fighter IV on December 7, 2007.

Actors

• In a number of games since Street Fighter Alpha, her voice is performed by actress/singer Yuko Miyamura.
• In the animated movie, her voice actress is Miki Fujitani.
• In Street Fighter III, Capcom Fighting Evolution, and the RPG Namco x Capcom she is performed by Atsuko Tanaka.
• In Capcom vs. SNK and Capcom vs. SNK 2, Chun-Li is voiced by Michiko Neya.
• In SVC Chaos: SNK vs. Capcom, Chun-Li is voiced by Mari Jitsukawa.
• Chun-Li is portrayed by Ming-Na alongside with Jean-Claude Van Damme in the live action movie (1994). After being captured by M. Bison, she is dressed in a red qipao in contrast of the signature blue portrayed in the video games. Ming Na played a news reporter in this movie, instead of an Interpol agent. The character is dubbed over by Sailor Moon actress Rika Fukami in the Japanese dub of the film.
• In all American dubs of the various Street Fighter anime, Chun-Li is voiced by Lia Sargent.
• Jackie Chan humorously parodies several characters from the game in the film City Hunter. He briefly dons Chun-li's attire in the movie to defeat a thug who modeled himself after Ken Masters.
• In the film Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li, she will be portrayed by Smallville actress Kristin Kreuk. This film is scheduled for a 2009 release.

External links

• The Evolution of Chun-Li and Blanka
• Kikouken.Com
• Chun-Li at the Internet Movie Database