Michelle Chang (ミシェール・チャン Mishēru Chan?) is a fictional character in the Tekken series of fighting games. A Native American woman of Chinese descent, she was first introduced in the original Tekken. She returned for Tekken 2, the non-canonical Tekken Tag Tournament, and its sequel Tekken Tag Tournament 2. Michelle's adopted daughter, Julia Chang, takes her place in Tekken 3 and all of the series' subsequent games, although both of them are playable in Tekken Tag Tournament and its sequel.
Biography
Michelle Chang is a young Native American woman of mixed descent; her father is a man from Hong Kong, sent to America by Heihachi Mishima with the task of finding a treasure on Native American land. Instead of treasure, he found romance and stayed in America to marry his new love. Michelle was born shortly after, and they lived together happily until, on her eighteenth birthday, Michelle learns from her mother that her father has been killed by Heihachi's men. Outraged, Michelle enters the first King of Iron Fist Tournament determined to exact revenge on Heihachi. Michelle was unsuccessful in winning the tournament, and her entry stoked more trouble for her when it was noticed that she was in possession of a valuable amulet, something which was sought by Kunimitsu, an ex-Manji Clan member, Heihachi himself and, later, his son Kazuya. Two years after the first tournament, Kazuya organizes a second and, determined to seize Michelle's amulet, kidnaps her mother in order to ensure her participation. His plan worked, and Michelle entered the second King of Iron Fist Tournament. The task of acquiring the amulet was handed to Ganryu, a Sumo wrestler and bodyguard of Kazuya's. However, rather than capture his target, Ganryu fell in love with Michelle, a love that was not reciprocated, and Michelle was able to hold on to her amulet. Shortly after the second tournament, Michelle found a baby girl abandoned in a ruined Native American settlement. Michelle decided to adopt the child, whom she named Julia and raised as her own. Julia grew up with a strong love for her adoptive mother and her tribe, and was taught by Michelle how to fight so that she could protect her homeland. As Julia reached adulthood, stories of martial artists disappearing began to reach the tribe, leading to concerns that the tribal legends of the God of Fighting were coming true. Fearing that the amulet she held could somehow be responsible for the gods awakening, a concerned Michelle travels to Japan to see Heihachi for answers as to why he originally sought the amulet. Rather than help her, Heihachi kidnapped Michelle and used her amulet to fully awaken Ogre, the God of Fighting. When Michelle did not return, Julia suspected that Heihachi was responsible for her mothers disappearance and entered the newly announced third King of Iron Fist Tournament to confront Heihachi and find her mother. Julia's ending in Tekken 3 marks the final canonical appearance of Michelle, and her current whereabouts are unknown, although she is believed to be alive and has likely returned to her homeland.
Personality
Determined and strong minded, Michelle Chang houses a deep love for her family and a vengeful nature towards those who threaten them. She pursues her goals with dedication. She also possesses a love for the environment and is a true lover of nature. This is something which is assumed to be passed on to her daughter, Julia, as she taught her to fight to "..protect mother earth, not to destroy it".
Appearance
Michelle is a beautiful Native American woman with brown eyes and long brown hair with a parted fringe, while braided down the back. Michelle is relatively short and petite, and displays her Native American heritage in her clothing and accessories, most noticeably the headdress and feather she wears on her head.
Outfits
Main Article: Michelle Chang/Outfits
In her few appearances in the Tekken franchise, Michelle's outfits have followed the same general style, consisting of denim shorts, a vest or undershirt, often cropped in design, and cowboy boots over long socks. These core components often vary in color and design, depending on the game and whether the primary or secondary outfit is chosen. Additions to these core items have included leather jackets, elbow pads and scarves. Owing to her Native American heritage, Michelle's outfits are often accessorized with a traditional headdress and jewellery, such as necklaces, bracelets and chokers, bearing traditional designs.
Story
Tekken
Prologue Text (version 1): This wandering fighter is the daughter of a Native American woman and a Hong Kong man sent by Heihachi Mishima to find an ancient treasure on Native American land. Eventually, on her 18th birthday, she hears from her mother that her father had been killed by Heihachi's men. She is taking part in the tournament to take revenge on "Mishima."
Tekken 1 Michelle Chang Ending - Mother
Prologue Text (version 2): Michelle was born of a Native American woman and a Hong Kong man. Her father was sent by Heihachi Mishima to find an ancient treasure on Native American lands.
On her 18th birthday, Michelle heard from her mother that her father had been killed by Heihachi's men. She entered the King of Iron Fist Tournament to take revenge on "Mishima."
Ending Description: Michelle has just returned from the Tournament and is walking home through the Arizona desert. She stops and drops her bag, seeing her mother sitting outside, rocking in a chair peacefully reading a book. Overjoyed, Michelle runs to her mother, the scene ending with the word 'fin' appearing in the lower right-hand corner.
Tekken 2
Tekken 2 Michelle Chang - Pendant
Prologue (Manual): Kazuya wants the pendant that Michelle wears around her neck, since it carries the secret to a great treasure. Michelle's mother has now been kidnapped by Kazuya's men to ensure Michelle's participation in the tournament. Michelle vows to rescue her mother at all costs.[1]
Ending Description: Michelle approaches a lake in a forest with her pendant in her hand while a bird flies by. After a couple of moments enjoying the nature while making her choice, Michelle tosses the pendant into the water.
Tekken 3
Sometime before the events of Tekken 3, Michelle adopted Julia Chang while Julia was a baby. Before the tournament, Michelle was kidnapped by Heihachi Mishima, who sought her pendant, which is why Julia entered the tournament. Heihachi planned to use her pendant to awaken Ogre in the Aztec Temple, which he was successful in doing. After Tekken 3, Michelle's whereabouts are unknown. While Michelle is not a playable character in Tekken 3, she does appear in Julia's ending, meaning, at least in Tekken 3, she's still alive.
Other Appearances
Tekken: The Motion Picture
In The Motion Picture, Michelle is young and filled with rage because her entire family was murdered by Heihachi Mishima. She is determined to get her revenge, no matter what the odds. This fierce passion is her greatest strength and her only weakness. She fought and overcame Ganryu during the tournament, but was easily defeated by Kazuya Mishima. Just when Kazuya was about to end her life, Jun Kazama stepped in and saved her. Later on, as the Island is blowing up, she is seen being carried by Paul Phoenix.
Tekken Tag Tournament
Michelle appeared in Tekken Tag Tournament as a playable character. She has her moveset from Tekken 2 with many more attacks added to her arsenal. Like other Tekken characters, her movelist was expanded to bring it up to date, as it was lacking in some areas due to her absence in Tekken 3.
Tekken Tag Tournament - Michelle Chang Ending
Ending Description: Michelle is shown sitting on the ground. Julia Chang walks over to her and sits down beside her. Julia and Michelle then begin having an unheard conversation. This ending takes place in Eddy Gordo's second Tekken Tag Tournament stage.
Tekken Tag Special Alliance Partners:
Tekken Tag Tournament 2
Michelle finally returned in Tekken Tag Tournament 2, as a downloadable character for the console version of the game.
Tekken Tag Tournament 2 - Michelle Ending Movie
Ending Description: Michelle is walking around the house while Julia is in the shower. Michelle comes across Julia's wrestling mask and seems to be interested in it. She tries it on, smiling and saying "Just a peek won't hurt..." and poses in front of the mirror before trying a few moves. Julia then catches her mom posing. Embarrassed, Michelle tries to take the mask off, but Julia says she looks great in it and has an idea. The scene changes, showing both Julia (as Jaycee) and Michelle (as a luchadora) beating King and Marduk.
Tekken Tag 2 Special Alliance Partners:
Gameplay
Michelle's moveset comprises mainly of ranged kicks and fast jabs, and while she may be weaker in strength than other characters, many of her attacks can be chained into other attacks, allowing her to rack up significant damage through combos and juggles.
The key to best utilizing Michelle's moveset is knowing which attacks link into which others, and how these attacks can best be used either to counter opponents attacks or force errors from the opponent, leaving them open to further attack. The fact that her attacks cover all heights allows the player to mix up their attack patterns, making it easier to catch opponents off guard.
Michelle's more complex attack patterns can be tricky to learn, making her a difficult character for less experienced players to use, but in the hands of an experienced player Michelle can be a formidable opponent, with her speed and unpredictability giving her an advantage over other, less agile, characters.
Fighting Style
Michelle's fighting style is a mixture of various Chinese martial arts, such as Xin Yi Liu He Quan and Baji Quan, among others. She also uses various wrestling throws; in the early Tekken games, all of her throws were suplexes.
Quotes
Character Relationships
- Heihachi Mishima - Michelle's father was killed by his men some time before the first tournament.
- Kazuya Mishima - Michelle's mother was kidnapped by his men some time before the second tournament, she was also defeated by him in Tekken: The Motion Picture (non-canon).
- Kunimitsu - She, along with Kazuya and Heihachi, sought the pendant that Michelle possessed in Tekken 2.
- Julia Chang - Her adopted daughter.
- Ganryu - He is in love with her in Tekken 2. She also defeated him in Tekken: The Motion Picture (non-canon).
- Ogre - Her tribe recalled legends about him.
- Jun Kazama - Saved her from being killed by Kazuya Mishima in Tekken: The Motion Picture (non-canon).
Trivia
General:
- The kanji for "Chang Kenpo" (中国拳法) translates to "Chinese Martial Arts", which is universally known as "Kung-fu".
- Ganryu, a sumo wrestler, falls in love with Michelle in Tekken 2, but she doesn't feel the same way about him. After retiring, Ganryu built a sumo stable to forget about her. Ganryu falls in love with her adoptive daughter Julia in Tekken 5.
- Despite having adopted Julia and not being her birth mother, they do look alike, which is one of the reasons why Ganryu fell in love with Julia after getting over Michelle.
- Both of Michelle's endings in Tekken and Tekken 2 end with the scene freezing and the word "Fin" (which is the Spanish and French word for "end" or "conclusion"), appearing on the screen.
- In Tekken 6, it is possible to customize Julia to resemble Michelle.
- If Michelle is still alive, she would be 39 in Tekken 3 and 41 at the time of Tekkens 4, 5, and 6.
- She, along with Armor King I (before his death in Tekken 4) and Marshall Law, is one of only three non-playable returning characters in Tekken 3.
- Aside from this cameo, Michelle, along with Jun Kazama, are the only two well-known characters not to have made an appearance nor become playable in the main game franchise after Tekken 2.
- Her sub-boss is Kunimitsu.
- Her sub-boss is Ganryu.
- Michelle is one of the few characters (Heihachi and Yoshimitsu being other examples) to have a Sidestep command, something that would go on to become a standard feature in later titles. While other characters were able to move sideways, it was typically as part of another command and offered little to no evasive benefits.
- She has two secret win animations besides her two default ones.
- Michelle has her praying while she breathes sign of relief after defeating her opponent. This win animation would later became as Julia's default win animations in the main games. The only difference between the two when they were in a praying stance, Michelle is in the standing position while Julia was kneeling on the ground.
- Michelle imitates one of Kazuya's win poses in Tekken 2.
- Julia's Tekken 3 ending is the first cut-scene in the series to utilize voice acting, making Michelle and Julia the first two characters in the series to speak actual dialog.
- In Theater Mode, her surname is incorrectly spelled as 'Chan' in her Tekken 2 ending description.
- Michelle had a third costume.
- Her sub-boss is again Ganryu.
- It is possible to customize Michelle with the luchadora outfit from her ending.
- Her luchadora alter-ego name is not mentioned but some fans call her "Emcee" or "Maycee".
- Michelle's current voice actress, Julie Ann Taylor, narrated Mokujin's Tekken 6 ending.
- In her ending, she wears her primary outfit, but without the Native American headdress, white tiger scarf and jacket.