For me The Shadow Hero was the story of a boy who becomes a hero to defeat the stereotypes that surround the Asian American community. From the beginning, Hank’s life is depicted in a stereotypical manner. The first stereotype I noticed was that he has an American name, Hank, and he is the only one with such a normal name, he seems to be assimilated into American culture. Another stereotype is that his parents had an arranged marriage and were unhappy with each other. Hank’s mother also assumes the role of the stereotypical “tiger mom” who pushes her son to do what she thinks will make him a good man and successful. Later on in the story we see the stereotype that only a man can continue a dynasty that women aren’t fit to rule. And perhaps the most prominent stereotype in the story is that of corrupt Chinese rulers trying to control Chinatown as it’s own government.
Hank as a hero fights against all these racial stereotypes. When he chooses a name he doesn’t pick a common hero name which makes him seem strong and powerful, instead he picks the name Green Turtle which has meaning to him because it is named after his father’s store. In the beginning when his mom forces him to be a superhero he listens to her and tries to make her happy but when she no longer approves of being a superhero he actually goes against his “tiger mom” showing that he wants to go fulfill his own dreams. When he meets Red Center he seems to fall in love with her and he goes out with her even though he doesn’t have his mother’s approval. He clearly doesn’t admire the miserable marriage his parent’s had because they were arranged. As the Green Turtle the most important stereotype he defeated was that of the unjust corruption the Chinese apparently had. They are stereotypically depicted as men who are trying to rule their own community their way despite being in America. The Green Turtle however doesn’t believe in it. When he has the chance to kill Mock Beak and become the leader of a dynasty that rules Chinatown, he does the just thing instead. Instead of killing Mock as a way to avenge his father’s death he arrests him and turns him over to the police showing that justice doesn’t have to be served through bloodshed. The Green Turtle isn’t a hero to his people just because he saves them the bad guys, he is a hero to his people because he shows them in a different light one that is clear of all the racial stereotypes.
