Gene Luen Yang’s The Shadow Hero, illustrated by Sonny Liew, fluctuates heavily between epitomizing and surpassing preconceived stereotypes about Asian-Americans. Throughout the beginning of the comic, the Chus are painted as the normal, archetypal Chinese family; they own their own convenience store and the marriage between Hua Chu and Hank’s father is one that is arranged and, for the most part, loveless. Furthermore, Detective Lawful’s characterization of the Chinese as “sneaky, slant-eyed bastards” (118) only goes to reinforce how other races define Asian-American archetypes. Additionally, the criminal Ten Grand emphasizes the notion of the submissive nature of Asian-American women when he refuses to select one of his daughters to become the next heir to his empire, instead choosing to select one through means of combat.
However, Yang pushes to move past such labels in his depiction of protagonist Hank Chu and his mother. Initially, Hank is seen as only following in the footsteps of his father, which is to run the family business in a monotonous future. This future changes when Hua Chu is saved from death by the hands of the Anchor of Justice (a Caucasian superhero) and consequentially becomes obsessed with training Hank to become a hero modeled after her savior. Hua Chu’s personality becomes more aggressive, but in a way that motivates her son to do the right thing and fight for the wellbeing of the greater good. She raises Hank to another level of heroism, something that is not seen in typical Western culture. Hank is defiant, strong (both physically and mentally), and is able to fend for himself and for those who cannot protect themselves. In this way, Hank moves past the standards placed upon him by Western culture and evolves into a champion of the Chinese spirit. During the convergence between the dragon and turtle spirits, Hank allows himself to become the leader that his community needs and is willing to fight against crime in a way that isn’t secondary to a main hero. He isn’t a sidekick; Hank stands front in center of the battle against criminals and asserts himself as a force to be reckoned with.
The Shadow Hero serves primarily as a reminder of how Asian-Americans are traditionally seen by society but also strives to redefine what being Asian-American means. Yang understands that some stereotypes are rooted in some form of truth, but allows audiences to see examples of Asian-Americans outside of these boxes. Hank Chu is a physical manifestation of what Asian-Americans, and in fact, what some Asian-Americans are. Hank’s resilience in training and fighting crime supports the stereotype of Asian-Americans of being hardworking, but also transforms that label to not just include intelligence or academics, but athleticism and morale as well. Hua Chu’s hot headedness is derived from the “nagging and overbearing” stereotype of the Asian-American mother, but is evolved to include the emotional capacity and range that she has for her son’s success and safety. It is in these extensions that Yang chooses to recreate certain stereotypes into something that Asian-Americans can be proud to identify with.
