American Born Chinese Review

Genuine standout performances come from Ke Huy Quan and Daniel Wu.

Writing with mythological figures can be difficult because they have essentially been pre-loaded for a very long time, and this programme does not break that rule. I’d say that, even among the more earthly personalities, I’m not convinced many of them have much core character. This isn’t always a bad thing, though, because of what the story is trying to accomplish: Wei-Chen and Jin are both searching for themselves and figuring out exactly who they want to be, as are Jin’s parents, who are also trying to figure out who they are in the midst of culturally inspired marital issues, and the more godly characters remain with “function playing,” for lack of a better term; they all obviously have a role to play in this hero’s journey and do

That’s fine, too! They are obviously using the tried-and-true formula of the American coming-of-age story, but they are inserting characters and points of view that many people would not be familiar with. This is also not to say that any actor or actress did a poor job portraying their role. The majority of the performances are respectable, but Ke Huy Quan as Jamie Yao/Jimmy Wong and Daniel Wu as Sun Wukong are two real standouts.

Every thing Quan says resounds that much more authentically and naturally since he frequently plays characters who are the actual manifestation of his Oscars acceptance speech. His character Jamie Yao, a reimagining of the caricature Chin-Kee from the graphic novel, regrets having really played “America’s preferred next-door neighbour” Jimmy Wong on a vintage in-universe television programme. It’s safe to say that the entire concept is somewhat meta because I’m not sure if another actor could have performed the role without coming across as preachy.

And despite being a part of a cast that includes rising stars and Oscar contenders, Daniel Wu by far delivers the best performance in the entire production. Wukong, who is normally portrayed as carefree, conceited, and power-hungry, is depicted in this scene as a horrified father who loses his child as a result of the, um, monkey-like behaviour of his younger self. This isn’t the Monkey King’s first adaptation—far from it, as even American Born Chinese points out—but it might be my favourite because of the way Wu writes about him and the way he performs, which makes him seem like a real person rather than just a war-hungry but attractive trickster god. Even his fighting style occasionally seems desperate, which is never something I’d say about the guy who is perhaps most known to people now as Goku from Dragon Ball.

The fact that the story’s central theme is acceptance of individuality seems to be secured by the program’s decision to keep the name “American Born Chinese.” This is examined through pretty much every character that isn’t portrayed by Michelle Yeoh, who emerges as a goddess of grace and empathy in a largely complete package. The only problem I occasionally had with this was that because everyone was doing it, primary man Jin wasn’t given enough time to feel fully prepared. His character development happens quickly in the final few minutes of both the first and finale episodes, and it happens in a very “inform disappoint” way. As a result, he comes off as a little unrelatable.

My determining factor in everything, even with some uninteresting character possibilities and certain slow-starting styles and concepts, is “did I have a good time?” Watching American Born Chinese was a blast. Though you certainly did not have to be a fan of Mr. Yang, his work, or possibly Chinese fairy tales to appreciate seeing, the most pleasurable aspect was seeing it as a whole as a true love letter to whatever Gene Luen Yang has to do with and displays in all of his comics. The rethinking of the finale, though, was a key aspect I didn’t enjoy. While I won’t spoil everything, I will say that as a fan of the graphic novel, I strongly disagree with it. Insufficient to undo the benefits of the programme properly, but it does give me some pause.

Decision

A well-deservedly renowned graphic novel, American Born Chinese is a delightful, compelling reinterpretation of the classic American coming-of-age story that incorporates Chinese folklore. There are a lot of moving components that happen quickly, but when they’re all put together with fantastic combat choreography, it works in a truly engaging way. The storytelling falls a little short on some of the more enthusiastic ideas it offers, but none of it takes away from the joy or enjoyment I felt watching people discover their true selves through Wuxia god nonsense, all on the strength of exceptional performances from Ke Huy Quan and Daniel Wu.