Meet the
MCU’s first
Asian superhero
Comics expert Amanda Yeo
on the personal and
cinematic significance of
the Shang-Chi solo movieMEET THE
MASTER
WHAT YOU NEED
TO KNOW ABOUT
SHANG-CHIWHO IS HE?
Born in the Hu’nan
province of China,
Shang-Chi is
known as the
‘Master of
Kung-Fu’. Raised
to become a deadly
assassin by his
father Fu Manchu, he
went on to join the
Heroes For Hire, and
later, the Avengers.WHAT ARE
HIS POWERS?
Up until recently, he had
no superpowers; instead,
he is classed as one of
the most highly skilled
martial artists alive.
After being exposed
to cosmic radiation,
he gained the ability
to create unlimited
duplicates of himself.WHAT DO WE
KNOW ABOUT
THE MOVIE?
Destin Daniel Cretton,
director of acclaimed
indie drama Short Term
12 , has been hired as
director, with Dave
Callaham (The
Expendables, Godzilla)
writing the script. Kevin
Feige has said more news
will be announced
post-Endgame.Above: Kung fu
master Shang-Chi.
Here: Director Destin
Daniel Cretton.WHEN IT WAS revealed that Marvel
was fast-tracking a Shang-Chi film, I was
unsure if I was allowed to be excited.
I’ve waited over a decade for an Asian
superhero to headline a Marvel movie.
My teen years were spent buried in comics,
then films based on them. To have a face
like mine included in the world I loved
would be a teenage dream come true.
But hearing it would be Shang-Chi
gave me pause. As a child, I was ashamed
of my interest in martial arts. It felt like
playing into a stereotype. Now, Marvel’s
groundbreaking Asian superhero was to
be a martial artist.
Shang-Chi is the most famous Asian
hero in Marvel comics, yet even some
comic fans may not know the Master of
Kung Fu. The best martial artist in the
Marvel universe, he’s typically seen as a
supporting hero, taking part in temporary
team-ups or teaching Spider-Man or
Domino how to fight without powers.
Born and raised in China, Shang-Chi
was trained since birth to be an assassin,
in defence of his father’s philanthropic
endeavours. However, he eventually
discovered his father was not the
humanitarian he believed but the leader
of an international criminal empire, using
Shang-Chi to kill those who opposed him.
Abandoning his father, he committed to
fighting for justice. He then worked
alongside heroes such as Daredevil and
Iron Fist, and spent some time as an
Avenger. He later gained the power to
duplicate himself, but hand-to-hand
combat is his trademark.
Shang-Chi’s past is marred by
uncomfortable elements in the real world
as well. He was created in 1973 by two
white men as an attempt to capitalise on
the popularity of kung fu films. Further,his father was Fu Manchu, a 1913
pulp novel villain who embodied
the West’s fear of the Yellow Peril.
This history will never go away.
However, giving Shang-Chi to
Asian-American creators — director
Destin Daniel Cretton — gives Asians
a chance to reclaim their narrative.
Born from exploitation, Shang-Chi
is now inspiration for fictional and
real-life Asians alike. One of
Marvel’s most enduring Asian heroes,
he wields an inextricably Asian
power while forgoing othering
mysticism or shame.
Being Asian in the West is
the constant qualification of self.
It’s being too Asian, not Asian
enough, Asian in the wrong way
or at the wrong time. You starve
parts of yourself for approval,
parts that were healthy and
unflawed except in that they
made you different.
Shang-Chi is an
unapologetically Asian hero in
a Western world. His ethnicity
is celebrated and wielded with
power rather than ignored, excused,
exoticised or compromised.
My initial hesitancy is one of the
reasons why Marvel’s Shang-Chi film
is significant. I shouldn’t have been
ashamed to explore my culture.
Perhaps if I had a hero like Shang-Chi,
I might have been bolder.