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So, it was brought to my attention that Tony Bedard has seen my post on the Great Ten and responded.
(If it wasn't clear: I am a white American, born and raised in the US.)
"I find your disdain for "cultural poaching" a bit silly. Borrowing from other cultures is what America was built on.
Ah yes, "our poaching is okay because we built our culture on poaching." It is in fact the American Way for the dominant culture to indiscriminately take from others for its own gain, and only remember to belatedly apologize long after the offense has entered the history books.
Just because something has always been done one way does not mean it should not be changed if it furthers a disproportionate power dynamic. And the Great Ten and its ilk most definitely do so by relying on "Eastern Orient" and 'yellow peril' stereotypes.
You can impugn "English-Chinese" food all you want. I think it's delicious.
It should be noted the "English-Chinese food" is a direct quote from Coco Wang, who is far more of an authority than I, as both a native of the mainland and a Chinese creator. It appears this quote is unclear, however, and I shall edit it to make it so. But this fact does not negate that for all English-Chinese food is delicious to an American, is it not the food of the people of mainland China. It is not Coco Wang's food--it is a Westerner's dish.
Of course THE GREAT TEN is "by Westerners and for Westerners." I've never thought it was anything else.
And stop. Right here. Because this is key. A series about heroes who were, according to DC, meant as part of an effort to increase diversity, is really for the West. Diversity is not about the disempowered, is it about us (And yes, I am in this case most decidedly an 'us.'). They and their culture exist to entertain us.
That doesn't mean it can't be a fun read, and if it sparks any interest in China, or a little more respect for their culture, history and accomplishments, then great. I know my own respect for Eastern culture is genuine, but feel free to doubt it all you want.
If it sparks interest, it will almost certainly be an interest which furthers the same mistaken notions which already drive the industry which deprives Chinese creators of their own unique voices. Fans say they see McDaniel's art is seen as having "sort of a manga spin," as if all Asian comics look the same. Mainland Chinese and Hong Kong artists don't have any established comic art styles or anything.
Did the Chinese really wonder why they didn't make KUNG FU PANDA? Seriously? That's hilarious. I mean, that movie never struck me as authentically Chinese, but I enjoyed it anyway.
As did I. Kung Fu Panda was a smart, well-done film which reached a broad cross-section of the age range. The filmmakers had clearly done their homework regarding the Shaw Brothers' pictures as pop culture artifacts. However, this is immaterial to the issue of appropriation. Quality works can and frequently do appropriate.
Most importantly, the Shaw Brothers chose to selectively draw from their culture. They chose the elements to emphasize to sell movies. The American creative team behind Kung Fu Panda, in comparison, were the "outsider [who] sees and appreciates things in a way that the native doesn’t," as producer Kevin Gelder (who is currently working with Beijing animation studio Magic Dumpling) said, and profited from their innovative re-purposing of the Shaws' American-ready material.
However, Gelder also notes that, "at other times the native has an understanding that the outsider can never hope to achieve. To my mind, the best results come from a marriage of the two." It is this meeting of which will produce authentic Chinese voices--a meeting the government now aims to foster, however misguided their methods for achieving it. What a pity if we were never able to hear them.
Also, though as the Onion proved the Chinese government's idiosyncrasies (and there are many) are ripe for mockery, humor at the fact mainland creators find themselves held captive by both their own government and the market forces of the Western-driven Post-Production Economy is at best terribly insensitive and at worst baldly arrogant.
"for a culture to have a voice at all, its works must speak to the issues important to the culture’s consumers." I leave that to some genius in China or Taiwan. The consumers of THE GREAT TEN will be overwhelmingly American and British."
It's easy to buck pass and question the impact of a single work. After all, it's not for Them. When They entertain Us, We are the benefactors. Why does it matter when They won't know?
It matters because We will never expect anything different. "Some genius[es] in China or Taiwan" frequently create comics that are worth critical attention or consideration, but We will likely never be given a chance to read these comics, works like Coco Wang's tuwen book (which she translated and published in a blog) or interesting and unique works like Tibetan Rock Dog.
We want the same stories We have been told first by the Shaws, who knew the magic formula to sell to Us, and then by Westerners like Us who blindly turn candy consumption into theft of the recipe. It becomes a vicious cycle whose sole consideration is the appetites of the thieves.
The makeup of one's readership is never an excuse for ignorance, arrogance, or carelessness.
(If it wasn't clear: I am a white American, born and raised in the US.)
"I find your disdain for "cultural poaching" a bit silly. Borrowing from other cultures is what America was built on.
Ah yes, "our poaching is okay because we built our culture on poaching." It is in fact the American Way for the dominant culture to indiscriminately take from others for its own gain, and only remember to belatedly apologize long after the offense has entered the history books.
Just because something has always been done one way does not mean it should not be changed if it furthers a disproportionate power dynamic. And the Great Ten and its ilk most definitely do so by relying on "Eastern Orient" and 'yellow peril' stereotypes.
You can impugn "English-Chinese" food all you want. I think it's delicious.
It should be noted the "English-Chinese food" is a direct quote from Coco Wang, who is far more of an authority than I, as both a native of the mainland and a Chinese creator. It appears this quote is unclear, however, and I shall edit it to make it so. But this fact does not negate that for all English-Chinese food is delicious to an American, is it not the food of the people of mainland China. It is not Coco Wang's food--it is a Westerner's dish.
Of course THE GREAT TEN is "by Westerners and for Westerners." I've never thought it was anything else.
And stop. Right here. Because this is key. A series about heroes who were, according to DC, meant as part of an effort to increase diversity, is really for the West. Diversity is not about the disempowered, is it about us (And yes, I am in this case most decidedly an 'us.'). They and their culture exist to entertain us.
That doesn't mean it can't be a fun read, and if it sparks any interest in China, or a little more respect for their culture, history and accomplishments, then great. I know my own respect for Eastern culture is genuine, but feel free to doubt it all you want.
If it sparks interest, it will almost certainly be an interest which furthers the same mistaken notions which already drive the industry which deprives Chinese creators of their own unique voices. Fans say they see McDaniel's art is seen as having "sort of a manga spin," as if all Asian comics look the same. Mainland Chinese and Hong Kong artists don't have any established comic art styles or anything.
Did the Chinese really wonder why they didn't make KUNG FU PANDA? Seriously? That's hilarious. I mean, that movie never struck me as authentically Chinese, but I enjoyed it anyway.
As did I. Kung Fu Panda was a smart, well-done film which reached a broad cross-section of the age range. The filmmakers had clearly done their homework regarding the Shaw Brothers' pictures as pop culture artifacts. However, this is immaterial to the issue of appropriation. Quality works can and frequently do appropriate.
Most importantly, the Shaw Brothers chose to selectively draw from their culture. They chose the elements to emphasize to sell movies. The American creative team behind Kung Fu Panda, in comparison, were the "outsider [who] sees and appreciates things in a way that the native doesn’t," as producer Kevin Gelder (who is currently working with Beijing animation studio Magic Dumpling) said, and profited from their innovative re-purposing of the Shaws' American-ready material.
However, Gelder also notes that, "at other times the native has an understanding that the outsider can never hope to achieve. To my mind, the best results come from a marriage of the two." It is this meeting of which will produce authentic Chinese voices--a meeting the government now aims to foster, however misguided their methods for achieving it. What a pity if we were never able to hear them.
Also, though as the Onion proved the Chinese government's idiosyncrasies (and there are many) are ripe for mockery, humor at the fact mainland creators find themselves held captive by both their own government and the market forces of the Western-driven Post-Production Economy is at best terribly insensitive and at worst baldly arrogant.
"for a culture to have a voice at all, its works must speak to the issues important to the culture’s consumers." I leave that to some genius in China or Taiwan. The consumers of THE GREAT TEN will be overwhelmingly American and British."
It's easy to buck pass and question the impact of a single work. After all, it's not for Them. When They entertain Us, We are the benefactors. Why does it matter when They won't know?
It matters because We will never expect anything different. "Some genius[es] in China or Taiwan" frequently create comics that are worth critical attention or consideration, but We will likely never be given a chance to read these comics, works like Coco Wang's tuwen book (which she translated and published in a blog) or interesting and unique works like Tibetan Rock Dog.
We want the same stories We have been told first by the Shaws, who knew the magic formula to sell to Us, and then by Westerners like Us who blindly turn candy consumption into theft of the recipe. It becomes a vicious cycle whose sole consideration is the appetites of the thieves.
The makeup of one's readership is never an excuse for ignorance, arrogance, or carelessness.