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AMERICAN BORN CHINESE REVIEW
Long long ago in a galaxy that can be referred to as our very own, the greatest classic Chinese novels were written. Journey to the West, attributed to author Wu Cheng’en is about the pilgrimage of the Tang Dynasty’s Buddhist monk Xuanzang and his travel to the western regions from Central Asia to India to obtain the Buddhist sutras. This Disney+ series American Born Chinese is not the story of the monk but rather his his protector’s life after the pilgrimage has concluded. Thousands of years have passed and former bodyguard Sun Wukong (Daniel Wu) the Monkey King and current reigning great sage of the heavens has his inner peace disrupted when his iron staff is stolen by his only son Wei-Chen (Jimmy Liu). Falling from heaven to the earth realm, Wei Chen believes a high school harbours a guide that will help him in his quest to find a mysterious fourth scroll that will stop the uprising against heaven led by the Bull King. That guide is Jin Wang (Ben Wang) an insecure high school soccer player who just wants to fit in, hang out with his chemistry partner Amelia (Sydney Taylor) and explore some biology, and lastly hide away from his parents Christine (Yeo Yann Yann) and Simon’s (Chin Han) constant bickering. Created for television by Kelvin Yu and based on the renowned comic book writer Gene Luen Yang’s graphic novel, American Born Chinese tells the story of an ancient important quest and how it all really relates to the discovery of inner peace when dealing with the horrors of high school politics. Bradly and Harmoni hold a pep rally and praise the coming of age awkwardness in a time of social media and memes while Eliot and Kim discuss discuss the excellence of the marketing team pushing Michelle Yeoh and Ke Huy Quan as the leads in a story that’s actually about a teenage dirtbag’s baby. Together the four take their own pilgrimage into the adaptation conversation and how not knowing the text could riddle the journey in convoluted obstacles.
CREATED BY: Kelvin Yu
STARRING: Ben Wang, Yeo Yann Yann, Chin Han, Ke Huy Quan, Jimmy Liu, Sydney Taylor, Daniel Wu, Michelle Yeoh, Mahi Alam, Stony Blyden, David Bloom, Justin Jarzombek, Brian Huskey, Larry Bates, Sophie Reynolds, Josh Duvendeck, Leonard Wu, Ronny Chieng, Rosalie Chiang, Brian Le, Lisa Lu, Poppy Liu, James Hong, Jimmy O. Yang, Stephanie Hsu
YOUR REVIEWERS
Bradly Martin (Screener Squad, Eye on the Prize, Breakfast Pub)
Bradly Martin was born in the united states and grew up on a healthy diet of sports, films, and books. A rather shy lad who kept to himself, Bradly soon discovered the best way to know a person was to know what people liked. Throughout the years Bradly became a fan of many things and a fanatic of none. From Doctor Dre, to Doctor Strange and the who’s who of Whos. From Playstation to the Dreamcast and Marvel to DC. From LeBron James to James Bond and Lord of the Rings to Lord Palmerston (or Pitt the Elder if you agree with Wade Boggs) and is a huge fan of dad jokes and randomly obscure Simpsons references. Armed with a vast knowledge of comics, films, and pop culture. Bradly traveled the world making friends and sharing takes. As a young man Bradly married the love of his life young and grew older every year with each new child brought into the brood. If trends continue, Scientists predict that .2% of Canada (where Bradly and family reside) will be populated by Bradly’s children by the year 2029. You can hear him leading and listening to his favorite critics on the Screener Squad and Eye on the prize and maybe even provide some comments of his own.
Harmoni Anderson (Screener Squad, Highly Suspect Reviews, Unstabletop Gaming)
Harmoni is a mermaid-haired, millennial, rum drinking, Section 31, Slytherin (who’s divorced J.K. Rowling) preschool/nursery teacher and multi genre geek who also loves all things film, tv, fashion, makeup, and an embarrassingly huge BTS stan. Like really embarrassing. As in, mention them and then sit back and watch the insanity. Harmoni likes being able to game and talk movies/TV with people that aren’t 3 feet tall or all that demanding of her. Plus she can curse at us and not get fired….so bonus!
Eliot Nelson (Screener Squad, Staff Writer)
Soaked in the soggy rains of Seattle, Eliot developed a love of sci-fi, movies, cartoons, heavy metal, and all of geekdom. Pursuing his passion for the written word, he got his BA from The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington. He has since worked exclusively in the foodservice industry, like any liberal arts major worth their salt. Eliot wiles away the hours listening to movie reviews, writing his epic sci-fi novel, and consuming as much media as possible. His favorite movies include The Lord of the Rings, City of God, Dawn of the Dead, and Groundhog Day. When not rambling to himself about the ineptness of entertainment executives, Eliot posts infrequently on Twitter and squawks regularly on his podcast The Debasement Tapes.
Kimberly Brown (Highly Suspect Reviews)
Kimberly wants to live in a world filled with blue telephone boxes, speedsters, and ice dragons but through an ironic twist of fate, she’s stuck in this reality where these wondrous things only exist on page or film. Kim’s perpetual desire to consume sci-fi and fantasy media as a teen led her to the study of illustration/design at university to better understand its creation. Currently an Austin transplant, when she’s not wearing her critic hat you can find her pretending to like hiking, fielding questions about her hair or maybe even enjoying a local brew at the nearest dive bar.
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