by Mehr Sharma
Category: Short Comics
Dressing Up
by Renee Chen
Growing up, I always dreaded Halloween. Weeks in advance people would ask if I’d chosen a costume, and I’d always reply,
“Oh, you know, I’m not really into dressing up.”
To be fair, it’s not as celebrated in China – not that I’d really know, having been in Canada most of my life.
Really, I had this weird complex about costumes. I always felt like I wasn’t allowed to dress up as a character who wasn’t Asian, but that left so little to choose from. I couldn’t be just any character, I had to be the ‘Asian version.’ I was one of two Asian kids in my class, and I felt like I stuck out like a sore thumb, even if no one else thought the same.
Dressing up is supposed to be fun, I guess, but I got to play pretend every day. I pretended to understand all the references that all my friends made, I played the role of a ‘normal’ kid. I was already inauthentic, in every way.
–(Years later, way after I’d gotten too old to be dressing up, I mentioned this to a couple of my friends; some Asian, some not.
“Really?” they all said. “I don’t know, I never felt like that.”
As more and more Asian characters are introduced in popular franchises, I begin to wonder where all these role models were when I was a kid.
I wonder how many of the insecurities of my childhood actually had anything to do with people judging me by race, and how much of it was just me.)
Love for Language
Sushi Through The Years
by Aya Rothwell
Tomorrow Mourning
Chimera
by Weiwei Xu
You know 叶公好龙 (ye gong hao long)? That’s my comic in a nutshell. 叶公好龙 is a 4-word Chinese idiom based on a story about a dude who loves dragons soooo much he had them painted on all of his walls. Then one day, a real dragon comes down to thank him for his love, and he freaks out because he only liked images of dragons – the real thing was too much for him to handle. I’m him, and the dragon is China – I feel like a fake fan sometimes because I love being the Token Asian in Canada, but China feels alien to me.
Birthday Unknown
by Kingsbridge
Garlic
by Caroline Hu
One page comic about the scent of garlic and its association with womanhood.
Home
by Lilly Taing
My comic is a small reflection on my experiences growing up Chinese Cambodian American in Los Angeles and living in between these cultures. While I have always struggled to feel like I belong in any one of these identities, it helped teach me how to appreciate the diverse experiences and beliefs that shape United States all into who we are.
Any Place I Know By Heart
by Samera Xu
Any Place I Know By Heart is a collection of short form comics based on interviews with Asian-American creatives. This particular piece came about after a talk with a Cambodian-American photographer friend.
Amuse Bouche
Mixcommunication
by Sean Evans
A comic about the trickiness of second languages and the love that can be communicated through them.
A Matter of Interpretation
by Al K. Teng
A 4-page comic on managing the intersection of cultural heritage, family, queerness, and personal freedom.
Language of the Heart
by Holly Cheng
Open Up
by Sunny Go
Lies My Mother Told Me: Scout’s Honor
by Ashley Lam