Marvel's excessively anticipated "Infinity War" event is just around the corner. 10 years in the making, every installment into the expansive Marvel Cinematic Universe has led to this. The titan Thanos is finally making his entrance, and based on the trailers and teasers Marvel has tickled us with, it's sure to be a spectacle.
And while I may not have tickets to see a midnight showing, I'll be one of those who sees it again and again and again.
While I've never hid my love of Marvel's many cash cows, one thing I have shied away from is sharing my growing dissatisfaction that's been festering. Marvel has a serious problem with Asians.
I've touched on this before in my article praising "Black Panther," but I haven't gone into much detail. It's also worth disclaiming here that blaming Marvel for these issues isn't entirely fair, as much of this critique falls on the shoulders of Hollywood as a whole.
I've spent a lot of time trying to think of heroes or characters in the MCU that are Asian, and no I'm not counting "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." (sorry Ming-Na Wen). I've struggled to come up with many, and those that are relevant are relegated to sidekick status or are under-utilized.
"Infinity War" will feature Mantis from the "Guardians of the Galaxy" franchise and it seems like Wong from "Doctor Strange" will at least have a small role to play in the film, but one character might be accidentally racist and the other doesn't receive the full hero treatment.
And don't worry, I didn't forget about Ned from "Spider-Man" either. His go-to guy in the chair portrayed by Jacob Batalon is a wonderful point of levity and I'm glad he'll be there too.
But with each installment into the MCU, it seems more and more like Asians aren't expected to play leading roles. "Big Hero 6," the Disney Animated film was the closest we came, but the film was heavily Americanized being set in the fictional San Fransokyo, a bastardization of San Francisco and Tokyo.
Now I'm not saying that Marvel is the only studio to blame for this, and this concept of Asian Erasure is nothing new.
Just look at the backlash surrounding films like "Ghost In The Shell" or Netflix's "The Outsider" Hell, just Google searching 'Hollywood'+'Whitewashing' yields a nearly endless amount of examples to pick from.
So be it comic relief, sidekicks, guys in the chair, or disposable extras, it seems that Asians are certainly allowed a place in the MCU. It's just not that visible. This is an extension of a problem plaguing Hollywood as a whole, but a studio with as much power and influence as Marvel has the opportunity to change it.
I still love Marvel movies and will continue to see them. I'm not even mad about any of the above, but I and many others recognize a problematic trend that Marvel's fallen into. With their power and influence, they have the ability to change it.
I hope they do.
