The 2nd Amendment

Self-Depricating Humor

A Story Involving Danny Chen

For those who haven't heard the tragic story of Danny Chen, he was an Army Pvt. in Afghanistan who took his own life last year as a result of intense hazing and racially driven bullying. Well, recently the trial of Staff Sgt. Andrew Van Bockel, who was accused of being the driving force behind the bullying, concluded in a guilty charge. Good news. Looking at a possible maximum sentence of four years and nine months in prison with a dishonorable discharge, Van Bockel was only sentenced to 60 days hard labor (45 of which were already credited) and a rank demotion. He is still in active duty. Meanwhile Pvt. Danny Chen is dead.

Some people argue (mostly assholes and douche bags) that it was not Van Bockel's fault that Chen killed himself and that Chen's suicide was further proof that he didn't have what it took to be a soldier. Others engage in odd deflective arguments about how blacks and Latinos are actually more know to be specifically anti-Asian. And still others begin discussing the intricacies of detecting mental illness.

My point is none of these. My point is this: Blind hero worshiping bothers me. Always has. Just because someone enlists in the military and serves our country does not make them a hero. I refuse to call someone who rapes a fellow soldier a hero. I don't consider soldiers who piss on dead bodies heroes. I realize that the percentage of soldiers who act in this way represents the tiniest fraction of the military but the same can be said about the number of terrorists versus the numbers of Muslims but I'm positive more people find the latter an easier conclusion to jump to.

Once we go down a path of blindly accepting the righteousness of any given group, we set ourselves up for justifiable injustice. Always treat an individual as such and never feel obligations to any group. To me, the story of Danny Chen is sadly typical and the shock that people expressed over it illustrates how blind people can be to these kinds of situations.

Space: Epilogue

Homeward Bound

Exactly the Same But Completely Different

Reflections Across Dimensions

Charity Auction - 3' tall LEGO Army Vet

I'm auctioning off the 3' tall LEGO Army Vet statue I made for the Death of Childhood show and giving all the proceeds to the Wounded Warriors Project to commemorate Veterans Day. This is only a three day auction (ending Sunday) and multiple bids have already been placed. Lets get that as high as it'll go, give the big guy a good home and raise some money for a good cause. Thanks!

Shattered: Behind the Scenes by Tak Toyoshima

 When I was contacted by the Secret Identities crew to contribute a story to their second graphic anthology, Shattered,  I jumped at the chance. Then when they sent out a call to help with some inking chores I again jumped at the chance and got to ink a 10 page Shaolin monk vs. zombies story called Qi Lai!, pencilled by Dheeraj Verma and written by Roger Ma (Zombie Combat Manual). Then when the SI guys reached out to see if someone could help with the tail end production of the book to assist prepping files, paginating, tracking edits and sending it off to The New Press for final proofing I was all in.

Now, I don't write this to make you think, "Boy, those guys sure needed a lot of help! What a bunch of lazy drunks!" No, I wrote it to point out what a massive and coordinated undertaking it was to put this book together. To make a point that ALL the people who took part in this book did so on top of their already busy schedules and found the time to contribute because they understood the importance of this project and have a passion for not only sequential art but of the overall mission of Secret Identities. All this despite the fact that they actually are a bunch of drunks. Just not lazy ones.

My story, Occupy the Ethnic Food Aisle, is the touching story of a jar of Ah-So Chinese barbeque sauce struggling with its segregation from the rest of the "normal" food in the supermarket. As it questions why it can't be shelved next to other sauces and condiments like ketchup and mustard, it is challenged by the manipulative and opportunistic Nissin Cup-o-Noodles who holds a secret to Ah-So's past that ... well, you'll just have to pick up a copy of Shattered to find out.

Please read the back stories from other Shattered contributors:
Adam Warrock
8Asians
Wendy M. Xu (Angry Girl Comics)
A.L. Baroza
Jenn Fang (Reappropriate) and Ace Continuado
Phil Yu (Angry Asian Man) and Jerry Ma (Epic Proportions)
Bao Phi and G.B. Tran
Amy Chu and Larry Hama

Screw the 4th wall

Meet Your Maker

Boston Asian American Film Fest

This week the hard working folks at the BAAFF will be holding their film fest from 10/25 to 10/28  AND I HAVE A PAIR OF TICKETS FOR YOU FOR OPENING NIGHT at the Brattle Theater and will feature the east coast premiere of White Frog, and will be attended by actor Booboo Stewart (Twilight), producer/writer Ellie Wen and producer (the one and only) David Henry Hwang (Chinglish, M. Butterfly)! All attendee will receive an autographed memento!

All you have to do is be the first person to e-mail me a link to a picture of a white frog and you and a friend are in!

If you don't win you should still definitely go. Opening night tickets are $20 adv/$25 at the door.

The Way Home

There is a way home ...

SAM Strikes Back

Moment of truth

Double Exhibit at MOCA

On September 27 the Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA) will open a double exhibit highlighting Asian imagery and artists in comics from the past and today. MOCA is also working with the New York City Tourism Bureau to help promote the event with bus kiosk advertising and street banners like the one above.

Marvels and Monsters: Unmasking Asian Images in U.S. Comics, 1942-1986
Recently donated to the NYU Fales Library & Special Collection, Marvels and Monsters is drawn from what is widely considered the world’s largest archive of comic books featuring images of Asian and Americans, painstakingly collected over four turbulent decades (1940s to 1980s) by science fiction author and cultural studies scholar William F. Wu. The compilation offers a unique glimpse into America’s evolving racial and cultural sensibilities, as depicted by wartime images of racist propaganda and xenophobic anxiety over Chinese immigration to lasting archetypes which continue to define America's perception of Asians today.

and

Alt.Comics
Showcasing the efforts of Asian American artists to establish a new and authentic identity by subverting stereotypes and juxtaposing disparate images. The exhibition focuses on alternative and independent comic spaces, particularly in the hubs of San Francisco and New York, which produced many of the most prominent artists in the independent scene. The exhibition features work by: Gene Luen Yang, Derek Kirk Kim, Thien Pham, Lark Pien, Jason Shiga, Hellen Jo, GB Tran, Jerry Ma, Larry Hama, Alex Joon Kim, and Christine Norrie.

This exhibition includes excerpts from Secret Identities Volume 2: Shattered, a follow-up to the groundbreaking compilation using the comic format “to upend, re-envision, re-imagine – to shatter – the distorted and negative images that have shadowed Asian Americans since the earliest days of our arrival in this country.”

I'll have my original pages from the story I did in the upcoming Secret Identities Volume 2: Shattered coming out later this year.

Not good

That's Gonna Leave a Mark

Savage Battle to the Death?

Enter the Kaku

Gundam Style!

Sic 'em, George!

After a day of seeing two dumbass anti-Asian videos (one of a comedian getting punched in the face by an Asian named George and the other of Olympian Ryan Lochte's sister) I decided the two should meet. And a meme avenger is born!

Is this the end?

Uncle Branson Wants You ... But Not You

Comic Book Club LIVE!

Thanks to everyone who came out to ImprovBoston. For those who couldn't make it here's the podcast of the show. Had a great time with Joe Quinones and the CBC boys.

Enter Richard Branson

Space Sugar Daddy

Umm...uhhh...

Astrophysicatheist

And who the hell are you?

There is no God

Dislike

Since Facebook won't create a dislike button, here's one you can use in the comments field. Just copy this url and paste it in the comments field:

http://bit.ly/M1ThLW

The One Thing

Reconstituted

Finally We Meet

Close Friends...Really Close

In Space, No One Can Hear You WTF

The Trip Just Got Trippier

(Water) Bears in Spaaaaccceee!

One of my favorite things to do is to research things for story ideas. When I stumbled across the lovable tardigrade I fell in love. No, I'm not going to marry it. One of these things was dehydrated (it then retracts its legs and goes into a dormant stage) in some vegetation and when a couple of drops of water were added, they popped back to life...DECADES LATER! These things survive boiling, freezing, radiation and the vacuum of space. They make roaches look like pussies!

The Battle to Save the Universe Begins

Anybody got any papers?

My official review of The Avengers

It was smashing.

Saying goodbye?

Looks like we've got company.

Off to ... Nibiru?

Nibiru is a planet, supposedly tucked away beyond Pluto, that is, again supposedly, on a collision course with Earth. At least it is according to someone named Nancy Lieder, founder of ZetaTalk. The existence of Nibiru is based on interpretations of Babylonian and Sumerian astrology and a lot of this end of the world stuff that's supposed to happen this year is based on it.

Whether or not this has any truth in it at all is questionable but I do know that if John Cusack survived it, so can we.

Interview/Multimedia Presentation

Molly Saito, a student at Boston University, put together this great multimedia presentation for one of her classes. She started documenting at the Asian Americana art show and finished up at the MFA artist demos. Visit her site and tell her she did a great job!

Jeremy Lin Speaks to Stuyvesant High School

Jeremy Lin was invited to speak at my old high school. This solidifies Jeremy Lin as the nerdiest dude in the NBA. Ever. I love it. Go Peg Legs!

MFA Demo

Had a great time at the MFA. Thanks to everyone who came. Here are some pics from Wednesday.

BLAST OFFFFFFUUUUCCCCCKKKKKKK!!!

Well, the boys are off to their adventure into the stars. Who knows what they will encounter? I'll let you know when I figure it out. To infinity and beyond!

Nerding Out About Space

There's so much ridiculously cool technology being developed right now that it's hard not to jump the gun, assume they work and some how integrate them. So that's pretty much what I'm doing. If Star Trek can plant the seed for cell phones with a communicator then maybe a flying space port-a-potty will ignite someone's imagination to create one. Any takers?

My Birthday Wish

So tomorrow is my birthday. I usually don't ask for anything but this year I have a simple request: I'd like you to draw SAM. He can be doing anything, saying anything, wearing anything, riding anything, smoking anything, eating anything etc. It can be a sketch, a napkin scrawling or a full fledged illustration or comic. Any time I see someone take on the big eye browed one I always get a kick out of it. Message me on Facebook or e-mail to tak@secretasianman.com.

So there you have it. Good luck!

Meet Ripley