| Green Turtle | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Rural Home Publications |
| First appearance | Blazing Comics #1June (1944) |
| Created by | Chu F. Hing[1] |
| In-story information | |
| Full name | Hank Chu (The Shadow Hero) Yong Shi (The Liberty Brigade) |
| Partnerships | Burma Boy Wun-Too |
| Abilities |
|
TheGreen Turtle is asuperhero originally published byRural Home Publications. He first appeared inBlazing Comics #1 (June 1944),[2] and was created by Chinese-American cartoonistChu F. Hing.[3] While the original run of the character lasted only five issues, the Green Turtle is notable for two factors. First, during WWII, the stories represented the Chinese in U.S. popular media as heroic partners fighting theAxis. One issue begins with the banner 美國及中華民國 (the United States united with the Chinese Republic), and features a U.S. general joining Chinese guerrillas in battle.[4] During the war, U.S. depictions of the Pacific theatre were typically racialized; the "Yellow Peril" stereotypes applied to the Japanese were originally anti-Chinese[5] and portrayed Asians as racial enemies of Western civilization.[6][7] Second, the character is often identified as the first Asian-American comic book hero. These factors inspired a contemporary miniseries on the Green Turtle,The shadow Hero, byGene Luen Yang, whoseAmerican Born Chinese was the first work in a comics format to be nominated for theNational Book Award.[4]
The superheroic Green Turtle, battling Japanese forces in wartime China, appeared in the first five issues ofBlazing Comics (June 1944-March 1945)[2] before it was discontinued after six issues and later fell into thepublic domain."[8]
The Green Turtle aided the Chinese inguerrilla warfare against the Japanese invaders inWorld War II. He wore a green cowl and a cloak with a turtle-shell design.[9] Most origin stories around the comic say that Hing initially wanted to make him an overtly Chinese hero, but his publisher would not allow this, believing there would not be a sufficient market for an Asian superhero, so Hing never drew the character without his mask. He had a sidekick, Burma Boy, a young beggar whom the Green Turtle rescued from execution by the Japanese army.[10] He also had a manservant, Wun-Too.[3]
Chinese people refer to it as Ching Quai (青龜), Green Turtle inMandarin Chinese.[11]
The Green Turtle's secret identity was never revealed, and readers never saw the character's face without a mask,[12] Gene Luen Yang's The Shadow Hero gives him the identity of Chinese-AmericanHank Chu living in theChinatown of a fictionalCalifornia city of San Incendio.[13]
The Green Turtle as originally written has no special powers but is a skilled fighter and flies a high-tech Turtle Plane.[14] He wears a large, flowing cape with a green turtle emblem, and is occasionally depicted with a huge, shadowy, black turtle silhouette rearing behind him. Though the significance of this is never established in the original series, it could be a visual reference to theBlack Tortoise of Chinese mythology. He also carries a rope tied to his waist, which he uses to jump onto enemies. In addition, he has ajadedagger in a sheath at his side, though he is never shown wielding it.[15]
In 2014,Gene Luen Yang andSonny Liew created a six-issue miniseriesThe Shadow Hero to revive the Green Turtle, with aretcon explaining the turtle silhouette as a spirit who keeps the Green Turtle from getting shot. A trade paperback collecting all six issues was published byFirst Second Books in 2014.[16]
In 2017, the Chinese restaurant chainPanda Express distributed a new comic titledShadow Hero Comics #1 as part of a campaign forAsian Pacific American Heritage Month. Aimed at a younger audience than the previous story, the new comic introduced a partner for the hero: Miss Stardust. Although she appears to be a blonde white woman, she is actually an alien who fled her home planet, placing her in a situation similar to that of the Green Turtle.[17][18]
In 2018, The Green Turtle was reimagined inThe Liberty Brigade, an initiative that brought together public domain characters in new adventures.[19] The project wascrowdfunded byKickstarter.[20] In this version, the hero isYong Shi, an immortal warrior from 13th century China, during theYuan dynasty. According to the new mythology, Yong Shi was blessed by the godsPangu andNuwa after a desperate prayer, receiving the mission of protecting China. Active for over 700 years, Yong Shi also fought during World War II, when he began to fight alongside other heroes in the Liberty Brigade team.[21]
