![]() Thirty years after I became an American, it happened - and I laughed until my belly ached. Never in a million years did I imagine I would see a similar sequence of events play out comedically in the plot of an Asian American sitcom, but I did. My parents forced a light tone in their voices, declaring that the photo was proof enough that our family had been to the happiest place on Earth. We posed for photos in front of the glorious fountain entrance, my brother and I holding back our own waterworks. When I was nine and my brother was six, my parents drove us hours to Disney World only to turn around after gaping at the admissions cost. Asian parents are different, but not less."įor me, witnessing my own childhood pent-up frustrations - borne from feeling trapped in the corner of my family’s small restaurant while my parents mandated that I complete endlessly tedious stacks of extra algebra and reading homework - depicted on screen comedically was hilariously therapeutic. The way we grew up is not shameful, it's just another way. But having a show like Fresh Off the Boat on ABC like a shift. "As a kid, I often felt like the way my parents do things were awkward or embarrassing, and I still feel that way sometimes at 29. "I came here with my parents when I was 10," recounts Yvonne Su. FOTB is a fantasy, as most sitcoms are - and it resonated with many Asian Americans. Unlike Eddie’s memoir, the sitcom was never meant to be real life. FOTB tackled many of the same struggles I faced in childhood, but everything formed a neat resolution within the half-hour slot, tying up the ends of every episode with a glossy, Mickey Mouse worthy, happily-ever-after bow on top. The show was no longer an adaptation of his memoir, it became something altogether new. And my worries multiplied when Huang publicly lashed out against the show soon after its premiere, calling it "unrecognizable."Īs I watched and continued to enjoy the first season, however, I realized Huang’s point. So I was curious about how such dark and nuanced source material was going to be translated into a half-hour primetime sitcom. It was personal, specific, and it helped me heal. Huang’s raw depiction of domestic violence mirrored my own experiences. The book is dark and was lauded for being edgy and unflinching. Reading Eddie Huang’s 2013 memoir of the same name, which inspired the television series, had been a vital part of my personal reckoning, of facing my own past traumas while embracing my heritage. But from the beginning, for so many of us, FOTB was more than just a show. because being the first Asian American sitcom in decades is so much pressure."įive years ago, I counted down to the premiere of Fresh Off the Boat with unparalleled anticipation, feeling silly to be so excited about a network sitcom. Tria Chang, a 35-year-old fan, recalls how excited she was for the show to air, but admits, "I was also nervous. Fresh Off the Boat's potential to herald a new era of Asian American representation in entertainment left me breathless.
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