Fresh Ink: An Anthology

In this graphic short story, hand-drawn panel illustrations portray the actions and words. The framing device is a fantasy game that four friends are playing, involving warriors battling undead goblins. Although they’re willing to play a fantasy game with made-up characters, the Game Master, Wujae, feels passionately that the protagonist, Owen, can’t call himself a samurai within the confines of the game because “samurai” doesn’t exist as a class within the game, and “if [they] want to maintain a believable fantasy world, [they] have to follow the rules!” (149). This irony serves to convey Wujae’s cultural insensitivity given that Owen wishes to be a samurai to honor his Japanese heritage. Despite the fact that the game is made up, with undead creatures and a fantasy world, Wujae is unwilling to budge on the inclusion of a Japanese character for Owen’s benefit. As is revealed in his confrontation with Dusty, Owen feels as though he has a right to be represented in their game as a character rooted in Japanese culture. However, the way that Wujae initially dismisses his request, along with his physical confrontation with Dusty, reveals how frustrating it is for Owen not to be represented in these games, even games that he helped invent.

Central to the story are two conflicts that explore The Importance of Cultural Roots as a theme. The first conflict, between Wujae and Owen, angers Owen because Wujae denies his request to be a Japanese character within the fantasy game. The second, between Owen and Dusty (a school bully), occurs when Owen crosses the street to pursue his crush, Kelly Morris, at the party at her home. In the story’s climax, Owen confronts Dusty about how he treated Cam and Wujae and becomes angry when Dusty refers to them as “Kimchi and his boyfriend” (152). This comment, coupled with Wujae’s treatment of Owen during the game in the story’s opening scene, reflects the cultural insensitivity that Owen faces as someone who is half Japanese. In retaliation, he punches Dusty, confronting his ignorance and standing up for himself. The story’s resolution clarifies that Owen’s actions at the party impressed Wujae and gave him insight into what Owen faces because of his ethnicity. Wujae ultimately relents, allowing Owen to be a samurai within the game. Owen’s journey from having his cultural heritage excluded in the game to confronting racism by punching Dusty and ultimately being allowed to play the game as a samurai warrior of his heritage reflects the importance of maintaining and defending one’s cultural roots. Owen realizes that he deserves representation and doesn’t need to deal with culturally insensitive people. His final line in the story, “We’re gonna show ‘em who we are!” (155), reflects this change in Owen. He’s speaking of the game characters while also conveying his personal need to show people who he is: Japanese.