Girls Writer Joshua Luna Says Image Comics Refused To Publish His Filipino Memoir

As May -- and by extension Asian Pacific American Heritage Month -- is winding to a close today, [...]

By Russ Burlingame

As May -- and by extension Asian Pacific American Heritage Month -- is winding to a close today, writer Joshua Luna (one half of the Luna Brothers, who have published work like Girls, Ultra, and The Sword) expressed regret at not being able to announce a new project this month, claiming that publisher Image Comics refused to consider a memoir-comic dealing with the Filipino experience in America. The writer made the announcement via a lengthy Twitter thread in which he explained his position, told fans what he had apparently been told by Image, and solicited patrons for his Patreon to help him get the book made. He drew unfavorable comparisons between how the publisher has handled his project and how it dealt with the recent controversy over Howard Chaykin's Divided States of Hysteria.

Luna believes that Image never wanted to publish the book and looked for several excuses to get out of the deal, some of which he characterizes as culturally tone-deaf. Here's what he had to say about the project, with some minor edits made for clarity and formatting (as well as one tweet embedded so you can see its images): "For Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, I'd hoped to announce the release date of Americanizasian, a book collecting my online comic strips about Filipino American & Asian American identity and experiences, but since my publisher Image Comics doesn't seem comfortable publishing it, I need your help.

"When I pitched Americanizasian, a Partner compared it to a female cartoonist's collection of political cartoons—many of which are anti-Trump — and described both of our books as "angry" and with "no story for people to relate to," implying her book was a mistake and mine would be too. The Partner—a white man—said my work should be "more positive" and implied that my Asian-American experience would be more relatable if it was like PEN15, a show that reminds his half-Japanese wife of her childhood (the protagonist is half-white, half-Japanese — I'm neither, I'm Filipino). He showed my strips to Asian-Americans he knew, including one on his staff, to co-sign his belief that my book wouldn't sell. He used their opinions to justify ignoring my online following and every fan who's explicitly told me they want to buy this book (most are Asian/POC and educators).

"He begrudgingly greenlit the book — even though it was clear he didn't want to — and I submitted my cover a month later. I was immediately told it could not be used due to legal concerns over its parodying of trademarked characters. No suggestions were offered to make it usable. I asked for more details, as my strips also parody/criticize trademarked characters. Image insisted the interiors were fine because — unlike a cover — they're not used to promote the book. I offered to modify the cover (the version you see here) but they ignored me and got a lawyer. They then said the interiors were a problem because my criticism of Marvel's anti-Asian narratives was 'so negative' within the book's overall context. Our exchange got heated, as I said I felt they wanted to reject the book all along and were using a legal angle to justify it.

"Two days later, I was informed that my bestselling comic previously published through Image would be removed from Comixology, and any remaining copies burned. Burning books to reduce inventory costs is normal, but I've never been told it would put an end to digital sales. Concerned they were going to erase all my books, I tried again to work with them. I gave them a detailed list of all of my strips with potential legal risks and offered to modify them based on their recommendations, but they haven't been forthcoming with answers or guidance. One cover change the Partner did suggest, though, was to exclude "other characters and focus on you." As a light-skinned Fil-Am, it's important to me to uplift dark-skinned Filipinos, yet he was implying I should erase two characters that are my own IP — that's not a legal issue.

"Yet when a marginalized person speaks truth to power, speaks about the harm of anti-Asian narratives, it's condemned as unpublishable for being 'angry' and 'negative?' Suddenly Image's credo of publishing comics 'no other publisher would dare take a risk on' no longer applies? I was inspired to join Image years ago because two of its co-founders, Jim Lee and Whilce Portacio, are Asian. I wanted to pay that forward and use Americanizasian to invite other creators of color to tell their story, but how can I invite anyone when my own story isn't wanted? I still intend to publish Americanizasian, but I need a publisher who is POC-friendly and supports the book's message and tone. In the meantime, I need your support. I've been putting out these strips for free for 3 years, and was counting on book sales as a source of income. Speaking out about this is risky and terrifying, but silence would only add to the pain this has caused. So if you've enjoyed my comics, please pledge to my Patreon and/or donate via PayPal so that I can continue making them."

Image Comics had no comment on the subject of Americanizasian when we reached out to them earlier today.

This is not the first time in recent memory that content concerns have scuttled an existing publishing deal. Earlier this year, DC Comics cancelled the planned Vertigo series Second Coming after it gained attention in the conservative media and was being protested by Christian groups. The title later found a home at Ahoy Comics.

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