Invisibility, Transnationalism, and Filipino Canadian Comics

Abstract

This article discusses the rich but neglected body of Filipino Canadian comics. After discussing some of the historical conditions that have given rise to this neglect, the article explores four Filipino Canadian graphic novels: Emmanuelle Chateauneuf’s Queen Street (2017); Lorina Mapa’s Imelda Marcos, Duran, and Me (2017); Allan Matudio’s Kasama (2021); and J. Torres and Elbert Or’s Lola: A Ghost Story (2020). These very different texts engage, to varying degrees, shared themes and tropes. Many of them discuss diasporic experience through a transnational turn to the Philippines through the trope of return travel. Some use Filipino folklore to structure discussions of diaspora and authenticity. The article concludes by discussing forms of Filipino Canadian comics other than the graphic novel and suggesting future research possibilities.