The Chinese term “manhua” (漫画) is commonly used in Hong Kong to mean “cartoon” or “comics”. Manhua, in Hong Kong today, also refers to “lianhuantu” (連环图) a Chinese term that means picture books featuring a sequence of Chinese line art accompanied by prose, telling stories about traditional characters. These stories have typically been of the martial arts and kung fu genres.
One only has to glance through the pages of the Eisner-Award winning “The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye”, by Sonny Liew, to see the development of comic book art in Asia over the last several decades. True, the titular character created by Sonny is fictional – but Chan Hock Chye’s journey illustrates the myriad influences that have flowed into the region over the years, and some ways in which they were adapted and transformed by local culture.