On Dec 7th, the animated movie “Me and My Winter Games” officially announced its release date. Along with the announcement, there is a poster and a trailer showing that many classic animation characters in China will appear in the movie.
Sun Wukong from the Havoc in Heaven (1961) is the most iconic animation character in China. Many Chinese people see the Sun Wukong as an invincible hero and a symbol of resistance against authority and tyranny. Havoc in Heaven is an award winner and a milestone in the Chinese animation industry. The character design of Sun Wukong affects many works in the past decades, and it is still one of the most classic designs of the beloved Monkey King.
The design of Sun Wukong was modified several times before they decided to use this one.
The 1980s are considered a “golden age for the Chinese animation industry” by some people. TV series like Black Cat Detective and Hulu Brothers are popular memories from the 80s and 90s in China. Kids, especially boys, dreamt of becoming a police detective just like the Black Cat Detective in those days. Hulu Brothers are still popular today due to multiple memes and re-creations around them. One well-known meme is “Teamplay like the Hulu Brothers”. It refers to a group of people who attack the enemy separately, then gets defeated one by one, just like the story in the TV series.
They soon overwhelmed the enemy when they concentrated their power in the last episode.
The movie is not going to stay in the past though. There are also friends for the young people and kids of today. Bonnie Cubs, the lower-age version of Bonnie Bears will join the movie. They have been loved by kids since 2012 and have achieved a $516 million box office gross from their existing 7 movies.
It surprised some people with its box-office success.
The other interesting title is Non-Human: Fei Ren Zai. It is a relaxing comic about traditional Yaoguai characters trying to live in modern China like normal young people. And funny things happen all the time. It has an anime with the same title that was released in 2018. In China, comics are often considered a subculture and not always appreciated by the mainstream. Being able to take part in a movie that is officially authorized by the Winter Olympics makes its fans excited.
It also shares interesting moments of the characters on social media.
It appears that “Me and My Winter Games” is trying to attract audiences from all age groups. It is unclear what the story will be yet. But it will be a warm story for families to experience the animated characters each other has grown up with.