Jeremy Lin Takes On Marvel’s Awesome Hulk For A Match

By Richard Chiu
Jeremy Lin
Jeremy Lin (left) spoke to nearly 2,000 students at Chinese University in Hong Kong. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

Jeremy Lin wows his crowd of "Linsanity" fans but has gone beyond just the court in doing so, after his debut as a character in the Marvel Comics publication of the Totally Awesome Hulk #13.

During a recent interview with ESPN, Marvel comic book writer and film director Greg Pak said he was captivated by the rise of fame of Brooklyn Nets point guard Jeremy Lin and was himself enamored by the "Linsanity" phenomenon that swept the nation.

"I was a nerdy kid who didn't really care about sports, but I was living in New York when 'Linsanity' happened, and it was a mind-blowing experience. I totally got sucked in. I mean the whole city was happy. It was a really kind of an amazing phenomenon. You would see random people start talking about it, " Pak said.

"The more I came to learn about Jeremy Lin, the more I came to admire the guy. He has got a tremendous fortitude and dedication, and he is an incredible underdog story. And I love an underdog story," added Pak, who wanted to portray a real-life role model for comic book fans in the same way they could relate with imaginary superheroes.

At first, Lin - of Asian descent and a practicing Christian - said he was shocked when he heard the news that he will be featured in the Hulk comic series, but somehow felt the need to empower the Asian- American population as well as he embraced the idea of the comic feature. This Hulk series by Pak revolves around the story of a 19-year-old Korean- American nerd genius Amadeus Cho who inherited the powers of the Hulk from Bruce Banner.

"You kind of see how Asians and Asian-Americans are kind of portrayed in films over time. I feel that there have been a lot of barriers, but this is a big step in the right direction. In terms of just making Asians more mainstream [and] not just in the stereotypically Asian way where it is almost like sometimes, it is like the token Asian guy -- you are being made fun of, in some ways you got to be on there with an accent or something like that. It's awesome that [Cho] is this really prominent and masculine figure as well," Lin said.

Lin said he never expected to be part of a character in a comic book, which is why he gave Pak the liberty to present him in the way the Marvel writer deems best.

Lin just returned to playing for the Brooklyn Nets after a hamstring injury that placed him out of commission last month. He was just given a clean bill of health and will be back on the court for the next series of NBA matches.

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