Here it is, the discussion we all should be having. A tip of the hat to writer Theresa Celebran Jones:
by Theresa Celebran Jones
One of the biggest events this past week for us Filipino Americans was Friday night’s episode of Grimm. If you grew up hearing tales of the Aswang — a Filipino mythical creature that eats babies — the Grimm episode, “Mommy Dearest,” was likely one of the most terrifying things you’ve seen on prime time this season. It also probably brought you back to the days when your lola would sit you down and tell you all about the Mumu and Tiktik and Manananggal — stories to put the fear in you and discourage you from being too curious.
You don’t need me to even mention what a wonderful, validating thing it is to see a part of your childhood on television after being invisible for so long. It was also incredibly encouraging to read that the writers personally consulted Reggie Lee — the actor who plays Sergeant Wu, the character around whom the episode was centered — for ideas on a Filipino mythological creature. It was a great episode, one that did justice to how truly terrifying these stories were to us as children, and it was nice to see an actual Filipino American community on television.