Having watched as Christian Westerners abuse his family and village, young Bao learns martial arts and recruits others to go with him to fight the “foreign devils” of the West. He forms the Society of the Righteous and Harmonious Fist, a group who take on the identities of the gods of Chinese Opera as they seek to destroy Christianity in China and kill its followers.
Young Four-Girl joins Christianity after being rejected by her family because she was born on the wrong day (of the wrong month of the wrong year). But it’s a dangerous time to be Christian in China, and soon she faces the fearsome violence of Society of the Righteous and Harmonious Fist.
In this incredibly thought-provoking pair of graphic novels, Yang tells the intertwined stories of two young people on opposite sides of a volatile conflict. In Boxers, Bao takes on the superhero-like identity of a god of the Opera as he endeavors to defeat the villainous Christians, while in Saints, an abused and rejected Four-Girl finds acceptance and belonging (and a real name) with those that her family calls devils. Both receive spiritual visitations: Bao, from the domineering first emperor of China, Chin Shi Huang; Four-Girl/Vibiana, from the earnest Joan of Arc. Yang throws the reader into the middle of the action—in all its shocking violence—bringing to life a time of upheaval and high emotions. By writing two novels from different perspectives, Yang provides a more full understanding and well-rounded view of the events. I read all the overlapping scenes side by side after I finished the books, and I found new insights in every one.
Each volume works as a satisfying stand-alone graphic novel. Both stories are interesting, nuanced, and bring up the kind of questions of character, morality and motivation that make a story interesting. But together, they are not only a story of the Boxer Rebellion, but an examination of the idea of sides and war. Is there a good side and a bad side at all? Who are the heroes—or are there any? Who were the protagonists of the Boxer Rebellion?
This is a fascinating question that Yang asks, but I think my love for the books is more about the characters—Bao and Vibiana—than anything else. Their journeys, their imperfections, their youth and immaturity (because many Boxers were just teenagers), their character, and perhaps most powerfully, their deaths had a profound effect on me.
I also appreciated the artistry of the books. Just look at the covers. Each works individually without the other, but together we see parallels and symmetry, completion of halves, ampersands we didn’t even notice were there. That’s how the content of the books is.
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