Mushu is not mentioned in the Chinese legend about Hua Mulan or the Ballad of Hua Mulan, on which the film is based. He was created specifically for the animated adaptation of the film.

Who is Mushu in the original Mulan?

Mushu is the deuteragonist of Disney's 1998 animated feature film Mulan. He is a pint-sized, fast-talking, self-absorbed Chinese dragon and the self-appointed guardian of Fa Mulan.

Why didn't they include Mushu in Mulan?

Though the director shared that Mushu was removed to allow Mulan to better enhance her relationships with her fellow soldiers, his absence may have also been more about not offending viewers, who found Mushu to be insensitive in the 1998 animated feature.

Is the original Mulan historically accurate?

Scholars generally consider Mulan to be a fictional character. Hua Mulan is depicted in the Wu Shuang Pu (無雙譜, Table of Peerless Heroes) by Jin Guliang. Mulan as depicted in the album Gathering Gems of Beauty (畫麗珠萃秀) (Qing dynasty; ca 18th century).

Why is Mulan different from the original?

The Original Legend Doesn't Include Any Mystical Elements

The original Mulan isn't aided by a talking dragon and a lucky cricket as in the animated film. The film also contains sequences of the ancestor ghosts who seem to have magical powers.

The True Tale of Mulan - WooKong

Why did China not like Mulan the movie?

Disney's classic 'Mulan' flopped in China because audiences didn't think the heroine looked Chinese enough. Although Mulan is the only Disney Princess of East Asian descent, the original Mulan cartoon was a massive flop in China.

Which Mulan is more accurate?

Though the 1998 version is based on this same legend, it pulls many Westernized additions out of thin air, like Mulan's pint-sized dragon sidekick Mushu and love interest Shang. While you might not be able to picture the story without these elements, they ultimately make for a more historically accurate film.

Who were the Huns in Mulan based on?

French scholar Joseph de Guignes proposed that the Huns were descended from the Xiongnu, but this theory remains under intense debate. This is further supported by Shan Yu's name, as a "Shanyu" or "Chanyu" was what the Xiongnu leaders were called, much like a Mongol leader would be "Khan."

Who do the Huns represent in Mulan?

The villains of her story are the Huns––a fierce army of Mongolian warriors bent on conquest. Historically speaking, that's complete B.S. First of all, Mulan would have looked more like the Hun than the Han. Her people, the Xianbei, were a proto-Mongolian tribe of horsemen.

Is Shan Yu based on a real person?

Shan Yu was inspired by the real-life Attila the Hun. Though while Shan Yu died by the hands of fireworks, Attila died by choking on his own blood the night he was to be wed to his future wife, Ildico. Coincidently the name of the computer system that was used to animate the Hun army charge was called Attila.

Why was Mushu controversial?

Believed to have been written out of the film due to being "deemed culturally inaccurate and racist", some academics and culture critics defended Disney's decision to remove Mushu, describing it as their attempt "to represent Chinese culture and history in a more authentic manner".

Why didn't Eddie Murphy do Mulan 2?

A clause in Eddie Murphy's contract for doing Shrek 2 (2004) forbade him from reprising the role of Mushu in this film, therefore having his other voice actor Mark Moseley (a man best known for filling in for Murphy's characters like Mushu and Donkey in their TV and Video Game appearances) fill in for this film.

Why is the Mulan movie controversy?

There were complaints about a lack of Asians among the core creative team; cries of sacrilege that Mushu, a wisecracking dragon in Disney's animated version, had been jettisoned; and grumbles that this telling of the Mulan tale seemed to pander to Chinese nationalism.

Who replaced Mushu in Mulan?

Although Mushu and the phoenix are both guardians of the ancestors, and both are stone statues brought to life for Mulan's protection, the phoenix is never a true replacement for Mushu. Mulan and the phoenix never really interact, compared with Mushu's constant involvement in the animated film.

Why did Mushu turn evil?

If any of you watched Mulan 2, for exapmle buying it on DVD, Mushu turns evil after losing his pedastol, so he tries to tear apart Mulan and Shang, which worked.

What does Mushu symbolize in Mulan?

Also, the fact that Mushu is a dragon may be a nod to the fact that, while Mulan is a mighty force on her own, she requires a little bit of guidance to be whole and achieve her goals. Ultimately, this would mean that Mushu couldn't awaken the Great Stone Dragon because it was awake all along.

What was historically incorrect about Mulan?

Mulan's Feet Were Not Bound

Disney never shows this practice, although it is assumed in the ballad that she unbound her feet before heading off on her journey into the heat of battle. This is definitely one of the biggest historical inaccuracies in Mulan but was left out for understandable reasons.

Are Huns and Mongols the same?

The Mongols and the Huns are distinct peoples. The Mongols unified in Mongolia during the early 13th century and quickly established the world's largest-ever continuous land empire. In contrast, the Huns invaded Europe in the 4th century AD and established the Hunnic Empire in Central and Eastern Europe.

How did they know Mulan was a girl?

Mulan (disguised as Ping) was injured while in a battle in the mountains from when she got slashed with a sword by Shan Yu (the villain) and then while she was recovering from her injuries, her bandages on her chest showed who she really was.

What true story is Mulan based on?

However, many people forgot one important fact. Mulan is based on a real Chinese legend! The inspiration for Disney's Mulan is taken from the legendry warrior Hua Mulan and her story in the “Ballad of Mulan”.

How many Huns were killed in Mulan?

After Mulan sets off an avalanche with a rocket, only six of those Huns survived. Shan Yu is later killed, but by Mushu rather than Mulan (although she did play an instrumental role in Shan Yu's defeat, of course). In total, Mulan's final kill count is 3,994.

Are the Huns in Mulan the Mongols?

They are the Rouran, not the Mongols (exclusively). In those times, especially the nomadic confederations like the Huns, were multi-ethnic. Meaning, that there were Mongol, Turkic and even Iranic-speaking tribes among them - even Han-Chinese.

Why did Mulan 2 get negative reviews?

The biggest issue is this film features way less action than it's predecessor and way less Mulan (she practically disappears in the middle of the film). Mulan's bickering with Shang is also very badly written.

Is Mulan based on Joan of Arc?

Joan of Arc seems outwardly similar to Fa Mulan, as they both donned male guise to assist them in joining/serving in their respective royal armies at times when their homelands were threatened, however, the latter preceded the former by nearly a thousand years (albeit only as an epic poem) and thus shares no direct ...

Why did they change Mulan's last name?

Mulan's surname is tweaked from Fa, the Cantonese pronunciation of her name, to Hua, which makes it truer to the name of the original ballad. However, both names have the same basic meaning.