“Ne Zha 2”, the highest-grossing animated movie of all time, has arrived in American theaters, and the timing is nearly too perfect. The Chinese animated film follows the legend of a child, Ne Zha, born into a cursed destiny to let fate decide his future. themes of acceptance, balance and choosing your own path. The story hits close to home for Las Positas students figuring out their place in the world. At Las Positas, students juggle school, work and family, making the struggles of Ne Zha feel less like distant mythology.
The English dub shows how Chinese animation is reaching new audiences. Michelle Yeoh lends her voice, while Aleks Le, best known as Zenitsu from “Demon Slayer”, adds anime-world weight to the cast. For students used to Disney, Marvel and anime, seeing a Chinese myth like Ne Zha on the big screen opens the door to new cultural voices. It also blends into LPC’s own anime culture, where clubs and conversations about Japanese animation are common. Ne Zha proves that storytelling isn’t limited to one region.
That sense of belonging was at the forefront for LPC student Cayden Cho, the secretary of the Asian Pacific Islanders Association club. “One of Ne Zha’s biggest struggles is acceptance,” he said. “Some people coming here for the first time might feel like they don’t fit in. But Ne Zha makes one friend, and that lets him open up to others and build deeper connections.”
It’s a small but relatable moment, finding one friend or joining one club can transform college from isolating to welcoming. Clubs like APIA, Anime Club, and others give students a place to feel represented and understood, just as Ne Zha finds community in his own story.
Cayden also reflected on destiny. “Ne Zha thought his fate was going to lead him down a bad path. But in the end, it brought everyone together. Maybe fate isn’t real. You can change what happens in your future.” For students, that lesson is clear: grades or setbacks don’t determine your whole life.
Other students tied the film to culture. Aidan Mallick, the President of the APIA club, emphasized how stories like “Ne Zha” highlight multiple perspectives: “Different cultures offer different viewpoints. Like eastern medicine and western medicine are so different, but both are valuable. Films like this give people a mindset that isn’t just focused on one way.”
That diversity is reflected every day at Las Positas, where classrooms are already cross-cultural spaces. Stories like “Ne Zha 2” expand that learning, showing that foreign ideas can become familiar and even transformative. Representation matters, and the film is a reminder that LPC’s strength comes from students bringing their own cultures into the mix.
Kimberly Tomlinson, Religious Studies professor, connected the film’s themes to mythology itself. “I think myths enter into some deeper part of our collective unconscious memory. And when they do, the myth itself becomes a transformational story not only for the individual but for groups that come behind it.”
For Tomlinson, yin and yang aren’t just visual style, but philosophy. “We know joy because we know sorrow, we know good because we’ve known evil. So in each of those, they complement the other.”
She also drew from her experience working with the CalWORKs program. “Families often come in without a background for education. By the time they leave, you’ve seen a transformation that changes their own life trajectory and their children’s and that is endlessly beautiful.”
Cayden echoed this with a note on representation. “I think this connects to the idea of the American dream and diversity. Films like Ne Zha share ideas that might feel foreign, but people embrace them once they’re told.”
Ultimately, “Ne Zha 2” and the conversations around it circle back to one idea: change and courage. As Tomlinson put it, “Say yes to the things that scare you. When we step into a new path without knowing what’s ahead, that’s when we discover new worlds that help us move forward.”
At LPC, adventure is happening every day. Whether it’s joining a club, taking a tough class, or planning a transfer, students reflect the same resilience Ne Zha displays on screen. The myth may be ancient, but its lesson: destiny isn’t fixed, it’s written in the choices we make now.
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TOP ILLUSTRATION: Ne Zha 2 is the highest-grossing animated movie of all time, and it provides balance for LPC students. (Illustration by Mel Llamas/Special to The Express)
Andrew Branham is a staff writer for The Express.
