History YMMV / Mulan2020

* BrokenAesop: While Mulan in the animated film and the original ballad has to struggle and work hard to prove herself, this version has a natural talent thanks to her chi and is immediately a master in everything and even if the movie says that those same traits would be praised in a man, whereas they are scorned in women like Mulan and Xianniang, an attitude that is justly presented as a bad thing, the only woman whi's scorned is the witch, and it happens for justifiable reasons since she uses her powers for evil purposes.

** A [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KSr7PTpMk74 video]] of a French cinema owner going amok and smashing up a Mulan cutout after Disney announced that the movie would be a Disney+ exclusive in most parts of the world.

* LesYay: Mulan and Xianniang are becoming a popular pairing. Xianniang attempts to [[WeCanRuleTogether seduce her to the dark side]] and even tenderly strokes Mulan's sword and brushes her hair out of her face while they fight. [[spoiler:Xianniang even sacrifices herself to save Mulan and dies in her arms.]] Xianniang's name also calls to mind Dou Xiannang, Mulan's fellow ActionGirl and "[[BloodBrothers sworn sister]]" in some versions of the story, itself a relationship with a great deal of HoYay.

* MagnificentBitch: Xianniang is a witch who, exiled from her home due to her great power, seeks to form a new society where people like her will be viewed as equal. Allying herself with Rouran warlord Böri Khan during his invasion of China, Xianniang uses both her powers and battle prowess to help topple China's military garrisons, while also using her shape-shifting abilities to infiltrate the Imperial City and manipulate TheEmperor into gathering troops to battle the invaders. Meeting Mulan in battle, Xianniang sees through her disguise and reveals that the attacks were merely a diversion to draw troops away from the Imperial City. Infiltrating the palace in the guise of the Chancellor, Xianniang tricks the Emperor into leaving the safety of the palace and falling into Böri Khan's trap. Later, upon seeing how Mulan has been accepted by the army despite her gender and realizing that there is a place for people like her, Xianniang aids Mulan in defeating Böri Khan, sacrificing her life in the process.

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter[=/=]TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Xianniang being the main villain of the movie instead of Böri Khan. As ''WebVideo/TheNostalgiaCritic'' [[https://youtu.be/_X6DlQqzQig pointed out in his review of the film]], her character is wasted as TheDragon to Böri Khan, especially since she has so much chi it gives her a wide variety of magic powers. If she were the main villain from the start she could have served as a dark reflection of Mulan, who had to work her way up and earn the respect of her peers to prove them wrong, by using her power to cow and oppress people. If done correctly she'd have been the representation of the dark side of feminine empowerment movements that are led by those who only seek to bully and torment others to their way of thinking instead of actually trying to affect positive changes.

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter[=/=]TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Xianniang being the main villain of the movie instead of Böri Khan. As ''WebVideo/TheNostalgiaCritic'' [[https://youtu.be/_X6DlQqzQig pointed out in his review of the film]], her character is wasted as TheDragon to Böri Khan, especially since she has so much chi it gives her a wide variety of magic powers. If she were the main villain from the start she could have served as a dark reflection of Mulan, who had to work her way up and earn the respect of her peers to prove them wrong, by using her power to cow and oppress people. If done correctly she’d have been the representation of the dark side of feminine empowerment movements that are led by those who only seek to bully and torment others to their way of thinking instead of actually trying to affect positive changes.

* AlternateCharacterInterpretation: Due to Böri Khan not having any interactions with any Rouran women (indeed, there is little to indicate Xian Lang is Rouran as well), some have seen an ethnic-based prejudice on his part towards Xian Lang and Mulan, who is Chinese, in addition to or instead of a gender based prejudice. In the case of Mulan, it even seems to be age based with his use of the words "girl", rather than woman, and "child". Of course, having multiple prejudices just makes him far worse.

* FanPreferredCouple: [[LesYay Mulan/Xian Lang]] is easily more popular than [[ImpliedLoveInterest implied to be canon Mulan/Chen]] on almost every site, due to many feeling that they have better chemistry and Xian Lang's attempts to convince Mulan to join her, before [[spoiler:sacrificing herself to save Mulan]]. It helps that Xian is a fan favorite, while Chen is often seen as ReplacementScrappy for Li Shang.

* LesYay: Mulan and Xian Lang are becoming a popular pairing. Xian Lang attempts to [[WeCanRuleTogether seduce her to the dark side]] and even tenderly strokes Mulan's sword and brushes her hair out of her face while they fight. [[spoiler:Xian Lang even sacrifices herself to save Mulan and dies in her arms.]] Xian Lang's name also calls to mind Dou Xiannang, Mulan's fellow ActionGirl and "[[BloodBrothers sworn sister]]" in some versions of the story, itself a relationship with a great deal of HoYay.
* MagnificentBitch: Xian Lang is a witch who, exiled from her home due to her great power, seeks to form a new society where people like her will be viewed as equal. Allying herself with Rouran warlord Böri Khan during his invasion of China, Xian Lang uses both her powers and battle prowess to help topple China's military garrisons, while also using her shape-shifting abilities to infiltrate the Imperial City and manipulate TheEmperor into gathering troops to battle the invaders. Meeting Mulan in battle, Xian Lang sees through her disguise and reveals that the attacks were merely a diversion to draw troops away from the Imperial City. Infiltrating the palace in the guise of the Chancellor, Xian Lang tricks the Emperor into leaving the safety of the palace and falling into Böri Khan's trap. Later, upon seeing how Mulan has been accepted by the army despite her gender and realizing that there is a place for people like her, Xian Lang aids Mulan in defeating Böri Khan, sacrificing her life in the process.

** [[spoiler:Xian Lang's StupidSacrifice. She is a witch who could use her magic abilities to stir the arrow fired at Mulan off-course or block it non-fatally by transforming into a large flock of birds. Instead, she decides to TakeTheBullet.]]

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter[=/=]TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Xian Lang being the main villain of the movie instead of Böri Khan. As ''WebVideo/TheNostalgiaCritic'' [[https://youtu.be/_X6DlQqzQig pointed out in his review of the film]], her character is wasted as TheDragon to Böri Khan, especially since she has so much chi it gives her a wide variety of magic powers. If she were the main villain from the start she could have served as a dark reflection of Mulan, who had to work her way up and earn the respect of her peers to prove them wrong, by using her power to cow and oppress people. If done correctly she’d have been the representation of the dark side of feminine empowerment movements that are led by those who only seek to bully and torment others to their way of thinking instead of actually trying to affect positive changes.

* AlternateCharacterInterpretation: Due to Bori Khan not having any interactions with any Rouran women (indeed, there is little to indicate Xian Lang is Rouran as well), some have seen an ethnic-based prejudice on his part towards Xian Lang and Mulan, who is Chinese, in addition to or instead of a gender based prejudice. In the case of Mulan, it even seems to be age based with his use of the words "girl", rather than woman, and "child". Of course, having multiple prejudices just makes him far worse.

* MagnificentBitch: Xian Lang is a witch who, exiled from her home due to her great power, seeks to form a new society where people like her will be viewed as equal. Allying herself with Rouran warlord Bori Khan during his invasion of China, Xian Lang uses both her powers and battle prowess to help topple China's military garrisons, while also using her shape-shifting abilities to infiltrate the Imperial City and manipulate TheEmperor into gathering troops to battle the invaders. Meeting Mulan in battle, Xian Lang sees through her disguise and reveals that the attacks were merely a diversion to draw troops away from the Imperial City. Infiltrating the palace in the guise of the Chancellor, Xian Lang tricks the Emperor into leaving the safety of the palace and falling into Bori Khan's trap. Later, upon seeing how Mulan has been accepted by the army despite her gender and realizing that there is a place for people like her, Xian Lang aids Mulan in defeating Bori Khan, sacrificing her life in the process.

** In the final battle with Bori Kahn, Mulan's sword gets destroyed. While it was meant to be sad as it belonged to her father, Mulan's [[DullSurprise lack of reaction]] kind of undermines it.

** Many fans dislike the change of Shan Yu. Instead of being one of the few male characters who ''isn't'' sexist, Bori Khan is pretty much the film's ''personification'' of misogyny. It comes off as unnecessary, [[{{Anvilicious}} as if the film's message against sexism]] is damaged by its main villain not being sexist.

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter[=/=]TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Xian Lang being the main villain of the movie instead of Bori Khan. As ''WebVideo/TheNostalgiaCritic'' [[https://youtu.be/_X6DlQqzQig pointed out in his review of the film]], her character is wasted as TheDragon to Bori Khan, especially since she has so much chi it gives her a wide variety of magic powers. If she were the main villain from the start she could have served as a dark reflection of Mulan, who had to work her way up and earn the respect of her peers to prove them wrong, by using her power to cow and oppress people. If done correctly she’d have been the representation of the dark side of feminine empowerment movements that are led by those who only seek to bully and torment others to their way of thinking instead of actually trying to affect positive changes.

* OvershadowedByControversy: In the Western world, the film was overshadowed by controversies related to its main actress and Disney's collaboration with the Chinese government, during a tense time in relations between China and the US. First, lead star Liu Yifei shared an image posted by the official Communist Party newspaper ''People's Daily'' which implied she supported crackdowns by police against anti-extradition protesters in Hong Kong, which led to Yifei dropping out of the 2019 D23 Expo. Then, months prior to the film's release, it emerged that Disney had collaborated with four government agencies and the [[BackedByThePentagon public security bureau]] in the region of Xinjiang, where the government is accused of carrying out an ongoing campaign of cultural genocide against the Muslim Uyghur population. The end result was a film accused by some of being Chinese nationalist propaganda and [=#BoycottMulan=] became a popular hashtag. Meanwhile on the other side of the fence, Chinese audiences accused Disney of appropriating Chinese culture. The backlash got so great, that the Chinese government [[BannedInChina actually halted all coverage of the movie for a time]]. Then the UsefulNotes/COVID19Pandemic hit just prior to its March 2023 release date.

** Many viewers have commented on Tzi Ma's resemblance to UsefulNotes/XiJinping. [[Franchise/WinnieThePooh Wouldn't be the first Disney character either.]]

* OvershadowedByControversy: The film was overshadowed by controversies related to its development and Disney's collaboration with the Chinese government. First, lead star Liu Yifei reshared an image posted by the official Communist Party newspaper ''People's Daily'' which implied she supported violent crackdowns by police against pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, which led to Yifei dropping out of the 2019 D23 Expo. Then, after the film's release, it emerged that Disney had collaborated with four Chinese [[PropagandaMachine propaganda departments]] (listed in the end credits as "[[NonindicativeName publicity departments]]") and the [[BackedByThePentagon public security bureau]] in the region of Xinjiang, where the government is carrying out an ongoing campaign of cultural genocide against the Muslim Uyghur population. The end result was a film accused by some of being Chinese nationalist propaganda and [=#BoycottMulan=] became a popular hashtag. The backlash got so great, that the CPC [[BannedInChina actually halted all screenings of the movie for a time]].

* ReplacementScrappy: Both Commander Tung and Chen Honghui are seen as this next to Li Shang. Given that Shang is one of the most well-liked of the male love interests in Disney canon (being a RatedMForManly character who's also AmbiguouslyBi and a MrFanservice), they had a lot to live up to, and generally, Tung comes across as forgettable, while Chen ends up with all of Shang's bad traits and few of his good ones. The loss of the SweetOnPollyOliver elements hurt Chen particularly badly, as it means he goes from hating Mulan to loving her with the primary change in-between being the revelation that she's been lying to him, while Shang's relationship with Mulan had a clear arc to it.

* ReplacementScrappy:
** Fans have felt this way about Bori Khan when compared to Shan Yu. While both are fairly one-dimensional villains, Shan Yu was loved partly because he was one of the few characters in the film who ''didn't'' act sexist towards Mulan, as a subtle but clever reference to how the Xiongnu in that time period allowed women to train and fight along with the men; Bori Khan, on the other hand, is a blatant and unrepentant StrawMisogynist, a character trait that was criticized for [[{{Anvilicious}} seemingly only being there to push the "girl power" message as much as possible]]. Additionally, Shan Yu had a lot of clear dignity and was a NoNonsenseNemesis, which made him threatening if nothing else, something Bori Khan can't boast as much.
** Both Commander Tung and Chen Honghui are seen as this next to Li Shang. Given that Shang is one of the most well-liked of the male love interests in Disney canon (being a RatedMForManly character who's also AmbiguouslyBi and a MrFanservice), they had a lot to live up to, and generally, Tung comes across as forgettable, while Chen ends up with all of Shang's bad traits and few of his good ones. The loss of the SweetOnPollyOliver elements hurt Chen particularly badly, as it means he goes from hating Mulan to loving her with the primary change in-between being the revelation that she's been lying to him, while Shang's relationship with Mulan had a clear arc to it.
** Hua Zhou is considered a vastly inferior follow-up to Fa Zhou of the original. Not only does this version lack the original's defining father/daughter bonding moment, where he reassures Mulan that failing at the Matchmaker's does not mean she's ruined - this remake's updated version of that is just exposition where he tells her to bring honor to the family.

** Mulan being TheChosenOne instead of becoming a greater warrior through hard work and intelligence was also met with a lot of criticism. In the original film, Mulan was not a strong warrior, she was just a normal person who joined the army to save her father from doing so, and had to survive by getting stronger, both physically and mentally. The new movie makes Mulan a gifted fighter from a young age with the ability to use Chi to give her essentially "superpowers" who can best other warriors in open combat. Many felt this [[MarySue change created a less interesting and relatable character, who doesn't actually need to try hard and prove her abilities since she's practically perfect from the start]]. This undermines the message of empowerment as it could be read as "you're special only if you're born this way" rather than "anyone can become special if they believe and work hard to become it".

** Mulan being TheChosenOne instead of becoming a greater warrior through hard work and intelligence was also met with a lot of criticism. In the original film, Mulan was not a strong warrior, she was just a normal person who joined the army to save her father from doing so, and had to survive by getting stronger, both physically and mentally. The new movie makes Mulan a gifted fighter from a young age with the ability to use Chi to give her essentially "superpowers" who can best other warriors in open combat. Many felt this change created a less interesting and relatable character, who doesn't actually need to try hard and prove her abilities since she's practically perfect from the start. This undermines the message of empowerment as it could be read as "you're special only if you're born this way" rather than "anyone can become special if they believe and work hard to become it".

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/ TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Xian Lang being the main villain of the movie instead of Bori Khan. As ''WebVideo/TheNostalgiaCritic'' [[https://youtu.be/_X6DlQqzQig pointed out in his review of the film]], her character is wasted as TheDragon to Bori Khan, especially since she has so much chi it gives her a wide variety of magic powers. If she were the main villain from the start she could have served as a dark reflection of Mulan, who had to work her way up and earn the respect of her peers to prove them wrong, by using her power to cow and oppress people. If done correctly she’d have been the representation of the dark side of feminine empowerment movements that are led by those who only seek to bully and torment others to their way of thinking instead of actually trying to affect positive changes.

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/ TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Xian Lang being the main villain of the movie. As ''WebVideo/TheNostalgiaCritic'' [[https://youtu.be/_X6DlQqzQig pointed out in his review of the film]], her character is wasted as TheDragon to Bori Khan, especially since she has so much chi it gives her a wide variety of magic powers. If she were the main villain from the start she could have served as a dark reflection of Mulan, who had to work her way up and earn the respect of her peers to prove them wrong, by using her power to cow and oppress people. If done correctly she’d have been the representation of the dark side of feminine empowerment movements that are led by those who only seek to bully and torment others to their way of thinking instead of actually trying to affect positive changes.