#THE STORY MOTIF LEGITIMATELY MAKES ME GO RABID

[imminent-danger-came]

LMK Story Motif

Tang: “The thing you need to understand about the old legends, is that the story is never finished. There maybe be no more pages left to turn, but there’s always more to the journey. “

(1x00 A Hero is Born)

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Tang: “It’s nice to know someone is taking in all these stories—pearls of wisdom, DRIPPING from my lips.”

(1x00 A Hero is Born)

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Mirror MK: “UGH, stop that! Listen- every time we get in trouble, we turn to Monkie King or our friends or SOMEONE. They tell us a story, and we find that smidge of motivation we need. Well! Now we’re on our own. It’s just you.”

(2x00 Revenge of the Spider Queen)

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MK: “Wait! I am worthy, definitely worthy! I’m Monkie Kid! Basically the new Monkey King—might have heard of me? You know, the next chapter? I’m totally worthy!”

(2x01 Sleep Bug)

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Totally Not Macaque (TNM): “Haha, what would you like to hear—the Hero suddenly remembered his beloved friend the Warrior? That they lived happily ever after?”

MK: “No! Nah no no no- well uh, yeah! Maybe. Um. Okay, I don’t know why I’m telling a complete stranger this but, I guess...I kind of feel like the Warrior in the story. A little. Is that dumb?

TNM: “I take that as a complement young man.”

TNM: “The tell-tale sign of a good story—that you resonate with it so personally. But I think maybe you missed the point.”

(2x07 Shadow Play)

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Macaque: “Ah MK, you really are dense, aren’t you. Haha, you saw a story about a hero who got handed everything, who didn’t have to work for anything, and you thought you were the other guy? The second the hero got real power, he couldn’t care less about his friends. That’s you bud.”

(2x07 Shadow Play)

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Tang: “Now, any chance at hope lies in the hands of a monkey, and a kid who wishes he was a monkey.”

MK: “Ugghhhh Mr. Tang! Would you quit it?

Pigsy: “You’ve been reading your diary out loud LITERALLY all day. You’re bumming everybody out!”

Tang: “Hey! It’s not a diary, I’m writing the next chapter!”

(3x01 On the Run)

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Sun Wukong (SWK): “Okay! Gather round everyone, it’s Monkey King story time!”

(3x01 On the Run)

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SWK: “Kid, why did you...?”

MK: “Uh, well yeah- I- I was trying to do you in- in the omelet story! Do the weird impulsive Monkey King thing and escape the bad guy!”

SWK: “Well, I mean- Ne Zha ain’t really a bad guy but, did you forget about the part where I got really hurt?”

(3x01 On the Run)

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(3x05 Amnesia Rules)

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(3x06 The First Ring)

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Tang: “But...compared to the great monk, I’m not so...great.”

Pigsy: “You’re pretty great to me tang. Besides, you’re story ain’t over—not yet.”

(3x12 The Corrupted King)

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Tang: “MK, from the moment you picked up the Monkey King’s staff, their stories became our stories. It’s our responsibility to write the final chapter, no matter the outcome. If we do this, we do it together.”

(3x13 Time to Be Warriors)

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Tang: “The curious thing about legends is the way we can continue to be moved by the same stories. We’re comforted by familiar tales of friendship, courage, redemption. At times, the path of the hero might seem unclear, and the stories chaotic and directionless. Sometimes it may seem as though we’ve ended back where we began, but it’s clear to see how much we’ve grown on the journey—for although the story is over, there’s always room on the shelf for another.”

(3x14 Destiny Fulfilled)

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MK: “I wasn’t really gonna slice ‘em and dice ‘em you know, I just- I just thought we looked cool and edgy! But like, what if this is the point in our heroes journey where things get a little bit...darker.”

(4x01 Familiar Tales)

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MK: “You’re telling me that I’m holding THE Journey to the West legend in my hand right now?”

Azure Lion: “That and a great many other tales I’m sure."

(4x02 New Adventures)

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MK: “Alright! Find our friends, defeat the curse, and get back to the good old fashioned story of the week!”

(4x03 The Great Tang Man)

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Tang: “L-listen you! Stop holding onto the past, it’s time to go!”

“Aah! What did I say before—earthly connections can only weight you down? Well, I don’t believe it! Your time with your family was precious, and nothing will ever take that away. The memories we make with the ones we love—they’re what lift us up! Your time here is over, but that doesn’t mean your story is finished—you’re not being cast out or pulled down, you were being lifted up!”

“The next chapter is calling you to start a new adventure, it’s time to answer the call!”

(4x03 The Great Tang Man)

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Tang: “That’s it! This Tang has had it! We’ve been through a bajillion chapters from Monkey King’s Journey to the West, and I feel like we’re no closer to finding Pigsy, Sandy, or Monkey King!””

(4x04 Pig Napped!)

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Subodhi: “A simple creature, with no past, no family, and no name. There is a reason you were at the center of these stories—a reason you can harness the power of the Monkey King himself!”

“Without question, you were not born from the stone as he was! Who or what you are, even I do not know the answer; but, of one thing I am certain, fate has plans for you—great plans, or foul? Time will tell.”

MK: “I- I can’t be! I’m just- I’m just MK!”

Subodhi: “The Monkie Kid?”

(4x06 Show Me the Monster) (Isn’t it so funny that he’s named MK? Like the initials of Monkey King? Haha. It’s so funny isn’t it? HAHAHA. YEAH. I’M HAVING A GREAT TIME. THIS IS SO FUN.)

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Curse MK: “Hey no no I get it man—you want to get back to our monster of the week adventures, get back to our simple missions with Mei, mastering all of Monkey King’s powers and delivering noodles for Pigsy. Right?”

MK: “Yeah. Yeah actually, that’s exactly what I wanna-”

Curse MK: “-But we can’t. Not after all we’ve seen. All we know and all we don’t—*sigh*, right friend?

(4x07 Pitiful Creatures)(THE HERO’S JOURNEY INTENSIFIES. MK IS NOT RETURNING WITH THAT ELIXER)

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MK: No matter what I do, it’s going to lead to pain. It’s like the Lady Bone Demon said—it doesn’t matter if I want to help people or NOT, everything I do it just- it just makes things worse!

Mei: “You’re all stuck up in your own head! None of this is your fault-”

MK: “It’s ALWAYS my fault! Ever since I picked up monkey king’s staff, I-”

(4x08 The Brotherhood)

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Ne Zha: “We should have stood and fought till the end.”

MK: “We didn’t stand a chance against them, if we'd stayed, it wouldn’t of made a difference.”

Ne Zha: “So you’re just gonna stand aside and let Azure become the new Jade Emperor!?”

MK: “There’s only one person who ever stood against the Jade Emperor and lived to tell the tale.”

(4x10 The Jade Emperor)

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Stories, Legends, and Tales.