#jttw crew

[swk-mac]

The movie of Monkey King has so much potencial... I do hope Netflix works of the sequel or a TV show. What do you think?

Hi anoon

Me too, to be honest I see the potential of it having a sequel, they have a lot of material to tell the adventures they could have, more demons, more stuff, they could tell what happened in JTTW but with some changes because it's an adaptation, it's a good idea, I want to see him again with the JTTW crew, and I feel it would be funny to see their dynamic and the troubles they can get into hahsahsb, I just can see another funny scenes with them, like what happened with the first movie, where the attendants of the dragon of water (Ao Guang I think) were disguised as bees ahshahssh

[angstandhappiness]

What an absolute blast! But I think you missed one of my question on how did Tripitaka find Wukong, who's inside a mountain instead of just under it, and why did he release him? Especially if the implications is that Guanyin didn't exactly chose the companions beforehand. I will definitely specify which verse of JTTW I refer to next time.

Hi! Me again. Do you have any headcanons about the JTTW gang? I'd LOVE to hear all of them: the fluff, the funny, and the angsty. How did you think Tripitaka found SWK when he's inside the mountain itself instead of under it, and why? Why did Ao Lie reveal himself in his human for to the two at the bridge? In the book the trio met Zhu Bajie when the father of the the pig's wife requested their help to bring his daughter back, it even referenced this in the game, but in the flashback they met at Zhu Bajie's food stall where it seems like Trip was complaining about the food to the chef. How do you think the showdown between Sha Wujing and the quartet went down in this verse? Who do you think Wujing challenged first?

hey! sorry i'm replying to these a day late T^T

so imma assume you meant the jttw gang in the context of lmk bc any headcanons of them within the book is a tough one for me bc i'm still reading through it and trying to differentiate between what's a translation issue and what's "canon" is a time :)

anyway,

i think i mentioned this before, but i love the idea of Sun Wukong finding comfort in Tripitaka and Ao Lie out of the rest of the companions post-journey. like if he were ever in a slump or feeling overwhelmed he would go to them (or they would reach out to him if they notice swk being less chipper and talkative). i think even before Wukong's isolation, he would not go out and visit people as often, mostly keep to his friends and allies (how many few they were now).

also, Ao Lie would take Wukong on so many trips into the city just as an excuse to hang out and give swk a chance to be outside. i have an inkling that Ao Lie is the type to get lost or accidentally find himself in a precarious situation that swk would have to help him from (taking a wrong turn and finding himself face-to-face with a gang or something for example, and, being the conservative warrior he is, Ao Lie would not fight them or anything). one of Ao Lie's favorite places would be the city's theater districts because it was the most colorful, and Wukong would allow the dragon to drag him along anyway, past memories be damned.

with Tripitaka, i think Wukong enjoys making playful jabs at the monk for funsies. when they were originally acquainted, these jabs were more hurtful and condescending and aggravated the monk to no end. now tho, the jabs are in good fun, and Tripitaka's sighs are more jovial than exasperated. (though he does have times when the exasperation does come bc Wukong is nothing if not a monkey hell-bent on mischief, and Tripitaka always seems to be the guy he calls to help bail him out. out of love of course.) and given that i am a "Tripitaka and Sun Wukong's relationship wasn't abusive" truther, i like to believe that both monkey and monk view their relationship as something that resembles familial and brotherly.

Wukong and Zhu Baije i headcanon as rivals to friends who are still rivals but now care for each other deeply. they will shit-talk each other, they will get into spats, they will threaten to murder the other ("roast pork-let on a stick" and "make their own monkey pelt skirt"), they will give Tripitaka and Sandy/Sha Wujing the worst of headaches but it's with love <3

Wukong and Sha Wujing are comedian buddies. i am so sure about this, the pregnancy chapter confirmed it to me. Wukong told me himsel-

but enough about my opinions about their alleged relationships in th lmk context....for le questions!!!

well, from what i remember, Ao Lie first introduced himself as, and to quote Red from OSP, "an enormous fuck-you dragon" before changing shape into his human form. so, probably during his little skirmish with Wukong (+ Tripitaka hiding behind a rock), he realized that the two were supposed to be his companions on the journey, and switched up real fast to show them that he's actually friendly!

i do think it's interesting how Zhu Baije's story is different 👀 i'm guessing they changed it to show some similarity to Pigsy and his ancestor? so the reference we saw in the game could have just been an in-book easter egg??? i honestly don't know why they changed that, but it is funny to think that Zhu Baije was a cook who met the gang when he captured Tripitaka so that his business could boom with serving specialized, holy monk meat 😂 i can, like, imagine Wukong busting down the doors of Zhu baije's "restaurant" demanding that he give the demon his monk back lmao (but that also adds another bit of confusion bc Zhu Baije was chosen by Guanyin, Goddess of Mercy, to be one of the pilgrims for the journey, so he should have recognized that the monk he wanted to eat was the monk he was supposed to protect? unless in lmk, Guanyin didn't go out and choose companions for tripitaka?????)

now for the showdown with Sha Wujing, i bet 100 bucks that the order of fights went like this:

Sha Wujing asks/demands which if the four would fight him to be called the "strongest demon of all,"

Wukong opts for going bc he's the fucking Monkey King™️,

Zhu Baije says fuck that bc he is NOT gonna let the monkey show off again,

Zhu Baije loses, Wukong offers to help (not really, he did that to piss the pig off) & Baije tells him to fuck off,

Baije loses 3-5 times later, tripitaka pleads for the pig demon to stop and just "let the monkey do it, dear Buddha,"

Wukong rolls up his sleeves,

Sha Wujing laughs and calls Wukong puny,

Sha Wujing is pomelled to the grown without breaking a sweat,

Baije complains that he helped weaken the river demon for Wukong

exactly like that, yeah

[mythicalmagical-monkeyman]

Pigsy & Macaque: *dressed to the nines*

Wukong & Tang: *having gay panics*

Ma: *inhales* GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!!!!!!!!

[pompomqt]

Journey to the West Chapter 65

Wukong when he has to rescue Tripitaka from the 10th demon trap he's fallen into this month because he refused to listen to him:

Welcome back to this weeks chapter of Journey to the West with @journeythroughjourneytothewest. This week do the Pilgrims actually arrive at their destination, the Thunderclap Monastery? Let's find out.

After the gang has traveled peacefully for a while, they run into yet another mountain, this one is particularly tall. In fact while they were talking about it I wondered if they were talking about Mt. Everest, turns out no- instead they are apparently at Mount Kunlun. After a quick scuffle between Pigsy and Sandy, the group proceeds to climb the mountain, while being suitably wary of lions and tigers and bears oh my. Luckily Monkey is around to scare off any normal hungry creatures and they are able to reach the summit without incident.

At the summit they see a magnificent building, surrounded by divine light and the sound of harmonious bells. Despite how tempting the place looks, Tripitaka asks Monkey to take a closer look to see what kind of place it is. I mean- he isn't going to listen to Monkey anyways, but at least he asked? So Monkey takes a look and decides that despite being a very beautiful place that reminds him of Thunderclap Monastery somehow, it still feels shady to him somehow, so they should probably be careful.

Tripitaka however is to excited by the idea that this could be the end of his journey, and asks if this place could actually be Thunderclap Monastery. Monkey however claims that it isn't, since he's actually been to the Thunderclap Monastery plenty of times before, and this place isn't it. Despite that the pilgrims decide to take a closer look, and when they arrive at the door they see the words 'The Thunderclap Monastery'. Which causes Tripitaka to fall off his horse in astonishment and yell at Monkey for trying to deceive him. Monkey tells him to cool it, and maybe finish reading the sign before he starts leveling accusations at him.

And indeed there is a forth word that Tripitaka missed in his excitement- this is actually The 'Small' Thunderclap Monastery. Despite this, Tripitaka still insists that they should go inside, because even if it isn't THE Thunderclap Monastery it probably still has an important Buddhist Patriarch inside. Monkey warns him one last time, that this place is trouble, and not to come crying to him when he gets kidnapped again. Tripitaka still insists that they go, since if nothing else he still has his vow about bowing to any Buddhist image he see's, and there is surely one here.

Once they enter the gate, a booming voice greets them, calling out the Tang Monk and telling him not to be insolent. Tripitaka, Pigsy, and Sandy all bow in proper respect, while Wukong tends to the luggage and horse, presumably while rolling his eyes at the latest demon's theatrics. Once inside the grand hall, they see the five hundred arhats, the three thousand guardians of faith, the four great diamond kings, the mendicant nuns and the upaskas, along with some normal monks and workers. And up on the spiritial platform sits Buddha himself! When they see this, the three of them all go into deep bows, while Wukong stays standing. The supposed Buddha calls him out for this of course, but Monkey isn't going to bow to someone just because they are disguised as the Buddha, you have to actually trap him under a mountain for five hundred years to earn that privileged.

Unsurprisingly, Wukong does not care to for being called out by a fake Buddha, and immediately takes out his staff and goes for the kill. This fake Buddha, while not having a spare mountain to crush Wukong under, does have some golden cymbals, which fall onto Monkey and enclose him inside, the edges sealing together. Which I find to be a particularly ironic imagery, mainly because of that one toy with the Monkey and the cymbals, you know? Anyway with Monkey captured, Sandy and Pigsy try and reach for their weapons, but all three of them are quickly overwhelmed by the people in the monastery and are captured. It turns out that the fake Buddhist is actually a monster king, with all the arhats and such being his minion demons. Gasp, who could have seen this one coming? Besides Sun Wukong of course.

The demons pack up, and lock up the three pilgrims, while cymbals trapping Monkey are placed on the jeweled platform, and they expect him to be reduced to pus and blood within three days and nights, so that they can eat the other pilgrims unimpeded. Oh, and they also take the horse and luggage to I guess.

Monkey meanwhile is trying everything he can think of to break out of the golden cymbals. Striking at it with his staff, only to not leave a dent, growing and shrinking in size only to have the cymbal grow and shrink with him, and transforming some of his hairs into tools to try and drill or puncture a hole in the cymbals. Out of options of what he can try himself, he summons the gods that are on Tripitaka babysitting duty.

The gods aren't particularly happy to be summoned away from Tripitaka when the risk of him being eaten is currently very high, and asks why Monkey summoned them away at this critical moment. Monkey however also isn't particularly happy with Tripitaka at the moment for refusing to listen to him and getting them stuck in this position in the first place. So he just tells them, that if Tripitaka dies, he dies, so they should just focus on getting him out of these cymbals so he can just handle everything.

The gods try and pry the cymbals open, but can't even budge them. The gods inform Monkey that they don't know what kind of sacred treasure the cymbals are, but they've completely fused together now, and are one piece. For now the gods decide to send some of them back to watch over Tripitaka, while some stay to watch the cymbals, they also send someone to go to the Jade Emperor to ask for help. The God gives the Jade Emperor the run down of the situation, and the Jade emperor sends the twenty eight constellations to help.

The constellations arrive and tell Monkey they are here to help. Monkey tells them to use their weapons to bust him out, but they tell him that if they make to much noise they'll alert the guards. Instead they'll try to use their weapons to puncture it, since Monkey will be able to escape through even the tiniest gap. Monkey agrees, but despite the gods giving it their best, Monkey doesn't see any gaps to escape through. Finally the Gullet of the Gold Dragon says that the treasure he is trapped in, also posses the power of transformation. So he's going to to use the tip of his horn to see if he can try and wedge it inside.

So the dragon wedges his horn inside, while Monkey feels the edges between the cymbals. He manages to stick his horn inside, however the cymbal fuses around it, and no gap is formed. Monkey however, is able to feel the edge of the horn, and uses his staff to drill a hole in the horn, and shrink to fit inside. After that, the dragon pulls his horn, and Monkey, out of the cymbal, freeing him. Good job team, great group effort all around!

Of course as soon as Monkey is out of the cymbal, he smashes it into gold dust, which does indeed alert every single demon in the hideout, including the demon king. The Demon King challenges Wukong to a duel and declares that he is Old Buddha of Yellow Brows, and if Wukong can defeat him, he'll let them go, if not he'll kill them all and receive the scriptures from Buddha himself. Wukong, never one to turn down a fight, takes this challenge. The two fight for a while, until the gods that came to Wukong's aid earlier try to join in on the fight. However, now that Wukong and his allies are nicely clumped together, Yellow Brow takes a white cloth wrap from his waist and uses it to scoop up and trap Wukong and his allies.

Rather then just leaving them in the wrap however, Yellow Brow orders his minion demons to take them out and tie them up individually. However it looks like just being in the wrap for a short time did a real number on them anyways, since the deities are all in rough shape. While Wukong is tied up with the rest of the deities, he hears the sound of Tripitaka softly crying. Saying that he hates himself for not listening to Wukong, and now Wukong is probably hurt and trapped in the cymbals. This is enough for Wukong to forgive him for not listening to him and getting them all into this mess, and Wukong resolves to rescue them all right away.

So Monkey just shrinks himself to remove the ropes, and then goes to Tripitaka and quietly announces his presence to him. Tripitaka asks how he escaped and Monkey gives him the quick rundown, after which Tripitaka begs Monkey to rescue them, and promises to listen to him from now on. We'll have to see how long that will last, nevertheless Monkey unties everyone and they make their escape. On the way out, Monkey remembers that the demon's still have all their stuff, so he sends everyone out while he stays back to get their luggage back.

So Monkey transforms into a bat in order to search the place, and is able to find their stuff pretty easily, helped along by the fact that Tripitaka's fancy cassock apparently glows. Monkey however makes a rookie mistake when trying to steal their stuff back, he doesn't check to make sure their stuff is probably attached to the pole. So when he lugs it all over his shoulder, the luggage slips right off with a loud thud, that once again awakens every monster in the vicinity. The demon's immediately find out that all their prisoners have escaped, and order demons to guard all the doors, which causes Monkey to cut his losses and escape without the luggage. With the demon king giving chase right behind him.

The Demon King catches up to where Tripitaka and the others fled to, so Pigsy, Sandy and all of the celestial go to battle the Demon King, who quickly summons his own demons to fight in a battle royal. Pigsy asks Monkey where all their stuff is, and Monkey says that he was lucky enough to escape even without the luggage. The battle between the two forces, last all day, but when it starts getting late, the Demon King gets bored I guess, and once again takes out the white wrap. Monkey has seen this move before and doesn't care to be a part of the sequel, so he jumps clear and tries to shout out a warning to everyone else. However no one else is able to respond in time, leading to everyone but Wukong getting captured again.

Tripitaka, Sandy and Pigsy are left to dangle from the rafters while their horse is tied up and all the deities are tied up and thrown in a cellar. Leaving Monkey alone to contemplate Tripitaka's rotten luck in life. After Monkey thinks on the problem at hand for a while, he settles on going to get the help of the True Warrior of the north.

Current Sun Wukong Stats: Names/Titles: Monkey, The Stone Monkey, The Handsome Monkey King, Sun Wukong (Monkey awakened to the void), Bimawen (Banhorseplague), The Great Sage Equal To Heaven and Pilgrim Sun. Immortality: 5 + 94,000 years Weapon: The Compliant Golden Hooped Rod Abilities: 72 Transformations, Cloud-Somersault, Ability to transform his individual hairs, super strength, Ability to Summon Wind, Water restriction charm, and the ability to change into a huge war form, ability to duplicate his staff, ability to immobilize others, the ability to put others to sleep, and the Fiery eyes and Diamond Pupils, intimidating horses, churning large bodies of water, sleeplessness, seizing the wind, enhanced smell, discerning good and evil within a thousand miles, Spirit Summoning, lock picking, object transformation, distance reduction, vanishing in a flash of light, super healing, transforming others, Invisibility, and Wind Immunity Demon Kill Count: 11 + Unknown Number of Minions Human Kill Count: 1039 God's Defeated: 23 + Unknown number Defeats: 7 Crime List: Robbery, Murder, Mass Murder, Arson, Theft, Coercion, Threatening a Government Official, Resisting Arrest, Assault, Forgery, Employee Theft, False Imprisonment, Impersonating a Government Official, Treason, attempted murder, failure to control or report a dangerous fire, desecrating a corpse, breaking and entering, trespassing, violating Tree Law, looting corpses, trading counterfeit goods, criminal threat, animal abuse, Assisting or Instigating Escape, Damage to Religious Property, contaminating a substance for human consumption, Identity Fraud, Disorderly Conduct and Joyriding Cry Count: 9 + 3 fake cries Mountains Trapped Under: 4

Current Tang Sanzang stats: Names/Titles: River Float, Xuanzang, Tang Sanzang, Tripitaka and the Tang Monk Abilities: Curing Blindness, making branches point a certain direction (allegedly), reciting sutras, pretty privilege, memorization, Heart Sutra, Meditation, and Being Heaven's Specialist Little Guy Cry Count: 34 Tight Fillet Spell Uses: 63 Paralyzed by fear: 6 Bandit Problems: 3 Kidnapped by demons: 11 Falling Off Horses: 11

Current Bai Long Ma Stats: Names/Titles: Bai Long Ma (White Dragon Horse), Prince of the Western Ocean, and third prince jade dragon of the dragon king Aorun Abilities: Transforming into a human, a water snake, and a horse, eating a horse in one bite, flight, Magic of Water Restriction, Singing, and Sword Dancing. Cry Count: 1 Crime List: Arson, and Grave Disobedience. Contributions to the plot: 3 Kidnapped by demons: 3

Current Zhu Wuneng Stats: Names/Titles: The Marshal of the Heavenly Reeds, Zhu Wuneng (Pig who is aware of ability), Zhu Ganglie, Pigsy, Idiot and Eight Rules. Weapon: Rake Abilities: 36 Transformations, parting water, fighting underwater, cloud soaring, size enhancement and CPR Demon Kill Count/Kill steals: 15 + Unknown number of minions Kidnapped by Demons: 7 Human Kill Count: 1 Failed Flirtation/romances Attempts: 4 Cry Count: 2 Crime List: Sexual Harassment, Murder, Kidnapping, arson, defamation, Damage to Religious Property, contaminating a substance for human consumption, Identity Fraud, Theft, Forcible entry, Disrupting a Funeral and Violating Tree Law

Current Sha Wujing Stats: Names/Titles: The Curtain-Raising General, Sha Wujing (Sand Aware of Purity), Sandy and Sha Monk Weapon: Monster Taming Staff Abilities: Fighting underwater, Cloud soaring, and fetching water from a well. Demon Kill Count: 1 + Unknown number of minions. Kidnapped by Demons: 5 Human Kill Count: 1 Cry Count: 1 Crime List: Breaking a Crystal Cup, murder, desecration of a human corpse, Damage to Religious Property and contaminating a substance for human consumption

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Art

[weaverpop]

Now I'm imagining Wukong with Tang-style glasses and his eyes looking like they're the size of baseballs. Cute and innocent eyes.

Hey, do you think it's unnerving to Wukong just how similar the pilgrims look to the noodle gang?

🤣 Wukong be havin’ them bug eyes!

A bit, but I think he’s also aware of them being the reincarnations, plus Mei is litterally ao lie’s dependent. But well, it’s been over 500 years, right? Sure he misses them, but he’s got people who care about him here and now too.

[bitshoarder]

Hey, did you saw this Sun Wukong Rap clip by RUSTAGE? Usually they do anime raps, but lately they jumped on mythology train and I’m all for it

[the-monkey-ruler]

"Journey to the West" crew in Thailand (1987)《西游记》剧组在泰国

Director: Yang Jie

Screenwriter: Wang Chongqiu / Ma Lizhu

Starring: Luo Jing

Genre: Documentary / Short

Country/Region of Production: Mainland China

Language: Mandarin Chinese / Thai

Date: 1987-12

Episodes: 1

Single episode length: 21 minutes

Type: Crossover

Summary:

In 1987, the crew of the TV series "Journey to the West" was approved to go to Thailand for location shooting. Due to the shortage of funds, the entire crew was reduced to 20 people, most of whom were going abroad for the first time. This film records the filming and experience of the "Journey to the West" crew in Thailand.

Source: https://movie.douban.com/subject/24525619/

Link: N/A

[kittenninja14]

we all are wondering the same question XD

poor Mac tho.... he really needs a hug

https://www.tumblr.com/kittenninja14/731916269075480576/hey-yall-i-just-found-this-incredible-video-and

So i'm putting together a reference of Macaque expressions/emotions because I like him a regular amount and this is the coolest frame by frame subtlety find i've found yet

like the fact that Wukong was willing capable of showing restraint and mercy but not for him-

also, absolutely enthralled he ended up like this from this

what happened bud

[crzyimp]

quick sketch of an oc that was inspired by one of the jttw chats, one focusing on lmk where MK deserves one mother figure to balance out the dads(he gotta collect them all!). No name for her, but she's a monkey to complete the set with modern version of jttw gang. She assisted Pigsy with raising MK, whether a helping hand, giving Pigsy a break, or funding activities/sports for MK.

[fluffypotatey]

ok ok have a jttw animatic idea that i am throwing to the world (bc i have no animating experience so go forth)

basically Perception Check by Tom Cardy with the jttw crew with Tripitaka as the DM, Sun Wukong is the bard, and Pigsy + Sandy failing their rolls (Bai Longma is unfortunately not available to play so his PC is just in his horse form rn)

it can either go with the gang having this animatic occur during their journey OR have it be a split between a modern setting of the characters playing D&D with their jttw counterparts as the PCs

[mythicalmagical-monkeyman]

Wukong: If I die I hope I end up on buzzfeed unsolved Ma: Don't worry buddy we'll make sure you do Tang: *anime glasses* They'll never fine your body Pigsy: *to Macaque* Now I don't know what's the worst part about that conversation. The fact that Wukong said if or the fact that Tang and Ma seem perfectly fine with committing murder Macaque: *nodding* Yeah, remind me to never get on their bad side

[moonicdaze]

Without reaching too much into JTTW for getting an idea for what happened between Wukong and macaque (since LMK does often differ from the book and we’ve only got bits and pieces of their fight so far), wukong’s memory of the event in s5 shows that macaque was definitely not innocent (laughing maniacally while Wukong begs him to stop). Even what he did in s3 was super messed up (and yes he was in a bad spot and desperate there but he still had agency in his actions and damn I wish we got him apologizing at least a little).

Like macaque is also not a super good person, not sure how that gets brushed under the rug when it’s very obvious.

I love macaque but if my ex-best friend tries to steal my identity after i worked so hard to change and became better I'll probably be pissed of too because wtf

like I don't get why is it such a hot take to say that wukong anger towards macaque is justifiable because it is

macaque was also going to kill his companions and replace them with clons (at least in jttw) like yeah wukong definitely did some mistakes but that doesn't mean he's not allowed to be angry about this like lmk fandom need to understand that this anger is not one sided for a good reason

[angelcake10023]

Curious MK 💛 and the Man In The Red Scarf 🧣

This au is everything to me… be ready for me to not shut up about it.

If you want a little explanation on the au look under the cut

The au pretty much follows the beats of the movie with some twists to fit the world of LMK a bit better

Tang works at his College’s museum, doing tours on a lot of historical exhibits which heavily align with his special interests (lots of JTTW like stuff)

Pigsy is the local school teacher that takes his class to the museum every week- to learn obviously. Not cause he has a big crush on this pathetic museum nerd.

Anyway the museum is loosing interest and funding you know the gist, Tang somehow agrees to go on an expedition to flower fruit mountain to maybe find something worth putting on display. Probably something related to Sun Wukong

Tang is out of his element, but also this is his hyperfixation and he can tooootally find something of note surely. However what he doesn’t know is that a few certain spider henchmen in disguise have made their way onto his expedition crew and are hoping to find something powerful to bring back to their queen.

Once they get there they do a lot of fruitless searching, set up camp for the day, and an exhausted Tang is quickly ambushed by a newly awakened baby Monkey MK. He’s very curious about the bright color of Tang’s scarf and steals it when Tang takes it off to eat.

Tang has never seen or heard of this type of monkey on the mountain before, thinking he resembles Sun Wukong but thinking it ridiculous to think more of it. They play for a bit, Tang playfully wagering for his scarf back.

Anyway the expedition continues and they’re still unable to find anything and have to leave empty handed, (except for two pieces of a little monkey shaped rock.)

Mk ends up with Tang’s scarf as he’s leaving, deciding to secretly follow them back. Wholesome shenanigans ensue just like in the movie. Tang struggles being a dad to this monkey who’s attached himself to him, while also learning he might not really be normal monkey. Add in some Monkey power shenanigans hehe. Also some spider henchmen repeatedly trying and failing to capture Mk (comedically managing to also go unnoticed every time)

Of course in the climax, Tang is pretty worn down. He’s homeless, jobless, and a disappointment. He doesn’t think he can handle taking care of MK, and that’s when Sun Wukong shows up. He’s been keeping an eye on them and knows MK has mystic powers that are probably too much for a human to handle- so he’s willing to take him off Tang’s hands.

Tang reluctantly agrees, much to MK’s confusion and sadness. Trying to reach and grab onto him repeatedly as Tang holds back tears and begs Wukong to take him. Wukong does and Mk, who’s been struggling with any speech up to this point finally manages a soft and scratchy “no” just as Wukong’s cloud zips away with them both.

Tang immediately regrets it, his regret fueled after he talks with Pigsy. He made a mistake and he needs his kid back.

Unfortunately, The Spider Queen and co managed to ambush Wukong similar to the show and capture baby MK. Cue Tang, Pigsy, and Sandy teaming up to rescue the monkeys

Rescue ensues, Tang and Mk reunite wholesomely, Wukong is impressed by Tangs determination to save the kid despite his mortality. Wukong gives him some cool treasure junk that they can take back to the museum

The day is saved, Tang and MK are a family, and Tang finally got Pigsy’s flirting through his dense head lmaooooo

Dad Tang and Baby MK are so special to me… thank you for reading haha. Itll probably be fleshed out more in the future as well

[miifu666]

Whoever sent me asks that requires me drawing PLS GIVE ME A MOMENT IM WORKING ON IT. Also yey i doodled the JTTW crew (not complete but eeeh)

Designed my Wukong to have some attributed and accessories that reminded him of Suklha, mostly because he's not gonna meet her for like months just so he can focus on himself and protecting the pilgrim. He occassionally writes to her though and send her some stuff he did. (In this case, he embroided a centipede pattern on his garment that he bought).

[comicaurora]

hi red!! i'm doing an analysis of sun wukong's (and journey to the west in general's) impact on modern culture for my world mythology final, and for some reason i'm having a hard time finding sources. is there anything you can recommend?

The fact that Journey to the West has contributed an enormous number of tropes to modern media is very clear when the media in question is examined, but I don't know of a specific secondary source that's already done that analysis for you. However, this IS a very good excuse for you to plow through a metric buttload of shonen manga, since the lineage is basically Sun Wukong -> Son Goku -> like a solid third of all shonen action heroes written in the last forty years.

Dragon Ball kicks things off:

Started in 1984 and almost unquestionably the most influential manga ever made. Its first arc features the weird super-strong monkey-kid Son Goku - which is just the japanese pronunciation of the characters of Sun Wukong's name - meeting up with a wacky crew of thinly-veiled expys of the Journey to the West crew, with teen inventor Bulma filling the role of Tripitaka, Oolong the pig-man filling Zhu Bajie's role and Yamcha the desert-based bandit as Sha Wujing.

Hijinks ensue, and while the story drifts pretty far from Journey to the West's original plot, it actually stays pretty solidly referential in weirdly unexpected ways. Several the villains of the week are JttW references, and even the later appearance of three more Saiyans lines up with the surprise reveal of three more Wukong-like mystical apes in the original story.

The connection between Dragon Ball and JttW is very unsubtle and a frequent reference in the chapter covers and supplemental art.

Not every subsequent JttW reference is the result of Dragon Ball popularizing it or anything, since it was already enormously popular, but I think it's pretty hard to extricate Dragon Ball's influence on anime and manga from the original influence of Journey to the West itself.

One way that a distinction can be drawn is in the differences in characterization between Goku and Sun Wukong himself. A lot of the next generation of shonen protagonists were kind of Goku-alikes - pure-hearted dumbasses who only care for the three Fs: Food, Fighting and Friendship.

But the original characterization of Sun Wukong is not really all that similar. He's a trickster, sure, but he's far from a young, friendship-motivated goober. He's profoundly intelligent, pretty much the most well-educated entity on the planet, and routinely brings up that he's centuries older than most of his peers. The Goku-alikes from the later decades of shonen anime are tellingly far-removed from that original characterization. So you get characters based on Goku's cheerful idiocy, but it's just a small subset of the broader influence of Journey to the West on the space of literature.

In general, Journey to the West frequently shows up in very small, bite-sized tropes in other stories. It's less "this is wholly based on Journey to the West" and more "oh, I know where they maybe got this idea/aesthetic/power/weapon/villain of the week from." There are way too many to list, but some of the ones that tend to jump out at me are-

Sneaky characters with monkey motifs:

Tricksy, highly mobile characters who fight with a staff:

Characters afflicted with a magical restraint artifact that allows a much weaker character to stop them from misbehaving:

Specific esoteric weapons, eg. magical fans, rakes, gourds, namedropping The Sword of Seven Stars, etc.

Villains with prominent ox or pig design motifs:

Characters whose primary combat strat is just making Shitloads Of Disposable Copies Of Themselves:

Honestly it just keeps going like this. It's kinda everywhere. Finding the JttW in things is my favorite conspiracy theory rabbit hole because it's 100% harmless and more often than not completely correct.

[angstandhappiness]

INTERESTING

Mks angst - existential crisis. his friends being hurt or taken from him. Being abandoned. Failing. Being seen by others the same way they see swk maybe???

Swk angst - just indescribable physical pain being inflicted on him. Loneliness. Losing Mk

Mei angst - familial. Losing mk. (with the samadhi fire it was having a power she couldn't control ig but that was short-lived:( so) not being strong enough maybe???

Pigsy angst - losing his kid. Losing his shop. Being a lazy good for nothing. Being Zhu Bajie

Tang angst - being useless. Being left behind. Being seen as useless by his friends

Sandy angst - becoming violent/blackout rage. Causing harm