#very Samadhi Fire Part 3 of them.

[imminent-danger-came]

I WAS LOOKING THROUGH PINTEREST AND I HSD TO START FUCKIMG PACING AROUKD THE ROOM

MK ANS MEI MK AND MEI A HERO AND A WARRIOR?????? WHEN DOES THE PAIN END GAAAAAAAAWD WAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH

The grind doesn't end when you're in this deep with the legos.

This is a very specific Mei and MK dynamic that I kinda adore

[iridescenttttttt]

This includes s5 spoilers!!

I think we as a fandom should talk more about how sun wukong has absolutely no self preservation, and how he has been self-sacrificial since season 1. Hi, my name is iridescent, and in this essay-

ok but in all seriousness, I have evidence from every season of him doing this, and I will be analyzing it and informing about it Meticulously.

I also have a couple of tangents about him protecting MK in here. I just like the detail of him always doing that, especially considering how he does it.

it wasn’t just season 5 where he was willing to sacrifice himself, season 5 was just the only season where it was outright blatantly stated that he was going to sacrifice himself.

(^Image taken from S1 EP9, Macaque)

this image in and of itself is fairly minor. Because we know he’s going to be okay. he is immortal, and compared to MK, an explosion most definitely will not do much, if anything, to him. and I’m sure he’s fully aware of this (which is probably part of the reason he shields MK with his body so much, there are SO many example of him doing this)

Still, even the fact his immediate instinct was to throw himself in harms way to protect MK is pretty sacrificial in and of itself. I’m 100% certain that even if it could hurt him, he would still protect MK like this.

(^ image taken from S2 EP10, this is the end)

Wukong here is visibly weakened and injured. It was stated early in season 3 that he was weak, and even at the end of season 2, we could tell. ESPECIALLY when he grabbed MK and escaped from LBD on his nimbus cloud. By the time they found their friends, it was deteriorating, and they quiet literally crash landed onto the ship.

But despite his obviously weakened state, he was still throwing himself in front of MK, protecting him from harm, and shielding him with his body. His first thought was to throw himself in harms way, and this time, there is a very real possibility that he probably can get injured! He’s weak, his powers are failing, there is no way he would have the energy to fight LBD. Not in the state he is in at this very moment, and MK isn’t, either. He knows this- I know he does, because instead of picking a fight, he grabs MK and runs. He even admits that he isn’t in any shape to face her. However, even though he knows he would hardly be able to put up a fight as it stands right now, he is still willing to throw himself in front of MK. (Which also directly supports what I said above! It does not matter if he can get hurt if not, he will still put himself in harms way to keep MK safe)

Similarly to above, he was fully willing to find and reforge the samadhi fire on his own, despite his weakened state- to keep the others out of harms way, because they are mortal and he is not. Still, even despite him being immortal, he’s trying to reforge the samadhi fire- one of the rare things that has the ability to actually hurt him. Wukong knows this, and he is still willing to do this alone. Even though he is obviously injured, and weakened, and there is a very real possibility the samadhi fire could kill him, he is willing to do this on his own. Because they are mortals- if the fire can kill him, then it can definitely kill them, too.

(^ Image taken from S3, EP1, on the run)

season 3 is, in my opinion, where his self-sacrificial tendencies and complete lack of self preservation becomes a lot more obvious. So, fair warning, season 3 is probably going to be a long one.

Wukong is fully willing to risk himself to get the map. And it isn’t like he doesn’t know the risks of forcing his way through the Barrie. Ne Zha even warns him, and says that if he forces his way through the barrier, they could both be destroyed. And honestly? If Wukong wasn’t, like, 7x immortal, there is a very real possibility that he would’ve been destroyed, then and there. And while, yeah, Ne Zha didn’t die, either, he also wasnt the one actively breaking through the barrier. I’m sure if Ne Zha was the one breaking through, he probably would’ve died. Even then, Wukong was severely weakened after this (as seen and talked about above!), he knew the risks and he still took them. He knew he could die, but if it meant saving the world and keeping MK and his friends safe? He would do it. And, again, even after being fully aware of his weakened state, he immediately ran to the protection of MK as soon as he realized he was in danger.

(^images taken from S3 EP10, The Samadhi Fire)

I’ve already talked about how often he is shown to use his body to protect MK from danger, but here, specifically, I want to mention be we are specifically shown a scene of him moving his arm to protect MK from danger. Especially considering the danger is the samadhi fire- something that can actually harm him. This is different from most other times he’s doing this, because this time, he can actually get hurt.

This is one of, in my opinion, one the most obvious examples of him being a self sacrificing idiot with very little self preservation (/aff)

his entire plan, from the very beginning, was to try and take the samadhi fire out of Mei (because he never wanted her to be harmed- he’s spent the entirety of season 2 and 3 trying to protect MK and his friends, he never one intentionally hurt them) and put it in himself. Think about that. The samadhi fire is something that can harm him- kill him, and he knows that. He knows that extremely well. His entire plan could lead to his death, and he’s aware of that. And the same thing goes for when he was getting the map in the first place- both times, he was fully aware that there is a possibility he could die from this. He doesn’t care, though. If it protects the people he cares about, he’s going to do it- even if he dies in the process.

once again, we are specifically shown a scene of him trying to protect MK. His immediate thought has always been to take the brunt of the fire, and keep MK from danger- I fully think, had there not been a shock factor to MK literally running straight in, he would have ran in after.

Again, in this scene he has no self preservation, and he is very self sacrificial. His entire plan from the very beginning hitched on having a weapon, something powerful enough to stop the lady bone demon, except that plan has failed, and now, there is no weapon. So his new solution? Stop LBD himself.

If he was truly confident he could beat her again, then why did he go looking for the samadhi fire, instead of going to immediately fight her and stop her? He’s desperate, he knows how bad the situation is, and he still isn’t sure if he can even beat her. He’s still willing to try, if it means protecting MK and his friends, and saving the world. He’s going into the fight. Alone. No backup, no plan, no samadhi fire. (And we know this goes wrong, too) He is fully aware of this! He knows he’s going into a fight he’s might not come out of. Everyone else knows this, too- Ne Zha even points out the chances of him surviving are slim.

(^ image taken from S4, EP1, familiar tales)

once again, his immediate reaction (even when being faced with his trauma) is to protect and save MK. He knows what the scroll is, and he knows what’s going to happen if he gets stuck inside of it- despite that, he still sacrifices himself to ensure MK doesn’t get stuck inside of the scroll. He lets himself get sucked into it. He is willing to face all of the mistakes he’s made and the trauma he’s endured to protect MK from having to go through the same.

WARNING YOU ALL AGAIN!!! S5 SPOILERS BEGIN NOW!!

Let’s all be honest here, they’re both lacking in the self preservation department. They are not lacking in the self sacrifice department, though, I’ll tell you that much! This entire fight, they are very blatant about how they are, quite literally, fighting over who gets to sacrifice themself. There isn’t much to say here that wouldn’t be stating the obvious- neither of them want eachother to sacrifice themselves, they both want to be the sacrifice.

TLDR: Sun Wukong has been self sacrificial and has had a disregard for his own preservation since we were introduced to him. This has only become more apparent as he grew closer to MK, and as his character has developed.

is all of this already very obvious? Mmmaybe???? I’m not too sure. Did I make a couple of reaches a couple of times? Mmmmmmmaaaaaybe. Is this an excuse to infodump and talk about sun wukong? Yeah. Am I sorry? No.

[totallynotokguys]

Lego Monkie Kid Rewatch: Season 3

Episode 10, Samadhi Fire Part 1/2

Just a warning, I do talk about season 5 for a moment, but I'll try to keep it labeled and separate so you can easily skip over it without getting spoiled if you want.

Now that I know a bit of the Journey to the West, I have only just realised how impossible it would be for the pilgrims to be here helping baby Red Son.

No way could this rage baby Red Son have thought up clever scheams to catch and eat Tang Sanzang the way JTTW Red Son did. Not to mention at the end JTTW Red Son ended up going to Guanyin's villain reform program.

On the other hand, I don't believe the sealing of Samadhi Fire would have happened before the journey. Wukong is clearly wearing his post-pilgrimage get up and the pilgrims all act like they know each other.

All of this to say, just how many differences are there between the show's journey and the novel's.

Then again, the fact that Iron Fan and Bull King are still in love and married should have been the first tip off for me.

Season 5 Spoiler Talk

I am curious, are all of these differences a result to Nine-Headed Demon's interference? What the heck did the guy have to do to insure Red Son would be born late enough to be baby during Tang Sanzang's life time? Is the Nine-Headed Demon responsible for the Samahdi fire being so out of control in a young Red Son? In JTTW, Red Son still wields it and has great control over it.

"For the Samahdi fire to be split in three, you must harmonise you're energies!"

These three? Harmonise? A hard headed demon king, a sentient rock monkey, and a duty bound celestial ex-mortal? Sanzang was basically asking for failure here.

Wukong: 'Psssh, this is easy.'

Also Wukong:

Ao Lie just took a blow for Sanzang!

The notorious, lets everything go to chaos in a box around him while continues to be horse actually stepped up and took action. Now I know for sure this is post-pilgrimage! Character development!

Reprimands in sarcasm and bonks heads when annoyed.

Brother coded, brother coded, brother coded, brother coded

"Alright, you win."

In the last episode when Tang said this it was more from Macaque's perspective and thus Tang sounded desperate and hopeless. He really seemed like he'd given up.

Now, thanks to these three shots… everything feels different. Same lines, same delivery. But now I believe Tang isn't giving up. He's got a plan!

I have not talked enough about the sound design in this show! I love the sounds they use for magic. I'm pretty sure that each magic user plus each different power their unique chime/gong! Examples:

Tang's has a very clear and simple ring.

Ne Zha's sounds like fairy twinkle lights, all light, airy, and chimey.

Wukong main magic is like a bamboo thunking against a stone, or a a small stone creating ripples in a pond. Wish I knew what made this sound. I have been conditioned to be hyped every time I hear it.

Interestingly, MK's magic sounds the same. I believe this is what further fed into the belief that Wukong had gifted MK his magic instead of it coming from the kid. The shows own little misdirection!

But really, I think the reason for the similarity in their magic, both ability and sound, stems from them both being made by Nuwa as celestial stone monkeys.

The whole reason I thought to bring it up was this transition. We go from a third person perspective to looking through Wukong's eyes. and the first thing to clue us in that this is happening is the sound of Wukong's gold vision activating before suddenly the image blinks gold and we find ourselves zooming out of Wukong's eyes as he watches the scene from far away.

The way they did this was such a cool transition as well as an awesome example of how the golden vision works! Superman, you wish you're eye powers were this cool!

"Let's hope my aim is as good as it used to be."

AKA: "If I skewer you, it's totally because I missed and not because I'm still angry at you and taking petty revenge."

Red, blue, green. Long ago, the three Samadhi Fires were separated and the great destruction was extinguished.

Only when the three colors are found again can they unite and create- PINK FIRE!

Wai- what? That's not how color theory works. How did I never notice before? The full might of the Samadhi Fire is pink.

Love the shattered chains, and the washing away of the blue aura to symbolize LBD's hold over him being broken.

"Someone get some water!"

I'm surprised he didn't throw snow at her. Its right there.

Anyone else think it's really cool that Wukong can just pull Macaque out of his shadows?

Like, no one else has been able to do that!

Ah, so Tang didn't have a plan. He just did it because it felt right. shakes my head Oh Tang, and for a moment I thought you were competent.

Seriously though, I am now forever scarred by the word destiny. I hate it.

"I hate to interrupt, but can someone explain what is going on!"

No please interrupt. We need you MK! You're the only one who could possible salvage this situation. Everybody else just keeps making it worse!

Macaque- ignoring the child in fiery pain to celebrate his freedom.

Wukong- lashing out at the closest person marginally at fault (that isn't him).

Ne Zha- voice of doom declaring the girl and world as a lost cause.

Tang- DESTINY

Like, great job everyone. Way to solve your problems.

[byfulcrums]

No but Sun Wukong is so much... less alone(? now

He's been alone for centuries, with only the company of his monkeys. He hadn't left his mountain in 500 years; the first actual interaction he had with someone outside FFM was MK, and even then, it was just one person. He only met the rest of the gang at the start of season 2 and then he left

In season 3 he was literally stuck with MK, Mei, Pigsy, Tang and Sandy. He didn't have a choice; he was hurt, MK didn't have his powers and if he left then who knew what LBD could do to them? Besides, Macaque was looking for them. He couldn't leave (probably didn't really want to leave either)

Even though he had to interact with MK and the rest during season 3 because, well, they were literally living together, he was still hiding so much. No one knew about the fourth ring nor about what his initial plan was. He hadn't told MK about LBD when she first appeared and everyone was still upset at him for it (which, okay. Deserved. But also- angst)

In the scenes where the gang is having fun with each other, SWK tends to push himself away? He stays at the corner, a little too far away, showing that he doesn't consider himself part of the group. These MK's friends, not his, and even if he cares about them (and even if they're his family's reincarnations + descendant) he still distances himself from them. He keeps secrets, doesn't trust them the way MK does, refuses to tell them all about the Samadhi fire. Hell, they don't find out about his plan until it's already gone wrong!

At some point in pretty much every season, MK is hugged by his friends after some life threatening stuff happens. SWK (if he's present) smiles fondly and stays out of it. After he finds out about LBD and the gang are having a good time together, celebrating (and also being so excited to meet the Monkey King), he gifts them some hair food and leaves

Also, at the start of Revenge of the Spider Queen it's shown that he wants to either celebrate with MK or spend his day alone like he's been doing every year for centuries

In the final episode of season 2, MK's friends rush to his side and no one goes to check on Wukong, even though he looks pretty hurt. Heck, they're (rightfully) angry at him! It's only after they convince him to let them accompany him to the West that we see him patched up, and that's on the first episode of season 3 (also it's already nighttime when that happens)

When the gang hugs Pigsy in Cooking with Chang'e (I think that was the episode?) he smiles, looking happy for them, but he doesn't join them

I'm not saying that they don't care about SWK, because they really do! But he mostly keeps to himself, never tells them what's going on and left when MK needed him the most without explaining why. Besides, he's a legend. No one can know what's happening inside his mind. How can they trust him when they don't even know when he's being truthful?

In all of the scenes where they're all together in one place, SWK either stays closer to MK or leaves. There is no in between. Really shows how MK is pretty much his only friend lol

Also, all of his relationships went wrong. Macaque, Azure Lion, the rest of the brotherhood — all of them, thrown to the ground because of 'his' mistakes and 'his' bad deeds (not all of it was his fault, but there's no way he doesn't blame himself for that. He and MK are very similar). He (assumedly) killed Macaque and Azure Lion, Peng and Yellow Tusk were left in the scroll and he sealed DBK under a mountain. The friendships he did manage to keep are now gone not because of him fucking up, but because they're dead. MK is the first friend he's had in a long time and he is very afraid of messing that up too

When Mei gets the Samadhi fire (“Can't you see you're hurting the people who care about you the most?!” she said people, not person. She wasn't only talking about MK. They care about SWK too!), the first thing he does is leave again. He pushes everyone away, leaving MK and the others to take care of everything himself, and it fails. He fails, and MK is almost killed because of it. In the end, it was only because MK was accompanied by the people he cares about that he won. This makes Wukong see stuff differently

Post-season 3. SWK realizes that he doesn't have to be all alone. He notices how MK is doing so much better than him because he has friends (his support network or whatever that's called) and is like “Ohhhhhh okay. Yeah that makes sense. Alright-”

After the whole LBD fiasco, SWK is willing to trust other people more. He not only cares way too deeply now, but he also tries to share what's on his mind a little more! He's doing his best to show that he trusts them too and I think he's doing a pretty good job!

When Inky separates them, he says that he won't let some dumb curse keep him and his friends trapped. His friends. They're no longer only MK's buddies. They're not strangers he might've known once anymore; they're his friends. And some day they will be his family

The reason why they seem more like friends now is because of Sun Wukong himself. Sure, he might've needed some help, but he finally started to try to just. Stop pushing everyone away. This is why he's so much closer with the rest. It was all him

Also, I love this because it shows how you're the only one who can make the final decision that will change your life (dying or living, staying or leaving). You're more than allowed to ask for help and you can get it from anyone, but in the end, it's all you.

In the season 4 special, Sun Wukong shares his plan. He hadn't told MK about Azure Lion and the brotherhood before, sure, but that's because he thought that was over. In the scroll, when Macaque and MK go to find him, he opens up to MK. Shares his worries. Lets MK (and Macaque too I guess, with that smile. Ugh that SMILE) comfort him. And he, most importantly, fights alongside MK in the final battle. He gives the team the information they need for MK to come up with a plan. They fight together

And when the season 4 special ends, Yellow Tusk says something about true heroes (I can't remember the exact line) and the camera shows all of them, SWK included. The only one who is not there is MK, and even then it's clear that Yellow Tusk was talking about him bc the camera cuts to him sitting all alone at the edge of the cliff

SWK goes to sit with MK, but this time the rest of their friends are there. Sun Wukong, immortal or not, is a little less lonely now

[quitealotofsodapop]

"The Monkey King and the Infant" details Part 3 - and likely last for now before I go on Spoiler lockdown so I can write:

links to Part 1 and Part 2:

The Jade Emperor sees/is aware of the canon Monkie Kid series. He thinks the whole situation as a big waste of time. So... remove Monkie Kid = no Monkie Kid series, Monkey King stays retired, and less of a headache for the big man up top. Win win.

The Jade Emperor shows Sun Wukong visions of the worst parts on the series inc; LBD's return, the Samadhi fire being reignited, The Jade Emperor's death and the potential breakdown of the universe etc... This is also how SW learns on accident that Macaque is alive again.

Internally SW is very conflicted cus... the universe might end? But more importantly he might actually die? But also consider; Free Son and a return to his beloved.

Other characters occassionally get tormented by visions of canon events/death omens - likely a side effect of the altered timeline, or the Jade Emperor subtly trying to turn them against one another.

Erlang and various other mythos characters show up. Erlang is tasked with ensuring that SW destroyed MK's egg, but is knocked out by Moksha (on command of Guanyin) to give SW a chance to reconsider. In the egg's place, Erlang found a "shell" of obsidian. This isn't enough to convince Erlang... but it's enough to convince the Jade Emperor and the few members of the Celestial Court who knew about the Egg that the task had been completed. Erlang is sussing SW hard for this... but wants to see what the big deal is with the undercooked Stone Monkey before he says anything.

Moksha is acting as Sun Wukong's parole officer as a "Sorry I bonked you" favor to Erlang. Shows up in glamour at Pigsy's as customer to keep an eye on things. Big shipper under her no-crap cop attitude.

Guanyin herself is Very Against the idea of scrambling MK (Mercy personified yo). But she doesn't appear physically, meaning that not even the Jade Emperor knows that she techincally betrayed Heaven.

Nicknames/familial titles MK calls his fam through out the story:

Sun Wukong = "Dad" "Baba" "Baba Wu" Macaque = "Mom" "Bama" "Baba Mihou" "Mama" (when he was really young) Pigsy = "Dadsy" "Pops" "Boss" (at work) Tang = "Papa Tang" "Pama" (verbal slip as a toddler that stuck) Sandy = "Shúshu/Uncle" Mei = "Meimei" " (little sister - techically she's older but the title is also a pun on her name) Nezha = "Tánggē" "Gege" (grew up thinking Nezha was an older cousin)

When it comes to finally training MK when he comes of age; Sun pulls a "Lego Batman and Bruce Wayne" - hoping that by separating the personas, he'll be able to reach MK better as a teacher. And MK 100% falls for it. Cus "The Monkey King" and his dorky "Dad" are two completely different guys! Right?

Macaque meanwhile has a very different style of teaching:

Macaque, in his series outfit, manifesting from the shadows: "MK, we need to talk about-" MK, battlemode: "AH! THE SIX EARED MACAQUE!" Macaque: "I'M LITERALLY YOUR OWN MOTHER! YOU PUT THAT STAFF DOWN THIS INSTANT MISTER!" MK: "yes sir"

This leads to a funny misunderstanding later on when he sees Macaque and The Monkey King interact during training:

MK: "Wait... if my mom is the Six Eared Macaque... and I've got Monkey King's powers..." MK: *"GASP!"* MK: "MOM!? Did you you cheat on Dad with The Monkey King!?" Macaque: "...really???" SW: *laughing his ass off*

Ok imma punch out and try to finish the first chapter. Will probably post a spotify mix soon. Pls tag or reply, or ask if you got any thoughts/questions. I love feedback!

[magpiepaws]

LMK S4 THEORY TIME

So I was thinking about the box art that came out recently and thought of something we might see in season 4, involving Mei, the Samadhi fire, and her love for the game Monkey Mech.

[!This post contains MAJOR SPOILERS for previous seasons of lego monkie kid, especially season 3!]

Inspired by this thread by colesmonkies on Twitter!

The thread above talks about how season 4 might take place inside a video game, specifically Monkey Mech, or maybe even the unnamed game that Wukong made from S2E6 "Game on". This theory is supported by the fact that Monkey Mech has been a big part of the show since the very first episode, and that it inspired MK's physical monkey mech power - which is the sole thing that separates him from Monkey King as his successor.

This journey into the game (instead of actually traveling to the past) would help tell the story of Monkey King's adventures that were never covered in Journey to the west, like his relationship with Macaque. Because let's be honest, that monkey would never talk about his past problems out of his own free will, especially not that part of his life.

Some people have pointed out that it was suspicious how MK's arcade machine was highlighted next to MK's staff and the scroll in the end scene. We know the latter is definitely going to be important in season 4, and we know Pigsy removed the game from his store when it kept distracting MK from his work too much.

So why does Wukong have it? Did he just want to have the game for himself to play? Or maybe there's something special about it? And most importantly, how would they get INTO the game in the first place?

Mei has a big role in MK's Monkey Mech obsession. It's also her favorite game and she's an expert at it, easily beating him (or anyone else, really) every time they compete against each other.

Very early in the series, in S1E3 "Coming home", she reveals a bit about her childhood, her personal life and her family, and obtains her dragon sword. She has grown a lot since then, going through character development comparable to that of MK himself and other major characters.

In S3E6 "The first ring" she is shown to be able to create, or at least modify, other vehicles and transform them into her own, very much like MK's physical monkey mech. She does this by plugging her dragon sword into it like some sort of overpowered USB stick. This particular vehicle is white gold and blue instead of her usual green, the same color scheme as her Monkey mech horse character (and her outfit on the new box art).

Also why did Red son have an input specifically for Mei's dragon sword in his car? I could go on about this but that's a topic for another post

Mei is insanely powerful even without the sword, or her dragon powers. She has created a fully stocked futuristic secret base, owns multiple personalised motorbikes, put a totally-not-creepy digital tracking system on all of her friends, and probably much more i forgot about while writing this post. She is a massive tech nerd much like Red son, the previous holder of the Samadhi fire.

Thanks to him, Mei has now learned to make the fire her own. This is a huge development, something i assume they won't just gloss over in season 4. I fully expect to see more of her abilities now that she has the fire under her control, especially combined with her dragon powers. We've only seen a snippet of what she can do with it (Including nearly cooking MK alive on like... three separate occasions).

I was watching the season 3 specials again, and one thing Red son said stuck out to me:

The samadhi fire is more than just an inextinguishable flame. It's an interdimensional weapon, with the destructive power to burn through the very fabric of reality."

Season 3 put emphasis on the fact that the fire could destroy reality. But what if through some training, the fire could also modify it, BEND it? We know Mei can teleport now, so it wouldn't be too far fetched to assume she could use this INTERDIMENSIONAL weapon to travel between realities.

We've seen that Mei can plug her sword into things to give them a "power up". So what i think might happens is that she will use it on the Monkey Mech arcade machine, and using the samadhi fire's interdimensional abilities, somehow transport herself and her friends into the reality of the game where (a big part of) season 4 will take place. She will need to leave her sword plugged in while being in there, which could explain why she doesn't have it with her in the box art.

TLDR: My theory is that the plot of season 4 will be about Mei plugging her dragon sword into the Monkey mech arcade machine, and transporting herself and her friends into the game thanks to her new samadhi fire powers.

I don't really have an idea for why they would enter the game and how the scroll could to this. Maybe they just wanted some fun, or it was an accident? Either way, they would need to find a way to get out back to their own reality, either by finishing the game or with help from outside. (Red son on Guanyin? Flying Bark? pls?)

Let me know your thoughts!

------------

EDIT 3/12/2022: MORE THOUGHTS ABOUT THIS BECAUSE MORE SETS CAME OUT!

The man antagonists of the new sets are the yellow tusk elephant, azure lion and golden-winged eagle which are minor characters in Journey to the West. The Rhino king was a character from JTTW that made a cameo in Wukong's game in S2E6, so it's likely that these three new animal-based characters will have a similar antagonistic role.

But what stood out to me are their sidekicks, called "ink demons". These demons are original characters, never appearing in JTTW. @/sonofwu on twitter pointed out that heir names imply that there's a possibility our main cast will dive into the world of a book (the scroll from S3E14?) instead of a video game, or that the characters in the book come alive into the real world of Monkie kid.

Since Mei gets a lot of focus in the sets, and her and MK being the only ones not as their past selves unlike Pigsy, Sandy and Tang, I believe there's still a possibility of her using her sword to take MK and herself into this dimension (either into the book or the game) instead of traveling to the past.

Something that stood out to me as well was the backgrounds for these sets, which appear very similar to the scenery in Wukong's game from S2E6. This could support the theory that they'll travel into this game instead of Monkey Mech.

In one set, MK, Mei, and the original versions of Pigsy and Sandy are shown to be vendors of some kind of stores (for example, Mei being a blacksmith). Maybe this implies that they'll take part in the game as NPC's too, like how the original Tang did in Wukong's game.

Also, you know how I said Pigsy, Sandy and Tang looked like their past selves in these sets? They also have VERY similar outfits to their game counterparts! I wonder if this means anything....

Let me know your thoughts!

[digitaldoeslmk]

I am curious about your LMK au. I mean, i think i remember thar you still have a lady bone demon in you au,right? So if she still wants to erase this reality to create her perfet World, she stills need the samadhi fire, what exactly is she going to do to make red son use it? Cause i dont think he is going to do it if she asks him😂😂😂. Is she going to make him, for example, remember that he had lost his childhood? I can understand that he is ok right now with that, but can still be something that can upset him if the overthink of it.🤔

PD, i love your au and your art! I wish the actual serie was more like that, or at least the part of guanyin and red son still having the samadhi fire.

Pd2.0, do you have a fanfic of all this? If you have, please tell me!!!! 🤩🤩🤩🤩I need it!!!💙💙💙

Sorry if my english is not that perfect😂

hello anon, and thank you for the compliments!! I don't quite have a fanfic proper cus long-format writing is a real struggle for me, but I do plan to do some scenes and such :D I'll post here and on AO3, particularly on this collection <3

as for LBD, that's the thing, that's not her motivation at all! xD like I said, my au is very JTTW-compliant, and in the novels, the White Bone Demon's only motivation was to eat Tripitaka to gain immortality thanks to his multiple lifetimes of cultivation. that's the motivation of pretty much all the demons the pilgrims face, save maybe Princess Iron Fan and Bull Demon King, who both want revenge on Wukong for defeating their son Red Boy.

in my au, LBD gets revived along with a few other demons on the prospect of getting revenge of Wukong for killing them, a proposal offered to them by Macaque. previously I stated that he ran away from the Diyu but after some thinking, im changing it to he was reincarnated once his time on the Diyu was done! despite being reborn, he wanted to get back at Wukong and the aspect of fate itself, and for that he needed to cause some real uproar, thus the sneaking souls out of the Hells for his own plans. however his plans don't include the use of the Samadhi fire, so no need to manipulate Red Son into using it for him.

also the Samadhi fire isn't exclusive to Red Son either! it's a very specific and powerful skill that only a few select individuals can use, but it's not this world-ending power like the series make it out to be. other characters like Nezha and Erlang can use it too uwu

[fluffypotatey]

Hello there! I hope the month has treated you kindly enough. I don't have much questions right now, but there are a few buzzing in my head:

Why did Wukong tell MK at the start of S2 that he was going on a vacation, instead of maybe just saying that he has some unfinished business, maybe a serious one, that needs attending to now that MK can sort of look after himself? Probably to set the tone into something less alarming but I think if he went with that kind of excuse maybe MK wouldn't feel so resentful about his mentor apparently chilling while away. Or rather why not say that he's going to the Celestial realm and that he may not be available for a while because time runs differently between the two realms?

What effects do you think that being imprisoned inside a mountain has on Wukong instead of being trapped under it like in the OG JTTW book? I mean, both are pretty bad but at least the one in the book gives him fresh air and sunlight instead of complete darkness in the isolation.

Do you think that just like the battle that lead to the Havoc in Heaven 2.0 is different in LMK compared to the original book version, the peach thievery and banquet disruption also has a different story to it than the book one?

How's your writing for SWK and The Reaper series going? If you're having a bit of an inspiration fatigue, take your time to recharge. But are we going to see the White Impermanence's successor in that series though. How would the s4 and its specials' events go?

Have a great week, eat your meals regularly and not too late, take your medication if you have any, and eat your fruits and vegetables!

oh dear, oh honey, you’ve done it now :3 the floodgates are open :) hope you don’t regret it

imma have to answer these by short answer to long, so that first one is definitely placed last

anyway,

How's your writing for SWK and The Reaper series going?

tis marinating my good friend! tis on the slow cooker rn and might be for some more days or weeks depending on my uni stuff and motivation levels T^T but yeah, it’s not abandoned (far from it!) just needs some more mental plotting (ESPECIALLY because I added Xié Líng to the story and kind of want them introduced in the upcoming chapter/installment/part(?))

Are we going to see the White Impermanence's successor in that series though?

so yeah, you will see the White Impermanence’s successor soon! their involvement in the story takes place more in what I have in mind for s4 :3 and I don’t remember what I mentioned about them, but Xié Líng is basically Júhua’s only friend in the underworld (not to mention that the two are basically soulmates no thanks to what they have/will inherit). they aren’t that big of a fan of Sun Wukong but tolerate him bc it’s Júhua’s uncle (a label she only ever confessed to Xié Líng). also, hoping they will help me explained Júhua’s magic a bit more since I now have 2 reapers in this verse :)

and for s4…..no, I shan’t say…….more Diyu and Júhua playing sleuth while MK goes through the horrors

Do you think that just like the battle that lead to the Havoc in Heaven 2.0 is different in LMK compared to the original book version, the peach thievery and banquet disruption also has a different story to it than the book one?

I honestly would not be surprised if that was the case. lmk already differentiates a lot from the book with specific details or chapters (Red Son’s chapter/Samadhi Fire lore, the reason behind Guanyin’s vase, how the JTTW crew met Pigsy, how they met Sandy, LBD’s chapter). so, while the feel of the show sticks with that adventure and high stakes and moral dilema that JTTW had, it also is its own piece of work (which you could argue for many JTTW adaptations tbh since there are sO many and many are very different from each other)

anyway, yeah, I have an inkling that the stolen peach story is not exactly book accurate.

What effects do you think that being imprisoned inside a mountain has on Wukong instead of being trapped under it like in the OG JTTW book?

oh ho ho! what a question 👀

I certainly think being trapped inside the 5 Phases Mt has a different impact than being trapped under it. for one, like you mentioned, book!SWK had the “luxury” of being able to see outside and breathe fresh air. lmk!SWK???? he is in the heart of the mountain. he is seeing nothing but rocks (stalactites and stalagmites), he can hear nothing but the drips of cave water, he can breath nothing but stale and dusty air….for 500 years :)

how do you stay sane in such conditions?

spoiler: you don’t!

you cannot stay sane or impassive to being trapped inside a mountain with nothing but rock and golden chains for 500 years!!! we all remember that clip of a freed swk, right?

see that? that’s the look of a monkey who’s just been released from a 500 year prison and is ready to tear the world apart just to feel better :)

so how would one stay some-what lucid in this imprisonment? my guess is the man hallucinated the shit out of it. bored of seeing nothing but rock and more rock and even more rock? how about visualizing that Macky returned after your horrible fight and is apologizing for snapping at you. how about believing that you good pals the Brotherhood and you didn’t fail your war with Heaven! how about thinking that the darkness and loud echos of the cave hold more creatures and demons who heard of your downfall and want to finish the job. how about envisioning being back at FFM, Macky and your monkey subjects are so happy to see you and you were actually never imprisoned! how about believing—

listen to me, listen to me: Wukong’s experience of being held inside the mountain, other than being smushed under it, is more psychologically impactful and I bet this monkey could not sleep well after being freed for centuries. Wukong sleeps with a night light still!

Why did Wukong tell MK at the start of S2 that he was going on a vacation, instead of maybe just saying that he has some unfinished business?

short answer: because he’s an idiot

long answer:

Wukong is very used to solving issues on his own. he is aware that MK is human (maybe) and a mortal (now debatable, but at this point, MK believed that and that’s what’s important). he is aware that MK’s an anxious kid and wants to prove himself but also has great power within him. he is very aware that MK still needs to complete his training and isn’t ready for what Wukong is about to embark on (also who Wukong would potentially fight against with no one being none the wiser to).

and, as I stated prior, Wukong is very used to solving issues on his own. he did it in his time before JTTW and even during JTTW because he was the overpowered stone monkey who was FFM’s trump card and the JTTW savior when situations got rough (barely any of the other companions are able to beat off an opponent without Wukong’s help). thus, Wukong is not someone to ask for help or even allow other to be aware that help is needed because he is not used to asking (he only will if push comes to shove and he is out of ideas, which he wasn’t in s2)

however, I’m sure we’re well aware of SWK’s almost allergic reaction to acknowledging help or admitting that something is most definitely wrong! but imma get that statement out of the way so that when I delve into the question, we all have what I said above in mind :)

now, why tell MK he’s going on vacation? why not give a lie that could be a little closer to the truth?

well, as said before, Wukong has an aversion to admitting when there are things going wrong that only he could recognize and probably worries that hinting to MK that Wukong is off to investigate something would possibly entice the kid to join Wukong or ask the monkey a lot of questions about it he isn’t inclined to answer. also, if Wukong were to say he needed to complete something in the celestial realm that would also bring on more questions he would not know how to respond to

thus, vacation! it’s already established that Wukong retired himself from helping duty by s1. and what do retired people do? go on vacation!!!! they hit the road, take the most tourist heavy sites, go radio silent and relax! therefore, if Wuking were to tell MK he is going on vacation, then MK would not ask him too many questions about where he’s going or ask if he can join! I would not be surprised if that’s Wukong’s thought process. this answer is merely the simplest way for Wukong to subtly get rid of the LBD problem while MK protects the city and learns more about how to hone his powers (it’s not like the kid needed Wukong, the kid’s a fast learner and his powers are growing pretty quickly).

‘course this undermines MK’s insecurities of not being good enough and brings to light his abandonment issues and his low self worth but, uh, yeah

in conclusion: Wukong dun fucked up for saying vacation because he’s an idiot

[static-arz]

What are the relationship of Li with Mk and others and Shen too if its alright?(Sorry I'm just really invested in your oc's🥺✨)

DON'T BEE I LOVE TALKING ABT THEM 🥹❤

Also phew this one is gonna long answer so prepare! :'D,

1. Note: Li makes his first appearance in mid season 2 while Shen makes his first appearance in mid season 4!

Li Xin:

Mei dragon:

Just like I wrote on his sheet, she's Li's childhood bestie and are super close, for Li she's seen as a possible love interest too! Problem is that he's too scared to say anything and doesn't wanna ruin the long friendship they share so he loves her in silence :')

MK:

Just like the rest, Li only knows him through Mei. At first, Li was doubting him and judging him in all ways, didn't really like him at first because he thought he was the only best friend Mei had lmao he was kind of jealous tbh.

But around season 3 Li sees MK as an close friend too! The moment MK had to start figuring things on his own, that is when Li was able to relate to him a lot. He would often try to mentally support him and just be there for him as much as he needed. He adores the way he is and also apologizes to him for his behavior and now he's extra caring for him. uvu

Monkey King/Sun Wukong:

Nope. Not even a bit. For Li monkey King is a burden. He gets to learn about him throughout the season 2, 3 and 4 and he is not very convinced by him. He often try to avoid talking to him and be annoyed with his presence alone. He only sees the bad traits instead of the good ones. In the end of season 4 he does get to learn more about him, but stays natural towards him. So he doesn't really see him as friend.

Tang:

For Li he's sorta a mutual than a close friend. He doesn't bond with him much but they had their moments too. Li gets to see his troubles too and notices his lack of confidence. He often try to tell him the opposite though. By now you'd know that Li is sort of the therapy friend of the bunch.

Pigsy:

Just like Tang a mutual. he would often take advice from him when it comes to cooking because Li had to microwave his food most of the time because he is a student. He'd love to learn how to cook proper meals for his health and regrets never learning it from his parents. Pigsy gladly teaches him as well. Li also learns quickly and he's thankful he's here too.

Sandy:

Li sees him as a close mutual. At first he was quite suspicious of him because he never saw so much kindness before. Almost made him believe that guy is not what he seems to be. He actually had a lot of doubts in everyone but slowly he warmed up to him too and saw a genuine kind individual. Since he received pain and suffering most of the time he often got fooled by people who pretended to be kind. He's glad Sandy is not that person and never will be. He appreciates his presence too.

Red son:

He doesn't wanna admit it but pretty sure he's part of them too! When first met in S3 Li gets super suspicious of him too. Especially after hearing about what he did in the past with the others he quickly becomes protective and alert of his friends safety. Soldier instinct he has. He didn't really like him at first and was neutral about him until in the special episode: embrace your destiny, he sees him as ally once seeing how much he helped. Especially Mei since Li gets super anxious and even more protective once he saw Mei struggling with the fire of Samadhi.

2. Note: As for everyone else he was able to meet throughout the adventures with MK and the others, he'd stay natural and takes time to warm up to anyone that is seen as ally, and he will be protective and shielding against the enemies.

Shen Xiaotian:

Let's say that his relationship with MK and the others is a mix of hatred and adoration. He pities MK but at the same time he can't help but feel pleasure when watching him suffer because he thinks he deserves it. Shen sees him as a corny hero but at the same time Shen wishes he was that type. For the rest he isn't very impressed by them but more annoyed. Especially with Li because for some reason Li caught his attention shortly. There is not much to say about Shen and his relationship with Mk and the others since he freshly appears in season 4.

As for Monkey King, he's a different case. Shen first met him when he caught him stealing peaches of immortality. Back then Shen was a passionate celestial warrior so he'd definitely try to catch that monkey. For sure he failed. He was a nuisance to him and still is. Yet he does adores the way of his rebellious acts. But Shen is even more unhinged than Monkey King so when he finds out how "weak" be became he instantly gets disgusted by him.

Phew! That was a lot to write! Took me almost an hour! Excuse my spelling mistakes, I am quite fast in typing and english is not my first language! :'D. But yeah, let me know if something is unclear I try to explain it more!

[winterpower98]

Awesome! Thank you for allowing me to ramble about my AU ideas to you! ^^

My first idea, let's call it the "Ice and Bone AU" for now, is one I alredy kind of talked about in the past. Set up is easy: in this AU MK and friends do not manage to bring up enough power to defeat LBD, ending up in a stand off where they are equaly matched in power. So instead, MK proposes a deal to her: she gives him 1 year to convince her that the world is worth not destroying, if he fails she can resume her plan of destroying everything. Suprisingly, LBD agrees and she and the Major become part of MK's "found family", taking basically the roles of really, REALLY weard aunt and uncle.

My secound AU idea, let's calle it the "Three Fires AU" for now, is mainly focused on the trafic light trio. Basically, unbeknown to everyone Meis Samadhi Fire split itlself into three becouse her body couldn't handle it, transferring parts of it to MK and Red Son who where directly exposed to Meis fire for a long time during the finally. So while Meis fire isn't as strong as it should be, Red and MK can use their own versions of Samadhi Fire, it just takes them a while to figure it out.

So, after explaining both my AU ideas (sorry the texts turned out so long), here is the thing I'm unsure about:

I could keep them as seperated AU's, that way I could do whatever with them becouse they don't "depend" on each other.

Or I could combine them into one AU. That way I would have an explanation for why MK and the others wheren't able to defeat LBK (becouse of Meis fire beeing weaker than expected due to alredy having split into three). But on the other hand it would mean I have one AU with basically two plots, something I never had before. But it's also two plots that can work together well, becouse LBD is old and smart enough to maybe help the trio figure out what is going on with the fire.

So, what do you think? Should I combine those two ideas to one AU, or keep them as seperated AU's?

(Btw, Sorry this message turned out super long! >.<)

~*~

(Sorry for answering this ask suuuuuppppeeerr late)

"Ice and Bone AU" sounds like a very interesting AU. No doubt complicated too tho, I think it would be one of those stories where you have pretty normal things happen by they are always paired with some type of phsyco analisys, or something like that.

"Three Fires AU" sounds like what I had originally theorized was going to happen in season 3, so I am immediatly down for it.

I think you can combine the AU easily because you don’t really have two plots, per se. You have a primary plot (the one from Ice and Bone), which is the one that drives the story and the protagonist’s actions, and a secondary plot (The one from Three Fires) that aids the first plot but also gives you a way to make the protagonists develop during the story.

I hope this was helpful!

[imminent-danger-came]

so after I saw some of recent asks on your blog i went back and read your post about mei in full, and i liked her before but now i'm gonna be thinking about this forever. i love love love characters that are optimistic despite all the circumstances and oh my god. she's just like me for real!!!

on a separate note: hoping so hard that if/when MK goes ballistic with his powers, we get a scene like 3x10 with the roles reversed. someone made a really cool comic about the concept (that. might have even been you KFDJH) and i haven't gotten it out of my head since

final note: *chanting* mei dragon form. mei dragon form. mei dragon fORM. MEI DRAGON F-

"hoping so hard that if/when MK goes ballistic with his powers, we get a scene like 3x10 with the roles reversed" YEAH. SAMADHI FIRE PART 3 BABBYYYYYYY

Also I'm very happy I can dish out some Mei propaganda!

Sometimes I think about Mei and MK constantly reaching for each other, and how Mei's first scene in the whole show was her reaching for MK, and I just get a little emotional!

Mei and her "We have to try!" hopepunk mentality extends all the back to the AHIB special, with "Someone has to fight". She always takes action! She's going to try even when it seems hopeless! She'll reach and reach and reach! She's giving everything she has to protect the people she cares about:

Mei: "How dare you! My friends are in danger because of you! And you're not even going to stick around to finish the job?" (4x14 Better than We Found It)

[cherry-blossom-consumer]

I saw a take that someone made saying something along the lines of hiw Red Son has emotional trauma from his parents. Which, honestly sounds understandable.

Personally, and this is just my opinion, it isn't meant to offend anyone's headcanons and such, but I think it's honestly not extreme like I've seen a couple people say. Of COURSE the guy didn't grow up normal, he

1) Is a literal demon

2) Is immortal

3) Is classified as a former villain who LIVES with former villain parents

4) Was born with the Samadhi Fire which made him extremely powerful and destructive

And tons of other issues. His parents were only part of it. Yes he craves attention, praise, and recognition from them and is eager to please them, but on the inside they are still a family. They love eachother and care about eachother.

Not to mention when the Samadhi Fire was extracted, all the others chose to catch the rings since they had their hands free yet DBK didn't give the ring a glance and instead rushed to catch his son. He cares. They care.

DBK was obviously scared of the possibility of his wife getting captured by the Spider Queen. And while he claims on the outside that his son is useless or a disappointment, he very much cares about him inside.

They have issues, yes. Can they be reversed? No. Can they be fixed? Not really. Are they egotistical and have hard outer shells? You betcha. But do they love eachother as a family? Yes. They so very much do.

[makiruz]

I have come to realize that while I did know things about Monkie Kid I didn't know what the seasons were about.

I knew about the Samadhi Fire and it's destructive potential, not the season was bout the good guys finding it and using it; I knew season 4 involved Azure Lion and the ink curse, but assumed the season was about him, not them reliving the Journey to the West; which is hella cool by the way, teaches kids about the story while giving character development; btw I didn't know Pigsy had a complex about his appearance, or Sandy, although it makes sense that he does, we did know he had been a mighty warrior in the past.

Anyway, this is a very interesting story, and like it takes place inside the scroll, and like they're confirming the guys are the reincarnations or the Pilgrims, I guess? I mean Sandy, Pigsy and Mei are descendants of Sha Wujing, Zhu Bajie and the White Horse Dragon, we knew that and it makes sense, but Sanzang doesn't have descendants, he's a monk; so what is Tang to him? Mmmmmmm

Oh my god, the early part is a perfect match for the story! Even after Tang becomes himself again, it's the Monk, his monkey protector and his white horse dragon, that's why episode 3 is just him with MK and Mei; and then their jumping is just people trying to eat Tang because he's in the role of the Great Monk and as we all know eating the flesh of a holy monk gives you immortality, obviously

[f4lse--real1ty]

Hello! I saw you write for Ninjago AND Monkie Kid! So I was wondering if you could write lloyd and cole x a reader/ S/O who's basically Mei from Monkie Kid head cannons? (Part of the west dragon sea clan and has the Samadhi Fire in them) If not that's ok! Thank you have a great day!

-- Emo Anon 🖤

Oh OFC!!! I've been waiting for something like this lol

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Story Info:

Reader Gender: Gender Neutral

Characters: Lloyd and Cole

TW/CW: Reader questioning their self-worth for a little bit and a little bit of cursing (Also a lot of gifs)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

- Noodle Dragon -

(omg look at my daughter.)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-- Lloyd --

Oh wow.

Green.....

No but seriously he loves the green dyed part of your hair

Lots of teasing from the other ninjas

"Wow Lloyd, you both have green parts. You really are soulmates~"

"Ooooh~"

That one "shut the f- up" face is given by Lloyd

When you showed him your dragon form, he couldn't help but awe at the noodle form of your dragon

"Awwwwww babe! You look so cute!"

You pulled out your phone and texted Nya

"About to beat up Lloyd, come record bestie."

"OMG YES ON MY WAY RN"

Let's just say he didn't have a really good day after that

Now regarding the Samadhi fire.

You were always insecure and now that you're dating the Green Ninja, you became even more insecure due to not fully being able to control your newfound power

He doesn't mind your fire at all, if you get insecure, he'll kiss you all over until you're both in a giggling fit

"What if I can't control it? What if I hurt you-"

*smooch*

"I know you won't. I love you so much."

Whenever you get pissed off, he doesn't believe he's in real life because of how chill you usually are

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Bonus:

Him reacting to you beating up the villain(s)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

but ngl he kinda thinks it's hot (pun intended)

He'll go up to you after you finish beating the villain(s) up/after the fight and attempt to calm you down (lots of teasing from the team)

"C'mon honey, we won. It's ok now."

He holds your hands, he doesn't care if he gets 3rd degree burns, love makes you crazy, right?

After you calm down and start smiling again, he'll kiss your cheek and walk you home to the monastery

He doesn't mind your outbursts; he knows you didn't ask your great x100 to take that part of the Samadhi fire

Overall loves you very much <3

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-- Cole --

He really loves your dragon form

Noodle shaped dragon>>>>

Your personalities don't really clash but they are somewhat opposites

Cole: mindful and calm (sometimes) You: Hyper and loving

Opposites attract ig

Dude loves cuddling with you, you're as warm as a bear to him (bro some kid hugged me and said this to me, and I was laughing my head off it was fucking hilarious)

Bake him a cake and he's all yours

He's very interested in your clan and loves hearing stories/legends from you

He kisses your dragon form a lot

Now onto the Samadhi fire

He made sure to not show any negative emotions around you when you got into your fire form

Again, he knows you didn't ask for this power at all

He doesn't mind your form at all, he makes sure to kiss you every time you're in your Samadhi fire form

Kisses you everywhere because he loves you

He doesn't care if he ever gets 3rd degree burns because he decided to kiss you or hug you while you were covered in the fire You get very surprised, but it helps you calm down

Overall loves you to bits <33

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A/N: SORRY FOR NOT BEING SO ACTIVE BUT ANYWAYS hope you have a great morning/afternoon/night! <333

[davids-cartoon-corkboard]

Episode 6 thoughts!

Is this why the Demon Bull King and Princess Iron Fan were always so disappointed when Red Son failed or was “weak”? He was so powerful with the Samadhi fire, surely he could be powerful without it if they pushed him- but that just turned into biting comments and tearing him down. And they kept the knowledge of the fire from him because they knew he would try to retrieve it to be powerful and win their approval.

Even without the risk of him attacking them out of resentment should he manage to succeed, it’s clear that he’s willing to hurt himself for power. (Apparently punching yourself in the face is a requirement to activate the Samadhi fire. Methinks that’s how he got his scar.) Wouldn’t he be so determined to get the fire that he would act recklessly, then? Couldn’t he very well get hurt or killed? Better to just keep it a secret.

Since it seems like the Bodhisattva Guanyin was only involved in the first part of the fight versus Red Son (using the water in her vase to extinguish the fire), but not the second part (actually removing and splitting the fire), I’m assuming he never became her disciple in this version. Which isn’t surprising; Journey to the West is meant to be read allegorically and a lot of that meaning isn’t going to make it into this silly Lego cartoon. And if you don’t read JttW allegorically, a lot of parts seem really fucked up. The Bodhisattva stabbed this kid with, like, a lot of swords, y’all.

-----

As the amnesic Sun Wukong said last episode, the Samadhi fire split into four pieces.

Ao Lie is in dragon form in the flashback, placed much more prominently than he would be if he were in horse form.

Long Xiaojiao is aflame in a vision here and in episode 2.

LXJ outright refers to herself as Bai Longma, in a way!

Did Ao Lie absorb the last piece of the Samadhi fire?! Was it accidental, or a deliberate grasp at more power? Did SWK know at the time? If so, did he tell anyone or try to do anything about it? Or was he too afraid to square up against even a fragment of the fire that nearly killed him? Does he still know now, or did White Bone Sprit mess with that memory? Did others know, and WBS also messed with their memories?

...If the fire was meant to be lost forever, then who made the map? It had to be someone present at the separation, someone who would know or be able to reasonably guess the location of the other three pieces.

Was Ao Lie not satisfied with having only one piece? Did he plan to get the other three? Clearly he failed, was he found out and stopped by the others? Or did he perish against WBS and the Not-Mayor, passing on the fragment within him to his next incarnation?

The whole reason Ao Lie went on the Journey was to repent for accidentally setting fire to his father’s palace and pearls. To parallel this, LXJ is gonna light Megapolis UP.

(*Steve Harvey voice* YES! KILL!)

I’m curious if a piece of the Samadhi fire can be activated independently, and under what circumstances... perhaps LXJ will connect the dots once she learns about there being four pieces and then she’ll get fire breath or something?

-----

Side note: he actually went to get the blanket and milk. And he’s definitely going to keep LXJ’s dragon plushie safe for her. Spicynoodles and Dragonfruit shippers are having a field day with this aren’t they.

-----

(Screenshots and subtitles courtesy of colesmonkies on twitter.)

(Opening) (Ep.1) (Ep. 2) (Ep. 3) (Ep. 4) (Ep. 5)

(Ep. 6: You Are Here) (Ep. 7) (Ep. 8) (Ep. 9) (Ep. 10)

[purble-turble]

Okay good! In that case, SEASON 3 SPOILERS!!!

When MK is pleading for Macaque to join them the first time, Macaque actually takes him up on the offer, and that's why he's now searching for the rings of Samadhi with them. Truthfully, he's only doing it so he can either free himself from LBD or bring the fire to her. Of course, this leads to a bitter reunion between himself and Wukong.

Now imagine with me - Amnesiac Wukong from that one episode with Macaque. He's thrilled to see his lover with him, and wow Liu-Er, you look so handsome! Almost like you're a king yourself now 😉, and Pigsy and Tang are very confused while Macaque is avoiding Wukong

Ooh now that sounds fun!! That other ask I got had a similar premise of Macaque showing up during episode 5 when Wukong was out of his mind.. but in this case, if instead of him confronting Sun Wukong with the intent to capture him, he shows up with the others with the intent to join him and it’s even mORE awkward LOL!

So, maybe instead of running off after destroying the Evil Macaque Mech, MK stayed to fight him again.. that show of strength might have been enough to convince him to actually turn against LBD and help them in their search. And, since they now have Mac’s help, they don’t get trapped in the desert and instead manage to catch up to Sun Wukong and the others just as this whole amnesia thing is happening. With Macaque not actively antagonistic to the group, and also with MK there to make sure things don’t get out of hand, they don’t end up fighting this time. Instead Macaque just kind of sulks and pushes Wukong away when he gets flirty and tries to act like they’re friends. Eventually, once he gets sick enough about it, he blows up at the other monkey shouting that they are NOT FRIENDS anymore! He ruined that a long time ago by first leaving him behind and then literally killing him! MK gets between them and does his best to calm Mac down while everyone else, especially Sun Wukong, just is kind of confused about that last part of his statement…. Once Sun Wukong gets his memories back MK is definitely gonna ask him about that so they can work out what he is sure is a misunderstanding.