Ok I was looking on the internet for some chinese movies to watch (movies that were dubbed in vietnamese fyi i am vietnamese so yeah....) anyway I saw this title Tay Du Ky= tay-u-ki. I'll translate the words for you Tay is West, Du is Journey, Ki is To. It is kinda confusing because the vietnamese language is weird at times. So anyway I was looking at it the english translation for Tay Du Ky was Journey To The West. I thought oh this reminds me of Saiyuki and when I was looking at the pic of it there was a buddhist monk guy and three of this buddies on the cover and I was like: OMG LIVE ACTION SAIYUKI! so i bought it and watched it and compared it to the anime version and it was quite different but there were a lot of similarities. If you want to see the pic of the live action saiyuki I'll show it to u. It may look a little weird. BTW the live action saiyuki isn't a japanese release but a chinese release.
Jouney to the West is a really famous Chinese? book. It's very long and deals with a monk and three of his traveling companions. One of them is definitely named Goku. Saiyuki is not the 1st to incorporate this story/myth into their plot. So there's nothing strange at all about you finding something else with a similar title and themes as Saiyuki.
It is the practically almost the same. I asked my dad about this since he read the books himself. I described all the characters in saiyuki to him and he said that it was in the book. Sanzo, Goku, Hakkai, and can't remember the other guy's name. He also told me about the character background info and it was almost exact as the anime.
The last guys name is Gojyo.
And yes, alot of it is very similar. Because the anime is based off of the book. I really don't pay attention to alot of it, but I know that Goku's story is virtually identical. Where Sanzo comes by and sees Goku imprisoned by the gods and then he frees him and everything else that follows.
Saiyuki Live had already existed in the early 80s. Saiyuki is a chinese folklore. I think most people know that. As far as I know, there are 4 China versions and 4 HK versions. The vietnamese versions are just translated versions of the China versions.
The anime is just an adaptation. In the anime, Sanzo's, Hakkai's characters have been changed. Goku's character is the only one which practically remains 99% identical to the original story.
If you have the R1 dvd's it has cultural notes on the series verses the book, I'd suggest reading through them (there actually not that boring). ^^
Quote:Originally posted by SilverMuraki
If you have the R1 dvd's it has cultural notes on the series verses the book, I'd suggest reading through them (there actually not that boring). ^^
I've read them all. And they are quite enlightening. But I've also forgotten them just as quickly. :confused:
There's also been other anime based on that tale like Dragonball.
Dragonball is only remotely similar, only using the character Goku and maybe a couple of demons, if I remember it correctly.
Quote:Originally posted by ZODDGUTS
There's also been other anime based on that tale like Dragonball.
Albeit VERY loosely.
And wasn't there an American mini-series thrown in there for good measure?
Edit: While I was getting water I was beaten to the punch
theres also that tv show that airs late on ch4 (uk) called monkey which is based on the same book, what a show!!!
You can download one of the chinese Saiyuki series via BT - i think it has eng subs. I think it was the recent china version with all the idols which bored the hell out of me.
There are TONS of TV shows and movies based on Journey to the West. I don't like using the name Saiyuki outside of anime, since it's a Japanese title for a Chinese piece of literature. I'm pretty sure I'd get my ass beat by my grandparents if I ever used a Japanese name to describe a Chinese item (or story for that matter).
Sanzo shows up in Read or Die, for some shameless self promotion. He appeared in India, and explained that he once journeyed there in the past or somthing along those lines.