The appeal of Monkey! is easier to experience than explain. It's an occasionally surreal blend of Oriental fable, knock-about martial arts, pop Buddhism and slapstick comedy. The frequent comic fight scenes are accompanied by a 70s disco-fusion soundtrack, and a narrator (English voice: Frank Duncan) uses gaps in the action to deliver inscrutable snippets of wisdom ("Even a starving camel is still bigger than a horse", "Does love mean labour even for the carp-hearted?"). Best of all, though, is the dialogue: without regard to any lip-synch niceties the English script (by David Weir) is full of idiomatic delights, jokes and double entendres. All are delivered by British actors in hilarious cod-Japanese accents (distinguished thesp Miriam Margolyes is the voice of Tripitaka). Bad special effects crown the show's cheesy, retro appeal.

On the DVD: Monkey! volume 2 on DVD features the same three episodes as the VHS incarnation--"Monkey Swallows the Universe", "The Power of Youth" and "Even Monsters Can Be People"--but also a bonus previously unseen episode from the second season, "Pigsy Learns a Lesson", which is subtitled not dubbed, so if nothing else is an opportunity to hear the actors' real voices. Extra features are a stills gallery, text pieces on the principal cast, characters and episodes, Weblinks, trailers for The Water Margin and Blake's Seven and a pop-video version of the show's irrepressible main title song.--Mark Walker

DVD Description
DVD Special Features
Pigsy Learns A Lesson (Bonus episode never seen on UK TV, with English subtitles)
Principal cast/character biographies
Still galleries
Web links

See all Reviews