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91 of 94 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Monkey! Control yourself!, 22 Mar 2007
Ah, Monkey, Monkey, where do I start with Monkey? I was only 2 years old when the show originally aired (too young to take any notice of it really!), but over the years, I heard from older friends (as well as my 2 older sisters) what a great programme it was, and how I would have loved it, seeing as how I became a huge fan of badly dubbed martial arts epics as I was growing up. However, the BBC in their infinite wisdom chose not to repeat the series....
But salvation came years later in the form of the Bravo channel on Sky. I'd gotten Sky installed at home as one of the first big things I did when I started earning my own cash (wrestling addict that I am!) and I read in a magazine that Bravo were to start airing the old episodes of Monkey! So, I decided to watch and see what all the fuss was about....I was completely blown away by it.
Basically, `Monkey' follows the plot of `Journey To The West'....to cut a long story short, Monkey attempts to take over Heaven, ends up having fights with 2 spirits (who themselves end up being banished to earth and reincarnated as a Pig Demon and Water Demon as punishment) and eventually tries to take on Lord Buddha, who traps Monkey underneath a mountain for 500 years in order to make Monkey learn patience, Eventually, a young Priest named Tripitaka is charged with the task of travelling to India in order to obtain holy scriptures which will save mankind, and it is decided that Monkey and the 2 spirits who were banished from Heaven (affectionately referred to as Pigsy and Sandy once they join the quest) shall accompany him as his bodyguards, as a way of earning forgiveness and being allowed back into Heaven. Monkey is at first reluctant to help the pilgrimage, but is kept under control by a magical headband which tightens and causes him agony whenever Tripitaka recites the `headache sutra' (complete with comedy piercing screech sound effect).
The series, though set in China, was actually a Japanese production and was made back at the end of the 1970's....meaning that there are a lot of hilariously awful special effects. Long shots of Monkey flying on his cloud are made up of a wax figure on a ball of cotton wool (as had been mentioned in another review) and asides from a couple of instances, most `underwater' scenes are obviously filmed from inside a fish tank, with the actors and sets perfectly dry on the outside. But this is a series that does not take itself too seriously. Yes, the dubbing is amusingly bad, but this is more intentional than accidental....even in it's original language the script is meant to be humerous and it constantly pokes light hearted but respectful fun at the main Buddhist themes of the story....Lord Buddha consistently appears as a female entity (as an attempt to convey compassion), but this only causes Monkey to openly refer to Buddha as `kinky' (`I always thought you were a fella!' says Monkey). As such, because you're laughing so much, you actually end up remembering more of the dialogue and many of the Buddhist sayings that crop up (ie. `How many times must a fool who misses the way wander through his many lives?' Maybe that was the intention of the people who made it, I don't know.
Comedy and action is where Monkey really excels. If it doesn't have you chuckling at the constant witty banter between Monkey, Pigsy and Sandy, then you'll be smiling at the fight scenes and their `swish/whoosh' sound effects. Along with the amount of superhuman feats on display (Monkey appears to be able to leap tall buildings in a single bound), it's quite easy to get lost in the crazyness of it all. The music is also great, from the main theme which contains the lines `Born from an egg on a mountain top, punkiest monkey that ever popped!' to the cheesy J-pop tune that plays whenever an emotional scene takes place, it all adds to the quirky appeal of the show.
In fact, the only (slight) problems I have with the whole show are the fact that Toshiyuki Nishida (the original Pigsy actor) left at the end of the first series (26 episodes) and was replaced by Tonpei Hidari who, whilst amusing, just doesn't seem quite as charismatic in the role, and also that the story doesn't actually end with the final episode, as the show was put on suspension at the end of the second series but a third series was never made. However, it's easy to find out what happened at the end of the story, just read a translation of `Journey To The West' and revel in the fact that the TV series is more about life's journey than life's destination.
Also take note that the original series ran for 52 episodes but only the 39 that were originally broadcast on UK TV are included in this box set. However, the `missing' 13 episodes were actually dubbed in 2004 by the original voice actors and are available either as a separate box set (here on Amazon) or as part of the 4 volume Special Edition sets (not available on Amazon). All in all, however you decide to collect them you can't really go wrong with Monkey. My wife recently bought me the Special Edition box sets from Ebay for my 30th birthday and they've since become a hugely treasured part of my collection. As the saying goes, `The nature of Monkey is irrepressible!' so long may the legacy of this fantastic series live on.
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