Mackaque definitely wins the Most Helpful Side Character award in season five, he’s working overtime to keep the monkeys alive and rational. *The fact that he’s the most emotionally stable member of the team now is crazy*
One of my favorite moments was him yelling at Wukong about holding back. It just reveals so much about him, especially with the benefit of hindsight. At first it just seems like he's surprised/upset Wukong isn't taking him seriously and that he's in disbelief he could've changed. And when you learn about their past you can feel the anger more. The rage the Wukong did change, but seemingly for someone else. Mac asked him, warned him, fought with him about his actions so many times, but Wukong wouldn't change for him- his best friend. Now he's different for a kid he barely knows. That's gotta sting. "You could've done this the whole time. Why couldn't you be better for me?" Type thing.
The analyzation is on point. I was always so fascinated with his character and the personal arc he had throughout the seasons. It’s refreshing to see almost 22 minutes analyzing this emo macaroni 🤍
@@mikaelbuonarotti355 You’re welcome! and be careful when reading comments and drinking water. You might run into something so unhinged to the point a whole waterfall comes out the nose 🌊🤧
honestly I do regret the lack of flashbacks. It’s a shame that we have to wait until the s4 finale to truly witness how toxic Wukong was to Mackaque in the past, hence his bitterness. It would have hit harder if we’d seen more than a single scene of it. My favorite part of their dynamic is that they’re both at fault for the broken bond, and it took a long time for the writers to display that
@@musingsofahomeschooler5332 I really hope we get some answers in S6......and that it's most involved than we are even theorizing. There's just enough there to give us a good idea of what happened, but I'm sure when we get it we will still be all 'oh...wow...didn't see THAT coming'
I love how different macaque and wukong are cuz wukong was forced into redemption while macaque chose it because as you said he self reflect 's a lot and knows he's partially to blame for what happened like not trying hard enough to convince wukong not to attack heaven cuz one conversation isn't going to cut it and abandoning wukong to take the punishment they all should've gotten and he wants to make things but doesn't try like wukong because he feels he doesn't deserve forgiveness even though wukong was macaque's best and only friend he had
@@OthandoSimamane-ss1xp wow that is a true statement Wukong was forced and macaque chose their redemption.....I'm going to have to think about that for awhile!!!!
I agree,except the part about "not convincing Wukong enough to not attack heaven".I don't think that part is Macaque's fault.Aside from Wukong being...well,Wukong (headstrong and immature),there's already Azure Lion the charismatic strong leader,Yellow Tusk the idealist,and Peng who is equally powerful.Macaque is almost insignificant in this situation,with only Wukong caring enough for him.I don't think any amount of conversation is enough to pull Wukong out of it. Honestly I feel like the only option Macaque has here is to leave Wukong on his own on this crazy mission.But his loyalty to his brother is too strong for that.And that scene below Five Phases mountain is Macaque finally snapping from it.Like imagine being loyal to your friend to keep em out of danger,only for said friend to never learn,keep running into danger with no concern for the both of you.Like don't you wanna say "Why you stupid?!" to their face.And irl (and in the case of MK & Mei,an everyday modern characters),it would be frustrating yet comedic.But the downside of Macaque & Wukong's relationship is the power imbalance.Like bruh,Wukong popped out of a stone and became a king in one chapter. Macaque was a good friend to Wukong,but as long as Wukong doesn't want to better himself,Macaque can only do so much for him 😔
this is a pretty good analysis for macaque's progression, bc here it's at least acknowledged that he does genuinely change after season 3- even if it's under his typical dramatic layer, he's dropped the genuine malice completely since then (i respectfully disagree with some bits, but you made good observations about macaque overall)
@virignek9879 lol thanks! I change my mind constantly so it's probably pretty likely I'd disagree with myself eventually too. People are always pointing out thing I didn't see. That the fun of the conversation!
@@mikaelbuonarotti355 true i'm just kinda tired of seeing people assume that macaque is just a villain and that it somehow equals with "has no good traits whatsoever" (the amount of times i've seen macaque be portrayed as much meaner than he is, istg-), so seeing a more neutral/complex take on Macaque is really refreshing (also doesn't help that he's one of my favorite characters in the show- bc overtime i have developed some pretty strong opinions on that matter that would make a page long list or longer if someone asked) so your analysis was overall nice to watch
@@virignek9879 heh same! I get that people think he should apologize and he was pretty mean at first but honestly they are literally godly figures....they kinda have a different perspective on things. Plus I bet he already did and we just didn't see it. Mk seems pretty neutral to him, but clearly cares about him too.
@@mikaelbuonarotti355 Yeah.Also,I'm far from being a Macaque super fan or anything but I personally think that Wukong & Macaque's conflict is best seen as a conflict between two warriors rather than a typical black & white view
@@claudius3359 Ya me too But I'm bit confused in JTTW when Macaque tried to trick the monk and the piglrims that he was Sun Wukong And I'm questioning myself on why he would do that
17:57 this!! I saw someone on tumblr get really up in arms about macaque telling wukong he needs to do better, criticizing macaque and saying *he* needs to be the one to do better and like…while it is ironic for macaque to be the one to tell wukong to be better, he isn’t exactly wrong? Macaque has known Wukong much longer than any other characters have except for the other members of the brotherhood, he’s seen wukong’s flaws up close and he just doesn’t want to those to end up hurting MK.
Mackaque’s Celestial Puppet Crown PTSD. I can’t get enough of that split second of his reaction to the Celestial Puppet Crown that Turned His Brother into a Living Weapon of Divine Vengeance that Murdered Mackaque and Haunts Both of Their Nightmares. Imagine if Azure saw that
19:52 "I swear Macaque it's just a part of Wukong sucked out to be his own person" HE LITERALLY IS, in the book of the journey to the West Macaque is the "evil" part of Wukong sucked out of his mind
@@aubella_the_hermit right???? But also like he's calm, patient and and not at all necessarily the BAD things from Wukong, but definitely like his opposite side brought to life 🤣
@@mikaelbuonarotti355 yeah, since there isn't that much information on him in the journey to the West, they definitely made changes to his character in lmk
@@OthandoSimamane-ss1xp symbolically in the book Macaque is the parts of himself that Wukong wants to conquer and be rid of, the worst of himself. In LMK he is just the six eared macaque as his own person created by Nuwa so proooooonably no relation? May e s6 will tell us for sure!
17:17 That last sentence? It like feeds into this theory I have that maybe, someone (ideally i was thinking xiangliu) planned to have mac killed by wukong, setting him up, to get rid of him for their plan to work. We see mac knows a lot and acts like a prophet kinda like in s2 where he warns MK abt the threat of the LBD so maybe this person knew mac could find their identity so got rid of him when they could. Also, this video overall is such an amazing analysis. Often, people place too much blame on wukong and I always see him apologising but as far as we've seen, we dont rlly know who to put the blame on and it actually seems like the blame should be favoured towards mac. Honestly, this felt like a complete, perfect breakdown of his character, along with sprinkles of wukong's character being discussed, and it was worth the 22 mins. Tysm i can't wait for more of this!!
I do like that theory! It seems to me that Wukong either doesn't really remember or is suspicious of what he does. He and macaque both seem to know there is some manipulation going on somewhere.Also thanks!!!
Honestly? That's an interesting theory on what could be the cause of Macaque's death. And I agree to the part about blaming Wukong.What also bothers me is that the blame people inflict on Wukong isn't even the right faults.Even a lego youtuber that has plenty of views got this wrong and phrase it like Wukong is genuinely malicious when he's being extremely reckless about his planning in S3
Okay, for one, great video! I really love how you picked apart everything about his character from Seasons 1-5! Like, the way you speculated his feelings on, well, everything was such a fun time to read! I love these monkies so much and this video was what I needed today, Lol
Tf you mean "not at all afraid"?? Macaque was terrified to fight Wukong. Do you not see him sweating during the fight? Not to mention how apprehensive he was to even do that plan in the first place.
@@boomgirlbucko hmmm...I say that not as in he wasn't concerned, more as in, he'd already fought him a few times and he never hesitated, nor does he that time, though the stakes were much higher. Compared to LBD, who he was terrified of, he just goes with it (once MK inspired him). But yes,once the fight starts he quickly realizes he is very outmatched, but still goes with it because he knows he is the only one that could even come close to keeping Wukong busy and yeah at that point he is totally freaked out
2:22 The new outfits are actually acknowledged/confirmed in another scene. It's not very obvious, so I can see why you missed it. It was in season 5 'into the pagoda'. The scene where macaque frees wukong from the 100 eyed demon's stare. In his memory, he's actually wearing his new outfit. LBD's narration isn't unreliable. She has absolutely no reason to lie nor to show macaque a false memory. LBD is intentional about everything she does and lying wouldn't gain her anything.
I agree.LBD in this scene & NHD in his monologue doesn't have any reason to lie with the kind of power that they hold and how focused they are to their goals.What I'm seeing here is basically her torturing Macaque's mind with flashbacks. Contrary to Azure Lion & Macaque,where they depend on certain character's trust to go on with their mission.
Macaque saying that Wokung didn’t have to work for any of his powers when he literally found a master to study Taoist teachings😅 the bias goes hard, this is while ignoring the journey too
@@shardonayM Literally why I didn't buy almost ANYTHING that he said in that episode,cause if what he said was true,the story wouldn't work. Then again,if you could argue using Wukong's title (Intelligent Stone Monkey) & Subodhi's sayings to MK (implying something extraordinary that makes him learn so fast),Macaque's not the one to talk since he's also a celestial monkey with omniscient hearing (and an excellent strategist,might I add).Shows how blinded he was.
@@ShadowyKatz I think it's because otherwise he is is so stoic. When someone who NEVER shows fear, or almost any emotion other than anger, suddenly does, you know it's serious.
0:58 Maybe it's a reference to how Macaque is basically a walking corpse? 5:36 Yeahh Wukong's the last guy you'd expect to stop acting annoying. 6:18 So glad that I'm not the only one thinking this.If Macaque's character is how it is in the flashback all the time,then what is tragic isn't just the crack in Wukong & Macaque's friendship that eventually lead to Macaque's death,it's the fact that Macaque is replicating the one who killed him in his second chance to live.It's tragic. Reconciling those two is gonna be hard,and requires careful writing. 9:3416:24 This is what I think too! It perfectly contrasts Wukong's demeanor.Especially if we're bringing up the book where he's very unstable,immature,quick to temper,and lets his staff/fists talk. 8:17 Yesss!! Wukong & Macaque can be too similar sometimes. 8:36 I think about that too sometimes.Plus with his six ears,he can get whatever necessary info he needs. 9:53 I personally don't ship them,but I saw them as more of a big brother-younger brother dynamic with how Wukong teases him,messes with Macaque's hair,fixing his armor,and has that 'troublemaker big brother brings his younger brother everywhere' vibe.So I kinda think of 'What if Wukong saw Macaque just like he sees MK' too 10:37 Screenshotting & saving this cause Macaque is absolutely MK's weird uncle 11:07 Rewatching this kinda makes me rethink it.Doesn't that mean that MK failed in S4's final battle,for the most part? I've seen somebody said that MK was channeling Macaque's personality in the final battle,but isn't that the opposite? If he was following Macaque,he wouldn't let his anger took over him and think rationally.This is added with the fact that the final battle has references to Wukong's battle against Erlang Shen & Azure Lion in the book. Then again,Macaque,after all,might also be taking after Wukong.And those negative traits he showed while threatening MK back then,might've inspired him. 11:31 Yeah..I kinda wish that isn't true,but the fact that Azure Lion's memory & words aren't exactly great,makes me question things that he says about the past.If Azure Lion's order of events retelling is that messed up,there's a possibility the monkeys are involved.It has to do about what I said about 'references to Wukong's fight against Erlang Shen',where the monkeys abandoned all the weapons,drums and banners because they were terrified of Wukong & Erlang Shen's giant forms (just like how both Azure Lion & MK used their giant forms).The heavenly army seized this opportunity to capture all of the fiends under Wukong (including the non-monkeys).Sure hope that's not the case though. 12:11 This isn't related to Macaque at all,but I just wanna point out that the symbol on the giant locks are Buddhist/Hindu/Jainism symbol called Eternal/Endless Knot.Which is odd,since the one portrayed defeating Wukong (so far) is The Jade Emperor,a chinese folk religion/Daoist deity. 13:28 You fr cooked with this one.I've been trying to figure out what he has in mind in this scene. 15:35 Love this lol 13:37 Eh? 'Wukong's influence on people to be their best selves'? Genuinely curious,what are you referring to in this part? 15:38 My personal interpretation on this scene is that Macaque wasn't very convinced on how much Wukong changed.It's a process from his admittance from the scenes where he's retelling the events to MK inside the scroll,to seeing...well,what you said.That he'd face someone with JE's power with no hesitation to save everybody & showing actual care for MK. Compare it to the scenes where he said "...make it worse for him?" and "Just plain old Wukong,doing whatever he wants." Or when he said to Mr.Tang that Wukong only values people useful to him.He's probably realising that Wukong isn't the power hungry demon that only thinks about himself anymore.That's my guess. Honestly 16:02 and 16:21 are my favorite scenes of them.Makes me look forward for their future interactions.Honestly it's probably why I like 15:35 so much.Both Macaque & Mei are excellent strategists that set their best friends straight.The difference is Wukong barely listens while MK atleast said "All I can do is try!" to Mei's "Just don't be stupid next time,ok?" 16:49 Love this breakdown.It's exactly why I love the whole sequence.What I like from Macaque's attitude here is that he's the only one with equal footing with Wukong,knows his entire history,and as a result,can bring out the 'real' Wukong.When even Pigsy that isn't very fond of Wukong isn't sure to call Wukong out,that's where Macaque comes in.(This is so messy,but you get what I mean) Though my main takeaway from 17:24 is that they both want to trust each other but is still wary of each other.It's not just about that one sentence. 18:17 Wasn't expecting that 😂 But yea this was so petty 18:29 Stuff like this is why I have a newfound respect for Macaque.My guy got straight to the point. 19:52 As much as I'm anticipating LMK to divert a lot from the book,everytime I try to analyse his character,it (weirdly) always leads to this. I mean,this is a video on Macaque's development,but I'm kinda disappointed that you didn't point out the weird thing about Nine Heads/Prince Consort of Jisai having similar mannerisms to Macaque's villain persona before he reverted to his calmer,quiet demeanor.In fact I kinda find it weird that Wukong,Macaque and Nine Heads are kinda similar (or maybe this last part is just me looking too much into it). Sorry that this comment is wayyyy too long haha 😅 I find it really nice that there's finally a video that breaks down my favorite Wukong & Macaque scenes
@@claudius3359 this is amazing I love it! So first, Wukong inspiring people...he's charasmatic and optimistic and people around him get drawn in and inspired to reach for their own dreams. In Azure's case he meant well but his ideals went south. Wukong gave him the to confidence and drive to basically pursue his dream which turned out to not be so great. Not Wukongs fault, but Macaque probably saw it time and again. As far as Nine goes I don't wanna try and predict too much (I'm always wrong lol) just yet but you are totally right about the three of them. Anyway I love it all, that's what the comments are for!!! There's been so many great comments so thank you for this!!!
Theory here What if they are following the story line of Macaque trying to get Wukong's prize at the end of the JTTW like in the book, but with the motivation of finally getting something for himself or to possibly drag Wukong back down to his level in desperation. Wukong, enraged, acts violently, and eventually kills him like in JTTW. We pick up with Macaque starting to understand his wrongs while Wukong understands his wrongs too. But now they have to figure out where to go from there. Why they both acted out so strongly at the time. Mk most likely will get dragged into the mix and now have to deal with even more trauma(this one second hand trauma from learning both his mentors are actually not the great people he's come to love and then learning that people change and mistakes are made). They aren't happily ever after and still have to deal with the world having access to powers and all that, but it's a little easier with the tension lowered even further. But hey, that's just a theory, a Monkie theory, thanks for reading!
Love this though I somewhat disagree with some of the bits of the fight under the mountain. Since we don't know the complete context. Since we did see the rest of the Brotherhood guys get surrounded so who knows how they got out of that Also who knows if Macaque told him multiple times it was a bad idea besides what we saw. Macaque does end trying to defend Wukong a bit to the other three in an earlier flashback when they were all convinced he 'betrayed' them so at least there is that I think that took place after the mountain fight maybe? Hard to tell the timeline with some of the flashbacks. The 'rush to my rescue' thing is a little unfair on Wukong's end mostly because Macaque would definitively get him out if he could and Macaque probably didn't think he would have to rescue Wukong since he was always the stronger of the two. Not good foresight on either end with those two though. Unfair blowing up at each other on both ends though. Though Macaque definitely knows he shouldn't have stormed off after reflecting on it.
@@scififan21 ya know, if EVERYTHING doesn't change at least a little bit when we get full context about those two, I'll be disappointed! I really do think Macaque did feel guilty after the JE fight, but everything else up to that point finally boiled over when Wukong got mad at him. Both kinda right, both kinda wrong. I really can't wait to find out what REALLY happened!!!!
@@mikaelbuonarotti355 I agree I don't really like when people make things one sided it is nice to see a take where somebody knows they are both right/wrong in equal aspects. Also agree emotions were definitely running high in that situation.
It's a nice analysis with some good points but I just wish I didn't have to pause the video every other second to read the vid😢 sorry but still good videt
@@eclipsedstar7580I know right??? I have so much to say....this is my lame attempt at avoidIng a 15 page long Tumblr post lol. I tried so hard to make things short enough (words) and long enough (video) to read, but clearly I failed on many occasions 🤪 Maybe I'll figure out a better vehicle someday but for now this is what I've got!
You know what? I'll just write it like this Actually, I think Macaque never really wanted anything bad for MK, he just wanted to stop it from becoming the same as Wukong. Plus, come on, he already in season 1 actually had to plan a bit what he would do when LBD came back and have the Monkey King's powers was definitely the first thing that came to his mind when he thought about what he could do to be as far away from her as possible Dunno, im just.. rambling about the emo short drama queen
Mackaque definitely wins the Most Helpful Side Character award in season five, he’s working overtime to keep the monkeys alive and rational. *The fact that he’s the most emotionally stable member of the team now is crazy*
@@musingsofahomeschooler5332 I know Right!?!?!?
One of my favorite moments was him yelling at Wukong about holding back. It just reveals so much about him, especially with the benefit of hindsight. At first it just seems like he's surprised/upset Wukong isn't taking him seriously and that he's in disbelief he could've changed. And when you learn about their past you can feel the anger more. The rage the Wukong did change, but seemingly for someone else. Mac asked him, warned him, fought with him about his actions so many times, but Wukong wouldn't change for him- his best friend. Now he's different for a kid he barely knows. That's gotta sting. "You could've done this the whole time. Why couldn't you be better for me?" Type thing.
@@ShadowyKatz 😭😭😭😭😭😭 YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THIS EXACTLY!!!!
Hit the nail on the head!!!
I have a theory that it was Xiangliu who gave the Major the key. He was the one playing all the cards and controlling everyone like puppets
I love how this analysis sounds like you are roasting / calling him out yet pilling off his layers like onion.
I LOVE IT.
@@mariapazgonzalezlesme I am absolutely roasting/ calling him out I love him so much he deserves the best
The analyzation is on point. I was always so fascinated with his character and the personal arc he had throughout the seasons. It’s refreshing to see almost 22 minutes analyzing this emo macaroni 🤍
@@Kishi.. I just snorted some water out of my nose, I think emo macaroni maybe the most perfect description I've ever heard. Thanks for the comment!
@@mikaelbuonarotti355 You’re welcome! and be careful when reading comments and drinking water. You might run into something so unhinged to the point a whole waterfall comes out the nose 🌊🤧
@@Kishi.. oh you are funi like you 😂!! hit me up if you're over on Tumblr hehehe
@@mikaelbuonarotti355 I’ll definitely check it out 🤭
lol 😂✨
honestly I do regret the lack of flashbacks. It’s a shame that we have to wait until the s4 finale to truly witness how toxic Wukong was to Mackaque in the past, hence his bitterness. It would have hit harder if we’d seen more than a single scene of it. My favorite part of their dynamic is that they’re both at fault for the broken bond, and it took a long time for the writers to display that
@@musingsofahomeschooler5332 I really hope we get some answers in S6......and that it's most involved than we are even theorizing. There's just enough there to give us a good idea of what happened, but I'm sure when we get it we will still be all 'oh...wow...didn't see THAT coming'
I love how different macaque and wukong are cuz wukong was forced into redemption while macaque chose it because as you said he self reflect 's a lot and knows he's partially to blame for what happened like not trying hard enough to convince wukong not to attack heaven cuz one conversation isn't going to cut it and abandoning wukong to take the punishment they all should've gotten and he wants to make things but doesn't try like wukong because he feels he doesn't deserve forgiveness even though wukong was macaque's best and only friend he had
@@OthandoSimamane-ss1xp wow that is a true statement Wukong was forced and macaque chose their redemption.....I'm going to have to think about that for awhile!!!!
I agree,except the part about "not convincing Wukong enough to not attack heaven".I don't think that part is Macaque's fault.Aside from Wukong being...well,Wukong (headstrong and immature),there's already Azure Lion the charismatic strong leader,Yellow Tusk the idealist,and Peng who is equally powerful.Macaque is almost insignificant in this situation,with only Wukong caring enough for him.I don't think any amount of conversation is enough to pull Wukong out of it.
Honestly I feel like the only option Macaque has here is to leave Wukong on his own on this crazy mission.But his loyalty to his brother is too strong for that.And that scene below Five Phases mountain is Macaque finally snapping from it.Like imagine being loyal to your friend to keep em out of danger,only for said friend to never learn,keep running into danger with no concern for the both of you.Like don't you wanna say "Why you stupid?!" to their face.And irl (and in the case of MK & Mei,an everyday modern characters),it would be frustrating yet comedic.But the downside of Macaque & Wukong's relationship is the power imbalance.Like bruh,Wukong popped out of a stone and became a king in one chapter.
Macaque was a good friend to Wukong,but as long as Wukong doesn't want to better himself,Macaque can only do so much for him 😔
they do have a bit of Goku and Vegeta’s “we have to get along in order to prevent the apocalypse” but it’s much more personal and that’s super cool
@@musingsofahomeschooler5332 Yeah!! And if they do their character arcs carefully,I believe it can be an even better version
this is a pretty good analysis for macaque's progression, bc here it's at least acknowledged that he does genuinely change after season 3- even if it's under his typical dramatic layer, he's dropped the genuine malice completely since then
(i respectfully disagree with some bits, but you made good observations about macaque overall)
@virignek9879 lol thanks! I change my mind constantly so it's probably pretty likely I'd disagree with myself eventually too. People are always pointing out thing I didn't see. That the fun of the conversation!
@@mikaelbuonarotti355 true
i'm just kinda tired of seeing people assume that macaque is just a villain and that it somehow equals with "has no good traits whatsoever" (the amount of times i've seen macaque be portrayed as much meaner than he is, istg-), so seeing a more neutral/complex take on Macaque is really refreshing
(also doesn't help that he's one of my favorite characters in the show- bc overtime i have developed some pretty strong opinions on that matter that would make a page long list or longer if someone asked)
so your analysis was overall nice to watch
@@virignek9879 heh same! I get that people think he should apologize and he was pretty mean at first but honestly they are literally godly figures....they kinda have a different perspective on things. Plus I bet he already did and we just didn't see it. Mk seems pretty neutral to him, but clearly cares about him too.
@@mikaelbuonarotti355 Yeah.Also,I'm far from being a Macaque super fan or anything but I personally think that Wukong & Macaque's conflict is best seen as a conflict between two warriors rather than a typical black & white view
@@claudius3359
Ya me too
But I'm bit confused in JTTW when Macaque tried to trick the monk and the piglrims that he was Sun Wukong
And I'm questioning myself on why he would do that
17:57 this!! I saw someone on tumblr get really up in arms about macaque telling wukong he needs to do better, criticizing macaque and saying *he* needs to be the one to do better and like…while it is ironic for macaque to be the one to tell wukong to be better, he isn’t exactly wrong? Macaque has known Wukong much longer than any other characters have except for the other members of the brotherhood, he’s seen wukong’s flaws up close and he just doesn’t want to those to end up hurting MK.
Mackaque’s Celestial Puppet Crown PTSD. I can’t get enough of that split second of his reaction to the Celestial Puppet Crown that Turned His Brother into a Living Weapon of Divine Vengeance that Murdered Mackaque and Haunts Both of Their Nightmares. Imagine if Azure saw that
19:52 "I swear Macaque it's just a part of Wukong sucked out to be his own person" HE LITERALLY IS, in the book of the journey to the West Macaque is the "evil" part of Wukong sucked out of his mind
@@aubella_the_hermit right???? But also like he's calm, patient and and not at all necessarily the BAD things from Wukong, but definitely like his opposite side brought to life 🤣
@@mikaelbuonarotti355 yeah, since there isn't that much information on him in the journey to the West, they definitely made changes to his character in lmk
Does that make them related or what I'm confused
@@OthandoSimamane-ss1xp symbolically in the book Macaque is the parts of himself that Wukong wants to conquer and be rid of, the worst of himself. In LMK he is just the six eared macaque as his own person created by Nuwa so proooooonably no relation? May e s6 will tell us for sure!
@@mikaelbuonarotti355 some people theorize that macaque was supposed to sacrifice himself that he was a prototype while mk was the product
If season 6 and advanced one will be a fiasco, i will beg you to write the scenario. It's fantastic work with details, dude.
17:17 That last sentence? It like feeds into this theory I have that maybe, someone (ideally i was thinking xiangliu) planned to have mac killed by wukong, setting him up, to get rid of him for their plan to work. We see mac knows a lot and acts like a prophet kinda like in s2 where he warns MK abt the threat of the LBD so maybe this person knew mac could find their identity so got rid of him when they could. Also, this video overall is such an amazing analysis. Often, people place too much blame on wukong and I always see him apologising but as far as we've seen, we dont rlly know who to put the blame on and it actually seems like the blame should be favoured towards mac. Honestly, this felt like a complete, perfect breakdown of his character, along with sprinkles of wukong's character being discussed, and it was worth the 22 mins. Tysm i can't wait for more of this!!
I do like that theory! It seems to me that Wukong either doesn't really remember or is suspicious of what he does. He and macaque both seem to know there is some manipulation going on somewhere.Also thanks!!!
Honestly? That's an interesting theory on what could be the cause of Macaque's death.
And I agree to the part about blaming Wukong.What also bothers me is that the blame people inflict on Wukong isn't even the right faults.Even a lego youtuber that has plenty of views got this wrong and phrase it like Wukong is genuinely malicious when he's being extremely reckless about his planning in S3
Well both Macaque and Sun Wukong were both betrayed
And I hope we can get more answer about them in S6
Okay, for one, great video! I really love how you picked apart everything about his character from Seasons 1-5! Like, the way you speculated his feelings on, well, everything was such a fun time to read! I love these monkies so much and this video was what I needed today, Lol
*whispers* me toooooooooo
Tf you mean "not at all afraid"?? Macaque was terrified to fight Wukong. Do you not see him sweating during the fight? Not to mention how apprehensive he was to even do that plan in the first place.
@@boomgirlbucko hmmm...I say that not as in he wasn't concerned, more as in, he'd already fought him a few times and he never hesitated, nor does he that time, though the stakes were much higher. Compared to LBD, who he was terrified of, he just goes with it (once MK inspired him). But yes,once the fight starts he quickly realizes he is very outmatched, but still goes with it because he knows he is the only one that could even come close to keeping Wukong busy and yeah at that point he is totally freaked out
2:22
The new outfits are actually acknowledged/confirmed in another scene. It's not very obvious, so I can see why you missed it. It was in season 5 'into the pagoda'. The scene where macaque frees wukong from the 100 eyed demon's stare. In his memory, he's actually wearing his new outfit.
LBD's narration isn't unreliable. She has absolutely no reason to lie nor to show macaque a false memory. LBD is intentional about everything she does and lying wouldn't gain her anything.
I agree.LBD in this scene & NHD in his monologue doesn't have any reason to lie with the kind of power that they hold and how focused they are to their goals.What I'm seeing here is basically her torturing Macaque's mind with flashbacks.
Contrary to Azure Lion & Macaque,where they depend on certain character's trust to go on with their mission.
This was a PLEASURE to watch. Thank you so much for the insights!
Not me reading that in Macaques voice or anything lol
Macaque saying that Wokung didn’t have to work for any of his powers when he literally found a master to study Taoist teachings😅 the bias goes hard, this is while ignoring the journey too
@@shardonayM Literally why I didn't buy almost ANYTHING that he said in that episode,cause if what he said was true,the story wouldn't work.
Then again,if you could argue using Wukong's title (Intelligent Stone Monkey) & Subodhi's sayings to MK (implying something extraordinary that makes him learn so fast),Macaque's not the one to talk since he's also a celestial monkey with omniscient hearing (and an excellent strategist,might I add).Shows how blinded he was.
I love how you keep calling out everyone, I just find it funny 😂
5:47 it's not like he didn't want to. He couldn't because of that headband 😂
I hate how many times he's afraid in this series. Idk why his terror just feels a little bit more vicseral to me.
@@ShadowyKatz I think it's because otherwise he is is so stoic. When someone who NEVER shows fear, or almost any emotion other than anger, suddenly does, you know it's serious.
0:58 Maybe it's a reference to how Macaque is basically a walking corpse?
5:36 Yeahh Wukong's the last guy you'd expect to stop acting annoying.
6:18 So glad that I'm not the only one thinking this.If Macaque's character is how it is in the flashback all the time,then what is tragic isn't just the crack in Wukong & Macaque's friendship that eventually lead to Macaque's death,it's the fact that Macaque is replicating the one who killed him in his second chance to live.It's tragic.
Reconciling those two is gonna be hard,and requires careful writing.
9:34 16:24 This is what I think too! It perfectly contrasts Wukong's demeanor.Especially if we're bringing up the book where he's very unstable,immature,quick to temper,and lets his staff/fists talk.
8:17 Yesss!! Wukong & Macaque can be too similar sometimes.
8:36 I think about that too sometimes.Plus with his six ears,he can get whatever necessary info he needs.
9:53 I personally don't ship them,but I saw them as more of a big brother-younger brother dynamic with how Wukong teases him,messes with Macaque's hair,fixing his armor,and has that 'troublemaker big brother brings his younger brother everywhere' vibe.So I kinda think of 'What if Wukong saw Macaque just like he sees MK' too
10:37 Screenshotting & saving this cause Macaque is absolutely MK's weird uncle
11:07 Rewatching this kinda makes me rethink it.Doesn't that mean that MK failed in S4's final battle,for the most part? I've seen somebody said that MK was channeling Macaque's personality in the final battle,but isn't that the opposite? If he was following Macaque,he wouldn't let his anger took over him and think rationally.This is added with the fact that the final battle has references to Wukong's battle against Erlang Shen & Azure Lion in the book.
Then again,Macaque,after all,might also be taking after Wukong.And those negative traits he showed while threatening MK back then,might've inspired him.
11:31 Yeah..I kinda wish that isn't true,but the fact that Azure Lion's memory & words aren't exactly great,makes me question things that he says about the past.If Azure Lion's order of events retelling is that messed up,there's a possibility the monkeys are involved.It has to do about what I said about 'references to Wukong's fight against Erlang Shen',where the monkeys abandoned all the weapons,drums and banners because they were terrified of Wukong & Erlang Shen's giant forms (just like how both Azure Lion & MK used their giant forms).The heavenly army seized this opportunity to capture all of the fiends under Wukong (including the non-monkeys).Sure hope that's not the case though.
12:11 This isn't related to Macaque at all,but I just wanna point out that the symbol on the giant locks are Buddhist/Hindu/Jainism symbol called Eternal/Endless Knot.Which is odd,since the one portrayed defeating Wukong (so far) is The Jade Emperor,a chinese folk religion/Daoist deity.
13:28 You fr cooked with this one.I've been trying to figure out what he has in mind in this scene.
15:35 Love this lol
13:37 Eh? 'Wukong's influence on people to be their best selves'? Genuinely curious,what are you referring to in this part?
15:38 My personal interpretation on this scene is that Macaque wasn't very convinced on how much Wukong changed.It's a process from his admittance from the scenes where he's retelling the events to MK inside the scroll,to seeing...well,what you said.That he'd face someone with JE's power with no hesitation to save everybody & showing actual care for MK.
Compare it to the scenes where he said "...make it worse for him?" and "Just plain old Wukong,doing whatever he wants." Or when he said to Mr.Tang that Wukong only values people useful to him.He's probably realising that Wukong isn't the power hungry demon that only thinks about himself anymore.That's my guess.
Honestly 16:02 and 16:21 are my favorite scenes of them.Makes me look forward for their future interactions.Honestly it's probably why I like 15:35 so much.Both Macaque & Mei are excellent strategists that set their best friends straight.The difference is Wukong barely listens while MK atleast said "All I can do is try!" to Mei's "Just don't be stupid next time,ok?"
16:49 Love this breakdown.It's exactly why I love the whole sequence.What I like from Macaque's attitude here is that he's the only one with equal footing with Wukong,knows his entire history,and as a result,can bring out the 'real' Wukong.When even Pigsy that isn't very fond of Wukong isn't sure to call Wukong out,that's where Macaque comes in.(This is so messy,but you get what I mean)
Though my main takeaway from 17:24 is that they both want to trust each other but is still wary of each other.It's not just about that one sentence.
18:17 Wasn't expecting that 😂 But yea this was so petty
18:29 Stuff like this is why I have a newfound respect for Macaque.My guy got straight to the point.
19:52 As much as I'm anticipating LMK to divert a lot from the book,everytime I try to analyse his character,it (weirdly) always leads to this.
I mean,this is a video on Macaque's development,but I'm kinda disappointed that you didn't point out the weird thing about Nine Heads/Prince Consort of Jisai having similar mannerisms to Macaque's villain persona before he reverted to his calmer,quiet demeanor.In fact I kinda find it weird that Wukong,Macaque and Nine Heads are kinda similar (or maybe this last part is just me looking too much into it).
Sorry that this comment is wayyyy too long haha 😅 I find it really nice that there's finally a video that breaks down my favorite Wukong & Macaque scenes
@@claudius3359 this is amazing I love it! So first, Wukong inspiring people...he's charasmatic and optimistic and people around him get drawn in and inspired to reach for their own dreams. In Azure's case he meant well but his ideals went south. Wukong gave him the to confidence and drive to basically pursue his dream which turned out to not be so great. Not Wukongs fault, but Macaque probably saw it time and again. As far as Nine goes I don't wanna try and predict too much (I'm always wrong lol) just yet but you are totally right about the three of them. Anyway I love it all, that's what the comments are for!!! There's been so many great comments so thank you for this!!!
Theory here
What if they are following the story line of Macaque trying to get Wukong's prize at the end of the JTTW like in the book, but with the motivation of finally getting something for himself or to possibly drag Wukong back down to his level in desperation. Wukong, enraged, acts violently, and eventually kills him like in JTTW.
We pick up with Macaque starting to understand his wrongs while Wukong understands his wrongs too. But now they have to figure out where to go from there. Why they both acted out so strongly at the time. Mk most likely will get dragged into the mix and now have to deal with even more trauma(this one second hand trauma from learning both his mentors are actually not the great people he's come to love and then learning that people change and mistakes are made).
They aren't happily ever after and still have to deal with the world having access to powers and all that, but it's a little easier with the tension lowered even further.
But hey, that's just a theory, a Monkie theory, thanks for reading!
GIGGLES CUTELY MY BABY MY SON MY BLORBO BLEEBUS MACAQUE-A-DOODLE EEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEE
He's Macanda! He has the leaf on his face! :D
The character arcs in this series should make the writers of Transformers One feel incredibly insecure
@@musingsofahomeschooler5332 it's zuko level, I'm telling you
That's why I'm sooooooooooooo excited for season 6✨
Aww.....sowwey 😅 I actually don't curse too much myself honestly, but sometimes it just slips through
“He always gets away, right?”
“He didn’t get away from me when I murdered him.”
“What?”
“What?”
But i can't help but wonder where did Macaque actually got his power
Love this though I somewhat disagree with some of the bits of the fight under the mountain. Since we don't know the complete context. Since we did see the rest of the Brotherhood guys get surrounded so who knows how they got out of that Also who knows if Macaque told him multiple times it was a bad idea besides what we saw. Macaque does end trying to defend Wukong a bit to the other three in an earlier flashback when they were all convinced he 'betrayed' them so at least there is that I think that took place after the mountain fight maybe? Hard to tell the timeline with some of the flashbacks. The 'rush to my rescue' thing is a little unfair on Wukong's end mostly because Macaque would definitively get him out if he could and Macaque probably didn't think he would have to rescue Wukong since he was always the stronger of the two. Not good foresight on either end with those two though. Unfair blowing up at each other on both ends though. Though Macaque definitely knows he shouldn't have stormed off after reflecting on it.
@@scififan21 ya know, if EVERYTHING doesn't change at least a little bit when we get full context about those two, I'll be disappointed! I really do think Macaque did feel guilty after the JE fight, but everything else up to that point finally boiled over when Wukong got mad at him. Both kinda right, both kinda wrong. I really can't wait to find out what REALLY happened!!!!
@@mikaelbuonarotti355 I agree I don't really like when people make things one sided it is nice to see a take where somebody knows they are both right/wrong in equal aspects. Also agree emotions were definitely running high in that situation.
And after this of (Macaque theories) and wash it all down with some good old SonicDavid
With some Koreanosh too ✨😂🙃
It's a nice analysis with some good points but I just wish I didn't have to pause the video every other second to read the vid😢 sorry but still good videt
@@eclipsedstar7580I know right??? I have so much to say....this is my lame attempt at avoidIng a 15 page long Tumblr post lol. I tried so hard to make things short enough (words) and long enough (video) to read, but clearly I failed on many occasions 🤪 Maybe I'll figure out a better vehicle someday but for now this is what I've got!
❤❤❤❤
You know what? I'll just write it like this
Actually, I think Macaque never really wanted anything bad for MK, he just wanted to stop it from becoming the same as Wukong. Plus, come on, he already in season 1 actually had to plan a bit what he would do when LBD came back and have the Monkey King's powers was definitely the first thing that came to his mind when he thought about what he could do to be as far away from her as possible
Dunno, im just.. rambling about the emo short drama queen
@@Foxqueen211_LMKFANI very much think that is probably the case 😜
I was about to praise you for being considerate and refraining from using foul language, but then 2:34 🥲