#dc monkey prince

[runeiio]

my favssss

[m0dernchr0n1cles]

Rewriting DC Monkey Prince & Nezha: Fixing "Shifu Pigsy"

This is a sort-of writing guide and a critique.

TW: Asian stereotypes, References to Violence, References to Torture

I've already ranted a lot about Marcus' and Pigsy's bad characterization, the uncle-nephew relationship they technically have, and the possible comedic potential.

The canon relationship between Marcus and Shifu Pigsy is vague, shallow, and only relevant when the narrative demands it.

Shifu Pigsy remarks that he has been looking for other sons of the Monkey King, and that Marcus is the only successful one. Outside of give Marcus a superhero form, a torture headband, a weapon, and a boatload of empty platitudes, he doesn't do anything.

Even his advice is terrible:

"Do not succumb to fear!" "You must learn to manage fear!"

"You are stronger than him. That makes you the bully." - when Marcus uses his powers to prank his bully (who assaulted and tried to drown him)

"[The circlet] is a device to help you learn discipline, to keep you from becoming a bully." "There are worse things than an itty-bitty headache." "Don't think about what's being done to you. Think about what you're doing." - using the circlet on Marcus

"I was once like you! Ruled by my appetites! But there is another way!" - what Pigsy said to Shellestriah

Shifu Pigsy falls into an Asian stereotype: the Goofy Kung-Fu Master (that's my name for it, I don't know the official term)

A good subversion of this trope: Iroh from Avatar: the Last Airbender.

He is a kind, fun-loving, retired general who freely gives out advice in the form of riddles and proverbs. He is a secret badass warrior who hides his skill with a goofy facade. He is a lover of tea, board games, and helping others.

What makes him a subversion of the stereotype is his character arc: he started as a villain or assistant to the villains, waging war or passively standing by as it happened. His villainous actions led to the death of his son, which him realize the true depth of his actions. He spends the rest of his life trying to atone for his past by saving Zuko and every young person he comes by.

By the end of the series, he fully atones by saving the city that he once besieged.

But he also has a limit, and knows some people need to be knocked down a peg, and he's not afraid to do so.

Shifu Pigsy does not have the same depth. Granted, this could be a result of executive meddling which forced Yang on a time crunch, but I don't think that's the only problem.

Gene Luen Yang is a big fan of Avatar, and he wrote the original sequel comics. I think he was drawing on some inspiration from Iroh, which could have been awesome.

It could have been Zhu Bajie continuing his search for enlightenment, while trying to help his nephew on his own journey.

Except, Yang picked the wrong fruit, and ended up writing another Goofy Asian Kung-Fu Master-flavored Nothing Burger.

To quote Lo F. Fort:

"[Shifu Pigsy]'s characterization isn't 'Blink and you might miss it'. It's: 'Stare as much as you want, you can't see sh*t'."

He gets another disciple, Shellestriah, the half-human daughter of the Trench King. He barely said two sentences to her in the background, and that magically redeems her. She becomes his disciple which would make her a daughter figure and becomes a sidekick to her "martial brother" 师兄.

That's it. Outside of her bowing to Shifu Pigsy and calling him master, the real focus is her new shallow relationship with the Monkey Price. Specifically, whether she is loyal to our shallow protagonist or if she is getting ready for a backstab.

A big problem with having so many characters is that there are too many dynamics to juggle, and if you fail to flesh out these relationships, your audience will notice.

Fixing This in 新神榜：孙太子

Here's how I would write it.

For inspiration, I started looking at other iterations of Zhu Bajie to find inspiration for their relationship.

In the original Journey to the West, in a very simplified manner, Zhu Bajie was the Sexual Harassment Repeat Offender who keeps getting the group into trouble, and Sun Wukong was the Straight Man.

In both LEGO Monkie Kid and Black Myth: Wukong, the roles are kinda switched.

In LEGO Monkie Kid, Pigsy is the Straight Man to Sun Wukong's Manipulative Jerk. The former calls out Wukong for putting MK in danger and for keeping secrets the cause problems.

There is also Dadsy and MK

In Black Myth: Wukong, in Chapter 5, the duo encounter a young woman who is being held captive and begging for help. Zhu Bajie is the suspicious one while the Destined One is the gullible one.

I think that 孙太子 should follow this pattern.

Based on the timeline, the current events of 孙太子 would take place ~1375 years after Journey to the West (based on actual timeline for Xuanzang's pilgrimage)

Zhu Bajie would've had over a thousand years of off-screen character development. He is also dealing with his own baggage related to the original Sun Wukong, which complicates his relationship with Marcus.

He's happy to help, but he is trying to get his "nephew 侄儿" to drop his quest and leave.

I also expect him to be the Straight Man to Marcus' horny teenager. Everytime Bajie sees Marcus with a girl, he thinks back to his own behavior and cringes.

I can see him clashing with the Dragon Clan and Yang Jian, especially when it concerns Marcus. He would effectively be one of the few people to actually care about Marcus as a person, not a tool.

There would also be the Psychological Projection thing that everyone is doing with Marcus: Projecting Sun Wukong onto this kid. It's not as severe when it comes to Zhu Bajie, but it bleeds through occasionally.

[missurbruhh]

MONKEY PRINCE & MONKEY KING 🐒👑

Finished the comics, it’s was okay but I liked it tho !

[cxffinpinnk]

Ruyi in DC,..,,...,,,,,,,,

[sonicasura]

I have seen your beef with Monkey Prince, and now I have to ask. What is your opinion on DC Comics Devil Nezha?

FUCK THAT. Another insult to Asian culture even moreso when you remember Ne Zha's story and what he represents. Despite his family's shortcomings, the young god sacrificed himself for their salvation out of love.

He represents changing one's destiny despite everything stacked against them. Thus to have Ne Zha become a villain for such low born fruit is greatly insulting. Want a good representation?

Ne Zha 2019 and its sequel(which I haven't watched yet) are the best. Lego Monkie Kid also has an interesting take on the mythological character.

[phantamic-moriori]

This DC version of sun wukong got me acting a certain way...

[jrlunaart]

~NEW DESIGN~

Here's a newer character from DC Comics: Monkey Prince! Since he's fairly new, some of you may not know about him yet, but he's still pretty cool. This was a design that was requested through my Ko-fi page!

Links!:

https://jrlunaart.start.page/

[louwsys]

hehe monkey