How LEGO Monkie Kid Created the Perfect Antagonist

[@dunkwaffle4895]

The contrast of macaques ideals with Tang was honestly one of the smartest way to challenge and develop their characters 😭

[@SkylerDemness]

Agreed!

[@jecaparaiso5477]

Hi, i know it seems random but Repent and believe the gospel, this could be your last chance to be saved, jesus loves you and God bless you ❤️!

[@hinatasuzuki5344]

@@jecaparaiso5477 Not everyone believes in the same religion as you.

[@IsleofPigsStudios]

“Sorry Mr Macquack” - Sandy Sorry, couldn’t resist saying that again.

[@brickbanditstudios6037]

What’s even better is that there was like some sort of promotional poster for season 2 that had Macaque creating a shadow puppet of a duck and we know that ducks make a quack sound! 😂😁

[@jarizaismail315]

Lol

[@jecaparaiso5477]

Hi, i know it seems random but Repent and believe the gospel, this could be your last chance to be saved, jesus loves you and God bless you ❤️!

[@MikeMayCommitArson]

XD ​@@brickbanditstudios6037

[@Sally-x5z]

@@brickbanditstudios6037I am fully convinced Macaque’s favorite animal is ducks

[@bowserbreaker2515]

"Sorry, bud. But I'm not a hero." "Then be a warrior."

[@user-uv2ql7yz7y]

"He. Alright. You win."

[@shadowbonniedark9950]

What fascinates me in Monkie Kid, is that every character is well written. AHEM AND YES I'M LOOKING AT YOU HARUMI.

[@saysikeern202]

Don't get me started on Harumi ☠️☠️☠️

[@IsleofPigsStudios]

Don’t get me started on some of the other Ninjago Villains. Even without Crystalized… there are still bad characters like The Vermilion (who are annoying) and LaRow (who sucks). And if we take Crystalized into account and not mention Harumi… MISTER F IS RIGHT THERE

[@ivanrodriguez897]

Monkie kid focused on quality while ninjago focused on quantity. (note that doesn't mean every villain is poorly written, some Ninjago villans are really well written, but I do think that many of the earlier seasons made to many villains for them to have and are just kind of sitting there with little to no character building.)

[@lol-birdbrain]

@@ivanrodriguez897 garmadon was good tho

[@jaidabullock5599]

So was morro

[@lumidotexe]

i adore the amount of depth and complexity macaque has, his redemption arc was what really pushed him to become my favorite character in the show :D

[@orlastarburst]

For real! The writers took their time whilst writing and how delicately they handled his character growth and arc

[@Ccelix]

LUMI?? AAA OMG I LUV UU

[@ashleightompkins3200]

For only being in one chapter of the original JTTW story, Macaque is so fascinating a character because he is the original evil doppelgänger. It’s a shame that this is probably the only time he’s been included in a JTTW retelling.

[@imshadowsdragon]

Well, we DO have peach buds Macaque and there is this really beautiful Chinese animation focused on Wukong and Macaque here on youtube as well. But sadly as you said Macaque isn't very often in anything else. Its a real shame as you said due to him being one of the most interesting foils to Wukong in the whole story and yet so rarely is he represented. Though it was funny to have Wukong pretend to be Macaque in Nezha reborn even if Macaque himself isn't actually in it.

[@Notbakedboss]

@@imshadowsdragon Do you happen to remember the name or some way to find the animation? it sounds really interesting i'd love to see it!

[@imshadowsdragon]

@@Notbakedboss Of Course! I would link it but since i don't think linking is allowed i'll just copy and past the title of the vid cause its written in Chinese its 西游记之花果山传 （全2话，合集，完结）【1080P蓝光】 3月最新国漫 I THINK in English the animation is called 'Journey to the West: Legend of Huaguoshan' but i was using google translate so take that with a grain of salt. Its a mix of animation and moving stills and its another version that treats Wukong and Mac as old friends instead of how Mac was in the book.

[@Notbakedboss]

@@imshadowsdragon oh thank you so much I wasn’t expecting to get the name honestly, I will definitely be checking that out!

[@boomgirlbucko]

Incorrect. He was also in the 2009 Monkey King cartoon. In that one he goes by Liu'er Mihou

[@matti.8465]

It's so interesting how despite everything, Macaque's intentions are (mostly) good. Almost everything he does is to keep MK from repeating Wukong's mistakes. "Shadow Play" is just a messed up lesson on not losing sight of the people around you on your pursuit for power, which is exactly what broke his friendship with Wukong.

[@Coldxsavior123]

Now that you mention it it kinda makes sense 😅

[@robbo1470]

I think Macaque actually tries to help MK to improve in season 3. In that episode where he kidnapped MK and others in a copy of their van, Macaque could take MK and leave, but instead kept pressuring MK until he re-learned his transformation powers and rescued his friends

[@Plexxis_SugarPom]

Something I really love about Monkie Kid is in the season 3 scene where MK proclaims to Mei that their heroes and friends, saying that they don't leave each other when they need it, and we get a shot of Wukong and Macaque to look at each other and at MK, considering the power of his words in such a moment. It's an obvious nod to how Wukong had left Macaque, pushing him away as seen in Shadow Play, how he burnt him. What I don't think anyone else realizes is that it was also for shadow a duality moment in season 4. Before the rease of season 4, it shows thar obviously this was how Monkey King and Macaque went through, how they both got hurt. How MK not leaving his bestie Mei was him avoiding the mistakes that Monkey King made. But in the season 4 special, we also get an important scene. The one where MK and Macaque show Wukong and Mac fighting. Wukong left Macaque earlier, becoming more powerful, strong, and according to Macaque, pushed him away and eventually he killed him. But in that scene in season 4, we see Macaque confront Wukong. He shouts at him and tells him that he's the one who hurt people by not stopping, how everyone, including himself, has hurt. And then he leaves. It's in character that Macaque runs away, but that scene made me realize that they both abandoned each other when they needed each other. That while Macaque ran for protection, Wukong was just like him and ran to Protect themselves from mortality. Theyre both running from something, Macaque ran from death when Wukong never had to worry about it again, and Wukong ran from mortality when Macaque told him to stop. Theeyy really are two sides of the same coin. EDIT:Ok I edited this but I didn't change anything I just fixed the Grammer and typos. The passage you read above is the OG since I don't like deleting my words on the vast web, but down below is kinda the same thing just with more clarification, better Grammer, and maybe some more substance to the comparisons lol Something I really love about Monkie Kid is in the season 3 scene where MK proclaims to Mei that their heroes and friends, saying that they don't leave each other when they need it, and we get a shot of Wukong and Macaque to look at each other and at MK, considering the power of his words in such a moment. It's an obvious nod to how Wukong had left Macaque, pushing him away as seen in Shadow Play, and how he burnt him. What I don't think anyone else realizes is that it was also a duality moment for the first part of the season 4, more specifically, the moment between Wukong and Macaque when Wukong got imprisoned. Before the release of season 4, it was shown during that interaction I mentioned from season 3, that this was what Monkey King and Macaque went through, how they both got hurt. MK not leaving his bestie, Mei, was him avoiding the mistakes that Monkey King made and it had surprised both Macaque and Wukong, because it really solidified just how different MK was from Monkey King. Prior to all of this, everyone was practically seeing MK as another version of Wukong, especially Macaque. Mac even made it a point to point out how similar to Monkey King MK was, when MK had been feeling more and more like Macaque. But in the season 4 special, we also get an important scene, an important scene that changed the way I view that moment from season 3. The one where MK and Macaque show Wukong and Mac fighting. Wukong left Macaque earlier, becoming more powerful, strong, and according to Macaque, pushed him away and eventually he was killed by him. But in that scene in season 4, we see Macaque confront Wukong. He shouts at him and tells him that he's the one who hurt people by not stopping, how everyone, including himself, has hurt. And then he leaves. It's in character that Macaque runs away, but that scene made me realize that they both abandoned each other when they needed each other. That while Macaque ran for protection, Wukong was just like him and ran to Protect himself from mortality. They're both running from something, Macaque ran from death when Wukong never had to worry about it again, and Wukong ran from mortality when Macaque told him to stop. They really are two sides of the same coin. Sorry for making ya read the same thing twice lol.

[@thatonegirlwithtoomanyfandoms]

BRO I KID YOU NOT I READ THIS ON MY COUCH AND HAD TO SIT THERE IN SILENCE CONTEMPLATING MY ENTIRE EXISTENCE LIKE WHAT THE HECK MR. PHILOSOPHER SIR-

[@Plexxis_SugarPom]

@@thatonegirlwithtoomanyfandoms HEHEHEHE YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THAT MEANS TO HEAR THAT LMFAO. believe it or not, I was going to script this whole analysis and go even DEEPER with the comparisons in a video. But then with this video being a perfect opportunity, I kinda just went on with it. But hey that means a lot to be called a philosopher, best of luck with that crisis lol. Also, a thousand apologies with my bad grammar and typos, phones man I tell ya.

[@thatonegirlwithtoomanyfandoms]

@@Plexxis_SugarPom OF COURSE YOU’RE LITERALLY SO THOUGHTFUL AND DEEP LIKE ITS GENUINELY AMAZING 😭🫶🏻

[@Plexxis_SugarPom]

@@thatonegirlwithtoomanyfandoms LMAO THATS SO SWEET TO HEAR THANKS, IM ACTUALLY REWRITING THE COMMENT RN SO IDK YOU CAN JUST SEE THE OTHER TIDBITS I ADDED LOL

[@thatonegirlwithtoomanyfandoms]

@@Plexxis_SugarPom WILL DO!

[@StrykeSZN]

Billy Kametz was born in my home town and passed away nearby as well. He is a huge part of how impactful macque is. Rest in Peace

[@mishaelgallardoriquelme9138]

Billy Kametz fue un grande, un talento prometedor y una maravillosa persona que se fue muy pronto, lo extrañamos.

[@Bric_kproduction]

I really love how Macaque is just like Monkey King and how he really wants the best for MK but he doesn’t want him to be come like this mentor also Rest in peace Billy😢.

[@javonscruggs8233]

Wow you pointed out a detail I never noticed. You're right when Macque was yelling at Wukong in the past when he was trapped about how he became a selfish,power hungry demon who only cares about himself only for in the future for Macque to end doing the same thing. How ironic. Macque such a enjoyable characters and the latest season telling us more about his backstory as Wukong former friend only made me like him more.

[@musingsofahomeschooler5332]

Lego Monkie Kid is a phenomenal example of how the animated art form still has yet to reach its full potential. Imagine all that could happen if more projects got the proper budget

[@AngrySheepProject]

I personally really love how they show us why Macaque is going after the team in S3 before he escalates, Him fighting Wukong and MK in the first episode is familiar so we don't think it's crazy, and we don't really get to see how his fight with the Dragon ends exactly in episode 2. But early in the season, episode 4, they show us that Macaque isn't doing this because he wants LBD to win; he's doing this because he's scared and doesn't want to die. Then, he ups the ante through the van kidnapping stunt. They could have waited until the final episodes, like' Benched,' to reveal why he's after them, but they don't because they want the audience to still sympathize with Macaque. It's a great way to almost show, not tell, how the audience should feel about a character. A similar move is done with Zuko by introducing Zhao in the third episode. The audience would probably feel a lot more dislike for Macaque in s3 if they didn't show us the conversation with LBD before the van scene and everything after it.

[@orlastarburst]

You can tell macaque is a good character because half of the fandom simps for him Edit: Ok I’m not that type of person but. . . 1K LIKES???

[@Zaruption8]

I think the fandom simps for literally all characters

[@MihouLover14]

Um.......uh.......well...... He also is such a great character! And he's.....uh....fun! And I relate to him so much Hehe

[@pumpkincat3739]

As we should

[@ashleightompkins3200]

I simped for him the moment I realised he was voiced by Billy Kametz. May he rest in peace. I also ship Shadowpeach with 0 regrets.

[@pumpkincat3739]

@@ashleightompkins3200 I am pretty sure 90% of the Fandom ships them and even the lmk crew tease the ship constantly. If lmk wasn't so reliant on China I am pretty should that there would be a chance of it becoming canon

[@musingsofahomeschooler5332]

Imagine, just for a second, that you are Mackaque. Imagine having a wonderful friend group that doesn’t listen to your advice very often. Imagine losing all of your friends at once due to the reckless actions of your own closest brother. Imagine watching Wukong become so guilt-stricken and obsessed that he pushes you and everyone else away and becomes heartless. Imagine being abandoned by him for years and years, only for him to suddenly change his mind and pursue relationships again with someone who isn’t you. Someone he literally just met. An obnoxious child who idolizes the “legendary hero” who shattered your dreams. Someone Wukong only bonds with on his own terms, molding him into his likeness. A new “bud” to replace you. And also throw the Lady Bone Demon in there somewhere. How would you react? Wukong really got off lightly huh

[@igbunujed-sodje179]

I've been saying this for a while now. When people criticize macaque's actions, they don't put into account what he's been through and how much he felt betrayed by wukong. His growth as a character in accepting MK and forgiving wukong is truly amazing given that Wukong never really apologized (as far as we know) for everything he did to him, and that's not even counting the fact that Wukong murdered him. And still, he decided that forgiveness and peace within himself and towards others was the best option for everyone. Truly a warrior!!

[@rohanthomas6629]

Ok couple of things to note: Wukong at that point was trapped in that god forsaken mountain, thinking to himself that he is a fucking failure that failed all of his friends. He is by this point not thinking straight, and is especially angry considering Azure, Goldtusk, DBK, and Peng FOR SOME REASON doesn't see him. It's even worse considering after that interaction Macaque never came back, and left Wukong all alone. I'd also imagine they had met once again when Wukong had changed a lot due to the Pilgrims. Hell Wukong changed quite a bit, and they prolly had some nice interactions with eachother. What likekly happened is Macaque didn't want Wukong with Tripitaka and their involvement with the Celestial Court. And wanting him to come back to the Brotherhood. One thing that happened due to Macaque;s actions is that he either hurt or tried to kill Tripitaka and hurt the other Pilgrims, which really pissed off Wukong, who had already tried to make Macaque stop. So overall it is likely that this is both of their faults.

[@rohanthomas6629]

@@igbunujed-sodje179 Actually from the words of the creators Macaque "thinks Wukong killed him." Someone else did it, and Wukong prolly got close to killing him but spared him considering Macaque was his friend in this version.

[@igbunujed-sodje179]

@@rohanthomas6629 Failure? Maybe, but what was the first thing wukong said to macaque when he came to see how he's doing and give him his favorite food? It certainly wasn't "I'm so sorry I failed you all" Macaque didn't come back cuz he was just disrespected by Wukong even though he had been warning him of this since forever. Also, wukong told him he never wanted to see his face there again. I agree with the last part. Wukong didn't just get up and decide to kill Macaque. Macaque probably did something horrible to someone he cared about. Still doesn't excuse killing your own brother.

[@fynchan11]

Don't have to imagine, was hurt and betrayed by supposedly best friend who O knew whole life. Obviously ended the "friendship" but it's hard for me to trust anyone. What makes case worse she's my godmotger's niece. Every time she boasts how great that bitch is I say "no one fucking asked nor care"

[@musingsofahomeschooler5332]

Mackaque yelling at Wukong in the s4 finale flashback scene might very well be the best acting I’ve ever witnessed. All the feels are there

[@NinjaGamerGirl2023]

Wait until you season SWK in season 5.

[@Cherllyio]

Of course the most the most interesting and dramatic characther is a godamn theather nerd- (i love him)

[@redjaypictures4528]

I think macaque is a good example of an anti-villain, a character that does the right thing, but for selfish or malicious gains

[@purplecatloverrandompizza]

Macaque going from a false teacher for MK trying to use MKs desire to to learn faster against him to test him to an actual teacher aiming to help MK in his own way and showing him that there's more than just 2 options and he doesn't have to follow the obvious paths laid out for him

[@spinjitzumasterfalcon]

I actually just finished rewatching Macaque’s debut episode. He is so much fun and menacing. That might be why I love Cinder so much. But as for Macaque, he’s so much fun and interesting.

[@PK_HH]

Okey,you did it,im starting to watch monkie kid

[@orlastarburst]

ONE OF US!! ONE OF US!!!

[@Killa1012]

ONE OF US! ONE OF US! ONE OF US!

[@lunaristicmoth]

ONE OF US

[@Plexxis_SugarPom]

ONE OF US YES

[@PK_HH]

Finished the pilot,its peak

[@alexlee4154]

Billy Kametz was so good

[@brickbanditstudios6037]

May he rest in peace… 🥺😢

[@somedragonbastard]

I'm just glad they were able to find a good VA to take over, I didn't even realize the VA changed at first

[@night4138]

I too love Macaque. I always was drawn more to the villain characters because they were USUALLY written well. Macaque had a whole backstory that was intriguing and you wanted more. And he had the right amount of sass in the right situations. It was obvious he had reasons for his actions before we even knew what the reasons were. And his lessons for MK brought more to his character, because some of them he doesn't do himself. He knows that someone should act without waiting too long, but he doesn't act himself and stays in the shadows. He helps from the sidelines though, never the front lines. I instantly latched onto him because he never felt truly evil, just hurt. And I love how he's gotten actual development through the show

[@musingsofahomeschooler5332]

Mackaque really is like a more emotionally resonant Pro Max version of Morro

[@Strike-hopper]

If morro stayed for longer we could have gotten peak long term redemption but atleast had a redemption unlike Mr tai lung

[@Notbakedboss]

Who is morro?

[@Tocagroot]

@@Notbakedboss Morro is from Lego Ninjago on s5

[@lunaponce4068]

Also the fact that macaque fought WuKong again in the season three special when the last time they fought without holding back Macaque died. That had to take a lot of courage to fight him again, we can see the fear in his eyes, his body language, hear it in his voice. Now here he is again, no holding back, and he doesn’t know if he will make it out this time but his still did it for MK and the rest of the world

[@infiniteoctopaw]

You mentioned not reading jttw, it's a WILD read. Surprisingly cartoonish and the lore is halarious with any lego monkie kid context. Like even small things like how much of a clown Azure is in the book. Or Peng being the half sibling of Buddha. Or Tripitaka got hit in the head with a destiny embroidery dodge ball and ended up in a arranged marriage with a moon demon. Or how Wukong tries to sue Nezah's dad for being a bad father, cuz his adopted daughter is a demon who kidnapped Tripitaka and Wukong couldn't beat her so Wukong went to the jade court to file a complaint about her dad. Or how Tripitaka wins a fight by beating a famly of demon trees in a rap battle. OR how Spider Queen is in a fanserve episode that was the original of anime hotspring episodes. Wukong turned into a bird and stole her and her sisters clothes while they are bathing. 😭 Lady bone demon is alive for 3 pages! Dbk and Azure don't die in the book. Macaque gets no physical description and dies in one hit and has zero lines outside of copying Wukong. The family the pilgrums were staying with were just hoping the two monkies would reck their house with this biblically God fight before them. The book is super funny and has very similar comedy to the show. I read the big 4 volume translation. So I could keep going. Honestly HIGHLY recommend. Also the demons have poetry boss fight intros by the narrator. Ehem: ----- A face as if it had been powdered white, And lips so ruddy, they seemed brushed with paint. No dye could create such dark, lovely hair; His eyebrows curved like new moons carved with knives. Phoenix and dragon coiled on his battle kilt; More husky than Nezah’s a frame he had. With air imposing he lifted up his lance And walked out the door, swathed in hallowed light. He roared like thunder in the time of spring; His striking eyes flashed like lightning bright. If one would know his true identity, Remember Red Boy, a name of lasting fame. ---- Also Wukong calls him "Worthy nephew" in the book because DBK IS his sworn brother. I have nothing to add. Your video was amazing, I just wanted to boost the algorithm by commenting and ramble off some book knowledge that even the OSP viewers wouldn't know.

[@godzillaslayer5817]

Nah I gotta see that spider queen chapter-

[@Notbakedboss]

W marketing ngl but you’ve actually convinced me to read the book it sounds like a whole comedy show

[@infiniteoctopaw]

​@Notbakedboss I got you, I read the Revised Edition Journey To The West by Anthony C. Yu. It really is a treat and I hope you enjoy! 😁

[@thatonegirlwithtoomanyfandoms]

The dodgeball one SENT ME because it’s so surprisingly similar to how the main characters meet my LMK oc in my AU 😂

[@thatonegirlwithtoomanyfandoms]

@@godzillaslayer5817 bro-💀

[@pipopiipo]

I’ve read quite a bit of jttw and Monkie Kid’s rendition of Macaque definitely takes some creative liberties since he wasn’t a huge character to begin with. Technically it wasn’t this Macaque that was a member of the brotherhood. This Macaque and the JTTW Macaque are almost two completely different characters but that’s something this show does great. For most big characters from the book, like Wukong and Nezha, their personalities are so accurate and it gives attention to characters who did almost nothing in the original.

[@pepsi6881]

I often think about the fight in the desert with mei, sandy, and mk during s3. even after he sits in the wreck of his own mech clutching his eye, all he can say is how mk recovered one of his powers and everything just got more interesting. he completely ignores the fact that he was just beat, and pretends like he was testing him or had planned for this. it feels like a scrape for any kind of control over his life at the moment, given how his own life is very much NOT in his own control. He is really such an interesting character

[@Helloknight]

2:19 I gotchu bro so in the Journey to the West, Macaque was one of the four celestial monkeys, along with Sun Wukong (Stone Nosed Monkey of Numerous Wisdom), the Red Butt Horse Monkey, and the Bei Gibbon. In the original, the Gibbon and the Horse Monkey were essentially throwaway characters that don't really show up again, however, the Six-Eared Macaque is important because he had a lengthy shapeshifting battle with Wukong after he stole the Pilgrim's supplies disguised as Wukong while the real Wukong mourned the fact that he was kicked out for being too murdery. S-EM was essentially his opposite and equal to the point where not even Kuanyin, the ever-present and powerful Boddhisatva of mercy could tell them apart. They had to get the Buddha to help them settle which was real.

[@orlastarburst]

(SPOILERS AHEAD) Macaque and wukong’s story is SOO interesting and complex, they have handled it really well, but I’d do fear in Season 5 they might make it a “he didn’t actually kill you” sorta thing, because we all know (or you don’t) that there is a memory problem going around, so I REALLY hope they don’t make it so someone ELSE killed macaque but changed their MEMORIES so that they both THINK wukong killed macaque. You know what I mean?

[@sketch_adrenaline2569]

Yeah I agree. The writers have been hinting at Macaque’s death and Wukong being responsible for it for all these 4 seasons, that it would feel cheap to back down and have someone else take the blame.

[@orlastarburst]

@@sketch_adrenaline2569 for real though, it would seem like a quick and easy way out of their complex relationship

[@bluebelt1235]

Yeah. But he didn’t say anything or even hinted killing Macaque in the past. During the first time he met Macaque again, Wukong acted like he was expecting him to come back one day despite Macaque claiming to have had a “taste of dying”. But when Azure Lion showed up, Wukong was not only surprised but confused to how he came back despite admitting to “putting him in the underworld himself”. I don’t think Wukong even knew Macaque died and just assumed that he was harassing him out of spite.

[@orlastarburst]

@@bluebelt1235 yeah, but I always thought that maybe wukong found out before that incident , or that he was secretly happy/ confused but had to hide that for MK

[@sketch_adrenaline2569]

@@bluebelt1235 True but it could also be that Wukong injured him more than he though, thinking Macaque would be fine but the injuries being too much that he died and while this next point isn’t really “evidence” since the show does take some liberties with this retelling, in the original Journey to the West, Wukong kills the six eared macaque and is a point that I think is rather well known so it would make sense to keep it in the story and flesh out the way Macaque and Wukong’s friendship heals and moves forward from the resentment. But we will see how the show does it, I just hope that whatever the writers decide to do gives us a satisfactory explanation to Wukong and Macaque’s story :D

[@VloiVo]

Me when Lego makes a Monkie Kid Journey To The West just to conclude the entire series: 😮

[@Domisaurus_Documentries]

The six eared Macaque is an immortal being who can fall in battle and knows what comes ahead into the future. He is a demon monkey who is basically a mimic of Sun Wukong, the stone monkey. Macaque has sensitive hearing which is why we see him irritated by Pigsy’s singing. If anyone has any other info add on to it :)

[@spiderman-2416]

The voice acting for Macaque was steller, like seriously Ninjago wishes it had with level of quallity.

[@Strike-hopper]

Oh yeah ninjago wishes it had slang words like boiiii or son yeah no get out of the kitchen nobody beating you can only save those who want to be saved so long master I mean just remembering that line is beautiful meanwhile we have slang fest tho monkie kid has good lines and ninjago has a some terrible lines like it's okey she's with us but the good outweighs the negative and making another show look good by making another show look bad is really terrible and plus we already have a lego show with bad lines and a bad mic it's chima lol so let's get together to roast chima instead lol

[@Patch-lz9yi]

LMK does so well with its antagonist characters. Great overview of Macaque! I always love the edits you have between the intro and the bulk of the video. You did a great job at showing the character's growth over the series this far

[@lockskelington314]

Macaque is the best mentor for MK because he knows failure and insecurity at someone stronger than him. He's the Perfect teacher for MK who Identifies with his struggle to stand in the shadow of the Monkey king seeing themselves as just an echo of the Greatness he once was.

[@ghostcrisps1037]

I respectfully disagree about him being the best mentor for mk. Wukong did not write this comment

[@ghostcrisps1037]

While yes they can somewhat relate to each other but macaques lessons up until s4 were straight up unhealthy It rubs me the wrong way when I see folks say he's the best mentor for mk.....he's gonna need more credentials because right now he has season 4 Wukong while he is far from perfect he has always kept mks limits in mind first while macaque has over pushed them.... All and all tho I think making it a contest never solves anything either but to understand what's a healthy lesson/teaching and what's not Wukong and macaque are not perfect teachers Wukong is still learning himself while Macaque is just starting to redeem himself and trying a different way at teaching along with wukong

[@lockskelington314]

@@ghostcrisps1037 Thats why he's the perfect mentor because he's not perfect and can in turn learn from Teaching MK who Genuinely Cares for him and Empathizes with him. He's the best because he's flawed and Learns with MK instead of Having all the answers he learns with MK while guiding him away from the mistakes he has made.

[@ghostcrisps1037]

@@lockskelington314 you can also make the same argument with wukong on that one then too

[@lockskelington314]

@@ghostcrisps1037 Not really because Wukong Abandoned both and did really take interest in MK until things got serious. While Macaque knows what its like to be alone and can help MK who feels like he's alone.

[@bowserbreaker2515]

Macaque is one of the few times I like the "redeemed villain" trope. He's also my second favorite character. Also, his theme song really enhances him.

[@syedarizvi7290]

I absolutely love Macaque and he is hands down my favourite character. I love him. I agree with everything you said. I love how nuanced this show is because usually, good and evil are so black and white in fiction when in reality, it's really complicated. I adore Macaque. I can relate to him a bit. This is embarrassing to admit but I used to be bullied a lot as a kid. The bully in question was charismatic, larger than life and had a lot of friends. I was socially awkward and quiet by comparison. I had only love for this person in the start and just wanted to be friends or at least be peaceful. But I was bullied in a way that scarred me for life. I just decided to keep my distance, heal from my trauma and not let it affect me (easier said than done). I didn't have a lot of support on my side so I had to be a loner for a really long time. And also like Macaque, I couldn't really get away from my bully. He never apologised or acknowledged what happened but decided to be civil. I was always civil. I am so happy I lived my life the way I did, I am really proud that I had my achievements and made true friends on my side and I didn't let my past ruin my future. Because it is possible to heal from trauma and to live life in a way that makes you happy and successful. I find Macaque relatable on so many levels. I love this show so much.

[@Notbakedboss]

I’m deeply sorry you had to go through that experience, but I’m so glad you didn’t let that stop you and hold you down you are very strong I wish that same strength on everyone, please don’t feel embarrassed it’s an achievement in itself going through that and coming out the other side the only one who should ever feel embarrassed by bullying is the bully. I hope you’re having a great week! 👍✨

[@StonedHunter]

One thing I love about this show is they put enough of the original story in that anyone who is familiar with it will be able to pick up on things like why Macaque is out for Wukong, but it's not so heavily done that it's inaccessible to people who know only a little to nothing about Journey to the West. That's such a hard balance to strike and it's part of why, personally, everyone's character arcs work so well. You don't need to know all the past details, but if you do it just makes the experience all the richer.

[@kermitgotthesickkicks4265]

R.I.P Billy Kametz Macque's VA

[@Riven_of_a_Thousand_Voices]

This video has reinforced that Macaque is the best character in LMK. My mind will not be changed:)

[@GoldenCicada]

I'm certainly not going to try!

[@Tocagroot]

Macaque, my favorite LMK villain... rip Billy we all loved you

[@TheRevanchrist]

Macaque is my favourite character. Although I have only read highlights of "Journey to the West", his full name "The Six Eared Macaque" may have also played a role in his behavior in the early seasons. In the books, The Macaque is described as a near omniscient being as it had such highly attuned hearing to hear events past, present and future and that hearing is complimented by his ability to comprehend what he hears. He may have been messing with MK because he saw similarities between Mk and Wukong personality wise, but it's also possible he also acted because he "heard a future" where MK does become a second Wukong and proved to be a hazard for the world.

[@silverdrag0n_]

i love this guy so much. nothing is more entertaining than watching a theatrical antagonist be unnecessarily dramatic.

[@alphax800]

Ok but did anybody notice the Goku and Vegeta reference at the end of season 4 on the beach. Wukong and Macaque were literally wearing their casual clothes and I was literally squealing 😂😭

[@SafiraCoyfolf]

One of my favourite things I didn't notice until rewatching the show a few times, is that during the whole thing where Nezha and Mk go after Wukong, there's quite a few shots where you can see Macaque in his bird form flying around in the background, watching. My first few watches I was confused as to how Macaque knew when and where MK was to open his shadow portal. Lol

[@hi.im.ceekay]

"yes macaque" we all say in unison

[@FlippySuper]

My biggest surprise on the video is how you got parts of the monkie kid soundtrack given the limited tracks that got official releases

[@nelsonthepurpleninja]

Stop because I swear every character in this show is so well written ✋😩

[@boomgirlbucko]

I feel that in the first two seasons, he's really more of an antithesis. But then in season 3, he was kinda forced to be an antagonist against his will. So he decided to play the part as the dramatic actor that he is.

[@bai_ma_leshi]

Really awsome video bendo i really liked the reasons and things you talked about here and you actually made me realize stuff that i hadn't seen after watching the series 3 times. I also wanted to put some of my own reasons for why Macaque is my favorite character in the show just to put my opinion out there. One of the biggest reasons i love Macaque so much is because of how i'm able to relate to him in many ways, the most important being his fear of being himself around other people. But aside from that the writing of this character is really intriguing in it's own way: to the point where i had to watch the seasons more than once or twice to really fully understand him. One of the biggest examples of this is in the episode shadow play where we see how Macaque is portraid just as a villain on a surfice level while if you pay more attention you can see that he is not only testing MK to see if he is ready in terms of strenght but also in spirit and morals. His way of comparing him to Wukong and how he "doesen't care" about his friends shows how he wants to see if MK has potential to be better, at least in the way Macaque sees it. This also ties to the episode in s4 where MK, just like Wukong and Macaque did, runs away from his problems to flowerfruit mountain, where Macaque teaches him the value of making your own choises and forging your own destiny through his videogame. This is a direct consequence of the scene in the memory scroll with Wukongs captivity, where macaque finally understands why he and Wukong always ran away from problems, and doesen't want to see the same thing happen to MK. There are also two scenes in the first episode of the season 4 special that are really important and underrated in my opinion: those being the one where Macaque sees the flashback with him as a kid and the part where Wukong looks at Macaque for reassurance. The first scene shows how Macaque reacts to his past; before everything that later happend with Wukong, he shows how sad he really is about what happened between him and Sun Wukong and later, in the second scene, we see that Wukong is still attached to Macaque as he searches for reassurance that he can still be a master after all he's done. In that scene we see Wukong break his typical personality that he puts up every time those two interact. We also see this again in the last scene of s4 where when Macaque shows up at that beach and Wukong acts annoyed at first, but imediatly drops the act and gives his old friend something to eat(even thought it is portrayed as a joke), just like he did so long ago under the same tree. A final thing about Macaques character that i want to point out is his powers and the meaning behind them: we all know that he has shadow powers because he is considered to be Wukongs bad copy, his... well shadow, but in my opinion there is a bigger meaning under why he has those powers specifically. Shadows are often put in the same meaning as someone secretive or that keeps mostly to himself, and thats the basic definition of macaque, he used to be someone friendly who got beaten down over and over so badly that he just stopped trying to connect with anybody. I also just want to say how GOOD the design, representation of his powers and especially his theme are: like you said in cartoons or animation in general the animators have complete freedom to create and visualize everything they like, rhis is shown really well in how macaques powers are animated and implemented into the show. An example of wasting a power like this is Shadow from ninjago tournament of elements, who, due to the animation style doesn't really have a lot of ways to use his power. This, however isn't a problem in monkie kid and i really apreaciate that the animators took full advantage of that. Thanks to whomever took the ungodly amount of time that it must have took to read the whole thing, i could basically make a whole video if i turned this thing into a script. (btw sorry for the bad english but i'm italian so i don't exactly know everything about this language).

[@musingsofahomeschooler5332]

As much as KZbin video essay people love to throw the word “perfect” around, this instance is truly amazing. But it’s your vids that are actually perfect bc of the legendary lack of profanity, truly incredibly unique online

[@chevalierdelalune]

The Hero and the Warrior were like the sun and the moon, a protective glow shining upon the world..

[@q-pidstupid]

OUGHWGGHHH dies

[@memyselfandi8237]

"A hint of resentment" at 3:49 had me laughing 😂

[@melaniegogel2662]

Great video! Macaque is one of my favorite Monkie Kid characters. Every time his theme plays, I get excited. I just recently finished showing my dad and brother the show. They loved it.

[@Chippychipcheetos]

Alternative title: me obsessing over maqucoue for 21 minutes

[@Fernsketch]

In light of season five, Macaque’s season one mentor advice hits in a very different way

[@Duck-yr4yt]

Oh my god i love the sound design of the intro

[@fynchan11]

I went through several betrayals myself from close friends so I think the same: if you wanna count on someone count on yourself

[@1.red.panda.1]

You talked about not knowing what macaque was. He, like Sun Wukong, was one of the four spiritual primates, primates who didn’t fall into any of the ten categories that all things fell into. The Six Eared Macaque was said to know almost anything, being able to listen to all in the universe. In journey to the west, it’s a bit of a thing that like every other chapter Monkey (which is what Sun Wukong can be called, like how that one guy is pigsy) is pissing off Tripitaka (tang’s guy, he also got a smasy new name which was just the name of the scrolls they were going to the west for) by being a murder hobo (every dnd rogue to their paladin/cleric ever) or for some other reason relating to pigsy blaming monkey and tripitaka being far too gullible. During one of these instances, monkey resigns. although this time was far worse than the others. He’s so pissed that he goes to his bestie’s (Guan Yin’s) place to eat ice cream and cry. Suddenly, Monkey comes back and begs for forgiveness, and asks if he can pretty please help them get the tripitaka please please please please. Tripitaka (the guy not the scroll) is having none of it. He even refuses the water Monkey gives him despite having a whole ballad on the previous page on how thirsty he is. Monkey gets so fed up he says “fuck this”, hits tripitaka really fucking hard with his stick, and leaves for flower fruit mountain. Sandy sees this and is obviously pissed (also Monkey stole all of their equipment) so he goes to flower fruit mountain to get everything back and probably punch Monkey a bit. He instead finds that Monkey is trying to use the other monkeys on the island to impersonate the Gang™️ so that Monkey can do the journey to the west. Sandy is obviously pissed, but after having to fight Monkey is unsuccessful getting their shit back. Finally he goes to Guan Yin to see if she can smack some sense into Monkey. He, surprisingly, finds Monkey eating ice cream and laymenting that his master made him leave and blah blah blah. Sandy, thoroughly confused, goes to attack Monkey, but is intercepted by Guan Yin. Sandy explains the situation to her, and Guan Yin explains that Monkey has been here the whole time, under her careful watch. Monkey goes to flower fruit mountain and fights with Not!Monkey, but they seem to be evenly matched. They fight all the way to Guan Yin, since during the fight everyone else couldn’t tell them apart. She looks onto the fight and finds that she couldn’t even tell them apart. They go to (i forgot what he’s called, a dog who knows all or smth) and he says he knows who is who and what the imposter is, but cannot say, because the imposter would just kill him. he advises that the party go to buddha himself, since he is the only one who would be able to tell them apart and not die from it. So they make their fighting way to him and he is able to tell that the imposter is The Six Eared Macaque, he was able to disguise himself so well due to his knowledge of most things. He was trying to insert himself into Monkeys role so that he could get true immortality (the goal for all the less virtuous party members). Once Macaque is revealed Monkey kills him. Like right away. Without hesitation. So easily dude. This show doesn’t follow jttw very closely… I also didn’t read the books (there’s like ten, no fuckin way) But there’s a yt series on the channel Overly Sarcastic Productions, that tells the beginning of jttw as well as little fun stories, like the Macaque one.

[@arturoantonio3548]

Macaque is what the sith from acolyte wants to be triying to change the aprentice from making the same mistake

[@ziadahmed2295]

Been waiting for this! Macaque is genuinely my favourite character. You did him justice with this video

[@ChuM00n_]

I love how many people have good reasons to love Mac and him being their favorite characters and my reasoning is pretty voice... And because in Journey to the West he doesn't actually have a fully fledged back story

[@ThatOneRandomGhost]

I need a wukong video essay IMMEDIATELY 🙏 no one every talks in depth about LMK and I wish more ppl did🙁.... The show is so underrated and not talked about enough by people 😭🙏💔

[@banana_walter_]

I hope we get much more macaque in the next season 🥺🥺 we need the lore to be filled

[@bluebelt1235]

I still say Macaque deserves some call outs for what he’s done to MK and his friends despite his predicament with LBD. Seriously just because he holds a grudge against Wukong, doesn’t mean he should take out his anger on people who have nothing to do with their past. Also in case anyone else is a huge Macaque fan, read this fan comic called the Eclipse Apprentice. It focuses more on him and a female OC that’s part huli-jing (9 Tailed Fox spirit)

[@faithmoffat3087]

I agree

[@Tocagroot]

Hi

[@blood_star32]

"You should have stayed buried" one of Wukongs coldest lines.

[@TheJaredPunch]

Macaque is my favorite character in the show. R.I.P. Billy Kametz.

[@juniper890]

I think the reason macaque is different is because while he decided to attack MK because of wukong he later sees that MK while similar to wukong is different.

[@_-penpen-_]

I love macaques story and how what happened between him and wukong affected his character

[@digitalexecutioner]

oh my god and after watching season 5, this whole thing just hits so much harder. i’m really excited for the special (or season 6???) because it looks like macaque is going to be a bigger player (SPOILERS FOR SEASON 5!!!) we have macaque going up against the snake bird guy TWICE, in what could be his most powerful form- or close to it. plus the snake bird saying something along the lines of “that was an interesting trick, how did you do that, who gave you that power? who did you make a deal with?” (i’m guessing it’d be LBD but regardless it’s alluding to SOMETHING with macaque), us finally seeing a new snippet of when he died/was killed by wukong (and wukong saying “macaque stop don’t make me do this” oh my GODD), wukong reaching out to him when they were all holding hands and about to die, him appearing in the court alone at the very end with his shadow magic turning into chaos magic (??? i’m not totally sure about this last one take it with a grain of salt lol) and finally, macaque being the only one to notice that something weird had happened to Mk/the monkey kings staff during the very last scene. i’m super excited to see if he ends up playing a bigger role later on

[@Strike-hopper]

Yeah he's pretty cool i have to agree with you on that

[@peachespearlsandpigs3705]

Love this video so so much- Macaque is what got me into the show in the first place. Also, it’s probably more due to regional accents, but you sound so similar to the main host of Subjectively

[@OFFICIALAKIWIXX]

"Entertaining to watch him" yes VERY entertaining :3

[@vulpiixfoxx]

I’m curious to know: what are your feelings for the animation studio change for season 5? Fortunately from what I’m hearing the writers and voice actors aren’t being changed, it’s just that Flyingbark had a lot on their plate so Wildbrain will be in charge of animating season 5.

[@ZeroJump]

He already stated it on Twitter

[@vulpiixfoxx]

@@ZeroJump I don’t have twitter, what did he say?

[@ZeroJump]

​@@vulpiixfoxx "I've come to terms with the fact that season 5 is not gonna be what I want to see for Monkie Kid's future. Call me overdramatic but any hype I had for where the show was going after season 4 is completely gone. its a huge fumble on LEGO's part and I'm incredibly disappointed"

[@ashikinnajwa620]

Macaque is such amazing character. I always like him antagonist of LMK story (I hate the fandom won't stop "uwu babygirl" him) . But I wouldn't say he have redemption arc YET. Arc is when we actually follow the character in their changes, their guilty of acation that they take, what they do to change. When Macaque help MK and his gang defected LBD that was start to redemption arc but everything else kinda.... happened off screen I guess? Like seriusly Macaque just pop out of nowhere in season 4. How is he in FFM? Because we all know Wukong still doesn't like Macaque even after they defected LBD. Wukong kinda still thing Macaque did all that just for himself which it fair. And Wukong always take care of FFM , you really think Wukong just let someone like Macaque near him let alone in HIS mountain? (Cuz I know I wouldn't). Yes he help MK but at first MK still think Macaque messing with him. That's great! Just because he help with LBD doesn't mean MK can fully trust him. How can he? When someone like Macaque show him that he nothing but everything he did is for himself. The way how Macaque talk about himself like he better than Wukong and other villain. He did give good advice to MK over bad video game....(Who make video that you can't win? That dump....). But then season 4 special piss me off. Like I get the whole "Macaque doesn't actually need to help Wukong he just want to" what piss me off is Macaque helping MK because MK doesn't really know JTTW. I'm SORRY? Doesn't MK supposed to be Wukong biggest fan how can he not know about JTTW well?! They really trow away MK important trait 😔. And when MK and Macaque in scroll memory they didn't let Wukong tell the story, they let that six-eared clown did it. Macaque knowledge of JTTW is pretty limited. Dispite keep promoting JTTW to us. And how everyone just OKAY work with Macaque?! Especially Mei and Pigsy? I really wish they kinda hold what Macaque did little longger. Again yes he did help they with whole LBD thing but just because he helped one time doesn't mean they could juat trust him fully. I like Macaque and I wish we actually get his redemption arc next season and all.

[@musingsofahomeschooler5332]

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, but the three rules of making iconic villains are casting, casting, and casting.

[@strawberrypkg]

I have this love hate relationship with how more and more popular lmk is getting On one hand "yay more people appreciate and share content of this media i like" On the other "ive been here since the community is a baby, its growing foo fast!"

[@iShu56]

Macaque may not be my favorite character (though you made some absolutly amazing points in this video) but whenever his theme starts playing I go crazy. I now see why some people are such big fans of leitmotifs

[@trixfox45]

Once I started watching lego monkie kid one of the first characters I started liking was macaque. He is kinda a villain but not to just be evil. He just likes messing around a bit but mostly ends up helping mk. He also has reasons to be "evil" instead of just being some evil character just for the sake of it. Which is also a thing, he is more of a villain character but he is not really evil or just evil. I like that they give the villain characters other ways to be seen that just some evil villain. They seem more like actual people.

[@idk_man3491]

wow what a cool show animated by a really good studio I sure do hope it doesn't get absolutely butchered by wildbrain!! ^^

[@StillWatchingCartoons]

real

[@wdymthishandleisntavailable]

i think wildbrain is only animating the trailer for s5 not the season itself lol (i tell myself this everyday chat am i cooked)

[@lunaristicmoth]

Love this video, if they do end up showing macaques past i wonder how they will treat it

[@dinolover8183]

another important note wukong didnt just leave mac be killed him that image of wukong rising as mac crawls away was mac's death

[@inalvissarria5518]

Perfect antagonist into a protagonist. Seriously tho, it’s like every antagonist turned into a protagonist.

[@okamiseele8614]

I totally agree on the presentation aspect. The first episode he showed up in, I couldn’t make heads or tails of if he was a bad guy or not. The way he talked, the inflection and performance of it, SEEMED like he was an ally, and then he wasn’t. And then in season three I always wondered if Macaque was trying to help MK grow by testing him and motivating him.

[@Nightfang1]

It’s really easy to relate to macaque

[@yurichamadayo]

just bingewatched all of your lego monkie kid video essays and holy shit they’re amazing. i can’t wait to see more! i also absolutely adore your intro edits. your videos are so well made and pleasant to watch

[@greatsageamane1984]

I've been waiting for a video like this for so long-

[@hfree15]

Didn’t Macaque’s original voice actor pass away recently? 😢

[@Plexxis_SugarPom]

I absolutely love watching these analysis videos, so fun and well put together, definitely gonna rewatch later. So anyway the hero and the warrior were like the sun and the moon- (Also fairly sure one if the chapters spells redemption wrong) Second edit- he fixed the time stamp lol. Thanks.really appreciate you making such nice vids about such an amazing show. Still cant believe it blew past me that the same animator of this are animating a new ATLA movie releasing next year.

[@kingdragoonmk10]

It Honestly makes sense to me, having the power to essentially hear just about everything that happens in the world, can make you feel both empathy and cinisism... Its like he's permanentently plugged into the equivalent social media, hearing the best and worst of the world and everything in-between, and the only way he can seem to tune it out is focusing on whats right in front of him like a important person who can act as a Anchor to give him hope and pull him away from Nihilism (sadly his first burned him pretty bad) but hey MK is workin on it.

[@twigbranch4556]

What makes Macaque the perfect antagonist? What makes Macaque so incredibly sassy? What makes Macaque the most charming form of concentrated angst? What makes Macaques voice actor have such an attractive voice? What makes Macaque? that one's easy, DEATH.

[@By-Hrish]

Great video! I waited for this one for ages…and now it’s finally here!

[@sydryi3086]

spoilers from Journey to the West, Sun wukong most likely Killed Macaque at some point, thus showing his 'taste of dying' but also showing why he hates wukong so much. also side note this is a show meant for kids and yet it is still more grown up than any of the BS being produced by Disney.

[@tinothetuna215]

I’ll keep eating these up until we get season 5….we ARE getting season 5…right?….right?

[@bethanyjohnson8001]

Eventually

[@thekingofcookies4877]

yes, that much has been confirmed at least.

[@q-pidstupid]

Some day

[@JoseReyCapistrano]

Yes, it is there is season 5. I've seen it well the circlets back,bad animation,well mk finally accepted who he is but it was in Chinese. At least somebody translated it Some sad news tho (alot of sadness)

[@zakirstocks9514]

I Absolutely Respect Macaque from *Monkie Kid,* as the Perfect Evil Longtime Archenemy and Worthy Adversary of Monkey King/Sun Wukong!

[@AlfonzoFrohicky]

bro gets more cinematic every video

[@NiC.kChenNC]

This is crazy

[@tiathetea4779]

Why is his presentation so good? he is a theatre kid

[@EnjoyerOfBirds]

also can we mention that sun wukong is voiced by SEAN SCHEMMEL?