Journey to the West (CCTV, 1986)

The version a billion people grew up on, wires and all.

The pilgrimage is episodic by design, so the honest screen form is television, and this is the one that took the whole road.

You want the version that is simply what this story looks like for a billion people, and you are happy to give it weeks.

What it keeps and what it changes

Keeps: the structure — demon after demon, province after province — and a Monkey, Liu Xiao Ling Tong, who has been the face of the character in China ever since.
Changes: the budget into ingenuity. The wire work and the optical effects are of their decade, and the show is beloved rather than embarrassed about it.

Whose story is it?

the party’s. Over twenty-five episodes everybody gets their turn, including the pig.

How much time does it ask?

25 episodes, directed by Yang Jie.

CCTV’s own programme listing: 25 episodes, 1986, directed by Yang Jie.

Where to find it

Find where it’s streaming — JustWatch →

Common questions

How many episodes is the 1986 Journey to the West?

Twenty-five, per CCTV's own programme listing, directed by Yang Jie. Later continuations and recuts exist and are counted differently, which is why episode totals for this series disagree across the internet.

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More ways west: Havoc in Heaven (1961/1964) · Monkey (1978–1980) · Monkey King: Hero Is Back (2015)