Well, I already babbled about this one earlier in an update, but you probably haven't seen that if you're here...Saiyuki is the famous story of Genjo Sanzo-houshi, a monk in 6th or 7th century China. However, I doubt that the original story had characters like these in it...and this is surely not a historical, educational show. ^_^ This manga and anime retelling was done by Minekura Kazuya-sensei.

Firstly, Sanzo (Seki Toshihiko) is what we like to call a bad or corrupt monk. Although he wears the sutra mantle and serves the Three Aspects, he is NOT, I repeat NOT, your typical monkly type. If you're expecting Chichiri, don't bother watching. Sanzo not only drinks, smokes, and curses, he uses a special gun to vaporize youkai. He has a short temper (well, to be honest, he has no patienc whatsoever) and is constantly whacking his comrades with his harisen. Poor Goku (Hoshi Souichiro)!! He's so kawaii!! Alright, so he's an elemental with a hollow leg and a tendency to go apeshit, but still. Goku represents the monkey in the original story.

Then there's the ever-calm voice of reason, Cho Hakkai (Ishida Akira), who is the boar, and Sha Gojyo (Hirata Hiroaki), the water-spirit or kappa. That's why Goku's always calling him "ero kappa," (perverted kappa) and why Goku's also called "baka saru" (stupid monkey). Our general villains, or antagonists, are Kougaiji (Kusao Takeshi), the son of Gyuu-Ma-Oh, and his loyal followers, Yaone (Minaguchi Yuko) and Dokugakuji (Matsumoto Masaru, to be replaced by Kosugi Juurouta in Saiyuki: Reload--or so I've been told). For more info on Doku-kun, go here. (I Love Dokugakuji!!!)

Personally, I think I find Sanzo so attractive because he's such a prick. I mean, have you sensed a trend here in the characters I love most? Schuldig (psychic bastard), Hiei (little bastard^_^), Tate (sexy bastard), Griffith (chivalrous bastard), Mikagami (teenage bastard), Legato (misanthropic bastard), Aoshi (obsessive bastard), Dark Schneider (he's just THE bastard)...just add in Sanzo, our irreligious bastard, and I've practically got a full set. Put 'em on a shelf in my room for display purposes. But really...Sanzo's seiyuu is incredible. I love Seki Toshihiko's voice...I've been a fan of him since I saw Ninja Scroll for the first time in Japanse. And then when I saw Trigun, I was lost. And then I saw Yami no Matsuei, and went, "THAT'S Legato?!" But I love Watari too. He's adorable, in his dorky, genki way. Anyway. I'm getting sidetracked again...

Saiyuki's great to watch. Especially the episode where the group posing as Sanzo-ikkou comes in. My god, I laughed my ass off...The characters play really well of each other. It's especily touching to watch Sanzo and Goku. They're kind of like...brothers. Like Goku's the annoying kid brother always hanging around his niisan and being a pest, so niisan beats him up, but would never ever let him get hurt. And, god help me, when Sanzo's hurt...and Goku goes completely psycho...like when Sanzo got stabbed in the stomach? Yikes. I also like watching Dokugakuji cause he's a very even character. I feel like he's the Hakkai of the Kougaiji-tachi. Besides, Gojyo's flashbacks KILL me. Especially the adorable, crying, floppy haired Doku. O_O

Mug shots of the boys. My my, they've been bad... (in case you were wondering, the top line is age, birthdate, and bloodtype - so Sanzo's 23, his birthday is Nov. 29, and he's an A bloodtype)

He's so kawaii SD! Harisen over his shoulder, too...

I nearly fell out of my chair when I saw this picture...gah... why do I love a man rising out of a pool of blood with a gun to his own head? >_<

The rest of the boys. Gojyo lookin' like a pimp wadin' in the water, Goku close-up, and Hakkai with a gun. Too bad he's got a monocle instead of glasses in the series....and I saw a picture of him where he looks seriously anorexic. O_o

Oh lord. Someone save me. Looks like Sanzo-ikkou's been in a bit of a tiff. I saw this one and HAD to nab it--mostly because of Sanzo licking his bloody lip.

Sanzo, lookin' like some bad 20s hitman in a white suit. Very niiice, but then, we know I have a soft spot for a well-dressed and unbalanced man. This and the previous picture are both scans of the magazine "G Fantasy" I found here.

Oh lord. The boys in their previous incarnations. Sanzo STILL needs to eat a few sandwiches...that's Gojyo on the left looking like a Sid Vicious impersonator (Kenren), and Hakkai on the right in desperate need of a haircut (Tenpou). And there, marching along so cutely next to Konzen (Sanzo), is a super-kawaii chibi Goku! Wai!!!

Chibi Goku gives me the same feeling I get when I look at a puppy. ^_^

Kou and Doku gettin' a little rough there. Geezus, Doku's tall...a picture of Kou and one of Yaone. Busty, isn't she? O_O I really like Yaone. She's one of the very few women in this series, and she has a lot to worry about (like taking care of Lirin--imagine a female Goku and you'll get the idea...), especially being practically the ONLY level-headed person besides Hakkai. Anyway, she's hopelessly in love with Kougaiji (not sure why...he's a bit of a Momma's boy) and I think she should come to her senses and fall in love with Dokugakuji instead.

Speaing of...why no more pics of Doku? Want to see him with no shirt on *swoon*? Go here!

For more good Saiyuki pics, check out the Saiyuki Gallery. Right now it has screencaps of Episode 1 (TV), and lots of character scans.

Also, try Gensomaden Saiyuki, an excellent page with artbook scans and lots of fan art. It's got some great pictures of the guys (and one scan on Hakkai where he looks seriously anorexic...I want to bake them some brownies and force-feed them! Sheesh...)

Back