[Andrew999]

Getting a bit tired of American Mythology as filtered through the lens of DC/Marvel?

You might want to join me in a journey I'm making through Chinese Mythology. Of course, everyone knows of the Monkey King and the Journey to the West (the world's greatest metaphor) and Mulan, quite possibly the first feminist icon - but there's so much more.

I'm taking it one bite at a time because each mini-section spawns searches for other materials, movies, comic books and differing interpretations - not to mention the ideas it generates for possible comic book stories.

So far, I've reached the Jade Emperor - now there's a mind-blowing character - battles with demons, a cryptozooic team of agents, the conflict between Heaven and Hell, treachery deceit, poison, magic, decay and honour.......not to mention a love story that spans centuries and dimensions.

No, on second thoughts, you'd best not pass through the Dragon Gate with me. Once inside the Heavenly Realm, you may find you are unable to return..........

[The Australian Panther]

The Journey to the West is in principal, true.
Buddhism started in India, spread to Sri Lanka and to Tibet and virtually disappeared on the Indian Subcontinent.
Ashoka: The Search for India's Lost Emperor by Charles Allen ? review
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2012/mar/16/ashoka-india-emperor-charles-allen-review
The Buddhist emperor who united India
So Buddhism made it's way from Tibet via the Silk Road to Mongolia, China, Korea and Japan.
Some time later an expedition was sent back to Tibet to get scriptures and Documentary Evidence. The Journey to the West and the participation of the Monkey King are a popularization of that tale. 
The three World-views of China are Taoism, Buddhism and Confucianism. The current secular socialist regime has tried hard to wipe them out, but has not succeeded so far.
I took Chinese Religion and Buddhism as optional subjects at University.
If you wish to study Chinese traditional World-view, I would recommend the texts of Confucius and the I-Ching. Also read Chin-Ning Chu's book,'Thick Face, Black Heart.' which is essentially Taoist.
Thick Face, Black Heart - The Review Part 1
https://benardcometh.blogspot.com/2007/07/thick-face-black-heart-review-part-1.html
I count myself a Christian, but I like to inform myself about what other beliefs are out there.
Apologies if this comes on a bit heavy, but that's the kind of mood I am in today.       
               

[SuperScrounge]

Somewhere I read a possibly tongue in cheek comment that a quarter of all manga is based on Journey To The West. May not be true, but look behind the speed lines and big old eyes and you can see the Monkey King looking back at you. ;-)

[Captain Audio]

Somewhere I read a possibly tongue in cheek comment that a quarter of all manga is based on Journey To The West. May not be true, but look behind the speed lines and big old eyes and you can see the Monkey King looking back at you. ;-)

Saw a video recently that pointed out the influence of an FX malfunction in the film "seven Samurai" on Japanese anime scenes of violence.
In one scene where a bad guy is sliced up the middle a hose intended to spurt blood in a realistic arterial bleeding manner burst due to the pressure being far too high and a huge high pressure gout of fake blood burst forth. This sort of over the top blood letting became the norm in Japanese action films and anime.

[SuperScrounge]

A friend of mine told me about a humor book about anime characters where it stated something like 'anime characters have 15 gallons of blood in their bodies under 200 psi'. He worked the joke into an upcoming page of his webcomic, but sadly he hasn't updated his comic in years.