JT Studio is a Taiwan individual design studio by designer Jei Tseng (曾弘傑). The Journey to the West (西遊記) series are his first creation of works. Journey to the West is an ancient Chinese adventure novel about a Monk (Tang) traveling with his three disciples / protectors Sun Goku, Shamonk, and Pigsy to sink the Buddhist sacred texts in the West. JT has re-created this classic characters with a combination of modern pop and his own comic style.
Tang Monk (唐僧）
Tang Monk is a Buddhist monk who set off for Dahila kingdom (India) to retrieve original Buddhist scriptures for China. Guanyin (Goddess in Chinese mythology) helps by finding him powerful disciples who aid and protect him on his journey. In return, the disciples will receive enlightenment and forgiveness for their sins once the journey is done. Along the way, they help the local inhabitants by defeating various monsters and demons who try to obtain immortality by eating Tang Monk's flesh.
Like others individual design studio, the JT Studio's figures are in limited run. This figure is limited of 300 pcs only. The figure comes with 2 sets of golden prayer beads. Small one for the prayer hand. The large one can wear around the body, or use as a weapon, or can even wear as a real bracelet. The second weaponry is the 卍 symbol pestle which is made of metal rod and solid plastic top. It is impossible for the figure to lift up the pestle, and can't even do the pose as in the illustration drawing above. It can only carry the pestle with the 卍 top dragging on the floor.
Customer who purchased online within 24 hours on the 1st day of pre-ordering will get a bonus Buddhist scripture comes along with the figure.
Son Goku (孫悟空）- The Monkey King
Son Goku is born on Flower Fruit Mountain from a stone egg that forms from an ancient rock created by the coupling of Heaven and Earth. He called himself the Monkey King. Because of his rebellion behaviors among the God's world, he is eventually punished by the Buddha by sealing him under a mountain called Five Elements Mountain. Goku is kept under the mountain for 500 years, and at last he is set free when Tang Monk comes upon him during his pilgrimage and accepts him as a disciple.
There are a few versions of Son Goku released from JT Studio, mainly because of the popularity of this character. The one I got is the Monkey King Wild version, which belongs to the beginning of the story where Goku is still living as the king of the wild. The crown, cape, banana, raged dirty outfit all represent the background of the character.
The major weapon he carries is the Ruyi Jingu Bang (magical staff) which was originally a pillar supporting the undersea palace of the Dragon King of the East Sea. The rod is made with metal with some rustic effect on it. The figure can carry the weapon just fine.
Monkey King is the most articulated and posable out of the others I got. The joints are stiffer. The hand fits in the weapon tightly. The cape, scarf and tail are posable with wire embedded inside. The only drawback is the feet, cause he is bare footed which creates no friction when standing on a smooth surface. I need to use other 1/6 stands to help him stand, otherwise he will slip.
Pigsy (豬八戒)
Pigsy was once an immortal who was the Marshal of the Heavenly Canopy commanding 100,000 naval soldiers of the Milky Way, he drank too much during a celebration of gods and attempted to flirt with the moon goddess, resulting in his banishment into the mortal world. He was supposed to be reborn as a human, but ends up in the womb of a sow due to an error at the Reincarnation Wheel, which turns him into a half-man half-pig monster. He eventually becomes the 2nd disciple of Tang Monk.
There are plenty of options and looks can be chosen from Pigsy. It can be shown with his gas mask, with his hood on, or without his hood jacket etc.
The nine-toothed rack is an iconic weapon of Pigsy. The rack appears to be a little bend to create a motion illusion, but unfortunately the figure itself is limited to pose in a dynamical way.
Sha Monk (沙悟浄)
Sha Monk was once a celestial Curtain Lifting General, who stood in attendance by the imperial chariot in the Hall of Miraculous Mist. He was exiled to the mortal world and made to look like a monster because he accidentally smashed a crystal goblet belonging to the Queen Mother of the West during a Peach Banquet. The now-hideous immortal took up residence in the Flowing Sands River, terrorizing surrounding villages and travelers trying to cross the river. However, he was subdued by Son Goku and Pigsy when Tang Monk's party came across him. They consequently took him in, as part of the pilgrimage to the West.
This figure is only the 2nd release of JT Studios, their product development is still in an infant stage and there are areas for improvement on this one. The figure itself is quite loose, hard to stand on its own. The accessories are cool but is a hit and miss at the same time. The weapon holding hand can only hold his moon fork so loose, he cannot grip it properly. There is a slot on the turtle shell backpack which suppose to store the moon fork on the back, but the slot was made too big to hold it. The best is the skull belt which match his river monster image!
JT Studio has great creativity with unique modern design, but there are still room for improvement on the figure itself in terms of material use and quality. But there are definite progression on each release from Sha Monk -> Pigsy -> Monkey King W -> Tang Monk. Hope that JT Studio will continue to grow!!