ANIME BREAKDOWN
GENSOMADEN SAIYUKI
幻想魔伝　最遊記

EPISODE REVIEWS:

EPISODE 1:
GO TO THE WEST
Journey to the Max

Introductory plot: humans and youkai (demons) have been living together happily for centuries... until now.

Sanzo and Goku are hanging out together, somewhat reluctantly. Goku is loud & annoying and Sanzo is trying his damnest to be the coolest monk in Shangri-La. The other monks question why Sanzo keeps hanging out with Goku.

Gojyo (oops - almost typed "gyoza") is involved in a card game amidst adoring women. The four queens he displays enrages his opponent, who turns into a youkai and attacks. Gojyo takes out his funky-ass weapon (part chains, part cheese-cutter) and neatly dispatches the demon.

Hakkai is busy talking to his jeep (?!), when he almost runs over a kid. His jeep transforms into a small white dragon (Hakuryuu) and Hakkai offers his apologies to the sprawled kid. The kid transforms into a youkai and starts chowing down on Hakkai's forearm. Hakkai is amused, and points out that he, too, is a youkai. The kid continues munching. Other youkai kids are gathering around, so Hakuryuu turns back into a jeep, and speedily takes Hakkai away.

Sanzo & Goku are planning to meet up with Gojyo and Hakkai. Sanzo's received a higher calling to team up with the remaining youkai. Turns out someone is attempting to resurrect Gyuu-Ma-Ou and that's bad news. Sanzo reluctantly agrees to the quest, since teaming up with youkai - even ones that haven't turned evil - really isn't his bag.

Meanwhile, youkai have attacked Sanzo & Goku. Sanzo pulls out his snub-nosed pistol, which the evil-doers rightly mock. Ah, but this is no ordinary pistol - it's 'specially designed for murdering youkai, which makes Sanzo one of those "fly-by-the-seat-of-his-pants" type monk. He smokes too. Probably drinks. No word on women, though - he seems to avoid them.

Just when things are beginning to look a little bleak for Sanzo and Goku, Gojyo and Hakkai show up. Gojyo kills a youkai with his bare hands, and Hakkai leaps backwards over another, generating a nuclear-sized light which kills the youkai. See, he's not totally useless.

The remaining evil youkai notice suspicious ear clips on our good youkai and are unbelieving that our three (Hakkai, Gojyo and Goku) would team up with a human (Sanzo). Sanzo is also skeptical, but he receives divine reassurance that these three are needed for his quest. He agrees to work with them, but mentions that it would be foolhardy to trust them. Cue end credits as they head into the west.

End credits: Truly, truly awful. Quite possibly the worst ending credits of any anime series I've ever seen (and that includes Weiss Kreuz second season, which ends with all four of our main guys crying sadly to themselves). Graphic novel covers, including a particularly slutty picture of naked Gojyo in bed, are interspersed amidst an insidiously catchy theme-song ("You must fight against yourselves") I dare you to get it out of your mind.

EPISODE 2:
FIRST GAME
The Guide to Hades

Our four boys have settled in at an inn. Goku is happily chowing down on the food provided by their hostess, Houmei. Turns out her friend had been murdered by the rampaging youkai and she has a heck of a bone to pick with youkai.

In private, Hakkai mentions that it's a good thing they have their ear clips, otherwise they'd become youkai too. Goku doesn't seem to have an ear clip.

Homei is chopping wood outside and trying her damnest to enlist Goku in her hatred against the youkai. Goku akwardly decides not to tell her that he's a youkai.

A traveling theatre troop has also appeared at the inn. Our boys are trying to figure out sleeping arrangements, and Genzo rather snippily tells the others that he doesn't plan on seeing their faces during the night. No slumber parties. Hakkai mutters something under his breath about Genzo's somewhat rude comment, and they all shuffle off to their separate rooms.

On a completely different note, an evil guy has just sent out assassins to kill our four intrepid travelers, in order to free his mom. More later on this story.

Assassin number one heads for the sleeping Sanzo. Sanzo pins the guy down and whips his modified pistol out. This is actually kind of sexy, since Sanzo's in a black tank top with black sleeves (one presumes this is part of his monk's garb, and not a bit of cross-dressing he likes to do on the side). The youkai assassin spills his guts, and an evil spider woman youkai shows up on the scene. She'd be a babe, but she has a forked tongue that keeps flopping out of her mouth.

Assassin number two has headed for Gojyo's room. She cuddles up in bed with him, and he mentions that she might want to trim her nails a bit, seeing as they're demon claws. She furiously exclaims that he was supposed to be easy to seduce; Gojyo mentions that he likes to pick his women carefully, as he lights a cigarette.

Assassin number three has already been dispatched by Hakkai, and Goku took out the fourth assassin completely in his sleep.

Meanwhile, Sanzo's in spider bondage. Sleazy! The spider-woman youkai raves about his eyes and mentions that if she eats him, she'll gain much energy, seeing as he's a priest and all. She also notices he's fabulously good-looking. Sanzo struggles mightily.

While she's taunting him, the rest of our guys show up and cut through the spider web, releasing Sanzo. Hakkai quickly takes away Homei, who was being held hostage, and Gojyo whips out his chains to do battle. Bad move, as evil spider-lady actually turns INTO a spider and starts spewing webs at them.

Spider lady grosses out our four guys (along wiht Homei and her father) by chowing down on the bodies of her youkai henchmen. Apparently she gains their energy this way. She starts looking towards our three youkai heroes for supplemental nourishment. Homei has finally figured out that Goku is a youkai, and feels horribly, horribly betrayed. Goku lamely points out that he doesn't care about humans or youkai, only food, but this doesn't console her.

Our heroes finally manage to destroy the spider lady, with a triple-tiered attack (Hakkai is busy protecting Homei and her father).

Having finished their mission, the Saiyuki cuties ride off into the sunset. Homei follows along and offers a bunch of bento boxes to Goku as means of apology. Goku happily accepts.

As the jeep moves towards the east, Hakkai & Sanzo talk about deeper matters (being chased by assassins), while Gojyo and Goku argue over the bento boxes. Roll credits.

EPISODE 4:
CRIMSON
Crimson Tears

Shunrei's given the boys a new set of clean clothes (outfit change!), and has prepared a feast for them at her place. She goes to hang clothes, and her aunt tells a sad story: Shunrei's lover was a youkai who turned evil and fled. Shunrei keeps cleaning the house and washing his clothes (which our four guys are now wearing), in hopes that he'll return.

Gojyo laments that the pretty girl already has a guy, and Hakkai feels bad about wearing clothes that are that important to Shunrei. Her aunt mentions that perhaps it was because they caused Shunrei to laugh, and that they probably remind her of Jien.

At the name Jien, Gojyo quickly gets up from the table and visits Shunrei. He tells her to stop crying and asks about her boyfriend. Not suprising, she's still in love with Jien and keeps hoping he'll come back. Gojyo tells her that pretty girls shouldn't cry, because men feel like comforting them when they do.

Meanwhile, Hakkai's spilling the beans about Gojyo's past to Goku and Sanzo. Turns out Gojyo has a half-brother named Jien - they both had the same father (a youkai), but Gojyo's natural mother was human, making him a half-breed. Demon half-breeds are treated quite badly in society. Gojyo enters at the end of the talk about him and agrees about the bad treatment.

The next morning, an old man from the village visits Shunrei's aunt and tells her a silver-haired youkai killed humans in the woods last night. Shunrei lets out a gasp and heads to the woods. The aunt quickly awakes the sleeping beauties and sends them off to the woods to protect Shunrei, who's searching for Jien (who has silver hair).

Our gang loses the trail and decides to split up to search for Shunrei. Gojyo and Hakkai team up, and Sanzo and Goku head off in another direction.

Gojyo is having flashbacks to the bad old days with his full-youkai demon stepmother, who used to cry every time she looked at him. When she eventually tried to kill him, Gojyo was paradoxically relieved that she'd be able to stop crying. Unfortunately, his brother Jien killed his mom, protecting Gojyo. Jien, too, had tears running down his face.

Hakkai notices that Gojyo is silent, and apologizes for telling the others about his older brother. Gojyo tells him not to worry about it.

Shunrei has collapsed from exhaustion, which attracts the attention of three youkai, none of which are her boyfriend. She lets out a scream and our guys start heading over. Gojyo and Goku do a simultaneous flying-kick and knock out one of the bad guys.

The three youkai, who aren't part of the assassin team, start taunting our good guys. Never a good idea. Shunrei asks about silver-haired Jien, and the evil youkai tells her that he's the only silver-haired youkai in this area. Shunrei faints, and Gojyo looks pensive.

Our four guys pack up to leave, taking Shunrei with them. The three evil youkai start taunting Gojyo, telling him that only kids born between youkai and human parents have red hair and eyes. They further taunt that his hair "down there" is probably bright red too, and ask to see it to make sure.

The "hair down there" taunt is the straw that broke the camel's back. Gojyo freezes, the other three spring to his defense. Gojyo, ever the cool dude, shrugs even this taunt off. Then the evil youkai mention that they killed humans last night. Gojyo mentions "So you're that interested in seeing bright red, eh?" and takes out all three of them with his chains.

Shunrei wakes up from her faint in her bed, only to find the guys gone. She mentions that she didn't thank them, and her aunt tells her that the guy with the beautiful eyes the color of the setting sun (Gojyo) said that they were heading west, and that they were setting the world right so that Jien would come back to her.

In the jeep, Gojyo mentions that Shunrei's Jien isn't his brother Jien - his brother doesn't have silver hair. Gojyo laments again that all the babes are taken, and that all the hunks are heading west, into the sunset.

Meanwhile, much evil is astir over at Gyuu-Ma-Ou's place. Empress Gyokumen is enlisting Kougaiji in her quest for evil. He reluctantly agrees to help, as his mom (Gyuu-Ma-Ou) is being held hostage by Gyokumen. More later

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