Your Favorite Anime Hero Is Actually the Monkey King - Goku's Ancient Secret

Goku is arguably the most famous animated hero on Earth - and he is not an original character. He is a modern incarnation of Sun Wukong, the Monkey King, hero of the 500-year-old Chinese epic Journey to the West. This is the full story of that hidden lineage: Goku's name IS the Monkey King's name; his monkey tail, his extending Power Pole, his Flying Nimbus cloud, his wild strength and rebellious heart all come straight from the ancient legend; and the entire early Dragon Ball cast maps onto the legend's pilgrimage party. We trace every connection - the name and its meaning, the epic itself, the Monkey King's own story, the magic objects, the whole party, how Akira Toriyama transformed an ancient tale into a world-conquering original epic, and what it all reveals about how legends live forever. Once you see the Monkey King inside Goku, you can never unsee him.