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The Companions
Monkey
- Played by: Chai Hansen
One of the last free gods, sealed away in a mountain prior to the rise of the demons. Though extremely brave and powerful, he is arrogant, hence why he was trapped in a mountain until Tripitaka freed him.
- Animal Motif: He is the Monkey King after all.
- Ambiguously Bi: He kisses Tripitaka's forehead and snuggles up to her while she's sleeping off the effects of a poison, and those events both happen before he finds out that she's a girl.
- The Atoner: Monkey’s arrogance is the reason why the world’s gone to Hell, and he can only make things right again by finding the scrolls. Sandy even comments that the situation is poetic.
- Blood Knight: Monkey enjoys beating up demons a little too much.
- Expy: He is a version of Sun Wukong, the Monkey King.
- Fatal Flaw: Like his legendary counterpart, he is extremely arrogant.
- It's All About Me: Monkey is chiefly looking out for Monkey, at least at first.
- Never Learned to Read: He stubbornly refused to learn the divine language when he was younger.
- Restraining Bolt: His crown enables Tripitaka to rein him in when he's getting out of line.
- Sealed Good in a Can: He was sealed in a mountain for five hundred years.
Tripitaka
- Played by: Luciane Buchanan
An orphan raised in a monastery by The Scholar. When her master is killed by the Font Demon, she sets out to Padawa to find Monkey and set him free from his imprisonment in order to help her find the Sacred Scrolls.
- Adaptational Badass: In the original book, Tripitaka was constantly getting captured left and right and had to rely on his companions to save him. While she does get captured a number of times in this version, it’s not nearly as often, and a few times she even manages to save herself.
- All-Loving Hero: She manages to convince Monkey and Pigsy (who were both initially not interested) to help her on the quest.
- Badass Bookworm: She’s one of the very few humans who can read the ancient language of the Gods, and was raised by a scholar.
- Conveniently an Orphan: She was left in the monastery by her parents. It's unknown what became of them.
- Expy: She is a version of Tang Sanzang.
- The Heart: Tripitaka is the one who keeps her companions together.
- Jumped at the Call: She is quick to take action when she stumbles upon the demon who stole Monkey’s crown, knowing that she’s the only person who can release the Monkey King.
- Nice Girl: She is kind and generous towards others, and brings out the best in her companions.
- Only Known by Their Nickname: Her real name is unrevealed; everyone calls her either "Tripitaka" or "Girl".
- Sweet Polly Oliver: She spends much of the first season posing as a boy monk.
- The Unchosen One: She was never meant to be the one to go on the quest. But when the Scholar, the warriors and the monk are killed, she’s the only one left who knows the details of the quest, so becomes Tripitaka in order to complete it."I'm not worthy, but I'm here."
Pigsy
- Played by: Josh Thomson
A former general in the divine army who became the enforcer and concubine of a demon lord, before Tripitaka guilt-tripped him into joining her quest.
- Adaptational Heroism: In the original Journey to the West, Pigsy's sins include cowardice, lechery, drunkenness, gluttony, and greed. In this version of events, his sins are limited to gluttony and cowardice.
- Animal Motifs: A pig, obviously.
- The Atoner: He spent years serving Princess Locke out of cowardice, and now seeks to atone for that by helping his companions find the scrolls and defeating the demons.
- Big Eater: Well, he is a pig god, after all.
- Butt-Monkey: He is constantly getting beaten up or humiliated.
- Dating Catwoman: Prior to joining Monkey and Tripitaka, he was Princess Locke's boy toy.
- Expy: He is the series' version of Zhu Bajie, or Pigsy.
- Lovable Coward: Given his druthers, he's much rather be cooking and eating than fighting, but his companions are still fond of him.
- Team Chef: He prepares all the team's meals.
Sandy
- Played by: Emilie Coquerel
A friendly but scatterbrained water god living in the sewers of Padawa.
- Adaptational Attractiveness: Her counterpart in Journey to the West was a hideous cannibal. She's filthy and disheveled, but not particularly ugly.
- Cloud Cuckoolander: She's a bit... off.
- Expy: She is the series' equivalent of Sha Wujing, or Friar Sand.
- Making a Splash: She has water powers.
- Skeletons in the Coat Closet: She wears a necklace made of bones.
Demons
Davari
- Played by: Josh McKenzie
Formerly Monkey's closest friend, and now a demon lord occupying Jade Mountain.
- Big Bad: He is the main villain of the first season.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: He pretended to be Monkey's friend in order to goad him into rebelling against the other gods.
Princess Locke
- Played by: Bryony Skillington
The greedy demon lord of Padawa.
- Big Beautiful Woman: She is a very attractive woman, despite her considerable girth.
- Fat Bastard: She is very large and very cruel.
Font Demon
- Played by: Jarred Blakiston
A demon assassin sent to kill Tripitaka and steal Monkey's crown.
- Long-Haired Pretty Boy: He has long white hair and is not unattractive.
- White Hair, Black Heart: He has long white hair, wears all black, is very good looking, and is an enemy for most of the season who then fights for the heroes in the season's last episode. It’s like he was purposely designed to be a Chick Magnet.
Shaman
- Played by: Daniel Watterson
A magic-using demon employed to capture gods and bring them to Davari.
- Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep": If he has another name, it's never revealed.
- Lotus-Eater Machine: He uses vivid illusions to keep gods under his thrall.
Raxion
- Played by: Jordan Mooney
One of Davari's top-ranked henchmen... or so he thinks.
- Mistreatment-Induced Betrayal: He helps Monkey and Pigsy fight Davari after getting fed up with Davari's constant mistreatment.
Lord Gorm
- Played by: Tawani Manyimo
The new ruler of the Broken Temple.
- Big Bad: He leads the other demons in the second season until it's revealed that he's a literal puppet for Hagfish.
Hagfish
- Played by: Simon Prast
Lord Gorm's assistant. He uses magical puppets to control people including Lord Gorm.
- Animal Motifs: His namesake is a nasty little bottom feeder that worms its way into larger creatures and consumes them from the inside, much like he has been placing his pins inside Gorm to manipulate him.
- The Man Behind the Man: He's been manipulating Gorm for centuries.
- Marionette Master: His schtick is using magical puppets to control people.
General Khan
- Played by: Michelle Ang
The leader of the demon army.
- Abhorrent Admirer: The way to her heart lies through her stomach, so naturally Pigsy's culinary talents draw her affection, much to his horror; she eats like a pig.
- Big Eater: She will eat or drink almost anything that's not nailed down.
- Jabba Table Manners: Her table manners are disgusting.
- Meaningful Name: A khan was traditionally the leader of a horde during the Mongol Empire, and she leads one of the largest demon factions.
- Villainous Crush: She is quite taken with Pigsy, which Pigsy reluctantly uses to distract her while his companions steal from her.
Lady Tsumori
- Played by: Roxie Mohebi
A shapeshifting demon who's been plaguing a small village.
- Animal Motifs: She lives in water and spits ink like a squid.
- Shapeshifting: She impersonates Sandy and kidnaps children in order to turn a village against the heroes.
- Stealthy Cephalopod: Lady Tsumori is an octopus demon, and her talent is changing her shape to impersonate others in order to sow distrust.
Mothrax
- Played by: Natasha Daniel
A moth demon who serves as a spy for the Broken Temple.
- Animal Motifs: She turns into a moth, and her human form has gold-brown robes, a crown that resembles a pair of antennae, and predilection for chasing fire.
- Love Potion: She uses “smoke bombs” which releases a love potion gas. Monkey, Pigsy, Sandy and Tripitaka all come under its influence briefly while Mothrax makes off with the scrolls, and they snap out of it by having water squirted in their faces by Sandy.
- Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: During Gorm’s fight with Monkey, Mothrax walks in on Hagfish while he’s controlling the other demon. She thinks he’s having a seizure so shakes him out of his meditation, preventing him from controlling Gorm. This leads to Monkey and Tripitaka trapping the now immobilized Gorm and escaping with the others.
- Running Gag: Her compulsion to run towards fire is a recurring joke.
- Too Dumb to Live: Pigsy manages to fatally outwit her by lighting a fire. Being a moth, she flies right into it.
Cranius Kang
- Played by: Joel Tobeck
A demonic scholar sent to capture the Scroll of Knowledge. After failing rather dramatically, he is relegated to being Hagfish's grunt.
- The Dog Bites Back: He removes the final pin that allows Hagfish to control Gorm, in revenge for Hagfish's mistreatment.
Shadow Monkey
- Played by: Chai Hansen
An Evil version of Monkey formed using a corrupted version of the Scroll of Creation.
- Evil Twin: To Monkey.
- Expy: Being a fake, evil version of Monkey draws parallels to The Six-Eared Macaque from the original story.
- Walking Spoiler: It's very difficult to talk about him without revealing the plot.
Moggoth
- Played by: Zane Fleming
Queen Hakuru
- Played by: Rachel House
Gods and Spirits
Lior
- Played by: Samson Chan-Boon
The captain of the guard at Jade Mountain, now a prisoner of Davari.
- The Big Guy: He is quite large.
Librarian
- Played by: J.J. Fong
The librarian of the Infinite Archive, and guardian of the Scroll of Knowledge.
- Older Than They Look: She is hundreds of years old.
- Scary Librarian: Do not talk loudly in her library.
- Magic Librarian: She's been watching over the Infinite Archive for centuries.
Mycelia
- Played by: Katherine Kennard
The guardian of the Scroll of Creation.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Beneath her warm and kindly exterior, she is absolutely ruthless about protecting her scroll.
- Meaningful Name: Her name is derived from the plural of mycelium, the vegetative part of a fungal colony.
- Terms of Endangerment: She uses loads of affectionate terms towards her victims.
Mortals
Monica
- Played by: Rachel House
The tavern keeper at Padawa. And also the leader of the anti-demon resistance.
- Eyepatch of Power: Her eyepatch confers a certain air of experience upon her.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: When she first appears, she forces Tripitaka to work herself to the bone in order to pay for a meal and a place to stay, but she eventually softens up and is revealed to be a secret believer in the old gods. At the end of season 2, she gives Tripitaka ownership of the tavern.
Kaedo Zef
- Played by: Atticus Iti
A pint-sized mercenary hired to lead Monkey and his companions to the resistance.
- Troubling Unchildlike Behavior: He knows a lot about combat and poisons for a mere kid.
- Unexplained Recovery: Tripitaka stabs him with a poisoned knife while under Hagfish's control, and yet somehow he survives, despite the same poison nearly killing Tripitaka several episodes earlier.
Gaxion
- Played by: Jayden Daniels
The real Tripitaka, a monk who has spent his whole life preparing to lead the resistance and find the sacred scrolls. He is seemingly killed in the first episode.
- Break the Haughty: Gaxin is so sure of his own wisdom and that he was chosen by the Gods that he doesn’t listen to Tripitaka’s warnings. Only when the Rebellion is defeated by demons does he realize that maybe this isn’t true, and is further humbled when he can’t reach the Scroll of Creation.
- Decoy Protagonist: He is first introduced as the monk who will become this series' incarnation of Tripitaka... only to get killed off shortly afterwards.
- Right for the Wrong Reasons: Gaxin believes he was resurrected by the Gods because he has an important roll to play. He’s right about that, but he initially thinks it’s his destiny to lead the quest for the remaining scrolls. In the end he realizes he was brought back so he could give his life resurrecting Monkey so Tripitaka doesn’t have to.
- This Cannot Be!: He was intended to become Tripitaka, and thus has this reaction moments before he’s killed by the Font Demon in the pilot.
- Unfit for Greatness: Gaxin was originally chosen to become Tripitaka and lead the quest for the scrolls. But he was killed by the Font Demon, and when he’s resurrected, he keeps making poor decisions which all end in disaster.
