The Year of the Monkey is just around the corner. One of the most famous depictions of the monkey is the Monkey King in the classic Chinese novel Journey to the West.

Efforts have been made over the years to pass on the adventures of the Monkey King, along with his mentor Buddhist monk Xuan Zang, to the younger generation through animations. Here is a history of such animation productions.

1941

DVD cover of Princess Iron Fan. [Photo/Mtime]

Princess Iron Fan

Director: Wan brothers

Release date: Jan 1, 1941

The film is based on an episode of Journey to the West, in which the Monkey King battles the vengeful Princess Iron Fan.

The film was made by the Wan brothers, namely Wan Laiming, Wan Guchan, Wan Chaochen and Wan Dihuan, one of the first batch of animators in China. This first animated feature film made in China took three years and 237 artists to make. It was a milestone for China's history of animation, and its influences were widespread. Abroad, it prompted the then-16-year-old Tezuka Osamu, a Japanese animator and father of many renowned works including Astro Boy, to get into animation when it was exported to wartime Japan in 1942.

1958

A scene from Pigsy East Watermelon. [Photo/Mtime]

Pigsy Eats Watermelon

Director: Wan Laiming, Wan Guchan

Produced at the Shanghai Animation Film Studio by Wan Laiming and Wan Guchan, the film Pigsy Eats Watermelon features the character Zhu Bajie from Journey to the West. In the film, Zhu Bajie goes off to search for food for the four and discovers some watermelons. Instead of bringing the fruits back to his hungry companions, he gets greedy and enjoys the fruit all by himself. The Monkey King discovers his lies and teaches him a lesson.

The character was used since pigs are often associated with greed in Chinese culture.

1961

A scene from Havoc in Heaven. [Photo/Mtime]

Havoc in Heaven

Director: Wan Laiming

The four Wan brothers created the film at the height of a booming Chinese animation industry from 1961 to 1964. It was one of the longer animated colored features at the time.

The story centers on how the Monkey King causes an uproar in Heaven and his troubles with the Jade Emperor, who presides over the deities. The stylized animation, drums and percussion accompaniment used in this film is heavily influenced by the traditional performing art of Peking Opera.

1980

Ding Ding Zhan Hou Wang. [Photo/From the Internet]

Ding Ding Zhan Hou Wang

Director: Hu Jinqing

The Monkey King is angered by Dingding, a young boy who didn't finish watching the film Havoc in Heaven, in which he is the protagonist. He then jumps out of the television and questions Dingding, and is lectured by the boy, who holds the key to modern scientific knowledge. The Monkey King doesn't want to give in and challenges Dingding in a series of battles, mostly in places the traditional hero has never been, including beneath the sea and high up in space. The Monkey King finally admits to his ignorance when it comes to scientific knowledge and asks Dingding to teach him.

1981

A scene from Ren Shen Guo. [Photo/From the Internet]

Ren Shen Guo

Director: Yan Dingxian

Xuan Zang and his disciples stopped at Wuzhuang Guan on their way to the West, a place known for "ren shen guo", or Ginseng fruits, a type of rare fruit that makes people who eat them immortal. Zhu Bajie coerces the Monkey King to steal some of the sacred fruits and gets the team into trouble until Guanyin comes to the rescue.

1983

A scene from Xiao Ba Jie. [Photo/Tencent]

Xiao Ba Jie

The film, made solely out of paper cut figurines, is a classic film by Shanghai Animation Film Studio.

DVD cover of Jin Hou Xiang Yao. [Photo/Mtime]

Jin Hou Xiang Yao

Another production by Shanghai Animation Film Studio, the film brought the story of the Monkey King's three battles against the White Bone Spirit in Journey to the West to life.

1986

DVD cover of Dragon Ball. [Photo/Mtime]

Dragon Ball

Dragon Ball is a Japanese anime television series based on the namesake manga by Akira Toriyama. The 153-episode production was a megahit among young Japanese, as well as those from around the world, after it was aired by Fuji TV from Feb 26, 1986 to April 12, 1989. Four sequels followed afterwards, including Dragon Ball Z in 1989 and Dragon Ball Super in 2015.

The Monkey King, which went by the name of Son Goku in Dragon Ball, is a super strong but naive boy who sets out to gather seven wish-granting Dragon Balls, with the help from his mentor Kame-Sennin and his fellow pupil Kuririn.

1988

A scene from Doraemon: The Record of Nobita's Parallel Visit to the West. [Photo/From the Internet]

Doraemon: The Record of Nobita's Parallel Visit to the West

Director: Tsutomu Shibayama

Release date: March 12, 1988

Loosely based on Journey to the West, this Japanese film centers on Nobita, a clumsy fourth grader, who accidentally falls into the era of Journey to the West and embarks on a quest for the holy scripture, with the help from the beloved robot cat Doramon.

1992

A scene from Flying Monkid. [Photo/From the Internet]

Flying Monkid

This 74-episode animated TV production initially aired in 1992. The storyline somewhat deviates from the original story, where the protagonist is not as arrogant as the images portrayed in other reproductions. The Monkid is kind, has real friends, and his own share of troubles and dreams. The adorable illustrations were also praised as one of the major revisions to the original story.

Journey to the West

In contrast to Flying Monkid, CCTV's reproduction of Journey to the West adheres more strictly to the original storyline. More than 2,000 illustrators worked to depict most of the details in the original novel from roughly 500 characters in this 52-episode animation.

1999

A scene from Lotus Lantern. [Photo/Mtime]

Lotus Lantern

Director: Chang Guangxi

Release date: July 30, 1999

Erlang Shen, or the second son of God, had a sister known as the Holy Mother of Mount Hua. She married a mortal scholar, Liu Yanchang, though it was forbidden for those in Heaven to marry mortals, and gave birth to a son named Chen Xiang. She was admonished by her brother for the human-deity union and imprisoned under a mountain. When Chen Xiang came of age, he split the mountain with an axe to free his mother under the guidance of the Monkey King.

2005

A scene from The Red Boy. [Photo/From the Internet]

The Red Boy

Directed by: Wang Tong

Release date: May 8, 2005

The red boy (hong hai'er in Chinese), son of Princess Iron Fan and Bull Demon King, is a monster by birth but is kind at heart. His believed the words of a toad to seek for the flesh of Xuan Zang, which would give his sick mother immortality, not knowing that the Buddhist monk has already been capture by the Spider. The red boy and the Monkey King, who was given the task to protect the monk, engages in several battles, both physically and mentally. In the end, they discover the good in one another and join hands to combat their common enemy - the Spider.

2006

A scene from Monkey King. [Photo/Mtime]

Monkey King

With the original story of Journey to the West as the blueprint, this 16-episode flash miniseries rewrote the story giving it a humorous touch. Some traditional Chinese folktales (ones not found in the original Journey to the West) were also included to make the production more educational.

2010

A scene from New Journey to the West. [Photo/Mtime]

New Journey to the West

Director: Xing Rufei

Release date: Nov 6, 2010

Set in the present day, the monk and his three disciples are reunited once more to search for a sacred book on self protection for the young. Just like in the original, the gang crossed rivers and trotted over mountains, overcoming one challenge after another, in search of how we can better protect ourselves from the harms in this world.

2012

A scene from The Monkey King 3D. [Photo/Mtime]

The Monkey King 3D

Director: Su Da, Chen Zhihong

Release date: Jan 11, 2012

The 90-minute animation tells the legendary adventures of the Monkey King causing an uproar down beneath the sea and high up in Heaven. An "all-star" cast, including veteran actors Chen Daoming and Zhang Guoli, director Chen Kaige, actress Yao Chen and actor Liu Ye, voiced the main characters in the film.

2015

A scenen from Monkey King: Hero is Back. [Photo/Mtime]

Monkey King: Hero is Back

Director: Teng Xiaiopeng

Release date: July 10, 2015

The Monkey King, who once roamed freely between Heaven and Earth, was imprisoned within an ice cage deep within the mountains after his mischief angered the higher gods. 500 years later, a pack of monsters attack a small village, and a young monk flees to the mountains. The child unknowingly releases the captured Monkey King, whom he has read about only in books, from the curse, and embarks on a journey along with his idol in a search for self worth and the true meaning of being a hero.

Up to date, Monkey King: Hero is Back is the highest-grossing Chinese animated film.