The Westward (Chinese: 西行纪; pinyin: Xī Xíng Jì; Vietnamese: Tây Hành Kỷ) is a Chinese 3D animated fantasy series adapted from the Hong Kong manhua of the same name by Zheng Jianhe and Deng Zhihui. The first season, produced by Tencent Pictures and Baiman Culture with Penguin Pictures and Baioo Family Interactive as co-producers, premiered on Tencent Video on 18 July 2018.
The series consists of five seasons and 134 episodes, excluding related films and specials. It is distributed internationally by WeTV under the title The Westward.
Plot The story begins sixteen years after Tang Sanzang and his disciples brought the Qi Jing back from the Other Shore and entrusted it to Emperor Shitian. The wordless scripture is actually the Eternal Fire, the fire of creation. Corrupted by the Dark Souls, Shitian seeks to use its power to rule the three realms. While protecting the scripture, Sun Wukong is killed by the Three-Eyed General. Zhu Bajie loses his tusks, Sha Wujing is stripped of his memories, and Sanzang returns to the human world.
After battling Emperor Shitian, Tathagata retrieves the Qi Jing and entrusts it to the Dragon King of Tianyu Mountain. It takes the form of a girl named Xiaoyu, whom the Dragon King raises as his daughter. When Heaven sends the Three-Eyed General to reclaim her, the wolf demon Bai Lang helps her escape. He seeks Tang Sanzang's help in returning the scripture to the Other Shore.
Production The series adapts a manhua by Hong Kong creators Zheng Jianhe and Deng Zhihui. The comic reworks Journey to the West, changing the roles and relationships of its characters. Baiman Culture acquired the adaptation rights when only five instalments of the comic had been serialised. In 2016, it began working with Tencent Video to develop the property. Directors Zhong Zhixing and Mai Zhengle were involved in the early seasons.
According to a 2023 Xinsheng Pro report, the production team grew from more than 20 people to more than 200. Its production process involved storyboards, previews, animation, rendering, visual effects, lighting and compositing. Later seasons also combined two-dimensional and three-dimensional imagery in some scenes; the team said it had used artificial intelligence tools during production of the fifth season.
Release Tencent announced the animated adaptation in 2018. Its first season premiered exclusively on Tencent Video on 18 July that year. The fifth season began on 2 August 2023, and its final episode became available in February 2025. SeasonTitleFirst releasedEpisodes1The Westward2018162The Westward S22019223The Westward S32021204The Westward S42022125The Westward S52023–202564
Reception Before the first season was released, CCTV-6 reported a favourable initial response to its 3D animation at a preview screening. In an August 2018 analysis, ACGx praised the visual presentation and story but argued that less than ten minutes of main content per episode was a weakness for a weekly series. It also cited audience comments collected by Guduo Radar that increasingly focused on the short running time.
A 2023 Xinsheng Pro report stated that the first season ranked first among domestic animated programmes on its premiere day and received more than 120 million views that day. At the 15th China Animation Golden Dragon Awards, The Westward received the bronze award for Best Animated Series.
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Jiemian News – 当经典遭遇网生代，腾讯对这部全网点击70亿的漫画做了什么？ Tencent – 泛娛樂升級新文創，騰訊五大文創業務集中發佈 China Daily – 《西行纪之集结篇》点映，导演麦正乐角色解读 Giải thưởng Hoạt hình Kim Long – Giải đồng dành cho Tây Hành Kỷ Tây Hành Kỷ trên Douban Baidu - 西行纪 Wikipedia - zh: 西行纪