

Journey to the West: Read Backward
Storyteller Tan Xingchuan has spent three years narrating Journey to the West. One evening, an old man sitting in the corner disrupts his performance with a single remark: "You've got it backward." With a wager agreed upon, Tan must retell the story in reverse, starting from the moment the pilgrims attain Buddhahood at Spirit Mountain and working his way back to Flower-Fruit Mountain. Beneath Sun Wukong's Buddha crown lies his old tightening circlet; Tang Sanzang carries a ledger of tribulations, and Zhu Bajie, now a marshal, dares not acknowledge his past. One by one, they reveal another side of themselves: demons with powerful connections are escorted home, while those without backing are killed by the roadside. Seven installments, seven losses. By the end, all that remains is a single stone. The old man in the audience who never smiles turns out to be the only person in the ledger whose story has never been rewritten.
Main characters: Tan Xingchuan, Sun Wukong, Tang Sanzang, Zhu Bajie
Supporting characters: White Bone Demon
Also known as: 西游倒着读
西遊倒著讀 (54 集)
說書人譚醒川講了三年《西遊記》,一晚被角落裡的老人一句「你講反了」砸了場子。賭約既定,從靈山成佛往回講,一路講到花果山。佛冠下壓著舊箍的孫悟空、批著劫難單子的唐僧、當了元帥不敢認舊事的豬八戒,一個個露出另一張臉——有後台的妖怪被領回家,沒後台的打死在路旁。七回書,七個丟,丟到最後只剩一塊石頭。台下那個不笑的老頭,才是…
說書人譚醒川講了三年《西遊記》,一晚被角落裡的老人一句「你講反了」砸了場子。賭約既定,從靈山成佛往回講,一路講到花果山。佛冠下壓著舊箍的孫悟空、批著劫難單子的唐僧、當了元帥不敢認舊事的豬八戒,一個個露出另一張臉——有後台的妖怪被領回家,沒後台的打死在路旁。七回書,七個丟,丟到最後只剩一塊石頭。台下那個不笑的老頭,才是冊子裡唯一沒被改寫的人。
西游倒着读 · Journey to the West: Read Backward