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New Journey to the West

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For other uses, see Journey to the West (disambiguation).

New Journey to the West
File:New Journey to the West Season 5.jpg
Official poster for New Journey to the West (Season 5)
GenreVariety show
Written byLee Woo-jung
Choi Jae-young
Directed byNa Young-seok
Shin Hyo-jung
Starring(Various Artist)
Country of originSouth Korea
Original languageKorean
No. of seasons5
No. of episodes
  • Season 1: 2 (TV)
  • Season 2: 9
  • Season 3: 10
  • Season 4: 11
  • Season 5: 3 (as of 14 October 2018)
(list of episodes)
Production
Production locations
Running time5-10 minutes each video, 5 videos every release on Friday at 10 a.m. (KST) (Season 1)
80–90 minutes per episode (Season 2-5)
Original release
NetworktvNgo broadcast via Naver TVCast (Season 1~2)
tvN (Season 2–5)
Release
  • Season 1: 4 September – 2 October 2015 (2015-09-04 – 2015-10-02) (webcast)
  • Season 1: 8–15 April 2016 (2016-04-08 – 2016-04-15) (TV)
  • Season 2: 19 April – 14 June 2016 (2016-04-19 – 2016-06-14) (webcast)
  • Season 2: 22 April – 17 June 2016 (2016-04-22 – 2016-06-17) (TV)
  • Season 2.5: 5–6 January 2017 (2017-01-05 – 2017-01-06) (webcast)
  • Season 3: 8 January – 12 March 2017 (2017-01-08 – 2017-03-12)
  • Season 4: 13 June – 22 August 2017 (2017-06-13 – 2017-08-22)
  • Season 5: 30 September 2018 (2018-09-30) – present

New Journey to The West (Korean: 신서유기; RR: Sinseoyugi) is a South Korean travel-reality show that has been broadcast online via Naver TVCast from 4 September 2015. This is the first project from “tvN Go,” a digital-content brand from cable channel tvN.

The show re-unites 2 Days & 1 Night Season 1 members Lee Seung-gi, Kang Ho-dong, Eun Ji-won and Lee Soo-geun. The four members each take one of the characters from the classic Chinese novel “Journey to the West” as they go on a 5-days and 4 night backpacking trip through Xian, China, to play various games in Season 1. Season 1 webcast version ended on 2 October 2015.

Prior to the start of Season 2, tvN rebroadcast the online version of Season 1 to the TV by compiling it to two episodes on 8 and 15 April 2016.

In Season 2, Kang Ho-dong, Eun Ji-won and Lee Soo-geun with Ahn Jae-hyun (replacing Lee Seung-gi) travel to China (Chengdu & Lijiang). Each member takes on one of the characters as in Season 1 and played various games. The season started on 22 April and ended on 17 June 2016. Simultaneously, the show was also broadcast online via Naver TVCast between 19 April and 14 June 2016.

Season 2.5 consist of two new members (Mino and Kyuhyun) for familiarizing with the current members from Season 2.

In Season 3, Kang Ho-dong, Eun Ji-won, Lee Soo-geun, Ahn Jae-hyun, Mino and Kyuhyun travel to China (Guilin & Xiamen). New characters (Master Roshi and Bulma) were also introduced. The season started on 8 January and ended on 12 March 2017.

In Season 4, current members from Season 3 travel to Vietnam (Hanoi, Cat Ba, Hai Phong & Sa Pa) with new characters (Goku, Piccolo and Krillin) being added and replacing the some characters (Sun Wukong, Master Roshi and Bulma) from Season 3. The season started on 13 June and ended on 22 August 2017.

In Season 5, Kang Ho-dong, Eun Ji-won, Lee Soo-geun, Ahn Jae-hyun, Mino and P.O (replacing Kyuhyun) travel to Hong Kong and Hokkaido. A totally new set of characters (Chucky, Kaonashi, Dracula, Chinese Zombie, Grim Reaper & Virgin Female Ghost) are introduced. The season started on 30 September 2018.

Airtime

Season Airdate Broadcast Time (KST) Broadcast channel
1 4 September 2015 – 2 October 2015
Fridays 10 a.m.
Naver TVCast
8 April 2016 – 15 April 2016
Fridays 9:45 p.m.
tvN
2 19 April 2016 – 14 June 2016
Tuesdays 10 a.m.
Naver TVCast
22 April 2016 – 17 June 2016
Fridays 9:45 p.m.
tvN
2.5 5 January 2017 – 6 January 2017 Thursday, Friday 10 a.m.
Naver TVCast
3 8 January 2017 – 12 March 2017
Sundays 9:20 p.m.
tvN
4 13 June 2017 – 22 August 2017
Tuesdays 9:30 p.m.
5 30 September 2018 – present
Sundays 10:40 p.m.

Cast and Characters

Members Characters
Season 1 Season 2 Season 3 Season 4 Season 5
Xian Chengdu Lijiang Guilin Xiamen Hanoi, Hai Phong Sa Pa Hong Kong Hokkaido
Kang Ho-dong Zhu Bajie Sun Wukong Zhu Bajie Sun Wukong Zhu Bajie Sun Wukong Kaonashi
(No-Face)
Lee Soo-geun Sun Wukong Monk Xuan Zhang Sha Wujing Master Roshi Sha Wujing Piccolo Krillin Chucky
Eun Ji-won
（Sechs Kies） 		Sha Wujing Sun Wukong Monk Xuan Zhang Bulma Monk Xuan Zhang Sun Wukong Sha Wujing Grim Reaper
(Death Angel)
Ahn Jae-hyun — Sha Wujing Zhu Bajie Monk Xuan Zhang Master Roshi Monk Xuan Zhang Chinese Zombie
Song Mino
（Winner） 		— Sha Wujing Bulma Krillin Piccolo Virgin Female
Ghost
P.O
（Block B） 		— Dracula
Former Members
Lee Seung-gi Monk Xuan Zhang —
Kyuhyun
（Super Junior） 		— Sun Wukong Zhu Bajie Sha Wujing Zhu Bajie —

Story Plot

In Season 1, Lee Seung Gi plays Tang Sanzang (a Buddhist monk in the novel) who leads and worries constantly about the monsters hyungs (his co-cast members) who don’t listen to him. Lee Soo Geun plays Sun Wukong a monkey character with the greatest sin, Eun Ji Won plays Sha Wujing (a celestial being) who is either immature or genius villain, and Kang Ho Dong plays Zhu Bajie (a pig character) with low brain power but great strength and appetite. Together, they take a journey to the west (Xi'an, China) while completing various mission to find seven dragon balls which can grant wishes for those who can collect them.

Na Young Suk PD expressed, “The four are too familiar with each other, and they know what each other is thinking just from looking at each other’s eyes. Everyone had a great and fun time during the 5 days four nights trip. We are working hard on the post-production at the moment, so that the viewers can experience the fun that we all had.”[1]

In Season 2 to 4, the show followed the similar concept as Season 1 as they travelled with new characters and new cast members to several parts of China and Vietnam to find the seven dragon balls.

In Season 5, a total new sets of characters and theme (Ghost Special) were introduced as the cast members travelled to Hong Kong and Hokkaido.

Production

Season 1

This show reunite four former cast members of the golden age of KBS '2 Days & 1 Night ' in Season 1. On 16 July 2015, tvN announced that Na Young Seok PD will show a new form of variety program in fall through internet contents called 'New Journey to The West'. The production crew stated, "We invested [in the show] as a new format that will broadcast on the internet instead of TV. Right now, we are considering recruiting Lee Soo Geun, and Eun Ji Won in addition to Kang Ho Dong and Lee Seung Gi. There will be no more additions after four members are confirmed."[2]

A CJ E&M official told Sports Chosun on 23 July 2015, ‘New Journey to the West’ is holding the first meeting of the members.[3] On 5 August, a source involved in broadcasting said that Lee Seung Gi, Kang Ho Dong, Lee Soo Geun, Eun Ji Won, and Na Young Suk leave for China on 6 August to begin filming. Which later revealed that they heading to Xian, a city in China, for 5 days filming.[4]

tvN announced on 18 August 2015 that "New Journey to the West" will be released exclusively through PC & mobile Naver TVCast in early September.[5] It marked this show as the first South Korean variety show created by a TV network, tvN, to be broadcast exclusively online.[6]

New Journey to the West production crew and members make their first official appearance through a press conference held at 63 Convention Center on the afternoon of 1 September 2015.[7] The press conference go live on Tuesday at 2 p.m. on Naver and V app at the same time.[8]

The show also streamed exclusively on Tencent's QQ.com in China, simultaneously with its run on South Korean portal website Naver. Seo Jang-Ho, the head of international sales and acquisitions at CJ E&M, said, "We are excited to introduce New Journey to the West to Chinese viewers through Tencent, one of the largest online platforms in the country. As the show is CJ E&M’s highly anticipated digital content of the year, we hope for its successful reception in China.”[9][10]

In the show press conference, Director Na said that there was no step-by-step casting process. "It all just happened very naturally when Lee Seung-gi mentioned going on a trip with the old members over a casual dinner," Na explained. “We then talked about filming it, but because it would lack completeness as a TV show, we decided to use the Internet platform.”[11] Na stated that they wanted to make a program that is new in every ways, including genre and format. Providing busy businessmen and students with short break in the midst of their hectic daily routines. The concept about five new clips at once time release, with each clip to be about ten minutes long, make those who can't afford the time to watch all of the clips in order can just randomly pick whatever looks good for them.[12]

Episodes

Season 1

Season 1

Destinations
Xian, China
Roles
Role Member
Zhu Bajie Kang Hodong
Monk Xuan Zhang Lee Seunggi
Sun Wukong Lee Soogeun
Sha Wujin Eun Jiwon


Naver TVCast

Release Date Episode Title
4 September 2015 1 The Beginning of a Legend
2 Find the Monkey King, the greatest sinner
3 New Journey to the West Game Instruction Manual
4 Good Things to Know Before the Race
5 Finally China! Monk Tang Sanzang Race - Part 1
11 September 2015 6 The winner is Lee Seung Gi anyway! Monk Tang Sanzang Race - Part 2
7 Ho Dong does it too, part 1! Kang Ho Dong’s first ever errand
8 The Birth of Zhu Bajie
9 First Dragon Ball Mission! What happened at DeFaChang?!
10 Sleeping together after 5 years! Monsters’ First Night
18 September 2015 11 Xi'an City Wall tour
12 Exploring The Terracotta Army
13 Second Dragon Ball Mission
14 A Trembling night with the massager!
15 Who's responsible for the missing shoes?!
22 September 2015 11-1 (Special) Time limit is 30 minutes! Dragon Ball Individual Mission!
25 September 2015 16 Culprit finally revealed! And breakfast at opposite extremes!
17 Relay Individual Mission! HoDong’s desperate struggle with ATM machine!
18 Extraordinary Mission! Look for KyungMo PD!
19 Guess it right to eat! Who is this person?
29 September 2015 Chuseok Special Home Cooking Monk Lee
2 October 2015 20 Night of Wishes! Crazy guy Eun Ji Won’s wish is?
21 Final Mission! Fate Up to HoDong!
22 It’s All Over But Let’s Still Do One Quiz
Final Epilogue Made to Not Waste What Was Filmed (End)


tvN

Release Date Episode
8 April 2016 1
15 April 2016 2
Season 2

Season 2

Destinations
China (Chengdu & Lijiang)
Roles
Role 1st part Member 2nd part Member
Zhu Bajie Kang Hodong Ahn Jaehyun
Monk Xuan Zhang Lee Soogeun Ahn Jaehyun > Eun Jiwon
Sun Wukong Eun Jiwon Kang Hodong
Sha Wujing Ahn Jaehyun Lee Soogeun
Release Date Episode
22 April 2016 1
29 April 2016 2
6 May 2016 3
13 May 2016 4
20 May 2016 5
27 May 2016 6
3 June 2016 7
10 June 2016 8
17 June 2016 9
Season 2.5

Season 2.5

Season 2.5 consisted of 7 episode internet exclusive clips familiarizing the 2 new cast members, Cho Kyuhyun and Song Minho to the show among other things.

It aired on Naver TVCast between 5 and 6 January 2017.

Season 3

Season 3

Destinations
China (Guilin & Xiamen)
Roles
Role 1st part Member 2nd part Member
*new* Master Roshi Lee Soogeun Ahn Jaehyun
*new* Bulma Eun Jiwon Song Minho
Zhu Bajie Kang Hodong Cho Kyuhyun
Monk Xuan Zhang Ahn Jaehyun Eun Jiwon
Sun Wukong Cho Kyuhyun Kang Hodong
Sha Wujin Song Minho Lee Soogeun
Release Date Episode
8 January 2017 1
15 January 2017 2
22 January 2017 3
29 January 2017 4
5 February 2017 5
12 February 2017 6
19 February 2017 7
26 February 2017 8
5 March 2017 9
12 March 2017 10
Season 4

Season 4

Destinations
Vietnam (Hanoi, Cat Ba, Hai Phong & Sa Pa)
Theme
Hell's Apocalypse
Roles
Role 1st part Member 2nd part member
*new* Piccolo Lee Soogeun Lee Soogeun > Song Minho
*new* Krillin Song Minho Song Minho > Lee Soogeun
Zhu Bajie Kang Hodong Cho Kyuhyun
Monk Xuan Zhang Ahn Jaehyun Ahn Jaehyun
Sun Wukong→*new* Goku Eun Jiwon Kang Hodong
Sha Wujin Cho Kyuhyun Eun Jiwon
Release Date Episode Recap
13 June 2017
1
Arriving in Hanoi, Vietnam. Sun Wukong has evolve to become Goku
20 June 2017
2
Arrival at the Army Hotel and Dragon Ball Games
27 June 2017
3
Let's go to Cat Ba Island
4 July 2017
4
Cat Ba Island: Cone Game and Guess Who Quiz
11 July 2017
5
The city of water- Hai Phong and The first Worlds' Best Martial Arts Competition
18 July 2017
6
Part 1 Ending, Dragon Ball Game
25 July 2017
7
Part 2 Beginning, Murder mystery train to Sa Pa, Vietnam
1 August 2017
8
8 August 2017
9
15 August 2017
10
Part 2 Ending, Individual Dragon Ball Game
22 August 2017
11
Director's Cut

Season 5

Destinations

Hong Kong and Hokkaido

Theme

Ghost Special or Horror Special

Roles

Role Member
*new* Kaonashi Kang Hodong
*new* Chucky Lee Soogeun
*new* Dracula P.O
*new* Chinese Zombie Ahn Jaehyun
*new* Grim Reaper Eun Jiwon
*new* Virgin Female Ghost Song Minho
Release Date Episode Recap
30 September 2018
1
 Character selection and Ghost Olympiad. Lee Soogeun won HKD300 as he chose not to "reincarnate" after winning the Ghost Olympiad.
7 October 2018
2
 Arrive at Hong Kong. Kang Hodong won the first dragon ball for the team.
14 October 2018
3

Reception

Season 1

In a survey done prior to the program’s airing, 62.5% of the recipients knew about the new program, while 76.9% indicated that they would watch the program.[13] The first trailer of the show which was revealed on 25 August 2015 via Naver TVCast exceeded more than 1 million view in less than 24 hours and became a hot topic among netizen.[14]

The first five episodes, each spanning between five and ten minutes, were uploaded at 10 a.m. Five hours after it release, more than 50,000 people had subscribed to the channel on Naver's video streaming website TVCast, where the show is broadcast. The first episode has been viewed more than 700,000 times, with the five together recording a combined 2 million views. After 12 hours of its release, the five episodes almost hit 5 million views.[15]

It has received positive response from the public. The show’s network tvN revealed that the first five episodes, released through Naver TV Cast recorded 6.1 million hits on the first day of its release. If the trailer and the video unveiled in production presentation are also included, the number adds up to 11.5 million views as of the morning of 5 September 2015.[16] In 3 days after its release, the first five episodes hit 8.7 million views and reach 14.4 million views altogether (including views for press conference and trailer clips).[17]

On 8 September 2015, 'New Journey the West' has accumulated 15 million views on Naver TV Cast since its release. In the day of the second five episodes release, 11 September, the show already attracted more than 20 million combined views online with its trailer and first episode. It made "New Journey to the West" as the first online broadcast to reach the break-even point with only advertising revenues in South Korea. Executive of CJ E&M stated, “We are likely to reap the profits earlier-than-expected thanks to a surge in viewers. Online broadcast is emerging as a new cash cow with TV ad revenues declining.”[18][19]

It also receive good response in China. On 5 September 2015, 'New Journey to the West' first on QQ video real time chart, and fourth in overall QQ vidoes site. On 7 September, the first 5 episodes of this show already got more than 10 million views on QQ Video in China. The Second 5 episodes (episode 6-10) which released in following week, got 10 million just 2 days after its release.

Ratings

  • In the ratings below, the highest rating for the show will be in red and the lowest rating for the show will be in blue.
  • Note that the show airs on a cable channel (pay TV), which plays part in its slower uptake and relatively small audience share when compared to programs broadcast (FTA) on public networks such as KBS, SBS, MBC or EBS.
  • TNmS have stopped publishing their rating report since June 2018.

Season 1

List of ratings
Episode # Broadcast Date AGB Ratings [20][21]
1 8 April 2016 2.702%
2 15 April 2016 2.721%

Season 2

List of ratings
Episode # Broadcast Date AGB Ratings [20][21]
1 22 April 2016 2.7%
2 29 April 2016 2.6%
3 6 May 2016 2.7%
4 13 May 2016 5.0%
5 20 May 2016 3.6%
6 27 May 2016 3.4%
7 3 June 2016 2.8%
8 10 June 2016 3.6%
9 17 June 2016 3.8%
Average 3.36%

Season 3

List of ratings
Episode # Broadcast Date AGB Ratings [20][21] TNmS Ratings [22]
1 8 January 2017 3.6% 3.8%
2 15 January 2017 3.5% 3.6%
3 22 January 2017 3.6% 3.9%
4 29 January 2017 3.1% 3.3%
5 5 February 2017 3.5% 3.4%
6 12 February 2017 3.1% 3.8%
7 19 February 2017 3.5% 4.8%
8 26 February 2017 3.7% 4.2%
9 5 March 2017 3.4% 4.1%
10 12 March 2017 2.8% 3.7%
Average 3.38% 3.86%

Season 4

List of ratings
Episode # Broadcast Date AGB Ratings [20][21] TNmS
Ratings [23]
Nationwide Seoul
1 13 June 2017 3.299% 3.194% 5.3%
2 20 June 2017 2.766% 2.354% 3.6%
3 27 June 2017 3.534% 3.526% 4.5%
4 4 July 2017 3.762% 3.828% 4.8%
5 11 July 2017 3.244% 3.258% 4.0%
6 18 July 2017 4.329% 4.605% 5.9%
7 25 July 2017 3.474% 3.106% 5.5%
8 1 August 2017 4.423% 4.430% 6.3%
9 8 August 2017 4.624% 4.461% 5.9%
10 15 August 2017 5.119% 5.164% 5.9%
11 22 August 2017 3.921% 3.789% 5.2%
Average 3.863% 3.792% 5.17%

Season 5

Episode # Broadcast Date AGB Ratings
(Nationwide)
[20][21][24]
1 30 September 2018 5.727%
2 7 October 2018 4.772%
3 14 October 2018 %

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Recipient Result
2016
tvN10 Awards
 Best Content Award, Variety New Journey to the West Won
Variety Icon
Nominated

Promotional Posters

References

  1. ^ "'New Journey To The West' drops first teaser". Kpopfigting. Retrieved 25 August 2015.
  2. ^ "Kang Ho Dong & Lee Seung Gi coming up with a new variety program". StarN. Retrieved 16 July 2015.
  3. ^ "CJ E&M측 "'신서유기' 멤버 오늘 사적인 회동, 촬영은 안해". Sports Chosun (in Korean). Retrieved 23 July 2015.
  4. ^ "Kang Ho-dong, Lee Seung-gi to shoot new show in China". KoreanTimes. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
  5. ^ "'신서유기', 네이버 TV캐스트서 단독 공개…여행+게임쇼 접목 '기대↑'". StarN (in Korean). Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  6. ^ ""South Korean Variety Show 'New Journey to The West' Off to a Strong Start"". koogle.tv. Retrieved 4 September 2015.
  7. ^ "'신서유기' 팀, 첫 공식석상 확정…1일 제작발표회 개최". OSEN (in Korean). Retrieved 25 August 2015.
  8. ^ "[V Report Plus] 'New Journey to the West' to go live on Tuesday". KpopHerald (in Korean). Retrieved 30 August 2015.
  9. ^ "'New Journey to the West' to be shown on Chinese portal". KoreaTimes (in Korean). Retrieved 31 August 2015.
  10. ^ "CJ E&M Reality Show to Stream on Tencent in China". Wordscreen. Retrieved 31 August 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  11. ^ "Exploring a new frontier in content". Korea JoongAng Daily. Retrieved 3 September 2015.
  12. ^ "Kang Ho Dong & Lee Seung Gi coming up with new variety program 'New Journey To The West'". StarN. Retrieved 3 September 2015.
  13. ^ "'New Journey To The West' variety program is already drawing much popularity prior to airing". KpopFighting. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  14. ^ "'New Journey To The West' reveals official poster featuring the main cast". dkpopnews. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
  15. ^ "'New Journey to the West' off to strong start". Kpopherald. Retrieved 4 September 2015.
  16. ^ "'New Journey' hits 6.1M viewers". Korea JongAng Daily. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
  17. ^ "[TV톡톡]'신서유기' 전.성.시.대! 공개 3일만에 870만 뷰…누적 1440만". OSEN (in Korean). Retrieved 7 September 2015.
  18. ^ "'New Journey to the West' paves way for Web entertainment". Kpopherald. Retrieved 9 September 2015.
  19. ^ "'New Journey to the West' exceeds 20 million views". KpopHerald. Retrieved 13 September 2015.
  20. ^ a b c d e "AGB Nielsen Ratings" (in Korean) – via naver.
  21. ^ a b c d e "Nielsen Korea Top 10 List for TV Programs". nielsenkorea (in Korean).
  22. ^ "Season 3 Ratings" (in Korean) – via naver.
  23. ^ "Season 4 Ratings" (in Korean) – via naver.
  24. ^ "Season 5 Ratings" (in Korean) – via naver.


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