#KFP4 thinkings

[binturong-that-simps-red-panda]

Some KFP4 thoughts

I been thinking about this for a while...

Hear me out: I think the reason why opinions on Zhen are so divided (leaving out her VA) is because at giving her the "Dragon Warrior" title in the rushed way they did in the film, everyone is putting expectations on her to be "The new/next Po"

And... obviously SHE IS NOT PO,

SHE IS ZHEN, AND THAT'S OK

SHE HAS POTENTIAL

But they didn't took their shots to make her shine AS A CHARACTER. On the one hand I think that, YES, the mistake of this movie is that EVERYTHING feels diluted, like everyone's arc is rushed and only told by the surface, since they never take their time to explain important things, like... Why Po should leave the "Dragon warrior" tittle to become the spiritual leader?

As far as I remeber, KFP franchise core, was about find yourself through the way of martial arts and the equilibrium between body, mind and spirit. And now that Po is the expert, he gets the task to guide!

And what means Guide?

And how do you show to others an hability or an advice?

BY TEACHING, OF COURSE! PASS YOUR KNOWLEDGE AS A MASTER!

And the main issue about the plot of the film is that:

PASS KNOWLEDGE ≠ INHERIT A POSITION

This is why the premise falls apart dramatically. Both can be related, YUP, but again, we never get that explanation, imagine this...

⫸ What if once he is named the Spiritual guide, Po can't fulfill both roles at the same time?

This could make him put his feet on earth, having a crisis about feeling not enough without his team, something like "imposter syndrome" which can fit with the shapeshifter theme of the villain.

Missing the old times, this following the line that the Furious five or Shifu will not be there forever to cover his back, because they have their own duties and responsabilities too, making that change something hard to accept.

And after meditate about his situation he decides to look for a sidekick to train. Like, comme on is something that Po could do, he always takes the initiative and that's one of his strong points, a usefull one for a leader.

⫸What if they developed Shifu's jelousy for Po getting everything he (Shifu) searched FOR YEARS and never got?

They imply it, but again, another exploration missing, so he looks just like the cranky crazy man that tries to piss off his student for a whim. When he already had overcome that phase, accepted the change and aparently got a regression...

YES, BECAUSE:

Personal development has its high and low seasons.

That could be a good lesson to play on a movie, when depression, anxiety and some issues of mental health are so common these days

PLEASE, SOMEONE TAKE SHIFU TO THERAPY OR I WILL DO IT PERSONALLY, HE NEEDS IT ;^;)

IDK, I just felt like I wanted to write o(>ω< )o

[bietrofastimoff23]

they really watched the first movie kfp, saw how Shifu raises Tai Lung as his son, how Shifu could not attack Tai Lung out of love for him, how Shifu refrained from touching his unconscious son because he thought he had no right, how Tigress says that Shifu never loved anyone like Tai Lung neither before nor after, how Tai Lung even years later is angry and jealous of the idea that the father has a new favorite, how Tai Lung admits that everything he ever did was just to make Shifu proud of him, how he literally knocks this words out of Shifu, how Shifu admits that he's always been proud of him, how decades later Shifu finally admits responsibility for his son's ruined fate and asks for forgiveness, how Tai Lung freezes in confusion because of his words, - and they still dismissed the idea of S&T reconciliation and farewell in kfp4 with the words "nah, it would be superfluous 🚬".

[badpanduhmemes]

[pheasent-one]

I don't care how cool it is to hate on KFP4, I think Chammy is very neat.

[infini-tree]

in true Me Fashion, i redesigned my own take on zhen's design (post-trailer, since i also had a speculative one made before any visuals lol).

anyway, i did this for two reasons: one was to clarify some aspects of her design i mentioned in my notes, like the frayed robes that don't read super well in the initial pose i gave her. the other was to further refine the markings, since it felt a little haphazard upon looking back.

the circles stayed as recurring motif to those whiskers and is a good contrast to some of the sharper shapes on her. the darkest lines were relegated to her eyes, mouth, and ears to further emphasize them. the end of her tail is similarly dark because it felt unbalanced otherwise. i also played with the top surface of the snout to give it a gradient from light to dark to give it a sense of dimension and also a bit of movement! it gives a nice sense of motion, imo

finally the two sketches of her head in different angles were partially based on the nico marlet sketches of a scrapped fox civilian, seen under the cut. they're so silly :]

[aislinceivun]

*resurrects this account to talk about KFP4 real quick bc she has FEELS*

Okay but the second I saw the new poster I was like "Tai Lung?? Who brought you back?? Man, I hope it's not so that you can be a boring repeat villain but so you can end up as a reluctant hero and ally to Po!"

Then I read up and learned that it's the villain who brings him back from the spirit realm, and the plot of the movie is that Po is about to become the new spiritual leader so he is looking for a Dragon Warrior successor. And the way my mind JUMPED on that and I started SALIVATING

Because imagine if Chameleon brought Tai Lung back to be her ally... but throughout the movie Tai Lung gets a redemption arc and makes up with Shi Fu and helps Po... and in the end, PO CHOSES HIM TO BE THE NEW DRAGON WARRIOR

IT WOULD LITERALLY BE SO AWESOME AND PERFECT! A fantastic continuation to Tai Lung's story arc! He was meant to be the Dragon Warrior - but he had to experience loss and defeat and even death before he could grow enough for it to be his time ;-;

He'd be wasted as a repeat villain but THIS?? Please please oh PLEASE dreamworks

Also, I think Shi Fu should die xD I like him, but he's waaaay outlived the usual life span allocated to a mentor lmao. Imagine him living long enough to make up with Tai Lung, see him repent, maybe even as Po choses him? See the utter shock on Tai Lung's face because HIM? He understands now what he did and surely the panda cannot be serious bc HIM?? And Shi Fu is so proud of him, and he TELLS Tai Lung that he is proud, he calls him SON...

... but shit happened and he sacrificed himself for Tai Lung and now he dies in his boy's arms ;w;

Dreamworks I'm begging you

If you don't live with this awesome opportunity you've created here I might have to resort to writing that fic myself jrfnhgjfsnhjf

[hey-hey-j]

it just keeps dropping lower and lower 😔

[dracocheesecake]

...This had so much potential:

(Potential spoilers for KFP4 below):

"Because deep down beneath that iron-scaled exterior is a good hearted soul who still thinks of me as one of the family?"

Shame they didn't do anything with this! 🫠

I MEAN LOOK AT HER FACE WHEN HAN REJECTS HER I- THE POTENTIAL 😭😭😭😭

[khodorkovskaya]

say what you want about kung fu panda 4 but the fact that po has two dads is incredible and it made me feel so seen and understood. so i can't even imagine the joy little kids must feel when seeing a family dynamic that's similar to their own.

[nebula-award]

Please please PLEASE tell me I’m not the only one who sees the parallels

[masteroffakesmiles]

hey if you haven't watched the kung fu panda movies, do it now. They're so good.

[the-five-deadly-venoms]

It's good to see you back, even if it's not at all under circumstances we want it to be.

aww omg thank you fire !! what a sweet thing to send me :3c

dreamworks really just swept the five away all in favour of tai lung..........................

[bietrofastimoff23]

✨they're besties ✨

I just know that their first meeting was supposed to end in a fight, but Tai Lung saw how this loser couldn't use his own breath fire, and he was like, "ha-ha. well, this funny guy is my bff now ."

No, he didn't ask for Scott's opinion. He decided it for the two of them.

Tai Lung before and during a conversation with Scott:

[floridianfireflyfaith]

[miicycle]

Just something I reflected on

The last 2–3 posts I've made have been extremely discouraging and upsetting, and I just wanted to reflect on why I'm so negative suddenly.

Below the cut:

Initially, when I watched the trailer for Kung Fu Panda 4, I was super excited. Sure, I saw Zhen and instantly felt off about her, but the rest was too good to be brought down by her. Though, as I went on Tumblr, I got onto the KFP4 tag to check out some fan art for the Chameleon, but was met with a barrage of negativity. I'm not blaming anyone, but it does affect opinions when there's genuinely good points.

This phenomenon has happened frequently, as I usually wish to see fan art and am met with critique that I end up reading (which is still entirely on me), which in turn makes me wonder if I really should like the media I consume.

The reflection I did today did aid me in coming to a proper conclusion about my stance:

I'll like what I damn please, even if it's literal shit. The jokes can be awful, the story can make little sense, the cinematography can be abysmal. I don't care. I watched through the entirety of The Untamed, for goodness’s sake. Yeah, maybe DreamWorks should do better, and yeah, perhaps it's stupid that they made some new character to take up screen time when we could've had the Furious Five. Yes, DreamWorks, do better, treat the furious five better, make a compelling movie twice in a row challenge impossible.

If I end up loving it based on the few good things in it? Then so be it! I like Hotel Transylvania 3. NO ONE likes Hotel Transylvania 3. But I do. So, people may be critics, but I'm genuinely tired of being a critic and I'm going to be a silly guy and go "ohh. animation prettyy omggg tai lung hiii tai lung wydd <33" even if the story isnt living up to the past movies. I watch movies, shows and consume books and media to feel, not to nitpick and be all professional. I watch stuff to have a good time. So if KFP4 sucks, I hope for it to be bad as an enjoyable time and not a waste of time.

[infini-tree]

hm. maybe i’ll at least post my chameleon thoughts later