#kung fu panda theories

[dakooftacos]

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[velvet-vox]

The complete and utter alienation of Tai Lung: Part 1

First thing first: I am not a Tai Lung defender so consider this an unbiased post.

So, Kung Fu Panda color theory is pretty much well known across all of the fandom, and it's obvious even from an outside perspective.

Po and the heroes are yellow/gold

Then Lord Shen's red

Kai's and Oogway's green

And finally Tai Lung colour is blue

(Also Chameleon is also yellow but this ain't about her).

And this is the one I want to touch upon in this post.

You see this graphic?

These are the three primary colours /yellow, cyan and magenta/ that come together to form the main secondary colours /blue, red, green/.

If you are in the fandom, or you just simply pay attention, you'll also know that:

Tai Lung's backstory has ties with Shifu.

Lord Shen's backstory has ties with Po.

General Kai's backstory has ties with Oogway.

But Kai backstory doesn't just simply have ties to Oogway like we were simply led to believe at large, but it also has ties with Po, because of his ties with the panda village and its effect on Oogway's reformation.

And with that, as you might have noticed, both Kai and Shen have, according to the chart, the colour yellow as a part of their secondary colour scheme.

With Shen in particular it goes a step further in that Po has red as a complimentary colour to yellow in some scenes.

Shen is also the least isolated of the villains (mental state doesn't count); always surrounded by his goons who he's going to use to conquer China and the Soothsayer, Shen is only truly alone at the end of the movie on the boat scene where he's just been defeated.

And Kai, despite the fact that he doesn't have goons that can bounce off his dialogue, is also never truly alone whenever we see him; he was a warlord leader of a huge army, he now has a jade zombie army and he often speaks to the Oogway amulet and narrates him whatever is happening, and, like Shen, he only becomes alone during his death scene.

They do tend to isolate themselves from others of their own volition...... but Tai Lung?

He has absolutely nothing. Nobody. Never had.

Returning to the colour wheel, his main colour is blue and he has ties with Shifu's backstory who, after the first movie, loses relevance for the rest of the movies. And blue itself is a pretty alien colour in the entire series (extended material included), it doesn't have any ties with yellow, much like Tai Lung doesn't have any personal ties with Po despite being in opposition, and Tai Lung itself doesn't interact much with the setting besides being a looming threat.

And it all ties back to his isolation and how it probably tied back to his turn to the dark side.

From the glimpses that we see of his childhood, Tai Lung doesn't interact with anyone else aside from Shifu and possibly Oogway, and I'm pretty confident in saying that he probably lived a sheltered life in the Jade palace. A childhood like that can inflict serious damage on a person's mental health in the long run as you don't have anyone who you can confront your experiences with, and it clearly carried on into adulthood, better explaining his fit of rage after being denied the dragon scroll.

Sadly, his loneliness carried on for the 20 years that he spent in jail. And after he escapes, he tries to claim back the dragon scroll by himself since he doesn't have an army or ways to gain allies, so he just carries on with nobody to support him and then he dies of a lonely, gruesome death that reflects on the way he lived.

The franchise itself then continues to portray Tai Lung less as a character and more as a figure of power in Po's journey, completely and utterly dehumanising him in every possible and conceivable way.

Ok, I must admit, maybe I gained a brand new appreciation for Tai Lung while writing this.

Next Part>>>>

[badpanduhmemes]

[rinandsketches]

Dragon warrior study

Spoilers ahead in case you don't wanna be spoiled for Kung fu panda 4.

Meet the new dragon warrior~ Zhen the fox.

And OOH boy does everyone have some sharp words for this idea. But I am here to have a look and share some of my theories on why Zhen was picked.

Quick opinion on the movie since it can't be helped. I really enjoyed it. True it didn't have much of the depth as the first two but it does have a lot of heart, the best description I heard, its this reason I enjoyed it more then the third movie.

Now that I successfully pissed some readers off we can continue. Cause I'm looking into the possibilities of why the dragon warriors have been odd selections, and why both tigress and tai lung weren't chosen to be the dragon warrior despite whether or not they were worthy of being this legendary warrior.

The main argument is in fact the next dragon warrior should be tigress and tai lung since they were cheated out of the title and that po just met Zhen for like eh, 3 days at most. But hey, I'mma tell those folks something. Po was also picked off the streets to be the dragon warrior and had to be trained by shifu in a small time. The choosing of Zhen was no different, only difference is that Po got to know Zhen before the choice.

That said, I wondered why is the dragon warrior such as difficult spot to gain? In the first movie we get info of the dragon warrior, a prophet warrior to protect the valley. Not one managed to claim the title. Not shifu, not tigress, and not tai lung. We're not sure if Oogwai was the first dragon warrior before po but it was the turtle who made the scroll and said it had the secret to becoming an unstoppable warrior.

Shifu had trained Tai lung to be the warrior but Oogwai denied him for having darkness in his heart, then chose Po despite the 5 skilled warrior. He was about to select Tigress before po landed in front but this is not the case. Oogwai felt Po's presence at the tournament, po was flying over the gate at the time when tigress was set to preform, this is why he stopped the tournament. You can see Tigress with a confused expression when he does this. Its cause she didn't even get started.

This is why I believe not even Tigress was meant to be the dragon warrior, but why? Why spend so many years waiting only to select some random panda? Why wasn't any other strong warrior selected. I believe the answer is very simple. What do we know of the dragon warrior? Tigress said this,

"It is said that the dragon warrior can spend months at a time eating nothing but the dew off of a single ginko leaf and the energy of the universe."

What? What kind of mad magic does that mean? Sure the kung fu is pretty exaggerated in the panda universe but even the most strongest warriors needed to have a little bit of food when not in mediation. Its also agreed that the dragon warrior is the strongest. And lastly, why is it called the dragon warrior to begin with?

Because the dragon warrior...was an actual dragon.

Meet the first dragon warrior

This is a character from the paws of destiny. I don't know how Canon the side projects are but in the series paws of destiny we meet Jindao the figure behind the legend. In the series its said that Jindao protected the valley of piece. In Kung fu panda there are only counted 3 dragons so far, 2 in the paws of destiny and 1 in the TV show. Two out of the three were evil. Can you guess which one was among those evil dragons? Yup, Jindao.

For whatever reason Jindao was corrupted by the hero's chi and got power hungry but it was clear that during his defeat Jindao was very powerful. The very ones who defeated him won but just barely. Despite wrong doings here we are, 1000 years later Oogway, yes he's that old, foresaw a hero taking the place of the dragon warrior and training with the hero's chi. Yet he didn't know who it would be.

With all the information laid out, let's see why Zhen and Po are the true animals to recieve the title. For Po, Oogway saw the balance of the universe in Po, his true successor. Po was perfect. Yet no one believed this and thought in order to be the dragon warrior, you needed to be a warrior. This is why Shifu trained tai lung and the 5 so harshly. Po isn't who you'd think would be perfect, borrowing information from Mat pat, he explained the dragon style of kung fu practices all 5 animal styles. (Correct me is I'm wrong) Po was a fanboy of all five so he was on his way to learning the dragon style of kung fu. Po was also very lax nature, had a free spirit and so much heart that Oogway knew Po wouldn't follow the same fate as Jindao.

Zhen, we finally get to Zhen, heh, is a grey fox. Originally a thief and an apprentice to "the chameleon~" someone you wouldn't guess would be the next dragon warrior. The animal that everyone things was picked too fast but again Po was selected in seconds compared to the 5. Their feelings of being jibbed was how audience felt. Shifu again selected more bigger, stronger and skilled warriors to be the dragon warrior. Not the furious five. They had their own stories going on. Po was unwilling to give up the title but I think those candidates would have been a terrible choice, cause the dragon warrior needs to also be humble enough to not fall to the allure of the hero chi. Sure, Zhen's a thief but is she a bad person? No, she isn't. She is a morally grey character next to a black and white one. I believe Zhen was chosen because she can have this understanding of the world. An understanding that some people aren't always who they seem to be. An open heart. This is what everyone else was missing. I'm not saying tigress didn't have heart, she does and I'm not saying tai lung didn't deserve to be the dragon warrior. But if all you needed was skill, you worked for it and you deserved it then by that same logic then Shifu should have been considered.

So why do I believe Zhen was chosen? I believe she was picked because she always had the heart, she has the potential to learn great kung fu, (notice how while she has some skill in combat she isn't probably trained, she then started being trained by the furious 5 and po. Remember the dragon style is the 5 animal styles into one), Zhen also defied someone already on the evil side. and I think po also had...a vision. If you recall Po was beginning to get visions just like Oogway when he foresaw Tai lung returning and the success Po would accomplish. Po had a vision of the chameleon's true plans of world domination. Perhaps Po also saw something similar to what Oogway saw in himself, that Zhen can accomplish great things as the dragon warrior. Someone to follow the steps of po instead of turning into another monster like Jindao.

But this is what I believe, why do you think Po was chosen? And don't write, the creators got lazy, but that count they could have gone. Oh, Monket is next dragon warrior. Movie done.

[shootbangdang]

Lord Shen forged his own spear

A theory...

ok there's a chance some of you eagle-eyed Shen studyers already know this. But a few months ago I was checking out models from the game Showdown of Legendary Legends, and I noticed this:

"Huh, that's weird, the blade is all messed up." I wondered why the game devs decided to make his spear so assymetrical and imperfect. Until I compared it to his spear in the movie:

Clear as day, the thing has a very pronounced curve along its axis. Now I wondered if this was just a technical gaffe, so I looked further back into Shen's development:

Still there. But just to be sure, I went back to the clay model:

And all the way back to the drawing board:

Yep! Fully intentional.

Now I can only guess as to why it's forged so crudely, and my only conclusion can be that he made the "guandao" himself. Perhaps he took it as a sign of pride for him to need to forge his own weapon with zero outside help.

This could be supported by the fact that the weapon he used in the panda massacre is completely distinct from this one:

And no, it's not just a stylized version for the flashback. It's a real weapon that actually exists, and is seen in Kung Fu Panda 3:

So, Lord Shen lost or discarded this weapon after the panda massacre. Thereafter, he forged himself a new one with a lobed blade, one less connected to his old home's "flame" theme and more with his own "eye" design. There is only one small issue with this theory, however...

The durn thing shows up in the 3D portion of Po's flashback. So, it's a wash? Not quite. There's still the possibility Shen forged it himself before he was banished, or that the filmmakers forgot to switch his spears out for this sequence.

If he did make the weapon himself, that also means it was his decision to add this cute goth collar to the crossguard:

That's the end of the theory. Hope I gave you some cold hard steel to chew on.

[elegantjellyfishwerewolf]

Theory

What if the Chameleon hired Zhen to steal Po's staff and use it to summon the villains from the previous parts?

That would explain why Zhen knows so much about the new villainess.

And, obviously, the theft of the staff was unsuccessful, since during the conversation with Po, Zhen is in prison.

[nataszaluiz]

Theory Kung fu Panda : Why Po can't longer be a dragon warrior.

I've been thinking about this theory since Movie 4 came out, so let's get to it.

Let's ask ourselves a question. Why did Shifu make Po choose the next dragon warrior?

Shifu said in the movie 4, Oogwar chose Po as his deputy. Even Master Oogway said so himself.

Oogwar: You finally became the panda you were always meant to be.

Po: But, how'd you know I could?

Oogwar: On the first day we meet. I saw the future of Kung fu and the past. I saw the panda who could unite them both. That is why I choose you, Po. Both sides of a Yin and Yang. And my true successor.

And like all of us, we thought that Po was simply the successor to Oogway. But as it turns out in kfp 4, it was intended that Po would be the next Spiritual Leader of the Valley of Peace. Maybe we, the viewers and Po, misunderstood back then. But as I checked all the information. No one before kfp 4 called Oogwał by this title.

And that's why in kfp 4 Po was surprised that he had to go to the next stage. Only the question arises. Why right away. In the third part, Shifu didn't say anything to Po.

We don't know how much time has passed between kfp3 and kfp4, but we can guess that it must have been several weeks or months. I conclude this because Po's dad has reopened the shop and there are pandas living in the city. So they definitely had to build some house for the panda. So it certainly took some time.

So why did Shifu wait so long to tell Po that he would now be the Spiritual Leader of the Valley of Peace? Why didn't he say it right away? Why did he wait so long to say that Po would be a spiritual sage from now on? Why Shifu did he tell Po to find another dragon warrior now?

Why should he find a successor so quickly? Because let's make an agreement. Choosing a successor is not an easy thing. Damn, Oogway must have spent years looking for his successor, so why did Po have to choose in one day?

And this is where theory comes in.

Po is a spirit warrior and that's why he can no longer be a dragon warrior.

In the third part of the movie, Po used the Wuxi Finger Hold on himself to take Kai with him to the spirit world. And we know that this technique kills instantly and does not work on people who are already dead. And in kfp 4 he tells us directly that this technique is deadly and dangerous. Because we see that Taing Luing is a spiritual warrior.

So the question is, if Po was also a spiritual warrior, why doesn't he shine the same as Taing Lung, Shen or Kai? Why doesn't Po shine like them? What makes him stand out from the rest?

This is where my Reply comes in. Po came out of the spirit world differently than they did. In the third part, we see Po using his staff to leave the Spirit World. So that might be the reason why he doesn't shine like the rest of the spirit warriors.

The second reason why his aura is not visible like the rest is because Po uses his Chi very often. In kfp 4 Po we see how he uses it during combat or how he opens the gate to the spirit world. There's a chance that Po used more off-screen than he did in the movie. So it's possible that this is why his aura is not as visible as the rest.

In the supplement, we see that Po has acquired several abilities, but he uses them unknowingly. So I'm guessing he has two visible abilities. The first with conversation with the afterlife and the ability to predict the future or something similar. The first one could be that Oogway spoke, but the second one is definitely some new ability of Po.

The question now is. When Shifu figured out that Po was a spirit warrior? Maybe he saw something strange with Po? Maybe shifu had guessed by Po's appearance or his behavior. Or perhaps he noticed how rarely he needed rest. I noticed that Po only falls asleep once throughout the entire movie. I suspect it was just a short nap. Considering that from the house hanging on the precipice to the masta was already visible, it would probably take 2-3 hours to get there. Even in kfp 3 he took longer to fall asleep, but that was before he entered the spirit world. Despite the fact that Zhen traveled just as much as Po. Zhen could have slept lying on his backpack while they were traveling.

And if it were true. That Po is a spirit warrior. He is definitely unaware of it.

All right. At the end. Now let's move on to why Po chose Zhen.

Let's discuss Taing Lung first because it is the easiest.

He is dead. 💀

Okay now let's move on to Tigress. Tigress could be the next dragon warrior. But there are a few reasons why not.

#1- I suspect that Tigress no longer wants to be a dragon warrior even if she had a chance to become one.

#2 - She's a good fighter, but I think she'd have trouble shrugging off some of the Kung Fu stereotypes like Po did. A way of teaching or selecting someone to succeed you.

#3 - Po and Tigress are almost the same age.

#4- In the third part it is seen that Chi Tigress is not as strong as Po.

[knine-nights]

I have a Problem

Ok I was rewatching Kung Fu Panda because reasons and it just came up again and somebody help me.

So Tai Lung right? Scary cat guy villain of KFP1. Love his voice acting, his backstory is great, his baby version is one of the cutest things ever but hold on a fuckin second. WHAT IS WITH HIS TEETH?

WHAT? There are parts here and there where it’s clearer but we never have an explanation.

Have you ever seen Snow Leopard teeth? And just to clarify, yes Tai Lung is confirmed a Snow Leopard.

It’s really hard to see in most pictures but if you see the skull it’s clearer.

So yeah that’s shockingly accurate right?

But hold on a fuckin second.

WHY ARE THERE SO MANY OF THE FLAT TEETH ON THE TOP AND BOTTOM??

On this skull there are six on the bottom row.

In both of these pictures there are FOURTEEN.

THATS MORE THAN TWICE AS MUCH.

And it’s in both pictures exactly 14 so this isn’t an oppsie daisy moment.

And don’t just say that the way they drew the head meant they needed to have more bottom teeth. They could have made them wider or drawn any aspect differently. They chose this.

Why?!

[the-great-bonkings]

3 things that all the Kung Fu Panda villains have in common:

1: they all want something that's impossible for them to have.

Tai Lung wants to be dragon warrior, Shen wants to avoid his destiny, and Kai wants infinite power.

2: they are emotionally driven.

They all went bad because they FELT betrayed.

3: they are suffering at their own hands.

Tai Lung could've accepted he wasn't dragon warrior and moved on. Shen could've accepted his fate and moved on. Kai could've accepted he couldn't have infinite power and moved on. But they didn't, and that's on them.

Thanks for coming to my ted talk.

[lovelytayforce]

Dragons Among Us Theory!!

Alright, KFP4 trailer is out and I have a couple of theories that all point to one similarity and that is; DRAGONS! Now, we all know this is the Year of the Dragon and all that jazz but this trailer takes it to another level from beginning to end so let's start how we always do here and press play; at the very start! We start with this Gate called a Paifang which is commonly used as an entrance for shrines, it can also be used for common structures and architecture but ssshh! Now, we all know this is the Year of the Dragon and all that jazz but this trailer takes it to another level from beginning to end so let's start how we always do here and press play; at the very start! We start with this Gate called a Paifang which is commonly used as an entrance for shrines, it can also be used for common structures and architecture but ssshh!

This gate is obviously made from natural materials such as burnt paper which is common practice in said shrines during the new year to make wishes along with Wood which is a Chinese element! So, we might have hints of chi manifesting into the elements of the mortal realm into something far more mystical than we have ever seen within the series! Now, this is closely connected to Dragons, dw I didn't forget! Our first hint is Tai Lung here, aka "The Great Dragon", he's only here for this one sole reason. (People aren't gonna like hearing this but he's gonna be the last bit of energy for what is to come!) The Chameleon cannot truly transform into others perfectly, there is always an imperfection such as when she transforms into the elephant which has designs upon her head on its trunk, Tai Lung has red pants instead of purple, and Po as we've all seen is rather spiky! This all leads to ONE THING, she is a shapeshifting Dragon! And one that fits this description is Shen/Chen in Chinese mythology and makes sense of those weird aquatic like Lizards in her army that match no know species we know of. Aka they are Dragons in disguise acting as normal lizards.

The second thing is her tail here. It grows rather than switches and flips and sheds scales of different colors as she did with Tai and Po, this I believe along with the shadow that follows is her true form.

There could be a number of reasons why she wants Po's staff much less chi that aligns with the power much less essence of a Dragon because she is either a fallen dragon, an old god whose Shrine was left in the past by locals, or merely a Dragon wishing to ascend above what she is. It explains why the Director calls her more mystical than Kai, The Maker of Widows! She's an ancient being whose already tapped into chi and the nature around here along with knowing Dragon style already! And shoutout to my boy @thegreatying for telling me about Tibetan Temples cause I was confusing them with another type of Chinese temple so peep that info here!: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tibetan_Buddhist_architecture Honestly, this is going to be one of the best villains of this series with this concept alone, we are finally getting hints at Dragons and the door between the mortal realm and Heaven (aka the spirit realm) into the plot that continues on from what kfp3 left behind. The fact that chi is now normal and accessible makes beings like her look less special and less powerful. But gives her an opening for something even bigger than we could all expect!! So, that is my theory, that The Chameleon is just a code name for her taken form and that in reality, she is a shape-shifting Dragon and her army is also Dragons in disguise! With the themes of temples, shrines and maybe some commentary on Tourism in our future and how they affect old shrines and gods when we find it too inconvenient to visit them... Or maybe just maybe we'll get a hint at a true god-or maybe a Demi GOD YOU KNOW WHO IM TALKING ABOUT WUKONG! Anyways, that's all for now~!

[shannonallaround]

After pondering on it for several days, I have officially decided I did not like the direction of KFP4 and have banished it from my brain. It is no longer canon. KFP4? What's that? Don't know what you're talking about.

[its-me-vixen]

I enjoyed talking to you about it, and you said you have more to say, so... elaborate on your kfp 4 rewrite? I've been living off seeing people try and fix this movie, and there's not NEARLY enough variants around. I'd love to hear more, especially since I'm not super well-versed in the franchise lore, specifically Tai Lung as a character.

OOh In that case bestie allow me, as someone who's hyperfixated on the series off and on, to ramble. This might be long becuase I'm justing wingin it lol

So Tai Lung as a character is introduced as basically Shifu's first adopted child, an orphan he took in to train in Kung Fu with the specific intent of making him into the Dragon Warrior. Oogway denied this, causing Shifu to abandon Tai Lung, forcing him out and causing his turn to evil after everything he had trained for his entire life was taken away from him.

This series of events is why Tigress (also an orphan Shifu took in) is raised much stricter, with an emphasis on a lack of feeling.

This also is Shifu's main character arc; the transition from thinking that everything he's done has earned him control over the future but realizing he is at the whims of the universe no matter how much he try's to change things. This is extremely contradictory to how he was presented in KP4 where he's suddenly encouraging Po to make his exact mistakes in KP1 all over again, with even less effort.

Back to Tai Lung - His entire life was consumed with the acquisition of the Dragon Warrior scroll, and the appointment of Po was at odds with everything he had ever believed about the way the world worked - that raw power and skill was all that mattered. Po defeats him of course, and send him to the spirit world.

In the events of the third movie, the chi of all Kung Fu masters in the spirit world is stolen to be used by General Kai, and we can assume Tai Lung was included in that, which would have been another defeat that could have pushed him further from that ideal still. I haven't thought this aspect all too much, but with the way they present the spirit world one could assume some character change and growth from the years he spent there. I think this would contribute to a growing sense of questioning things, along with rage at failing.

This growing feeling would be brought to the surface when Tai Lung is summoned much closer to the beginning of the movie, in an opening scene taking place on the night of the blood moon, or whatever allows the spell to happen. Tai Lung is not the first to be summoned, and witnesses specifically General Kai get absorbed - similar to yours, with no body remaining. The sequence could be made to parallel Kai's own ability to take the chi of others and turn them into Jade figures, maybe leaving them transfigured into some kind of object. I'm picturing that lovely golden tree palanquin, maybe they become the jewels. The process is through a specific item with a single task.

More exploration of the Chameleon as a Sorcerer would be very important. In this scene, Tai Lung would be the audience POV witnessing what's happening. He is powerless in the moment, to his increased and endless frustration, but something unrelated happens that allows him to escape mid-absorption. We don't clearly see who or how the spell is happening, its obscured and more esoteric. The vibe is much darker, in a visible sense.

He is left powerless, unable to remember or do any kung fu, and is forced with very little choice in how to recover his power at all. He has had some ability to observe Po from the afterlife, and knows that he is now well established as the Dragon Warrior, and that he is unfortunately the most powerful person, and thus the one capable of defeating this new evil. He is reluctant, but could have some interaction that sets him on the path, like getting shoved aside by someone now much stronger than him and seeing some kind of poster about Po.

The Dragon Warrior would be more popular in my version, if only like a bit of a Mascot. This guy has saved the capital, he found the lost city of the Pandas, people may not know exactly who he is, but they know the Dragon Warrior. In the first movie, there was merchandising for the Furious Five, so there certainly would be for Po, too.

Cut to Po kicking butt, devolving into a montage of battles that he handles well and gladly, happy in his routine, until there's another transition where he's entering the Jade Palace. Shifu is noticeably older, Po has some new visual changes to his design/outfit the imply more experience and maturity. He regards Shifu with respect before relaxing into his casual, comedic self. Shifu has actually found peace, more resembling Oogway in the first film, his arc has finished and he is enjoying a peaceful life.

The Furious Five has dispersed to create their own schools or take on more permanent responsibilities elsewhere, going where they're needed. Po has put off settling down in any way, and is used to being alone on missions, seeking adventure. He finds it difficult to stay in one place for long now that his world has opened up. His dads have that scene where he's late, he's often far from town these days.

Shifu has been trying to get him to stick around for longer stretches, telling him to teach classes.

(If we consider supplementary media, Po has already had storylines about being kind of pushed into being a teacher, I recommend Kung Fu Panda: The Paws of Destiny, so while that's an aspect of this I don't want it to be the central theme of his arc over the movie.)

Shifu announces to Po that he wants to step down and is naming Po as his successor, and suddenly there's a looming future where he becomes the Master of the Jade Palace instead of the Dragon Warrior.

Po has some kind of imagination sequence about becoming something he isn't, settling down, no longer being a warrior.

Shifu snaps him back to reality and encourages him to oversee a new crop of students, illustrating how there's nothing else that needs to be done. Po oversees a scene with auditioning students. Shifu is absent. He is very bored, antsy for the thrill of adventure, but being forced to let others handle it instead. In a parallel to the first movie, Tai Lung bursts into the courtyard in the middle of the proceedings, causing a full response from the guards, all shaken because they're watching a ghost collapse to the ground. Po jumps at the opportunity for something he perceives as a task only he can accomplish.

{I'm not a great comedy writer, so please assume there's also jokes and light-hearted air to this lol}

Po confronts Tai Lung in private (jail? I'm unsure, I wasn't into how they did that) wondering what the heck is going on. Coming back from the spirit world is a thing that's been established in this world, so he wouldn't bee too shocked I don't think? He'd also be defensively cocky because he's beat this guy before, but seeing Tai Lung's actual state would defuse the tension. Po gains a feeling of sympathy for him.

Tai Lung tells him about a new, growing evil, and that no matter how much he hates it, if he wants to regain his power and return to the spirit world, he needs Po's help. They leave for Juniper City. The journey actually matters this time around, illustrating the growth of their connection, while the dynamic is similar to the journey in the film. Po is overly friendly in the eyes of the pissed off, exhausted Tai Lung, pushing his boundaries. Po is wired and a little stressed, deflecting with a manic energy. Tai Lung is jumpy and snaps often now that he feels powerless. Po offers to help him re-learn, but is quickly shot down, and so circumvents it by acting like he's casually "practicing" things. Eventually Tai Lung would have to ask a question and they would make progress forward. Tai Lung would have been clinging to the idea that he was the best and needed to get HIS power back, and that nothing Po did could be anywhere near as good, being very stubborn etc but Po would casually wear him down. They make genuine progress by the end of the sequence.

Po has a vision about the villain, and the consequences of their plans going unchecked during the last night. There is a moment where Tai Lung shows concern for Po - some kind of emotional connection. They're both awkward about it lol

When they approach the border of the city they have some kind of encounter with a citizen who gets terrified or something? Something that makes it so they have to lay very low, perhaps they're wanted, perhaps the rumor of the ghost of the formidable villain Tai Lung has been haunting the countryside. They end up in a situation where they are saved by Zhen - a fast-talking street thief of Juniper City. Also not Awkwafina lol

Tai Lung is suspicious of the fox, but Po sings the praises of helping others in need and putting good out into the world. He's still trying to be more eloquent with creating proverbs over the course of the movie, but doesn't notice saying decent ones when he isn't trying.

Zhen leads them to the underground crime syndicate place and listens incredulously as Po overshares about their goals. She says that if something like that was going down in Juniper City, she'd know about it! Tai Lung describes the place he remembers escaping from, its the palace (much less dramatic but still heavily fortified). Zhen tells them that they'll need her help to get in.

Other denizens of the underground avoid her and ignore Po, making a few scared reactions to Tai Lung. There is gossipy, nervous whispering. Time passes, Zhen has befriended Po with food and conversation. They even have a small, genuine moment of connection over something while Zhen explains their approach.

The group invades the castle.

Zhen is taken out early and encourages the others to go on without her.

They encounter the Chameleon, we get a reveal of them. I would redesign the Chameleon to be a more shadowy figure, literally, with a constantly shifting appearance in some way. A normal chameleon in this world would be able to shift colors but would otherwise look fairly simple. They are hurt by the world, and feel abandoned and isolated. There is emphasis on how their sorcery has changed them, physically and mentally. I'd also like them more androgynous as a personal choice. They are menacing and formidable, their own guards abandoning the fight as soon as magic kicks up. This is the big, flashy, gorgeous fight scene.

Tai Lung is incapacitated via sorcery. The ability to take any shape is shown here, and the transition is much more complete. Po faces the Chameleon on his own, and it's more of a draw than a defeat. He is thrown off by the mental aspect of recognizing the Masters, Chameleon fumbling with a lack of practice at these new powers. They experience joy at the intense power at their disposal. I think the Chameleon should also be a bit more mentally unstable. There's monologuing where we learn that The Chameleon's goal is to absorb Po, China's strongest warrior, and take over China. There's some kind of dialogue like,

"No Kung Fu Master could ever defeat me!"

Po gets trapped, and is saved by a self-sacrificial move from Tai Lung, forcing his escape through the floor.

Po is alone and ends up back in the underground, feeling like a failure as a leader, projecting the feeling on his running away from his responsibilities. There would be hints of his self-doubt and deflection prior.

The dads' storyline is fine, I love them, best pairing in the whole series tbh. I'd probably just shift it so they end up also in the underground, maybe feeding all the criminals haha

Po meets up with them there, feeling supported by their presence and encouragement, some kind of scene where they help him see his worth and continued potential. Po rises to the challenge of being a leader, rallying the criminals together, and having a comical scene where they all show off their various skills, and Po has to come up with a plan that uses their skills that aren't Kung Fu, the only option is to try something new.

They pull off an infiltration, the group emerging back into the throne/ritual room, there's combat, it's comical and creative. Po finds a restrained Zhen, and is happy to see her until she begins to lose her form - Zhen was always The Chameleon.

{Adored your idea for that so don't mind if I use some inspiration here!!}

A more chaotic fight ensues, everyone coming together to conquer the Chameleon with their unique gifts and new things they practiced that were explored prior. Po has a realization regarding how skills aren't exclusively useful in their original contexts.

The fight sequence ends with the item for the absorption being used against the Chameleon, while also releasing all of the previous victims, and restoring their powers. They also begin unsummoning, Tai Lung taking the item now containing all of the sorcerer magic with him into the Spirit World. Po and Tai Lung have a moment of mutual respect before he goes.

The chameleon isn't sent into the Spirit World, but is instead offered a place at the Jade Palace by Po, offering to help them learn something new.

Po would return to his responsibilities, but also give them his own unique flair!! Time would pass and you'd see The Chameleon/Zhen growing into the better person they didn't think they could be. We get a bright ending showing hope for the future.

~~~

Okay I feel batshit insane after spending like two solid hours on this??

2300+ words later and here I am lol I kept going back and revising to try and make the story beats and themeing consistent, but I haven't like, edited this with any consistency. So don't judge me if somethings don't quite make sense lol And god the pacing feels so off writing like this but hopefully it still makes sense????? Anyways. Thank you so much for asking what I would do, I had a blast thinking about this in detail!!

[velvet-vox]

The complete and utter alienation of Tai Lung: Part 2

Very recently I've done a marathon of all the Kung Fu Panda movies after not seeing them for a couple of years, watching one after the other in a single day, and aside from the emotional whiplash of seeing Kung Fu Panda 3 right after 2, it really got me to rethink about the colour theory present in the Kung Fu Panda movies, and more specifically about Tai Lung's.

Now, it's no secret that my first Tai Lung analysis blew up (unexpectedly), and it's still getting new hearts to this very day, and thus it only felt natural to make a sequel that could touch upon things that I didn't talk about originally.

So... let's bring up the colour table again, shall we?

As we have already established, Po is yellow, Shen red, Kai and Oogway green, and Tai Lung blu....... right?

The thing is, this simple association of the colour's meaning doesn't leave much room for an interesting, in depth discussion, that's why I wanted to go a little bit deeper into what I've head cannoned as the individual meaning of each primary colour, so that we can expand upon our current colour dynamics.

Just for reminder:

Cyan+Magenta=Blue

Magenta+Yellow=Red

Yellow+Cyan=Green

Just like we said, Yellow is the colour of Po, our heroes, the good side, (the Chameleon) and justice; whenever Yellow is present on the scene, you know that you can put yourself to ease, as nothing bad is probably going to happen;

I believe this to be the most straightforward primary colour, for obvious reasons, but especially because all the other colours gain their meaning when compared to Yellow (Po, our protagonist), therefore it also has to be the one we understand the most.

Indeed,

Po = Yellow

Now, this is where it starts to get interesting:

....I believe cyan to be Oogway's true colour. I think about it. When we first met Oogway, the only lighting present in the room was the cyan light of the Dragon scroll's pond, there was actually very little green accentuated in that scene, it was all mostly mellowed out by the cyan.

It also makes sense when you consider that Tai Lung and Kai had a relationship with Oogway, while Shen didn't because red isn't made out of cyan.

There's also the whole popular belief that "cyan represents patience" which also fits Oogway, but it's not really important to this discussion, so you can think what you want about it.

So,

Oogway = Cyan

Magenta... is particular.

Particular in the sense that it's extremely rare in both the movies and outside material.

Of magenta/purple things that come to mind we have Crane and Tai Lung's clothing, Shen's mother, Feng Huang related things, that weird sexual panda from the third movie... and probably some more.

As you can see, magenta is incredibly hard to pinpoint its meaning due to how infrequently it's used, which makes sense: Magenta and purple have ties to royalty in both China and other countries around the world; it's a sacred colour, so it has to be used sparingly, and I don't think it was ever intended by the writers for a meaning to be extrapolated from it.

....

Yet I tried to anyway.

Now, let it be known that I'm planning to make a post talking about Po's weird relationship birds, as it feels like whenever a bird is on screen the conflict is already more personal for Po.

For now... you could argue that magenta means danger, since it's the closest colour to purple aka yellow's opposite, and both Shen and Tai Lung are a direct threat to Po while Kai is treated as a joke for the entirety of the final movie, but I doubt bad writing has any deeper meaning.

I actually wanted to attribute magenta the meaning of closeness. For me, it was the easiest way to justify his rarity: it can't be Shifu's colour because he lost relevance after the first movie, and no other character is closely associated with it, so it makes sense for it to just be a colour that's taken for granted by Po since his adopted dad shares those tones.

However, I think I came up with a much more interesting idea: it's the colour of pride and approval, as Tai Lung and Shen both sought the approval of their parents to satisfy their ego, while Kai wasn't seeking anybody's approval for his evil actions.

Ultimately, magenta, much like in the movies, is irrelevant to the narrative, so I'm going to ignore it, but for now,

Approval = Magenta

Finally, (a worthy opponent) with all that out of the way, let's talk about everybody's favourite snow leopard!

And the first thing to mention, is the gold.

The Gold.

The GOLD.

It's everywhere. Whenever you look at him, Tai Lung is always chasing the gold, he was welcomed by the gold when he had no one by his side, and said gold was always what he dreamt about when he was in jail, he basked in the gold his entire life, and when that gold rejected him, he had nothing left in his life to cling onto because his entire life was dependent by that gold.

While Shen and Kai have Yellow as part of their secondary colour by nature, Tai Lung doesn't, yet he wants to. But that yellow keeps rejecting him and putting an end to his actions;

When Tai Lung's first rampage is interrupted, the (chi) body block technique that Oogway uses to stop him is yellow; when Po kills him at the end of the movie, the after wave of the Wuxi finger is, again, yellow; TAI LUNG'S EYES ARE YELLOW. BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT'S ALWAYS ON HIS MIND.

... And that makes all the similarities that he shares with Tigress kind of sad (For both).

Like, I already knew that Tigress and Tai Lung were similar and meant to be foil, but it's only after my most recent rewatch the underlying pain and tragedy present in their rivalry really hit me.

If Tigre's pupils weren't red, she would have easily turned out as the next Tai Lung.

And Tai Lung upon seeing how similar he is to Tigress, probably thinks "This is what Shifu replaced me with. A cheap knock-off copy of the real deal".

It hurts him deeply, because it reminds him of how little Shifu really cared for him, despite not being true, and it scares Tigress, who's nervous for their entire interaction, due to now finally seeing Tai Lung in the flesh and not as just some story she overheard.

Tragically, once Tai Lung finally manages to get his paws on the Dragon scroll (yellow), it doesn't fix anything for him, instead, it sends him spiralling one last time before Po can finally put him out of his misery.

And with that, Tai Lung goes out of his miserable existence, only finding peace in the afterlife, and not in death.

<<<<Previous part

The horrifying humanity of Lord Shen

[thefantasticfrank21]

I don't do this very often, but i might have some sort of fan theory about Puss In Boots The Last Wish, and it's about him:

It kinda feels weird seeing him without his so-, i mean, sweater

So hear me out, he might be a spoof of 101 Dalmatians.

Before you guys say anything, i know 101 Dalmatians isn't technically a fairy tale, but the Shrek franchise has often been known to be some kind of Anti-Disney satire.

It has also been known to feature some darker and grittier versions of well known characters, so having Perrito's "littermates" being cruel and mean to him would honestly be a great reference to it.

And Perrito having been a victim of attempted murder, verbally insulted, covered with scars, homeless and being totally happy about it definitely feels true to a character in this universe!

What do you guys think?

[shadowlynx-2022]

We all remember this scene, right?

And we all remember Po's reaction?

And we remember when Po picked up that larger shard of concrete that Tigress broke, right?

Wanna know why that chunk of concrete is WAY more significant than we originally thought? When animating that particular scene, the animators of Kung Fu Panda dubbed that specific bit of concrete... you guessed it, "THE LOVE CHUNK". And this was waaaaay before Tigress even liked Po as a friend!!!

Now WHY would they do that, other than to suggest that TiPo could become a reality??? I'm just sayin'.... we might have some progress with this ship in the next movie....

[luminouslumity]

I shared MatPat's final theory videos already, so now here are the new hosts! Good luck to them!