Kung Fu Panda Movie: Po, The Dragon Warrior?

Po is the protagonist of Kung Fu Panda. His early life is largely unrevealed, although he was evidently under the guardianship of his goose father, Mr. Ping, for as long as he can remember. Although unenthusiastic about the restaurant trade, he was evidently a studious apprentice considering the praised quality of his cooking. Po was reluctant to disappoint his father by revealing his true interests in kung fu. Though mild and friendly, he also has severely low self-esteem since he thinks he is a failure for both being obese and of a species not known for a warrior tradition. When upset, he usually gorges on food to dull the pain.



His main interest lies in the martial arts, of which he has developed an encyclopedic knowledge. He is able to recall the lore of warriors, famous combat moves, dates and historic artifacts. Apparently by accident, he is dubbed the Dragon Warrior by Master Oogway (who proclaims that "there are no accidents"), and while Master Shifu and the Furious Five make no secret of their disdain for him, he endures their abuse in the hope of changing into someone he himself can respect. This tenacity, in turn, begins to earn their respect.

Eventually, Shifu discovers that Po can perform considerable physical feats when motivated by food and uses this to train him with a custom regime. At the end of the training, during a chopstick-sparring match over dumplings, Po demonstrates not only considerable skill in combat, but also some emotional maturity that allows him to somewhat reduce his emotional dependence on food.

In a climatic battle, Po manages to defeat Tai Lung with an improvised combat style that takes advantage of his body fat not only to shield his nerves from ch'i strikes but also to utilize his belly for deflecting attacks.

Since the events of the first film, the end credit graphics indicate that Po divides his time between practice, working at his father's noodle shop and teaching children martial arts, a task in which he proves to be exceptionally skilled. Po has also improved his physical health, as demonstrated in Secrets of the Furious Five when he runs alongside Shifu at an amazing pace and, upon stopping, needs much less time than before to catch his breath.

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