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On the Shades of Conflict in the film series
The film series features the Black-and-White Morality as its Shades of Conflict, though Tai Lung and Lord Shen have some redeeming and sympathetic qualities.
This lack of gray area means that there is no Anti-Hero or Anti-Villain, that Po and his friends never do something that would get them called out, and that the Big Bad never make a Heel–Face Turn. To be more specific, it can explain one of the reasons why Po can let go of his pain and find inner peace without nearly becoming He Who Fights Monsters or Jumping Off the Slippery Slope upon learning what Lord Shen did to his parents and kind in Kung Fu Panda 2.
On the common traits of every Big Bad in the film series
Every Big Bad in the film series has some things in common.
- They serve as the Knight of Cerebus in their respective film (though all have lingering shades of comedy from their bluster and Po catching them off guard).
- They are power-hungry and seek acknowledgment.
- Power-hungry: Tai Lung wants to get the Dragon Scroll in order to become the true Dragon Warrior, Lord Shen wants to conquer all of China, and Kai wants to consume all of the kung fu masters' chi.
- Acknowledgement: Tai Lung and Lord Shen want their parental figures to acknowledge them, and Kai expects everyone in the present day to still know him.
- They provide the example of the Evil Cannot Comprehend Good trope.
- Even though Po offers Tai Lung and Lord Shen a Last-Second Chance for redemption (and Oogway for Kai), they never make a Heel–Face Turn or regret their action partly because of the Shades of Conflict in the series.
How the antagonists serve as foils to Po and the lessons he learns.
- In each movie Po's character arc essentially shows the theme of the movie. His main opponents show the consequences of not learning these lessons.
- In the first movie Po suffers from extreme cases of self loathing and low self esteem. His arc throughout the movie has him trying to escape his unfulfilling life and self. During this time he's trying to hang on to his dream even though he doesn't think he can be the dragon warrior barring some miracle. He of course fulfills his dream when he's trained to be himself and when he truly accepts himself. Tai Lung's arc is basically the inverse of Po's. He is raised as an elite Kung fu warrior; a role which he both accepts and allows to completely define him. Like Po he is also reaching for the dragon scroll. But unlike him he completely believes he deserves to and will get it. So when he is "denied his destiny" he refuses to accept that he is not the Dragon Warrior. While Po thinks he can't escape his unfitting life Tai Lung refuses to. In the end Po defeats Tai lung because he accepts his own identity. While Tai Lung loses because he is focused on the scroll to the exclusion of all else. Essentially Tai Lung represents chasing a foolish obsession instead of discovering and accepting who you are.
- By the time of the second movie Po has moved on from his past of self loathing and has accepted who he is. However, this is disrupted when his tragic past reappears. Now Po has to face his past and accept it while realizing it doesn't have to dominate his life. Shen like Po is also dealing with his past but unlike Po he has been brooding on it for decades. He tries to sever his obsession with the past and focus on his ambition. But ultimately that ambition is just a way to avoid confronting his mistakes. In the end Shen is destroyed because he refuses to let his scars fade and instead embraces death. While Po is able to move on and achieve inner peace at a remarkably young age. Similarly to Tai Lung Shen can represent what happens when you refuse to accept, deal with, and move on from your past.
- Tai Lung and Shen were both very similar in that they were villains who chased external obsessions as opposed to dealing with their internal issues. Kai is different in that he has no internal issue he's ignoring. Instead the theme of Kung Fu Panda 3 deals with how we learn from and interact with others. After Kung Fu Panda 2 Po has solidly established himself as a Kung Fu learner and warrior. His final hurdle is to become a mentor. Kai actually is a fitting foil for this stage of Po's life. This is because while Po is learning to give (mentoring) to others in order to recieve (chi kind of) Kai is all about taking. In the past when Kai learned about how the panda village shared chi he saw at as a way to take power from others. He essentially steals their power and forces them to serve him. This can be seen as him plundering knowledge and skills without giving anything back. A consequence of this can be seen in that no one in the present knows who he is. Compare this to Oogway who is revered for founding Kung Fu. When all you do is take your legacy will be minimal. Ultimately Po defeats Kai because he motivates and trains his friends. The villagers then give back to him in the form of their chi. Kai demonstrates that supporting and teaching only yourself is self defeating.
- The morality of the movies is black and white essentially because Po is learning the lessons of the movies. So almost by necessity he's always going to end on the right side.
