The Lessons I Learned From Kung Fu Panda

PATREON: www.patreon.com/storystreet TWITTER: twitter.com/StreetOfStories Thanks for watching the video! I hope it meant something to you. I still have one more video planned to come out before the end of the year, and it is a doozy. I can't say for certain that it will be done before the end of the month, but I'm going to try my best! Have a great day!

"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That is why it is called present". One of my favourite movie quotes!

"ALL I EVER DID I DID TO MAKE YOU PROUD, TELL ME HOW PROUD YOU ARE TELL ME" I felt this like more than anything

You know, with Shen, it's the opposite. He didn't become a villain because his parents rejected him, but his parents rejected him because he became a villain. He had his plan and massacred innocents BEFORE his parents rejected him..... Shen was a monster but he didn't want to believe that. He was wrong but he didn't want to accept responsibility, instead, blaming his parents.

There was a guy I used to call Po. When I took taekwondo in community college, there was this big guy in our class. Not big with muscles. Big as in fat, he weighed more than twice I do. He passed out the first day of class. Straight up flopped forward onto the mat. Aside from car troubles, that man showed up to every single class, and put in more effort than the majority of our fellow students. He wasn't the best in the class, but he pushed through everything. He knew his material. he practiced, and he encouraged others. Since he was big, I started calling him Po. Not as an insult, but because I respected the liveliness and determination he came to class with. He reminded me of the character that kids were supposed to look up to. Unfortunately, the nickname stuck so well that half the class didn't know his real name...

Kung Fu Panda is one of those series that has no right to be as profound, heartfelt and well crafted as it is. But on every rewatch there's still something new to find and appreciate. Top notch video that I hope more people see

Oogway summarized the entire trilogy with just three words. “You must believe.”

"It's not because you aren't enough." A lot of people really need to hear that, man. I needed to hear it. Sure, I know my life has value, I matter, who I am is who I choose to be, but sometimes, I just don't feel it. For this absolute masterpiece of a video, your raw honesty of your experience and how you feel, and the simple, sort of cliche, but much needed reminder that none of us have this all figured out: thank you

When a movie trilogy about a Kung Fu Panda has VASTLY more depth than the vast majority of Adult shows, you know we need MORE kids shows in reality.

"There is no secret ingredient. In order for something to be special, you only have to believe it's special." - Po's Dad

“In the end this trilogy is not about teachers and students. It’s about children and their parents. It’s about a father telling his son he suppose to be something he could never be. It’s about a mother and father terrified of their own child, who then spent the entire rest of his life trying to destroy what they left behind and fill the hole where their love was suppose to go. It’s about a father who just wanted the chance to raise and love the son he lost, but in doing so limited what his son was allowed to be.” I just love this part. Especially Shen’s. It’s… actually heartbreaking…

It's really interesting that the saying "one often meets his destiny on the road they take to avoid it" really fits Kung fu panda 2. It was shen taking the action to prevent his fate from being what the soothsayer said that only sealed his fate

Kung Fu Panda 1: Find who you are by accepting your present Kung Fu Panda 2: Find who you are by accepting your past Kung Fu Panda 3: Find who you are by accepting your history I think all 3 films were talking about different forms of who he is.... but the 1st 2 movies are more about accepting the parts he doesn't like, the 3rd is about learning the parts he didn't know.... We as humans are complicated.... we have many parts, many faces... we could always learn more and more about ourselves than we realize....

A good children’s story imo is one that can teach good ground morals while also remaining entertaining. It’s why I have a gripe with Raya and the last dragon. That entire movie is a “what could’ve been”.

That final monologue was so incredibly powerful and hit so very close to home. My god dude, you have an incredible way with words.

“Yeah, I stayed. I stayed because every time you threw a brick at my head or said I smelled, it hurt, but it could never hurt more than it did every day of my life just being me”- this part quite literally broke me as it encapsulates my feelings, my sense of Inadequacy…. I felt this as a child and I’m still trying to overcome that complex into adulthood. Simply put, this trilogy was the voice of a generation who simply wanted to be loved, for being who they are…

"...you gotta let go of that stuff from the past because it just doesn't matter. The only thing that matters, is what you chose to be now". That is the greatest life advice that I have ever heard in an animated movie in my entire life, and I've watched a ton of them. The themes in these movies are so mature and real, and in all genuine seriousness, have helped positively shaped me into who I am today.

This was unbelievably emotional. I don't know if it's just me or something but it hit right in the heart of what I'm feeling. Thanks, Story Street.

I honestly don’t mind that Kai was less complex than than the other two. I feel like they realized how easy it could be for it to begin to feel formulaic if the villain was solely this “you are me” type of character. There is some of that in there and Kai does have a decent character and story, but I feel like he’s mostly there to be inanimate in a way. He is the villain. He is a threat. That’s mostly it. He’s not the psychological or emotional foil like the other two. But he’s by far the most powerful which is shown immediately in the opening scene. He’s the atom bomb that’s getting closer to Po’s newly found family. I feel like this movie is meant to put just a tad bit more focus on Po rather than splitting it up as much to focus on the villain like usual. Same amount of time, but less thought provoking. Kai feels slighted by Oogway and that he’s been living in the shadow of his legendary friend when he feels he deserves much more. It’s more of an inferiority complex than the other two. Tai Lung and Shen definitely also had inferiority complexes, but it was also sorta laced with a little something else. Tai Lung was laced with the expectations and need to prove himself worthy of Shifu’s standards. Shen was laced with a defiance to acknowledge his feelings of betrayal and the need to shape his own destiny by using his innate talents to shape it though pure force. Literally killed as many pandas as he could because it seemed the most simple way to alter his destiny was to just kill it. Kai seemed to mostly just be that. Inferior. Feeling inferior to Oogway and feeling the only way to get the proper respect was to become the strongest and took that to the extreme! He was weaker than Oogway and so he literally steals the power of others to make himself stronger. He didn’t train himself and stew in his hatred to become stronger like Tai Lung (although he did technically stew a lot longer haha😄). He didn’t use his talents to innovate and create weapons that could make Kung fu obsolete like Shen. He literally steals the power of others to prop himself up. Where Po eventually learns to use the power of others FREELY given to prop himself up. Po eventually fully knows who he is and fully values those who care about him now. He uses the lessons he’s learned, not only from Shifu, but all of the members of his found family over the years to become more powerful and a proper leader. Likewise he learns how to show others how to be who they are through his leadership such as is seen through the final village battle. Like you said, this movie is focused on how Po becomes that leader to pass on what he’s learned through the other two movies, and finally this one, to others. Not to mention that he seems great at it😄. Which you can see by how many people learn to use their chi in the final scene. He was a terrible teacher at the beginning, but by learning how to utilize the strengths and lessons of others Po became possibly a greater teacher than Shifu or Oogway ever were. That’s why I’m ok with Kai being less complex. He’s simpler and sometimes that works just fine for what a story is trying to do. He’s the biggest threat Po’s faced by far. He has character, backstory, and even a some of that “you are me” type to him like I mentioned earlier. But mostly I just feel like he’s that ticking time bomb. More of a force of nature than anything. He’s the impending doom destroying and corrupting literally everything in his path as it makes its way to the last place of hope for Po to stop him. Kai turned everyone against Po including his friends and master who were his first found family. Now he’s found more family, his biological family, to finally cement who he is and Kai will destroy them too. He can’t do it alone. He came to the village to be taught so that he could 1 v 1 Kai all on his own during the final showdown like in the other two films. But…he can’t. Kai truly is too strong. Po cannot defeat him alone. Even if he knows who he is and even if he embraces who he is he simply isn’t powerful enough to stop the impending threat coming this time. He WILL fail. But only if he does it alone. In 1, he defeated Tai Lung alone. In 2, he defeated Shen by freeing his friends and attacking him before he had chance to get past the last line of defense. Only Shen was insane 😅haha. Worst of all Shen was completely ruthless. By the end of 2, Po’s super team still is unable to help and he has to face Shen’s entire army alone. But by using the lessons he learned throughout that movie and accepting himself, his past, his emotions, and who he wants to and can be, he defeats Shen’s entire army alone. With his own power. But this time, it’s not enough. Like I said before, when Kai isn’t strong enough he steals other’s power and it works. He has become that impending and unstoppable force and Po has no chance of defeating him like he did with Tai Lung or his forces like he did with Shen. So he becomes a leader and learns to rely on others for strength when his isn’t enough. He finally commits the ultimate sacrifice indicative of a great leader and sacrifices himself if it’s the only option to protect his people. But by his family literally lending him there power, he is finally stronger than Kai and it’s not even close😁. He tosses Kai around like he’s nothing and finally gives Kai as much power as he wants knowing he can’t handle it. He meets Oogway one last time, the figure of the series that many of us consider the ultimate teacher, and Oogway literally gives him his staff (not without telling him he has a bigger one just to have that typical Oogway sass one last time haha😄). Po returns and like I said, is finally ready to take his place as argueably the greatest teacher and leader in the land’s history. I really wasn’t a huge fan of 3. I liked it don’t get me wrong and loved parts of it as well just like StoryStreet said he felt. But I also felt it was the weakest installation for a long time. But looking back and really thinking it through, even if I could, I don’t think I would change a single thing. Honestly in my opinion the team behind it wrote it perfectly for what they wanted to portray and to fit into Po’s journey. It truly is the perfect finale for this franchise to me and leaves the character in the perfect position for what I feel is important to portray to the audience. Bravo Dreamworks and thanks StoryStreet for giving your insight to this trilogy which led to me thinking about them from a different perspective and literally forming this opinion as I watched this haha. Best of luck to you.

I'm 37 and I constantly consume kids shows and movies as much as I can. There are some excellent lessons in "children's" media of the last decade that I never got growing up, and resonate better than most of the "adult" media out there. I also prescribe to the "the best children's stories are those mature enough to be for everyone".