Kung Fu Panda: The Paws of Destiny | |
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Genre |
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Based on | Kung Fu Panda |
Developed by | Elliott Owen |
Voices of |
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Composer | Leo Birenberg[1] |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 1 (2 Parts) |
No. of episodes | 26 |
Production | |
Executive producers | Mitch Watson Elliott Owen Lane Lueras |
Running time | 23 minutes |
Production companies | DreamWorks Animation Television Amazon Studios |
Original release | |
Network | Amazon Prime Video |
Release | November 16, 2018 July 5, 2019 | –
Related | |
Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness Kung Fu Panda: The Dragon Knight |
Kung Fu Panda: The Paws of Destiny is an American animated television limited series produced by DreamWorks Animation Television and premiered its first "part" on Amazon Prime Video on November 16, 2018. The second and final part was released on July 5, 2019.[2] It is the second television series in the Kung Fu Panda franchise following Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness.[3] In 2018, Mitch Watson, the show's producer, confirmed that Mick Wingert would reprise his role from Legends of Awesomeness as Po.[4]
Plot
[edit]Set after the events of Kung Fu Panda 3 (2016), the series follows Po the panda on a fresh adventure featuring four panda kids (Nu Hai, Jing, Bao, and Fan Tong); who happen upon a mystical cave beneath the Panda Village. The panda kids accidentally absorb the chi of ancient and powerful Kung Fu warriors known as the four constellations; Blue Dragon, Black Tortoise, White Tiger and Red Phoenix – each of which somehow are with the panda who is lacking that particular quality. They realize they are now destined to save the world from an evil force (Jindiao); who wishes to take over the world and steal the chi of the four constellations, landing Po with his biggest challenge yet – teaching this ragtag band of kids how to wield their new-found Kung Fu powers. They also defend the Forbidden City against an evil Komodo dragon named Shi Long along with an ancient evil demon.
Voice cast
[edit]- Mick Wingert as Po[4] / Black Tortoise / Male Panda No. 1 / Yak Bandit Leader / Dim / Yak Bouncer No. 2 / Chow Guard No. 4 Gongmen City Police Wolf No. 1
- Haley Tju as Nu Hai[5]
- Laya Deleon Hayes as Jing[5]
- Gunnar Sizemore as Bao[5]
- Makana Say as Fan Tong[5]
- Chrissy Metz as Mei Mei[5]
- Piotr Michael as Oogway / Wong / Wing / Bingwen / Emperor Kang Zi / Dum Dum / Pika Mobster / Chow Guard No. 1 / Salamander Henchman No. 1 Lead Chow Guard
- Christopher Swindle as Li Shan / Zang / Sum / Ping / Chow Guard No. 3 / Yak Brawler / Gongmen City Police Wolf No. 2 / Imperial Guard No. 1
- James Hong as Mr. Ping / Chow Guard No. 8[5]
- Steve Blum as Jindiao / Red Phoenix / Pious Chan
- Amy Hill as Grandma Panda / Spyglass Monk[5]
- Cherise Boothe as Jade Tusk / Huifang / Female Panda No. 1 / Tahr No. 2 / Gongmen City Police Wolf Leader / Rabbit Artisan Rabbit
- James Sie as Bunnidharma / White Tiger / Chong / Friend Vulture / Sun Wukong / Shirinking Sun Wukong / Chow Guard No. 7 / Giant Sun
- JB Blanc as Blue Dragon / General Fang / Chow Guard No. 5 / Tahr Tavern Owner / Imperial Guard No. 2 / Juan
- Grey Griffin as The Xin / Laoshu / Suyin / Tuoluo Seller Rabbit
- Jeff Bennett as Zhizhu / Yak Bouncer No. 1 / Tahr No. 1 / Mole Rat No. 3 / Rabbit Bandit Leader
- Mitch Watson as Yaoguai Demon
- Michael Rivkin as Rooster / Chow Guard No. 6
- Lacey Chabert as Princess Xiao / Panda Mother
- Sumalee Montano as Shi Long / Young Shi Long / Rabbit Villager / Rabbit Servant / Assassin / Rabbit Citizen
- Elisa Gabrielli as Baigujing / White Bone Demon / Dark Shadow / Old Lady Tahr / Porcupine Assassin
- Jimmie Wood as Qilin / Chow Guard No. 2
- Betsy Sodaro as Makesi / Mole Rat No. 1 / Mole Rat No. 2 / Pika Kid
Episodes
[edit]Season | Episodes | Originally released | ||
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1 | 26 | 13 | November 16, 2018 | |
13 | July 4, 2019 |
Part 1 (2018)
[edit]No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Storyboarded by | Original air date | |
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1 | "Enter the Dragon Master" | Lane Lueras | Elliott Owen | Alice Herring & Lane Lueras | November 16, 2018 | |
Set some time after the events of Kung Fu Panda 3, panda children Nu-Hai, Jing, Bao, and Fan-Tong are in trouble for knocking over the Sacred Peach Statue that was to be blessed by Po, now the Dragon Master, at the annual Peach Blossom Festival. Determined to make it up to the villagers, Nu-Hai sets the group to the task of returning the statue. As they try to push it onto the lift, the statue rolls down and falls into a cave along with the kids. Nu-Hai recognizes the cave as the Temple of The Four Constellations. They find four pedestals, each with a giant statue. When Bao touches one to annoy Nu-Hai, chi radiates from the and enters the pandas. As the four run out of the cave screaming, they are watched by an unnamed Chinese water deer. The four shut themselves in Nu-Hai and Bao's room, the former freaking out over what just happened. Meanwhile, the water deer reports to another deer named Jade Tusk that she was beaten to the Temple of the Four Constellations by the pandas. The deers' master orders Jade Tusk to kill the monk. At Jade Tusk's urging, her master allows her to get the children. In the next scene, we see the four in the library asking Grandma who the Four Constellations were. Grandma explains that a thousand years ago, the Four Constellations were guardians of a sacred wellspring, but a dark chi master wanted its power for himself. The Four Constellations stopped him, and to protect the Chi Wellspring from those with evil ambitions, they hid it in the last place anyone would look, hoping their successors would continue their legacy. The Four run towards Po, trying to explain what happened at the Temple and asking to be taught kung-fu. Po declines, but when the kids keep pressuring him, he tries to run, only to be hit by a door and faint. Po awakes to see the spirit of Oogway, who tells him the universe has chosen him to teach the Four and they will die if he doesn't. We see Nu-Hai, Jing, Bao, and Fan-Tong running through the night hoping to reach Po and change his mind, but they're captured by the Poison Clan. Jade Tusk attempts to force the kids to open the Temple, but Po arrives to save them. Po bangs his head, leaving him vulnerable, when a chi blast erupts from the four panda kids. Now believing them, Po agrees to teach them kung fu. | ||||||
2 | "Blue Dragon Plays with Fire" | Lane Lueras | Elliott Owen | Annie Li & Byron Penaranda | November 16, 2018 | |
Po goes around to wake up his new students for their first day of study, only to find them all rather high-strung. He then shows them where he intends to train them: a run-down building at the top of a long set of stairs. Po explains that they, like him, have been imbued with Hero's Chi, which typically only comes to one hero in a generation. He goes over the character of each member of the Four Constellations, only to find that the kids have personalities that are the direct opposite of those they have inherited. Meanwhile, at the Most Auspicious Temple of the Heavenward Plumblossom Serene Moonbeam, the bearded vulture Jindiao is giving a lecture on the original Dragon Warrior and how he was sustained by Chi. The seemingly decrepit master mentions that his own life and vitality is sustained by Chi, but is shocked to see Jade Tusk. He rebukes her, but then learns that she has the whereabouts of Pious Chan. He decides to visit their "old friend" himself, though not before the two discuss their boisterous subordinate Huifang. Upon returning to his training hall, Po finds that the kids have cleaned the place up and decides to see what abilities they already possess. Their efforts are less than stellar, but Po is encouraging and informs them of his intent to research the constellations more thoroughly. Elsewhere, Jade Tusk and her underlings attack the wise old tahr Pious Chan, but the battle is broken off by the appearance of Jindiao. Believing the elderly abbot to be a friend, Chan offers his help, only for Jindiao to steal his Chi. Back at Panda Village, the kids get out of school, with Nu Hai asserting herself as the group's leader despite the others' objections. A duck messenger then arrives seeking help for Wu-Ran Village, and the kids go to defend it without Po's help. Po, meanwhile, locates a scroll about the origins of the Constellations, only to learn what the kids have done. At the village, Nu Hai leads the others in attacking the bandits, but their Hero Chi fails to materialize. As the four are menaced by the bandits, Blue Dragon's Chi manifests to Nu Hai, prompting her to lead them in evading the villains, but only she escapes. As the others are subdued, Nu-Hai panics as she struggles to determine what to do. The voice of Blue Dragon urges her to relax; she obeys, which lets her unlock her power and strike down one of the bandits. Po then arrives to back up his students, handily defeating the remaining enemies. Nu Hai admits that it was her own recklessness that led her team into trouble, and Po commends her honesty. He then reveals that the original Four Constellations were farmers and shopkeepers; as such, his students should not be discouraged by their own humble origins. Meanwhile, Jindiao has gained renewed youth by draining Pious Chan's Chi. | ||||||
3 | "Blade of the Red Phoenix" | Johnny Castuciano | Elliott Owen | Rihanna Williams, Emma Hoffard & Mike Tisserand | November 16, 2018 | |
4 | "The Intruder Flies a Crooked Path" | James Wootton | Michael Ryan | Tom Galvin, Candice Prince, Victor Sampaio & Rhianna Williams | November 16, 2018 | |
5 | "A Fistful of Herbs" | Lane Lueras | Benjamin Lapides | Annie Jingyi Li & Byron Penaranda | November 16, 2018 | |
6 | "Poison in the Pit of the Plum" | Johnny Castuciano | Johanna Stein | Rhianna Williams, Emma Hoffard & Mike Tisserand | November 16, 2018 | |
7 | "Big Trouble in Panda Village" | James Wootton | Elliott Owen | Tom Galvin, Candice Prince & Victor Sampaio | November 16, 2018 | |
8 | "Secrets Lost to Shadow" | Mike Mullen | Mitch Watson | Annie Jingyi Li & Daniel Villa de Rey | November 16, 2018 | |
9 | "Out of the Cave and Onto Thin Ice" | Lane Lueras & Rhianna Williams | Benjamin Lapides | Johnny Castuciano, Emma Hoffard & Mike Tisserand | November 16, 2018 | |
10 | "Return of the Four Constellations" | Lane Lueras & James Wootton | Nicole Belisle | Tom Galvin, Annie Jingyi Li, Candice Prince & Victor Sampaio | November 16, 2018 | |
11 | "Unholy Dragon Returns to the Mountains" | Mike Mullen | Johanna Stein | Crystal Kan, & Annie Jingyi Li & Daniel Villa de Rey | November 16, 2018 | |
12 | "Sacrifice at the Edge of Time" | Rhianna Williams | Mitch Watson | Emma Hoffard, Annie Jingyi Li, Kevin Slawinski & Mike Tisserand | November 16, 2018 | |
13 | "End of the Dragon Master" | James Wootton | Elliott Owen | Tom Galvin, Annie Jingyi Li, Candice Prince & Victor Sampaio | November 16, 2018 |
Part 2 (2019)
[edit]No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Storyboarded by | Original air date | |
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14 | "Journey to the East" | Mike Mullen | Benjamin Lapides | Crystal Kan, Annie Jingyi Li & Daniel Villa de Rey | July 4, 2019 | |
15 | "Curse of the Monkey King" | Rhianna Williams | Johanna Stein | Bradley Cayford, Emma Hoffard, Annie Jingyi Li & Kevin Slawinski | July 4, 2019 | |
16 | "A Game of Fists" | Lane Lueras | Lindsay Kerns | Tom Galvin, Annie Jingyi Li, Candice Prince & Victor Sampaio | July 4, 2019 | |
17 | "The Beast of the Wasteland" | Mike Mullen | Nicole Belisle | Chris Jimenez, Crystal Kan, Annie Jingyi Li & Daniel Villa de Rey | July 4, 2019 | |
18 | "Danger in the Forbidden City" | Rhianna Williams | Mitch Watson | Bradley Cayford, Emma Hoffard, Annie Jingyi Li & Kevin Slawinski | July 4, 2019 | |
19 | "The Battle(s) of Gongmen Bay" | Lane Lueras | Elliott Owen | Matt Engstrom, George Gipson, Zheng Kang, Annie Jingyi Li & Luther McLaurin | July 4, 2019 | |
20 | "Gongmen City Hustle" | Mike Mullen | Benjamin Lapides | Chris Jimenez, Crystal Kan, Annie Jingyi Li & Daniel Villa de Rey | July 4, 2019 | |
21 | "Night of the White Bone Demon" | Rhianna Williams | Johanna Stein | Bradley Cayford, Emma Hoffard, Chris Jimenez, Annie Jingyi Li & Kevin Slawinski | July 4, 2019 | |
22 | "Rise of the Empress" | Tom Galvin | Lindsay Kerns | Gena Buto, Annie Jingyi Li & Victor Sampaio | July 4, 2019 | |
23 | "Bridge Over Troubled Lava" | Mike Mullen | Nicole Belisle | Chris Jimenez, Crystal Kan, Annie Jingyi Li & Daniel Villa de Rey | July 4, 2019 | |
24 | "House of Flying Pandas" | Rhianna Williams | Bethany Armstrong Johnson | Bradley Cayford, Emma Hoffard, Annie Jingyi Li & Kevin Slawinski | July 4, 2019 | |
25 | "Coronation of the Iron Goddess" | Tom Galvin | Mitch Watson | Gena Buto, Annie Jingyi Li & Victor Sampaio | July 4, 2019 | |
26 | "The Invincible Armor" | Mike Mullen | Elliott Owen | Chris Jimenez, Crystal Kan, Annie Jingyi Li & Daniel Villa de Rey | July 4, 2019 | |
The White Bone Demon ate Shi Long and then attacked causing Rooster and his henchmen Wing and Wong to flee. The White Bone Demon was about to squish the group but was saved by a giant Sun Wukong. Nu Hai puts on the crown to control him, and throws the White Bone Demon out of Empress Xiao's kingdom. The gang rides on a giant Sun Wukong to the desert, and find the White Bone Demon and her army of terracotta warriors there. Sun Wukong and the demon have a little fight with each other. When the monkey tries to smash the red jade, he starts shrinking due to him loving red jade. The White Bone Demon says goodbye before flicking the monkey king away and tells Po that he and his students are a legend and will kill them. Suddenly, she starts sinking into the sand. Rooster and his henchmen come out of a pile of rocks and he claims that he proved his "incredible intellect." It is then revealed that Makesi and her friends caused the White Bone Demon to sink, and they, alongside Qilin and the Poison Clan defeat the terracotta warriors. Rooster hops off his henchmen's hands and shows he has changed before getting attacked by a terracotta warriors. The group does all they can to stop the demon but are overpowered by the warrior. Bao hits the demon with his Black Tortoise chi, but the demon flicks him away, much to his annoyance. Fan Tong uses his Red Phoenix chi to throw Xiao close to the demon. Xiao uses her jade chain to break the demon's red jade heart causing a chain reaction which destroys her and the warriors. The panda kids help each other out of the wreckage. Xiao thanks Fan Tong for helping her protect her kingdom with Bao making a "good job" look, while Po, Sun Wukong, and Rooster fight over the crown. Po gives the crown back to the monkey and he makes a joke by telling him the followers just send him where he's sent, which annoys Po. Xiao finds Shi Long who was lucky to survive and tells the lizard they will fix her, which she says, "I don’t deserve to be fixed." But Xiao still lets Shi Long get healed since she's her sister. Jing comes over to help but Rooster blocks her and tries to convince her not to heal Shi Long because of her actions and tomfoolery. But Jing tells Rooster that healing people is "what she does" and kicks him away. She then uses her chi to heal Shi Long and Shi Long is now fixed. Xiao forgives Shi Long, but still takes her to jail. Grandma Panda and the refugees came out of the wreckage and all went home, unaware that a female bat (who is the actual White Bone Demon) is emerging out of the body grinning evilly before disappearing into the body. The gang suddenly realize that the red jade was about to explode just as Sun Wukong flees and the jade explodes, giving chi to everyone around China and restoring the Wellspring. The Wellspring was then restored and Rooster decided to retire from being a criminal. He, Wing and Wong then noticed a cart full of corn and they went to eat it. Meanwhile, Xiao is made empress and Jade Tusk and the Poison Clan are her new servants while Shi Long was placed in the same cage Xiao was in. Meanwhile, the Panda Village congratulates the Four Constellations and Po, who says that there are still more adventures out there. |
Awards and nominations
[edit]Year | Award | Category | Nominee | Result | Ref |
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2019 | Annie Awards | Best Animated Television/Broadcast Production For Children | Nominated | [6] | |
2020 | Kidscreen Awards | Best New Series | Won | [7] | |
2020 | Daytime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Directing for an Animated Program | Michael Mullen Charlie Adler |
Nominated | [8] |
References
[edit]- ^ "Leo Birenberg to score DreamWorks Animation's 'Kung Fu Panda: The Paws of Destiny'". Film Music Reporter. Retrieved June 19, 2018.
- ^ Milligan, Mercedes (June 18, 2019). "Trailer: 'Kung Fu Panda: The Paws of Destiny' S2 Kicks Off July 5". Animation Magazine. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
- ^ Amidi, Amid (April 12, 2018). "TRAILER: New DreamWorks Version of 'The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle'". CartoonBrew.
- ^ a b "The Nightfly with Dave Juskow – Live from Los Angeles with Mitch Watson". Player FM. November 9, 2017. Archived from the original on June 30, 2019. Retrieved June 19, 2018.
- ^ a b c d e f g Trailer: ‘Kung Fu Panda: The Paws of Destiny’ Brings the Fight to Amazon | Animation Magazine
- ^ The 46th Annie Awards Shine a Spotlight on Toon Greatness | Animation Magazine
- ^ 2020 Kidscreen Awards Winners Revealed | Animation Magazine
- ^ "Daytime Emmy Awards: 'Dragon Prince,' 'Ask the Storybots' & 'Last Kids on Earth' Win Key Animation Categories for Netflix". 26 July 2020.