Is it so wrong that I love “Kung Fu Panda 2” in spite of all of its unoriginality and lack of creativity? Is it so terrible that I’m totally won over by an overweight panda who can do kung fu as well as he can eat? Is it so strange that a village of adorable pigs and bunnies makes me feel like I’m five years old again?
While the sequel is hardly as entertaining and funny as the original “Kung Fu Panda,” Po and the rest of the Furious Five are still a joy to watch. The movie still possesses that charm that made me watch the first installment countless times on HBO while eating dinner, and it proves once again to be infectious as it melts down whatever barriers are hardening your heart. It’s also a movie that’s easy on the eyes with appealing action and fun graphics, evincing the slow closing of the gap between Pixar and everyone else with a computer.
This “Kung Fu Panda” is all about daddy issues as the movie’s two storylines both deal with characters coming to grips with decisions made by their parents. The evil peacock Shen (voiced by the always creepy Gary Oldman) orders a genocide of pandas to prevent the fulfilling of a prophecy that one would defeat him, thus leaving his parents with no choice but to exile him. When Shen returns to power, the Dragon Warrior Po (Jack Black) starts to question where he really came from. His goose father, Mr. Ping, has few answers, so Po is largely on his own. However, his kung fu companions, known as the Furious Five (and featuring the voices of Angelina Jolie, Seth Rogen, Jackie Chan, Lucy Liu, and David Cross) have big issues that they have to deal with, namely Shen’s reappearance which threatens to dismantle the art of kung fu. But as their journey progresses, Po finds that the questions about his parents may relate to Shen’s avarice and malice in shocking ways.
That summary probably makes the plot sound more glorious and intricate than it actually unfolds in the movie. On the other hand, sometimes glory isn’t found in the story (despite the majority of my reviews saying just the opposite). Sometimes it’s just the rush of joy that can be found in juvenility that makes something fun. Sometimes we can have a perfectly gratifying experience just looking at a cute and cuddly panda cub playing in a bucket of radishes. Sometimes it’s nice to be reminded of what it’s like to be a kid watching a movie again. B+ / 
Marshall and the Movies 
I didn’t like this one like most people
You’re just jamming out these reviews, keep up the good work.
Great job catching up so far; I feel really lazy.
This sequel sounds darker. I guess the Kung Fu Panda 2 = The Dark Knight comparisons work.
HAHAHA, I know, I can’t wait for “Kung Fu Panda Rises!”