Prepare for the return of awesomeness

Rating: 8/10 (31 May 2011)

Po is now living his dream as The Dragon Warrior, protecting the Valley of Peace alongside his friends and fellow kung fu masters, The Furious Five. But Po's new life of awesomeness is threatened by the emergence of a formidable villain, who plans to use a secret, unstoppable weapon to conquer China and destroy kung fu. Po must look to his past and uncover the secrets of his mysterious origins; only then will he be able to unlock the strength he needs to succeed. -- (C) Dreamworks
KUNG FU PANDA 2 is an example of a sequel that surpasses it's predecessor. Instead of repeating the plot of the first film, the creative minds behind this sequel made the rightful decision to continue expanding Po's emotional story, in this case meaning that we finally find out Po's origin story. By doing this, KUNG FU PANDA 2 feels much more emotionally involving than the first, and it just goes to show you that Dreamworks Animation have matured in the past few years, although PUSS IN BOOTS looks like it'll bring the studio back a few steps.
With that being said, the film does suffer from having too many things going on at once, as if afraid that it'll bore the kids in the audience. The film moves at an lightening speed and, before you know it, the credits are rolling right in front of you. Part of this is due to the film's amazing narrative economy. For example, in the first few minutes, we have already learned the villain's origin story told in a fairytale kind of way with Michelle Yeoh as the narrator, à la THE MUMMY: TOMB OF THE DRAGON EMPEROR. I just wished the film took its time in certain parts because the film could have certainly been better if we had time to breathe.
As with most sequels, everything is bigger in KUNG FU PANDA 2. This includes the action sequences, which are amazing, stunning, and wildly imaginative, all enhanced by the 3D technology and the gorgeous cinematography. The 3D also provides amazing depth in almost every scene and moments of pop out gimmicks. With a bigger scope and the ability of animators to manipulate everything on screen, the extra dimension is certainly worth the extra cost. Hans Zimmer's score is terrific as usual, continuing the theme from the first film.
I also liked the villain a lot, the peacock Shen, voiced by the great Gary Oldman. The character is fleshed out more than your usual 2D villain, and he was pretty bad ass. Jack Black continues to prove that he's a great voice actor and provides the charm of the film with the lovable Po. His relationship with Angelina Jolie's Tigress is explored further in here as well, and it'll be interesting to see where they'll end up in the next sequel. I also liked the addition of Michelle Yeoh, who's pretty much great in everything she's in.
The wicked fast pace doesn't ruin the film, but slowing it down could have made it better. While not an amazing sequel, KUNG FU PANDA 2 is still better than the first film. With a great visual sense of wonder, funny jokes, and fantastic action sequences, this is an entertaining and emotionally involving sequel that branches out the story from the first film. In 2D or 3D, do yourself a favor and just go watch it. 7.5/10