Monkey

"*Monkey, one. Panda, zero.* "
―Monkey after tricking Po with peppers[src]
**Master Monkey** is one of the supporting characters of The Awesome Universe's Kung Fu Panda franchise, the second generation. He is a member of the Furious Five as well as one of Master Daniel, Elida, Olivia and Shifu's students at the Jade Palace. He is a master of the Monkey Style of kung fu.

In his youth, Monkey was known as a thief and prankster who made a fool of anyone called to get rid of him—until Master Oogway arrived. After he lost a battle against the old master, Monkey was convinced by Oogway to find a new purpose: to use his skills for good. Monkey later came to form the Furious Five with Tigress, Mantis, Viper, and Crane. When first meeting Po, he was skeptical of the panda being the Dragon Warrior, but quickly came to appreciate his determination and sense of humor. He now fights alongside Po as a friend and fellow warrior.

## Biography

### **Early years**

Monkey and his older brother Wu Kong used to play tricks on other people as children. But Wu Kong eventually turned to crime and was sent to prison, causing his family to be shamed. Years later, Monkey battled Wu Kong when he escaped. Their mother saw them fighting, and she died of a broken heart. Before she passed away, however, she made Monkey swear to always protect his family.

### **In *Secrets of the Furious Five***

Monkey was the laughingstock in his hometown village when he accidentally slipped on banana peel and his pants fell in public. As he grew older, he sought revenge for this incident by earning himself the title of the trouble-making hooligan in his village, playing tricks on the townspeople (often making people slip on banana peels or "pantsing" them) and made the habit of stealing from the markets. The townspeople didn't want him around anymore and told him to leave, but he refused.

They sent many powerful warriors to force him out of town, but Monkey humiliated each and every one of them with his "pantsing" maneuvers. He finally faced defeat when the townspeople sent Master Oogway, who, other than not wearing pants, used his shell to dodge all of Monkey's attacks. Not expecting him to dodge so easily, Monkey slipped underneath a falling beam, only to be saved by Oogway. Humiliated in front of the whole town by the kung fu master and his own tricks, Monkey surrendered and agreed to leave. But Oogway instead encouraged him to stay, teaching him compassion which then turned Monkey into a hero who helped and defended the people of the village.

### **In *Secrets of the Scroll***

Monkey would later try his hand at stand-up comedy, but would find no one who shared his sense of humor. It was during this attempted career that he would be found by Tigress, who mistook him for a Kung fu master sought by Shifu after a scroll given her by Shifu was accidentally switched for one listing possible career choices of Po's, one of them being "comedian." Along with Crane, Viper, and Mantis, Monkey would be presented to master Daniel, Elida, Olivia and the ill Shifu by Tigress, only to be turned away. Despite this, he and the others joined their newfound friend in facing the menace known as Boar, whom they defeated by working together. Afterwards, Shifu welcomed them all as his pupils and set to work honing their individual styles of Kung fu.

## Personality

> Mischievous, playful and enthusiastic, Master Monkey likes a good joke, but his easy-going attitude masks a cunning martial arts ability. More street smart than the rest of the Furious Five, Monkey is an unpredictable prankster who is as fierce as he is clever and funny. While he likes to goof off as much as Po, in a fight Monkey always has your back.
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While going by Shifu's strict teachings, it would appear that Monkey in general has taken Oogway, Daniel, Elida and Olivia's teachings more to heart, being similarly relaxed and displaying a calmer side to his personality.

He is also sort of a romantic; In Legends of Awesomeness, Po says that love songs make Monkey cry and Monkey said how he, when he was younger, tried to get the attention the girls only to have them fawn over his brother, Wu Kong.

Monkey was the first of the Five to recognize Po's determination, even though he shared in the Five's general decision of the panda until Po proved himself to be the Dragon Warrior. He's also the first of the Five to have called Po by name. Monkey seems to harbor the strongest sense of humor within the Five, responding most strongly to Po's sense of comedy.

## Fighting style

> With his distinctive style of kung fu fighting, Monkey's unpredictable moves and unique personality always keeps his attackers guessing. Monkey's style is acrobatic, playful, comical, unpredictable, quick, and energetic. He confuses his enemies by striking at will from any position with speed, deception, and agility - with blows from his hands, feet and tail that seem to come from everywhere all at once.
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A bunch of Monkey's attacks involve his opponent's pants. For instance, in Secrets of the Furious Five, Monkey pantsed several warriors, embarrassing them enough to make them quit. Also, in Monkey in the Middle, Monkey gave Po a wedgie. Finally, in Secret Admirer, Po tried to rip off Monkey's pants with a branch, but Monkey redirected it back on Po by using his tail to move the branch into Po's pants.

Monkey is the only one of the Five who fights with an apparatus, mainly a staff—a traditional and well-known weapon of the Shaolin temple monks.

## Relationships

### **His Mother**

Very little is known about Monkey relationship with his mother. He was shown to love her very much as he was the last person to leave her grave and, even years after her death, still keeps the promise he made to her by protecting his brother.

### **Wu Kong**

When they were young, Monkey and Wu Kong were very close. Both of them were mischievous and liked to play pranks, but as they got older, Wu Kong fell into a life of crime. Eventually Wu Kong was arrested and this caused a rift in the brothers' relationship. When Wu Kong escaped prison, Monkey confronted him and they fought. During this fight Monkey hit Wu Kong in the jaw, causing his teeth to be forever crooked.

As an adult, Monkey still looks out for his brother despite their disagreements, even willing to take the blame for crimes he did not commit. Wu Kong, while rude and demanding towards Monkey, also cares for his brother as he saves Monkey's life and admits to the angry mob that it was him, not Monkey, that committed the crimes.

### **Oogway**

When Master Oogway was summoned to get rid of Monkey, Monkey was surprised by this new foe, as all the previous warriors were far more fearsome looking. Still, Monkey was confident that he would defeat the tortoise. But since Oogway didn't wear any pants, he was a match for Monkey as he avoided his speedy tricks and mischievous pranks. When Monkey was about to be crushed by a falling beam, Oogway pulled him out of the way, surprising Monkey with his compassion. When asked why he had saved him, Oogway gently told Monkey that between his mischief and great skill, he sensed great pain from his youth. This brought Monkey to tears, and he turned to leave the village as per their agreement. Oogway stopped him and assured him that he should stay and use his compassion to help others who didn't give it to him, therefore Oogway taught him a great lesson in dignity and compassion.

Later in life, Oogway presumably accepted Monkey in the Jade Palace for further training under his old friend and student, Shifu.

**Daniel**
coming soon

### **Shifu**

As Shifu's student, Monkey greatly respects his master and follows his teachings to the letter.

### **The Furious Five**

Monkey appears to be the jokester of the Five and he gets along well with them most of the time, but also tries to trick them from time to time. This is shown when he tried to get Tigress to shake his hand rigged with a joy buzzer.

### **Po**

These two appear to enjoy having a good laugh with one another. When Monkey was hypnotized by Scorpion into destroying Po, the panda managed to snap him out of it by making him remember their friendship. However, Monkey has more than been landed on by the accident-prone panda.

Monkey and Po have also invented "dizzy kung fu" together. The two make themselves dizzy by spinning at a great speed in the Training Hall's jade turtle, and then try to fight each other. Po claimed it to be "the best idea they've ever had".

## Clothing

Monkey's outfit consists of basic clothing most students would wear to practice the art of kung fu in. However, unlike the other Furious Five, Monkey is the only member to wear studded leather wristbands. He also wears loose brown sweatpants with the waist and ankles wrapped in the style of a Shaolin leg wrap (noted to help increase kicking and stance endurance). His waist sash is colored gold.

In Kung Fu Panda Holiday (during the Winter Feast dinner at the Jade Palace and later at the Noodle Shop), Monkey and the other members of the Furious Five each wear an outfit similar to their normal attire, but with colors that match the colors of the holiday. Monkey wears golden studded leather wristbands with patterned red pants and a dark golden Shaolin waist wrap.

In Secrets of the Furious Five, Monkey was shown to have worn orange pants and a red sleeveless coat when he was a young child.

In Kung Fu Panda 3, the Chinese voiceover for Monkey is provided by pop singer Jay Chou, who also sings the theme song for the film.

## Trivia

### **General**

* Monkey is one of three animals of the Furious Five to resemble Chinese zodiacs, the others being Tigress and Viper.
* Monkey enjoys almond cookies and hides them on the top shelf of the Jade Palace kitchen.

* Monkey's battle weakness is revealed to be his tail.