Kung Fu Panda/Fanfic Recs
Proof that the remaining 10% is worth dying for here.
These are recommendations made by Tropers for the Kung Fu Panda Fan Fics, all of which have to be signed to stay on the page. Feel free to add a fanfic of your own to the list, but remember to use the template found here.
You can also add to the current recommendations if you want. Refrain from posting Conversation in the Main Page though; that goes in the discussion page.
Authors, and Websites
- Recommended by Anything Goes
- Comments: A writer who is fluidly poetic, has a wide vocabulary range that he's not afraid to use, and is sometimes melodramatic but works in generating much Angst. His portfolio contains stories and oneshots that span both movies, most of which are powerful while touching all at the same time.
- Recommended by Jack O Crow
- Comments: A great author, who gives great looks at characters, while making her stories original, funny, and sometimes surreal. Most assuredly worth looking at.
- Recommended by Anything Goes
- Comments: Already rather established in the fandom, as evidenced by her near Doorstopper-length fics, this author can really write. Many of her chapters read almost like actual novels, keep the characters beautifully in-character, and show just how much dedication and effort she puts into her work.
- Recommended by Kaoru Sailor Z
- Comments: This author is highly recommended for her stories and like Luna, she can write. Most of her fics are mostly Shen-centric but believable and realistic. All the characters are in-character, even showing a side that is implied. She shows a lot of work and dedication to make it the best she can.
General Fics
Stories focused on the family and the friendly relationships of the cast. Plot-focused stories or light day-in-the-life stories. Pretty much anything that isn't focused on romance.
That's Why They Call It The Present by Luna Goldsun (minor sexual themes, violence)
- Recommended by Gattsuru
- Synopsis: Fairly long Fix Fic set after the events of the film, bringing back and giving a Heel Face Turn to Tai Lung, just in time to fight off an attacking horde lead by the man who made Tai Lung a Door Step Baby and sliced apart Tai Lung's father.
- Comments: Completed story. Shipping content features in some chapters, mostly between canon/non-canon characters or Snake/Crane, but is not focus of stories. Slightly Dark Fic, or at least Darker and Edgier than the original Never Say "Die" storyline. Falls into a lot of common fanfic traps, like adding a wide variety of satellite characters, pulling extra legendary warrior statuses out of thin air, having Heel Face Turned characters accepted a bit too easily, and 'borrowing' well-established jokes. Some Rape as Drama meets Prison Rape meets Unfortunate Implications, too. All that said, it provides an incredible deconstruction of Tai Lung's motivation and what would had happened if he were made the Dragon Warrior (as well as Master Shifu's), keeps each character's tone of voice similar to the film, and has some rather artful moments that make it well worth reading.
Memoirs of A Master by Luna Goldsun. Violence, minor sexual themes.
- Recommended by Sithking Zero, Keshia
- Synopsis: From FF.net: "Months after Tai Lung's defeat, Shifu has been shutting himself away. When Po and the Five investigate, they discover more about their beloved master than they ever thought possible."
- Pairing(s): Shifu/OC, OC/OC, Po/Tigress. This is not a shipping fic, though, so if you don't like those, then don't worry, it's not the main focus.
- Comments: Exactly what it says on the tin, the story revolves around Master Shifu's memoirs. They find his memoirs and begin to take turns reading them out loud as a group, which reveals Shifu's entire life, starting from his original home with his two brothers, his grandmother, and his parents. I could not put this story down, and I loved it to death. That's not to say that this is, in fact, a happy story, far from it. It's far darker than the movie upon which it is based, going into topics such as the Mongols and their invasions, the attitude towards women in ancient China, and political upheaval. Flushes out the KFP universe quite nicely, with depth and drama and storytelling that puts her previous work, That's Why They Call It The Present to shame. It is a rare author that can make one care for an OC, but this story makes you like Shifu's comrades and friends. Also, if you don't cry when Yeying dies, you have no soul. Also explains the origins of pretty much everything in the KFP universe, another plus. In short, one of the best KFP stories out there, and I would definitely recommend this to anyone.
- Just as a warning for those that do not like homosexual pairings, the OC/OC pairing is a homosexual one.
Bamboo: Wounds Heal, But Scars Won't by Herehopelies
- Recommended by Tora Yakari
- Synopsis: First in a series of KFP one-shots. Shen doesn't care what scars do...
- Comments: A very sad but beautiful, extremely well-written one-shot about Shen's childhood and what drove him to massacre the Panda village, aside from just the prophecy. One of the most interesting things about this story is how much of is through the perspective of his parents, so you get some real insight into what they really felt and thought about their poor, sickly son. The author has promised to update this story with different themed one-shots in the future, so here's hoping the later additions are as great as the first.
The Life and Times of Lord Shen by Domenic
- Recommended by Kchishol
- Synopsis: The story of Lord Shen from his childhood to his death at the semi-hands of Po the Dragon Warrior.
- Comments: An intriguingly elaborate and heartbreaking story about the Peacock villain that takes maximum advantage of known backstory information. In doing so, we have a tragic story about a sickly prince's Start of Darkness trying so hard to connect with his parents until his determination drives him to do the unthinkable.
- Recommended by Anything Goes
- Synopsis: A compendium of short backstories, oneshots and novelizations on the different characters from Kung Fu Panda.
- Comments: Genres vary in this fic, but Angst seems to be the main theme. Each chapter concentrates on one character and is written in a rather abstract style, giving much more depth to the more obscure Masters and characters of the movie, most of whom are possibly Advertised Extras.
Instinct by 1Past and Present1
- Recommended by Jack O Crow
- Synopsis: A playful, rare moment is shared between Tigress and Po when the mighty feline discovers the joy of pouncing on unsuspecting people...
- Comments: A cute short story that shows Tigress' playful side. While listed as a friendship story, you can see Po/Tigress if you squint and tilt your head.
- Recommended by Jack O Crow
- Synopsis: A currently ongoing fic, set two years after a decidedly dark alternate ending to Kung Fu Panda 2, which involves the cast being killed off, with Tigress returning from the grave to avenge them.
- Comments: Something of a Dark Fic, it contains slightly morbid humour, a gritty feel to it, and decent action. Certainly worth a read.
Gongmen City: Shifu's Arrival by FyreDragon5
- Recommended by bookwormgal
- Synopsis: Did anyone wonder how Shifu arrived at Gongmen City so quickly? How did he react to the oppressed citizens? And how did he convince Ox and Croc to join him against Lord Shen?
- Comments: A nice glimpse of the red panda's thoughts and reactions when he arrives in the city, learns of the Furious Five being captured and Po's "death", and how he persuaded Master Ox and Master Croc to leave their prison near the end of "Kung Fu Panda 2."
- Recommended by Nausicaa of the Spirits
- Synopsis: Green was a beautiful, natural color. Plenty eyes in the city were green. Red was abnormal; it meant darkness. He meant darkness. This cub meant purity. Set before the events of KFP 2.
- Comments: Kind of a little what-if story involving Shen and his parents visiting the panda village and Shen meeting baby!Po months before the massacre of the pandas. There's a companion story, The Misadventures of Lord Shen And Baby Po, that picks up where the prologue leaves off.
A Turn For the Worse by The.anti.Kira36
- Recommended by Nausicaa of the Spirits
- Synopsis: Shen kidnaps Po and has a wicked plot in store for our hero. Will the Five be able to rescue him in time?
- Comments: This story takes place during the Zen Ball Master scene and deviates from the outcome.
Extermination by White Trenchcoat
- Recommended by Nausicaa of the Spirits
- Synopsis: Spoilers for second film. Hearing a worrying prophecy, the young Lord Shen sets out to change his destiny, and destroy a village of pandas. However, it won't be that easy.
- Comments: Takes place during the panda massacre, Shen getting exiled after the massacre, and that sad scene where Po's mother hides her baby and sacrifices herself.
- Recommended by Much Ado About Nonny
- Pairings: Po/Tigress
- Synopsis: Po is a superhero with a problem. A brilliant, gorgeous problem that has a knack for making him look stupid.
- Comments: AU, obviously. The plot basically revolves around Superhero!Po's somewhat complicated relationship with the beautiful Tigress, his co-worker at the Jade Law Firm who moonlights as a tightly-clad criminal. Also features Hungover!Tai Lung, who acts as Po's Vitriolic Best Bud as per the requisite Superman/Batman parallels for such a story as this. This work is a masterpiece; it is drop-dead hilarious, portrays the characters' canon personalities to nigh perfect detail, and somehow manages to be one of the most excellently written superhero parody fanfics out there in this troper's humble opinion. A must-read.
- Recommended by Gannetwhale
- Synopsis: After Shen's death, spirits of the previously departed help him find inner peace.
- Comments: Fucking brilliant. Shen's characterisation at first seems more positive than the movie's, but don't let that fool you (and well, he found inner peace in his death, remember? ), as his interactions with the spiritual guides are believable and rather cleverly written. Overall, one of the best fanfics I have read in a while.
- Seconded. This is basically The Five People You Meet In Heaven, Shen-style. Beautifully written, heartbreakingly poignant at times, and a wonderful read.
Shipping Fics
Stories focused on the romantic relationships between the cast.
Can You See The Cracks? by Velorhi
- Recommended by J The Drafter
- Pairings: One sided Tigress/Shifu
- Synopsis : Tigress learns just how the Furious Five are seen by the villagers when she eavesdrops on Po talking to Master Shifu late one night, and she reflects on her own desperate need to have Shifu's regard.
- Comments : This is a well-written piece that gives us insight into the minds of both Tigress and the collective villagers of the Valley of Peace.
The Charming Lotus Flower by International-Wonderland
- Recommended by Nausicaa of the Spirits
- Pairings: Shen/Viper
- Synopsis: Viper starts to acknowledge plot holes in Shen's current plans that if used against him, will return China's freedom. However, terrible situations befall her when he catches on that she is chosen as the Snake of the Chinese Zodiac to crush his empire.
- Comments: A little bit of a Dark Fic, two recent chapters scream Improbable Species Compatibility, but it's quite the read if you like Interspecies Romance.