"Kung Fu Panda 4" finds our trusty, rotund hero Po at a career crossroads and he's nervous. "Change doesn't have to be a bad thing," he is told. "Kung Fu Panda 4" also finds the franchise at an inflection point, but there's no reason for us to be nervous. DreamWorks knows what it's doing.
The series' first new installment in eight years is a reliably funny, sweet and wonderfully realized passing of the torch, with a paw in the past and another into the future -- an elegant goodbye and a hello. Many other filmmakers -- ahem, Marvel and DC -- might learn a thing.
When we meet him, Po -- voiced as always by a lively Jack Black -- is being asked to give up his dream role as Dragon Warrior and pick a successor. He's being kicked upstairs to be Spiritual Leader of the Valley of Peace.
Except Po doesn't want to go into management. He loves smashing skulls and still has that lovable imposter syndrome he's had since the franchise began. He tries to short-circuit any succession plans, change being too frightening.
A new enemy threatening an existential crisis offers a reprieve -- The Chameleon -- a wicked, powerful sorceress voiced by Viola Davis who looks like the lizard from the GEICO commercials who spent too much time at Graceland.
Po teams up with a new character -- a Corsac fox named Zhen voiced by Awkwafina -- who is an orphan-turned-thief and teaches the too-trusting panda to trust no one. The movie then becomes a buddy road movie.
It's a good balance of new and old characters but a masterstroke is coming: The Chameleon finds a way of accessing the spirit realm and bringing back every villain Po has ever faced. That results in a greatest hits-like fight scene that may be hard to top if there's a "Kung Fu Panda 5."
"Kung Fu Panda 4," a DreamWorks Animation release that hit theaters Friday, is rated PG for "for mild violence, martial arts action, scary images and some mild rude humor." Running time: 94 minutes. Three stars out of four.
This image released by Universal Pictures shows Po, voiced by Jack Black, in a scene from DreamWorks Animation's "Kung Fu Panda 4." (DreamWorks Animation/Universal Pictures via AP)
This image released by Universal Pictures shows Chameleon, voiced by Viola Davis, in a scene from DreamWorks Animation's "Kung Fu Panda 4." (DreamWorks Animation/Universal Pictures via AP)
This image released by Universal Pictures shows Zhen, voiced by Awkwafina, in a scene from DreamWorks Animation's "Kung Fu Panda 4." (DreamWorks Animation/Universal Pictures via AP)
This image released by Universal Pictures shows characters Po, voiced by Jack Black, left, and Zhen, voiced by Awkwafina, in a scene from DreamWorks Animation's "Kung Fu Panda 4." (DreamWorks Animation/Universal Pictures via AP)