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Mitch-el — Lord Shen
Published: 2011-06-02 19:19:18 +0000 UTC; Views: 19160; Favourites: 537; Downloads: 1379
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Lord Shen from Kung Fu Panda 2.Ever looked at an image of a character and known that he/she was probably going to end up being your favorite personality in the film that he/she is in? It was like that here. One look at that design and I immediately liked the character, even though I knew next to nothing about his history or demeanor at the time.
Of all the entities in the sequel to Kung Fu Panda, old and new, Lord Shen is my favorite. His calculating movements and delivery of lines, coupled with a mentality that borders on the psychotic, is only complimented further by the noteworthy animation done on him -- such details as head shakes/quivers and intense expressions add that much more to the emotions Shen travels through. The work the animators did is altogether admirable and inspiring. Many congratulations to the crew!
Needless to say, fan art was in order. Lately, the fact that I've been submitting almost nothing but fan art has disturbed me. Original pieces should be the main focus. However, I couldn't not pay tribute to this fellow. That design rocks.
Credit must be given where credit is due. Although references were used, I made up all but one of the poses. The sketch in the top right-hand corner was copied directly from a screen shot. Additionally, thanks must be given to *VivzMind for inspiring me to create that pose in the top left-hand corner. She also drew Lord Shen in a similar position, but her version is undoubtedly superior to mine. You can view her take on the character here: [link]
-- Mitch
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Lord Shen is the property of DreamWorks SKG.
"Kung Fu Panda 2" is © DreamWorks SKG.
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Comments: 181
I saw the film a few days ago with my brothers. That peacock had to be one of the most beautifully animated characters I have ever seen. You've captured him well here, truly remarkable!
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Agreed. The animation on all of the characters was exceptional, Lord Shen included. They must have had a heck of a time animating all of those tail feathers....
Thank you very much!
-- Mitch
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I read somewhere that apparently Shen's character was so complex it was like 'Animating six characters at once'. I also loved all the 2D sequences, as I said, beautifully animated film.
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I read the same thing -- it was the tail feathers that made him so complicated to animate, I think.
Oh, most definitely. Their traditional work is just as lovely as their computer animation.
-- Mitch
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ｗｏｗ this is wonderful! I love the peacock for his beautiful tail feathers , his elegance and pride, his crazy ideas and facial expression!!! he's so breath-taking when he uses his kongfu to fight.
and I especially like to see the interaction between Wolf boss and Lord Shen...
great job!
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Yup. They did a great job on this character.
Thank you very much!
-- Mitch
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I always loved the design, though I had some doubt for the character. Mainly because I figured Tai Lung would be almost impossible to top. But Shen turned out to be an incredibly unique character that I found myself sympathizing with. He had quite the presence on screen, I wanted so bad for him to come around in the end.
That said, I really love these drawings. You captured his look and personality flawlessly.
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You're not alone. I also loved the design, but wasn't sure how the film-makers would pass him off as a convincing villain. Needless to say, they did a marvelous job. He is a likable character that can be empathized/sympathized with, and whom I also wish had chosen redemption in the end.
Thank you very much!
-- Mitch
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tai lung isnt evil compared to shen so id give shen top ranking but that just my opinion
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I thought Lord Shen was awesome (diff one of the better villains)! But I couldn't help keep feeling that he really wasn't such a bad guy, he just had misunderstood talents and was totally consumed by his hate (which also seemed a bit misguided, almost like he had forced himself to hate without reason, maybe he hated or disliked himself or what he had done?) which he was not strong enough to fight on his own.
Truly a masterpiece for a char we only came to know for over an hour or such (it is rare that you get to know a not-main-char like that in such a short time in any movies).
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Yup. I concur. He was misunderstood, but, like you said, he was also consumed by hate and misused his powers and weapons. I think his original backstory was that his parents rejected him due to his sickly condition and color. It's a history I wish they'd kept, because it seemed to be a more fitting reason for his anger.
Oh, yes. He was definitely a very interesting personality!
-- Mitch
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Well, hate is a funny thing really... it can make one stronger and go much longer than normal to achieve something, like spending their entire life plotting to punish those that did them wrong in the first place. you might say that this would be a waste of life and it probably is as vengeance is an endless circle of hatred and suffering.
Yeah, your right. It would give a more logic reason for him to hate his parents as much as he did. not that banishment isn't bad but it still seemed off somehow... its like he did something bad like eating the last cookie or such and then get slapped over his hand and therefor he hates them to the end of the world <- a little silly no? What you say would make for a better background story for him for sure, but as this movie was a cutie-thing such a "tabu" in story would never do with such a movie i guess -_-
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Very true. It does make one stronger, but it was for the wrong reason in this case. As for his original backstory, it's a shame that the film-makers didn't stick to it because, as you said, it would have given him a more logical (and believable) incentive for turning against his parents and, in effect, the rest of the world. The film itself wasn't all-around "cutesy", as there were some suspenseful/thematic elements, but it was kid-friendly enough to make Lord Shen be seen as the villain instead of blaming the cause of his anger on his parents' rejection of him.
-- Mitch
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he actually is strong enough he defeated 2 masters almost defeated po and some gaselle guards
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just because you can kick people around doesn't necessarily mean that your mind/will is strong.
its like how clever people "beat" dumb people with words, while dumb people instead beat the living shit out of clever people with their FISTS!!! xD
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Epic expressions for the win. XD I can so easily pin these lines on each:
"Heheh..."
"Eek..."
"WHAT."
"Ididnotjustseethat."
"No."
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There will be many villains in the universe which have been created, Shen is probably among the top. Given more power and time....he would rival most of them.
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Agreed. Although he relied more on weapons than on proficiency in skill, he was still a well-rounded antagonist with an intriguing past and personality. The DreamWorks crew did a great job in regards to character development on this guy. Heck, the whole dang film was impressive.
-- Mitch
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Well Tai from the first movie was just an angry kitty, nothing really to it. In fact probably more passive than Shen if you think about it.
While Shen, angry yes, but also in a hidden state of depression. It seemed that the weapons he created were more or less his release. What really got me to buy into him as a villain was the fact he had a story (not to say Tai Long didn't) which in a way the audience could sympathize with. One of the scenes which he was talking to the Soothe Sayer was more or less the best moments of Shen, aside from the fights.
But I do agree, DreamWorks did an excellent job and needless to say, have some very good writers.
I cannot wait for the third movie.
---Skythe S. Annur-Delphi.
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Mmm... yeah. Kind of. There seem to be quite a few parallels between Tai Lung and Shen, actually. The anger of both characters were fueled by rejection, they both took out their disappointment on others, and they both had a chance at redemption... but refused. One difference is that Shen was interested in completely dominating the country, while Tai Lung was mainly focused on exacting revenge in regards to Shifu alone. Rather interesting.
I like your idea of the weapons being created as a type of "release" as well as control -- it makes perfect sense. As for that scene with Shen and the Soothsayer, I assume that you're referring to the moment when they were talking about his parents, Shen saying that they wronged him and the Soothsayer countering this with the fact that they loved him. You're right: That was definitely one of his best moments.
Yup. DreamWorks is certainly improving story-wise!
-- Mitch
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Shen is absolutly my new favorite villain. I saw KFP2 opening night and have been waiting for art.
Damn was it worth it <3
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Blame you, I do not. He's such an intriguing character.
Gee, thank you very much!
-- Mitch
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Amen! Just like you,as soon as I saw Lord Shen I loved him. All the poses you drew him in are simply amazing. I love the 'shocked/what-did-you-just-do' look he has at the bottom left!
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You too, eh? We're not alone, either! A lot of folks like this guy, because he's awesome.
Thank you very much for the kind comments!
-- Mitch
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I love all of the expressions!
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The poses in the left corner are cute^^
When I saw him in the movie I also started to like him immediately^^ He and Shifu are my fave characters in KFP.
I would also like to hear Gary Oldman's voice performence, because I saw the movie only in russian (but his russian voice actor was great!!^^). Is there a trailer or something where you can hear it?
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Thank you!
Agreed. They're my two favorites, as well.
Oh, really? You saw it in Russian? How interesting! I would like to have heard the voice actor for Shen in that language. As for Gary Oldman, he did a marvelous job. It's difficult to find many videos of Shen online, but YouTube does have some of the Kung Fu Panda 2 featurettes available to view, and Shen speaks in some of them. Here is one example: [link]
If you ever see the film in English, I hope you enjoy it!
-- Mitch
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Thanks for the video. It was very short, but it sounded nice 
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You're most welcome.
He most definitely is.
-- Mitch
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Hey... These are really nice sketches! lOve those cute googly eyes!
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Thank you very much!
-- Mitch
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I'm very surprised with the positive comments about Lord Shen. When I first discovered, I found it very difficult to take him seriously. I mean, a male peacock? Whatchoo gonna do? Show off your tail feathers?
When the trailer rolled around, I had misgivings about my preconceptions. And now folks like you, Fahmi and Sara are starting to plant the seeds of doubt... is he going to be a formidable villain to Po? Will he not hold back his punches, if you'll pardon the pun?
I guess I'll find out. But yeah, about this piece, I really love the facial gestures. This piece feels especially natural for some reason, were you in 'the zone'? I especially love the ones in the top-left and bottom-right corners!
He certainly looks like a very expressive character; those eyebrows, whiskers, and comb hold a lot of animation potential!
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"Whachoo gonna do? Show off your tail feathers?" 
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Yes, the choice of animal was a most unexpected, albeit interesting, one. I can see how it would be difficult to take him seriously, at least initially... from viewing production photographs, but this just goes to show that judging a book by its cover can bring about false preconceptions. He really is a very dynamic and fleshed out personality. I'm not sure if multifaceted would be another fitting term here, but, basically, he's well-rounded and has a reason for his actions, albeit a rather twisted one. He was formidable enough, relying on cunning and weapons more than skill, although he proved to be learned in the martial arts, as well. Animation-wise, it's just... impeccable. Really, you have to see him in action to fully appreciate the work the artists did on this guy.
Ha-ha. Yeah, I was in "the zone". It may have been because I really like this character, and when I really like an entity I put more work/"love" into my sketches of that personality.
Thank you very much for the comments!
-- Mitch
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ooh he was my favorite in the movie. I absolutely love how he was animated totally awesome
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I'm right with you there. The animators did a fantastic job.
-- Mitch
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Shen's the main reason why I wanted to see KFP2. He was awesome
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Same here, or, at least, he was one of the reasons why I went to see it. As a character, he did not disappoint!
-- Mitch
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no, no he did not. his royal albino-ness kicked ass
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Ha-ha. True that.
-- Mitch
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Oh my god I love this! His expressions are wonderful and so animated!
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Ha-ha. Thank you very much!
-- Mitch
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