Kung Fu Panda 2

Oh kids movies! How I love thee! Oh 3D! How I loathe thee! Seriously. This is the dilemma that comes up EVERYTIME a new kids flick comes out. I adore kids movies, they're (usually) so imaginative and cheeky, and just plain fun to watch. However, these days it seems that every kids movie is in 3D, and I'm not going to harp on it AGAIN, but I think we all know how I feel about 3D and it's evil grip on the film industry these days. Now that's out of the way, Kung Fu Panda 2!
I loved the first one, to be quite honest, I was supremely surprised by how much loved the first one, so needless to say I was pretty psyched to see Po and the Furious Five back in action. I have to say when I first found out that the new baddie that Po was going to have to up against was a peacock I was a little apprehensive. A bird? Really? With fancy feathers? However, Shen [voiced by the always amazing Gary Oldman] turned out to be truly menacing, with metal claws and hypnotic spots on his plumage not to mention a psychotic need to be all powerful. Po has to unearth the secrets of his past to figure out how to stop Shen and his gunpowder powered weapons. 
I really loved in the first movie when we were first introduced to Po's dad, the little noodle obsessed goose. They have such a cute dynamic, although one that becomes strained as Po searches for his lost family. What really comes across in this movie is that parents love their kids, whether they're biologically theirs or not; they just want what's best for their kids.
One thing I find very interesting about both Kung Fu Panda movies is that they have all this amazing voice talent that just goes to waste. Don't get me wrong, Jack Black and Dustin Hoffman, who have the majority of the speaking parts are wonderful. Jack Black has a voice made for animation and Hoffman's gravelly tones are great in any format. But Dreamworks has gone out and hired an all-star cast that mostly, in my opinion, goes completely underused.   Sure, the story is about Po, and Jack Black, is well, loquacious, to say the least. But why hire Angelina Jolie, Seth Rogen, David Cross, Lucy Liu and Jackie Chan if they're all only going to get a line or two at most? I suppose it's so you can say they're in your movie, but only barely.
However, that being said, I think Dreamworks continues to impress. The animation in the movie was gorgeous. The characters look great and the backgrounds are just amazing. Not only that, but the story is well done, sure not overly original considering the first movie and all, but still pretty darn good.