| NOTE: This page is about Kai the Collector's movie counterpart, as his novelization counterpart was not voted Near Pure Evil, therefore only Kai the Collector's movie counterpart's information and crimes should be included here. |
| “ | The mortal realm. You hear that, Oogway? I’m back. KAI HAS RETURNED! | „ |
| ~ Kai announcing his return; also his most famous quote |
| “ | Who? The panda? His chi is strong, but it won't be enough. He will meet the same fate as you. And so will every panda in that village. | „ |
| ~ Kai taunting Shifu on the Panda Village's doom before absorbing his chi. |
General Kai, also known as Kai the Collector, is the main antagonist of DreamWorks' 32nd full-length animated feature film, Kung Fu Panda 3, and a minor character in its 2024 sequel, Kung Fu Panda 4.
He is a supernatural bull who was once Oogway's brother-in-arms. However, after Oogway stopped him from taking the chi of the pandas, Kai developed a deep hatred for him. This animosity led him to seek revenge by destroying Oogway's legacy and stealing the chi of every master and panda. Kai now serves as Oogway's arch-nemesis.
He was voiced by J.K. Simmons, who also voiced General Wade Eiling in Justice League Unlimited and portrayed Terence Fletcher in Whiplash.
His Evil Ranking[]
What Makes Him Close to Being Pure Evil?[]
- In the past, he was believed to have killed and tortured many animals as a conqueror alongside his former friend Oogway, earning aliases like "The Jade Slayer", "Master of Pain", "Beast of Vengeance" and "Maker of Widows", likely doing it to hundreds if not thousands to be infamously known by his titles before Oogway erased his memory.
- Desiring to have all of the pandas' chi for himself, he attempted to take it from them, only to be stopped by Oogway, who had abandoned his path as a conqueror.
- Even though he carried the badly injured Oogway for days, and Oogway's survival was largely due to the pandas' help, Kai remained ungrateful to them for saving his friend's life, as he still clung to his conqueror mindset.
- While in the Spirit Realm, he stole the chi of every master, and while it's not explicitly stated how many masters or how long it took, the Realm is depicted as virtually empty, implying that he stole the chi from every master there, including Tai Lung.
- It's also worth noting that when their chi is absorbed, their souls are as well, and the victims are enslaved as ghoulish zombies, known as jombies, against their will. This proves the process to be painful and even a fate worse than death.
- While he was saddened that Oogway sent him to the Spirit Realm, this doesn't make him tragic since he brought it upon himself by attempting to steal the chi of the pandas and his care for Oogway was subverted when he took his chi and intended to destroy his legacy.
- He proceeded to take Oogway's chi before entering the mortal realm, telling his jade amulet form that when he's done, no one will remember him.
- Upon arriving in the moral realm, he summoned some of his corrupted spirits to find and fight the Furious Five.
- This heavily suggests that he was willing to kill thousands if not millions in order to erase Oogway's memory.
- Master Chicken mentioned jade creatures attacking his village, prompting him to track them with Croc and Bear, the latter of whom also had jombies invade their villages.
- While hiding out in a desert, he took the chi of Master Croc, Bear, Chicken, and Mantis, taunting Crane by threatening to destroy the Jade Palace and everyone in it before taking Crane's chi as well.
- He proceeded to steal the chi—and practically the souls—of every master in China, enslaving their souls with this method.
- Upon arriving at the Jade Palace, he defeated most of the Furious Five and consumed the chi of Monkey and Viper, turning them into jombies as well.
- He destroyed Oogway's statue and the Palace before taunting Shifu, telling him that Po wouldn't be able to stop him, and taking Shifu's chi as well.
- At the secret panda village, he summoned his jade army to attack Po and the pandas, but the army was briefly outmatched.
- After Po attempted to send him back to the Spirit Realm and failed, Kai mocked him while preparing to take his chi and the chi of every panda in the village including Tigress and Mr. Ping, forcing Po to sacrifice himself by using the Wuxi Finger Hold on himself to send both of them to the Spirit Realm, and while Po was later able to return, nobody knew he had the ability to do so.
- While Kai's reasons for wanting to take the pandas' chi are not fully explained, it is presumed to be out of spite against their ancestors, believing they were responsible for Oogway turning against him. It should also be noted that had he succeeded in taking the pandas' chi, it would have led to their extinction, as they were the only survivors of Lord Shen and Boss Wolf's massacre on the panda's.
- He attempted to take Po's chi, even using a large building to aid in his defeat.
- Despite his horrific defeat of exploding into nothing, it was well-deserved considering everything he did to Po, his friends, and his family.
- Despite painfully having his kung fu stolen by the The Chameleon, it doesn't render him a scapegoat as he completely deserved it for everything listed above and it can be seen as him getting a taste of his own medicine.
- Although he returns to the Spirit Realm willingly after The Chameleon's defeat, there is no indication that he feels remorse for stealing chi from both living and deceased warriors, so this doesn't redeem him in any way.
What Prevents Him from Being Pure Evil?[]
- He ultimately fails the Heinous Standards to Lord Shen, who had less resources than him yet managed to do worse by committing genocide on Po's species, attempting to take over China, and causing mass destruction, while also being a much more personal foe to Po.
- He, despite his personality, shows respect to Po after he defeats the Chameleon, by sincerely bowing before his former archenemy and willingly returning to the Spirit Realm without attacking him even though he very well could have attacked Po and could have refused to enter the spirit realm, demonstrating that he possesses some honor.
Trivia[]
- Originally, Kai was meant to be a much darker character as he would not have had any of the comedic moments that were shown in the final version. He even would have explicitly killed Po rather than the latter sacrificing himself. Whether or not this would have affected his NPE status and have potentially made him Pure Evil is unknown. However, the former would have been more likely since he still would have failed the standards to Lord Shen. It would have also made Kai even worse if it stayed in.
- His voice actor, J.K. Simmons, also voiced Ford Pines from Gravity Falls, who is instead Near Pure Good, the opposite of Kai morality-wise. Coincidentally, Kung Fu Panda 3 was released in the same year Gravity Falls originally ended.
External Links[]
- Kai the Collector on the Villains Wiki
- Kai the Collector on the DreamWorks Wiki
- Kai the Collector on the Kung Fu Panda Wiki
- Kai the Collector on the VS Battles Wiki
- Kai the Collector on the Entertainingly Detestable Wiki
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 Near Pure Evils
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Movies Television See Also | ||
 Near Pure Evils
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Animated Features Live-Action Features Animated Television See Also | ||
