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The relationships of Po throughout the Kung Fu Panda series.
Friends/Allies[]
Shifu[]
Though Po had merely been trying to see which of the Furious Five would be chosen as the Dragon Warrior, he himself ended up being selected by Oogway instead of any of Shifu's students. Though Oogway had foretold that whoever he'd choose would bring peace to the Valley and to Shifu himself, Shifu refused to accept that a "flabby panda" could be the true Dragon Warrior. Outraged at this turn of events, he immediately determined that he would make the unwitting panda quit his training by morning, and later met Po in the Jade Palace, quickly showing his disapproval for the panda by mocking his pudgy appearance. Though Po tried to talk back, he was quickly caught in the Wuxi Finger Hold by the master, who threatened that he would regret ever being chosen.
Daunted, Po was then shown into the Training Hall, but being a big fan of kung fu, he showed a willingness to do some moves himself. However, he clumsily came upon several training mechanisms, Shifu and the Five merely watching him in his struggle, and Shifu only pleased to see the panda having a hard time. Though Po was discouraged that Shifu could ever make him into the Dragon Warrior, he received some advice from Oogway to concentrate on the moment instead of doubting his abilities.
That next morning, the red panda was convinced that Po had quit as his quarters were empty, but he saw that Po had instead arrived early at the training courtyard to "warm up". Annoyed, Shifu later set him up with many brutal sparring matches with the Five and himself, again hoping it would drive the panda to quit. However, Po only demonstrated an eager fearlessness to continue despite failing and getting pummeled every time. Infuriated, Shifu kicked the panda out of the training grounds and down the palace stairs himself.
However, Po still didn't quit and was later seen with the Five, mimicking Shifu's stern personality much to their amusement, until Shifu himself appeared a moment later and shared the grim news that Tai Lung had escaped prison and was returning and that Po was the only one who could stop him. Po was alarmed and fled but was stopped by Shifu outside the palace stairs. Po then confronted the master about how he'd been trying to get rid of him, and that neither of them really thought he was the Dragon Warrior. Shifu asked him why he hadn't quit in spite of everything and was taken aback when Po admitted that being beaten and humiliated was still better than living every day being himself, and hoped that by staying, the kung fu master could change him. When Po demanded just how Shifu could actually help him to win against Tai Lung, Shifu was at a loss and quietly retreated without an answer.
The next morning, Po was discovered raiding the barracks' kitchen, eating everything he could find in his distraught state. Shifu was astounded to see that Po displayed an unintentional talent in kung fu while trying to rummage the place for more food, even making a perfect split while doing so. Shifu understood that the best way to teach him was to use food as motivation, and with that, he took the panda to the Wu Dan Mountains. He proclaimed that he would be Po's master and would teach him kung fu, much to the elation of the panda. During an intense period of training, the two formed a bond of friendship and trust, and Shifu saw Po's mastery and humility in a final test of "keep away" using a dumpling as the prize. Though Po won, he gave back the dumpling, declaring with confidence that he wasn't hungry, and ended bowing respectfully to his master, with Shifu bowing to him in return.
By the time they returned to the Jade Palace, Shifu believed that Po was ready to receive the Dragon Scroll, and used his name instead of calling him "panda" when addressing him. But when the scroll turned out to be blank, both Po and Shifu were confused, neither seeing how Po could defeat the snow leopard on his own. With Tai Lung approaching, the Five were ordered to evacuate the Valley, while Shifu declared he would fight Tai Lung himself. Po was reluctant to let Shifu fight alone, afraid he would be killed, but he obeyed and left with the Five. Once he reunited with his father and realized the true secret of the Dragon Scroll, Po returned to the palace just in time to save an injured Shifu from Tai Lung's attack.
After Po defeated Tai Lung, he again returned to the palace and found Shifu, who weakly thanked him for saving the Valley and bringing him peace, seeing that Oogway had indeed been right and that Po was the Dragon Warrior foretold of in legend. After the master trailed off and closed his eyes, the panda pleaded with him not to die, only for Shifu to yell back that he wasn't dying, he was only at peace, and master and student shared a long meditative moment side by side, until Po interrupted, asking if Shifu wanted to get something to eat, which the red panda agreed to after a sigh. Po and Shifu then shared a meal of dumplings at the Peach Tree of Heavenly Wisdom, together as two friends.
Although Shifu has accepted Po, he continues to show some impatience with the panda, and later stated that the day Po was chosen as Dragon Warrior was the worst day of his life, though also noted that Po had not been the real cause of his turmoil, but rather it was his own expectations and presumptions. He also appeared to be slightly jealous that Po had mastered inner peace at such a young age, though he was deeply impressed at Po's incredibly swift mastery and how he used it to defeat Lord Shen. The two now continue to sustain a good friendship, with only the occasional quarrel, and Po has also come to consider Shifu as being part of his family.
The Furious Five[]
As a big fan of the Furious Five, Po's admiration for them is great, so much that his bedroom is covered in posters and he owns an action figure set he had carved himself. He was willing to make several comedic and potentially dangerous attempts to get into the palace arena, just to see the Five perform in the Dragon Warrior Tournament. Po was disheartened when the Five were disdainful of him after being chosen as the Dragon Warrior, though he was eventually able to win them over with his cooking skills and his tenacity.
In the second film, Po has joined forces with the Furious Five and now stands as good friends with them. However, he has a tendency to embarrass them from time to time, for example when he indiscreetly sneaked into Gongmen City donning a Dragon Costume, and when he later destroyed a model of Shen's cannon, mistaking it for the real one, with the Five staring at him in shock and embarrassment. However, the Five deeply care for Po, evidenced by their despair when Po was seemingly killed, and their ecstasy when he returned alive.
Tigress[]
After being chosen as the Dragon Warrior, presumably before it seemed Tigress was about to be chosen, Po was treated with contempt by her, as shown during his first night in the Palace's barracks, and he was upset when Tigress blatantly told him he was a disgrace to kung fu and should leave. Although Tigress continued to display resentment towards Po for the majority of the film, he never held a grudge against her for it. It wasn't until the film's end that Tigress finally accepted Po as the Dragon Warrior, and Po seemed appreciative of it.
In the sequel, Po and Tigress seemed to have developed a close friendship with each other since the events of the first film. This was first seen when Po stuffed forty bean buns in his mouth, and Tigress encouraged him, joining in on the fun with the rest of the Five. Furthermore, like the rest of the Five, Tigress has learned to work in unison with Po in combat, as shown when they fought off the wolf bandits in the Musician Village.
When Po became afflicted with an identity crisis when he learned the truth about his adoption, Tigress alone persuaded him to talk about his emotional problems, but during their conversation Po unknowingly made Tigress feel uncomfortable when he claimed that she couldn't feel anything.
Despite their close friendship, Po was extremely reluctant to tell Tigress about his discovery of Shen's involvement in his past when she interrogated him in Gongmen Jail. When Tigress ordered Po to stay behind in the prison after he had allowed Shen to escape, he insisted on leaving, leading to a minor one-sided duel between them. Po eventually revealed his wish to learn the truth about his parents and stated that the 'hardcore' wouldn't understand. He received a shock when she hugged him instead of lunging at him. She told Po she did understand, but wouldn't allow her friend to be killed, showing him that she wasn't as unfeeling as Po thought she was.
Near the end of the movie, during the battle in the canal, Tigress shoved Po out of the line of fire a second before Shen fired his cannon and sent the kung fu warriors flying into the harbor. After the explosion, Po swam for Tigress after spotting her lying motionless on a piece of driftwood, and gently took her paw. Seeing how badly injured she was, Po locked eyes with Shen, giving him a long burning glare. He then pushed Tigress out of firing range before swimming away to face Shen's Armada for the last time.
After Shen was defeated, Po hugged Tigress after she had complimented his heroic actions as "pretty hardcore". Tigress was bewildered and didn't hug back, but stood alongside Po and the others, her paw resting on his arm, and happily watched the fireworks above Gongmen City in wake of Po's victory.