“ | Shujaa.... Ponda! | ” |
–Shujaa's catchphrase |
Shujaa is an adult male gorilla who is a member of Sokwe's Troop.
Appearance[]
Shujaa is a massive, muscular, and bulky male mountain gorilla with dark blue fur, a tall, sagittal crest, and brown eyes.
Personality[]
Shujaa is a massively strong gorilla, even stronger than Beshte and stronger than any other gorilla. Despite his strength he is friendly and gentle, Shujaa initially acted before thinking, and unintentionally caused more harm than good. After several lessons with Beshte, Shujaa grew wiser and starts to think about what he should do instead of what he could do. He helped the Lion Guard put out the fire near Big Springs and got rid of the Outlanders.
History[]
Beshte and the Beast[]
Shujaa starts knocking down trees and scares off the giraffes and zebras who are down at the Watering Hole. Kion orders Ono and Beshte to make sure that the herds are safe, while he, Fuli and Bunga tackle the gorilla. When Bunga says that he'll have to mess with the Lion Guard Shujaa stops making messes and Kion thinks that he's friendly. Soon Ono and Beshte come back and he explains that he was sent by his leader King Sokwe to help them stop the Outlanders. Fuli asks what Shujaa does best and he responds with Shujaa Ponda. After hearing that Beshte is the strongest in the Pride Lands Shujaa asks Beshte to see his strength. Beshte lifts up a big rock and throws it over to Shujaa and he catches it. Kion thought that they could use his help and Ono sees the jackals, crocodiles, and hyenas, who are approaching Big Springs. Beshte's father, Basi, and some of his pod are part of the target. Kion leads Shujaa and the Guard away. Before Kion can inform everyone about his plan, Shujaa runs ahead with a plan of his own. At Big Springs, Basi stands his ground against the intruders. Before they can strike, Shujaa leaps between the animals, but this doesn't hinder the Army of Scar since they outnumber him. Shujaa flings a large rock into Reirei and Goigoi, and Kion decides not to intervene. Shujaa continues hurling rocks towards his enemies, but eventually removes one rock too many from a large structure. The gorilla escapes the falling rocks, which slide onto Kiburi and Tamka. Noticing the hyenas still standing, Shujaa snaps a small tree trunk from its root and charges towards them, smashing them away. They land on some oryxes before retreating and the guard thought that it was amazing at what Shujaa did. The Lion Guard are impressed with Shujaa's actions, but soon notice the aftermath of them, with Muhangus' den becoming blocked by rocks, hares trapped in the mud and the oryxes have gotten their horns intertwined with each other after the hyenas hit them. Shujaa is a little upset, but Kion assures him that he did good and it just means they have a bit of cleaning to do. The Lion Guard finish the cleanup. Muhangus points out one den that is still covered, and Shujaa offers to help. He throws the rock far away, but it crashes into a termite mound, prompting Kion to suggest that he leaves the clean up to them. Bunga is about to tuck into the termites when Ono alerts them to the army's return. After learning where they are, Kion suggests cutting them off by moving through Nyani Grove. Shujaa offers to help and begins breaking the trees down, causing the Baboons to scatter onto some buffaloes and in turn causing them to panic as well. With Fuli and Beshte sent to calm them, Kion, Ono, and Bunga follow Shujaa. Janja soon notices the gorilla tearing up the trees, realizing that Scar's plan is working. Once out of the grove, Kion orders Ono to tell the sable antelopes to move. After they comply, the cub uses the Roar of the Elders to blast the Outlanders away. Shujaa is left impressed by his work. Fuli and Beshte return with news that the other animals are safe, but Kion notices the mess that Nyani Grove is in. Shujaa offers to help clean, but instead flings a lone tree trunk onto another tree, breaking it in the process and causing the residents to flee. The Guard stops him from helping, and Kion explains to him how he doesn't know his own strength. Beshte soon has an idea and offers to help Shujaa control his strength. Although he doesn't truly understand, he trusts the hippo, and the pair leave. The pair soon encounter a worried Laini with her galagos, who are at first startled by Shujaa's presence. They point to a serval in their tree, who Laini is certain wants to eat them. The serval explains that he was hunting a bird, but doesn't know how to get down. Beshte tasks Shujaa with assisting the serval, but is stopped before he can tear Laini's tree down completely. Beshte asks him to think first, and he obliges. He then conjures up an idea. Shujaa leans the tree to one side, allowing the serval to leave. However, while thanking Beshte, he releases the tree which catapults the galagos to another tree in Ndefu Grove. Shujaa offers to catapult them back, but Laini insists that they'll get back on their own, which causes Shujaa disappointment. Beshte tries to cheer Shujaa up, and another chance for the gorilla to prove himself arises when a butterfly comes into their view, trapped between some stones. Beshte tells Shujaa to be gentle, and, after thinking about it, the gorilla carefully removes the tiny stones that are trapping the butterfly, setting it free. In his joy, Shujaa pounds a fist against the larger rocks, causing the largest to fall.Beshte pushes Shujaa out of the way just in time. Once again Beshte supports Shujaa, reminding him that no one got hurt. They soon come across Kifaru, who has given Mwenzi the day off and has in turn gotten lost on his way to the watering hole. After learning about Kifaru's poor eyesight, Shujaa reacts by punching a hole in the wall which is blocking him and sets Kifaru the right way around. Unfortunately, the wall is revealed to have been part of the hyraxes' home. This distresses Shujaa greatly, and even though Beshte is optimistic about finding them a new home, Shujaa realizes that he causes problems no matter what he does. Beshte calls for Shujaa to follow him while they find the hyraxes a new home, but Shujaa, feeling defeated, laments about his accidental destruction.
He sits down in an ostrich nest, not even noticing Mbuni briefly return to it. When Beshte returns having found an even better home for the hyraxes, Shujaa explains that he won't be moving. Ono arrives to alert them of the Outlanders return to Big Springs, and this time, there's a fire. With Shujaa refusing to move, Beshte promises to return for him once he has stopped the blaze. Beshte arrives just in time and tackles the crocodiles away. He orders his pod into the water, while he deals with the fire.
Nearby, Kion faces off against Janja, when Beshte smashes him away and asks what he can do. Kion asks him to go on fire breaks and he does so immediately. Since the fire could spread if Kion uses the Roar, they have no choice but to fight normally. However, a tree snaps in half, causing Ono to cry out for them. Beshte notices and runs towards them, but his foot catches on an open root. The tree collapses on Beshte, whose leg is injured. While the Outlanders retreat a little with the encroaching fire, the Guard realize that they can't move Beshte. Kion orders Ono to find Shujaa. When the egret returns to the gorilla, he refuses to move until he learns that Beshte needs him. The rest of the Guard fight against Kiburi, Janja, and Reirei, when Shujaa appears. He effortlessly extinguishes the flames before arriving at Beshte. Before he does anything, he thinks about the best solution to help him. He then carefully lifts Beshte and places him near the water, prompting praise from the hippo for thinking first. Proud of himself, Shujaa turns to help the Lion Guard, warning the Outlanders away. Before they can react, Shujaa grabs the crocodiles by their tails and smashes them into the ground. Frightened by his strength, the hyenas and jackals retreat. Shujaa then swings the crocodiles around by their tails before letting them go, where they land on their friends in the distance. Shujaa finishes his job by taking out the fire, using a huge clump of dirt and dispersing it around the springs. The Lion Guard is pleased with Shujaa and glad that King Sokwe sent him. Shujaa remembers that Sokwe has never seen him think before, and decides to return to show him, with the promise that, if the Lion Guard ever need him, he will be there. On his way home, he knocks down a couple of trees, uttering a silent 'oops' in the process.Battle for the Pride Lands[]
Zazu brings Shujaa along with Hadithi to help the fight against Scar's army. When Shujaa sees Scar for the first time on top of Pride Rock, he says 'Fiery lion scary.' The next day, when Kion brings the herds to the Outlands, Shujaa throws a huge rock at Dogo, Kijana and all of their siblings.Return to the Pride Lands[]
Shujaa is one of the attendees at Kion's coronation as King of the Tree of Life.
Songs[]
Trivia[]
- Shujaa frequently refers to himself in the third person.
- Shujaa was announced ahead of time.[1]
- His voice actor also voices Kitendo, Makini's father.