Panda (パンダ?) is a character in the Tekken fighting game series. She is a giant Panda and the loyal pet, best friend, and bodyguard of Ling Xiaoyu.
Panda made her debut in Tekken 3 and has returned for every mainline game since. She was originally just a palette swap for Kuma II until finally receiving her own character slot since Tekken Tag Tournament 2, however, she had her own character slot for the first time in Tekken Card Challenge.
Biography[]
Personality[]
Very intelligent, Panda seems to have an almost human-like empathy and thought process. She is shown to be very considerate to Xiaoyu when she is upset, as well as supportive towards her decisions. She sometimes shows a playful side, similar to Xiaoyu.
Panda is often shown rejecting Kuma, sometimes resorting to physical violence as he seeks her out with romantic intent. Although she seems uninterested in Kuma romantically, she does occasionally think of him.
Outfits[]
Story[]
Tekken 3[]
Protector of Ling Xiaoyu. She is cared for at Xiaoyu's high school. To participate in the tournament, Xiaoyu moved to the Mishima Industrial College in Japan. Heihachi Mishima taught Panda advanced bear fighting so that she could act as a bodyguard for Xiaoyu during the tournament. Although Kuma is fond of Panda, she dislikes him and keeps her distance.[citation needed]
Tekken 3 Kuma Panda - Honey
Ending Description, "Honey..."*
Kuma is waiting outside of the gate of Mishima Polytechnical School. Ling Xiaoyu and Panda are leaving the building. As they walk out of the gate, Kuma kneels on one knee, offering Panda a bouquet of flowers; Panda, however, has not noticed (or had deliberately ignored him) and continues to walk past him with Xiaoyu. Kuma continues to stand there in the same position, even until the gate in front of the school closes.
*Panda's ending is the same as Kuma's with no visible differences.
Tekken 4[]
Official Strategy Guide
After the last tournament, Panda accompanied Ling Xiaoyu back to Mishima High School. After that, Panda spent her days training with Ling Xiaoyu. On some days she wondered, just a little, about the disappearance of Kuma, who disappeared after the tournament.
One day, two years after the tournament, Ling Xiaoyu, lost in her thoughts, told Panda about the announcement of the King of Iron Fist Tournament 4. After hearing Ling's concerns about the tournament and the Mishima Zaibatsu, Panda made up her mind to become Ling's bodyguard once again.[6]
Prologue
After the last Tournament, Panda accompanied Xiaoyu back to Mishima High School. Since then, Panda spent her days training with Xiaoyu. On some days, she wondered (just a little) about the whereabouts of Kuma, who disappeared after the Tournament. One day, two years after the Tournament, a preoccupied Xiaoyu mentioned the announcement for The King of Iron Fist Tournament 4. After hearing Xiaoyu's concerns about the Tournament and the Mishima Zaibatsu, Panda decided to become Xiaoyu's bodyguard once again.[7]
Epilogue Text
After winning the tournament, Panda handed over the entire Mishima Zaibatsu to Xiaoyu. Xiaoyu made public the wrongdoings of Mishima Zaibatsu and used the fortune to compensate its victims.
Then Panda invited Xiaoyu out...
Tekken 4 - Panda ending - HQ
Ending Description
Panda and Xiaoyu are sit at the Arena. Xiao asks why Panda asked her out. Panda takes out a picture of herself, Xiaoyu and Jin, and then points at Jin. Xiaoyu then believes that Panda wants to help her find Jin; Panda, however, wants Xiaoyu to do it on her own, since Panda herself is on the "endangered species" list. Upset, Xiaoyu places her face on her knees. A moment later, Xiaoyu stands up and, with a new resolve, decides that she will go on her own. She hugs Panda and says that they will always be best friends.
Tekken 5[]
Prologue
Panda. Ling Xiaoyu's beloved bodyguard. Xiaoyu was very depressed after the King of Iron Fist Tournament 4. Panda thought long and hard about how she could make her happy again.
Panda figured that if she could find Jin Kazama, Xiaoyu would be happy again. She searched high and low for Jin... But to no avail.
One day, Xiaoyu came to her excited. "I'm entering the King of Iron Fist Tournament 5. Will you help me again?" Panda doesn't have a clue why, but she would do anything for Xiaoyu.[8]
Ending Description
Tekken 5 - Panda ending
Panda is now the head of the Mishima Zaibatsu. Lee comes to Panda, telling Kuma would like to see her. "Bring him here.", she says. At her command, he agrees and allows Kuma to enter the office. He proceeds to walk towards her with his arms open, preparing to hug Panda (he is also holding a bouquet of red flowers in one of his hands). Panda puts her arms up as if she is going to hug him back, but instead presses a big red button as soon as he's in front of her desk. Kuma then falls into a hole screaming. Panda is now satisfied. Lee confidently gives a thumbs up.
Not soon after, Xiaoyu comes in, greeting Panda excitedly asking Panda how she's been. She quickly approaches her desk. She then sees a big blue triangle-shaped button, curiously wondering what it does. Panda tries to shake her head as a warning not to. However, Xiaoyu lets curiosity get the best of her and pushes it. The floor opens up under Panda and her chair as both are ejected down into a hole screaming. Ling then contemplates what happened to Panda. Lee just gives another thumbs up.
Tekken 6[]
Official Strategy Guide
Panda participated in The King of Iron Fist Tournament 5 as Ling Xiaoyu's bodyguard. Discovering that Heihachi Mishima was not dead, however, she left the Tournament with Xiaoyu.
Just when Panda thought that it was safe to rest and relax, peace was interrupted by Mishima Zaibatsu's declaration of war. Xiaoyu stated that she must once again join The King of Iron Fist Tournament, so Panda reluctantly joined her.[9]
Prologue
Panda participated in The King of Iron Fist Tournament 5 as Ling Xiaoyu's bodyguard. However, upon discovering that Heihachi Mishima was not dead, she quit the tournament along with Xiaoyu.
Just when Panda thought that she could now rest, the peace was interrupted by Mishima Zaibatsu's declaration of war. Xiaoyu announces that she must once again enter The King of Iron Fist Tournament. Breathing a long, drawn-out sigh, Panda reluctantly joins her.[10]
Tekken 6 - Panda ending - HD 720p
Ending Description
The screen first shows Lili putting her index finger and thumb on the side of her face. Asuka, possibly offended by her actions and looking for a fight, yells at Lili saying, "Are you some sort of idiot?!" and prepares to hit Lili. Lili, who is shocked, gets ready as the two engage in combat. Meanwhile, while they counter-block each other's hits in front of Lili's limousine, Xiaoyu and Panda come rushing toward them on their way to school. Xiaoyu remarks that she's going to be late. Panda reacts by running faster and has a head-on collision with Asuka, Lili and her limo, literally blowing the two in the opposite direction as one another as well as the limo. Lili then crawls next to Asuka, who is also laying on the ground and the girls exchange looks. The two girls get back up and run after them. Suddenly, Xiaoyu looks back and sees the girls, startling her and Panda. The screen ends with Asuka and Lili angrily chasing after Panda and Xiaoyu.
Tekken 7[]
TEKKEN 7 - Panda Ending & Intro (TEKKEN 7 Character Endings)
Prologue
Panda, Ling Xiaoyu's pet and personal bodyguard, was concerned because she hadn't seen Xiaoyu since she'd left in search of Jin Kazama. Panda deduced that Xiaoyu was likely at a King of Iron Fist Tournament match, so she headed off to the arena.
Panda approached the staff entrance and inquired with the guards as to Xiaoyu's whereabouts, but was hurriedly ushered inside. Believing Xiaoyu to be somewhere up ahead, she bounds down a darkened corridor towards the light ahead...
But to her chagrin, it wasn't Panda's dearest Xiaoyu who awaited her, but an unfamiliar, boorish man with a bizarre hairstyle. Enraged by the man's attitude and absence of her owner, Panda's fury reaches boiling point![11]
Ending Description
Panda celebrates her victory against Paul until one of her bracelets falls off. She then remembers Xiaoyu and begins to smell her scent. Hoping to reunite with her friend, Panda races towards the scent while running over Paul.
Tekken 8[]
TEKKEN 8 — Panda Reveal & Gameplay Trailer
Official Website Profile (English)
Panda doubles as both Ling Xiaoyu's pet and bodyguard. A short while after Jin Kazama, whom Xiaoyu has feelings for, goes missing, she sets off on a journey to find him, leaving her home only to never return again. Determined to uphold her duty of protecting Xiaoyu, Panda tracks her all the way to the Mishima Zaibatsu building.
When she finds her, Xiaoyu informs her that she's successfully obtained Jin's search data and is going on a journey across the globe to follow after him. Shocked as she is by Xiaoyu's tenacity, Panda decides nevertheless to set off with her—after all, Xiaoyu deserves a vacation where she can enjoy all the sights and delicious cuisine the world has to offer.
On their journey, Panda makes sure Xiaoyu is always looking her best by coordinating her outfits so that whenever she finally meets Jin again, she won't be embarrassed. After six months of traveling around the world and tracking down what few leads they have, however, any hope of finding Jin is fading fast.
Even so, just as Xiaoyu refuses to give up out of her unwavering dedication to Jin, so too is Panda resolute in staying by Xiaoyu's side until the very end.[1]
Tekken 8 - Panda Character Episode Ending
Character Episode Prologue
Ling Xiaoyu and Panda searched all around the world in order to find the missing Jin Kazama.
But Jin's trail went cold in the Middle East, and Panda did her best to console the heartbroken Xiaoyu.
Just then, they learned of the latest The King of Iron Fist Tournament, and its goal to determine the next head of the Mishima Zaibatsu.
Upon hearing the news, Panda decided to enter the tournament as well in the hopes of helping Xiaoyu, who'd joined to look for Jin.
"(Fine, I see how it is. Guess I'll help you out.)"
Ending Description
Panda wins the tournament and becomes the new head of the Mishima Zaibatsu, although she is curious about what she will do next. Then, there is a special interview for Panda, where the interviewer asks about how she feels to be the head of the Mishima Zaibatsu, to which Panda responds that she never intended to lead the organization, but she is devoting all of its resources to world peace. The interviewer then asks Panda a second question regarding her first order of business, to which she responds that she plans to build her new amusement park, "PANDALAND", for Xiaoyu, whom she hired as the Development Producer to make a public announcement about it. The interviewer finally asks Panda to say anything to her viewers, to which she responds that she is looking for Jin Kazama. Panda posts flyers of Jin in multiple cities around the globe, noting that people should contact the Mishima Zaibatsu if they see him. However, at the last minute, Panda sees Jin walking away on television and tries to get out of her seat, falling down in her attempt.
Summary of In-Game Events
Panda is at the Sirius Sanctuary with Ling Xiaoyu, watching the live broadcast of Jin Kazama winning the Preliminaries for the King of Iron Fist Tournament. Afterward, Panda accompanies Xiaoyu along with Claudio Serafino and Zafina to the Coliseum of Fate where the King of Iron Fist Tournament is being held.
Upon arriving at the coliseum, Panda and the rest of the fighters witness Kazuya Mishima absorbing Azazel from Zafina's arm and transforming into his True Devil form. Soon after, Panda accompanies Xiaoyu, Lili, and Asuka Kazama to escort Jin to Yakushima. While flying on Lili's private jet, Panda wants to look at the Kazama Family Tree with Xiaoyu and Asuka. After they arrive at Yakushima, Panda goes with Xiaoyu to escort Jin to the shrine. However, Panda and Xiaoyu are ambushed by an army of Jack-7s, trying to hold them off to protect Jin while he is unconscious. After Lars Alexandersson came to the rescue, Panda is blown away with Xiaoyu by Kazuya who arrives to fight Lars and kill Jin.
In the good ending, Panda is seen serving soup to the soldiers of Yggdrasil, with the help of Kuma, Paul Phoenix, King, Steve Fox, and Marshall Law.
Other Appearances[]
Tekken Tag Tournament[]
Tekken Hybrid Tekken Tag Tournament HD - Panda ending - HD 1080p
Panda appeared playable in Tekken Tag Tournament.
Ending Description: Kuma is seen nervously walking towards Panda while holding flowers. He quickly kneels down on one knee and presents her flowers to her. Paul is standing a short distance behind him with his arms crossed, watching the interaction. Panda rears her arm back and slaps Kuma, knocking him over and turning her nose up at his offer. The scene ends with Panda happily walking away with Ling Xiaoyu, who was waiting for her, and with Paul cheering at Kuma's misfortune. The ending takes place at the second school stage in the game, School-B.
Tekken Tag Special Alliance Partners:
Tekken: Blood Vengeance[]
Panda appeared in Blood Vengeance as one of the supporting characters.
Tekken Tag Tournament 2[]
Tekken Tag Tournament 2 - Panda Arcade Ending Movie
Panda returned playable in Tekken Tag Tournament 2, this time she finally gets her own character slot.
Profile:
A panda bear who came to accompany Xiaoyu in Japan. She received personal instruction from Heihachi Mishima himself in order to serve as a proper bodyguard for Xiaoyu. Kuma is quite infatuated with her, but she has no real interest in him.[12]
Ending Description: On a roller coaster, Panda is seated with Alisa behind Xiaoyu and Miharu. She growls at Miharu out of jealousy. When the roller coaster train speeds, Panda raises her arms. Then, on a teacup cup, Panda attempts to get a seat with Xiaoyu, but again has to sit with Alisa and feels outraged. When the three girls have some ice cream later, Panda begins to feel isolated, thinking back to the times she spent with Xiaoyu. When the dream ends, Miharu offers Panda some water, then she jumps happily into Xiaoyu's arms. Later, Xiaoyu begins to hate herself for not giving Panda more attention. Alisa then suggests they all go to a sauna.
- Ling Xiaoyu
- Kuma II
- Miharu Hirano
- Heihachi Mishima
- Kazuya Mishima / Devil
- Jinpachi Mishima
- Jin Kazama
- Devil Jin
- Angel
- Jun Kazama
- Unknown
- Asuka Kazama
- Roger Jr.
- Alex
- Alisa Bosconovitch
Tekken Card Tournament []
Panda appears as a playable character in Tekken Card Tournament. Her cards focus on defense and protection, which means that it will be quite difficult for opponents to get real damage out of her if her decks are set up with lots of protection. She also hits hard, being the 2nd strongest character after Paul. Her drawbacks are that she draws slow, but not as slow as Paul does. She also is still susceptible to focus breaks even with protection, has no major parries, and her more powerful cards either drain HP, or strengthen her opponent's cards in some manner. She can also heal, but dual strikes are the only major way to do so, and her opponents will most likely wait her out so they can strike without any problems. Overall, she has impressive abilities, and can be used by beginners and veterans alike.
Gameplay[]
Being nearly identical to Kuma, Panda shares the same strengths and weaknesses in her gameplay. She has longer arms than most of the cast, making her capable of strong whiff punishment from range. She, like Kuma, also has a nonstandard hitbox and as such can be more difficult for other characters to land hits on in some cases, forcing the opponent to adapt. From Hunting Bear Stance, Panda is capable of high-damage mix-ups which can trip up an opponent. This stance also provides some evasiveness.
Panda also shares the same weaknesses as Kuma: a shorter range on her kicks due to her smaller legs, the ability to do higher-damage combos against her most notably after a wall splat due to her size, and weak backdash capabilities. In Tekken 8 and like Kuma who uses a large salmon, Panda uses a beach ball as a weapon when she uses one of her new moves.
Fighting Style[]
Panda uses Kuma Shinken, the same fighting style as Kuma II. Starting in Tekken 8, Panda inherits attacks from Xiaoyu.
Moves[]
- Panda Moves
- Panda/Tekken 3 Movelist
- Panda/Tekken Card Challenge Movelist
- Panda/Tekken Tag Tournament Movelist
- Panda/Tekken 4 Movelist
- Panda/Tekken 5 Movelist
- Panda/Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection Movelist
- Panda/Tekken 6 Movelist
- Panda/Tekken Tag Tournament 2 Movelist
- Tekken Card Tournament/Panda Cards
- Panda/Tekken 7 Movelist
- Panda/Tekken 8 Movelist
Quotes[]
Character Relationships[]
- Ling Xiaoyu - Her owner and best friend.
- Miharu Hirano - Her good friend.
- Jin Kazama - Her friend.
- Alisa Bosconovitch - Her good friend in Tekken: Blood Vengeance and Tekken Tag Tournament 2 (non-canon).
- Kuma II - He has a huge crush on her, despite the fact that she is not interested in him.
- Lee Chaolan - Took Xiaoyu, Alisa, and Panda to his house in Tekken: Blood Vengeance (non-canon).
- Paul Phoenix - Both fought each other in Tekken 7.
Trivia[]
General:
- Panda is the first female animal character in the Tekken series.
- Panda is the tallest animal female character, standing at 277 cm (9′1″), and also the heaviest, weighting at 320 kg (705lbs).
- Despite being female, prior to Tekken 7, Panda cannot be attacked with Nina or Anna's Bitch Slaps, which is usable against females; but can be hit by Heihachi's Headbutt Carnival, which is usable against males.
- Panda is one of multiple characters with origins as a palette swap of another character; the others include Alex, Angel, Anna Williams, Devil, Tetsujin, Tiger Jackson, Miharu Hirano, and Violet.
- The noises and grunts Panda makes from Tekken 3 to Tekken 5 sound similar to that of a dingo. In Tekken 6, she sounds much more like a bear.
- Panda can be selected by pressing one of the kick buttons while on Kuma.
- She has no character select icon of her own, with Kuma's portrait shown instead during loading screens.
- Panda's bosses in the Tekken Force mini game are (in order appearance): Kuma, Ling Xiaoyu, Jin Kazama, and Heihachi Mishima.
- Her ending is almost identical to Kuma's, except the ending shows a few extra seconds of her and Xiaoyu walking away from Kuma.
- She appears in Embu 3 along with the other unlockable characters, taking the place of Hwoarang.
- Panda receives a new outfit, wearing a yellow ribbon around her waist and red bracelets on her wrists.
- Her sub boss is Paul Phoenix.
- If teamed with Heihachi Mishima, Kuma and Panda will be able to perform Heihachi's Demon Boar move (called Demon Bear).
- She appears in Embu 2 along with the other animals, with her P1 outfit taking the place of Jin and her P2 outfit taking the place of Eddy.
- Panda becomes playable by beating the game seven times, or as soon as the player completes Story Mode with Ling Xiaoyu.
- In the Tekken Force side game, Panda (or Kuma) is the boss of the second stage, the "Jungle" stage.
- Panda's sub-boss is Kuma.
- Not counting the three characters debuting in Dark Resurrection, Panda is the only character that is never encountered in Story Mode as a boss.
- Panda has two Item Moves. The first has her roll a bowling ball that launches the opponent. The other has her spin and dance with a tutu while hitting the opponent. The second item move is shared with Kuma.
- She is encountered as a midboss at the Mishima Polytechnic in Scenario Campaign mode, where she must be defeated before reaching Xiaoyu.
- This is the first game where Panda gets her own character slot.
- Panda makes her cameo in the Sakura Schoolyard stage when she is not selected. She is seen in the background with the rest of the schoolgirls sitting up.
- Panda's partners in Ghost Battle (in order from lowest to highest ranks) are Jinpachi Mishima, Miharu Hirano, Alex, Ling Xiaoyu, and Kuma II.
- When paired with Xiaoyu, she can perform Xiaoyu's Storming Flower.
- Her item move turns her Mauling Bear from Hunting into a tag-bufferable throw. When used, she will smash into her opponent while riding a tire to bring in her partner. If the opponent is in front of a wall, Panda will crash into the wall instead of bringing in her partner.
Tekken 7 and Tekken 7: Fated Retribution:
- Panda's new main outfit is based on her previous customized outfits in Tekken 6 and Tekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion but with minor changes.
- Panda's Rage Art is based on Shoma Sawamura's Grand Slam in Capcom's Rival Schools series where the player does a volleyball serve and toss against an airborne opponent.
- Panda has new intro animations that do not match Kuma's. One of which has her mimic one of Xiaoyu's intro poses.
- Panda can use her Rage Drive after landing a Bear Shove to launch her opponent into an aerial combo. This makes her, Kuma, Master Raven, and Josie Rizal the only characters who are able to launch off moves that would otherwise give guaranteed ground hits when rage is active
- Panda's memory of Xiaoyu in her ending is reused from her Tekken Tag Tournament 2 ending.
- Panda is now able to perform the female-exclusive Bitch Slaps, but can no longer perform the Headbutt Carnival.
- One of the customizable player boxes featuring Panda is based off of the Chōjū-jinbutsu-giga, an ancient set of picture scrolls featuring several animals that is credited as being the oldest form of manga.
- Unlike other characters that were revealed via gameplay trailers or during promotional videos, Panda was revealed as a playable character for Tekken 8 by the unveiling of a large statue of her at the Tokyo Game Show.
- Panda has a special intro with Kuma and Ling Xiaoyu.
- Kuma will approach Panda, before bringing out a salmon, asking her to marry him. Panda immediately rejects this by knocking the salmon away, much to Kuma's shock.
- Panda and Xiaoyu will skip around one another in a circle, singing about how the winner of their bout will decide what snack the two will eat.
Other:
- Panda is briefly seen in Xiaoyu's Street Fighter X Tekken promotional art, where she is seen on the roof of what appears to be Mishima Polytechnical School.
- Chun-Li has also Panda's design as her Swap Costume.
- Panda has a cameo role in Tekken Pachislot 4 where she arrives at the Jungle Outpost to help Xiaoyu and Claudio break into a ruined temple. She charges into the blocked up entrance, clearing the path for them.
- Panda appears in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate as a spirit alongside Kuma II. Their spirit battle has the player fight a Mii Gunner (Panda) that is eventually reinforced by a Mii Brawler (Kuma).
Gallery[]
References[]
- ^ a b Official English Website Profile.
- ^ Tekken 5 Official Strategy Guide, Brady Games (2004), p.126
- ^ a b In-game Tekken 8 profile
- ^ See Jun Kazama's Tekken 8 Official Japanese Website Profile, which states that Ogre's attack took place 'seven years ago'. The Tekken 3 story write up states that this attack happened four years prior to the events of Tekken 3.
- ^ Katsuhiro Harada @Harada_TEKKEN, Twitter, 4:21 PM Jun 13, 2024. Note that information is not stated in-game and only comes from a database of information provided by series developer Katsuhiro Harada.
- ^ Tekken 4 Official Strategy Guide, Prima (2002), p.76.
- ^ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myMW1-FqWLA
- ^ Tekken 5 In-Game Prologue.
- ^ Tekken 6 Official Strategy Guide, Brady Games (2009), p.168; transcribed on Tekken Zaibatsu.
- ^ Tekken 6 In-Game Prologue.
- ^ Tekken 7 Character Prologue.
- ^ Tekken Tag Tournament 2 Wii U profile.