The Red Panda Blessing EXPLAINED! - A Turning Red Theory and Discussion!

When Mei questions her moms panda’s size, her dad just says “I told you she was big!” indicating that she was that size even when she was younger.

I personally like how they didn't have the classic, "And everyone decided to keep thier panda." Ending. I think it makes a point where the old should not be forced to embrace new ideas, but instead be tolerant when younger generations do.

I bet that in a year’s time, if Ming breaks that tamagotchi and lets her panda out, it will be a more normal size compared to Mei’s and the other relatives. Ming isn’t annoyed by her panda-gotchi’s needs. She’s really into taking care of it. Loving her panda is loving herself, especially with her daughter’s example to reassure her.

I think some people might feel a bit “eeeh?” about her “turning into a monster when she feels emotions” but she gains control of it really fast and is able to switch without consequences which I like.

With Onward, Soul, and Luca being some of Pixar’s finest work, and this movie being once again incredible, it seems like Pixar wants to make this their best decade yet.

I still like the period analogy with the pandas where mei mei has the beginning small flow, her grandma and aunts have normal flows, and ming has a monstrously heavy flow. But the emotions also check out UvU

I don't think that Mei's family are dishonoring their ancestors by deciding to seal their Pandas. In a Modern-day society transforming into a Big Furry Monster every time your emotions get out of control IS INDEED an inconvenience. Being able to transform yourself into a powerful beast it's certainly a blessing in a time of war and constant conflict and danger, but in our times is more like a Curse (Specially in Ming's case). And just to clarify.... I'm NOT trying to undermine the message of the movie, I'm just saying that we shouldn't judge Mei's family members too harshly for deciding to seal their Panda Forms.

The Matriarch of the story (forgot her name), asked for this power to protect her family and her village. From petty muggers to literal Army's, so it wouldn't too surprising that the Panda form can grow so big.

Man...all of this just makes me really, REALLY want a sequel. Either a sequel where Mei's family HAS to use their panda forms to protect their old home, OR some sort of exploration of Ming's panda powers and Mei's nonchalance with flaunting this weird magic around. I mean...this would not have flown so well in 2022 compared to 2002.

I think the panda curse happens during puberty (like so many others). In conjuction with your hypothesis, puberty is when a lot of strong emotions come forward; whether it's because of those hormones that take off the training wheels and replace it with a 500 horsepower engine, or societal norms that dictate how someone or something should be.

I loved seeing Sun Yee and Mei have that moment together! What a relief it must be to her to see someone in the family actually be able to enjoy the gift without it being an emergency measure.

Why did people hate on the art style, did they forget Luca?

I think your breakdown of it was pretty interesting! Admittedly i do kinda wish that like how abuela in encanto got to relearn how to properly care for her family and casita, the rest of the lee family could've learned to accept their pandas but i also get why they wouldn't make that choice both in and out of universe

"The Aunt Squad 😎" best line ever

In the concept art, Mei was as big as Ming and they were both taller than buildings. Maybe they can grow to that size depending on the amount of emotion that they store up.

Turning Red basically has this cartoony kinda feel to it’s animation- and it’s very rare to see that in newer movies so I was so happy when they showed this kind of animation style! I also love how Pixar is also getting more personal with their stories and they do it with a lot of realism and respect. Also we can all agree all of the red pandas are fricking adorable 🥺

What I feel is that Ming had three "personas" in the astral realm which show each event she turned into the Mega Panda. The highschool girl when she first turned, the second time when her mother disapproved of Jin and she ended up giving her a scar, and the last one in the present when her locket breaks. Just a theory tho

At the end of the movie, how does Mei have both her human ears and her panda ears? Does this mean she has 4 times the hearing!?

I like the idea that Mei's mother was a late bloomer, having her 'lotus blossom' later then her sisters. Being late for a momentous occasion could make Mei's grandmother woried as to what could have happened and install a lot of fear and confusion into a child which she probably carried with her for several years before blowing up into a giant.

The way I see it, the size of the panda depends on both age and emotions, kind of like how the Hulk works. The base form would, overtime, become larger with age, eventually capping at a certain point, say mid to late 30s. But they can get larger sizes depending on how much they've been bottling up their emotions since their last transformation, whether or not their spirit was entangled with the panda spirit at the time. That's why Ming Lee's panda is so large and why the grandma's panda is only about 2* the size of Meilin's panda. Of course, there are exceptions to this such as Sun Yee's panda and Ming Lee's base panda state, but whatever.