| “ | I see you carry the cane of the notorious Cooper thief clan. Have you come here for revenge? To steal back the Thievius Raccoonus? | „ |
| ~ The Panda King |
| “ | Insolent child! You shall pay dearly for your disrespect! Still, to honor your Cooper ancestry, I will send you to your doom with the beauty of my new firework technique: Flame Fu! | „ |
| ~ The Panda King, facing Sly. |
Panda King is a secondary antagonist who appears in the Sly Cooper videogame franchise. As of the third game Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves, he became a member of the Cooper Gang and was redeemed for his part in the death of Sly's parents at the hands of the Fiendish Five. When Sly feigned amnesia to strike up a relationship with Inspector Carmelita Fox, Panda King left when the gang disbanded and remained in China to ensure his daughter garnered a good marriage from a rush of potential suitors.
Early life
Panda King as he appears in cut-scenes as a member of the Cooper Gang in Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves.
Panda King grew up in a small village in the Kunlun Mountains of western China. There he was astonished by the colorful fireworks displays given by noblemen every year, and yearned to become just like them. Over the years he set about perfecting his craft, until he was ready to show off his creations to the noblemen. However, they scoffed and turned him away after what they saw as a pitiful display, enraging Panda King greatly.
He again set about perfecting his craft and eventually crafted fireworks that could be used for military purposes. This must have been about the time he also discovered his firework 'technique' called Flame-Fu. Panda King then used his new fireworks to gain his revenge of the noblemen who has shunned him before.
It wasn't long until Panda King was noticed by the Fiendish Five and taken on as their demolitions expert, gaining himself the title of 'The Mad Bomber'.
As a member of The Fiendish Five
Panda King utilized fireworks to crush his opponents and bomb entire villages into submission - making him quite a ruthless character. In Sly Cooper and the Thievious Raccoonus, Panda King used his fireworks to bury an entire village in snow. Sly arrived to witness this and eventually came to face the villain in a pagoda atop a giant stone statue of his likeness - using, ironically, one of the fireworks to reach the top. Panda King stated he would kill Sly, but honor his Cooper ancestry by using "the beauty" of his new firework technique, "Flame-Fu".
Sly and Panda King fought, the former running to avoid the flame-throwing attacks of the latter. Sly defeated Panda King by hitting him with his hooked cane, which eventually made the panda collapse. Panda King said that he was surprised to have been defeated and was in admiration of Sly's fighting skills, fainting immediately afterwords.
Later, he was accosted by Carmelita Fox and her Interpol forces, who had been in pursuit of the Cooper Gang.
As a member of the Cooper gang
At some point between the first and third game, he escaped or was released from police-custody and returned to his daughter Jing King in China. But when a warlord named general Tsao arrived and kidnapped her, he was unable to rescue her and thus tried to become stronger through meditation. When the Cooper-gang found him they offered to save his daughter in return for him joining their gang. He reluctantly accepted.
Panda King conversing with his second personality.
But Panda king's hatred for Sly had eventually manifested into a second personality who tried to control him. Fortunately, he managed to suppress his darker side and assisted Sly in defeating Tsao. Jing King was saved and Panda King became an official member of the Cooper-gang.
Trivia
- Although he was arrested by Interpol, Panda King somehow turns up in the hands of General Tsao in Sly 3 three years later.
- Like that of the Guru, Panda King's role and ultimate fate within the Cooper Gang are unknown as of the third game's ending.
- His daughter Jing King is never actually seen in any of the games and only her shadow is glimpsed.
- In the European and Australian editions of the Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves game manual, Panda King is shown to be about six-foot five in height.