Po panda: Jack Black voices the fuzzy fellow.

As Po Ping, a portly, martial arts-loving panda bear in Kung Fu Panda, Jack Black gives his freshest, funniest comic performance since his breakout turn in Richard Linklater's The School of Rock. That alone should make Panda a cause for celebration in some Black-worshipping circles.

A CGI product from the DreamWorks Animation factory — the same folks responsible for the Shrek franchise, as well as lots of lesser 'toons (Shark Tale, Madagascar, et al) — Panda has several things going for it besides Black's rambunctiously voiced Po. Directors John Stevenson and Mark Osborne have crafted a great-looking film that's one of the most eye-pleasing, non-Pixar animated features in recent memory. There's a supple richness to the images, many inspired by Asian art/anime traditions (including classical Japanese watercolor drawings), that makes Panda a veritable feast for the eyes from start to finish. Plus, it's one of the few DreamWorks cartoons in the post Shrek-ian world that doesn't feel compelled to insert punning, and usually pandering, pop culture references into every other line of dialogue.

That absence of wink-wink, nudge-nudge japery — imagine getting jabbed in the chest for 90 minutes by someone who thinks they're being clever but is really just tiresome — probably explains why Kung Fu Panda goes down so easily. You can trance out on all of the pretty pictures and smile at the cute critters without having to explain half the jokes to your kids — or to a pop cult-impaired significant other.

Black's panda is a familiar 'toon underdog hero. Baby Huey-ish Po still lives at home with his adoptive father goose (James Hong) whose sincerest wish is that his son will someday take over the family restaurant. But kung-fu crazy Po has different plans ("I don't dream about noodles, Dad; I love kung fu!"). After being mistakenly identified as the new Dragon Warrior by Yoda/Mr. Miyagi manque Master Shifu (amusingly voiced by Dustin Hoffman), Po must undergo the rigorous training program of his new tough-love sensei to attain that exalted title. (Unraveling the mystery of something called "The Dragon Scroll" is yet another test young Po must ace before his elevation to "warrior" status.)

Everything, of course, is preamble for his ultimate showdown with martial arts bully Tai Lung (Ian McShane of Deadwood fame) who's still pissed off at Shifu for denying him the feverishly coveted Dragon Warrior mantle. Assisting Po on his quest are the Furious Five: Tigress (Angelina Jolie), Monkey (Jackie Chan), Viper (Lucy Liu), Mantis (Seth Rogen) and Crane (David Cross). Of that starry quintet, only Jolie has much to say (or do), which was fine by me. The rest are pretty much fancy window dressing.

Interspersed throughout Po's journey to enlightenment — and kung-fu mastery — are lots of fortune-cookie aphorisms and sage advice, most supplied by the diminutive Master Shifu. (My personal favorite: "We don't wash our pits in the Pool of Eternal Tears.") Po's most valuable life lesson, however, is the one he has to learn on his own: "There is no secret ingredient; there's just you."

Sure, it's mostly predictable and occasionally silly/juvenile, but the characters are so appealing, the tone and humor so unexpectedly gentle, and the lush, widescreen images so beguiling that it's tough not to snuggle up to Kung Fu Panda. Even the few action set pieces, including Po's climactic fight with Tai, are more cartoonishly slapsticky than violent/mean, which is a bit of a relief these days when even kiddie 'toons come equipped with nasty streaks. Considering what a nice job Black does here, perhaps his (literally) larger-than-life presence is best suited for the world of animation after all. At least it might save us all from having to suffer through another clunker like Tenacious D: The Pick of Destiny.