The Rise of Scar (spoilers)

[Kallo]

But she also was shown to do poorly on her first hunt, she wouldn't have survived the fire without Kovu's help, and she was shown to be very poor in her skills when training with Kovu. I mean, she was always brave and headstrong, but never someone who could handle herself in a fight or an actually tough situation, and definitely wouldn't say she had a fighting spirit. Her plunge at Zira was just one tackle after she blindsided her, and that was in the dire situation of needing to save her father. And the escape from the crocodiles was more good luck for them than anything. I very much think she has been made much more "girl powerish" and even smarter in TLG than she ever was in TLK2, which is why it surprises me people are complaining about the exact opposite being the problem.

[SimbasGuard]

[quote="Kallo"]But she also was shown to do poorly on her first hunt, she wouldn't have survived the fire without Kovu's help, and she was shown to be very poor in her skills when training with Kovu.[/quote]

Yes in Lion King 2 she did poorly on her first hunt, but that was with the ambush/pursuit and take-down part of the hunt. Definitely crucial aspects of a hunt, but the tracking she did very well. On The Lion Guard tracking is all we have seen her do. Yes she would have died in the fire if not for Kovu's help, but I doubt her hunting training covered what to do if your prey starts chasing you. Her training with Kovu focused on ambush/pursuit and take-down. Things she had trouble with anyway. (She also might have been a bit more distracted by her handsome teacher).

[quote="Kallo"]I mean, she was always brave and headstrong, but never someone who could handle herself in a fight or an actually tough situation, and definitely wouldn't say she had a fighting spirit. Her plunge at Zira was just one tackle after she blindsided her, and that was in the dire situation of needing to save her father[/quote]

Well aside from the fight with Zira (Yes calling that a fight is very large overstatement) we never saw Kiara in a fight so she might have been able to handle herself better than might be readily apparent. As I said in The Lion Guard Kion had no problem with Kiara fighting at his side. He didn't tell Kiara to get behind him, so he must believe in her skills as a fighter. Now I did look up the definition fighting spirit to make sure I understood it correctly. In a nutshell it just means that someone is willing to fight when it is necessary. I guess Kiara hitting Zira at just the right spot could easily have been luck, but the fact Kiara was willing to do that for her father is what (to me) shows that she has a fighting spirit.

[quote="Kallo"]the escape from the crocodiles was more good luck for them than anything. I very much think she has been made much more "girl powerish" and even smarter in TLG than she ever was in TLK2, which is why it surprises me people are complaining about the exact opposite being the problem.[/quote]

Well O.K. it never hurts to have (good) luck on your side, but Kiara did keep a (for the most part) cool head in a dire situation.

As for the rest we are seeing a slightly older more responsible Kiara than we saw in the first part of Lion King 2. I always just see the characters as the characters regardless of age so I can not offer much of an explanation on either side.