Meilin “Mei” Lee is the protagonist of Turning Red. Born in 1989, she is a 13-year-old girl who loves hanging out with her friends, makes good grades, and is obsessed with 4*Town, despite dealing with her very overprotective mother, Ming Lee. One day while going to bed, she had a nightmare where lots of red imagery ends up going out of control with red pandas appearing. During her sleep, she manifested her red panda form. While she can turn back into a human, she becomes aware that any strong emotion can trigger the red panda and there is a ritual that allows her to be free from the red panda in her. It will get harder to break free if she triggers it more often.