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| “ | You young apes wouldn't know a real adventure if it jumped up and bit you on the nose! | „ |
| ~ Cranky Kong, Donkey Kong Country: Rumble in the Jungle. |
Donkey Kong I, also known as Cranky Kong, is the overarching protagonist of the Donkey Kong franchise.
He is Donkey Kong III's grandfather and Donkey Kong Jr's father, and was initially the original Donkey Kong who threw barrels at Mario and his original nemesis. However, he is now a widowed, retired old ape, always helping his grandson and Diddy Kong on their adventures.
Physical Appearance[]
In his youth, Cranky was a muscular and unkempt Kong. Already old, Cranky has a white beard, glasses, and wears a reddish gray shirt. At the end of the third game, Cranky wears a white karate uniform and black belt. In Donkey Kong 64, Cranky wears a scientist's coat and head mirror.
Biography[]
Youth[]
Cranky is formerly known as Donkey Kong and was responsible for kidnapping Mario's friend Pauline. Later, his son Donkey Kong Jr. freed him from a cage when Mario managed to capture him. He then fought Stanley the Bugman inside various greenhouses and lost.
Donkey Kong Country[]
Cranky Kong appears at Cranky's Cabin where he will rant to the Kongs and occasionally give advice about certain levels in the game.
Donkey Kong Land[]
Annoyed about the success of Donkey Kong Country, Cranky Kong gives Donkey Kong's Banana Hoard back to King K. Rool and challenges DK and Diddy to retrieve it again on the Game Boy system.
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong-Quest[]
Cranky Kong reappears at the Monkey Museum to once again provide hints, but this time his information must be purchased with Banana Coins.
Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble![]
Cranky Kong is mostly absent in the game, though he may appear in Swanky's Sideshow as Dixie and Kiddy Kong's opponent. He also appears in the end credits of the game, where he criticizes the both of them for their victory over KAOS and Baron K. Roolenstein.
Donkey Kong 64[]
Cranky first appears in his lab on DK Island when Donkey Kong goes to visit him at the beginning of the game after being alerted by Squawks the Parrot, where he informs him that K. Rool's cronies have kidnapped the other Kongs and stolen his Golden Banana hoard. He then sends him to complete some basic training in some training barrels he's set up for him, and informs him not to come back until he's completed them all. After Donkey Kong successfully completes them all and returns, he gives him his first potion of the game that grants him the ability to perform the Simian Slam, which allows him to leave the area.
From that point in, Cranky's labs can be found in each of the main levels of the game. DK and the rest of the Kongs, after having been freed, can visit him, and if they've collected enough color-coded Banana Coins, they can pay him to get more potions that allow them to learn new moves that are essential to reaching new areas and retrieving a number of the Golden Bananas, though all the while, he'll often engage in his usual snark and insults towards them by pointing out how undeserving or badly in need they are of some of them. Additionally, when the Kongs have collected 15 Banana Medals (which are earned when any of the Kongs collects 75 out of 100 color-coded regular bananas in a given level), he allows them to play the Jetpac arcade game, and if any of them score at least 5,000 points, he'll reward them with a special Rareware Coin, which is required along with the Nintendo Coin to open the last gate in Hideout Helm that leads to the last Boss Key.
At the end of the game after DK and his crew have defeated K. Rool, he is seen with DK as he returns the last of the Golden Bananas to the hoard, though he takes such a long time to get through the tunnel to the hoard that DK falls asleep waiting for him. After he finally catches up and pokes DK awake with his cane, DK finally adds the last banana to the pile, then offers to give him a piggyback ride. Though Cranky tries to refuse, DK still picks him up and runs with him back through the tunnel and presumably jumps into the pool of water with him.
Donkey Kong Country Returns[]
Cranky runs a shop in each of the game's worlds, and will often make sarcastic quips towards Donkey Kong and Diddy over the items that they buy. He is the only character from the original trilogy besides Donkey Kong and Diddy to appear in the game.
Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze[]
Cranky returns as a playable partner character in the game, making this the first time he appears as a playable character. At the beginning of the game, he's at Donkey Kong's house celebrating his birthday along with Diddy and Dixie. However, they are abruptly interrupted when the Snowmads, an army of arctic invaders led by a particularly large and intimidating Waldough named Lord Frederik, arrive at their island. Lord Fredrik then blows into a special horn that unleases a dragon made of ice and fierce frozen winds, which blows them off the island, with the Snowmads then conquering the now frozen Donkey Kong Island. However, the Kongs manage to fight their way through five other islands that the Snowmads had conquered before eventually managing to make it back to their home. After fighting through more of the Snowmads on Donkey Kong Island, the Kongs confront Lord Fredrik in the depths of the frozen volcano and engage in a climactic battle with him. Upon defeating him, Donkey Kong uses a final flurry of punches that sends Lord Fredrik flying out of the volcano and crashing down on the rest of Snowmad ships, defeating them for good. DK then gets a hold of Fredrik's horn and blows into it, which creates a warm breeze that restores the island back to its normal state, after which Cranky celebrates the liberation of their home with him, Diddy and Dixie.
Throughout the game, Cranky can be used whenever DK finds a barrel with his initials on it. His primary ability is to use his cane like a pogo stick, which allows DK to jump higher and reach areas he otherwise can't, cross spiky terrain that is unsafe to any of the other Kongs, as well as defeat certain enemies and destroy certain obstacles that can't be touched by anyone else. Additionally, when DK fills up the Kong-POW meter by collecting enough bananas, like Diddy and Dixie, he can perform a special move with him that defeats all the enemies on the screen. When Cranky performs the move with him, all the enemies leave behind Banana Coins.
Personality[]
As his name suggests, Cranky is a grouchy old man with a bitter disposition. He has a fairly arrogant and egotistical attitude, as he often claims himself superior to his grandsons, and whacks them with his cane when they fail to live up to his high expectations, even going as far as calling Donkey Kong his "lazy good-for-nothing (grand)son". Cranky can be rude and snarky, but he isn't cruel, as he does care for his family, can get fiercely protective if they are in danger, and is even more aggressive towards his enemies. Eventually, he comes to show pride in his grandsons' accomplishments, and even admits that they may have surpassed him.
Other Media[]
Donkey Konga[]
Cranky also appears in the Donkey Konga series, serving as a playable character in the third game in the series. This marks the first time he's playable in a video game.
DK: King of Swing[]
Cranky and the ghost of his wife Wrinky teach Doneky Kong and Diddy the controls of the game in Cranky's Lectures. He, along with Candy Kong, are the only Kongs in the game that are not playable.
DK: Jungle Climber[]
Cranky teaches Donkey Kong and Diddy how to play the game, and instructs the both of them on new moves, power-ups, and collectables in various levels.
Donkey Kong Barrel Blast[]
Cranky yet again appears as a playable character, unlocked after the player completes Challenge 24 in Candy's Challenges.
Super Smash Bros.[]
Cranky Kong appears in the stages of Kongo Jungle and 75m as background character. In Super Smash Bros. Brawl as a collectable trophy and a sticker that increases the user's indirect attacks. Cranky Kong returns in Super Smash Bros. for 3DS/Super Smash Bros. for Wii U as an collectable trophy. In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Cranky Kong appears as a summonable spirit that decreases the user's speed which can be summoned using cores of Cyrus, Reese and Wrinkly Kong. His spirit battle is against Donkey Kong on Jungle Japes with a sleep-inducing floor.
Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle[]
Cranky Kong himself does not appear in the the game, but his Rabbid equivalent is a playable character in Donkey Kong Adventure.
Theme[]
Note: The songs don't work on Internet Explorer
|
Track |
Album |
| Donkey Kong | |
| Donkey Kong Country | |
| Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Quest | |
| Donkey Kong Country Returns | |
| Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze | |
| Mario Tennis | |
| Mario vs. Donkey Kong | |
| Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis | |
| Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again! | |
| Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem! | |
| Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars | |
| Mini Mario & Friends: amiibo Challenge | |
| DK: King of Swing | |
| DK: Jungle Climber | |
| Donkey Kong Barrel Blast | |
| Super Smash Bros. series | |
| Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle |
Trivia[]
- Cranky Kong's family relation with Donkey Kong has been inconsistent in the series. In Donkey Kong Country's instruction manual and in following games developed by Rare Ltd., it is stated that Cranky is Donkey Kong's father. However, in Super Smash Bros Brawl and Donkey Kong Country Returns, he is said to by his grandfather. On the Japanese website for The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Donkey Kong's profile mentions that Cranky Kong is his father, although it's unknown if this reflects on the game continuity.
External Links[]
- Donkey Kong on the Villains Wiki
- Cranky Kong on the Villainous Benchmark Wiki
- Cranky Kong on the Heroic Benchmark Wiki
- Cranky Kong on the Mario Wiki
- Cranky Kong on the Nintendo Wiki
- Cranky Kong on the Donkey Kong Wiki
