- <span title="Source: "Kong for a Day"">"I am the king of Kong, the simian number one."
- —Diddy Kong[["Kong for a Day"|[src]]]
Kongs (also known as the Apes in production literature for the Donkey Kong Country television series)[1] are sapient primates that make up much of the cast of the Donkey Kong franchise, with the eponymous character himself being one. They are capable of actions such as speech and building houses and typically wear clothing, though the amount varies drastically with the individual, with Donkey Kong himself wearing only a tie, while many others wear full outfits. They seem to be native to Donkey Kong Island, and they share an animosity with much of the crocodilian Kremling race. While most of them share the surname "Kong," they are not all directly related to one another. Kongs can resemble any number of real-life primates, with Donkey Kong, Funky Kong, and several others being gorillas; Diddy Kong being a monkey, Dixie Kong and Tiny Kong being chimpanzees; and Lanky Kong being an orangutan.
In the Donkey Kong Country cartoon and Saturday Supercade, Kongs are never referred to as such outside their individual names. Instead, generic names of various real-life types of primates, such as "monkeys," "chimps," "gorillas," and "apes," are used fairly interchangeably to describe them. However, the term "baboon" seems to be reserved as an insult, potentially due to it sounding similar to the word "buffoon," and is even used against other species, such as Cranky Kong using it against Krusha in "From Zero to Hero."
The word "Kong" is a Japanese slang word for "gorilla."[2]
Kong Family[]
List of Kongs[]
Donkey Kong's family[]
- Cranky Kong's great grandfather — Was said to have once owned an antique mirror in Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble![3]
- Cranky Kong — The original Donkey Kong, the paternal figure of Donkey Kong Jr. and Donkey Kong, Wrinkly Kong's husband.
- Donkey Kong Jr. — Donkey Kong's father.
- Donkey Kong — The current Donkey Kong, Cranky Kong's grandson.
- Baby Donkey Kong — The younger version of Donkey Kong in Yoshi's Island DS.
- Baby Kong — The younger version of Donkey Kong in the Ape Foo Young episode of the Donkey Kong Country television series.
- Wrinkly Kong — Cranky Kong's wife. She appeared alive prior to Donkey Kong 64; from then onwards, she has been deceased and appears as a spirit.
In addition, Donkey Kong Jr. has a relative referred to as Uncle Julius, albeit he has not been shown to be part of the Kong clan.
Dixie Kong's family[]
- Dixie Kong — Diddy Kong's girlfriend, Tiny Kong's older sister, Kiddy and Chunky Kong's cousin.
- Tiny Kong — Dixie Kong's younger sister, Kiddy and Chunky Kong's cousin.
- Chunky Kong — Kiddy Kong's older brother, Dixie and Tiny Kong's cousin.
- Kiddy Kong — Chunky Kong's younger brother, Dixie and Tiny Kong's cousin.
Close friends[]
- Candy Kong — Donkey Kong's rumored girlfriend.
- Diddy Kong — Donkey Kong's sidekick and Dixie Kong's boyfriend.
- Funky Kong — Donkey Kong's friend.
Other members[]
- Baby Kong — A baby that was under the care of Candy Kong and Dixie Kong in the Baby Kong Blues episode of the Donkey Kong Country television series.
- Bink — A deceased Kong-like character in Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga. In the Nintendo 3DS remake, his appearance is the same as the rest of the skeleton sailors of the S.S. Chuckola.
- Bluster Kong — A rich arrogant Kong that runs Bluster Barrelworks on Kongo Bongo Island.
- Leo Luster — Bluster's alter-ego from the Hunka Hunka Burnin' Bluster episode of the Donkey Kong Country television series.
- Eddie the Mean Old Yeti — A Kong that lives in the mountains of Kongo Bongo Island.
- Junior (II) — A pink variant of Donkey Kong Jr.
- Kong Fu — A Kong that challenges Donkey Kong in the television show.
- Lanky Kong — Relationship unknown.[4][5]
- Mini Donkey Kong — A Kong that signifies an alarm.
- Monkey Kong — An implied Kong chosen to lead the Federation of Future Rulers.
- Rabbid Cranky — A Rabbid/Cranky Kong cross-creation.
- Ringo — A cartoonist friend of Donkey Kong appearing in the Donkey Kong Jungle Action Special.
- Super Kong — A powerful version of Donkey Kong that appears to help the player get through levels. Super Kong also has the ability to get a white-furred Diddy Kong as a partner.
- Swanky Kong — A Kong that hosts a game show.
- Poppa — An implied Kong who is the father of Sonny who disappeared
- Uncle Kong — A Kong similar in appearance to Bluster described as "Diddy's uncle" who gives various tips in JK Voice's Donkey Kong Country 2 strategy book.
- Various generic, unnamed Kong characters seen at the starting line of DK Jungle and Bananan Labyrinth in Mario Kart Arcade GP DX.
- Various generic, unnamed Kong characters in The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
Evil Kongs[]
- Dread Kong — A member of the Kong boss group.
- Ghastly King, a.k.a. Cactus King — The leader of the Kong boss group.
- Karate Kong — A member of the Kong boss group.
- Ninja Kong — A member of the Kong boss group.
- Rabbid Kong — A Rabbid/Kong cross-creation.
- Mega Rabbid Kong — Rabbid Kong's corrupted alter-ego.
- Sumo Kong — A member of the Kong boss group.
Robotic Kongs[]
- Candy Clone — A robotic version of Candy Kong under the control of King K. Rool in the Donkey Kong Country television series.
- Cannon Kong — A monkey robot from the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series.
- Capture Kong — A monkey robot from the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series.
- Catapult Kong — A monkey robot from the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series.
- Circus Kong — A monkey robot from the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series.
- Cool Kong — A monkey robot from the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series.
- Crash Kong — A monkey robot from the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series.
- Cyber Kong — Robotic Kong enemies that can shoot lasers from Donkey Kong Barrel Blast.
- Kongā — A monkey robot from the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series.
- Mini Diddy Kong — A toy made by the Mario Toy Company.
- Mini Donkey Kong — A toy made by the Mario Toy Company.
Kong species[]
- Guerrilla — Enemies from Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars that have an uncanny resemblance to Donkey Kong.
- Chained Kong — A stronger variant of Guerrillas, from Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars.
- Manky Kong — Enemies from Donkey Kong Country that are described as "Kong reject orangutans".[6]
- Uckykong — Enemies from Yoshi's Crafted World that are a hybrid between an Ukiki and a Kong.
- Snow Ucky Kong — A snow variant of the Uckykongs, from Yoshi's Crafted World.
Unused Kongs[]
- An unnamed, hatted Kong. — Donkey Kong Land
- An unnamed Kong with dark fur and glowing red eyes. He was replaced by Dread Kong in the final game. — Donkey Kong Jungle Beat
- The Helper Monkeys from an earlier build. — Donkey Kong Jungle Beat
- Redneck Kong, also known as "Crappy Kong". He was replaced by Candy Kong in the later build. — Diddy Kong Pilot
Gallery[]
Kong Family[]
Group[]
The Kongs of Donkey Kong Country. From left to right: Funky Kong, Diddy Kong, Candy Kong, Donkey Kong, and Cranky Kong.
The Kongs of Donkey Kong Country 2. From left to right: Diddy Kong, Donkey Kong, Dixie Kong, Funky Kong, Cranky Kong, Wrinkly Kong, and Swanky Kong.
The Kongs of Donkey Kong Country 3. From left to right: Kiddy Kong, Diddy Kong, Donkey Kong, Cranky Kong, Dixie Kong, and Wrinkly Kong.
The main Kongs featured in the game Donkey Kong 64. From left to right: Diddy Kong, Lanky Kong, Donkey Kong, Chunky Kong, and Tiny Kong.
The main Kongs in the Donkey Kong Country TV show. Clockwise from top left: Funky Kong, Donkey Kong, Bluster Kong, Candy Kong, Cranky Kong, Diddy Kong, and Dixie Kong.
The Kongs of Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze
Emblem[]
Barrel
Coin
Pennant
Portal
Dirt pile
Switch
Other Kongs[]
A Manky Kong, from Donkey Kong Country.
The main Kong bosses from Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat. From left to right: Karate Kong, Dread Kong, Ninja Kong, and Sumo Kong.
The starting line of DK Jungle in Mario Kart Arcade GP DX, with two unknown Kongs cheering at the sides.
Miscellaneous[]
Trivia[]
- In Donkey Kong's character poster for The Super Mario Bros. Movie set in the coliseum, in addition to depicting Diddy Kong, Dixie Kong, Swanky Kong, and Cranky Kong, there are also several other unnamed Kongs.
References[]
- ↑ Computer Animation: A Whole New World (1998, Rockport Publishers). "Medialab Donkey Kong Country". P. 87
- ↑ De Maria, Rusel, and Wilson, Johnny L. (2004). High Score!: The Illustrated History of Electronic Games. 2nd ed. New York: McGraw-Hill/Osborne.
- ↑ Bazaar's words: "Yes, but it's no ordinary one though! It was Cranky's great grandfather's! I can't let it go for less than 50 coins." - Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!
- ↑ In Cranky's words: "A newcomer to the Kong clan and the joker of the pack. I haven't a clue whom he's related to—must be some distant cousin or something." - Donkey Kong 64 instruction booklet, page 8.
- ↑ Chunky's bio from German DK64 website: "The well-mannered giant gorilla is, in the truest sense of the word, a great guy, and sticks to Lanky, his uncle once-removed."
- ↑ Donkey Kong Country instruction booklet, page 29.
