Donkey Kong jr

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thumb|220x220px|Fans/Fake Doppelgangers/Clones of Junior in Mario Kart: Double Dash!!; while the real Junior is no where to be found, his presence and impact are felt
For the game Donkey Kong Jr., see Donkey Kong Jr. (game).
Donkey Kong Jr. (also known as DKJ or DK JR. or Junior for short or DK II or Donkey Kong the Second) known to be Donkey Kong Sr.'s docile, calm and collected, studious, sensitive, thoughtul, respectful, constructive, productive, responsible, mature, civilized, sophisticated, level-headed, intuitive, insightful, disciplinary, charismatic, optimistic, gentle, helpful, chivalrous, dutiful, quick-thinking, kind, and pure of heart playful boy-scout of a son and the father of the modern DK meaning he's part of the second generation in the DK Lineage. He's best at being the hard-working tough love dad with a blue collar job, a Virtual Boy Tennis player, a fruit hoarder, and the City/Office Kong with an infamous master's degree in arithmetic.
This retro arcade icon and enigmatic '80s main protagonist may have slight dwarfism and be a bit on the chubby side but DK JR. (while looking and acting youthful and comically punching modern DK despite being in his all grown up middle aged adult years in an official manga) also prides himself in his heroism and actively performs brave heroic acts showing his sense of justice, but as he grew up and got older and wiser he has not been in many games as a playable character. However he still makes numerous secret appearances roles and hidden cameos such as Mario spin-offs, Mario Clash, Super Mario Maker, Super Mario Bros. remakes, Donkey Kong remakes, Punch-Out!!, NES Remix, WarioWare, Animal Crossing, Tetris DS, and the Game & Watch Gallery series.
As a traditionally reactive hero, Jr. appreciates humanity and believes in mercy, peace, and using diplomacy to talk things out. Evident by his lack of adventures with the main DK cast and different preferences like either making cameos or partaking in more sophisticated pursuits including competitive mathematics, virtual reality tennis, and go-kart racing.
It's no surprise that Junior's happiness and ultimate grandiose goal isn't to be a videogame hero like his laid-back and rebellious Star Child of a son, nor is it to obsess over the glorious NES/Arcade/8-bit days of retro gaming like his senile and grumpy father.
Becoming restless, Junior's career and interests would rather propel him on a journey to follow his dreams and isolate from that life, he went to go achieve his quest for enlightenment in solitary, while not the most open or outspoken role-model, the lesson he taught was that there are many different directions to choose on the path to success.
His first appearance was in the game Donkey Kong Game & Watch and first starring role was Donkey Kong Jr., where he makes it his own task to rescue his father from Mario.
As DKJ is more innocent, nice, happy, curious, heroic, selfless, cautious, patient, well-mannered, somewhat reserved/quiet/soft-spoken, capable of getting little shy/embarrassed, well-versed in social customs, and the Voice of Reason contrasting his violent, selfish, petty, hot-tempered/loud-mouthed, standoffish, clumsy/goofy, empathy lacking, obsessive, aloof, arrogant, and narcissistic dad, which shows that JR. has got the humanistic brains that opposes his dad's animalistic brawn (demonstrated when he is solving tough Math problems), though this doesn't prevent him from being swept into others' intensive feuds, impusively rush into dangerous situations without a pre-planned strategy, get recklessly cocky, or get caught off guard and imprisoned in a cage.
He at least wears outfits like a White Leotard/Singlet/Onesie and White Shoes (while regularly using a hand-mirror to check on his looks) making him much more fashionable and gentleman-like than the original DK). The two still have a deep love and mutual respect for each other with Cranky being proud of his son and JR. is forever loyal to him.
Originally, he was heavily implied to be the father of the current Donkey Kong which was later confirmed on page 112 in the 2017's Playing With Super Power: Nintendo Super NES Classics eGuide, Super Mario Kart 16 Bits Tab, a book by Prima Games and officially licensed by Nintendo.
Gregg Mayles on Twitter in 2017 also confirmed that modern DK is Cranky's grandson, and the statement in DK64 was a mistake and an outlier not to be construed as literal since DK64 is the only game that has claimed this. Furthermore, not only is it common for "son/sonny/my boy" to be short for "grandson", it's also simply used by older people non-literally towards any younger males as a common figurative term (for a vague example: "son of the Kong Family") and form of endearment whether they're biologically related or not ("pappy/pops/old man" is generally used for "grandfather"), and it's possible Cranky raised DK "like a son" (confirmed in DKC and DKCR) instead of literally being his son. Another explanation is that Cranky calls DK "that undeserving son of mine" in a pun like sense, DK is his grandson, but as far as Cranky Kong is arrogantly concerned DK is not "grand" at all; hence Donkey being his "good for nothing son".
It should be noted: DKC3 and DK64 were developed by a different team at Rare as opposed to the original team that made DKC and DKC2 (the original team had moved on and were making the N64 game series Banjo-Kazooie) which can lead to conflicting statements.
It should also be noted that there is no in-game dialogue/text nor manual/instruction booklet that ever explicitly states that DK is Jr., debunking the fan misconception. The Japanese version of DK64 says grandson; as does an official Japanese Nintendo Online Magazine that came out around a similar time mentions it, both of which directly contradict the outated fan notion; as that remains accurate to every other in-game reference that came out before and after DK64.
It is also referenced in the grand majority of the games that the current Donkey Kong is Cranky Kong's grandson such as in the original DKC trilogy and it's GBC/GBA remakes, Donkey Kong Land, Super Smash Bros. Brawl/Ultimate, Donkey Kong Country Returns, and Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze. This heavily suggests that Donkey Kong Jr. is actually the current Donkey Kong's father.
==History==
===Donkey Kong Jr. Math===
The intelligent Donkey Kong Jr. solves math problems with his cleverness, level-headedness, and the original Donkey Kong. He can also compete with his re-colored palette swap, "Pink Donkey Kong Jr.". DK JR. gets extra advanced learning compared to Pink Donkey Kong Jr. such as with the +-x/ exercises (and possibly calculus).
===Mario Kart Series===
Donkey Kong Jr. (now a young adult) has appeared in the original Super Mario Kart for the Super NES as a playable character celebrating the 10th anniversary of his arcade game and his shared history with Mario. He is one of the heaviest characters in the game along with Bowser and like Bowser is a (in Junior's case friendly) rival to Mario.
Contrary to popular belief, JR. was not replaced with his son the current Donkey Kong for the future games, in Mario Kart 64 JR. was actually replaced by Wario. Kamek replaced Koopa Troopa and was originally going to appear in Mario Kart 64 but in fact Kamek was the one that was replaced by modern Donkey Kong for the final game for unknown reasons.
In Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, JR. was originally going to be the partner to current Donkey Kong but was replaced by Diddy Kong, however JR. still makes a cameo appearance in Waluigi Stadium in the form of his fan club/fake doppelgangers/clones, while the real character is no where to be seen, his presence and impact are felt. Music from Donkey Kong Jr. appears during the first part of the DK Mountain/Dino Dino Jungle theme.
===Donkey Kong (Game Boy)===
Donkey Kong Jr. appears in the 1994 Game Boy retelling (possibly a stage play akin to Super Mario Bros. 3) of the infamous Big Ape City/New Donk City kidnapping event from Donkey Kong (game). Here, DK Jr. throws Poison Mushrooms and also pulls and pushes on switches/levers called Directional Switches used to either hinder or help Mario by activating/deactivating platforms. They are used to control conveyor belts, moving platforms and elevators. They can also be used to make bridges appear and disappear, as well as opening and closing gates.
It is shown in Stage 8-9 of Rocky-Valley that the plumber can lose a life when touching Donkey Kong Jr. Sometimes, Donkey Kong Jr. even appears out in the open and throws Poison Mushrooms. Finally, Mario got to stop him for good in Stage 9-4, where he locked him in a cage in a fashion similar to Stage 4 of the original Donkey Kong Jr.. In the ending, Donkey Kong Jr. somehow managed to free himself and lay in wait as Pauline gave Mario a Super Mushroom to catch Donkey Kong Sr., and acted as soon as his father was calling for help, DKJ managed to save him. In the end, the group of characters take a photo together, implying they called a truce and are now peaceful towards each other.
===Mario Tennis Series===
Young Adult Donkey Kong Jr. also appeared in Mario's Tennis for the Virtual Boy (where he wears tennis shoes) and with time traveling shenanigans appeared as his younger self in Mario Tennis for the Nintendo 64 as an unlockable character. He is considered a Power character along with Donkey Kong, Wario, and Bowser.
===Ralston===
Donkey Kong Jr. had his own fruit flavored cereal made by Ralston. Each box contained a free PEZ or 4 baseball cards inside.
===Super Smash Bros. Series===
Donkey Kong Jr. is not playable in the Super Smash Bros. series but he does make some form of appearances. Mr. Game & Watch's Down Aerial is a Key that references his arcade game Donkey Kong Jr.. Diddy Kong's White Alternate Costume does reference Junior's appearance in Donkey Kong Jr. Math
===Super Smash Bros. Melee===
Donkey Kong Jr. appears as a trophy in the GameCube game, Super Smash Bros. Melee.
===Super Smash Bros. Brawl===
Donkey Kong Jr. appears as two stickers. JR.'s trophy was going to be in Brawl, but it was scrapped.
===Super Smash Bros. Ultimate===
Donkey Kong Jr. appears as a spirit. Music songs from his arcade game and the original Donkey arcade game were remixed and appear as selectable stage music.
===Donkey Kong Country Returns===
Although Donkey Kong Jr. does not appear, he is referenced in the Golden Temple world where the theme that plays in the sky area is a remix of the Donkey Kong Jr., ending, stage and title themes. Additionally the Fruit from his game including the Bananas appear as platforms. The K-Temples and the Golden Temple have depictions of the original Donkey Kong.
===Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze===
Donkey Kong Jr. appears as a cameo at the end of the Aqueduct Assault level in the background in Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze inside a Wii U GamePad held high by the original Donkey Kong. He is referenced in the Secret Seclusion world where the theme that plays in the sky area is a different cover of the Donkey Kong Jr. music.
==Trivia==
*Donkey Kong Jr. is mostly seen walking on his two hind legs/feet and keeping his arms to his sides just like a human (he also has two buck teeth (a full set of teeth later in life) and has even worn tennis shoes though he still has his slight dwarfism) and his jumps are aesthetically identical to Mario. This suggests that Junior is really good at imitation and impressions considering his cartoony expressions and human-like mannerisms and even his super abilities appear to be inspired by cartoons such as Looney Tunes, Popeye, Tex Avery, and Tom & Jerry.
*Donkey Kong Jr. throughout the video games and other media has made a tremendous amount of feats and achievements.
*DK JR. was originally going to star with his dad, Mario, and Pauline in a music game for the NES called Donkey Kong no Ongaku Asobi (Music Play/Fun with Music) but it was cancelled (his instrument would have been Drums).
*His sprite/assets can be found in Donkey Kong 3 suggesting a role he might have had with original Donkey Kong and Stanley the Bugman.
*Donkey Kong Jr. first appeared as the son of the original Donkey Kong that kidnapped Pauline. This was Cranky Kong. Cranky Kong has alternatively been described as the Grandfather or Father (the latter is only said in DK64) of the current Donkey Kong appearing in the Donkey Kong Country games. This means that JR. could either be DK's father or DK. However Nintendo likely believed that the new Donkey Kong's design is too different than that of JR. (different head shape, face, and fur color) (if anything JR. would look more like classic DK (except incredibly shorter) rather than modern DK), seeing Junior as a relative arcade icon and viable/relevant property, and with the debut of Baby Donkey Kong they took the opportunity to disprove that they are the same character, it is also referenced in the grand majority of the games that the current Donkey Kong is Cranky Kong's grandson such as in the original DKC trilogy and it's GBC/GBA remakes, Donkey Kong Land, Super Smash Bros. Brawl/Ultimate, Donkey Kong Country Returns, and Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze. This heavily suggests that Donkey Kong Jr. is actually the current Donkey Kong's father.
**Jr. being Cranky's son as well as being the father of the modern Donkey Kong was also later further confirmed in 2017 in DK Lineage section on page 112 in the Playing With Super Power: Nintendo Super NES Classics eGuide, Super Mario Kart 16 Bits Tab, an official book by Prima Games as the true official familial interpretation, whereas the section on page 192 with the "Donkey Kong Jr., all grown up" statement according to Prima on their social media accounts is meant to be written as a metaphor for the gameplay/design process and evolution of the older Donkey Kong games to the more modernized Donkey Kong Country games (the gameplay mechanics and strategy of the Donkey Kong Jr. arcade game heavily inspired DKC and it's sequels) rather than be taken as literal; it references how Junior had the playable Kong role instead of DK himself, and said role was now "all grown up" (aka modernized) and redesigned with new moves. It should also be noted that there is no in-game text nor manual/instruction booklet that ever explicitly states that DK is JR., debunking the fan misconception.
*Real-life Gorillas reach the age to desire a child at 6–10 years old, and mature at 11-15 since they age 2-3 times faster than humans meaning that Cranky in both human years and Kong years is much older than Mario, by the time of Donkey Kong Jr. Junior (in Kong years) would have already been older than Mario, and already old enough to have a son of his own (Baby Donkey Kong), that would later become modern Donkey Kong who would be a bit younger than Mario.
**Mario is Age: 24 and regularly eats 1-Up Mushrooms that make him physically age slowly, while Donkey Kong is (in human years) around Age: 1-6 and (in Kong years) around Age: 11-20, in Tropical Freeze since he is celebrating the 20th anniversary of Donkey Kong Country which came out in 1994.
*In a Nintendo Power advertisement for the game Donkey Kong Land, it shows a mysterious Kong who wears a fedora (Fedora Kong) and was planned to appear in the game but was later cut (it's heavily implied that he would have appeared in Big Ape City; an area filled with arcade Donkey Kong references).
*He looks very similar to Donkey Kong except with darker and jagged fur, slightly more pink skin tone, and more sophisticated. Men who wear fedoras in the earlier days of film aside from being very dapper and lady-attractive (this character is the well-mannered polite gentleman type who slightly condescendingly says "m'lady" and does a hat tip and a respectful bow as well as embody the tough dad persona) this demeanor and fashionable hat are used to depict the father, or at least a mature, sophisticated, level-headed, and civilized fatherly figure/"The Man's Man"/"The Everyman" who always brings many forms of respectable wisdom and intellectual advice and is almost completely void of any type of mean-spirited attitude, while they are the type that gives tough love and are slightly stern, they are still good-natured, casual, and fun-loving.
**Fedora Kong is speculated to possibly be Donkey Kong Jr. in disguise. To add, Fedora Kong's artwork shows him in a pose that bears a resemblance to DKJ's default/forward facing sprite from Donkey Kong Jr.. He's also round and pudgy like DKJ is, along with a wider face and thicker limbs. However it is not confirmed if they are the same character.
***In Donkey Kong Jr., one of DKJ.'s sprites presents him as sad, hinting that he is scared while he's trying to save his father from Mario, which could partially explain why he's not shown going on dangerous/life-risking missions in later DK games (unless he's forced to), though acting as the hard-working tough dad he's willing to help others and likes fun, light-hearted, peaceful activities, but tge sprite could also be hinting that he's secretly a little shy and also hint at his self-doubt as a small part of him might be unable to confidently believe he has courage even if he has had courageous moments, thoughts which he tends to keep to himself. It's unlikely for JR. to just vanish from Donkey Kong Island, he would most definitely want to be there in his son's and family's lives.
****However JR.'s whereabouts are unknown. He and his wife are missing, he doesn't appear to be a part of his son's and the Kong Family's lives as it's stated by Donkey's grandfather Cranky Kong in Donkey Kong Country Returns that he was the one that raised Donkey. It's unknown whether or not JR. is still on Donkey Kong Island.
*An idea for Donkey Kong Country was for Diddy Kong to be an updated/re-imagined version of Donkey Kong Jr. however Nintendo didn't like it thinking that the redesign looked too drastically different and asked for JR. to appear in his original design or make an entirely new character, the latter was chosen thus Diddy Kong was born. Diddy did inherit some of JR.'s smarts (Junior is reminded of a younger version of himself when he sees Diddy) and became the Red Oni to JR.'s Blue Oni.
*Donkey Kong Jr. in the Saturday Supercade cartoon had a personality somewhat like Scrappy-Doo from Scooby-Doo, complete with his catchphrase MONKEY MUSCLE!!. Diddy Kong however in the main series seems to have fully adopted JR.'s cartoon counterpart's traits barring the catchphrase while Junior became more of a Mario/Mickey Mouse type character.
*Junior first appeared in the form of his predecessor/genesis/previous counterpart called the Mini Donkey Kong in the Game & Watch Donkey Kong title. This incarnation of him was the one who appeared on a red girder and handled the alarm function for the game, which are akin to watches for the Game & Watch. The Wonder Life guide for Donkey Kong '94 released in 1994 states that the Mini Alarm Clock DK is the same character as Junior, the one who would show up in his own titular arcade game, Donkey Kong Jr..
*It's possible Junior was made relatively bigger (sometimes even bigger than Mario and even Bowser) and grew into a young adult for games such as Super Mario Kart and Mario's Tennis as an artistic choice, likely so it would be easier for players to see the character sprites (plus his White Leotard contrasts his fur) and contrast the stage/background, due to hardware limitations.
*Cranky Kong, Wrinkly Kong, Donkey Kong Jr., and Diddy Kong have conjoined eyes whereas modern Donkey Kong doesn't.
*JR. is the only Kong that has never been shown using a Barrel.
*Donkey Kong Jr., the original Donkey Kong, and Wrinkly Kong are the only known Kongs who know how to do math correctly.
*Donkey Kong Jr. was supposed to be in Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, but was replaced by Diddy Kong.
*Super Mario Kart is the only Mario Kart game to feature Jr. as a playable character.
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