King K. Rool
- This article is about the main antagonist of the Donkey Kong franchise. For the boss level in DK: King of Swing, see King K. Rool (level).
- "K. Rool" and "KRool" redirect here. For his ancestor from Super Donkey Kong with Mario 2, see Cranky K. Rool. For the musical theme from Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest also known as "KRool", see Crocodile Cacophony (K. Rool's Theme).
| King K. Rool | |
|---|---|
 Screenshot from Nintendo Today! | |
| Species | Kremling |
| First appearance | Donkey Kong Country (1994) |
| Latest appearance | Donkey Kong Bananza (2025) |
| Latest portrayal | Tsuguo Mogami (2025–present) |
| Member of | Kremling Krew (leader) |
- “I've been waiting a long time for this moment. Soon, Donkey Kong and his pretty little island... will be no more.”
- —King K. Rool, Donkey Kong 64
King K. Rool, also known as simply K. Rool or Rool,[1] is the arch-enemy of Donkey Kong and the main antagonist of the Donkey Kong franchise. He is a large potbellied Kremling usually seen with a bulbous, bloodshot eye who has undergone several different aliases while leading the Kremling Krew, usually for a scheme that involves stealing the Kongs' banana hoard.
Creation[edit]
- “Never expected old K.Rool to make it out of DKC, let alone turn up in #SmashBros nearly 25 years later. Maybe I should have spent a bit more than 5 minutes coming up with his slightly rubbish name.”
- —Gregg Mayles on King K. Rool's name
During early production of Donkey Kong Country, the character that would become King. K Rool was named "Krudd".[2] Another proposed idea had the character named "King Klinker" and have him paired with a female Kremling named "Queen Krapp".[3] Later in development, "Kommander K. Rool" was considered as the character's name.[4] This planned name was given a brief nod in the fake credits during his boss fight, which mentioned him as being the "Kommander" of the game.
When asked what the K in "K. Rool" stands for, Gregg Mayles replied "Nothing! It was just a way of making him seem more important, that he'd added it to inflate his ego. In hindsight, it could have been something tonal like 'Kremling', or something deliberately out of character like Keith. What do you reckon it should stand for?"[5]
His Kaptain K. Rool alter ego was designed by Steve Mayles.[6] Baron K. Roolenstein was designed by Mark Stevenson.[7]
General information[edit]
Physical description[edit]
- “I'm just an old dried-up lizard!”
- —King K. Rool, "Ape Foo Young"
In King K. Rool's most common appearance, he wears a red cape and a gold crown, but he is fond of adopting many other looks and costumes as well. When he takes on the alias of Kaptain K. Rool, he trades in the cape for a brown trench coat and the crown for a pirate hat. When he becomes Baron K. Roolenstein, he wears a white lab coat and a tall prosthetic forehead with a small black wig resembling Frankenstein's monster, and has a Propellerpack on his back. His outfit is based on a combination of Frankenstein's Monster as portrayed by Boris Karloff in the Universal horror movie Frankenstein and the character of Baron Victor von Frankenstein (played by Peter Cushing) from the Hammer Horror Frankenstein series. In Mario Super Sluggers, K. Rool wears an Ancient Egyptian-style usekh collar and loincloth, much like a pharaoh. Cranky Kong mentions in the Donkey Kong 64 instruction booklet that K. Rool had given up his silly disguises in that game. While he has not seriously gone incognito since Baron K. Roolenstein, for the final fight he goes by the moniker "King Krusha K. Rool" as a boxer. During this fight he sports a stereotypical one-piece as well as boxing gloves with a champion's belt.
K. Rool has three clawed toes on each foot and his hands each have four clawed fingers, though early appearances depict blunt or even nailed fingers. His Kaptain K. Rool and Baron K. Roolenstein sprites depict his hands as being much larger than in his typical appearances. K. Rool debuted with a tail, though its length and presence have varied between appearances. His tail was the longest in Donkey Kong 64, stubby in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and completely absent in DK: King of Swing and the animated series. He is portrayed with a signature bloodshot eye, usually his left eye. K. Rool's skin is light green (though some appearances show it as dark green) and he has muscular arms, as well as usually being shown with jagged teeth.
In Donkey Kong 64, during the final battle in the boxing arena, King Krusha K. Rool (his boxing alias) is wearing a boxing outfit. He is wearing a blue spandex suit, which has a thick, white stripe on both sides. King Krusha K. Rool also has a champion's belt, which has a brown strap and a gold center, tied around his belly. He wears a pair of red boxing gloves, and a pair of reddish-pink shoes, which are almost the same color as his boxing gloves. A large hole appears in front of K. Rool's left shoe; inside of it, K. Rool is shown to have four toes. Contrarily, in his regular character model and artworks, K. Rool has three toes. For both his regular and his boxer alias, K. Rool's crown has eight prongs, fewer than that in the Donkey Kong Country games.
King K. Rool's underbelly was originally golden in texture and color (meant to be a piece of armor according to character designer Steve Mayles[8]), but since DK: King of Swing his underbelly has been changed to a light flesh tone, and has lost the prominent vertical indentation down the middle. In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, he regains the gold plate, which now has a sharp ridge along the edges but still lacks the vertical indentation; however, Palutena's Guidance mentions his "leathery" belly, though it is possible she is referring to the belly underneath the armor. In this game, his general head and body shape is more akin to the later games, though he has a tail again, albeit a short one. King K. Rool also has more pronounced scales in this game, akin to his design in the Rare games. He is also once again depicted as being distinctly larger than Donkey Kong. His cape also appears to be slightly torn up at the bottom.
King K. Rool has seven other costumes to choose from in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, all of which change his colors. His orange costume resembles Kerozene from the Game Boy Advance version of Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest and Re-Koil from Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble! It also resembles the red Kritters that appear in the Donkey Kong Country series. King K. Rool's blue costume resembles the armored blue Kritters that appear throughout the Donkey Kong Country series, as well as Krusha from Donkey Kong Country and Donkey Kong 64. His yellow costume resembles Kutlass from Donkey Kong Country 2, as well as Kopter as he appeared in Donkey Kong: Barrel Blast. King K. Rool's pink costume resembles Skidda in Donkey Kong Country 3, Klump as he appears in Donkey Kong 64, and Kritters from the Game Boy Advance version of Donkey Kong Country. King K. Rool's black costume resembles the armored Black Kritters from Donkey Kong Country, while his brown costume resembles Klump's original appearance in said game, one of his alternate colors in DK: King of Swing, and a partial inversion of his normal colors. Lastly, King K. Rool has a white costume, which somewhat resembles an albino crocodile.
King K. Rool's design in Donkey Kong Bananza is largely based on his Super Smash Bros. Ultimate appearance, but with a few differences: his scales are square-shaped (alongside now being a slightly darker shade of green), his snout and teeth are more akin to that of his Rare-era design, his bulging eye is more bloodshot, his tail is back to its longer length again and his cape now has a slightly frayed hem instead of the large rips. He is also much larger in this game, even larger than he was in Donkey Kong Country and Donkey Kong 64. In his Core King K. Rool form, his eyes become golden yellow (including the blood vessels in his bulging eye), his belly armor slightly cracks, and his wristbands, crown, and cape turn into bananas and the gem holding the cape is replaced with his new emblem. He additionally gains two more bands near his shoulders.
Personality[edit]
- “That slimy, scaly, foul-breathed lizard, King K. Rool! Professional bad guy, the big daddy of evil.”
- —Cranky Kong, "Bad Hair Day"
K. Rool, as his name, a pun on "cruel", may imply, is brutal, ruling his minions through threats and intimidation, often punishing them severely when they fail. This is mentioned by Klubba in Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest, who says that K. Rool mistreats his minions.[9] This is also seen in Donkey Kong 64, when he punishes a purple-haired Kasplat via a giant red Klaptrap for losing Blueprints and calling him "fatso", not realizing that K. Rool was listening. Even his most powerful followers seem to fear his wrath, as displayed in Donkey Kong 64, when his subtle display of anger results in Army Dillo fainting on the spot. He does not seem to respect his henchmen, the Kritters, much better either. In Mario Super Sluggers, he refers to brown Kritter as "the dirty under-belly of the Kremling Krew", and in Donkey Kong Bananza, when noticing their lack of presence shortly after being freed from encapsulation when explaining to Donkey Kong and Pauline why he was near the Planet Core in the first place, he insultingly referred to the Kremling Krew as "no-good banana bandits" and "toothless and useless" after wondering where they were. In Donkey Kong 64, he even has K. Lumsy locked up due to his gentle nature, despite being K. Rool's younger brother in the Japanese version. This abuse of his underlings has also worked against him, as demonstrated by Klubba openly rooting for Diddy and Dixie to ruin his boss's plans, and also K. Lumsy being implied to have supplied him with a massive beatdown before sending him flying again as revenge for locking him up after being sent flying by Funky Kong earlier. In addition, a diary entry at sublevel 1600 near his statue by a Kremling Krew member explaining the circumstances behind their being trapped indicated they were far more afraid of what K. Rool will do to them once he gets free than they were truly concerned about his well-being or themselves being trapped. Despite all of this, however, he and the Kritters have good chemistry with each other in Mario Super Sluggers and the trophy bios of Kalypso and Kludge show he respects and trusts the former as a capable leader and is intimidated by the latter's ferocious temper. K. Rool is also somewhat of a dirty fighter. He fakes defeat, often collapsing in the middle of combat and making it seem like he has been defeated, only to rise seconds later and begin fighting again after a fake credits sequence. He has also shown himself to be negligent towards nature.[10] He has also shown some desire for planetary destruction if such benefitted him, as in the Japanese version of DK: Jungle Climber, he declared his intention to use the power of his Crystal Banana to obliterate Planet Plantaen.[11] This is further indicated with Donkey Kong Bananza where he declares that he intends to transform New Donk City, and ultimately the entire planet, into a world full of overripened banana mush for him to feast on as a "meal fit for a king."
K. Rool hates the Kongs, Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong more so than the others, having referred to them as "filthy apes" and "monkey brains". Despite his hatred of the Kongs, however, he is nevertheless willing to employ evil Kongs such as Manky Kong and Minkey, as well as being susceptible to Candy Kong's charm, as evidenced by his being mesmerized by Candy flirting with him in Donkey Kong 64, even going so far as to reach out to her from the ring in apparent infatuation (which was later revealed to be a diversion to distract the Kremling leader long enough for Funky Kong to literally "give him the boot" by firing a boot from his bazooka). He is also capable of commending the Kongs' skill, as shown when they first enter the Lost World in Donkey Kong Land III, where he also gives them six Watches and invites them to try Time Attack mode after he is defeated, as well as in Mario Super Sluggers where he joins Donkey Kong's team after acknowledging their skill. K. Rool also appears to have some respect for the oldest Kongs as he had worked with Cranky Kong to steal the banana hoard in Donkey Kong Land and had taken classes from Wrinkly Kong in Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest.
Both Donkey Kong 64 and Super Smash Bros. Melee imply that K. Rool is somewhat insane and demented. The final battle of Donkey Kong 64 also shows him to be somewhat of a showboater, constantly showing-off and making taunting gestures. He has bad chemistry with all of the Kongs in Mario Super Sluggers, although he makes it clear that he is only teaming up with them when playing baseball, showing that he is capable of putting aside his hatred for them and will team up with them if needed, similarly to Bowser. He is also seen with Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong at their house sleeping in Banjo & Kazooie's reveal trailer despite his hatred for them.
According to Leigh Loveday (one of the writers of the Donkey Kong Country series) on Rareware.com's former Scribes column, K. Rool's motivation for stealing the banana hoard is either that he wants Donkey Kong to starve to death so that he can occupy his "cosy treehouse pad", or perhaps that he simply likes bananas.[12] The latter explanation is supported in the Donkey Kong Country manual, which states that the Kremlings coveted the bananas for their nutritional value,[13] Palutena's Guidance in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate which states that Kremlings like bananas, the half-eaten bananas on the Gangplank Galleon, the Giant Bananas in The Flying Krock, and a piece of art by Steve Mayles depicting K. Rool reading a banana recipe book.[14] However, K. Rool purports that he hates bananas in the English localization of DK: Jungle Climber.[11] While Donkey Kong Bananza does make clear that he enjoys bananas like in previous sources, it further specifies that he enjoys them being overripe and rotten.
Powers and abilities[edit]
- In combat, King K. Rool usually uses his size and strength, attempting to tackle, crush and even leap onto opponents; considering his physique, attacks, and athletic abilities from the first Donkey Kong Country and Donkey Kong 64, he is capable of inflicting considerable damage with physical strength alone. Although, in Donkey Kong: Barrel Blast, King K. Rool's attack is a single claw swipe. Additionally, despite his size, King K. Rool can actually be quite swift and speedy in battle (far more so then Donkey Kong, as shown in Donkey Kong Country where he can leap from one end of the Gangplank Galleon to the other in one jump). In DK: King of Swing, King K. Rool had the highest attack out of all the characters. He is tied with Bowser and Petey Piranha for the best batting abilities in Mario Super Sluggers.
- In Donkey Kong Country, King K. Rool boasts the ability to summon a barrage of large cannonballs to rain down on Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong.
- In Donkey Kong Country 2, Kaptain K. Rool can teleport.
- In Donkey Kong Country 3, Baron K. Roolenstein simply uses a remote control to activate his arenas' gadgets and weaponry in battle. While not directly observed, he was also capable of practicing powerful sealing magic, as stated by the Banana Queen. In Donkey Kong Land III, K. Roolenstein can shoot electricity from his hands and throw bombs.
- In Donkey Kong 64, King K. Rool displays the ability to create multiple shockwaves by slamming the ground once (although, as demonstrated with Tiny Kong, doing this too many times will cause him to injure his posterior, leaving an opening for Tiny to inflict damage to his toes). He can also perform a powerful uppercut after charging at the Kongs, which can knock Chunky Kong high into in the air, even when he is the same size as K. Rool.
- In Donkey Kong Country 2 and Donkey Kong 64, King K. Rool displays his ability to turn invisible, though minor details still give away his position. In Donkey Kong Country 2, his blunderbuss leaves smoke puffs behind him, and in Donkey Kong 64, his shadow can still be seen on the ground when he is invisible.
- In DK: Jungle Climber, King K. Rool, after being damaged in battle, can turn temporarily invincible (gaining a reddish coloration) and the ability to assume a ball shape and bounce off surfaces rapidly. After being empowered by a Crystal Banana, King K. Rool gains a multitude of different powers, such as manipulating the weather, summoning meteors, breathing a barrage of fireballs and exploding mines.
- In Donkey Kong Bananza, King K. Rool uses the Banandium Root to empower himself into K. Rool, King of Rot, giving him control over Banandium mush. He retains his physical strength as well, defeating Void Kong with a single punch.
Weapons[edit]
Throughout his various appearances, King K. Rool uses a variety of weaponry.
In Donkey Kong Country and Donkey Kong Land, using his trademark attack, King K. Rool attacks Donkey Kong or Diddy Kong by taking off his crown and throwing it at them, which can boomerang back to him.
In Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest and Donkey Kong Land 2, Kaptain K. Rool uses a powerful blunderbuss. He fires different types of ammunition such as Kannonballs, spiked Kannonballs, barrels, and status-afflicting mists, which either freeze, slow, or disorient his targets. K. Rool also uses his blunderbuss as a vacuum to suck the Kongs toward him, whereupon he hits them with the butt of his blunderbuss. In addition to using it as an offensive weapon, he also uses it as his primary form of movement by aiming it in the opposite direction and using the jet propulsion to thrust him forward at high speeds.
In Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble! and Donkey Kong Land III, Baron K. Roolenstein uses a helicopter-equipped pack on his back to obtain flight. Despite the fact that K. Rool can actually move faster on his feet, and the fact that the helicopter pack is his weakpoint in the game, it is necessary for his trap-based fighting strategy; it allows him to avoid his own electric beams by hovering over them. Through the use of a remote, he can manipulate various objects in his lair, such as altering positions and movements of platforms, and activating pods that send blasts of electricity at Dixie Kong and Kiddy Kong. During the battle in Krematoa, Baron K. Roolenstein's remote can also activate a fireball-launching cannon and a moving conveyor belt, in addition to the electric pods. In Donkey Kong Land III, he shoots electric beams and throws bombs.
During the final battle of Donkey Kong 64, in his fight against Diddy Kong, King Krusha K. Rool is capable of throwing his boxing gloves as boomerangs.
In Donkey Kong Bananza, King K. Rool steals Void Kong's All-Mine Remote, allowing him to transform terrain. His Propellerpack has been upgraded to a jetpack, allowing him to outpace the Banandium Root Tower to the surface. He also uses a triple-barreled blunderbuss both in the Planet Core and as the King of Rot in New Donk City, which fires large cannonballs that generate toxic Banandium mush as they roll across the ground.
Vehicles[edit]
King K. Rool also uses a wide variety of vehicles, from his Gangplank Galleon, to large airships, such as the Flying Krock and K. Kruizer III. DK: King of Swing also shows King K. Rool has in his possession a personal hovercraft, which can move quickly. He also uses a type of barrel vehicle in Donkey Kong: Barrel Blast. Another one of these vehicles is the Propellerpack.
Family[edit]
- “Oh, my favorite part is going back to the swamplands to play gator-games with all my slithering siblings. We just roll around in the muck all day, drinking bog-nog and exchanging villain stories! And then later, we will gorge on one of mummy's home-made mud pies!”
- —King K. Rool, "The Kongo Bongo Festival of Lights"
King K. Rool mentions having a wife in Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble! Specifically, after KAOS is defeated a second time, Baron K. Roolenstein appears, stating he built KAOS from his wife's best pots and pans. It is unknown if K. Rool is telling a joke, or if he actually has a wife. In a December 23, 1999 edition of the Scribes section of Rare's website, Leigh Loveday stated that K. Rool's "my wife is going to kill me" line was merely "a typically throwaway Vic and Bob reference."[15] The wife does make a physical appearance in 4koma Gag Battle and 4koma Manga Ōkoku where she is depicted as a thin Kremling woman with light hair and an apron over a black dress. His wife is mentioned again in the description for the fossil based on KAOS in Donkey Kong Bananza.
In the episode "The Big Switch-a-Roo" of the Donkey Kong Country television series, King K. Rool mentions his mother, and in "The Kongo Bongo Festival of Lights" he mentions his "slithering siblings."
Though K. Rool's trophy information erroneously states that Kaptain K. Rool is his brother, according to the Japanese version of Donkey Kong 64, K. Lumsy is King K. Rool’s little brother.[16]
According to the Nintendo Magazine System, K. Rool is a descendant of Kremlantis' former residents.[17]
In the Donkey Kong Country television series episode "Baby Kong Blues", King K. Rool attempts to raise Baby Kong for an heir, renaming him "Prince Junior Croc", but Donkey Kong eventually manages to convince him otherwise.
In Super Donkey Kong with Mario 2, K. Rool meets an ancestor of his called Cranky K. Rool who lived in Donkey Kong Island's depths for more than 500 years after the shame of losing at Picross against the Kongs.
Pets[edit]
In Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest, K. Rool's parrot is Screech, while in the cartoon, K. Rool takes the parrot, Polly Roger, as a spy.
In Donkey Kong 64, K. Rool keeps an unnamed green Klaptrap as a pet, stroking it in a manner similar to Ernst Stavro Blofeld from James Bond. The Klaptrap enjoys using K. Rool's viewscreen in its spare time. Exclusively in the Japanese script, K. Rool also refers to Dogadon as his cute pet.
Themes[edit]
- See also: Category:King K. Rool's themes
King K. Rool has had various musical themes associated with him throughout his history. His most recurring leitmotif is "Gang-Plank Galleon" from Donkey Kong Country. Other notable leitmotifs for King K. Rool include "Crocodile Cacophony (K. Rool's Theme)" from Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest and "Big Boss Blues" from Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!
 Gang-Plank Galleon - The musical theme from Donkey Kong Country | File info 0:28 |
| Crocodile Cacophony (K. Rool's Theme) - The musical theme from Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest | File info 0:30 |
| Big Boss Blues - The musical theme from Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble! | File info 0:30 |
In Donkey Kong 64, King K. Rool has a unique leitmotif, which is incorporated into several other themes in the game, such as inside the Temple with Five Doors and during a Game Over. This leitmotif would go on to also appear when he is first revealed and during his boss battle in New Donk City in Donkey Kong Bananza.
| K. Rool's theme[conjectural] - The theme that plays in the intermission cutscenes featuring K. Rool in Donkey Kong 64 | File info |
| Blueprint Appears[conjectural] - The tune that plays when a Kasplat is defeated and a blueprint appears in Donkey Kong 64 | File info |
| Angry Aztec (Temple with Five Doors)[conjectural] - A portion of the music that plays in the Temple with Five Doors in Angry Aztec in Donkey Kong 64 | File info |
| K. Rool Escapes[conjectural] - The music that plays when K. Rool escapes in his Kremling craft in Donkey Kong 64 | File info |
| K. Rool Battle[conjectural] - The final boss theme in Donkey Kong 64 | File info |
| Game Over[conjectural] - The Game Over music in Donkey Kong 64 | File info |
| New Donk City - The music that plays in New Donk City in Donkey Kong Bananza, featuring K. Rool's leitmotif | File info |
History[edit]
Donkey Kong franchise[edit]
Donkey Kong Country series[edit]
Donkey Kong Country[edit]
King K. Rool first appears in Donkey Kong Country as the seventh and final boss. K. Rool, as the main antagonist, is the catalyst of the game's events, since his minions steal Donkey Kong's banana hoard, prompting Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong (whom he frees from a DK Barrel) to go all the way over to K. Rool's ship, the Gangplank Galleon, and face him in battle. King K. Rool attacks by throwing his crown like a boomerang. Without the crown on his head, K. Rool can be stomped. After four hits, K. Rool causes cannonballs to drop from the sky. After K. Rool takes three more hits, the false ending credits ("kredits") are shown, featuring names of Kremlings as programmers, including King K. Rool himself as "kommander". After the "kredits" are shown, King K. Rool gets back up and tries to stomp on the Kongs by jumping: first making long jumps, then long and short jumps, then long, short, and very short jumps. K. Rool is defeated completely after three more hits. K. Rool also appears after the cast of characters is shown in the Game Boy Advance remake, where he forces Donkey, Diddy, Candy and Cranky Kong off the ship by threatening to blow up Kong Island with his onboard cannons.
Some of King K. Rool's voice clips from Donkey Kong 64 are reused in the second remake.
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest[edit]
In Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest, taking place after the events of the first game, K. Rool (under the alias of Kaptain K. Rool) kidnaps Donkey Kong and holds him ransom over at Crocodile Isle, demanding the banana hoard in exchange. Diddy refuses K. Rool's offer, and he goes on a journey to rescue him, now accompanied by his girlfriend Dixie Kong.
K. Rool is supposedly a student at Kong Kollege, as one of Wrinkly Kong's lines of dialogue is asking the Kongs if K. Rool has done his homework. K. Rool is not a skilled sailor despite being a pirate, and he is responsible for multiple shipwrecks such as the one in Krem Quay.[18]
Kaptain K. Rool is first fought in K. Rool Duel, the boss level of The Flying Krock. He is first seen whacking Donkey Kong with the butt of his blunderbuss and shooting kannonballs at him, though only when first visited (later visits show him simply shooting a kannonball out of his blunderbuss before starting). K. Rool's main actions are to shoot kannonballs, both regular and spiked, as well as to dash back and forth with his blunderbuss. Kaptain K. Rool takes damage each time a kannonball is thrown into his blunderbuss, which causes it to spark and eventually backfire, causing him to be covered in soot as well as K. Rool looking to the screen in shock immediately beforehand. Late into the battle, K. Rool begins a tactic of turning invisible and shooting light-blue, red, and purple smoke, which briefly freeze, slow, and invert the D-Pad controls, respectively. After nine hits, just before K. Rool can resume fighting, Donkey Kong breaks free and uppercuts him through the ceiling of the Flying Krock (in the GBA remake, he instead goes flying through the cockpit, causing the Flying Krock to crash), with K. Rool collapsing into the swampy waters of Crocodile Isle. In the SNES version, he falls into Krem Quay and ends up being preyed on by carnivorous fish, while in the GBA version, he instead falls directly into the Lost World and challenges Diddy and Dixie to fight him there.
K. Rool is fought a second time at Krocodile Kore in the Lost World, accessible after collecting every Kremkoin. After shooting out some fish from his blunderbuss, K. Rool shoots several kannonballs and lastly a barrel containing a kannonball. The battle ends with K. Rool defeated once the kannonball enters his blunderbuss, which explodes as a result. From this, K. Rool is launched into a geyser that acts as a power source to Crocodile Isle and becomes stuck as the energy continues to build up until finally exploding, sinking Crocodile Isle underwater. The ending scene shows a ship sailing away from the island's remains, with a sinister laugh playing as it sails over the horizon. In the remake, K. Rool and his ship are bombed by Funky Kong from his Gyrocopter, with K. Rool vowing to have revenge.
Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble![edit]
The title of being the Kremling Krew leader seemingly goes from K. Rool to KAOS during the events of Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!. K. Rool, going by the alias of Baron K. Roolenstein, is not seen until the penultimate battle at Kastle Kaos, when the red curtain lifts. After confessing to a plot of world domination involving KAOS, K. Rool says a Scooby-Doo-esque line, "[...] and I'd have gotten away with it... ...if it wasn't for you meddling kids", before taking over for the remainder of the battle. K. Rool uses a helicopter pack on his back to fly and a remote control to send blasts of electricity. K. Rool can be attacked from having a barrel hit his helicopter pack, which Dixie and Kiddy can spawn by grabbing on a certain handle. When K. Rool is defeated, KAOS crashes on the ground, freeing Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong.
Baron K. Roolenstein is fought a second time in Knautilus, accessible in Krematoa after Dixie and Kiddy recover all five cogs. The battle is different, as K. Rool is often in the background and only sometimes arrives in front, where the Kongs are. K. Rool attacks by launching fireballs, and later electrical beams. Like before, K. Rool can be damaged from Steel Kegs hitting his helicopter pack, which for this battle applies also to when K. Rool is in the background. After ten hits, K. Rool is defeated, losing control over his helicopter pack while moving out of control in the Knautilus.
Baron K. Roolenstein is last shown using the stolen Hover Craft on the Northern Kremisphere map, after the player characters free the Banana Queen. She flies after K. Rool as revenge for being imprisoned and drops an egg onto him, trapping K. Rool as his eyes peek out of the eggshell, appearing confused.
Donkey Kong Land series[edit]
Donkey Kong Land[edit]
King K. Rool makes his second appearance in Donkey Kong Land, the follow-up to Donkey Kong Country. He is called by Cranky Kong to steal Donkey Kong's banana hoard,[19] as part of a bet that Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong cannot have a successful journey on a Game Boy system. K. Rool is the final boss, and he is fought in K. Rool's Kingdom at the end of Big Ape City. He retains his moves of throwing his crown and dashing to other sides of the screen. After six hits, K. Rool starts using a belly flop attack, which he does not use in Donkey Kong Country, and takes twelve hits to defeat altogether.
Donkey Kong Land 2[edit]
Kaptain K. Rool returns as the main antagonist of Donkey Kong Land 2, where his role in the plot is identical to Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest. Kaptain K. Rool is first fought on K. Rool Duel at the end of the Flying Krock. He only shoots kannonballs and lastly a barrel with a kannonball that can be thrown into his blunderbuss. At the end, Donkey Kong breaks free and uppercuts K. Rool out of the arena, results in his defeat.
Kaptain K. Rool is fought again at Krocodile Kore in the Lost World, again requiring every Kremkoin to access. It is mostly the same, but like in Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest, only a single kannonball is required to defeat K. Rool. Unlike before, K. Rool is not seen escaping from Crocodile Isle as it sinks underwater during the end cutscene afterward.
Donkey Kong Land III[edit]
K. Rool reappears in his ancestral[20] baron costume in Donkey Kong Land III. He is among the competitors who searches for the Lost World. Baron K. Roolenstein is never titled as such in the game, only as K. Rool (incorrectly titled K Rool in levels where he is fought). He is first fought in K Rool Duel, where his attack is to shoot electric beams and, after being hit by a barrel, bounce around briefly. It takes only three hits to defeat K. Rool.
K. Rool is fought again in K Rools Last Stand, at the end of the Lost World. K. Rool attacks using bombs, besides electrical beams, and is vulnerable to barrels like before. Following K. Rool's defeat, Dixie and Kiddy are announced the winners of the Lost World contest, and K. Rool gives the six Watches to the Kongs, challenging them to complete the Time Attack mode.
Diddy Kong Racing[edit]
Though King K. Rool himself does not appear in Diddy Kong Racing, he is alluded to by Krunch in both the instruction booklet and on the official Krunch's Dirty Tricks webpage. In both cases, Krunch refers to King K. Rool as "boss".
Donkey Kong 64[edit]
King K. Rool has a new scheme to destroy Donkey Kong Island in Donkey Kong 64, by using the Blast-o-Matic from the rebuilt Crocodile Isle, which breaks down and undergoes repairs after crashing into a rock. To buy time for the repairs, K. Rool has Diddy Kong, Tiny Kong, Lanky Kong, and Chunky Kong imprisoned and steals Donkey Kong's Golden Banana Hoard again. He has some similarities to the James Bond villain Blofeld, petting a Klaptrap in the manner of Blofeld petting his cat as well as having his face largely obscured in earlier cutscenes. However, K. Rool breathes and speaks similarly to Star Wars villain Darth Vader. K. Rool's laugh uses a pitched-down version of the "Evil Laugh" stock sound effect from the Cartoon Trax Volume 1 album,[21] which is reused for Kloaks and Krocs in the Game Boy Advance remakes of Donkey Kong Country 2 and Donkey Kong Country 3, respectively. He witnesses the Kongs' progress at parts of the journey while also scolding the Kremlings for their incompetence. At one point, he sends a large red Klaptrap after a Kasplat for trying to escape.
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Portraits of Kaptain K. Rool are in various areas, including Gloomy Galleon's sunken ships (as well as "Kaptain K. Rool's Log Book"), several log cabins in Crystal Caves, and in Creepy Castle's Museum.
Around the time the Kongs infiltrate Hideout Helm, the Blast-o-Matic becomes nearly operational. K. Rool orders the machine to activate, ignoring warnings that it could explode. Later, when the Kongs deactivate the Blast-o-Matic entirely, K. Rool tries to escape in his Kremling craft, but a released K. Lumsy knocks it to the ground. The final battle takes place in the boxing arena within the Kremling craft, complete with spectators and King K. Rool, as his boxer alias King Krusha K. Rool. There are five rounds, each involving a different Kong:
- Round 1: K. Rool fights Donkey Kong. He attacks by ground pounding to produce shockwaves. From the perspective of a Baboon Blast cannon, K. Rool is shown t