Ask Guru Gobbo #112

Since so many people asked, and since it was ready the day after the comeback session was posted (d'oh-ith!), there's the full, cynical, and biting truth to last month's question, Where's Bogg? And that's really about how it happened, too. Guilty as charged.

- February 8th, 2009

  1. Leirin
  2. N-Z 43
  3. 888Chilly
  4. Dedede-Daimyo
  5. Leirin
  6. Kirby G
  7. Kirby-4-Ever
  8. Escargon Fan 101
  9. Brandon

Everyone always thinks that the ability shown in the Kirby Wii trailer is Water, which makes sense--but in all honesty, I think it could be Bubble, too. Although the trailer was shown/game was announced in 2005 (2004?), and Squeak Squad came out late 2006, I get the feeling Squeak Squad was in development at the time, so it's possible it was Bubble. But who knows...

Here's hoping the game comes out in 2009.

- Leirin

Squeaky Bogg

It could very well be Bubble rather than a new Water ability, but there are some things that have me leaning more towards Water. For starters, the hat is different. Rather than suds, it is a crown of waves. That's a good first indicator. It continues with the actual enemy. It's not just that it's different, as they change all the time, but the foe is pointy-topped like a typical droplet of water. That comes across more watery than bubbly. Finally, the actual attack is very distinct. Kirby spits up "a shape" that arcs and falls. Bubbles don't really follow gravity. Being pockets of air, they drift. This is a globule of liquid that splashes upon impact.

I mean, yeah, it could be Bubble, sure. There's also the chance that the molecules of my body and chair will synch up, and I'll slip right through it. Possible? Yes, but probable? Not really, given the body of just loose facts presented. Now, granted, it's not nearly that unlikely, but that's just the scenario I pull from my book of scenarios. Wait until I find reason to pull out my flamethrower chainsaw analogy.

Hey Bimblesnaff, I have a few questions for you:

1. Could O3 ever make it into a Kirby game?

2. Can you make a new Ometon sprite? I'm a big fan of him!!!

3. Finally, what's your favorite mini-boss?

- N-Z 43

Squeaky Bogg

1) No is my best guess and the probable answer. Zero was part of the Shinichi Shimomura "Dark Matter Trilogy", and there seems to be some character embargo within those titles. While Dark Matter and 0 have similar enemies appearing in games, like Dark Mind and Drawcia Soul for a stretch, it's not them... him... whichever. Since they aren't used in games really and even their direct acknowledgement is skirted around, it seems unlikely that a in line named Zero-Three (or cubed?) would be making any sort of appearance.

2) Really? A fan of the Ometon? The spiky ball or the individual? Because one would have not much behind it to be fanned for, and the other does more to be hated for. Anyhoo, I don't make those pictures, so I can't help you there. Maybe the Ometon can hook you up, however.

The Ometon

Help! I don't have a whole lotta capacity for expression! I don't even know what emotion this is supposed to be! Maybe its Surprised-I-have-a-fan-for-some-reason?

3) My favorite mini-boss is Bugzzy.

finally your back. looks like the entire site did nothing for 2 months.

well, So i watch the newest (which is still old) kirby translation. When i see this I actually said what the????? Why do they talk about global warming on a cartoon?????

Do you still accept sheet music? I finally got it to change into a midi then using a midi notation player, it finally got into a picture!

- 888chilly

Squeaky Bogg

1) Two months? Apparently, somebody got in a temporal rift of some sort as this place only went without Gurus or Uncle Gobbo sanctioned activities for one full month, January 2009. Sniff. I guess no one cared for what was done in December.

2) The animated series tried its best to be more than just a cartoon about Kirby. It tried to be a "slice of life" that adults could relate to, as well. At least, that's what I think it says on the Anime page. If Ivy said it, it's good by my book.

3) Yeah, I ... I guess I still accept sheet music. I pretty much accept anything that can be reasonably submitted to the site since I don't really think it's too known who handles what anymore, pretty much meaning atrophy and apathy. The only thing about sheet music is that it should be presented in a fashion like the sheet music that already exists on the site. I didn't set the standard, but I think consistency is a good point to uphold.

Welcome back, Bimblesnaff and Bro!

I knew you would return soon enough. People just need to calm down and learn some patience! Anyway, glad to see you're back. To the questions>>

1) Does Bonkers have eyes? It kind of looks like he is wearing sunglasses, but they never come off.

2) How does TAC carry around his sack? Not with his hands, apparently.

3) Are characters like Wheelie, Heavy Lobster, Heavy Mole, and Dyna Blade robots, cyborgs, or living beings? I mean, Dyna Blade can't be, because she has chicks, but they all have metal plating, and such.

4) Do you think the Angel from the last level, the miniboss tower, of Kirby's Dreamland 3 was a precursor to the fairies of Ripple Star?

5) For that matter, do you think characters from that game like Pitcher Man and Granny are what true "Dreamlanders" (so-called Kirbies) look like? They have a very common appearance and similar shape; that is, if Kirby himself is to be considered unique.

6) I like your newly colored Squeaky Boggs adorning the Gurus Main Page! The color style gives them a very realistic look and a killer texture, much better than the old flat ones. How do you do it?

7) I humbly ask you add Leirin's Kirby Dream>> Your Source For All Things Kirby website to the links section of KRR, with her approval, of course. It is a great up-and-coming site that has much potential, and I think it would be great for everybody.

8) In addition, Lei is working on a project called the "Kirby's Greatest Hits Super Songbook" that combines artwork with lyrics to Kirby music, to which members of the Fan Art Gallery here can contribute. If you are really thinking of the next Interactive Fandom, perhaps you could suggest participating in this project. Ya know, like you used another of her ideas :)

9) Lastly, I can't thank you and your bro enough for the fantastic work put into displaying my Kirby Super Star Ultra Emaki! It was an absolutely great Christmas miracle, indeed :) If I were to make another long picture scroll, would it be too much trouble for you all to work your magic again? Thanks! And I appreciate all the work you do for the site! Continue Well!!

10) Ps. One more thing. Thanks for the honor of dedicating the FrontPage Picture this year to yours truly. I express much gratitude! Does this mean you'll make me a trophy? hurhur...

- Dedede-Daimyo

Squeaky Bogg

1) While I'm not certain how it is played off in the animated series, the in-game Bonkers, from what I have always assumed, just has shadow over his eyes. It's just an ever present shading that keeps his oculars masked. If they were eyewear in some fashion, a shine or other marking would be present on them to show dimension and separation between lens and frame. No, I think they are a black void as it is just that, a lightless spot created by his pulled down cap and prominent jaw.

2) T.A.C., being modeled after a stereotypical cat burglar, should be slinging his bag of booty over a shoulder. However, he doesn't really have much of a body to speak of, being mostly a head. I always just took it that the off-side of his sprite was where the deal went down, a common trick to dodging explaining certain situations within games when designers have no idea how to make it look good. Or, to set up a safety net for myself, it's no bag, it is his back! And it's disgusting!

3) Heavy Lobster, for certain, is a construct. It was built just like the Halberd in my take, and probably around the same time. There's no organic qualities to it what so ever. It's mech-o-matic. However, there's a blurred line that comes between what is or isn't alive in Dream Land. Plenty of enemies seem like they should be just metal and other materials tossed together, like Shotzo, Bomber, or Kaboola, and it raises some confusion about what is what. What has to be remembered is that Kabu is stone, Rocky is too, and Puffy is a cloud. Life comes in all kinds on Pop Star, and off. Why, a buzz saw is alive on other stars. It's a wacky galaxy.

As for Heavy Mole, I've always viewed him as more of a cyborg, but he'd probably make more sense as a large digging machine. The eye just gives me the impression of a chewy, caramel center. Caramel is, of course, what resides within the cores of all Dream Landers, which is why Kirby likes to eat them so much.

Wheelies, at first, were presented as completely organic beings that were just shaped like tired. There wasn't any real reason to question it. However, once the dawn of Wheelie Rider came about, and the several more in Air Ride, they started being more mechanical. I would say it's just barding, armor plating for a steed, that give them this added detail. Or, maybe, they turned cybernetic. Jaw ("Joe" in Dream Land 3) has a propeller caudal fin, so it's not like its unheard of.

Dyna-Blade, I never liked. The thing just clashes too much with the Kirby style. I've never even thought for a second that the gigantic bird could be anything outside of farm raised. It has very elaborate plumage, and what looks to be a jewel encrusted vest, but the chicks can be seen to grow up to be like her in appearance. Of course, I could really see why a robo-confusion would be raised after seeing her in the animated series. 3-D animation equals stiff and lifeless.

4) Yes and no. Since both were part of the Shinichi Shimomura era, many ideas and characters were borrowed between the titles. The angel does have a similar appearance to the Ripple Fairies but looks like Ado at the same time. Maybe less twiggy. The primary difference is, of course, that the angel had feathers while the fey had insectoid wings. Couple that with the two distinct bodies have absolutely no relation or other shared conjoining, it begs why such could even be considered. However, it can't be said that after having that character designed that the idea for a star populated by other sweet li'l girls didn't pop into the game maker's minds.

5) Pitcher Man and the like have round bodies, hands, and feet. Kirby has ... exactly the same. Different sizes, different shapes (slightly), and different faces, yes. Hands, when gloved well in older games, appear as floating spheres next to the individual, so that even fits. What you're looking at is a culmination of vague character traits that amount to a large difference. It would be like standing me next to any chosen site-goer and saying that we are of a wholly different species or what just because of these minor differences. Humanity comes in a large range of heights, forms, and tints. That's one of the reasons I get so peeved when everyone just uses a carbon copy of Kirby to make a "new character". Of course, I go ahead and shove the folks from Broom Hatter to Wizzer in with what I consider a Dream Lander, but the prior statements still hold true. So, yes.

6) The regular icons appear flat because they are processed in a method called "flat coloring", which makes absolutely no attempt at gradient in the name of quickness in processing. It's literally thresholding the ink lines and filling in the white space. The ones on the main page were done in water color pencils. That texture is actually an accidental effect acquired from the microscopic size I draw most pictures at (one to three inches). The branded WCP Boggs were suppose to replace all others, as they certainly couldn't be finely integrated with the existing ones, but after realizing just how much of them I had accumulated, I just shrugged it off and used them for display purposes. They actually required a large degree of color adjustment, being very blanched out when scanned, which is why it probably won't be an adopted method.

7) A fresh face probably would be nice to liven up the very-much-so dead links. So many seem to be dead links or abandoned. Of course, many people confuse Rainbow Resort for the same. Strangely, the last place I knew her site to be is reporting non-existence.

8) I dunno if that'd be the thing I'd try to fly in Interactive Fandom. I try to keep the events limited to thought process and ideas with pictures as an optional submission. I have been, tho', thinking of some type of contest or deal to run in the Gallery to freshen things up since it is known there that everyone is willing to draw. Of course, knowing better from playing the numbers of active members and participating members, that stuff usually just gets kicked to the side, just like Staff Infection.

9) That was all him, truthfully. I would have just smacked up thumbnails placed near one another that linked to the full scope. Then again, I only know HTML. I don't know it extensively.

10) Truthfully, that was part homage, part sloth, and part demonstration. I wanted to make sure folks knew about the Emaki as, really, it's just great stuff. I was also running low on the FPC ideas and wanted that landscape reshaped, so I figured it'd be a good intermediary. Lastly, I wanted people coming to the front page to see a good hand drawn picture to deter the pink-circle-on-a-navy-background-drawn-in-MS-Paint-bitmap I get every so often. It's always navy.

Lately I've been getting pop-up ads for like, credit card payments. I thought KRR was free from the tyranny of pop-ups! Blargh.

Do you think the Kirby Wii will end up getting turned into, what, some kind of Air Ride Wii? There's a chance. Or maybe, it will altogether be a different game from what we even saw three (soon to be four!) years ago?

- Leirin

Squeaky Bogg

1) Yeah, GameSpy has been getting pretty ad-tastic as of late. First, they had the annoying and ever-growing banners. Next, they had the intrusive page transition ads pick up in frequency. Now, pop-ups? I use things with pretty good pop-up blockers, but, blergle, GameSpy has been getting on my nerves as of late with its crazy ads.

2) I highly doubt it. The game, while delayed as it is, would make a lousy race game. It had too much other stuff going for it to dumbed down to just travel. I don't even know how the stacking would bit would even be used to make an interesting gimmick. Piling could easily make for big, fancy attacks, but for travelling, it'd mainly serve to burden, and players tend to want to go faster when racing. Of course, that's just speculation. It's also speculation that the title will even ... come ... out.

is kirby and earthbound/mother both made by hal?

- Kirby G

Squeaky Bogg

Does this constitute as a "tough question"? 'Cuz, i gotta tell ya, right on the Wikipedia page for Earthbound, it plainly says "HAL" right when you go there. And Kirby, well, unless you go temperarily blind whenever booting any Kirby title ever, you know... Kinda obvious. Right there, smack dab on the bottom of the screen. Just sayin'.

I like to put down comments in the gallery, but it's not letting me, is there a problem? Yes, I'm logged in.

- Kirby-4-ever

Squeaky Bogg

Yes, there is a problem. That "problem" was ruled as you commenting too much in disregard to the rules, holding off-topic conversations and the what-not, which resulted in your name being added to a cut-access list along with a few other folks who did the same. Yep, that's what happened.

will kirby ever return to television?! i needs mah daily dose of kirby!

- Escargon Fan 101

Squeaky Bogg

Kirby was never one daily. That's just crazy talk. Weekdays, maybe, but Sunday and Saturday? Doesn't sound likely.

Anyways, I'm inclined to say "no". The show has been on for a long time, considering it was just one-hundred episodes. I mean, that's normally maybe a five year run, four at the rate they cut out episodes and rush cartoons. The fact that it remained on air this long is frankly surprising. Most shows, cartoons especially, fade away after they broadcast the last episode. Kirby managed to stick around a good while afterwards, two years, and came back again thanks to the writer's strike and the new show drought. I think it's pretty safe to say that Kirby is gone from television, barring a new series or your local broadcaster. By the big picture, nodda.

who is marx

- Brandon

Squeaky Bogg

Who is Marx. Really? Well, I've gotten and answered "Who's Gooey?", so I guess if Super Star escaped someone's play, it'd be a bit of a mystery. Also, I need another tick to launch this session.

Marx is a resident of Pop Star. Innocent, cheerful, and dressing like a clown, he inspires Kirby to cease the quarrel of the sun and moon in Milky Way Wishes with the legend of Galactic NOVA, an ancient being who can grant wishes if the power of the surrounding stars is collected. Think Dragon Ball with less charging up. However, Marx is a two-faced fink and takes the wish from Kirby, wishing for control of Pop Star and transforming into some sort of glittery monster. He, of course, gets defeated by Kirby, blows up NOVA, gets reborn from NOVA's scraps, and is defeated again in Super Star Ultra for The True Arena's final of final bosses.

Repeat Response:

  1. Peeps asked why Meta Knight wears a mask.
  2. Stephen asked if Galacta Knight could be.
  3. Stephen asked if Galacta Knight was related to Kirby.

With all that out of the way, I just want to note how long it's been since this session was churned out. The big problem is that I'm trying to clean up this place to make the questions about Kirby rather than, say, myself or current on-goings to the site. This place should be more for profound, thought-provoking questions. All the glory-hogging stuff should be, oh, I dunno, piled over in Mailbag? Say, who changed that page? * fakes innocence *

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Last Updated - February 8th, 2009