TheKirbymanga, which is localized asKirby Manga Maniaby Viz, is a four-volume series written by Hirokazu Hikawa. This manga is actually a selection of Hikawa’s favorite stories, with about 11 chapters per volume and a few pages of 4-koma at the end. However,Kirby Manga Maniaisn’t considered canon to the main games, just as theLegend of Zeldamanga series isn’t canon to theirs.
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Fans of theKirbyfranchise may quickly realize a few very things that are different inManga Maniacompared to theKirbyvideo games. For one, most of the featured stories don’t involve Kirby saving the world from some abomination. Also, while Kirby retains his copy abilities, he doesn’t always use them to save the day. The following are only a handful of the noteworthy differences from the mainline canon.
5Kirby Can Talk
Perhaps the first jarring thing readers will notice about the manga is that Kirby can talk. He speaks full sentences and has the naivety of a child. Kirby doesn’t say much in the games beyond a few words, but, in the manga, a talking Kirby is pretty common.
Kirby’s speech is very one-track-minded. As a result, he’s usually talking about wanting to have fun or what he’s going to eat. Since the manga is much more lighthearted, it’s fun to imagine what the Kirby in the games would say as he goes on his many adventures.
4Kirby Doesn’t Say Poyo
In the animeKirby: Right Back at Ya!,Kirby is a bit youngerthan his game counterpart. While Kirby’s actual age is unknown, the Kirby inRight Back at Ya!is confirmed to be no older than a baby. He’s also the same species as Meta Knight: A Star Warrior. However, because Kirby is so young, he’s unable to speak full sentences. Instead, he says “poyo,” which doesn’t really have a strict translation.
Despite never being used in the games beyond a recycled voice clip, many fanart and fan animations seem to portray Kirby saying his anime catchphrase: Poyo. Oddly enough, in the manga, he doesn’t say “poyo” but instead says “pe-poh.” Given Kirby’s ability to speak full sentences in the manga, “pe-poh” just seems to be an exclamation, and, sometimes, a verbal tic that’s tacked onto the end of Kirby’s speech.
3Robot Kirby and Toy Dedede
The content ofKirby Manga Maniais meant to be humorous and jovial, but that doesn’t stop weird things from happening. In Chapter 2 of Volume 1, a curse is cast on King Dedede, and he turns into a wind-up toy as a result. In this state, his personality is noticeably more cheerful than his game and anime counterparts. While the idea of Dedede beingcursed or even brainwashed by an enemymay not be out of place in theKirbygames, the design of Toy!Dedede is bound to get attention for its permanent smiling face and odd mannerisms.
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In Chapter 7, King Dedede has a robot Kirby with whom he appears to have a strong attachment. This robot looks just like… well, Kirby, only with pointy ears that may bring to mind the Pokemon Clefairy instead. Kirby being Kirby ends up breaking the robot and decides to impersonate it to trick King Dedede. There isn’t a reason for Kirby to be doing this beyond just messing with Dedede.
2Kirby Gets Drunk
Since theKirby Manga Maniawasmarketed toward a younger audience by Viz, there’s a slight edit involving Kirby in the first chapter to make the volume more kid-friendly. To be more precise, the localized chapter title is Kirby, the Loopy Picnic Crasher!, and, true to its name, Kirby does get rather “loopy.” This story follows Kirby crashing a picnic in Dream Land by eating everything in sight and just being an utter handful for Dedede and the others. At one point, King Dedede grows fed up with Kirby’s antics and throws a bottle at him, which Kirby accidentally drinks.
In the original version, this bottle was labeled with the kanji for “sake,” while in the Viz version it was edited to read “Loopy Juice.” Put bluntly, Kirby gets really drunk and even more obnoxious. One panel even shows him with his arm around King Dedede as he speaks in a slurred, drunken manner. However, the Viz localization opts to call Kirby “loopy” to avoid outright saying that he’s “drunk.” To some, this is an odd editing choice, but other fans aren’t surprised by what they consider to be an unnecessary change from the original.
1Kirby’s A Nuisance To Everyone (Especially King Dedede)
It’s hard to tell what Kirby’s thinking sometimes, but, at the end of the day, his heart is usually in the right place. He saves Dream Land and other worldsfrom dimension-eating monsters on a regular basis. Even the anime version of Kirby has some noble qualities for as young as he is. On the other hand, the Kirby inManga Maniais less considerate of others. That said, he isn’tmaliciousso much as he’s just careless. Most notably, Kirby’s relationship with King Dedede in the manga isn’t as “mutually respectful” as it is in the game, nor as “antagonistic” as it is in the anime. Instead, it’s almost as if King Dedede is just trying to live his life while Kirby acts as a pest that just keeps crawling back to ruin things.
In Chapter 3 of volume 1, King Dedede hears about a typhoon that’s going to strike Dream Land. In a panic, he has the Dream Land residents fortify his castle to prepare for the inevitable. In comes Kirby, who, for no real reason, just demolishes all that Dedede and the others worked on. Fortunately for Dedede, the typhoon never hits Dream Land, but that doesn’t make Kirby’s actions any less chaotic. Other chapters like Chapter 9 and Chapter 10 involve similar scenarios whereKing Dedede is usually the butt of Kirby’s antics, while Kirby walks away scot-free.
