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Hey this is the first Kirby character of the month thread! Talk about Meta Knight here!

Umm...Meta Knight is AWESOME!!!

Wanna give us a pic?

Fine.

Gracias.

^

It's Meta Knight from that one TV show!

Meta Knight

Meta Knight is a fictional character that appears in many Kirby games. His first appearance was in Kirby's Adventure, yet his name was not known in the US until Kirby's Avalanche. His mysterious nature has lead him playing more of a friend or foe role and less of a actual playable character throughout the Kirby series.

Characteristics

Meta Knight wields a powerful sword, and wears a blue cloak and light blue-silver mask. In some games, his mask is removed, revealing that he looks like Kirby, except that he's blue (originally black), with his facial features in white. There is a symbol on Meta Knight's left shoulderpatch, it is the letter "M" with a sword behind it. It was first used as his symbol in Kirby Super Star and could be seen on the Combo Cannon. It was also used in the anime series and in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

Games

Meta Knight is an enigmatic character. He follows a code of honor, and usually gives Kirby a sword before they fight to be fair. He is called Kirby's rival, and while Kirby often battles him, they have also worked towards the same goals in the past. Little is known of his background other than his rivalry with Kirby, and how they share a similar appearance.

Meta Knight appears to care for his home of Dream Land as much as Kirby does.

Meta Knight commands an army of several unique monsters and allies. He leads a small group of followers called the Meta-Knights (notice the hyphen), which consists of Axe Knight, Mace Knight, Trident Knight, and Javelin Knight (in English versions, they're renamed Meta Axe, Meta Mace, Meta Lance, and Meta Droid, respectively). Since Meta Knight himself is the leader of the Meta-Knights, he is sometimes referred to as "Sir Meta Knight". All of them appeared in Kirby's Adventure and Kirby Super Star at various points in the games to fight Kirby. Another minion of his is an eagle-like bird who pilots his Halberd in Kirby Super Star. Another is a Sailor Waddle Dee. Waddle Dee is a small, weak creature, who, in Kirby Super Star, stuck by Meta Knight for the fight against Kirby.

Kirby's Adventure

Meta Knight's first appearance. He appears as the boss of the Orange Ocean level that you must battle to reclaim a piece of the Star Rod. At other times, he sends his band of followers, the Meta-Knights to attack Kirby. However, he also aids Kirby in his journey by giving him special Invincibility candy. In this game, Meta Knight does not have the ability to fly, or any other special abilities. However, he is very skilled with his sword, and it is almost impossible to attack him head-on.

Kirby Super Star

Meta Knight has also played role of main antagonist; in the Kirby Super Star subgame, Revenge of Meta Knight, he attempted to take over Dream Land with the intent to end Dream Land's "lazy lifestyle" using a huge battleship called the Halberd. Kirby attacks and begins to destroy his ship, eventually destroying its main engine. He battles Meta Knight, who refuses to give up, sprouting a pair of bat-like wings and pursuing Kirby as he escapes from the Halberd. After the ship sinks into the ocean, a tiny figure can be seen fleeing the wreckage, which is assumed to be Meta Knight.

This is the first game where Meta Knight has his wings, as well as a host of mysterious abilities such as the power to create small tornadoes with his sword. He has kept most of these abilities in later games, but it is never explained how he came to possess them. (Although his trophy in Super Smash Bros Melee says that his cape turns into the wings.)

Meta Knight does offer Kirby a sword in this game. However, if you stall for too long in "Revenge of Meta Knight" he'll start the fight anyway. Originally listed as the effect of impatience, this is the only instance to date where Meta Knight will not indefinitely wait for Kirby to pick up the sword. It also probably has nothing to do with him being impatient, but rather that every stage in the sub-game has a set time limit.

Kirby & the Amazing Mirror

When evil threatens the Mirror World, Meta Knight is the first to try to stop it and save Dream Land. However, a character called Dark Meta Knight also appears in that game- an evil version of Meta Knight from the Mirror World. He looks like Meta Knight but with a gray body, red feet, a scar on his mask and a tattered cape. He traps the real Meta Knight in the Dark Mirror World while he disguises himself as the real one and attacks Kirby.

Kirby battles the disguised Dark Meta Knight, who has the same abilities as the real one. He does not give Kirby a sword for their battle, perhaps symbolizing that this Meta Knight is pure evil.

The sword the real Meta Knight wields is called 'Master', but is given no name in any other game (although in the anime, it is called the Galaxia). He gives it to Kirby to use to beat the final boss, Dark Mind.

Kirby can also use the 'Magic' Copy Ability to summon the real Meta Knight. The ability uses a roulette that causes certain things to happen at random, one of them being Meta Knight flying across the screen and damaging enemies.

Kirby: Squeak Squad

After Kirby defeats Dorocche, the leader of the thief band The Squeaks, Meta Knight appears from nowhere and takes the treasure chest that Dorocche believes to contain an ultimate power. He then escapes through a door sealed by five colored stars. If Kirby collects them he can follow him to the Secret Sea, where Meta Knight is again in his ship the Halberd, hidden beneath the waters. (It uses the same design as the one from Kirby: Right Back at Ya!)

As the Halberd rises out of the sea and into the Gamble Galaxy, Kirby battles Meta Knight to reclaim the treasure, only to have Dorocche take it again. But in truth the chest contained an evil entity called Dark Nebula. It is revealed in the ending that Meta Knight had really only taken the chest to try and stop the revival of Dark Nebula, again attempting to save Popstar.

Anime

Personality and Background

Meta Knight was also a regular on the anime series Kirby: Right Back at Ya!. In it his role is much clearer. He is revealed as a member of the same group as Kirby, the Star Warriors, and is a high ranking and respected member of the Galaxy Soldier Army which fought against the armies of Nightmare. As in the games, he works for King Dedede, but is in truth an ally to Kirby and only stays with the king to keep a close eye on his schemes. He wields a golden, spiked sword called Galaxia which has some significance to the show's plot, and had an episode devoted to it and its origins.

He acts as a mentor to Kirby, occasionally training him or defending him when needed, but above all he wants Kirby to learn for himself to eventually be able to defeat Nightmare. (However, his idea of training is to 'push him to his limits', which typically involves putting Kirby into life-threatening situations.)

He had a rather tragic past, as every one of his comrades was killed by Nightmare's monsters, leaving him as one of the only surviving members of the Star Warriors and GSA. Despite this, he doesn't come across as a depressed or angsty character as one might expect.

Meta Knight manages to be a satirical yet serious character, with many odd quirks and habits that seem to parody the 'stoic loner' stereotype so commonly seen. One example is his habit of appearing from seemingly nowhere, often startling other characters, that becomes a sort of running gag as the series progresses. He nearly always appears standing on top of objects, from tables to statues to trees (some say suggests that he's compensating for his height).

He is described as being rather cold, especially by Tiff, who often berates him whenever he allows Kirby and others to get in danger so they will learn their lesson the hard way. He shows a great dislike for stupid people and often refuses to fix other people's mistakes.

He'll usually save someone if the situation isn't their fault, but if it is the result of their own action he believes they should get themselves out of it. Rarely does he show a softer side, but he is often seen doing rather mundane things, like watching television or going grocery shopping which can have a surreal effect.

Relationships

Though he works for Dedede, Meta Knight will obey or disobey him based on whether the king's orders further his own agenda of training Kirby. At one point when Dedede questioned his loyalty, Meta Knight insisted that he was his faithful servant- and kicked him off a cliff.

Meta Knight is accompanied by Sword Knight and Blade Knight, both of whom originally appeared as sword-wielding enemy drones in Kirby's Adventure. The backstory of their connection to Meta Knight is revealed in the episode of the series, "Hour of the Wolfwrath" ("Loyalty! Sword and Blade!" in Japan). Nightmare's army attacked their home, leaving death and destruction in its wake, and the pair became bandits so they would not starve. During the pair's travels they attempted to rob Meta Knight and were attacked by a monster called Wolfwrath. Meta Knight rescued them, after which they swore loyalty to him and joined him to help out on his quest to find more Star Warriors.

The two of them are fiercely loyal to him, saying they would give their lives for his sake. They aren't as skilled in swordplay as he is, but they are quite intelligent with much of their strength in the building and repair of starships. While in the English dub they both had gruff, deep voices (only mumbling in the case of Blade Knight), in the original they were both voiced by women and sounded much younger.

The only character he regularly associates with aside from them is Tiff. She can be seen as a rare source of intelligent conversation in Dream Land, though she often disagrees with Meta Knight's methods of training Kirby and general cold-heartedness, they get along fairly well. He often goes out of his way to help her when she's in danger or needs assistance. Meta Knight is often described as chivalrous, which could explain why he protects her, however fans have taken it to mean he has some level of romantic affection for her (despite her being a little girl) and the pairing of the two of them is common in the Japanese fandom.

Meta Knight had many more acquaintances in the past, mainly his fellow Star Warriors and others in the GSA. Some of them received more focus in different episodes. One was the unnamed father of Knuckle Joe, who had been a Star Warrior and a good friend of Meta Knight. At one point Joe's father was captured by Nightmare's forces, and when he returned, his was under Nightmare's control and Meta Knight was forced to kill him.

Another was the mother of Sirica, Garlude. Meta Knight doesn't actually talk about her himself, instead having the statue Kabu tell the story. She was member of the Galaxy Soldier Army, and she and Meta Knight had gone to the lair of Kirisakin to retrieve the sacred sword Galaxia. Garlude was killed in the process despite Meta Knight's attempts to save her.

Miscellaneous

Meta Knight's actual bedroom is never shown, however we do often see him in his small living room. It is decorated sparsely, in a rather Japanese style with a tatami mat, paper lantern and hanging watercolor scroll. Weapons that belonged to Sword and Blade are hung on the walls, they say to remind them of Meta Knight's kindness. There is also a large jar of candy on display, suggesting that he may have a sweet tooth. He also has a television, and sometimes watches Dedede's network 'Channel DDD'.

His eyes also change colors to indicate his mood, perhaps to compensate for how his mask hides most of his face. Yellow is the normal color, while green seems to indicate a serious or thoughtful mood, with blue for happiness, pink for amusement, and red for anger. Occasionally they flash white, but there doesn't seem to be a particular mood attached to it. When he sleeps his eyes do not appear to close- they only dim to a dull amber color.

Meta Knight does not have wings or any of the other special abilities he shows in the games. The only special technique he is shown used is the Sword Beam. It is a massively powerly attack, capable of slicing through solid stone.

In the English-dubbed version of the anime, Meta Knight spoke with a Spanish accent (provided by Eric Stuart), possibly an impersonation of Ricardo Montalbán (or perhaps just a satirical salute to Zorro, an even more famous masked swordsman). Similarly, the dubbed voice of Sword Knight had an English accent, while Blade Knight's dubbed voice usually mumbled.

In the original Japanese version, Meta Knight is voiced by seiyuu Atsushi Kisaichi. There he has no accent to speak of, his only speech quirk being a tendency to use random English words in his sentences.

Meta Knight also appeared in the prototype for the anime as one of Nightmare's monsters. Unlike his counterpart in the final version of the anime, the prototype anime Meta Knight seems to show some expression on his mask as well as in his eyes.

Appearances in games

In the remake of Kirby's Adventure, Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land, players who completed the game and the additional "Extra" mode with one hundred percent completion got a chance to play as Meta Knight. He had several more moves than Sword Kirby, and his sword was not only extremely powerful, but also could solve any puzzle, the proverbial cutting of the Gordian Knot. He was able to transform his cape into a pair of bat-like wings in order to fly about like Kirby (without the limitations present with Kirby's method of sucking in air). His running speed is also as fast as Wheel Kirby can move. His 'death' animation shows him appearing to explode and his mask falling off the screen, rather than allowing the player to see his face.

Meta Knight was one of the many "rides" in Kirby Air Ride. Meta Knight could be used in all of Air Ride mode and in the Free Run portion of City Trial. He had to be unlocked by the player in each individual mode, by gliding for a total of 30 minutes (not necessarily in one sitting) on Air Ride and by destroying an accumulative total of 1,000 boxes in City Trial. Meta Knight can be seen as possessing both the Wing and Sword abilities in one, as he uses his bat-like wings to glide across the track and uses his sword to attack. Because of this, Meta Knight has decent top speed with good acceleration, but lacks the ability to boost.(Ironically, he has one of the lowest attacks in the game.) He is also a little bit slower than Wing Kirby. Also, in City Trial, since he is not a "machine", and therefore cannot blow up, he falls down when his health is reduced to zero, and can barely move at all.

During the final boss sequence and after Kirby & the Amazing Mirror was beaten, Kirby could wield Meta Knight's sword (whose name is apparently "Master", according to the pause screen, despite its being called Galaxia in the anime).

In Kirby: Canvas Curse, Meta Knight is an unlockable character. He is the fastest character in the game, although his health is the lowest.

After appearing in Super Smash Bros. Melee as a trophy, Meta Knight has been revealed as a character in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. What kind of play style he will have is unknown, but the trailer showed him utilizing his sword, wings, and cape (as a shield). It is confirmed, however, that he will be able to fight with his sword. Also he can fly like Kirby and can glide using his wings. When not using his wings Meta Knight will have his cape on.

The following Kirby games have featured Meta Knight:

Kirby's Avalanche
Kirby Super Star
Kirby no Kirakira Kizzu (never released in the US)
Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land (2002, Game Boy Advance)
Kirby Air Ride (2003, GameCube)
Kirby and the Amazing Mirror
Kirby: Canvas Curse (2005, DS)
Kirby: Squeak Squad
Super Smash Bros. Brawl (2007, Wii)
Meta Knight makes cameo appearances in the following games:

Kirby's Adventure — One of the final bosses.
Kirby's Pinball Land — Appears upon Kirby getting enough points at the top of Kracko's level.
Kirby's Dream Course — Seen as one of the characters with high scores in the game.
Super Smash Bros. Melee (GCN) — Seen as a trophy.

Changes in fighting style

Meta Knight typically shows some of the more advanced AI for bosses Kirby must face, reacting to the player's actions by dodging and blocking. However, his attacking style and types of attacks often change significantly between games. His state of mind could possibly be inferred when one looks at the circumstances surrounding each battle.

Kirby's Adventure and Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land

Meta Knight is told by Dedede to guard a piece of the Star Rod. Dedede had broken it in a short-sighted attempt to prevent nightmares from invading the Fountain of Dreams, (but disabling it in the process) though Kirby doesn't know it at this time.
He shows his most conservative fighting style in this game. He does not have his wings or any special powers, and only attacks with normal sword slashes. Attacking him head-on is useless as he will only block. The best way to hit him is to get behind him before he can turn around.
He offers Kirby a sword before their duel, and will refuse to fight you until you take it. Also, unlike other times when he has an ability, being hit will not cause Kirby to lose it. (As Meta Knight creates no stars or other projectiles for Kirby to use as other bosses do, it would be impossible to defeat him without an ability.) In the remake, Meta Knight's tactics have been slightly retooled to make the battle much easier; he has a different upward slash, reacts slower, and barely guards.

Kirby Super Star

This battle occurs after Kirby has destroyed much of Meta Knight's ship and it has begun to fall from the sky. Before this battle, Meta Knight is furious and is quoted as saying "This is it, Kirby. Prepare to die!"
Meta Knight uses normal attacks far less, preferring to power up for super attacks. (Such as creating a tornado that moves across the battlefield and is difficult to dodge.) If attacked head-on, he will move away to charge up his attacks. He shows a wider variety of attacks, such as dashing across the screen in a flying strike, a rapid slash similar to the one Kirby himself uses, and an earthquake move.
He offers Kirby a sword at the start of the battle, but he will fight Kirby even if he doesn't take it.
Meta Knight only gains his wings after the battle, when he chases Kirby off the falling Halberd, saying he 'will never escape'. There he displays even more strange new abilities, firing orbs of energy, or conjuring floating swords in mid-air.

Kirby & the Amazing Mirror

It is actually Dark Meta Knight you must fight twice in this game. The first time he is disguised as the real Meta Knight and keeping a shard of the mirror from you, and the second time you face him in his true form before the final boss.
He does not offer a sword for Kirby either time- however he will create stars with some of his attacks that supply the Sword ability, or used as projectiles.
He has a more erratic fighting style than the real Meta Knight, and can be difficult to predict. Attacking him head-on may cause him to block, move away or simply strike back. He uses many of the same powerful attacks at Meta Knight in KSS, and will often jump away from Kirby to charge up. The best way to hit him is to get behind him while he charges up an attack.
He also has the ability to fly, and will pursue Kirby to the top of the screen if one tries to attack him from above.

Kirby Squeak Squad

Though Kirby does not know it at the time, Meta Knight is trying to keep him from opening a chest that contains an evil creature called Dark Zero.
Meta Knight attacks almost non-stop in this version, seemingly trying to keep Kirby from getting any hits in himself. If you attack him head-on he will simply strike back. He retains his tornado move, but also gains a variety of elemental moves, such as striking his sword down to create an electrical charge around him, or shooting a ball of fire across the screen. He turns around much faster, making it hard to attack him from behind. Fighting him with the Sword ability can prove difficult, and it's advised to use faster or longer range abilities against him.
He doesn't offer you a sword himself, but in the room before him Kirby can choose between a Sword and Beam bubble. (In addition, the swallowing the stars he creates with certain attacks will allow you to gain the Sword ability as well.)

Common Misconceptions
Because of his intentionally mysterious and vague character, many rumors have come to surround Meta Knight.

A comparison of Lololo and Meta Knight in Kirby Super StarOne error made is to assume Meta Knight is actually another HAL and Kirby character, Lololo, because both of them are round and blue, in addition to being created by the same company. A look at the differences between the two shows otherwise- Lololo has large, round white eyes and a tail, while Meta Knight has same style of face as Kirby, with small eyes and blushing cheeks, and no tail. Lololo appeared first in Kirby's series in Kirby's Dream Land, then Meta Knight appeared in Kirby's Adventure, and they both appear in Kirby Super Star. In addition, Lololo and Meta Knight both appear simultaneously in the anime series.

There is also additional debate about Meta Knight's species in addition to Kirby's, as well as whether they are related by blood. Nothing has appeared in the game series as of yet to suggest that they are anything more than the same or similar species.

Meta Knight is often described as being either a 'good' or 'evil' character. However, because of the vagueness of most of his actions, it seems he's neutral and works toward his own goals, which can match or go against Kirby's. The Super Smash Bros. Brawl biography refers to him as Kirby's rival, while he is Kirby's ally and mentor in the anime series. Even officially, his character varies greatly. Because Kirby Super Star is one of the better known Kirby games, and features Meta Knight trying to take over Dream Land, he is commonly seen as an 'evil' character.

But he has also appeared as an ally, such as in Kirby & the Amazing Mirror and Kirby Squeak Squad, where he actively tries to save Dream Land from evil forces. Even in games as early as Kirby's Adventure, he aids Kirby by appearing in certain levels and giving him power-ups. He is also constantly described in official sources as having a strong sense of chivalry, leading to him always offer Kirby a weapon before their battles.

There is a common rumor that Meta Knight was possessed by Nightmare following the events of Kirby's Adventure, leading to his actions in Kirby Super Star, something that is said to have come from a source at HAL. However, it has not since been verified and it is now believed that Meta Knight was acting of his own free will.

~From Wikipedia
Meta Knight - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[QUOTE=Killer Tomato]^[/QUOTE]
Yes.

Almost end of the month I need to decide on the next character of the month.

metaknight is mexican.

He has a sword and the best swords are made from Toledo steel.

Heh. I didn't even know this forum existed. Meta Knight rules. -CSM

Irby. Once you get back, Waddle Dee.

Maybe I should start a "Character of the month" in my forum.

^Kracko, damn it.