Kirby 3D

Kirby 3D Lobzilla gives Kirby a warm welcome. Details First aired September 20th, 2008 (Kirby's Magical Theater) August 9th, 2009 (for home viewing) January 14, 2012 (volume 1) January 24, 2012 (volume 2) Episode # 101 Copy Ability (Abilities) featured Fire, Kabuki Monster(s) featured Lobzilla Character(s) featured Kirby, Tiff, Tuff, Chef Kawasaki, King Dedede, Escargoon

Episode order ← Fright to the Finish Last episode

This article is about the 3D-animated Kirby: Right Back at Ya! episode, and should not be confused with Kirby 3D Rumble or Kirby: Triple Deluxe.

Kirby 3D is a special episode of the Kirby: Right Back at Ya! series, technically the 101st episode in broadcast order.

In the episode, King Dedede—sick of never being able to defeat Kirby—orders a monster named Lobzilla from Night Mare Enterprises. Lobzilla has the ability to blow icy breath and freeze his opponents, and he runs loose about Cappy Town, terrorizing the townspeople. To Dedede's annoyance, he does not target Kirby until the latter is lured into Castle Dedede with a cake. This leads Tiff, Tuff, and Chef Kawasaki to head to the castle to protect Kirby, whereupon Tiff calls the Warp Star. Lobzilla transforms into an enormous beast that exhales tiny lobsters in addition to his cold breath. After a failed attempt at using Fire, Meta Knight advises that the lobster's weapon should be used against him; Tiff tells Kirby to inhale the tiny lobsters, which allows Kirby to use the Kabuki ability and defeat Lobzilla.

The episode was initially shown as a "4D" feature at the "Kirby's Magical Theater" (星のカービィ マジカルシアター) event at the Tokyo Dome City Toys Kingdom theme park between September 20th, 2008 and January 12th, 2009, premiering just under five years after the anime had concluded its broadcast. Its home viewing release date was August 9th, 2009, through the Japan-only Wii no Ma channel; it was later released in two parts on the Nintendo 3DS app Nintendo Video in January of 2012, where it was given an English dub. In North America, the short was also available as a download on 3DS via My Nintendo in 2019, costing 100 Platinum Points. The special is also included on the Japanese-only 2023 Blu-ray set Kirby of the Stars HD Remastered Edition All-Round Complete Box, which is its first release on physical media.

Both the Japanese and English versions of the special reunite much of the original cast of the series, with some minor exceptions in the English dub. As the name implies, it is also presented in full, realistically-rendered 3D, whereas the original show was largely in 2D and only used cel-shaded 3D for certain characters.

Characters

The following characters appear in this episode:

Cast of "Kirby 3D"
Character	Selected quote	Notes
Primary characters
Kirby	"Paayoh! Pai! Wah, poyyy!"
Tiff	"Kirby! Suck up the babies!"
Tuff	"Maybe it's another monster from King Dedede!"
Chef Kawasaki	"Don't let him get away! I've been lookin' for some fresh lobster to make a ravioli! Doesn't get fresher than this!"	In English, Kawasaki is voiced by Ted Lewis rather than Maddie Blaustein, due to the latter passing away in 2008.
King Dedede	"You crusty creep! Look at this! This here's the guy you're after!"
Escargoon	"Kirby's gone wild, and you're cacklin' like a gassed-up hyena!"
Secondary characters
N.M.E. Sales Guy	"My profoundest apologies, King Dedede and Lord Escargoon. We'll send over our latest, most miserable model for a discount price of... two billion D-Bills!"
eNeMeE	"Best-selling video games? An animated series? He's unstoppable!"	In English, eNeMeE is voiced by Michael Sinterniklaas rather than Andrew Rannells, due to the latter stepping away from voice acting to focus on his Broadway career (at the time the dub was released, he was starring in The Book of Mormon).
Meta Knight	"The enemy's weapon... it must be used against him."
Professor Curio, Mabel, Mayor Len Blustergas, Chief Bookem, and Hana	(no dialogue)	These characters all appear in the same scene together.
Honey, Iro, and Spikehead	Iro: "But that one's even bigger!"	These characters all appear in the same scene together.
Kabu	"Warp Star!"

Locations

• Dream Land
  • Cappy Town
  • Castle Dedede
  • Kabu Canyon
• eNeMeE's Fortress

Plot sypnosis

Tiff, Tuff, and Chef Kawasaki discuss Dedede's latest monster.

The episode begins in darkness, with footsteps being heard and a button being pressed, followed by the usual intro for the Kirby: Right Back at Ya! series. The camera pulls back to reveal it is being played on a small display held by the N.M.E. Sales Guy, who is conversing about Kirby's popularity with his master, eNeMeE (breaking the fourth wall as they do so, as they mention the video games, animated series, and the 3D episode itself). The two of them laugh as they discuss how to "put a stop to his plans". In response, King Dedede and Escargoon complain that they have a crisis on their hands, as Kirby is still "running wild". The Sales Guy apologizes and reveals their latest monster, for a discounted price of two billion D-Bills: Lobzilla, a diminutive lobster. Dedede and Escargoon express disappointment with the monster until he reveals his icy breath, freezing both of them solid.

Kirby is drawn to his favorite snack.

Lobzilla escapes into Cappy Town, but is soon pursued by Chef Kawasaki, who wishes to cook him into ravioli; when cornered, he retaliates with icy winds. The monster crosses by a small pond where Tuff, Honey, Iro, and Spikehead are catching lobsters, and freezes them as well. Later in the day, Tuff and Kawasaki describe him to Tiff as she drives Mayor Len's car. They conclude that it must be the work of King Dedede, and head toward Castle Dedede. Inside, Dedede angrily directs Lobzilla to go after Kirby, while Escargoon lures Kirby into the castle halls using a Strawberry Shortcake on a remote-controlled car. The monster crosses paths with Kirby, identifies him as an enemy, and begins to attack him in various ways (such as twisting him into knots and dribbling him like a basketball). Dedede yells in a fit of rage over the ensuing destruction to his castle. As Tiff and her friends catch up with Kirby, Lobzilla suddenly grows into a massive monster and pursues him. In a panic, Tiff calls Kabu for the Warp Star.

Kirby flees from Lobzilla through the crumbling castle walls and then by flying away on the Warp Star. Following some close scrapes, Kirby gets a taste of the beast's icy breath, which now contains smaller lobsters that pick at his skin. Tiff tosses him a torch, allowing him to become Fire Kirby, but this proves ineffective as Lobzilla's frozen winds overpower him. When Tuff readies another torch, Meta Knight stops him and explains that Lobzilla must be defeated with his own weapon. Enlightened, Tiff tells Kirby to suck up the baby lobsters after she nearly slips and falls.

Kirby saves the day one last time.

Kirby follows Tiff's advice, and upon transforming, suddenly takes the form of a large humanoid dressed in traditional Japanese attire. Meta Knight explains that this is Kabuki Kirby, which Tiff describes as "a ninja blessed with magical powers passed on from generations before". The humanoid form performs some kabuki poses before charging at Lobzilla head-on, balancing upon the Warp Star. When the monster prepares another attack, Kirby returns to his usual shape (though still wearing Japanese clothing) and fires a laser that pierces the icy wind, causing the lobster to explode. Lobzilla's defeat results in fried lobster raining down upon the castle, to Chef Kawasaki's delight. Tiff, Tuff, and Kirby celebrate while King Dedede sulks at his two billion D-Bill debt. Escargoon, holding a plate with soy sauce, advises the king to try some lobster, which cheers him up. In the final scene, Kabuki Kirby, Tiff, Tuff, and Meta Knight pose on a kabuki theater stage as the curtain closes on the episode.

Differences between versions

• This special was only officially dubbed into English. The only visual edit between the two versions was that the Japanese intro ("Kirby ★ March") was replaced with the English intro ("Kirby: Right Back at Ya!"). Otherwise, they are visually identical; as a result, the N.M.E. Sales Guy's monitor still reads "HOLY NIGHT MARE". The Japanese score is also left intact in the English dub, unlike the main series.

Dialogue differences in the Japanese version

• The N.M.E. Sales Guy offers Lobzilla for a discount price of two billion D-Bills "cut down" from one billion. King Dedede accepts this despite Escargoon's protest.
• Lobzilla is not a lobster, but instead a shrimp monster named "Ebizō" (from ebi and zō, shrimp and elephant, which Lobzilla resembles a cross between). The Japanese word for shrimp, ebi, is two syllables, so referring to him as a lobster likely made it easier for the dub to match the animation of the dialogue. However, this results in the removal of much of the wordplay involving Lobzilla's basis on kabuki actor Ichikawa Danjūrō V (also known as Ichikawa Ebizō V), which also serves to foreshadow the appearance of Kabuki Kirby.
  • Instead of generic cries of encouragement ("Atta boy!" and "Go get 'em!"), Dedede and Escargoon yell out a peculiar pair of phrases, 「成田屋！」 (Narita-ya!) and 「いよっ、大統領！」 (Iyo~, daitouryou!). This is a reference to the practice of kakegoe, where kabuki audiences shout or yell customary phrases at appropriate times to praise the performers. With Lobzilla or Ebizō having just overpowered Fire Kirby, Dedede and Escargoon may have considered the moment an appropriate climax featuring a mie from the monster. Often the kakegoe inserted are simply house names or aliases for the performer. For instance, daitouryou ("president") started in reference to Ichikawa Sadanji II. Meanwhile, Narita-ya (House Narita) is an example of a yagō or "house name", used to refer to actors belonging to a particular guild, as Japanese commoners did not have family names. In particular, Narita-ya was the house name of Ichikawa Ebizō.
• Chef Kawasaki wishes to make fried shrimp out of Lobzilla rather than ravioli.
• Tiff describes Kabuki Kirby more accurately as "a warrior like a ninja" rather than simply a ninja. More specifically, Kabuki Kirby's appearance is based on Ichikawa Ebizō V's portrayal of Saitō Musashibō Benkei, who was a sōhei (warrior monk).
• At the end, Kawasaki describes the raining shrimp as "cherry blossom shrimp". In the English version, he expresses joy that the raining lobsters are pre-cooked.

Trivia

Lobzilla transforms Kirby into a string figure vaguely reminiscent of Kirby's Epic Yarn.

• This was the only episode to be animated in widescreen at HD resolution. However, since its original screening was a temporary event, and the Wii and 3DS both feature sub-HD displays, the Blu-ray release is currently the only way the special can be viewed in its native resolution.
• Because Night Mare Enterprises and the Monster Delivery System are still active, the episode presumably takes place before Air-Ride-in-Style - Part I, though it is debatable if this episode is even part of the show's continuity.
• Tiff is not seen driving a car in any other episode of the series.
• Escargoon pilots the remote-controlled car using a device that resembles a Nintendo DS.
• When Lobzilla first grabs Kirby, he plays a game of cat's cradle (or string figures) with Kirby, ending up with a shape that resembles his yarn form in Kirby's Epic Yarn. This is likely a simple coincidence, as the episode was first shown over two years before said game released (and a year before Kirby was even added to the project, in the summer of 2009).

Gallery

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  eNeMeE and his Sales Guy muse over Kirby's fame.

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  King Dedede and Escargoon complain about the pink menace.

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  The Sales Guy offers his new model at a discount price.

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  Dedede agrees, even though Escargoon sees through the scam.

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  The Teleporter at work.

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  N.M.E.'s latest, most miserable model.

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  The King and his servant freeze up.

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  Lobzilla is cornered by Chef Kawasaki.

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  Kawasaki suffers freezer burn.

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  Tuff, Honey, Iro, and Spikehead go fishing.

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  Lobzilla puts the freeze on them.

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  Meanwhile, at Castle Dedede...

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  Dedede bosses Lobzilla around while Escargoon lures in Kirby.

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  Kirby and the monster come face-to-face.

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  Lobzilla detects an enemy.

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  Dedede bemoans the destruction of his castle.

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  The monster becomes a jumbo shrimp.

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  Tiff calls the Warp Star...

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  ...and Kabu responds.

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  Kirby escapes a crustaceous fate.

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  A chase scene on the castle walls.

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  Kirby makes a close shave.

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  Even with the Warp Star, Kirby is outmatched.

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  Lobzilla is closing in.

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  With the pink puff cornered, Lobzilla attacks.

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  The tiny lobsters snap at Kirby's skin.

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  Tiff tosses a torch.

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  It's Fire Kirby!

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  Even fire can't stop Lobzilla.

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  Kirby's on the ropes.

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  Tuff does the same thing expecting a different result.

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  Meta Knight explains that weakness comes from within.

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  Tiff and Tuff have a revelation.

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  Kirby sucks up the babies.

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  Kabuki Kirby appears.

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  Meta Knight, Tuff, and Tiff watch on in awe.

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  Kirby confronts Lobzilla above Castle Dedede.

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  Kirby readies himself.

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  Lobzilla prepares to strike.

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  Kirby reveals his true form...

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  ...and he counterattacks.

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  Chef Kawasaki dishes up fresh lobster.

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  Kirby, Tiff, and Tuff celebrate their victory.

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  Dedede and Escargoon celebrate their loss.

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  Kirby's job is done.

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  The curtain closes on the series.

Names in other languages

Language	Name	Meaning
Japanese	星ほしのカービィ〜特別編とくべつへん〜 倒たおせ！！甲殻魔獣こうかくまじゅうエビゾウ Hoshi no Kābyi ~ Tokubetsu-hen ~ Taose!! Kōkaku Majū Ebizō	Kirby of the Stars ~ Special Edition ~ Defeat It!! The Shelled Monster, Ebizō