Pon & Con
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
|
| ||||||||||||||||
| “ | Pon and Con block the way! Kitted out in sinister black armor, these combat-ready critters have got a gate to guard, and they aren't about to let the Star Allies through without a fight! | ” | — VS Pon & Con Pause Screen description in Kirby Star Allies |
Pon & Con are a dual boss consisting of a brown tanuki (Pon) and a yellow kitsune (Con). They are natives on Planet Popstar. While not normally hostile to Kirby, they have been possessed by more malevolent forces and made to fight him in the games in which they appear.
Game appearances
Kirby's Dream Land 3
Pon & Con are fought at the end of Sand Canyon. Their fight is similar to the one with Nruff and Nelly from Kirby's Dream Land 2, as they run around on decked platforms in and out of the screen with their children in tow. Kirby can attack them - if he has no ability - by inhaling these children and spitting them back at their parents. An additional caveat exists though, in the form of a large Gordo with a skull insignia on it, that occasionally falls in various places and eventually explodes to block off a path to Kirby.
Both Pon and Con have separate health from each other, though it is displayed as one life bar, each with 160 HP. Both of them need to be defeated separately in order to win the fight.
While the Star Bullet does 32 damage in Kirby's Dream Land 3, the Blaster Bullet notably only does 32 damage to both Pon and Con as well instead of 64 damage normally.
Kirby: Triple Deluxe
In Kirby: Triple Deluxe, Pon & Con both appear as a single keychain, using their sprites from Kirby's Dream Land 3.
Template:KatRC KatRP
In [[Kirby and the Rainbow Curse|Template:KatRC KatRP]], Pon & Con appear in the page 19 of Elline's Secret Diary, "Junk TV", where they are seen as comedians in the "Comedy Special".
Kirby Star Allies
Pon & Con return in Kirby Star Allies after a long absence, now under the control of the Jambastion force, wearing armTemplate:Or bearing the Jambastion emblem. Their fight is largely the same as it was in Kirby's Dream Land 3, as their children follow them in tow like before. They are fought at Gatehouse Road in the Fortress of Shadows Jambastion, as well as in Guest Star ???? Star Allies Go! and The Ultimate Choice on the Mild Stroll, Zesty Expedition, Spicy Adventure and Sizzling Threat difficulties.
Pon & Con both have 240 HP in Story Mode and Guest Star ???? Star Allies Go!, and 180 HP in The Ultimate Choice (for reference, a Star Bullet does 52 damage). When their total health is below 60%, they will enter the second phase and take 0.2× damage during the transition. Just like in Kirby's Dream Land 3, the two of them have separate health despite the health bar saying otherwise and both need to be defeated separately to win the battle.
Once they are defeated in the Story Mode, Kirby must toss a Friend Heart at them to make them friendly to him. They will then open the gatehouse for him, and participate in his victory dance. In other modes, Friend Hearts have no effect on them.
While the duo is not fought again after that point in Story Mode and in Guest Star ????, a metal version of them, Goldon & Silvox, appears on Mareen Moon. They are a harder version of Pon & Con and behave similarly, however, they are different characters.
The following table lists all of Pon & Con's attacks in Kirby Star Allies:
| Pon & Con's Attacks in Kirby Star Allies | |
|---|---|
| Attack | Description |
| Solo Movement | Pon or Con runs across a decked platform with no Junior. |
| Movement with Juniors | Pon or Con runs across a decked platform with a number of Juniors. |
| Junior-only Movement | Only the Juniors run across a decked platform. On occasion, a Waddle Doo might run among the Juniors. |
| Rushing Movement | During the second phase of the fight, Pon & Con from left-to-right or right-to-left quicker than usual after a brief charge-up. |
| Fire Bomb Drop | The Juniors on the ceiling drop a fire bomb, creating flames in explosion. |
| Ice Bomb Drop | The Juniors on the ceiling drop an ice bomb, creating icicles in explosion. |
| Guard does not fully prevent contact damage from Pon & Con. Attack names are taken from Japanese guide books. | |
Role in Kirby: Right Back at Ya!
| ||||||||||||
|
| ||||||||||||
| “ | "We would never hurt our friend!" | ” | — Pon |
| “ | "Yeah! We protect him from trouble!" | ” | — Con |
Pon & Con make a few minor appearances in the anime series Kirby: Right Back at Ya!. Here, they are portrayed as intelligent animals capable of speech who live within the Eastern Forest, taking refuge in the ancient tree Acore who they help defend from intruders. Unlike Rick who also lives in Acore, Pon & Con are never seen outside of the forest.
Unlike in the video games, Pon & Con do not send their children out to attack, and instead fight on their own. They attack mainly by mauling their foes or throwing objects at them.
Trivia
- Tanuki (Japanese raccoon dog) and kitsune (fox in Japanese) are a recurring duo in Japanese folklore, and Pon & Con is one of their popular culture appearances.[1]
- Pon & Con are referred to as Raccoon & Fox on Page 34 of the North American manual of Kirby's Dream Land 3. Tanukis are often localized as raccoons in video games despite them being different species.
- When Pon & Con are defeated in Kirby Star Allies, their helmets crash into each other and make a metal sound. In Goldon & Silvox's case, the same metal sound is made from their collided metal bodies instead.
- The Pon & Con boss battles could have referenced Maru-chan™ "Red Kitsune Udon" & "Green Tanuki Tempura Soba" ramen noodles by Toyo Suisan.
- In Kirby's Dream Land 3, when Pon & Con are hit, Pon flashes in green while Con flashes in red.
- In Kirby Star Allies, when Pon & Con roar, Pon releases green effects while Con releases red effects; when they are defeated, Pon is knocked out with green smoke while Con is knocked out with red smoke.
- Parallel Big Kracko can drop the same fire bombs of Pon & Con and Goldon & Silvox.
Gallery
A portion of the battle with Pon Con in Kirby's Dream Land 3
Splash Card of Pon & Con from Kirby Star Allies
A portion of the fight with Pon & Con in Star Allies
Kirby and his new friends dance
Illustration from the Kirby JP Twitter featuring Pon & Con
Names in other languages
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | ポン＆コン Pon ando Kon |
Pon & Con
|
| Chinese | 阿狸&阿狐 ā lí (Pon) ā hú (Con) |
Tanuki (Pon) Fox (Con) |
| Dutch | Pon en Con | Pon & Con |
| French | Pon & Cot | Pon & Con
|
| German | Pon & Con | Pon & Con |
| Italian | Pon & Con | Pon & Con |
| Korean | 폰 & 콘 Pon aend Kon |
Pon & Con |
| Spanish | Pon y Con | Pon & Con |
References
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
