Laki

Laki
Sprite from Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
Species	Lakitu
First appearance	Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
Latest appearance	Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Nintendo Switch) (2024)

“I tell you, I like just standing here gazing at the train more than I would like riding it.”

—Laki, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door

Laki is a character in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. He is an 18-year old Lakitu who appears by the train station in Rogueport. Laki is called a train enthusiast, but is more of a train obsessionist. All he does is watch the trains all day, and hopes to one day get to ride the Excess Express (although he lacked the money to do so all throughout Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door). His appearance is noticeably different from most other Lakitus; his hair is more curly than that of the average Lakitu, his eyes are always in an angry position, and his cloud wears sunglasses. However, a separate Lakitu with this same appearance can be found actually riding the Excess Express occasionally, and two Lakitus from Glitzville also look identical to him.

Laki is mentioned in one of the RDM Issues in the game, where he is said to have been taken into custody after making the Excess Express late for the first time in ten years by taking pictures of it in an area where non-workers were not allowed to enter. The Excess Express staff apparently allowed Laki to get away with his crime with just a warning, although the story ended with an additional "...this time". This issue of RDM is also notable for stating that Laki is eighteen years old, in accordance with standard newspaper practice for criminals.

Profiles

• Tattle: That's Laki, a train-loving Lakitu. All this guy does is sit here and watch trains. I'm sure he'd love to ride the Excess Express, but he can't afford a ticket. It'd be cool if he saved enough to ride it just once in his life, y'know?

Gallery

• 

  Laki next to the Excess Express.

Names in other languages

Language	Name	Meaning	Notes
Japanese	ジュオーネ[?] Juōne	From「ジュゲム」(Jugemu, "Lakitu") and "Al Capone", an infamous Italian American gangster, or "Don Corleone" from the renowned Godfather series, which centers around a fictional Mafia family
French	Lakirail[?]	From "Lakitu" and "rail"
Italian	Gran Lakitu[?]	Big Lakitu
Spanish	Lakione[?]	From "Lakitu" and the Italian augmentative suffix -one

Trivia

• Laki was referenced in Super Paper Mario, where he left graffiti stating that he loves both Koopla and Buzzo in Merlee's Mansion's men's restroom.