Kleever

Kleever
First appearance	Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (1995)
Latest appearance	Donkey Kong Country 2 (GBA) (2004)

“When you hit Kleever, quickly get across to the other side before he gets angry.”

—Wrinkly Kong, Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest

Kleever, spelled Kleaver in Donkey Kong Land 2, is a living sword and a boss who first appears in Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest. Kleever is a cutlass with a green glowing pommel and a skeletal guard shaped like a Kremling skull. Its name is a pun on the word "cleaver", which is a large broad knife.

History

Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest

In Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest, Kleever is the boss of the second world, Crocodile Cauldron, where it is fought at Kleever's Kiln. During the first part of the battle, Kleever is held above the lava by an arm made up of fire; this is based on King Arthur's sword Excalibur, which Lady of the Lake held above the water when she presented it to the legendary king. Kleever attacks Diddy Kong and Dixie Kong by creating fireballs from the lava and then throwing them at the Kongs. After Kleever takes a third hit from a kannonball, it is no longer held by an arm of fire, moves around by hovering in midair, and gains an attack where it tries to charge into Diddy and Dixie. After a fourth hit, Kleever rapidly slashes at the Kongs for a few seconds. After taking six hits, Kleever explodes into shards and falls into the lava, defeated. In the ending's Cast of Characters, Kleever is classified as part of the Barnacled Bosses.

Concept drawings for Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest show that Squawks would originally fight Kleever, though in the final game, he fights a different boss instead, King Zing.

In the Game Boy Advance version of Donkey Kong Country 2, Kerozene's first two attacks in Stronghold Showdown is bringing out two small Kleevers to attack the Kongs. The small Kleevers are much weaker than Kleever, and it only takes one hit from a kannonball to defeat it. The small Kleevers cannot throw fireballs and only attack by slashing rapidly either horizontally or in circles.

Donkey Kong Land 2

Kleaver in Donkey Kong Land 2's ending

In Donkey Kong Land 2, Kleaver is the boss of Krem Cauldron at the similarly named Kleaver's Kiln. Kleaver is fought differently than in Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest. It is no longer held by an arm made of fire, and it takes four hits to defeat instead of six. During the first half, Kleaver throws fireballs at the Kongs and eventually a barrel containing a kannonball, which has to be thrown at it. In the second part, Kleever charges at the active Kong horizontally. A kannon appears on the stage, and right as Kleaver moves over it, Diddy or Dixie must walk into the kannon to blast a kannonball into him. When the Kongs do it another time, Kleaver gets defeated. Outside of the game, his usual name, Kleever, was used on one occasion.

Gallery

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  Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest sprite

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  Donkey Kong Land 2 sprite

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  Donkey Kong Country 2 (Game Boy Advance) sprite

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  Kleaver in the ending of Donkey Kong Land 2

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  Concept of the boss battle against Kleever

Names in other languages

Language	Name	Meaning	Notes
Japanese	ボス　クリーバー[?] Bosu Kurībā	Boss Kleaver
Italian	Koltel[?]	From coltello, meaning "knife"
Spanish	Kleever[?]	-