King Kaliente
King Kaliente, not to be confused with Super Mario RPG's King Kalamari, is a boss in Super Mario Galaxy. Although his Japanese name suggests he is a Blooper, he more closely resembles an octopus than a squid. He appears on the cover of Super Mario Galaxy. He seems to be in league with Bowser as he was leading a portion of his fleet, was called upon by Bowser Jr. to fight Mario, and guarded a grand star. He is fought twice: once in the Good Egg Galaxy and again in Bowser Jr.'s Lava Reactor. The second battle is for a Grand Star.
Appearance
King Kaliente is best described as a Blooper with an Electrogoomba/Snifit for a head. He has a crown on his head and a white moustache. When he is battled a second time, his whole body has a much darker, blacker hue and his eyes are red. His attacks include shooting fireballs and coconuts at Mario and summoning lesser enemies.
First Battle
Once Mario comes up to the top of Magma Planet, first a yellow Luma will warn him about the king. When Mario reaches the volcanic side, the king will emerge from the lava pool and shake his head, angered that Mario has awakened him, beginning the battle. He will first spit out three fireballs, followed by a coconut. Mario must perform a Star Spin or a Spin Jump to whack it back at him, then the king will throw it back at Mario. If Mario whacks it at him three times with the coconut fly past him, he will knock the king's crown off. If it is missed, the attack pattern will repeat until Mario is successful.
King Kaliente will get very angered after his crown falls and sinks into the lava, then unleash a big roar of wind, blowing the lava around and sprouting little bouncing Lava Bouncers, that will bounce on the lava or on the ground toward Mario for the rest of the battle. If they touch Mario, they will burn him and cause him to lose up to two HP.
Again, the King must be hit three more times in a row with a coconut. If this is pulled off, King Kaliente will be knocked out and will collapse back into his lava hot tub-home. A Power Star will sprout out of the lava and appear next to Mario, and the Lava Bouncers will vanish.
Grand Star Battle
King Kaliente is fought for a second time in Bowser Jr.'s Lava Reactor. His tactic is the same as in the Good Egg Galaxy, but the fight itself is much harder. The fight takes place on a ring of small platforms that will sink into the lava if Mario stands on them. King Kaliente's attacks are more frequent, and include sending in dozens of Lava Bouncers, and, after having his crown knocked off, summoning fiery meteors from the sky. After Mario defeats him for the second time, he will give up a Grand Star. He also looks scorched, possibly from the last fight.
Possible Relatives
(the second of these three is most likely correct, since Electrogoombas are much more similar-looking to King Kaliente than Bloopers, and they use the same projectile attacks as the King)
Trivia
- His name comes from the Spanish word "Caliente" which means hot, or spicy.
- King Kaliente shares his boss music with Bugaboom and Topmaniac.
- King Kaliente also resembles and is similar to the Kirby enemy named Octakon, a fire breathing octopus-like monster.
