Meta Knight

''This page is for the character Meta Knight. For his army see Meta-Knight. For the Evil Mirror World version seen in Kirby and the Amazing Mirror, see Dark Meta Knight.''

"Prepare to take off! Blow Kirby away!"

- Meta Knight

Meta Knight (or Sir Meta Knight) is a major enemy and ally character in the Kirby Series appearing in most of the games, as well as the anime. He is largely similar to Kirby in appearance, and is one of the few Kirby-like characters in the Kirby series. His intentions are often unknown but what is known is that he is the leader of the Meta-Knights, an army of unique soldiers, and owns a large battleship called the Halberd which often accompanies him into the heat of battle. Though Meta Knight first appeared in Kirby's Adventure (1993) his name was not known in the U.S. until Kirby's Avalanche was released in 1995.

His mysterious nature has led to him playing more of a "friend or foe" role and less of an actual playable character throughout the series.

Concept and Creation
Masahiro Sakurai designed Meta Knight when he was 22 years old, three years after he created Kirby. 

Characteristics
Meta Knight wields a powerful sword, and wears a blue cloak, and light blue-silver mask with yellow, oval, eyes. He also has shiny, purple shoes that are probably made out of metal. His sword is probably made out of gold, with small spikes coming off of the edge of it and a ruby embedded in the handle.

In a few games, his mask is removed, revealing that he looks a lot like Kirby except that his body is blue while his eyes and mouth are white, leading many to believe that he is the same species as Kirby.

Meta Knight's mask has strange characteristic; it turns the wearers eyes a yellowish tint. Meta Knight's white eyes are turned yellow, and Kirby's blue eyes become green. A little known fact is that while sleeping, he cuddles with a small plush creature.

Master
Master is the name of the ability Kirby recieves while wielding Meta Knight's sword in the Gameboy Advance Game, Kirby and the Amazing Mirror. It is an unlockable ability with no hat, and can only be used in the main world after the final boss has been defeated (it is also used during the final boss fight).

Meta Knight wields the sword Galaxia in Brawl, although it takes its appearance from the anime and Kirby: Air Ride as opposed to Kirby and the Amazing Mirror itself. Meta Knight's Forward B in Brawl, the Drill Rush, may be derived from a similar move that can be used when Kirby has the Master ability.

Galaxia
Though never named outside Brawl, the anime calls Meta Knight's sword the Galaxia. In the games it lacks the spikes.

Curiously, Meta Knight's sword was never named in any game in the Kirby series. Kirby uses Meta Knight's sword to fight against the final boss in Kirby and the Amazing Mirror. This form in the game is called the "Master Ability".

In the anime, Kirby: Right Back at Ya! known in Japan as Hoshi no Kirby (星のカービィ, Hoshi no Kābī, lit. "Kirby of the Stars"), the sword is finally given a name, Galaxia, and only a selected few can wield it. In the anime, the only power the sword is shown using is called the Sword Beam. It was a solid blast that could shatter rock. However, this power is presumably anime-only...or not. It may be the hold B and release attack that one may use to shatter bricks when using the Master ability.

=Appearances=

Kirby's Adventure and Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land
Meta Knight is given one of the pieces of the Star Rod by King Dedede in Kirby's Adventure, and it's remake Kirby: Nightmare in Dreamland, here he is the boss of Level 6, Orange Ocean. Because of his chivalrous nature, he will give Kirby a sword to fight with. Kirby must then hinder the ability he already had, since Meta Knight will only fight you if you get the sword (Once Meta Knight is defeated however, you get the ability you originally had back). Meta Knight attacks you with his sword and can often block your attacks. He blocks less and is a little easier in the remake. During the fight, you cannot drop the Sword ability.

Beating Kirby: Nightmare in Dreamland 100 % in normal and Challenge mode unlocks the Meta Knightmare sub-game, which is the same as the extra game only you can play as Meta Knight. Strangely, because Meta Knight goes through the same levels as Kirby (minus Nightmare), when gets to the Meta Knight boss fight he must fight himself.

Kirby Super Star
In Kirby Super Star, Meta Knight was the final boss of his own game, Revenge of Meta Knight.

In this sub-game, Meta-Knight wants to dominate Dreamland. His reason: to end the people's lazy lifestyle. Kirby is, however, meddling with his plans by beating up the crew members and destroying the Halberd piece-by-piece. Meta Knight is infuriated with this, so he tries throw Kirby into an ocean and forest. Kirby got back up however, and eventually Meta Knight fights him.

Again he offers you a sword, but this time you can refuse it if you wait for a while (possibly due to this game's time limit feature) so you can use a more efficient ability that suits you (but be warned, doing this in RoMK will take time off of the timer). In this game, not only can Meta Knight use his sword, but can also summon giant tornadoes to send you up in the air and do damage. Meta Knight can also parry your attacks, as well as block. Strangely, some of his sword slash attacks can be inhaled and spat back at him.

After he is defeated once, Kirby tries to escape using a Wheelie. However, Meta Knight flies towards Kirby in an attempt to knock him out. Kirby, his Wheelie, and Meta Knight succsessfully escape the Halberd before it crashes into the sea.

Meta Knight is also fought in The Arena subgame. Since there's no timer, it is okay if you switch to an ability that better suits you.

Kirby and the Amazing Mirror
Dark Meta Knight also appears in Kirby and the Amazing Mirror disguised as Meta Knight as the boss of area 8, Radish Ruins. Unlike the real Meta Knight, who is an honorable opponent, he doesn't offer you a sword before he attacks, however some of his attacks produce stars that can be eaten for the sword ability. He uses the same attacks as Meta Knight in Super Star.

It turns out that the Meta Knight that the Kirbys fought in the Ruins wasn't Meta Knight at all, but a copy of his dark side - the real Meta Knight was sealed within the Amazing Mirror. This Meta Knight is almost greyscale in color, fights more aggressively than the real Meta Knight and can also summon tornadoes. These tornadoes don't throw you around, but they still hurt.

Kirby: Squeak Squad
In Kirby: Squeak Squad Meta Knight came from nowhere and stole the treasure chest that Kirby thought had contained his cake and so gives chase after him though the Secret Sea and in his rebuilt Halberd. However, what Kirby does not know at the time is that Meta Knight is trying to keep him from opening the chest because it contains an evil creature called Dark Zero (Dark Nebula).

Meta Knight attacks almost non-stop in this version, seemingly trying to keep Kirby from getting any hits in himself. If attacked head-on he will simply strike back instead of blocking. He retains his tornado move, but also gains a variety of elemental moves, such as striking his sword down to create an electrical charge around him, or shooting crescents of fire across the screen. He turns around much faster, making it hard to attack him from behind. Fighting him with the Sword ability can prove difficult, and it's advised to use faster or longer range abilities against him, such as Tornado. Thunder Sword works fine, though.

Meta Knight himself doesn't offer a sword, but in the room before him Kirby can choose between a Sword and Beam bubble (In addition, swallowing the stars he creates with certain attacks will allow you to gain the Sword ability as well).

During the battle, the Halberd takes off from the ocean, through the atmosphere and into space, as seen through the large windows behind the scene of the battle.

In Kirby Air Ride
Meta Knight is playable in Kirby Air Ride. He is unlocked by gliding for 30 seconds with the Shadow Star. Much like the Wagon Star, he cannot charge or boost, but has excellent other stats. They are listed below.

In the Anime
In the Kirby of the Stars Pilot, Meta Knight appears as one of the enemies that appear out of the plumes of smoke when the sky turns dark. He is defeated when Kirby spits Captain Stitch at him. Meta Knight appears in the anime Kirby: Right Back at Ya!. He is a legendary Star Warrior, who was one of the few survivors of the great war against Nightmare. He then started living in Dream Land and became King Dedede's servant along with Sword Knight and Blade Knight, his followers - knowing that, because Dedede likes monsters, hopefully a young Star Warrior will land in Dreamland and together they can beat Nightmare. He teaches the new Star Warrior Kirby, to make him strong enough to beat Nightmare one day. Compared to the games, his role is much clearer- he is undoubtedly on Kirby's side, though he doesn't always show it. His character is given more depth, in addition to a complex past. Although his mask covers his face, his eyes often show what mood he's in by a colour change:


 * Green - Serious, thoughtful
 * Blue - Happiness, pride
 * Red - Anger, sensing danger
 * Pink - Amusement
 * Purple - Embarrassed or mislead
 * Dark - sleep, coma

Uncharacteristically, he likes watching Channel DDD, though whether it is because it amuses him somewhat or whether it is to try and catch out Dedede's scheming early is unknown. He also has a jar of sweets in his room, suggesting that he has a sweet tooth.

In the Japenese version, Meta Knight will frequently put English words randomly into his sentences, even if a Japanese equivalent exists. The reason for this is unknown. In the dub version he is given a Spanish accent like Zorro or the Taco Bell dog. Mexican-style music also plays when he appears, further enforcing the Zorro reference.

Meta Knight in voiced by Atsushi Kisaichi in the Japanese version of the anime and by Eric Stuart in the English dub. (Eric Stuart is famous for his role of Seto Kaiba in the Yu-Gi-Oh! Anime Series, and also provides the voices of Gus and Blade Knight)

It is in the Anime that that sword that Meta Knight wields is given a name for the first time, Galaxia. He and Kirby are the only ones known to be able to wield it. It is likely that this is the official name, given the fact that it's name appears in an attack in Smash Bros. Brawl (the Final Smash, to be exact), as well as the fact that Meta Knight Looks like he's wielding that sword instead of the one he's usually portrayed using in previous games.

In the Super Smash Bros. Series
Though Meta Knight isn't playable in Super Smash Bros. Melee he does appear as one of the collectible trophies. His trophy description is notable for a number of mistakes; like saying that his first appearance was in Kirby Super Star, when it was actually in Kirby's Adventure released three years prior and adds an unnecessary hyphen between Meta and Knight ("Meta-Knight" (with hyphen) is actually his army's name not his).

Meta Knight is one of the playable fighters in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and was the first new playable character confirmed for the game. Here he is a fast but light character and can jump up to five times like Kirby using his wings. He can also glide and fights using his sword Galaxia.

His flagship, the Halberd appears as a stage, and in the game's story mode Subspace Emissary where in plays an important role. His voice actor in the Japanese version of Super Smash Bros. Brawl is the same as the anime series, Atsushi Kisaichi, while in the English version he is voiced by Jay Ward (not to be confused with the Pixar animator). One of his alternate color scheme the black color scheme, may be based upon his dark side from Kirby and the Amazing Mirror, Dark Meta Knight.

Role in the Subspace Emissary
It is revealed that before the events of the Subspace Emissary, Meta Knight was attacked by the Subspace Army, who had the intent of taking the Halberd. He was able to hold them off until King Dedede attacked him, causing him to lose his ship.

When Meta Knight is first featured in the Subspace Emissary, he attacks a lone Marth outside of a large castle. Quickly, he learns that Marth is not his enemy as they are both surrounded by Primids. After a successful battle, both warriors chase the Ancient Minister who is carrying a Subspace bomb. Both are unsuccessful in their attempts in destroying the bomb, though luckily Ike appears and he uses his Great Aether to catch the Minister off guard and destroy the bomb. With the bomb destroyed, all three head back to the castle to clear out any remaining Primids.

Later, they are all seen traveling the wastelands together and battling Galleom. Meta Knight then saves Lucas and the Pokémon Trainer from a giant freefall after they defeat the same boss. Meta Knight then begins to ascend a large cliff face, followed by the Ice Climbers (who see his ascent as a racing challenge), in order to reach the Battleship Halberd. At the summit, Lucario challenges Meta Knight to a sparring contest. After the contest, both board the Halberd which has just shaken off the defeated Great Fox.

The pair run into Solid Snake while on board and join forces with him to take back the Halberd. After rescuing Peach and Zelda, the trio continues on to the control deck. There they discover that the ship is being piloted by a gang of Shadow Bug Mr. Game & Watches who fuse together to form a gigantic metallic monster called Duon. Once Duon is defeated, Mr. Game & Watch joins the group, along with Peach, Sheik, Fox, and Falco.

Meta Knight takes back control of the Halberd and reunites with the members from other groups. The aircraft of the other heroes is placed inside the Halberd, which heads towards the Subspace Battleship with all of the Super Smash Bros heroes on board. After using the Subspace Battleship's main cannon to create another Subspace portal, Ganondorf spots the Halberd on the horizon and orders the battleship to open fire. The Halberd is struck down, but the heroes are able to escape on board Samus's Gunship, Captain Falcon's Falcon Flyer, Olimar's Hocotate ship, and Fox and Falco's Arwings. Kirby destroys the Subspace Battleship by ramming through it it with the Dragoon racing machine and the heroes enter Subspace to pursue Ganondorf and Bowser.

Meta Knight is turned into a trophy by Tabuu along with the rest of the Super Smash Bros heroes upon their entrance into Subspace. He is later revived by Kirby. He rejoins the others in the fight against Tabuu.

Meta Knight's Special Attacks
Standard Special Move - Mach Tornado Mach Tornado works in a similar way to the Tornado ability. Meta Knight whirls either left or right in a vicious tornado. Mashing the button allows him to rise up slightly. As this is Meta Knight's Standard Special Attack, Kirby will also be able to use this when Meta Knight is inhaled. After spinning for about three seconds, he will launch any opponents who were caught in the tornado.

Up Special Move - Shuttle Loop Named after the Throw move of Wing, Meta Knight launches himself up into the air, sword first. He can then use his ability to glide afterwards, making it even more like Wing. You can tilt the direction by pressing up/down. Can be used to recover from being knocked away.

Side Special Move - Drill Rush Meta Knight spins like a drill, sword first, into enemies, like Kirby's dash attack with Master, but it may also be based on the spin attack from Kirby Air Ride. You can control the direction of Meta Knight slightly when you do this, but only up or down.

Down Special Move - Dimensional Cape An entirely defensive move, it allows Meta Knight to teleport away from danger. Holding a directional position determines where he will teleport to and pressing the attack button after teleporting allows Meta Knight to attack straight after using it. Use of this move can prove to be strategic.

Misc abilities

 * By pressing and holding A, Meta Knight performs a flurry of sword slashes.


 * Meta Knight enters a stage using his Dimensional Cape.


 * Meta Knight's up throw and down throw are the same as Kirby's, being similar to the Backdrop and Suplex abilities. His other Throws involve kicking the enemy whilst performing a backflip and teleporting behind the enemy and slashing at them.


 * When Kirby inhales Meta Knight, he wears Meta Knight's mask and has Green Eyes (which, if the Anime means anything, that Kirby is either serious or thoughtful), as well as tiny wings similar to Meta Knight's, though it could also mean his mask simply colors its wearer's eyes yellow, as Kirby's blue eyes+yellow makes green.

Final Smash
His Final Smash is known as Galaxia Darkness. He swirls his cape out in a wide sweep trying to hit his opponent with it, if he misses, nothing happens and it’s a waste of a Smash Ball. When Meta Knight DOES hit with the cape, the field turns dark, and Meta Knight slices strongly through the darkness. Enemies get launched helplessly. This attack affects everyone near you not just the person you hit with the cape. Interestingly if you are in a team match you will hit your teammate

=Controversy and Misconceptions=

Meta Knight's 'Revenge'?
One of the many things that may have contributed to the confusion about Meta Knight's character in Revenge of Meta Knight could be a somewhat inaccurate translation. The subgame is one of the few Kirby games with any dialogue, and a few key lines were changed significantly in the English version.

In the intro of Chapter 1, Meta Knight says, ""Dream Land's lazy lifestyle will end! I will rule!" However, the translation of the original line is more like, "Dream Land, filled with corruption, shall be changed by my hand." It's not clear just what he's referring to- however, it is well known that Dream Land's current ruler King Dedede is a corrupt tyrant who does little but torment the population.

In the final chapter, before battling Kirby, Meta Knight says, ""Kirby, this is it! Prepare to die!" But originally he says, "This is the end! Kirby! Now we duel!"

There is also the issue of the title. Though it says 'revenge', it isn't clear who Meta Knight is getting revenge on! To the casual player, it would seem to be Kirby- but Kirby is not the original target. Indeed, when Kirby first boards the Halberd, Meta Knight's only thought is to knock him off the ship and continue with their plans.

It may have been better translated as 'Counterattack', referring to how the Halberd crew is basically responding to Kirby's attack on them.

There is also a long-standing rumor that Meta Knight was possessed by Nightmare during the events of the game. However, this has since been debunked.

No Relation
It's commonly said, usually jokingly, that because of their similar appearance, Meta Knight must be Kirby's father or brother.

While it certainly isn't impossible, there is no direct support for it other than it fitting the Star Wars cliché. The fact he and Kirby look similar can safely be used as support for them being the same species, but saying they're related by blood is probably stretching things a bit. (But it's not outside the realm of possibility).

Not to be confused with...
A very strange rumor is that under his armor, Meta Knight is a completely different character- Lololo! But we've seen what Meta Knight looks like under his mask, and he has Kirby's facial features (The only real difference is that he's blue).

=Trivia=
 * Some speculate that Meta Knight is a Kirby; however, Nintendo refuses to confirm this. It is likely, though, as he typically loses his mask after defeat, revealing a blue, Kirby-like face. However, Meta Knight seems to lack the same abilities that Kirby does.
 * As stated above, Meta Knight often loses his mask post-defeat. He usually, however, keeps his gloves after these fights, but in the obscure Japanese game Kirby no Kirakira Kizzu, he actually does lose these gloves, revealing yet another Kirby-reminiscent feature: flap-like, seemingly handless arms.
 * To add to this theory, in the 'Kirby: Right back at ya'(Hoshi no kirby)anime, he not only knows most of Kirby's powers suggesting that he either has used the abilities himself (likely prior to finding Galaxia), has experienced another Kirby like character doing such, or was given some kind of instuctions about the new generation which Kirby is apart of), but when Kirby tries to suck him up he states that he has ways of avoiding this ability. As shown in 'Super Smash Bros. melee', a Kirby cannot gain abilities from another Kirby unless the other Kirby already has absorbed a power.