Cranky's Cabin

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Cranky's Cabin
Artwork of Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong, and Cranky Kong outside of Cranky's Cabin
Artwork of the Kongs and Cranky at Cranky's Cabin for Donkey Kong Country
First appearance Donkey Kong Country (1994)
Latest appearance The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023)
Greater location Donkey Kong Island
Owner Cranky Kong
“Who told you I was here? Was it that obnoxious Funky Kong?”
Cranky Kong, Donkey Kong Country

Cranky's Cabin, titled Cranky's Hut in the Game Boy Advance remake, is the home of Cranky Kong. It is made out of a barrel, with an opening carved in the side for an entrance. The building has a stone-coated metal roof, which a long chimney stems out from. A neon sign of the Nintendo logo is hanging above the entrance, and a Giant Banana is sitting to the left of the cabin. Located to the right is a large crate appearing to be a Rambi Crate, on which a silhouetted emblem of Rambi's face is printed. There is an official artwork showing Donkey Kong and Diddy at Cranky's Cabin. It appears to be during the evening, as evidenced from the orange sky. Instead of a Rambi Crate, the scene shows a crate reading "2L84ME" (too late for me) in red text. This text was later included on the Barrel Cannons in Super Smash Bros. Melee.

Cranky Kong would later run the Monkey Museum in Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest, and Cranky's Lab in Donkey Kong 64. In the Game Boy Advance version of Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!, Cranky runs his own dojo. In Donkey Kong Country Returns, Cranky runs his own shop, whose design appears to have been inspired from his original cabin. The location's theme is even a rendition of that of Cranky's Cabin's.

History

Donkey Kong Country

Cranky greeting Donkey Kong and Diddy

Cranky's Cabin first appears in Donkey Kong Country, as an optional location that Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong can visit to hear Cranky's advice, usually regarding animal token and bonus room locations in the first world, Kongo Jungle. Regardless of the current world, Cranky's Cabin is surrounded by jungle foliage. In addition to his advice, Cranky lives up to his name by complaining, often breaking the fourth wall in the process. He constantly whines about how the games from his glory days (such as the original Donkey Kong) were much better than the newer one. Cranky makes other complaints such as over modern graphics, which he deems as too bright and colorful, or his swaying beard being a "waste of frames" from the game's end.

In the ending, after the Kongs defeat King K. Rool, they take a trip to Cranky's Cabin, where the old ape will congratulate them, and comment on whether or not they found all of the bonus rooms in the game. Afterwards, he will tell the Kongs to return to the banana hoard, so they can see that it's been replenished.

Occasionally, Cranky says he would invite Donkey and Diddy indoors but the game cannot allocate the memory allowing him to do so. Ironically, in the Game Boy Advance version, Cranky's Cabin takes place indoors, and it now features new background details referencing other Rare games. The mask of Mumbo Jumbo, a character from the Banjo-Kazooie series, is lying on Steel Barrels right outside the screen. The decapitated head of Sabre Wulf, the main villain of Sabreman, is mounted on the cabin's wall, next to the entrance. Sabre Wulf does not appear to be dead because his eyes continue to blink in spite of his decapitation. To the left of Sabre Wulf's head is a framed picture above a television set with a flashing static screen.

Donkey Kong Land

Although Cranky's Cabin does not appear in Donkey Kong Land itself, the manual has it as the location where Donkey and Diddy make a bet with Cranky over recovering their bananas from the Kremling Krew again on a handheld system.

Donkey Kong Country television series

Cranky's Cabin in the television series

In the Donkey Kong Country television series, Cranky's Cabin, instead of being located on the ground, is high in the trees, possibly in the television series equivalent of Tree Top Town. The appearance of Cranky's Cabin was also altered in the cartoon series; it was made rounded and larger and had a variety of booby traps located near it, which could be activated to ward off enemies. The Cabin's interior has a safe located in the center of the hut, and unlike the games also has a piano and potion making equipment.

The safe within the cabin is the holding place of the Crystal Coconut in the show, which Donkey Kong spends much of his time guarding. On several occasions, King K. Rool is able to sneak into the cabin and get the Coconut, and other times, he is able to trick, or even use magic, to get someone else to go in and get it for him (such as when he uses the love potion to get Candy Kong to go in and steal it for him in "A Thin Line Between Love & Ape"). The walkway to the cabin is booby-trapped with Trigger Barrels that when jumped on, send anyone unfortunate enough to be standing on it flying or falling. This is featured in several episodes, and is often used to thwart K. Rool from stealing the coconut.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Cranky's Cabin makes a cameo appearance in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate in the DK Island subarea of the World of Light, which in itself is a recreation of the Kongo Jungle world map from Donkey Kong Country. Cranky Kong's spirit is fought in this location.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie

Cranky's Cabin appears in The Super Mario Bros. Movie as Cranky's base of operations when discussing a strategy with Mario and Princess Peach to get ahead of Bowser and his army. It resembles his shop from Donkey Kong Country Returns.

Unused appearances

Diddy Kong Pilot (2003)

Screenshot of Cranky Kong sitting at his cabin from Diddy Kong Pilot.
Cranky sitting at his cabin in Diddy Kong Pilot

Cranky's Cabin makes a cameo in the 2003 iteration of Diddy Kong Pilot, and it also shown in a jungle setting. It is the location where Cranky communicates to the player from during various parts of the game. The iconic Nintendo logo and Giant Banana reappear in the scenery.

Cranky's Cabin was replaced with Bottles' Molehill in the final version of this iteration, Banjo-Pilot.

Gallery

Names in other languages

Language Name Meaning
Japanese クランキーコングの小屋
Kurankī Kongu no Koya
クランキーのこや
Kurankī no Koya
Cranky Kong's Cabin

Cranky's Cabin (handheld versions); see Monkey Museum

French Cabane de Cranky
Cranky's Hut
German Crankys Hütte
Cranky's Hut
Italian Capanna di Cranky
Cranky's Hut
Spanish Choza de Cranky
Cranky's Hut

Trivia

  • Cranky was originally intended to provide more hints regarding later worlds of the game, which is evidenced from unused dialogue hidden in the game's contents.[1]

References