Heavy Zed
Heavy Zeds[1], also referred to as simply Owls[2], are birds that appear in the Tree Zone of Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins. They are large owls that are usually seen asleep, with their name being a play on the phrase "heavy sleeper" and "zed"; "zed" is the British English pronunciation of the letter Z, which is commonly used to denote snoring.
Heavy Zeds are not hostile, and their heads can be used as platforms. When Mario approaches a Heavy Zed, it wakes up, and he can then stand on top of it to be flown to a higher area. A similar role is served by other owls in later games, such as Hoot from Super Mario 64 and the owls from Wario Land II and Wario Land 3.
A singular Heavy Zed appears in volume 7 and 10 of Super Mario-kun. While fighting a Battle Beetle, Mario avoid one punch from the enemy how hits a branch from which a sleeping Heavy Zed fell, without waking up, squashing the Battle Beetle. While keeping him awake, Mario and Carrot fly on his back and reach Big Bird nest. Later, seeing them in difficulty, the Heavy Zed brings a Bonus bell and, by hitting it, Carrot summon a Fire Flower from the Mario Catcher minigame. With the flower, Mario beats Big Bird and the three then looks for the Golden Coin inside the Big Bird's eggs. The Zed finds it, but falls asleep, while Mario and Carrot keep looking for the Coin. In volume 10, after Mario manages to break Wario's hypnosis on the Mario Land inhabitants, Luigi collect the inhabitants and, riding the Heavy Zed, they reach Mario, in time to cheer for him as an audience during the final battle.
Official profiles
Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins
- Virtual Console Manual: "This isn't really an enemy; it's a sleeping owl. If Mario climbs onto this owl's head, it'll wake up and give Mario a ride. Heavy Zed has other friends that will give Mario a ride, too."
Names in other languages
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | グー[3] Gū |
From 「ぐうぐう」gūgū, an onomatopoeia for a snoring sound |
| French | Zed l'Assoupi[4] |
The Dozing Zed |
| German | Müder Zed |
Tired Zed |
| Italian | Ciccio Zed[5] |
Heavy Zed |
| Spanish | Heavy Zed |
- |
References
- ^ Super Mario Land 2: 6 Gold Coins English instruction booklet, page 14.
- ^ Nintendo Magazine System (AU) Issue #5, page 56.
- ^ Super Mario Land 2: 6-tsu no Kinka Japanese instruction booklet, page 17.
- ^ Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins European instruction booklet (French part), page 58.
- ^ Super Mario Bros. Enciclopedia; pag. 77
