Ultimate brings us not one, but two major villains as newcomers! I'm going to admit, K. Rool got more emotional investment than Ridley did, and that's mostly because Donkey Kong Country is one of my favorite video game series of all time. So, what's he been doing for the last 6 years in this story? Well…

- K. Rool's lost to the Kongs about… six times (SNES trilogy, 64, King of Swing, and Jungle Climber). He's unhinged, but it's mostly a front.

- He missed Returns because DK beat him up at the Sluggers baseball competition Mario held, during which K. Rool tried picking on Diddy and Dixie. He missed Tropical Freeze because he was in the middle of rebuilding his island, and also because he's a reptile, and the island getting frozen over ain't good for 'em.

- His pharaoh outfit from Sluggers is referred to as "Tutan K. Roolmon."

- Neo Crocodile Isle strongly resembles the version of the island from DKC2, but there's a catch: in addition to the Flying Krock, the Gangplank Galleon from the first game, his castle from the third, and the head of the Blast-O-Matic from 64 are present. The Krockodile Kore still runs the island.

Neo Crocodile Isle…

King K. Rool, also known as Kaptain K. Rool, Baron K. Roolenstein, Krusha K. Rool, and Tutan K. Roolmon, was festering in his airship, going over plans to make a grand return and eradicate the Kongs once and for all. The Blast-O-Matic once again seemed like his best bet, but it would be months until it had the power to annihilate the entirety of DK Island.

It also didn't help that the island's geography had radically changed in the four years he had been away. The large DK head had been completely blown away by the volcano's eruption, which had greatly satisfied K. Rool. The ice caps on Gorilla Glacier had melted away, the declining sea levels had given way to a beach, most of the land between what was once Gorilla Glacier and the remains of Kremcroc Industries had crumbled away, leaving precarious cliffs and exposing tar pits and fossils, and ancient ruins had been uncovered by deforestation.

Most of his Kremling Krew had deserted him, save for Krusha, Klump, Klaptrap, and Kritter, who remained with him out of sheer loyalty.

Gnashing his teeth in frustration, K. Rool crumpled up the paper and flung it at his wastebin. Nothing had gone right for him since those blasted Kongs foiled his original scheme of starving them for their island. Nothing, absolutely nothing had worked. Not even a desperate bid for the Super Smash Bros. tournament two years prior could get him his revenge on the clan of primates.

Speaking of the Super Smash Bros. tournament, K. Rool had filed yet another application for the tournament. He was certain that it would work this time, even if it failed twice before…

A knock on his door snapped him out of his thoughts.

"WHAT IS IT?!"

"Uh, it's Krusha, sir. You have a visitor."

"A visitor?"

"Yeah, he's requesting a personal audience with you, Your Scaliness."

"Very well, then. Let them in, Krusha."

The door opened, and K. Rool saw a large white glove holding a briefcase.

"Well, it's about time! I was wondering when you'd arrive!"

Master Hand's aura completely vanished in sheer confusion, only managing to utter out a confused, "Huh?"

"I've filed applications for the last six years! Why haven't I been accepted?"

Krusha walked into the room, and said to Master Hand, "He gets like this often. He hasn't been right up there ever since KAOS and the Blast-O-Matic failed."

As Krusha left the room, Master Hand decided to cut right to the chase, saying, "K. Rool, you're in the Super Smash Brothers tournament."

K. Rool stopped mid-rant, saying, "So… I'm in?"

Sighing in exasperation, Master Hand said, "Yes, K. Rool, you're in. Here's the envelope. Take the portal when you're ready."

After generating the wormhole, Master Hand gave the invitation to K. Rool and left immediately.

K. Rool looked at Krusha, who gave him a thumbs-up, and back at the envelope, which was sealed with a wax version of the Super Smash Bros. logo. K. Rool leapt in sheer elation, whooping out, "My time has come! At last, I can get my revenge on those meddlesome monkeys!"

Turning to Krusha, K. Rool said, "Krusha, get the devices!"

"All of 'em, sir?"

K. Rool snapped, "Yes, all of them, you numbskull!"

As Krusha left to get the supplies from the Gangplank Galleon, K. Rool looked through his wardrobe. Which one of these outfits would be the best fit for a grand return?

While he ultimately decided to stick with his first outfit, he still crammed all of the other ones into a large suitcase. At this point, Krusha ran into the room, grunting, "Here they are, sir!" before collapsing in a heap.

K. Rool looked through the pile, picking out his boxing gloves, his helicopter pack, and his blunderbuss out of the pile and cramming them into his suitcase.

It was at this moment that K. Rool decided to spontaneously burst into song. Krusha, taking a hint, left the Flying Krock.

"Now that I have the power, this is my finest hour. Nothing on this earth can stop me nooooooowwwww…"

K. Rool stepped through the wormhole, ready to exact his revenge on the Kongs for the first time in six years.

Meanwhile, a squirrel in a blue hoodie walked onto the island, and said, "Well, that's certainly not the weirdest thing I've seen all day…"

Yes, I liked some aspects of the Donkey Kong Country TV show. Sue me. But anyways, I've always liked King K. Rool, he was such a cool villain in the SNES trilogy, especially with the nonverbal humor of the first two games. Just hearing him give that silly croak when I jump on his head, or seeing him look at the screen before his gun backfires is always good for a laugh.

Also, little Conker cameo is just that. A cameo.

Anyways, Smashville's our next stop! I wonder how Isabelle's doing with all the paperwork regarding the floating platform up above…