Mugly

Mugly
First appearance	Donkey Kong Country Returns (2010)
Latest appearance	WarioWare: Get It Together! (statue cameo) (2021)

“Tell that bulbous banana-eating guy he needs to cut down on the nanners! I mean, look at him! He's huge!”

—Cranky Kong, Donkey Kong Country Returns

Mugly is the first boss of Donkey Kong Country Returns and its Nintendo 3DS remake, Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D. Mugly is fought by Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong at the end of the Jungle world in the boss level, Mugly's Mound, where he is hypnotized by Kalimba. Mugly is a distant relative of a later boss, Thugly.

General information

Physical description

The Kongs fighting Mugly.

Mugly is a four-legged, yellow reptilian monster. He has a large mouth with a few teeth, each being crooked, and a large tongue. Mugly has two lazy eyes and red spikes on his back, which he can retract at will. During the second phase of the battle, Mugly turns orange, and in the third and final phase, he turns from orange to red. Mugly has a target-like design on his back, which indicates his vulnerable spot that the Kongs must jump on while Mugly's spikes are retracted.

Attacks

Mugly has two basic attacks: one is running from one side of the arena to the next with his mouth open, while the other is jumping high and attempting to land down onto Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong. During both attacks, Mugly's spikes are retracted, allowing the Kongs to do a jump attack onto him.

Mugly moves quicker when he turns orange, even more so when he is red. In both phases, when Mugly performs a high jump and lands, he generates a large shockwave. While either orange or red, if the Kongs avoid Mugly as he charges at them, he may hit into a wall, causing Mugly to become dizzy temporarily and giving the Kongs a brief opportunity to jump onto Mugly. Sometimes Mugly walks to the other side of the arena with his back arched and his spikes extended, but sometimes his spikes are retracted, leaving his weak spot exposed to attack unless he was hit the third and sixth time.

When Mugly runs into the Kongs with his mouth open, he eats them and chews on them for a few seconds before spitting them out, causing the Kongs to lose a heart. When Mugly's mouth is open, Diddy Kong can shoot peanuts into Mugly's mouth and after a certain amount of peanuts are eaten, Mugly stops to chew on the peanuts for a few seconds, leaving his weak spot exposed. (Mugly's mouth also opens in the first phase when jumping, but keeps it shut in the second and third phase.)

Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS trophy

Name	Image	American English description	British English description
Mugly		Mugly doesn't even peel bananas before eating them! Maybe he gets his yellow skin that way. I'm sure he's a lovable monster when he isn't controlled by evil Tikis. When he charges, his spikes go away—maybe so he can go faster? It definitely exposes his weak spot...	You know how eating carrots all the time can turn you orange? If bananas have a similar effect, that might explain Mugly. His spikes retract whenever he charges, which is either a sign of his better nature when he's not hypnotised by the Tiki Tak Tribe, or just a regular old weak point!

Gallery

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  Concept artwork from the Extras menu

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  Boss fight in Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D

Names in other languages

Language	Name	Meaning	Notes
Japanese	マグリー[?] Magurī	Mugly
Chinese	马古力[?] Mǎgǔlì	Mugly
French (NOA)	Grobêta[?]	Pun on "gros bêta" (moron)
French (NOE)	Jauny[?]	From "jaune" (yellow) with diminutive "-y"
German	Grässli[?]	From "grässlich" (ghastly)
Italian	Bruttomuso[?]	From "brutto" (ugly) and "muso" (muzzle)
Spanish	Mufeo[?]	Possibly from a contraction of "muy feo" (very ugly)

Trivia

• Two statues of Mugly can be seen in the background of Jungle Hijinxs, which release bananas that are required to obtain a Puzzle Piece.
  • The same statues can be seen in Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, in the background of the Homecoming Hijinxs level. Mugly makes another cameo, frozen solid, in the diorama of Donkey Kong Island.