Editing Donkey Kong (character) (section)

===Analysis===
[[File:King Kong 1933 Promotional Image.png|thumb|right|upright|Donkey Kong has been described as a parody of [[King Kong]]; their similarities sparked the 1983 ''[[Universal City Studios, Inc. v. Nintendo Co., Ltd.|Universal v. Nintendo]]'' lawsuit.]]
Donkey Kong has been described as a parody of King Kong,<ref name="NWR: Fav" /><ref name="PCGamer: 1980sDocs" /> with ''Nintendo World Report'' writing that the original game "was almost a mockery of the premise" of the first ''King Kong'' film.<ref name="NWR: KingKong" /> Whereas King Kong is fearsome, Donkey Kong is silly and foolish.<ref name="NWR: Fav" /><ref name="NWR: KingKong" /> In the 1983 ''[[Universal City Studios, Inc. v. Nintendo Co., Ltd.]]'' lawsuit, [[Universal Pictures|Universal]] alleged that ''Donkey Kong'' violated its ''[[King Kong (franchise)|King Kong]]'' trademark. [[Robert W. Sweet]] ruled it was unlikely that anyone would confuse the two, as Donkey Kong was "farcical, childlike and nonsexual" compared to King Kong, "a ferocious gorilla in quest of a beautiful woman".<ref name="PCGamer: 1980sDocs" /> He noted stark contrasts between King Kong, who goes on bloody rampages and viciously attacks foes, and Donkey Kong, who bounces and struts to taunt the player and uses humorous obstacles such as cement tubs and pies.<ref name="PCGamer: 1980sDocs" />

The original ''Donkey Kong'' features a simple [[damsel in distress]] narrative with traditional gender roles, which Miyamoto reused in his ''[[Super Mario]]'' and ''[[Legend of Zelda]]'' games.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Snyder |first1=Colin |last2=Bourdet |first2=Kelly |title=Future Sex: How Tales of Damsels in Distress Came to Dominate Video Games |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/future-sex-princess-peach/ |website=[[Vice Media|Vice]] |access-date=February 24, 2025 |date=March 11, 2013}}</ref><ref name="GameStudies">{{cite journal |last1=Wesp |first1=Edward |title=A Too-Coherent World: Game Studies and the Myth of 'Narrative' Media |journal=Game Studies |date=December 2014 |volume=14 |issue=2 |url=https://gamestudies.org/1402/articles/wesp |issn=1604-7982}}</ref> Donkey Kong, [[hypermasculine]] and brutish, kidnaps the passive Pauline, who must be rescued by the "appropriately masculine" hero, Mario. However, due to the cyclical gameplay, the masculine Mario is unsuccessful in defeating the hypermasculine Donkey Kong, who always recaptures Pauline.<ref name="GameStudies" /> The [[Western New England University]] professor Edward Wesp found this makes Donkey Kong similar to the ''[[Looney Tunes]]'' character [[Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner|Road Runner]], with Mario akin to the perpetually failing [[Wile E. Coyote]]. Wesp writes that Mario's "determination and skill... will, in the end, fail to overcome [Donkey Kong]'s brutish power".<ref name="GameStudies" />

Games featuring Donkey Kong as a protagonist depict melodramatic adventures that emphasize action over characterization.{{sfn|Dyson|2001|p=425}} In his initial appearance, Donkey Kong is similar to Nintendo villains such as ''Mario''{{'s}} Bowser, ''Zelda''{{'s}} [[Ganon]], and ''[[Metroid]]''{{'s}} [[Ridley (Metroid)|Ridley]], in that he is animalistic, unclothed, and unrelatable, much like the literary villains [[Caliban]] and [[Gollum]]. ''[[PopMatters]]'' observed that, in turning Donkey Kong into a protagonist, ''Donkey Kong Country'' "domesticated" him, adding the tie to clothe him and supporting Kongs to provide a family.<ref name="PM: Tie" /> The tie—as well as Donkey Kong's contrast with the crocodilian King K. Rool, a more primitive animal—suggests Donkey Kong possesses sophistication and nobility and does not merely act upon impulse. The Kong family highlights that Donkey Kong cares for others and is past kidnapping. The player thus perceives him as selfless and admirable.<ref name="PM: Tie">{{cite web |author1=''PopMatters'' staff |title=Donkey Kong's Tie, or the Domestication of the Villain |url=https://www.popmatters.com/180206-donkey-kongs-tie-or-the-domestication-of-the-villain-2495674093.html |website=[[PopMatters]] |access-date=February 24, 2025 |date=March 24, 2014}}</ref>