Taranza Artwork ofTaranza fromKirby Air Riders. Details First appearance Kirby: Triple Deluxe (2014) Latest appearance Kirby Air Riders (2025) Other appearance(s) Team Kirby Clash Deluxe Kirby Star Allies Super Kirby Clash Cameo appearance(s) Dedede's Drum Dash Deluxe Kirby: Planet Robobot Kirby Battle Royale Kirby's Dream Buffet Kirby's Return to Dream Land Deluxe Similar Dark Taranza Sectonia's original form Como Voice actor(s) Hirokazu Ando

Theme music https://wikirby.com/wiki/File:KTD_Taranza_the_Master_of_Puppetry_Sample.oga "Taranza, the Master of Puppetry" Clip of Taranza's theme fromKirby: Triple Deluxe

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Taranza is a young, clumsy wizard with arachnid-like characteristics who serves as a prominent character in a few games in theKirby series. He first appeared inKirby: Triple Deluxe when, on orders fromQueen Sectonia, he kidnappedKing Dedede in order to prevent him from foiling their plans to conquerFloralia. In the end, however, he realized he had captured the wrong target, asKirby would pursue him all the way to the queen's chambers and defeat them in combat. Taranza would later be betrayed by his queen, and eventually come to Kirby and King Dedede's aid in dispatching her after she hadmerged with theDreamstalk. From then on, he would be an ally to Kirby and King Dedede.

SinceKirby: Triple Deluxe, Taranza has made various appearances in subsequent games. InTeam Kirby Clash Deluxe, he serves as one of the principal villains, and is battled directly for the first time in the series (he also serves as a more minor plot element inSuper Kirby Clash). This is where he gained the moniker ofThe Puppeteer Magician. Taranza would become playable for the first time as aDream Friend inKirby Star Allies, though he does not serve a specific role in the game's story. He has also made minor appearances inDedede's Drum Dash Deluxe,Kirby: Planet Robobot, andKirby Battle Royale.

Physical appearance[edit]

Taranza is a floating creature who greatly resembles a spider, and bears similar anatomy toMagolor. His body is divided into a head and a torso, which simultaneously resembles a spider's cephalothorax and abdomen. He has brown skin, and on his head he has eight eyes (one pair on his face, one pair on his forehead, and two pairs on the back of his head), a mouth with two visible fangs, silver hair, and orange horns that resemble pincers. Over his torso, he wears a red scarf with a green web-patterned cape. He has three pairs of disembodied, gloved hands. At the bottom of his torso, he has a stubby "tail", which resembles a spinneret. InTeam Kirby Clash Deluxe andSuper Kirby Clash, Taranza dresses in a dark color scheme; in the former game, this is due to theBlack Mirror which was corrupting him.

The name Taranza is partially based on the name of the large spider family known as thetarantula. This is a possible misnomer however, as tarantulas are generally more passive than other spiders, as well as much hairier.

Game appearances[edit]

Kirby: Triple Deluxe[edit]

In the opening scene ofKirby: Triple Deluxe's Story Mode, Taranza is seen kidnappingKing Dedede, mistaking him for the "Hero ofDream Land", and flies up theDreamstalk with him. Afterwards, Taranza is seen in every stage containing aboss battle in the first five levels, fleeing fromKirby and making bosses fight against the pink hero. Taranza's acts include:

• Using magic to grow a flower intoFlowery Woods at the end ofFine Fields;
• Using magic to makePaintra come to life out of her painting at the end ofLollipop Land;
• Using magic to bringKracko from the clouds at the end ofOld Odyssey;
• Using magic to awakenCoily Rattler from its statue form at the end ofWild World;
• DeceivingPyribbit into believing Kirby has disturbed his rest at the end ofEndless Explosions.

At the end ofRoyal Road, Taranza appears again and uses his magic to turn King Dedede intoMasked Dedede and mind controls him to fight Kirby as the "Master of Puppetry". After Kirby bests Dedede, Taranza realizes his mistake in kidnapping Dedede rather than Kirby and calls for help fromQueen Sectonia, who swats him away for his failures. At this point, Taranza decides to aid Kirby and King Dedede, gaining redemption in the process by tossing Kirby aMiracle Fruit to activate hisHypernova ability at a crucial point during the final battle withFlowered Sectonia. Afterwards, in the ending cutscene, Taranza rescues Dedede from his fall, and it is revealed that Taranza was ordered by Sectonia to kidnap the hero of Dream Land in order to prevent them from stopping her, but he mistakenly kidnapped King Dedede rather than Kirby. After the credits roll, Taranzawaves at the player alongside Kirby, King Dedede and thePeople of the Sky.

In some of the bosses' Special Pages and inMiiverse posts, it is revealed that Taranza and Sectonia were once good friends. In one occasion, he stole theDimension Mirror from theMirror World to give it as a gift to Sectonia, but neither of them knew of the mirror's power which caused her to become more self-obsessed and power-hungry than before. She was also said to even alter her original form, which was shown in future games to be very similar to Taranza's appearance. InSoul of Sectonia's first phase's Special Page, it is revealed that Taranza attempted to say some final words and an offering for her, but he could not reach her.

Original sprite work of Taranza also appears as a rareKeychain. Moreover, inStage 3 ofWild World, a painting of Taranza can be seen in the background during the fight withKing Phanta.

Dedede's Drum Dash Deluxe[edit]

InDedede's Drum Dash Deluxe, Dedede can unlock the Taranza Mask after completing every secret level in the game. A hand-puppet version of Taranza also appears on title screen as part of various different interactions, and he appears in some of thetrophies as well.

Kirby: Planet Robobot[edit]

InKirby: Planet Robobot, twostickers depicting Taranza appear: a portrait and a doodle. Additionally, a portrait of Taranza appears as a camouflage ofArcher Kirby in the game.

Team Kirby Clash Deluxe[edit]

Taranza returns in the spinoff titleTeam Kirby Clash Deluxe, serving the role of the main antagonist and driving the various monsters to attack theDream Kingdom. His ultimate triumph is in subduing and bendingLandia the Guardian Angel to his will, who continues to fight even after he is defeated. It is later revealed that Taranza was being influenced by a powerful evil object known as theBlack Mirror, and to return Taranza to a friendly demeanor, Team Kirby must destroy this mirror, dealing with everything it summons in the process.

Unlike inKirby: Triple Deluxe, Taranza is fought directly as aboss in this title, serving as the fourth Ordeal boss. He floats around the battlefield, tossing magic energy at Team Kirby from the foreground and background. He is also capable of ensnaring the Kirbys in a magic net, rendering them useless for a time. His ability to float about and teleport makes him a difficult target for Team Kirby, but like other floating enemies, he is vulnerable to theBeam Mage's Time Beam spell.

Defeating Taranza unlocks the last series of encounters in all of the lands unlocked up to that point, eventually leading to the fight withLandia EX. After Landia EX is defeated, two invaders fromAnother Dimension strike the Dream Kingdom, namelyParallel Susie andParallel Landia. After the two parallel invaders are defeated, theBlack Mirror brings forth Taranza's evil counterpart,Dark Taranza. Team Kirby must fight Dark Taranza andhis master in the true final battles.

After Team Kirby win the true final battles and eventually bring peace back to the Dream Kingdom, the friendly Taranza will stay in the town and sit onMagolor's Shoppe, looking at a flower in his hand in memory ofhis queen.

In this game, Taranza's model was updated fromTriple Deluxe. Most notably, his mouth is now part of his model rather than a texture, meaning he can freely open and close it. His hair is similarly fully-modeled, and his scarf is longer, details which carry over to his future appearances. His color scheme is also altered to be primarily red and purple, though he returns to his original palette once he has been subdued.

Magolor's Shoppe also sells a set ofDoctor Healmore armor modeled after Taranza.

Attacks[edit]

The following are all of Taranza's attacks inTeam Kirby Clash Deluxe. Note that attack names are conjectural:

• 
  Portion of the battle with Taranza, where he has used his web to ensnare two Kirbys
• 
  Throwing a giant bouncing energy ball at Team Kirby
• 
  Throwing large diamond-shaped projectiles at the Kirbys

Kirby Battle Royale[edit]

InKirby Battle Royale, Taranza appears as a spectator in the Party Room stage forCoin Clash.

Kirby Star Allies[edit]

InKirby Star Allies, Taranza makes his playable debut as aDream Friend in Version 4.0.0 of the game.

Taranza borrows much of his moveset from theSpider ability—including theFriend Bounce—but his webs are distinctly pink in color. In addition, he has many unique magic moves: Some are taken from his attacks inTeam Kirby Clash Deluxe (e.g. Taranza Web Hold, Taranza Burst, Taranza Ball), and he can summon the illusion ofQueen Sectonia dropping lightning bolts which can imbue his allies with theZap element. Despite being based on an arachnid, his description refers to him as an insect.

Taranzahovers via flying rather thanInfinity Jump, similar toNESP,Vividria,Marx,Adeleine & Ribbon,Magolor,Francisca andZan Partizanne.

Moveset[edit]

The following table lists all of Taranza's moves inKirby Star Allies:

Cameos[edit]

• One of theStone ability transformations in the base game has the statue of Taranza and the presumable original form ofQueen Sectonia.
• AStone transformation of Taranza and theDreamstalk was added in Version 4.0.0.
• A stone plate of Taranza andQueen Sectonia's official artwork fromKirby: Triple Deluxe was added in theGrott Moon stage in Version 4.0.0.
• Taranza appears in twoCelebration Pictures: "A Miracle Sent to the Skies" and "Rockabilly and Blues".

Super Kirby Clash[edit]

Taranza returns inSuper Kirby Clash, his attack style and appearance carried over from his fights inTeam Kirby Clash Deluxe. He serves as the fifth Ordeal of the game, though this time, he does not have quite as large a role in the story. Team Kirby battles him in the Empyrean, confusing him forParallel Nightmare at first. Once Taranza is beaten, he appears in the Port Village and sits atopMagolor's Shoppe. Taranza is fought two more times in Party Quest encounters. This time,Dark Taranza does not appear alongside Taranza.

Taranza also appears as one of the game'sstickers, which uses his artwork fromKirby: Triple Deluxe.

Kirby's Dream Buffet[edit]

InKirby's Dream Buffet, Kirby can take on Taranza's likeness using acostume andcolor which resemble him. Taranza also appears on aCharacter Treat, which uses his artwork fromKirby: Triple Deluxe.

Kirby's Return to Dream Land Deluxe[edit]

InKirby's Return to Dream Land Deluxe, Taranza makes a cameo appearance inMerry Magoland as a statue upon completing 70missions inMerry Magoland. ADress-Up Mask featuring his likeness also appears in the game, which replaces the wearer's voice with Taranza's. It is unlocked upon completing card #09 in theStamp Rally.

Kirby Air Riders[edit]

Taranza is a selectable rider and playable character inKirby Air Riders. Unlike inKirby Star Allies, he is referred to as an arachnid. He can be unlocked either by riding for a total of 5,000 m (5,469 yd) inBeanstalk Park during a Time match, or by winning aShort Race inCity Trial. Like other riders, he can wieldCopy Abilities byCapturing enemies. While riding and facing a wall, a pink reticle may appear ahead of Taranza; if the Boost button is pressed, Taranza will cast a thread of silk to the wall and pull it, giving him a small speed boost. For hisSpecial, Spider Shots, Taranza slowly and automatically tosses web balls that glide along the ground. These cause damage to opponents and tie them up in a silky cluster, requiring them to quickly flick the Control Stick to escape from. Similar toLololo & Lalala's Emerald Framer, Taranza will not throw web balls during aQuick Spin. His alternate palette is based off of Dark Taranza. On theRoad TripChecklist image, Taranza rides theVampire Star.

Profiles[edit]

Flavor text[edit]

Image	Game	Flavor text
	Team Kirby Clash Deluxe	The Magician reveals himself! Break his web of spells and restore peace!
	Kirby Star Allies	As a Dream Friend: This clumsy smarty-pants stumbled his way here from the heights of Kirby: Triple Deluxe. He's a lonely insect on a journey in search of a queen, and he's one of your new Dream Friends! Guest Star Taranza: "No doubt. A miracle will happen for sure!" Hoping for a true miracle, the boy with silver hair from Kirby: Triple Deluxe is making a bid for the altar. Deep in his heart, he already knows the outcome. But if he could just reach that bright light...
	Super Kirby Clash	Taranza (Tough) The magician reveals himself! Break his web of spells and restore peace! Taranza (Tougher) This teleporting trickster will try to confuse Team Kirby with its[sic] magic, but stay focused and you'll beat him! Taranza (Super) The decisive battle between the final form of the puppetmaster magician and the heroes of Team Kirby!
	Kirby Air Riders	A clever arachnid with tight controls. Web and sling around corners for extra bursts of speed!

Kirby: Triple Deluxeelectronic manual[edit]

• "Appeared out of nowhere and kidnapped King Dedede. Very little is known about him or his motives for kidnapping the king."

In theKirby novel series[edit]

Taranza Artwork ofTaranza fromKirby's Labyrinth Rescue! Details First appearance Kirby's Labyrinth Rescue! Last appearance Kirby: Save the Rainbow Islands! Role Supporting character Other appearance(s) his video game counterpart

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In theKirby novel series, Taranza is a reoccurring character who lives inFloralia. He was a servant of the evilQueen Sectonia until Kirby defeated her and still greatly misses her. Because of his desire to see her again, he causes trouble toKirby and his friends, even if he has well meaning intentions. He has the power to trap characters by his strings and make them act as his puppets.

Taranza's appearances in theKirby novel series
Volume	Image	Role	Role details	Notes
Kirby's Labyrinth Rescue!		Supporting character	In this novel, before the events of the story, Taranza meetsMagolor, who falsely claims to be an acquaintance ofQueen Sectonia. Magolor asks to hand over theDimension Mirror, but Taranza refuses, and Magolor tries to steal it by force. As a fight begins between them, Taranza calls for help and the mirror respond to his desires, sealing Taranza away in the labyrinth of theMirror World to protect him from Magolor. Later in the story, Magolor,Kirby and his friends hear Taranza's voice from the other side of a black door. When Magolor calls his name, it is revealed that the supposed friend of Magolor is Taranza. They barge in and find Taranza gazing at the Dimension Mirror, ignoring all their calls. Taranza calls Queen Sectonia and hallucinates visions of her from inside the mirror, who fulfils his wish to reunite with her. As Kirby andMeta Knight try to destroy the mirror, he turns around, protecting the mirror he thinks is Queen Sectonia. He shoots strings at Meta Knight, making him his puppet to fight Kirby. Noticing Magolor trying to steal the mirror, Taranza is distracted and the puppet spell breaks. To stop Taranza from chasing after him, Magolor tells him that he only protects the Dimension Mirror from Kirby and his friends, and they join forces. After Taranza is defeated by theKirby Tank, they tell him to take back the mirror from Magolor. Taranza fights Magolor, gaining the upper hand, until the mirror grunts Magolor's wish. Taranza savesKing Dedede from Magolor by carrying him with his strings. He snaps out of the hallucination and reveals that Magolor was not his friend and was only trying to steal the mirror. He stumbles uponMirra, which they use to find aCopy Ability. After they defeat Magolor, Taranza wraps him by his strings and tells them about everything that happened. When Taranza tries to pick up the mirror again, Meta Knight stops him, telling him all he saw is an illusion and that Sectonia is truly gone. Taranza tells him that he heard her laughing and calling him from inside the mirror. Meta Knight responds that he cannot go back to the past. As Taranza wants to leave, he hears her voice again from inside the mirror, but this time, he turns back. They part ways, leaving Kirby to wonder if the voice was real after all.
Kirby Clash Team Unite!		Supporting character	In this novel, Taranza shows up before the events of the story unfold. He is set on finding theBlack Mirror in hopes of seeingQueen Sectonia again. Throughout the novel, Taranza causes chaos in theDream Kingdom and it's up to Team Kirby to put an end to it. After many battles the team decides that the only one that can be pulling the strings is the master of puppetry himself. Team Kirby would go to find Taranza at the Empyrean, accompanied byLandia. Landia battles Team Kirby and ends up being defeated by the four right before Taranza reveals himself. Team Kirby tries to talk it out with him but Taranza goes on the attack. Team Kirby ends up defeating Taranza but Landia, now recovered, saves Taranza. Taranza continues to have more monsters terrorize the Dream Kingdom which leads to Team Kirby thinking he faked his defeat. Team Kirby decides to go back to the Empyrean in which they see the Black Mirror. From it, a corrupted version of Taranza spawns:Dark Taranza. After his defeat, Dark Taranza summonsKing D-Mind, who bats his summoner into the distance before attacking Team Kirby. King D-Mind is defeated by Team Kirby and gets sucked into the Black Mirror. Team Kirby thinks about Taranza's wish to see Queen Sectonia again and they decide to destroy the Black Mirror, freeing Taranza. Taranza reconciles with Team Kirby and decides to sit on top of the shoppe wagon.
Kirby: Save the Rainbow Islands!		Supporting character	In this novel, Taranza appears in before the events of the story. He noticesPirika when she admires a castle in the sky. When he tells her that nobody lives in castle anymore, Pirika tells him that she knows and came to this place because she admiresQueen Sectonia. Hearing that, Taranza decides to explain to her about the queen and reveal his identity as her servant. When she tells him that she wants to be as great as her, he tells her to move on. Pirika doesn't listen and leaves. In the end of the story, one of theDreamstalk fruits that Pirika has thrown atGooey is carried by the wind toFloralia, where Taranza finds it. He is reminded of Pirika and wishes that her fate won't be like Queen Sectonia's fate. He plants the Dreamstalk seed and waters it, hopeful to see it grow strong and to see Queen Sectonia again.

• 
  Taranza is entranced by the Dimension Mirror fromKirby's Labyrinth Rescue!.
• 
  Taranza does not want Kirby and Meta Knight to destroy the Dimension Mirror fromKirby's Labyrinth Rescue!.
• 
  Taranza chases after Magolor fromKirby's Labyrinth Rescue!.
• 
  Taranza cheering Kirby to beat Magolor fromKirby's Labyrinth Rescue!.
• 
  Taranza hearing Sectonia's voice fromKirby's Labyrinth Rescue!.
• 
  Taranza revealing himself fromKirby Clash Team Unite!.
• 
  Landia flying off with Taranza in tow fromKirby Clash Team Unite!.
• 
  Magolor annoyed that Taranza is sitting on top of the Shoppe wagon fromKirby Clash Team Unite!.
• 
  Pirika meets Taranza near the abandoned castle fromKirby: Save the Rainbow Islands!.
• 
  Taranza waters the Dreamstalk fruit fromKirby: Save the Rainbow Islands!.

Trivia[edit]

• In an official Twitter post, Taranza is given the nickname インテリ坊ちゃん刈り ("Bowlcut Intellectual") byZan Partizanne.
• Super Taranza Burst fromKirby Star Allies (96damage) is one of the most powerful single attacks in theKirby series, even stronger thanHammer Flip (80 in many cases, and 88 in King Dedede's case).
  • Super Taranza Burst's power is three times as much as Taranza Burst.
  • Sometimes if the attack button is released too early but the charge complete sound effect still plays, Taranza Burst will be used instead of Super Taranza Burst.
  • This attack is only surpassed by the Hammer Flip withFriend Abilities: 100 for Hammer Kirby andBonkers and 110 for King Dedede.
• Unused data of the Net Work and Skyward Web attacks from theSpider ability can be found in Taranza's moveset files, possibly due to straight copying.
• Taranza's voice was first heard inDedede's Drum Dash Deluxe and was provided by the game's composer,Hirokazu Ando. According toShinya Kumazaki onMiiverse, his voice was digitally altered and designed with "the image of an androgynous young spider".^[1]

Gallery[edit]

Main article:Taranza/gallery

• 
  Artwork of Taranza fromKirby: Triple Deluxe
• 
  Taranzakeychain fromKirby: Triple Deluxe
• 
  Taranzasticker fromKirby: Planet Robobot
• 
  Taranza Doodle sticker fromKirby: Planet Robobot
• 
  Icon fromKirby Star Allies
• 
  In-game art fromSuper Kirby Clash
• 
  Dress-Up Mask fromKirby's Return to Dream Land Deluxe
• 
  Taranza plushie, manufactured by San-ei
• 
  Magnet of Taranza made forKirby's 30th Anniversary, from the "PITATTO" merchandise line

Quotes[edit]

Names in other languages[edit]

Video gallery[edit]

References

• Featured pages
• Characters
• Novel characters
• Antagonists
• Enemies in Team Kirby Clash Deluxe
• Enemies in Super Kirby Clash
• Allies
• Playable characters
• Dream Friends
• Riders in Kirby Air Riders

• Articles which list Japanese names
• Articles which list Chinese names
• Articles which list Dutch names
• Articles which list French names
• Articles which list German names
• Articles which list Italian names
• Articles which list Korean names
• Articles which list Portuguese names
• Articles which list Russian names
• Articles which list Spanish names