Kirby: Right Back At Ya! (JP)

Kirby of the Stars is an anime series based on Nintendo's Kirby franchise. The series was produced by Warpstar Inc., a company formed between a joint investment between Nintendo and HAL Laboratory, Inc. In Japan, the series has aired on Chubu-Nippon Broadcasting Co., Ltd. since October 6, 2001. It is currently licensed in North America by 4Kids Entertainment under the title Kirby: Right Back at Ya! and was seen on 4Kids TV (formerly known as FoxBox). The show is distributed by 20th Century Fox, Nelvana Enterprises, and HAL Laboratory, Inc. It ended in Japan in 2003 with 100 episodes, and the final episodes are scheduled to air in 2006 in the US. The show is about the adventures Kirby has with his friends after he crash lands on the planet Popstar, in the country of Dreamland. Kirby is actually a legendary Star Warrior destined to save the planet from destruction by the evil Nightmare. The greedy ruler of Dreamland, King Dedede, orders up fearsome monsters from Nightmare's company, Nightmare Enterprises. He uses them to attack Kirby and the people of Dreamland, but Kirby uses his signature abilities to inhale and copy an enemy's power to save the day. Kirby is only based on the game series, taking characters and concepts rather than copying any of the games word-for-word. It can be seen as an alternate universe, having no connection to the game timeline. Being mainly self-contained, it can be easier for those unfamiliar with the game series to understand it. The series is rife with satire and parody, some of it self-referential in nature. Homages to old movies are common, as are references to modern popular culture, politics and news events.