Review: Parasol

When it rains, it pours, and for that, you need an umbrella. That's not what this ability is. No, parasols are used to keep the blazing light off your pasty, sunless skin. Sunshine and enemies.

As far as Kirby is concerned, anything that gets even close to his Parasol is in trouble. This tool knocks 'em dead even when it isn't being used. This makes it the only passive power -- always taking effect no matter what the player is doing. It looms overhead, constantly protecting Kirby. Even better, it's angled slightly to the back, providing a slight amount of protection from rear attacks.

You see, Parasol is a deadly weapon even when it is not being thrust forward. Unlike the other handheld hardware, this canvassed cane is permanently a threat to all foes about you. The edge of Sword and crush of Hammer are only felt during their swing. The seemingly innocent Parasol does not require such. Simply standing there is enough.

It is actually the earliest form of blocking that Kirby could manage. This can either be done by holding down the button to keep the weapon deployed or by ducking. In Dream Land 3, this mode of guard became full-fledged as Kirby did not pancake himself flat but held its red and white surface over his face. It could deter the shots of the appropriately named Shotzo and other such projectiles.

Even when not caring or focusing on blocking attacks, Parasol is a secure shield. Enemies can rain from above, and it bounces them away. There's no fear of any falling stalactites, exploding coconuts, raining stars, or kamikaze foes. Why, there's a good deal of the post-boss mini-games in Dream Land 2 that some cover overhead can help greatly during. Since one hit takes you out, it's a huge help to be able to absorb some of these near hits.

And I haven't even gotten to what this ability does as an attack yet. The thing is, it really isn't that all important. You don't equip the Parasol for its offensive capabilities. All of its power is defensive. You let the enemy come to you or have them get deflected if they get to close. It's range is miserable, in more titles. A single swat follows the pattern of drill forward, hold out, and then sweep upwards and to the back where it resets its position of protection.

In Super Star, they "enhanced" this ability by having it spray off dew or mist or something. It wasn't nearly as powerful as landing a true blow, now, but neither was a foe touching the stationary sunshade. In other titles prior to and including The Crystal Shards, enemies only took a single hit to be defeated. Touching the Parasol in any respect lead to a regular foe's immediate defeat. This is what made it a feared weapon. Super Star, however, introduced ranges of attack power and enemy life for even the commoners. If someone hit your canopy, they'd just bounce back with barely any harm at all.

This title, however, made the weapon more known for its deadly drilling than its defense. A mistake in my book, but I still loved it nonetheless. It could do more, granted, but I typically found myself sticking with these two tactics no matter what power was held in Super Star: dashing and downward attacks. Its charge offered more height than the other wielded weapons since of orbiting stars that spun around Kirby. Additionally, its midair downward plowing offered an angle of attack unseen by any other ability. The problem with it was that you'd normally just use this instead of the inherit drift possessed by Parasol. I mean, why cautiously drift when you can violently crash into the unknown?

Speaking of drifting, that's another detail that makes this power so wonderful. It was the first ability to physically change how Kirby played in the games, and for a while was the only. Rather than falling sharply, Kirby could catch the winds and pleasantly see what danger was lurking for him below. There really weren't many situations that called for this feature, but it was a nice touch to have at disposal if desired. Also, Kirby could slowly descend any depth by just inflating. This offered problems such as an inability to defend himself and time delays between being able to attack. With Parasol, Kirby could do both, sink slow and strike fast.

This is what Parasol offers all in all, a unique playing experience. The very tactic and play of the games is fundamentally altered. One side of the player is perpetually protected so long as no attack is made. Assault comes at the risk of allowing damage to one's self. It has a limited range but can deter enemy attacks. For those who take the turtle's tactic, slow and cautious, rather than a blitzing, berserker battle that bruises foe and self, this unseeming umbrella should be pulled from the coat rack before you set off on your path of adventure. You never know if it might rain.

But you said it wasn't used to block rain at the start of this! Quiet, you! The phrase, "It could be sunny out and you don't want to get a tan" doesn't nearly sound as cool, and it already wasn't that good of a line to start with.

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