Riddle me this, Donkey Kong fans: what is the familial relation between Cranky Kong and Donkey Kong?  Is the elder Kong his grandfather?  Father?  Some combination of the two?  And where does Diddy Kong fit into the puzzle?  The Mushroom Kingdom lays out all of the evidence and tries to settle the matter once and for all.  The final answer?  Inconclusive and confusing.

There's no question the curmudgeonly Cranky Kong is supposed to be the original Donkey Kong who starred in the arcade titles of the 80's. But who is the current Donkey Kong? Most evidence suggests that he is the grandson of Cranky, and therefore not the original Donkey Kong Jr. Every once in a while, however, Rare or Nintendo will refer to him as Cranky's son.

It's surprising that this sort of thing would become so murky considering how deep most Nintendo storylines can go.  *cough*  I've always liked the conceit that Cranky Kong is the original 1981 arcade villain, but beyond that I try not to think about it too much.  Whoever the current Donkey Kong is, however, there's one thing I think we can all agree on: he has a fantastic sense of fashion when it comes to neckties.