"As the goddess of light, it's my duty to protect humanity."
- Palutena
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Palutena
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Affiliation |
Palutena's Army |
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Appearances |
Kid Icarus |
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Job |
Leader of her army, Goddess of Light, and Guardian of the human race |
Palutena (パルテナ Parutena), also known as "Lady Palutena," is the Goddess of Light, rightful ruler of Angel Land (Skyworld) and patron deity of and mother figure to Pit. She is kind-hearted and benevolent, as opposed to the cruel and malevolent Medusa. Despite being a divine goddess, Palutena also seems to be somewhat of a damsel-in-distress, as she was kidnapped and held captive by Medusa and needed to be rescued. She never physically aids Pit on the battlefield, but recently she has been given a much more active role as a major supporting character and Pit's greatest ally. She does, however, use her power attacks to fight Pit in Chapter 20 while possessed by the Chaos Kin.
She is the leader of her own army, better known as Palutena's Army.
Appearance
- Voice actor: English: Ali Hillis (Kid Icarus: Uprising); Brandy Kopp (SSB4), Japanese: Aya Hisakawa
Palutena has the appearance of a 22-year old woman[[1]] with very long green hair reaching down to her lower legs. She has an overall very elegant and regal appearance, fitting her title as the Goddess of Light. Her main outfit is a relatively simple-looking white dress with numerous gold ornaments to accommodate it. Interestingly, many of Palutena's design choices has parallels to Pit's, such as the gold laurel crown, red fibula, the vine-like patterns on the hems of her dress, brown-colored footwear, and the various gold accessories. She is typically depicted wielding her weapons of choice such as a gold staff with a blue handle and a mirror shield.
Personality
Palutena's personality is not explored much during the first two games, although the general description is that she's a "pure-hearted and kind" goddess who puts her people before her own welfare. Palutena is generally a very kind and wise character. She is shown to care much about the human race and her personal army, and will go to great lengths keep them safe from harm.
Despite her mature appearance, she has been shown to have a very playful and mischievous side. Palutena often teases Pit, and even purposely puts him into dangerous situations in order to complete missions. She also has a habit of saying common phrases incorrectly and using complex vocabulary that confuses Pit. With the advent of Kid Icarus: Uprising, it is revealed that Palutena is rather light-hearted and a little playful. She gets along swimmingly with Pit and banters with him multiple times throughout the adventure.
She is also very intelligent and knowledgeable, helping Pit with various enemies, hinting at the best direction to take and how to get past certain obstacles. She is so successful at aiding Pit with information, in fact, that Hades calls her "Professor Palutena" and "Know-It-All Palutena" in the game's commentary multiple times. Her wisdom is also some of the greatest within the pantheon, allowing her to know weak points of enemies which is very handy for her angel during combat.
She is notable for being the only deity to be aware and admit that the gods' fighting is what causes so much suffering.
She also appears to have an unusually large appetite, and food never seems to be far from her mind, as displayed in numerous instances. She appears to like cooking outside of the game but is an amateur in skill level. Despite her young appearance, she is sensitive when it comes to the topic regarding her age and strongly dislikes being called “ma’am”.
Palutena also has shown very motherly traits, mostly towards Pit, which could imply that she raised him.
Relationships
Pit
Palutena trusts Pit, who is thoroughly loyal and dependable in return. They share a "mutually beneficial" relationship: Pit does the leg-work and Palutena guides him and aids him in battle. By far, her greatest gift, as far as Pit is concerned, is the Power of Flight she bestows upon him.
At first, during Uprising, it can be summarized that she has a tendency to take Pit for granted at times. She very well could have obliterated Pit with her "Palutena Glamblaster/Super Goddess Clobberlaser" when using it to destroy Hewdraw, knowing that he was within the destructive vicinity of the attack, and she thinks nothing of using her "Monster Pheromones" to attract monsters to Pit's location, potentially risking his life as both Hewdraw heads were on the loose. However, during Chapter 22, Palutena clearly states and acknowledges that Pit has made countless sacrifices, both for her and everyone else, revealing that she shares a much deeper bond with him then what anyone knows. In Chapters 20 and 21, she's overjoyed to see Pit who, in return, is relieved to see she's all right. When Pit is unconscious at the end of Chapter 21, Palutena holds him and is very distraught, which highlights just how much she cares for him. Similarly, during Chapter 15, she mentions that she "wouldn't know what she'd do without Pit," causing Pit to remark how sweet it is, whilst the two gods, Hades and Viridi, pretend to be sickened by the display. In response, Palutena simply says, "you wouldn't know anything about loyalty."
The Centurions
The Centurions are completely devoted to Palutena and will follow any order, even attacking Pit during Chapter 18 and 20. Palutena realizes their relative fragility and prefers not to send them into battle unless absolutely necessary. Pit feels similarly. At one point, Palutena mentions to "possibly opening a boot camp" for them. Palutena is able to summon Centurions and Centurion Knights, and Viridi is surprised at Palutena's generally lax attitude to the Centurions who risk their lives for her. She cares deeply for them, however, and hates seeing them fall—a caring that rivals what she feels for Pit.
Medusa
Medusa harbors a deep hatred for both Palutena and Pit and aims to completely obliterate them in revenge for her defeat of 25 years ago. Palutena in return doesn't seem to hate Medusa, but she definitely resents her for her actions against humanity. Their war is what sets the events of the first game.
Hades
The Master of the Underworld comes across as quite flamboyant, and his flirty attitude towards the goddesses appears to disgust, or at least annoy, Palutena. The goddess tolerates him during the Aurum Invasion, but makes no bones about his defeat when he is revealed to be devouring souls. Hades' attitude, beyond flirting, isn't known, and he generally seems indifferent so long as the Goddess of Light doesn't meddle in his affairs. He often refers to her as "Pretty Palutena" or "Professor Palutena" to tease and annoy her. Oddly enough, Palutena seems to already know Hades as she knows his name without him introducing himself.
Viridi
Viridi has a grudging respect for Palutena—revealed mostly during Chapters 20 and 21—whereas Palutena seems to respect Viridi as a goddess but is equally against her actions. During the Reset Bomb arc, Palutena clearly states that Viridi is over-stepping her domain and will pay for her actions. When not at odds over humanity, Palutena and Viridi appear to be on civil terms. Palutena's respect for Viridi seems to grow during Chapter 22 when she realizes that she took care of Pit while she was being controlled by the Chaos Kin. Palutena is also aware of Viridi's soft spot for Pit and teases her about it in Chapter 16.
Dark Pit
Fondly referring to Dark Pit as "Pittoo" and "quite the little scrapper," Palutena mentions that his existence is unnatural and he needs to be eliminated. After the initial battle in Chapter 6, Palutena seems to become more tolerant of Dark Pit and even acknowledges how having two angels is useful as opposed to just one. Dark Pit seems to respect Palutena and, after the events of Chapter 21, realizes she's important to his survival, too. When Pit is turned into a ring, Dark Pit ends up unconscious for the three years that Pit spends as a ring, making him realize they have an important connection. Palutena and Dark Pit grudgingly set aside their differences to assist Pit in Chapter 22 when he's on the verge of dying, showing them to be accepting of each other on a civil level at least. They later save Pit from Hades, and Palutena is the one who granted Dark Pit the Power of Flight in the game's ending, as Viridi had granted hers to Pit.
Phosphora
Palutena at first seems to respect Phosphora's battle prowess, but she quickly turns antagonistic towards Phosphora when Phosphora offhandedly calls her "Ma'am." Pit audibly winces and mutters "Uh-oh" during the exchange. Palutena becomes unusually prickly, rapidly and defensively asking Phosphora if she's "trying to start something." Palutena then rebukes Pit, reminding him that "she's the ENEMY", despite Phosphora's flirting. Phosphora, on the other hand, doesn't really seem to care at all about Palutena, making it a one-sided rivalry.
Pandora and Thanatos
Thanatos and Palutena don't have much screen-time together, and as such, they don't really talk much. The only times they have some kind of conversation is when Pit enters the Seafloor Palace and when Palutena asks why Thanatos doesn't outrank Medusa in the Underworld army, with Thanatos avoiding the question.
Pandora seems to have a rivalry with Palutena, such as screaming out that she's not a strategy guide when Palutena asks her about the Mirror of Truth. Palutena acknowledges that Pandora has a certain aura of toughness to maintain as part of the "rules of being a Boss." When Pandora becomes Amazon Pandora, Palutena is understandably surprised. Not even Hades recognizes her true form.
Powers and Abilities
Power of Flight
Palutena's primary abilities shown in the games are utilitarian, such as granting Pit, a flightless angel, the Power of Flight. This power only lasts five minutes, limited by Pit's wing's tolerance of the Power of Flight.
Some Other Powers
In Uprising, Palutena grants Pit grind rails, food, and vehicles to aid him in his quest. She is also responsible for arrows that guide Pit through levels (a power made possible through her "Palutena Super Sensor," as she calls it), and can expose weak spots on enemies such as Aurum ships (which she calls her "Power of Weak-Point Exposure"). She also says in one of the flight paths in Chapter 10 that her Power of Cooling keeps Pit from burning to a crisp because of the lava.
Powers in Anime Shorts
In the anime shorts titled "Palutena's Revolting Dinner", Palutena is revealed to be a potions master, as she is able to (unintentionally) make vegetables into animate beings through an overdose of her potion. Later she uses her "Power of Caging" to try to stop the mutant carrots. After she learns that the potion can be washed off she uses her "Power of Maelstrom" to make it rain.
Power to Transform Objects/People
In Chapter 20, it is revealed by Viridi that Palutena turned Pit into a ring. This may have been either her own power or the Chaos Kin's.
Battle
While she is mostly supporting, Palutena is shown to be quite adept offensively as well. Palutena is the boss of Chapter 20 in Uprising, being controlled by the Chaos Kin, which must be destroyed while not harming the already weak Palutena. Defeating her instead of the Chaos Kin will result in an "I'm Finished". While she has been noticeably weakened by resisting the Chaos Kin for three years, Palutena shows that she is very adept in battle, wielding her staff and shield.
"Palutena Glam Blaster"
A fierce attack Palutena uses to finish the Three-Headed Hewdraw if Pit doesn't finish the last head quickly enough, killing it in one shot.
Palutena launching light at Pit
Levitation.
Palutena preparing to launch her light projectiles
Palutena has the ability to levitate, effortlessly and seemingly indefinitely; even when she swoons from resisting the Chaos Kin, she does so in midair. Projectiles
"Cover your eyes!"
Palutena boost a plethora of light-based projectile attacks. She can create three balls of light above her either horizontally or vertically. If horizontal, Palutena will fire three bolts of light at the same time up to three times in quick succession, launching a total of nine shots with great horizontal range. If vertical, the bolts will fire one at a time from the bottom to the top, rapidly firing off up to nine shots in a flurry of light.
"Cover your eyes!"
"Time for a sacrifice!"
Palutena raises her shield and charges her light power, then unleashes it blinds her target with light, if in range. This lasts for about three seconds.
"Time for a Sacrifice!"
The columns of light and the slow-moving halo
Palutena shoots a large, slow-moving ball of teal light that hone in on her target. Palutena can shoot up to three in quick succession.
"Kneel before me!"
Slow-moving halo and its own projectile
Palutena waves her staff and shoots three fast-moving columns of light across the stage.
"Poor you!"
Palutena launches a slow-moving halo that resembles her own across the ground. The halo hones in on her target and chases it, and it additionally shoots its own light projectiles at her target, up to three times before evaporating.
"This might sting!"
Melee
Palutena preparing to use her Counter on Pit
While Palutena seems much more comfortable at a distance, she possess a swift melee attack in which she twirls, surrounding herself with rings of light, knocking her target back. She will use this as a counter to being melee attacked in Chapter 20, or if her target is extremely close to her.
Palutena executing her spinning attack
"This might sting!"
When her target is nearby, Palutena raises her staff and zooms forward in a huge column of light, blazing toward her target at great speed. This attack also cover a great distance, allowing her to essentially move across the stage.
Summoning
Palutena summoning a Centurion
Palutena is able to summon Centurions and Centurion Knights (depending on the Intensity) to aid her in the battle. She will only summon one at a time.
During the three anime shorts she displays the ability to summon storms, cages and a "video display" for Pit to view.
Game Appearances
Kid Icarus
Prior to the start of the game, Palutena banished the cruel Medusa and turned her into a horrible monster.
When Medusa took over Skyworld and imprisoned Palutena, Pit gathered the Three Sacred Treasures to defeat Medusa. Palutena additionally gave Pit a Sacred Bow with her last amount of energy for Pit to break out of his prison in the Underworld and which to defeat his enemies.
Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters
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Palutena in Of Myths and Monsters
Here, Palutena charges Pit with the quest to recover the Three Sacred Treasures and prepare for the coming of Orcos.
Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Palutena appears in Super Smash Bros. Brawl in The Subspace Emissary, the game's extensive Adventure Mode, where she gives Pit a new Bow in order to fight the Subspace Army, having the honor of being the only non-playable ally character in the story. She also appears in Pit's Final Smash, Palutena's Army, where she summons Centurions to attack Pit's enemies. She's even featured as an unlockable trophy, only given once the player has completed the event titled "Cleaning house in Skyworld".
It is in Brawl that Palutena's design gets updated to the modern look she has now. Oddly, Palutena appears to look older in Brawl than in Uprising.
Kid Icarus: Uprising
The Goddess of Light and ruler of Skyworld. Palutena guides Pit through most of his journey, using her powers to help him protect the humans of the surface world from her archnemesis, Medusa, goddess of the Underworld.
Despite here reputation for wisdom and mercy, little is known about the history and motivations behind the goddess Palutena. What she lacks in military might, she makes up for in her brave champion, Pit.
Palutena entrusts Pit with a weapon, a First Blade and the Power of Flight (that helps Pit fly for five minutes).
She currently appears to act as the "Mission Control" for Pit, giving him information and suggestions. She appears quite knowledgeable about near-everything Pit comes across. With this, her personality comes out a lot more than in previous games. She appears to enjoy teasing Pit, who seems to take it in good humor.
In the aftermath of the Aurum invasion, Palutena is possessed by the Chaos Kin who uses her to attack humanity for the next three years while sealing away Pit's soul in a ring. She acts like a completely different character while the Chaos Kin possesses her. Eventually, it is revealed that she's possessed before the Chaos Kin escapes to the Chaos Vortex with Palutena's soul, turning the goddess' body to stone. Though restored to normal, Palutena finds Pit is mortally wounded and has Dark Pit help her bring Pit back from the verge of death.
Kid Icarus Anime
She appears as one of the main protagonists in Thanatos Rising, where she assists Pit in trying to defeat Thanatos. Her first action is to warn Pit of Thanatos' imminent attack on a nearby city. Pit swears to defeat him. Later, when giving chase to Thanatos, Palutena gives Pit "her Power of Flight" to catch up. When Pit loses track of him, Palutena suggests a shortcut through a nearby valley. As she guides him through, Pit asks whether she's sure about this. After replying about "not having faith," Palutena continues to guide him despite being "rusty."
Palutena having a bath in the hot springs in Palutena's Revolting Dinner
Palutena is the main character in her own two-episode anime, Palutena's Revolting Dinner. During the anime, she accidentally brings a group of carrots "to life," causing them to sprout limbs. They quickly go on a rampage, forcing her to summon rain to eventually defeat their combined, giant form. Palutena has been attempting to cook these vegetables for the whole episode and eventually says to Pit that, "we are going OUT for dinner."
During Medusa's Revenge, Palutena reveals her history with the Goddess of Darkness but does not play an overly major role beyond confronting Medusa when she attacks the humans.
Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS/Wii U
Palutena in Smash Bros Wii U 3DS (E3 2014)
Palutena's reveal trailer
At E3 2014, Palutena was announced to be a playable character in the fourth installment of the Super Smash Bros. franchise. Unlike every other character in the game, (aside Mii Fighters) she can choose between three completely different customization options for all four of her special attacks.
Idol Descriptions
Palutena
The goddess of light and ruler of Skyworld. Palutena guides Pit through most of his journey, using her powers to help him protect the humans of the surface world from her archnemesis, Medusa, goddess of the Underworld.
Chaos Kin and Palutena
The Chaos Kin binds Palutena to its will, manipulating her form like a foul puppet. By doing so, the Chaos Kin simultaneously shields itself and forces Pit to attack the very goddess he serves.
Petrified Palutena
After Pit defeats the possessed Palutena, the Chaos Kin is unable to escape with the goddess. She turns her body to stone at the last moment, so the Chaos Kin can flee into the Chaos Vortex with only her soul.
Palutena (Rare)
Despite her reputation for wisdom and mercy, little is known about the history and motivations behind the goddess Palutena. What she lacks in military might, she makes up for in her brave champion, Pit.
Gallery
Trivia
- The name Palutena may come from Pallas Athena who was the Greek Goddess of Wisdom and War, the actual god of light being Apollo. After the Romans absorbed the Greek culture, this goddess became known as Minerva.
- In Chapter 11, Viridi says to Palutena in response to her setting up a grind rail, "Calling you a snake would be an insult to snakes! But you are crafty. I'll give you that." This bit of dialogue is quite fitting as Athena is also the goddess of crafts.
- Palutena's character is likely based off of the Greek goddess Athena: Her staff and shield equipment are a staple of Athena's classical appearance, and in greek mythology, Athena is the Goddess responsible for transforming Medusa into a monster, just as Palutena is revealed to have done so during the dialogue of Chapter 9.
- It is possible that Palutena is a corruption of parthena, which means "virgin" in Greek. This is based from the katakana of parthena which is パルテナ (PARUTENA).
- In the best ending of the English version of the original NES game, a budding romance was implied between Pit and the Goddess. While this isn't touched upon as much in Uprising, Palutena is shown to be very protective of Pit, and they share a very strong relationship.
- Palutena appears to have a knack for mixing up phrases and names. For example, she refers to "Super Smash Brothers" as "Super Bash Sisters", and instead of "Every rose has its thorn," she says "Every coral has its thorns." Whenever Pit corrects her, she always insists she's right.
- According to Masahiro Sakurai, Palutena is 22 years old when converted from the human body.
- Palutena is one of three bosses that can instantly defeat Pit, the others being the Great Sacred Treasure and Hades. If Pit hits Palutena instead of the Chaos Kin too many times, she will be defeated, and it will reult in an instant Game Over.
- In the anime short Palutena's Revolting Dinner, Palutena accidentally overdoses the rejuvenation potion in a basket of carrots that cause a vegetable revolt, hence the name.
- Palutena seems to be sensitive about her age as shown in the dialogue between her and Phosphora when she calls Palutena "Ma'am".
- Food never seems to be far from Palutena's mind, and she proves to have an eccentric love of exotic cuisine, bordering on ridiculousness:
- Chapter 2: "If you're not careful, we're going to be having barbecued angel tonight. And while spicy angel wings sound tasty, I'd best get you out of there." - In response to the prospect of Pit being struck by lightning.
- Chapter 8: "...although, when prepared correctly, octopus can actually be quite delicious" - While a Space Kraken is attacking Pit.
- Chapter 10: "I just remembered; Phoenix eggs make the most divine omlettes - As she nearly steers Pit's flight path into an arcing jet of Lava.
- Chapter 11: "I've heard that the Forces of Nature are actually quite tasty...Apparently, they're especially delicious when paired with a hard cheese." - Responding to Pit's hunger
- Her culinary eccentricities are particularly displayed in the anime short Palutena's Revolting Dinner, when she appears to have no qualms about the notion of chopping up her carrots despite the fact that they've gained sentience.
Quotes
- "Despite the Underworld Invasion, the people haven't given up hope!"
- "I take it back. This guy's a jerk."
- "That's a Cherubot. The Cherubot is both armor and weapon. Even jumping in it packs a punch."
- "Listen to that swagger! You've toughened up nicely, Pit. Remember when you'd be like, 'I'M FINISHED!' all the time?"
- "He's like 'Yar, I'll make ye walk the space plank, scurvy dog!' That's just a loose translation." - Second cutscene (Chapter 8)
- "What a sucker..." - Upon the defeat of the Space Kraken (Chapter 8)
- "A Space Kraken?! Well, that came out of nowhere." - Upon the appearance of the Space Kraken (Chapter 8)
- "Fly Pit!"
- "I'll give you my Power of Flight!"
- "Pit, the situation is grave: Thanatos is about to attack the city."
- "Gotcha. Mr. Gullible."
- "Oh, Pit, did you think I have time to read every blog? I never have any time for myself!"
- "It's time for a sacrifice!" - Fighting Pit
- "So, you're here to fight me, Pit?"
- "You're a lucky angel, Pit." - When Pit spots an Aether Ring (Chapter 11)
- "What are you doing!?"
- "Pit, I have need of you once more!"
- "His very existence is unnatural. He must be eliminated!"
- "Pit... why?" - Fighting Pit when weakened
- "Well, it's been a while, Pit." (Chapter 18)
- "Now, now, I think we can all agree that Pit's not a buzzard. Though I have seen him eat some questionable things off the ground..."
See Also