La Golden Diva dans Wario Land 4 : masque de porcelaine souriant, couronne, boucles d'oreilles, collier, bracelets, col de fourrure rose et éventail doré, le bas du corps en volute verte

Golden Diva: the masked opera singer of Wario Land 4

2021 words | Reading time : 10 minute(s)

BossWario Land 4Golden Pyramid

Beneath her porcelain masks lies an opera singer whom time and greed have turned into a monster. Final boss of Wario Land 4, the Golden Diva cursed Princess Shokora and guards the treasure of the Golden Pyramid. This profile looks back at her costume, her curse, the jewellery of four other bosses, every phase of her battle, her official descriptions, her appearance in Super Mario-kun and her names abroad.

At the heart of the Golden Pyramid, a black cat hurls itself at a figure in an Elizabethan gown, fan in hand. Its little tackle is not enough to defeat the creature, whose magic carries the animal off; then the masked head multiplies before Wario's eyes. So begins the duel with the Golden Diva, final boss of Wario Land 4 (2001).

This opera singer holds Princess Shokora under her curse and guards the legendary treasure that draws Wario to her. To defeat her, he will have to tear off her masks one by one, right down to her lips, which still hold the black cat captive; manuals, guides and manga then carry her portrait beyond the game.

Contents

An opera singer behind porcelain masks

The Golden Diva appears in an Elizabethan gown, fan in hand, her face hidden behind several porcelain masks. Each time she takes a hit, one of these masks falls off, bringing Wario closer to the true face they cover.

Her outward face is an Okame mask, also known as Otafuku, a type used in Noh theatre performances. Beneath this costume hides an opera singer whom time and greed have gradually turned into a monster.

Terrormisu, the final boss of Wario: Master of Disguise, uses the same ploy: a grotesque face hidden behind magic masks.

Her finery bears the traces of past battles. The Diva owns four pieces of jewellery once worn by bosses fought earlier in the game: Cractus's crown, Cuckoo Condor's earrings, Aerodent's necklace and Catbat's bracelets. The creatures she conjures up during the battle also recall these bosses.

💍 Crown, earrings, necklace and bracelets: the Diva wears the finery of four bosses. To add a touch of the Mario universe to your outfit, with no curse attached, discover our Mario accessories.

Princess Shokora turned into a black cat

Before Wario arrived, the Golden Diva cast a spell on Princess Shokora while she slept in the Golden Pyramid: she seized treasures and turned her into a black cat. Since then, the Diva has lived at the centre of this ancient pyramid, at the end of the Golden Passage, where she guards her legendary hoard.

What puts Wario on its trail is a newspaper article about this treasure. Out of sheer greed, the antihero of the Wario Land saga decides to take it for himself.

Just before the showdown, the Diva's magic carries off the black cat that came to challenge her. If Wario has bought an item from the shop, Shokora, who runs it, then uses that item; the Diva turns her back into a black cat and the scene continues as usual.

Four heads and a fan to kick things off

The time allowed to defeat her depends on the game mode: 6:00 in Normal, 5:00 in Hard and 4:00 in S-Hard. As soon as the battle begins, the Diva splits her head into four copies; three remain transparent while the fourth goes after Wario.

Getting hit is costly. The head grabs Wario, spins him round and hurls him to the ground, a move that wastes precious seconds. To strike back, he must jump on the head, which turns blue and angry.

Wario can then lift it and perform a charged upward throw, straight at the Diva's fan. Once this accessory is destroyed, the battle changes pace: the singer unleashes four more attacks, each giving Wario a way to strike her masked face.

Spikes, a teddy bear, black eggs and a hammer

The first attack drops a green creature bristling with spikes, which drifts down to the ground, swaying from side to side. Wario must jump on it to stun it, then throw it at the Diva's mask.

Next comes a teddy bear in a ball, a miniature version of Aerodent's. Wario must charge into the ball: it ricochets off the walls and explodes on the third wall it hits or against the Diva's face, damaging her in the process.

The third attack recalls that of Cuckoo Condor's second form. The Diva summons black eggs that fall and, on landing, hatch into black ducks; these dash towards Wario and explode, much faster than Cuckoo Condor's chicks. Wario has to catch the eggs before they hit the ground and throw them at the Diva's face; an egg not thrown in time flashes and then explodes on Wario.

The last attack is trickier. A spike-covered hammer falls to the ground, and its spikes vanish after a few seconds. Wario picks it up and throws it into the air so that it lands on his head: this turns him into Bouncy Wario, able to spring up to the mask and damage it.

👒 Not keen on whacking yourself on the head with a hammer to bounce around? For a gentler way to cover your head, discover our Mario bucket hats.

The Diva's true face, then her lips

After enough hits, the masks disappear and reveal her true face, grotesque and sinister. Her arms become visible. Whenever Wario passes beneath her, she plunges down and smashes the floor, exposing the spikes hidden underneath.

The counter-attack comes right after the impact: Wario damages her with a side tackle and by jumping on her head. After two attacks, the Diva becomes angrier and more grotesque still, and pulls back from the floor more quickly, which makes every counter-attack harder.

When she has only one hit point left, her body fades away, leaving only her lips; the spikes and what remains of the floor vanish too. Striking these lips frees the black cat they were holding and ends the battle.

Wario then collects the remaining treasure chests and the four pieces of jewellery the Diva wore. The closing sequence shows him fleeing with the black cat as the pyramid begins to crumble.

Arrogant and greedy in the manuals and guides

The official texts paint an unflattering portrait of her. The American manual for Wario Land 4 presents her as arrogant, selfish and money-crazed, while the Italian manual describes an evil, selfish and greedy Diva, who cast the spell on Princess Shokora.

In Japan, the Shogakukan guide calls her Yōki and describes her as the instigator of the pyramid's occupation, arrogant and selfish. It also mentions her make-up-free face, which many masks can cover. Nintendo Power Advance, meanwhile, advises aiming at the face of this awful opera singer to silence her, and warns that she has three forms.

The book Warioland 4, branded “You Decide on the Adventure!” and published by Scholastic in 2002, recalls that she is the one who imprisoned Shokora long ago. Facing the narrator, her five porcelain heads leer at him and taunt him before attacking.

From Super Mario-kun to the Japanese name Yōki

The manga Super Mario-kun gives her an appearance in volume 28, published in 2003. There, the Diva is astonished to see the black cat still around. Elsewhere, she insists there is no need to panic, that she is not one to be discouraged by so little, and introduces herself, with a snigger, as the “very cheerful” Golden Diva.

Her Japanese name, Yōki (ヨーキ), probably comes from 妖姫, which refers to the ghost of a beautiful woman. In the Japanese version, her level is titled “Piramiddo no Nushi Yōki”, in other words Yōki, mistress of the pyramid.

In Europe, the multilingual manual keeps Golden Diva in French as well as in Spanish, while the German text opts for Goldene Diva and the Italian for Diva Dorata.

Golden Diva at a glance

French name Golden Diva
Original name Golden Diva (English), Yōki (Japanese)
First appearance Wario Land 4 (released in 2001)
Nature Opera singer turned into a monster by time and greed
Role Final boss of Wario Land 4, mistress of the Golden Pyramid
Misdeed Cursed Princess Shokora, turning her into a black cat, and seized treasures
Finery Cractus's crown, Cuckoo Condor's earrings, Aerodent's necklace, Catbat's bracelets
Battle Heads and fan, four attacks, true face then lips; 6:00, 5:00 or 4:00 depending on the mode
Outside the game Super Mario-kun manga, volume 28 (published in 2003)
European names Goldene Diva (German), Diva Dorata (Italian), Golden Diva (Spanish)

🎭 Elizabethan gown, fan and porcelain masks: the Golden Diva fights her battle in stage costume. To step into the shoes of a character from the Mario universe yourself, discover our Mario costumes.

FAQ

  • Who is the Golden Diva in Wario Land 4?
    She is the game's final boss, an opera singer whom time and greed have turned into a monster. She cursed Princess Shokora, transformed her into a black cat and guards a legendary treasure at the centre of the Golden Pyramid.
  • How do you beat the Golden Diva?
    First, jump on her active head, then throw it at her fan. Wario then sends the green creature, the teddy bear ball and the black eggs back at her masked face, or springs up to her mask as Bouncy Wario. Once unmasked, she pounds the floor: hit her after the impact, then attack her lips when she has only one hit point left.
  • How much time do you have to defeat the Golden Diva?
    The timer depends on the game mode: 6:00 in Normal, 5:00 in Hard and 4:00 in S-Hard. Each time one of her heads throws Wario to the ground, precious time is lost.
  • Who did the Golden Diva's jewellery belong to?
    She wears jewellery once worn by four bosses fought earlier in Wario Land 4: Cractus's crown, Cuckoo Condor's earrings, Aerodent's necklace and Catbat's bracelets. Wario recovers these four pieces of jewellery once the Diva is defeated.
  • What is the Golden Diva's Japanese name?
    In Japan, she is called Yōki, a name that probably comes from 妖姫, the ghost of a beautiful woman. Her level there is titled Piramiddo no Nushi Yōki, meaning Yōki, mistress of the pyramid.
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