Von Kaiser isn’t a bad boxer. His Win Loss ratio shows he was truly amazing in his prime. He even taught boxing in a military academy. But now he’s old. His intro shows the day he realized it. His reflexes were too slow, he couldn’t handle getting hit anymore, even by the children he was teaching. Before the fight he’s panicking, the reality setting in. He is going to have to retire. For title defence, he sees how Little Mac has the title. It makes him jealous. Little Mac reminds him of when he was young and able. He wants to give it one last shot before he retires. It’s going to be the fight of his life. He doesn’t care about the belt. Von Kaiser just wants his last fight to be memorable, to tell himself he gave it his all and now he can retire. When he wins, the sad thing is he doesn’t gloat. He just gives a bittersweet chuckle and leaves. Finally he can retire as champion.
His theme always gets me pumped up. Like forget fighting with Gloves, we're fighting with BOMBERS! Personally I feel like you fight him way too early. With a theme like this, I wish he was later.
Gosh, now that you mention it, I'm willing to believe Von Kaiser has PTSD. Most characters seem to be extremely overconfident as if carried on a platter their whole lives (except Glass Joe, who probably is only boxing cause he can't do anything else), but Von Kaiser shaking like that and making mechanical noises. Probably was born from a war veteran of WW2 or witnessed his father/mother being abused as they invented stuff (which did happen a lot). Keep in mind, the Nazis were spoiled and abusive to the soldiers as well as the civilians so seeing Kaiser survive something like that is very admirable. ZeroSllp
I always thought that Von Kaiser resembles how broken Germany was after WW1. But it seemed that in the title defence ''arc?'', he seems to show Germany at the start of WW2 (full of energy and angry AF). It really seems like it when he does that extreme shouting punch that made me feel like i just got hit by a blitzkrieg the first time it happened. Not sure if it was intentional but it makes sense ( to me anyway :I ).
I think what adds to this is that the 3 major stages of Von Kaiser's story (What little we get of it) align pretty much verbatim with the story of early 20th century Germany. Pre-Humiliation Von Kaiser = Imperial Germany -Both are respected in their field of expertise, skilled in what they do. Suffer a fall from grace due to a miscalculation or underestimation. Post-Humiliation Von Kaiser = Wiemar Germany -Both have completely fallen from grace; losing any respect they once had. By no means defenseless, but completely defanged and scarred from a humiliating defeat. Title Defence Von Kaiser = Germany under The NSDAP -Both have hit a new low; finding themselves unable to gain even a slight semblance of respect back. Driving themselves to completely reinvent themselves by becoming stronger, more militaristic and more aggressive.
@@dumdummcstupid2414 First off, hilariously ironic username. Second, Punch Out is surprisingly epic when you think of all the cool historical shit you could pack into it.. XD
I feel bad for Von Kaiser. Even though he was a military teacher, he got beat by the group of kids in his boxing teaching class, he suffered from emotional trauma because of that, hence the twitching and feeling the need to beat Little Mac, because if you think about it, Little Mac does look a little bit like a kid in some ways.
LordOfGames777 Well he gets a one hit knock down move called "Von kaiser rush" in TD so yeah I would say he gets pretty good and seriously if you jumped into the ring yelling "COMBAT BOOTS!!" into the sky then you need to show you got new moves
I'm pretty sure it was more of he couldn't technically hit them back. in the scene it looks like they snuck up on them since it appears they aren't in the ring.
@@2cox909 I like to think that maybe Mr.Sandman wrecked everyone to shred when he got to the top. Either him or Super Macho Man was the champion of the World Circuit and in my thoery, this would have caused him an inferiority complex, resulting in the overly sensitive German mess we know and love
@@nikami6178 yeah, Sandman did probably had a hand to start the fall of Kaiser, then the Kid incident happened and it got worse from there until the title defense
Fuck yeah! I mean come on he makes shot gun noises with his punch i know the nes version he didnt have a theme or everything else that makes him badass today and he already was second but still that's a shame
Fun fact-Von kaiser has the best k.o ratio of all the minor circut fighters and is somehow before disco kid (the second easiest fighter in the game next to glass joe)
+Gurdy My theory is that Von Kaiser was actually a really good boxer when he was younger. This can be seen by his much better record then the other minor circuit fighters. However, he kept boxing long after his prime and now at the age of 42 he's just way too old to box well.
In Title Defense, Von Kaiser is certainly a lot harder than Disco Kid. But in Contender, Von Kaiser is easier without a doubt. Poor Von Kaiser. He deserved so much better.
Portal888 By his theme, he should have been the Minor Circuit Boss at the very least instead of King Hippo, but that's just my opinion of this "years old" comment
He probably used to be very good, but hes the oldest fighter in the game, so he probably got out of his prime a long time ago. Even glass joe is only 38, this man is 42 and still trying to prove his worth. My headcanon is that he actually retired and then started the boxing class, only to be beaten by his students. He went kinda mad, and rejoined boxing to prove his worth. But not only has the competition gotten much better, he's lost his form from age and not training as professionally. He's still having trouble getting out of the minor leauge, poor guy. The once-young rookie Glass Joe is still in there too, after all these years. Since he's scared of hippo and weirded out by disco kid, Joe is the closest thing he has to a friend in the league. Von Kaiser manages to stay in the minor league, but is unable to beat Hippo, stopping him from advancing. Kaiser finally feels like hes getting back into the swing of things, when Mac shows up. Mac. A minor. Immediately, Kaiser is reminded of what happened on the day he started teaching boxing lessons. Kaiser remains a wreck throughout the fight, being beaten by mac by the end. Mac gets through the minor league, beating King Hippo, faster and better then anyone ever has. A broken Kaiser surveys his fellow leaugemates. Glass Joe has now lost so many times, he's given the head protector, only given to those who lose 100 matches. Disco Kid considers quitting boxing, despite being only 20. King Hippo doesn't know how to deal with his defeat, stunned at how mac didn't exactly easily beat him, struggled much less then those who fought him before. Although the only one he cared about even a tiny bit was Joe, in this moment Kaiser found himself sad for his league, who all had been wronged, in his eyes. In this moment, Kaiser took the first step to removing his mental problems. When Kaiser learns Mac is the champion, he is filled with rage. The one who beat him and his fellow fighters so effortlessly is now the champion? The tiny boxer who stood no chance? It was time to make changes. Kaiser had finally come to terms with the fact that his boxing career was closing, for the final time. But he wanted one last go at mac. He put all of his energy into training, for one last full out battle. He didn't care if Bald Bull or Sandman would take his belt right away, Mac was going down. His rank in the league only helped him; he knew Joe stood no chance. The title bout was coming. Kaiser had come to terms with the fact he was indeed a good boxer, but that primes don't last forever. Unlike the first one, this match wasn't to prove he could still box, Kaiser didn't need or even want that at this point. He just wanted to take down Mac. (he stays for last stand because its basically a garunteed way to get rid of him.)
Way too weak of a boxer though to be named for the Kaiser… you guys kicked butt back in WWI. Greetings and well-wishes from Newfoundland, Canada! I have always respected our former enemy and modern-day friend!
@@TheEmeraldMenOfficial Thank you! It is always so nice to see people from other country see Germany as more then just... you know Hitler and Nazis. That's why I despite all his flaws I'm glad Von Kaiser represents my country. Yes they realy could have made a better fighter (I agree with you) but still it is a german antagonist who thank good for once have no relation to Nazis. Greetings and well wishes back from Germany! :)
As a contender, Von Kaiser has suffered a lot dealing with kids especially when trying to train them. It's almost like every veteran who served for the country suffering from PTSD and it caught onto him. But then there's Title Defense, and I'd be lying if I did not say that this man earned my respect for fighting back at full force. Von Kaiser wrecked my shit at first impression and the intro too solidifies that. He was focused, determined and full of will power. He found it in himself to become what he once was: a fearless & brave boxer who isn't crying out for mommy. And don't get me started about his OHKO, which bears reminding, NO OTHER BOXER in Minor Circuit has, not even Mr. Sandman alone at Title Defense. He lets out a deafening war cry full of rage and pride and will swing one side or the other and knock your god damn lights out. That's why I like this guy: A once broken man who was cracked and almost shattered via mental breakdowns, to a brave badass who stood his ground, fought back and tamed the insanity to use as power.
It's also the theme of Germany getting their face mauled by South Korea, Mexico and Sweden in 2018 and being send back home with their tails between their legs without even making it to the knockout stage. Ow how the mighty have fallen... delightful!
All these years later, Von Kaiser still remains my favorite boxer in the game, and his theme is just simply justice to his character, Especially his Rematch!
While people think he has PTSD, I think he's going through a midlife crisis somewhat. The dude is 41 years old. He's older than Glass Joe and he really seems shaken up by the fact that he's getting older as a younger boxer he was training punched him really hard. Little Mac is another young boxer and it reminds him that he's no longer at his prime. He's fading and will no longer be Germany's top boxer... Title Defense mode was him trying his best to confront his age to get into shape, relive the days of his championships for one final bout for the belt. He intends to show the world that he once was the champion.
His theme is way too intense for "the guy you fight after Glass Joe". It's bad ass and I love it, but the tone shift is really sudden. The rest of the minor circuit boxers have upbeat, almost silly themes, and this one fits in like a German immigrant in WW1 America
I like the placement of his pause theme, between his losing and winning themes. It fits really well, and I wish other Punch-Out!! OST videos did it too.
Von Kaiser's theme segments: 0:00-0:08 Intro Theme 0:08-1:28 Fight Theme 1:28-1:54 Mac Down 1:54-3:44 Pause 3:44-4:08 Von Kaiser Down 4:09-4:16 Mac Wins 4:18-4:32 Winscreen Theme
***** Actually the music for each fighter is just meant to fit his cultural background. This definitely sounds like WWI Germany. They did a good job at capturing that.
Here's my headcannon for Von Kaiser. In his early days, he was a great boxer, as evidenced by his decent win rate and KO rate. However, at around 20 wins, a war starts, and he decides to join the army. He is a decent soldier, but eventually, something tragic happens to his unit, and his chest is injured as a result. The event also gives him PTSD, leading to him being discharged. He tries to get back into boxing, but his wound and PTSD sap his strength, and he has to resort to being a teacher. This leaves off about where the game picks up.
Most Respect to this man during the Title Defense run. Most of the other fighters? Cheap gimmicks, Extra Protective Equipment, Magical Mind Stones. Von Kaiser on the other hand cuts his hair and MANS THE FUCK UP
I know he’s literally the second character but I still find him infinitely more intimidating than any other boxer, the sound effects, movements and theme just line up perfectly to make it so if I did have the game, I’d be too freaked out during the von kaiser fight to do anything productive lol
I wish in TD every fighter had their music replaced with their exhibition music. It makes the fights feel so more epic and meaningful, and you only experience that best once
It's funny that in his intro, he gets beaten and made fun of by kids. It's similar to the movie All Quiet On The Western Front when Corporal non-commissioned officer gets punked and made fun of by young gentlemen because he was just known as an old mailman and didn't believe he was in the reserves.
A guy who's coming to terms he's getting to old for this and seemingly suffers from shellshock. We laugh at Glass Jo and Gabby Jay but Kaiser is just kind of sad. If we do get another Punch-Out game, having a fight with Von Kaiser in his prime be in the world circuit would be a nice callback.
TD Von Kaiser gives you a peak at what he really was like back in his prime, but you can still see his age showing. I'd love a game where we could go against Kaiser in his prime
I could just imagine two military officers in long brown overcoats watching over a gigantic military base on an island surrounded by greyish-bluish water overlooking some amazing mountains at 5:30 in the morning even though the sky is grey and foggy still.
I think that Von Kaiser’s fight theme is one of the most interesting themes in the game, even though he’s an easy opponent. I haven’t played Punch Out real long, but I’ve worked my way up, and now that I think about it, if Von Kaiser didn’t cower during matches and fought harder, I think he’d make a much better opponent in the ring.💥🥊
I can't believe he isn't a contender near the end of the game. He's the only character, other than sparring against Doc, that has a one hit KO maneuver! I want to cheer for the guy, I really do!
von kaiser may be suffering hallucinations and trauma after he was a soldier he was beaten up by abunch of kids and now he sees kids as enemy soldiers most likely thats why he attacks little mac with so much agression and in title defense mode he has been helped slightly through his trauma and is more fierce then ever i feel bad for von kaiser
Themes: 0:00 Intro (cutscene) 0:09 Circuit theme 1:28 GET UP! (if he knock you) 1:54 (i forget about this one) menu theme (if u pause the game) 3:41 Opponent down 4:09 YOU WON! 4:17 Score board
This theme is more then that he is pass his prime and he knows he is not as good as he used to be but he is determined to win and that in my eyes is true strength.
