Marina is an Octoling, the Octarian version of an Inkling. She has dark brown skin, silvery-teal eyes with reddish-pink pupils in the shape of an infinity symbol (like octopuses in real life), two eyelashes on each eye, very dark teal eyebrows that are constantly downturned in a "worried" expression, and a beauty mark at the left of her lips. She appears to be taller than most Inklings and Octolings. Like Pearl, and unlike other Octolings, her sharp teeth are in the center on both the top and bottom, instead of being asymmetrical. Her tentacles are a dark shade of purplish-brown with teal edges but can change completely to one color. They are long (the longest of all Octolings) and worn down past her waist, and her fingers and toes are pointed and teal at the tips, giving somewhat the impression of painted nails. She has also stated that she has multiple hearts, like how real-life octopuses do.[1]
Her outfit consists of a sleeveless black top covering her chest with a large, mostly unzipped silver zipper with an infinity-shaped hole resembling an 8 and a high collar, leaving her midriff visible, showing a teal navel piercing. She has black shorts with a diagonal waistline and slanted deep teal lines over teal tights, black fingerless gloves, and black boots with big undone silver zippers with 8-shaped holes like the one on her top. She wears large black headphones with teal rings on the sides of them; her ears, which are slightly bigger than those of the average Octoling, are usually covered by these headphones. As seen in Splatfest artwork, she also occasionally wears glasses. During Splatfests, the teal on her design changes to match the color of the team she chose, except for her eyebrows. Her shorts light up in sync with the music.
In the Octo Expansion, Marina wears a more hip-hop attire than her pop stage outfit, somewhat resembling rapper Tupac Shakur. She wears a white bandana that is wrapped around her head with light gray designs, a long, silver chain necklace with an 8 symbol pendant (similar to her zippers from her stage outfit) around her neck, a black wristwatch and a black chain bracelet on her right arm, a white turtleneck crop top, seafoam colored capris, and silver bowed gray-white shoes. She also retains her headphones. The gear items given out by the Marina amiibo are replicas of Marina's Octo Expansion outfit, namely the Marinated Headphones, Marinated Top, and Marinated Slip-Ons.
During the Final Fest, she wore a metallic dress with a number eight cut at the chest and very long sleeves that turned into gloves, and matching boots that were higher than the hem of the dress. She also had two diamond shapes painted on her face and a different pair of headphones, with diamond shapes instead of circles.
In Splatoon 3, Marina wears an orange suit with a subtle zig-zag pattern, matching pants, and a black tube top. She has new headphones with a glowing, sea-green circle pattern on each ear; they are connected by two orange tubes, with a small white square on either temple. Her gloves now expose her knuckles and the back of her hands, and she wears black high heels with a blue underside. The tips of Marina's tentacles now have a night sky pattern, possibly to contrast Pearl's light yellow, although her sideburns and eyebrows remain teal.
Personality and traits
Marina is more reserved than her bandmate Pearl. She speaks in a sweet, gentle manner, and can get very sassy in response to others teasing her, though she often acts quite shy as well. While she is reserved, she does not appear to be concerned about expressing herself. She is forgetful[2] and has been observed to forget the news she and Pearl are broadcasting. Her timidity shows when she sees an Inkling watching her through the window; when she notices them, she smiles awkwardly and waves. This behavior likely comes from the fact that many believe her to be an Inkling even though she learned the Inkling language recently and that she looks very different from the Inklings; her Octoling-like appearance was said to simply be a new fashion trend before Agent 8 came to Inkopolis Square. Marina also has a crush on Pearl, being described as a "maiden in love" on Splatoon Base[3], and making a manga about her where she is drawn as a bishōjo, drawing flowers, sparkles and hearts around Pearl. While this is never explicitly stated in-game, it shows, with Marina playfully poking fun at Pearl's small stature during newscasts, tackling and nuzzling her in a hug after they win the final battle of Octo Expansion, and becoming extremely devastated when Pearl floats around the idea of their band breaking up.
Marina has demonstrated a high level of intelligence, with Pearl describing her as being "too smart for her own good" in the Octo Expansion. This is demonstrated with the Shifty Stations, a series of stages created by Marina for Splatfests using advanced Octarian technology, with the mechanics from Octo Canyon appearing in them, as well as floating rocks. She is also capable of hacking Kamabo Corporation, allowing Agent 8 to pass a test using the data collected from their previous attempts, and can hack their CQ-80 device to show her chat room or release a distress signal. In the final battle of the Octo Expansion, she can use her laptop to analyze the NILS Statue in a few seconds, learning about the strength of its cannon and its use of sunlight to charge up power. She can also play a keytar with Squid Sisters and Off the Hook decals on the neck, which she does during live performances of Muck Warfare. Her laptop is decorated similarly.
Marina is shown to be an enthusiast regarding all sorts of technology, befitting her background as an 83rd generation Octarian combat engineer. She is portrayed as being obsessed with the machinery found in various stages, such as Sturgeon Shipyard, Port Mackerel and the bucketwheel excavator in Piranha Pit. She often utilizes similar machinery in the Shifty Station layouts she designs. She does not like being considered a 'nerd' in this regard. She is also a fan of shōjo manga and can draw, with her naming the Shifty Stations after shōjo manga in the Japanese version and practicing her crosshatching in secrecy.[2][3] Her drawings were also seen in the Octo Expansion before the fight against Tartar with portraits of Agent 8 and Pearl.
In Japanese, Marina's speech is occasionally rendered in katakana, indicating an accent of some sort. Unlike DJ Octavio, she does not speak completely in katakana. However, in the Splatune 2 and Octotune liner notes, her lyrics are entirely in katakana, which is supposed to show that her singing is in a different language.[4] Her preferred personal pronoun is ワタシ (watashi), which is used mostly by women or during formal speech. The fact that she pluralizes it to ワタシら (watashi ra) rather than ワタシたち (watashi tachi) seems to indicate that she uses it to sound formal and not to sound feminine. She also usually speaks with formal variants and conjugations. When learning Japanese, the formal 丁寧語 (teinei-go) is usually the first taught to pupils, as is the pronoun わたし, since they are catch-all and useful in more situations. This shows that Marina has only recently learned the language she is speaking. She also tends to make many malapropisms, further indicating this. Marina's text mostly extends syllables with the "～" character, and her sentences often end with "♪". This makes it read as if she is singing her lines. Marina refers to Pearl with the honorific "senpai", which is an honorific used to address somebody of an elder social rank in a field or trade. This is due to Pearl having taught Marina about Inkling society and also might be because Pearl is three years older than her.
Marina was born into "the oppression of Octarian society" as she would later describe it and was trained as a combat engineer from a very early age. She graduated from elementary training at the age of 9 after skipping multiple grades and for the next few years went on to play a part in designing the Flooder and enhancing the Great Octoweapons. During the events of Splatoon, she had received multiple commendations as part of DJ Octavio's wasabi supply unit. As a high-ranking member, she was known throughout Octarian society and was recognized by Agent 8 despite them never meeting personally.
During Splatoon, Marina was present wearing Octoling gear in the audience of Agent 3's battle against DJ Octavio but deserted the army and Octarian society shortly after hearing the Squid Sisters sing the Calamari Inkantation. According to witnesses, her only comment was "This changes everything." She escaped to Mount Nantai, where she did not even understand the Inkling language.[5] While there, she met an Inkling named Pearl, who was practicing singing. Growing on each other, Pearl then taught Marina about Inkling culture and customs. After this, Marina came back to Mount Nantai every day for two weeks, hoping to find Pearl again. When she did, she showed Pearl her musical abilities through her demo of Ebb & Flow and Pearl immediately agreed to them starting a band that they decided to call Off the Hook. They released Ebb & Flow as their first single, which was a hit. By the time of their fourth single, around nine months after the events of Splatoon, they had become popular enough to take over hosting Inkopolis News from the Squid Sisters.
Splatoon 2
By the time of Splatoon 2, Off the Hook had become famous in Inkopolis Square for their music and for presenting Inkopolis News, in which Marina had a similar relationship with Pearl as Marie had with Callie. Their work included hosting Splatfest events, announcing the themes and singing and dancing to Color Pulse for the event's duration. Across all regions, Marina and Pearl won 29 Splatfests each.
Although Pearl and Marina did not make appearances during Octo Canyon, they were the first to break the news of Callie and the Great Zapfish's disappearances. They also announced their rescue on Inkopolis News, fulfilling a request by "Freshly Fried Boy" to play Fresh Start over the credits.
Octo Expansion
Marina had a major role in the Octo Expansion, where she and Pearl stumbled upon Cap'n Cuttlefish and Agent 8 by overhearing their radio transmission while on Mount Nantai. Learning that they were trapped in the Deepsea Metro, attempting to escape to Inkopolis, they promised to help them out. The three acted as Agent 8's guides during the tests, while they also talked in Marina's chat room, where Marina was known as "DJ_Hyperfresh". This chat room was used by the group to learn about their respective pasts. When discussing with Cuttlefish about Marina's technological achievements, Pearl finally discovered her history as a member of the Octarian army, and despite being deeply shocked, she promised to remain friends with her.
After Agent 8 collected all four thangs and escaped from the Deepsea Metro, Off the Hook finally met them and Cap'n Cuttlefish in person after their battle with a brainwashed Agent 3, using a fleet of helicopters to carry them away. When the Telephone revealed its true nature as Commander Tartar to destroy Inkopolis, Marina came up with the plan necessary to defeat it - having Agent 8 detonate her prototype hyperbombs to cover the NILS Statue in ink, with Pearl using her Princess Cannon to finish it off. With the threat averted, the group returned safely to Inkopolis Square.
Marina's first appearance in the manga was chapter 15, where she and Pearl announced the semi-final matches for the Square King Cup. During the same tournament, she, along with Pearl, provides the play-by-play report for both the semi-finals and finals.
In the Octo Expansion arc, Marina plays the same role she has in the game, helping Cap'n Cuttlefish, Eight, Team Blue, and Rider out of Deepsea Metro.
Marina makes two appearances in the Splatfest arc; once to announce the Funny Man VS Straight Man Splatfest, and another to provide the play-by-play report.
In the Square King Ranked Battle Cup arc, Pearl and Marina return to providing the play-by-play report for most of the tournament.
As a bonus included in Volume 10, she is seen in the short manga she made, Dear Pearl.
During the Final Fest arc, Marina appears to represent her team, Team Order, and she and Pearl once again provide the play-by-play report for the entire Splatfest.
Although Marina's ears appear in Splatfest artwork, such as that of Tsubuan vs. Koshian, her in-game model does not have them, due to them being always covered by her headphones.
In Japan, Marina's fans are known as イイダチ Īdachi, which is a portmanteau of Marina's name, Īda, and 友達 tomodachi, meaning "friend." The English equivalent to this name may be "the Marination," a portmanteau of "Marina" and "nation," as seen on the Marination Lace-Ups.
In the original and some localized versions of the Octo Expansion, Pearl reveals that Marina is a manga enthusiast that likes manga clubs.[8][9]
In a couple of localizations, Marina is said to be a comic enthusiast instead.[10]
In the Russian version, Marina is said to be waiting for an invite to an anime club.[11]
In the opening dialogue for Trick vs. Treat, she reveals that she still goes trick-or-treating, despite being an adult.
In one of her dialogues for Kelp Dome, Marina says her favorite vegetables are beets, a pun on beats, referencing the fact that she remixes and creates beats as a DJ.
In English and Spanish, Marina shares a name with Marina from Animal Crossing, who also happens to be an octopus.
If the player plays as an Octoling and zooms into Off the Hook's room in Inkopolis Square, Marina and Pearl will show a more friendly pose than if playing as an Inkling, seeing as they recognize them as Agent 8.
Etymology
"Marina" is a feminine form of "Marinus", from the Latin for "of the sea", and is also derived from the name of a dock for boats. Her surname "Ida" is taken directly from her Japanese name.
Names in other languages
Language
Name
Meaning
Japanese
イイダ＝マリネ Īda Marine
Īda is a common surname; from īdako (Japanese for webfoot octopus). Marine is short for "marination". The double hyphen implies that the given name is first, rather than the family name.
Dutch
Mariana ten Takel
Mariana is a female given name, referencing Mariana Trench and Mariana Islands. Ten ("at [the]") is a tussenvoegsel, used in Dutch surnames, and when put next to takel ("tackle, hoist, crane"), they make tentakel ("tentacle").
Combined with Alga (Pearl) it forms Alga nori, a group of edible seaweeds, mostly used with Japanese sushi (Nori alone means the same thing as Alga nori)
Russian
Мариша Marisha Марина Осьмуряш Marina Os'muryash
Мариша (Marisha) is a diminutive form of Марина (Marina). Осьмуряш (Os'muryash) comes from осьминог (os'minog) - octopus.
Spanish
Marina Villaoctos
Last name is based on the surname "Villalobos"
Chinese (Simplified)
饭田 fàntián (Mandarin)
From 飯田 (iida), the surname Marina's Japanese name comes from.
Chinese (Traditional)
飯田 fàntián (Mandarin)
From 飯田 (iida), the surname Marina's Japanese name comes from.
↑ 2.02.1Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named artbook
↑ 3.03.1Character profile on Splatoon base, Translators notes: 恋する乙女 koisuru otome, from koisuru meaning "to fall in love" and otome meaning maiden, often used in romantic contexts such as otome games (dating sims). The relationship text says "センパイ！ついていきます！" senpai tsuite ikimasu, which translates as "senpai, I'll go wherever you go" (lit. "senpai, I'll follow you")
↑NoA Spanish localization of the Octo Expansion. Marina: "Recuerdo que cuando llegué al mundo de los inklings no entendía ni una palabra de su idioma. Tuviste que enseñarme todo desde cero, Perlita. ♪" (I remember when I arrived at the world of the Inklings, I didn't understand one word of their language. You had to teach me all from zero, Pearlie. ♪)
↑Humpback Pump Track/QuotesPearl: "Marina! You bought a new motorcycle recently, yeah? You gotta let me ride it!"
↑Pearl:「イイダのあこがれ 漫画 研究 会 略して マンケン！」(Marina admires manga study clubs, or "manken" for short!)Marina:「わ〜！センパイ！それはヒミツに...」(Wha?! Pearlie! That's secret...)
↑Dutch localisation of Octo Expansion. Pearl: "Mariana weet mangaclubs wel te waarderen!" (Marina knows how to appreciate manga clubs!) Marina: "Jeetje, Lorelei! Dat is een geheimpje!" (Jeez, Pearl! That's a secret!)
↑NoA Spanish localization of Octo Expansion. Pearl: "¡Marina tiene 5000 cómics en casa!" (Marina has 5,000 comics at home!) Marina: "¡Perla! ¡Esa información es privada!" (Pearl! That information is private!)
↑Pearl: «Мариша в аниме-клуб ждет приглашение!» (Marina is waiting for an invite to the anime club!)
Japanese
Dutch
French
German
Italian
Russian
Spanish
Chinese (Simplified)
Chinese (Traditional)
Korean
