The Detonator is Humba Wumba’s transformation in Glitter Gulch Mine and the second ordinary form available in Banjo-Tooie. Her spell turns Banjo and Kazooie into a small plunger detonator, with a box-shaped body, tall handle and the familiar blue backpack. Its appearance matches the explosives used throughout the mine, and its main function is to connect to the loose ends of fuses beside red TNT barrels. Reach Wumba’s Wigwam on the prominent purple ore mound near the world entrance, collect the Glowbo on the smaller purple mound across the stream and offer it to Humba. Activate the warp pad inside the wigwam before entering her pool, since returning there is useful throughout the collection route. One Glowbo unlocks the spell, and later changes between the Detonator and normal duo do not require another payment. To trigger a placed TNT charge, move onto the free end of its fuse. The form automatically lowers its plunger, lighting the fuse and blasting the associated obstruction. Its separate self-detonation attack is performed with B on Nintendo 64 and costs one segment of health. It cannot be used when only one segment remains, so keep enough energy before relying on it against enemies or destructible objects. The blast affects a wider area than a simple contact attack, but repeated explosions quickly consume the health supply. Movement consists of walking and short hops, with none of the normal pair’s climbing or diving toolkit. The Detonator floats on the mine’s streams, allowing it to cross surface water and get back onto the banks. For the deeper underwater routes, return to Humba and restore Banjo and Kazooie. A model of this form also appears in Nuts & Bolts, preserving the plunger design as a reference to the earlier adventure.
Opening Canary Cave and Rescuing Canary Mary
The first useful TNT site lies close to Wumba’s ore mound, where a pile of rocks blocks the entrance to Canary Cave. Stand at the fuse end as the Detonator and let the charge remove the obstruction. The passage stays open after the spell is reversed, so return to the nearby wigwam and change back before entering to rescue Canary Mary. Inside, toxic gas drains the normal duo’s air supply even though they are standing on dry ground. Approach the cage promptly, speak to its prisoner and use an attack such as Rat-a-tat Rap on the cage door to break it. Leave before the oxygen meter empties. Mary explains that the prospectors used her to detect dangerous gas and abandoned her underground; once freed, she flies out toward the damaged handcar near the Fuel Depot. Opening the cave and releasing her do not immediately produce a Jiggy. Meet her beside the railway, where she repairs the handcar and offers a race to stretch her wings. Board the cart as Banjo and Kazooie and repeatedly press A to propel it along the track. Winning the first race earns a Jiggy, and accepting the return race provides a further chance to win a Cheato Page. After both mine races have been won, Mary leaves and can later be encountered again in Cloud Cuckooland. This sequence uses the Detonator to clear the external barrier, followed by the normal duo for the cage and racing. Canary Cave should also be distinguished from the mine’s separately named Toxic Gas Cave near the waterfall and Crushing Shed. That other chamber contains its own hidden collectibles and boulders, while the TNT entrance beside Humba leads specifically to Mary’s prison. The gas makes a short, prepared visit preferable to wandering around the cage after the conversation has finished.
The Gloomy Caverns Jinjo and Flooded Caves
Two further TNT charges open collection routes elsewhere in Glitter Gulch Mine. For the imprisoned Jinjo, first prepare Mine Entry 2 near Mumbo’s Skull as Banjo and Kazooie. Learn Bill Drill from Jamjars for eighty-five Notes and break the boulder sealing that entrance before returning to Humba for the Detonator. This avoids arriving with the specialised form while the outer obstruction still requires the normal duo’s drilling move. Enter the Gloomy Caverns through the opened shaft, find the cell area and step onto the TNT fuse. The explosion clears the barrier between the cells, allowing the Detonator to hop through the low openings and collect the captive Jinjo. Watch for the nearby enemies while positioning at the fuse, since the transformation still takes ordinary damage. This Jinjo is separate from the one hidden in the Toxic Gas Cave and the later underwater route from Jolly Roger’s Lagoon. The other charge lies at the end of a narrow approach near the Crushing Shed, beside the structure blocking the entrance to the Flooded Caves. Follow the passage to its TNT and ignite the fuse to remove the obstruction. Once this work is done, warp back to Wumba’s Wigwam and restore the normal duo for the submerged tunnels beyond it. From the entrance opened by this blast, swim through the first pipe straight ahead, take the right-hand pipe at the next junction and the left-hand pipe after that. Surface in the chamber beyond, climb out and collect the Jiggy, then retrace the route to leave. Keep track of the oxygen meter while swimming rather than assuming the Detonator’s ability to float supplies an underwater movement power. An alternative entrance can be reached from the Waterfall Cavern, but its approach and orientation differ from this TNT route. The fuse beside the Crushing Shed provides a straightforward way to open the cave before returning with the pair’s swimming controls.
Clearing the Fuel Depot for the Saucer of Peril
The fourth TNT job begins in the Fuel Depot, reached by following the railway from the mine’s entrance area. A moving crate carrying the Saucer of Peril is stopped by rocks on the track and cannot continue to Witchyworld. Approach the charge beside this obstruction as the Detonator and stand on its fuse to blast the rocks away. The crate can then move farther along the route, but another closed door must be opened from the amusement park’s side. The Detonator’s contribution is therefore one stage of a cross-world task, with a later return as Banjo and Kazooie needed to finish it. In Witchyworld, climb the tall structure in the Western Zone and use the upper cable-car route toward the Space Zone. From the upper platform near the Star Spinner, follow the pipe ledge toward the red wall button and press it to open the connection from the mine. The crate comes through and unfolds into the Saucer of Peril. Mumbo Jumbo must also use his Power spell at the Area 51 generator before the ride can operate, so clearing the TNT and pressing the door button do not replace the park’s electrical requirement. Once all of these preparations are complete, board the saucer as the normal duo for a target-shooting tour of Witchyworld. Red targets are worth one point, green targets two and blue targets three; four hundred points earns a Cheato Page, while five hundred earns the Jiggy. These rewards belong to the amusement park’s ride, although the Detonator starts the necessary access sequence in Glitter Gulch Mine. After clearing the four placed TNT obstructions, return to Humba whenever the mine’s remaining work needs climbing, drilling, swimming or the ordinary moves. The explosive form remains restricted to its home world during normal play; opening a path for the saucer does not let Banjo carry the transformation through the whole route.