THE MARIO SERIES CHARACTER GUIDE
- Compiled by the Space Pope (spacepope4u@gmail.com) -
- version 2.3 -
(last updated March, 11 2007)
***** ***** IMPORTANT NOTE!!! ***** *****
Okay. The Mario Series Character Guide is finally back in the business
of being regularly updated. I will be working my way through the last
year and a half's worth of Mario and Mario-related titles, adding all
appropriate characters. Continue to read this guide on GameFAQS and
also posted on my personal site at the following URL:
http://spacepope4u.tripod.com/mario_characters.txt
However, I am also informing you that I'm now keeping a Mario blog,
Coin Heaven, in order to post breaking Mario news and elaborate on
matters that aren't pertinent to this guide. For those interested, please
check out my blog and help make it popular.
http://spacepope4u.blogspot.com/
Now enjoy the guide and scan for updates by CTRL+Fing [new].
==T A B L E==O F==C O N T E N T S=======================================
- What the Hell? (an introduction)
- What's New [updates]
- What I Need (and lingering questions) [questions]
- Legal Stuff [legal]
- The Big List [biglist]
- Mario Game Masterlist [gamelist]
- Frequently Asked Questions [faq]
- Miscellaneous Lists [misc]
- Who Did This? [author]
- Works Cited (and recommended reading) [cited]
- Special Thanks [thanks]
- Game Over
Find new or updated entries quickly by searching [new].
==W H A T==T H E==H E L L ?==(an introduction)==========================
Hi. This FAQ is an extensive guide to the characters of Nintendo's
Mario games - all of the games, from the early days in the arcade to
whatever sport Nintendo has Mario and his friends playing today. This
guide also includes the series that have sprung up around other Mario
characters - namely Yoshi, Donkey Kong and Wario.
Why?
Why not? A lot of downtime, that's why.
Plus the fact that a whole slew of characters now populate the Mario
universe, and I thought some other fans would appreciate the
characters being catalogued in a single, quick-to-load and easy-to-read
text document.
And also because Nintendo and its affiliated developers have an
tendency to populate new titles with "clone" characters - the likes of
Waluigi and Toadette - at the expense of classic ones like Birdo or
even Donkey Kong. I'd thought Mario fans might appreciate one more
site commemorating bygone Mario characters.
This whole thing is pretty straightforward, but before we start, a few
notes:
(1) Character profiles differentiate between starring roles and mere
appearances. A starring role means that characters was (a) playable or
(b) a boss. I had previously counted "damsel" appearances as starring
roles, but I changed this when I realized that damsels don't usually do
all that much. Also, I'm not detailing every appearance in a character's
career. Instead, I focus on what I deem interesting. For the sake of
being succinct, I lump especially minor characters in the profiles of
major characters with whom they're associated. And I regard the
appearance of the various WarioWare characters who have their own
mini-game set as a sort of boss, thus their appearances being "starring
roles" instead of just appearances.
(2) I do not believe that the creators of the Mario games planned for
the various plotlines to stitch themselves into a neat, ordered universe
with conscious continuity. Honestly, I think anyone who does think
this is being naďve. These are just games, and forcing strict continuity
rules on their plots would hinder their evolution, especially after
twentysome years. Nonetheless, I honestly believe that it's the ill-
fitting patchwork of contradicting storylines that makes the Marioverse
interesting. There's a reason some characters get pushed to the
forefront and others get bumped into obscurity, and I'd like to explore
that.
(3) Here, storylines are discussed in depth. This is your spoiler
warning. But come on - do you really need a spoiler warning for a
Mario game? I'll spoil it for you here: Mario wins, Bowser loses.
(4) To differentiate between the Japanese and American versions on
Super Mario Bros. 2, I refer to the Japanese one as The Lost Levels
and the American one as Super Mario Bros. 2.
(5) Because storylines get unreasonably complicated otherwise, the
following characters each get their own separate bios: Mario, Baby
Mario, Dr. Mario, Metal Mario, Shadow Mario, Luigi, Baby Luigi,
Peach, Nurse Peach, Donkey Kong, Donkey Kong Jr., Cranky Kong,
Bowser, Giga Bowser, Baby Bowser, Bowser Jr., Koopa Kid,
Cackletta and Bowletta. Not to say that everything works out neatly
this way. But it's easier for me to give these characters separate bios.
On a similar note, I refer to the pink, pretty princess as Peach
throughout this guide, even when discussing the games she technically
appeared in as Princess Toadstool. The only exception is in her profile,
specifically where I discuss how her name changed in the U.S.
(6) Please excuse redundancy. I try to avoid whenever I can, but since
I wanted each bio to more-or-less be able to stand on its own, some
plot threads get repeated. Thus, if you read the entire guide, you'll hear
about how Kamek tried to kidnap both baby Mario Bros. about seven
times - and now eight, counting here. Whoops.
(7) Unless otherwise noted, I've gotten all my Japanese names for
Mario characters from the good people at the Mushroom Kingdom
website. Thanks, fellas.
(8) A note about the Donkey Kong Country games: If I had made this
guide a few years ago, I totally would have included Donkey Kong,
D.K. Jr., Pauline, Stanley and then stopped. However, due to the
schism between Nintendo and Rare and - judging by Diddy's
appearances in Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour and Mario Kart: Double
Dash!! - the gradual introduction of the Donky Kong Country
characters into the Marioverse, I think they belong here after all.
Characters introduced in Wario and Yoshi's series made it in, so I
think it's only fair that the Donkey Kong Country characters be
included as well, even if their games exist on the fringes of the
Marioverse.
(9) Dates provided refer to American releases of games, except when
said games were released only in Japan.
(10) Because the games clearly follow each other in a certain order,
I'm considering the events of WarioWare: Twisted to occur before
those of WarioWare: Touched, even though Nintendo biffed it and
released the latter before the former in the United States.
And finally, (11) you might have noticed that I've so far, I've omitted
profiles for certain staple characters like Goomba. At this point, I'm
not compiling profiles for generic baddies. But Goombario, because
he's a playable character, does get a profile. Characters like Koopa
Troopa or Boo are included because, despite being generic characters,
they're playable in games like Mario Kart or Mario Tennis. (It's
entirely likely that I will one day reverse this decision, so please stop
emailing me about it.)
==W H A T ' S==N E W ?============================================
[update]
Version 2.17 (PUT DATE HERE): New profiles for Wario-Man,
Vanessa, Art and Decko, Garbage Boy, the Pizza Dinosaur goons,
Mama T., Papa T., Jamie T., James T., Scratchy the Fro Bug, Sugar,
Count Down, Paul, Noki Elder, Bobo, the Yum Yums, Sal Out, Luna,
the Pork Loins, Sammy Rai, Bridget the Baker, Ashley, Red, Pyoro,
the Diamond Troll, Space Monster Gabriel, Sugar, the Guru of the
Sewer, Rocky the Reporter, Mike, Hen, Onnanoko, Oyazi, Akuman,
De Buu, Dorago, Meidou, Goura, and Shiisa.
Updates to Wario, Mona, Jimmy T., Kat and Ana, Tiny Kong, the
Koopa Bros, Reznor, Ken the Reporter, Dr. Crygor, Gelato Joe,
Dribble and Spitz.
Minor tidbits added to E. Gadd, Bowyer, Exor, Sluggy the Unshaven,
Yoshi, Katsini.
To help organize some of the longer articles, I've also added
subheadings to the profiles for Peach, Luigi, Yoshi and Wario, Bowser
and Donkey Kong.
I've also started posting links to images for some of the more obscure
characters in the Marioverse. So far, these include Aqualea, Biff Atlas,
Boom Boom, Booster, Boshi, Chauncey, Dangerous Duck, Frogfucius,
Hammerbot, Hiyoihoi, Keyzer, King Totomesu, Scienstein, Spearhead,
Spike, Syrup, Tatanga, Tumble, Valentina and Wanda. All appear at
the wonderful Gamehiker image gallery. Enjoy! There's more to
come.
==W H A T==I==N E E D=(and some lingering questions)====================
[questions]
Clearly, the list is not complete. If you think something is glaringly
missing, please do write me at this following address:
spacepope4u@gmail.com. Tell me what I left out, what I got
wrong or what I could do better. I love being corrected, honestly.
However, please do not write me to tell me that I left out your
favorite character unless it's an especially obscure one that has
somehow gone under my radar. Chances are, I've thought of this
character but just haven't gotten around to posting a profile for
them.
That said, I have a few random, unanswered Mario questions:
In Super Mario Land 2: Six Golden Coins, who is the guy who
operates the underground casino where Mario exchanges coins for
lives?
Does anybody know the names of the remaining bosses from the
first Wario Land game? Or Super Mario Land 2, for that matter?
[new]
The credits for WarioWare: Twisted! mention characters named
"Ocktar" and "Pip Squeak." Does anybody know who these
characters are? And who is the "Fligby" mentioned in the credits
for WarioWare: Touched!?
==L E G A L==S T U F F==================================================
[legal]
The boilerplate: All trademarks and copyrights contained in this
document are owned by their respective trademark and copyright
holders.
Meaning...
Mario and every other character mentioned in this guide are
trademarked by Nintendo, 1983 to present. In many cases, the
characters may be partially owned by one or more of the many
developers who have contributed to these games. These companies
include Square-Enix, Camelot, HAL, Alpha Dream and others. This
guide is copyrighted (c) to me and is my intellectual property, save
the comments that I have attributed to other people. This guide may
not be posted anywhere without my permission. If I find it
somewhere I haven't permitted it to be, I'll ask you to remove it. But
I'm not all that stingy about where it goes, so if you'd like to post it
somewhere, go ahead and write me at the this email address:
spacepope4u@gmail.com
Honestly, I'd love for this to be distributed widely. I made it to be
read. But please, ask permission.
==T H E==B I G==L I S T================================================
[biglist]
All the Mario characters I've catalogued so far, listed alphabetically.
- 5-Volt
- 9-Volt
- 18-Volt
- Aerodent
- Akiki
- Akuman
- Alex
- Anti Guy
- The Ancient Ones
- Appleby
- Aqualea
- Arich
- The Armored Harriers
- Art and Decko
- Ashley
- The Axem Rangers
- Azalea
- Baby Bowser
- Baby Luigi
- Baby Mario
- Baby Yoshi
- Bandit
- Bandy Andy
- Barbos
- Belcha
- Belome
- Biff Atlas
- The Big Bob-Omb
- The Big Boo
- Big Bully
- Big Lantern Ghost
- The Bigger Boo
- Biokinton
- Birdo
- Blablanadon
- Bleak
- Bloat
- Blooey
- Bobbery
- Bobo
- Boddle
- Bogmire
- Bombette
- Boneheads
- Bonetail
- Boo
- Boolossus
- Boom-Boom
- Boomer
- Booster
- Bootler
- Boshi
- Bow
- Bowletta
- Bowser Koopa Jr.
- Bowser Koopa
- Bowyer
- Bridget the Baker
- Brighton
- The Brothers Bear
- Bruce
- Bubbles
- Bub-Ulber
- Bundt
- Burt the Bashful
- Bumpty
- Buzzar
- Cackletta
- Candy Kong
- Carlton
- Catbat
- Charlie
- Charlieton
- Chauncey
- Chestnut King
- Chet Rippo
- Chief Chilly
- Chuck Quizmo
- Chuckleroot
- Chuckolator
- Chunky Kong
- Clapper
- Clawgrip
- Cleftor
- Cloaker and Domino
- Clockwork Soldiers
- Cloudjin
- Cloud N. Candy
- Cork and Cask
- Cortez
- Count Down
- Cractus
- Cranberry
- Cranky Kong
- Crepe
- Croco
- Crump
- Crystal King
- Cuckoo Condor
- Culex
- Czar Dragon
- Daisy
- Dancing Whirlindas
- Dangerous Duck
- Darkly
- Dazzle
- De Buu
- Dedar
- The Diamond Troll
- Diddy Kong
- Dixie Kong
- Dodo
- Doll Man
- Dolphin
- Don
- Donkey Kong
- Donkey Kong Jr.
- Don Pianta (and other Piantas)
- Francesca and Franky
- Tony and Vinny
- Doopliss
- Dorago
- Dorrie
- Dour
- Dragohoho
- Dragonzamasu
- Dribble and Spitz
- Dr. Crygor
- Dr. Mario
- Dr. Payne
- Dr. Topper
- Dr. Wario
- Dupree
- Dumb Drum
- Dyna (and her family)
- Mite
- Ma'Mole
- Pa'Mole
- Eclair
- E. Gadd
- Ella
- Ellie
- Enguarde
- Eve
- Expresso
- Exor
- Fat Mouth
- Fava
- Fawful
- Fishmael
- Flapper
- Flavio
- FLUDD
- Flurrie
- Fly Guy
- Fret
- Frogfucius
- Fryguy
- Funky Kong
- Galrog
- Game Guy
- Garbage Boy
- Gargantua Blargg
- Garro
- General Guy
- General White
- Geno
- Giant Snake
- Giga Bowser
- Glimmer
- Gloomtail
- Goldbob (and his family)
- Sylvia
- Bub
- Golden Diva
- Goomba King
- Goombario (and his family)
- Goompa
- Goombaria
- Goompapa
- Goomama
- Gooma
- Goombella
- Goombob and Goombetty
- Goomfrey
- Gooper Blooper
- Goura
- Gourmet Guy
- Grace
- Grate Guy
- Grifty
- Grodus
- Grubba
- The Guru of the Sewer
- Gus
- Hamma Jamma
- Hammerbot
- The Hammer Bros.
- Hammerhead Bros.
- Harhall
- Harley Quin
- Harry Hare
- Harry (1)
- Harry (2)
- Hawkmouth
- Hayzee
- Heavy Zed
- Helio
- Hen
- Henry and Orville
- Hermie III
- Herringway
- Hiyoihoi
- Hizza
- Hoggle
- Hoohooros
- Hookbill the Koopa
- Hooktail
- Hoot
- Huff N. Puff
- Il Piantissimo
- Imajin (and his family)
- Lina
- Mama
- Papa
- Inviso
- Ishnail
- Jagger
- Jamano
- Jarvis
- Jellybob
- Jellyfish Sisters
- Jerry
- Jimmy T. (and his family)
- Mama T. and Papa T.
- Jamie T.
- James T.
- Jinx
- Joe
- Jojora
- Jolene
- Jonathan Jones
- Jr. Troopa
- Kamek
- Kammy Koopa
- KAOS
- Kat and Ana (and their pets)
- Shadow
- Shuriken
- Numchuck
- Kate
- Katsini
- Ken
- Kent C. Koopa
- Keyzer
- Kezune
- Kid
- Kiddy Kong
- King and Queen Nimbus
- King Boo
- King K
- King Kalamari
- King Totomesu
- King Zing Sting
- Kleevar
- Klepto
- Klubba
- K. Lumsy
- Knife Guy
- Kolorado
- Koopa Bros.
- The Koopalings
- Larry Koopa
- Morton Koopa
- Wendy O. Koopa
- Iggy Koopa
- Roy Koopa
- Lemmy Koopa
- Ludwig von Koopa
- Koopa Kid
- Koopa Koot
- Koopa the Quick
- Koopa Troopa
- Kooper
- Koopie Koo
- The Koopinator
- Koopley
- Koops
- K. Rool
- Kroop
- Krow
- Kudgel
- Krunch
- Lady Lima
- Lakilester
- Lakilulu
- Lakitu
- Lanky Kong
- Lava Piranha
- Lee and Chan
- Lily
- Lizardon
- Luigi
- Lump
- Lumpy
- Luna
- Lunge Fish
- Lydia
- Mable
- Mack
- Madame Clairvoya
- Mallow
- Manglylox
- Marching Milde
- Mario
- Master Crash
- Master Necky
- McGoomba
- Megasmilax
- Meidou
- Melody Pianissima
- Merlon (and his family)
- Merluvlee
- Merlon
- Merlee
- Merle
- Merlar
- Metal Mario
- Mike
- Millennium Star
- MIPS
- Miss Petunia
- Miss Warp
- Mom Piranha
- Mona (and her menagerie)
- No. 1
- No. 2
- No. 3
- 4.1 and 4.2
- Monsieur Boo
- Monstar
- Monty Mole
- Mouser
- Moustafa
- Mr. and Mrs. Mario
- Mr. Luggs
- Ms. Mowz
- Mushroom Kings
- Nana
- Naval Piranha
- Neil
- Neville
- Nina
- Noki Elder
- Nurse Peach
- Octo
- Onnanoko
- Oosansho
- Orbulon
- Oyazi
- Pak E. Derm
- Pa-Patch
- Paragoom
- Parakarry
- Paratroopa
- Parrator
- Parry
- Paul
- Pauline
- Paw
- Peach
- Peasley
- Peeka and Lahla
- Pennington
- Petey Piranha
- Petunia
- Pine
- Pizza Joe
- The Pizza Dinosaur goons
- Plum
- Podley
- Popple
- Poochy
- The Pork Loins
- Posie
- Prince Froggy
- Professor Frankly
- Punchinello
- Punio (and other Punies)
- Puniper
- Puni Elder
- Petuni
- Pungent
- Pungry
- Putts
- Pyoro
- Queen B
- Queen Bean
- Rambi
- Raphael the Raven
- Rattly
- Rawk Hawk
- Razor
- Really Gnawty
- Red
- Reznor
- Rip Cheato
- Robirdo
- Roger the Potted Ghost
- Rocky the Reporter
- Rosie
- Rowf
- Rudy
- Sal Out
- Salvo the Slime
- Sam Spook
- Sammy Rai
- Sarissa
- Scienstein
- Scratchy the Fro Bug
- Screamy
- Sergeant Flutter
- Shadow Mario
- The Shadow Queen
- The Shadow Sirens
- Vivian
- Beldam
- Marilyn
- Shaggy
- Shellshocker
- Sherry
- Shimi
- Shiisa
- Shivers
- Shokora
- Shoot
- Shy Guy
- Silky
- Sir Weston
- Slim Bankshot
- Sluggy the Unshaven
- Smithy (and his factory staff)
- The Clerk
- The Manager
- The Director
- The Factory Chief
- Smorg
- Snifits Three
- Sonny
- Space Monster Gabriel
- Spangle
- Spearhead
- Spike
- Spoiled Rotten
- Spooky
- Squawks
- Squirt
- Squitter
- Stanley the Bugman
- The Star Spirits
- Eldstar
- Mamar
- Skolar
- Muskular
- Misstar
- Klevar
- Kalmar
- Stewart
- The Stork
- Subcon
- Sue Pea
- Sugar
- The Sun
- Sugar
- Sushie
- Svën
- Swanky Kong
- Syrup
- Tad Rock
- Tap-Tap the Red Nose
- Tatanga
- TEC
- Thak
- The Three Musty Fears
- Thwomp
- Tiny
- Tiny Kong
- Toad (and miscellaneous Toads)
- The Chancellor of the Mushroom Kingdom
- Chanterelle
- Felissa T.
- Fice T.
- Gaz
- Ghost T.
- Grandma
- Heff T.
- Herb T.
- Hinopio
- Jolene
- The Master
- Minh T.
- Miss T.
- Montermama
- Mr. E (1)
- Mr. E (2)
- Mrs. Shroomlock
- Mushbert
- Muss T.
- Pine T.
- Plenn T.
- Prince Mush
- Raz and Raini
- Russ T.
- Shroomlock
- Starshade Bros.
- Tayce T.
- Toadia
- Toadofsky
- Toodles
- Thriff T.
- The Travelling Sisters Three
- Vanna T.
- Zess T.
- Zip Toad
- Toadette
- Toadies
- Toadsworth
- Tolielip
- Tolstar
- Torque
- Torte
- Trunkle
- Tryclyde
- Tubba Blubba
- Tumble
- Tutankoopa
- Tuxie and Mama Penguin
- Twila
- Twink
- Ukiki
- Unagi
- Uncle Grimmly
- Undodog
- Valentina
- Vampire Wario
- Vanessa
- Very Gnawty
- Vincent van Gore
- The Viruses
- Waluigi
- Wanda
- Wario
- Wart
- Watinga
- Watt
- Webber
- Whacka
- Whomp
- Whomp King
- Wiggler
- Winky
- Wise Wisterwood
- Wonky
- Wrinkly Kong
- Yakkey
- Yaridovich
- Yoshi
- The Yum Yums
I know I'm behind on the Mario games of the past two years, but I am
back in the business of updating regularly and will soon be compiling
information for the following games, in order:
- Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat
- Yoshi Touch & Go
- Donkey Konga 2
- Yoshi Topsy-Turvy
- Mario Superstar Baseball
- Donkey Kong Country 3 (Game Boy Advance)
- DK: King of Swing
- Dance Dance Revolution: Mario Mix
- Mario Party 7
- Mario Kart DS
- Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time
- Super Mario Strikers
- Dr. Mario / Puzzle League
- Mario Tennis: Power Tour
- Super Princess Peach
- New Super Mario Bros.
- Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis
- Yoshi's Island DS
- Diddy Kong Racing DS
- Wario: Master of Disguise
- WarioWare: Smooth Moves
- Mario Party 8
(If you can think of characters I should do who aren't presently in the
to-do-soon list, please email me.)
=======================================================================
5-VOLT [new]
Occupation: Gaming mom
First appearance: WarioWare: Twisted! (2005)
Just as Mario's mommy is only glimpsed from the knees down, so too
down 9-Volt's curiously named mother appear in WarioWare:
Twisted! Aside from an order at 9-Volt's bedroom door to quit the
gaming and hit the sack, 5-Volt is depicted only one other time - in
silhouetted form at 9-Volt's door.
=======================================================================
9-VOLT [new]
Occupation: Retro gamer extraordinaire
First appearance: WarioWare, Inc. (2003)
School gets out at Diamond Elementary and 9-Volt skates home to do
what he loves best: spinning records and playing classic Nintendo
games. He pops in a cartridge into a Game Boy from the creamed
spinach-color era and goes to work. The game, a parody of the original
NES Dragon Warrior, has players using hit points for chances to play
classic Nintendo games.
9-Volt's series is actually a brilliant example of product placement;
each microgame is based on a classic Nintendo game or product, such
as the NES Balloon Fight or the Super NES F-Zero. Mario-related
games referenced in 9-Volts series include the original Super Mario
Bros., Mario Clash, the NES Dr. Mario, Mario Paint and the original
Donkey Kong.
Ken the Reporter pops up to interrupt 9-Volt's epilogue with an
important announcement: the new Game Boy Advance SP is now on
sale in stores everywhere. Our tech tyke leaves in such a rush that his
skateboard transforms into a hoverboard.
Chicken Race, an extra game players can unlock, also features 9-Volt.
Two players control either of two feet, which kick 9-Volt or Shaggy
on a skateboard. Whoever coasts the closest to the end of the cliff
without sailing over it wins.
Doubtlessly one of the more popular members of Wario's Diamond
City crew, it should have surprised no one that 9-Volt returned for
WarioWare: Twisted. In this game, he's doing his student thing at
Diamond City Elementary when his teacher introduces a new student:
the hulking 18-Volt. "No relation to naughty 9-Volt," the snarky
teacher explains. 9-Volt and 18-Volt become fast friends and spend the
afternoon playing video games at 9-Volt's house, making for a kick-
ass game set, "Spintendo Classics," in which the rotating mechanism
takes over as the primary control for great old Nintendo games.
Eventually, 9-Volt's mother, 5-Volt, orders the two to break it up. Late
at night, Mrs. 5-Volt checks in on her son, only to catch him furtively
playing his Game Boy SP under the covers. "I saw that!" she yells.
When 9-Volt and 18-Volt return in WarioWare: Twisted!, they have
newly purchased a copy of the hot new Gamecube game, 36-Volt
Man. They rush home, pop it in their system and party the night away
with 9-Volt's vast collection of Nintendo products. At this point, the
player makes their way through the "Retro Action" game set. Upon
completion, the player sees that the two have passed out. They wake
up, check out the clock and speed off for school. Late again, those no-
goodniks.
Microgames in 9-Volt's series that feature Mario characters:
WARIOWARE, INC.
- Donkey Kong (Mario leaps over a barrel.)
- Super Mario Bros. (Mario must stomp Goombas.)
- Fly Swatter (Swat minor baddies from the old Mario Paint
minigame.)
- Dr. Mario (Match pills to viruses.)
- Mario Clash (Knock out baddies with a Koopa shell, Virtual Boy-
style!)
WARIOWARE: TWISTED!
- Super Mario Bros. 3-Lift (Steer Mario around a circular lift while
avoiding Bullet Bills, Cheep-Cheeps and Piranha Plants.)
- Wrecking Crew (Help Mario Avoid Eggplant Men.)
- Pinball (Mario and Pauline cameo as balls ping about.)
- Golf (Mario swings on his own, but the player must steer the course
to catch the ball!)
- Mario Bros. (Spin the Game Boy to right an upturned Koopa
Troopa or Buzzy Beetle.)
- Donkey Kong Jr. (Help Junior save his pops from Mario.)
- Donkey Kong 3 (Stanley aims insecticide at D.K.'s ass once again.)
- NES Open Tournament Golf (Aim the ball while caddy Peach
watches pleasantly.)
- Super Mario Bros. 3 (Pick the right power-up - Frog, Hammer
Bros., Tanooki, Fiery or Statue!)
- Super Mario Bros. (Classic Super Mario Bros.-style levels are bent
into roundness, navigable only by rotating.)
WARIOWARE: TOUCHED!
- Super Mario Bros. (Bump the stylus against blocks to reveal coins.)
- Super Mario Bros. (Give Goombas, Koopa Troopas and Spinys the
poke of death with the stylus.)
- Mario Paint (Fill in the unpainted areas.)
- 8-Bit Hero (Note which pixel doesn't belong. Pick correctly and the
screen zooms out to reveal Link, an Ice Climber or Mario.)
- Donkey Kong 3 (Blow into the microphone to make Stanley's bug
spray shoot up at D.K.)
9-Volt's starring roles:
WarioWare, Inc. (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$ (Gamecube) - 2003
WarioWare: Twisted! (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
WarioWare: Touched! (Nintendo DS) - 2005
Other appearances:
Wario World (Gamecube) - 2003
=======================================================================
18-VOLT [new]
Occupation: Overgrown funkster
First appearance: WarioWare: Twisted! (2005)
Looks like he's 30, but he's apparently an elementary school student.
Either way, I felt a little nervous went 9-Volt invited this guy over to
his house to play. Things turned out pretty well, though - his mixing
on the turntable ends up being a good complement to the music 9-
Volt's 8-bit gaming experience. You can always pick 18-Volt out from
the rest. He's the character who's taller than everybody else, shoulders
like a linebacker, 3-D shades inexplicably on his eyes and a single
mohawked spike on his head.
Since his introduction to the WarioWare series, 18-Volt has shown up
in each of 9-Volt's cinema scenes.
18-Volt's appearances:
WarioWare: Twisted! (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
WarioWare: Touched! (Nintendo DS) - 2005
=======================================================================
AERODENT
Occupation: Boss of the Topaz Passage
Only appearance: Wario Land Advance (2001)
A mouse riding an inflatable teddy bear - and only one of the many
whacked-out bosses inhabiting the Golden Pyramid. If Wario can flip
the teddy bear balloon upside-down, he can take a swipe at its mousy
pilot.
=======================================================================
AKIKI
Occupation: Ukiki cutie
Only appearance: Mario Party Advance (2005)
In Mario Party Advance, Ukiki the Grinder has a family that includes a
tomboyish niece named Akiki - ostensibly making Ukiki a genuine
monkey's uncle. In one of the game's mini-quests, Akiki seeks help in
finding the kidnapped Ukiki.
=======================================================================
AKUMAN
Occupation: Worse than the Noid
Only appearance: Wario's Woods NES (1994)
A fiendish gremlin creature with wings and a pitchfork. He wears a
read outfit. Standard cartoon devil stuff here. He's the first boss Wario
must puzzle-duel with, but only in the NES version of the game.
=======================================================================
ALEX
Occupation: Tennis player
Only appearance: Mario Tennis (2000)
A generic human netter that players could unlock by hooking their
Game Boy Color versions of Mario Tennis to their Nintendo 64
versions via a special cable. I, however, never had this cable and know
nothing of Alex's appearance, behavior or tennis abilities.
=======================================================================
ANTI GUY
[also known as Deadly Guy]
Occupation: The dark side of shyness
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
A black-robed Shy Guy who tenaciously guards a chest in Shy Guy's
Toy Box. Mario can fight him, but he's a tough cookie. Stomping Anti
Guy earns Mario the Power Plus badge. Alternatively, Mario can buy
off this Shy Guy by feeding him Lemon Candy.
=======================================================================
THE ANCIENT ONES [new]
Occupation: Stone idols
First appearance: Super Mario 64 (1996)
A pair of stone hands with an eye in the palm, these spirits call
themselves "the ancient ones" and guard a star. Mario must pop them
in the eyeball three times each. Then they hands will crumble and
yield the star.
The Ancient Ones' starring roles:
Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1996
Super Mario 64 Shindou Version (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Super Mario 64 DS (Nintendo DS) - 2004
=======================================================================
APPLEBY
Occupation: Fruit-chucking tunneler
Only appearance: Dr. Mario 64 (2001)
A strange, flesh-colored mole creature who pops up as a boss in Dr.
Mario 64. Appleby is also a selectable character in the game's
multiplayer mode. The character initially appeared, however, in Wario
Land 3, where he'd toss the apples that transform Wario into Fat
Wario
Appleby's starring roles:
Dr. Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Other appearances:
Wario Land 3 (Game Boy Color) - 2000
=======================================================================
AQUALEA [new]
[Japanese name: Meidou]
Occupation: Angry mermaid
Only appearance: Wario's Woods (1994)
A mermaid with a pink tail and blue hair. She's the boss of the eighth
level in Wario's Woods. I'm fairly certain that a boss from the NES
Wario Wood's, Meidou, is Aqualea without her name being translated
into English. They look almost identical.
Image link: gamehiker.com/gallery/displayimage.php?album=177&pos=7
=======================================================================
ARICH
Occupation: Sinister spider
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double
Trouble (1996)
A giant red spider who's not nearly as nice as Squitter. Arich is the
boss of the game's second area, Kremwood Forest.
Arich's starring roles:
Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie's Double Trouble (Super NES) - 1996
Donkey Kong Land 3 (Game Boy) - 1997
=======================================================================
THE ARMORED HARRIERS
Occupation: Impermeable idiots
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
Called "The Iron Adonis Twins" by their fans, the Armored Harriers
sit pretty high on the Glitz Pit totem pole-o'-fightingness. They're a
pair of king-sized Iron Clefts, those generic Paper Mario baddies that
looks like walking rocks. You thought the little ones were tough?
These guys are practically invincible. Only when a certain nameless
Baby Yoshi join Mario's party can the Armored Harriers' heft be used
against them. The little Yoshi swallows can swallow one and them spit
it against the other. After toppling these two, Mario advances to the
cleaner, newer major league locker room instead of the skuzzy minor
league one.
And did you notice that one of the Armored Harrier brothers wears red
shoes while the other wears green? And should that remind you of
another pair of brothers?
=======================================================================
ART and DECKO [new]
Occupation: Hawt Slices guitarist and rapper, respectively
Only appearance: WarioWare: Twisted (2005)
We may never know how Mona ended up in a band with these two.
Regardless, Mona + Art + Decko = the Hawt Slices, a rock band hot
enough to displace Vanessa from the top of the pop charts. Art, the
smaller of the two, appears to be a black, impish creature wearing
something like a Santa Claus hat. Decko, conversely, is a fat, yellow
creature who looks something like a bear with antlers. Decko also has
a "D" on his chest.
In the same vein as the "Kat and Ana" pun, Art and Decko's names
together make "art deco," an artistic, fashion and architectural
movement in the early 1900s. The pun doesn't work as well as Kat and
Ana's, though, since the art deco movement seems to have no relation
to Art and Decko's appearance or behavior.
=======================================================================
ASHLEY [new]
Occupation: Dark-hearted cutie pie
First appearance: WarioWare: Touched! (2005)
A morbid little girl with a red witchy dress, two long, black pigtails,
and a creepy headless doll, Ashley lives alone in a mansion in
Diamond City. That the mansion bears a passing resemblance to
Luigi's Mansion is probably no coincidence - both places seem to be
the site of some creepy goings-on.
You see, Ashley doesn't just look like a witch. She is a witch. In fact,
her story sequence in the game depicts her being in the middle of
combining some ingredients in her cauldron one stormy night. The
mixture, however, goes sour and belched us a cloud of smoke, and
Ashley quickly realized that she's missing an ingredient. At the same
time, space alien and WarioWare regular Orbulon is cruising over the
sky when a lightning bolt zaps his ship and sends him crashing into
Ashley just as she's leaving to look for the missing ingredient. Upon
meeting the alien, Ashley realizes that he is the missing ingredient and
she dispatches her impy cohort, Red, to chase after Orbulon.
The harried alien, of course, escapes, and Red returns to his mistress
empty-handed. Ashley merely grins and tells him that she'll just use
him instead.
Later, Ashley and Red go to the Hawt House to meet up with the rest
of the WarioWare: Touched! cast. Notably, Ashley is the only
character who does not dance. She's probably too busy being evil.
Ashley's game set, "Total Drag," features games that require the
player to drag the Nintendo DS stylus in order to perform various
actions: lighting a match, for example. The games pass to the tune of
Ashley's theme song, making her one of the few characters in the
Marioverse to have their own tune, complete with lyrics. The words to
Ashley's theme are printed below. They come from Enigmapoeia's
video game song lyrics guide at GameFAQs.com. Lyrics are sung by a
mysterious group referred to in the credits as "Ashley's Creepy Crew."
They're not seen in the game. Lyrics in the double brackets are spoken
by Ashley herself.
Who's the girl next door living in the haunted mansion?
[[You better learn my name 'cause I am]] Ashley!
She knows the darkest spells and she brews the meanest potions
[[You might be the ingredient I seek]]
Don't let yourself be fooled by her innocent demeanor
[[You should be afraid of the great]] Ashley!
She doesn't play with dolls, and she never combs her hair
[[Who has time for girly things like that?]]
[[Eye of newt, I cast a hex on you]]
[[Grandma's wig, this'll make you big]]
[[Kitten Spitz, soon your pants won't fix]]
[[Pantalones Giganticus!]]
[[Oh no, not again!)
She could rule the world, and still finish all her homework
[[Everyone knows that I'm the greatest]] Ashley!
You better watch your step or she'll cast a spell on you
[[I turned my teacher into a spoon]]
[[I must flip through my spellbook, and yes it's true]]
[[I don't have as many friends as you.]]
[[But I think you're nice and maybe we could be friends]]
[[And if you say no, you're toast]]
Who's the girl next door living in the haunted mansion?
[[You better learn my name 'cause I am]] Ashley!
Just remember this when you see her on the street
[[I'm the cruelest girl you'll ever meet]]
As Enigmapoeia also notes, the character Luna, who appears in
Mona's prologue, has a number-four hit with her version of
Ashley's theme. In her version, however, the second line is
subbed for "You should be afraid of the great Ashley!"
Enigmapoeia also notes that the "Kitten Spitz" mentioned is
probably the WarioWare character Spitz, a feline taxi driver
who had his own game sets in the first to entries in the series.
Ashley's not the first diminutive witch character in the Wario
games. That would be Sarissa, a cuter, nicer looking sorceress
who appeared in Wario's Woods. Also, Ashley's name is
probably a pun on the word "ash," seeing as how she's all
about fire and brimstone and all that.
=======================================================================
THE AXEM RANGERS
[Japanese name: Kajidoh Sentai Onoranger]
Occupation: Smithy's minions
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
After Mario and his friends defeat the Czar Dragon in Barrel Volcano,
these five color-coded criminals swoop in and steal the star. The Axem
Rangers include Axem Red, the leader; Axem Black, the cool guy with
the shades; Axem Pink, the cute one; Axem Green, the skinny one; and
Axem Yellow, the fat one. The rangers, each of whom fight with a
small handheld hatchet, attempt to escape on the Blade, their flying
vehicle, which, of course, is shaped like an axe. When Mario's party
fights the Axem Rangers, they one-by-one drop out of the rumble,
each with his or her own lame excuse.
Axem Green: "I have a headache!"
Axem Pink: "My makeup's running!"
Axem Yellow: "I'm hungry!"
Axem Black: "I broke my shades!"
(A reader calling himself ON EI tells me that if you decide to take
Axem Red out and leave one of the other rangers for last, he'll exclaim
"Oh, my head is spinning!")
Axem Red eventually makes his teammates combine forces with the
Blade to fire their powerful Breaker Beam, but the Axems fail anyway.
Later, in the depths of Smithy's factory, Mario can see new Axem
rangers being manufactured.
The Axem Rangers are a clear parody of the Mighty Morphin' Power
Rangers, whose various incarnations enjoyed mid-90s popularity
throughout the United States and Japan. The subsequent Mario RPG,
Paper Mario, featured the Koopa Bros., who parodied the Teenage
Mutant Ninja Turtles in similar vein.
(Editorial note: I was a little flattered when I was browsing through the
Wikipedia and found that a user named Ciotti plagiarized this passage
for an article on the Axems. Not only that, but another reader had
recognized the text as mine and called him on it. I guess that's when I
realized that people actually do read this guide!)
=======================================================================
AZALEA [new]
Occupation: Golfer
First appearance: Mario Golf (2000)
A track star now quickly accelling at golf. Azalea is one of the four
generic humans players can chose to play as in the Game Boy Color
version of Mario Golf, which allows players to build their stats
however they chose. Azalea is also playable in the Nintendo 64
version of Mario Golf if they have both versions, both systems and a
transfer pak. Her stats are variable and her name can be changed to
whatever players wish.
There's a strange connection between Azalea and Daisy that I think
merits a mention. The Smash Bros. Melee trophy info for Daisy claims
that she was playable in the Nintendo 64 Mario Golf. She wasn't, but
Azalea was. Azalea also happens to look exactly like Daisy. Same
color clothes, same hair, and the exact same face. Odder still, when
Azalea was still around, Daisy looked like old Daisy - that is,
brunette hair and tan skin. Essentially, then, Nintendo gave Daisy
Azalea's face.
Creepy, no?
Azalea's starring roles:
Mario Golf (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Mario Golf (Game Boy Color) - 2000
Mario Golf: Advance Tour (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
BABY BOWSER
[Japanese name: Kokuppa/Baby Koopa]
Occupation: Child-king of the Koopa
First appearance: Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super NES) -
1995
While Bowser and Baby Bowser's biographies don't conflict like
Mario and Baby Mario's do, determining exactly who Baby Bowser is
and what he should be called is nonetheless a pain in the ass.
Baby Bowser is Bowser's infant self. Baby Bowser is not Bowser Jr.,
who is the youngest of Bowser's offspring and a troublemaker in
Super Mario Sunshine. Baby Bowser is also not one of the miniature
Bowser clones that populate the Mario Party games (even though they
have been referred to as Baby Bowsers at some point in that series).
Those Mario Party cretins are either the Mini Bowsers (as I think
they're called in Mario Party 5, in which you can play as one) or
Koopa Kids (though, not to be confused with the seven of Bowser's
children from Super Mario Bros. 3, who are called the Koopa Kids or
the Koopalings, alternately).
No, this is the crankiest, meanest baby in the whole Marioverse: the
child king of the Koopa Kingdom, Baby Bowser.
This brat and his caretaker/foster parent, Kamek, are the central
villains of Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island. After using his black
Koopa magic to foresee all the trouble the Mario Bros. would one day
cause Bowser and his crew, Kamek intercepts the Stork en route to
delivering Baby Mario and Baby Luigi to their parents. Kamek snags
Baby Luigi, but Baby Mario falls into the helping hands of the
Yoshies.
Baby Bowser doesn't show up until the end of the game. The Yoshi
clan's quest to reunite Baby Mario ends in Baby Bowser's playroom.
The spoiled mini-monarch demands to ride Yoshi, calling him, "green
donkey." But Yoshi instead stomps Baby Bowser. Kamek swoops in to
magically meddle one last time. Abracadabra - Baby Bowser grows
up. Not older, just bigger. Tyrannosaurus rex-size, which is big enough
to destroy his entire castle. With glowing eyes, he bounds from the
horizon, directly at Yoshi and Baby Mario - and your TV screen, too.
A series of well-aimed eggs stops him in his tracks however, and
Kamek zooms away with the battered boy king in tow.
Baby Bowser shows up on Yoshi's Island once more, sans Kamek, to
stir up trouble in Yoshi's Story. Yoshi, sans Baby Mario, must rescue
his homeland's most precious natural resource, the Super Happy Tree
- also known as the Marvelous Tree of Mirth in the game's pre-
production days - from Baby Bowser's clutches. Fiendishly, Bowser
has stolen the source of the Yoshies' happiness and flattened their
world into a storybook.
After embarking on an unusual quest of fruit-collecting, Yoshi finds
Bowser waiting in the last room of one of his four castles: Mecha
Castle, Lift Castle, Magma Castle or Ghost Castle, depending on the
player's choice. Regardless of which castle chosen, the little king rides
around on ghosts near the ceiling of the final room. Yoshi must chuck
Bob-Ombs upwards, then tussle with Baby Bowser on the floor once
he falls. The battle is not too difficult, especially since the Super
Happy Tree is growing in the center of the room, giving Yoshi a
healthy supply of fruit. Yoshi sends Baby Bowser packing once last
time. Presumably, Bowser spends the next few years growing up and
attacks the Mushroom Kingdom as an adult some time later.
Though he's probably not going to make a starring role in the near
future, I've noticed that Baby Bowser is also part of the décor in the
Yoshi's Island-themed Baby Park racetrack in Mario Kart: Double
Dash!!
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR BABY BOWSER***
Even as a youngster, Baby Bowser was already playing pranks and
causing trouble for Baby Mario and his pal Yoshi. Even at this early
age of his evil career, Baby Bowser had tons of henchmen at his
disposal. Many experts speculate that Mario and Bowser have some
sort of connection that can be traced back to their mutual births.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR BABY BOWSER***
Baby Bowser's starring roles:
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super NES) - 1995
Yoshi's Story (Nintendo 64) - 1998
Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3 (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Other appearances:
Picross NP Vol. 2 (Super Famicom) - 1999
Super Smash Bros. Melee (Gamecube) - 2001
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (Gamecube) - 2003
=======================================================================
BABY LUIGI
Occupation: Overshadowed infant
First appearance: Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (1995)
If Luigi got the short end of the stick when it comes to starring roles in
video games, then Baby Luigi had his stick stolen, stomped into pieces
and then recycled. Baby Luigi doesn't show up in his debut game until
the very end. Basically, he's the game's Princess Peach. Once Baby
Mario and Yoshi trounce Bowser, they find Baby Luigi and the Stork.
The Stork flies his bundle back to Mom and Dad. The last shot of the
game is proud Mr. and Mrs. Mario holding the young heroes in their
hands.
The little green guy floated around in Nintendo limbo until Mario
Kart: Double Dash!!, in which he and his twin brother tore up the
racing circuit in their turbo-powered prams.
Like his brother, Baby Luigi makes a split-second cameo in the
opening cinema for Mario Power Tennis. During the match between
the Marios and the Warios, Baby Luigi is that blurry green tot standing
beneath Toadsworth's umpire chair.
MARIO KART: DOUBLE DASH!! DATA:
Partner: Baby Mario
Personal racecar: Rattle Buggy
Special weapon: Chain Chomp
Baby Luigi's starring role:
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (Gamecube) - 2003
Other appearances:
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super NES) - 1995
Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3 (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Mario Power Tennis (Gamecube) - 2004
=======================================================================
BABY MARIO
Occupation: Crybaby, future hero
First appearance: Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (1995)
In the beginning, Baby Mario makes sense. Kamek buzzes the Stork
flying the baby Mario Bros. to their parents and makes off with Baby
Luigi and Mr. Stork, but Baby Mario plummets to Yoshi's Island -
and onto the back of an unsuspecting Yoshi. Baby Mario's adventure
in Super Mario World 2 established three things: (1) the diaper-clad
daredevil's lifelong propensity for adventure; (2) his friendly
relationship with the Yoshies; and (3) his decidedly less friendly
relationship with the Koopas.
Baby Mario doesn't do a whole lot in Super Mario World 2. If Yoshi
takes a hit, Baby Mario gets bounced off Yoshi's back. He also
becomes encased in a bubble, for some inscrutable reason, and will
float about the screen until Yoshi can retrieve him. The bubble's no
sound barrier, though; Baby Mario shrieks like a banshee when his
separated from his steed. Super Mario World 2 actually marks the first
time Mario had any kind of voice.
If Yoshi snags a Super Star, however, Baby Mario becomes Super
Baby Mario. Invincible and clad in the yellow cape from Super Mario
World, Baby Mario could run at super speeds - even up walls and on
ceilings. The effect was only temporary, but Baby Mario does get his
own stage, "4-1: Go! Go! Mario!!," in which a string of Super Stars
pits Baby Mario against classic foes from Mario's adult adventures:
Koopa Troopas, Goombas, Piranha Plants and even the rarely seen
post-cocoon form of the Wiggler: the Wigglerfly.
Proving true Kamek's predictions that Mario would be a headache for
the Koopas, Baby Mario and his Yoshi companions trample Baby
Bowser, setting the turtle folk up for many future losing interactions
with the Mario Bros. The ending sequence that follows, however,
begins to cause some head-scratchers for those of us looking for any
shred of continuity in the Marioverse.
When the freed Stork finally delivers the infant brothers, he does so in
a village in the Mushroom Kingdom - not Brooklyn, where the Mario
Bros. supposedly originally came from. The game's text clearly says
"Mushroom Kingdom" and the neighboring houses sport the fungus-
style look we Mario fans have come to know and love. With that,
Nintendo established a difference between Baby Mario and his adult
self.
A reader calling himself Tinus points out, however, that Mario's
Brooklyn origin never shows up in the text of any game. He's right.
The only actual mention of the Mario Bros. as Brooklynites is in the
American instruction manual for the original Super Mario Bros. Still,
that aspect of Mario and Luigi has shown up in so many adaptations of
the Mario series, like the television shows and the movie, that I'd dare
to call it canon. Initially, I'd say that being born in Brooklyn would
account for Mario and Luigi's accents, but Tinus also points out that
the brothers' accents are so thick as to suggest they came from Italy,
not the United States. A valid point, I admit. (He also points out that
many characters in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door speak with
accents - like Dupree in his fake French, for example - and these
characters most likely weren't born in the real world. Contradictions
on top of contradictions. That's the Nintendo way. Nonetheless, I'd
much rather just live with the continuity flaws than disregard original
origin story altogether.) This debate is continued to some extent in
Mario's bio, but I'll warn readers here that I make no attempt to settle
it - just present the two sides of the issue.
Baby Mario would show up in subsequent Mario games, though
clothed in a toddler version of Mario's overalls instead of just a diaper.
Despite his tiny stature, Baby Mario can swing a golf club or drive a
go-kart with the best of them. He cries less loudly now, which is a
plus. However, his continued presence is a bit of a pain for Mario
purists. Mario playing a tennis match against Bowser is enough of a
stretch; Mario playing tennis against his own infant self is another
matter altogether.
It's quite possible that Camelot realized this: Baby Mario is nearly
absent from Mario Power Tennis, the Gamecube sequel to the Mario
Tennis that Baby Mario starred in. He's not playable, but he makes an
ever-so-quick cameo in the game's intro movie. During the opening
match between the Mario Bros. and the Wario Bros., look for this pint-
sized plumber standing beneath the umpire's chair. He's only there for
a second or two, but I'm sure it's him.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR BABY MARIO***
Long ago, when the stork was carrying Baby Mario and Baby Luigi to
the Mario household, the stork was ambushed, causing Baby Mario to
tumble onto Yoshi's Island. This marked the beginning of the Yoshies'
adventure to deliver Baby Mario to his parents. Since then, Baby
Mario's been spotted on golf courses and tennis courts.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR BABY MARIO***
MARIO KART: DOUBLE DASH!! DATA:
Partner: Baby Luigi
Personal racecar: Goo Goo Buggy
Special weapon: Chain Chomp
Baby Mario's starring roles:
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super NES) - 1995
Mario Golf (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) - 2000
Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3 (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (Gamecube) - 2003
Other appearances:
Super Smash Bros Melee (Gamecube) - 2001
Mario Power Tennis (Gamecube) - 2004
=======================================================================
BABY YOSHI
Occupation: Compulsive eater-in-training
First appearance: Super Mario World (1990)
Before Baby Mario or Baby Bowser or - I dread it - Baby Wario,
Baby Yoshi showed up in Super Mario World. While the regular green
Yoshi popped out of his shell fully grown, the special classes of
Yoshies - red, yellow and blue - were little squirts whom Mario
carried around and fed enemies until they matured. Additionally, each
time Mario toppled one of the Koopalings' castles, he freed one of the
captive Yoshi eggs. At the end of the game, when Mario and Peach
return to Yoshi's house, the seven eggs hatched, producing seven baby
Yoshies. (Curiously, while the eggs all had yellow spots, Yoshies of
all four colors emerged. This flaw was fixed when Nintendo ported
thew game to Game Boy Advance.)
The heroes of Yoshi's Story were also supposed to be juveniles -
ones who hadn't yet cracked out of their shells when Baby Bowser
zapped Yoshi's Island into storybook flatness. These eight Yoshi kids,
however, didn't look any different than full-sized Yoshies.
In Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, Mario rescues a Yoshi egg
from Hoggle, the porcine hotdog vendor who'd like to incorporate the
egg into a new dish. Mario rescues the egg and it eventually hatches
into a cute Baby Yoshi - complete with an eggshell diaper. This
Baby Yoshi model seems to be based more off the anklebiter Yoshies
from Paper Mario than the look of the original Baby Yoshies. This
tagalong is more customizable than most. Players get the option of
naming the little guy and colors varied from one game to another. (I
got an orange one and named him Doshi.)
Though tiny, this Baby Yoshi packs a punch. Mario can ride on his
back to get around a little more quickly. And in battle, the Baby Yoshi
can stomp and slurp as well as a full-grown one. His Slurp ability,
which allows him to swallow one enemy and spit it at another, is
instrumental in the defeat of the Armored Harriers, a pair of baddies
made from the hardest substance in the Marioverse. In the game's
epilogue, we find that Baby Yoshi has re-entered the Glitz Pit fighting
circuit as a solo act. He fights under the name "The Great Gonzalez
Jr."
Baby Yoshi's starring role:
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Gamecube) - 2004
Other appearances:
Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Yoshi (NES) - 1992
Yoshi (Game Boy) - 1992
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Mario's Picross (Game Boy) - 1995
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (Super NES) - 1996
Tetris Attack (Super NES) - 1996
Game & Watch Gallery 2 (Game Boy) - 1998
Game & Watch Gallery 3 (Game Boy Color) - 1999
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Game & Watch Gallery 4 (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
=======================================================================
BALL BUNNY
[Japanese name: Shoot]
Occupation: Hare at the hoops
First appearance: Wario Land II (1998)
Ball Bunny is a basketball-loving rabbit whom Wario must fight in an
unusual way: by shooting hoops. Ball Bunny will attempt to jump on
Wario and turn him into Ball Wario, then shoot his newly round form
into his basket. Alternatively, Wario will be trying to squash Ball
Bunny into a make a basket with him on his side of the court.
Ball Bunny is the only boss from Wario Land II to show up in the
sequel. There, he's the fourth boss in a stage called "A Town in
Chaos." The rules are fairly similar, except that Ball Bunny and Wario
are aided in their basketball efforts by a neutral third party: a happy
little tortoise.
Ball Bunny's starring roles:
Wario Land II (Game Boy) - 1998
Wario Land 3 (Game Boy Color) - 2000
=======================================================================
BANDIT
[Japanese name: Thief]
Occupation: Super-evolved Shy Guy
First appearance: Super Mario World: Yoshi's Island (1995)
Bandit, who looks like a taller, sneakier Shy Guy in a blue robe, is a
generic enemy with a knack for thievery. He'll snatch Baby Mario
right off Yoshi's back. Bandit has a profile here, however, because he
is also Yoshi's opponent in a series of mini-games Yoshi can find
during his adventure. Yoshi and Bandit square off in such
competitions as Balloon Toss, in which they must key in a certain
sequence to toss the gradually expanding balloon to their opponents, or
Watermelon Spit, where they try to snipe each other with a high-speed
stream of watermelon seeds.
Some players might not know that Bandit is also a playable character.
While on the map screen, a player could hold select and then press X,
X, Y, B and then A to unlock a special menu that allowed both
practice sessions of the microgames and a two-player version of
certain games. Whoever held the second controller played as Bandit,
making him the first playable Shy Guy ever in a Mario game.
The generic Bandits showed up as minor villains in the Dry Dry Desert
area of Paper Mario, as well as on the mean streets of Rogueport in the
sequel, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door.
Bandit's starring roles:
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super NES) - 1995
Super Mario Advance 3: Yoshi's Island (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Other appearances:
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Gamecube) - 2004
=======================================================================
BANDY ANDY
[Japanese name: Prots]
Occupation: Gossipy grunt
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A combatant in the Glitz Pit who fights on a team called the Hand-It-
Overs. Bandy Andy has been around long enough to learn a secret or
two, and he'll blab if Mario gives him a chance. Loose lips sink ships,
of course, and soon Bandy Andy vanishes, just like the other missing
fighters he's warned you about.
Bandy Andy is a particular member of the generic Bandit enemy class,
as his name might imply.
=======================================================================
BARBOS
Occupation: Irksome urchin
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double
Trouble (1996)
A giant spiny sea urchin and the boss of the game's sixth area, Razor
Ridge. Dixie and Kiddy sit this fight out and leave the heroics to
Enguarde, the smiling swordfish that has served the Kong family since
the days of the original Donkey Kong Country. Enguarde must poke
Barbos' soft body during the brief seconds in which his shell opens up.
Barbos' starring roles:
Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie's Double Trouble (Super NES) - 1996
Donkey Kong Land 3 (Game Boy) - 1997
=======================================================================
BELCHA
Occupation: Big-time barrel
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double
Trouble (1996)
And you thought Dumb Drum was an odd choice for a boss. Belcha is
the boss of the game's first area, Lake Orangutanga. He's is a giant
animate barrel that spits smaller, inanimate barrels. Dixie must crack
open the barrels and throw the contents - beetles, unless I'm
mistaken - into Belcha's mouth. Doing so causes the big guy to burp,
which will send him rocketing backwards. Eventually, he'll burp
himself right off the pier. The fight sounds a lot like Yoshi's against
Roger the Potted Ghost in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island.
Belcha's starring roles:
Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie's Double Trouble (Super NES) - 1996
Donkey Kong Land 3 (Game Boy) - 1997
=======================================================================
BELOME
[Japanese name: Berome]
Occupation: Sewer mutant
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
A big, four-eyed dog who lives in Kero Sewer. Before the much-
feared Belome goes down in the fight against Mallow and Mario early
in the game, he predicts, "If you defeat me, you still won't beat me.
Beware the flood!" His prophecy comes true when a huge wall of
water knocks the heroes out of the sewer and into the cascades of the
Midas River.
Mario and company fight Belome again in Belome Temple, the
complex located beneath the shifting sands of the Land's End desert.
This time, he's even stronger and he'll eat party members and generate
clones of them. As a point of interest, Belome thinks Mario tastes sour,
Geno tastes like wood, Peach tastes peachy, Bowser tastes worst, and
Mallow tastes the best.
In Japan, Belome's name can also be written as "Berome." Fellow
Mario researcher TheKoopaBros. notes that "bero" means "tongue"
and "me" means "eye." This makes sense, since Belome's two most
outstanding characteristics are his big, lolling canine tongue and his
four eyes.
=======================================================================
BIFF ATLAS [new]
[Japanese name: Maddi]
Occupation: Bodybuilder boogeyman
Only appearance: Luigi's Mansion (2001)
A muscular ghost who haunts the rec room in the haunted mansion.
Though his body is gone, Biff still spends his time lifting barbells. If
Luigi knocks one of the punching bags into Biff as he floats by, he'll
be vulnerable just long enough for Luigi to suck him up with this
vacuum.
According to the Game Boy Horror on Biff, he likes weightlifting and
lilies, the latter because they symbolize purity.
Image link:
http://www.gamehiker.com/gallery/displayimage.php?album=64&pos
=7
=======================================================================
THE BIG BOB-OMB
[also known as the Bob-Omb King]
Occupation: Lord of all blasting matter
First appearance: Super Mario 64 (1996)
This stately bomb sits atop the hill in the middle of Bob-Omb
Battlefield, the first area Mario encounters in Super Mario 64. He
claims to be powerful and uses words like "methinks," but if Mario
can pick him up and throw him three times, he'll explode and Mario
will earn a star.
In Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour, the Big Bob-Omb appears atop a
mountain in the Peach Castle grounds. According to reader Tinus, the
Ring Golf mode makes players hit a ring that the Big Bob-Omb is
wearing - a difficult task.
The Big Bob-Omb's starring roles:
Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1996
Super Mario 64 Shindou Version (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour (Gamecube) - 2003
Super Mario 64 DS (Nintendo DS) - 2004
Other appearances:
Mario Party 5 (Gamecube) - 2003
=======================================================================
THE BIG BOO
Occupation: Principal poltergeist
First appearance: Super Mario World (1991)
The Big Boo awaits Mario at the end of a hidden ghost house in the
Donut Plains area of Super Mario World. He's a supersized version of
the regular Boo ghosts, who made their debut in Super Mario Bros. 3.
Unlike his underlings, however, the Big Boo doesn't shy away if he
looks Mario in the face. Mario defeats him by kicking blocks upward
into the Big Boo's face. Super Mario World also has a look-alike ghost
in a later Ghost House on Chocolate Island. It's a blue-toned version
of the same ghost - presumably the Big Blue Boo.
In Super Mario RPG, a minor baddie called "The Big Boo" inhabits
Kero Sewers. But because this ghost is anything but big, I'll assume
this name was just given arbitrarily.
The Boo Mansion area of Super Mario 64 pits Mario against the Big
Boo in a boss battle three separate times for three separate stars, as
reader Tinus reminds me. "Scarier than ever," Tinus writes.
The Big Boo has recently seemed to lose his position as Boo boss to
King Boo from Luigi's Mansion. Biggie did, however, show up in
Game Boy Advance's Game & Watch Gallery 4, as the second-level
boss in the boxing game. He even used a smaller Boo to "punch."
GameFAQs poster Kirby021591 theorizes that the Big Boo and King
Boo are one in the same, as the character referred to as the Big Boo in
Super Mario 64 DS wears a crown - though only in the stage "Big
Boo's Haunt," which Nintendo created specifically for Super Mario 64
DS. (The other Big Boo appearances in Super Mario 64 DS are sans-
crown.) A crown, after all, is the primary defining characteristic of
King Boo aside from his size. This Big Boo also has a cackle that
sounds more like King Boo's than that of the typical Super Mario 64
Boo. (Though, again, the cackle only shows up in the Big Boo's Haunt
stage.) Since the Big Boo had no crown in the Nintendo 64 incarnation
of Super Mario 64, maybe the programmers just decided to place the
game more on continuity with the current state of the Marioverse.
The Big Boo's starring roles:
Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1996
Super Mario 64 Shindou Version (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Super Mario 64 DS (Nintendo DS) - 2004
Other appearances:
Mario Party-e (Game Boy Advance E-Reader) - 2002
=======================================================================
BIG BULLY
Occupation: Horny pusher
First appearance: Super Mario 64 (1996)
A boss Mario must fight in steamy, dreamy Lethal Lava Land. As
Mario hops from one island to the next in a sea of lava, he eventually
comes to one populated by three Bullies, minor baddies that look like
Bob-Ombs with bull's horns. They'll try to knock Mario into the lava
if he steps into their line of sight. Once the three Bullies are boiled, the
Big Bully will drop down and take Mario on. He's no real threat,
though. All Mario has to do is trick him into plunging into the lava and
he'll earn a star.
Big Bully's appearances:
Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1996
Super Mario 64 Shindou Version (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Super Mario 64 DS (Nintendo DS) - 2004
=======================================================================
BIG LANTERN GHOST
[Japanese name: Big Torch-kun]
Occupation: Brooder-in-the-dark
First appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
The Big Lantern Ghost is a mid-boss in Shy Guy's Toy Box. He loves
the dark and hates the light, so the only way to defeat him is to attack
his lantern to brighten the room - and weaken him. Once Mario
stomps the Big Lantern Ghost, he can break open the lantern, revealing
Watt, the source of the light and Mario's sixth companion.
Smaller Lantern Ghosts first showed up as generic baddies in Super
Mario Bros. 2: Yoshi's Island.
Big Lantern Ghost's appearance:
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Mario Party Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
=======================================================================
THE BIGGER BOO
Occupation: Plus-size poltergeist
First appearance: Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (1995)
Boss of the third castle in Yoshi's Island. Pelting him with eggs make
him grow bigger. Then he dies.
The Bigger Boo's starring roles:
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super NES) - 1995
Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3 (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
=======================================================================
BIONKINTON
Occupation: Floating chicken hatchery
Only appearance: Super Mario Land (1989)
A mini-boss Mario fights in the final stage of Super Mario Land.
Bionkinton is a fairly generic-looking cloud, from which helmet-
wearing chickens launch at Mario. When Bionkinton absorbs twenty
shots from Mario's Sky Pop, the considerably more-menacing Tatanga
appears.
Oddly, while nearly every other enemy in Super Mario Land has a
Japanese name, the chickens Bionkinton fires are simply named
"Chicken."
=======================================================================
BIRDO
[Japanese name: Catherine]
Occupation: Bazooka beak
First appearance: Doki Doki Panic (1987)
"That's as far as you'll go!"
Get it straight. It's not Ostro. It's not Birdetta. It's Birdo, and she's a
girl.
Birdo first showed up in Doki Doki Panic, better known as Super
Mario Bros. 2 with Arabian people. As far as I know, the Doki Doki
Birdo was identical to her Super Mario Bros. 2 incarnation: a pink
dinosaur - who looked like Yoshi even before there was a Yoshi -
who spat eggs, wore a bow and guarded a crystal ball. (One should
also note that Birdo's emblematic bow only showed up in the
promotional artwirk initially. Nintendo didn't add it to her sprite until
Super Mario All-Stars.) By hopping on her eggs and tossing then back
in her face, Mario and his friends could beat Birdo and open the portal
to the next level. Later in the game, Birdo got tougher, mixing fireballs
into the stream of projectiles shooting from her cannon-shaped
proboscis.
Unfortunately for Birdo, those behind Super Mario Bros. 2's
translation made a few mistakes. In both the game's ending and
instruction manual, Birdo's name shows up as "Ostro," which is
actually the name of the ostrich-like baddie ridden by Shy Guys -
that's Birdo as a beast of burden, which is another Yoshi-before-there-
was-a-Yoshi connection. Furthermore, some clown at Nintendo
decided to decide that the bow-adorned Birdo was a transvestite -
"He thinks he is a girl and likes to be called 'Birdetta,'" as the
instruction manual put it. But that transvestite complication has since
vanished, especially since Birdo is now a quasi-love interest for Yoshi,
who also blurs the gender line by producing eggs. Weird! That's pre-
Yoshi connection number three.
At first, it seemed Birdo would go the way of Stanley the Bugman,
dropping out of sight after her fifteen minutes of video game fame. But
then she made a cameo both in Wario's Woods and in the background
of Kirby Super Star. She also appeared as a boss in Super Mario RPG:
Legend of the Seven Stars. As one of Valentina's guards, Birdo shot
eggs as fiercely as ever as a one of the many bird-pets skulking around
the Nimbus Land Castle.
Birdo bounced from the fringes of obscure cameo land to the
mainstream Mario crew in 2000 in Mario Tennis for the Nintendo 64.
This game marked the first major addition to the "Big Eight" in years
with the arrival of Birdo, Daisy, Baby Mario and Waluigi. Each have
appeared regularly since. This also means that Birdo followed in the
footsteps of Donkey Kong and Wario as a former foe that reformed
into a friend.
Her popularity has grown in the past few years. In Mario Kart: Double
Dash!!, Birdo and Yoshi raced together. Birdo's likeness even graced
the box art for Super Mario Advance - which, interestingly, is the
third remake of Super Mario Bros. 2 and the fourth remake of Doki
Doki Panic. A giant robotic version of Birdo, Robirdo, even replaced
the second Mouser, who had previously been boss of level 3-3. And
players could now pluck the bow from Birdo's head if they wanted.
The act does nothing to further their battles with Birdo, but it's a
Mario first nonetheless. Birdo also has a voice in Super Mario
Advance - an eloquent and evil sounding voice. In most games,
though, she merely makes honking, quacking noises, with a
vocabulary limited to her own name.
Birdo treads the line between goodie and baddie in Mario and Luigi:
Superstar Saga. The Princess Peach who gets her voice stolen by
Cackletta is actually a cleverly disguised Birdo. Later, the bazooka-
beaked one becomes an adoring apprentice to Popple after sense gets
knocked back into the previous apprentice, an amnesiac Bowser. But it
would seem the writers of the game's script decided to bring back
Birdo's ambiguous gender. Popple pauses before referring to Birdo as
a "dame," and Birdo insists that Popple call her the more feminine
"Birdie."
Birdo's small but dedicated following may have been disappointed to
find out that she is not playable in Mario Power Tennis, despite having
appeared in several previous Mario sports titles. What's interesting is
that she appears in the intro sequence as a generic race. No Mario
game has featured generic Birdos since her Doki Doki Panic/Super
Mario Bros. 2 days, but check out the opening movie and you'll see
scores of Birdos - orange ones, blue ones, yellow ones, green ones -
trotting about the stadium, alongside other generic races like Pinatas,
Nokies, Toads, Goombas and Koopas. Even more interesting: there's
not a single pink Birdo.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR BIRDO***
First seen in Super Mario Bros. 2, Birdo is known for shooting eggs
and fireballs from her mouth. Mario and his friends would have to
jump onto the eggs in midair, pick them up and throw them back at
her. Long missing from the Nintendo scene, Birdo recently reappeared
in Mario Tennis and Super Mario Advance.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR BIRDO***
Note: the trophy bio for Birdo is technically incorrect, as Birdo
appeared in Wario's Woods, Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven
Stars and Kirby Super Star before returning full-force in Mario Tennis.
She was never completely absent, just under the radar.
MARIO KART: DOUBLE DASH!! DATA:
Partner: Yoshi
Personal racecar: Turbo Birdo
Special weapon: Birdo Egg
Birdo's starring roles:
Doki Doki Panic (Famicom) - 1987*
Super Mario Bros. 2 (NES) - 1988*
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993*
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994*
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (Super NES) - 1996
Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) - 2000
Super Mario Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2001*
Super Smash Bros Melee (Gamecube) - 2001
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Other appearances:
Wario's Woods (NES) - 1994
Kirby Super Star (Super NES) - 1996
Animal Crossing (Gamecube) - 2001
Mario Power Tennis (Gamecube) - 2004*
* Because Birdo is both a unique character and a generic term for her
whole race, I decided to differentiate between her appearances in this
list. Entries with an asterisk mean that Birdo appears as a generic race
- not as the specific pink egg-spitter we all know and love. (In Japan,
I suppose, this unique Birdo the one they call "Catherine.")
=======================================================================
BLABLANADON
Occupation: Friendly neighborhood pterodactyl
Only appearance: Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003)
This prehistoric anachronism waits at the foot of Hoohoo Mountain
and to fly travelers to the mountain's summit. When Mario and Luigi
travel through Hoo Hoo Village, however, Blabblanadon is nowhere to
be found. Once Mario and Luigi ascend to the mountain's summit,
they see him incubating an egg, the contents of which are, of course,
evil. Once Mario and Luigi beat the hatchling, a nasty fire-breather
named Dragohoho, Blablanadon returns to Hoohoo Village.
Much later in the game, Bowletta pilots Bowser's castle high into the
sky, where she rains down fiery terror on the good people of Beanbean
Kingdom. Mario and Luigi's only hope at getting high in the sky is, of
course, Blablanadon, who waits at the castle entrance to fly the
brothers back down again when they emerge victorious.
=======================================================================
BLEAK
Occupation: Not-so-jolly snowman
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double
Trouble (1996)
A giant snowman who's not interested in spreading Christmas mirth
- or any mirth, for that matter. Bleak is the boss of K3, the tallest
mountain in the entire Northern Kremisphere and the fifth area of the
game. The battle departs from typical boss fights, however. It's a
snowball fight that plays more like Swanky's Sideshow, the mini-
games in which Dixie must throw balls at targets.
Bleak's starring roles:
Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie's Double Trouble (Super NES) - 1996
Donkey Kong Land 3 (Game Boy) - 1997
=======================================================================
BLOAT
[Japanese name: Billy]
Occupation: Skele-glutton
Only appearance: Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003)
A bony member of the skeleton crew of the S.S. Chuckola who,
despite lacking flesh, has still managed to become obese and wedge
himself in a doorway. Mario and Luigi must blast Bloat out of the way
with dynamite.
=======================================================================
BLOOEY
Occupation: Blooper buddy
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
Blooey, known to his friends as the "White Torpedo" is a feisty
Blooper who joins Luigi on his quest to rescue Princess Eclair. Mario
first meets them in the plaza in Rogueport, where Luigi details their
escapades in Rumblebump Volcano. Blooey, sporting what would
appear to be a golden tan, seems none too pleased with the adventure,
however. He apparently got dunked in lava and, now crispy fried,
blames Luigi.
He'd be playable if you could play Luigi's quest. But you can't.
=======================================================================
BOBBERY
[Japanese name: Barel/Bareru]
Occupation: Salty sea dog
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
Before Flavio will set sail to Keelhaul Key, he wants Mario to find
Admirable Bobbery, the trustworthiest deckhands in Rogueport.
Bobbery, however, isn't keen of being found. Once Mario stumbles
upon the secret entrance into his locked house, he finds that Bobbery
- a standard black Bob-Omb who sports with a big white moustache,
a sailor's hat and a nautical steering wheel spinning about on his back
- is completely unwilling to leave on a high-seas adventure.
Podley, proprietor of Rogueport's soda bar and the one guy privy to
the inside scoop on Rogueport residents, explains that Bobbery's
beloved wife, Scarlette, passed away from a sudden illness while he
was away on a voyage long ago. Since then, Bobbery has been too
depressed to do much of anything. Fortunately, Podley has an old
letter that Scarlette wrote before she died and he asks Mario to deliver
it. Upon reading the letter, Bobbery realizes that Scarlette would have
wanted him to continue living. He merrily skips off to the S.S. Flavio
to join Flavio's crew.
Once on Keelhaul Key, Bobbery takes a licking from some pirate
ghosts and seems nearly ready to kick the bucket. But a sip of
Chuckola Cola fills the old guy with the life he needs to keep on
fighting. Bobbery joins Mario's party.
Bobbery has similar talents as Bombette from the first Paper Mario. It
makes sense, as both characters are Bob-Ombs. In battle, Bobbery
explodes to harm enemies. Out of battle, he can explode to blast open
secret passage ways. No matter how many times Bobbery explodes, he
always reforms, good as new.
He's the second playable Bob-Omb ever in a Mario game.
=======================================================================
BOBO [new]
Occupation: Black Sugar pirates mascot
First appearance: Super Mario Land 3: Wario Land
A giant pink bird and Capt. Syrup's personal pet. Wario first fights
Bobo in the S.S. Teacup area of the original Wario Land. She swoops
at Wario and sends smaller birds at Wario like projectiles. The
oversized avian shows up again in the game's sequel, Wario Land II,
as the boss of the second area - again, the S.S. Teacup.
I'm actually not completely sure that "Bobo" is the character's name.
Jay Mitchell, reader and self-described Wariologist, brought the
character to my attention, but I have yet to verify it online. If another
Wario buffs can help me check this out, I'd appreciate it.
Bobo's starring roles:
Super Mario Land 3: Wario Land (Game Boy) - 1994
Wario Land II (Game Boy Color) - 1998
=======================================================================
BODDLE
Occupation: Theatre owner
Only appearance: Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003)
The eccentric brother of Bubbles, the inventor of Chuckola Cola.
Boddle, the president of the Yoshi Fan Club, loves Yoshies so much
that he wears a Yoshi egg like clothes. He even poured his money into
constructing a theater so the Yoshies can come to Beanbean Kingdom
and watch movies. When Mario and Luigi first meet Boddle, he's
using a fragment of the shattered Beanstar to decorate the theater
marquee. He's willing to lend the piece to the Mario Bros., but on one
condition: they collect suitable replacement decorations.
Mario and Luigi have no choice but to search the world for Bean Fruit,
a delicacy that grows underground. If they feed the Bean Fruit to the
seven different colors of Yoshies - red, orange, yellow, green, azure,
blue and purple - the respective Yoshies will lay a neon egg that
Boddle will use in the sign.
(Together, the two brothers names are Bubbles and Boddle, which
sounds just a bit like the classic Taito arcade game, Bubble Bobble.
The resemblance is probably coincidental.)
=======================================================================
BOGMIRE
[Japanese name: Shadoma]
Occupation: Cemetery spook
Only appearance: Luigi's Mansion (2001)
A manifestation of the haunted mansion's collective fear and despair.
A shapeless, grimacing ghost that Luigi must fight in the mansion's
backyard cemetery. Once Luigi beats Bogmire, he can access the third
wing of the mansion.
=======================================================================
BOMBETTE
[Japanese name: Pinky]
Occupation: Adorable explosive device
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
Little Bombette is a pink Bob-Omb with an iron will - and a fiery
temper. An outburst in front of her bosses, the Koopa Bros., sent her to
the dungeon of the their fortress, so she's more than happy to help
Mario fight them. All the other Bob-Ombs respect Bombette and many
of the male ones seem to be head-over-heals in love with her.
Bombette is the first playable Bob-Omb in any Mario game.
Despite her size, Bombette packs a lot of power. She can explode -
though she re-forms after every explosion - or send her round little
body careening into enemies. Her explosions can also break through
walls to reveal hidden rooms and passageways.
Bob-Ombs have been a staple of the Marioverse since their
introduction in Super Mario Bros. 2 (and before that, Doki Doki
Panic). But those Bob-Ombs didn't show the personality Bombette
does. They just mindlessly walked forward, stopped, and then
exploded, taking out anyone - good guys or bad guys - who might
be standing nearby. Bob-Ombs were actually the first Super Mario
Bros. 2 baddie to show up in another game. Of all the baddies in the
game, only they appeared in Super Mario Bros. 3. (Most, like Shy
Guys and Snifits didn't appear again until Super Mario World 2:
Yoshi's Island.)
Super Mario 64 introduced the friendly pink Bob-Ombs, the Bob-Omb
Buddies. Unlike their nasty black-colored brethren, the Bob-Omb
Buddies would help Mario and shoot him from their cannons to let him
reach far-off ledges. Presumably, Bombette, whose Japanese name is
"Pinky," is one of these friendly ones, thought the Paper Mario series
offers many friendly Bob-Ombs of all colors.
=======================================================================
BONEHEADS
Occupation: Samurai demon
Only appearance: WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$
A giant skeleton clad in samurai armor who creeps into the castle
where Prince or Princess Insert Your Five-Letter Name Here lives and
promptly possess him or her. Ana and her troop of ninjas tries to kill
him but fail. Kat and her dog Paw rush to Ana's rescue. Kat shred
Boneheads into ribbons.
I have no idea why this guy's name is plural, but I'd presume it's a
typo.
=======================================================================
BONETAIL
[Japanese name: Zonbaba]
Occupation: Biggest, baddest dragon
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
The third of the three pet dragons who once served the Shadow Queen.
Bonetail is the older brother of Hooktail and Gloomtail. A skeletal
beast, he awaits Mario at the bottom of the Pit of 100 Trials. The fight
against him is purportedly the toughest in the game.
=======================================================================
BOO
[also known as: Boo Diddly, Boo Buddy; Japanese name: Teresa]
Occupation: Shy spook
First appearance: Super Mario Bros. 3 (1990)
This shy little ghost originally appeared as Boo Diddly, another
character in the Nintendo tradition of rock star namesakes. (Bo Diddly
was a famous musician and singer.) Boo was a generic baddie who
lived in fortresses and other dark places. Of the many, many new
baddies introduced in Super Mario Bros. 3, Boo was one of the only
ones to appear again in other games - Chain Chomps, Nipper Plants
and Thwomps being among the others. Though their name changed to
simply "Boo," their behavior has remained virtually identical: look at
Boo, Boo won't move; turn away, he tries to bite you in the butt.
Boos have been popular ever since. They congregated in myriad forms
in their own haunted houses in Super Mario World and appeared as
items in Super Mario Kart that, when used, would render a character
invisible and steal opponents' weapons.
This ghost wasn't so shy in Mario Tennis, the first game to feature a
playable Boo. Apparently, phobia of looking people in the face fades
when faced with athletic competition.
(I remember when the preview specs for Mario Tennis were released.
Several websites listed Boo as being a female character because the
Japanese version of the game listen the ghost's name as "Teresa." As it
turns out, the reference wasn't to the common name but the Japanese
name for the character, which can be also be Anglicized as "telesa."
Boos, I'll wager, generally are gender ambiguous, with the exception
of Bow, Bootler and King Boo. "Teresa," incidentally, seems similar
to the Japanese word for "shy," "tereru.")
In his trek through the haunted homestead in Luigi's Mansio, Luigi
gradually eliminates various lesser Boos before he finally defeats the
King Boo. Before they attack, each introduces itself, so I hthought I'd
list their names here: BamBoo, Boo B. Hatch, Boodacious, Boofant,
Boogie, Boohoo, Booigi, Boo La La, Boolderdash, Boolicious,
Booligan, Boolivia, Boomeo, Boomerang, Boonita, Boonswoggle,
Booregard, Booris, Booscaster, Bootha, Bootique, Game Boo, Game
Boo Advance, GumBoo, Kung Boo, LimBooger, Little Boo Peep, Mr.
Boojangles, PeekaBoo, ShamBoo, TaBoo, TamBoorine, TurBoo and
Underboo. The remaining twenty Boos have no names, and Luigi
dispatches them in the form of the jumbo ghost, Boolossus.
A generic Boo also materialized as a playable character in Mario Party
5, replacing the much-missed Donkey Kong. Boo had previously
shown up in each of the Mario Party games as an instrument players
could use to rob opponents of money or even stars. Though Mario
Party 5's Boo lacked feet or a body, he competed in games with the
rest of the characters.
Now that King Boo has risen to popularity, it will be interesting to see
whether the generic Boo persists as a playable character. Camelot
decided to inclue him in Mario Power Tennis, in which he could
summon his spectral companions to help defeat his opponents. You
haven't played real tennis until you see a wall of Boos materialize
against you mid-match.
Much of the rest of Boo folklore is collected in the profiles for the Big
Boo, the Bigger Boo, Bow and King Boo.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR BOO***
These shy spirits inhabit Mario's world and have been known to vanish
or freeze when met face-to-face. In recent years, they seem to have
overcome their fears in order to pursue tennis and other social
activities. They usually appear in groups and fly in formation. From
time to time, giant Boos make surprise appearances.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR BOO***
Boo's starring roles:
Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) - 2000
Mario Party 5 (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Party 6 (Gamecube) - 2004
Other appearances:
Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES) - 1990
Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario Land 2: Six Golden Coins (Game Boy) - 1992
Super Mario Kart (Super NES) - 1992
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Mario's Picross (Game Boy) - 1995
Bandai Satellaview Super Mario Bros. 3 (Bandai Satellaview) - 1995
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super NES) - 1995
Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1996
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (Super NES) - 1996
Super Mario 64 Shindou Version (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Mario Kart 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Game & Watch Gallery 2 (Game Boy) - 1998
Super Mario Bros. Deluxe (Game Boy Color) - 1999
Picross NP Vol. 2 (Super Famicom) - 1999
Mario Party (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Mario Party 2 (Nintendo 64) - 2000
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Mario Party 3 (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Mario Kart: Super Circuit (Game Boy Advance) - 2001
Luigi's Mansion (Gamecube) - 2001
Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Super Mario Sunshine (Gamecube) - 2002
Mario Party 4 (Gamecube) - 2002
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (Gamecube) - 2003
Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
WarioWare, Inc. (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Mario vs. Donkey Kong (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Mario Pinball Land (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Super Mario 64 DS (Nintendo DS) - 2004
Mario Party Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
=======================================================================
BOOLOSSUS
[Japanese name: Jumbo Teresa]
Occupation: Jumbo Boo
Only appearance: Luigi's Mansion (2001)
A conglomeration of twenty Boos mashed together into one big, fat,
bouncing Boo. Luigi must trick Boolossus, the third boss in Luigi's
Mansion, into popping itself on the horn of one of the unicorn statues
on the balcony. Doing so will cause Boolossus to divide into its
smaller members, whom Luigi can freeze with ice and suck into the
Poltergust 3000.
=======================================================================
BOOM-BOOM [new]
Occupation: Fortress foe
Only appearance: Super Mario Bros. 3 (1990)
Basically, Boom-Boom is the Birdo of Super Mario Bros. 3. Scattered
throughout the various kingdoms of the Mushroom World are
fortresses Mario must conquer. In each of fortresses lurks Boom-
Boom, a brutish Koopa mini-boss who swings a pair of mighty biceps
as he scuttles around the floor. If Mario stomps Boom-Boom three
times, he drops a crystal that will unlock a door on the map screen.
In the final kingdom, Dark World, Boom-Boom appeared in Bowser's
tanks, airships and boats as well.
Image link:
gamehiker.com/gallery/displayimage.php?album=74&pos=3
Boom-Boom's appearances:
Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES) - 1990
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Bandai Satellaview Super Mario Bros. 3 (Bandai Satellaview) - 1995
Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
=======================================================================
BOOMER
Occupation: Smithy's minion
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
An honorable fighter who duels Mario and his party on the chandeliers
in Bowser's Keep, much as Mario and Bowser did at the beginning of
the game. When beaten, Boomer performs a melodramatic death scene
before plummeting off the chandelier and onto the floor.
=======================================================================
BOOSTER [new]
[also known as Booster the Seventh; Japanese name: Bukki]
Occupation: Crazed train enthusiast
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
During the quest to collect the Star Pieces and give Smithy the boot,
Mario and company met Booster, the seventh in a line of Boosters.
Booster lived in Booster Tower, which sat atop Booster Hill.
Surrounded only by toy trains and his three beetle-collecting Snifit
pals, Booster went quite mad.
Smithy first arrived in Mario's world by crashing through the roof of
Bowser's Keep in his giant sword-shaped vehicle, Exor, during the
middle of Mario and Bowser's umpteenth fight. Consequently, the
three figures central to the brawl - Bowser, Mario, and Peach -
went flying in three different directions. Peach happened to land on the
balcony of Booster Tower.
A stranger to the interactions of normal humans, Booster decided to
marry Peach despite her pleas of "MARIOHELPMEMARIOHELPME
MARIOHELPME." Intent of making Peach his bride, Booster
kidnapped her to the marriage resort, Marrymore. Mario and his crew
intervened just in time, however; Booster ended up kissing Bowser
and returning to his tower wifeless. (Technically, Booster could also
end up kissing Mario. Different kissing variations depend on how
quickly Mario collects Peach's various bridal articles: her shoes, her
brooch, her ring, and her crown. I'm just going by the best-case
scenario here.) Undaunted, Booster played with his trains until a
second woman fell from the sky: Valentina, the villainess who had
been plotting to overthrow the Nimbus Land royal family. Somehow,
the two fell in love. Super Mario RPG's ending led one to believe
Booster and Valentina eventually got married.
With his big red nose, bug eyes, and wild facial hair, Booster bore a
more-than-passing resemblance to Wario. (Wario, however, had a
much less prominent role in the Mario universe at the time Nintendo
released Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars than he does
now.) A painting of a guy who looks a lot like Wario - big nose,
moustache, yellow hat - even hangs in the lobby of Booster Tower,
in the wall of portraits showing Booster's ancestors. (Players can spot
this one easily because the blue Snifit that casually peruses each
painting, one by one, jumps back when he sees Wario's mug in the slot
marked "Booster the Second.")
Since Square owns the rights to all the characters unique to Super
Mario RPG, Booster has yet to reappear. Too bad, because Booster is a
kickass character, with kickass theme music to boot.
Image link: gamehiker.com/gallery/displayimage.php?album=46&pos=13
=======================================================================
BOOTLER
Occupation: Spectral Smithers
First appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
A minor character in Paper Mario, Bootler is Lady Bow's ghostly
butler. This Boo serves as an advisor to Lady Bow and seems very
protective of her. Much as the Chancellor of the Mushroom Kingdom
does to Peach in Super Mario RPG, Bootler tries to persuade Bow not
to journey with Mario. Bow and Bootler's exchanges, however,
involve quite a bit more shouting that the polite ones in the Mushroom
Kingdom court.
Apparently, Booter traveled the world with Goompa and Koopa Koot
when they were younger. Various asides throughout the game
reference Bootler's legendary status.
Bootler makes a cameo in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door.
After Mario vanquishes the Shadow Queen, he'll find Bootler and
Lady Bow on vacation in Poshley Heights. Bootler is just as adoring of
his mistress as ever.
Bootler's appearances:
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Gamecube) - 2004
=======================================================================
BOSHI [new]
[Japanese name: Washi/Warshi/Warushi]
Occupation: Mushroom Derby champion
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
In Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, the Yoshies reside on
Yo'ster Isle. No, scratch that. A bunch of red and yellow Yoshies
reside there, plus one green one - the Yoshi we all know and love -
and one blue one - Yoshi's jerk of an alterego, Boshi. It's not evident
in the English translation, but Boshi was conceived as a rival for Yoshi
on the same lines as Wario and Waluigi were for Mario and Luigi. The
Japanese root "warui," which means bad," got blended into Yoshi's
name to turn "Washi" - or possibly "Warshi" or "Warushi."
Nintendo of America apparently thought "Boshi" sounded tougher.
Boshi certainly looks tough. He sports some wicked shades and a
spiked choker. The other Yoshies resent Boshi because he dominates
the Mushroom Derby, the Yoshi footrace, and will only take
challengers on a one-on-one basis. Once Mario shows up, Yoshi
schools Boshi and the races open up to everybody. Boshi reforms.
Since Square owns the rights to Boshi and all the other characters
unique to Super Mario RPG, Boshi has yet to cause any more trouble.
Image link: gamehiker.com/gallery/displayimage.php?album=46&pos=14
=======================================================================
BOW
[also known as Lady Bow; Japanese name: Resaresa]
Occupation: Poltergeist royalty
First appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
She'd be a great colleague for Peach and Daisy. Lady Bow is the
reigning royalty for the Boo Kingdom. She oversees all matters ghost-
related. And unlike her shy brethren, haughty but well-intentioned
Lady Bow does not shrink away from conflict.
Her deadly fan weapon in tow, this glamorous ghost joins Mario and
his friends to help destroy Tubba Blubba, a lumbering, purple Koopa
who's been snacking on Lady Bow's subjects in the desert town of
Gusty Gulch. Lady Bow promises to give Mario the Star Spirit Skolar
if he helps her find Tubba Blubba's hidden weakness. The weakness, it
turns out, is that Tubba keeps his disembodied-yet-still beating heart in
the basement of a locked shack in Gusty Gulch. After defeating Tubba
Blubba and his talking heart, Mario and Bow emerge victorious.
Tubba Blubba coughs up the ghosts he's eaten while Bow's butler
Bootler materializes with the Star Spirit. Lady Bow decides to see
Mario though his entire journey. She's a formidable fighter who can
slap enemies or whack them with her war fan. Lady Bow can also
make Mario become invisible.
In Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, Mario can meet up with
Bow and Bootler after he beats the Shadow Queen. They're
vacationing in Poshley Heights.
Lady Bow's name keeps in synch with the tendency for Marioverse
women to have names that are cute, sweet or diminutive objects. This
is, of course, if you pronounce her name to rhyme with "foe" and
"doe," instead of "cow" or "how." Either pronunciation makes sense;
she does wear bows but also has a position of respect that would
necessitate others to bow to her.
At the Mushroom Kingdom Squad's Domain, Luigi of the Pipes points
out an interesting ambiguity about Boo royalty. Lady Bow's in charge
in Paper Mario, but King Boo reigns supreme in Luigi's Mansion. And
then there's the Big Boo - not to be confused with the Big Blue Boo
- in Super Mario World. Just another example of Nintendo's "to hell
with continuity" policy. Interesting, though.
Bow's starring roles:
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Other appearances:
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Gamecube) - 2004
=======================================================================
BOWLETTA
[Japanese name: Gerakuppa]
Occupation: Hell-spawn he-she
Only appearance: Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003)
An unholy union of Cackletta's evil magic and Bowser's brute
strength. Bowletta is born when Mario and Luigi stomp Cackletta's
body, displacing her angry spirit. Cackletta's assistant, Fawful, pumps
her soul into Bowser's unconscious body. Tadah! - evil that bends
gender. Ever wondered what Bowser would look like with breasts?
Well go find a picture of Bowletta and you'll know. Everyone in the
game seems to take to referring to this monstrous amalgam as
Bowletta right away, too. Bowletta is the second-to-last battle in the
game.
And, as any Mario fan would know, Bowletta is hardly the first
gender-vague character in the series, what with Toad, Yoshi and Birdo
and all.
=======================================================================
BOWSER KOOPA JR.
[Japanese name: Koopa Jr.]
Occupation: Prince of the Koopa
First appearance: Super Mario Sunshine (2002)
The apple doesn't fall far from the tree - the overgrown, rotten, foul-
tempered tree.
This pipsqueak first stirred up trouble on Isle Delfino in Super Mario
Sunshine. Initially, though, it's not Bowser Jr. who seems to be at the
root of the island paradise's problems. It's Shadow Mario, Mario's
shady doppelganger - as opposed to his twin brother Luigi or his
alterego Wario or his infant self Baby Mario or his twin's alterego
Waluigi or his doctor alterego Dr. Mario. Princess Peach first notices
Shadow Mario during the in-flight movie promoting Isle Delfino. He's
a Mario-shaped silhouette bounding behind a row of hula-dancing
Pianta folk.
When the Isle Delfino police arrest Mario for vandalizing the buildings
in Delfino Plaza, it's clear Shadow Mario painted the graffiti to frame
Mario. Under a court order, Mario must postpone his vacation and
clean up the graffiti with a water-powered jetpack design by the mad
Dr. E. Gadd. Washing away graffiti means leaving Princess Peach
behind. Surprising no one, she gets nabbed - this time, by Shadow
Mario.
After a showdown at roller coaster funland Pinna Park, Shadow Mario
removes his mask to reveal the face of young Koopa royalty. Bowser
Jr. then drops two bombshells: that his graffiti paintbrush and Mario
disguise were designed by the Gadd Science Corporation; and that
Princess Peach is his mommy and this whole graffiti mess was just a
ploy to have someone to tuck him in at night.
In a few short minutes, this revelation changes a lot about the
Marioverse, actually. Bowser Jr.'s presence apparently negates the
existence of the Koopalings, Bowser's seven children who debuted in
Super Mario Bros. 3. After all, why would Bowser wait until his
eighth child to name one "Bowser Jr."? Bowser Jr. Certainly seems
younger than the original brood. Furthermore, Bowser Jr.'s possession
of the Gaddbrush also means that E. Gadd's inventions serve evil
purposes as well as good. And finally, Princess Peach's apparent
willingness to believe that she's Bowser's Jr.'s mother - you're your
mommy?" - means that she is a complete idiot.
In the game's final battle, Mario duels Bowser and Bowser Jr. in a
Koopa jacuzzi floating high above Corona Volcano. Naturally, he and
Peach escape safely. Surprisingly, Bowser and his son seem to escape
okay as well. They end up on some island near Isle Delfino, relatively
unscathed. Proving Bowser Jr.'s a true heir to the Koopa line, he
admits that though he knew Peach was not his mother, the lie does
nothing to prevent father and son from gleefully readying their plot
against Mario and Peach.
The little guy has yet to cause too much trouble, however. Bowser Jr.
competed in the Toadstool Tour in Gamecube installment of Mario
Golf. He even wore his mask from his Shadow Mario costume. He
also raced with his father in Mario Kart: Double Dash!! - this time,
without the mask around his face.
The young master Bowser appears alongside his pops in Mario Power
Tennis, proving that he is quickly becoming a Mario series regular. He
seems to have collected the old Gaddbrush for this appearance, as
well, as both his super movers involve using that awful goopy paint to
ensure a victory.
As a side note, it's obvious that while Bowser Jr. and Baby Bowser are
separate characters, Baby Bowser - that is, the infant version of the
Koopa king seen in games like Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island
and Yoshi's Story - came first and clearly influenced the look of
Bowser Jr.
I recently came across an interesting point regarding the apparent
paradox between Bowser Jr. and the seven other Koopalings. At the
beginning of Super Mario Sunshine, FLUDD scans over Mario and, in
processing his earlier exploits, briefly flashes a shot of Mario tussling
with Larry Koopa. (Whether this fight is from Super Mario Bros. 3 or
Super Mario World, I'm not yet sure.) Thus, this may be unintentional
proof on Nintendo's part that Bowser Jr. and the other Koopa offspring
do, in fact, exist in the same continuity. Otherwise, how could
FLUDD's display and Bowser Jr. appear in the same game?
MARIO KART: DOUBLE DASH!! DATA:
Partner: Bowser
Personal racecar: Bullet Blaster
Special weapon: Bowser Shell
Bowser Jr.'s starring roles:
Super Mario Sunshine (Gamecube) - 2002
Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (Gamecube) - 2003
=======================================================================
BOWSER KOOPA
[also known as King Koopa, Big Devil Koopa; Japanese name:
Koopa/Kuppa]
Occupation: Cantankerous King of the Koopa
First appearance: Super Mario Bros. (1985)
[bowser]
"KOOPAMACALLIT"
Easily the most famous turtle-dragon-king-grouch in video games
today.
King Bowser Koopa, a spiked shell full of bad news, stomped into the
Mushroom Kingdom in Super Mario Bros. Using that black Koopa
magic, Bowser subjugated the Mushroom people, transforming them
into bricks, stones and "field horsehair plants." He then locked away
Princess Peach, the only one with the power to break his spell. He's
tormented Mario, Luigi, and mushroom folk alike ever since.
The origins of Bowser's name are not as well-documented as other
Mario characters'. I remember reading somewhere that Shigeru
Miyamoto took the name Kuppa from a brand of Asian plateware, thus
keeping within the theme of naming characters after food and food-
related stuff. However, I can't remember where I read this and
researching it online hasn't turned up much.
A Mario fan named LajosJancsi posted an interesting point at the SMB
Info Station about "Koopa" also being the Japanese pronunciation of
the Korean soupy rice dish gug-bab. (If you'd like to read this post in
full, check the recommended reading section at the end of this guide; I
put its address.)
Quite a few readers have also been lobbying the Koopa-Kappa
connection as a possible explanation for Bowser's surname. In
Japanese folklore, Kappa are water-dwelling creatures who prey upon
humans somewhat like vampires do in western folklore. Kappas
resemble turtles somewhat, and in some depictions they even have
shells, much like the Koopas do. Kappas, however, also have the
distinct trait of having hollow-bowl like heads filled with water. If the
water spills out, the Kappa dies. No Koopas have this trait, though it
did show in Super Mario World; on the climb up to the Yellow Switch
Palace on Yoshi's Island, Mario passes through a small body of water
on top of a hill. According to the American instruction manual, this
geographical formation is called Kappa Mountain, though the game
never mentions this. (An actual Kappa shows up in Animal Crossing
as Kap'n, the seafaring, cucumber-loving turtle-looking thing, whom
the American version never specifies as a Kappa. So clearly such a
reference would not be out of place in a Nintendo game.)
If having three plausible origins didn't cloud the matter enough
already, one of the Mushroom Kingdom's specials on the translation
quirks of Japanese Mario games into English states that Bowser had no
first name in the original Super Mario Bros. Whatever he was called in
Japanese translated to "Big Devil Koopa." Subsequently, the games
just called him "Koopa" or "Kuppa," the latter being a Japanese
variant of the former.
Finally, Patrick Gremillion wrote in and informed me that Bowser may
have gotten his doggy-sounding first name in a way similar to how the
Koopalings got theirs. One of the members of the classic rock-pop
group Shanana is nicknamed "Bowzer."
THE BIG BAD
Wherever his name might come from, Bowser's been causing trouble
since his infancy, as seen in the prequel to the Mario saga, Super
Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island. Under the guidance of the Magikoopa
Kamek, an early Koopa Troop attacked the Stork that was delivering
Baby Mario and Baby Luigi to their parents in the Mushroom
Kingdom. Although this plot contradicted Nintendo's earlier story of
the Mario brothers hailing from Brooklyn, the continuity works from
Bowser's side. No matter where these Mushroom Kingdom-native
babies fit into the Marioverse, it's the same Bowser who's been
wreaking havoc, whether as a spoiled child king or a full-grown king.
Bowser lost this first fight, as he would subsequent ones - and, hell,
all future ones, too. Kamek whisked Baby Bowser into the sky, to
grow up and devise future schemes for future games. (For certain
reasons, arbitrary though they might be, the activities Bowser did as a
baby in the Yoshi's Island games are listed in their own profile, under
"Baby Bowser.")
In the original Super Mario Bros., Mario and Luigi could fight eight
separate Bowsers. Every fourth level introduced the brothers to a
different Bowser clone. Each could be defeated either by tagging -
and apparently removing - the hammer that keeps Bowser's bridge
from collapsing or by being sprayed with a volley of fireballs, which
would reduce the clones to their original states and fall into the lava.
(In order, these baddies-in-disguise are a Goomba, Koopa Troopa,
Buzzy Beetle, Spiny, Lakitu, Blooper and Hammer Brother.) Each
Bowser, notably, lacked his trademark fire-red mane in the game,
though all the promotional art showed him with it.
Bowser wreaked similar havoc in The Lost Levels: breathing fire,
tossing hammers, and blocking access to Peach and her Mushroom
Retainers. And, once again, stages leading up to the last were marked
by more decoy Bowsers - and in stages A through D, sometimes
more than one Bowser in a stage.
The big guy sat out Super Mario Bros. 2, but showed up in the third
NES outing flanked by his seven horrible children: Larry, Morton,
Wendy, Iggy, Roy, Lemmy, and Ludwig. As per their father's
instructions, the Koopalings had each raided the castles of various
kingdoms in the Mushroom World, stolen the kings' magic wands, and
transformed them into animals. A glaring, unanswered question Super
Mario Bros. 3 poses is where these Koopalings came from. Although
diehard Mario fans would probably be thrilled to meet her, Nintendo
has yet to introduce Bowser's better half - the closest thing to a wife
so far has been that old hag Magikoopa Kammy Koopa.
But regardless of whether his wife lived there too, Super Mario Bros.
3's take on Bowser resides in the Dark World, the gloomy but fiery
final kingdom of the Mushroom World. (In the Japanese version of the
game, this last kingdom was called "Koopa Kingdom," which would
make Super Mario Bros. 3 the only game to depict the often-
referenced home of the Koopas.) After collapsing fortresses, legions of
army tanks and fleets of airships, Mario or Luigi had to trick thudbutt
Bowser into crashing through the brick floor of his throne room.
Bowser's Super Mario Bros. 3 in-game appearance marks the first to
feature his trademark red mane and yellow spikes.
Bowser got a bit craftier for Super Mario World. After the brothers
survived the terrors of his neon fortress, the Mario Bros. had to duel on
the rooftop with the Clown Car, a grinning quasi-helicopter in which
Bowser kept himself, Peach, giant bowling balls, and dozens of
mechanical replicas of himself. Some well-placed hits, however, sent
the Koopa King hurtling into the night sky.
Hanging out with Mario and Peach in various spin-offs that began
popping up after Super Mario World didn't change Bowser's nasty
ways, however. The Mario series entered 64-bit territory with Mario's
quest to break the curse Bowser places over the Mushroom Kingdom
castle. A Koopa spell magically imprisoned Peach and her subjects in
the castle walls unless Mario finds the 120 stars Bowser secreted away
in the castle's various nooks. In Super Mario 64, Bowser brawled with
Mario three times. Taller, fiercer, and more Godzilla-like than he'd
appeared in earlier games, Bowser belched flames Mario could only
douse by swinging him by the tail and tossing him into some ringside
explosive devices a wiser king would not have installed.
At the end of Luigi's Mansion, the launch title for the Nintendo
Gamecube, it wasn't Bowser who dueled with Luigi on the roof at the
end of Luigi's Mansion. Instead, King Boo piloted a giant mechanical
Bowser suit - the head of which could float off disembodied and
expose King Boo to Luigi's vacuum. Spooky stuff.
The scheme Bowser hatches in Super Mario Sunshine is downright
dastardly. Bowser fought Mario high atop Corona Volcano at the end
of Super Mario Sunshine. Bowser Jr. and Peach float in the own lava-
proof boats. But what has drawn these characters together this time?
Bowser cruelly has convinced Bowser Jr., the eighth Koopaling -
whose origins are as mysterious as his older siblings' - that Peach is
his mother. This lie prompts Bowser Jr.'s painty shenanigans all over
Isle Delfino. When Mario tromps the junior and senior Bowsers in a
duel in a volcano-heated bathtub in the sky, they end up on the shores
of some island paradise. Bowser admits the lie; Junior seems okay
with it. It's the closest to a happy ending Bowser's gotten yet.
ARCH-NEMESES LIKE TO PLAY, TOO
Back in the heyday of the Super Nintendo, Bowser appeared for the
first time as a playable character in Super Mario Kart, the first-ever
spin-off of the Mario platforming franchises. Yes, it's a little odd to
see Bowser driving around in a miniature car with folks he usually
tries to kill or kidnap. But his inclusion in this came has meant that
he's playable in the vast majority of subsequent spin-offs - and each
time he's the fatty. Like in his original Mario Kart incarnation, Bowser
generally plays the slowest, strongest selectable character in whatever
the Mario gang does. Tennis, golf, baseball - whatever.
This trend continued in Super Smash Bros. Melee as well. Like Mario,
Yoshi, Donkey Kong, Peach, and Dr. Mario, Bowser was a selectable
character. This Bowser wasn't a bumbling grumblepuss; he was a
snarling monster. A suped-up tyrannosaurus rex of angry called Giga
Bowser even awaited skilled players who met special conditions. Giga
Bowser was a monstrous amalgam of Bowser, Ganondorf, and
Mewtwo - the three supervillains from the Mario, Zelda, and
Pokémon franchises, respectively. He - it? - stood several times
taller than Bowser in his normal form.
THE LIGHTER SIDE OF BOWSER
It shouldn't be surprising that Bowser makes regular appearances in
the Mario RPG series. What's puzzling about these games, however, is
that they generally portray him as a much more likeable character than
the regular games do.
For example, Bowser kept unusually polite company in Super Mario
RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars as well. As Bowser sees it, it's Mario,
Mallow, and Geno who join the Koopa Troop. In truth, the union
between Mario and Bowser is really Bowser's only means of stealing
back his castle from the Smithy Gang, whose arrival has stricken him
with a serious case of homeless. Bowser proved to be as worthy and
ally as was an enemy; he brought brute strength to the group and could
fling a mean Chain Chomp. Bowser's special moves included
summoning his minions to attack.
Returning to the RPG format didn't cheer Bowser up. Bowser played
the central villain in Paper Mario in 2001. The Koopa King seized the
wish-granting Star Rod, an artifact from the astral paradise Star Haven,
and then imprisoned the seven Star Spirits. Aided by Koopa witch
Kammy - Kamek's replacement? - Bowser even hoisted the
Mushroom Kingdom castle into space. Naturally, Mario eventually
trekked all the way to Peach's doorstep in the sky, then fought and
defeated a gargantuan Bowser. Still, his acts of villainy were intercut
with scenes showing him squabbling with Kammy. Big bad or not, he
had a human side to him.
He then suffered his worst indignation yet in Mario and Luigi:
Superstar Saga. First, his plan to steal Peach gets inadvertently foiled
by Cackletta, the Bean Witch, because Cackletta replaces Peach's
voice with explosive expletives. Every time the fair princess speaks,
her caustic words shake the room. Bowser agrees to fly Mario and
Luigi to Beanbean Kingdom in the Koopa Cruiser to retrieve Peach's
voice, but Cackletta destroys Bowser's aircraft and Bowser gets his fat
butt stuck in a cannon. A pair of Toads named the Stardust Brothers
fire the Koopa King into the stratosphere, but he later turns up with
amnesia and a new job: apprentice to Popple the thief. Worst of all,
Bowser regains his mind just in time to have his body possessed by the
disembodied Cackletta. The result: Bowletta, Bowser's body with
Cackletta's headdress and what would appear to be breasts. Bowletta
even crosses his/her legs when perched on Bowser's throne. Bowletta
was the second-to-last fight in this Game Boy Advance RPG.
Bowser supplied comic relief once again in the fourth Mario RPG,
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. With the main villainy duties
being performed by the Shadow Queen and the X-Nauts, Bowser
merely bumbled about Rogueport and the outlying areas in a vain
quest for the Crystal Stars. He and Kammy often arrive at areas just
after Mario had stormed through and done anything worth doing.
Humorous squabbling ensues.
He wasn't completely relegated to playing a bit part, however. Bowser
fights Mario twice: once in a surprise Glitz Pit match and again at the
end of the game, when Bowser is making a last-ditch effort to do
something important. Occasionally, Bowser is even playable. His
scenes even contain three recreations of original side-scrolling levels
from Super Mario Bros. - specifically level 1-1, 2-2 and 1-4 - that
Bowser can hop and bop his way through. The Koopa Troopas are
replaced with X-Nauts and the mushrooms with chunks of meat, but
it's all there, more or less accurate to how you remember it. It's damn
cool, and the closest we've gotten yet to a Bowser solo adventure.
THE FUTURE
On that note, Bowser is the only one of the Big Eight to not yet get his
own game. Will players ever get to play as the Koopa King and
pummel those pesky plumbers?
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR BOWSER***
Bowser has a long history of kidnapping Princess Peach to lure his
nemesis, Mario, into traps. He leads an enormous group of
mischievous creatures, not the least of which are his seven children.
With outrageous strength, flammable breath, and more spikes than you
can shake a Star Rod at, Bowser is a constant threat.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR BOWSER***
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR THE CLOWN CAR***
Bowser's single-seat, personal airship doesn't exactly handle like a
dream, but it wasn't designed to be sporty. The Koopa Clown Car was
made to carry Bowser's huge weight, not to mention a logic-defying
arsenal of massive bowling balls. In Super Mario World, Mario busted
the Koopa Clown Car by pelting it with Mecha Koopas.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR THE CLOWN CAR***
MARIO KART: DOUBLE DASH!! DATA:
Partner: Bowser Jr.
Personal racecar: The Koopa King
Special weapon: Bowser Shell
Bowser's starring roles:
Super Mario Bros. (NES) - 1985
Versus Super Mario Bros. (Arcade) - 1986
Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels (Famicom) - 1986
Super Mario Bros. + Duck Hunt (NES) - 1988
Super Mario Bros. + Duck Hunt + World Class Track Meet (NES) - 1990
Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES) - 1990
Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario Kart (Super NES) - 1992
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993
Yoshi's Safari (Super NES) - 1993
Yoshi's Cookie (Super NES) - 1993
Yoshi's Cookie (Game Boy) - 1993
Yoshi's Cookie (NES) - 1993
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Bandai Satellaview Super Mario Bros. 3 (Bandai Satellaview) - 1995
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (Super NES) - 1996
Tetris Attack (Super NES) - 1996
Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1996
Super Mario 64 Shindou Version (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Mario Kart 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Mario's Tennis (Virtual Boy) - 1997
Super Mario Bros. Deluxe (Game Boy Color) - 1999
Mario Golf (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) - 2000
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Mario Kart: Super Circuit (Game Boy Advance) - 2001
Luigi's Mansion (Gamecube) - 2001
Super Smash Bros Melee (Gamecube) - 2001
Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Super Mario Sunshine (Gamecube) - 2002
Mario Party-e (Game Boy Advance E-Reader) - 2002
Nintendo Puzzle Collection (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (Gamecube) - 2003
Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Super Mario Bros. (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Super Mario Bros. 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Mario Pinball Land (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Gamecube) - 2004
Mario Power Tennis (Gamecube) - 2004
Super Mario 64 DS (Nintendo DS) - 2004
Other appearances:
Tetris (NES) - 1989
Alleyway (Game Boy) - 1989
F-1 Race (Game Boy) - 1991
SimCity (Super NES) - 1991
Hotel Mario (CD-I) - 1992
Mario Is Missing! (NES) - 1993
Mario Is Missing! (Super NES) - 1993
Yoshi's Cookie (Super NES) - 1993
Game & Watch Gallery (Game Boy) - 1997
Game & Watch Gallery 2 (Game Boy Color) - 1998
Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (Nintendo 64) - 1998*
Game & Watch Gallery 3 (Game Boy Color) - 1999
Mario Party (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask (Nintendo 64) - 2000*
Mario Party 2 (Nintendo 64) - 2000
Picross NP Vol. 6 (Super Famicom) - 2000
Mario Party 3 (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Game & Watch Gallery 4 (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Mario Party 4 (Gamecube) - 2002
Mario Party 5 (Gamecube) - 2003
WarioWare, Inc. (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$ (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Party 6 (Gamecube) - 2004
Mario Party Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
* as the Lon Lon/Romani Medallion and as a portait in Hyrule Castle
=======================================================================
BOWYER [new]
[Japanese name: Yuminpa]
Occupation: Smithy's minion
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
At the heart of the forest maze, Mario and Mallow meet the maniac
whose rain of poison arrows has been terrorizing the residents of Rose
Town. It's Bowyer, a living, talking bow. (And when I say talking, I
mean in the most broken English in a Mario game - Yoda with a
learning disability.) Bowyer and his team entered the forest in search
of the "shooting star" the residents of Rose Town witnessed a few days
earlier. Of course, it's the second Star Piece. When Mario and Mallow
fight Bowyer, they join Geno for the firs time. Bowyer has a clever
tactic in the fight: he can disable certain buttons to prevent the party
from using regular attacks, special attacks or items.
By the way, "bowyer" is an archaic English term for a bowsmith.
=======================================================================
BRIDGET THE BAKER [new]
Occupation: Purveyor of sweet pastries
Only appearance: WarioWare: Touched! (2005)
A pleasant-looking lass who works at the Sweet Spot, Diamond City's
bakery. Wario stops there on the walk back from a particularly nasty
visit to his dentist, Dr. Payne, and buys some sweet baked good, only
to undo all the work that Dr. Payne had done. Ouch.
Bridget looks remarkably like the pop singer Luna, who also debuts in
WarioWare: Twisted.
=======================================================================
BRIGHTON
Occupation: Solar manifestation
Only appearance: Mario Party 6 (2004)
The sun, though neither the Angry Sun from Super Mario Bros. 3 nor
the imprisoned sun from Paper Mario. Brighton, who appears as a sun-
shaped head atop a red and white robed body, represents sunlight and
daytime. His war with this friend Twila, the moon, will be settled
somewhat nonsensically by Mario and his friends playing mini-games
and filling up the Star Bank with stellar currency.
Make sense? Didn't think so.
Brighton and Twila's celestial popularity contest is a recurrent theme
in Mario Party 6. Throughout the game, time passes from day to night,
affecting game appearance and play.
=======================================================================
THE BROTHERS BEAR
Occupation: Just short of a jamboree
Only appearance: Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double
Trouble (1996)
Thirteen bear siblings scattered throughout the Northern Kremisphere.
They can help Dixie out, but she'll need to find them various items or
perform various tasks, RPG-style. You know the drill.
The Brothers Bear, listed alphabetically:
* Baffle, the puzzle aficionado
* Barnacle, the shell collector
* Barter, who runs a swap shop
* Bazaar, who sells items and information
* Bazooka, the gun enthusiast
* Benny and Bjorn, the twins who operate a set of chain lift
* Blizzard, a snowbound bear who needs Dixie to deliver a present for
him
* Blue, who's down in the dumps
* Blunder, the Nintendo Power subscriber
* Boomer, the explosives expert
* Bramble, who loves both flowers and Banana Birds
* Brash, the braggart
=======================================================================
BRUCE
Occupation: Bombette's admirer, Kooper's subleaser
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
A Bob-Omb who lives in Koopa Village in Kooper's house. Bruce
loves Bombette so much he explodes for her - literally - but she
doesn't return the affection.
=======================================================================
BUBBLES
Occupation: Chuckola Cola Inc. owner and proprietor
Only appearance: Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003)
An older bean who founded the Chuckola Cola soda company.
Bubbles makes his signature brew by brewing choice Chuckleberries
and telling quality jokes to get the Chuckleberries to laugh and
carbonate the beverage. He'll gladly donate a can of his mightiest
brew, Chuckola Cola, to help save the ailing Queen Bean - but only
if the brothers can best his brew in battle.
=======================================================================
BUNDT
Occupation: Monster wedding cake
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
Initially, Chef Torte attacks Mario's party when he realizes that they
have disrupted Booster and Peach's wedding. Shortly into the battle,
however, the cake begins to rumble. Mario and his friends must then
fight the living cake itself until all five of its candles have been
snuffed. Eventually, all that's left of the Bundt is its raspberry base,
which the three Snifits encourage Booster to swallow hole. He does.
Mario would fight feisty food again in the third Mario RPG, Mario and
Luigi: Superstar Saga, when he and Luigi take on the Chuckolator, the
living, fighting barrel of Chuckola Cola.
=======================================================================
BUB-ULBER
[Japanese name: Flower-san/Mr. Flower]
Occupation: Anthropomorphic bulb
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A cheerful resident of Petalburg whom Mario and Goombella
encounter.
Bub-Ulber is a Bub-Ulb, a rare plant character that figured into the
plotline of the first Paper Mario. Bub-Ulbs look like an oversized bulb
with a face and a flower growing out of the top. In Paper Mario, Mario
had to collect seeds from red, blue, green and yellow Bub-Ulbs and
then let Minh T. grow them into flowers in order to open the passage
to Flower Fields. (Curious, since bulb plants don't grow from seeds.)
Those Bub-Ulbs, however, did not have names.
Obviously, the name "Bub-Ulb" is patterned after the name of the
classic Mario baddie, "Bob-Omb."
=======================================================================
BURT THE BASHFUL
[Japanese name: Donburi]
Occupation: Nudity-shy rotundo
Only appearance: Super Mario World: Yoshi's Island (1995)
Burt is the boss of the first castle Yoshi and Baby Mario encounter.
He's a round, bouncy and harmless-looking fellow whose pants fall off
if Yoshi nails him with enough well-aimed eggs. He then turns red and
deflates while buzzing around the room like a dying balloon. Bye bye,
Burt!
Burt's Japanese name, "Donburi," refers to a Japanese rish-bowl
entrée.
Bashful Burt's starring roles:
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super NES) - 1995
Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3 (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
=======================================================================
BUMPTY
Occupation: Rubbery penguin
First appearance: Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (1995)
A penguin who will cause Yoshi to bounce backwards if they touch.
The bounce itself won't hurt Yoshi, but he could rebound off a cliff or
into another enemy. Like many of the cuter critters from Yoshi's
Island, Bumpty shows up in Tetris Attack as a selectable character. He
replaced the ice fairy Sherbet, who appeared in the game's original
form, Panel du Pon.
All the penguins living in Shiver City in Paper Mario and Poshley
Heights in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door look just like
Bumpty, rather than like Tuxie and the more realistic penguins from
Super Mario 64.
Bumpty's appearances:
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super NES) - 1995
Tetris Attack (Super NES) - 1996
Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3 (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Gamecube) - 2004
=======================================================================
BUZZAR
[Japanese name: Geehaa]
Occupation: Bridge guardian
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
Mario must fight Buzzar in order to pass a certain bridge at the end of
Mt. Rugged. Goombario, noting that Buzzar sits in a nest all day,
wonders if this buzzard is female. Oddly, Mario can completely bypass
the fight with Buzzar by claiming that he's Luigi.
There's a Rogueport resident named Lumpy who travels to Dry Dry
Desert to drill for oil during Mario's quest in Paper Mario: The
Thousand-Year Door. Lumpy will let Mario read his diary of his
travails in the desert, including an entry about Buzzar stealing his
backpack.
=======================================================================
CACKLETTA
[Japanese name: Geragemoona/Kikimona]
Occupation: Bean witch
Only appearance: Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003)
The villain of Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga, Cackletta is one mean
bean. Posing as a friendly ambassador to nearby Beanbean Kingdom,
Cackletta strolls into Peach's throne room and, in front of an entire
court of Mushroom Retainers, ambushes the princess. A rush of green
gas to Peach's face steals her voice. Cackletta escapes.
But why would Cackletta need Peach's voice? As the adventure
progresses, Mario learns that the legendary Beanstar, a wish-granting
artifact kept by Queen Bean, can only be awakened by the voice of a
pure and noble beauty. Since Peach has the purest soul in the world,
Cackletta uses her voice to awaken the Beanstar and fulfill her every
dark desire. Cackletta successfully steals the Beanstar and takes it to
Woohoo Hooniversity, Beanbean Kingdom's scientific capital, but the
plan explodes in her face - quite literally. Unbeknownst to Cackletta
or Mario, Peach switched places with Birdo in a Peach getup. Birdo's
quacks only enrage the Beanstar, which blasts into the sky and divides
into four pieces.
Mario and Luigi promptly stomp Cackletta, but Fawful sneaks in at the
last minute to suck up her broken body into his handy headgear
contraption. Fawful carries his mistress across the world until he finds
a suitable host: Bowser, battered once again and just freshly no longer
amnesiac. Bowletta is born.
The final showdown with Bowletta in the throne room of Bowser's
castle is surprisingly easy - too easy, in fact. Just when s/he has run
out of energy, Bowletta sucks the Mario Bros. into her belly, where
they must fight the vengeful spirit of Cackletta. Once the spirit is
stomps, all traces of Cackletta vanish from poor Bowser's body. At
present, it would seem that Cackletta is gone forever.
Cackletta is the second female character to be in the main villain in a
Mario game, the first being Captain Syrup from Super Mario Land 3:
Wario Land. After the release of Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga,
however, Nintendo released Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door,
where Mario fought the game's ultimate battle against the Shadow
Queen.
=======================================================================
CANDY KONG
[alternate Japanese spelling: Kandii Kongu]
Occupation: Kong cutie
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country (1994)
Ah, Candy Kong. I'd call her the apple of Donkey Kong's eye, but
everybody knows that Donkey much prefers bananas. And a
banana in the eye could be painful, I'd wager. Candy, the only
member of the Kong clan with a decent figure, seems to be
Donkey's answer to Mario's Peach. She's pink. She has blonde
hair. Candy even seems more passive than Peach, as Candy doesn't
seem to do much of anything - but at least she doesn't have to get
kidnapped all the time.
In the first Donkey Kong Country, Candy operated the Save Barrel
- a spot on the map where Donkey or Diddy could hop in and
record the progress of their adventure. For the sequel, Rare
dropped Candy entirely. She didn't show up again until Donkey
Kong 64, where she operated some sort of store, I'm told, and
played a pivotral role in providing Donkey, Diddy, Chunkly,
Lanky and Tiny with magical musical instruments.
When Nintendo re-released Donkey Kong Country for the Game
Boy Advance in 2004, the option to save at any point - even mid-
stage - rendered Candy's original role completely useless. To
compensate the comely lass, Nintendo invented Candy Kong's
Dance Barrel, a mini-game in which Donkey or Diddy have to
master some of Candy's jazzy dance steps.
When Nintendo ported Donkey Kong Country 2 to the Game Boy
Advance, they kindly inserted Candy into the background of the
re-designed Swanky's Bonus Bonanza. She doesn't do much, but
at least she's there.
I'm told Candy also appears in DK: King of Swing for the Game
Boy Advance, but I haven't played the game and couldn't
elaborate.
Candy Kong's appearances:
Donkey Kong Country (Super NES) - 1994
Donkey Kong Land (Game Boy) - 1995
Donkey Kong 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Color) - 2000
Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
DK: King of Swing (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Donkey Kong Country 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
CARLTON
Occupation: Knight
Only appearance: Wario's Woods (1994)
A knight in a suit of shiny armor. He's the fifteenth boss.
=======================================================================
CATBAT
Occupation: Boss of the Sapphire Passage
Only appearance: Wario Land Advance (2001)
A big purple cat with a bat growing out of its head. Wario must ride
the waves Catbat creates when it crashes into the pool of water of the
floor and stomp Catbat's head.
CHARLIE
Occupation: Golfer
Only appearance: Mario Golf (1999)
One of the generic human characters competing in the Mushroom
Kingdom golf tournaments. Rylle has the following to say about this
character: "Charlie has brown hair and a yellow shirt (with a lighter
yellow collar). Charlie has midnight blue pants, the same color as
Harry's hat. Charlie too has brown shoes, and a white and red glove on
his left hand."
So there you go.
=======================================================================
CHARLIETON
[Japanese name: Damasu]
Occupation: Merchant
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A chubby fellow who peddles rare wares near the harbor in Rogueport.
Mario should be careful spending money around Charlieton, however
- his name seems like a pun on the word "charlatan." Charlieton also
shows up sporadically in the Pit of 100 Trials, peddling items Mario
may need to reach the pit's bottom level.
=======================================================================
CHAUNCEY [new]
[Japanese name: Bebira]
Occupation: Ghost baby
Only appearance: Luigi's Mansion (2001)
Yikes. If anyone thought Baby Mario was a pain, they should meet
Baby Chauncey.
Chauncey, the ghost-son of Neville and Lydia, is the first major boss
Luigi fights. He seems innocent enough, wiggling around in his cradle,
but if Luigi sets Chauncey's rocking horse into motion with his
vacuum, Chauncey will want to play. For ghost babies, playtime
means zapping you away to some other dimension in a giant cradle
while he hurls rocking horses and toy balls at you. By bopping
Chauncey with one of his toys, Luigi can make him vulnerable for just
enough time to suck him up into the vacuum.
But talk about creepy. Dead babies? Demon rocking horses? Yikes
indeed.
Image link:
http://www.gamehiker.com/gallery/displayimage.php?album=64&pos
=3
=======================================================================
CHESTNUT KING [new]
Occupation: Third-class supervillain
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
The never-seen but often-mentioned villain who steals Princess Eclair
from Waffle Kingdom. Luigi treks to Hatesong Tower to fight the
fiend, whom Luigi describes as "dripping with toxic goo." Anyone
who reads the novelization of Luigi's adventures, however, knows that
the Chestnut King isn't all that bad. He's actually Princess Eclair's
boyfriend, transformed by the black magic of Waffle Kingdom
Minister Crepe, who summoned Luigi on his journey in the first place.
In other countries, the Chestnut King is called the "Goomba King."
This is probably because the Japanese name for the Goomba,
"Kuribo," is derived from the Japanese name for the chestnut, "kuri."
Though the Marioverse already has a Goomba King - notably, one
that debuted in the first Paper Mario - they character has been called
"Goomboss" lately, so whether Luigi's Chestnut King and this
character are the same is debatable.
=======================================================================
CHET RIPPO
[Japanese name: Rebeera]
Occupation: Huckster
First appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
His name is a clue to his criminal activities. This seedy-looking bird
lurks around Toad Town and will offer Mario a chance to boost his
either a certain set of his stats - health, power or magic. Mario
shouldn't take Chet up, though, because allowing Chet to raise one set
of stats will lower the others.
Chet shows up again in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, but I
can't say it's the same guy. He performs the same function, but he
looks a lot more like a member of Merlon's clan than the chubby bird
guy we saw in the first game. Maybe he lost weight and bought a
stupid lampshade hat?
Chet Rippo's appearances:
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Gamecube) - 2004
=======================================================================
CHIEF CHILLY
Occupation: Surly snowball
Only appearance: Super Mario 64 DS (2004)
A well-chilled brute whom Luigi must fight in order to free Wario. He
prides himself on his moustache and even insults Luigi's spindly
moustache, figuring that someone with facial hair that pathetic must be
the sidekick, not the hero. Luigi then must show Chief Chilly that
sidekicks can fight too and promptly bumps Chief Chilly over the edge
of the platform they fight on.
Chief Chilly looks like a modified version of the Big Bob-Omb's
sprite, but he acts more like the Big Bully boss. He's also the only
wholly original character in this remake of the original Super Mario
64.
=======================================================================
CHUCK QUIZMO
[Japanese name: Hatena Worm]
Occupation: Game show host
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
A worm dressed like Willy Wonka, Chuck pops up all over the world,
eager to challenge Mario to a trivia contest. If Mario answers the
question correctly, Chuck gives Mario a star piece and then vanishes
into the brim of his brightly colored hat. Strange guy, that Chuck
Quizmo.
Chuck has an assistant, the lovely Vanna T.
=======================================================================
CHUCKLEROOT
Occupation: Chuckleberry guard
Only appearance: Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003)
The Chuckleroot is a large, gnarled tree that will only let Mario and
Luigi pass to the Chuckola brewery if they collect three specially
colored Chuckleberries. He also has a granddaughter, also a gnarled
tree, who will teach Luigi how to collect beans growing underground.
=======================================================================
CHUCKOLATOR
[Japanese name: Gerane Konti]
Occupation: Sword-bearing soda pop
Only appearance: Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003)
The warrior form of Chuckola Reserve, the choicest soda made by the
Chuckola Cola soda company. The soda has squarely beaten Popple
and Bowser by the time Mario and Luigi arrive, and they too must
tangle with him. When subdued, Chuckola Reserve cures Queen
Bean's belly worm infection.
=======================================================================
CHUNKY KONG
Occupation: Girthy gorilla
Only appearance: Donkey Kong Country 64 (1999)
One of the new Kong heroes introduced for the Donkey Kong Country
series' only Nintendo 64 foray and the older brother of Kiddy Kong
from Donkey Kong Country 3. As his name might imply, this meek
gorilla is a big load of muscle. In fact, he's the biggest member of the
entire Kong clan. Chunky can even make himself grow to supersized
proportions and crush pesky baddies underfoot.
=======================================================================
CLAPPER
Occupation: Controller of water, lava
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country (1994)
An affable seal who pops up in a few levels. He sits there, barks and
claps. Diddy and Dixie can't ride him, but if they jump on his head,
the water level will rise or sink. Or he'll turn lava to water. How, I
couldn't imagine. Seal magic, I guess.
Clapper's appearances:
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (Super NES) - 1995
Donkey Kong Land 2 (Game Boy) - 1996
Donkey Kong 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Donkey Kong Country 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
CLAWGRIP
[Japanese name: Chokey]
Occupation: King-sized crab
First appearance: Super Mario Bros. 2 (1988)
Apparently unsatisfied with a third, albino Mouser as the boss of Super
Mario Bros. 2's fifth world, the game's American developers created
Clawgrip, a rock-throwing crab who waits atop a giant hollow tree for
a showdown with whichever dreaming hero you chose to play as.
Clawgrip, whose name is misspelled in the game's end credits as
"Clawglip," replaces Doki Doki Panic's the original game's fifth boss.
Clawgrip has remained a part of the game ever since, even in its
Japanese reincarnations - Super Mario USA, Super Mario All-Stars
and Super Mario Advance - so it would seem that Clawgrip is the
first-ever American-created Mario character.
In the Super Mario Advance remake, Nintendo gave Clawgrip a pirate
voice. The fight also begins with him looking just like the generic crab
baddie from the original Mario Bros. game until a bubble - one of
Wart's? - transforms him into the decidedly nastier Clawgrip.
Clawgrip's appearances:
Super Mario Bros. 2 (NES) - 1988
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Super Mario Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2001
=======================================================================
CLEFTOR
[Japanese name: Gan Gan]
Occupation: Glitz Pit competitor
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A green Cleft who hangs out in the minor league locker room at the
Glitz Pit. He doesn't respect Mario initially, but after his team, the
Punk Rocks, experience a sound stomping beneath Mario's boots,
Cleftor changes his attitude.
=======================================================================
CLOAKER and DOMINO
Occupation: Smithy's minions
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
A pair of puppets who confront Mario and his friends in Smithy's
factory. Cloaker swings a mean sword, while Domino casts magic
spells against Mario's crew. If Mario's party defeats Cloaker first,
Domino escapes to the Mad Adder, a giant snake puppet that Mario
and his party must fight as well. If Domino falls first, Cloaker
electronically attaches himself to Earth Link, another snake puppet that
is a palette swap of the Mad Adder.
=======================================================================
CLOCKWORK SOLIDERS
[Japanese name: Puppet Army; alternate spelling: Papetto Ami]
Occupation: Robo-ghosts
Only appearance: Luigi's Mansion (2001)
I didn't know robots could become ghosts, but nonetheless that seems
to be the case with the Clockwork Soldiers, a trio of life-size wind-up
toys who no longer need to be wound up in order to play. Luigi can
wake them up by setting off all the clocks in their room. Once up and
about, they'll try to plug Luigi with their toy guns.
I'm not sure, but I think the Clockwork Knights might be a reference
to the short-lived series Clockwork Knight, which showed up early in
the career of the Sega Saturn. That game starred a mustachioed toy
soldier who bore a slight resemblance to Mario.
=======================================================================
CLOUDJIN
Occupation: Hot air-containing mid-boss
Only appearance: Yoshi's Story (1998)
A semi-transparent genie who blows flames at Yoshi, who must also
contend with teetering platforms and spikes balls falling all around him. A
few well-placed eggs make Cloudjin evaporate.
=======================================================================
CLOUD N. CANDY
Occupation: Easily licked mid-boss
Only appearance: Yoshi's Story (1998)
Horribly, horribly named character. A big yellow puff of something -
whether it's a cloud or cotton candy, I don't know. However, I do know
that it's one of the most easily beaten bosses in a Mario game. All Yoshi
must do to conquer Cloud N. Candy is lick him repeatedly. Eventually,
there'll be nothing left to lick, and Yoshi will win.
=======================================================================
CORK and CASK
Occupation: Vintners
Only appearance: Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003)
Twin bean brothers who work at Chateau de Chucklehuck, the
headquarters of the Chuckola Cola Inc. If Mario and Luigi can
decipher the brothers' thick French accents, they'll learn how to do
some new special moves with their hammers.
=======================================================================
CORTEZ
Occupation: Skeletal spirit of the pirate king
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
Mario first hears of Cortez in the legends recalled by the residents of
Rogueport - a great pirate king whose spirit lingers somewhere in
Keelhaul Key, near his long-lost treasure horde. Naturally, Mario
meets Cortez head-on when he ventures through Pirate's Grotto, a
series of caverns that lead to a graveyard of all the ships sunk near
Keelhaul Key.
A cackling spectral skull with a variety of ghostly appendages at his
command, Cortez awaits Mario in the treasure room of the Black
Skull, his ship and the first vessel to ever sink near Keelhaul Key.
Thinking that Mario has come to plunder his vast stores of treasure,
Cortez engages Mario in battle. In a fight, this pirate poltergeist can
strike at Mario with his four arms, morph into a bony snake or even
levitate four weapons - a saber, a cutlass, a hook and a rapier, each
ready to poke, slash or otherwise strike Mario. Even an undead spirit
like Cortez eventually gives up in a physical fight with Super Mario,
and soon Mario wins the Sapphire Star. Cortez is genuinely surprise
when he realizes that the star is all Mario comes for. Among all his
piles of gold and jewels, the Sapphire Star is one of his least prized
treasures. He doesn't even really mind that Mario takes it.
When the X-Nauts attack Mario and the other shipwrecked souls
stranded on Keelhaul Key, Mario and Flavio turn to Cortez for help.
Offering the Skull Gem, Flavio's treasured family heirloom, as
payment, Cortez agrees to sail the group back to Rogueport. He even
helps them battle the X-Nauts forces. Later, Cortez and the Black
Skull wait for Mario in the Rogueport harbor, in case they ever want to
travel back to Keelhaul Key.
Kirby021591 points out that Cortez is probably named after famous
and infamous Spanish explorer Herndando de Cortés, who
"discovered" many parts of the New World in the 1600s. Kirby021591
also notes that the notion of a pirate turning good after Mario stomps
him appeared previously in Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven
Stars. See the bio for Jonathan Jones for more details.
=======================================================================
COUNT DOWN [new]
Occupation: World's biggest alarm clock
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
A large, silly clock tha Mario fights in the lower levels of Smithy's
factory. As Count Down cycles through the hours, unleashing
chronologically appropriate attacks. It also has two bells mounted on
it, both named "Ding-a-Ling," which also attack Mario's party.
=======================================================================
CRACTUS
Occupation: Boss of the Emerald Passage
Only appearance: Wario Land Advance (2001)
A cracked-out cactus whose drool can turn Wario into a zombie.
Wario can put the crackdown on Cractus by slamming into its head
from above.
=======================================================================
CRANBERRY
Occupation: Last of the Luffs
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A sleeping boy who happens to be the last remaining member of the
Luffs, an ancient but advanced race. Luigi sneezes and awakens
Cranberry, and suddenly Luigi can understand the Luff language.
When Luigi leaves the Rapturous Ruins, they disappear, presumably
whisking Cranberry away with them.
=======================================================================
CRANKY KONG
[alternate Japanese spelling: Kurankii Kongu]
Occupation: Embittered video game icon
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country (1994)
"Back in my day, games were only black and white, and we were
lucky just to get one shade of gray!"
Depending on how you look at this bearded Kong, he's either Donkey
Kong's grandfather, Donkey Kong's elderly father or a grizzled senior
member of the Kong clan who's not officially related to Donkey but
maintains a grandfatherly relationship nonetheless. Yikes.
Hunched over and gray-haired, Cranky Kong doesn't look like an ape
that could cause too much trouble. Nonetheless, he claims he was the
original barrel-tosser - the first Donkey Kong. If what he says is true,
then the family moniker eventually got passed onto the hero of the
Donkey Kong Country games sometime around 1994. The senior
Donkey Kong got stuck with the nickname Cranky, which seems all-
too-appropriate, given his nasty disposition.
As my good friend Tinus points out, there's actually legitimate reason
to doubt Cranky's claims about his former stardom. Other than the fact
that he seems senile sometimes, Cranky is a bit of a joke character in
that he's the only guy in the entire Marioverse I can think of who
repeatedly breaks the fourth wall - that is, Cranky seems to know
he's in a video game. (Tinus also reminds me that Cranky is a spot-on
parody of retrogamers - people like me who love to claim that video
games were so much better back in the old days.)
When Cranky isn't lecturing Donkey about how much better video
games were before the advent of the 3D model, he'll actually drop
hints about where to find secrets in levels Donkey and Diddy have
already passed through. In Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong
Quest, Cranky hangs out in the Monkey Museum, a shrine to the video
games of yore - or at least the ones Nintendo and Rare made. He still
shells out hints, but he charges this time. He finally gets a more active
role in Donkey Kong Country 3. As Dixie travels around on her own
adventure, she can compete with Cranky in Swanky Kong's various
sideshow mini-games. If Dixie or Kiddy beat him, he'll get angry and
chase them off. And in Donkey Kong 64, Donkey's new crew can visit
Cranky and exchange coins for potions that allow them to use new
moves. If given enough coins, Cranky will allow you to play Jetpac,
one of Rare's first-ever titles.
Cranky nearly got a chance at being a playable character in Diddy
Kong Pilot, the now-defunct Game Boy Advance flying game that
Rare no longer seems to be developing. Too bad. To my knowledge,
Cranky Kong has not yet been a playable character.
Cranky cameos in the background of Donkey's "Jungle Japes" stage in
Super Smash Bros. Melee. You can see his silhouette moving around
the cabin. He never actually comes out, though, and maybe that's why
there's no Cranky Kong trophy available in the game.
I should also point out that Cranky was married to Wrinkly Kong for
some time, but Rare killed her off in Donkey Kong 64. The poor old
guy's a widower now - the first in the Marioverse - though the
persistant presence of Wrinkly's ghost seems to keep him from getting
too lonely.
Cranky Kong's appearances:
Donkey Kong Country (Super NES) - 1994
Donkey Kong Land (Game Boy) - 1995
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (Super NES) - 1995
Donkey Kong Land 2 (Game Boy) - 1996
Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie's Double Trouble (Super NES) - 1996
Donkey Kong Land 3 (Game Boy) - 1997
Donkey Kong 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Color) - 2000
Super Smash Bros. Melee (Gamecube) - 2001
Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Donkey Kong Country 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
CREPE
Occupation: Minister of Waffle Kingdom
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
Waffle Kingdom's counterpart to Toadsworth, I'm assuming, who
summons Mario in order to rescue Princess Eclair. Crepe would seem
to be a completely insignificant character to anybody who doesn't buy
all the volume's of the novel based on Luigi's adventures. Those who
picked up the last installment, however, learn that the story's true
villain is not the Chestnut King but Crepe, who transformed the king
into a beast in order to steal Princess Eclair for himself. Crepe is the
last boss Luigi fights. But, of course, it's only an "as told to"
adventure. We see neither the fight nor any of the members of the
Crepe-Chestnut-Eclair love triangle.
=======================================================================
CROCO
Occupation: Thief
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
A purple crocodile with a top hat and a penchant for speaking like a
bad gangster movie, Croco steals anything he can get his claws on.
Mario first meets him in the Mushroom Kingdom, where Mallow is
pursuing Croco in hopes of retrieving the coin Croco stole from him.
Croco can jump a lot better than pudgy little Mallow can, however,
and Mario must help Mallow catch Croco on Bandit's Way. They
eventually fight, and Croco tries to defend himself by throwing
whatever he's got in his sack of plundered goods.
Croco shows up again in the Moleville Mines. When Mario thumps his
head on a low ceiling, Croco and his thuggish chums rob Mario of all
his money. Once caught, Croco fights again. As a victory prize, Mario
and company get the Bambino Bomb, which they can use to blast
away rocks blocking the passage to a different part of the mines.
The purple one shadows Mario through most of his adventure. In
Bowser's Keep, Croco shows up twice, though for a different purpose:
he sells Mario items at a surprisingly reasonable price. In the game's
epilogue, Croco seems to have taken residence as a competitor in the
footraces on Yo'ster Isle.
According to Jellysoup's comprehensive Mario series ending FAQ,
Croco cameos in the Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX as a
crocodile character named Sale. Readers of this guide disagree on
whether this statement is accurate. I've never played this particular
game, so I can't say for sure. But it seems unlikely to me that such a
minor Marioverse character would earn a cameo in a Zelda game,
especially when that Zelda game was released two years before the
game that introduced Croco.
=======================================================================
CRUMP
[also known as Four Eyes; Japanese name: Peckda]
Occupation: X-Naut lieutenant
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
The first enemy Mario encounters in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year
Door is also a high-ranking officer in the X-Naut army, the
technologically advanced group of soldiers intent on collecting the
Crystal Stars. Despite his rank, Crump is a bit of a bumbler. Head X-
Naut Grodus himself admits that Crump is "out there" and sends the
Shadow Sirens to ensure an X-Naut victory on Crump's mission to the
Boggly Woods. Mario beats the Shadow Sirens anyway and eventually
must fight Lord Crump in a folding, spinning, transforming robotic
contraption called Magnus von Grapple. Once trounced, Crump yields
the Emerald Star.
Crump later poses as a member of Flavio's crew, "Four Eyes," in order
to steal the Sapphire Star from Mario during the daventure on
Keelhaul Key. He's using a pretty lousy disguise to it, too. Even
Crump seems to realize how obvious his true identity is. He even
addresses you, the video game player - "you behind the TV screen"
- and asks you not to rat him out to Mario. Once Mario stomps
Cortez, Crump drops his "Four Eyes" disguise and attacks Mario,
Flavio's crew and some other shipwrecked souls with all the firepower
of an X-Naut battleship. While pirate ghosts tackle the X-Naut
soldiers, Mario and Crump square off once more. Crump eventually
falls, and later Grodus promises Crump only one more chance at
stopping Mario.
He makes good on that promise when Mario reaches the last room of
the X-Naut base on the moon. There, Crump fights Mario with
Magnus von Grapple 2.0, a supposedly glitch-free upgrade to the
original Magnus von Grapple. When Mario beats Crump, his new
contraption explodes, sending Crump into outer space.
With his squat frame and pointy beard, Lord Crump looks a bit like a
disguised version of Booster from Super Mario RPG. You can pick out
Crump from the other X-Nauts easily because Crump wears a purple
horned hat.
=======================================================================
CRYSTAL KING
Occupation: Bowser's goon
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
The Crystal King resides in the Crystal Palace. Though the palace was
built to venerate the Star Spirits, the Crystal King and his gang of
Duplighosts had no problem moving in and causing trouble. Mario
battles the Crystal King, who shoots jewel shards and creates illusion
doubles of himself.
=======================================================================
CUCKOO CONDOR
Occupation: Boss of the Ruby Passage
Only appearance: Wario Land Advance (2001)
A hovering clock that will attempts to snatch Wario up in a clamp and
drop him onto a sharp gear to hurt him. If Wario knocks the clamp
around into the clock, the wood frame will crumble, revealing an
angry egg-dropping bird.
The Cuckoo Condor may be a variation on a minor baddie that
originally appeared in Virtual Boy Wario Land, Coo Coo. It was also a
boy that lived in a clock and dropped eggs on Wario.
=======================================================================
CULEX
[Japanese name: Crystal Monster]
Occupation: Dark knight of Vanda
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
If Mario brings a mole girl in Moleville some fireworks, she'll trade
him a mysterious shiny stone. And if Mario takes this shiny stone to a
sealed door in Monstro Town, he and his party will be pulled into an
alternate dimension inhabited by Culex. A monstrous looking fighter
flanked by four elemental crystals, Culex asks to challenge the
dimension's most valiant knight.
Culex doesn't especially look like he belongs in the Marioverse. He's
not supposed to. Since Square, the RPG kings behind the Final Fantasy
series, helped Nintendo develop Mario's first RPG outing, they
included Culex as a nod to the Final Fantasy series. Culex doesn't
come from any specific game, but he does look and act like a character
who would. The four crystals that accompany Culex into battle are
also staple features of the Final Fantasy series: the crystals of fire,
earth, air and water. Even the battle music is from the boss battles of
Final Fantasy 4.
Oddly, "culex" is the genus for the common mosquito.
=======================================================================
CZAR DRAGON
[Japanese name: Kaizaa Dragon/Kaiser Dragon]
Occupation: Lava dweller
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
The boss of Barrel Volcano and the first of two major obstacles
standing between Mario and the sixth Star Piece. The Czar Dragon
sinks into the hot stuff again once his HP is depleted, only to emerge
again as Zombone, a skeletal version of his former self. Once Mario
and his party destroy that form of the Czar Dragon, they must still
square off with the Axem Rangers.
The Czar Dragon looks a lot like Blargg, a lava-dwelling dinosaur
from Super Mario World. It also looks like the dragon Hooktail from
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, as several readers have
pointed out.
=======================================================================
DAISY
Occupation: Reigning monarch of Sarasaland
First Appearance: Super Mario Land (1989)
If Peach is Barbie, then Daisy is Midge - a body double with
different hair.
In her first appearance in Super Mario Land, Daisy was pretty
much just that: a red-haired version of Peach in a yellow dress. As
Mario ventured through each of the four kingdoms of Sarasaland
- the Egyptian-like Birabuto Kingdom, the seaside Muda
Kingdom, the Easter Island-like Easton Kingdom, and the Asian-
themed Chai Kingdom - he would rescue a fake Daisy who
would transform into a monster and bound away. These monsters,
in order, include a Fly (a generic, hopping bug baddie), Gunion (an
octopus baddie) and Kumo (a hopping spider baddie).
After blasting Tatanga out of the sky, Mario rescued the real Daisy
and the two sped away in Mario's mini-plane. Eleven years later,
Daisy got a second appearance in Mario Tennis for the Nintendo
64. This time, Nintendo seemed to be posing her as a match for
Luigi instead of the trollop who broke up whatever Mario and
Peach had going on.
As any princess of a desert kingdom would, Daisy sported a nice
tan. Nintendo also differentiated her face somewhat, to visually
distance her from Peach. Daisy's evolution wouldn't complete
until Mario Party 3. Daisy, with shorter hair and cuter than ever,
competed in mini-games with a tomboyish toughness. (The
instruction manual made a point of referring to Daisy as "a bit of a
tomboy" and depicted her swinging a baseball bat. I guess she's a
tomboy. She no longer wears a flower in her hair like she did in
Super Mario Land. But honestly, anybody would seem tough
compared to that frilly cake-baker Peach.)
The age of the Gamecube has included Daisy in most Mario-
related outings, including Super Smash Bros. Melee, in which
Peachy could wear Daisy's duds - and her tan - as an alternate
costume. Daisy herself got an alternate costume in 2003's Mario
Golf: Toadstool Tour. On the links, she wears short-shorts - a
first in the Marioverse, I believe.
A few people have written in asking me to note the change in
Daisy's appearance from her Nintendo 64 days to her Gamecube
days. Originally, Nintendo kept Daisy looking more like she did in
the art for Super Mario Land - a desert princess. Daisy looked
appropriately tan and her crown was red. In Mario Party 4,
however, Nintendo rejiggered her look a bit. Instead of tan skin,
she now has pale white skin, which makes sense because people
with red hair can hardly ever sport a tan. Beyond that, Nintendo
also restructured her face. I'm guessing they did so make her look
less like Peach and more like the spunky tomboy character they'd
like her to be. The Mushroom Kingdom website discussed this
very subject in its March 2005 mailbag and you can check out a
side-by-side comparison of new and old Daisy here:
http://www.classicgaming.com/tmk/mailbag_050324.shtml
Oddly, Nintendo also gave the new Daisy a bit of a pot belly, too.
Apparently Nintendo didn't want anybody mistaking Daisy for
being the cuter of the too. You can check this out at a screenshot
posted by Mushroom Kingdom regular MEGA߼TE, who was
kind enough to note the princesses' difference in stomach size:
http://www.classicgaming.com/tmk/images/mailbag/20050130_bellies.jpg
The difference in appearance between Daisy and Peach is
especially interesting when you remember that Peach's first
appearance at the end of the original Super Mario Bros. looked a
lot more like Daisy than the Peach we know. Check out
screenshots: she has Daisy's red hair and a white dress.
http://www.vgmuseum.com/end/nes/a/smario.htm
Bosom buddies Peach and Daisy raced alongside each other in
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! They were the only all-female team.
Interestingly, the instruction manual for this game played up
Daisy's cuteness, saying her popularity had made her "something
of an idol." For this Mario fan, she was something of a pain in the
ass, what with her constant need to introduce herself every time
she dove into the driver's seat. "Hi! I'm Daisy!" Indeed.
Love her or hate her, let's hear it for Daisy for evening out the
male-to-female ratio. But will Nintendo ever let her appear in
another game that's not some Mario equivalent of a day at the
country club? Gof? Tennis? Go-kart racing? The Mario Party
series? Will Daisy ever get another appearance in a genuine Mario
game?
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR DAISY***
The princess of Sarasaland. Daisy met Mario when he helped
defeat the evil alien Tatanga in Super Mario Land. Princess Daisy
is a bit of a tomboy when compared with her counterpart, Princess
Peach. After her appearance in Mario Golf, some gossips started
portraying her as Luigi's answer to Mario's Peach.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR DAISY***
NOTE: The information in her Smash Bros. trophy bio is incorrect.
Daisy did not appear in Mario Golf until its Gamecube installment
in 2003. Daisy's trophy, by the way, has a semi-famous flaw. If
you zoom the hair on the back of her head, you'll see she has a
third eye there.
MARIO KART: DOUBLE DASH!! DATA:
Partner: Peach
Personal racecar: Bloom Coach
Special weapon: Heart
Daisy's starring roles:
Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) - 2000
Mario Party 3 (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Mario Party 4 (Gamecube) - 2002
Mario Party-e (Game Boy Advance E-Reader) - 2002
Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Party 5 (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Power Tennis (Gamecube) - 2004
Other appearances:
Super Mario Land (Game Boy) - 1989
Super Smash Bros Melee (Gamecube) - 2001
=======================================================================
THE DANCING WHIRLINDAS
[Japanese name: Darutten Man and Wife; alternate spelling: Darruten
Fusai]
Occupation: Ghost waltzes
Only appearance: Luigi's Mansion (2001)
Mr. and Mrs. Whirlinda are a husband-and-wife dancing team. Trouble
is, they're dead. According to info from E. Gadd's Game Boy Horror,
they can no longer compete in dancing competitions because their feet
no longer touch the floor. The Whirlindas mark the fourth portrait
ghost battle in Luigi's Mansion.
This couple's name is an allusion to the Flying Wallendas, a legendary
family of circus acrobats.
=======================================================================
DANGEROUS DUCK [new]
[also known as D.D.]
Occupation: Wariophobic waterfowl
First appearance: Super Mario Land 3: Wario Land
This boomerang-tossing duck initially appears as a generic baddie in
the first Wario Land adventure. In the sequel, Dangerous Duck appears
as both a generic baddie and as the main character of Flagman D.D., a
mini-game players can unlock by finding all the game's hidden
treasure. The game is a remake of Flagman, a Game & Watch title.
Image link: gamehiker.com/gallery/displayimage.php?album=103&pos=1
Dangerous Duck's starring roles:
Super Mario Land 3: Wario Land (Game Boy) - 1994
Other appearances:
Wario Land II (Game Boy Color) - 1998
=======================================================================
DARKLY
Occupation: Seeker of back alley shadows
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A Twilighter who hangs out in the shady alleys of Rogueport. This
grandson of the Twilight Town mayor kindly writes his name on
Mario so as to allow him to access Twilight Town. Darkly also has a
good chuckle when he learns that Dour spent some time in pig form as
a result of the Twilight Town curse.
=======================================================================
DAZZLE
Occupation: Star Piece collector
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
An obsessive Twilighter who lives in the ruins beneath Rogueport. He
loves Star Pieces more than anything and will trade Mario rare badges
for them. Basically, Dazzle performs the same service as Merlow did
in the first Paper Mario.
=======================================================================
DE BUU
Occupation: Thuggish swine
Only appearance: Wario's Woods NES (1994)
The game's second boss, De Buu is a large hog dressed up like a
barbarian and carrying a knife and fork. He does not appear in the
SNES version of Wario's Woods.
=======================================================================
DEDAR
Occupation: Sprite
Only appearance: Wario's Woods (1994)
A green gremlin character wearing a red hat. For some reason, he
reminds me of the Poppy Bros. characters from the Kirby games.
Dedar is a boss.
=======================================================================
THE DIAMOND TROLL [new]
Occupation: Overgrown funkster
Only appearance: WarioWare: Twisted! (2005)
While spending the day on a field trip at Diamond Knoll, Kat and Ana
encounter a swarm of bees and therefore flee into a nearby hut. Little
do they realize that the hut is inhabited by the Diamond Troll, a ogrish-
looking dude with buff arms and a scary Japanese-style mask. If
players successfully complete Kat and Ana's game set, they see the
girls beat the Diamond Troll with the help of Shadow and Shuriken.
=======================================================================
DIDDY KONG
[alternate Japanese spelling: Didii Kongu]
Occupation: Potassium lover
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country (1994)
Like Luigi to Mario or Donkey Kong Jr. to... um, the other Donkey
Kong, this little guy plays sidekick in the Donkey Kong Country
series, the games that took the classic villain Donkey Kong in a bold
new direction.
According to the game's instruction manual, little Diddy is guarding
Donkey's bananas one stormy night as part of his hero training.
Suddenly, out of the darkness emerge the Kremlings, a band of
reptilian evildoers. The fiends nab the stash and then stuff poor Diddy
in a barrel. The next morning, a horrified Donkey finds only empty
space where a small mountain of bananas once sat. Determined to
reclaim his property, Donkey Kong smashes open the barrel containing
his friend and the two set out across Kong Island to fight them and get
those nanners back.
(Some sources identify Diddy as Donkey's nephew, others as his little
friend. The Donkey Kong 64 instruction manual identifies Diddy as
Donkey's "little nephew wannabe," but that can be interpreted as
meaning that Diddy is both Donkey's nephew and a wannabe or a
Kong who has a "little buddy" nephew-like relationship with Donkey.
Since Diddy has a prehensile tail, he's clearly not an ape. Maybe he's
really not related to Donkey. But then again, he does have the Kong
surname. One thing's for sure: he's neither Donkey's son nor Donkey
Kong Jr.)
Diddy's name works as a code in the original Donkey Kong County.
By pushing down, Y, down, down, Y - D-Y-D-D-Y - during the
intro sequence in which Cranky cranks his gramophone, the player can
unlock a special area in which he can practice the various bonus
chances located throughout the game. Whether Diddy was assigned a
name with the intention of its letters spelling out a code, I'm not sure.
But curiously, the same thing exists in the sequel with Dixie's name.
Unlike the Mario games, in which Mario and Luigi must alternate
stage-by-stage through the game, Donkey and Diddy share the
adventure. With a high five, the two simians slap hands and switch
places, letting the player control Donkey or Diddy at any given point.
Whereas Donkey's specialty lies in his brute strength, Diddy is far
more nimble. Together the two progress all the way to King K. Rool,
the Kremling overlord. When K. Rool falls, D and D celebrate the
return of the prized banana hoard.
The climactic fight on K. Rool's pirate ship, the Gangplank Galleon, is
a mere glimmer of the adventure yet to come: Donkey Kong Country
2: Diddy's Kong Quest.
Shortly after rescuing the bananas from the Kremlings' scaly hands,
Donkey Kong vanishes. Where could he be? All becomes clear when
Diddy discovers a note from the Kremlings - who have now become
a band of pirates. K. Rool demands that the Kongs hand over their
prized banana collection in exchange for Donkey's safe return. At
once, Diddy sets out to rescue his mentor; but this for adventure,
however, he has his little gorilla-friend Dixie accompany him. The two
trace a trail of bananas. Rare left Diddy essentially unchanged from the
first game, with the exception of yellow stars on his shirt and the
ability to throw his partner to hard-to-reach platforms.
Though Diddy and Dixie eventually emerged victorious, the
Kremlings struck a third time. For the third Super NES installment of
Donkey Kong Country, the Kremlings nab both Diddy and Donkey.
Cute-as-a-button Dixie shines as the star of that game as she wanders
in search of the two missing guys.
Diddy finally reunited with Donkey Kong in their only Nintendo 64
joint venture, Donkey Kong 64. Players could play as the bigger or the
smaller D.K. as well as Chunky Kong, Lanky Kong and Tiny Kong. In
this game, Rare outfitted Diddy with a special peanut gun, which
Diddy could use both for fighting and for reaching areas other
characters couldn't.
So while Donkey Kong 64 marked the only action-adventure outing of
the Donkey-Diddy duo, sneaky little Diddy made his own game on the
side: Diddy Kong Racing. Essentially a much-improved, much-
innovated spin on the Mario Kart engine, Diddy Kong Racing had the
little monkey racing an assortment of furry critters in karts, planes and
even hovercrafts. The game's plot involved Diddy traveling to a far-
off land to help Prince Timber rid his homeland of the evil Wizpig.
Other drivers included such one-hit-wonders as Pipsy the mouse and
Bumper the Badger, but also certain Rare originals who would later
get their own series: Banjo, sans Kazooie, and Conker, sans rudeness.
Enjoy it while you can - I doubt you'll ever see Nintendo characters
hanging out with the likes of Banjo or Conker again.
In Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour, Diddy finally crossed over in the
mainstream Marioverse, where Donkey Kong had been appearing
since Mario Kart 64. Most recently, Diddy got to use his Diddy Kong
Racing-honed driving skills in Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, where he
and Donkey Kong menaced other drivers with some gargantuan
banana peels.
Diddy is the only non-Japanese-created character in the extended
Marioverse in Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour and Mario Kart: Double
Dash!! If these games are any indication, I'd say he stands a good
chance to being assimilated into the regular Golf/Tennis/Party/Kart
crew, a rarity for a character born outside of Japan. (Since Rare works
out of Britain, I guess Diddy's a British lad.)
Answers.com points out an interesting transformation Diddy
underwent when he transitioned from being a Rareware-only character
to a Mario mainstay - he grew an extra finger. Previous to his entry
into the Mario Golf and Mario Kart series, Diddy - and, I'm
assuming, the rest of the Kongs - had only four fingers, a common
characteristic among western cartoon characters. Whoever wrote
Diddy's profile, however, notes that Japan has a taboo about four-
fingered characters, so Diddy apparently gain the extra digit as a
result. (Answers.com, by the way, has some cool profiles about other
major Marioverse characters, and I heartily encourage you all to check
the site out.)
At one point, Rare release some preliminary shots of a Game Boy
Adance title called Diddy Kong Pilot, which I'd guess would have had
Diddy and his friends revisiting the plane-racing action from Diddy
Kong Racing. Alas, though Rare still seems intent on developing titles
for Nintendo's portable systems - case in point, the puzzle game Mr.
Pants - I doubt they'll be starring any sort of Kongs. Unless I'm
mistaken, Diddy Kong Pilot given a makeover and now exists as Banjo
Pilot.
Diddy employs his monkey madness for his appearance in Mario
Power Tennis: as super moves, he can either transform his racquet into
a curve-ball slicing banana or simply strap on a jetpack from Donkey
Kong 64 and soar over to the far side of the court in order to snag the
ball.
MARIO KART: DOUBLE DASH!! DATA:
Partner: Donkey Kong
Personal racecar: Barrel Train
Special weapon: Big Banana
Diddy Kong's starring roles:
Donkey Kong Country (Super NES) - 1994
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (Super NES) - 1995
Donkey Kong Land (Game Boy) - 1995
Donkey Kong Land 2 (Game Boy) - 1996
Diddy Kong Racing - Nintendo 64) - 1997
Donkey Kong 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Color) - 2000
Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (Gamecube) - 2003
Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Donkey Konga (Gamecube) - 2004
Donkey Konga 2: Hit Song Parade (Gamecube) - 2004
Donkey Kong Country 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Mario Power Tennis (Gamecube) - 2004
Other appearances:
Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie's Double Trouble (Super NES) - 1996
=======================================================================
DIXIE KONG
Occupation: Hairy heroine
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest
(1995)
Dixie Kong's quite a little lady, when you think about it.
She may look girly. In fact, I'm pretty sure she's one of the girliest-
looking characters in the Marioverse, even more so than the I-can't-
do-anything-but-hang-out-at-the-Save Barrel doily, Candy Kong.
What with her long blonde ponytail, stylishly knotted shirt and jaunty
pink beret, you might expect that Dixie couldn't do much besides sell
girl scout cookies. You're way wrong, though her beret is ridiculously
cutesy - did you notice the golden Rare "R" pin on it?
Dixie and Diddy together made a decent team in Donkey Kong
Country 2. Though a bit slower than her partner, Dixie could spin her
ponytail around helicopter-style to slow her descent and allow her to
cross wide gaps. Dixie could also whip her hair as an attack, much like
Diddy's cartwheel. And man, she'd shake that ponytail all over when
she cleared a stage - whereas Diddy would pop out his boom box,
Dixie would jam on an electric guitar.
(I'm not entirely clear on the nature of Diddy and Dixie's relationship.
I believe there's a few references - both in the games and in their
instruction manuals - that they're boyfriend and girlfriend, but we
never see them canoodling. Besides, they have the same last name. In
fact, I'm not even sure whether Dixie is a monkey, like Diddy, or an
ape, like Donkey. Her tail may very well be tucked inside her shirt.)
Once Diddy and Dixie rescue Donkey from the evil K. Rool, it's only
a matter of time before those Kremlings return for a third time, during
which they ditch the bananas and take Donkey and Diddy instead.
With the series two main male heroes out of commission, who will
rescue the day? Who indeed! Dixie Kong, who's busy babysitting
brawny baby Kiddy Kong, leaps into action and chases down the
Kremling crew for the third and final Super NES Donkey Kong
Country game.
Now this is the big deal. Think about it: Dixie gets her own game. Her
name is even in the title: Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's
Double Trouble - the "double trouble," I'm guessing, either referring
to the dual disappearance of Donkey and Diddy or the seemingly
impossible task of defeating the Kremlings and still babysitting her
baby cousin, Kiddy Kong. Dixie and her pajama-clad charge venture
all about the Northern Kremisphere until they track down K. Rool and
KAOS - a robotic contraption powered by Donkey and Diddy's
stolen brain energy.
This makes Dixie the only female character in the entire Marioverse to
carry her own game. And at that, she does it at a time when Nintendo
didn't seem particularly interested in evening out the gender ratio.
Princess Peach, though nearly ten years older than Dixie, still hasn't
starred in her own game. And in 1996, the year Nintendo released
DKC3 released, Peach was regularly the solitary female character in
any Mario game.
Because Dixie rocked so much, many players were peeved to see her
needlessly replaced in Donkey Kong 64 with Tiny Kong, her kid
sister. The future looked pretty grim for Dixie. In the preliminary shots
from the now-defunct Donkey Kong Racing, you could see Tiny, not
Dixie, racing rhinoceroses with Diddy.
I'm fairly certain a saw a blonde ponytail trailing behind one of the
planes in Diddy Kong Pilot, so Rare may have intended to have Dixie
back in that game. But as I explained in Diddy's profile, that game
seems dead in the water. And if I'm not mistaken, the upcoming Rare
release Mr. Pants was originally a puzzle game titled Dixie Kong's
Coconut Crackers. But oh well.
Oddly, Dixie scored an appearance in Super Smash Bros. Melee as a
trophy, while Diddy, Tiny or many of the other Kongs did not. And
more happily, she cameos in the later entries of the Donkey Konga
series as well..
(Like Diddy's name, Dixie's works as a code. If a player pushes down,
Y, X, Y - D-Y-X-Y - on the Donkey Kong menu screen, they can
unlock the game's hidden features. But whether Dixie was named with
the intention of her name being code, I'm not sure.)
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR DIXIE***
Dixie Kong is also a fearless adventurer and a reliable team player.
She earned her wings helping Diddy rescue Donkey Kong from the
clutches of King K. Rool. Dixie's amazingly quick and nimble, and
she's even able to twirl her ponytail in order to float slowly through
the air.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR DIXIE***
Dixie Kong's starring roles:
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (Super NES) - 1995
Donkey Kong Land 2 (Game Boy) - 1996
Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie's Double Trouble (Super NES) - 1996
Donkey Kong Land 3 (Game Boy) - 1997
Donkey Kong Country 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Other appearances:
Super Smash Bros. Melee (Gamecube) - 2001
=======================================================================
DODO
[also known as Prince Mallow, Tubby]
Occupation: Toucan toadie
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
Dodo does Valentina's bidding, though one could infer that Dodo's
not too happy with his job. (Actually, Mallow does just that - using
his Psychopath mind-reading technique, Mallow hears Dodo think the
sentence "She's not paying me enough for this.") One of Super Mario
RPG's more interesting scenarios involves Dodo pecking various
statues in the Nimbus Land gallery to determine which is actually
Mario in disguise. Eventually, Dodo escapes with Valentina in tow.
Dodo drops Valentina, apparently fed up with her demands. The two
end up together again, however. In the game's ending sequence, Dodo
seems to be acting as the minister for Booster and Valentina's
wedding.
Dodo looks a bit like an overgrown Pidgit, but then again so does
Raphael the Raven. And Dodo and Raphael look nothing a like. So
there.
=======================================================================
DOLL MAN
Occupation: Hammer-throwing doll
Only appearance: Wario Land 3 (2000)
The first boss in Wario Land 3, Wario fights Doll Man in the
Volcano's Base stage. Apparently Doll Man's hammers turn Wario
into Bouncy Wario.
I haven't played this game and don't know much about Doll Man other
than what Shdwrlm3 posted in his Wario Land 3 guide at GameFAQs.
Anybody with further information will be greatly appreciated.
=======================================================================
DOLPHIN
Occupation: Bottlenose stepping stone
First appearance: Super Mario World (1991)
A blue dolphin that pops up in a few stages in Super World,
particularly the stage Vanilla Secret 3. Dolphin often appears in packs.
Some leap vertically into the air, while others bound over the waves in
along the horizon. Though Yoshi could eat Dolphin in the Japanese
version of Super Mario World, Nintendo removed this from the
American translation, perhaps to make Dolphin seem like less of an
enemy.
Although I initially objected to including Dolphin as a character in this
guide, Kirby021591 reminded me that I included Heavy Zed from
Super Mario Land 2: Six Golden Coins. Dolphin and Heavy Zed serve
essentially the same function: animate, cuddly lifts that Mario can use
to get from place to place. Thus, the profile you're reading now. It's
just too bad that Nintendo stuck the character with such a boring name.
Dolphins - as in the generic species and not this particular character
- have a bit of a history with the games on the Gamecube. The
system was initially codenamed Project Doplhin, and Nintendo has
reflected this in dolphin cameos in many games. Notably, Super Mario
Sunshine takes place on Isle Delfino - Italian for "dolphin" - and
dolphin helpers appear in the seaside board in Mario Party 4.
However, these dolphins are consistently realistic-looking ones, none
the ones drawn in the Super Mario World style. The Dolphin
character, as far as I know, never appeared beyond Super Mario World
and its various reincarnations.
Dolphin's appearances:
Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
=======================================================================
DON
Occupation: Messenger bird
Only appearance: WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$
Don is a small brown bird who accompanies Ana into battle with
Boneheads. When Ana is captured, she attached a note asking Kat for
help to Don, who flies away.
=======================================================================
DONKEY KONG
[also known as D.K.; alternate Japanese spelling: Dokii Kongu]
Occupation: Banana consumer
First appearance: Donkey Kong (1981)
[donkey]
STUPID MONKEY
Oh, headaches. The Donkey Kong continuity is nearly as complicated
as the whole thing with Mario and Baby Mario. Before I delve into
that, though, there's a good story behind how D.K. got his name. As
far as video game urban legends go, this one's widely believed to be
true. Apparently, back in the planning stages for the original Donkey
Kong, Shigeru Miyamoto thought "donkey" meant "stupid" or
"stubborn" in English. The second part comes from the famous movie
about a stupid ape, King Kong. And it's stuck all these years.
Well, at least I can explain one thing.
Now for the hard part: Even though the name Donkey Kong has been
used continually in Mario games for years, it hasn't always referred to
the same simian. This FAQ will try to sort all this out.
Undeniably, the first Donkey Kong was the ape who in 1981 nabbed
Mario's first girlfriend, Pauline, dragged her to the top of various
construction sites and chucked cascades of barrels at any intrepid
heroes wanting to rescue her. Big and brawny, D.K. could only be
defeated by collapsing the entire site. Tables turned in the 1982 sequel.
Guarded by the cruel Mario, Donkey Kong sat in a cage and waited for
his son, D.K. Jr., to swing from vine to vine and rescue him. In 1983,
Nintendo fazed Mario out of the Donkey Kong franchise altogether.
Also fazed out: barrels, D.K. Jr., and vines. The new direction Donkey
Kong 3 took involved a greenhouse and a determined insect
exterminator named Stanley the Bugman. Donkey Kong, apparently
intending to raise all manner of hell among the potted flowers, would
slowly lower himself on two poles in the center of the playing field.
Stanley, his trusty gas gun in hand, sprays insecticide up Donkey
Kong's ass.
How successfully was this new direction received by fans? Well,
Stanley never appeared again. And Donkey Kong was relegated to
cameos until a little company called Rare gave him an extra life.
A MORE WELL-ROUNDED APE
Rare, the second-party developer behind the Battletoads and Killer
Instinct franchises, completely revamped Donkey Kong's appearance
and backstory. (According to the now-defunct Donkey Kong Megasite,
Rare chose to develop a Donkey Kong series because the paltry
backstory allotted to the original D.K. gave Rare a lot of leeway with
the games' plots.) Donkey Kong Country was one of the most
successful games released on the Super NES. It pitted Donkey Kong
and his monkey cousin Diddy Kong against the Kremlings, a race of
villainous lizards intent on taking over the lush, banana-rich paradise
called the Kong Isle. They even stole D.K.'s banana horde, the jerks.
Donkey and Diddy set out together to crunch that evil King K. Rool
and his band of Kremlings.
This Donkey Kong looked different, and not just because Rare created
his model using 3-D rendering. While still the muscle-bound stud
players new in the series' arcade days, Donkey was sleeker and
sported a sharp-looking red necktie with his initials. The new Donkey
Kong could run, jump, and stomp enemies just as well as his old
nemesis Mario could. He even had his own blonde-haired, pink-suited
girlfriend: Candy Kong, who ran the Save Barrel Booth.
The drastic change was explained by the new D.K. being the grandson
of the old Donkey Kong. This Donkey Kong became Cranky Kong, a
creaky old grump who whiled away his days mocking his younger
associates from his rocking chair throne. (It should be noted, however,
that various Donkey Kong Country games have changed the familial
relationship between Donkey and Cranky. Some have Donkey being
Cranky's son, while others have Donkey as the grown-up version D.K.
Jr., which would make him Cranky's grandson. Different aficionados
have different theories, but one thing's for sure: regardless of their
specific relationship, the Donkey from back then and the Donkey we
have today are not the same ape.)
The new Donkey Kong got his whole mini-universe: lots of Kongs, but
lots of Kremlings as well. D.K. himself didn't star in another Donkey
Kong Country game until Donkey Kong 64; sidekicks Diddy and
Dixie Kong starred in the second and third games, respectively, while
Donkey Kong played captive. (Donkey Kong did make a cameo,
however, in the 3-D modeled world of Super Mario RPG: Legend of
the Seven Stars as the generic "Chained Kong" enemy and later as the
generic "Guerilla" enemy.)
So fine. Old Donkey Kong replaced by his kid, who now gets the
Donkey Kong mantle. Seems simple, but that's not how the
Marioverse treated it.
IT GETS BANANAS
As Donkey Kong's Smash Bros. bio below indicates, the remodeled
Donkey Kong was the same as the original, meaning the rift caused by
Donkey Kong Country seems largely forgotten - sorta. The new
Donkey Kong became one of the core eight Mario characters that
populated all the spin-offs: the Mario Party series, Mario Kart, Mario
Tennis, and Mario Golf. Yet in Super Smash Bros., Donkey Kong
fights under his own logo - the DK barrel - and not the Mushroom
that Mario, Luigi, Bowser and Peach fight under.
This zigzag between the separate D.K. universe and the Marioverse
continues. Donkey Kong teamed up with Diddy, Chunky Kong, Lanky
Kong, and that shameless Dixie King knock-off Tiny Kong in Donkey
Kong 64, yet a year later in the Nintendo 64 installment of Mario
Tennis, Donkey Kong showed alongside D.K. Jr., who by now
shouldn't exist. Or something.
In the days when the Nintendo Gamecube was still being called
Project Dolphin, Rare showed some very exciting screenshots of a
game called Donkey Kong Racing, which involved Donkey, Diddy
and other Kongs racing such series staples as Rambi the Rhino,
Espresso the ostrich and Zinger the killer bee. Unfortunately, Rare and
Nintendo called it quits. While it's likely that Donkey Kong Racing
died altogether, the game may one day surface with characters not
owned by Nintendo. Pity - it's always the children who lose in
divorces.
Possibly because Rare became a free agent and no longer develops
games with characters from the Donkey Kong Country series,
Nintendo may be inching closer towards a joined Mario-Donkey
Kongverse, much to the relief of overly anal fans like me. Donkey
Kong's partner in Mario Kart: Double Dash!! was Diddy Kong and
thankfully not D.K. Jr. Since Diddy also hit the links the same year in
Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour, maybe more of the crew from Kong
Island will make it in future games.
Of course, in that tradition of fazing out elements of the Donkey Kong
series, Nintendo fazed Donkey Kong out of the pool of selectable
characters in Mario Party 5, to make room for Toad, Bowser Jr., and a
Boo. Lameness. Hudson Soft at least gave D.K. a paltry game space.
Landing on the D.K. space summons the big ape and triggers random
mini-games.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR DONKEY KONG***
While he now prefers the laid-back jungle lifestyle to construction site
mischief, DK is often forced back into action by the Kremling Krew.
The great ape is quite fast despite his burly physique, and he keeps his
strength up with a steady diet of his favorite food: bananas. His one
extravagance (and only piece of clothing) is a monogrammed necktie.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR DONKEY KONG***
MARIO KART: DOUBLE DASH!! DATA:
Partner: Diddy Kong
Personal racecar: DK Jumbo
Special weapon: Big Banana
Donkey Kong's starring roles:
Donkey Kong (Arcade) - 1981
Donkey Kong (Atari 2600) - 1981
Donkey Kong (NES) -1985
Donkey Kong 3 (Arcade) - 1986
Donkey Kong Classics (NES) - 1988
Donkey Kong Classics (NES) - 1989
Donkey Kong Country (Super NES) - 1994
Donkey Kong '94 (Game Boy) - 1994
Mario Kart 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Mario Party (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Mario Golf (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Super Smash Bros. (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Donkey Kong 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Mario Party 2 (Nintendo 64) - 2000
Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) - 2000
Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Color) - 2000
Mario Party 3 (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Mario Kart: Super Circuit (Game Boy Advance) - 2001
Super Smash Bros Melee (Gamecube) - 2001
Mario Party 4 (Gamecube) - 2002
Mario Party-e (Game Boy Advance E-Reader) - 2002
Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (Gamecube) - 2003
Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Mario vs. Donkey Kong (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Donkey Konga (Gamecube) - 2004
Donkey Kong 2: Hit Song Parade (Gamecube) - 2004
Mario Golf: Advance Tour (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Mario Power Tennis (Gamecube) - 2004
Other appearances:
Donkey Kong Jr. (Arcade) - 1982
Donkey Kong Jr. Math (NES) - 1983
Donkey Kong Jr. (NES) - 1986
Donkey Kong Jr. (Intellivision) - 1988
Donkey Kong Jr. (Colecovision) - 1988
Donkey Kong Jr. (Atari 7800) - 1988
Tetris (NES) - 1989
Earthbound (Super NES) - 1994
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (Super NES) - 1995
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (Super NES) - 1996*
Donkey Kong Land 2 (Game Boy) - 1996
Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie's Double Trouble (Super NES) - 1996
Game & Watch Gallery (Game Boy) - 1997
Game & Watch Gallery 2 (Game Boy) - 1998
Banjo-Tooie (Nintendo 64) - 2000**
Animal Crossing (Gamecube) - 2001***
Game & Watch Gallery 4 (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Donkey Kong Jr. (Game Boy Advance E-Reader) - 2002
Mario Party 5 (Gamecube) - 2003
WarioWare, Inc. (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$ (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Party 6 (Gamecube) - 2004
WarioWare: Twisted! (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
WarioWare: Touched! (Nintendo DS) - 2005
* as generic baddie Guerilla in the Mushroom Forest and as generic
baddie Chained Kong in Barrel Volcano
** as a plush doll in Bottles' house
*** As Louie, an ape character that wears a Luigi-themed t-shirt, but
looks just like Donkey Kong. Also, the rest of the ape characters also
seem to be based on the basic D.K. design.
=======================================================================
DONKEY KONG JR.
[also known as D.K. Jr.]
Occupation: Second banana
First appearance: Donkey Kong Jr. (1982)
Like father, like son. Junior might not have equaled his dad in terms of
size, but that didn't stop him from being the star of the first sequel to a
Mario game. He even got his name in the title.
It's odd when you really think about it: the second Mario game
features Mario as a villain and the son of the previous game's villain
as the hero. But it's true: Donkey Kong Jr., the young ape who wears a
bib with a big J, is the second playable character ever in a Mario game.
The game premiered in arcades and had D.K. Jr. swinging vine-to-vine
to pop D.K. Sr. out of the slammer. Mario, toting a whip instead of a
hammer, stood guard in front of the cage.
Nintendo later released a dreadful edutainment title, Donkey Kong Jr.
Math, based on the original game's engine. In fact, this edutainment
version of Donkey Kong Jr. appeared in the life of the NES and three
years before Nintendo ported the actual arcade version. In it, D.K. Jr.
must solve math problems to advance up a vine in competition with
the computer or player two, who controls a pink version of D.K. Jr.
As a likely result of the game's mathematical flair, the little guy
disappeared for a while. His career revived, however, with Super
Mario Kart. Racing alongside the likes of Mario, Bowser, Toad, and
Yoshi, D.K. Jr. represented the early days of Mario's video game
career. He also represented the heavy class of the Marioverse; junior
though he may be, the ape's hefty frame placed him in the same slow-
but-powerful weight class as Bowser. Aside from his weight, D.K. Jr.
brought something else to the racetrack: banana peels. Every character
had a special item, and the ape's was an endless supply of those
yellow, smiling traffic hazards that have continued to plague Mario
Kart racetracks, even in D.K. Jr.'s absence.
The same core eight characters from Mario Kart showed up in the
Virtual Boy installment of Mario Tennis - minus Bowser, however
- but Donkey Kong Jr.'s days were numbered. Aside from
appearances in the Game Boy's Game & Watch Gallery series,
Donkey Kong Jr. basically got edged out of the video game scene by
the Donkey Kong Country series.
Although players argue over exactly how the Kong family tree grows,
an idea propagated in several games in that series states that the young
ape who was Donkey Kong Jr. grew up into the remodeled tie-wearing
Donkey Kong we now see in games like Mario Kart 64 and the Mario
Party games. Junior's daddy grew up into Cranky Kong, the grizzled,
bearded old ape who now rocks chairs rather than chucks barrels.
(Conversely, the other camp of overzealous Donkey Kong fans
believes that today's remodeled Donkey Kong is the son of D.K. Jr.
and therefore the grandson of Cranky Kong/the original Donkey Kong.
Sigh. Continuity blues.)
In either case, the new Donkey Kong doesn't need a junior because he
has Diddy, a tagalong monkey who fits better into Donkey Kong
Coutnry's rendered world.
Initially, it seemed that Diddy Kong would stay in the Donkey Kong
Country universe, apart from Mario and his tennis-playing, party-
having, kart-driving friends. When Donkey Kong needed a partner in
the Nintendo 64 installment of Mario Tennis, the developers elected to
assign him to Donkey Kong Jr., rather than have Diddy intrude into the
Mushroom Kingdom.
That idea has seemingly been abandoned. Likely prompted by Rare's
decision to develop for non-Nintendo systems, the Donkey Kong
Country cast has started to pop in games a lot of fans - me, for one
- wouldn't have expected them to. Diddy Kong, not Donkey Kong
Jr., hit the links with the Mario crew in Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour.
And Diddy was also the senior D.K.'s racing partner in Mario Kart:
Double Dash!!, as well as a netter in Mario Power Tennis, the follow-
up to the Nintendo 64 tennis title that featured Donkey Kong Jr.
Does this mean the end of Donkey Kong Jr.? Has the second ever
playable character in a Mario game been bumped off by a
monkeyfaced replacement?
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR D.K. JR.***
Donkey Kong Jr. came to the rescue when Mario imprisoned his
father. DK Jr.'s challenge was to collect the keys to Donkey Kong's
cage, all the while dropping fruit on the enemies from high above.
He was able to climb faster by using two ivy vines at once. This
ape is also quite skilled at kart racing, tennis, and mathematics.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR D.K. JR.***
Donkey Kong Jr.'s starring roles:
Donkey Kong Jr. (Arcade) - 1982
Donkey Kong Jr. Math (NES) - 1983
Donkey Kong Jr. (NES) - 1986
Donkey Kong Jr. (Intellivision) - 1988
Donkey Kong Jr. (Colecovision) - 1988
Donkey Kong Jr. (Atari 7800) - 1988
Donkey Kong Classics (NES) - 1989
Super Mario Kart (Super NES) - 1992
Donkey Kong '94 (Game Boy) - 1994
Mario's Tennis (Virtual Boy) - 1995
Game & Watch Gallery 2 (Game Boy) - 1998
Game & Watch Gallery 3 (Game Boy Color) - 1999
Game & Watch Gallery (Game Boy) - 1997
Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) - 2000
Super Smash Bros Melee (Gamecube) - 2001
Game & Watch Gallery 4 (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Donkey Kong Jr. (Game Boy Advance E-Reader) - 2002
WarioWare: Twisted! (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
Other appearances:
Super Smash Bros. Melee (Gamecube) - 2001
Animal Crossing (Gamecube) - 2001
=======================================================================
DON PIANTA (and other Piantas)
[Japanese name: Don Monteone]
Occupation: Macho mafioso
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
You might call Don Pianta a goomba, if that didn't mean something
else in the Marioverse. Yes, as if Mario wasn't enough of an Italian
stereotype, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door gives us Don
Pianta, the leader of the Pianta mafia. He talks just like you'd expect a
mafia honcho to talk, too - and with a nickname like "The Don of
Untimely Death," you know he means business. (My, the Marioverse
has gotten a shade darker these days, hasn't it?)
Don Pianta, a big orange Pianta with sunshades and a black suit,
controls tickets to the Cheep Cheep Blimp, which ferries travelers
between Rogueport and Glitzville. The don will only allow Mario a
pass if Mario can locate his daughter, Francesca, who has run away
with her beau, Frankie. Don Pianta promises Mario help if he can
locate the two - and very bad luck if Mario can't. Mario reunites the
don with his daughter.
Eventually, Mario's required him to score some tickets for the Excess
Express, which connects Rogueport with Poshley Heights. Only Don
Pianta can procure such tickets, but Mario first needs to fetch
Francesca and Frankie from Keelhaul Key to alleviate the don's grief
sickness. When his daughter and son-in-law return, Don Pianta
immediately recovers and retires from the Pianta Syndicate, passing on
the leadership to Francesca and Frankie.
Piantas are the indigenous people of Isle Delfino. They first appeared
in Super Mario Sunshine, where they all wore hula skirts and enjoyed
a laid-back, tropical lifestyle. Piantas are plump by nature and each has
a small tree growing from the top of his or her head. Oddly, not a
single one of the scads of Piantas in this game ever had a name. Don
Pianta is the first Pianta with a name.
=====
FRANCESCA and FRANKIE
[Japanese names: Moni and Piton]
Occupation: Lovebirds on the lam
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
Two of Don Pianta's favorite people - his only daughter and his
trusted henchman. They nearly lose his favor when they try to make
off to elope, however. Only Mario's intervention can earn them Don
Pianta's blessing. The two lovebirds eventually end up in Keelhaul
Key, the pirate paradise, when they shipwreck there.
Mario must eventually travel back to Keelhaul Key and convince
Francesca and Frankie to ditch their island digs when Don Pianta
becomes sick with grief for his missing daughter. When he finds them,
however, they're busy searching for Francesca's missing wedding
ring. Once Mario finds that, the two will happily return to Rogueport.
A recovered Don Pianta forgives his daughter and son-in-law for
eloping, then passes leadership on to both Frankie and Francesca.
Though Mario offers to take them back to Rogueport with him,
Francesca and Frankie refuse. They'd rather stay on the island and try
to start their lives together. Touching, really.
=====
TONY and VINNY
[Japanese names: Henchman and Henchman]
Occupation: Hired goons
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
Twin brothers in the service of Don Pianta. Though loyal to their boss,
the plea for him to spare Francesca and Frankie from his anger. They
seem genuinely happy with the little soap opera works out tidily.
=======================================================================
DOOPLISS
[Japanese name: Ranperu/Odoron Temple Ghost]
Occupation: Duplicitious doppelganger
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A stage curse befalls the already-gloomy citizens of Twilight Town.
Every time the church bells ring at Creepy Steeple, the residents turn
into pigs. (Truthfully, they turn into Li'l Oinks, the pet pigs Mario
could hatch in the first Paper Mario. They're also the only characters
in this game who look wholly three-dimensional.) When Mario climbs
to the top of Creepy Steeple to stop this porcine magic, he finds the
belfry is being occupied by a Duplighost - a minor baddie from the
first Paper Mario that looks like a dude in a sheet and take on the
appearance of other characters. This particular Duplighost wears a
party hat, so you know he's special. Curiously, his name won't show
up in Goombella's book of baddies. Even more curiously, this
anonymous foe falls pretty easily, even when he transforms into a
Mario look-alike.
Once Mario wins, he leaves with his companions back to Twilight
Town with the Ruby Star in hand. The screen, however, lingers on the
collapsed Mario clone. Eventually, the player gets control of this
purple shadow. But he has Mario's stats, Mario's coins, Mario's
badges... It's Mario. The shape-changer somehow switches places
with Mario post-fight and heads back to Twilight Town to back in
Mario's glory. (He also has an annoying habit for using the word
"wrongamundo.") Once Mario learns Doopliss' real name, he can
trounce him for good.
Once Vivian joins Mario's party, Doopliss joins the Shadow Sirens in
her stead. Mario meets Doopliss again aboard the Excess Express,
though Doopliss is disguised as the famous movie actor Zip Toad.
Mario eventually deduces that Doopliss-as-Zip Toad is mystery
terrorist who threatens to derail the train with a bomb made from a
prototype Ultra Honey Syrup, the plans for which are being carried by
a businessman on the train. Excess Express staff ake Doopliss into
custody when Mario fingers him as the culprit, but he escapes.
Mario allows Doopliss to lure him through the Thousand-Year Door
when Doopliss poses as Professor Frankly near the end of the game.
Later, Mario sees him having fully taken Vivian's place in the Shadow
Sirens: as "Freak Sheet," the butt of Beldam's endless insults.
In the game's epilogue, we learn this shapeshifter makes a living for
himself as an actor in Flurrie's new play.
=======================================================================
DORAGO
Occupation: Big green dragon
Only appearance: Wario's Woods NES (1994)
Nothing much to say about Dorago other than that he's the third boss
in the NES version of Wario's Woods.
=======================================================================
DORRIE
Occupation: Lake monster
First appearance: Super Mario 64 (1996)
A blue, Nessie-like creature residing in the lake in the Hazy Maze
Cave. She'll let Mario climb on top of her and ride he as she swims
from one hard-to-reach ledge to another. If Mario stomps on her
back, she'll whimper, lower her head and give Mario and
opportunity to jump to even harder-to-reach platforms.
Dorrie re-appears in Mario Party 3 in an item-fetching mini-game
called Dorrie Dip. Players can again stomp poor Dorrie's head to
make her get an item. The blue sea serpent continues to elicit my
sympathy in Mario Party Advance, where one of the game's mini-
quests involves finding her a friend with whom she can share
lonely Loch Dorrie
In Super Mario 64 DS, Nintendo seems to have restyled Dorrie to
look like a cross between Yoshi and the Dolphins from Super
Mario World.
Dorrie's appearances:
Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1996
Super Mario 64 Shindou Version (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Mario Party 3 (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Super Mario 64 DS (Nintendo DS) - 2004
Mario Party Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
=======================================================================
DOUR
Occupation: Mayor of Twilight Town
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
Mayor Dour oversees the goings-on in Twilight Town, a little village
that sits in permanent dusk. He's not such a hands-on mayor, though.
When the chiming of the bells in Creepy Steeple start turning the
Twilighters into pigs, he can only ask Mario to intervene - then
promptly turn into a pig himself. Later, he can't tell the difference
between Mario and the evil imposter Doopliss disguised as Mario. Oh
well, Dour's not such a bad guy, I guess. And he seems to have some
head honcho camaraderie with Kroop, mayor of Petalburg, and the
Puni Elder.
Dour is the grandather of Darkly, a Twilighter who hangs out in
Rogueports shady backalleys.
=======================================================================
DRAGOHOHO
[Japanese name: Ohohoragon]
Occupation: Huffy hatchling
Only appearance: Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003)
When Mario and Luigi scale Mt. Hoohoo, they find Blablanadon the
pterodactyl sitting on an egg. The egg hatches and out comes
Dragohoho, a foul-tempered dragon. Once the bros. stomp the dragon,
they find he's actually the missing Prince Peasely, who was hexed by
Cackletta, transformed into this monstrous shape and trapped in an
eggshell.
=======================================================================
DRAGONZAMASU
Occupation: Sea dragon guardian
Only appearance: Super Mario Land (1989)
The boss of Super Mario Land's second world, the watery Muda
Kingdom. The third and final stage of this world departs from the
usual hop-and-bop action for a shooter stage. Mario, in his Sea Pop
submarine vehicle, has to fire missiles at Dragonzamasu in between
the protective bubble enemies - called "Tamao" - that circle this sea
beast.
The battle against Dragonzamasu in level 2-3 is the first shooter battle
in a Mario game.
=======================================================================
DRIBBLE and SPITZ [new]
Occupation: Taxi drivers
First appearance: WarioWare, Inc. (2003)
Dribble, a big bulldog, and Spitz, a little cat, work for Diamond Taxi.
One rainy day, they pick up Bill or Bob or Fifi or whatever name you
chose to call yourself under the bright lights of downtown Diamond
City. As they drive, they change the radio station to an ingratiating,
poppy tune. At this point, the player starts Dribble and Spitz' sci-fi
games, a wacky collection that seems drawn from action movies of all
types, as players will shoot UFOs, dodge ninja darts and fight an
Ultraman-style Bowser-versus-Mario fight.
When the player beats Dribble and Spitz's games, he or she gets to see
them delivering their character to their destination: the beach. With a
flash, the passenger transforms into a mermaid - or merman - and
leaps into the ocean. Dribble and Spitz forget to collect their fare.
The mechanics show up again in WarioWare: Twisted!, again in their
taxi cab. They're driving down Route 310, which apparently cuts right
through Diamond City when Spitz turns on the radio as a means of
staying awake. The action takes a drastic toll on the cab, however,
which promptly blows a gasket. In the meantime, the player takes over
and plays Dribble and Spitz's set, "Steer Clear," which has the player
both tilting the Game Boy and pressing the A button. In the end,
Dribble fixes the cab, which blasts into space. Up in the stars, an alien
hops in. "Where to?" they ask, to which the alien promptly responds
with "Take me to Club Sugar!"
Dribble and Spitz do not have their own game set in WarioWare:
Touched!, however they do make cameo appearances in other
characters story scenes. Also, it's their taxi cab - still in hover mode
- that delivers new characters to the screen where players select
whose games they'd like to take on.
Dribble and Spitz's appearances:
WarioWare, Inc. (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$ (Gamecube) - 2003
WarioWare: Twisted! (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
Other appearances:
Wario World (Gamecube) - 2003
WarioWare: Touched! (Nintendo DS) - 2005
=======================================================================
DR. CRYGOR [new]
Occupation: Mad scientist
First appearance: WarioWare, Inc. (2003)
A bald guy who looks to be part robot, Dr. Crygor would be in great
company with Dr. Scienstein and Prof. E. Gadd. They're all mad
scientists. This one, however, wears a yellow jumpsuit and works on
an island laboratory off the coast of Diamond City.
Dr. Crygor gleefully dances around his lab, which sits just of the coast
of Diamond City. He's invented some new potion which surely had an
intended effect different from what it does when Crygor ingested it.
Immediately, he doubles over in pain and hops to the bathroom. That's
where Dr. Crygor's series of games begins. With every flush of the
toilet comes a new reality-based game, whether its sawing through a
sirloin steak with a knife or getting a white cat to sleep by closing its
eyes at a precise moment.
Having voided his system of the noxious substance, Dr. Crygor breaths
a sigh of relief - until the toilet starts spewing forth blue liquid. He
tries to swim for it, but a geyser of mystery fluid shoots Dr. Crygor
high into the sky. Luckily, Ana's messenger bird Don catches him and
he gently descends to the gelateria, where he meets everybody else.
Dr. Crygor also competes with Orbulon in the unlockable microgame
"Versus Hurdle."
In WarioWare: Twisted, the good doctor appears initially in the
game's intro sequence. Wario, infuriated at losing while playing on his
Game Boy Advance, smashes the game system by throwing it across
the room. He then takes the broken Game Boy Advance to Dr. Crygor,
who repairs it by tossing it into a converted washing machine that
seems to cause all manner of scientific innovations. The system is
repaired, but without buttons, and Dr. Crygor must explain that Wario
must rotate the system in order to play. Mona and 9-Volt trot on over
and immediately take to the unusual game play. Immediately, Wario
gets dollar signs in his eyes and decided to market the game. So,
ostensibly, Dr. Crygor is supposed to be the one responsible for the
tilt-and-turn gameplay you're doing as you play WarioWare: Twisted!
In his own story scenes, Dr. Crygor is seen once again inventing. He
manages to rig the same washing machine to affect gravity, hence his
game series title, "Gravitator," which has the player tilting the Game
Boy at all angles to win. Once the games are completed, the Gravitator
ruptures and a powerful mechanical suit pops out. Naturally, Dr.
Crygor jumps in and takes off into the sky. He soars until he comes
into contact with Shuriken, Kat's bird. The super suit disassembles,
but Shuriken swoops back and snatches up Crygor before he hits the
ground. Safe and on the ground, Crygor meets up with his friends at
Club Sugar.
Crygor gets an upgrade, of sorts, in WarioWare: Touched!, which
features him testing out a new machine that converts old, crappy things
into shining new ones. He tosses in an apple core, for example, twists a
crank and voila! - a brand new apple. Crygor steps into the machine
to fetch the fruit, but the door closes on him. The player, this time,
must twist the crank using the Nintendo DS stylus, and out steps Dr.
Crygor 2.0 - more metal, more machine and now complete with
jetpack. Dr. Crygor's games fall into the set "Slightly Unscrewed," as
all of them necessitate the same circular stylus motion the player
performed in the intro.
Once the player beats Crygor's games, he or she sees the doctor
blasting into space - complete with cameos from the Space Bunnies.
Then, curiously, he heads back to Earth, to the Hawt House to jam
with the rest of the crew.
Dr. Crygor's starring roles:
WarioWare, Inc. (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$ (Gamecube) - 2003
WarioWare: Twisted! (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
WarioWare: Touched! (Nintendo DS) - 2005
Other appearances:
Wario World (Gamecube) - 2003
=======================================================================
DR. MARIO
Occupation: Medical doctor
First appearance: Dr. Mario (1990)
What if, instead of a plunger, Mario's tool of the trade was a
stethoscope? What if Mario cured people instead of pipes? Then
you'd have Dr. Mario, a twist on the usual Mario persona that
spends his days wiping out red, blue and yellow-colored viruses
with the appropriately colored megavitamins. Dr. Mario may seem
improbable at first, but when you remember that Mario has worked
at everywhere from a cookie factory to a construction site, the job
makes a little more sense. It's unclear whether Mario and Dr.
Mario are even the same person, but the good doc is a staple of the
Marioverse regardless.
Dr. Mario usually shows up in variations on his debut game, a
Tetris-like puzzler involving germs and pills. The Nintendo 64
version of the game, however, pitted him against Wario and Dr.
Scienstein in an actual plot: Scienstein nabs the good doctor's
megavitamins and the height of flu season, and Dr. Mario races
Wario to see who can get them first.
The good doctor even got a role in Super Smash Bros. Melee as a
slight variation on the regular Mario. Dressed in a white lab coat,
Dr. Mario hurled bouncing megavitamins when normal Mario
would shoot fireballs.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR DR. MARIO***
Immaculate in his medical garb, Dr. Mario destroys killer viruses
with his amazing vitamin capsules. With his dedicated nurse,
Princess Peach, at his side, Dr. Mario spends day and night in his
laboratory working on new miracle cures. Somehow he's managed
to keep up with all the new viruses that have arisen over the years.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR DR. MARIO***
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR MEGAVITAMINS***
Megavitamins come in six color combinations of red, blue, and
yellow. Dr. Mario uses these capsules by tossing them into
contaminated bottles to destroy viruses. The origin of these wonder
pills is a mystery, but the most likely theory is that they're the
result of Dr. Mario's lifelong efforts to find a cure for the common
cold.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR MEGAVITAMINS***
Dr. Mario's starring roles:
Dr. Mario (Game Boy) - 1990
Dr. Mario (NES) - 1990
Versus Dr. Mario (Arcade) - 1990
Dr. Mario (Bandai Satellaview) - 1998
Dr. Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Super Smash Bros. Melee (Gamecube) - 2001
Nintendo Puzzle Collection (Gamecube) - 2003
WarioWare, Inc. (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$ (Gamecube) - 2003
Dr. Mario (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
DR. PAYNE [new]
Occupation: Saddistic dentist
Only appearance: WarioWare: Twisted! (2005)
Diamond City's resident practicioner of pokey, injurious dental
surgery. After gorging on sweets, Wario must visit Dr. Payne. The
player even gets to simulate actually painful dentistry in the prologue
by using the stylus to poke away Wario's various cavities.
For whatever reason, Dr. Payne looks almost exactly like The Guru of
the Sewer.
=======================================================================
DR. TOPPER
[Japanese name: Karudi]
Occupation: Quizmaster
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
A lone Hammer Brother who resides in Bowser's Keep during
Smithy's occupation. He asks Mario to call him "Dr. T." and forces
him to participate in puzzles and trivia games.
One of Dr. Topper's challenges involves a word problem of sorts in
which Mario must sort out the rankings of a race held between four
characters: Goo (a Goomba), Boo (a Boo), Bones (a Dry Bones) and
Kipp (a member of the fish enemy race called "Mr. Kipper").
=======================================================================
DR. WARIO
Occupation: Thinly veiled parody
First appearance: WarioWare, Inc. (2003)
A parody of Dr. Mario. A fully playable version of the NES Dr. Mario
is unlockable in WarioWare, but it's fat old Wario who plays doctor.
Dr. Wario's appearances:
WarioWare, Inc. (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$ (Gamecube) - 2003
=======================================================================
DUPREE
Occupation: Wandering hipster
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
An afro-sporting hipster who seems to have raided the wardrobe of
Jimmy T. from WarioWare. Mario meets him on the streets of
Petalburg, where Dupree hits on Goombella, calling her a "leetle
cabbage." Goombella rebuffs his advances. This pseudo-francophone
shows up again in every city Mario stops at during his adventure.
Dupree looks like a blue-colored Doogan, the race that Rowf and Ruff
and other rhino-horned dog-looking dino-types belong too.
=======================================================================
DUMB DRUM
Occupation: Industrial waste disposal unit
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country (1994)
Certainly not a character in the traditional sense, this inanimate keg is
nonetheless the boss of the game's fifth, Kremcroc Industries, Inc.
Donkey and Diddy have to kill the monsters Dumb Drum spews out in
order to kill it.
Dumb Drum's starring roles:
Donkey Kong Country (Super NES) - 1994
Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Color) - 2000
Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
DYNA (and her family)
Occupation: Babysitting big sister
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
Dyna, a cute mole girl with a big polka dot bow, takes her baby
brother Mite into the Moleville Mines just before the third Star Piece
crashes into Mole Mountain. Dyna's parents are worried sick about her
and Mite. Once Mario and company beats Punchinello, they find little
Dyna trying to dislodge a mine cart to escape on. Mario helps. He,
Dyna and Mite ride the cart throughout the mines, off the mountain
and directly through the roof of Dyna's house.
Though Dyna's family and all the residents of Moleville are moles,
they don't look much like Monty Mole, the staple mole character of
the Marioverse.
=====
MITE
This infant mole doesn't speak much. He seems young enough that
any big sister would have realized taking him into a dangerous
abandoned mine would have been a bad idea. Maybe Dyna's just not
such a great babysitter.
=====
MA'MOLE
Dyna's mom. Like all the moles in Moleville, she speaks in a quaint
backwoods dialect. She "reckons that Dyna's taken a likin' to Mario."
Apparently she always warns her daughter that venturing through the
mines by herself is not a good idea.
=====
PA'MOLE
Friendly Pa'Mole is so happy to have his children back that he doesn't
mind the giant hole Mario's mine cart crash landing left in the roof.
=======================================================================
ECLAIR
Occupation: Princess of Waffle Kingdom
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
Yes, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door denies Luigi another
opportunity for heroism. And yes, Luigi's appearance amounts to an
extended cameo. However, Luigi does get to see some action, in a
way. While Mario is following Peach's map in search of the Crystal
Stars, Luigi gets a letter bidding him to rescue Waffle Kingdom's
Princess Eclair from the evil Chestnut King.
In true RPG fashion, Luigi sets out on his own adventure, collecting
the pieces of the Marvelous Compass, which Eclair broke into pieces
and scattered about the world before she was kidnapped. Only by
finding the broken pieces will Luigi learn where the Chestnut King is
keeping Éclair: Hatesong Tower, where the allegedly fiendish
Chestnut King awaits.
It would seem, alas, that Luigi's adventure only reunites Eclair with
her boyfriend, the Chestnut King, whom the treacherous Minister
Crepe transformed into a monster. Don't feel too bad for Luigi. He sill
has Daisy, right?
=======================================================================
E. GADD [new]
[also known as Elvin Gadd; Japanese name: Professor Oyama]
Occupation: Mad scientist
First appearance: Luigi's Mansion (2001)
The laboratory of Elvin Gadd, better known as E. Gadd, lies just down
the hill from Luigi's Mansion. He's worked there for twenty years,
studying ghosts and ghost-hunting technology. The stooped, buck-
toothed old inventor proved to be Luigi's most powerful ally in this
Gamecube launch title. He would pop up via his Game Boy Horror
communication device to give Luigi pointers whenever he could.
(He'd also give Luigi less helpful information, such as his favorite
homemade dish - pickled dandelions with barnacles in a diesel
marinade, in case you were wondering.) As Luigi dispatched the
various humanoid ghosts inhabiting the haunted mansion, Gadd would
convert them back into the portraits that once hung in his gallery.
Curiously, not all E. Gadd's have been used for good, as the Poltergust
vacuum cleaner was in Luigi's Mansion. In Super Mario Sunshine,
Bowser Jr. claims an old man with glasses created the paintbrush he
uses to splatter Isle Delfino with evil graffiti. Fortunately, Gadd is also
F.L.U.D.D.'s daddy, so his creations both cause and solve Isle
Delfino's hardships.
While Gadd didn't join the ranks of Mario regulars who populate the
Mario Party and Mario Kart games - his non-playable cameos so far
include his own board, E. Gadd's Garage, in Mario Party 6 - this guy
snagged a cameo in Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga, as the proprietor
of the Starbeans Coffee Company. His likeness even popped up in
Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, as one of Tetra's pirates.
A bit of trivia: There's a rumor that Gadd's wizened appearance is a
caricature of a certain older Nintendo executive.
Gadd's inventions:
- POLTERGUST 3000 (Luigi's Mansion)
Sucks stuff up: dust, money, and mansion-haunting ghosts; can
also blow out ice, water and fire.
- GAME BOY HORROR (Luigi's Mansion)
Provides a map of the mansion; also allows E. Gadd to
communicate with Luigi.
- THE PORTRIFICATIONIZER (Luigi's Mansion)
Transforms ghosts into paintings of said ghosts; also
transforms a painting of Mario back into the real deal.
- THE GADDLIGHT (Mario Party 4)
Scares away meddlesome Boos.
- F.L.U.D.D. (Flash Liquidizer Ultra Dousing Device) (Super
Mario Sunshine)
Cleans graffiti with a concentrated stream of water; also blasts
off like a rocket or propels its user across the water with a jet
stream.
- THE GADDBRUSH (Super Mario Sunshine)
Paints horrible graffiti that brings to life evil gloopy paint
monsters. Why the hell would Gadd make such a thing?
- BEANBEAN MACHINE (Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga)
Allows customers to mix different types of coffee beans to
make caffeinated drinks with various effects. The lynchpin
invention of the Starbeans Coffee Franchise.
- GAMEBOY HORROR SP (Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga)
When Mario or Luigi equip this accessory, enemies drop rare
items more often.
- GADDGETS (Mario Party Advance)
Items with varying effects.
- CAPSULE CHANGER (Mario Party 6)
Switches items with those of other characters.
- FINANCIAL VENTILATOR (Mario Party 6)
Creates a gust of wind that focuses on a certain character and
blows their spare change out of their pockets.
- TELEPOTER (Mario Party 6)
Allows to characters to switch places on the game board.
A friendly Austrian reader named Klaus Kloss tells me that in his
country, E. Gadd is named I. Gidd - a pun on his language's word for
"ugly."
E. Gadd's appearances:
Luigi's Mansion (Gamecube) - 2001
Super Mario Sunshine (Gamecube) - 2002
Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker (Gamecube) - 2002*
Mario Party 4 (Gamecube) - 2002
Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Mario Party 6 (Gamecube) - 2004
Mario Party Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
* as Mako, a member of Tetra's crew
=======================================================================
ELLA
Occupation: Golfer
Only appearance: Mario Golf: Advance Tour (2004)
One of the generic human characters whose stats you pick at the
beginning of the game, this cute strawberry blonde is Kid's apprentice.
=======================================================================
ELLIE
Occupation: Friendly firehose
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double
Trouble (1996)
A young elephant who will happily let Dixie or Kiddy ride on her
back. She handles a bit like Rambi, but instead of goring enemies with
a horn, Ellie's specialty is sucking up water in her trunk and blasting it
at enemies. She's a great help, of course, but she's terrified of mice
and will freak out if she happens upon any during her adventures.
A slightly more grown-up looking Ellie also pops up in the
background of Donkey Konga.
Ellie's starring roles:
Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie's Double Trouble (Super NES) - 1996
Donkey Kong Land 3 (Game Boy) - 1997
Other appearances:
Donkey Konga (Gamecube) - 2004
=======================================================================
ENGUARDE
[alternate Japanese spelling: Engaado]
Occupation: Ichthyoid instrument of pain
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country (1994)
A cheerful looking blue swordfish who has the honor of being the only
animal buddy to be playable in every installment of the Donkey Kong
Country series. Enguarde's role is essentially identical in each.
Various Kongs can ride him in underwater levels for better
maneuverability and a chance to poke away at baddies. In later
Donkey Kong Country games, certain stages allow the player to play
as Enguarde - that is, sans Kong.
Enguarde's starring roles:
Donkey Kong Country (Super NES) - 1994
Donkey Kong Land (Game Boy) - 1995
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (Super NES) - 1995
Donkey Kong Land 2 (Game Boy) - 1996
Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie's Double Trouble (Super NES) - 1996
Donkey Kong Land 3 (Game Boy) - 1997
Donkey Kong 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Color) - 2000
Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Donkey Kong Country 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
EVE
[also known as Purehearted Eve; Japanese name: Diana]
Occupation: Hausfrau
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A resident of Twilight Town. She's the one who gets transformed into
a pig in front of her three children. Later, in non-pig form, Eve will ask
Mario to find her lost love, Podley, with whom she once dreamed of
becoming a star of the theater. (Her stage name, she tells Mario, was
"Purehearted Eve.") Eve and Podley parted ways, but just hearing that
Mario spoke to Podley breathes life back into her heart.
=======================================================================
EXPRESSO
[Japanese name: Ekusupresso]
Occupation: High-octane ostrich
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country (1994)
A sneaker-wearing ostrich that can take Donkey or Diddy on a
rocketing ride through a level - provided he doesn't get hit any
enemy. Expresso can also flip his wings and slowly glide to the
ground, allowing him to cross wide gaps that other characters couldn't.
After his appearance in the Game Boy installment of his Super NES
adventure, Expresso dropped off the radar. I could have sworn I
remember seeing Expresso as one of the animal "vehicles" in the
promos for Donkey Kong Racing, the now-cancelled Gamecube title.
Fortunately, Nintendo decided to pop Expresso back into the Game
Boy Advance rejiggering of Donkey Kong Country 2. Diddy and
Dixie can collect golden feathers to bolster the stats of the plucky
ostrich in special Expresso mini-races players can engage in by
visiting Cranky's cabin.
Take away those fancy sneakers and slap a Shy Guy on his back, and
Expresso will transform into Ostro, a generic baddie from Super Mario
Bros. 2.
Expresso's starring roles:
Donkey Kong Country (Super NES) - 1994
Donkey Kong Land (Game Boy) - 1995
Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Color) - 2000
Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Donkey Kong Country 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
EXOR [new]
[Japanese name: Karibaa]
Occupation: Giant talking sword
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
We meet Exor, the giant sword as big as a building, when it crashes
through the roof of Bowser's Keep during a duel between Mario and
Bowser, both of whom go flying to other regions of the world. When
Mario attempts to return to the Keep, he finds Exor firmly stuck
through its center. Neosquid, the quizzically named talking hilt on the
sword, explains that the keep now belongs to Smithy, then shakes so
hard he destroys the only bridge connecting it with the rest of the
world. Exor thrust into Bowser's Keep becomes the game's iconic
image.
Much later in the game, after Mario beats Boomer, his party must fight
Exor on the roof of Bowser's Keep. Once defeated, Exor opens his
mouth and sucks the party into the dimension inside - a sprawling
factory where Smithy creates the weapons with which he hopes to take
over the world.
As fellow Mario researcher TheKoopaBros. notes, Exor's Japanese
name, "Karibaa" is derived from the last half of "Ikusukariba," the
Japanese translation of the name for the legendary Excalibur. I would
guess that "Exor" comes from the first part of the same word,
translated back into English.
=======================================================================
FAT MOUTH
Occupation: Fishy boss
Only appearance: Wario Land 3 (2000)
The ninth boss in Wario Land 3, whom Wario fights in the stage called
"Bank of the Wild River." Fat Mouth apparently looks like a cross
between a fish and a mouse. Wario must beat him by tricking him into
eating green cheese. Very odd, even for a Wario game.
I haven't played this game and don't know much about Fat Mouth
other than what Shdwrlm3 posted in his Wario Land 3 guide at
GameFAQs. Anybody with further information will be greatly
appreciated.
=======================================================================
FAVA
Occupation: Egg enthusiast, architect
Only appearance: Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003)
Fava hangs out at the brand new Yoshi Theater, in the northern part of
Beanbean Kingdom. This bean designed the theater himself, but his
true passion is for neon eggs, and he's willing to tell Mario and Luigi
where to find the buried Bean Fruit that will prompt the Yoshies to lay
some. He'll mark the brothers' map so they can collect the fruit.
=======================================================================
FAWFUL
[Japanese name: Gerakobittsu]
Occupation: Henchbean
Only appearance: Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003)
"I have fury!"
With a rather loose grip on the English language and a propensity for
talking about mustard, Fawful is one of the odder villains in the
Marioverse. He's Cackletta's bean toadie and follows her around
throughout Beanbean Kingdom. He's a mean green bean, too, just like
Cackletta, with a wide grin and rocket-powered headgear.
Fawful assists Cackletta throughout the game, until his defeat by the
Mario Bros. in Bowser's Castle. Even in the game's final battle,
however, against the ghost of Cackletta in the pit of Bowletta's
stomach, Cackletta summons an apparition of Fawful to attack Mario
and Luigi.
=======================================================================
FISHMAEL
Occupation: Dock-sitter
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
A fisherman who hangs out at the docks in Toad Town. At one point,
his bait, a Fuzzipede, gets caught in the stomach of a whale. Mario and
Watt have to fight the Fuzzipede. The grateful whale will then
transport Mario to Lavalava Island, where the fifth Star Spirit awaits.
=======================================================================
FLAPPER
Occupation: Crappier, flappier parrot
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest
(1995)
An alternate version of Squawks. And by "alternate," I mean "worse."
Picture Squawks, only blue and unable to really fly. Flapper can carry
Diddy or Dixie or whomever, but he can't actually move up. Instead,
Flapper can only move forward. Flap though he might, he will slowly
drift towards the ground. Often, Flappers show up in flocks.
A improved version of Flapper shows up in the sequel, Donkey Kong
Coutnry 3. Now purple instead of blue, this bird can pick up things
with his (her?) talons and carry them around.
Flapper's starring roles:
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (Super NES) - 1995
Donkey Kong Land 2 (Game Boy) - 1996
Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie's Double Trouble (Super NES) - 1996
Donkey Kong Land 3 (Game Boy) - 1997
Donkey Kong Country 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
FLAVIO
[Japanese name: Marco]
Occupation: Trader and nutcase
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
He dresses like a sea captain and claims to own many ships - so why
does this grinning screwball spend all his time singing to himself in
Podley's soda bar? Because he's too hung up in his own grandeur to
do anything else. Fortunately, Flavio starts getting a hankering for
adventure around the same time Mario needs to sail to Keelhaul Key to
find the Sapphire Star in a legendary pirate treasure horde. Flavio's
goals: money, romance, adventure and thrills.
En route to Keelhaul Key, however, a small army of pirate ghosts sink
the S.S. Flavion and strand Mario, Flavio and the entire crew. Flavio
immediately begins shouting orders in an especially haughty manner.
He is, after all, the editor of Foppish Gourmet Weekly magazine.
Flavio briefly joins Mario, but he refuses to fight.
After Mario infiltrates Pirate's Grotto and retrieves the Sapphire Star,
however, Flavio has a change of heart. The X-Nauts attack and Flavio
decides that the crew's only means of escape is to use ghost ship of the
legendary pirate king, Cortez. Flavio bravely approaches Cortez and
offers the Skull Gem - his priceless family heirloom - as payment
for use of Cortez's ship. Cortez agrees and the group successfully
fends off the X-Nauts and sails back to Rogueport. In the end, Flavio
admits that he enjoyed the trip to Keelhaul Key. Even if he didn't
collect any riches, he at least got the money, romance, adventure and
thrills he'd been hoping for.
Flavio bears a slight resemblance to Prince Pine, the foppish he-
damsel from Yoshi's Safari. Compare for yourself:
Prince Pine: www.vgmuseum.com/end/snes/a/yoshisafari.htm
Flavio: www.smrpglegacy.com/PM%20TTYD%20Artwork/flavio.jpg
=======================================================================
FLUDD
[Japanese name: PUMP]
Occupation: Talking power-up, graffiti cleaner
First appearance: Super Mario Sunshine (2002)
The second E. Gadd invention to aid one of the Mario Bros. in their
quest to conquer evil, FLUDD is a high-pressure water pump that
Mario can use to hover, blast-off rocket-style or skip across the water's
surface like a human jet ski. FLUDD is also an acronym for "Flash
Liquidizer Ultra Dousing Device" and, I might add, a much better
name that its Japanese counterpart, PUMP. (I have no idea what
PUMP stands for, if anything.)
While not a character per se, FLUDD speaks to Mario throughout his
quest in Isle Delfino. Sometimes, at critical junctures, FLUDD will
give advice, much in the manner Navi does to Link in Legend of
Zelda: Ocarina of Time. FLUDD is less annoying, however.
Personally, the only reason I'm even including FLUDD in this list is
for one specific moment, during Super Mario Sunshine's ending
sequence, that totally humanizes the thing. After destroying Bowser's
bathtub in the sky, Mario, Peach, Bowser, Bowser Jr. and FLUDD
each go plummeting back to the earth. There, Mario pulls a sputtering
FLUDD out of the sand. After viewing Mario through its sputtering,
fading camera display, FLUDD asks, "Mario... was I... of...
assistance?" Touching stuff for a Mario game. Of course, a moment
later FLUDD is seemingly healed. "Now the vacation begins,"
FLUDD announces. Everybody rejoices.
Incidentally, FLUDD may have unintentionally proved that Bowser Jr.
exists in the same continuity as the other seven Koopalings. When
Mario first encounters FLUDD, it scans over Mario and flashes
through some clips of his earlier exploits, including a fight with Larry
Koopa from Super Mario World. One could argue that this is proof of
all the Bowser offspring existing in the same universe, since Bowser
Jr. plays such a central role in Super Mairo Sunshine.
FLUDD appears as again as a minor character in Mario Power Tennis.
Multiple FLUDD units are stationed around the Delfino Isle Plaza
Court, as are paint-vomiting Piranha Plants. As the baneful buds puke
goo over the court, players must step on switches to activate the
FLUDD units into clearing the court.
FLUDD's appearances:
Super Mario Sunshine (Gamecube) - 2002
Mario Power Tennis (Gamecube) - 2004
=======================================================================
FLURRIE
[also known as Madam Flurrie; Japanese name: Clouda/Karauda]
Occupation: Retired actress
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
Ever the drama queen, Flurrie refuses to emerge from her bedroom
without her treasured necklace. She simply can't have her adoring
public see her sans-accessories. Mario must then return to the Shadow
Sirens, whom he overheard arguing about a necklace, and retrieve it
for Madam Flurrie. Necklace in place, the former stage actress
emerges. Little Punio explains how he needs her help to reveal the
secret entrance to the Great Tree and Flurrie joins out of her deep love
for the Puni clan, her only friends since she retired from acting and
became a recluse long ago.
Once Mario defeats the Shadow Queen, Flurrie returns to acting. Her
new play - "Paper Mario," starring herself and Doopliss - becomes
a hit.
Flurrie is a wind spirit and whose powers combine with her feminine
wiles to make her a formidable ally for Mario in battle. Out of battle,
Flurrie can blow a gust of air that can reveal hidden passages - such
as the secret entrance to the Great Tree - or stun enemies.
There's no award for bustiness in a Mario character - thank god -
but if there were, it might go to Flurrie. (Actually, it might go to
Queen Been, but Flurrie would give her a run for her money.) She's a
big lady, who's essentially walking around naked. But she's made out
of air or clouds or something, so I guess that makes it okay.
(According to the mouse at Podley's bar, Flurrie didn't used to be so
zaftig. I guess she did quite a bit of snacking while in seclusion.)
This character is a bit of an oddity. As Masamune points out at the
Hitchhiker's Guide to Video Games, Flurrie is the only buddy in either
Paper Mario game who doesn't belong to any specific race. Others you
can pick out readily - Goombario is a Goomba, Koops is a Koopa
Troopa, whatever - but Flurrie doesn't seem to belong to the same
race as either Mallow, that other weather controlling cloud-buddy from
a Mario RPG, or Huff N. Puff, the blustery boss from Flower Fields in
the first Paper Mario. She's a wind spirit or something. Let's leave it at
that.
Flurrie is also interesting in her resemblence to Ludwig von Koopa,
the oldest Koopaling. Looking at the preliminary screenshots for Paper
Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, some other gamers and I thought the
character might have been the long-missing wife of Bowser - or
because of her airy build and lack of feet, perhaps the ghost of this
character or something. No dice, it seems. Flurrie does have Ludwig's
exact hairstyle and color, though. I also thought her lips looked a lot
like Wendy O. Koopa's.
Finally, Flurrie is not the first Mario character with that name. Flurries
were generic baddies in Super Mario Bros. 2 - little puffs of snow
who slid around haphazardly in the ice world. They never appeared
again.
In meteorological terms, a flurry is a brief bout of light rain or snow.
=======================================================================
FLY GUY
Occupation: Airborne shyness
First appearance: Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (1995)
A variant on the regular Shy Guy model, the Fly Guy has a little
propeller on his noggin that allows him to fly. Fly Guys appear less
requently than regular Shy Guys, except in Super Mario 64, where
they're the only Shy Guy in the entire game.
A propeller-topped little Fly Guy is an unlockable character in
Mario Power Tennis.
Fly Guy's starring roles:
Mario Power Tennis (Gamecube) - 2004
Other appearances:
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super NES) - 1995
Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1996
Super Mario 64 Shindou Version (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Yoshi's Story (Nintendo 64) - 1998
Super Smash Bros. Melee (Gamecube) - 2001
Mario Pinball Land (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Super Mario 64 DS (Nintendo DS) - 2004
=======================================================================
FRET
Occupation: King of Jewelry Land
Only appearance: Yoshi's Safari (1993)
When Bowser and his children steal Jewelry Kingdom's twelve
protective magical gems, natural disasters imperil the area's once-
happy citizens and the land divides into dark and light halves. Princess
Peach asks Mario and Yoshi to retrieve the gems as a favor to her
friend, King Fret, and his son, Prince Pine. Once Mario and Yoshi
defeat the Koopalings in the Light World, King Fret helps Mario enter
the Dark World, where Bowser is holding Prince Pine captive.
King Fret is an appropriately regal looking king, with a robe, a white
beard and a mighty crown.
=======================================================================
FROGFUCIUS [new]
[Japanese name: Frog Mountain Wizard]
Occupation: Sagacious amphibian
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
Frogfucius is Mallow's adoptive grandfather. He lives as Tadpole
Pond, where he instructs young tadpoles in the ways of philosophy. He
also likes to appear to levitate, though it's fairly obvious that a Lakitu
with a fishing rod is creating the effect. When Mallow returns from his
errand to the Mushroom Kingdom with a piece of Cricket Pie,
Frogfucius explains that Mallow is not actually a tadpole and should
partake in Mario's quest in order to find his true homeland.
Frogfucius also has pupil who begins the game as a tadpole and
matures into a full-fledged frog by the end of the game. Mario meets
him is Seaside Town, where the pupil has gone to ponder the meaning
of life. He's the only person who's not kidnapped and locked up when
Yaridovich's gang invades.
I feel silly even mentioning this, but I suppose some younger Mario
fans may not realize that Frogfucius' name is a play on that of the
famous Chinese philosopher, Confucius.
Image link: gamehiker.com/gallery/displayimage.php?album=46&pos=38
=======================================================================
FRYGUY
[Japanese name: Hiibooboo/Hibobo]
Occupation: Hothead
First appearance: Doki Doki Panic (1987)
Oddly, the fiery Fryguy is the boss of the icy fourth world of Super
Mario Bros. 2. Even more oddly, he can only be extinguished by
dropping wooden blocks on him.
Fryguy's appearances:
Doki Doki Panic (Famicom) - 1987
Super Mario Bros. 2 (NES) - 1988
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Super Mario Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2001
=======================================================================
FUNKY KONG
[Japanese name: Fankii Kongu]
Occupation: Ambassador to barrel travel
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country (1994)
He's the main monkey.
Well, he's not, really. That's Donkey Kong. But Funky's still pretty
damn cool. Funky Kong operates Funky's Flights, a service that allows
Donkey and Diddy to travel back to previously conquered words via
the Funky Barrel - a regular barrel decked out with wings and a
propeller. Doing so allows them to rack up extra lives in the easy
stages before tackling some of the more taxing ones.
In Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble, Funky
provides a slightly modified version of his usual service. If Dixie
delivers the proper items, Funky can forge new vehicles, like a
hovercraft. Dixie can use these to travel to new areas.
Funky apparently opens up Funky's Armory for Donkey Kong
Country 64. This new shop will sell the various shooting devices
characters might use in this game: the Coconut Cannon for Donkey,
the Peanut Popgun for Diddy, the Pineapple Launcher for Chunky
Kong, the Feather Bow for Tiny Kong and the Grape Pipe for Lanky
Kong.
Players can finally play as Funky in the Game Boy Advance title, DK:
King of Swing. He's not the titular swinger, sadly, but an optional
character in the game's Jungle Jam mode, in which Donkey, Diddy,
Dixie, Funky and others can compete in mini-games. If I remember
correctly, Funky was going to be one of the selectable Kongs in this
game, which, alas, never saw the light of day.
Remember: whatever game he's in, Funky always has the best theme
song.
Funky's starring role:
DK: King of Swing (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Other appearances:
Donkey Kong Country (Super NES) - 1994
Donkey Kong Land (Game Boy) - 1995
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (Super NES) - 1995
Donkey Kong Land 2 (Game Boy) - 1996
Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie's Double Trouble (Super NES) - 1996
Donkey Kong Land 3 (Game Boy) - 1997
Donkey Kong 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Color) - 2000
Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Donkey Konga (Gamecube) - 2004
Donkey Kong 2: Hit Song Parade (Gamecube) - 2004
Donkey Kong Country 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
GALROG
Occupation: Cyclops
Only appearance: Wario's Woods (1994)
A gray brute with a single eye in the center of his head. He's the
second boss. His name sounds like a cross between "gray" and
"Balrog," the beastly monster from the Lord of the Rings books -
and, also, the boxer from Street Fighter II.
=======================================================================
GAME GUY
Occupation: Master of the odds
Only appearance: Mario Party 3 (2001)
A Shy Guy with a bowtie. Players landing on his space during the
game get the luxury of playing games of luck in which they must
wager all their coins.
=======================================================================
GARBAGE BOY [new]
Occupation: Music-lover and garbage-lover
Only appearance: WarioWare: Twisted (2005)
Almost a non-character, really, Garbage Boy lives in a trash can in the
back of the stage at the Hawt House, the venue where Mona's band
place. During performances, he periodically peeks his head out from
beneath the lid and grins.
=======================================================================
GARGANTUA BLARGG
[Japanese name: Unbaba]
Occupation: Fire beast
First appearance: Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (1995)
A giant fire beast that rises from the lava and will block Yoshi's
pathway unless Yoshi can fire an egg at him. (Smaller forms, called
just Blarggs, also pop around in lava pools. Also, a blue version of the
Gargantua Blargg - Nep-Enut - also shows up in the game's early
stages.) A Gargantua Blargg appears in Tetris Attack as a playable
character. The blobby guy replaces Flare, the fire fairy from the
game's original Japanese version, Panel du Pon.
Though he has the same name as the Blargg enemy in Super Mario
World, none of Yoshi's Island Blarggs look much like that monster.
The Super Mario World Blargg looks more like a dinosaur - like the
Czar Dragon boss in Super Mario RPG.
Gargantua Blargg's appearances:
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super NES) - 1995
Tetris Attack (Super NES) - 1996
Yoshi's Story (Nintendo 64) - 1998
Picross NP Vol. 2 (Super Famicom) - 1999
Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3 (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
=======================================================================
GARRO
[Japanese name: Garo]
Occupation: Sculptor
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
One of the cloud-shaped residents of Nimbus Land, Garro creates
statues in his studio in Nimbus Land. When Mario and Mallow first
arrive at the studio, they notice what appears to be a statue of Mallow.
Garro explains that the statue is actually of Nimbus Land's present
king when he was a boy. Mario and Mallow conclude that Mallow is
actually the rightful heir to the Nimbus Land throne.
In order to sneak into the Nimbus Land castle, Garro disguises Mario
and his latest work of art by spraying him gold. Garro tells Valentina's
guards, who normally only allow statues of Valentina though the gates,
that the statue is of Valentina's nephew, Mariotta. When Valentina
balks at the decidedly un-elegant Mario statue, Garro bluffs that it's an
sculptural ode to the plight of the working class - "The Plumber's
Lament." Mario gets in, and once he skillfully dodges a pecking by
Valentina's henchman Dodo, he set his sights on Valentina.
=======================================================================
GENERAL GUY
[Japanese name: General Heihoo]
Occupation: Shy Guy Commander
First appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
A militant Shy Guy in a military uniform. He's the boss of Shy Guy's
Toy Box.
=======================================================================
GENERAL WHITE
Occupation: Cannon operator
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A white Bob-Omb with a moustache who mopes around Petalburg
until Mario renews his interest in life by asking him to operate the
giant cannon at Fahr Outpost. General White hops into action and soon
the cannon is blasting Mario and pals to the moon.
=======================================================================
GENO
Occupation: Living doll
First appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
When Smithy's sword-shaped ship, Exor, fell from the sky and
skewered Bowser's Keep, it also punctured the Star Road, a celestial
passage vital to the granting of wishes. Seven star pieces scattered
throughout the world. Mario, accompanied by his new friend Mallow,
had just begun their around-the-world trek to collect the missing star
pieces when they stopped in Rose Town. Since Smithy stormed into
Mario's world, the people residing in Rose Town couldn't leave their
houses safely because a mysterious sniper has been assailing them
with a rain of paralyzing arrows.
The owner of the inn there has a small child named Gaz - a devout
fan of his Geno doll - who insists Mario play dolls with him. Gaz,
picking his favorite doll Geno, gets a little too excited a knocks Mario
out cold with Geno's Super Star Shot. That night, while Mario
recuperates, a single star floated down from the sky and -taking a
page from the story of Pinocchio - settles into the Geno doll.
(Apparently, he deems Gaz's Mario, Bowser, and Peach dolls
unworthy of inhabiting.)
The next morning, Gaz tells his mother and Mario that Geno walked
into the Forest Maze all by himself. He's not fibbing. Mario and
Mallow tail him throughout the woods, joining him just as they find
the one firing the poison arrows - Bowyer, one of Smithy's minions.
When Bowyer falls, Geno joins Mario and Mallow, asking them to
simply call him Geno, as his actual name would be impossible for
earth tongues to pronounce. (Specifically, the game's text represents
Geno's name as the following characters: heart-musical note-
exclamation point-question mark.) He fights enemies with the flashy
dazzle of star power, proving to be one o f Mario's strongest allies.
Once Mario's party defeated Smithy, the star traveler left Geno's
body, reducing the doll to a lifeless toy once again.
Although Square, the developers of Super Mario RPG, own the rights
to Geno and all the other characters unique to the game, the living doll
showed up in again in the Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga, as the host
of Star 'Stache Smash, a video game-within-the-video game in the
Little Fungitown arcade. The game's ending credits, however, clearly
list Geno as property of Square now Square-Enix.
Geno's starring roles:
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (Super NES) - 1996
Other appearances:
Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
=======================================================================
GIANT SNAKE
Occupation: A snake... that's giant
Only appearance: Wario Land II (1998)
A large boss that lives in the caverns beneath Wario's castle. He's the
first boss. I'm not sure if "Giant Snake" is his official name, the most
obvious description of him or how his name is translated from
Japanese.
If you know, shoot me an email.
=======================================================================
GIGA BOWSER
Occupation: Amalgamated menace
Only appearance: Super Smash Bros. Melee (2001)
What if Bowser could power-up, too? Giga Bowser is a towering freak
with a mean streak. You can fight him at the end of adventure mode if
you don't use any contiues and get there in eighteen minutes or less.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR GIGA BOWSER***
An even more imposing figure than the original King of the
Koopas, Giga Bowser is roughly twice the size of his scaly, fire-
breathing, spike-studded Super Smash Bros. Melee
counterpart. Predictably, this monstrous creature's offensive and
defensive powers are a grade higher than those of regular
Bowser. Good luck defeating this colossus!
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR GIGA BOWSER***
=======================================================================
GLIMMER
Occupation: A light in the dark
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest
(1995)
An angler fish who shows up in a few underwater levels in Donkey
Kong Country 2. Much like Squawks in the first game, Glimmer
hovers behind your characters, lighting the way in dark areas.
Glimmer's appearances:
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (Super NES) - 1995
Donkey Kong Land 2 (Game Boy) - 1996
Donkey Kong 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Donkey Kong Country 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
GLOOMTAIL
Occupation: Bigger, badder dragon
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
Hooktail's older brother, whom Mario fights near the end of the game
in the Palace of Shadow.Gloomtail, who looks like a black version of
Hooktail, has apparently been napping there since the last time the
fortress was opened a thousand years ago. He's incensed that Mario
beat his little sister and puts up quite a fight with his poison breath
attacks.
=======================================================================
GOLDBOB (and his family)
[Japanese name: Goldman]
Occupation: Aristocratic artillery
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
He's so wealthy he wears a monocle. The president of
Goldbobbington's, a succusseful but otherwise mysterious company,
Goldbob first pops up in Glitzville, where he, his wife and son have
arrived to watch some world-class fighting. He becomes a big fan
there and will forever after refer to Mario as the "Great Gonzales."
Mario meets Goldbob again aboard the Excess Express. It's his son's
birthday and Goldbob and his wife can't decide what to get him as a
present.
=====
SYLVIA
[Alternate Japanese spelling: Silvia]
Occupation: Rich man's wife
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A white Bob-Omb with a stylish pink hat. She's as elegant as artillery
can be, but she'll put up her dukes to fight for what's best for her son,
Bub. She argues that the best birthday present for her son is a primer
for proper Bob-Omb etiquette. She's wrong, of course.
In the end, Sylvia needs to be rescued along with the rest of the
passengers from the Excess Express when they are abducted by
Smorg, the dust bunny monster. Once rescued, Sylvia and family
return to their home in Poshley Heights.
=====
BUB
[Japanese name: Konarikin]
Occupation: Spoiled son
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
The spoiled son of Goldbob and Sylvia. One day, he'll take over
Goldbobbington's, but until then Goldbob and Sylvia will fight over
what they think is best for him. Both miss the point. Little Bub loves
trains, but his parents don't know. For example, neither one can guess
that he wanted the autograph of a train conductor most.
=======================================================================
GOLDEN DIVA
Occupation: Vanity spirit
Only appearance: Wario Land Advance (2001)
Jeez. I don't know what to call the Golden Diva. The best way to
describe her, I guess, is if an evil female genie wearing a sort of
Kabuki mask and holding a lady's fan. Oh, and she's totally evil.
Once Wario defeats the bosses of the Ruby, Emerald, Sapphire and
Topaz passages of the Golden Pyramid, he can access the Golden
Passage. The diva assumes the several different forms throughout the
fight, many of them mimicking the attacks of the other pyramid
bosses. When Wario wins, however, he reclaims all of the treasure that
the greedy Golden Diva plundered from Princess Shokora.
The Golden Diva has the dubious honor of being one of the four
female bosses of a Mario - or Mario-related - game: her, Syrup (in
Wario Land and Wario Land II), Cackletta (in Mario and Luigi:
Superstar Saga) and the Shadow Queen (in Paper Mario: the
Thousand-Year Door).
=======================================================================
GOOMBA KING
[Japanese name: Kuri King; also known as Goomboss]
Occupation: Regal Shroom
First appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
A jumbo Goomba with a crown, The Goomba King blocks the bridge
leading from Goomba Village to Toad Town. He's flanked by his two
underlings, the Red Goomba and the Blue Goomba. He's one of the
game's first boss battles.
The Goomba King makes an unexpected second appearance in Super
Mario 64 DS as the boss of new area hidden behind a painting of
Mario. Referred to for some reason as "Goomboss," beating this
character unlocks Mario as a playable character. This Goomboss is
considerably bigger than the Goomba King, but looks identical
otherwise.
Goomba King's appearances:
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Super Mario 64 DS (Nintendo DS) - 2004
=======================================================================
GOOMBARIO (and his family)
[Japanese name: Kurio]
Occupation: Mario's no. one fan
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
Early in his quest to retrieve the Star Rod from Bowser's dirty mitts,
Mario crash lands in the house of a family of Goombas. One of
Mario's oldest foes, Goombas are described in the instruction manual
of the original Super Mario Bros. as "mushrooms that defected from
the Mushroom Kingdom." Not all Goombas are so bad, however.
As his name might suggest, Goombario is Mario's biggest fan. He
even has a blue cap with a G on it, much like Mario's - or Luigi's or
Wario's or Waluigi's or doubtlessly anybody else joining the super
plumber club. Goombario lives with his mom and dad, Goomama and
Goompapa; his grandparents, Goompa and Gooma; and his kid sister,
Goombaria.
A battle with the Star Rod-powered Bowser sends Mario crashing into
a shady glen in Goomba Village. After the resident Goomba family
helps Mario smash through a magic block Kammy Koopa creates to
hinder Mario's progress, wise and learned Goompa instructs
Goombario to accompany Mario. Years of listening to Goompa's
stories have filled Goombario with useful knowledge, and allow him
to act as of guide on Mario's journey. (Come to think of it, what
Goombario does isn't all that different from what I'm doing with this
guide.) Eager little Goombario can also help Mario in fights by
bonking enemies with his head or by using his skills as a tattletale to
reveal enemies' weaknesses.
Goombario is the first Goomba a player could control in a Mario game
- or any video game, for that matter. In the sequel to Paper Mario,
Mario met Goombella, who was basically a female version of
Goombario: a chatty head-bonker who'd explain the world with just a
hint of cynicism.
=====
GOOMPA
[Japanese name: Kurijii]
A wise, old, mushroom with a bad back. Goompa taught Goombario
everything he knows about the way the world works, so he requests
that Goombario travel with Mario. Technically, Goompa - not
Goombario - is the first friend to join Mario's party. At the beginning
of Paper Mario, Goompa tails Mario in the woods near Goomba
Village and explains the basics of the game's battle system.
Kirby021591 informs me that Goompa probably gained his extensive
knowledge of the world through his youthful journeys with two other
old fogeys, Koopa Koot and Bootler. Apparently, the three were quite
the adventurers in their younger days.
=====
GOOMBARIA
[Japanese name: Kuriko]
Goombaria is Goombario's little sister. She does three things,
basically. (1) She stumbles upon Mario after he falls from the sky. (2)
She refers to Kammy as a "weird flying thing." And (3) If you find her
missing Princess Peach doll, she gives you a star piece. She's
otherwise unremarkable, except that she's the cutest Goomba in the
whole damn world.
=====
GOOMPAPA
Goombario's dad. He has a moustache. Early in the game, he's trying
to repair the family's front gate when Kammy smashes it to bits with a
giant block.
=====
GOOMA
Goombario's kindly grandmother.
=====
GOOMAMA
Goombario's mom. She wears a housewife's headwrap that looks a lot
like the one worn by Mamar, the motherly Star Spirit. Apparently
that's how Paper Mario's developers represent maternity.
=======================================================================
GOOMBELLA
[Japanese name: Christine/Kuristinu/Kurisuchiifu]
Occupation: Archeology student
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
Did I say Goombaria was the cutest Goomba ever? Scratch that.
Mario meets this pink ponytailed Goomba in the harbor at Rogueport,
just as he steps of his ship. She's arguing with a man named Lord
Crump who is seeking answers about the Crystal Stars. Mario valiantly
steps in and stomps Crump.
The scarf and pith helmet are dead giveaways that Goombella loves
exploring. In fact, she's a junior archeology major at Goom University
studying under the brilliant Professor Frankly. One look at the ancient
treasure map is motivation enough for her to join Mario's adventure.
Goombella functions much like Goombario in the first Paper Mario.
Like Goombario, Goombella is Mario's personal tour guide,
explaining where they are or what enemy they're fighting. And
Goombella does it with her own dry brand of humor. Typically, her
most barbed retorts are directed at the many lowlifes who hit on her
during the adventure. In battles, Goombella fights also just like
Goombario - primarily though a lot of headbonking.
A bit of trivia: Goombella's Japanese name seems to be Christine.
That might seem like an oddly common name for a Marioverse
character, but it's actually quite appropriate. The first two syllables of
the Japanese name for the Goomba, "kuribo," blend perfectly into the
Japanese pronunciation of the western name "Christine" -
"kuristinu."
=======================================================================
GOOMBOB AND GOOMBETTY
Occupation: High school Goombhearts
Only appearance: Mario Party Advance (2005)
A pair of would be Goomba lovers. One of the game's mini-quests
involves getting this two crazy kids together. Goombob is a rich kid
with a big house. Goombetty is a talented violinist.
=======================================================================
GOOMFREY
[Japanese name: Kuriido]
Occupation: Problem solver
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A shady Goomba who hangs out on the streets of Rogueport, near
Professor Frankly's house. He eliminates problems, whether those
problems be a who or a what. When Mario needs to dispose of a load
of dirty boxer shorts of Glitz Pit fighters, Goomfrey's the only guy to
do it.
=======================================================================
GOOPER BLOOPER
Occupation: Enraged ink squirter
First appearance: Super Mario Sunshine (2002)
A big squid with whose tentacles Mario must tangle in the Ricco
Harbor area of Isle Delfino. After Mario crushes each of Gooper
Blooper's arms individually, he must grab hold of its snout, stretch it
like a rubber band and then let it snap back in the face of the six-armed
menace.
Gooper Blooper, who gets his name from his fondness for the icky
paint goop Shadow Mario/Bowser Jr. has dripped all over Isle Delfino,
is a boss version of the Blooper, a generic seafaring foe that has made
swimming dangerous since the original Super Mario Bros. While
Cheep Cheeps would stupidly swim about without regard to Mario,
these squids were swarm directly towards him. They've appeared in
nearly every Mario game with an underwater stage.
Gooper Bloober reappeared as a boss, of sorts, in Mario Power Tennis.
This ten-tentacled monster owns the Gooper Bloober court, a place for
tennis right on the docks of Ricco Harbor. He takes up nearly his entire
half of the court, and any netter brave enough to challenge him must
contend with the swinging racquets in all of his tentacles.
Gooper Bloober's starring roles;
Super Mario Sunshine (Gamecube) - 2002
Mario Power Tennis (Gamecube) - 2004
=======================================================================
GOURA
Occupation: Lumpy goem
Only appearance: Wario's Woods NES (1994)
A large, earthy-looking creature who appears as a boss in the NES
Wario's Woods. And then no one ever sees him again.
=======================================================================
GOURMET GUY
[Japanese name: Gourmet Heihoo]
Occupation: Glutton
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
An obese Shy Guy whose girth blocks the path in Shy Guy's Toy Box.
He demands food, and only Tayce T.'s cake will send him through the
roof. Upon exiting, he drops a cookbook that Mario can give to Tayce
to improve the quality of her cooking. Later, Gourmet Guy shows up
in Peach's Castle, where Peach is being held hostage. If Peach bakes
him a strawberry cake, he'll drop a hint about the location of the next
Star Spirit.
=======================================================================
GRACE
Occupation: Golfer
First appearance: Mario Golf (2000)
"The Queen of the Course." Tall, beautiful Grace is one of the
experienced golfers than players can challenge.
Grace's starring roles:
Mario Golf (Game Boy Color) - 2000
Mario Golf: Advance Tour (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
GRATE GUY
Occupation: Ballsy jester
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
One of Booster's goons. Mario and company fight him and his partner,
Knife Guy, on the balcony of Booster Tower after Booster splits with
Peach for Marrymore, the marriage resort. Grate Guy is the one of the
pair balancing on a circus ball a la Lemmy Koopa. Despite what his
name might indicate, Grate Guy isn't affiliated with the Shy Guys;
instead, he's a scary clown.
Later in the game, Grate Guy opens a casino where Mario can gamble.
It's well hidden in Bean Valley and Mario will need a special pass to
enter. There, he'll challenge Mario to a rather difficult game of chance
called Look the Other Way, in which Mario must anticipate which
direction Grate Guy will look and, as the name would suggest, look the
other way. If Mario plays a hundred rounds of the game, Grate Guy
will reward Mario with the Star Egg, and item whose effects are like
those of the Rock Candy item: pain for Mario's enemies.
For a long time I wondered where Grate Guy might have got his name
from. He rides a ball, so why not Ball Guy? Lots of readers wrote in
and pointed out that a grater - as in a cheese grater - is a kitchen
appliance, much like a knife I don't buy it, even with Nintendo's
propensity for naming characters after food and food-related products.
Joe Etienne and Richard Gallivan both wrote me with a better
explanation. He says that Knife Guy and Grate Guy's names are puns
on "nice guy" and "great guy." This is still a stretch, but I think it
works better than the kitchen explanation.
=======================================================================
GRIFTY
[Japanese name: Teiruwaasu]
Occupation: Rooftop storyteller
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
An odd, crocodile-looking fellow who hangs out high above
Rogueport. For a fee, he'll tell Mario about the legends behind
Rogueport, the Crystal Stars, the Thousand-Year Door and what might
be behind it.
Grifty's story (a synopsis):
Long ago, a great city stood where Rogueport does now. A great
demon, the Shadow Queen, emerged and pulled the city beneath the
earth. Her armies plundered the various cities of the world. In order to
make herself more powerful, the Shadow Queen created the Crystal
Stars and placed them in special castles - the only surviving one of
which is Hooktail's Castle in Petal Meadows - to extend its evil
influence. Four heroes eventually arose to defeat the demon: a shy
Toad from Petalburg, a learned Goomba from Boggly Woods, a
wandering Koopa warrior and a powerful Boo magician. They
succeeded in nabbing the Crystal Stars and scattered them around the
world, knowing that the demon would be sealed unless somebody ever
collected the stars. The Goomba took her star to the Boggly Woods.
When it started drawing monsters, she hollowed out the tree so the
Punies might live peacefully. The Boo hid hers in Creepy Steeple. The
Koopa fought with the pirate king Cortez, lost and was imprisoned in a
chest. Before the Toad passed away, he entrusted his star to a holy
man who promised to stow it where no one would ever find it. In
death, each of the four heroes' souls were stolen and magically
imprisoned due to a latent curse cast by the demon they had
imprisoned.
=======================================================================
GRODUS
[Japanese name: Lord Batsugaruf]
Occupation: Captain of the X-Nauts
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A dome-headed figure who commands the X-naut soldiers. Grodus is
taller than the rest of the X-Nauts and carries a glass scepter.
For being one of the main villains of Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year
Door, Grodus doesn't actually appear in much of the game. More
often, he summons Lord Crump or the Shadow Sirens to do his
bidding while he watches from the X-Naut fortress on the moon. The
only villainy we see him perform before he confronts Mario at the end
of the game is his cruel pulling of TEC's plug.
When Mario and company reach the end of the Shadow Palace, they
meet Grodus for the first time and learn that Grodus tricked Mario into
collecting the seven Crystal Stars for him and opening the Thousand-
Year Door so he could awaken the Shadow Queen. Mario beats
Grodus, but Grodus escapes to the Shadow Queen's chamber while
Mario tussles with Bowser and Kammy. There, he successfully opens
the Shadow Queen's tomb. Reborn, however, the Shadow Queen isn't
keen on taking orders and swiftly zaps Grodus into oblivion.
Judging from Grodus's appearance, I'd wager his at least part
computer, if not a computer entirely. Through his glass dome, you can
see all manner of blinking circuitry. Also, after the Shadow Queen
zaps him into the void, he winds up living the rest of his life as just a
head - and I'm pretty sure most living things need a body.
=======================================================================
GRUBBA
[Japanese name: Gansu/Guns]
Occupation: Crooked fight promoter
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
This shady character comes off as a friendly guy, what with his affable
Foghorn Leghorn speech patterns and all. And he seems more than
happy to dub Mario "The Great Gonzales" and enter him into
Glitzville's central fighting arena, the Glitz Pit.
As Mario advanced through the Glitz Pit ranks, however, he and his
buddies begin to suspect foul play. Combatants have a knack for
disappearing, it seems. And someone may be using the prized Gold
Star for other sinister purposes. Could it be Grubba's efficient but curt
assistant, Jolene? Or the obnoxious champion fighter, Rawk Hawk?
And is that a real Crystal Star on his belt?
No and no. It's Grubba.
Mario - or, I guess, the Great Gonzales - eventually finds out that
Grubba, a former fighter, has been maintaining a youthful appearance
by sapping the energy out of former prize fighters. Grubba powers up
and takes Mario on as Macho Grubba.
Grubba appears to be a slightly altered version of Clubba, a minor
Koopa foe from the first Paper Mario. Whereas Clubbas have green
skin and white hair, Grubba is orange. He also carries no club. He's a
complex guy, that Grubba. And yes, as a reader calling himself
KWS369 points out, both Grubbas and Clubbas are modified versions
of the minor Super Mario Bros. 3 baddie, Spike. (Though, don't
confuse him with the non-generic character Spike, who's included in
this guide.)
=======================================================================
THE GURU OF THE SEWER [new]
Occupation: Yuck-smelling yogi
Only appearance: WarioWare: Twisted! (2005)
An old man who, despite his alleged wisdom, lives in the sewers
beneath Diamond City. Wario is happily walking down the street with
a stolen Game Boy Advance in one hand and a Game Boy Advance SP
in the other when he trips and accidentally drops both systems down a
manhole. The Guru of the Sewer emerges, all sagacious and saintly,
and offers Wario the choice of his two old systems or a shiny new one
with two screens - the Nintendo DS. Wario cleverly hops into the
sewer and steals all three from the guru. The old man gets his revenge
in the game's epilogue when he knocks Wario over the head.
The Guru of the Sewer has the unique honor of being a character from
the story cinematics who also shows up in a microgame. In "Light
Sleeper," he's snoozing in the air. The player must blow into the
Nintendo DS microphone in order to keep him aloft. The Guru shows
up once again in "Snore Rope," a minigame unlockable in WarioWare:
Twisted's Toy Room feature. In this version, he's still asleep, and the
player must blow him through a skipping rope being swung by
giggling giant women. Yes, I just wrote that sentence.
=======================================================================
GUS
Occupation: Westside bouncer
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A bird who guards the entrance to the western Rogueport. He's also a
member of the Robbo band of thieves, all of whom work for Ishnail.
Mario can either pay Gus ten coins to pass or fight him and his pointy
spear. Either way, Gus isn't too big a deal.
=======================================================================
HAMMA JAMMA
Occupation: Glitz Pit competitor
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A Hammer Brother who can't wait to test the strength of his hammer
against Mario's in the Glitz Pit. When he fights, he fights with
Bamma, a Boomerang Brother, and Flare, a Fire Brother. Together,
they're Hamma, Bamma and Flare, and beating them earns Mario a
ranking of four on the Glitz Pit roster. Outside of the ring, Hamma
Jamma will mention that fights with the hammer he inherited from his
grandfather, a Hammer Brother Mario tangled with all the way back in
level 8-1 from the original Super Mario Bros.
=======================================================================
HAMMERBOT [new]
Occupation: Robo-masher
First appearance: Wario Land 3 (Game Boy Color) - 2000
Just like his name implies, Hammerbot is a little robot with a big
hammer. You'd think people would avoid such a contraption, but Dr.
Mario and Wario both have to fight Hammerbot in the Dr. Mario 64
story mode. Hamerbot previously bam-bam-bammed as a minor
baddie in Wario Land 3.
Image link: gamehiker.com/gallery/displayimage.php?album=105&pos=3
Hammerbot's starring roles:
Dr. Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Other appearances:
Wario Land 3 (Game Boy Color) - 2000
=======================================================================
THE HAMMER BROS.
Occupation: The other brothers
First appearance: Super Mario Bros. (1985)
The Hammer Bros. first caused trouble in the original Mario Bros.,
though they were only a minor enemy. In Super Mario RPG, however,
these twin Koopas were the first boss Mario faces. They are roughing
up poor Toad and blocking the path between Mushroom Way and the
Mushroom Kingdom. Defeating them earns Mario one of their
hammers.
Long a part of the Marioverse, the Hammer Bros. have shown up in
many variations: the Boomerang Bros., the Fire Bros., the Sledge
Brothers., the Sumo Bros., the Limbo Bros., the yo-yo-swinging Yo
Bros., the Chain Chomp-Swinging Chomp Bros., and even the
Amazing Flying Hammer Bros. A Hammer Brother suit was even one
of Mario's power-ups in Super Mario Bros. 3. In it, Mario could toss
hammers and hide in his fireproof shell. And in Paper Mario, a
Hammer Brother is actually playable - kinda. Using her magical
transformation umbrella, Peach can disguise herself as a number of
different enemies: an armored Koopa Troopa, a Clubba or a Hammer
Brother. She can't fight in her Hammer Brother guise, but she can
stroll about her castle freely looking every bit like a Hammer Brother.
The Hammer Bros.' appearances:
Super Mario Bros. (NES) - 1985
Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels (Famicom) - 1986
Super Mario Bros. + Duck Hunt (NES) - 1988
Super Mario Bros. + Duck Hunt + World Class Track Meet (NES) - 1990
Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES) - 1990
Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (Super NES) - 1996
Mario Party 3 (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Mario Party 5 (Gamecube) - 2003
Super Mario Bros. (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Super Mario Bros. 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Gamecube) - 2004
Mario Party Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
=======================================================================
HAMMERHEAD BROS.
Occupation: Hammersmiths
Only appearance: Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003)
Twin brothers who forge hammers in their shop in Hoohoo Village
who are also two of the first residents of Beanbean Kingdom to help
Mario and Luigi on their quest. Their name isn't a coincidence, either;
both of the Hammerhead Bros. have hammer-shaped heads. If Mario
and Luigi can find them a special stone, they'll create a set of hammers
the heroes can use throughout their quest. Sledge is the brother with
green eyebrows, while Mallet has red eyebrows.
=======================================================================
HARHALL
[Japanese name: Kyahaaru]
Occupation: Fashion genius
Only appearance: Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003)
A fussy, huffy clothes designer whose temperament makes keeping an
assistant difficult. He's at the forefront of splart - splatter art - and
he'll grant Mario and Luigi a piece of the Beanstar if they help him
design some new shirts.
=======================================================================
HARLEY QUIN
Occupation: Jester
Only appearance: Wario's Woods (1994)
A clown. He's the third boss in Wario's Woods. Like the Batman
villain Harley Quinn, a harlequin is a clown character from old
pantomime comedies. You know, from yore.
=======================================================================
HARRY HARE
Occupation: Suit-wearing bunny
Only appearance: Wario's Woods (1994)
He's, um, a suit wearing bunny. He's also the seventeenth boss in
Wario's Woods.
=======================================================================
HARRY (1)
Occupation: Golfer
Only appearance: Mario Golf (1999)
A pudgy golfer with blonde hair, sideburns and a beard. He's a
different character than the Harry who appearsin Mario Tennis for the
Nintendo 64.
Harry's starring roles:
Mario Golf (Nintendo 64) - 1999
=======================================================================
HARRY (2)
Occupation: Tennis player
Only appearance: Mario Tennis (2000)
A beefy, tall netter with dark spiky hair and a goatee, this Harry is one
of the players made unlockable by connecting the Game Boy Color
Mario Tennis to the Nintendo 64 version. He's a different character
than the Mario Golf Harry.
Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) - 2000
=======================================================================
HAWKMOUTH
[Japanese name: Door Guard]
Occupation: Angry aperture
First appearance: Super Mario Bros. 2 (1988)
A surprise boss and the last obstacle before our heroes can fight Wart
and his bad dream machine. Hawkmouth is actually just the bird-
shaped gate players enter at the end of every level in Super Mario
Bros. 2. Pick up Birdo's crystal ball and voila! - Hawkmouth opens
wide and you hope in. In the final stage, however, picking up the
crystal ball makes the bird's face pop off the wall and chase our hero
around the room. Tossing a few mushroom blocks at him stops
Hawkmouth in his tracks and opens the way to Wart's chamber.
It's not a typo that Hawkmouth's first appearance is listed as Super
Mario Bros. 2 and not Doki Doki Panic; in the original version, the
ending gate looked like a human's face or an African mask.
Hawkmouth was an original creation for the American version of the
game.
Hawkmouth's appearances:
Super Mario Bros. 2 (NES) - 1988
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Super Mario Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2001
=======================================================================
HAYZEE
Occupation: Drama pansy
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
The fourth of Luigi's traveling buddies. He meets Hayzee, producer
from far-off Jazzafrazz Town, as he's looking for the fourth piece of
the Marvelous Compass, which will point him towards Princess Eclair.
It turns out the compass piece is incorporated into the Dramalala
Plaque, which is awarded to the winner of the annual Jazzafrazz Town
Drama Slam. Hayzee throws together a winning play titled "The
Mystery of the Fiery Hat of Social Awareness," in which Luigi plays
grass - as in, a patch of inanimate green stuff. He somehow wins the
slam anyway and Hayzee accompanies Luigi back to Rogueport. And
Hayzee has... green petals? Seriously, what kind of flower has green
petals?
Hayzee is a Crayzee Dayzee, a rather innocuous-looking generic
baddie who first appeared in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island.
They're basically a grinning little flower who sings. That's it. Nothing
too scary. They're pushovers in Yoshi's Island, but they're quite more
formidable in the Paper Mario's games, where their singing attacks are
hard to block.
=======================================================================
HEAVY ZED
Occupation: Beast of burden
Only appearance: Super Mario Land 2: Six Golden Coins (1992)
A sleepy owl who wakes up and gives Mario a ride when Mario jumps
on him.
=======================================================================
HELIO
[Japanese name: Balloon Spirit]
Occupation: Hot-air boss
First appearance: Wario Land 3 (2000)
The seventh boss in Wario Land 3, Helio is a difficult character to
decsribe. Picture two red balloons that got attached to each other, kind
of in a figure eight. Now imagine the top balloon wasn't happy about
it. Many people also claim Helio looks a little like Mr. Hanky from
"South Park." They're right, though please remember that Helio is a
balloon and not poop. Anyway, there you have Helio. Wario fights
him in a stage called "The Desert Ruins."
Helio pops up again - excuse the pun - in Dr. Mario 64. He's a boss
as well as a playable character in the game's multiplayer mode. He's
cooler than most of the Wario Land imports in Dr. Mario 64, if you
want my opinion. And he makes a cool "ffft" noise whenever he
makes a smooth move.
Helio's starring roles:
Wario Land 3 (Game Boy Color) - 2000
Dr. Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Nintendo Puzzle Collection (Gamecube) - 2003
=======================================================================
HEN [new]
Occupation: The Camilla to Wario's Gonzo
Only appearance: Wario Land II (1998)
This one slipped past me completely. I only realized that this female
chicken character figured into the Marioverse after reading her profile
on the Super Mario Wiki.
Apparently, Wario has a pet hen in Wario Land II. The hen's name is
"Hen." (I know. Seems lame, but after all, Yoshi's name is "Yoshi.")
Anyway, one story in chapter two of the game apparently revolves
entirely around returning Hen to her nest, from which she was
apparently roused when the Brown Sugar Pirates attacked Wario's
hideout. Shockingly, Wario seems to care more about Hen than money
- a first! - but the profile also notes that Hen repeatedly tries to
escape Wario while being delivered back to her nest. Thus, one could
assume the affection Wario has for Hen is not necessarily returned.
And really - could you blame her?
=======================================================================
HENRY and ORVILLE
[Japanese name: Juan and Ted]
Occupation: Hide-and-seek haunts
Only appearance: Luigi's Mansion (2001)
Twin brothers named after two figures known for their historical
contributions to transportation: Henry Ford, inventor of the
automobile, and Orville Wright, half of the aviating duo that
performed the first successful human flight. Luigi can summon them
by spinning the airplane mobile in their bedroom. They'll want Luigi
to play hide and seek, though if he wins he'll have to fight them.
Orville flies a toy plane that drops bombs, while Henry drives a little
car. If Luigi can displace them from their rides, though, he can suck
them up into his vacuum.
Since Henry and Orville's room is in the same wing of the house as
Neville, Lydia and Chauncey's rooms, I'd assume they're supposed to
be the older sons in this ghost family.
=======================================================================
HERMIE III
Occupation: Decorator crab
Only appearance: Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003)
Hermie the lisping hermit crab gets his claws on the Beanstar piece
that floats to Gwahar Lagoon. Dazzled by its glow, he puts it atop his
shell, which he has stylishly decorated like a Christmas tree. When the
Mario Bros. first arrive to retrieve the Beanstar piece, Hermie first
mistakes Mario for Santa Claus - or more properly, "Thanta Clauth"
- then challenges Mario and Luigi to a fight.
Hermie is aided in his aesthetic efforts by three sunbathing fishgirls,
none of whom I believe have names.
=======================================================================
HERRINGWAY
Occupation: Mystery novelist
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
A penguin who lives in snow-covered Shiver Town and writes murder
mysteries. Herringway, whose name is a play on that of novelist Ernest
Hemmingway, is a bit of a recluse, but Mario must find him when the
wife of the Shiver Town mayor accuses Mario of murdering her
husband. (Honestly, I never thought I'd see the word "murder" pop up
in a Mario game.) In the end, the mayor revived from having fainted,
Herringway clears Mario's name and the mayor's excitable wife
decides not to read Herringway's novels anymore.
Herringway, the mayor, his wife and all the other residents of Shiver
Town are modeled on Bumpty, a penguin character from Super Mario
World 2: Yoshi's Island. This model is distinctly different from that of
Tuxie and the other penguins in Super Mario 64.
This character doesn't show up in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year
Door, but that doesn't stop the penguins of Poshley Heights from
dropping his name. Most of them even claim to be a relative of
Herringway's.
=======================================================================
HOGGLE
Occupation: Hotdog vendor
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A pig who runs a hotdog stand outside the Glitz Pit in Glitzville.
Shortly into Mario's Glitzville adventure, he gets word that Hoggle
has a new item on the menu: the Southern Fried Egg Dogg of
Tastiness, made with a special egg imported from a faraway land.
When Mario goes to check out this new product, he finds Hoggle
chasing what is clearly a Yoshi egg. Mario catches the egg and Hoggle
agrees to let him keep it, as people generally don't like eating food that
moves.
=======================================================================
HIYOIHOI [new]
Occupation: Stony guardian
Only appearance: Super Mario Land (1989)
Fitting in perfectly with the Easter Island-like scenery of Sarasaland's
Easton Kingdom, Hiyoihoi is a living stone head whom Mario must
beat in order to advance the game's fourth and last world. Hiyoihoi
hurls boulders - generic enemies called "Ganachans" - at Mario,
but Mario can leap on top of them and peg the fiend with Superballs.
Hiyoihoi evolves from the generic Tokotoko baddie, which also looks
like a living Easter Island stone head.
Image link: gamehiker.com/gallery/displayimage.php?album=77&pos=23
=======================================================================
HIZZA
Occupation: Eater of maidens
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A two-headed snake that Luigi fights during his adventures on the
Strudel Continent. Luigi wears the dress of the mayor's daughter in an
effort to dupe Hizza and then fight him. Defying physics, Hizza's two
heads eat each other. Luigi wins.
Of course, since we only hear of Luigi's adventures, Hizza is never
seen. I wonder if he'd look like a two-headed version of Triclyde from
Super Mario Bros. 2.
=======================================================================
HOOHOOROS
[Japanese name: Ufurosu]
Occupation: Stone idol
Only appearance: Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003)
A stone guardian of Hoohoo Mountain that was built an ancient
civilization. When Mario and Luigi fight him, he evades their attacks
by ducking behind huge stone pillars.
=======================================================================
HOOKBILL THE KOOPA
[Japanese name: Big Nokonoko]
Occupation: Overgrown Koopa Troopa
Only appearance: Super Mario World: Yoshi's Island (1995)
Hookbill waits Yoshi and Baby Mario on a cloud-shrouded platform
high above the final stage of the fourth world. He's really nothing
more than a normal red Koopa Troopa pumped up by Kamek's steroid
magic. Despite his average nature, Hookbill keeps showing up. He's a
boss in Tetris Attack and part of the festive décor in the Baby Park
racetrack in Mario Kart: Double Dash!!
Hookbill's starring roles:
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super NES) - 1995
Tetris Attack - (Super NES) - 1996
Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3 (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Other appearances:
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (Gamecube) - 2003
=======================================================================
HOOKTAIL
[Japanese name: Gonbaba]
Occupation: Big bad dragon
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A massive red dragon who patrols the skies above Petalburg and
snacks on hapless passers-by, including Koops' father, Koopley. She's
easily one of the biggest enemies Mario's ever fought, but that does
not deter Mario from marching into her castle and putting up his
dukes.
Fortunately, Mario learns Hooktail's secret weakness: she hates "the
thing that begins with 'cr' and ends with 'icket.'" Apparently, Hooktail
ate a bad cricket once and got some nasty food poisoning. Now, just
the mere sound of a cricket chirping puts knots in her stomach. Mario
cleverly equips the Attack FX R badge, which makes Mario's hammer
sound like crickets, and begins pounding away. Hooktail proves to be
a bit of a pushover - until she leaps towards the audience watching
the battle and starts gobbling up Toads. Eventually, Mario stomps him
for good and Koops' father emerges from Hooktail's belly to present
the Diamond Star, the first of the Crystal Stars.
Keeping with the papery theme of the Paper Mario series, Hooktail
seems to be composed entirely of origami. And Mario doesn't actually
learn Hooktail's true gender until he fights her older brother,
Gloomtail, in the Palace of Shadow at the end of the game.
Several readers have noted that Hooktail bears a passing resemblance
to the Czar Dragon from Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven
Stars.
=======================================================================
HOOT
Occupation: Nocturnal owl
First appearance: Super Mario 64 (1996)
If Mario jumps into one of the trees at the base of Whomp's
Fortress, he'll wake Hoot, a sleeping owl. Since he's awake, Hoot
will offer to give Mario a lift to the top of the castle. By holding
the A button, Mario can stay airborne with Hoot as long as he
wants, though he should let go at the height of the flight to make
getting the star in this level much easier.
A down-on-his-luck Hoot also appears as a gambler in Super
Mario Advance.
Hoot's appearances:
Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1996
Super Mario 64 Shindou Verson (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Super Mario 64 DS (Nintendo DS) - 2004
Mario Party Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
=======================================================================
HUFF N. PUFF
Occupation: Rambunctious rain cloud
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
Huff N. Puff is Bowser's minion in Flower Fields. He would like to
block the sun out forever, transforming Flower Fields into a cloud's
paradise - and a flower's nightmare. Once Mario destroys the Puff
Puff Machine, the clouds vanish and Mario can grow a beanstalk into
an area called Cloud Climb. There, he fights Huff N. Puff and frees the
sixth star spirit.
=======================================================================
IL PIANTISSIMO
[Japanese name: Monteman]
Occupation: Runner
Only appearance: Super Mario Sunshine (2002)
A dude who will race Mario at several points in Super Mario
Sunshine. When and if Mario wins, Il Piantissimo will cough up a
Shine Sprite, much as Koopa the Quick does with stars in Super Mario
64. Perhaps to mask the shame of losing a footrace to an overweight
plumber, Il Piantissimo wears a disguise. He looks human - notably,
with darker skin than most human-types in the Marioverse do - but
he wears a purple Pianta mask, gloves and boots, none of which I'd
think would make him a better competitive runner.
Though he's a minor character, the game's closing image (for players
who haven't got all the Shine Sprites or blue coins) is one of Il
Piantissimo standing on the beach, looking pensively at Bowser Jr.'s
discarded Gaddbrush. Whether the resident runner is considering a life
of crime, we never find out.
In Italian, Il Piantissimo's name means, as best as I can translate it,
"the most plant." "Pianta" means "plant," but it's also the name of the
tree-headed residents of Isle Delfino.
A reader calling himself TSPhoenix points out that Il PIantissimo
looks a lot the running man from Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.
Same white clothes. Same dark skin. Same laugh. He's just wearing a
Pianta mask. And we all know how popular masks are in Hyrule.
=======================================================================
IMAJIN (and his family)
Occupation: Heroic brother
Only appearance: Doki Doki Panic (1987)
Although not officially a Mario character, Imajin appears in Doki Doki
Panic, the Japanese from which the American Super Mario Bros. 2
was born. Kacy Shelley tells me that Imajin and his family are actually
the mascots of Fuji TV's annual Yume Kojo festival. Doki Doki Panic
was released to promote the 1987 festival, and, most interestingly,
Shelley claims that Shigeru Miyamoto had more involvement with the
programming of Doki Doki Panic than he did with Super Mario Bros:
The Lost Levels - the "other" sequel to the original Super Mario
Bros.
Imajin most likely ended up becoming Mario in the transformation,
though the turban and blue pants in Imajin's sprite make him look
more like Toad than Mario. In the story, Wart - called "Mamu" in
Japan - nabs two children through a magical storybook and the kids'
family sets out to rescue them: big brother Imajin, big sis Lina, Mama
and Papa. The family is dressed in traditional Arabian garb - or at
least as close as 8-bit graphics let the designers approximate - and
this fits in with Doki Doki Panic's general Arabian feel. Much of this
atmosphere was lost in the translation. Things like the Arabian lamps
that opened the door to subs-space were replaced with the bubbling
potions familiar to American gamers. However, certain elements
remained, like the presence of the red-striped jars and Pidgit's magic
carpet.
Imajin's family:
LINA
[alternate spelling: Lina]
Lina is clearly the analogue for Princess Peach; she wears pink and can
glide through the air.
=====
MAMA
The tall, skinny mother character clearly became Luigi, though Mama
lacks Luigi's signature bicycle kick when she jumps.
=====
PAPA
Stout and squat, Papa became the heavy-lifting Toad. His turban
transformed nicely into Toad's mushroom cap.
=======================================================================
INVISO
Occupation: Transparent tough
Only appearance: Yoshi's Story (1998)
One of the four mid-bosses Yoshi may face, depending on which
stages he challenges. True to his name, Inviso cannot be seen.
However, he can be pelted with eggs. Yoshi should do so.
=======================================================================
ISHNAIL
Occupation: Boss brigand
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
Chief of criminal operations on Rogueport's east side and the chief
rival to Don Pianta, who oversees the west side. The two factions are
waging a small-scale gang war for control of Rogueport. Ishnail
actually seems like a nice enough guy though. Once Mario finds the
hidden entrance to Ishnail's hangout, he helpfully explains to Mario
the easiest way to contact Don Pianta, from whom Mario needs a
favor.
Though he looks an awful lot like a Koopa Troopa, Ishnail is, in fact, a
snail. You can tell by his shell. Since Rogueport is a maritime city, I'd
guess his name is supposed to be a pun on "Ishmael," the name of the
narrator from Moby Dick. The first Paper Mario made a similar pun
with "Fishmael," the name of the character who fished in Toad Town
harbor.
=======================================================================
JAGGER
[Japanese name: Nokoyan]
Occupation: Martial arts student
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
Jinx's student, whom Mario must fight before he can fight Jinx. Jagger
is a Koopa Troopa who fled the Koopa Troop when Smithy's gang
proved to tough. In the vein of the Koopalings and Reznor, Jagger
likely takes his name from a singer: Rolling Stones frontman Mick
Jagger.
=======================================================================
JAMANO
Occupation: Salty boss
Only appearance: Wario Land 3 (2000)
The eighth boss in Wario Land 3, Jamano is a pirate ghosts who
attacks with a barrage of glowing skulls. I haven't played this game
and don't know much about Jamano other than what Shdwrlm3 posted
in his Wario Land 3 guide at GameFAQs. Anybody with further
information will be greatly appreciated.
=======================================================================
JARVIS
[Japanese name: Shibon]
Occupation: Pottery ghost
Only appearance: Luigi's Mansion (2001)
When Luigi stumbles into the ceramics studio, he finds Jarvis, the jar-
loving ghost. Jarvis asks Luigi to play a whack-a-mole style game
before he'll let Luigi fight him. According to his bio on Luigi's Game
Boy Horror, Jarvis likes his jar collection so much that he now lives
inside a jar.
=======================================================================
JELLYBOB
[Japanese name: Ikukakotengu]
Occupation: Well-gelled boss
First appearance: Wario Land 3 (2000)
The fifth boss in Wario Land 3, Jellybob is an electric jellyfish that
Wario fights in the stage called "Sea Turtle Rocks." The same
character shows up again as a boss in the story mode of Dr. Mario 64.
Players can also select him in the game's multiplayer mode.
Jellybob's starring roles:
Wario Land 3 (Game Boy Color) - 2000
Dr. Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Nintendo Puzzle Collection (Gamecube) - 2003
=======================================================================
JELLYFISH SISTERS
[Japanese names: Eren and Ganton]
Occupation: Masseuses
Only appearance: Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003)
Twin sisters who own the Relaxation Room at Gwarhar Lagoon.
They're beautiful and use words like "wowser" and "super duper."
Gigi wears the red dress; Merri wears the green one. For two hundred
coins, they'll give Mario and Luigi a massage, but when the brothers'
hands ignite, Gigi and Merri will realize that the brothers are masters
of the Firebrand and Thunderhand techniques, respectively.
They take Mario and Luigi to a lair beneath their massage parlor and
teach them two special hand techniques: Luigi learns to electrically
bond with Mario and move in unison, while Mario learns to use fire to
send Luigi dashing across the room. They then demand that Mario and
Luigi fetch them the Pearl Beans, a red and green pair of special beans.
If Mario and Luigi refuse, the sisters will charge them ten thousand
coins.
=======================================================================
JERRY
Occupation: Bob-Omb buddy
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
The second of the traveling partners Luigi picks up during his never-
seen quest to rescue Princess Eclair. Jerry accompanies Luigi to
Plumpbelly Village, where he suffers the indignity of seeing Luigi
dressed up as a bride. Then they fight a two-headed snake or
something. The details aren't that clear to me anymore.
Jerry's a fruit red color and it place of his fuse he has a stem. Get it?
Jerry? Cherry? Cherry bomb? You got it, right?
=======================================================================
JIMMY T. (and his family) [new]
[also known as Jimmy]
Occupation: Disco king
First appearance: WarioWare, Inc. (2003)
Jimmy T., a hip dude with a Wario nose and a perfect blue afro, is
dancing at Diamond City's disco, Club Sugar, when his phone rings.
Bam! - welcome to Jimmy's sport-themed games. Every time the
player loses a game, Jimmy's cell battery depletes just a little. No
more battery and you've lost Jimmy's games. Jimmy's series of games
are the second one players take on in WarioWare, after an introduction
from Wario, though Jimmy shows up twice more to challenge the
player with remixes of other characters' microgames.
Eventually, the player can unlock Chiritorie, a game based on a
remote-controlled vacuum cleaner that Nintendo released in Japan in
1979. In the Chiritorie microgame, one player controls the Game Boy
Advances L button and another controlled the R button and each
directs a vacuum cleaner toward crumpled-up paper wads. Whoever
gets a hundred points first wins, but he or she will have to avoid
Jimmy, who wanders onscreen to clog up the vacuums.
Jimmy shows up again in WarioWare: Twisted, in which he seems to
have never left the dancefloor at Club Sugar. Now, however, he's
busting a move with his folks, Mama T. and Papa T., much to the
annoyance of the club owner, who just wants them to eat their dinner
and go home. Jimmy's microgame set, Big Tipper, demands that the
player drastically rotate their Game Boy Advance to win.
In WarioWare: Touched, Jimmy and his family return once again to
the dance floor - cell phones in tow, no doubt - but Jimmy's
groove-busting is interrupted by an unfriendly beetle referred to in the
credits as Scratchy the Fro Bug. True to his name, Scratchy irritates
Jimmy something awful, but his family merely mimics his itch-
generated gyrations, thinking they're new dance moves. Scratchy's
nuisance then spawns Jimmy's microgame set, Dance Club Rub, in
which the player must make short, quick movements with the
Nintendo DS stylus to win. On the walk home, Scratchy strikes again,
but his family doesn't notice. "There he goes again," they comment.
With his giant afro and superior sense of style, this guy is easily my
favorite addition to Mario mythos in a long time. I'd like nothing
better than to see him absorbed into the Mario Party-Tennis-Golf-Kart
circuit, but we'll just have to wait and see.
Jimmy T.'s starring roles:
WarioWare, Inc. (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$ (Gamecube) - 2003
Other appearances:
Wario World (Gamecube) - 2003
=====
MAMA T. and PAPA T. [new]
Occupation: Matriarch and patriarch of one groovy family
First appearance: WarioWare: Twisted (2005)
Mama T.'s the one with the orange dress and apron. Papa T. sports a
green pin-stripe business suit. I don't know if Jimmy inherited his
funky sense of style from his folks or if they're just biting his style, but
Mama T. and Papa T's cotton candy afros and 3-D glasses are a dead
giveaway of the family resemblance.
Jimmy's folks debut in WarioWare: Twisted, where they party with
their son at Club Sugar. Later, the player can unlock Mama and Papa
in their own set of microgames: the Family Scramble, which tosses out
random games from other characters' sets.
In WarioWare: Touched, Mama and Papa cameo again in Jimmy's
story sequence, but they sit out when it comes to microgames, instead
allowing their younger children to party.
Mama T. and Papa T's starring role:
WarioWare: Twisted! (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
Other appearances:
WarioWare: Touched! (Nintendo DS) - 2005
=====
JAMIE T. [new]
Occupation: Jimmy's disco-fabulous sister
Only appearance: WarioWare: Touched (2005)
A dance floor cutie in a mini-skirt, Jamie T. is just another entry in a
long-line of T family hipsters. Her microgame set, Jamie's Mix,
features snippets from Wario, Mona and Jimmy's sets.
=====
JAMES T. [new]
Occupation: Self-described chick magnet
Only appearance: WarioWare: Touched (2005)
Portly James T., who just might be the youngest member of Jimmy's
family, doesn't let his gut stop him from grooving along with the rest
of his family. His microgame set, James' Mix, challenges the player
with random games from Crygor, Ashley and Kat and Ana's sets.
It's probably a case of the cultural disconnect between Japan and the
United States, but I'll bet whoever created this character didn't realize
that "Jimmy" is a nickname for "James." Or maybe Mama and Papa T.
were just too busy dancing to ever notice.
=======================================================================
JINX
[Japanese name: Jackie]
Occupation: Sensei
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
This flea-sized sensei operates a dojo in Monstro Town. If Mario can
beat him three times - and Jinx hits harder each time - Jinx will
award Mario his karate belt, the emblem of his power. He also declares
Mario the new sensei and Mario Style the dojo's new in-house martial
art.
In Japan, Jinx was called Jackie. I'd guess that that name - like the
name of the martial arts student Chan in Paper Mario - is a reference
to martial arts superstar Jackie Chan.
=======================================================================
JOE
Occupation: Golfer
Only appearance: Mario Golf (2000)
A dancing machine and one of the generic human characters can chose
when they embark on a new golfing quest.
Like Azalea, Joe is also playable in the Nintendo 64 version of Mario
Golf for players with the proper equipment. His name and stats,
however, are variable.
Joe's starring roles:
Mario Golf (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Mario Golf (Game Boy Color) - 2000
Mario Golf: Advance Tour (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
JOJORA
Occupation: Ice spirit
Only appearance: Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003)
A blue spirit who inhabits the icy fortress at Joke's End, Beanbean
Kingdom's version of Antarctica. Jojora claims Joke's End is the
playground of people like her, though there doesn't seem to be that
many people hanging around to play with. She then taunts Mario and
Luigi throughout the fortress that they'll never be able to figure out its
mazes and puzzles. They prove Jojora wrong, of course, and
eventually fight her and one playmate of their choosing: Chucklissa,
Oholina, Hoohoolia and Teeheena. (Whichever playmate the player
chooses has not effect on the ensuing battle; the four girls are just
palette swaps of the same hulking freight train of a girl.) The
playmate's the one to look out for, too. Jojora may try to strike Mario
or Luigi with her vanity mirror, but a well-timed counterattack will
send Jojora away crying.
Once beaten, Jojora will deem Mario and Luigi "uncool" and flee for
good.
=======================================================================
JONATHAN JONES
[also known as Johnny]
Occupation: Pirate captain
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
Jonathan captains the ship that holds a most valuable treasure: the fifth
Star Piece. I doubt the ship will travel very far, seeing as how it's a
sunken wreck at the bottom of the sea. In any case, this shark pirate
and his band will challenge Mario to a duel before he'll relinquish the
prize. At first, Mario and two of Mario's allies fight Johnny and four
of his pirate chums. Midway through the fight, Johnny will challenge
Mario to go one-on-one - Mario's hammer versus Johnny's trident.
Beating Johnny earns Mario his respect. When Mario gets duped by
Yaridovich, one of Smithy's cronies, into giving up the Star Piece,
Johnny and his pirates prevent Yaridovich from escaping.
=======================================================================
JR. TROOPA
[Japanese name: Kowappa]
Occupation: Hatchling hell-raiser
First appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
Though he's not even fully hatched from his shell yet, Jr. Troopa's
already starting trouble. He's the local bully in the woods near
Goomba Village. Mario and Goompa show him what's for, though
he's not much of a match for Mario's might. Goombario explains that
one of Jr. Troopa's hobbies is ordering things by mail. That's probably
where get gets all the gadgets he uses in each subsequent, increasingly
harder battles: a harder shell, a spike top, wings and a wand that
produces a Magikoopa-type hex attack.
Jr. Troopa never seems to learn his lesson. By following Mario all over
the world - even Bowser's castle! - for a rematch, he ends up
fighting Mario seven different times.
The little guy seems persistant enough to even cameo in Paper Mario:
The Thousand-Year Door. He's lurking in the background of the photo
Zip Toad emails Mario.
Jr. Troopa's starring roles:
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Other appearances:
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Gamecube) - 2004
=======================================================================
KAMEK
[Japanese name: Kame]
Occupation: Head Magikoopa
First appearance: Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island
"The babies are mine!"
A cackling Koopa wizard who molded Bowser into the menace he is
today - and one of the most neglected characters in Mario mythos.
When you think about it, it's Kamek - not Bowser - who sparked
the feud between the Koopa Kingdom and the Mario Bros. Kamek, the
head of the bespectacled, blue-robed Koopa Troopa wizards called
"Magikoopas," foresees all the trouble Mario and Luigi would cause
for the Koopas and intercepts the Stork carrying Baby Mario and Baby
Luigi to their parents. A blue blur on a broomstick, Kamek buzzes the
stork but botches the kidnapping by missing the stork instead of the
baby with the red hat.
With the help of the Yoshies, Baby Mario treks across Yoshi's Island
to find his brother. Kamek, however, doesn't make the journey any
easier. He routinely shows up at boss battles to either make monsters
grow to a gigantic size - as he does with most enemies - or make
Yoshi and Baby Mario shrink to flyspeck proportions - as with the
battle against Prince Froggy.
Since Kamek shadows the Yoshies throughout the game, he's really
the game's true villain, even if he never confronts the heroes directly.
In the end, Kamek's magic explodes the game's final fight into goliath
proportions. Baby Bowser, magically supersized, bounds from a
distance towards Yoshi and Baby Bowser, but Kamek's charge falls all
the same. Kamek swoops in on his flying magic wand, snatches up
Baby Bowser and zooms away, swearing revenge and still cackling.
(In fact, Kamek actually does get his revenge. Players can unlock
secret stages by getting perfect scores in all stages in a given world.
The secret stage in the fifth world is titles "Kamek's Revenge." Yoshi
must hop across a broken bridge and Kamek buzzes through, trying to
knock Baby Mario off Yoshi's back.)
Kamek's appeared next in Tetris Attack, a puzzle game based on the
pixie-populated Panel du Pon. Kamek was one of the four bosses,
alongside Hookbill the Koopa, the Naval Piranha and a noticeably
adult Bowser.
Save a brief flyby over one of the Bowser Castle tracks in the Game
Boy Advance version of Mario Kart, Kamek's basically disappeared
from the video game scene - even Yoshi's Story, the direct sequel to
the game in which he debuted. And at that, the Magikoopa in that
stage could honestly be any Magikoopa.
Early screenshots from Mario Kart 64, however, showed a
bespectacled Magikoopa in the spot that the remodlled Donkey Kong
eventually occupied. None of the screenshots I ever saw actually
labeled this character as Kamek, though considering the short span of
time between Kamek's debut in Super Mario World 2 and Mario Kart
64, it wouldn't be entirely unrealistic to think this was Kamek. It's a
moot point now, of course.
There's actually a trend in Mario-related storylines to show Bowser
being close with a certain Magikoopa that seems more powerful than
the rest. In the Super Mario World comics that ran in Nintendo Power
a few years back, for example, Bowser clearly had a bearded confidant
Magikoopa whom he trusted more than the rest of the Koopa Troop. A
similar thing happens in Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars.
When Mario, Bowser and company storm Bowser's Keep, he
encounters a certain Magikoopa who seems especially close to
Bowser. He doesn't have a name, but you could draw some parallels
with Kamek if you wanted to.
Nowadays, Kamek seems to have been semi-retired, though he
appeared briefly - and unexpectedly - in Mario and Luigi: Superstar
Saga. He wore a white robe and lived in Little Fungitown, where he
performed hypnosis on Luigi to give him the courage to infiltrate
Guffawha Ruins on his own. The Little Fungitown residents called
him "Psycho Kamek."
The position of Bowser's confidant has otherwise been filled Kammy,
a female Magikoopa who could well be Kamek's wife or sister. In
fact, Kamek and Kammy would have been great as a team in Mario
Kart: Double Dash!! - much better than, say, Baby Mario and Baby
Luigi. But hey, that's just me. And on that note, I thought I'd mention
that Wario765, a sharp-eyed gamer posting at the GameFAQs board
for Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, brought to my attention that one of the
attractions in the background of the Baby Park stage is "Kamek's
Magic Show." Neatness.
In Mario Party 5, Kamek appears as a capsule event item, the
activation of which allows Kamek to magically shuffle all the player's
other capsule event items. Hudson Soft saw fit to differentiate Kamek
from a normal Magikoopa, apparently, as there's a separate capsule
event for a generic Magikoopa in the same game.
And in Mario Party Advance, Kamek appears as the leader of a band,
the Kamek Krew. One of the game's mini-quests involves finding the
band a place to play.
Kamek's Japanese name translates as "turtle."
Kamek's starring roles:
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super NES) - 1995
Tetris Attack (Super NES) - 1996
Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3 (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Other appearances:
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (Super NES) - 1996 (?)
Mario Kart: Super Circuit (Game Boy Advance) - 2001
Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Party 5 (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Party 6 (Gamecube) - 2004
Mario Party Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
=======================================================================
KAMMY KOOPA
[Japanese name: Kamebaba]
Occupation: Koopa consort
First appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
Evil rides a purple broomstick.
Kammy, who introduces herself to Mario as a "beautiful Koopa
with a beautiful name," makes life difficult in Paper Mario.
Conceivably Kamek's successor as the top advisor and black
magician to Bowser, Kammy buzzes around throughout Paper
Mario, always causing trouble and trying to prematurely end
Mario's quest to retrieve the Star Rod.
Kammy, whose last name "Koopa" makes her relationship to
Bowser ambiguous, looks a lot like Kamek with pointier glasses, a
purple hat and a white witch hair. Her personality isn't that much
different either, always ready with a cackle or a spell to harm
Mario and his friends. (In fact, it's also not that different from that
of Koume and Kotake, the twin pint-sized witches who flank
Ganondorf in Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.) Whenever Mario
tromps another one of Bowser's goons, Kammy's there to reassure
her boss that the next foe will be even more invincible.
Before the final showdown between Mario and Bowser, Peach gets
a chance to take on Kammy, whose method of attack consists of
teleporting large blocks and then dropping them on Peach's buddy
Twink. Because stars are powered by people's wishes, however,
Peach's prayers give Twink just the boost he needs to knock
Kammy off her broom. When Bowser's castle destructs, it would
seem that Kammy got her just deserts, yet she shows up for the
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. In fact, she's the only
character introduced in the first Paper Mario to have a significant
role in the second. Kammy shows up in amusing cutscenes with
Bowser. They're trying to figure out who has kidnapped Peach and
how they might get their hands on a Crystal Star of their own, only
they're completely incompetent at it. They finally meet up with
Mario at the end of the game. Kammy and Bowser together mark
the second-to-last battle in the game. While Mario's stomping
them, in fact, Grodus makes off with Peach to the chamber of the
Shadow Queen.
Kammy's Japanese name roughly translates as "old lady turtle" or
"turtle witch." GameFAQs user, ShinigamiMaxwell, informed me
of an interesting connection between Kamek and Kammy and a
plotline in the original Dragonball series. In it, Goku meets a
character named Kame Sen'nin - or in English, the Turtle Hermit.
That character has a fortune teller sister named Kame Baba.
Kammy's starring roles:
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Gamecube) - 2004
=======================================================================
KAOS
Occupation: Rampaging robot
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double
Trouble (1996)
A giant contraption created by K. Rool. It's the last obstable in the
Mekanos area of Donkey Kong Country 3. Dixie can conquer KAOS
easily, but she'll encounter it again in the final confrontation with K.
Rool's mad scientist personaility, Baron K. Roolenstein. Once Dixie
busts KAOS open, she'll find that K. Rool is using the brain power of
the kidnapped Donkey and Diddy to power it.
KAOS's starring roles:
Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie's Double Trouble (Super NES) - 1996
Donkey Kong Land 3 (Game Boy) - 1997
=======================================================================
KAT and ANA (and pets) [new]
Occupation: Ninjas
First appearance: WarioWare, Inc. (2003)
A pair of adorable but fearsome ninja girls. You can tell them apart
easily by noting tha Kat has a single, erect ponytail while Ana has
pigtails. According to in-game dialogue in WarioWare: Touched!, the
two are sisters.
Late one night, a skeletal samurai demon named Boneheads descends
on the local pagoda and possesses its owner - who is, of course, you.
Immediately, Ana and her band of ninjas rushes to dispatch
Boneheads, but the demon makes quick work of them, tying Ana up
and leaving her hanging. Ana's only hope is her messenger bird, Don,
with whom she sends a note: "Ninja girl, save me!" The recipient is
her friend Kat, who then travels from her homeland - which looks a
lot like Japan but couldn't be, because Japan shouldn't exist in Wario's
world - to kill Boneheads and free Ana.
Kat and her dog, Paw, enter the pagoda and the player can begin Kat
and Ana's series of nature games. Like the rest, they're strange, so be
prepared to play a snail trying to eat a leaf or a cute little girl with a
watering can trying to hydrate a potted flower.
When victorious, players get to see Kat's dog transform into a might
blade, which Kat uses to cleave Boneheads into pieces. She and Ana
then go for a well-deserved snack at the gelateria. Later, players can
also unlock a special game featuring the two ninja girls: Jump Forever.
In it, players Wario must jump over a jump rope as Kat and Ana,
dressed in kimonos, turn it more and more quickly.
The twosome appear again in WarioWare: Twisted. Their game set,
Tap Out, demands the player to make subtle movements with the
Game Boy Advance will simultaneously tapping the A button. Kat and
Ana's cut scene story involves them straying from the group during a
Ninja Elementary School field trip. Kat happens onto a bee hive,
which chase both girls into an abandoned cabin, whereupon they are
ambushed by an angry goblin. Soon enough, Kat and Ana's respective
pets tumble into the cabin and KO the goblin, installing just enough of
a false sense of security for the girls to step outside - and once again
into the swarm of bees, which chases them back to Diamond City.
More hijinks abound in WarioWare: Touched!, as the girls chase down
an apparent banana thief. With Shadow and Shuriken in tow, the girls
corner the person who stole Ana's bananas: a cute monkey. The girls
gush and decided to name the simian "Numchuck" and take him home.
This little storyline gives way for Kat and Ana's microgames, which
are grouped under the title "Ninja Scribble." Appropriately, all of them
require writing-type movements with the Nintendo DS stylus.
Incidentally, Kat and Ana's names together form the word "katana," a
traditional Japanese sword.
Kat and Ana's appearances:
WarioWare, Inc. (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$ (Gamecube) - 2003
WarioWare: Twisted! (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
WarioWare: Touched! (Nintendo DS) - 2005
Other appearances:
Wario World (Gamecube) - 2003
====
SHURIKEN
Occupation: Attack bird
First appearance: WarioWare, Inc. (2003)
[also known as Don]
Shuriken, the pet hawk who in the first WarioWare game is called
"Don," belongs to Ana and aides her in her adventures. Shuriken is the
counterpart to Kat's pet, Shadow.
Technically, Shurkien looks a little fiecer than Don, but I assume since
both serve as Ana's stalwart animal companion, they're the same
character and that Nintendo just chose to rename and remodel the
original bird seem cooler. The name is appropriate as shurikens, like
the bird, are airborne attack weapons.
Shuriken's appearances:
WarioWare, Inc. (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$ (Gamecube) - 2003
WarioWare: Twisted! (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
WarioWare: Touched! (Nintendo DS) - 2005
====
SHADOW
Occupation: Faithful dog
First appearance: WarioWare, Inc. (2003)
[also known as Paw]
While Ana has a hawk, Kat has this canine character along for her
adventures. Originally called "Paw" in the first WarioWare, the
revamped Shadow seems to be the same character, if slightly redrawn.
Shadow's appearances:
WarioWare, Inc. (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$ (Gamecube) - 2003
WarioWare: Twisted! (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
WarioWare: Touched! (Nintendo DS) - 2005
===
NUMCHUCK
Only appearance: WarioWare: Touched! (2005)
A sweet little monkey who steals Ana's bananas. Upon realizing his
cuteness, the girls give him a name and make him their pet.
=======================================================================
KATE
Occupation: Tennis player
Only appearance: Mario Tennis (2000)
Like Alex, Kate is a generic human netter that I players could unlock
by hooking their Game Boy Color versions of Mario Tennis to their
Nintendo 64 versions via a special cable. I, however, never had this
cable and know nothing of Kate's appearance, behavior or tennis
abilities. Any pointers would be greatly appreciated.
=======================================================================
KATSINI [new]
Occupation: Purple... thing
Only appearance: Wario's Woods (1994)
A purple monster with big red eyes and a little suit like a magician's.
He's the first boss in Wario's Woods. Many have noted that Katsini
seems like he may be a member of whatever race Tatanga belongs to.
This claim, of course, is unsubstantiated.
=======================================================================
KEN [new]
[also known as Ken the Reporter, Ken the Veejay, Anchorman Ken]
Occupation: Diamond City talking head
Only appearance: WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$
A dog in a fez who works for the Diamond City news. He delivers the
report about the fad surrounding Pyoro, the hit Game Boy Advance
game-within-a-game. Later, he reports on the success of Wario's
game. In WarioWario: Twisted!, Ken has taken a desk job at the local
news agency, hence his new name, "Anchorman Ken." On-the-scene
reporting is handled by a Dalmatian named Rocky. In WarioWare:
Touched!, Ken apparently takes a job hosting "Ear Candy," a "TRL"-
style show on Diamond City's local music network.
Pizza Joe. Ken. Dribble. Rocky Anybody notice that there's a lot of
dogs living in Diamond City?
=======================================================================
KENT C. KOOPA
Occupation: Roadblock
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
A giant Koopa Troopa - though not as big as Hookbill - who blocks
Pleasant Path, which leads from Toad Town to Koopa Village. Kent's
toll: one hundred coins. He seems like a tough fight, but if Mario
stomps his tail rather than his body, he's a pushover.
=======================================================================
KEYZER [new]
Occupation: Living key
Only appearance: Wario Land Advance (2001)
A living, bird-like key Wario must snag to escape any level.
Image link: gamehiker.com/gallery/displayimage.php?album=106&pos=0
=======================================================================
KEZUNE
Occupation: Foxy boss
Only appearance: Wario Land 3 (2000)
A sorcerer fox whom Wario must fight at the end of the stage called
"The Pool of Rain." Kezune is the third boss in Wario Land 3.
I haven't played this game and don't know much about Kezune other
than what Shdwrlm3 posted in his Wario Land 3 guide at GameFAQs.
Anybody with further information will be greatly appreciated.
=======================================================================
KID
Occupation: Golfer
First appearance: Mario Golf (2000)
A ten-year-old golf whiz. Players can chose to play as Kid when they
start a new quest in the unique golfing sim-RPG. Kid is also playable
in the Nintendo 64 version of Mario Golf for players with the proper
equipment. His name and stats, however, are variable.
Kid appears again in Mario Golf: Advance Tour as the instructor of
Neil and Ella, the two generic characters whose stats you build by
playing golf. Apparently, some accident has rendered Kid unable to
golf anymore. But you still have to beat him. In a game of golf. Yeah,
you heard right.
Kid's starring roles:
Mario Golf (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Mario Golf (Game Boy Color) - 2000
Mario Golf: Advance Tour (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
KIDDY KONG
[Japanese name: Dinky Kong]
Occupation: Brawny baby
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie's Double Trouble
(1996)
A big baby.
Kiddy Kong accompanies Dixie Kong through the third Donkey Kong
Country adventure. He's a hefty toddler who looks nearly as big as
Donkey Kong himself. Clad in a light blue pair of footie pajamas,
Kiddy Kong is the brawn to Dixie Kong's brain. He also has a snazzy
attack move in which he snaps the feet of his pajamas at enemies.
Sources vary on exactly how Kiddy Kong is related to Dixie, but I've
heard he's her baby cousin. I've also read that Kiddy is the little
brother of Chunky Kong, one of the simian heroes from Donkey Kong
64.
Technically, Kiddy's only appearances are Donkey Kong Country 3
and its Game Boy incarnation, Donkey Kong Land 3. He popped up in
the promo shots for the now-cancelled Donkey Kong Racing, but we'll
just have to wait and see if he becomes a permanent part of the
Donkey Kong Country continuum.
In Japan, Kiddy Kong is known as Dinky Kong. In fact, the Japanese
name for Donkey Kong Land 3 is "Dixie Kong and Dinky Kong." I
think this name is much better, honestly. It keeps with the theme of all
the heroes from the Super NES Donkey Kong Country games having
the initials "D.K." Also, it helps him sound like a mini version of
Donkey Kong, which he essentially is, as far as muscle goes. Oh well.
Kiddy Kong's starring roles:
Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie's Double Trouble (Super NES) - 1996
Donkey Kong Land 3 (Game Boy) - 1997
=======================================================================
KING and QUEEN NIMBUS
[Japanese name: Papa Mallow and Mama Mallow]
Occupation: Puffy, fluffy monarchs
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
The rightful rulers of Nimbus Land. Once freed, they gladly welcome
Mallow back into their family, though no explanation is given for
Mallow's adoption by Frogfucius.
=======================================================================
KING BOO
[Japanese name: King Teresa, Boss Teresa; alternate spelling: Kingu
Teresa]
Occupation: Supreme spook
First appearance: Luigi's Mansion (2001)
When Luigi gets a special letter in the mail notifying him of having
won his own mansion, he was a bit suspicious - especially since he
never entered a contest to win one. The mansion, which materializes
mere days before Luigi arrived to check it out, is merely a ploy to
transform both Mario and Luigi into paintings. The ringleader of the
gang is a crown-wearing tongue-lolling ghost with a monarch
complex: King Boo. Luigi doesn't encounter King Boo until the
game's last battle. He pilots a Bowser robot and only shows his pale,
translucent face when Bowser's head pops off.
King Boo shows up again in Super Mario Sunshine in the casino of the
ghost-ridden Hotel Delfino on beautiful Sirena Beach. To defeat King
Boo, Mario has to toss King Boo's hot peppers into the ghost's mouth
and then pelt him with fruit while his ectoplasmic body is engulfed in
flames.
Subsequntly, King Boo appeared as a playable character in Mario
Kart: Double Dash!! He and his partner, Petey Piranha, were both
heavyweights who could use other characters' special weapons.
Ousting the Big Boo and Lady Bow as the senior specter, King Boo is
the most recent spin on the Boo character. Generic Boos have been
playable in Mario Party 5 and the Nintendo 64 version of Mario
Tennis. King Boo is just the second major Boo character since Bow to
actually have a name and a personality.
As Kirby021591 King Boo points out, King Boo and the Big Boo may
or may not be the same character. In Super Mario 64 DS, the Big Boo
apparently wears a crown, making him look a lot like King Boo. He
also has the King Boo cackle, which sounds lower and more raspy
than the regular Boo's cackle. Since Nintendo refers to them
differently and because King Boo was established as a character with a
name and personality and all that in Luigi's Mansion, I'm going to
continue to treat them separately, however.
MARIO KART: DOUBLE DASH!! DATA:
Partner: Petey Piranha
Personal racecar: Ghost Pipes
Special weapon: Anything! (King Boo and Petey can both use any
character's special moves.)
King Boo's starring roles:
Luigi's Mansion (Gamecube) - 2001
Super Mario Sunshine (Gamecube) - 2002
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Pinball Land (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
KING K
[Japanese name: Michael]
Occupation: Kingly competitor
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
He may not be all that regal, but this yellow-shelled Koopa Troopa
sure is friendly. When Mario first joins the Glitz Put fighting circuit,
King K offers some advice. King K is so nice that he doesn't even
seem very upset when Mario beats his team, the KP Koopas, in the
Glitz Pit.
Later, King K vanishes altogether. It seems he has fallen victim to
Grubba's energy sucking device and zapped into flatness, though he
somehow revives for Glitz Pit rematches.
=======================================================================
KING KALAMARI
[Japanese name: Takotsubagessoo]
Occupation: Ship-sinking squid
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
The super-sized squid responsible for sinking the ship that Jonathan
Jones and his band now reside in. Mario's party must first tackle King
Kalamari's tentacles individually before fighting the big guy himself.
=======================================================================
KING TOTOMESU [new]
Occupation: Sphinx guardian
Only appearance: Super Mario Land (1989)
This sphinx is the boss of Birabuto Kingdom, the Egyptian-themed
area of Sarasaland. He spits fire, but he shouldn't be too much trouble
for Mario.
Image link: gamehiker.com/gallery/displayimage.php?album=77&pos=49
=======================================================================
KING ZING STING
Occupation: Hum-dinger of a Zinger
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest
(1995)
Presimably the husband of Queen B/Bumble B Rumble, a boss from
the first Donkey Kong Country. King Zing Sting awaits in a giant
honeycomb at the end of Krazy Kremland, the fourth area of the game.
Diddy and Dixie actually sit this bout out while Squaks steps in,
hocking nuts at the king's stinger.
King Zing Sting's starring roles:
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (Super NES) - 1995
Donkey Kong Land 2 (Game Boy) - 1996
Donkey Kong Country 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
KLEEVAR
Occupation: Sentient sword
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest
(1995)
This floating sword may not have eyes, but it doesn't let that stop it
from trying to skewer Diddy and Dixie. He waits for them in the final
area of Crocodile Cauldron, the lava-bubbly second area of the game.
Kleevar's starring roles:
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (Super NES) - 1995
Donkey Kong Land 2 (Game Boy) - 1996
Donkey Kong Country 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
KLEPTO
[Japanese name: Jango]
Occupation: Hat-snatcher
First appearance: Super Mario 64 (1996)
A desert condor who will try to gank Mario's cap in Shifting Sand
Land. Mario can attack Klepto to knock him away, but Klepto won't
take any damage and will just jeep coming after that hat. Without his
hat, Mario takes more damage from enemies.
Hudson Soft rescued Klepto from obscurity with the Mario Party
games. The buzzard appears in some random mini-game in Mario
Party 4, I'm told. He also appears in Mario Party 5 as a capsule event
item; employing his services means getting an airlift to a spot on the
game board occupied by another player.
Klepto's appearances:
Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1996
Super Mario 64 Shindou Verison (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Mario Party 4 (Gamecube) - 2002
Mario Party 5 (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Pinball Land (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Super Mario 64 DS (Nintendo DS) - 2004
Mario Party 6 (Gamecube) - 2004
Mario Golf: Advance Tour (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
KLUBBA
Occupation: Doorman to the Lost World
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest
(1995)
A hulking Kremling who, true to his name, carries a giant club. He
won't shy away from swatting Diddy or Dixie with it unless they can
pay the fee to enter into the prehistoric Lost World. There, they can
challenge the game's hardest levels.
Don't confuse this Klubba with Clubba, the generic baddie from Paper
Mario.
Klubba's starring roles:
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (Super NES) - 1995
Donkey Kong Land 2 (Game Boy) - 1996
Donkey Kong Country 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
K. LUMSY
Occupation: Kremling klutz
Only appearance: Donkey Kong 64 (1999)
Let's just say that K. Rool and K. Lumsy aren't on good terms like
Mario and Luigi. When Donkey Kong first meets K. Rool's younger,
nicer brother, the poor guy's been imprisoned in a metallic box. That's
just not nice.
And just like K. Rool's name is a pun on "cruel," K. Lumsy is a pun
on "clumsy" - which he is.
=======================================================================
KNIFE GUY
Occupation: Edgy jester
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
One of Booster's goons. After Booster, Peach and the Snifits split for
Marrymore, Mario's party must fight Knife Guy and his partner Grate
Guy on the balcony. Despite what their name might indicate, these two
aren't Shy Guys; they're freaky clown jesters.
Later in the game, Mario can find Knife Guy hanging out in one of the
hallways in Booster Tower. He'll ask Mario to play a game in which
he will juggle some balls and then ask which hand holds the yellow
ball. If Mario wins on the highest level of difficulty, Knife Guy will
give him the Bright Card, which grants Mario access to Grate Guy's
Casino.
=======================================================================
KOLORADO
[Japanese name: Charles]
Occupation: Archeologist, explorer and adventurer
First appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
A resident of Koopa Village. Kolorado is a famous archeologist and
Kooper's hero. Mario first meets Kolorado in Dry Dry Desert, where
Kolorado's crew searches for the entrance to Dry Dry Ruins. Later,
Kolorado follows Mario through the volcanic Mt. Lavalava. The
professor valiantly tries to help Mario defeat the Lava Piranha, but
burns his butt and runs away.
Kolorado, who has a worrisome wife in Koopa Village, is a bit of a
bumbler and refers to Mario as "old boy." He also mistakes a whale
for a tuna and the Star Spirit Misstar for a starfish. (And it's not the
only time someone suffers from such confusion; check out Spangle
and Monstermama's profiles for more on this.)
In Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year door, Kolorado makes a cameo of
sorts. While venturing the skeleton strewn halls of Hooktail's Castle,
Mario and Koops happen upon a pile of bones that Koops immediately
recognizes as those of his father, who went to defeat Hooktail long ago
and never returned. When Koops reads the note attached to the
skeleton, however, he finds that its now-dead author addressed his son
as "Kolorado" and not "Koops." Indeed, Koops later finds out that his
father is alive. Kolorado's father, it seems, was not so lucky.
Later, Lumpy mentions having met Kolorado during his oil drilling
adventure in Dry Dry Desert.
Kolorado's appearances:
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Gamecube) - 2004
=======================================================================
THE KOOPA BROS. [new]
[Japanese name: Noko Bros.]
Occupation: Ninja turtle quartet
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
Four Koopa Troopas in ninja suits. They're the guardians of the first
Star Spirit, Eldstar and the bosses of the first chapter of Paper Mario.
Each wears a different colored bandana - red, black, green or yellow
- and they're martial artist turtles. Clearly, the Koopa Bros. are a
parody of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. (And not the first Mario
RPG bosses to poke fun at a children's superhero team - don't forget
the color-coded Axem Rangers from Super Mario RPG: Legend of the
Seven Stars.) When they're not masquerading as Toads, the Koopa
Bros reside in a fortress near Koopa Village. They've enslaved some
Bob-Ombs to work for them, and one of them - Bombette - is more
than happy to join Mario to stop them.
Later, in Bowser's Castle, Mario once again faces the Koopa Bros.,
only to have Jr. Troopa run in and knock them down, accidentally
defeating the foursome for Mario, who must now fight Jr. Troopa
instead.
Kirby021591 points out that the brother's colors match the Axem
Rangers perfectly, save for the exception of pink.
=======================================================================
THE KOOPALINGS
[also known as the Koopa Kids]
Occupation: Second-generation Koopa chaos
First appearance: Super Mario Bros. 3 (1990)
"We just love being mean!"
After his hiatus in Super Mario Bros. 2, Bowser returned with a
vengeance. Instead of merely overtaking the Mushroom Kingdom, his
hordes invaded the entire Mushroom World. And instead of solo
villainy, Bowser brought along his seven horrible Koopa children, the
Koopalings: Larry, Morton, Wendy, Iggy, Roy, Lemmy and Ludwig.
(Notably, Bowser seems to have spawned these kids without the aid of
a wife. Though fans would love to see Mrs. Bowser, the Koopa King
has inexplicably remained a single father.) Each child stole the magic
wand of the Mushroom King ruling a different land of the Mushroom
World. And each Koopaling used that wand to transform them into an
animal, rendering that land's throne up for grabs. Mario or Luigi
would venture through each world and eventually board the
Koopaling's airship, where one of the Koopalings would be waiting to
duel with him one-on-one.
The Koopalings appeared again in Super Mario World. They had
apparently followed dear old dad to Dinosaur Land, where they each
set up a castle from which they waged their war on Yoshi and his
friends. This time, they ditched their airships, though according to the
Super Mario World instruction manual, the wreckage of one of them
lay in the center of the ocean, now inhabited by Boos.
The Koopalings share attack patterns. Though Nintendo shuffled the
order Mario encounters the Koopalings from Super Mario Bros. 3 to
Super Mario World, the Koopalings who fought alike in the first game
continued to do so in the second. (Larry always fights like Iggy, Roy
always fights like Morton, Lemmy always fights like Wendy, and
Ludwig, the oldest, always does his own thing.)
The seven Koopa children started to show up regularly. They were
end-level bosses in the Super Scope 6 shooter Yoshi's Safari and they
were villains again in all versions of Mario's Missing. They even
showed up in all incarnations of the Mario comic books and cartoon
shows. (In the cartoon, though, they were called different names. See
the Frequently Asked Questions section for more on this.) However,
Nintendo apparently tired of their antics, because the Koopalings
promptly vanished from any further games.
Nonetheless, an interesting bit of proof may indicate that the
Koopalings and Bowser Jr. may exist in the same continuity after all.
When Mario first encounters FLUDD, it scans over Mario and flashes
through some clips of his earlier exploits, including a fight with Larry
Koopa. One could argue that this is proof of all the Bowser offspring
existing in the same universe, since Bowser Jr. plays such a central
role in Super Mairo Sunshine.
Nintendo threw them a bone in Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga. The
kids showed up at the end of the game as minor bosses in the last
dungeon. Strangely, they had a non-speaking role. Since then, their
future is indefinite. A younger and cuter pint-sized Koopa, Bowser Jr.,
has since been following Bowser around. Has this eighth Koopaling
ousted his older brothers and sister forever?
Rotten as they are, each Koopaling has his or her own individual
personality. Also, each draws their name from a real-life musician or
celebrity. (I've read that the Koopalings didn't actually have names in
the original Japanese release of Super Mario Bros. 3. This might
explain why their names are mostly drawn from American celebrities
and none from Japanese celebrities.)
I've read several places online - the Mushroom Kingdom among
them - that the Koopalings were nameless in the Japanese Super
Mario Bros. 3. Eventually, they got the names they have here in the
states, but the American translators were the ones to invent them.
=====
LARRY KOOPA
Larry, who overthrew the king of Grass Land, is the Koopaling with a
green shell and a blue mohawk. He's quite easy to beat in Super Mario
Bros. 3 - three stomps and he's gone, though Mario must dodge the
smoke rings Larry shoots from the magic wand he stole. Bowser
apparently promoted Larry in Super Mario World; instead of the first
boss he's the seventh and last, and his castle is the last major obstacle
before Bowser's neon palace in the Valley of Bowser.
Larry gets a small cameo in Super Mario Sunshine - an honor he
would surely lord over his brothers and sister. When FLUDD is
scanning Mario, a small video screen briefly plays clips from some of
Mario's previous adventures, including one of Mario's duel with Larry
in Super Mario World.
I'm not sure which celebrity Larry's name is a reference to, because
there's a lot of Larrys out there. There's an article at Super Mario
Infostation conjecturing that Larry gets his name from CNN talk show
host Larry King. Initially, I didn't believe it, but seeing as how Morton
is named after a talk show host, it's not impossible. Anybody have any
other guesses?
The address to the very cool Super Mario Infostation is located at the
bottom of this guide, by the way. Check it out.
Larry's starring roles:
Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES) - 1990
Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993
Yoshi's Safari (Super NES) - 1993
Mario Is Missing! (NES) - 1993
Mario Is Missing! (Super NES) - 1993
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Bandai Satellaview Super Mario Bros. 3 (Bandai Satellaview) - 1995
Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Other appearances:
Super Mario Sunshine (Gamecube) - 2001
=====
MORTON KOOPA JR.
Morton is the brown Koopaling who looks like he likes to eat. He also
has a weird star-shaped birthmark on his face. In both Super Mario
Bros. 3 and Super Mario World, Morton is the boss of the second
world: Desert Hill or the Donut Plains, respectively. Also in both
games, Morton fights just like his brother Roy. Mario finally frees the
Donut Plains of this overweight menace by literally stomping
Morton's castle into the ground.
With the possible exception of Larry, Morton is the only Koopaling
whose name isn't a reference to musician. Instead, it's Morton
Downey Jr., who was a popular but controversial talk show host in the
late eighties. Though it may seem unlikely, Nintendo Power magazine
ran a headline "It's the Morton Koopa Jr. Show!" in an article
mapping out the path through Morton's airship.
Morton's starring roles:
Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES) - 1990
Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993
Yoshi's Safari (Super NES) - 1993
Mario Is Missing! (NES) - 1993
Mario Is Missing! (Super NES) - 1993
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Bandai Satellaview Super Mario Bros. 3 (Bandai Satellaview) - 1995
Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
=====
WENDY O. KOOPA
Bowser's only daughter. But don't let that big pink bow fool you -
she's as much trouble as her brothers. In Super Mario Bros. 3, Wendy
conquers the island kingdom of Sea Side. She's the third boss Mario
fights and she attacks by hurling peppermint candy rings (or old-
fashioned floatation devices - I'm not sure which). In Super Mario
World, Wendy gets promoted to the sixth boss. Since she's such a
sweetie, she's the boss of Chocolate Island. When Mario fights Wendy
in her castle, he must also fight two Wendy dummies created to dupe
him. Once Mario stomps the real Wendy, he literally wipes out her
castle with a giant mop.
Wendy gets her name from Wendy O. Williams, late singer from the
eighties punk band the Plasmatics.
Wendy's starring roles:
Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES) - 1990
Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993
Yoshi's Safari (Super NES) - 1993
Mario Is Missing! (NES) - 1993
Mario Is Missing! (Super NES) - 1993
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Bandai Satellaview Super Mario Bros. 3 (Bandai Satellaview) - 1995
Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
=====
IGGY KOOPA
The taller, skinnier Koopaling with thick glasses and a rainbow
mohawk. Iggy, who's the boss of Super Mario Bros. 3's fourth world,
the Isle of Giants, fights a lot like Larry. They fight similarly in Super
Mario World, as well, though in that game Iggy has been demoted to
being the boss of the castle on the first world, Yoshi's Island. The fight
takes place on a platform teetering in lava; Mario must kick Iggy over
the side to win. Once Iggy's gone, Mario takes dynamite his castle.
Iggy most surely takes his name from Iggy Pop, the legendary singer
of the band Iggy Pop and the Stooges. He's an icon of the late
seventies and if you don't know his music, you should.
Generally, whenever one Koopaling shows up, the other six aren't too
far behind. But Iggy has the honor of having one more title under his
belt than all of his siblings except Larry. In Type A mode of the Super
Scope Six game LazerBlazer, Iggy will occasionally glide through the
screen, riding a missile. You can shoot him down for points.
Iggy's starring roles:
Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES) - 1990
Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993
Yoshi's Safari (Super NES) - 1993
Mario Is Missing! (NES) - 1993
Mario Is Missing! (Super NES) - 1993
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Bandai Satellaview Super Mario Bros. 3 (Bandai Satellaview) - 1995
Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Other appearances:
Super Scope 6 LazerBlazer (Super NES) - 1992
=====
ROY KOOPA
He may be as pink as Wendy, but Roy is the toughest of the
Koopalings. In both Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World, Roy
is the boss of the fifth world. In the first game, this means he waits for
Mario in the sky kingdom. In the next, his castle is at the end of the
Forest of Illusion. In a fight, Roy likes to throw his weight around.
Roy's sunglasses are a dead giveaway to his musical namesake. It's
the late Roy Orbison, a talented crooner who composed a lot of great
rock songs, including "Pretty Woman." Roy Orbison, like Roy Koopa,
always wore sunglasses.
Roy's starring roles:
Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES) - 1990
Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993
Yoshi's Safari (Super NES) - 1993
Mario Is Missing! (NES) - 1993
Mario Is Missing! (Super NES) - 1993
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Bandai Satellaview Super Mario Bros. 3 (Bandai Satellaview) - 1995
Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
=====
LEMMY KOOPA
Judging by the way Nintendo depicts Lemmy in all the official art, I
think were supposed to realize there's something wrong with the guy.
He's much smaller than his siblings and his eyes always point different
directions. Like Iggy, he sports a rainbow mohawk. You can always
pick Lemmy out because he's depicted balancing on a ball.
In both his major appearances, Lemmy fights just like Wendy. In
Super Mario Bros. 3, where Lemmy is the boss of the ice kingdom, he
sends several of his circus balls bouncing around the room. In Super
Mario World, where Lemmy is the boss of the cavernous Vanilla
Dome, he tries to trick Mario by popping out of pipes alongside two
Lemmy dummies. Once Mario beats Lemmy, he destroys his castle
with a hammer.
Lemmy shares his name with the lead singer of the heavy metal band
Motorhead.
Lemmy's starring roles:
Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES) - 1990
Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993
Yoshi's Safari (Super NES) - 1993
Mario Is Missing! (NES) - 1993
Mario Is Missing! (Super NES) - 1993
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Bandai Satellaview Super Mario Bros. 3 (Bandai Satellaview) - 1995
Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
=====
LUDWIG VON KOOPA
Bowser's oldest and second in command. The wild-haired Ludwig is
the boss of the seventh kingdom, the great Pipe Maze. In Super Mario
World, Ludwig's castle sits at the end of the fourth area, Twin
Bridges, which includes the Butter Bridge, the Cheese Bridge, Cookie
Mountain and Soda Lake. Ludwig is the only Koopaling in Super
Mario World with an attack pattern not shared by one of the siblings;
he spits fireballs (just like his father) and ducks into his spiked shell.
Once Mario beat Ludwig, he rockets the Koopaling's castle into a hill
on the horizon.
Ludwig takes his name from Ludwig von Beethoven. They even share
the same hairdo.
Ludwig's starring roles:
Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES) - 1990
Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993
Yoshi's Safari (Super NES) - 1993
Mario Is Missing! (NES) - 1993
Mario Is Missing! (Super NES) - 1993
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Bandai Satellaview Super Mario Bros. 3 (Bandai Satellaview) - 1995
Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
=======================================================================
KOOPA KID
[also known as Mini-Bowser, Bowser Jr., Baby Bowser]
Occupation: Party crasher
First appearance: Mario Party (1999)
One of the hardest characters to explain in the whole Marioverse.
This little guy, a staple of the Mario Party franchise who has yet to
break into other Mario games, has quite a few names. I fairly certain
the games refer to him as both Koopa Kid and Mini-Bowser. He's also
been called Bowser Jr. and Baby Bowser - perhaps also in the games
themselves but definitely by players and my fellow FAQ-writers.
These last two are wrong for sure because those names refer to other
characters - Bowser's son from Super Mario Sunshine and Bowser's
infant self from the Yoshi games, respectively.
Even the name I chose to stick with in this guide, Koopa Kid, is
problematic because Bowser's seven children from Super Mario Bros.
3 are sometimes called the Koopa Kids.
Beyond that, Kirby021591 points out that the name of this character
changes depending on which Mario Party you're playing. In the first
three, it's "Baby Bowser." In Mario Party 4, he's "Mini-Bowser" It's
only in Mario Party 5 and 6 that he is referred to as "Koopa Kid."
Yikes.
I believe that Koopa Kid has no real identity. He's just a little
character made up by Hudson in the development of the first Mario
Party. Scads of Koopa Kids show up in the game's final board in place
of Toad, who normally sells stars to characters. Once approached, the
Koopa Kid makes two dice blocks appear - one cycling between one
and ten above his head and another cycling between eight and ten
above the head of the potential star-purchaser. Whoever gets the
higher number gets the star.
Koopa Kid showed up in various other supporting roles - scurrying
obsequiously around Bowser, running an item shop in opposition to
Toad's - until Mario Party 5, when diehard Mario fans were shocked
to find that Hudson had kicked Donkey Kong out to the curb and
replaced him with Toad (yay!), Boo (meh) and the irrepressible Koopa
Kid. In the same game, red, green and blue versions of Koopa Kid also
shows up as the main villains in the story mode.
Koopa Kid reappears as a selectable character in Mario Party 6 as
well. One can only hope this walking plotline contradiction will soon
go the way of Donkey Kong Jr. and Baby Mario.
Koopa Kid's starring roles:
Mario Party 5 (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Party 6 (Gamecube) - 2004
Other appearances:
Mario Party (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Mario Party 2 (Nintendo 64) - 2000
Mario Party 3 (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Mario Party 4 (Gamecube) - 2002
Mario Party Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
=======================================================================
KOOPA KOOT
[Japanese name: Nokojirou]
Occupation: Curmudgeon
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
Koopa Koot is the oldest resident of Koopa Village, Kooper's
hometown. He asks Mario to do him certain favors, then rewards him
- often with a single, paltry coin. Cheapskate.
In his youth, Koopa Koot went on a world-spanning adventure with
Goompa and Koopa Koot. Kirby021591 informs me that his is why
one of the twenty favors he asks of Mario is to fetch his picture from
Boo's Mansion.
=======================================================================
KOOPA THE QUICK
Occupation: Runner
First appearance: Super Mario 64 (1996)
A fleet-footed Koopa who will challenge Mario to a footrace. If Mario
wins, Koopa the Quick will give him a star. In Super Mario 64 DS,
he'll challenge Mario to a re-match. This time, he's wearing Supa
Koopa Sprint sneakers instead of the Koopa Mach 1 Sprints he wore in
the first game.
Koopa the Quick's appearances:
Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1996
Super Mario 64 Shindou Verison (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Super Mario 64 DS (Nintendo DS) - 2004
=======================================================================
KOOPA TROOPA
[Japanese name: Nokonoko]
Occupation: Koopa foot soldier
First appearance: Mario Bros. (1983)
They were the turtle menace before there even was a Koopa Troop.
The generic Koopa Troopa was the first enemy Mario and Luigi ever
faced together. As they scrambled to collect coins in a leaky, pipe-
riddled sewer, the Koopa Troopa - then known as the Shell Creeper
- would emerge from pipes. If the brothers touched the Shell
Creeper, they'd die, as they also would if they jumped on it. No, to
combat the little critters, Mario and Luigi had to bop the ground below
where the Shell Creeper was walking to flip him onto his back. Only
then could they kick him off the screen.
(In more recent incarnations of the Mario Bros. game on the Game
Boy Advance, Nintendo's substituted the Koopa Troopa-looking
enemy with a Spiny, so players would resist the urge to stomp the
Shell Creeper.)
When Mario and Luigi passed through the warp pipe and into the
Mushroom Kingdom, they found that land filthy with turtles once
again. This time, however, they were the Koopa Troopas. Green
Koopa Troopas would charge blindly right at Mario - and right off a
cliff, if he'd let them. Red ones were smarter and would pace back and
forth on a platform, avoiding the edges. Both colors also appeared in
winged form, the Paratroopa. (He gets his own profile.) Any of the
Koopa Troopas could now easily be stomped - as they would in all
future Mario games - and their shells kicked as a weapon.
Curiously, while Koopa Troopas did not appear in Super Mario Bros.
2/Doki Doki Panic, their shells did. Mario - or Imajin, depending on
what you're playing - could pluck the shells out of the ground and
use them to plow through enemies, just like in Super Mario Bros.
The Koopa Troopa appeared relatively the same in Super Mario Bros.
3 as it did to its Super Mario Bros. incarnation, though in Super Mario
World they changed a bit. Bowser's new and improved army included
blue Koopa Troopas, which would kick shells at Mario, and yellow
ones, whose shells could be turned into near-invincible weapons that
could take out Mario and enemies alike. Also, Koopa Troopas now
walked upright rather than on all fours as they had previously and,
once deprived of their shell, would run around in undershirts.
Perhaps the most interesting incarnation of this enemy appeared after
Mario conquered the last level of the Special World - an ultra-
challenging set of eight levels that, once beaten, would cause Dinosaur
Land to change. Spring became autumn, Bullet Bills became Pidgits
and Koopa Troopas now wore strange Mario masks.
The green-shelled Koopa Troopa got his day in Super Mario Kart, in
which he was the very first generic Mario baddie to be playable. Sadly,
he'd lose his spot to Wario for the next Mario Kart. (In fact, the
instruction manual for Mario Kart 64 claims Wario stole the little
guy's kart.) Though he remained a staple of the series - his shells
even wound up as weapons in the Nintendo all-star bash, Smash Bros.
- he wouldn't pop up again as a playable character until Mario Golf:
Toadstool Tour for the Gamecube. Again, he had a green shell, as
would all generic playable Koopa Troopas, it would seem. (Generic,
playable Paratroopas, it seems, have a red shell.) He was the smallest
character, but he swung his club with the best of them.
(Tragically, Nintendo dropped Koopa Troopa from the Game Boy
Advance of Super Mario Kart, which was an unlockable feature in
Mario Kart: Super Circuit. In the little guy's place, again, was Wario.)
Nintendo thankfully restored the Koopa Troopa's spot in the Mario
Kart circuit by making him a playable character in Mario Kart: Double
Dash!! His partner was Paratroopa and they steered little cars made of
the shells of their fallen comrades, which is quite morbid, when you
think about it.
In Mario Power Tennis, an oddly water-powered Koopa Troopa
appears as a playable character. This is especially notable because he
did not appear in the Nintendo 64 installment Mario Tennis, and
several characters who did - Toad, Birdo, Baby Mario and Donkey
Kong Jr. among them - are not playable in Mario Power Tennis. The
little guy adorably tucks into his shell to zoom around the court, His
super moves include a water-powered drop shot and a cool slide move
where Koopa Troopa coasts on a film of water.
(In Super Mario RPG, Mario can kick Koopa shells at enemies as a
basic attack. The first shell he gets is the Noknok Shell, whose name
comes from "Nokonoko," the Japanese name for the Koopa Troopa.)
MARIO KART: DOUBLE DASH!! DATA:
Partner: Paratroopa
Personal racecar: Koopa Dasher
Special weapon: Triple Green Shell
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR KOOPA TROOPA***
Common soldiers in Bowser's army, Koopa Troopas can retreat into
their shells. Unbelievable as it may seem, they're clearly unaware of
being kicked and sent sliding when in this position. There are many
Koopa types, each with a different shell color and unique traits. They
all wear T-shirts and shorts under their shells.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR KOOPA TROOPA***
Koopa Troopa's starring roles:
Super Mario Kart (Super NES) - 1992
Mario's Tennis (Virtual Boy) - 1995
Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Power Tennis (Gamecube) - 2004
Other appearances:
Mario Bros. (Arcade) - 1983
Mario Bros. (Arcade) - 1983
Mario Bros. (Atari 2600) - 1983
Mario Bros. (Atari 5200) - 1983
Mario Bros. (Commodore 64) - 1984
Super Mario Bros. (NES) - 1985
Mario Bros. (Atari 7200) - 1985
Versus Super Mario Bros. (Arcade) - 1986
Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels (Famicom) - 1986
Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels (Famicom) - 1986
Mario Bros. (NES) - 1986
Super Mario Bros. + Duck Hunt (NES) - 1988
Return of Mario Bros. (NES) - 1988
Super Mario Bros. + Duck Hunt + World Class Track Meet (NES) - 1990
Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES) - 1990
Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario Land 2: Six Golden Coins (Game Boy) - 1992
Mario Paint (Super NES) - 1992
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993
Mario Is Missing! (NES) - 1993
Mario Is Missing! (Super NES) - 1993
Yoshi's Safari (Super NES) - 1993
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Bandai Satellaview Super Mario Bros. 3 (Bandai Satellaview) - 1995
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super NES) - 1995
Mario Clash (Virtual Boy) - 1995
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (Super NES) - 1996
Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1996
Super Mario 64 Shindou Version (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Mario Kart 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Game & Watch Gallery 2 (Game Boy) - 1998
Super Mario Bros. Deluxe (Game Boy Color) - 1999
Mario Party (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Super Smash Bros. (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Mario Party 2 (Nintendo 64) - 2000
Picross NP Vol. 6 (Super Famicom) - 2000
Super Mario Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2001
Mario Party 3 (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Super Smash Bros Melee (Gamecube) - 2001
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Mario Kart: Super Circuit (Game Boy Advance) - 2001
Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Super Mario Bros. (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Super Mario Bros. 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Super Mario 64 DS (Nintendo DS) - 2004
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Gamecube) - 2004
Mario Party 6 (Gamecube) - 2004
Mario Party Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
WarioWare: Twisted! (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
WarioWare: Touched! (Nintendo DS) - 2005
=======================================================================
KOOPER
[Japanese name: Kameki]
Occupation: Koopa comrade
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
On their way to the fortress of the Koopa Bros., Mario and Goombario
come across Koopa Village, a tiny burg besieged by Fuzzys, the
hairball-looking baddies that originally appeared in Super Mario
World. The mischievous Fuzzys have stolen the shells of the resident
Koopas and Mario must retrieve them. One of the Koopas rendered
nude is Kooper. Once Mario snags Kooper's blue shell, Kooper joins
the party to follow in the footsteps of his childhood hero, the Koopa
archeologist Kolorado.
Kooper's fighting talents involve his shell, which he can shoot at
enemies at high speeds. Kooper can also use his shell to get items on
ledges Mario could not otherwise reach.
While the first playable Koopa Troopa appeared in Super Mario Kart,
he was a generic one. Kooper is the first playable Koopa Troopa to
have a name and a personality. Koopa Troopas are Mario's oldest
generic foe; they've been a part of Mario's life since the original
Mario Bros., when they were known as "Shellcreepers."
=======================================================================
KOOPIE KOO
[Japanese name: Nokorin]
Occupation: Half-shelled sweetheart
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A ponytailed resident of Petalburg who initially opposes Koops' plans
to venture with Mario to Hooktail's Castle. When Koops returns
unscathed, however, Koopie Koo changes her mind and supports her
boyfriend's heroic pursuits. I don't know much about Koopa Troopa
beauty, but Goombella claims Koopie Koo is cute and had a good head
on her shoulders.
=======================================================================
THE KOOPINATOR
Occupation: Glitz Pit competitor
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A Koopatrol, the spiky armored Koopa Troopas who work in
Bowser's Castle in the first Paper Mario. This foot solider seems to
have traded in his military duties for the glamor of the Glitz Pit,
however. He's a tough customer and he's has a surly attitude.
=======================================================================
KOOPLEY
Occupation: Hard-to-swallow hero
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
Koops' father, presumed dead long ago when he ventured to
Hooktail's Castle and never returned. Once Mario and Koops stomp
Hooktail, however, Koopley emerges, as fit as ever and with the prized
Diamond Star in his hand. Afterwards, Koopley waits in Petalburg for
his son to return once Mario's quest has finished.
=======================================================================
KOOPS
[Japanese name: Nokotaro]
Occupation: Timid turtle
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A resident of Petalburg and the second buddy to join Mario's
adventure for the Crystal Stars. Koops is a green-shelled Koopa
Troopa who sports a black eye and dresses like he's training for a
boxing match - which is odd, since Koops seems like a bit of a
coward. After approaching Mario twice and then chickening out twice,
Koops finally joins Mario on Petal Path, much to the dismay of his
girlfriend, Koopie Koo. Koops claims he wants revenge on the dragon
Hooktail for eating his father.
Once Mario and Koops beat Hooktail, however, Koops' father
emerges safe and sound - and carrying the Diamond Star, the first of
the Crystal Stars. With new confidence, Koops continues with Mario
for the remainder of the adventure. The game's epilogue reveals that
Koops returns to Petalburg and thinks about becoming the mayor.
Koops is nearly identical in nearly every way to Kooper, his
counterpart in the first Paper Mario. Only Koops doesn't have a cool
blue shell; he has a generic green one. I'd venture to say he's the least
original of the buddies in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. In
battle, Koops even has most of Kooper's old moves.
=======================================================================
K. ROOL
[also known as Kaptain K. Rool. Baron K. Roolenstein]
Occupation: King of the Kremlings
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country (1994)
Bowser, reconfigured as a crocodile instead of a turtle, more or less.
K. Rool and the reptilian creeps called the Kremlings were designed
by Rare for a different game that was released, but they seem perfectly
at home tormenting the lives on the Kong clan. But I have to wonder:
what does a crocodile want with a bunch of bananas, anyway?
When Donkey and Diddy emerge from the Chimp Cavers, they find K.
Rool's ship, the Gangplank Galleon, waiting for them at the shore. On
board, they duel with K. Rool. The wily king of the Kremlings will try
to nail the simian heroes with his spiky crown, which he throws like a
Frisbee, or splatter them with a cannonball shot from his blunderbuss
gun. Once beaten, K. Rool's troops withdraw from Kong Island, return
the stolen banana horde to Donkey Kong and sail away.
The pirate motif established in the last battle of the first Donkey Kong
Country carries over throughout the enter sequel, in which Diddy and
Dixie Kong chase down the Kremlings - now in pirate get-ups - in
order to rescue the kidnapped Donkey Kong.
Diddy and Dixie trace the banana trail all through the Kremlings'
homeland and eventually step on board the Flying Krock, Kaptain K.
Rool's personal aircraft. If they can dodge the cannonballs, bombs and
spiked balls K. Rool shoots from his gun, Diddy and Dixie will rescue
Donkey Kong, who punches K. Rool so soundly that he flies all the
way to the swamps of the Lost World, a prehistoric region of Kremling
Island. Though Donkey Kong is already rescued, intrepid heroes can
follow K. Rool to the heart of the Lost World, Krocodile Kore, and
fight him, now dripping wet and considerably angrier than ever, one
more time.
The third Donkey Kong Country takes place in an alpine region of the
Kongs' world called the Northern Kremisphere. The game seems to
posit a new Kremling named KAOS as the primary villain, but Dixie
soon finds that KAOS is merely a mechanical contraction designed by
the evil Baron K. Roolenstein, the same old K. Rool re-imagined as a
mad scientist. KOAS is powered by the brain energy of the kidnapped
Donkey and Diddy Kong, whom Dixie must free by breaking the
contraption apart. Dixie eventually clocks both K. Roolenstein and
KAOS, but she can still travel to Krematoa, this game's version of the
Lost World, to challenge K. Roolenstein to another fight. In the end,
K. Roolenstein will try to escape on a hovercraft, but he gets crushed
beneath a giant egg laid by the Queen Banana Bird.
K. Rool's only Nintendo 64 appearance hinged around his scheme to
annhiliate Kong Isle with the Blast-o-Matic, a high-powered and aptly
named ray gun mounted to his ship. Kidnapping D.K.'s friends and his
Golden Bananas is just a diversionary tactic to ready the Blast-o-
Matic. The final shodown involves five separate rounds in a boxing
ring. Each of the game's five heroes must separately triumph over K.
Rool in order to beat him for good.
E-107 Sigma tells me that Donkey blasts from Barrel Cannons to
attack K. Rool, Diddy flies high enough with his jetpack to drop
lighting fixtures on K. Rool. Lanky Kong must trick K. Rool into
slipping on banana peels. Tiny Kong must shrink small enough to
sneak into K. Rool's shoes and shoot his toes. And Chunky Kong must
grow large and pummel K. Rool. Finally, Funky Kong steps in and
knocks him square with a boxing glove, sending him into the sunset.
And, obviously, K. Rool's name is pun on the word "cruel."
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR K. ROOL***
The demented head of the Kremlings and big boss in the Donkey Kong
series. K. Rool is a giant, greedy glutton with a serious eye tic. While
he fits the evil boss mold nicely, he's just enough of a bumbler to have
gained a few fans over the years. His plan to blow up the DK Isles
with his Blast-o-Matic shows how unbalanced he is.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR K. ROOL***
K. Rool's starring roles:
Donkey Kong Country (Super NES) - 1994
Donkey Kong Land (Game Boy) - 1995
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (Super NES) - 1995
Donkey Kong Land 2 (Game Boy) - 1996
Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie's Double Trouble (Super NES) - 1996
Donkey Kong Land 3 (Game Boy) - 1997
Donkey Kong 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Color) - 2000
Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Donkey Kong Country 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Other appearances:
Super Smash Bros. Melee (Gamecube) - 2001
=======================================================================
KROOP
[Japanese name: Hanahana Village Elder]
Occupation: Petalburg elder
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
Kroop, the oldest and therefore the wisest resident of Petalburg, helps
Mario find his way to Hooktail's Castle. This bushy-eyebrowed elder
sure shows his age. He can't seem to remember Mario's name and
repeatedly calls him "Murphy."
Kroop looks a lot like Koopa Koot, a similar character who was the
elder of Koopa Village in the first Paper Mario.
=======================================================================
KROW
Occupation: Seafaring squawker
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest
(1995)
Avian confusion. Krow wears a pirate hat, but she's not a parrot. Krow
lives in the crow's nest of the Kremling pirate ship, but she's not a
crow. She's a buzzard and the first boss of the game. Splatter Krow
with eggs until she hits the deck. Krow pops up again later as a ghost.
She's the boss of Gloomy Gulch, the fifth area of the game.
(I'm assuming Krow is female because she's always guarding a next.
And more often than not, it's the Missus Bird who sits on the eggs.)
Krow's starring roles:
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (Super NES) - 1995
Donkey Kong Land 2 (Game Boy) - 1996
Donkey Kong Country 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
KUDGEL
Occupation: Klumpy Kremling
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest
(1995)
A heavyweight Kremling who's boss of Krem Quay, the third area of
Donkey Kong Country 2. He's a gray palette swap of Klubba, the
semi-friendly chap who guards the entrance to the Lost World.
Kudgel's starring roles:
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (Super NES) - 1995
Donkey Kong Land 2 (Game Boy) - 1996
Donkey Kong Country 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
KRUNCH
Occupation: High-revving Kremling
Only appearance: Diddy Kong Racing (1997)
This tough-looking crocodile snarls through races with Diddy's crew.
As the heaviest of the bunch, he takes as the slow-but-powerful racer:
the Bowser, essentially.
On the advice of a reader calling herself Mega Rose, I included a
profile for Krunch. I had excluded all the other characters introduced
in Diddy Kong Racing because seemed more like Rareware types and
they hadn't appeared in a game since. However, Mega Rose points out
that Krunch is a Kremling and therefore part of the Donkey Kong
canon.
=======================================================================
LADY LIMA
Occupation: Queen Bean's advisor
Only appearance: Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003)
Looking just a bit like Impa, Princess Zelda's nursemaid from the 8-bit
Legend of Zelda days, Lady Lima helps Mario and Luigi on their
adventures through Beanbean Kingdom - until the brothers prove
they live up to their superstar status by fixing the leaky plumbing in
Beanbean Castle.
Once the pipes are tightened, Mario and Luigi find a second Lady
Lima in the basement. Surely enough the Lima who plunked the
brothers into the sewers is Cackletta's servant Fawful in disguise -
and, strangely, the key to disarming the castle's security is fixing the
plumbing. Eventually, Mario and Luigi restore order in Beanbean
Castle and the real Lady Lima assists the brothers however they can.
She's a tiny, old confidante to a ruler in the tradition of Toadsworth or
Kammy Koopa. In fact, Toadsworth and Lady Lima tearfully embrace
at the end of the game, before he and the regular crew head back to the
Mushroom Kingdom.
=======================================================================
LAKILESTER
[Japanese name: Pokopi]
Occupation: Rebel with a lame name
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
Initially, Lakilester appears as one of Bowser's agents, introduces
himself as Spike and then attacks. When Mario trounces him, his
girlfriend Lakilulu arrives and begs Mario to forgive Lakilester, calling
him by that instead of Spike even though Lakilester hates his given
name. When Mario does, this mohawk-and-shades dude joins the party
to atone for his crimes in Flower Field. As a Lakitu - the cloud-
riding, Spiny-tossing Koopas who have plagued Mario since the
original Mario Bros. - Lakilester can fight enemies by throwing
Spiny eggs or help Mario by letting him ride on his cloud.
Once Mario defeats Huff N. Puff, the one behind all the cloud-covered
mayhem, Lakilester realizes that helping people isn't so bad. He
reforms and pledges to help Mario through the rest of his quest.
=======================================================================
LAKILULU
[Japanese name: Pokona]
Occupation: Worried girlfriend
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
With Lakilester's rebel attitude and Lakilulu's overprotective nature,
the couple seems like a teenager movie from the fifties. Lakilulu has a
red ponytail and demands that Mario forgive Lakilester for his crimes,
lest she bop Mario with a Spiny egg.
=======================================================================
LAKITU
[Japanese name: Jegum/Jegumu]
Occupation: Cloud-riding, Spiny-groomer
First appearance: Super Mario Bros. (1985)
Lakitu, the bespectacled Koopa riding a cloud, debuted as a minor
villain in the original Super Mario Bros. He'd cruise the sky and pelt
Mario with eggs that would hatch into Spinys, dim-witted baddies with
spiked shells.
More and more often, however, Lakitu helps Mario and his friends
rather than Bowser. In Super Mario Bros. 3, players could use his
cloud as an item to pass over a stage without having to play it. In
Super Mario World, Lakitus would dangle tempting items from
fishhooks. Even Mario knocked Lakitu out of his cloud, Mario could
actually ride in the cloud for a short time. Lakitu always appears as the
race master in the Mario Kart franchise. He holds the start light, marks
how many laps you've driven and snatches you out of a hole or water
with his fishing pole. In Super Mario 64, a team of photojournalist
Lakitus filmed Mario's progress and controlled the camera angle from
which the player viewed Mario.
Many players might think Paper Mario's Lakilester is the first-ever
playable Lakitu, but Lakitu technically first showed up a few years
before in Tetris Attack. When Nintendo remade Panel du Pon as Tetris
Attack, they replaced all the fairies with Yoshi's Island characters.
Probably because Lakitus have that cloud motif, a generic Lakitu
replaced the air fairy Windy.
(SiR6 pointed out to me that Spinys are not actually Koopas in the
turtle sense. They're actually kin to Buzzy Beetles and Spike Tops. It
actually makes sense if you look at the sprite. Furthermore, Spiny
seems to share a bit of programming with Buzzy Beetle in Super
Mario Bros. 3. SiR6 tells me that a debug mode proves the connection
because the Kuribo's Shoe item appears graphically distorted in any
level not featuring a Spiny, which makes sense, since this rare power-
up only appears in the Spiny-populated level 5-3. The exception is any
level featuring Buzzy Beetle. Thus, the two baddies use the same
template sprite. Off subject, I realize, but this will just have to wait
here until I compose a profile for Spiny.)
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR LAKITU***
These airborne menaces used to ride their clouds exclusively as
Bowser's henchmen. They typically hover just out of Mario's reach and
hurl Spinys with irritating precision. More recently, however, they've
been known to take on less evil tasks, such as doing camera work for
sports events and even helping Mario on his quests.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR LAKITU***
Other appearances:
Super Mario Bros. (NES) - 1985
Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels (Famicom) - 1986
Super Mario Bros. + Duck Hunt (NES) - 1988
Super Mario Bros. + Duck Hunt + World Class Track Meet (NES) - 1990
Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES) - 1990
Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario Kart (Super NES) - 1992
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993
Yoshi's Safari (Super NES) - 1993
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super NES) - 1995
Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1996
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (Super NES) - 1996
Super Mario 64 Shindou Version (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Mario Kart 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Super Mario Bros. Deluxe (Game Boy Color) - 1999
Mario Golf (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) - 2000
Picross NP Vol. 6 (Super Famicom) - 2000
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Super Mario Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2001
Mario Kart: Super Circuit (Game Boy Advance) - 2001
Super Smash Bros Melee (Gamecube) - 2001
Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Mario Party-e (Game Boy Advance E-Reader) - 2002
Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Party 5 (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Party 5 (Gamecube) - 2003
Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Super Mario Bros. (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Super Mario Bros. 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Gamecube) - 2004
Super Mario 64 DS (Nintendo DS) - 2004
Mario Party 6 (Gamecube) - 2004
Mario Party Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
=======================================================================
LANKY KONG
Occupation: The long arm of the Kong
Only appearance: Donkey Kong Country 64 (1999)
The only orangutan in the Kong clan - or at least the only one we've
met so far. A distant cousin to the Kong clan, Lanky Kong fights like
an orange-furred fury. Lanky has the unique ability of stretching his
arms to reach out-of-the-way objects and enemies.
Lanky's status as an orangutan brings up an interesting question about
the Kong family. Donkey is an ape. Chunky is a gorilla. Diddy and
Tiny seem to be monkeys. Perhaps the Kongs are a family only in the
extended sense? The mind boggles.... In the end, though, it may be a
moot point, as Lanky and the other characters who debuted in Donkey
Kong 64 seem to have vanished since Rare left Nintendo.
=======================================================================
LAVA PIRANHA
Occupation: Hot-tempered weed
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
The boss of Mt. Lavalava, a volcano on the verge of eruption. The
Lava Piranha is just an overgrown Piranha Plant that's adapted to
living in the boiling hot lava.
=======================================================================
LEE and CHAN
Occupation: Martial arts students
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
The Master's two students at the dojo in Toad Town. Lee is a Buzzy
Beetle. Chan is a Duplighost. Their names reference those two famous
martial artists, Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan. Nintendo made a similar
reference in the Pokémon series with two martial arts Pokémon:
Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan.
=======================================================================
LILY
[Japanese name: Suireen]
Occupation: Bathing beauty
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
A scatterbrained water lily growing in Flower Fields. Her pond has run
dry, however, and only the missing Water Crystal can end the drought.
Mario must retrieve the crystal from selfish Rose to save Lily.
=======================================================================
LIZARDON
Occupation: Dino guy
Only appearance: Wario's Woods (1994)
A purple dinosaur. He's the twelfth boss.
=======================================================================
LUIGI [new]
[also known as Luigi Mario, Player Two, Mr. Green; alternate
Japanese spelling: Ruiji]
Occupation: Heroic Plumber's Little Brother
First appearance: Mario Bros. (1983)
[luigi]
GREEN GREENS
Green fireballs and green-striped raccoon tails aside, this lean,
mean stringbean has been playing second fiddle to Mario since his
introduction in Mario Bros. At least in his first appearance, Luigi
shared screen time with Mario. The two battled for coins and high
scores in the Brooklyn sewers. In most subsequent games, he'd be
relegated to Player Two.
Like the whole Mario-"marui" thing, the explanation for Luigi's
name may lie in the native language of the guys who invented him.
Japanese has the word "ruiji," meaning "similar." Since Luigi was
originally a palette swap, this connection also makes sense. Of
course, Luigi's also just a common Italian name - and, also,
allegedly a pizza parlor near Nintendo of America's original
headquarters - so maybe this is just a meaningless coincidence
after all.
As far as most of the games storylines go, Luigi is Mario's
younger, taller, thinner brother. The Nintendo Database points out
that although Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island indicated that
the brothers were twins, games before or since have stated
otherwise. Thus, for the purposes of this guide, Baby Mario and
Baby Luigi are being treated as separate characters and given
separate bios. Screw continuity.
In Super Mario Bros., you can tell the difference between Mario
and Luigi because Luigi sported white and green duds. (His
moustache is also a bit green, thanks to lousy 8-bit color
restraints.) He wore the same shirt and overalls in the Japanese
sequel too, but it's The Lost Levels that differentiated Luigi from
his brother in a much more important way: Luigi could jump
higher. Aside from hair-pulling difficulty, booby-trap poison
toadstools, and heavy winds that affected on-screen movement,
The Lost Levels threw Luigi's superior jumping ability into the
mix. Players could choose to rescue Peach as Mario, who had
tighter controls, or Luigi, who could leap higher and farther but
tended to slide a bit when he got going too fast. Luigi would
continue to out-jump Mario in the American Super Mario Bros. 2,
the Game Boy advance versions of Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super
Mario World, and both Smash Bros. games.
Logically, when Nintendo revamped the Doki Doki Panic engine
with Mario characters for the American sequel, Luigi took the
place of high-jumping - but slow-digging and slow-turnip
plucking - Mama character. Inexplicably, his legs made a bicycle
kick ever time he jumped. This adventure allowed Luigi his own
sprite, so he looked taller and thinner than Mario.
IN HIS BROTHER'S SHADOW
As time passed, however, Luigi's role in the canon series of Mario
games diminished. For example, in Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super
Mario World, Luigi once again was a palette swap of Mario, a
slight that wouldn't be corrected until the two games' respective
Super Mario Advance updates. Although he raced his friends in
Super Mario Kart, Luigi would be further ignored in later Super
NES games.
In 1993, Luigi starred in Mario Is Missing!, an "edutainment" title.
For the uninitiated, edutainment games teach children about
geography or math. They also suck balls. In this game, Bowser
nabs Mario for a change, so Luigi sets out to rescue Mario by
learning about geography. And no, not Mushroom Kingdom
geography - ours. Like, Paris and London and stuff. And there's
something about Bowser wanting to melt Earth's polar ice caps.
Totally lame. So sure, Luigi gets to be the main character, but this
game's innate crappiness this starring role ultimately a slap in his
mustachioed face.
No matter what people decide the "L Is Real 2041" inscription on
the castle courtyard fountain might mean, Luigi got screwed out of
appearing in Super Mario 64 altogether.
Luigi's Mansion, the title that launched the Gamecube in late 2001,
finally permitted the green guy the lead in a game that doesn't
suck. This is especially notable in that Luigi's co-star is a vacuum
cleaner. In the game's set-up, Luigi wins a contest he doesn't
remember entering. The prize: a giant mansion. Around the same
time, Mario goes missing. Geography won't help Luigi this time,
however. His mansion is full of ghosts. With the help of a
flashlight, the ingenious Professor E. Gadd, and the Poltergust
3000, a spook-sucking vacuum cleaner. The gameplay is a
departure from typical Mario antics, as its overhead view, search-
and-explore interface owes more to the Legend of Zelda games
than the hop-and-bop mechanics of the Mario games. Nonetheless,
it's populated with Mario series mainstays like Boos enough that
it's unmistakably part of the family.
Luigi's Mansion helped may have ushered in a new generation of
Mario games on the Gamecube, but Nintendo still neglected to
include the other brother in Super Mario Sunshine, which most
gamers recognize as the next canon Mario game in the series
following Super Mario 64.
The injustice of being shut out of the Nintendo 64 version of Super
Mario 64, however, was righted with the game's port to the
Nintendo DS. Players could finally choose to play as Luigi - but
only after Mario frees him. Fittingly, the key to poor Luigi's door
was secreted away in the Boo's Mansion stage, keeping up with
Luigi's feud with ghosts. Once out and about, Luigi proves to be
the most nimble of the four heroes in Super Mario 64 DS. He can
perform some floaty acrobatic moves and can also sprint across
water for short distances. Futhermore, Luigi can also touch the
Power Flower to gain the invisibility power-up. This would mark
the first-ever instance of a Luigi-specific power-up in a Mario
game.
A LITTLE MORE GREEN IN THE MIX
So while the mainstream Mario games might have started to shun
Luigi more and more, the RPG series has become quite a bit kinder
to the green guy, especially in recent years.
Luigi is basically absent from Super Mario RPG: Legend of the
Seven Stars, save for a few blink-and-you-miss-it cameo in the
ending as the leader of a parade of the game's cast and, as the
Sunset Kid points out, in an obscure "non-corporeal" cameo on
Star Hill. Mario and company can walk about the hill and overhear
the different wishes characters have made by checking out fallen
wishing stars on the ground. One star was wished upon by
somebody who wants to be "a great plumber like my brother,
Mario." Clearly, it's the L man.
The sequel to Super Mario RPG, Paper Mario, offered Luigi a bit
more to do than merely be neglected. He sulked. While Mario
ventured around the world to stop Bowser and rescue Peach,
homebody Luigi hung out at the brothers' pad and made humorous
observations. Mario could peek at Luigi's diary now and then for
some insight into his shy brother. Luigi had confided in his diary
that although he enjoyed the go-kart racing and golf and tennis and
parties, he maybe enjoyed letting Mario hog the spotlight. Maybe,
he wondered, he could have his own game one day. A short time
later, Luigi's Mansion debutted on the Gamecube.
Luigi finally got to share the top billing with Mario in Mario and
Luigi: Superstar Saga, their first RPG for the Game Boy Advance.
The two brothers took turns leading one another through Beanbean
Kingdom, a neighboring land to the Mushroom Kingdom. Only by
constantly switching into the leader position and using their
various skills in combination could the brothers triumph over the
evil witch Cackletta. Luigi's participation in this trip is initially
involuntary. He's serenely hanging his laundry to dry when Mario
races out to rescue Peach from Cackletta's attack. Luigi, and the
laundry, get tangled up with Mario as he races to the Mushroom
Kingdom castle.
At one point in the quest, Luigi goes solo. The prize for trying a
new game at the video arcade in Little Fungitown is an
Invincishroom - a scientific revolution that combines a 1-up
mushroom with a invincibility-granting Super Star. Mario chows
down, but promptly falls ill. A doctor diagnoses Mario's illness as
Bean Fever, which often befalls travelers not accustomed to
Beanbean cuisine and can - if not properly treated - transform
its victim into a bean. The only cure: Crabbie Grass, which grows
in Guffawha Ruins. Peach, visiting from the Mushroom Kingdom
begs Luigi to go. Only hypnotizing Luigi into thinking he's his
more courageous brother get him to stop shaking cowardly and
trek through the ruins. (Later in the game, that gloryhog Mario
thanks Luigi by flattening him and riding him as a makeshift
surfboard.)
Luigi shines once again, near the game's end, when he dons a wig
and a dress of Princess Peach's to fool Cackletta into thinking he's
the real monarch. The ruse works, momentarily, and Cackletta
drops the real Peach and grabs Luigi. A short time later, however,
Cackletta wonders why "Peach" covers her nose and mouth. She
shouts that a cockroach is right behind "Peach," tricking "her" into
revealing the schnoz and moustache formerly covered by hands.
Open fire on poor Luigi, but he escapes with the Beanstar.
The Mario RPG series proved to be kinder to Luigi again with its
latest installment, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door.
Although Luigi's appearance essentially amounted to an extended
cameo, Luigi purportedly went on his own quest throughout the
game, collecting pieces of the Marvelous Compass in an effort to
locate and rescue Éclair, the never-seen princess of Waffle
Kingdom. (A very Zelda-esque plot, if you ask me.) Between the
various chapters of the game's main, Mario-centric quest, Mario
could find his brother hanging around the streets of Rogueport,
eager to introduce his new partners - Blooey, Jerry Torque,
Hayzee and Screamy - or relate his recent escapades. Eventually,
Luigi's adventures are published in book form and sold at the
Rogueport general store at the multi-volume "Super Luigi."
Throughout the game, Luigi and various other characters wonder if
Luigi will ever get his own game - "Paper Luigi," perhaps?
Seeing as how the first Paper Mario alluded to Luigi's Mansion
being a solo-Luigi title, one has to wonder if perhaps the man in
green will one day claim the RPG series from his brother. I could
happen.
KING OF THE EXTRACURRICULARS
Mario may take precedence over Luigi in the games that require
somebody to fight a bad guy, but in the other Mario games - the
ones where the crew is driving go-karts, playing sports or attending
unusual parties - Luigi always shows up. Sure, it may be for no
other reason than to round out the cast, but he's there as a
selectable character all the same.
Luigi, for example, was playable right from the get-go in Super
Mario Kart, the game that launched the Mario spin-off craze. Its
sequel, Mario Kart 64, marks Luigi's first appearance on the
Nintendo 64. For the first time, also, Luigi gets a racetrack named
after himself. It's the first track and the most basic one. It sucks.
But hey - it's there.
Nintendo graciously allowed Luigi into Super Smash Bros. as a
secret character, in the ranks with Ness, Captain Falcon, and
Jigglypuff. Luigi shared the spotlight with the rest of the crew
through the Mario Party and sports games during the last days of
the Nintendo 64. In Mario Tennis, notably, he even got his own
versions of Wario and Peach with the introduction of Waluigi as
Luigi's rival and the reintroduction of Princess Daisy, this time as
a potential love interest for Luigi.
He returned for the second Smash Bros., as well as the seemingly
endless Mario Party sequels. He and Mario even teamed up for the
Gamecube's go-kart outing, Mario Kart: Double Dash!! Their
special weapon, of course, was their trademark fireball. Luigi's
fireballs were green.
Luigi also appeared alongside his brother and the usual Mario crew
in Mario Power Tennis. All the characters could wow their
opponents with super moves, but Luigi's were perhaps the most
interesting. In addition to an offensive shot the employed a plastic
squeaky hammer, Luigi's repertoire also included a defensive shot
wherein he sucked up the ball using his Poltergust 3000 and then
fired it back.
Nintendo has apparently tried to right the wrong that has so long
cast Luigi to the side. Who knows where he'll be as the Mario
franchise forges onto the next generation of consoles?
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR LUIGI***
Although Mario's younger brother has always played second
fiddle, Luigi finally garnered the spotlight with his very own game,
Luigi's Mansion. Things are looking up for the eternal understudy;
he's even picked up his own rival in Waluigi. The day he's
referred to as the "lean, mean, green machine" may not be too far
off.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR LUIGI***
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR VACUUM LUIGI***
In a strange twist of fate, Luigi wins a huge mansion in a contest
he didn't even enter, and the place turns out to be haunted! After
meeting a weird professor named Elvin Gadd, Luigi enters the
place armed with a flashlight and a ghost-sucking vacuum cleaner.
Mario's trapped somewhere in there! Can Luigi save him?
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR VACUUM LUIGI***
MARIO KART: DOUBLE DASH!! DATA:
Partner: Mario
Personal racecar: The Green Fire
Special weapon: Green Fireballs
Luigi's starring roles:
Mario Bros. (Arcade) - 1983
Mario Bros. (Arcade) - 1983
Mario Bros. (Atari 2600) - 1983
Mario Bros. (Atari 5200) - 1983
Mario Bros. (Commodore 64) - 1984
Super Mario Bros. (NES) - 1985
Wrecking Crew (NES) - 1985
Mario Bros. (Atari 7200) - 1985
Versus Super Mario Bros. (Arcade) - 1986
Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels (Famicom) - 1986
Mario Bros. (NES) - 1986
Mario Bros. 2 (Commodore 64) - 1987
Super Mario Bros. + Duck Hunt (NES) - 1988
Return of Mario Bros. (NES) - 1988
Super Mario Bros. 2 (NES) - 1988
Super Mario Bros. + Duck Hunt + World Class Track Meet (NES) - 1990
Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES) - 1990
NES Open Tournament Golf (NES) - 1991
Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Yoshi (Game Boy) - 1992
Yoshi (NES) - 1992
Super Mario Kart (Super NES) - 1992
Hotel Mario (CD-I) - 1992
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993
Mario Is Missing! (NES) - 1993
Mario Is Missing! (Super NES) - 1993
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Bandai Satellaview Super Mario Bros. 3 (Bandai Satellaview) - 1995
Mario's Tennis (Virtual Boy) - 1995
Excitebike: Bun Bun Mario Battle (Bandai Satellaview-X) - 1996
Excitebike: Bun Bun Mario Battle 2 (Bandai Satellaview-X) - 1996
Game & Watch Gallery (Game Boy) - 1997
Mario's Tennis (Virtual Boy) - 1997
Mario Kart 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Wrecking Crew '98 (Bandai Satellaview) - 1998
Game & Watch Gallery 2 (Game Boy) - 1998
Super Mario Bros. Deluxe (Game Boy Color) - 1999
Game & Watch Gallery 3 (Game Boy Color) - 1999
Mario Party (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Mario Golf (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Super Smash Bros. (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Mario Golf (Game Boy Color) - 2000
Mario Party 2 (Nintendo 64) - 2000
Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) - 2000
Mario Party 3 (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Super Mario Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2001
Mario Kart: Super Circuit (Game Boy Advance) - 2001
Luigi's Mansion (Gamecube) - 2001
Super Smash Bros Melee (Gamecube) - 2001
Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Mario Party 4 (Gamecube) - 2002
Game & Watch Gallery 4 (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Mario Party-e (Game Boy Advance E-Reader) - 2002
Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Party 5 (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (Gamecube) - 2003
Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Super Mario Bros. (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Super Mario Bros. 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
NBA Street V3 (Gamecube) - 2004
Mario Power Tennis (Gamecube) - 2004
Mario Party 6 (Gamecube) - 2004
Mario Party Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
Other appearances:
Tetris (NES) - 1989
F-1 Race (Game Boy) - 1991
Mario Teaches Typing (PC and Mac) - 1991
Mario Paint (Super NES) - 1992
Mario & Wario (Super Famicom) - 1993
Stunt Race FX (Super NES) - 1994
Mario Clash (Virtual Boy) - 1995
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super NES) - 1995
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (Super NES) - 1996
Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (Nintendo 64) - 1998*
Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask (Nintendo 64) - 2000**
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Animal Crossing (Gamecube) - 2001
Pikmin 2 (Gamecube) - 2004***
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Gamecube) - 2004
*as Ingo and as a portrait in Hyrule Castle
** as Gorman
*** as Louie
=======================================================================
LUMP
Occupation: He's in my head
First appearance: Wario Land 3 (2000)
A fat, gray toad who looks more like a rock than an amphibian. Lump
appears in Wario Land 3 and an enemy that obstructs Wario's path. He
also croaks his way into Dr. Mario 64's story mode as a boss and into
the multiplayer mode as a selectable charactet.
Lump's appearances:
Wario Land 3 (Game Boy Color) - 2000
Dr. Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 2001
=======================================================================
LUMPY
[Japanese name: Mokorimu]
Occupation: Entreprenuer
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
Lumpy hangs out around the Rogueport Harbor during the first few
chapters of the game. He'll ask Mario for a loan - whatever he can
spare to lend out, as long as it comes in multiples of a hundred. Much
later, Lumpy will return from a successful oil drilling venture in Dry
Dry Desert, an area Mario ventured through in the first Paper Mario.
There, Lumpy tangles with Buzzar, Merluvlee, Moustafa and
Kolorado, each of whom appeared in the first Paper Mario.
Lumpy is a Ratooey, a species introduced in Paper Mario: The
Thousand-Year Door. They look like tall rats that sit on their hind legs.
Curiously, only two appear in the entire game: Lumpy and the
nameless businessman who rides the Excess Express.
=======================================================================
LUNA [new]
Occupation: Blue-haired pop sensation
Only appearance: WarioWare: Twisted (2005)
With a modest hit ranking fourth on the Diamond City's pop charts,
you'd think Luna would be a recognizable face. I, however, can
honestly not tell the difference between her face and that of Bridget the
Baker, another Diamond City resident. Is this a result of lazy
programmers or secret identities? I suppose we'll have to wait until the
next WarioWare for an answer.
=======================================================================
LUNGE FISH
Occupation: Pond-dwelling snacker
First appearance: Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (1995)
A fish. He's a lot like Boss Bass, the Super Mario Bros. 3 baddie who
will attempt to eat Mario whole. True to his name, the Lunge Fish
pops out of the water in hopes of a Yoshi snack. He also is easily one
of the ugliest fish in a Mario game.
The Lunge Fish is a selectable character in Tetris Attack, where he
replaced the sea fairy Neris from the game's original Japanese version.
Lunge Fish's appearances:
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super NES) - 1995
Tetris Attack (Super NES) - 1996
Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3 (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
=======================================================================
LYDIA
[Japanese name: Mamara]
Occupation: Ghost mother
Only appearance: Luigi's Mansion (2001)
Lydia is the second portrait ghost Luigi fights. She's Neville's wife
and the mother of Chauncey, Henry and Orville. She's a self-absorbed
woman who constantly brushes her hair in front of her vanity mirror.
By pulling open the bedroom curtain, Lydia will notice a draft and go
to close it. That's Luigi's moment to suck her up into his vacuum.
=======================================================================
MAPLE
Occupation: Golfer
Only appearance: Mario Golf (1999)
Of the four generic human golfers in this game - Sonny, Charlie,
Harry, Plum and Maple - only Maple really stands out in my mind. I
remember she was a typical looking lady with short hair and a visor. If
my memory serves, she was also one of the later players to be
unlocked and therefore one of the best.
I'd almost put money on Maple's name somehow being a
mistranslation of the more common girl's name "Mable," but there's
always that tendency to name female characters after objects in the
Marioverse. Then again, a witchy character named Maple shows up in
Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons and Legend of Zelda: Oracle of
Ages for Game Boy Color.
=======================================================================
MACK
Occupation: Smithy's minion
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
One of Smithy's henchmen, Mack hops around on a giant knife. Mario
meets him when he returns to the Mushroom Kingdom from Bandit's
Way, where he helped Mallow fight Croco. Mario and Mallow find the
town overrun by Mack's horde of Shysters, pogo stick-mounted Shy
Guys. Once Mario and Mallow fight and defeat Mack in the throne
room of Peach's Castle, they earn their first Star Piece.
Mack's name is probably a reference to the old song "Mack the
Knife."
=======================================================================
MADAME CLAIRVOYA
[Japanese name: Madam Mieru]
Occupation: Fortune teller
Only appearance: Luigi's Mansion (2001)
What would a mansion be without a fortune teller's room? And what
would a fortune teller's room be without a fortune teller?
The haunted mansion has both. Madam Clairvoya's specializes in
reading fortunes by examining personal affects. As such, it's in Luigi's
interest to bring Madame Clairvoya the five items Mario dropped on
his way through the mansion - his hat, his shoe, his glove, a letter he
wrote and a star. Once Luigi's shows her all of Mario's lost items,
Madam Clairvoya decides she's done speaking with the spirits.
Instead, she's ready for the next astral plain - or at least the comfort
of her oil paint prison in a picture frame. She won't even attempt to
resist him.
According to Madame Clairvoya's bio on the Game Boy Horror, her
crystal ball only lets her see forty-nine days into the future.
Most people probably realize that Madame Clairvoya's name is an
obvious pun on the word "clairvoyant," which refers to the ability to
see things beyond the normal range of perception.
=======================================================================
MALLOW
Occupation: Not a tadpole
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
When the promotional material for Super Mario RPG first showed up
Nintendo Power, I was confused. It introduced Mario's partner
Mallow as a tadpole. Mallow looks like a ball of cotton with pants. I
just assumed tadpoles looked different in Japan.
Mario bumps into the marshmallow-like Mallow, a white pile of puffy
with a tiny shock of pink hair, just as his only coin has been stolen by
the crocodile bully Croco. Poor little Mallow breaks into tears and
immediately a rainstorm drenched the Mushroom Kingdom. Mario
agrees to help Mallow and the two crush Croco.
When Mario accompanies Mallow back to his home, Tadpole Pond, he
meets Mallow's "grandfather," the wise frog sage Frogfucius.
Frogfucius advises the pair as to the location of Bowser, Peach and the
Star Pieces. He also reveals that Mallow is not a tadpole - a
revelation that anybody with a brain should have seen coming a mile
away. Mallow starts crying again and the weather turns to rain.
The journey to find the star pieces eventually takes the pair to Nimbus
Land, the city in the clouds. The buildings are clouds. The ground is
clouds. And all of the people are made of fluffy white clouds - just
like Mallow. Here, Mario and Mallow also arrive just in time for a
royal proclamation: the return of the long-lost Prince Mallow! Only
the Prince Mallow introduced is an overweight toucan. The phony
prince proposes to a birdbrained ditz named Valentina, making Mario
and Mallow suspicious of the state of Nimbus Land.
In the studio of the famed sculptor Garro, Mario and Mario find what
appears to be a statue of Mallow. Garro, however explains that the
statue is of Nimbus Land's present king as a child. Figuring that
Mallow is almost certainly the kingdom's rightful prince. With Garro's
help, Mario and Mallow infiltrate royal palace and eliminate Valentina
and the fake prince. Tossing Valentina's butt out of the clouds means
freeing the rightful king and queen. Mallow has a naturally tearful
reunion with his parents and with his new royal title Mario's group
gets access to the formerly off-limits Barrel Volcano.
As the prince of Nimbus Land, Mallow can control all matter of
weather phenomena. He can use this power to shock and freeze his
opponents or heal them with a refreshing shower. Mallow's magic is
so powerful that during his spells, Mallow literally jumps out of his
pants. He's also skilled in hand-to-hand combat with Frogfucius' staff
or a pair of cymbals.
Because Square owns the rights to the characters created for Super
Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, Mallow has yet to reappear.
=======================================================================
MANGLYLOX
Occupation: Orange thing
Only appearance: Wario's Woods (1994)
You could have fooled me, but the Mushroom Kingdom website's
Mariopedia describes this boss as a hairy, orange dragon.
========================================================================
MARCHING MILDE
[Japanese name: Puchipuchi]
Occupation: Placid Puffball
Only appearance: Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island
Easily one of the friendliest-looking bosses in a Mario game,
Marching Milde is a giant pink puffball who bears a more-than-
passing resemblance to that other Nintendo mascot, Kirby. Milde isn't
nearly as cool as Kirby, though. He (she?) doesn't do much besides
slowly trudge forward. Yoshi must perform his hip drop stomping
move onto Milde's head, which causes him/her to divide into two
smaller Mildes. Keep stomping until Milde is no more.
Milde is a giant version of a smaller but equally harmless baddie in
Yoshi's Island called Mini Milde.
Marching Milde's starring roles:
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super NES) - 1995
Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3 (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
=======================================================================
MARIO
[also known as Mario Mario, Jumpman, the Great Gonzales]
Occupation: Heroic plumber
First appearance: Donkey Kong (1981)
[mario]
IT'S-A ME, JUMPMAN!
If you've reading video game FAQs and still need to read this to find
out who Mario is, you must be from Mars - in fact, a cave in one of
the more remote parts of Mars. But hey. We're not all perfect.
Mario, the Italian stereotype we all know and love today, is the
product of the gaming genius of Nintendo pioneers Shigeru Miyamoto
and Gunpei Yokoi. In the early days of Nintendo's arcade business,
Mr. Yukoi dreamed up a nifty little game where a jump-happy hero
could dodge rolling obstacles and save his sweetheart from a big
brutish bad guy. Donkey Kong, right?
Not yet.
The preliminary Donkey Kong engine originally was designed with
Popeye characters; Mario was originally Popeye, Pauline was Olive
Oyl, and Donkey Kong was supposed to be Bluto. However, Nintendo
couldn't snag the rights to the Popeye characters, so in 1981 the guys
at Nintendo re-designed the game with a different starring trio: a
mustachioed hero, a red-dressed damsel, and a big brutish ape. Only
Donkey Kong had an actual name at this point, though; Mario was
instead referred to as "Jumpman." This proto-Mario was not even a
plumber in his earliest incarnation, but a carpenter. Could the pink
scaffolding Mario climbs to rescue Pauline presumably be some
building Jumpman is working on?
The programming limits of the early video game age dictated
Jumpman's appearance. Hair was hard to animate, so programmers
gave him a hat. Mouths, apparently, were too hard to animate back
then, so Jumpman got a moustache. Those suspenders helped give
Jumpman's body a crude suggestion of arm movement. And sideburns
helped differentiate his ears. Jumpman jumped over endless volleys of
barrels all the way to the game's sequel the following year.
According to video game folklore, it's during this interim that
Nintendo of America president Minoru Arakawa coined the name
"Mario" when he saw Jumpman for the first time. Arakawa decided
Mario bore a resemblance to NOA's landlord Mario Segali. It stuck.
On a side note, Mario's name may also have some relevance in
Japanese as well. In Japanese the word "marui" means "round" or
"ball-like." Those who've played Metroid might remember that the
item that allows Samus to transform into a ball is called the Maru
Mari. Anyway, of the two Mario brothers, Mario is certainly the fatter
and rounder one. But though he already looked portly in his early days,
whether his pudge had any bearing on his name has yet to be verified.
He might have gotten himself a name, but Mario lost his spotlight to
his old nemesis' son in Donkey Kong Jr. in 1982. Donkey Kong now
awaited a rescue in a cage, Mario stood guard with a whip, while DK
Jr. swung from vine to vine to rescue his dad. Quite odd to think of
Mario as the villain, but I guess that's the case sometimes -
especially if your last name is "Koopa" or "Kong" or "the Hedgehog."
INTO THE PIPES
Nintendo released another sequel to Donkey Kong in 1983, but this
installment did not star Mario. Instead, a different release that same
year put the "brother" in Mario Bros. with the introduction of Mario's
younger brother Luigi: Mario's sprite with red overalls replaced with
green ones. And yes, Luigi's last name is Mario. So is Mario's. Hence
the name "Mario Bros." In this game, the boys battled monsters - and
each other - in the leaky pipes of the sewers.
Presumably, these sewers are in Mario's alleged homeland, Brooklyn,
New York, and not the Mushroom Kingdom, but the truthfulness of
this backstory is questionable - more a product of Nintendo of
America's repackaging of the title that was further perpetuated by
Mario-related books and cartoons released in the U.S. Honestly, if you
think about in-game text - that being the info most highly prized in
this guide - there's no mention of Mario and Luigi existing in this
world. So we could just as easily assume that Mario has always lived
in the Mushroom Kingdom. Yes, being Italian-American is an integral
part of his appearance - thick, black moustache as an Italian-
American man could have - and his heavily accented speech - what
with his "Mama mias" aplenty. But Nintendo may just as easily have
retconned this element out of existence, while preserving the look and
the accent. It's a tough one, with good arguments either way. I'm not
intending to settle it here, since I think it's good for fans to judge for
themselves.
The one thing Nintendo did set in stone was Mario's profession as a
plumber. Miyamoto has said in an interview that the he wanted Mario
to have a solid, hard-working occupation. Mario Bros. also introduced
a slew of gaming elements that became trademarks of the series. Aside
from Luigi's status as Player Two, Mario Bros. introduced jumping as
the brothers' primary method of attacking their enemies. Fireballs
bounced across the playing field and POW blocks only needed one
knock to send enemies tumbling. Most interestingly, the Koopa
Troopa basically made its entrance in Mario Bros. as the Shellcreeper.
With all the basics pretty well established, Mario made the transition
from the arcade to the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1985. Some
faulty plumbing warped Mario and his brother to the Mushroom
Kingdom just in time to rescue Princess Peach (then Toadstool) from
the clutches of Bowser, the King of the Koopa. On this adventure (and
pretty much every subsequent one) Mario could power-up by snagging
items. Interestingly, this power-up system inferred that Mario's shorter
form was his natural one. Mario started the game little - half the size
of Super Mario. Indeed, Miyamoto has said in interviews that "[the
designers] wanted him to be shorter than the enemy characters and
princesses he rescues."
As many players already know, the details surrounding the first
follow-up to Super Mario Bros. are quite complicated.
In 1986, Japanese Nintendo players got what amounts to an extreme
version of the original Super Mario Bros. - the same sprites and
music with only slight modifications. Frustratingly hard levels and the
choice between playing with Mario or Luigi set it apart from its
predecessor, but Nintendo of Japan apparently decided American
players would not be interested in this adventure. Instead, Nintendo
monkeyed with the programming of the 1987 Japanese release Doki
Doki Panic and replaced its heroes - a quaint Arabian family - with
Mario, Luigi, Toad, and Princess Peach. The American version
eventually did hit Japanese shores in 1992 as Super Mario USA; The
Lost Levels was featured on both ubercollection Super Mario All-Stars
in 1993 and Super Mario Deluxe in 1999.
In the American Super Mario Bros. 2, Mario and crew plucked and
chucked turnips at a whole new legion of baddies. The gameplay was
nothing like any previous or subsequent Mario game. Stomping didn't
work in Subcon, the land of Dreams, so heroes had to pull root
vegetables from the ground and kill bad guys with those.
The game's different feel didn't stop with combat techniques. The
backgrounds consisted of 8-bit interpretations of palm trees and weird,
ovular clouds. Powering-up meant throwing a red potion on the
ground, which predictably turned into a door, and venturing into a
dreamy, silhouetted subspace. And somehow, the residents of Subcon
grew rocket ships in the soil next to the turnips and radishes.
Fittingly, Nintendo explained the game's innate weirdness by
explaining the whole thing as a kooky dream Mario has. And while
plunk-and-chuck vegetable warfare vanished from the Marioverse
after Super Mario Bros. 2, a lot of elements remained in the series.
Many of the enemies, notably Bob-Ombs, Pokeys, Shy Guys, and
Birdo, showed up again and again in later games, despite the fact that
the plot of Super Mario Bros. 2 was explained as a dream. Whatever.
MARIO GETS HIGHER AND HIGHER
With Super Mario Bros. 3, Mario returned to a more standard plan of
attack: jump and stomp. Bowser declares war on the Mushroom
World, the area beyond the Mushroom Kingdom. With the help of
some magical suits, Mario and Luigi set out to stop Bowser and his
seven bratty children. The brothers could transform into a frog, a
Hammer Brother, or a mythical Japanese raccoon. Miyamoto has said
in interviews that he had even considered having Centaur Mario be
one of Mario's possible transformations.
Oddly, even though Super Mario Bros. 3 is the best-selling video game
of all time - 15 million copies worldwide at the time of my writing
this - and was even featured in the 1989 film The Wizard, few
features from this game became regular features in the series. Mario's
animal suits all but vanished - at least until Mario and Luigi:
Superstar Saga, 20003's Game Boy Advance RPG, in which the
brothers fought Tanoombas, freaky Tanooki-mushroom hybrids. The
Koopalings also got pushed to the backburner with the introduction of
the eighth Koopaling, Bowser Jr. Even the iconic raccoon tail got
replaced with the Super Cape in Super Mario World. As far as
enemies, Thwomps and Boos premiered in Super Mario Bros. 3, but
far more of the series' regulars were drawn from Super Mario Bros. 2
or Super Mario World. Odd.
Mario leaped into 16-bit glory in 1991 with Super Mario World, in
which Miyamoto's dreams of Mario riding an animal buddy were
finally realized with the introduction of Yoshi. Yoshi instantly became
a staple of the Mario games, and has since starred a few of his own
games, including Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, which told the
story of Baby Mario's traumatic delivery to his parents. (For the
purposes of this FAQ, Mario and Baby Mario are being treated as
separate characters. To find out why, read Baby Mario's section.)
Oddly, it was as late as Super Mario World that Mario's onscreen
appearance became finalized, likely since 16-bit games allowed
enough characters on his sprite to reflect what his artwork in the
instruction booklet looked like. Mario's consistently appeared slightly
pudgy, but his clothes changed from game to game during his 8-bit
days.
In Donkey Kong, Mario sported a blue shirt and red overalls - the
opposite of his present outfit. In Super Mario Bros, however, the
mustachioed one wore a green shirt and red overalls. These clothes
never appeared again. His look in Super Mario Bros. 2 matched his
present one, but in Super Mario Bros. 3, Mario's overalls were black.
His look since Super Mario World, however, has stuck.
FROM SIDE-SCROLLING TO ANYWHERE-SCROLLING
It's a cliché, really, to write about how Mario revolutionized anything.
Nonetheless, Mario took video games in a radically new direction with
his premiere in the 3-D world of the Nintendo 64's flagship title, Super
Mario 64. This game was the first 3-D adventure of its type. In it,
Mario could move about arenas in any direction. Other video game
companies mimicked it like crazy. In Super Mario 64, Mario rescued
Princess Peach from the imprisonment inside her own castle by diving
through magical paintings and explored the worlds inside them.
Jumping and stomping was again central to gameplay, but now Mario
could finally punch and kick his enemies - and send them flying in
any direction, no less. Specially powered hats lent Mario the powers of
flight, invisibility, and.... um... metal. Perhaps most importantly,
however, Super Mario 64 marked Charles Martinet's debut as the
plumber's voice. Martinet's vocal work may verge on stereotypical
Italian quips like "Mama mia!" and "It's-a me, Mario!" but he's been
faithfully voicing Mario - and, in later games, Luigi, Wario, and
Waluigi as well - ever since.
It's curious, though, to think that despite how much Super Mario 64
might have changed video games, it marked the only installment of the
main Mario series for the Nintendo 64. (By the main series, of course,
I mean the platformers, which would include Super Mario 64 and
Super Mario Sunshine, but not the RPG games and the like.) Indeed,
the Nintendo 64 marked the age of the spin-offs. Rather than fighting
Bowser, Mario spent much more time games with him - golf, tennis,
and funky large-scale boards games.
The Nintendo Gamecube debuted in 2001. Most interestingly, this
system's launch title, Luigi's Mansion, featured Mario only in a minor
role. Mario's first big game for Nintendo's first disc-based system is
Super Mario Sunshine. Essentially, a modification of the Super Mario
64 engine, Mario trades in some of his more acrobatic moves for
F.L.U.D.D. (the Flash Liquidizer Ultra Dousing Device), a
superpowered water pistol designed by the ingenious Dr. E. Gadd.
Super Mario Sunshine unfolds during Mario and Peach's vacation on
the tropical Isle Delfino, so Mario also sports rolled up sleeves and -
with a little work - a Hawaiian shirt and sunglasses.
MARIO WITH HIT POINTS IS STILL MARIO
Mario's last appearance on the Super NES broke tradition by placing
the plucky plumber in his first role playing game. Nintendo teamed up
with Square, the minds behind the RPG juggernaut Final Fantasy
series, to tell the story of Mario's battle with Smithy, the
extraterrestrial forger of weapons. Armed with a hammer, a Koopa
Troopa shell and his trusty stomping boots, Mario fought alongside
Princess Peach, Bowser (!), a puffball named Mallow, and an alien-
animated puppet named Geno. Super Mario RPG also showcased the
first 3-D rendered models for Mario and the rest of his friends.
but he bid farewell to the Nintendo 64 in 2001 with Paper Mario -
known in Japan is Paper Mario Story, which reduces to a funny
acronym. A semi-sequel to Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven
Stars, Mario again set out to piece the Star Road back together. This
RPG, however, conspicuously lacked any characters from the first
game. The rift caused by Squares decision to develop games for the
Sony Playstation instead of the Nintendo 64 meant none of the cast
introduced in Super Mario RPG could appear, as Square owned the
rights to all of them.
Sans Square, Nintendo took Paper Mario in a different direction: flat.
By giving the entire game the look of cut-out characters in a picture
book, Nintendo gave a new twist to the fight between Mario and
Bowser. This time, Mario also had the help of a team of reformed
baddies like Goombario, a Mario-idolizing Goomba, and Bombette,
the cutest little explosive device in the world.
Unlike Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, Paper Mario
received a full-fledged sequel. Titled Paper Mario: The Thousand-
Year Door, the game sent Mario off to the dangerous streets of
Rogueport, from which Peach had recently disappeared. Left with only
an ancient treasure map, Mario trekked all across the continent in
search of the Peach and the fabled Crystal Stars. The journey include
all the typical RPG stops - the jungle, the desert, a haunted house -
but this game took Mario as far as the moon - a feat a Mario game
hasn't attempted since Super Mario Land 2: Six Golden Coins.
As in the first Paper Mario, a small army of traveling buddies
accompanied Mario on his journey, including revamps of buddies from
the first game - Goombella, Koops and Bobbery - as well as wholly
new ones - Flurrie, Vivian, Ms. Mowz and an unnamed Baby Yoshi.
The game preserved the paper cut-out aesthetic of the first Paper
Mario and even underscored it by giving Mario special power ups that
allowed him to take advantage of the his paper form: he could roll up
into a cylinder and roll, turn to the side to fit through narrow passages,
fold into a paper airplane or even an origami boat. Though the game's
main villains were the X-Nauts, a tribe of tech-savvy baddies, Mario
eventually had to fight the Shadow Queen, an evil entity bent on
bringing about the apocalypse.
CREAMED SPINACH COLOR
While Mario starred in game after game on Nintendo's home systems,
he also expanded his universe with a few titles for Nintendo's Game
Boy. Though the Game Boy launched in 1989 with Tetris bundled into
every package, Super Mario land premiered two months later. Mario
visited Sarasaland to rescue Princess Daisy from crazed spaceman
Tatanga. For the first time, Mario incorporated vehicles into his
repertoire of goodies. Although his mini-plane - his "Sky Pop" -
and mini-sub - his "Marine Pop" - were basically the same
machine, two of Super Mario Land's twelve stages were essentially
shooters - departures from the traditional side-scroller fare.
While Super Mario Land played much like a creamed spinach-colored
version of Super Mario Bros, the second Game Boy game owed much
of its look and feel to Super Mario World. In Super Mario Land 2: Six
Golden Coins, Mario returned from rescuing Princess Daisy to his
home in Mario Land to find that Wario had ganked his castle. While
this plotline never explained where the hell this Mario Land came
from or why Mario had built a castle there, it did introduce Mario's
alterego, the villainous and greedy Wario. Like Yoshi, Wario became
instantly popular and quickly commandeered the Mario Land series.
WHAT WON'T MARIO DO?
If anyone deserved to relax in the meantime, it would be Mario. More
and more often, he whiles away his hours playing any game he can.
Following the advent of the Mario Kart franchise back in the days of
the Super Nintendo, Mario seems happy to call his ever-growing stable
of friends - and some enemies, oddly - together for polite
competition, whether it be on the go-kart track, the tennis court, the
golf course or even the baseball diamond. In nearly every game, Mario
plays the well-rounded character. He's heaver than Peach, less
squirrelly than Luigi and quicker than Bowser. The big exception to
this rule is the Mario party franchise, in which none of the ever-
growing cast of partiers seems to have a physical edge over another.
It seems that Mario won't even stop at kicking the crap out of his usual
crew. Twice now, Mario has starred in the Smash Bros. games, which
pit him against familiar friends and mascots from other series.
It begs the question: What will Mario's next hobby be?
(For a list of Mario's various powered-up forms, check the
miscellaneous lists section at the end of the guide.)
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR MARIO***
Known worldwide as Mr. Nintendo, Mario uses his incredible jumping
ability to thwart the evil Bowser time after time. While he's best
known as a hero, Mario has played many roles, including racer, doctor,
golfer, and villain. His tastes have changed over 20 years of gaming;
he long ago swapped the colors of his shirt and overalls.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR MARIO***
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR RACCOON MARIO***
In Super Mario Bros. 3, Super Leafs caused Mario to grow raccoon
ears and a tail. By sprinting and rapidly wagging the tail, Mario gained
the ability to fly for short periods. Like the Cape in Super Mario
World, the tail also reduced the speed at which he fell, making midair
moves easier. Needless to say, real raccoons were jealous.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR RACCOON MARIO***
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR MARIO & YOSHI***
Yoshi was first introduced in Super Mario World, and the sight of
Mario riding the helpful character soon became an enduring image.
Despite his Cape, Mario can't fly while astride Yoshi. The pair can
make huge jumps and drift slowly back to earth, though. As a last
resort, Mario could leap off Yoshi's back to safety.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR MARIO & YOSHI***
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR METAL MARIO***
Mario was in for a surprise the first time he hit a Metal Box in Super
Mario 64. The metal cap that popped out transformed Mario into living
metal, giving him great stamina, a heavy tread, and the ability to walk
underwater. In Super Smash Bros., Metal Mario showed up as an
incredibly stubborn midlevel boss.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR METAL MARIO***
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR PAPER MARIO***
The Star Rod: Bowser stole it, and Mario wants it back. Bowser vs.
Mario is familiar for Mario aficionados, but Paper Mario is novel.
What this game brings to the 3D polygon-filled gaming world is its art
style: everything is wafer thin! What the visuals lack in realism, they
more than make up for in unique artistry.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR PAPER MARIO***
MARIO KART: DOUBLE DASH!! DATA:
Partner: Luigi
Personal racecar: The Red Fire
Special weapon: Red Fireballs
Mario's starring roles:
Donkey Kong (Arcade) - 1981
Donkey Kong Jr. (Arcade) - 1982
Donkey Kong (Atari 2600) - 1981
Mario Bros. (Arcade) - 1983
Mario Bros. (Atari 2600) - 1983
Mario Bros. (Atari 5200) - 1983
Mario Bros. (Commodore 64) - 1984
Super Mario Bros. (NES) - 1985
Donkey Kong (NES) -1985
Wrecking Crew (NES) - 1985
Versus Super Mario Bros. (Arcade) - 1986
Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels (Famicom) - 1986
Mario Bros. (Atari 7200) - 1983
Donkey Kong Jr. (NES) - 1986
Mario Bros. (NES) - 1986
Mario Bros. 2 (Commodore 64) - 1987
Super Mario Bros. + Duck Hunt (NES) - 1988
Return of Mario Bros. (NES) - 1988
Super Mario Bros. 2 (NES) - 1988
Donkey Kong Jr. (Intellivision) - 1988
Donkey Kong Jr. (Colecovision) - 1988
Donkey Kong Jr. (Atari 7800) - 1988
Donkey Kong Classics (NES) - 1988
Super Mario Land (Game Boy) - 1989
Super Mario Bros. + Duck Hunt + World Class Track Meet (NES) - 1990
Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES) - 1990
NES Open Tournament Golf (NES) - 1991
Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Yoshi (Game Boy) - 1992
Yoshi (NES) - 1992
Super Mario Land 2: Six Golden Coins (Game Boy) - 1992
Super Mario Kart (Super NES) - 1992
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993
Yoshi's Safari (Super NES) - 1993
Yoshi's Cookie (Super NES) - 1993
Yoshi's Cookie (Game Boy) - 1993
Yoshi's Cookie (NES) - 1993
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Donkey Kong '94 (Game Boy) - 1994
Bandai Satellaview Super Mario Bros. 3 (Bandai Satellaview) - 1995
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super NES) - 1995
Mario Clash (Virtual Boy) - 1995
Mario's Tennis (Virtual Boy) - 1995
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (Super NES) - 1996
Excitebike: Bun Bun Mario Battle (Bandai Satellaview-X) - 1996
Excitebike: Bun Bun Mario Battle 2 (Bandai Satellaview-X) - 1996
Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1996
Super Mario 64 Shindou Version (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Game & Watch Gallery (Game Boy) - 1997
Mario Kart 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Excitebike: Bun Bun Mario Battle 3 (Bandai Satellaview-X) - 1997
Excitebike: Bun Bun Mario Battle 4 (Bandai Satellaview-X) - 1997
Wrecking Crew '98 (Bandai Satellaview) - 1998
Game & Watch Gallery 2 (Game Boy) - 1998
Super Mario Bros. Deluxe (Game Boy Color) - 1999
Game & Watch Gallery 3 (Game Boy Color) - 1999
Mario Party (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Mario Golf (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Super Smash Bros. (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Mario Golf (Game Boy Color) - 2000
Mario Party 2 (Nintendo 64) - 2000
Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) - 2000
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Mario Party 3 (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Super Mario Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2001
Mario Kart: Super Circuit (Game Boy Advance) - 2001
Super Smash Bros Melee (Gamecube) - 2001
Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Super Mario Sunshine (Gamecube) - 2002
Mario Party 4 (Gamecube) - 2002
Game & Watch Gallery 4 (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
Mario Party-e (Game Boy Advance E-Reader) - 2002
Nintendo Puzzle Collection (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Party 5 (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (Gamecube) - 2003
Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Mario vs. Donkey Kong (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Super Mario Bros. (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Super Mario Bros. 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
NBA Street V3 (Gamecube) - 2004
Mario Pinball Land (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Gamecube) - 2004
Super Mario 64 DS (Nintendo DS) - 2004
Mario Power Tennis (Gamecube) - 2004
Mario Party 6 (Gamecube) - 2004
Mario Golf: Advance Tour (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Mario Party Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
WarioWare: Twisted! (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
WarioWare: Touched! (Nintendo DS) - 2005
Other appearances:
Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! (Arcade) - 1984
Donkey Kong Jr. Math (NES) - 1985
Golf (NES) - 1985
Tennis (NES) - 1985
Pinball (NES) - 1985
Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! (NES) - 1987
Tetris (NES) - 1989
Alleyway (Game Boy) - 1989
Baseball (Game Boy) - 1989
Earthbound Zero (NES) - 1989
Qix (Game Boy) - 1990
Mario Teaches Typing (PC and Mac) - 1991
F-1 Race (Game Boy) - 1991
SimCity (Super NES) - 1991
Yoshi (Game Boy) - 1992
Yoshi (NES) - 1992
Mario Paint (Super NES) - 1992
Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (Super NES) - 1992
Super Play Action Football (Super NES) - 1992
Super Scope 6 LazerBlazer (Super NES) - 1992
Hotel Mario (CD-I) - 1992
Mario Is Missing! (NES) - 1993
Mario Is Missing! (Super NES) - 1993
Yoshi's Cookie (Super NES) - 1993
Mario & Wario (Super Famicom) - 1993
Mario's Time Machine (Super NES) - 1993
Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (Game Boy) - 1993*
Mario's Time Machine (NES) - 1994
Stunt Race FX (Super NES) - 1994
Earthbound (Super NES) - 1994
Super Mario Land 3: Wario Land (Game Boy) - 1994
Mario's Picross (Game Boy) - 1995
Mario's Picross 2 (Game Boy) - 1995
Undake 30 Same Game (Super NES) - 1995
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (Super NES) - 1995
Donkey Kong Land 2 (Game Boy) - 1996
Pilot Wings 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1996
Kirby Super Star (Super NES) - 1996
Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX (Game Boy Color) - 1998*
F-Zero X (Nintendo 64) - 1998**
Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (Nintendo 64) - 1998***
Picross NP Vol. 2 (Super Famicom) - 1999
Donkey Kong 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask (Nintendo 64) - 2000*
Picross NP Vol. 6 (Super Famicom) - 2000
Luigi's Mansion (Gamecube) - 2001
Pikmin (Gamecube) - 2001*****
Pokémon Stadium 2 (Nintendo 64) - 2001
1080 Avalance (Gamecube) - 2003******
WarioWare, Inc. (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Pikmin 2 (Gamecube) - 2004*****
* as Tarin
** as Mr. EAD
*** as Talon
**** as a mask on the back of the Happy Mask Saleman's pack
***** as Captain Olimar
****** on the bottom of Ricky Winterborn's snowboard
(Mario has appeared in more video games than any other video game
character. Eat your hearts out, Sonic and Mega Man.)
=======================================================================
MASTER CRASH
[Japanese name: Okutaru]
Occupation: Glitz Pit competitor
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A Bob-Omb afflicted with a bizarre speech impediment that forces
him to say "BOMB!" every few words. He hangs out in the minor
league locker room at the Glitz Pit and offers Mario advice. Mario
must fight his team, the Bob-Omb Squad, in the Glitz Pit arena.
=======================================================================
MASTER NECKY
Occupation: Bad bird with a big beak
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country (1994)
A jumo version of the generic, vulture-like Necky baddie, Master
Necky is the boss of the second area of Donkey Kong Country, the
Monkey Mines. His ugly pink head slides in from either side of the
screen just long enough to cough a nasty nut towards Donkey and
Diddy - and, if they're fast enough, they'll have time to stomp his
noggin while he's there.
Either Rare was trying to scrimp in character sprites or give Master
Necky more character depth, because this boss shows up again as the
boss of the game's sixth world, Chimp Caverns. The game remains the
same, however. Beak. Nuts. Stomp. No biggie.
Master Necky's starring roles:
Donkey Kong Country (Super NES) - 1994
Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Color) - 2000
Donkey Kong Country (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
=======================================================================
McGOOMBA
[Japanese name: Makuri]
Occupation: Goomba-on-the-lam
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
A Goomba who hides out behind Zess T.'s kitchen. He claims he's a
fugitive and asks Mario to deliver a package for him.
=======================================================================
MEGASMILAX
[Japanese name: Flower Bud]
Occupation: Wicked weed
Only appearance: Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996)
A Piranha Plant residing in Bean Valley with a hydra-like ability to
grow multiple heads, each of which are referred to as "Smilax."
Eventually, Smilax grows one big head that, when defeated, kills the
whole plant. A Shy Away, a skittish, flying Shy Guy with a watering
can, works for Valentina as the plant's caretaker.
"Smilax" is the Latin name for the plant "sarsaparilla," which is not
carnivorous at all, oddly enough.
=======================================================================
MEIDOU
Occupation: Angry mermaid
Only appearance: Wario's Woods NES (1994)
The fourth boss in the NES Wario's Woods. Given that she's a dead
ringer for Aqualea, the mermaid boss from the SNES Wario's Woods,
I'm fairly certain that she's the same character. Perhaps "Meidou" is
just her Japanese name.
=======================================================================
MELODY PIANISSIMA
[Japanese name: Pian]
Occupation: Poltergeist pianist
Only appearance: Luigi's Mansion (2001)
She calls herself the "spectral lady of the ivory keys." If Luigi nudges
the haunted instruments in the mansion's conservatory, they will each
play the Super Mario Bros. theme and Melody, delighted by the ditty,
will materialize. She then plays her concerto, the underwater music
from Super Mario Bros. 3., and asks Luigi what the composer had in
mind when he wrote that song. If Luigi answers "water," he gets to
fight Melody and her possessed sheet music. Alternately, Melody
could also play the stage music from the original Super Mario Bros.
and ask Luigi to identify what game the tune comes from.
Her last name is a musical term meaning "very softly."
=======================================================================
MERLON (and his family)
[Japanese name: Deaaru]
Occupation: Seer
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
The patriarch of a family of sages, Merlon resides in a spinning house
in Toad Town. He's regarded as an eccentric by the Toads, but Merlon
proves to be a helpful ally in Mario's quest to rescue the Star Spirits.
When four sinister-looking Toads lurk around Toad Town, Merlon's
magic reveals them to be the Koopa Bros. in disguise. After that,
Mario can visit Merlon's house any time for direction on his quest.
Oddly, the model for Merlon and his kin seems to be drawn from
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars. Square owns the rights
to most of the cast, and as a result, most of the characters introduced in
the game never showed up again - Geno being a notable exception.
But the game featured a generic character who first appears as a
merchant on the beach area before undersea portion of that game and
later appears as a generic baddie in Valentina's castle. The robed
figures had eyes glowed from beneath the shadows cast by their hoods
- just like Merlon's clan. Whether this is a coincidence, I don't know,
but it's certainly interesting that of all the characters in Super Mario
RPG to bring back, Nintendo chose these guys.
Merlon apparently spent the interim between the first Paper Mario and
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door growing his moustache. It's
quite bushier in the sequel. Mario can visit his shop in Rogueport if he
has three Shine Sprites, which Merlon will accept as payment for
upgrading one of his buddies' fighting abilities.
However, there's some evidence that the Merlon in Rogueport actually
isn't the Merlon in Toad Town - nor are the Merluvlees or Merlees
the same, either. Wonky, a chatterbox who copious inside information
on a number of characters in the Paper Mario series, mentions a certain
tribe that names it members by profession. For example, someone with
Merlon's job would always be called Merlon. This doesn't quite work,
though, when you remember that Merlon doesn't have the same job
from on Paper Mario to the next. In the first, for example, he tells
Mario what he should do next. In the sequel, he upgrades Mario's
partners. Make whatever you will from that.
Merlon's appearances:
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Gamecube) - 2004
=====
Merlon's family forms a worldwide network of psychics, shaman,
wizards and fortune-tellers who will help Mario.
MERLUVLEE
[Japanese name: Misuteeru]
Occupation: Fortune Teller
First appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
Merlon's granddaughter. Goombario thinks she's beautiful, though
you never get a good look at her face underneath her family's
trademark cloak. She lives on Shooting Star Summit and can use her
crystal ball to see into the future. Merluvlee's house also holds a
special chest with star crest that is magically linked to a similar chest
in Peach's castle. As Peach sneaks around her castle, she can deposit
items in the chest that Mario can access by checking Merluvlee's
chest.
In Paper-Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, Mario finds that Merluvlee
has traded her digs on Shooting Star Summit for considerably less
posh ones in the sewers of Rogueport. She looks different, too, as she
now seems to be wearing a turquoise version of Merlee's outfit. Even
in her new clothes, however, Merluvlee can still see the future. She
also still punctuates her speech with hearts and is as cute as ever.
Merluvlee's appearances:
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Gamecube) - 2004
=====
MERLOW
[Japanese name: Atsumeeru]
Occupation: Star Piece collector
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
Merluvlee's little brother. This pint-sized shaman lives with Merluvlee
and will trade rare badges for Star Pieces that Mario finds.
=====
MERLEE
[Japanese name: Sandeeru]
Occupation: Fortune Teller
First appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
Merluvlee's twin sister. She lives in a hidden alley in Dry Dry
Outpost. For a fee, she'll make her cards dance and enchant Mario
with a spell that will increase his offensive power, defensive power,
star points or coins.
Merlee performs an identical service in Paper Mario: The Thousand-
Year Door, from her new home beneath the streets of Rogueport. Now,
instead of cards she uses a magical box to bless Mario with extra luck.
Merlee's appearances:
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Gamecube) - 2004
=====
MERLE
Merlon's son. Only a blonde, droopy moustache distinguishes him
from the rest of the family. He lives with the Ninjis in Starborn Valley,
were Star Kids live until they are old enough to ascend to Star Haven.
Unfortunately, Bowser's meddling in Star Haven has rendered all the
Star Kids earthbound. Merle begs Mario to stop Bowser and gives him
the scarf, which is a key to unlocking the Star Palace.
=====
MERLAR
Merlon's ancestor, who appears as a ghost in a hidden room near the
Star Palace. Madam Merlar is the messenger of the stars and shares
Merlon's tendency to tell long-winded stories that put Mario to sleep.
=======================================================================
METAL MARIO
Occupation: Short-lived clone
First appearance: Super Mario 64 (1996)
Metal Mario first showed up as a powered-up version of Mario, not as
a separate character. By diving into a pool of molten metal, Mario
transformed into a stronger but heavier metal dynamo. For some
reason, Metal Mario showed up a few years later as an alternate
playable version of Mario in Mario Golf.
In the original Smash Bros., characters fought Metal Mario before they
took on the game's final boss, Master Hand. Logically, Metal Mario
fought a lot like normal Mario, just stronger and heavier like he was in
Super Mario 64. In Super Smash Bros. Melee, however, the character
was more or less eliminated. The Metal Cap became an item anybody
could use and the next-to-last battle with Master Hand was against a
metal version of any of the game's characters - Metal Ness, Metal
Marth or whoever.
Finally, Metal Mario appeared as the boss of the Wario storyline in Dr.
Mario 64. He could also be unlocked as a selectable character for
players who beat the entire game without losing once..
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR METAL MARIO***
Mario was in for a surprise the first time he hit a Metal Box in Super
Mario 64. The metal cap that popped out transformed Mario into living
metal, giving him great stamina, a heavy tread, and the ability to walk
underwater. In Super Smash Bros., Metal Mario showed up as an
incredibly stubborn midlevel boss.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR METAL MARIO***
Metal Mario's starring roles:
Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1996
Super Mario 64 Shindou Version (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Mario Golf (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Super Smash Bros. (Nintendo 64) - 1999
Dr. Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Nintendo Puzzle Collection (Gamecube) - 2003
Super Mario 64 DS (Nintendo DS) - 2004
Other appearances:
Super Smash Bros. Melee (Gamecube) - 2001
=======================================================================
MIKE [new]
Occupation: Karaoke robot
Only appearance: WarioWare: Touched (2005)
One of Dr. Crygor's creations, Mike is a walking, talking karaoke
machine who deems his master's singing as "99.78 percent awful."
However, upon being powered-up for the first time, Crygor decides to
leave the lab and program Mike to clean. Soon enough, his "party-
rocking algorithms" overpower clean-the-house mode, and Mike blasts
off into space in search of intergalactic karaoke competition. Thus
opens his game set, which all involve the use of the Nintendo DS
microphone. Blow to win, kids!
In the epilogue, Dribble and Spitz show up to return Mike to Crygor's
island lab. There, Crygor invite Mike to sing a duet with him. It does
not go well.
Like Ashley, the other new character introduced in WarioWare:
Touched!, Mike gets a theme song with lyrics. It plays during his
opening story sequence. Mike's spoken parts are in brackets. The rest
of the song is credited to Sal Out, one of Mona's rivals on the
Diamond City music charts.
Go! Go! Go! Go! Mike!
Go! Go! Go! Go! Mike!
[[My name is Mike]]
Come on, let's robo karaoke!
Rock the Mike! Rock the Mike!
Get up on stage and
Sing a little ditty for me
Rock the Mike! Rock the Mike!
Rock me! Know what I mean?
[[I'm a karaoke machine!]]
Rock the Mike!
[[I've got two mics on my head
Can you sing into me?]]
Rock the Mike! Rock the Mike!
[[Don't you wanna -
Don't you wanna -
Don't you wanna karaoke?]]
Rock the Mike! Rock the Mike!
Rock me! Know what I mean?
[[I'm a karaoke machine!]]
The song is also played in Mona's prologue in WarioWare: Touched!
=======================================================================
MILLENNIUM STAR
Occupation: Super Starman
Only appearance: Mario Party 3 (2001)
A giant talking star re-incarnated every thousand years. This
Millennium Star descends into Peach's courtyard just as she and her
friends are squabbling over who's the greatest star. Then they play
mini-games. Millennium Star also functions as the game's boss. At the
end of the game's story mode, he challenges your character to one
more round of adventure - "Stardust Battle," in which your character
must defeat the Millennium Star by dumping stars on him. Once the
battle ends, your character finds that the now-defeated Millennium
Star was a fake, and that Tumble, the sentient dice block, holds the real
deal.
The Millennium Star looks like a big Starman, the bouncing, power-up
that grants Mario invincibility. Honestly, you'd think a celestial entity
reborn once a millennium would have something better to do with its
time than exchange coins for stars in an effort to pick which of eight
people is the best at odd, competitive parties. But no.
=======================================================================
MIPS
Occupation: Little bunny lost
First appearance: Super Mario 64 (1996)
A brown hare hopping through the leaky basement of Princess Peach's
castle. If Mario can catch him, he'll scream something about being late
and toss Mario a star for his efforts. After Mario defeats Bowser,
MIPS will show up lost in Peach's basement a second time.
TSPhoenix points out that MIPS shares his name with that of a special
chip in the Nintendo 64 - the "Millions of Instructions per Second"
chip.
Though Nintendo faithfully ported most of the characters from Super
Mario 64 to the remake, Super Mario 64 DS, MIPS is missing, in a
sense. The game is full of runaway bunnies, and catching them yields
keys that unlock mini-games that you can play in Peach's rec room.
But these bunnies are not brown like MIPS. Upon being caught, none
introduce themselves as MIPS. So he's there and he's not.
MIPS' appearances:
Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64) - 1996
Super Mario 64 Shindou Version (Nintendo 64) - 1997
Super Mario 64 DS (Nintendo DS) - 2004
=======================================================================
MISS PETUNIA
[Japanese name: Miss Bunya]
Occupation: Bath spook
Only appearance: Luigi's Mansion (2001)
The bathing beauty. When Luigi's enters the bathroom, he can see
Petunia's fetching silhouette behind the curtain. Pull back the
curtain - and she's actually quite fat. Real fat. Petunia would hate
for Luigi to ruin her steamy shower, so Luigi should douse her
with some ice. Once chilled, Miss Petunia is vulnerable long
enough that Luigi can suck her up in his vacuum.
Miss Petunia's Game Boy Horror bio says that though she was
runner-up in the Miss Ghost pageant a few years back, she hasn't
had much modeling work lately.
Miss Petunia the ghostly bather is not to be confused with Petunia
from Paper Mario. That Petunia actually is a petunia.
=======================================================================
MISS WARP
[Japanese name: Waapuchan]
Occupation: Hopping teleportation device
First appearance: Yoshi's Story (1998)
A hopping little character - apparently female, though her appearance
doesn't look especially so - whom Yoshi can use to transport himself
throughout a level. Yoshi jumps on a sleeping Miss Warp to wake her,
and then she'll spring him to somewhere else in the same stage.
There's usually four Miss Warps per level.
Miss Warp's appearances:
Yoshi's Story (Nintendo 64) - 1998
Picross NP Vol. 2 (Super Famicom) - 1999
=======================================================================
MOM PIRANHA
[Japanese name: Mother Pakkun]
Occupation: Queen carni-flower
Only appearance: Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003)
Mom's offspring block the runway at Beanbean International Airport.
Only by soaking and then shocking the vile vegetation can Mario and
Luigi crack open the giant egg holding the Mom Piranha. Once she's
mulch, Princess Peach's plane can safely land.
=======================================================================
MONA (and her menagerie) [new]
Occupation: Pizza maven and expert scooterer
First appearance: WarioWare, Inc. (2003)
Co-worker Joe opens up the Diamond City gelateria one morning. It's
7:53 and Mona hasn't punched in yet. Mona, a pretty lady with red
hair and a driving goggles, is riding her scooter through some beautiful
countryside when she realizes she's late. Mona hits the gas - right as
she passes a cop. With the flip of a button, a hatchway on the back of
Mona's scooter opens up. A tiny elephant fires sludge out of his truck,
knocking out the cop car. Another cop car shows up. Flick - a tiny
piggy pops out of the same hatch and kick a soccer ball at the cop car.
Soon, whole fleets of Diamond City police are chasing Mona, so she
brings out the big guns: her monkey.
The player challenges Mona's series of games with the monkey's
bananas representing their lives. Each game beaten successfully lobs a
banana peel at a cop car, which true to Mario Kart form, spins out of
control. Mona's theme, strange games, fits perfectly with the
weirdness of a night vision goggles-clad monkey throwing banana
product at cop cars. Given a few seconds, players must catch toast
popping out of a toaster or push a thread through the eye of a needle.
In the end, Mona makes it to work just a second before 8 a.m. - right
on time. Everybody else ends up hanging out at Gelato Joe's as well.
Players can also unlock a special game featuring Mona and Dribble.
It's called - ahem - Dong Dong and requires two players to nudge
blocks to fall on each other.
By WarioWare: Twisted, however, Mona seems to have quit the gelato
job and opened up her own restaurant, Mona Pizza. The place even
comes with a nifty billboard parodying the Mona Lisa. She's more
popular in Diamond City than her rivals, the corporate franchise Pizza
Dinosaur. As Mona speeds out to deliver her loyal customers their
pizzas, the Pizza Dinosaur goons give chase - even whipping out an
actual Tyrannosaurus Rex and a big dino mech-on-wheels in the effort
to stop Mona. Luckily, Mona has her friends - the elephant, the piggy
and the monkey - willing to help. In the midst of the fight, Mona's
microgames start up - and to the tune of the Mona Pizza jingle by the
Yum Yums to boot. When the elephant's oil slicks and the piggy's
soccer balls can't stop the Pizza Dinosaur mech, the monkey drops a
banana peel on the road. Again, in classic Mario Kart style, the dino
mech flips and Mona delivers her pizza successfully.
(Mona's games set, "Mini Spin," require the player to perform the
appropriate action by making slight turns with their Game Boy
Advance.)
Apparently unfulfilled with life as a mere pizza personality, Mona
becomes a pop star of sorts in time for her appearance in WarioWare:
Touched. Her rival, surly diva Vanessa, is tuning in to Diamond City's
music news network to make sure that she's still at the top of the
charts. But what a shocker - Mona and the Hawt Licks have
displaced Vanessa as Diamond City's favorite. With Decko on vocals,
Art on lead guitar and Mona on bass, Mona and the Hawt Licks pose a
serious threat to Vanessa's stardom. But even burgeoning celebrity
status won't stop Mona from scootering food to faithful patrons. As
Mona dashes out from rehearsal to deliver more pizza, Vanessa and
her back-up singers pursue on their own scooters. (At this point, the
action breaks for Mona's microgames, the "Cute Cuts" set, in which
the player must make tiny, quick swipes with the stylus in order to
win.)
With the help of her animal buddies, Mona fends off her attackers, but
Vanessa beats her to the Hawt House, the local music venue. Figuring
she looks enough like Mona to leech her stardom, Vanessa hops on
stage. The fans can tell, though, and boo her off. Soon enough, Mona
hops on stage, jams on her guitar and gives the performance her fans
wanted. What a girl!
A bit of trivia: Mona's voice comes from former Nintendo Power
magazine editor Leslie Swan, who also voiced Princess Peach in Super
Mario 64.
Mona's appearances:
WarioWare, Inc. (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$ (Gamecube) - 2003
WarioWare: Twisted! (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
WarioWare: Touched! (Nintendo DS) - 2005
Other appearances:
Wario World (Gamecube) - 2003
=====
Mona is frequently aided in her roadside conflicts by a group of
dedicated animal buddies.
NO. 1
Occupation: Betrunked buddy
First appearance: WarioWare, Inc. (2003)
A cheerful green elephant wearing a shirt with the numeral "1" on it.
He helps money by dropping oil slicks on the road. When No. 1, No. 2
and No. 3 stack up totem pole-style, this pachyderm is on the bottom.
No. 1's appearances
WarioWare, Inc. (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$ (Gamecube) - 2003
WarioWare: Twisted! (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
WarioWare: Touched! (Nintendo DS) - 2005
=====
NO. 2
Occupation: Besnouted buddy
First appearance: WarioWare, Inc. (2003)
A small piggy wearing a shirt with the numeral "2" on it. No. 2's mode
of attack involves kicking soccer balls at Mona's enemies. He's the
middle of the Mona Buddy totem pole.
No. 2's appearances
WarioWare, Inc. (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$ (Gamecube) - 2003
WarioWare: Twisted! (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
WarioWare: Touched! (Nintendo DS) - 2005
=====
NO. 3
Occupation: Opposable thumbed buddy
First appearance: WarioWare, Inc. (2003)
A small monkey who usually saves the day by dropping a banana peel
on the asphalt and sending Mona's enemies tumbling. I'll bet you
could predict he's the one wearing a shirt with the numeral "3" on it.
No. 3's appearances
WarioWare, Inc. (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$ (Gamecube) - 2003
WarioWare: Twisted! (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
WarioWare: Touched! (Nintendo DS) - 2005
=====
4.1 and 4.2
Occupation: Canine buddies
Only appearance: WarioWare: Touched (2003)
A pair of wolf-looking characters who pilot a small aircraft in
WarioWare: Touched that comes to Mona's aid when Vanessa and her
goons attack. The mech Vanessa's goons are driving, however, quickly
bats 4.1 and 4.2 away. Their uniforms slightly resemble those of Thing
One and Thing Two, the characters from Dr. Suess's "The Cat in the
Hat."
=======================================================================
MONSIEUR BOO
Occupation: Ghost francophile
Only appearance: Wario's Woods (1994)
Sigh. I'm getting tired of writing bios for these Wario's Woods bosses.
Monsieur Boo is not a Boo. He's an ordinary white sheet-over-the-
head Halloween costume-style ghost. He's also not particularly
French-looking, unless that splash of red pixels on his head is
supposed to be a beret. As of this writing, Monsieur Boo must be my
least favorite Mario character ever. Seriously.
=======================================================================
MONSTAR
Occupation: Star spirit monster thing
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
A scary-looking cloud that blocks Mario from entering Starborn
Valley. It's an easy fight. Afterwards, Mario finds that Monstar is
actually a swarm of Star Kids in disguise.
=======================================================================
MONTY MOLE
[Japanese name: Choropoo]
Occupation: Dastardly digger
First appearance: Super Mario World (1991)
Pesky rodents who would burst from the walls of Cookie Mountain at attack
Mario. As moles, they had to wear sunglasses to protect themselves from the
light of the overworld. They also with their larger, tougher cousins, the Mega
Moles, but Yoshi could eat them all the same.
Monty Moles enjoyed generic baddie status in many games, in fact, until
Super Mario Sunshine. He appeared as a boss in several locations, and he'd
attempt to fire Bullet Bills and other artillery at Mario. A short time later,
Monty Mole showed up in Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga as a character
who would reside in hard-to-find areas and reward the brothers for reaching
him by giving them special items.
A character very similar to Monty appeared in Super Mario Bros. 3. His name
was Rocky Wrench. He lived on the Koopalings' airships and would toss
wrenches at Mario. Though he looked like a mole - the instruction manual
even made of point of saying so - he was a Koopa and had a shell. Maybe he
was a sort of Monty Mole prototype.
Monty Mole's starring roles:
Super Mario Sunshine (Gamecube) - 2003
Other appearances:
Super Mario World (Super Nintendo) - 1991
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Mario Party 5 (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Party Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
=======================================================================
MOUSER
[Japanese name: Donchuruge]
Occupation: Explosive rodent
First Appearance: Doki Doki Panic (1987)
Described in the original Super Mario Bros. 2 instruction manual as "a
bomber of bad dreams that destroys good dreams" who "doesn't want
to believe that it is just a mouse," this sunglasses-clad, bomb-throwing
mouse is the first boss in Super Mario Bros. 2. In this game's original
incarnation, the 1987 Japanese release Doki Doki Panic, Mouser was
the final boss of the first, third and fifth worlds. In every following
remake, however, Mouse lost some of his territory.
In the original American Super Mario Bros. 2, the third Mouser was
replaced by Clawgrip, a rock-throwing crab. The Mouser who waited
at the end of the third world also disappeared, this time being replaced
by Robirdo. Nintendo moved this Mouser to the end of the sixth world.
He replaced the second Tryclyde.
Mouser hasn't yet officially reappeared, but a race of similar-looking
mousefolk called the Nomadimice inhabited the desert town of Dry
Dry Outpost in Paper Mario. Similar looking mice also populated the
Cheese Land racetrack in Mario Kart: Super Circuit.
Kirby 021591 and Eab1990 mention that Mouser makes a debatable
cameo in the first Paper Mario. A Squeek named Little Mouser runs a
shop in Dry Dry Outpost. He looks a bit like the bomb-tossing Mouser.
Mouser's appearances:
Doki Doki Panic (Famicom) - 1987
Super Mario Bros. 2 (NES) - 1988
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Super Mario Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2001
Paper Mario (Nintedno 64) - 2001 (?)
=======================================================================
MOUSTAFA
[Japanese name: Rorenchu]
Occupation: Incognito crimelord
Only appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
A green mouse who controls the underground crime in the desert
village of Dry Dry Outpost. Initially, Moustafa introduces himself as
Sheek. Later, Moustafa explains that he keeps a low profile. Because
his race, the Nomadimice, built Dry Dry Ruins ages ago, only
Moustafa can help Mario find them.
In Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, a character named Lumpy
mentions having been helped by Moustafa while abroad in Dry Dry
Desert. (And, oddly, he met Moustafa in his real costume, not his as
his incognito ego Sheek.
Nomadimice are modeled after a generic mouse baddie in Super Mario
World 2: Yoshi's Island. Moustafa's pseudonym, "Sheek," is a
reference to the identity Princess Zelda assumes in Ocarina of Time. In
order to evade Ganondorf, Zelda wraps her face with cloth and calls
herself "Sheik."
=======================================================================
MR. and MRS. MARIO
Occupation: Hero-makers
Only appearance: Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (1995)
Negating Mario and Luigi's identity as native Brooklynites, the end of
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island has the Stork delivering Baby
Mario and Baby Luigi to their parent's home in the Mushroom
Kingdom. We never get a good look at Mr. and Mrs. Mario, but we do
see their feet as they open the front door to find the stork's bundle. We
also see their hands as they joyfully raise their newfound sons.
=======================================================================
MR. LUGGS
[Japanese name: Ta Han]
Occupation: Face stuffer
Only appearance: Luigi's Mansion (2001)
A fat ghost who obsessively stuffs his ghost face in the dining room of
the haunted mansion. According to his bio on Luigi's Game Boy
Horror, he prefers all-you-can eat buffets to three meals a day. If Luigi
vacuums up his meal - and the phantom waiters who keep delivering
more food - Mr. Luggs will attack Luigi.
Mr. Luggs is flanked by two waiter ghosts, who will deliver ghost-
food until Luigi sucks them up.
=======================================================================
MS. MOWZ
[Japanese name: Chuchu Rina]
Occupation: Squeaky thief
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A white mouse and a master thief, Ms. Mowz first meets Mario in
Hooktail's Castle, where she is plundering the treasure room. Ms.
Mowz seems immediately smitten with Mario, though I'd guess that
love comes easy to her, since her tail bends into a perfect heart shape.
Ms. Mowz might think she's fooling people with her red mask, but
anyone with a brain could easily recognize her as the mild-mannered
shopkeeper at the Howz of Badges in Rogueport.
Eventually, Ms. Mowz will post a bulletin in the Trouble House - a
sort of message board where Rogueport citizens can request assistance
in various tasks. She wants the Attack FX B badge, which is hidden so
well in Hooktail Castle that even her sixth sense for precious booty
won't reveal it. When Mario meets her again on the rooftop of the
Howz of Badges, he finds that Ms. Mowz deliberately hid the badge in
order to determine if Mario was worth joining. She is so impressed she
enlists immediately, bringing along her ability to fluster enemies,
sneak away items or sniff out hidden treasure.
Ms. Mowz is a Squeek, a race of characters that first appeared as a
generic baddie in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, but also
populated Dry Dry Outpost as the Nomadimouse people in the original
Paper Mario.
=======================================================================
THE MUSHROOM KINGS
Occupation: Rulers of the Mushroom World
First appearance: Super Mario Bros. 3 (1990)
The plotline of Super Mario Bros. 3 reveals that the Mushroom
Kingdom is merely a portal to the larger Mushroom World, which
consists of seven nations, each ruled by a different monarch.
Unfortunately, the treacherous Koopa family has invaded each of these
lands. Each ruler's magic wand has been stolen by one of Bowser's
children, who then promptly used the wand to transform the kings into
animals.
The transformations differ from the original Super Mario Bros. 3 to the
version of that game that appeared on Super Mario All-Stars, the Super
NES remake. The king of Grass Land, for example, was a dog in the
first game but a Cobrat - the red snake enemy from Super Mario
Bros. 2 - in the remake. The rest of the transformations are as
follows:
* King of Desert Hill: spider / Hoopster (ladybug baddie from Super
Mario Bros. 2)
* King of Ocean Side: turtle / Dino Rhino (fire-breathing baddie from
Super Mario World)
* King of the Isle of Giants: dinosaur / Donkey Kong Jr.
* King of the Sky: vulture / Albatoss (Bob-Omb carrying bird baddie
from Super Mario Bros. 2)
* King of Ice Land: seal / Monty Mole
* King of Pipe Maze: Piranha Plant (the only non-animal
transformation) / Yoshi
With the wands retrieved and the seven kings restores to their human
forms, the Mushroom World is at piece. Or so you'd think. Bowser
nabs Peach at the last moment, so Mario must trek into the eighth and
final world, Dark Land/Koopa Kingdom.
Incidentally, there's an eighth Mushroom King. And though he
precedes Super Mario Bros. 3 by a few years, he never actually
appears in any game. He's Princess Peach's father. As far as the games
are concerned, this Mushroom King only shows up in the instruction
manual for the original Super Mario Bros. The manual states only that
Princess Peach is the daughter of the Mushroom King. He never shows
up, and none of the seven Mushroom monarchs in Super Mario Bros. 3
seem to be Peach's pop. But the Mushroom King did show up in to
non-official incarnations of the Marioverse. In the Valiant comics that
ran some years ago, the king was a regularly occurring character -
and a bit of a bumbler at that. The king also figured into the plot of the
Super Mario Bros. movie, though one should note two things: (1) he's
technically Daisy's dad, not Peach's; and (2) this movie sucked.
The Mushroom Kings' appearances:
Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES) - 1990
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Bandai Satellaview Super Mario Bros. 3 (Bandai Satellaview) - 1995
Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
=======================================================================
NANA
[Japanese name: Babara]
Occupation: Ghost knitter
Only appearance: Luigi's Mansion (2001)
If Luigi pops into Nana's room, he sees her knitting pleasantly and
grandmotherly. If Luigi fires a few yarn balls on her, though, she'll be
vulnerable just long enough for Luigi to suck her up. Take that, Nana.
According to the Game Boy Horror's information on Nana, she's
spending her afterlife trying to finish knitting a scarf that now stretches
to 871 feet. And if Luigi checks a musty old journal he finds on the
bookshelf in Nana's room, he'll find that she's a bit of a prankster. She
once poured ice water on Miss Petunia during a shower, which no
doubt irked the bather. The trick should give Luigi a clue about how to
capture Miss Petunia's ghost.
=======================================================================
NAVAL PIRANHA
[Japanese name: Big Pakkun]
Occupation: Poolside Piranha Plant
First appearance: Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island
Sensibly, the boss of the aquatic, Piranha Plant-filled castle at the end
of the jungle world is the Naval Piranha, a giant set of leaves and teeth
growing in a pool of water. The Naval Piranha will try to ram Yoshi
into the wall, but if Yoshi will win if he can get his eggs to bounce off
the wall and into a navel-shaped protrusion on the Naval Piranha's
stem.
Like Hookbill, Nintendo ported the Naval Piranha to Tetris Attack as a
boss.
Naval Piranha's starring roles:
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super NES) - 1995
Tetris Attack (Super NES) - 1996
Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3 (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
=======================================================================
NEIL
Occupation: Golfer
Only appearance: Mario Golf: Advance Tour (2004)
This kid is one of the generic human characters whose stats you pick at
the beginning of the game. Like Ella, Neil is the apprentice of golf
whiz Kid. He has brown, shaggy hair and wears a blue and yellow
golfing outfit.
=======================================================================
NEVILLE
[Japanese name: Papara]
Occupation: Ghost father
Only appearance: Luigi's Mansion (2001)
Neville is the first portrait ghost Luigi encounters in the haunted
mansion. He's a father, but he spends his afterlife reading the books he
didn't read while he was alive. If Luigi waits until Neville yawns, he
can suck him up in his vacuum.
=======================================================================
NINA
Occupation: Tennis player
Only appearance: Mario Tennis (2000)
Another of the generic human netters that I players could unlock by
hooking their Game Boy Color versions of Mario Tennis to their
Nintendo 64 versions via a special cable. I, however, never had this
cable and know nothing of Nina's appearance, behavior or tennis
abilities.
According to the track listing for the Mario Tennis OST, however,
Nina apparently shares her victory music with Baby Mario. Odd.
=======================================================================
NOKI ELDER
Occupation: Number one Noki
Only appearance: Super Mario Sunshine (2002)
A shriveled member of the Noki race, who reside in the seaside cliffs
of Isle Delphino. Bearded and wise, the Noki Elder gives Mario his
missions in the Noki Bay area.
=======================================================================
NURSE PEACH
Occupation: Doctor's aide
First appearance: Dr. Mario (1990)
I'm not sure if this character even shows up in Dr. Mario 64, but
there's offical artwork for the game that depicts Peach standing next to
Dr. Mario. Only it's not the usual Peach: She has a pink nurse's
uniform instead of her dress and a nurse's hat instead of a tiara. I'm
pretty sure I can remember hearing the phrase "Nurse Peach" at some
point in my Dr. Mario-playing days. Can anybody help me out?
You can see some of the art for Nurse Peach yourself here:
http://gallery.gamehiker.com/displayimage.php?album=26&pos=5
I put this in a separate profile since Nintendo seems to treat Mario and
Dr. Mario like two different characters. She may not play a large role
in the Marioverse but it makes sense to follow that logic for Nurse
Peach as well.
Kirby021591 reminds be that Nurse Peach also cameos in Super
Smash Bros. Melee. Event 35 in the one-player challenge mode is
"Time for a Checkup," in which one fighter must take on Mario and
Nurse Peach. This Nurse Peach, however, is just the regular Peach in
her alternate white costume. There's no real difference between Peach
and this Nurse Peach - and if you ask me, I think her costume looks
more like a wedding dress.
Nurse Peach's appearances:
Dr. Mario (NES) - 1990
Super Smash Bros. Melee (Gamecube) - 2001
=======================================================================
OCTO
Occupation: Tentacled boss
Only appearance: Dr. Mario 64 (2001)
An octopus whom Dr. Mario medicates and cures from the flu in the
opening sequence to Dr. Mario 64's story mode. Octo later shows up
to cause trouble, but only if the player chooses Wario as his or her
character in story mode. Like all the bosses in the game, Octo is
selectable in the game's multiplayer mode.
I'm fairly certain Octo originated in some Wario Land game. If
anybody could tell me, I'd appreciate it.
=======================================================================
ONNANOKO [new]
Occupation: Cute little girl
Only appearance: Wrecking Crew '98 (1998)
I have no idea what Onnanoko's function is in this Japanese-only
update to the original wrecking crew, but she's apparently a character
alongside Mario, Peach, Bowser and Foreman Spike. See for yourself:
http://www.gamehiker.com/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=122
If anybody can fill me in on little Onnanoko, I'm all ears.
=======================================================================
OOSANSHO
Occupation: Squishy boss
Only appearance: Wario Land 3 (2000)
The sixth boss in Wario Land 3, whom Wario fights in the stage called
"The Stagnant Swamp." "Ooshanso" translates into English as "The
Great Salamander," which is exactly what he is. Neat, huh?
I haven't played this game and don't know much about Oosansho
other than what Shdwrlm3 posted in his Wario Land 3 guide at
GameFAQs. Anybody with further information will be greatly
appreciated.
=======================================================================
ORBULON
Occupation: Spaceman
First appearance: WarioWare, Inc. (2003)
Orbulon, a white alien with sunglasses and head shaped like a bowling
pin, is cruising above earth one day when an asteroid slams into his
piggy bank-shaped spacecraft. Desperately needing assistance he
boards the craft of the Space Hares, a group of lagomorphic aliens who
come to his rescue. On board, the player must play a series of IQ-
based microgames. Instead of merely mashing buttons, he or she must
input buttons in the correct sequence or use logic to determine which
of two groups of stacked tortoises would weigh more. If successful,
the Space Hare's cruelly release Orbulon's pig-shaped ship, The
Oinker, which plummets down to earth and crashes into what would
appear to be the continent of North America.
Players can control Orbulon in an unlockable microgame called
Hurdle Race, in which he and Dr. Crygor attempt to jump hurdles.
Orbulon returns in WarioWare: Twisted!, again in the company of the
Space Hares. Apparently since the last game, Orbulon has taken the
creatures into his employ. A massage from one lulls him into a sleep,
however, that nearly allows The Oinker to get sucked into a black
hole. His game set then starts - "Time Warp," in which all the
microgames require twice the time to complete that anyone else's do.
Every conquered microgame results in the entry a password needed to
steer the Oinker away from the abyss. Once successful, Orbulon ends
up rocketing into an asteroid, which eats the ship, then spits it out.
Orbulon crashes back in Diamond City, where he joins his friends for
a dance.
Although Orbulon does not have his own game set in WarioWare:
Touched!, he cameos in the cinema sequence of newcomer Ashley.
Orbulon's Oinker is also responsible for delivering newly won goodies
to the main menu screen.
Orbulon's appearances:
WarioWare, Inc. (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$ (Gamecube) - 2003
WarioWare: Twisted! (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
WarioWare: Touched! (Nintendo DS) - 2005
Other appearances:
Wario World (Gamecube) - 2003
=======================================================================
OYAZI [new]
Occupation: Apparently jolly fellow
Only appearance: Wrecking Crew '98 (1998)
Like little Onnanoko, I'm unclear as to what Oyazi does in Wrecking
Crew '98. But he's apparently a character. He looks happy. See for
yourself:
http://www.gamehiker.com/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=122
If anybody can fill me in on Mr. Oyazi, please do so.
=======================================================================
PAK E. DERM
Occupation: Elephantine crossing guard
Only appearance: Yoshi's Story (1998)
An elephant who shows up to block the pathways in the early stages of
Yoshi's Story. Yoshi can't fight Pak E. Derm, and he can't harm
Yoshi. Only by stomping the ground can Yoshi remove this roadblock.
Though he's a relatively minor character in the Yoshi corner of the
Marioverse, Pak E. Derm shows up in the background of the Yoshi's
Story-themed Smash Bros. stage.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR PAK E. DERM***
This pesky pachyderm bars Yoshi's path by sticking poles high into the
air. Pak E. Derm has been practicing this skill for years, and he's so
masterful that he can even block Yoshi's high-flying Flutter Jump. Pak
E. Derm is a little unstable, however, and he tends to topple over if
Yoshi pounds the ground anywhere nearby.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR PAK E. DERM***
Pak E. Derm's appearances:
Yoshi's Story (Nintendo 64) - 1998
Super Smash Bros. Melee (Gamecube) - 2001
=======================================================================
PA-PATCH
[Japanese name: Konpobi]
Occupation: Maritime bomb
Only appearance: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
A Bob-Omb with an eyepatch. He hangs out in the Rogueport harbor
until Flavio leave son his expedition to Keelhaul Key. Pa-Patch is a
nice guy, but he clashes with Flavio. In fact, the only thing that can
prevent them from tearing each other apart is their mutual fear of
pirate ghosts.
Pa-Patch's only other claim to Marioverse fame - and it's a good one
- is that he makes the first fart joke ever in a Mario game. Despite his
apparently lack of armpits, he makes an armpit fart to make fun of
Flavio. There you go.
=======================================================================
PARAGOOM
Occupation: Parasol-toting game explainer
First appearance: Wario Land 3 (2000)
A little guy who floats in the air with an umbrella and looks like a
cross between Kirby and Pac-Man, Paragoom initially appeared as a
generic bad guy in Wario Land 3. In Dr. Mario 64, he explains the
various rules and modes of the game.
Also, I should note that this character is not a Para Goomba, the flying
Goomba baddie that debuted in Super Mario Bros.3. It's similarly
named and similarly powered, but an entirely separate character.
Paragoom's appearances:
Wario Land 3 (Game Boy Color) - 2000
Dr. Mario 64 (Nintendo 64 - 2001
=======================================================================
PARAKARRY
[Japanese name: Paretta]
Occupation: Postman
First appearance: Paper Mario (2001)
A Paratroopa who works as a carrier for the Mushroom Kingdom
postal service, though everyone knows he's the slowest mail carrier in
the world. Parakarry delivers the party invitation form Peach to Mario
and Luigi at the beginning of the game - before Bowser spoils the
party by blasting off into space with Peach's castle. Later, Mario meets
Parakarry again atop Mt. Rugged, on the way to Dry Dry Outpost.
He's lost some letters he needs to deliver, but Mario kindly finds them.
In gratitude, Parakarry joins the party. Thankfully, he a better fighter
than he is a postman.
Even though Parakarry joins the party, the Mushroom Kingdom postal
service continues fine. Throughout the game, people are always
sending and receiving letters. Each of Mario's buddies receive mail
from their family and friends. Mario even received postcards from
various friends he makes on his journey. As a Paratroopa, Parakarry
repertoire includes a lot of aerial attacks. He can also lift Mario up and
carry him across certain chasms.
Parakarry is the second playable Paratroopa in a Mario game. (The
first, a generic, red-shelled guy showed up in the Nintendo 64 version
of Mario Tennis.) To my knowledge, he's also the only Koopa Troopa
with a turquoise shell.
Paper Mario's sequel actually begins with a quick cameo from
Parakarry, who delivers the letter from Princess Peach that launches
Mario on another adventure.
Parakarry's starring roles:
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Other appearances:
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Gamecube) - 2004
=======================================================================
PARATROOPA
[also known as Para Troopa, Sky Troopa, Para-Koopa; Japanese name:
Patapata]
Occupation: Koopa aerial soldier
First appearance: Super Mario Bros. (1985)
The winged form of the Koopa Troopa. Once stomp, though, and
they're grounded. This generic baddie, whose name has since been
shortened from Koopa Paratroopa to just Paratroopa, has appeared in
nearly every game the generic Koopa Troop has appeared in, minus a
few exceptions like Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island and Super
Mario 64.
Also like the Koopa Troopa, Paratroopa has been playable. (And,
notably, whenever he's playable, he's always in a red shell, as opposed
to the normal Koopa Troopa, whose playable form always wears a
green shell). Paratroopa was Bowser's partner in Mario Tennis 64. The
little guy never touched the ground, which made him quite interesting
to control. His only appearance since as a playable character has been
Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, where he raced alongside his brother in
arms, Koopa Troopa. On the Mario Kart racetrack, by the way, it's the
red shells that are always the most prized, as they have the ability to
home in on the nearest opponent.
The winged one appears as an unlockable player in Mario Power
Tennis. (Tennis seems to be his thing, I guess.) Both his super moves
are aerial ones: prepare to watch Paratroopa soar into the sky and then
rain down opn the earth comet-style as a special attack Neat stuff.
Paratroopa's Japanese name, "Patapata" is onomatopoeia for the sound
of fluttering wings.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR PARATROOPA***
These winged Koopa Troopas can fly, but they're none too smart: they
tend to spend a lot of their time simply jumping or fluttering around a
small area. As a result, no one exactly thinks of them as majestic,
soaring creatures. They lose their wings and become normal Koopa
Troopas if Mario or Luigi jumps on their backs.
***SMASH BROS. TROPHY INFO FOR PARATROOPA***
MARIO KART: DOUBLE DASH!! DATA:
Partner: Koopa Troopa
Personal racecar: Para Wing
Special weapon: Triple Red Shell
Paratroopa's starring roles:
Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) - 2000
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (Gamecube) - 2003
Mario Power Tennis (Gamecube) - 2004
Other appearances:
Super Mario Bros. (NES) - 1985
Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels (Famicom) - 1986
Super Mario Bros. + Duck Hunt (NES) - 1988
Super Mario Bros. + Duck Hunt + World Class Track Meet (NES) - 1990
Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES) - 1990
Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1991
Super Mario Land 2: Six Golden Coins (Game Boy) - 1992
Super Mario All-Stars (Super NES) - 1993
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (Super NES) - 1994
Bandai Satellaview Super Mario Bros. 3 (Bandai Satellaview) - 1995
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super NES) - 1995*
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (Super NES) - 1996**
Paper Mario (Nintendo 64) - 2001
Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
Super Mario Bros. (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Super Mario Bros. 2 (Game Boy Advance) - 2004
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Gamecube) - 2004
Mario Party Advance (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
* as Para-Koopa
** as Sky Troopa
=======================================================================
PARROTOR
Occupation: Parrot
Only appearance: Wario's Woods (1994)
He's... a parrot. He's also the sixth boss.
=======================================================================
PARRY
Occupation: Straight arrow
First appearance: Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double
Trouble (1996)
Parry the Parallel-Flying Bird. Tada. He flies overhead in a parallel
motion to Dixie. If Dixie moves to the left, so does Parry. If Dixie
jumps, Parry flies a bit higher. Dixie can use him to collect otherwise
unreachable bananas.
Parry's appearances:
Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie's Double Trouble (Super NES) - 1996
Donkey Kong Land 3 (Game Boy) - 1997
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PAUL [new]
[also known as the Professor]
Occupation: Archeologist
Only appearance: Wario Land Advance (2001)
A doddery, bald professor who follows Wario into the Golden
Pyramid in search of artifacts. His face - along with Princess
Shokora's - appears on the newspaper that Wario's convertible
throws into the wind in the game's opening sequence. Once in the
pyramid, Wario encounters Paul in various rooms. Often, Wario will
have to throw Paul in order to snag a certain item or activate a switch,
acts which result in yelps of pain from the good professor.
Paul's name never appears in the game itself, but I've had a few
readers claim that the instruction manual for Wario Land Advance
indeed identifies him as "Paul." If anyone has any information to the
contrary, I'd be happy to adjust the profile.
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PAULINE
[Japanese name: the Girl]
Occupation: Damsel in distress
First appearance: Donkey Kong (1981)
The pretty lady in a red dress.
Much like Mario's earliest incarnation, Jumpman, his girlfriend didn't
originally have her own name. By the time she got to the United
States, however, Nintendo looked to a silent film icon to get her one.
The Perils of Pauline were early serial shorts in which a woman would
continually evade death, whether by pirates, gypsies, or sharks. The
most common scenario involved Pauline being tied to train tracks,
desperately awaiting rescue.
Pauline's in-game appearance differed greatly from the look of the
brunette hottie in the red dress on the Donkey Kong arcade cabinets.
The thing that Mario actually rescued, however, was a fugly mass of
pixels with blonde pigtails and a long pink dress.
Once Mario traded in barrel-hopping for Koopa-stomping, though,
Pauline all but vanished. Some have speculated that Pauline hooked up
with that other forgotten Donkey Kong foe, Stanley the Bugman, but
that's as much buzz as she's gotten lately.
Could Pauline have a chance at Mario Party 8?
Pauline's appearances:
Donkey Kong (Arcade) - 1981
Donkey Kong (Atari 2600) - 1981
Donkey Kong (NES) -1985
Pinball (NES) - 1985
Donkey Kong '94 (Game Boy) - 1994
Game & Watch Gallery 2 (Game Boy) - 1998
Game & Watch Gallery 4 (Game Boy Advance) - 2002
WarioWare, Inc. (Game Boy Advance) - 2003
WarioWare: Twisted! (Game Boy Advance) - 2005
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PAW
Occupation: Kat's partner
Only appearance: WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$
A big white dog who follows Kat all the way from her homeland to
Diamond City. When Kat fights the demonic Boneheads, Paw
transforms into a sword Kat uses to defeat the fiend.
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PEACH
[also known as Princess Toadstool, the Princess]
Occupation: Benevolent Mushroom Kingdom Monarch
First appearance: Super Mario Bros. (1985)
[peach]
A PRINCESS AMONG PRINCESSES
If you were part of a race of mushroom people, would you pledge
allegiance to a princess with Barbie doll proportions and a Farrah
Fawcett hairdo? And if Peach is the head honcho, shouldn't she be
Queen Peach? And could her relationship with Mario go beyond the
simple chaste kiss on the nose players see following her countless
rescues?
Three good questions. None will be answered here.
Although she replaced the forgotten Pauline from the original Donkey
Kong, Peach pretty much set the standard for video game damsels. She
stands beside Zelda and Ms. Pac-Man as one of earliest heroines in a
video game.
The first glimpse of Princess Peach - still Princess Toadstool all the
way back in 1985 - players got was in the instruction manual for the
original Super Mario Bros. She was a giant question mark. According
to the instruction manual, only Princess Toadstool can break the
Koopa curse that transformed the peaceful denizens of the Mushroom
Kingdom into stones, bricks, and "field horsehair plants," Also, the
game mentions that Toadstool is the daughter of the Mushroom King,
a mysterious character whom Nintendo never mentions again. People
who actually played and beat the game would get something that
looked a little bit more like a princess - although not much more. In
her earliest onscreen appearance, Princess Toadstool was a mass of
pixels that formed a white dress, red hair, and something
approximating a face. The same pixilated princess appeared in the
ending of the Japanese-only Super Mario Bros. 2 - later known in the
United States as Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels. Nintendo
thoughtfully re-styled her to make her look more feminine and pretty,
but her red hair made her look more like Princess Daisy than the Peach
we know today.
(It should be noted that the Japanese sequel to the original Super Mario
Bros. offered a re-styled sprite for Princess Toadstool. She looked off,
still, for sure, but the redone sprite had her facing forward and looking
just a little more feminine.)
HOVERING INTO OUR HEARTS
In the American sequel, however, the modern Princess Peach began
taking form. Still known as "Toadstool" - though rarely addressed by
her one-name moniker and instead as "Princess" - the character
joined Mario, Luigi, and Toad in the American Super Mario Bros. 2 on
the journey to the cloud-bound castle of Wart, the evil king of bad
dreams. Her appearance in the 1988 title is notable, as few video
games had active female characters this early. Each of the four heroes
had their own specialty; while Toadstool was the weakest and slowest
of the four, she could extend her jumps by floating in midair for a few
seconds. This ability endeared the character to newbies, who could use
her to safely hover over large gaps or enemies. But how did Peach
float? Was it the dress? Princess power? Another unanswerable
question in the mystery of Peach.
Despite the social progress of Super Mario Bros. 2, however,
Toadstool quickly resumed a back seat to Mario and Luigi. In Super
Mario Bros. 3, the brothers' expedition into the Mushroom World
begins at Toadstool's request. She also sends the brothers care
packages each time they free a Koopa-conquered kingdom. However,
before Mario and Luigi could reach the eight kingdoms, Dark World,
Bowser himself nabs her.
Toadstool did even less in Super Mario World. According to that
game's story, Mario, Luigi, and Toadstool take a vacation after the
trials of tangling with Bowser in Super Mario Bros. 3. But Toadstool
gets nabbed before anyone gets any rest and relaxation. Mario and
Luigi don't see her again until a reunion atop Bowser's castle,
complete with heart-shaped fireworks and a chaste kiss.
The few seconds Toadstool appeared on screen, however, did depict
her finally as having locks as golden as those depicted in the art in the
instruction manual. Between Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario Bros.
3, Peach's hair changed from red to brunette. Nintendo finally nailed
banana blonde with 16-bit color. Her royal mane has grown gradually
blonder ever since.
(On a side note, I think Peach may have evolved to look more like as
did in the Mario anime, Super Mario Bros.: The Mission to Rescue
Princess Peach, a film little known in Japan and downright obscure in
the states. The movie came out in Japan in 1986, shortly after the first
NES Super Mario Bros and before a lot of official artwork of her
emerged. While the film depicts Mario remarkably similar to how she
looks today, other characters like Luigi and the Mushroom Retainers
are way off. It's presumable that game developers may have drawn
subsequent artwork that was heavily influenced by her design in the
movie, hence her appearance today. To check out Peach's film debut,
go to the SMB Info Station's page on the game, the link for which is at
the end of the guide.)
DEEPER, PINKER, MORE PRINCESSLY
The plot of Super Mario 64 revolved around Peach baking a cake -
not the most stereotype-shattering activity, I know, but the game marks
three significant changes for the character nonetheless. In Super Mario
64, Peach gets a permanent home, a new name and a voice.
In the game's opening sequence, the princess sends Mario an
invitation to have cake, but when Mario shows up at her castle, she's
nowhere to be found. Although her castle would under go countless
permutations through future games, Super Mario 64's included a
courtyard, an aquarium, a giant tree-shaped clock, and an iconic
stained glass window bearing Peach's likeness, the last of which has
been depicted in all subsequent versions of the structure.
Although she spent most of Super Mario 64 magically trapped in that
stained glass window, Nintendo finally got around to calling her
"Peach." Specifically, the princess signs the cake invitation to Mario
as "Princess Toadstool," but then has the name - or nickname -
"Peach" scrawled stylishly at an angle at the bottom. The move wasn't
exactly earth-shattering, however. Characters had casually referred to
her as "Peach" as far back as Yoshi's Safari in 1993 and Japanese
gamers always known her by this prettier and infinitely more feminine
name. But with decision, the cross-culture disparity was eliminated.
Incidentally, "Toadstool" seems to be used as her surname now, as
least in fanon. (Curiously, the Nintendo DS remake of Super Mario 64
reverts back to "Toadstool," even in text that did not exist in the
game's Nintendo 64 incarnation.)
Super Mario 64 also provided Peach with a voice. Nintendo veteran
Leslie Swan supplied Peach's princessly squeaks, though actress Jen
Taylor would provide the voice in later games. This is notable in that
she gets to speak whole words before most other Mario characters -
Mario and Toad excluded. (For the record, Super Mario 64 features
Bowser cackling, but not in any clear language. Luigi and Wario do
not get to speak until Mario Kart 64).
Finally, Super Mario 64 added further depth to Peach's personality by
giving her the hobby of pasty-baking, a pastime that has arisen again
in the first Mario Party as well as Paper Mario. So apparently that's
four.
Likely exhausted from constantly being kidnapped by magical turtles,
Peach accompanies Mario for a vacation on Isle Delfino in Super
Mario Sunshine. Unfortunately, the tropical resort is no paradise.
Shadow Mario - Bowser Jr. in disguise - has painted the town with
graffiti. Once