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List of Mario franchise characters

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This is a list of characters appearing in the Mario series.

Protagonists

Donkey Kong

Donkey Kong Jr.

File:DKJr.jpg
Donkey Kong Jr., as he appears in Mario Tennis.

The son of the original Donkey Kong, Donkey Kong Jr. was introduced in the video game of the same name, which featured him as it's protagonist who needed to save his caged father from Mario. Donkey Kong Jr. also appeared in Donkey Kong 2, Donkey Kong Jr. Math and Donkey Kong Classics as these game's main character. In Donkey Kong '94, Donkey Kong Jr. appears as an obstacle throughout the game, trying to impede Mario in his progress by pulling levers and throwing Poison Mushrooms at him; Donkey Kong Jr. also appears in Super Mario Kart and Mario's Tennis as a playable character, and as an unlockable character in Mario Tennis.

Donkey Kong Jr. is also featured as a major character in The Saturday Supercade, which has him searching for his runaway father, who was being chased by Mario and Pauline, with an incompetant biker named Bones; a possible alternate version of Donkey Kong Jr. also made a small appearance in the Nintendo Adventure Book "Doors to Doom" as an enemy of Mario and Luigi.

Rare, the creators of the Donkey Kong Country, implicate that Donkey Kong Jr. grew-up to be the modern day Donkey Kong, while the original Donkey Kong grew old and became Cranky Kong. [1] [2]

E. Gadd

Professor Elvin Gadd (オヤ・マー博士, Professor Oyama), more commonly known as E. Gadd, is a scientist that usually helps Mario and his friends with various inventions. In Japan, he is named after Nintendo game designer Yoshiyuki Oyama.[3] He first appears in Luigi's Mansion, where he starts to investigate the mansion that mysteriously appeared by his house to study ghosts, his favorite subject. To help him study the ghosts, he uses the Poltergust 3000, an invention that can capture ghosts, and the Game Boy Horror, an invention to track and detect objects. He lends it to Luigi, and helps him on his quest. Other major inventions include his FLUDD and Magic Brush used in Super Mario Sunshine.

In Mario Party Advance, the professor is the maker of a series of devices containing minigames called Gaddgets. The purpose of the single-player game in Mario Party Advance is to recover these devices. E. Gadd also appears in Mario Party 6, which featured a stage centered around him and his inventions, called "E. Gadd's Garage".

In Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, the professor makes an appearance supplying the brothers with an array of accessories to help them along their way, after they try each drink at Starbeans Cafe, a coffeehouse that he owns. In Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time the professor debuts his newest invention to the Mushroom Kingdom, a time machine. However, when Princess Peach ends up stuck in the past, E. Gadd provides the brothers a suitcase enhanced with artificial intelligence named Stuffwell to help them on their quest. The heroes later meet a younger Prof. E. Gadd, who is researching the behavior of the Thwomps at Thwomp Volcano. After his lab is destroyed by the eruption of the volcano he mentions his interests in studying ghosts, and that he would be buying a lab at the edge of Boo Woods.

Luigi

Mario

Pauline

File:Paulineeg6.png
Pauline, as seen in Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2.

Pauline (ポリーン, Porīn) is the damsel-in-distress of the original Donkey Kong, as well in the 1994 Game Boy game of the same name and Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis. She is best known as Mario's first romantic interest prior to the introduction of Princess Peach. Along with Mario and Donkey Kong, she is also one of Nintendo's earliest game characters. She was originally known as Lady (レディー, Redī).

In the original Donkey Kong, she is held captive by the Donkey Kong and it's Mario's objective to climb up the construction site and rescue her. Along the way, the player can collect feminine articles (a hat, a purse and a parasol) that Pauline has dropped for bonus points. After Donkey Kong, Pauline only made a few cameo appearances in a couple of early NES games (Pinball and Famicom BASIC) before fading into obscurity for years.

She would return several years later in the Game Boy remake of Donkey Kong. While previous depictions of Pauline portrayed her as a blonde, Pauline was redesigned as a brunette in the new version, presumably to distinguish her from the more popular Peach. As in the original game, she is taken captive by Donkey Kong. She returns once again in Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis, using the same design she had in the remake. She appears this time as a guest VIP at the grand opening of the "Super Mini Mario World", a theme park based on the Mini-Mario toys. Unlike previous games, her relationship with Mario is portrayed as a platonic one instead of a romantic one.

Poochy

A dog-like creature, Poochy is a friend and possible pet of Yoshi first appearing in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, where he could be found in few levels and could be ridden by Yoshi over spikes and into enemies, who are instantly destroyed upon touching Poochy. In Tetris Attack, Poochy is among the denizens of Yoshi's Island who are brainwashed by Bowser and Kamek; Poochy must be battled and defeated by Yoshi in order to free him from this brainwashing. In Yoshi's Story, Poochy appears in some levels, but is smaller in size and can not be ridden, and can only be used to sniff for buried treasures.

Poochy has made cameo appearances in later games, such as Picross NP Vol. 2, Mario Kart: Double Dash!! and Mario Party Advance, additionally, early screenshots of Paper Mario showed that Poochy was going to appear in the game. [4]

Princess Daisy

File:Princess Daisy Party 8.jpg
Princess Daisy in Mario Party 8.

Princess Daisy (デイジー姫, Deijī-Hime) is a princess who first appears in Super Mario Land, where she is kidnapped by a tyrannical alien named Tatanga who wishes to marry her and rule over her kingdom, Sarasaland, as king. She later appears in NES Open Tournament Golf as Luigi's caddy, and doesn't reappear until Mario Tennis eight years later. Since, she has become a main part of various Mario sports games and the Mario Party series. Outside of the video games, she appears as one of the main characters in the Super Mario Bros. 1993 movie, played by Samantha Mathis, and takes up her Super Mario Land role in the Game Boy comic books. Daisy's trophy in Super Smash Bros. Melee appears to hint at some sort of relationship between her and Luigi [5]

Daisy's first voice actor was Kate Fleming in Mario Tennis for the Nintendo 64. Her next voice actor was Jen Taylor, who provided her voice in various Mario Party games. In every other game, Daisy has been and is currently voiced by Deanna Mustard. She is a tomboy, unlike other female Mario characters that are feminine.

In her original design, she wore a yellow and white dress, had on a red crown in her debut and then a pink crown in Mario Party 3, and had hair the same length as Peach. In Mario Party 4 and subsequent games, she now wears a yellow and orange dress, a golden crown (same as Peach), has shorter hair, and is depicted as being stronger than Peach.

Princess Peach

Star Spirits

File:StarSpirits.jpg
The seven Star Spirits.

The Star Spirits are a group of deity-like beings who guard the Star Rod, an ancient object capable of granting wishes; the Star Spirits watched over the Star Rod and use it's power to grant the wishes of the righteous. In Paper Mario, Bowser, upon learning the Star Spirits were ignoring his wishes, broke into Star Haven and, while stealing the Star Rod, also imprisoned the Star Spirits in cards. Mario would need to rescue the Star Spirits from Bowser's minions in order to defeat Bowser, who was near-invincible due to possessing the Star Rod. In Mario Party 5, the Star Spirits return as the main hosts of the game.

The following are the Star Spirits, in the order they are encountered in in Paper Mario:

  • Eldstar: The leader of the Star Spirits, he has a large, white mustache. In Mario Party 5 he is the host of Party Mode.
  • Mamar: Possesses a pink ribbon on her head, Mamar imbues Mario with the power to put enemies to sleep. In Mario Party 5, she is the host of Bonus Mode.
  • Skolar: Is purple in color and wears glasses, Skolar also has a brown mustache and large eyebrows; Skolar allows Mario to use Star Storm, which causes seven damage to enemies. In Mario Party 5, Skolar is the host of Super-Duel Mode
  • Muskular: A blue star with a sailor hat, Muskular lets Mario use Chill Out, which weakens enemies. In Mario Party 5, Muskular is the host of Mini-Game Mode.
  • Misstar: A pink star, Misstar can use Smooch to make Mario recover twenty HP; in Mario Party 5, Misstar hosts Story Mode.
  • Klevar: A star with a bow-tie and book, Klevar's Time Out attack can immobilize enemies. In Mario Party 5, Klevar hosts the Game Modes section.
  • Kalmar: Possesses a mustache and can use Up and Away, which turns enemies into stars and flings them away; in Mario Party 5, Kalmar is the guide of Options Mode.

Toad

File:Toad Party 8.jpg
Toad in Mario Party 8.

Toad, known in Japan as Kinopio (キノピオ), is a humanoid mushroom that is both a single character and the collective name of the "Mushroom People" found in the Mushroom Kingdom. The Toad species first appeared in Super Mario Bros. as seven guards that serve Princess Peach, called Mushroom Retainers. In games prior to Paper Mario, which features an entire race of Toad inhabiting Toad Town, the capital of the Mushroom Kingdom, manuals referred to them as Mushroom People.

Toad first appears as a single character in Super Mario Bros. 2 as one of the four playable characters. He is stated to be the chief guard of the Mushroom Retainers. The character then goes on to star in Wario's Woods, and appear in the Mario Kart series and various sports games. Toad also makes a brief appearance in Super Smash Bros Melee, in which he can be seen running back and forth frantically in the first stage of adventure mode. He is also one of Princess Peach's attacks, in which she throws Toad in front of herself to take the blow of a foe's attack. In other games, he acts as an instructor, such as in the earlier Mario Party games, and helps guide characters in other games. As with the games, Toad plays a major supporting character in other forms of media starring Mario. He usually tags along with Mario in the various cartoons and comics as a sidekick.

Toad's voice is first heard in Mario Kart 64, which features actor Isaac Marshall. By the advent of the GameCube, Jen Taylor has continued to provide the voice of Toad until 2005, when Kelsey Hutchison took over for games such as Super Mario Strikers.

In the Super Mario Bros. live-action film, Toad (portrayed by Mojo Nixon) was reimagined as a street musician and one of the poor inhabitants of Dinohatten, all of whom were descended from dinosaurs; unhappy with King Koopa's rule, Toad was placed under arrest by King Koopa's police force for singing "anti-Koopa songs" and placed in custody, where he befriends Mario and Luigi. Toad is later forcibly devolved into a Goomba, but apparently retains his humanity, as evidenced by his kindness towards Princess Daisy and the fact that he later helps Mario and Luigi defeat King Koopa.

Toadette

File:Toadette Party 8.jpg
Toadette, as seen in Mario Party 8.

Toadette, a member of the Toad species that appears as a playable character in various spin-off games. Toadette is first introduced in Mario Kart: Double Dash!! as the partner of Toad, and goes on to join other sports games and the Mario Party series. In other games, she simply acts as an instructor or a background character, for example in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. Jen Taylor is her voice actor in the main series and Jennifer Hale takes up the role in Dance Dance Revolution: Mario Mix.

Toadsworth

Toadsworth, known in Japan as Kinojii (キノじい), voiced by Charles Martinet, is an elderly Toad steward of Princess Peach, first appearing in Super Mario Sunshine, where he travels to Isle Delfino with Mario, Princess Peach and an entourage of Toad; despite not making any previous appearances, the Super Mario Sunshine manual [6] refers to Toadsworth as Princess Peach's long-time steward, and indeed, Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time showed that a younger, much more care-free Toadsworth cared for Princess Peach since she was a toddler. Toadsworth made his first, and so far only, playable appearance in Mario Superstar Baseball, with most other games having him as an NPC, often giving advice or being in charge of mini-games.

Tumble

Tumble is a die that was brought to life by the Milennium Star. His appearance is a large blue dice with white dots, a small head underneath, and gloved hands and red shoes which aren't connected to his main body (similar to Rayman). In Mario Party 3 he oversaw the players' competition to become the superstar and, in the end, is revealed to contain the real Milennium Star in his dice hat. His second appearance was in Mario Party Advance, where he acts as the game's main host.

Yoshi

Antagonists

Army Hammer Bro.

The Army Hammer Bro. is a black-armored Hammer Brother who is the leader of the Hammer Brothers in Super Princess Peach. Before battle, Bowser will power the Army Hammer Bro up with his Vibe Scepter, giving the Army Hammer Bro the power of rage. Along with attacking in the standard Hammer Bro style of throwing hammers, the Army Hammer Bro can also summon other Hammer Bros. to assist him in battle.

Big Bob-omb

Big Bob-omb resembles a normal Bob-omb, but he has arms, a golden crown and an enormous white mustache. He fights by throwing Bob-ombs at his opponent or by picking them up and throwing them away. He appears in Super Mario 64, Super Mario 64 DS, and Mario Kart DS, each time as a boss. He makes cameo appearances in the numerous Mario Party series of games, notably in Mario Party Advance, where he reveals himself to be the leader of a Bob-omb mafia that defends Shroom City.

Birdo

File:Birdo nintendo.jpg
Birdo as seen in Mario Party 7.

Birdo, known in Japan as Catherine (キャサリン, Kyasarin) is an antagonist in various games. Birdo first appeared in the Japanese game Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic and the remade Super Mario Bros. 2 as a minor boss appearing at the end of many of the levels. Birdo later appeared in Wario's Woods as an ally of Toad and Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars as a boss character; Birdo made her first playable appearance afterwards in the Nintendo 64 installment of Mario Tennis, where she was Yoshi's default tennis partner for doubles matches. Since then, Birdo appeared as a playable character in several Mario sports titles.

Birdo attacks by spitting out eggs and fireballs from her tubular snout. Birdo is most frequently depicted as pink, although red, green, blue, yellow, orange, and gray Birdos are also seen in Super Mario Bros. 2 and other games. In later games such as Mario Tennis, Birdo's personal icon is her bow ribbon. As of Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour, the individual Birdo character now wears a diamond ring. However, in Super Mario Strikers, all Birdos wear diamond rings.

Boom Boom

Boom Boom is the boss of the various fortresses in Super Mario Bros. 3; Boom Boom would attack by either running from side to side, flailing his arms, or by growing wings and flying through the air.

Boom Boom was appears as an infrequent antagonist in The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3, which depicted him as a violent and snarling beast; though Boom Boom doesn't actually appear in the Super Mario Bros. live-action film, the name of one of the movie's major settings, the Boom Boom Bar, refers to him.

Bowser

Bowser Jr.

File:BowserJr2.jpg
Bowser Jr, as he appeared in New Super Mario Bros.

Bowser Jr., known in Japan as Koopa Jr. (クッパJr., Kuppa Jr.), is the child of Bowser that debuted in Super Mario Sunshine. He acts as the main antagonist of both Super Mario Sunshine and New Super Mario Bros., with his father only playing a minor role in each. He also appears in the various sports games such as Mario Superstar Baseball and Mario Kart: Double Dash!!. Bowser Jr. shares many physical similarities with his father, with the main differences being a red ponytail as opposed to Bowser's mane, small black beady eyes, a more rounded snout, and a single sharp tooth visible in his mouth. He wears a kerchief constantly. It was originally a drawing of Mario's distinctive nose and mustache, but it is later replaced with a set of sharp teeth.

In Super Mario Sunshine, Bowser Jr. uses a magic paintbrush, invented by Professor E. Gadd, and a special kerchief to transform into a translucent blue doppelgänger of Mario, Shadow Mario, who vandalizes Isle Delfino, tricking the native people into believing that Mario himself is to blame. He does this to Mario because Bowser tells him that Princess Peach is his mother, and that Mario has kidnapped her. Bowser Jr. kidnaps her himself, and is eventually defeated along with Bowser. He soon realizes that Princess Peach isn't his mother, but he still refers to Peach as "Mama" sometimes in later games, such as when he challenges Princess Peach to a game in Mario Superstar Baseball.

Chief Chilly

Chief Chilly is a giant Bully made out of ice. He has a big mustache, and takes even a greater pride about them than Big Bob-Omb. Chief Chilly has also very large eyebrows. He has only one horn, which is surrounded by small icy spikes, together making the horn and spikes look like a crown. He appeared in Super Mario 64 DS, guarding Wario's key and in Mario Kart DS as a boss in Mission Mode.

Clawgrip

Clawgrip (also known as "Chokey" in Japan) is an enemy boss character that appears in Super Mario Bros. 2 at the very end of World 5. He is a giant crab monster that throws large rocks. It lives in a giant tree awaiting the arrival of Mario and his friends. The manual describes him as "growing suddenly" [7], but this isn't apparent in the game itself, but it is in it's remake, Super Mario Advance. He also gains a pirate voice, saying "Aar! You'll make a tasty treat!" He replaces the third white Mouser that was a boss in Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic.

Clawgrip made a few appearances in The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, in the episodes "Rolling Down the River", "Pirates of Koopa" and "Mario of the Deep", though all these appearances were relatively minor ones. Several Clawgrips also appeared in the Nintendo Comics System issue "The Fish That Should've Gotten Away". [8]

Foreman Spike

File:ForemanSpike.jpg
Foreman Spike, as he is depicted in Mobile Golf.

Foreman Spike, known as Blackey (ブラッキー, Burakkī) in Japan, is the main antagonist of the game Wrecking Crew, his first appearance. He has also appeared in a few subsequent games; he depicted as an obese, bearded and apparently corrupt construction worker, whose face is mostly obscured by his sunglasses.

In Wrecking Crew, Foreman Spike would at first appear only in the game's bonus levels, in which the player must find a hidden gold coin before Spike does; later in the game, Foreman Spike would begin to appear outside of bonus levels, trying to hinder Mario in his demolition work. In the Japan-exclusive Super Famicom game Wrecking Crew '98, Foreman Spike returns, with an altered appearance, and is hired by Bowser to build him a new castle. In this game, Foreman Spike appears as the second-to-last boss, right before Bowser. Foreman Spike's most recent appearance has been in Mobile Golf, in which he is an unlockable character.

Fryguy

File:Mariostoohottohandle.JPG
Fryguy and the Fire God of Waki Waki

Fryguy is an enemy character that appears in Super Mario Bros. 2. Fryguy is essentially a giant living fireball that spews smaller fireballs when it is angry. Contrary to what his name may imply, he is not a member of the Shy Guy family. According to the original Super Mario Bros. 2 game manual, "Wart gave life to this entity which is created from fire. He spits fireballs when he is mad." [9] He, along with Mouser, Tryclyde and Clawgrip, is one of the boss characters that appear at the end of each world in Super Mario Bros. 2. Fryguy lives inside a very tall castle-type fortress, waiting for the arrival of Mario and his friends.

Fryguy was also a recurring character on The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, where he worked for King Koopa. He also appeared occasionally in the Nintendo Comics System's Mario comic stories, which revealed that there was more than one of him. According to the comics, Fryguys are made by exposing Toads to fire or lava. Additionally, one scene of the Super Mario Bros. movie referred to the flamethrowers used by King Koopa and his minions as "Fryguy Flamethrowers".

Goomboss

Goomboss is a large, mustached Goomba dressed in royal finery and and wearing a crown. Goomboss first appeared in Super Mario 64 DS as the boss keeping Mario captive; in battle, Goomboss would try to trample the player and also summon Goombas to aid him in combat. Goomboss also appears in Mario Kart DS as a boss raced by Toad in the Baby Park in Mission Mode. Goomboss is most likely the Goomba King, a minor boss from Paper Mario, or at least based on him, as the characters are largely identical in appearance. [10] [11]

Gooper Blooper

Gooper Blooper is a giant variation of the Blooper. It has appeared as a boss in Super Mario Sunshine and Super Princess Peach, and as an obstacle in Mario Power Tennis and Mario Hoops 3-on-3. It has four large tentacles on the front and four small tentacles on the side. Its skin is colored white with blue spots. At the end of the tentacles are blue-colored bulges, similar to suction cups. Its head is arrow-shaped, and the point of it is colored light blue. It has a black strip across its face, where its eyes are. It can commonly be seen with a cork in its tube-like snout. Gooper Blooper also has a small resemblance to the colossal squid. Mario defeated Gooper Blooper in Super Mario Sunshine by pulling his tentacles and snout.

Kamek

Kamek was Bowser's caretaker and the main antagonist in the game Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island. He kidnapped Baby Luigi and tried to kidnap Baby Mario, but Yoshi and his variously-colored friends protected Mario and saved Luigi after defeating Baby Bowser. He may be Yoshi's biggest foe and enemy. He is Bowser's lead Magikoopa, an offshoot of the Koopa species that can perform advanced magic. Like most members of his class, he wears big spectacles and rides a broomstick. During the events of Yoshi's Island, Kamek attempted to block the Yoshis' progress by swelling enemies to dramatic size using magic.

Kamek's minions, called Toadies (not to be confused with the friendly Toads), carry Baby Mario off to their master if Yoshi lets him float free for too long.

It should be noted that in Japan, Magikoopas are known as Kamek. Kamek the character was known as "Magikoopa" in Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, and both Kamek and Magikoopas were referred to as "Kameks" in Super Princess Peach.

Kammy Koopa

File:Kammy Koopa.jpg
Kammy, as she appears in promotional art for Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door.

Kammy Koopa (カメックババ, Kamekku Baba, Kameck Baba), first introduced in Paper Mario, is an old witch Magikoopa who works for Bowser. Kammy is described by Goombario in Paper Mario as "the brains behind Bowser" and is high up in the Koopa hierarchy. [12] Kammy oversees the Magikoopas similarly to Bowser's advisor Kamek, as one looked forward to getting a raise from Kammy for defeating Mario. However, unlike most Magikoopas, she lacks a fang, and instead has a square tooth on her bottom jaw.

Kammy continues as Bowser's lieutenant in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. In the second Paper Mario game, Kammy is the one who informs Bowser about Mario's quest to collect the Crystal Stars and that Princess Peach has been kidnapped. She then proceeds to aid Bowser in his journey to retrieve the Crystal Stars and Princess Peach although their efforts are unsuccessful most of the time. At the end of the game she aids Bowser in fighting Mario and his allies in the Palace of Shadow and is defeated.

King Boo

File:Kingboo.jpg
King Boo, as he appears in promotional art for Luigi's Mansion.

King Boo (キングテレサ, Kingu Teresa, King Teresa) first appears as the boss of Luigi's Mansion and plays minor roles in various other Mario games. He is member of the Boo species, though he is larger than the average Boo, and dons a crown, a large ruby in Luigi's Mansion, and a regular crown in subsequent appearances, on his head. King Boo also has a distinctive cackle that is lower in pitch than that of smaller Boos. After Luigi's Mansion, he appears as a boss in Super Mario Sunshine, Super Mario 64 DS, Mario Kart DS and Super Princess Peach and continues to appear as a character in spin off games such as Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, as the partner of Petey Piranha, and other sports games. He also gives out stars on his own board in Mario Party 8 entitled "King Boo's Haunted Hideaway". Due to inconsistencies in the manner of his appearance, it is probable that there is more than one King Boo.

In Luigi's Mansion, King Boo lures Mario and Luigi to the mansion by making them think they won it through a giveaway. After Mario arrives, King Boo traps him in a painting. He acts as the final boss, whom Luigi must defeat in order to free Mario. When Luigi reaches the mansion's secret altar, where Mario is being imprisoned in a painting, King Boo sucks Luigi into the painting of Mario, and then attacks using an unidentified Bowser-like entity as a tank of sorts. After being defeated and captured, King Boo is put on display in E.Gadd's collection of ghost portraits.

Klepto the Condor

Klepto (Jango in Japan) is a large condor-like creature who flies around "Shifting Sand Land" in Super Mario 64 and Super Mario 64 DS. It keeps that level's first Star in its talons. Mario must climb onto a checkered pillar to reach Klepto and then jump into him to get access to the Star. After the level has been completed, Klepto will seek revenge by swooping down at Mario to steal his hat. Without a hat, Mario will lose twice the normal amount of health when he gets hit. Mario must jump on Klepto again to get his hat back.

Klepto has remained a minor recurring in the Mario series since his appearance in Super Mario 64, appearing in both Mario Party 4 and Mario Party Advance. Several members of Klepto's species appear in the background of the desert course in Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour and as enemies in Mario Pinball Land.

Koopa Kids

Koopa Kids (Mini Bowsers in PAL regions) are minions of Bowser that appear in the Mario Party series. They do his general bidding, interrupting the players as they traverse the game boards. As of Mario Party 5, they became playable characters, although they don't appear in Mario Party 8.

Mario Party 5 introduced three differently-colored Koopa Kids (which were created by a technique of the original Koopa Kid): Red Koopa Kid, Green Koopa Kid and Blue Koopa Kid. They have been around in the Mario Party series ever since. While these three can compete with the player in mini-games in Mario Party 5 and Mario Party 6, only the original Koopa Kid has ever been playable. The colorful Koopa Kids continue to make appearances in Bowser mini-games in Mario Party 7 and Mario Party Advance.

Koopalings

File:SevenKoopalings.jpg
The Koopalings in Super Mario Bros. 3. Clockwise from the top: Morton Koopa Jr., Wendy O. Koopa, Iggy Koopa, Ludwig von Koopa, Lemmy Koopa, Roy Koopa, Larry Koopa.

Koopaling (コクッパ, Ko Kuppa) is a generic title given to seven children of King Bowser who help him in various games. They first appeared in Super Mario Bros. 3 where the original seven were introduced. Each Koopaling was a boss at the end of one of the game’s seven kingdoms. [13] The Koopalings are also world bosses in the following games of Super Mario World, Mario is Missing!, Yoshi's Safari, and Hotel Mario. In Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, however, they are mini-bosses in Bowser's Castle. They are made up of Larry Koopa, Morton Koopa Jr., Wendy O. Koopa, Iggy Koopa, Roy Koopa, Lemmy Koopa, and Ludwig von Koopa going from youngest to oldest. [14] It is unknown as to how they relate to Bowser Jr.

Most of the Koopalings have wild punk hairstyles. It is said that each Koopaling was personally designed by a different member of the production staff of Super Mario Bros. 3. Explains Shigeru Miyamoto: “This is another way we give recognition to the many people who help make the games successful.” [15] Nintendo did not initially name them for their debut in the Japanese version of Super Mario Bros. 3. In the Japanese version of Super Mario World only the kids’ first names are given.

The names of the Koopalings are all derived from notable musicians, including Wendy O. Williams, Iggy Pop, Roy Orbison, Lemmy Kilmister, and Ludwig van Beethoven.

In the Mario cartoons by DiC, the original seven Koopalings are given different names based on their given personalities. They are called Cheatsy Koopa, Big Mouth Koopa, Kootie Pie Koopa, Hop Koopa, Bully Koopa, Hip Koopa, and Kooky Von Koopa. Aside from their names and personalities, they look different, and serve Bowser differently. Instead of acting as minions, they act directly as his children, and do things such as seek his attention, and even plot against him. They also appear in Nintendo Adventure Books and comic books, though their first appearance outside a video game was in a set of Japanese OVAs.

File:Sppkoopalings.PNG
The unused sprites for Super Princess Peach

Most interestingly, sprites of the Koopalings were discovered in the game data of Super Princess Peach, indicating they were going to be major bosses of the game, but they were replaced at the last moment with different bosses.

Larry Koopa in particular was recently mentioned in Super Paper Mario, as the star of a horror simulation game entitled Larry Koopa: Zombie Heartbreaker.

Mouser

Mouser is a minion of Wart and was featured as sub-boss of Worlds 1 and 3 in Super Mario Bros. 2 and Worlds 1, 3 and 5 in Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic. His strategy is to throw bombs at his opponents. [16] Although Mouser was not featured in another Mario game for many years, he has played a big part in the game's marketing. He was a major character in The Super Mario Bros. Super Show, which cast him as King Koopa's second-in-command and a member of the Koopa Pack. John Stocker provided the voice for Mouser, who spoke with a German accent in the series; like King Koopa, Mouser would occasionally take on various aliases in his appearances in The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, some of which include Sheriff Mouser and Astro Mouser.

Mouser also occasionally appeared in the Super Mario Bros. comic books, which provided a backstory for him. According to the story "A Mouser in the Houser", Mouser was the king of a peaceful race of mice living in the tunnels of the Mushroom Kingdom. But he was corrupted by Bowser, and as a result, his now-leaderless subjects now steal vegetables for food.

Naval Piranha is a magically empowered Piranha Plant who first appeared in the video game Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island with many vines growing out of her. She rams, spits spores, and attacks with her vines. Her weak point is her belly button. Naval Piranha also appears in the video game Tetris Attack, as the second of four bosses. She appeared as a villain along with Hookbill the Koopa, while Raphael Raven had turned good. This game confirmed her gender, through hearts she would litter her speech with. Naval Piranha also made a small appearance in Mario Party Advance as a boss. In the closing credits, it says she now lives and thrives in the desert.

Petey Piranha

Petey Pirahna, as he appears in promotional art for Super Mario Sunshine.

Petey Piranha (ボスパックン, Bosu Pakkun, Boss Packun) first appears as the primary boss of Bianco Hills in Super Mario Sunshine. He has appeared as a boss in later games as well such as in Super Princess Peach, Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time, and New Super Mario Bros., but also as a playable character in spin-off Mario games like Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour, Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, Mario Power Tennis, Mario Superstar Baseball and Mario Strikers Charged, as a captain. A drastically different Petey is found as a boss in Mario Pinball Land. In a trailer for Super Mario Galaxy, a large, dinosaur-like creature with arms and a head resembling Petey Piranha's own can be seen. It also appears to have a long, vine-like tail. [17]

Petey is a larger, much more powerful version of a Piranha Plant, which is the result of mutation. Whereas normal Piranha Plants usually grow from pipes, Petey's leaves and roots have grown into foot-like and arm-like appendages. He can walk and even flutter about in the air. Furthermore, Petey sports a pair of white-spotted red briefs. Petey's head is framed with petals. Although Petey does not speak, he does make some growling, drooling and licking noises, which translate into actual speech. Petey frequently vomits out mud-like Earth Goop, a substance similar to that of Shadow Mario's Paintbrush, which can make the ground slippery and sometimes generate more goop-based monsters.

Raphael the Raven

File:Fighting Raphael Raven.png
Yoshi vs. Raphael in Yoshi's Island

Raphael the Raven, also known as Raphael Raven, is an enemy known as a Raven, small, bird-like enemies in the Yoshi series, who first appeared in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island as the boss of the fifth world. The battle against Raphael, who is enlarged to giant proportions by Kamek, takes place on the moon above Yoshi's Island; Raphael's attack pattern consists entirely of attempting to charge into the player's Yoshi. After his defeat in this game, Raphael is flung into space, where he becomes a new constellation.

In Tetris Attack, Raphael appears as a boss and one of the game's few enemies acting on his own accord, instead of being brainwashed by Kamek and Bowser. In Paper Mario, Raphael appears to have reformed, as he now lives peacefully on Lavalava Island as the leader of the Ravens living there; in order to gain access to Mt. Lavalava, Mario needs the aid of Raphael, who was alerted of Mario's quest for the Star Spirits by the stars themselves. The most recent appearance of Raphael has been Super Smash Bros. Melee, where he appears as one of the game's unlockable trophies.

Shroobs

File:Shroob.jpg
A typical Shroob.

The Shroobs (ゲドンコ, Gedonko) are the main enemies of the Nintendo DS game Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time. They are an evil alien race from a far-off planet that invades the Mushroom Kingdom while Mario and Luigi are infants. Although Shroobs come in numerous forms, a typical Shroob resembles a purple-colored mushroom with red eyes. Its hands have claw-like pinchers. Shroobs speak in a unique language made up of raspy growls and written in bizarre symbols. Initially, none of the characters can interpret the language, but over time it becomes more understandable, from jumbled phrases to clearer sentences.

They are led by two princesses, Princess Shroob and Elder Princess Shroob, who decide to take over the planet, and use its inhabitants as an energy source by converting them to vim with probes. They start with Princess Peach’s Castle, using it as a base, and move on to other locations, all while spreading their control. Both princesses and the army are defeated by the group effort of Mario, Luigi, and their infant counterparts.

Tryclyde

Tryclyde is an enemy character that appears in Super Mario Bros. 2. Tryclyde is a large, red serpent with three heads and the ability to breathe fire. His design is based on the hydra, a mythological creature, though his actual species in the Super Mario universe is that of a Cobrat. Tryclyde serves as Wart's lackey, and was apparently an outsider before Wart took him in due to his cunning and evil nature. [18] He was also a semi-regularly recurring villain in the animated series The Super Mario Bros. Super Show and a member of the semi-competent Koopa Pack (consisting of himself, Mouser, and Koopa Troopa). He was voiced by Harvey Atkin in the television show and by Charles Martinet in Super Mario Advance. He is colored blue in remakes rather than red.

Tatanga

File:Tatanga01.GIF
Tatanga promo art for SML2.

Tatanga ("the Mysterious Spaceman") appears as the final boss in Super Mario Land, where he kidnaps Princess Daisy of Sarasaland. He fights Mario in a war robot called "Pagosu" while Mario attempts to shoot him down from his "Sky Pop" airplane. Tatanga also appears in Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins as the guardian of the "Space Zone" coin. Since then, Tatanga has remained largely obscure.

Tatanga also appeared in the Game Boy comic books, published by Valiant as part of the Nintendo Comics System in 1990. There, in addition to an obvious change in his appearance, he had taken control of an estranged human from New Jersey by the name of Herman Smirch. Tatanga often hypnotized Smirch into bringing him through "the gateway" to Earth so that Tatanga could conquer it. Fortunately, a certain other human would notice Tatanga and bring Mario out of the Game Boy to drive Tatanga back.

Waluigi

File:Waluigi.png
Waluigi, as he appears in promotional art for Mario Party 8.

Waluigi (ワルイージ, Waruīji) has so far only appeared in spin-off and party games, as opposed to the main platformer titles, save for a few negligible cameos. Waluigi has a very crude attitude, usually showing poor sportsmanship and is thought to cheat often in sports. He is Luigi's darker rival, in the same way that Wario is Mario's darker rival. Along with this, Waluigi has a hat and gloves with a rotated L resembling a "Γ" gamma symbol, which is similar to Wario's "W", an inverted "M". Waluigi's relation to Wario remains largely unknown, as some sources indicate he is his brother, though others contradict this. Waluigi was created by Camelot's Fumihide Aoki and is voiced by Charles Martinet.

Waluigi's first appearance was in the Mario Tennis games for the Game Boy Color and Nintendo 64, as Wario's doubles partner, and then in 2005 on Mario Tennis: Power Tour for the Game Boy Advance. Later, along with Princess Daisy, he joined the Mario Party series's roster in Mario Party 3, which popularized him as a member of the Mario Crew; he has been a playable character in every main entry in the series since. He's since also appeared in various other sports games. He acts as the main antagonist in Dance Dance Revolution: Mario Mix, in which he wreaks havoc in the Mushroom Kingdom by stealing the Music Keys in order to cause World Domination by hypnotizing the entire world with his dancing.

Wario

Wart

Wart (マム, Mamu) plays the role of final boss in Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic, and Super Mario Bros. 2, the game that is derived from it. Wart is a regal, fat frog, with a crown on his head and a robe that can scarcely conceal his big belly. In Super Mario Bros. 2, Mario has a dream in which a voice pleads for his help. The voice explains that Wart has taken over Subcon, the land of dreams, but that Mario can defeat him by taking advantage of Wart's severe allergy to vegetables. In Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic, Wart abducts the youngest brother and sister from an Arabian family by snatching them away through an enchanted storybook. This game's heroes — siblings Imajin and Lina and parents Mama and Papa — fight Wart in the same manner, however. And again, killing Wart frees the mysterious red fairy folk in this game as well.

Wart appears in one comic story published for the Nintendo Comics System, his character design resembing a crocodile rather than a frog. Titled "Cloud Burst", this story has Princess Toadstool's father, King Toadstool, looking to buy a new mattress, as his current one is too lumpy. Disguised as a bed salesman, Wart takes the King up into the clouds and advertises a bed-shaped rain cloud as a Cloud Nine mattress. As the King rests up on that cloud, it causes rain all over the Mushroom Kingdom, but is quickly patched up by the Mario Bros. Wart also appeared in book six of the Nintendo Adventure Books, titled Doors to Doom. There, though, he appeared as a skateboarder who ended up helping the Mario Bros. during their current plight.

Wart also makes a cameo appearance under the name of Mamu in The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening and Link's Awakening DX, where he teaches Link The Frog's Song of Soul for a hefty price. Wart is also mentioned as the star of a comic book series entitled Cyborg Wart in Super Paper Mario.

Whomp King

Whomp King is a giant sized Whomp, and the leader of all Whomps and the apparent leader of the Thwomps as well. He hates people because they build their houses and castles, and the inhabitants still walk all over his clan without saying "Thank you". He appeared in Super Mario 64 and its remake, Super Mario 64 DS. He only had a crown in Super Mario 64 DS, when in the original game he looked like a normal, albeit giant, Whomp.

See also

References

  1. ^ Donkey Kong Country manual, pg. 6, pg. 12 and pg. 27
  2. ^ Rare's Scribes Page
  3. ^ (March 2006). "Inside Zelda". Nintendo Power, vol. 201, pp. 46-8.
  4. ^ http://media.ign64.ign.com/media/000/000453/img_1197940.html
  5. ^ "The princess of Sarasa-land. Daisy met Mario when he helped defeat the evil alien Tanaga 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." - Princess Daisy's trophy description, Super Smash Bros. Melee
  6. ^ Super Mario Sunshine manual, pg. 7
  7. ^ Super Mario Bros. 2 manual, pg. 28
  8. ^ "The Fish That Should've Gotten Away", pg. 1 - 2
  9. ^ Super Mario Bros. 2 manual, pg. 27
  10. ^ Yoshi battling Goomboss in Super Mario 64 DS
  11. ^ Mario battling Goomba King and Red Goomba in Paper Mario.
  12. ^ "Hey... I know that ol' Koopa! That was Kammy Koopa! She's way up in the ranks of the Koopa clan. Some people call her the brains behind Bowser. Boy, she sure looked like one mean Koopa, didn't she?" - Goombario, Paper Mario
  13. ^ Super Mario Bros. 3 manual, pg. 3 and 5
  14. ^ Super Mario Bros. 3 manual, pg. 4
  15. ^ Pam Sather, Scott Pelland; et al. (1991), Mario Mania Player’s Guide, Nintendo Power {{citation}}: Explicit use of et al. in: |author= (help) ISBN 0-45-049606-6 Copy at:"Shigeru Miyamoto interview". {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  16. ^ Super Mario Bros. 2 manual, pg. 27
  17. ^ http://media.wii.ign.com/media/748/748588/img_4382465.html
  18. ^ Super Mario Bros. 2 manual, pg. 27