Character of the Week #23

Metal Mario · 12-19-2009, 10:51 AM

Bowser

First Appearance: Super Mario Bros. (NES, 1985)
Latest Appearance: New Super Mario Bros. Wii (Wii, 2009)

Since the beginning of mankind, people have told stories of great heroes. And, since the beginning of mankind, every great hero has had his or her great villain. No matter how many diverse and ranging threats a hero may face over the course of his or her career, that hero is bound to clash time and time again with a recurring menace that just won't go away. Robin Hood has the Sheriff of Nottingham; James Bond has Ernst Stavro Blofeld; Superman has Lex Luthor. As for our homeboy Mario, he has King Bowser Koopa.

A giant, fire-breathing turtle with a bad attitude and a questionable learning curve, Bowser is probably the most recognizable of all video game villains. He burst onto the scene in 1985 as a despotic tyrant set on conquering the Mushroom Kingdom, and he's been at it ever since. No one knows why he wants so badly to conquer the Mushroom Kingdom; my guess is simply because it's there. And so he tries over and over and over again, only to be thwarted continuously and unfailingly by Mario and Luigi. And that's how it will be until the end of time. No matter how many times he kidnaps Princess Toadstool, or powers himself up with some star-related item, or frames Mario for painting graffiti all over the place, or tries to melt Antarctica, he'll always always always lose.

Bowser is not without his comforts, however. Despite being the main heavy of the Mario franchise, he's beloved by fans. He's a playable character in every Mario sports and Kart title (as well as SSB Melee and SSB Brawl), and it was a really huge deal back in the day when Nintendo announced that Mario and Bowser would be teaming up in Super Mario RPG (a game in which Bowser is an extremely useful character). In the years since, Bowser has gone on to playable roles in certain other Mario adventures, including Super Paper Mario and Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story (the latter being as close as Bowser is likely to get to ever having his own game).

Robotazy · 12-19-2009, 12:51 PM

Ah, Bowser.

He was once with Eggman in the "villains I don't really like anymore" boat.

That was until New Super Mario Bros.

PK FIRE! · 12-19-2009, 01:17 PM

Slow in the head or not, he's got a Wil E. Cyote level of determination about him, also he tends to have good taste in Gocarts.

- You stupid dog.

**Valigarmander** · 12-19-2009, 03:33 PM

SO LONG, GAY BOWSER!

Random User · 12-19-2009, 07:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Metal Mario

No one knows why he wants so badly to conquer the Mushroom Kingdom; my guess is simply because it's there.

Kammy said in Paper Mario that it's because Bowser wants power.

Dark Seraphim · 12-19-2009, 07:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Metal Mario

[i]or frames Mario for painting graffiti all over the place

That wasn't Bowser, that was Bowser's Jr.

Hey Metal Mario, did you know that in the very first Super Mario Bros. Bowser was going to look like this?:

Bowser is probabaly one of the coolest villains, sure he's simple and he almost always wants the same thing, but as repetitive as it is, we never grow tired of him. He's less predictable as he is just a creature of habit, and something about him just seems to attract us to him over and over again. Sure he's an evil tyrant, but something about his clownish yet intimidating demeanor just makes it so we can't hate him.

That said I wonder, Bowser has had two true super forms which are my favorite, Giga Bowser and Dry Bowser . . . who do you think is more powerful?

Random User · 12-19-2009, 09:04 PM

Giga Bowser, no contest.

Metal Mario · 12-20-2009, 03:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dark Seraphim

Hey Metal Mario, did you know that in the very first Super Mario Bros. Bowser was going to look like this?:

Yeah, Bowser's look wasn't really so well-defined until SMB 3 (that's when the jaundiced skin and red hair came in). That's why his SMB Super Show incarnation looks so different from the in-game incarnation we're all familiar with today.

Metal Mario · 12-22-2009, 08:19 PM

Just a note: Next week's Game of the Week and Character of the Week might be just a little bit late. I'll be spending the Christmas weekend with my folks, y'see, and they have a 12-year-old computer with a dial-up Internet connection. As you can imagine, it's very difficult to negotiate with. However, if I am slightly tardy in my updating of these features, it won't be by much. I'll definitely have the next installments up by Monday afternoon at the latest.

Merry Christmas!

Antisocial · 12-22-2009, 08:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Valigarmander

SO LONG, GAY BOWSER!

To this day, I still don't know what Mario's saying when he throws Bowser.

Makes it all the more intriguing when you consider it was changed to a simple "Bye-bye!" in the DS port.

Luigiman7 · 12-22-2009, 09:02 PM

^ I like opening and the closing the DS. Mario greeting me makes me happy.

Oh, yeah. Bowser. He's aight.

Dr. Furball · 12-23-2009, 12:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Antisocial

To this day, I still don't know what Mario's saying when he throws Bowser.

I always heard it as "So long-a, Bowser!"

Quote:

Originally Posted by Antisocial

Makes it all the more intriguing when you consider it was changed to a simple "Bye-bye!" in the DS port.

I once read somewhere that, in the N64 game, "So long-a, Bowser" replaced the "Bye-bye" from the Japanese version.
SM64 DS seems to be based on the original Japanese game, judging by the inclusion of that and the painting for Jolly Roger Bay.

Metal Mario · 12-23-2009, 10:02 AM

I always thought he said, "So long, King Bowser!"

12-19-2009, 10:51 AM	#1
Metal Mario Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 1999 Gender: Posts: 16,435 Thanks: 72 Thanked 190 Times in 127 Posts	Character of the Week #23 Bowser First Appearance: Super Mario Bros. (NES, 1985) Latest Appearance: New Super Mario Bros. Wii (Wii, 2009) Since the beginning of mankind, people have told stories of great heroes. And, since the beginning of mankind, every great hero has had his or her great villain. No matter how many diverse and ranging threats a hero may face over the course of his or her career, that hero is bound to clash time and time again with a recurring menace that just won't go away. Robin Hood has the Sheriff of Nottingham; James Bond has Ernst Stavro Blofeld; Superman has Lex Luthor. As for our homeboy Mario, he has King Bowser Koopa. A giant, fire-breathing turtle with a bad attitude and a questionable learning curve, Bowser is probably the most recognizable of all video game villains. He burst onto the scene in 1985 as a despotic tyrant set on conquering the Mushroom Kingdom, and he's been at it ever since. No one knows why he wants so badly to conquer the Mushroom Kingdom; my guess is simply because it's there. And so he tries over and over and over again, only to be thwarted continuously and unfailingly by Mario and Luigi. And that's how it will be until the end of time. No matter how many times he kidnaps Princess Toadstool, or powers himself up with some star-related item, or frames Mario for painting graffiti all over the place, or tries to melt Antarctica, he'll always always always lose. Bowser is not without his comforts, however. Despite being the main heavy of the Mario franchise, he's beloved by fans. He's a playable character in every Mario sports and Kart title (as well as SSB Melee and SSB Brawl), and it was a really huge deal back in the day when Nintendo announced that Mario and Bowser would be teaming up in Super Mario RPG (a game in which Bowser is an extremely useful character). In the years since, Bowser has gone on to playable roles in certain other Mario adventures, including Super Paper Mario and Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story (the latter being as close as Bowser is likely to get to ever having his own game).

12-22-2009, 09:02 PM	#11
Luigiman7 ヽ(◔ ◡ ◔)ノ.･ﾟ*｡･+☆ Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: ~)´◡｀(~ Gender: Posts: 17,605 Thanks: 1,134 Thanked 1,012 Times in 713 Posts Blog Entries: 8	^ I like opening and the closing the DS. Mario greeting me makes me happy. Oh, yeah. Bowser. He's aight. __________________ ／人◕ ‿‿ ◕人＼ＷＯＮ’Ｔ　ＹＯＵ　ＢＥＣＯＭＥ　Ａ　ＭＡＧＩＣＡＬ　ＧＩＲＬ？

12-19-2009, 12:51 PM	#2
Robotazy PRESS ANY KEY TO PANIC! Join Date: Sep 2000 Location: A Tiny Shed Gender: Posts: 16,483 Thanks: 529 Thanked 1,254 Times in 897 Posts Blog Entries: 46	Ah, Bowser. He was once with Eggman in the "villains I don't really like anymore" boat. That was until New Super Mario Bros.

12-19-2009, 01:17 PM	#3
PK FIRE! Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2000 Location: On the run. Gender: Posts: 9,544 Thanks: 175 Thanked 150 Times in 120 Posts	Slow in the head or not, he's got a Wil E. Cyote level of determination about him, also he tends to have good taste in Gocarts. - You stupid dog.

12-19-2009, 03:33 PM	#4
Valigarmander The Bee's Knees Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: The land of rain and trees (Oregon) Gender: Posts: 29,755 Thanks: 1,649 Thanked 5,701 Times in 2,581 Posts Blog Entries: 20	SO LONG, GAY BOWSER!

12-19-2009, 09:04 PM	#7
Random User Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Equestrian Republic of Spanglidesh Gender: Posts: 3,562 Thanks: 321 Thanked 195 Times in 143 Posts Blog Entries: 4	Giga Bowser, no contest.

12-22-2009, 08:19 PM	#9
Metal Mario Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 1999 Gender: Posts: 16,435 Thanks: 72 Thanked 190 Times in 127 Posts	Just a note: Next week's Game of the Week and Character of the Week might be just a little bit late. I'll be spending the Christmas weekend with my folks, y'see, and they have a 12-year-old computer with a dial-up Internet connection. As you can imagine, it's very difficult to negotiate with. However, if I am slightly tardy in my updating of these features, it won't be by much. I'll definitely have the next installments up by Monday afternoon at the latest. Merry Christmas!

12-23-2009, 10:02 AM	#13
Metal Mario Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 1999 Gender: Posts: 16,435 Thanks: 72 Thanked 190 Times in 127 Posts	I always thought he said, "So long, King Bowser!"