| Bowser Jr. | |
|---|---|
 | |
|
Series |
Mario |
|
Debut |
Super Mario Sunshine (2002) |
|
Console of origin |
Nintendo GameCube |
|
Species |
Koopa |
|
Gender |
Male |
Bowser Koopa Jr., known in Japan as Koopa Jr. (not to be confused with Koopa Kid), is the eighth and youngest child of Bowser and the apparent heir of the Dark Land. He 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 is a playable character in various multiplayer Mario games. Since his debut, he has stolen the spotlight as the main villain from his father in a few Mario Games.
Description[]
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—features which, along with his body shape, make him look almost identical to Bowser himself at a younger age. He wears a kerchief constantly. It was originally a drawing of Mario's distinctive nose and mustache, but it was later replaced with a set of sharp teeth, which he puts over his real ones to look more intimidating.
History[]
Super Mario Sunshine[]
Bowser Jr. debuted in Super Mario Sunshine. In it, 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 realized that Princess Peach isn't his mother before Bowser decided to tell him, 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.
New Super Mario Bros.[]
He is once again the main antagonist and kidnaps Princess Peach. He drags Peach around through different worlds as Mario chases him. In this game, Bowser Jr. is the boss of every tower.
His attack pattern depends on how he wears his bandanna. If it is hanging loose, Bowser Jr. will jump and charge at Mario and can be defeated by simple jump attacks. If he wears the bandanna over his mouth, Bowser Jr. will throw Koopa shells at Mario and duck into his shell whenever Mario comes near, preventing jump attacks from working. Bowser Jr. also helps his father during the final battle of the game. At the end of the game, Bowser Jr. can be seen dragging his father to his castle. Bowser Jr. looks at the player who is watching, gets angry and then helped back to his father. Bowser Jr. doing this breaks the fourth wall as he aknowledges the player's existance.
Super Mario Galaxy[]
Bowser Jr. is a boss and also appears in the last level of three domes in Super Mario Galaxy. He arrives in a tiny ship at the end of his airship and fires cannonballs while the player fights Koopa Troopas. If a Koopa's shell is thrown at his ship, he will start firing homing-Bullet Bills. Hit it again and a Magikoopa will appear. Hit it one more time and fireballs will start flying out from it. Three more hits and it explodes and Bowser Jr. gets away.
Bowser Jr. is fought for a second time in his small personal airship.
In his third encounter, he summons a black King Kaliente to attack. He will first spit out three fireballs, followed by a coconut. The player must perform a spinning attack to whack it back at him, then the king will throw it back at Mario. If Mario whacks it at him three times with the coconut fly past him, he will knock the king's crown off. If it is missed, the attack pattern will repeat until Mario is successful.
Bowser Jr. was not seen again until Mario reaches Bowser's Galaxy Reactor, where he is shown keeping Peach on his airship. While Mario marches up the steps to confront Bowser Jr., he fires cannonballs that collapse the steps. He then watches the final battle while keeping Peach. After Bowser is defeated, the Galaxy starts going haywire. Jr. falls out of his airship and falls into his father's sun. Later, however, he is shown alive and jumping in the Mushroom Kingdom.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii[]
Bowser Jr. and his Siblings hid in a cake during Princess Peach's birthday, and showed up by surprise and kidnapped the princess. He battles Mario on an airship in Worlds 4, 6, and 8.
In his first battle, he uses his new mini Koopa Clown Car and spits fireballs for the first time. When his fire hits the ground, it creates a large blaze there, the player must be careful not to land on these. The only possible way to attack him is to use the Propeller Block in order to spin up to his height and jump on him. He must be hit three times to be defeated.
In the second battle, he uses his damaged Clown Car. Luckily, Mario finds a similar Car to use in combat. Mario's Car must be flown up by the player and used to knock Jr. into the electrical fence on the walls of the room. He must be hit three times either by the electric fence or on the head (or a combination) to be defeated.
In the third battle, Bowser Jr. uses his father's Clown Car since his previous was broken. In battle, Jr. drops large mines on the field. A ground pound must be used on the wavy floor to lob the mine back up and damage the Clown Car. Bowser Jr. can now fire more than one fireball in a row, and they create blazing obstacles on the floor. In addition, these fireballs can home in on Mario. He must be hit three times.
In the final scene of Peach, Mario, Luigi and Toads, a new scene opens with Larry down, tired. Then, Jr. appears and draws the attention of his brother, and points to Bowser overturned and Koopalings helping him. Then Bowser gets back to normal, bringing joy to their children, but falls on his castle of all.
Super Mario Galaxy 2[]
Bowser Jr. reprises his role as the secondary antagonist. Like the previous game, Bowser Jr. will prevent Mario from reaching and fighting Bowser, via summoning monsters and controlling machines. During his first encounter, Bowser Jr. summons a gargantuan dragon Gobblegut in order to fight Mario, but is easily defeated by the Italian plumber. Later, Bowser Jr. attacks Mario with a giant robot (Megahammer) and is easily defeated again. Finally, in a last attempt to extinguish Mario, Bowser Jr. uses a large battle tank. After the third and final battle, Bowser Jr. is defeated for good and is not seen to the end of the game.
Paper Mario: Sticker Star[]
Bowser Jr. plays a somewhat major role in this game. He is first seen in the very first level chasing a Toad who has the rare Scissors sticker and the Toad gives it to Mario. Bowser Jr. can actually smell the Sticker Mario has and challenges him to a fight. Bowser Jr., however, is instantly defeated by Mario who used the very same Sticker on him and flies away. Bowser Jr. is seen again challenging Mario to another fight as he sails back from World 4 to Surfshine Harbor. Bowser Jr. plays a little harder this time keeping Bob-ombs over his head to prevent Mario from Jumping on him. Bowser Jr. is defeated again and flies off promising revenge. Bowser Jr. is seen for the last time in the second to last level interepting Mario from reaching his father with his battleship. Bowser Jr. comes into a battle with a shield which raises his defensive power dramatically. Mario, however, counters this using the Tail sticker and Bowser Jr. is defeated and is never seen again. Bowser Jr. makes a cameo appearance in the parade at the end.