- For fighter info, see Bowser Jr. (Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U) and Bowser Jr. (Super Smash Bros. Ultimate).
Bowser Jr. (クッパJr. Kuppa Junia?) is the son of Bowser and appears as the secondary antagonist in the Mario series. He made his debut in Super Mario Sunshine. He appears as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
Character description[]
Earlier artwork of Bowser Jr. from the Wii era, used for Super Mario Galaxy
Bowser Jr. is Bowser's spoiled son, and he has faced Mario on multiple occasions, usually fighting by himself and assisting Bowser in a final battle. He bears a striking resemblance to his father when he was a child, having black beady eyes, a rounded snout with fewer contours, and hair tied in a small ponytail. Jr. is usually seen fighting in either his Koopa Clown Car, other fighting machines, or calling many of Bowser's minions to fight for him. Jr. hates to lose and is often seen throwing a temper tantrum when Mario or someone else foils his plans. Bowser Jr. is also very naive, as shown in Super Mario Sunshine when Bowser tricked him into kidnapping Princess Peach by saying the latter was his mother.
In his first appearance, Bowser Jr. disguised himself and covered Isle Delfino with graffiti and slime, he did so in order to frame Mario and get him incarcerated, allowing Jr. to capture Peach. Jr. and his father were later defeated by Mario, and Peach was returned, sparking the rivalry between Jr. and Mario. The disguise, referred to as Shadow Mario, is activated by a blue neckerchief with Mario's signature mustache drawn on it (in later games starting with Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour, Bowser Jr.'s neckerchief is white and has a drawing of a ferocious mouth instead). Bowser Jr. became a landmark character after Super Mario Sunshine, appearing as a playable character in multiple spin-off games (his first being Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour), as well as having a recurring role as Bowser's elite soldier in the New Super Mario Bros. games, where he commands the Koopalings. He is fought as a mid boss in the DS game in every tower and in the airships in the Wii game. In several games, he uses a smaller variant of his father's famous Koopa Clown Car, officially named the Junior Clown Car in Mario & Luigi: Dream Team. Most notably, he appears in Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey, a remake of Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, where he takes center stage as the main protagonist of the newly-added Bowser Jr.'s Journey mode.
Later Mario games would explore more facets of Bowser Jr.'s character. In Super Mario Galaxy and subsequent games, Jr. has been shown to pilot large battle machines of various sorts, such as the Junior Clown Car. His mechanical prowess show through in his Super Smash Bros. moveset, which shows him summoning various tools and gadgets from within the Clown Car. Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam explores Jr.'s personality in further detail, showing that, while he may be a spoiled child and a cunning villain, he is ultimately a lonely Koopa who desires friends above anything else. Other games—such as Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle, Paper Mario: The Origami King, and Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury—show that Bowser cares deeply about his son, and in return, Bowser Jr. cares enough about his father's wellbeing that he is willing to team up with Mario when they are in danger.
Bowser Jr. has complicated relationships with the main cast. Despite knowing the Peach is not his real mother, he will still assist Bowser in his attempts to capture and marry her. Peach herself sees Bowser Jr. as a misguided child that needs a proper parent, particularly not Bowser. Though Bowser Jr. is antagonistic for most playable characters, he especially despises Mario for constantly getting in the way. This animosity was strongest in Sunshine where he actively sought to take Mario down. Later installments toned this hatred down, with the two fighting only when their paths cross. Bowser Jr. even occasionally shows a willingness to team up with Mario, but only when he has no other options. When the mission is complete, he goes right back to his antagonizing ways. While Mario will not hesitate to fight out of self-defense and can sometimes be cold towards him, he has no ill will towards Bowser Jr. and is more than willing to help him.
In Super Mario Sunshine, Bowser Jr.'s voice is performed by Dolores Rogers. Caety Sagoian has provided his voice in later games since Mario Strikers Charged.
Abilities[]
Bowser Jr.'s trademark weapon is his Magic Paintbrush, created by Professor E. Gadd. It produces toxic graffiti, which can suck in entire beings and items as seen in Super Mario Sunshine. Bowser Jr. can also control many of Bowser's mechanical creations, and the Koopa Clown Car, which varies from having punching gloves, drills, and a compartment for bombs. Like his father, Bowser Jr. can also breathe fire.
In Super Smash Bros. Brawl[]
Bowser Jr.'s only appearance in Brawl is as a collectible trophy and as two stickers.
Trophy Info[]
Bowser Jr. Trophy
- Bowser Jr.
- Bowser's son, who appears in Super Mario Sunshine calling Princess Peach his mother--he feels so strongly about her that he kidnaps her. Somewhat spoiled by his father, Bowser Jr. comes off as being on the selfish side. His bib is decorated with drawn-on fangs and worn like a mask--it's most likely an effort to appear more menacing.
- (GCN) Super Mario Sunshine
- (DS) New Super Mario Bros.
In Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U[]
As a playable character[]
Bowser Jr. appears as a playable newcomer in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U by a leak of the ESRB review video. He mostly fights in his Junior Clown Car, using a variety of the car's built-in weapons to attack his opponents. He also has a unique property where if opponents hit his body, he takes 1.15x more damage than normal, while hitting the Junior Clown Car reduces the damage taken to 0.88x. His Final Smash is Shadow Mario Paint, which has him briefly transform into his Shadow Mario form and then swipes the screen with the Magic Brush, creating a large X, which hurts all opponents that it touches. His seven palette swaps replaces him with one of the seven Koopalings, with each of them using their own color scheme of the Junior Clown Car and having their own voice clips. Currently, Bowser Jr. is placed 48th out of 55 on the tier list, placing him in the F tier. His Clown Kart Dash special gives him a fantastic approaching option thanks to its speed and usefulness in starting combos. He also comes with some powerful finishers that can potentially KO opponents below 100%. Although he's classed as a heavyweight, his aerial game is respectable thanks to his good air mobility and ability to juggle opponents with his aerials. Despite these strengths, Bowser Jr. is held back by notable flaws, such as a laggy grab, poor ground mobility, and his recovery in Abandon Ship! is predictable and open to gimps. Bowser Jr.'s weaknesses hold him back from leaving much impact on the competitive scene, having below average results in tournament, though he still has a few dedicated players.
Trophies[]
- Bowser Jr.
- Bowser's beloved, spoiled son sports a bandanna with a large mouth drawn on it. Like his father, Bowser Jr. longs to take Mario down. In Smash Bros., he'll fight from inside his heavily armed Junior Clown Car. The Clown Car takes less damage than Bowser Jr., so mind your positioning.
- (GCN) Super Mario Sunshine (08/2002)
- (Wii) New Super Mario Bros. Wii (11/2009)
- Bowser Jr. (Alt.)
- The Clown Kart Dash special move turns the Junior Clown Car into a kart. If you change direction while driving it, it'll spin and do more damage. When you use his up special, Bowser Jr. leaps from his Junior Clown Car, dropping it on the foes below.
- (GCN) Super Mario Sunshine (08/2002)
- (Wii) New Super Mario Bros. Wii (11/2009)
Victory Poses[]
- Bowser Jr. hops out of his Junior Clown Car, hops twice, and turns around abruptly.
- Bowser Jr. speeds up in his Junior Clown Car, transformed into a go-kart, turns around, and pulls out a hammer. In the Koopalings' case, they pull out their wand (only in Ultimate.)
- Bowser Jr. hops out of the Clown Car and pats it.
In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate[]
As a playable character[]
Bowser Jr. returns as a playable fighter in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Like in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, Bowser Jr. is an unlockable character and has the Koopalings as swaps again.
External Links[]
Trivia[]
- Bowser Jr. is the only character to not be able to change their color. His palette swaps are actually the Koopalings. Luminary, the Dragon Quest Hero from the Dragon Quest franchise, does not count, since he appears in his fifth color as well.
- Bowser Jr. is also the first character to have an opposite gender alternate costume that is an entirely different character. The second is Pokémon Trainer in Ultimate.
- Bowser Jr. is also the first character to have an opposite gender alternate costume but not have an equal number of male and female alternate costumes. The second is Pikachu in Ultimate.
- Bowser Jr. is the only character to not use an alternate costume for his Alt. Trophies, instead using his default costume.
- The Koopalings have their own separate trophies, but they do not have Alt. Trophies.
- Bowser Jr. is the heaviest character introduced in 3DS/Wii U despite not being a super heavyweight fighter.
- Bowser Jr. and Rosalina are the only playable Mario characters in the Super Smash Bros. series to have debuted in the 21st century.
- Unlike his father, Petey Piranha, Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong and King K. Rool, Bowser Jr. (along with the Koopalings) retains his voice actor from the Mario series. He shares this trait with Yoshi, who is voiced by Kazumi Totaka.
- He's also one of the only playable Mario characters, alongside the Koopalings and Daisy to recycle voice clips from outside sources.
- Bowser Jr. is one of the few playable Mario characters to have appeared in the Super Smash Bros. series in a non-playable capacity prior to his playable debut, as he had a trophy and two stickers in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. This distinction is shared with Ludwig von Koopa of the Koopalings (who appears as a playable model swap character via Bowser Jr.'s alternate costumes) and would later be shared with Daisy and Piranha Plant.
- Bowser Jr. is the only 3DS/Wii U newcomer to be unlockable in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and a starter character in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, as Ness, Jigglypuff and Ganondorf were veterans.
