Video
game franchises are like cartoon series. At some point, there is
going to be some superfluous characters you see only once. Characters
who never appear again, even in very continuity-heavy series. In many
video games, this curse of the
appear-once-and-then-gone mostly happens to the bosses. There's just
so many RPG bosses that are seen and fought only once, and then the franchise forgets about them, therefore you might forget about them too!
But
despite that, the fans have a very strong memory. They can
remember even the most unmemorable characters of any game, given that
said game and its franchise have a dedicated fan base. As a result,
no boss is truly “forgotten”; it's just that they appear once in
the series and never again, which doesn't mean that it couldn't have
a lasting impression on the players.
Even
some final bosses suffer from this. They are often seen in a single
game and then vanish from the series. Why? Nobody knows. But they
weren't forgotten by the fans. For a one-time final boss to leave a
lasting impression, there's a few factors: The character's
involvement in the plot; its personality; the fight against it;
its powers; memorable scenes; good boss music; and so on. Remember,
I'm keeping the list to Nintendo series, so only bosses from Mario,
Zelda, Kirby, Metroid, and other Nintendo franchises. You have every right to disagree with one or more of the entries, so if you think I didn't put in a boss you like, well, you can talk about it in the comments! Without further ado, here is my personal Top 12 one-time final Nintendo bosses!
12.
Rudy the Clown (Wario Land 3)
Like Wario, Rudy needs to lose weight. |
And
we already begin with a rather unknown fellow. In Wario Land 3 for
the Game Boy Color, Wario ends up trapped in a land within a music
box and helps the “God” of Music Box Land retrieving its powers
sealed into five music boxes. It also promises to send him back home
once that task is accomplished. At the end, surprise! This “god”
was actually the villain, Rudy the Clown, who attacks using his
fists... and yeah, that's his biggest strength. Despite his ridiculous design, Rudy managed to trick Wario into getting stuff for
him. He hid his true appearance and power well enough, claiming to be
the fat plumber's sole way to leave this land. But clearly, the
battle isn't the more memorable part of him. ...Seriously, the guy's
got trumpets for ears. Oh, and he's giant, guess that gives him a few
more points. (Also, he made an appearance as a boss in Dr. Mario 64,
but a Dr. Mario game with bosses? Seriously, Nintendo?)
11.
Marx Soul (Kirby Super Star Ultra)
"Blehh!" to you too! |
The
Kirby series had a lot of one-time villains. It was difficult to pick
among them as most had a stronger second form and a cool
design or abilities. So I picked Marx to be low on this list, as he
was technically the final boss of a game – and of its remake, and
made only one appearance after that point. What's so special about
it? In the first game, not much. In the remake, Marx is absorbed into
a wish-granting quasi-deity called Galactic Nova, and absorbs it in
turn, becoming an almighty creature, Marx Soul. ...Or, well, almighty
in Kirby's world anyway. It's a formidable opponent and it has a lot
of abilities. At the end of the boss battle, Kirby literally slices
Marx Soul in two and the monster screams in pain. In a game for kids.
Its upgraded form, its powers, how it's defeated, all make him a
memorable one-time villain, though most one-time Kirby villains do
have all these things. See why it was difficult for me to pick one?
10.
Ridley Robot (Metroid: Zero Mission)
Here, the boss's aftermath is even more memorable than the boss itself. Ain't that weird. |
An
incomplete robotic replica of Ridley, raging, really large. Yay for
alliteration. Allegedly created because Ridley wanted a massive,
powerful weapon that looked like him. However, the Ridley Robot is
met unfinished, with an open hole on the chest, and no wings. Be glad
it wasn't complete! The scary part of many of those one-time bosses
is how they often get very little development or backstory. As an
example, the Ridley Robot wasn't explained too well, so some players
thought it to be a revived Ridley from Planet Zebes. Nope! Just a
copy. A faker. Another thing that plays into this boss' fame is the
countdown once you defeat it: You have less time to escape depending
on your progression in the game. At worst, Samus has only three
minutes to escape the mothership! That's the kind of thing you hardly
forget.
9.
Cackletta (Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga)
By the power of the bean! |
The
Mario RPGs have brought us a lot of great villains. Naming them all
would waste some space. However, among them, I believe Cackletta
stands out. As the first villain foiled by Peach before the game
actually starts (in the introduction, in fact), she then appears a few
times to mess with the heroes (something not all RPG final bosses
tend to do), and then is fought a final time... But that's one
memorable battle, trust me! The bros are fighting Cackletta... or
rather, her SOUL, which entered and possessed Bowser in the second
half of the game... so they're fighting her INSIDE BOWSER, on a field that looks like Hell... what's more, Mario and Luigi both have only ONE
Hit Point when that battle starts, and must survive a round of her
attacks before they can THEN start hitting back. Holy crap! If that's
not memorable... Everything about the character is fun, from the
appearance to the actual fights to her involvement in the plot. And a
freaking epic final fight. Oh, by the way, Cackletta was truly
eradicated that time, but no worries, her minion Fawful took a level
in villainy and became later the villain of Mario and Luigi: Bowser's
Inside Story, with a plan that would make his mistress proud.
8.
Onox and Veran (The Leged of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons / Oracle of
Ages)
Counting
them as one because, Hell, they each were the final boss of their
version of this double Zelda game ever. Both count, in their
own way. Onox was the final boss inm Oracle of Seasons while Veran was the last in Oracle of Ages. They ARE technically the last boss of their version if you
couldn't link the two games together. Yeah yeah, I know, there's
Twinrova and Ganon if you link them, but dammit, Onox and Veran still
count thanks to a technicality. The two were a nice change of pace
from Ganondorf, though both had their own take on the “mighty
creature hidden inside” concept: Veran is actually a demonic fairy
that can shapeshift into a beetle, a bee and a spider, while Onox
could turn into a dragon. A freaking dragon! That's so much better
than a giant pig! Take that, Ganon! What makes them unique is that
when you link the games, first you had to defeat one, and then you
find out that the other acted behind the scenes and won for the two
of them, bringing Ganon to life again! How often did that happen in video games? Not very often, am I right?
7.
Majora (The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask)
Oh
yeah, who cannot remember this weird enemy? Majora is just a mask. A
mask that can POSSESS PEOPLE! Oh, and it can fight all by itself too.
But all things considered, everything about this mask makes it a
memorable villain. The setting, Termina, endangered by the falling
moon; the mask's backstory, as it was created as some sort of weapon
by an ancient tribe, and used to torture captives; and like I said,
it can grow “limbs” and attack by itself. And the fact that for
most of the game, you keep encountering a Skull Kid possessed by it.
It might not be as impressive as Ganon, or Vaati, or other major
villains of the Zelda series, but this is one mask you don't want to
put on under any circumstances. There's just something about cursed
artifacts with a will of their own that makes them very scary. Mostly their effect on the wearer. Ice crown, anyone?
I guess it just couldn't keep the masquerade going. |
6.
The Aparoid Queen (Star Fox: Assault)
Can you see her in this sea of greys? |
What's
worse than a villainous scientist ape controlling a giant white face
with red eyes? Why, the queen of an alien species that act like bees! Er... Not only is this creature the leader of a large invading force, the Aparoids, but
she's also able to use countless mind tricks against Fox and friends:
Among others, she literally uses the people she has assimilated and
their voices to mentally torture the heroes. Her massive armada, her tactics, and
of course the way she is destroyed are all memorable. How is the
Aparoid Queen destroyed? Fox sends a self-destruct program into her,
which she first fights off; but the good guys in their Arwings
destroy her outer body, then battle the core, and defeat said core.
Thanks to this, the self-destruct program works again and destroy not
only her, but every Aparoid in existence. Holy crud. This was
decidedly a dangerous villain, and you can be sure it wasn't
forgotten by fans. By the way, she even uses a fake James McCloud to
trick Fox. How the Hell could she do that???
5.
Hades (Kid Icarus: Uprising)
Is that fire on his head? Huh, wouldn't be the first Hades to have that. |
I
always wondered why Medusa was the final boss of the first Kid
Icarus. I thought Hades or, heck, even Cronus would be more fitting
for the role. Well, stop asking the question. She was Hades'
underling. A few hints were dropped in the sequel for the Game Boy,
as the villain Orcos also used the Underworld Army, but Hades really
appears as the main villain of the recent Kid Icarus: Uprising, which
would have never seen the light of day had Pit never gained so much
popularity thanks to Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Aside from being the God
of the Underworld, Hades is also cunning, ruthless and cruel. Oh, and
while he speaks in an educated manner, the guy won't shut up, unlike
Medusa who prefers silence. The fact that he was the mastermind
behind three games yet fought only in the third is already an
achievement. But toss that aside, and you still have a very cool
re-imagining of the Greek deity, both in personality and in looks.
Oh, and he'll be back for a future Kid Icarus game, apparently, so his status as one-time boss is limited for the moment. (Note: I still want to see how they'd picture Cronus.)
4.
Necrodeus (Kirby Mass Attack)
AAAAH! |
I'll
repeat it: In a world called Dream Land, obviously the villains are
runaway nightmares. But I don't think many of those are as impressive
as Necrodeus. The monster is literally a demon's head and hands with
a bit of a cape. In a game for kids, mind you. Just this creature's
appearance is enough to scare some kids. (Then again, 0²'s bleeding
eye did the same.) Also, at the beginning of the game, it splits
Kirby in ten weak versions of himself and leaves only one around at
first. So, not only is he scary, he almost wins from the start! But
the last Kirby manages to gather all the others and they beat
Necrodeus all together. That boss is amazing, a clearly dangerous
monster from its very first appearance and even at the end, when the
battle gets transported in space. One of the scariest monsters met in
Dream Land, a force to acknowledge, Necrodeus is certainly a
nightmare to remember. (That was corny.)
3.
Gorea (Metroid Prime Hunters)
The
Metroid series sure has a thing for scary monsters. Gorea is an
impressive boss, a powerful evil being who crashes on Alinos like a
comet of sorts. It is able to suck out the life energy of the
creatures it meets, leaving them dead – or almost dead in some
cases – and can copy any weapon that attacks it. In its second
form, Gorea can only be defeated with the Omega Cannon. Through the
DS game, it is not seen until the last parts, but its existence is
frequently hinted at through the game. And that's actually kind of
scary: To know something awfully powerful is coming but never
actually getting to know what until you actually go in battle against
it, technically unprepared. Not a lot of games do that. Oh, also,
Gorea is freaking HUGE and absorbs the abilities of Samus' allies
before the final battle. Its backstory, its powers, its size, the
fight against it, this all contributes to its popularity with the
fans.
2.
Dimentio (Super Paper Mario)
Dont be fooled by the smile. This guy is Emperor Joker in Paper Mario form. |
Yeah,
you knew this was coming. “Gosh, there was very little Mario in
this Top 12 so far!” Yeah, I know. Anyway, Dimentio is the “last
boss” of Super Paper Mario, probably the darkest Mario game ever
made. A playful jester who can manipulate dimensions, Dimentio worked
under Count Bleck, whose goal was to destroy all dimensions thanks to
the Chaos Heart. The jester appears a couple times through the game,
showing off some impressive abilities. He even kills the entire party
at some point! (Told you it was dark.) But after Bleck's defeat,
Dimentio double-crosses him, takes the Chaos heart, and merges with
it and Luigi, forming... the most ridiculous final boss in the history of the Mario series. But until that point, Dimentio was an
awesome villain, with less backstory than Bleck, making him more
mysterious and giving him vaguer motivations. He's like the Joker: No
one knows enough on where he came from to understand him, and all he wants to do is spread chaos.
It's really lame that he had to end that way. Still, for being the
most dangerous villain ever encountered by Mario's team, Dimentio
remains a popular one-time boss.
1.
Tabuu (Super Smash Bros. Brawl)
Where did you come from, TRONman? |
...Yeah,
you knew this was coming too. Tabuu is the greatest Nintendo villain.
He's done it all: Manipulating other major Nintendo villains, using
Master Hand as a literal puppet, sent the Smash world into Subspace
piece by piece thanks to the Subspace Bombs, using the particles of
Game&Watches to create evil clones of the characters, forcing
them to fight each other... He also one-hit-kills most of the cast of
SSBB at one point. The only thing that stopped his evil plan? King
Dedede, who was wise enough to create brooches that bring the trophy
characters back to life. Until that point, Tabuu's plan was flawless
and could have meant the end of the Smash universe altogether.
Picture that. We never learn where he came from, his motivations,
what he is nor how we came to have the most dangerous ability in all
of Smash. Add to this that Tabuu looks like a plasma male human with
few distinguishable features, dangerous abilities that are often too
large to avoid or too hard to counter, and you get one mean blue
monster. I'm not even discussing the wings! What else can I say about
Tabuu that hasn't been said before? Due to SSBB's popularity, it's
also one of the bosses on this list seen by the most gamers. After
you see him, you'll never forget him, and since there is little
chance of seeing him again (or so it seems, we can't tell what the
next Smash game will have), Tabuu deserves this #1 spot.
Though,
if you really want to know, I might talk about him again soon...
But
before that, I just remembered! The first installment of VGFlicks is
next week! On every cycle of reviews, I'm going to look at a film
with a plot related to video games. Next Friday: Gamer, a film about
a... gamer. And his character, who's a living being. And a bunch of
people playing a real-life ugly version of Second Life. And... Gah, it's too long to
explain! Tune in next week, that will spare me some troubles. See ya
then!
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