Midbus: Difference between revisions

From the Super Mario Wiki, the Mario encyclopedia
Jump to navigationJump to search
mNo edit summary
 
(412 intermediate revisions by more than 100 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{character-infobox
{{character infobox
|image=[[image:MetabossML3.jpg|250px]]<br>'''Midbus''', as seen in ''[[Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story]]''.
|image=[[File:Midbus Artwork - Mario and Luigi BiS.png|250px]]<br>Artwork from ''Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story''
|full_name=Midbus
|species=Pig/pangolin
|first_appearance=''[[Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story]]'' (2009)
|first_appearance=''[[Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story]]'' ([[List of games by date#2009|2009]])
|species=[[Pig]]
|latest_appearance=''[[Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey]]'' ([[List of games by date#2018|2018]])
|affiliation = [[Fawful]]
}}
}}
{{quote|What?! Nobody pressed dance! You are broken!|Midbus|Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story}}
{{quote|You listen. [[Princess Peach|Peach]], gone. [[Fawful|Lord Fawful]], new ruler. Now, no need of [[Bowser|you]]. Lord Fawful says sleep. NOW YOU SLEEP!|Midbus|Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story}}
'''Midbus''' is the secondary antagonist in ''[[Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story]]'' and its [[Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey|remake]]. He is a brawny, unintelligent, pig-like creature that acts as [[Fawful]]'s chief minion. Midbus's name is a pun on the phrase "mid boss". Midbus fights [[Bowser]] three times during the course of the game (the third time as [[Blizzard Midbus]], his powered-up form); the final fight is the only one where [[Mario]] and [[Luigi]] assist in the battle.
==Appearance==
Midbus is a pink creature resembling a boar with yellow {{wp|pangolin}}-esque armor, a snout-like tattoo on each shoulder, a light-pink belly, and black horns and spines. Midbus is similar to Bowser in build and temperament, making him a foil as well as a rival to the Koopa King; his Blizzard Midbus form is an elemental contrast to Bowser's fiery attacks, and the snout-shaped emblem on his shoulders even somewhat resembles the Koopa King's own emblem. Like Fawful, Midbus speaks {{wp|Engrish}}, but his speech pattern is more broken than that of his boss's, as he uses short and simple phrases and sentences; he also gives unnecessarily long names to the various weapons he uses (for example, he refers to [[Junker]] as "Super Ultra Great Mega Trashy Monster Junker Bot"). According to [[Nate Bihldorff]], his speech is meant to evoke a poorly dubbed kung-fu movie.<ref>Chester, Nick (September 15, 2009). [https://www.destructoid.com/localization-mario-luigi-bowsers-inside-story/ Localization Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story]. ''Destructoid''. Retrieved February 16, 2023.</ref>


'''Midbus''' is a brawny, unintelligent, anthropomorphic pig in ''[[Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story]]''. In lieu of working to conquer his own kingdom, he is a minion of [[Fawful]], who robotized and guarded [[Bowser's Castle]], as well as fighting [[Bowser]] three times. Akin to his master's tendency to speak in Engrish, Midbus speaks in broken sentences that make little sense, and give unnecessarily long names to various weapons that he uses. Given his physical similarities to Bowser, he may have been created as a foil to the Koopa king.
==History==
===''Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story'' / ''Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey''===
[[File:MLBiS - Midbus Screenshot1.png|frame|right|Midbus, during his first encounter with [[Bowser]].]]
After Bowser inhales [[Princess Peach]], [[Starlow]], the Mario Bros., and everyone else present in [[Peach's Castle]]'s [[Conference Hall]], he falls unconscious. Fawful calls Midbus over, who responds from off-screen. At a later point in time, when Bowser finally meets Fawful in [[Cavi Cape]], Fawful details his plan to take over the Mushroom Kingdom (including taking over [[Bowser's Castle|his castle]]) before summoning Midbus. The minion's nonsensical speech enrages Bowser, and the two fight; during the battle, Fawful unintentionally teaches Bowser how to use his [[Action Command]]s while trying to give Midbus advice. Due to the effects of the [[Vacuum Shroom]], Bowser ends up feeling weakened, and Midbus tells him to work on his skills before the evil duo leaves. The pair then complete the takeover of Bowser's Castle, and Fawful puts him in charge of Bowser's Castle, now his secondary base, along with Bowser's brainwashed and converted [[Bowser's Minions|minions]].
 
Later in [[Dimble Wood]], Bowser happens upon the trio of [[Private Goomp]], [[Corporal Paraplonk]] and [[Sergeant Guy]], who explain that Midbus and Fawful launched a massive attack on his castle. Bowser then obtains a [[Bomber Bill|Banzai Bill]] from [[Wiggler]] for the [[Banzai Bill Cannon|cannon]] that the trio had salvaged, and fires it directly at the castle. A pair of Goombas alert Midbus to the oncoming projectile, and he orders them to "do the thing", propelling the castle into the air and towards Dimble Wood, where he lands the castle on top of Bowser. The Mario Bros. enter the [[Rump Command]] and provide Bowser with a shot of adrenaline that turns him [[Super Bowser|giant]], surprising Midbus and starting the game's first Giant Bowser fight. Fawful's chief minion deploys several squadrons of troops during the battle itself.
 
After being defeated, he accuses Bowser of cheating only to be blasted with fiery breath, and demands that Bowser return to normal size before retreating and flying the castle away. Later on, the Koopa King travels through [[Bowser Path]] and eventually nears his badly-damaged flying castle. Midbus taunts Bowser and mistakenly calls for a [[Koopa Troopa]] and a [[Dry Bones]] to come before launching an enormous iron ball at him, who is able to toss it back at him with the assistance of [[Mario]] and [[Luigi]] in the game's fourth [[Arm Center]] segment, which damages it even further and forces Midbus to finally land the castle. Inside the castle - now [[Fawful Theater|a gigantic theater]] in which Fawful is preparing a grand show of some kind - Bowser enters the main auditorium and complains that there are no seats open. This allows Fawful to set Bowser up with a "VIP treatment" that soon launches him onto the stage as the show's "special guest", with Midbus being slated to fight the Koopa King in a caged match; the remake does not include the cage in this scene. Bowser decides to take him on and give the audience a "REAL show".
 
Upon defeating Midbus, two Goombas pull the dazed minion off stage as Bowser is rewarded with a banquet, though he is forcibly overfed and ends up stuck in the floor. Shortly after, Midbus and Fawful return to the stuck Bowser, where they are seen on the floor underneath him in the Bob-omb Storage Depot. After Fawful uses a ray gun to extract Princess Peach from Bowser, Midbus then brings out a treadmill and sets it under Bowser before walking off, with Fawful trailing behind and asking him to help carry Princess Peach (to no avail). Bowser finally falls through, landing on the treadmill and setting off a chain of events that ends with him being blown far away into an [[Tunnel|underground tunnel]].
 
Much later in the game, the Mario Bros. and Starlow are in a junkyard within Princess Peach's Castle, which Fawful had taken over. As Starlow comments that there's nothing but trash, Midbus appears on a flying platform and declares they will go no further. Claiming that the Dark Star will eventually awaken, he pulls out a remote and assembles a [[Junker|trash robot]] to attack the Mario Bros.; unfortunately, Junker's unresponsiveness frustrates him into breaking the remote, causing it to go haywire before actually attacking them. He then leaves the robot to its task and flies away, though the Mario Bros. defeat it and cause it to go on a rampage afterward, destroying itself in the process.
 
Bowser, who had been trapped in a safe a long while after his last encounter with Midbus and freed by Junker's post-defeat rampage, eventually catches up with Midbus and Fawful in Peach's Castle; he finds the pair transferring Princess Peach's power into the Dark Star to awaken it, and Midbus alerts Fawful to Bowser's arrival and demands to take him on for a third time. Fawful contemplates assisting Midbus in the battle, but notes that he is prideful, and instead elects to use his ray gun to transform him into Blizzard Midbus. The new Midbus then faces off against Bowser, boasting that he will end his long journey, but is defeated once more and frozen up to his neck in a block of ice while constantly exhaling cold breath. Bowser then uses the frosty air to relieve chest pain within [[Bowser's body|his body]] from the awakened Dark Star entering it and assimilating his DNA; the Mario Bros. must use the cold air to traverse the [[Airway (Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story)|Airway]] and hunt it down. Midbus remains frozen to the spot for the rest of the game, and it is unknown what happens to him after Fawful and the Dark Star are defeated for good.
 
Midbus also appears in the game's remake, ''Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey'', serving the same role as he did in the original. He also has a minor role alongside Fawful in ''Bowser Jr.'s Journey''. At one point, he is insultingly referred to as slow by [[Dieter]] of the [[Best Fitness Friends]], much to his chagrin. A ''[[Nintendo DREAM]]'' interview reveals that the Best Fitness Friends are the same species as Midbus.<ref>https://nintendoeverything.com/mario-luigi-bowsers-inside-story-dev-on-how-it-approached-the-remake-bowser-jr-s-journey-mode-updating-music-more</ref>


==History==
==Battle==
===''Mario & Luigi'' series===
:''For details on the third fight against Midbus, see [[Blizzard Midbus#Battle|the appropriate section on that form's article]].
====''Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story''====
===Cavi Cape===
[[Image:Metaboss1nf3.gif|thumb|right|Midbus in his battle stance.]]
Bowser's first fight against Midbus acts as a tutorial boss for the Koopa King, where the only move he performs is curling into a ball and rolling towards Bowser. At the beginning, Fawful warns Midbus about Bowser's [[punch]], going into detail in a way that displays how the move's Action Command works. On his turn, Bowser can wind up his punch and deal more damage by pressing {{button|ds|X}} as late as possible, while avoiding waiting too long and losing his balance (with Fawful's warnings showing the proper timing). The same is done for Bowser's [[counterattack]] punch (though he can use this prior to the tutorial if Midbus goes first). After Midbus takes enough damage, the fight ends when he uses a [[Ground Pound]]-like attack that Bowser cannot counter since he has not learned [[shell defense]] yet; while this does not KO him, the Vacuum Shroom's effects begin to weaken Bowser, leaving him unable to continue. Bowser's HP will also go back to the maximum of 75.
When Bowser meets Fawful, he sends Midbus to battle him. During the battle, Fawful unintentionally teaches Bowser how to use his action commands on Midbus. Due to the effects of the [[Vacuum Mushroom]], Bowser ended up getting weakened, and Midbus and Fawful abandon him.


Later in the game, Fawful puts him in charge of Bowser's Castle, his now secondary base. When Bowser approaches the castle, Midbus makes it animate to attack him. In a scene of delicious irony, he lands the castle on top of Bowser. Bowser then becomes giant thanks to [[Mario]] and [[Luigi]]. Midbus fights Giant Bowser within his own castle. After being defeated, he retreats with the castle into a new area.  
===Bowser's Castle===
During the second battle, Midbus uses a wider variety of attacks; in the remake, he gains the [[Fury]] status after losing half his HP like most bosses, increasing the damage he deals. The Ground Pound-style move seen in the first battle returns: Midbus rolls up and belly flop several times before rolling directly above Bowser, who can now counter by ducking so that Midbus lands on his spiky shell and takes damage. Midbus may also land in front of him, creating a shockwave that can [[Dizzy|confuse]] Bowser or [[Trip|flip him over]]; Bowser must counter by punching Midbus just before he lands.


When Bowser reaches the castle, he realizes it's been completely changed by Fawful. Bowser finds out that he made a piece of Bowser's castle into a gigantic auditorium with a big stage at the end of it. Fawful is seen hosting some kind of show or act. When Bowser is about to fight Fawful, he sends Midbus to battle him again in a cage match. In this battle, Midbus attacks in various ways. He can attack by trying to body slam Bowser or tackling into him. He can also punch and do other various attacks. When he attacks Bowser perfectly, food and coins will be thrown to him. Midbus can then eat the food to recover HP. Bowser can do the same thing by doing a good move on Midbus, though he will only gain coins. After Bowser finally defeats Midbus, he is rewarded with a banquet feast. He gets overstuffed though and gets stuck in the floor.
Midbus can run off-screen to grab a wrecking ball and return while swinging it rapidly. As Midbus approaches Bowser, he must duck and hold his position for a few seconds while Midbus swings the ball over him at a higher speed. If Bowser is hit or successfully dodges, Midbus continues spinning back, with the wrecking ball raised up high or angled low, before throwing it at Bowser. If the ball is up high, Bowser must duck the attack, and if angled low, Bowser must punch it away as it bounces towards him; being hit by the wrecking ball toss can render Bowser dizzy. In the remake, Midbus takes a couple of swings to pick up speed, usually meaning that Bowser must manually duck each one before holding his position for the longer swing.


Later in the game, Fawful and Midbus see Bowser stuck. Midbus brings out a treadmill, which Bowser falls onto and uses to make himself normal-sized again.
Midbus has a third attack where he takes a deep breath, puffing himself up, and walks forward before storing energy for a massive uppercut, signified by him flashing. Bowser must rapidly punch Midbus's stomach to cancel the attack before he winds up and gets the punch off; if he fails to do so and the attack lands, it sends him flying upward, with Bowser taking heavy damage and possibly becoming dizzy or flipped over upon landing. Successfully countering causes Midbus to grab his belly in pain, and Bowser can land another counter punch as he stumbles forward briefly before returning to his position; in the remake, a successful counter now damages Midbus.


In [[Princess Peach's Castle]], Midbus makes a [[Junker|trash monster]] attack the Mario Bros. so they can't pass to rescue Bowser who is knocked out. After the defeat, he goes into another area of Princess Peach's Castle.
The [[audience]] will interact with both Midbus and Bowser during the fight: if Midbus lands any of his attacks on Bowser, they throw him [[coin]]s (which are useless to him) and food, while if Bowser performs an "Excellent" Action Command on Midbus with any move (unless it KOs him), he will only receive six coins.<!--This might be a case of "you only see six thrown but the actual bonus is 10 per Excellent". Can someone confirm this, please?--> The food remains on the stage, and Midbus eats it during his turn, while Bowser can punch the food off stage or [[Vacuum Block|inhale]] it to eat for himself, which will anger Midbus; [[donut]]s heal 10 HP, the [[cake]]s heal 20 HP, and the [[meat]] heals 50 HP and [[POW-Up|raises]] [[power]] for a few turns.
* HP: 950


==Blizzard Midbus==
==Statistics==
[[Image:Blizzard_metaboss.PNG|frame|left|Blizzard Midbus]]
===''Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story''===
When Bowser meets with Midbus again, Fawful powers up Midbus, changing him into '''Blizzard Midbus'''.  In this form, Midbus is completely blue, with a brown, furry back, wearing a crown, and is a lot stronger than before.  Bowser has to battle Midbus in this form, which is difficult since Midbus can now use ice attacks, thanks to the power-up. He can jump onto a gigantic snowball and try to roll over Bowser with it. There is a Bob-Omb stuck in it.  Bowser has to punch the Bob-Omb to make the snowball explode and make Midbus lose HP. After Midbus' HP is halved, he sometimes hides the Bob-Omb so the [[player]] will have to remember where it is. Midbus can also send [[Snawful]]s out of his crown to attack Bowser. They can also throw little snowballs at Midbus to make him recover HP. Bowser can inhale them so they don't have Midbus recover HP.  Midbus also attacks by using snowballs. If he looks at the snowball, he won't throw it at Bowser, but if he looks at Bowser before throwing it, it will go towards him. Then, he will attempt to punch him. It can be countered, as usual. Once again, he attacks by body slamming Bowser. Bowser's Fire Breath can cause a lot of damage to Midbus.  After Midbus is defeated once again, he gets frozen in a gigantic block of ice. He then begins pumping out an infinite stream of frosty gas from his snout. Bowser needs to use the gas to help the Mario Brothers progress inside [[Bowser's body|his body]].
{{:Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story bestiary|transcludesection=Midbus (1)|align=horizontal|image=[[File:Metaboss1nf3.gif]]}}
* HP: 2041-2241
{{:Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story bestiary|transcludesection=Midbus (2)|align=horizontal|image=[[File:Metaboss1nf3.gif]]}}
{{:Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story bestiary|transcludesection=Cake|align=horizontal}}
{{:Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story bestiary|transcludesection=Donut|align=horizontal}}
{{:Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story bestiary|transcludesection=Meat|align=horizontal}}
{{:Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story bestiary|transcludesection=Blizzard Midbus|align=horizontal|image=[[File:BlizzarddMidbus.gif]]}}
===''Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey''===
{{:Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey bestiary|transcludesection=Midbus (1)|align=horizontal|image=[[File:Midbus MLBISBJJ.gif]]}}
{{:Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey bestiary|transcludesection=Midbus (2)|align=horizontal|image=[[File:Midbus MLBISBJJ.gif]]}}
{{:Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey bestiary|transcludesection=Cake |align=horizontal}}
{{:Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey bestiary|transcludesection=Donut |align=horizontal}}
{{:Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey bestiary|transcludesection=Meat |align=horizontal}}
{{:Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey bestiary|transcludesection=Blizzard Midbus|align=horizontal|image=[[File:Blizzard_Midbus_MLBISBJJ.gif]]}}


==Quotes==
==Quotes==
*''Main article'': [[List_of_Quotes_in_Mario_&_Luigi:_Bowser's_Inside_Story#Midbus|List of Quotes in Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story - Midbus]]
{{main|List of Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story quotes#Midbus}}
*"''Sense is for the weak!''"
*"''You listen. [[Princess Peach|Peach]], gone. [[Fawful|Lord Fawful]], new ruler. Now, no need of [[Bowser|you]]. Lord Fawful says sleep. NOW YOU SLEEP!''"
*"''MUH MUH! The clock strikes payback hour. Do plan two. To your posts!''"
*"''Bowser! Next time goes a different way than this way went.''"
*"''Hmph. I scoff. I scoff at you. You bluff. It is time. The special weapon of Lord Fawful. I will release it. SUPER ULTRA WONDER ULTIMATE RUTHLESS GREAT IRON BALL! HYAH!''"
*"''You amuse me. I have fought Bowser. [[Starlow|You]] are much smaller.''"
*"''[[Junker|He]] is of trash. And you are. You, trash. I call you trash. Go be trashy in this trash hole with this trash robot forever!''"
*"''No one pressed "dance"! [[Junker|You]] are broken!''"
*"''Now it is time! Now we will fight! Then you will lose! And you will cry!''"
*"''Now you face hot wrath. The hot wrath of my freezing blizzard attack! HERE [[Bowser|YOUR]] LONG JOURNEY ENDS!''" (Blizzard Midbus before battling Bowser for the final time)
*"''Though I fall here... None beat Lord Fawful... Now he will FINISH YOU!''" (Midbus' last words before freezing over after Bowser defeats him)
 
==Names in other languages==
{{foreign names
|Jap=メタボス
|JapR=Metabosu
|JapM=Portmanteau of「メタボ」(''metabo'', Japanese slang for [[wikipedia:metabolic syndrome|metabolic syndrome]]) and "boss"
|SpaA=Cervil
|SpaAM=Portmanteau of "cerdo" (pig) and "vil" (vile); also a pun on "servil" (subservient)
|SpaE=Metajefe
|SpaEM=From the Japanese Name
|FreA=Lèchebott
|FreAM=Pun on "lèche-bottes" (bootlicker)
|FreE=Métaboss
|FreEM=Japanese name
|Ita=Grugnosauro
|ItaM=Portmanteau of "grugno" (snout) and "dinosauro" (dinosaur)
|Ger=Metaboss
|GerM=From the Japanese name
|Rus=Бронехряк
|RusR=Bronekhryak
|RusM=Portmanteau of "броненосец" (''bronenosets'', armadillo) and "хряк" (''khryak'', boar)
|Kor=메타보스
|KorR=Metaboseu
|KorM=From the Japanese name
}}


==Trivia==
==Trivia==
*Even though it may just be a coincidence, the sign on Midbus's arm looks similar to the logo seen on Pigmask machinery in ''[[Wikipedia:Mother 3|Mother 3]]''.
[[File:Midbus pigs minecraft 2.jpg|thumb|125px|Pigs patterned after Midbus in ''Minecraft: Wii U Edition''.]]
*Midbus' name is possibly a pun off of the words "mid boss".
*In ''[[Minecraft|Minecraft: Wii U Edition]]'', there is a Super Mario Mash-up that replace skins in the game to characters/enemies from the ''[[Super Mario (franchise)|Super Mario]]'' franchise. Unused screenshots in the files reveal Midbus skins were originally going to replace the Pig skins, but this was removed from the final version of the game.
*Midbus can be seen as a contrast to his boss Fawful, although he is far less intelligent, he is far more muscular than him.
*Midbus is the only RPG secondary antagonist who didn't battle Mario. He is seen as a "rival" for Bowser.


==Names in Other Languages==
==References==
{{foreignname
<references/>
|Jap=メタボス<br>''Metabosu''
 
|JapM=Metaboss; May be derived from "[[the Blorbs|metakoro]]" and "boss"
{{M&LBIS}}
|Spa=Cervil ''(American)''<br>Metajefe ''(European)''
[[Category:Pigs]]
|SpaM=Pun of "Cerdo" (Pig) and "Vil" (Vile). ''<br>From "Metaboss" ("jefe" means "boss").
[[Category:Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story bosses]]
|Fra=Métaboss (blizzard) ''(European)''
[[Category:Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story characters]]
|FraM=Japanese name
[[Category:Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey characters]]
}}
[[Category:Super Mario-kun characters]]
<br clear=all>
[[de:Metaboss]]
{{RPG Villains}}
[[it:Grugnosauro]]
[[Category:Bosses]]
[[Category:Characters]]
[[Category:Enemies]]
[[Category:RPG Bosses]]
[[Category:RPG Characters]]
[[Category:Villains]]
[[Category:Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story]]
[[Category:Ice Creatures]]
[[Category:Mario & Luigi Series Characters]]
[[Category:Mario & Luigi Series Bosses]]
[[Category:Mario & Luigi Series Enemies]]

Latest revision as of 08:42, November 28, 2024

Midbus
Midbus artwork from Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story
Artwork from Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story
Species Pig/pangolin
First appearance Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story (2009)
Latest appearance Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey (2018)
“You listen. Peach, gone. Lord Fawful, new ruler. Now, no need of you. Lord Fawful says sleep. NOW YOU SLEEP!”
Midbus, Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story

Midbus is the secondary antagonist in Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story and its remake. He is a brawny, unintelligent, pig-like creature that acts as Fawful's chief minion. Midbus's name is a pun on the phrase "mid boss". Midbus fights Bowser three times during the course of the game (the third time as Blizzard Midbus, his powered-up form); the final fight is the only one where Mario and Luigi assist in the battle.

Appearance[edit]

Midbus is a pink creature resembling a boar with yellow pangolin-esque armor, a snout-like tattoo on each shoulder, a light-pink belly, and black horns and spines. Midbus is similar to Bowser in build and temperament, making him a foil as well as a rival to the Koopa King; his Blizzard Midbus form is an elemental contrast to Bowser's fiery attacks, and the snout-shaped emblem on his shoulders even somewhat resembles the Koopa King's own emblem. Like Fawful, Midbus speaks Engrish, but his speech pattern is more broken than that of his boss's, as he uses short and simple phrases and sentences; he also gives unnecessarily long names to the various weapons he uses (for example, he refers to Junker as "Super Ultra Great Mega Trashy Monster Junker Bot"). According to Nate Bihldorff, his speech is meant to evoke a poorly dubbed kung-fu movie.[1]

History[edit]

Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story / Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey[edit]

Screenshot of Bowser encountering Midbus for the first time, from Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story.
Midbus, during his first encounter with Bowser.

After Bowser inhales Princess Peach, Starlow, the Mario Bros., and everyone else present in Peach's Castle's Conference Hall, he falls unconscious. Fawful calls Midbus over, who responds from off-screen. At a later point in time, when Bowser finally meets Fawful in Cavi Cape, Fawful details his plan to take over the Mushroom Kingdom (including taking over his castle) before summoning Midbus. The minion's nonsensical speech enrages Bowser, and the two fight; during the battle, Fawful unintentionally teaches Bowser how to use his Action Commands while trying to give Midbus advice. Due to the effects of the Vacuum Shroom, Bowser ends up feeling weakened, and Midbus tells him to work on his skills before the evil duo leaves. The pair then complete the takeover of Bowser's Castle, and Fawful puts him in charge of Bowser's Castle, now his secondary base, along with Bowser's brainwashed and converted minions.

Later in Dimble Wood, Bowser happens upon the trio of Private Goomp, Corporal Paraplonk and Sergeant Guy, who explain that Midbus and Fawful launched a massive attack on his castle. Bowser then obtains a Banzai Bill from Wiggler for the cannon that the trio had salvaged, and fires it directly at the castle. A pair of Goombas alert Midbus to the oncoming projectile, and he orders them to "do the thing", propelling the castle into the air and towards Dimble Wood, where he lands the castle on top of Bowser. The Mario Bros. enter the Rump Command and provide Bowser with a shot of adrenaline that turns him giant, surprising Midbus and starting the game's first Giant Bowser fight. Fawful's chief minion deploys several squadrons of troops during the battle itself.

After being defeated, he accuses Bowser of cheating only to be blasted with fiery breath, and demands that Bowser return to normal size before retreating and flying the castle away. Later on, the Koopa King travels through Bowser Path and eventually nears his badly-damaged flying castle. Midbus taunts Bowser and mistakenly calls for a Koopa Troopa and a Dry Bones to come before launching an enormous iron ball at him, who is able to toss it back at him with the assistance of Mario and Luigi in the game's fourth Arm Center segment, which damages it even further and forces Midbus to finally land the castle. Inside the castle - now a gigantic theater in which Fawful is preparing a grand show of some kind - Bowser enters the main auditorium and complains that there are no seats open. This allows Fawful to set Bowser up with a "VIP treatment" that soon launches him onto the stage as the show's "special guest", with Midbus being slated to fight the Koopa King in a caged match; the remake does not include the cage in this scene. Bowser decides to take him on and give the audience a "REAL show".

Upon defeating Midbus, two Goombas pull the dazed minion off stage as Bowser is rewarded with a banquet, though he is forcibly overfed and ends up stuck in the floor. Shortly after, Midbus and Fawful return to the stuck Bowser, where they are seen on the floor underneath him in the Bob-omb Storage Depot. After Fawful uses a ray gun to extract Princess Peach from Bowser, Midbus then brings out a treadmill and sets it under Bowser before walking off, with Fawful trailing behind and asking him to help carry Princess Peach (to no avail). Bowser finally falls through, landing on the treadmill and setting off a chain of events that ends with him being blown far away into an underground tunnel.

Much later in the game, the Mario Bros. and Starlow are in a junkyard within Princess Peach's Castle, which Fawful had taken over. As Starlow comments that there's nothing but trash, Midbus appears on a flying platform and declares they will go no further. Claiming that the Dark Star will eventually awaken, he pulls out a remote and assembles a trash robot to attack the Mario Bros.; unfortunately, Junker's unresponsiveness frustrates him into breaking the remote, causing it to go haywire before actually attacking them. He then leaves the robot to its task and flies away, though the Mario Bros. defeat it and cause it to go on a rampage afterward, destroying itself in the process.

Bowser, who had been trapped in a safe a long while after his last encounter with Midbus and freed by Junker's post-defeat rampage, eventually catches up with Midbus and Fawful in Peach's Castle; he finds the pair transferring Princess Peach's power into the Dark Star to awaken it, and Midbus alerts Fawful to Bowser's arrival and demands to take him on for a third time. Fawful contemplates assisting Midbus in the battle, but notes that he is prideful, and instead elects to use his ray gun to transform him into Blizzard Midbus. The new Midbus then faces off against Bowser, boasting that he will end his long journey, but is defeated once more and frozen up to his neck in a block of ice while constantly exhaling cold breath. Bowser then uses the frosty air to relieve chest pain within his body from the awakened Dark Star entering it and assimilating his DNA; the Mario Bros. must use the cold air to traverse the Airway and hunt it down. Midbus remains frozen to the spot for the rest of the game, and it is unknown what happens to him after Fawful and the Dark Star are defeated for good.

Midbus also appears in the game's remake, Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey, serving the same role as he did in the original. He also has a minor role alongside Fawful in Bowser Jr.'s Journey. At one point, he is insultingly referred to as slow by Dieter of the Best Fitness Friends, much to his chagrin. A Nintendo DREAM interview reveals that the Best Fitness Friends are the same species as Midbus.[2]

Battle[edit]

For details on the third fight against Midbus, see the appropriate section on that form's article.

Cavi Cape[edit]

Bowser's first fight against Midbus acts as a tutorial boss for the Koopa King, where the only move he performs is curling into a ball and rolling towards Bowser. At the beginning, Fawful warns Midbus about Bowser's punch, going into detail in a way that displays how the move's Action Command works. On his turn, Bowser can wind up his punch and deal more damage by pressing X Button as late as possible, while avoiding waiting too long and losing his balance (with Fawful's warnings showing the proper timing). The same is done for Bowser's counterattack punch (though he can use this prior to the tutorial if Midbus goes first). After Midbus takes enough damage, the fight ends when he uses a Ground Pound-like attack that Bowser cannot counter since he has not learned shell defense yet; while this does not KO him, the Vacuum Shroom's effects begin to weaken Bowser, leaving him unable to continue. Bowser's HP will also go back to the maximum of 75.

Bowser's Castle[edit]

During the second battle, Midbus uses a wider variety of attacks; in the remake, he gains the Fury status after losing half his HP like most bosses, increasing the damage he deals. The Ground Pound-style move seen in the first battle returns: Midbus rolls up and belly flop several times before rolling directly above Bowser, who can now counter by ducking so that Midbus lands on his spiky shell and takes damage. Midbus may also land in front of him, creating a shockwave that can confuse Bowser or flip him over; Bowser must counter by punching Midbus just before he lands.

Midbus can run off-screen to grab a wrecking ball and return while swinging it rapidly. As Midbus approaches Bowser, he must duck and hold his position for a few seconds while Midbus swings the ball over him at a higher speed. If Bowser is hit or successfully dodges, Midbus continues spinning back, with the wrecking ball raised up high or angled low, before throwing it at Bowser. If the ball is up high, Bowser must duck the attack, and if angled low, Bowser must punch it away as it bounces towards him; being hit by the wrecking ball toss can render Bowser dizzy. In the remake, Midbus takes a couple of swings to pick up speed, usually meaning that Bowser must manually duck each one before holding his position for the longer swing.

Midbus has a third attack where he takes a deep breath, puffing himself up, and walks forward before storing energy for a massive uppercut, signified by him flashing. Bowser must rapidly punch Midbus's stomach to cancel the attack before he winds up and gets the punch off; if he fails to do so and the attack lands, it sends him flying upward, with Bowser taking heavy damage and possibly becoming dizzy or flipped over upon landing. Successfully countering causes Midbus to grab his belly in pain, and Bowser can land another counter punch as he stumbles forward briefly before returning to his position; in the remake, a successful counter now damages Midbus.

The audience will interact with both Midbus and Bowser during the fight: if Midbus lands any of his attacks on Bowser, they throw him coins (which are useless to him) and food, while if Bowser performs an "Excellent" Action Command on Midbus with any move (unless it KOs him), he will only receive six coins. The food remains on the stage, and Midbus eats it during his turn, while Bowser can punch the food off stage or inhale it to eat for himself, which will anger Midbus; donuts heal 10 HP, the cakes heal 20 HP, and the meat heals 50 HP and raises power for a few turns.

Statistics[edit]

Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story[edit]

Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story enemy
Midbus (1)
An idle animation of Midbus from Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story HP 95 (143) POW 30 (75) DEF 34 (51) SPEED 14 (21)
Coins 0 (0) Level 9 Fire Normal Burn? Immune
Role Training Battled by Bowser Location(s) Cavi Cape Dizzy? Immune
Stat down? Normal KO? Immune Experience 75 Item drop
Notice: The second set of numbers next to the enemy's HP, POW, DEF, SPEED and Coins are stat increases from the Challenge Medal accessory; a 50% increase for HP, DEF, SPEED and Coins earned, and a 150% increase for POW.
Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story enemy
Midbus (2)
An idle animation of Midbus from Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story HP 950 (1,425) POW 110 (275) DEF 76 (114) SPEED 21 (32)
Coins 300 (450) Level 21 Fire Normal Burn? Immune
Role Boss Battled by Bowser Location(s) Bowser's Castle Dizzy? Immune
Stat down? Normal KO? Immune Experience 550 Item drop TNT Drumstick - 100.0%
Notice: The second set of numbers next to the enemy's HP, POW, DEF, SPEED and Coins are stat increases from the Challenge Medal accessory; a 50% increase for HP, DEF, SPEED and Coins earned, and a 150% increase for POW.
Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story enemy
Cake
The Cake the audience throws to Midbus when Bowser takes damage from him. HP 9,999 (9,999) POW 999 (999) DEF 999 (999) SPEED 999 (999)
Coins 0 (0) Level 21 Fire Normal Burn? Immune
Role Support Battled by Bowser Location(s) Bowser's Castle Dizzy? Immune
Stat down? Normal KO? Immune Experience 0 Item drop
Notice: The second set of numbers next to the enemy's HP, POW, DEF, SPEED and Coins are stat increases from the Challenge Medal accessory; a 50% increase for HP, DEF, SPEED and Coins earned, and a 150% increase for POW.
Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story enemy
Donut
The donut the audience throws to Midbus when Bowser takes damage from him. HP 9,999 (9,999) POW 999 (999) DEF 999 (999) SPEED 999 (999)
Coins 0 (0) Level 21 Fire Normal Burn? Immune
Role Support Battled by Bowser Location(s) Bowser's Castle Dizzy? Immune
Stat down? Normal KO? Immune Experience 0 Item drop
Notice: The second set of numbers next to the enemy's HP, POW, DEF, SPEED and Coins are stat increases from the Challenge Medal accessory; a 50% increase for HP, DEF, SPEED and Coins earned, and a 150% increase for POW.
Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story enemy
Meat
The meat the audience throws to Midbus when Bowser takes damage from him. HP 9,999 (9,999) POW 999 (999) DEF 999 (999) SPEED 999 (999)
Coins 0 (0) Level 21 Fire Normal Burn? Immune
Role Support Battled by Bowser Location(s) Bowser's Castle Dizzy? Immune
Stat down? Normal KO? Immune Experience 0 Item drop
Notice: The second set of numbers next to the enemy's HP, POW, DEF, SPEED and Coins are stat increases from the Challenge Medal accessory; a 50% increase for HP, DEF, SPEED and Coins earned, and a 150% increase for POW.
Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story enemy
Blizzard Midbus
Blizzard Midbus from Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story. HP 2,041 (3,062) POW 312 (780) DEF 165 (248) SPEED 32 (48)
Coins 1,200 (1,800) Level 32 Fire Normal Burn? Immune
Role Boss Battled by Bowser Location(s) Peach's Castle Dizzy? Immune
Stat down? Normal KO? Immune Experience 6,500 Item drop Star Candy - 90.0%
Power Fangs X - 10.0%
Notice: The second set of numbers next to the enemy's HP, POW, DEF, SPEED and Coins are stat increases from the Challenge Medal accessory; a 50% increase for HP, DEF, SPEED and Coins earned, and a 150% increase for POW.

Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey[edit]

Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey enemy
Midbus (1)
Midbus in Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey HP 95 POW 58 DEF 17 SPEED 10 Experience 0
Fire Normal Jump Normal Hammer Normal Battled by Bowser Coins 0
Burn Immune Dizzy Immune Stat down 1x Speed down 1x Item drop None - 0%
None - 0%
Level           1 Location(s) Cavi Cape
Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey enemy
Midbus (2)
Midbus in Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey HP 800 POW 180 DEF 96 SPEED 21 Experience 550
Fire Normal Jump Normal Hammer Normal Battled by Bowser Coins 300
Burn Immune Dizzy Immune Stat down 1x Speed down 1x Item drop None - 0%
Gourmet Band - 100%
Level           12 Location(s) Bowser's Castle
Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey enemy
Cake
A cake from Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey. HP 9999 POW 999 DEF 999 SPEED 999 Experience 0
Fire Normal Jump Normal Hammer Normal Battled by Bowser Coins 0
Burn Immune Dizzy Immune Stat down 1x Speed down 1x Item drop None - 0%
None - 0%
Level           1 Location(s) Bowser's Castle
Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey enemy
Donut
A donut from Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey. HP 9999 POW 999 DEF 999 SPEED 999 Experience 0
Fire Normal Jump Normal Hammer Normal Battled by Bowser Coins 0
Burn Immune Dizzy Immune Stat down 1x Speed down 1x Item drop None - 0%
None - 0%
Level           1 Location(s) Bowser's Castle
Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey enemy
Meat
Meat from Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey. HP 9999 POW 999 DEF 999 SPEED 999 Experience 0
Fire Normal Jump Normal Hammer Normal Battled by Bowser Coins 0
Burn Immune Dizzy Immune Stat down 1x Speed down 1x Item drop None - 0%
None - 0%
Level           1 Location(s) Bowser's Castle
Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey enemy
Blizzard Midbus
Blizzard Midbus in Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey HP 2580 POW 336 DEF 330 SPEED 31 Experience 6500
Fire Normal Jump Normal Hammer Normal Battled by Bowser Coins 1200
Burn Immune Dizzy Immune Stat down 1x Speed down 1x Item drop None - 0%
Divine Shell - 100%
Level           30 Location(s) Peach's Castle

Quotes[edit]

Main article: List of Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story quotes § Midbus
  • "Sense is for the weak!"
  • "You listen. Peach, gone. Lord Fawful, new ruler. Now, no need of you. Lord Fawful says sleep. NOW YOU SLEEP!"
  • "MUH MUH! The clock strikes payback hour. Do plan two. To your posts!"
  • "Bowser! Next time goes a different way than this way went."
  • "Hmph. I scoff. I scoff at you. You bluff. It is time. The special weapon of Lord Fawful. I will release it. SUPER ULTRA WONDER ULTIMATE RUTHLESS GREAT IRON BALL! HYAH!"
  • "You amuse me. I have fought Bowser. You are much smaller."
  • "He is of trash. And you are. You, trash. I call you trash. Go be trashy in this trash hole with this trash robot forever!"
  • "No one pressed "dance"! You are broken!"
  • "Now it is time! Now we will fight! Then you will lose! And you will cry!"
  • "Now you face hot wrath. The hot wrath of my freezing blizzard attack! HERE YOUR LONG JOURNEY ENDS!" (Blizzard Midbus before battling Bowser for the final time)
  • "Though I fall here... None beat Lord Fawful... Now he will FINISH YOU!" (Midbus' last words before freezing over after Bowser defeats him)

Names in other languages[edit]

Language Name Meaning Notes
Japanese メタボス[?]
Metabosu
Portmanteau of「メタボ」(metabo, Japanese slang for metabolic syndrome) and "boss"
French (NOA) Lèchebott[?] Pun on "lèche-bottes" (bootlicker)
French (NOE) Métaboss[?] Japanese name
German Metaboss[?] From the Japanese name
Italian Grugnosauro[?] Portmanteau of "grugno" (snout) and "dinosauro" (dinosaur)
Korean 메타보스[?]
Metaboseu
From the Japanese name
Russian Бронехряк[?]
Bronekhryak
Portmanteau of "броненосец" (bronenosets, armadillo) and "хряк" (khryak, boar)
Spanish (NOA) Cervil[?] Portmanteau of "cerdo" (pig) and "vil" (vile); also a pun on "servil" (subservient)
Spanish (NOE) Metajefe[?] From the Japanese Name

Trivia[edit]

Image of Minecraft: Wii U Edition showing pigs patterned after Midbus.
Pigs patterned after Midbus in Minecraft: Wii U Edition.
  • In Minecraft: Wii U Edition, there is a Super Mario Mash-up that replace skins in the game to characters/enemies from the Super Mario franchise. Unused screenshots in the files reveal Midbus skins were originally going to replace the Pig skins, but this was removed from the final version of the game.

References[edit]