Shy Guy

File:ShyguyKart.jpg

A Shy Guy, with its standard kart from Mario Kart DS.

Shy Guys are troublemakers that wear robes and masks.

Appearances

Battle for Yoshi's Island

File:Shy Guy Yoshi's Island.PNG

Shy Guy's first appearance (chronologically) was in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, where he was known as Shy-Guy. Here they were extremely common and weak enemies, simply walking forward, making it easy for Yoshi to swallow them and turn them into Egg's. If they touch Yoshi, Baby Mario will go flying off his back. Shy Guys would often appear out of Pipes until Yoshi got six eggs.

The Story Book Crisis

In Yoshi's Story Shy Guys were once again common enemies, walking forward and backward. The Jumping variety from Yoshi's Island had disappeared, although some Shy Guys are seen to carry Fruit, or hide in trees. To defeat the Shy Guys that are in trees, Yoshi must Ground Pound near the tree they are hiding in, causing them to fall out. Additionally, if Yoshi Ground Pounds near a Shy Guy, its color will change. If different colored Yoshis eat a Shy Guy with the same color, they will be awarded with three petals instead of one. This game also introduces the first "good" Shy Guy, the White Shy Guy. Shy Guys have voices in this game; they can be distinctly heard saying "heigh ho" and other sounds as well.

Return to Yoshi's Island

Shy Guys also appeared in Yoshi's Island DS, once again, as very common and weak enemies. Yoshi could use any tactic to defeat them: jumping, egg-throwing, or swallowing. Shy Guys in this game played virtually the same role as they did in Yoshi's Island. Other than being common enemies, Shy Guys also had their own section in the Island Museum. Yoshi could view the different types of Shy Guys in that section, though Shy Guys that do not wander on land, such as Tube Guys, were only in the marine section.

Nightmares in Dreamland

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Shy Guys appeared frequently in Super Mario Bros. 2. In this game they worked for Wart, and would once again just walk in whatever direction Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, or Toad happened to be in. They could be easily disposed of by being picked up and thrown. They often appeared out of vases (the same way they appeared out of pipes in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island).

A neat trick that the player could do in Super Mario Bros. 2's remake Super Mario Advance is to place a Mushroom Block one space away from the vase that Shy Guys are coming out of. This way a mass of Shy Guy's would gather in the empty space between the Vase and the Mushroom Block. When enough Shy Guy's are there, the Player simply needs to pick up an object (even one of the Shy Guys) and throw it at the group. In this way, the player can easily max out his/her lives

Shy Paper

Shy Guys were semi-common enemies in Paper Mario. After Mario returns from Forever Forest he finds Toad Town over-run with Shy Guys. He can hit the enemies with his Hammer to run them out of the town. Once Mario discovers Shy Guy's Toy Box (the secret hide-out of the Shy Guys) they can be fought like normal enemies, with HP points. They have two main attacks: They can simply tackle Mario (three damage), or they can jump on top of him, dealing five damage.

Interestingly, a during the ending cinema of the game some Shy Guys can be seen talking with Watt, implying that they have changed their ways.

Dead, But Moving

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In Luigi's Mansion, Shy Guys reappeared as ghosts with pitch forks (Likely a reference to Beezo). To defeat them, Luigi had to suck up the Shy Guy's mask before he could suck it into his vacuum. Strangely this is the only type of Shy Guy that has been seen with its mask off.

Audience Members

Although Shy Guys were not actual enemies in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door they did appear in the audience of most of the battles. Occasionally Shy Guys will run onto the back-stage, and cause pieces of the set to fall on Mario or his enemies. Shy Guys will give Mario Star Points along with the other audience members when he performs a move correctly.

They also appear in the audience of Super Paper Mario when you perform a stylish move.

Other Appearances

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Shy Guy, as he appears in Mario Power Tennis.

Racing

In Mario Kart: Double Dash!! Shy Guys appear ice-skating in one of the stages, forming obstacle for the racers. A statue of two Shy Guys can be seen in the background of Baby Park, and they appear in the audience of Waluigi Stadium. A Shy Guy was playable in the local multi-player version of Mario Kart DS. Also, on the Action Replay DS Card, there was a cheat where you could press select to play as the said Shy Guy.

Tennis

A Shy Guy was an unlockable character in Mario Tennis for the Nintendo 64. This is the first time a Shy Guy was ever playable. Shy Guy came back for another round in Mario Power Tennis but this time was available from the start. For his power move, he does a Spear Guy-type dance, gets a spear, and electrifies the ball.

Baseball

Shy Guys of all different colors were playable in Mario Superstar Baseball. They are balanced characters. Ironically, their starting captain is Yoshi, one of their earliest enemies.

Other Info

Alleigance

Shy Guys first appeared in Super Mario Bros. 2, where they were minions of the tyrannical king Wart. However, there first appearance chronologically was in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island where they were members of the Koopa Troop. Since Super Mario Bros. 2 may have actually been a dream, it is possible that the Shy Guys working for Wart were ghosts from Mario's childhood, meaning that they had never served anyone but Bowser. It can be assumed that the Shy Guys that work for Bowser answer to General Guy.

Since Super Mario Bros. 2, Shy Guys have been seen working for many other villains, including Smithy and Donkey Kong. One Shy Guy (the White Shy Guy) is actually an ally of Yoshi's. It may be assumed that Shy Guys are jacks-of-all-trades, and can work for whomever they want to or may evan be mercinaries.

Physical Appearance

File:ShyGuySMB2.png

An early Super Mario Bros. 2 Shy Guy.

All Shy Guys (with the minor exception of General Guy) wear robes that can be red, pink, blue, yellow, green, black, or white. They are all fairly short, and all wear masks. The masks have been a mystery to fans for quite a while now. It is unknown what is behind them, or if they are actually even masks. In the intro movie of Mario Tennis, Luigi sees a Shy Guy without his mask on, and is shocked by what he sees. In Luigi's Mansion, Luigi can use the Poltergust 3000 to pull the mask out of Shy Guy Ghosts. These faces are pure blackness with two glowing, yellow, eyes. It is unknown whether this is what a Shy Guy's face looks like when it is alive, or if the Shy Guy Ghosts are even actual Shy Guys, as they are not actually ghosts. (They, like the game's other generic ghosts, were imitations created by Vincent Van Gore.)

It is also possible that the Shy Guys' so-called "masks" are not masks at all, but rather faces. In Yoshi's Island DS, the sleeping Shy Guy's masks' eyeholes were closed, supporting this fact, and the Bandit sub-species of Shy Guy have been shown to have the ability to quite freely move the faces on their masks. (The "masks" of Bandits are also notable for looking little like masks at all, having cartoony facial expressions spangling them.) The picture shown when Bandit wins in Super Mario World 2 minigames even suggests that he is able to stick out his tongue. Also, Super Mario RPG's Shy Guys' eyeholes comically spin when the Shy Guy is confused, much like people's eyes do in cartoon gags, and Spear Guys and Cannibal Guys are perfectly capable of moving their mouthholes when chanting and singing. However, most information suggests that Shy Guy's mask is indeed a mask, and what he hides behind it is surely something very dark and secret.

Interestingly, early Super Mario Bros. 2 artwork of Shy Guys, as well as the Super Mario Brothers Super Show!, depicted Shy Guys as wearing strange, Chuckola Fruit-like badges depicting an angry face. It is unknown what this badge represents; it is possible that it is some kind of emblem to the 8-bit Club, another Shy Guy-related element seen only in Super Mario Bros. 2. Super Mario Bros. 2 and the Super Mario Brothers Super Show! are also notable for using game artwork of the earliest forms of Shy Guys, making them tall, stout, and humanoid; however, the appearance of Shy Guys was later retconned to their in-game sprite appearance in Super Mario Bros. 2.

File:ShyGuyCartoon.jpg

Shy Guy from The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! episode "Brooklyn Bound / Cher's Poochie.

The Shy Guys of the Super Mario Brothers Super Show! are, like other enemies and characters, notable for being slightly inaccurate. The show's Shy Guys, in addition to looking like the strange ones depicted in the Super Mario Bros. 2 artwork, had only two holes in their masks. These holes, which were constantly in a scowling position, were both eyeholes; the Super Mario Brothers Super Show! Shy Guys lacked mouth holes.

Sub-Species

These two sub-species also have many different sub-species themselves:

• Bandit
• Snifit

Other:

• Anti Guy
• Barbecue Guy
• Beezo
• Black Shy Guy
• Boo Guy
• Boom Guy
• Chandeli-Ho
• Chuck Guy
• Fat Guy
• Fly Guy
• Flying Shy Guy
• Ghoul Guy
• Glide Guy
• Groove Guy
• Gunner Guy
• Jetpack Guy
• Jungle Guy
• Limbo Guy
• Mace Guy
• Medi Guy
• Melon Guy
• Mini-Shy Guy
• Mock Up
• Mufti Guy
• Mummy Guy
• Phantom Guy
• Pirate Guy
• Pyro Guy
• Rocket Guy
• Shy Away
• Shy Guy (ghost)
• Shy Guy Lion
• Shy Ranger
• Shy Squad
• Shy Stack
• Shyper
• Shyster
• Sky Guy
• Sling Shy
• Submarine Guy
• Tube Guy
• Woozy Guy

Notable Shy Guys

• Big Guy the Stilted - Yoshi's Island DS
• Game Guy - Mario Party 3
• General Guy - Paper Mario
• Gourmet Guy - Paper Mario
• Petal Guy - Mario Party Advance
• White Shy Guy - Yoshi's Story

Paper Mario Stats and Tattle Information

Shy Guy

• HP: 7
• Attack: 2
• Defense: 0
• Tattle: This is a Shy Guy. They're ne'er-do-wells. Big time rascals. No good... They occasionally do acrobatic attacks that have an attack power of 3. Who knows what lies in the hearts of these troublemakers? I guess they're dangerous, but they're pretty small time.

Mario Superstar Baseball Information

• Type: Balanced
• Starting Team Captain: Yoshi
• Status: Player
• Stats:
  • Red Shy Guy Stats:
    • Batting: 5/10
    • Pitching: 3/10
    • Fielding: 5/10
    • Running: 4/10
  • Blue Shy Guy Stats:
    • Batting: 4/10
    • Pitching: 3/10
    • Fielding: 5/10
    • Running: 5/10
  • Yellow Shy Guy Stats:
    • Batting: 3/10
    • Pitching: 4/10
    • Fielding: 5/10
    • Running: 4/10
  • Green Shy Guy Stats:
    • Batting: 4/10
    • Pitching: 4/10
    • Fielding: 5/10
    • Running: 4/10
  • Black Shy Guy Stats:
    • Batting: 4/10
    • Pitching: 4/10
    • Fielding: 6/10
    • Running: 4/10
• Player Profile:
  • Strong Point: Nothing Particular
  • Special Talents: Sliding Catch
  • Trajectory:
    • Field: Center
    • Height: Normal
• Star Pitch: Slowball
• Star Swing: Center
• Default Batting Position: Left
• Default Throwing Arm: Left
• Sweet Spot: The Shy Guy mask on the bat
• Compatible Relationships: Birdo, Monty Mole

Bio: "A charming, masked soldier. Shy Guys used to serve an evil king named Wart, but they nowadays make a lot of cameo appearances as friendly rivals of Mario. That said, they aren't always good... On the baseball mound, Shy Guys are consistent players with a few weaknesses."

Super Smash Bros. Melee trophy information

There are many types of Shy Guys: they've been known to walk on the ground, fly through the air, traipse about on stilts, wear flowers or camouflage, throw balls, swing bats, sail on pirate ships, carry fruit, do the Bamboo Dance, ride submarines, play guitar, play tennis, wear red, come in large or small sizes, steal people's toys, cause mischief...

Trivia

• The Mask-Guys from Virtual Boy Wario Land are very similar to Shy Guys in that they both have names ending in "guy" and that they are both shy creatures who hide their faces behind masks. As a matter of fact, Mask-Guy may be a Shy Guy sub-species, although this is unconfirmed.