Dry Bowser
- “You little insects think you can take on the mighty Dry Bowser?Pretty plucky, but you'll soon regret it!”
- —Dry Bowser, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games
Dry Bowser is a boney version of Bowser, debuting in New Super Mario Bros. Dry Bowser was accidentally born in New Super Mario Bros.'s first castle, when a short fight with Bowser ended with Bowser being dropped into a pit filled with lava.
Unlike previous occasions, the lava reduced the once-mighty king to a skeleton, leaving his son, Bowser Jr., temporarily in command of the Koopa Troop. He is then fought in the first castle in World 8. He makes an appearance as a unlockable driver in Mario Kart Wii, classified as a Large-sized character. Dry Bowser has an extremely horrifying howl combined with the rattling of bones from his entire body. This can specially be heard in Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games when the player faces him in Ice Hockey.
History
New Super Mario Bros.
In New Super Mario Bros., to defeat Dry Bowser, Mario must dodge his attacks, which include breathing small flames and throwing his own bones, and wait for him to make a high jump. Mario must then run under Dry Bowser and hit the Skull Switch, destroying the bridge and throwing him into a very deep pit; when he finally hits the ground, his whole body falls apart. An experienced player, however, may be able to jump over Bowser at the very start of the fight to reach the switch, after which Bowser "runs" after Mario to stop him. If Mario is in Shell Mario form, he can defeat him by performing the Shell Dash against him three times. As Mega Mario, one stomp is enough. A very simple way is to at least have a Super Mushroom then run straight through him and hit the switch. This battle is very similar to the battles against Bowser in Worlds 6-8 of Super Mario Bros.; however, in that game he threw hammers instead of bones. He is also immune to fireballs.
At the final battle of the game, the remains of Dry Bowser were thrown in a cauldron (the contents of which were unknown, but they were most certainly magical) which turns Dry Bowser back into his original form, except much larger, as if he had used a Mega Mushroom.
However Dry Bowser does not appear in this game's sequel, New Super Mario Bros. Wii.
Mario Kart Wii
Dry Bowser makes his first playable appearance in Mario Kart Wii. He is a Large-sized driver along with his living counterpart, Bowser. However, it seems more reasonable that Dry Bowser would be a lower weight class, as he lacks all matter other than bones. It is likely that his size that puts him in the class, seeing that weight doesn't always matter when it comes to the large karts (for example, Waluigi and Rosalina also look as if they should be in a lower weight class, but are too tall to fit in the medium size karts). He has a more terrifying roar than Bowser in this game, mixed in with several bone rattling sounds, which make up his sound effects throughout the game. He can be unlocked by beating all new cups on 150cc with at least 1 star ranking.
Dry Bowser was the only CPU opponent in the second Competition of March 2009, where he attacked the player by firing fireballs at him/her throughout the race in the Mario Kart 64 version of Bowser's Castle.
Dry Bowser features a good off-road (tied with Toadette) and mini-turbo (tied with Wario, Koopa Troopa, and Dry Bones) bonus, which makes vehicles like the Flame Flyer and Phantom perform a bit better off the track, along with getting a slightly better mini-turbo after a drift.
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games
Dry Bowser makes his second spin-off appearance in the game, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games. He appears as the last rival character in the Festival Mode for the Wii version and in the Adventure Tour for the Nintendo DS. The player meets Dry Bowser in the event of Ice Hockey, where he is the captain of a team of three Dry Bones while he participates as well in the event as the team's goalkeeper. Once the player's team manages to beat him, he chases his team, since he thinks that it is their fault that they have lost. There is a Dry Bowser costume that Miis can purchase in the store. Dry Bowser works for Bowser and Eggman trying to kidnap the Snow Spirits in the Adventure Tour in the DS version as the Boss of Super Sonic Downhill and again in Curling Bowling just as the player reaches Bowser and Dr. Eggman.
Although this is the second Mario spin-off to feature both Bowser and Dry Bowser, only Bowser is a playable character in this game, unlike in Mario Kart Wii where they were both playable.
Character Description
Personality
Dry Bowser's personality is similar to his living counterpart, Bowser. He is a cruel and ruthless villain, and his roar is even more terrifying than the living Bowser's.
Physical Description
Dry Bowser is simply Bowser's skeletal form, though there are some significant changes in not only color but also in shape. The most noticeable feature is his nose, which has morphed into a beak-like shape. Dry Bowser's shell is a charcoal gray with dark red ridges, as opposed to his counterpart's standard green. His horns are longer and more curved and his eye sockets are more triangular with thick bone where Bowser's eyebrows used to be. Like Dry Bones, Dry Bowser's eyes are small glowing pupils. The once black and shiny collars around his neck and arms have been scorched and turned a dull dark red, and his hair has been taken up in a ponytail similar to the hairstyle of Bowser Jr.
List of Appearances by Date
| Title | Description | Original Release Date | System/Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Super Mario Bros. | Boss | North America: May 15, 2006 |
Nintendo DS |
| Mario Kart Wii | Unlockable Playable Character | Japan: April 10, 2008 |
Wii |
| Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games | Rival (non-playable) | North America: October 13, 2009 |
Wii, Nintendo DS |
Names in Other Languages
Official Statistics and Profiles
Mario Kart Wii
- Size: Large
- Stats:
- Acceleration:*/***
- Top Speed:***/***
- Off-Road:*/***
- Site Bio: "If the King of the Koopas wasn't scary enough already, his appearance as a surly skeleton should have the other drivers shaken in their seats!."
- Prima Guide Bio: After a little dip in lava, Dry Bowser, King of the Dry Bones, returns invincible! Fortunately though, he's driving the same karts and bikes as everyone else!"
- Actual Bonuses
- Off-Road: +6
- Mini-Turbo: +6
Trivia
- Strangely, Dry Bowser's Japanese name (Honekuppa) is actually based on Dull Bones' Japanese name (Honenoko), Instead of Dry Bones' (Karon). The same goes for the French version, meaning Dry Bowser may actually be based off of Dull Bones.
- Bowser has previously been seen falling in lava in Super Mario Bros. and The Lost Levels without showing his apparent demise. In Super Mario 64, however, Bowser wasn't affected when falling in lava. Additionally, Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, Bowser comments that he loves the smell of lava in his castle.
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