Crash Bandicoot/Characters
A list of characters and tropes associated with the long-running Crash Bandicoot series.
The Good Guys
Crash Bandicoot
"Whoa!"
Voiced by: Brendan O Brien (1996-98, 2000-03), Billy Pope (1999), Steve Blum (2003), Jess Harnell (2005-present)
A genetically advanced Eastern Barred Bandicoot and inhabitant of the Wumpa Islands. Once an ordinary bandicoot, he was snatched from the wild by Doctor Neo Cortex and subjected to the Evolvo-Ray as part of Cortex's plan to make Crash the general of his "Cortex Commandos", which would be used to dominate the world. However, he was later deemed unworthy of being in Cortex's army and was dismissed from Cortex's castle. As an act of revenge and to rescue a female bandicoot named Tawna, Crash traveled through the Wumpa Islands, defeating Cortex's henchmen along the way. He eventually stole Cortex's airship, defeated Doctor Cortex, and escaped alongside Tawna. Nowadays, he attempts to live a quiet life on the Wumpa Islands. However, his relaxation tends to be interrupted by another world domination plot by Doctor Neo Cortex, forcing Crash to once again defeat him in order to put his life back in order.
Tropes associated with Crash:
- American Kirby Is Hardcore: Crash was "cutened" up for the Japanese release. He even got a funky dance created by the Japanese that was carried back into the American versions. Some have speculated that this design change combined with Radical Entertainment's radical character redesigns that would make such things look awkward is what's making Radical's Crash games a no-go for the Japanese.
- Attention Deficit Ooh Shiny: Though he somehow figures his way through Cortex's schemes rather competently, he often shows a poor attention to the problems at hand, shrugging off having his arch enemy inserted into his brain or accidentally deactivating his robot buddy.
- Big Brother Instinct: As dumb as he is, he visibly cares about his little sister, especially comes into play in later titles, threatening Coco's life is often one of few ways the villains can grab Crash's attention.
- Cloudcuckoolander: Even pre-Flanderization, Crash seems a little... unhinged in demeanor.
- Everything's Better with Spinning: His main form of offense.
- The Fool: Not the smartest guy around, but somehow always comes out on top, granted depending on the gamer's competence, he takes a few lumps along the way though.
- Go-Karting with Bowser: Crash has this going on with Doctor Neo Cortex from time to time.
- Good Is Dumb: Crash, though not without moments of brilliance, is often a victim of circumstances or being an Unwitting Pawn due to his simple-mindedness, but Aku Aku always makes sure to guide him to do good.
- Goomba Stomp: Wherever spinning won't work, this usually will.
- Half-Dressed Cartoon Animal: Wears shoes, pants and Fingerless Gloves, but never a shirt.
- Heroic Mime: Alternates between this and The Unintelligible.
- Heroic Sociopath: Displays a rather sadistic sense of humor at times, shown especially in Crash Tag Team Racing. Also a bit apathetic at times, though that may be due more to his stupidity and spaciness.
- Idiot Hero: Crash is perhaps the least intelligent of the heroes in the series.
- Iron Butt Monkey: So much the developers put special treatment in animating every possible manner he can lose a life in the game.
- Jack of All Stats: In the racing games, he is this alongside Doctor Neo Cortex.
- Kindhearted Simpleton: Sometimes a bit more sociopathic than usual examples, though usually means well despite his cluelessness.
- Mascot with Attitude: He appeared to be one on the covers, though in the games he was really goofy.
- The Pollyanna: For all he's put up with, he's pretty happy-go-lucky.
- The Unintelligible: Alternates between this and the Heroic Mime.
Aku Aku
"Hoobiga!"
Voiced by: Mel Winkler (1998-2004), Greg Eagles (2007-present)
The guardian of the Wumpa Islands, and the father figure of Crash and his friends. Aku Aku is the spirit of an ancient witch doctor encased in a floating, wooden mask. When he sensed Crash's mission to stop Doctor Cortex, he scattered copies of himself throughout the Wumpa Islands in an effort to aid him in his mission. Whenever Crash possesses an Aku Aku mask, he will be shielded from one enemy attack or contact. Collecting three Aku Aku masks gives Crash temporary invulnerability from all minor dangers. He didn't become a full-fledged character until Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped, in which he had his first speaking role.
Tropes associated with Aku Aku:
- Big Good
- Cain and Abel: Abel to Uka Uka's Cain.
- Expressive Mask: Bonus points in that he is a mask.
- Father to His Men: He takes in Crash and Coco (and their pets, and later Crunch) and protects them from Cortex.
- Invincibility Power-Up: Collect 3 masks, and Crash becomes invincible for a while, with a pretty cool-sounding bongo-like solo replacing the normal level music.
- The Obi-Wan
- Team Dad: He refers to Crash and Coco as being his "children", and generally acts as their mentor.
Coco Bandicoot
"Crash? Crash! Crash, my battery's fried. Make yourself useful, big brother, and go get an extra battery for me."
Voiced by: Vicki Winters (1997), Hynden Walch (1999), Debi Derryberry (2001-present)
The highly intelligent and spirited younger sister of Crash. Like Crash, Coco was also an ordinary bandicoot until she was taken from the jungle and genetically enhanced by Doctor Neo Cortex.
Tropes associated with Coco:
- Adrenaline Makeover: Compare her designs since Crash Nitro Kart to her designs in the Naughty Dog games.
- Bare Your Midriff: Starting with Crash Nitro Kart.
- Big Little Sister: Coco is often slightly taller and significantly more intelligent and sane than her "big brother" Crash (granted, this depends on the creative team; in Mind Over Mutant for example, she is shorter than Crash and almost as demented and childish as he is).
- Bratty Half-Pint: Especially in the Radical titles, more a Cheerful Child earlier on.
- Buffy-Speak: Seems to gained a tendency for this in the Radical series... and stuff.
- Child Prodigy
- Damsel in Distress: Happens more and more in recent titles, the villains seem to be fond of using her as hostage bait for Crash.
- Genius Ditz: In later titles, while still somewhat a techno whiz, she seems rather childish, melodramatic and less resourceful outside her talent, the point of some of her inventions such as a 'Butter Recycling' device can also be placed into question.
- Remember the New Guy?: She was introduced as Crash's sister in Crash Bandicoot 2 with absolutely no explanation as to where she came from. The manual for The Wrath of Cortex would much later establish that she's one of Cortex's mutants, same as Crash, but even so, we don't know how she escaped Cortex's control or where she was during the first game.
- Teen Genius: Although her age is difficult to pinpoint, she definitely qualifies as of Crash Nitro Kart. N. Sane Trilogy also leans her more in this direction, with her now wearing visible makeup and doing stereotypical teen things like taking selfies.
- Took a Level in Jerkass: Seems snarkier and more materialistic in later titles, the supposed nature-lover also seems less than compassionate about the state Cortex's machines are reducing Wumpa Island into.
- Trademark Favorite Food: Butter.
- Women Are Wiser: More prominent in earlier titles. She's more of a bratty Genius Ditz in later games, but still somewhat saner than Crash and Crunch.
Crunch Bandicoot
"Don't be a fool! Stay in milk!"
Voiced by: Kevin Michael Richardson (2001-03), Chris Williams (2005-present)
A genetically altered bandicoot who was originally created by Doctor Cortex to harness the power of the Elementals and destroy Crash Bandicoot. After his defeat to Crash, Crunch had a change of heart and now tries to be a positive role model to children.
Tropes associated with Crunch:
- The Big Guy: Of Bandicoot family.
- Boisterous Bruiser: In later games due to his hyperactive personality.
- Brainwashed and Crazy: Seems to be a recurring concept for Crunch, he debuted into the series under Cortex and the Elementals' mind control.
- Cloudcuckoolander: Following his Heel Face Turn, he's became increasingly dizzy and hyper in personality.
- Cyborg: One of his arms is mechanical.
- Heel Face Turn: After breaking from his mind control in The Wrath of Cortex.
- Laser Guided Tykebomb: His original purpose was to kill Crash Bandicoot.
- Motor Mouth: In the Radical Entertainment games.
- No Celebrities Were Harmed: Crunch's voice in the Radical Entertainment games is an impersonation of Mr. T.
- Spoof Aesop: He enjoys delivering these, especially in Crash: Mind Over Mutant.
- Took a Level In Dumbass: Tended to think with his fists in his initial appearances, but was otherwise intelligent. In the Radical games, he's a complete airhead.
The Bad Guys
Doctor Neo Cortex
"Oh, how I hate bandicoots..."
Voiced by: Brendan O Brien (1996), Clancy Brown (1997-2003), Lex Lang (2004-present)
Child Cortex voiced by: Debi Derryberry (2004)
A mad scientist who seeks to achieve world domination as an act of vengeance for the ridicule he has suffered in the past. Hoping to achieve this by mutating the local animals into his soldiers, he eventually creates Crash Bandicoot, the titular character of the series, but soon rejects him as unworthy of being in his army and removes him from his castle. As Cortex's actions endanger the sanctity of the islands the games are set in, Cortex's plans for world domination are often hampered by Crash along with other characters. Crash's constant interference has made eliminating Crash one of Cortex's top priorities along with world domination.
Tropes associated with Doctor Neo Cortex:
- Amazing Technicolor Population: He has yellow skin, though in the earlier games, his skin is more subtly yellowish than the Simpsonesque hue it would later take.
- Arch Enemy: He is the main enemy of Crash Bandicoot.
- Bald of Evil: He's the "top-balding" version of this, as he still has some hair around his head and a small tuft at the top.
- Beard of Evil: It's technically a goatee, but still counts.
- Big Bad: Demoted to Dragon upon Uka Uka's arrival.
- Brought to You by The Letter "S": He has an N on his forehead. The buildings on Cortex Island in the first game also have some occasional N on them.
- But for Me It Was Tuesday: In Crash Twinsanity, he has no idea what the Evil Twins are talking about when they say he ruined their lives and justifies it by saying he's ruined the lives of so many he can't be expected to remember them all.
- Butt Monkey/Chew Toy: In Crash Twinsanity.
- Camp Straight: Albeit with some rather... suggestive quotes in later titles.
- Card-Carrying Villain: This aspect slowly becomes more obvious as the series progresses.
- Chaste Toons: Nina is stated to be his niece, although he occasionally slips up and calls her his daughter, implying that he's hiding something. This concept was never explored in later games though.
- Circus Brat: According to at least one strategy guide, he was raised to a family of circus performers.
- The Comically Serious: Arguably his role in early games, became increasingly clownish as the series progressed however.
- Embarrassing Middle Name: Neo Cortex's middle name is "Periwinkle".
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones/Uncle Wolf: He genuinely cares for Nina, albeit in his own twisted way.
- Evil Sounds Deep: As Clancy Brown from 1997-2003, he has a menacing deep voice.
- Evilutionary Biologist: He's been attempting to create an army of super-animals since he was eight years old.
- Genius Ditz
- Jack of All Stats: He is this alongside Crash in the racing games.
- Jerkass: An evil scientist for one thing, outright admits in Crash Twinsanity he's willing to ruin other people's lives for another.
- Large Ham: Even more so in the later games.
- Mad Scientist: One of several throughout the series, each with their own special skills. For Cortex, it's brainwashing.
- Manipulative Bastard: Manages to be this in the second game.
- Morally-Ambiguous Doctorate: An evil doctor bent in world domination.
- My Brain Is Big: He has a big head, with the top being very oddly flat.
- The Napoleon: Implied to have been bullied for his short stature, even built a planetary minimizer to shrink the Earth so that its civilians could "look up to" him.
Cortex: Finally, after all these years of abuse, who's the little guy now?
- Punny Name: His name is a reference to the external section of the brain.
- The Starscream=/=The Dog Bites Back: Spends several years under Uka Uka's abusive command, though following Crash: Mind Over Mutant, well, let's just say Uka Uka will never want to eat cake again.
- They Called Me Mad: The catalyst of his quest for world domination.
Doctor N. Gin
"Enjoy your screaming doom!"
Voiced by: Brendan O Brien (1997-99), Corey Burton (2001), Quinton Flynn (2003-04), Nolan North (2005-2008)
Doctor Neo Cortex's faithful right-hand man. As a child, N. Gin was a classmate of Neo Cortex and Nitrus Brio in Madame Amberly's Academy of Evil. N. Gin then went on to become a world-renowned physicist in the defense industry. However, due to a budget cut, one of his missile projects ended up faulty and, as a result, went awry, lodging itself into N. Gin's head. With his intellect, N. Gin was able to stabilize the weapon and reconstruct it as a life support system at the cost of his mental stability. Because the missile is still live, it activates whenever N. Gin is stressed or angry, leaving him with a large headache. Shortly after the missile incident, Doctor N. Gin was taken in by Doctor Neo Cortex to replace the double-crossed Doctor Nitrus Brio.
Tropes associated with Doctor N. Gin:
- Amazing Technicolor Population: In the Radical games, he has chalk white skin.
- Butt Monkey: Perhaps the most prominent after Cortex, though granted he does kind of enjoy most of it.
- Cloudcuckoolander: More and more so with each title it seems.
- Doomy Dooms of Doom: "Doom" happens to be one of N. Gin's top favorite words.
- The Dragon: Replaced Brio as Cortex's right-hand man starting with the second game.
- Evil Redhead: Originally. The Radical version (pictured here) depicts him with black hair instead.
- Genius Ditz: He might be a loony guy with temper issues, but there's little doubt about his intelligence: he's demonstrated technical know-how that gives Coco a run for her money.
- He-Man Woman Hater: At one point in Crash of the Titans, he expresses a disgust of women in general. One of his lines in the next game, however, implies he is a Stalker with a Crush to Coco.
- Humongous Mecha: He's rather fond of creating and piloting these... until his Radical incarnation, anyway.
- The Igor: Taking the place of N.Brio in Crash Bandicoot 2 and so on.
- Large Ham: Eventually evolved into one. Earlier games had him behave very robotically, only really getting vocal when he was defeated. Later games made him manic and prone to loud outbursts.
- Mad Scientist: His specialty is creating machines. In the Where Are They Now? Epilogue of Crash Team Racing, he's openened a custom auto parts store in Toledo, Ohio, which closed after his "Clear-the-Road" missile system was recalled when it caused havoc on many freeways.
- Morally-Ambiguous Doctorate: A doctor who's also pretty unhinged.
- Punny Name: His name N. Gin, easily sounds like engine.
- No Celebrities Were Harmed: The fact that his voice is a Peter Lorre impersonation becomes more obvious as the series goes on.
- No Indoor Voice: N. Gin is prone to very frequent fits of yelling in the Radical Entertainment games.
- No Name Given: It has never been revealed what his first name is.
- The Renfield: Usually loyal to Doctor Cortex (though see The Starscream below). Even assisted Crash in thwarting Nina in hope that he would rescue his former master.
- Split Personality: Crash of the Titans indicates he has one in one scene, with one side wanting to support Cortex and the other Nina.
- The Starscream: Despite his Undying Loyalty, he does turn on Cortex and side with Brio and N. Tropy in Crash Twinsanity and briefly goes along with Nina's takeover in Crash of the Titans as well.
- Subordinate Excuse: In later games, his relationship with Doctor Cortex leans into this, even referring to him as his friend at one point.
- Too Kinky to Torture: N. Gin has been known to outright thank people who inflict physical pain upon him, particularly Doctor Cortex.
Tiny Tiger
"Stop! No more, please! You're just too stupendous and fantabulous! Honestly, you are just awesome."
Voiced by: Brendan O Brien (1998-2001), John Dimaggio (2003), Chris Williams (2007-present), Nolan North (2007)[1]
A hulking mutant henchman. Originally a cohort for Dr. Nitrus Brio, he is reverted to Cortex's most faithful henchman in Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped.
Tropes associated with Tiny Tiger:
- Dumb Muscle: Before the Radical Entertainment games.
- Fluffy the Terrible
- Hulk Speak: Before the Radical Entertainment games.
- Ironic Nickname
- The Klutz: Seems to be renowned for this by Crash Nitro Kart, he is the first to blame when something goes berserk.
N Gin: What did you break now?!
- Minion with an F In Evil: In the Radical games, Tiny is this in spades. The original rendition, while more vicious and antagonistic towards Crash, actually has traits of this as well, particularly in Crash Nitro Kart.
- No Celebrities Were Harmed: His voice in the Radical Entertainment games is an impersonation of boxer Mike Tyson.
- Sesquipedalian Loquaciousness: The Radical Entertainment version of Tiny sometimes practices this ("I can hardly articulate my displeasure!").
- Third Person Person: Before the Radical Entertainment games.
- Top-Heavy Guy: A very straight example prior to the Radical Entertainment redesign.
Uka Uka
"I will kill Crash Bandicoot. Kill him... forever..."
Voiced by: Clancy Brown (1998-2003), Alex Fernandez (2004), John Dimaggio (2007-present)
Doctor Cortex's overseer, and the evil younger twin brother of Aku Aku. Long ago, he was sealed away in an underground prison by Aku Aku due to his incredibly malicious nature. However, this prison would be destroyed many centuries later by the wreck of Cortex's space station, setting him free and allowing him to carry out his plot for world domination.
Tropes associated with Uka Uka:
- Bad Boss: Oh, so much. In the later games, this is arguably Uka Uka's defining characteristic.
- Big Bad: Opposite to his brother Aku Aku, he is the main antagonist of the series.
- Cain and Abel: Cain to Aku Aku's Abel.
- Card-Carrying Villain: Became this starting with Crash Bash.
- Evil Sounds Deep: Though he sounded progressively less deep with each game. N. Sane Trilogy restores his menacing deep voice.
- Evil Twin: He is Aku Aku's twin brother and is for all intents and purposes his villainous equivalent.
- Expressive Mask: Bonus points in that he is a mask. Though that factor kinda decreases with his Radical Entertainment redesign as he lacks a lower jaw in those games.
- God of Evil: Pretty godly in terms of his power. And certainly evil.
- Knight of Cerebus: Definitely in Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped and Crash Bash, but he was toned down considerably in later games.
- Large Ham: Always talks loud and over-dramatic. Somewhat toned down in later games, but still.
- The Man Behind the Man: The main evil behind the machines of Cortex.
- No Indoor Voice: Clancy Brown gave Uka a progressively loud, perpetually yelling voice. John Dimaggio toned this down with a more calmer depiction, though still has tendencies of this.
- Sdrawkcab Name: His name is the name of his older twin brother Aku Aku reversed.
- Sealed Evil in a Can: He was locked away in an underground prison by Aku Aku many eons ago until the prison was destroyed by Cortex's destroyed space station at the beginning of the third game.
- The Unfought: He didn't get an actual boss fight until Crash Twinsanity and Crash of the Titans despite being one of the main villains before then.
- You Have Failed Me...: He threatens to punish Cortex for his failures all the time, though only twice did he actually go through with it: at the end of The Wrath of Cortex, he tries to kill him, and in Crash of the Titans, he fires him and replaces him with Nina.
Dingodile
"Bring out the butter. I'm gonna make toast!"
Voiced by: William Hootkins (1998-99), Dwight Schultz (2003-04, 2007) [2]
Tropes associated with Dingodile:
- Awesome Aussie: Despite the fact that all of the other evolved animals come from Australia as well (except for the Komodo Brothers who are from Indonesia), Dingodile is the only one from the Australian animals to have an accent.
- Biological Mashup: Dingodile is half-dingo, half-crocodile.
- Hidden Depths: According to his bio in the manual for The Wrath of Cortex, one of his hobbies is playing croquet.
- Jerkass: Whenever a guy's introduction scene has them attacking an adorable baby penguin, you can tell that he's a very unlikable individual.
- Kick the Dog: C'mon, the guy tries to torch a baby penguin!
- Kill It with Fire: His weapon of choice is a flamethrower.
- Lone Wolf Boss: In Crash Twinsanity, where he doesn't appeared to be allied with the Evil Twins or N. Tropy and Brio.
- Pyromaniac: He wields a massive flamethrower, and he loves to use it.
Doctor Nitrus Brio
"This isn't the end! I invented endings! Why don't people take me seriously?"
Voiced by: Brendan O Brien (1996-2000), Maurice LaMarche (2008-present)
Tropes associated with Doctor Nitrus Brio:
- The Dragon: To Cortex in the first game, only to betray him in Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back and rekindle in Crash: Mind Over Mutant. He was also N. Tropy's dragon in Crash: Twinsanity.
- Heel Face Turn: He betrays Cortex and assists Crash in the second game, but turns evil again in time for Crash Bash, Crash Twinsanity and Crash: Mind Over Mutant.
- Large Ham: Especially in Crash: Mind Over Mutant.
Brio: Strike him with your large man-hand!
- Mad Scientist: His specialty is mutating animals through the Evolvo-Ray that he developed. He also likes playing with chemicals.
- Psycho Serum: Which he uses to transform during Crash's battle with him in the first game.
- Punny Name: His abbreviated name is a pun on the word "Embryo". He hangs a lampshade on it in Crash: Mind Over Mutant.
N. Brio: Yes, it is I, N. Brio! My name sounds like a fetus.
- Speech Impediment: Brio had a pretty bad stutter in the first game and in Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back, but it is gone by the time of Crash: Mind Over Mutant, in fitting with his newly-gained confident personality.
- Took a Level in Badass: He is a lot more assertive and confident in Crash: Mind Over Mutant than in the previous games, where he was very meek and submissive. However, his annoyance over Cortex wrongly taking the credit for the creation of the Evolvo-Ray has lead to Brio making claims that he invented pretty much everything that exists.
- The Voiceless: In Crash: Twinsanity, N. Tropy does all the talking.
Doctor Nefarious Tropy
"Now you're on my time, you little skunk! Give me the Crystals!"
Voiced by: Michael Ensign (1998-99; 2003-04), Corey Burton (2001)
A henchman of Uka Uka and the self-proclaimed master of time.
Tropes associated with Doctor Nefarious Tropy:
- Amazing Technicolor Population: Blue skin, at that.
- Beard of Evil: He has two long hairs for an evil beard.
- The Big Guy: He is easily the tallest out of all the scientists.
- The Dragon: Depending on how you look at it, in Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped, he is a Co-Dragon either to Cortex along with N. Gin or to Uka Uka along with Cortex. He is Uka Uka's full-time Dragon in N-Tranced though.
- Evil Brit: The only scientist to speak with an upper-class English accent, and he's certainly evil.
- Eyes of Gold: He has very yellow eyes in Crash Twinsanity.
- Final Boss: In N-Tranced, where he's your final opponent in the game even after the titular N-Trance.
- For the Evulz: According to his bio in The Wrath of Cortex, he enjoys causing time paradoxes for laughs.
- Hurricane of Puns: All time-related.
- Impossibly Cool Weapon: His giant tuning fork.
- Knight of Cerebus: He's the closest the series has to one, due to the fact that outside of his time puns, Tropy is treated surprisingly serious with no gags or quirks in sight, something that even Uka Uka wasn't immune to as the games went by. Fittingly, he never appeared in the Radical games.
- Large Ham: Not quite as hammy as Cortex or N. Gin, but he still has his moments.
- Lean and Mean: Easily the tallest of the scientists, and arguably the meanest.
- Mad Scientist: One who specializes in time travel.
- Names to Run Away From Really Fast: See Punny Name below. Also, someone with the first name of Nefarious isn't someone to be trifled with.
- Punny Name: His abbreviated name is a pun on the word "entropy", which is basically the theory that everything is eventually destroyed through time.
- Time Master: He refers to himself as the "Master of Time", and has access to various forms of time travel technology. In Crash Team Racing, he also shows up in the Time Trial runs.
- Villain Team-Up: Joins forces in N. Brio in Crash Twinsanity.
Nina Cortex
"Have you come to deliver me from boredom?"
Voiced by: Amy Gross (2005-present)
The niece of Doctor Neo Cortex. She sometimes aids her uncle in his quest for world domination, though they have had a recent falling-out due to a failed plot headed by her and Cortex's boss Uka Uka. Hinted in one line in Crash Twinsanity to actually be Cortex's daughter, but nothing's come of it since then.
Tropes associated with Nina Cortex:
- Amazing Technicolor Population: She has white, grayish skin.
- Annoying Laugh
- Bratty Half-Pint: Her Crash Tag Team Racing and her Radical Entertainment incarnations portray her as a rude little brat, the latter especially.
- Brought to You by The Letter "S": She has a lowercase "n" on her forehead in a similar way to her uncle.
- Butt Monkey: Radical's depiction at least.
- Characterization Marches On: Numerous developers all had completely different depictions of her. It was only following Radical's tenure that Nina's persona was defined, as a conniving brat almost as deranged as her uncle.
- Daddy's Little Villain: Uncle, actually, but still, she proves to be just as villainous.
- Dark Action Girl: She is on Cortex's side and fights Crash sometimes.
- Deadpan Snarker
- Genius Ditz
- Mad Scientist's Beautiful Daughter: Although she didn't become beautiful until the Radical Entertainment games (even when keeping those little Nosferatu-like buckteeth).
- Meaningful Name: Nina means "little girl".
- Progressively Prettier
- The Starscream: Takes over Cortex's position after Uka Uka fires him... he was very proud.
- That didn't stop him from punishing her though.
- Teen Genius: She's actually smarter (or at least more competent) than her Mad Scientist uncle, at least according to Aku Aku. She does however retain a lot of his flaws.
- The Voiceless: In Crash Twinsanity only.
And the Rest
Polar
A young polar bear who is an occasional ally of Crash.
Tropes associated with Polar:
- All Animals Are Dogs: He makes adorable yelping noises like a puppy. The N. Sane Trilogy makes him sound a bit more bear-like.
- Demoted to Extra: After being the Powerup Mount in Crash Bandicoot 2, Polar cameos in Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped and is seen getting ready to charge outside the Bandicoot's house as they race to the Time Twister.
- The Dog Bites Back: In Crash Twinsanity, Polar appears to have gotten tired of being used as a vehicle, and is seen holding a baseball bat at Crash's 'birthday party'.
- Powerup Mount: Crash moves faster while he's riding Polar.
Ripper Roo
A kangaroo who was mutated by Doctor Neo Cortex and now has a demented personality and distinctive laughter.
Tropes associated with Ripper Roo:
- Ax Crazy: Absolutely loco.
- Cute and Psycho: He becomes like this after the first game.
- Laughing Mad: His dialogue consists of this.
- Mad Doctor: not the medical sort, but, as it turns out, Ripper Roo holds a doctorate in psychology, after spending 8 years in higher education. He even wrote a book: Through the Eyes of the Vortex: A Study of Rapid Evolution and Its Consequences.
- Puzzle Boss: His boss encounters involve him hopping around an arena with explosive crates involved. In the original game, he hops around in a set pattern on platforms surrounded by water, and the player has to jump on the drifting TNT crates at the right time so that they explode while Roo is next to them. In Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strike Back, he hops around the arena, and creates TNT and Nitro crates wherever he lands, and the goal is to find a safe spot from the explosions, and hit Roo after he has stunned himself.
Pura
A tiger cub who is an occasional ally of Coco.
Tropes associated with Pura:
- Cute Kitten: Cute tiger cub, but still.
- Powerup Mount: Is Coco's equivalent to Crash's Polar. He's more willing than Polar too.
Nitros Oxide
"Survival of the fastest!"
Voiced by: David Anthony Pizzuto (1999), Quinton Flynn (2003)
An extraterrestrial who claims to be the fastest racer in the galaxy. He is best known as the Big Bad of Crash Team Racing, though he has had other appearances in the series.
Tropes associated with Nitros Oxide:
- Big Bad: Of Crash Team Racing.
- Drives Like Crazy
- Punny Name: He shares the name of an anesthetic/turbo fuel.
Papu Papu
Voiced by: Brendan O Brien (1996, 2000), David Anthony Pizzuto (1999), Dwight Schultz (2004)
The obese chief of the native tribe of N. Sanity Island. He is neither on Crash's nor Cortex's side, but will capture and/or eat anything that steps into his territory.
Tropes associated with Papu Papu:
- Fat Bastard: He didn't get the moniker "Mister Bad Belly" for nothing.
- Flunky Boss: In Crash Bash.
- Jiggle Physics: His stomach, as well as his butt.
- Large and In Charge: He's large and fat, and he's the chief of the tribe.
Pinstripe Potoroo
Voiced by: Brendan O Brien (1996-2005)
A mutated potoroo who wears a red pinstripe suit and wields a fully-loaded Tommy gun.
Tropes associated with Pinstripe:
- Axe Crazy: It's hinted during his boss fight, as he laughs maniacally while trying to pump Crash full of lead.
- Corrupt Corporate Executive: He's the owner of Cortex's Power Station in the first game, and he's responsible for the immense pollution in the ocean nearby.
- Damn, It Feels Good to Be a Gangster!
- Lean and Mean: Incredibly skinny, and incredibly mean indeed.
Tawna
Crash's love interest in the first game.
Tropes associated with Tawna:
- Bare Your Midriff: In her Crash Boom Bang appearance.
- Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: Handwaved away by the original developers saying she broke up with Crash for Pinstripe Potoroo. She even sent him a break-up letter stating this in the Crash Bandicoot manga.
- She does, however, cameo on a sign in Crash Twinsanity and appear as a playable character in Crash Boom Bang. There's also a picture of her in the Bandicoot house in Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped and Crash: Mind Over Mutant.
- Damsel in Distress: The extent of her role in the series.
- Expy: Her appearance was based on that of Pamela Anderson.
- Non-Mammal Mammaries/Humanoid Female Animal: Ohhh boy yes!
- Statuesque Stunner: She's twice as tall as Crash, easily able to lift him up. Downplayed in Crash Boom Bang where she has a much shorter game model.
Koala Kong
A mutated koala who tosses around boulders using his superhuman strength.
Tropes associated with Koala Kong:
- Dumb Muscle: The instruction manual for the first game mentions that "more protons were put towards his muscles than his brain" upon creation.
- The Voiceless: He makes deep, gravelly sounds in Crash Bash, but in the original game, he doesn't make a sound. It's heavily implied that he sounds like Arnold Schwarzenegger or Sylvester Stallone. He's given a proper voice at last in the N. Sane Trilogy.
Fake Crash
Voiced by: Michael Connor (1999), Dwight Schultz (2003)
A clone of Crash Bandicoot with thick eyebrows and an overbite.
Tropes associated with Fake Crash:
- Big Ol' Eyebrows: Crash already has thick eyebrows, and Fake Crash's takes them Up to Eleven.
- Evil Counterpart/Evil Knockoff: Well, maybe. In Crash Team Racing, Fake Crash is protected by Uka Uka rather than Aku Aku, suggesting he was originally meant to be a bad guy. In Crash Nitro Kart, he is, however, protected by Aku.
- Joke Character
- Mirror Match: In Crash Bandicoot 2: N-Tranced.
Komodo Brothers
Komodo Joe voiced by: David Anthony Pizzuto (1999)
Two mutated Komodo Dragons, named Joe and Moe, who have served as boss characters in the series.
Tropes associated with the Komodo Brothers:
- Bash Brothers: Although Joe races alone in Crash Team Racing.
- Brains and Brawn: Joe is the brains, Moe is the brawn.
- Dumb Muscle: Komodo Moe, allegedly.
- Lean and Mean: Komodo Joe.
- Sssssnaketalk: Komodo Joe.
- Throwing Your Sword Always Works: They're never shown actually swinging their scimitars in the proper way. They only throw them.
Evil Crash
An evil and ferocious version of Crash Bandicoot from the Tenth Dimension who appears in Crash Twinsanity (and in Crash Tag Team Racing as an extra skin).
Tropes associated with Evil Crash:
The Elementals
Rok-Ko voiced by: Thomas F Wilson (2001)
Wa-Wa voiced by: R. Lee Ermey (2001)
Py-Ro voiced by: Mark Hamill (2001)
Lo-Lo voiced by: Jess Harnell (2001)
A group of evil masks revived by Uka Uka in Crash Bandicoot: The Wrath of Cortex to act as a power source for Crunch Bandicoot. Consists of Rok-Ko the Earth Elemental, Wa-Wa the Water Elemental, Py-Ro the Fire Elemental and Lo-Lo the Air Elemental.
Tropes associated with the Elementals:
- Cat and Mouse Boss: Py-Ro the Fire Elemental.
- Elemental Powers: All of them control one of the four elements of nature.
- Blow You Away: Lo-Lo.
- Dishing Out Dirt: Rok-Ko.
- Making a Splash: Wa-Wa.
- Playing with Fire: Py-Ro.
The Evil Twins
"Cower, you fools, before the awesome might of... the Evil Twins."
Both twins voiced by: Quinton Flynn (2004)
A duo of highly intelligent twin parrots who act as the main antagonists of Crash Twinsanity. Their real names are Victor and Moritz, and were formerly the pet parrots of Doctor Neo Cortex, whose experimental Evolvo-Ray sent them to the Tenth Dimension and mutated them into the villains they would become. They are eaten by Evil Crash at the end of the game.
Tropes associated with the Evil Twins:
- Big Bad: Of Crash Twinsanity.
- Big Eater: Moritz.
- Foolish Sibling, Responsible Sibling: Moritz is the foolish sibling, Victor is the responsible one.
- For the Evulz: They love sucking the goodness out of dimensions and filling them with chaos and misery. Just for the heck of it.
- Incoming Ham: Their featured quote earns them a mention.
- Reality Warper
- With Great Power Comes Great Insanity: In Victor's words, the severe "reverso-radioactivity" in the Tenth Dimension "sharpened our skills and warped our fragile eggshell minds."
Madame Amberley
"You... are in detention!"
Voiced by: Susan Silo (2004)
The headmaster of the Academy of Evil and former teacher of Neo and Nina Cortex, N. Gin and Nitrus Brio.
Tropes associated with Madame Amberley:
- Brought to You by The Letter "S": She has a large letter A on her forehead. It might be where Cortex and Nina got the idea of putting their first initials on their heads.
- Evil Teacher: Justified in that she's literally teaches students to be as evil as her.
- Fat Bastard: She is humongously obese and requires cables attached to her back to move around.
- High-Class Glass: Again, wears a monocle.
- Large and In Charge: Not only (and obviously) weight wise, but also height: she could easily dwarf the tallest characters in the series prior! She's also the headmaster of a literal Academy of Evil.
- Psycho Electro: The head of an Academy of Evil and can fire lightning from her fingertips, what's more to be said?
N. Trance
Voiced by: Tom Bourdon (2003)
An egg-like being from the Fifth Dimension and the self-proclaimed master of hypnotism.
Tropes associated with N. Trance:
- Brainwashed and Crazy: N. Trance's modus operandi is doing this to his foes.
- Cephalothorax: He's an egg-shaped alien being, with a mechanical body to help him move.
Rilla Roo
A hybrid of a gorilla and a kangaroo who only appeared as a playable character in Crash Bash.
Tropes associated with Rilla Roo:
- Biological Mashup
- Flat Character: Shows up for Crash Bash, acts like a monkey, then never shows up again.
Emperor Velo XXVII
Voiced by: Steve Blum (2003)
The extraterrestrial emperor of an unnamed empire who only appears in Crash Nitro Kart. He is confident and dominating to the point of being a bully and showing contempt for his lessors, and kidnaps the best racers on Earth (namely Crash, Cortex and the rest of the cast) to prove his own skill in racing. Upon his defeat to the Earth racers, Velo literally explodes with anger, revealing a pouty, impetuous and childish gremlin not much different from his subjects.
Tropes associated with Velo:
- Aliens Speaking English: Albeit in a Russian accent. He also speaks in English to all of his champions, who come from different planets.
- The Bully
- Large and In Charge: Or so it seems at first.
Krunk
Voiced by: Marshall R Teague (2003)
The racing champion of the planet Terra who appears in Crash Nitro Kart. He challenges Earth's racers on the grounds that Earth is a copy of his Terra. When he loses to Crash's team, he confesses that Terra is actually a copy of Earth.
Tropes associated with Krunk:
- Berserk Button: Seems rather tetchy about Earth's similarities to Terra. Velo very easily convinces him to race the players when he mentions where they came from.
- Defeat Equals Friendship: Crash offers him his iconic yo-yo as a gift from his world.
- Defeat Means Playable: Only in the handheld version of the game.
- Everything's Better with Monkeys: Resembles a blue anthropomorphic baboon or mandrill.
- Graceful Loser: Sadly but willingly gives his opponents his world key. Crash offers him a gift out of sympathy.
- Heel Face Turn: Starts off hostile towards Crash and friends, but apologizes when Crash gives him his yo-yo, and admits that the people of Terra actually copied Earth instead of the other way around. While he plays fair with Cortex's team as well, they merely mock him in response, clearly angering him.
- Tribal Face Paint: Both he and many other Terrans have this, to go along with their tribal nature.
Nash
Voiced by: Billy West (2003)
The racing champion of the planet Barin who appears in Crash Nitro Kart. He is a cybernetic shark engineered to always move, never stopping to even sleep. He is finally put to sleep when Coco hacks into his helmet.
Tropes associated with Nash:
- Defeat Means Playable: Only in the handheld version of the game.
- Everything's Even Worse with Sharks: Subverted. He's a rather small shark, is fairly cute, and ultimately pretty harmless.
- Goggles Do Something Unusual: His goggles function as an opposite to what goggles are supposed to do: keep water out of your eyes. His goggles are actually filled with water, in order to keep his eyes wet since he never blinks.
- Keet: He's engineered to never sleep, making him very edgy and hyperactive.
- Shark Tunnel: His home track Deep Sea Driving is set in one.
- Sore Loser: Demands his key back when he loses.
- Sympathy for the Devil: Coco hacks his brain to take a nap out of sympathy.
- You Have Failed Me: Velo threatens this later on for losing to Cortex and arguing with the competitors.
Norm
Big Norm voiced by: Andre Sogliuzzo (2003)
The racing champion of the planet Fenomena who appears in Crash Nitro Kart. He is a book-loving mime who can split into his normal self and a larger, more obnoxious version of himself to race.
Tropes associated with Norm:
- Big Brother Instinct: Big Norm seems to have something resembling this for Little Norm when you race them.
- Brilliant but Lazy: Regular Norm doesn't actually seem to like racing, preferring to read. Big Norm, however, seems to enjoy the sport. It's shown in how Regular Norm always drives better than Big Norm does.
- Death Mountain: His home track is in Out of Time, situated on mountainous slopes.
- Defeat Equals Friendship: For Crash's team. The clown-hating Cortex tells him to get lost.
- Defeat Means Playable: Only in the handheld version of the game.
- Dual Boss: You'll be racing both of them in their boss race. You only count as taking the lead if you pass Regular Norm.
- Enemy Mime: Though he's less antagonistic than the other bosses in the game. It's implied that Big Norm isn't really a mime, however.
- Face of a Thug: Big Norm looks like an intimidating lout, but is pretty relaxed and friendly despite his competitive streak.
- Fat Bastard: Averted with Big Norm. He looks the part and is cocky about winning, but when defeated he's probably the most level headed and friendly challenger in the entire circuit and he cares deeply about his other half despite the annoying mime getup.
- Graceful Loser: Big Norm.
- Literal Split Personality: There's the normal, small Norm that's mute and likes reading, and the big, fat talkative version of him that actually wants to race.
- Voice for The Voiceless: Going through Little Norm's gameplay voice clip data reveals them to all be Big Norm reacting to what's happening to Little Norm.
- The Voiceless: Regular Norm is committed to his mime act.
Geary
Voiced by: Paul Greenberg (2003)
The racing champion of the planet Teknee who appears in Crash Nitro Kart. He is a robot who is as much obsessed with winning as he is with cleaning, causing him to switch between personalities from time to time.
Tropes associated with Geary:
- Camp Straight: Acts quite femmy, if only because of his voice and obsession with cleaning.
- Defeat Means Playable: Only in the handheld version of the game.
- Friendly Enemy: He'll clean anything. Even his opponents. Neither Tiny or Crash seem that objective to it either.
- Mood Swinger: Switches between a cold, ruthless combatant to a neurotic fusspot (that likes cleaning) in a flash, and back again.
- Neat Freak: His defining trait.
- Red Eyes, Take Warning: His eyes go red whenever he gets serious about racing.
- Super OCD: About cleaning.
- Tomorrowland: His planet Teknee has this theme as shown on its tracks.
- You Have Failed Me: From Velo, who orders him to clear the entire colosseum as punishment.
Zem
Voiced by: Andre Sogliuzzo (2003)
A large, vulgar creature who races alongside Nitros Oxide in Crash Nitro Kart.
Tropes associated with Zem:
- Big Eater: Zem's trash talk mostly concerns his appetite.
- Fat Bastard: Zem is an overweight creature and is a villain.
- Gasshole: Zem burps often while racing.
Zam
Voiced by: Billy West (2003)
Zem's pet dog-like creature who also races alongside Nitros Oxide.
Ebenezer Von Clutch
Voiced by: Danny Mann (2005)
A deranged German cyborg who owns the amusement park "Von Clutch's Motor World". He has only appeared in Crash Tag Team Racing, in which he begs for Crash and the others to find the Power Gems that keep his park up and running and his own Black Power Gem, his life source.
Tropes associated with Von Clutch:
- Bilingual Bonus: He occasionally throws German into his dialogue.
- Cloudcuckoolander: He's a very eccentric individual.
- Gratuitous German: He peppers his speech with German words.
- Pointy-Haired Boss: At least from what his employees imply in gameplay cutscenes.
- Poirot Speak: Speaks in a heavy German accent.
- Those Wacky Nazis: It is implied that Von Clutch served in World War Two under the Axis side.
- The Von Trope Family: He has "Von" in his name.
Pasadena O'Possum
Voiced by: Shanelle Workman (2005)
A Texan-accented racing champion and devoted subordinate of Von Clutch. She has only appeared in Crash Tag Team Racing, and shows a clear infatuation for Crash, something that Crash himself is... less than enthusiastic about.
Tropes associated with Pasadena:
- Chivalrous Pervert: Whenever Crash is around...
- Deep South: She has a Southern accent.
- Drives Like Crazy
- Dumb Blonde: May slide more towards Cloudcuckoolander or Genius Ditz territory, never less someone who doesn't know what 2 plus 2 equals has some severe intelligence issues.
- Ship Tease: When not seeming physically sickened by Pasadena's charms, he does seem to display a slight mutual affection, it is Crash we are talking about though.
- Southern Belle: To an extent, her upbringing is VERY obvious, anyway.
Willie Wumpa Cheeks
Voiced by: Roger L Jackson (2005)
The mascot and producer of Wumpa Whip in Von Clutch's Motor World. He only appears in Crash Tag Team Racing. He is later revealed to be the thief of Von Clutch's Power Gems (though he gives no motive as to why he did it) and is soon liquefied by Doctor Neo Cortex.
Tropes associated with Willie:
- Rhymes on a Dime: Willie is quite fond of reciting limericks relating to the current situation.
Chick and Stew
Chick voiced by: Quinton Flynn (2005)
Stew voiced by: Duane Shepard (2005)
A pair of veteran sportscasters who serve as the tutors of Crash Tag Team Racing.
Tropes associated with Chick and Stew:
- No Celebrities Were Harmed: Chick's voice is clearly channeling Howard Cosell, while Stew's voice has been compared to Charles Barkley and George Foreman.