F-Zero/Characters/F-Zero X
Characters debuting in F-Zero X
#01 Mighty Gazelle (Clinton Gazelle)
One of the best 3D photographers, Mighty was well known by the kids in his neighbourhood for being a great gamer when it came to racing games. After a while, he decided to try the real thing and qualify for the F-Zero GP, being rather legendary in his driving skills. However, fortune didn't smile upon him in the Great Accident and suffered the most injuries. He was only saved by Cyber Stick, inc. turning him into a cyborg. What's worse, the first time his wife saw him after the accident, she ran away from him forever, in tears no less. Afterwards he dedicated his life to F-Zero, much to the chagrin of fans who think it's unfair for a cyborg to race. As of late, however, he seems to be dating a woman and his obsession with F-Zero has started to wane a little.
His Machine is the Red Gazelle, rated E-A-C, weighing at 1330kgs and created by Cyber Stick inc. with a CY96-Z1 engine. Due to Mighty's condition, he no longer fears death, and it shows in his machine's very low durability. However, in every other field, the Red Gazelle performs top-notch, despite Mighty's risky driving skills.
- Animal Motifs: The gazelle.
- Ascended Fanboy: He went from being a professional gamer who specialized in racing simulators to an F-Zero racer who can keep up with seasoned racers like Captain Falcon and Dr. Stewart.
- Awesomeness By Analysis: Through analysis and fine-tuning of his robotic limbs, Gazelle can hone his (already impressive) reflex-related components.
- Big Damn Heroes: Outside of F-Zero, he devotes his time to disaster rescue, as his body can go places that ordinary humans can't.
- Brain In a Jar: His anime incarnation. Turns out the brain belongs to Roy Hughes, Clank's Disappeared Dad.
- Cyborg
- The Drifter: Implied.
Mighty Gazelle: "'Plans'? Who needs plans? I go where the wind takes me."
- Dub Name Change: Is known as MM Gazelle in Japan.
- Emergency Transformation: Cyber Stick, inc. saved his life, but not his romance.
- Fragile Speedster: In GX, the Red Gazelle is quite fast and stable, with good boosting abilities, but that durability...
- I Know Mortal Kombat: Pre-cyborgfication, Gazelle was encouraged to try out for the races after it was discovered that he was a pro at the video game.
- Lightning Can Do Anything: A very tame example.
Mighty Gazelle: "A million volts of running power - who can catch me?"
- Near-Death Experience: The Horrific Grand Finale, the reason for who/what he is today.
- Robo Speak: Subverted. He doesn't appear to come off as detached or machine-like. If anything, it sounds more like he's using Auto-Tune.
- Transformation Sequence: Mighty Gazelle's bonus video in GX features an impressive transformation sequence ... into a moped.
- We Can Rebuild Him: Cyber Stick Inc. had to replace most of his body parts with cybernetics in order to save his life.
- What Is This Thing You Call Love?: Gazelle!Roy is initially unable to remember his life as a human. He finally comes to his senses thanks to the cries of his son, hugging his son to shield him from an explosion and shutting down due to the damage he sustained. He is reassembled at a later date, and eventually regains his human body at the end of the series.
#02 Jody Summer
Daughter of Mason Summer, Jody is well-respected by her peers for not only her great physical prowess (and they are great), but as the spokeswoman for the Galactic Space Federation. After hearing word that her father had died in a crash during a flight to the Leonid System, she took up F-Zero racing in his honor. Despite being a novice at F-Zero, she quickly became a top racer due to her incredible high-speed control and amassed rivals just a fast. Quite often, however, John Tanaka races alongside her for her protection, despite the fact that she wants him to leave her alone.
Her Machine is the White Cat, named after Mason's nickname for her. It is ranked C-C-A, weighs only 1150kgs and created by the Galactic Space Federation with four FGS-EO55S engines. The machine focuses more on grip than anything else, making it rather average in the other stats. This makes driving on any course easier than normal and is a great choice for beginners.
- Action Girl: She was quite the Little Miss Badass, having lived a lifetime's worth of achievements by the time she was 18 [1], and seems to have kept her merits in adulthood. For this reason alone, she was made "Miss Galactic Space Federation" and operates as a spokeswoman for the organization.
- Animal Motifs: Cat.
- Appropriated Appellation: In a sense. White Cat was a pet name her father gave to Jody, who in turn bestowed it on her vehicle in honor of him.
- Ascended Extra: In the anime.
- Cartoon Conductor, Magic Music, Magic Dance: Invoked in her GX bonus video.
- Christmas Cake: She's 25 as of GX, but still without a suitor. This being a more westerned-themed game, it isn't brought up and thought of as normal.
- Cry Cute: Several times towards the end of the anime.
- Damsel in Distress: In Chapter 5 of Story Mode in GX. She avoids Chickification on the basis that Black Shadow mows over everyone not named Captain Falcon or Deathborn and was holding Jody hostage as bait to lure out Falcon. Unfazed by her capture, she was ready and rearing to race in the Grand Prix the next day. In other words, Badass in Distress and Badass Damsel.
- Dark Horse Victory: People are expecting Jody to pull this off due to her ability to control speed.
- Disappeared Dad: Her father, Mason Summer, was the inventor of the G-Diffuser anti-gravity system. She began training for the F-Zero GP upon learning that he had died when his ship crashed during a flight to the Leonid System.
- Good-Looking Privates
- Hair Flip: One of her Idle Animations in the Machine Settings screen from GX/AX.
- Heartbroken Badass: Her anime incarnation, towards her dead older brother. Unlike Ryu/Rick, she's decided to move on and enjoy the finer things in the world, not letting her life be controlled by Revenge.
- Hot Amazon: Being a self-made woman and a highly-capable combat-machine pilot, Jody has several admirers among her peers and superiors (most of all, John Tanaka). It doesn't hurt that she's eye-candy either.
- Lady of War
- No Badass to His Valet/No Hero to His Valet: For Captain Falcon in the anime. She is his younger sister after all.
- Officer And A Lady: The grace and femininity of a woman, but Jody definitely knows when to unceremoniously drop the hammer of justice down upon evildoers.
- Onee-Sama: Plays this role to entire Mobile Task Force. As her sweet side begins to surface, she upgrades to Team Mom.
- Fittingly so, her voice in the anime is provided by seiyuu Kikuko Inoue. Perfect casting choice.
- Racing Stilettos
- Reasonable Authority Figure: As the spokeswoman of a para-militaristic organization that works to ensure law, order, peace, and harmony throughout the cosmos and holds control over seven galaxies, Jody comes across as this.
- Robotic Reveal: When Jody is injured early on in the anime thanks to Ryu/Rick's recklessness, he discovers that she's a Cyborg.
- She's Got Legs
- Spell My Name with an "S": It's Summer, not Summers.
- Stop Helping Me!: Although she's polite and amiable enough to not say it aloud, this is how she feels about John Tanaka's "help." She treasures his value on her team as a mechanic, just not during the races.
- Supercop: In the anime, before joining the Mobile Task Force.
- Tall, Dark and Bishoujo
- Underwear of Power/Thong of Shielding: The latter applies to GX.
- Veronica Taylor: Jody Summer, we choose you!
- Wave Motion Gun: The HSQ skyrocketed during Jody's CMOA and CMOF in Episode 21 of the anime, where she nonchalantly reveals her White Cat to be equipped with one and opens fire on every other single racer. Not even Black Shadow can muster up the right combination of words to explain it.
- Why Did It Have To Be Octopi?: She confesses to a dislike of octopi in GX. When playing as Octoman in X or GX, Jody tends to be the player the computer chooses to be your rival.
- Woman in White: Underneath the pink lingerie, anyway.
#04 Baba
Baba is an enthusiastic, free willed man from Giant. He was recruited into the F-Zero GP due to his preternatural animal instincts and a resilient, well-toned physique. Upon recruitment, he underwent extensive training in order to get 1st prize. Since he didn't win, he underwent a spiritual journey so he could (obviously). The result made him twice as strong and overconfident for GX.
His Machine is the Iron Tiger, ranked B-D-A, weighs 1780kgs, has two RF-2E-SD engines and was created by the F-Zero Pilot Training School. The design focuses on making sure up-and-coming F-Zero pilots could handle the average F-Zero race. Fortunately, the Iron Tiger has an excellent stability control, that, with Baba's wild driving skills (and everything else), makes the Iron Tiger a formidable machine.
- Animal Motifs: Tiger.
- Camp Gay: His voice and his GX video.
- Gorgeous George: If you were kidding yourself, then he'd fall under this. But seriously, you'd have to be kidding yourself. Baba isn't just flaming, he's screaming. Just watch his interviews with Mr. Zero or his ending in GX; you will either gag or be unable to keep a straight face.
- Cool Helmet
- Cool Shades
- Macho Camp: He's effeminate but muscular.
- Pride Before a Fall: Not there yet, but he's setting himself up for this, seeing as his cockiness is pushing him towards Arrogant F-Zero Guy status.
- Primal Stance: His default pose when tweaking your vehicle's speed setting in GX.
- The Racing Narcissist: He might give Vega a run for his money.
- Screams Like a Little Girl: In X. Everyone thought it was a glitch at first, but then came GX...
- Sissy Villain: In the anime, he occasionally works for Dark Million, although this is subverted, as Baba isn't nearly as flamboyant in the anime.
- Ted Lewis: In the anime's dub.
- Walking the Earth: After losing in the GP in X, Baba, knowing that there was still much he needed to learn, set off of a spiritual journey.
- Wild Child
#08 Octoman
- Animal-Themed Superbeing: Don't let his name fool you; he's actually an elephant-themed hero.
- Animal Motifs: Likens himself to an elephant, oddly enough.
Mr. Zero: "If you compared yourself to an animal, what would it be?"
Octoman: "Gentle, but strong. I'd have to say an elephant?"
- Arrogant Kung Fu Guy: An I.Q.-related version, but not an Insufferable Genius.
- Ass in Ambassador: It's not entirely his fault; despite trying to maintain peaceful relations between Earth and Takora, his tendency to flaunt his intellectual superiority has him come off as stuck-up at times. However, he does show genuine friendliness towards those who earn his respect and are of a comparable I.Q. level.
- Badass Arm-Fold: Does this with two of his tentacles in GX while at the Machine Settings screen.
- Eric Stuart: Voices him in the anime's dub.
- Everything's Squishier with Cephalopods: The comical and friendly kind; he was even one of the first examples.
- Friend to All Children: Much like Leon, he's racing to support the younglings of his home planet.
- Friend to All Living Things: Averted, although his goal is almost as good (for him anyway); he's trying to save his fellow octopi the universe over from being eaten.
- Grass Is Greener: If you think being an octopus in cool, Octoman will be quick to remind you about the possibility of being eaten.
- Happily Married: A wife and nine kids.
- Intergenerational Friendship: He takes kindly to anyone who can match or even rival his intellectual prowess. For this reason, he enjoys the company of Mr. EAD, Dr. Clash, and Mrs. Arrow. The latter he is especially fond of, as she's probably the only human alive who speaks his language. Octoman is 88 in human years, Mrs. Arrow is 27.
- Punch Clock Villain: In the anime, where he races to support his family, not the ambitions of Dark Million.
- Racing Tentacles: He chalks up the bulk of his racing abilities to his extra arms.
- Reused Character Design: In Star Fox Command, Octoman appears as a member of the Anglar Empire.
- Underwear of Power
- We Are as Mayflies: He's 88 years old and acts like a middle-aged man.
#09 Mr. EAD
- Ambiguously Gay: He acts very campy. Keep in mind that he's an android, which makes things even more complicated.
- Artificial Human: Created by EAD's R&D to see how fast an artificial being would be against regular humans.
- Badass Mustache
- Bodyguard Crush: Towards Kate Alen in the anime (he's an android and she's a human; we know), prompting him to enact a You Shall Not Pass Heroic Sacrifice by taking the brunt of a speeding F-Zero machine head-on. Luckily, he's A-Ok.
- Do Androids Dream?: His answer is a big yes, especially pertaining to his brother.
- The Faceless: Only by a technicality. Mr. EAD is able to remove his face (which is a bit unsettling, but not quite at Nightmare Fuel levels). That way, he'll be prepared in case Optimus shows up.
- Joke Character: Allegedly, his machine is weak to test his resilience.
- He's named EAD for a reason. And it's 100% intentional.
- Knuckle-Cracking
- Noblewoman's Laugh: Yes, really.
- Patriotic Fervor: "Banzai!" For the record, he was built in Kyoto, Japan. Ring a bell?
- Shout-Out: To Nintendo's EAD group, as well as Mario. Heck, his creator was named Shiggs Mapone!
- He likes Italian food, wears a Starman on his belt, dreams of becoming more human and wearing overalls, and eats lots of cake in his GX ending. Investing in the robot manufacturing business looks like it'll pay off, Nintendo.
- Stout Strength: He is second-fattest character in the franchise after Don Genie, but he has the most well-defined biceps.
- Super Prototype: If he wins, expect to see an assembly line of him.
- Underwear of Power
- Wayne Grayson: There's a "Brooklyn Rage!" joke here somewhere...
#10 James McCloud
A mercenary and Ace Pilot, leader of the Galaxy Dog group. If his name sounds familiar, it should.
- Anime Hair: GX adds a white streak to his hair, making him resemble Fox's dad even more.
- Badass: He doesn't even try to be. He just is.
- Catch Phrase: "Friendship is a treasure that lasts a lifetime."
- Cool Shades:
- The Glasses Come Off: His victory still in X is, to date, the only time we've seen James without his sunglasses. Otherwise...
- Sunglasses at Night: ... he keeps 'em on at all times.
- Everythings Funkier With Disco: His ending in GX. Turns out that Peppy was right.
- Fingerless Gloves
- Happily Married: Kid included.
- Homage/Shout-Out: Take a wild freaking guess.
- To clarify (for those not knowledgeable about the mythos): He's the leader of the Galaxy Dog squadron of mercenaries and works to support his wife and young son (who he is raising to be a better man than himself). His Little Wyvern (which resembles a modified, wingless Arwing) was created by Space Dynamics, the same group responsible for--you guessed it--the Arwings. The anime even gives him a partner named O'Donnell.
- Hot Dad: He can be your daddy any day.
- Retired Badass: In the anime. He offers up his training and advice to the heroes when they scout out him out. He's also harboring a dangerous secret: he once functioned as a drill sergeant for Dark Million in the past.
- Scarf of Asskicking: He wears a red scarf, another reference to Star Fox.
- Shin'ichiro Miki: Seiyuu for the anime.
- Sigil Spam: Wears the Galaxy Dog logo (he designed it himself) on the back of his flight jacket.
- There Are No Coincidences: "No, there are no miracles in F-Zero. I earned this victory."
- True Companions: Galaxy Dog, natch.
James McCloud: "My mates at Galaxy Dog are the greatest!"
#11 Billy (Eeeach Koo-koo-koo Yia)
- Big Fun: His enthusiastic, jovial nature makes it easy for him to get along with the other pilots.
- Everything's Better with Monkeys
- In the Blood: One of his ancestors was a trained space pilot and the first monkey to go into orbit. Subverted when people are unsure if Billy's racing aptitude is due to good genetics.
- Money Fetish: In GX, a lot of his winning quotes have to do with money.
- Trademark Favorite Food: Bananas, obviously. Perhaps that why he's so obsessed with money?
- Two of Your Earth Minutes: He's seven in Earth years, but is actually about halfway through his projected life expectancy of sixteen years.
- Underwear of Power
#12 Kate Alen
- Audio Erotica: In-universe, her soulful singing voice is considered to be this.
- Bare Your Midriff: As a result of GX taking away her spandex.
- Captain Ersatz: As a child, she and her ten brothers formed a band known as the Alen Eleven, a clear knockoff of the Jackson 5.
- Christmas Cake: 30 and fine, but single. Though no one thinks anything of it in the future.
- Dance Racer: Thanks to her sense of rhythm and athleticism picked up from her years of singing and dancing, Kate was able to quickly adjust to the F-Zero races. She even describes the event being "just like dancing".
- Fashion Show: Her bonus video from GX. Involves Unlimited Wardrobe, as it's a one woman show.
- Former Child Star: Subverted. She's far more popular as a mega-platinum superstar than when she performed with her family.
- Funny Afro:
- Afro Asskicker: This one is really up to the player.
- Idol Singer
- In the Blood: Her parents were successful recording artists and her older brother were also singers.
- Massive-Numbered Siblings/Nuclear Family: She has ten older brothers.
- The Prima Donna: Considers herself to be one of the racetrack, but this might be a subversion, given her attitude and the modern denotation of the word.
- Racing Stilettos
- Sassy Black Woman: Her quotes and mannerisms give off shades of this, but if anything, she's closer to being a mild example of a Soul Sista.
- She's Got Legs
- Stripperific: In GX. See for yourself.
- Underwear of Power: At first. In GX, she loses the white bodysuit, turning her getup into a Chainmail Bikini-Thong of Shielding combo.
- You Go, Girl!
#13 Zoda
- Arch Enemy: Of the Arrows. He's something of a lesser rival to Falcon, as Falcon rounded up most of his henchmen.
- Ascended Extra: In the anime.
- Ax Crazy: He has it out for the Arrows and Falcon.
- Because Destiny Says So: In the anime, it turns out that Zoda was created by Black Shadow and sent to the past to find Ryu/Rick to enact a centuries-long Ancient Conspiracy. Zoda does not take in this tidbit well.
- Bizarre Alien Biology: Possibly subverted, as Zoda reveals that he's some sort of advanced human, but who knows?
- Car Fu: How he takes care of Rick/Ryu in the anime's pilot episode: he kicks off the door of his getaway vehicle and sends it flying right through his pursuer's front windshield.
- Cool Mask: He loses half of it in GX.
- The Dragon: To Black Shadow in the anime, at first. He then starts taking advice from Starscream, and ends up failing as hard as you'd expect him to.
- Drugs Are Bad: Implied. The device on his head regularly pumps adrenaline and dopamine into his systems, which can be reflected in his state of mind.
- A common Running Gag among the fandom is that he's really on crack. Lots and lots of crack.
- Eviler Makeover: When unthawed in 2201 in the anime, Zoda's body is remodeled to assume his design from the games.
- Evil Genius: Sees himself as one.
- Fangs Are Evil: If he flashes his teeth, that is a sign to run away. Nothing good will ever come of it.
- Humanoid Aliens: Averted, in GX, when asked what planet he's from, he responds:
Zoda: "Earth. I'm not an alien, I'm an improved version of the human!"
- Human Popsicle: In the anime.
- The Hyena
- Laughably Evil: In the games, where despite being evil to a large degree, comes off as funny while making an evil impression to the player, in direct contrast to other evil characters in the series. Partially due to his status as a secondary villain compared to Black Shadow and Deathborn.
- Lean and Mean: He's skinny, creepy and evil.
- Mad Scientist: As seen in his GX ending.
- Man-Eating Plant: "I like to grow flowers... Flowers that kill people!"
- New Powers as the Plot Demands: He inexplicably gains the ability to turn his Hyper Speeder into a fiery dragon for all of one scene. It's awesome, no doubt, but it still makes no sense.
- Not Quite Dead: Although he was thrown into the Dark Reactor by Black Shadow, he appears alive and well for the ending of the anime. Baba and The Skull are mortified.
- One-Winged Angel: Thanks to the power of the Reactor Mights, Zoda transforms into Hyper Zoda about halfway through the anime.
- Smug Snake: He does start to push towards Manipulative Bastardry towards the climax of the anime.
- Sweet Tooth: Often seen devouring copious amounts of ice cream in the anime.
- Take Over the World: His Evil Plan. Take it away, Bison.
Bison: "Of course!"
Zoda: "It's every bad guy's dream, of course!"
- Troll: Look at him and tell us that he doesn't strike you as this.
- Trying To Catch Me Racing Dirty: Win the GP with Zoda in GX, and one interview prompt will have Zoda reveal that he won by sabotaging the other racers' machines. No one seems to care.
- Villainous Crossdresser: Episode 21. Just, Episode 21. It's like watching a bizarro universe version of Sailor Moon, only with the need to introduce your mind's eye to a knife.
- Was Once a Man: GX hinted he's actually a mutated human and this is outright stated in the anime.
- We Can Rule Together: Not one to accept defeat, he's trying to get the Arrows to join The Dark Side so his plans can finally go off without a hitch.
- World of Cardboard Speech: Inverted. By swallowing his pride and giving a Rousing Speech to Ryu/Rick in his Darkest Hour, mere seconds before the latter was going to experience a Despair Event Horizon, Zoda's urging allows his rival to tap into copious amounts of Heroic Resolve and save the day. Way to go, Character Development!
#14 Jack Levin
- Ambiguously Gay/Camp Straight: He's gets the former accusation a lot (his bonus video adds fuel to the fire), but if anything, he's closer to being The Dandy. Remember, while he has some odd clothing quirks, he tries to pull a move on Lisa Brilliant in the anime and has a Groupie Brigade of swooning women in both continuities.
- Anime Hair: Starting with GX.
- Ascended Extra: In the anime.
- Badass Long Hair: As the Death Reaper of Michael Chain's group in the anime.
- Bishonen: The reason he's so popular.
- Boy Band: Was a part of one before joining the F-Zero races.
- Idol Singer: A rare male example.
- Chest Insignia: In the games, his name is written out on his jumpsuit alongside a lightning bolt. In the anime, his name is replaced by a simple "J".
- Disappeared Dad: His father left the family when he was four, forcing Jack to tend to his mother when she was ailing from Gonskie Flu five years later.
- Hair of Gold
- Handsome Lech: He claims that his female fans--all twenty billion of them--are his girlfriends. Why he doesn't pull a move on the handful of single ladies in the games is a good question to ask. In the anime (where he's more of a Chivalrous Pervert and/or The Charmer), Lisa Brilliant uses her womanly wiles to gain access to the Mobile Task Force HQ, ransack it, and make off with Jack's Astro Robin.
- Hidden Depths: Despite his talents as a singer, his piloting skills are exceptional enough to also merit discussion.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: This applies moreso to the anime.
- Kazuki Yao: In the anime. We kid you not.
- Knuckle-Cracking
- Marc Thompson: Yes, you're listening to an Australian Accent Duke Devlin. Women with heart conditions are advised not to look directly at Jack Levin.
- Momma's Boy: By Jack's admission, she's the one person impervious to his charms, which makes her scary to him. Possibly extends from his attachment to his mother during childhood (see Disappeared Dad above).
- Mr. Fanservice: While his status as such is debatable among the fandom, in-universe, YES. Slap his face on anything, and it will sell. As of GX, he's signing his 1,745,233,248 autograph.
- Vitriolic Best Buds: With Ryu/Rick. Doubles as a Big Brother Mentor when the two aren't feuding.
- Wholesome Crossdresser: Episode 21 of the anime eventually explodes into one particularly nasty racing variant of a Cat Fight. He and Ryu/Rick disguise themselves as women to help out, but this doesn't fly once they realize how stupid it is trying to navigate in high heels.
#15 Bio Rex
- Big Eater: Loves ribs, and meat in general. Also loves liquor.
- Carnivore Confusion: As a bio-enigineered T-rex, Bio Rex still has the primal urges to sample his fares (read: "the rest of the cast").
Bio Rex: "I was all revved up to eat my opposition."
Bio Rex: "If I beat you [the other racers] again, I'll eat the lot of you!"
Bio Rex: "Hamburgers, steaks, hot dogs, humans, anything with meat."
Bio Rex: "Everyone you meet is food. Eat all the food in front of you."
Bio Rex: "I'm a gourmand. I won't race against anyone who wouldn't make a good meal."
Bio Rex: "They all looked delicious. Except for Samurai Goroh."
- Everything's Better with Dinosaurs: Biologically-engineered dinosaur people. Fuck yes.
- Genius Bruiser: He was genetically engineered to be one. The "genius" part is sometimes lost.
- Hot-Blooded: This once ended up blowing up in Bio Rex's face. Before he could even race, he was under constant surveillance by the Paparazzi; press conferences, interviews, public appearances, you name it. Eventually, his temper reached a boiling point, causing bad press for his creators, Keerlon Corporation, causing them to cut ties with Bio Rex.
- Marc Thompson: In the anime's dub.
- Primal Stance: What? You expected a genetically-engineered dinosaur to not be an example of this?
- Proud Warrior Race Guy: He races to prove the superiority of dinosaurs to humans.
Bio Rex: "You [Mr. Zero] look surprised. Aren't dinosaurs supposed to win?"
Bio Rex: "I designed it [the Big Fang]. Dinosaurs are smarter than humans."
Bio Rex (to his fans): "Dinosaurs were on this planet long before you humans came along. The Earth belongs to us!"
- Red Eyes, Take Warning: Subverted. Just make sure to stay on his good side.
- Underwear of Power
#16 The Skull (Sterling LaVaughn)
Said to be a former contestant in an ancestor of the F-Zero league (F-MAX), he was revived through black magic and advanced technology to take to the track once more. The Skull rides the Sonic Phantom, a relic of F-MAX, which has stripped down safety features but is extremely light and speedy (rating E-A-C).
- Andrew Rannells: Provides his voice in the dub of the anime.
- Back from the Dead: He's an undead racer who races in a ghost car.
- Black Magic: Aside from the fusion of technology and necromancy used to revive him, the Aura Engines of his Sonic Phantom are rumored to run on the lifeforce of the crowds. Last, but not least, take note of how his ride has no steering wheel. HOW DOES HE PULL IT OFF?
- Blood Knight: He lives (errr...) for racing.
- Crazy Prepared: Pre-Retcon, he was so overtly paranoid about death (as he was extremely lucky to survive each race without a scratch) that he devised a formula for Immortality, by combining an ancient, magical chant and several injections of a prototypical drug designed to preserve the brain. It worked.
- Dark Is Not Evil: Looks sinister, but is really only interested in driving. Mr. Zero in GX isn't afraid of him either, like he is when interviewing the game's "proper" villains.
- Dem Bones
- Dub Name Change: In Japan, his real name is Arbin Gordon.
- Everything's Deader with Zombies
- Grass Is Greener: As a member of the living dead, he notes that living is not all it's cracked up to be.
- Grave Marking Scene: Played for Laughs, possibly extending into Grave Humor. He wants to visit his grave and then take a deep sleep in his coffin.
- The Grim Reaper: Several of his comments in GX mention the netherrealm, which implies that he's some sort of undertaker/ferryman for dead souls. However, he also boasts that "Not even the Grim Reaper could have kept up with me!", so make of that as you will.
The Skull: "This [the Sonic Phantom] has amazing boosters. It could blast ALL the way to the netherworld."
The Skull: "Is this [interview] being broadcast in the Underworld?"
The Skull (to his fellow racers): "Here's a one-way ticket to the netherworld."
The Skull: "Don't lose it [my autograph]. It's your passport to the netherworld."
- Noodle Incident: In the original comic that came with F-Zero X, the Skull claimed to have died in a great accident in F-MAX, which apparently killed a royal scion who was racing in it and caused F-MAX to either get shut down or heavily neutered. He notes that F-Zero is a lot safer due to updates in safety standards.
- Our Zombies Are Different: Type V.
- Power Floats: Both of his Idle Animations at the Settings screen in GX involve The Skull somehow lifting his own body off of the ground as if he were a marionette.
- Red Baron: He was a former legend of the circuit until a tragic accident happened.
- Stealth Mentor: Possibly serves as this for the other racers. Many of his interview quotes are advice to his competition so that they don't end up like him.
#17 Antonio Guster
- Badass Arm-Fold: For some unknown reason, he'll sometimes cross his arms and then shake his head disapprovingly at the Settings screeen.
- Badass Crew: He's the leader of his own gang, most likely a Take That to Goroh.
- Badass Longcoat
- Cool Helmet: And he's hiding a mohawk under that. A huge, blue mohawk.
- Cool Shades: Swapped for Goggles Do Nothing in the anime.
- Fingerless Gloves
- Mad Bomber: His anime incarnation is an explosives expert with an itching trigger-finger (earning him the nickname of "Dynamite Guster" in the dub). It is not a good idea to be around him. Because of his danger factor and mass collateral damage, Goroh kicks him out of his gang. Guster does not enjoy this.
- Revenge: Wants to serve this to Goroh.
- Best Served Cold
- In the Back: He used to be Goroh's best friend and Lancer, but Goroh set him up to be taken in by the Galactic Space Allies during one of their robberies. The two never met again on peaceful terms.
Antonio Guster: "As soon as the Federation put a price on my head, he tried to turn me in."
- The Power of Hate: Hatred is his first and foremost ally.
Antonio Guster: "This is just the beginning of my revenge, Goroh!"
Antonio Guster (on the key to his victory): "Holding on to how much I hate Samurai Goroh."
Antonio Guster (on his future plans): "To beat Samurai Goroh senseless. Don't run away, coward!"
Antonio Guster (on his forte in sports): "Baseball. Yeah, I'd really like to send Goroh a few dead balls."
- The Rival: To Goroh.
#18 Beastman (Christopher Annex)
After nearly dying in a giant crocodile attack on the planet White, Christopher Annex adopted the identity of the fearless hunter Beastman to protect people from rampaging animals. Creating an intimidating costume from the remains of a slain dinosaur like reptile, Beastman hides his bashful nature behind an imposing facade. Originally entering the F-Zero solely for promotional reasons, the race became a more personal endeavor when he heard of Bio Rex, a dinosaur man, competing. Now his goal is to protect people from Bio Rex if he gets out of control.
His Machine is the Hyper Speeder, which bears the rating C-C-A and was personally created by Dr. Clash. Originally an old fighter plane discovered by Beastman while on the prowl, he took it to Dr. Clash to refit it as an F-Zero machine. True to its name, it has the highest top speed of any Medium Load machine, but lacks acceleration and doesn't take well to sharp turns on the higher max speed settings.
- Animal-Themed Superbeing: Again, dinosaurs.
- Animal Motifs: Dinosaurs. Why not?
- Attack! Attack! Attack!: His racing strategy.
- Badass Boast: He gets several in GX, although whether or not he can back it up remains to be seen.
- Becoming the Mask: Underneath his intimidating and aggressive facade, Beastman is extremely shy. However, he seems to gradually making his way towards becoming a real Badass.
- Cool Helmet: It's a trophy made from the biggest animal he's defeated.
- Disproportionate Retribution: Yes, Beastman, having a Near-Death Experience with a giant crodocile is tragic, but working towards "A peaceful world free of wild animals!" (if by "wild" you mean all non-domesticated animals in general, not rampaging beasts) makes you sound like a Well-Intentioned Extremist.
- Expy: Crocodile Dundee and Steve Irwin IN THE 26TH CENTURY!
- Good Scars, Evil Scars: Due to the run-in with the aforementioned crocodile, his entire body is covered in scars.
- The Hunter
- I Know Karate: Learned karate through correspondence courses.
- Nature Hero
- Only in It For the Money: His anime depiction, who is an amoral game hunter (and a Jerkass to boot).
- Reptiles Are Abhorrent: Beastman seems to think so and Bio Rex is admittedly not particularly nice.
- Shout-Out: His poses during the Settings screen in GX are reminiscent of Bruce Lee, whereas his ending draws heavily from Batman.
#19 Leon
- Alien Sky: The Space Angler is the color of the sky on Zou. In all honesty, that means that Zou isn't too different from Earth, but it still sounds kinda cool.
- Animal Stereotypes: Take all of the best traits of the cat family, tie it together in a nice bundle, and you've got Leon.
- Badass:
- Big Badass Wolf: His anime incarnation.
- Our Werewolves Are Different: In the anime, Leon's transformations are not of his own volition, induced by surges in his adrenaline.
- Big Brother Mentor: To the children of Zou. He routinely plays soccer with them (going as far as to promise to build a soccer field for them with the prize money) and helps out at the local orphanage. Overlaps with Friend to All Children.
Mr. Zero: "For the sake of the children, you can't lose, can you?"
Leon: "I fight for a reason. I win for a reason."
- Bishonen: His human form in the anime. Even bishier than Jack.
- Book Dumb/Street Smart: He's said to be not too bright, but extremely cunning.
- Cute Kitten: Come ON, he's an oversized furball! What's not to love?
- Cuteness Proximity: Being an anthromorphic feline himself, Leon seems to have a natural affinity towards cats, as seen in his GX ending.
- Leon himself seems to have this effect on Mrs. Arrow (she's apparently a Mama Bear towards him), as well as some of the fans (particularly the female ones).
- Dark and Troubled Past: See War Is Hell below.
- Dogged Nice Guy: Towards Lucy in the anime, although there is some chemistry between them.
- Mix-and-Match Critters: As of GX, he seems be a cross between a cat and a wolf.
- Expy: Much like King is to Tekken, Leon is his universe's answer to Fray Tormenta. He even mentions that he's planning to take up wrestling and started an orphanage. He did all of this, alongside becoming a racer, "to see the smiles on the kids' faces."
- Happily Adopted: Depending on the source, he was either adopted by Mrs. Arrow after meeting the couple on his homeworld while they were vacationing on a jungle tour and impressing them with his driving skills (according to X) or by Fable, a rebel soldier disgusted by the merciless tactics by his comrades who ultimately led the people of Zou to a shaky victory against their invaders and designed the Space Angler to ensure that the already impoverished race wouldn't have to dig themselves deeper (according to GX).
- Informed Ability: Poor Leon. The manual states that he's gotten better over time, but the AI plays him like crap in GX.
- Interspecies Adoption: By either the Arrows or Fable.
- It Was a Gift: His gloves, which were a present from the children.
- Keet
- Meaningful Name: Leon is Greek and Spanish for "lion".
- The Pollyana: Rare male example.
- Retcon: In X, his planet was called Kalicho/Kericho. In GX, it is instead Zou.
- His design itself can somewhat stem from this (as opposed to Art Evolution). In X, it was more apparent that Leon was a cat, and while he had two scars on his face, both eyes were in working order. In GX, his appearance looks more like a wolf. He retains the scars, but not his left eye. Oddly enough, his appearance in his GX Master Class video uses his GX look, with the exception of having two scars on his face but both of his eyes.
- Underwear of Power
- War Is Hell: His Backstory plays this one depressingly straight, as the big war that sacked Zou when Leon was only a cub of four years left Leon as an orphan bereft of his left eye, as well as utterly screwing over Zou's populace and economy. Amazingly enough, Leon remains unshaken by these events.
#20 Super Arrow
- Animal Motifs: His would appear to be avians.
- Brought to You by The Letter "S": In case you forgot who he was, there's an "A" plastered on his mask.
- Bunny Ears Lawyer: He's eccentric to say the least, but he isn't the defender of Earth for nothing.
- The Cape (trope): And he comes with a pretty awesome cape to boot. Probably overlaps with The Paragon.
- Cool Mask
- Doing It for the Art: He genuinely enjoys his tenure as a superhero, despite the drawbacks (such as low wages). May lead to (or result from) Chronic Hero Syndrome.
- Henpecked Husband: He gets an allowance from her. When he was beating around the bush with his marriage proposal, she ordered him to marry her. Despite Super Arrow's unrelenting attitude towards criminals, Mrs. Arrow clearly wears the pants in this relationship.
Super Arrow (on who's the better racer): "I concede that victory to my wife. I'm scarred not to!"
- Humble Hero: He's the farthest thing from a Smug Super.
- I Call It Vera: Refers to the King Meteor as his "sword of justice".
- Idiot Hero: He hit this wall in the anime and kept on going, almost to Super Zeroes levels. There are a few moments of laudable competence here and there, but Super Arrow is generally meant to be Comic Relief.
- Played for Laughs when Michael Chain kidnaps him and several other characters. His Dream Sequence consists of him doing crazy stuff like cutting through their laser-encased prison with a Katanas Are Just Better. Supes is distraught when he wakes up.
- Informed Ability: According to X, Super Arrow was a skilled enough racer to be the only pilot who made it through the bloody Horrific Grand Finale. In GX, this was retconned; Super Arrow had to hastily sign up for the races and was a neophtye who used his superpowers to give the illusion of actual ability. The games have never demonstrated what those powers are (not including his video in GX, where he's shown to have Flight and mad guitar skillz), so it's unknown if he possesses the usual fare or something more mundane.
- Justice Will Prevail: This is essentially his Catch Phrase.
Super Arrow (on his reasons for becoming a racer): "For justice and galactic peace."
Super Arrow: "Justice always wins in the end."
- Large Ham: Taken to unprecedented levels in the anime.
- May-September Romance: With Mrs. Arrow. He's eight years her senior (as of GX, he's 35, she's 27), but the specifics of their love story is hazy.
- Robot Buddy: Speed Bird, his silent bird companion who doubles as the Team Pet and was a gift from Lazlo Falconi, a merchant who was one of Super Arrow's sponsors. In the anime, it is instead Plucky Comic Relief.
Super Arrow: "It brings me good luck."
- Secret Identity: Alluded to.
Super Arrow: "The defender of justice must keep his face hidden."
- Shout-Out: Somebody's been watching a bit too much Batman: The Animated Series.
Super Arrow: "I am Champion! I am Justice! I am SUPER ARROW!"
- Superhero
- Superheroes Wear Tights: He's a classic superhero call back, all right.
- Super Sentai Stance: Fond of these.
- They Fight Crime: Alongside his wife, he defends Earth.
#21 Mrs. Arrow (Monique L'amoreaux Arrow)
Monique L'amoreaux was born into a wealthy family, her father was a powerful businessman in neuroplastics, and her mother was vice president of the Milky Way Federation. She was surrounded by servants since she was an only child and received an excellent education in music and linguistics. She met Super Arrow while recruiting for the revived Grand Prix before X. Monique fell for Super Arrow and the two wed. Monique, now simply called Mrs. Arrow, gave up her old job as an F-Zero supermodel a joined Super Arrow as a racer, though she focuses on helping her husband rather than winning herself.
Her Machine is the Queen Meteor, ranked E-B-B, weighs 1140kgs, has two HW305-U2 engines and was created by Professor Hollow as well. It's nearly identical to the King Meteor above, but heavier, giving slightly more stability. It still has great boost and grip and cruddy integrity, but it performs better due to the extra weight.
- Action Girl: Her superheroics are a bit of an Informed Ability, but her prowess on the track is undeniable.
- Action Mom: She's shown to have an infant child in Captain Falcon's Master Class video from GX, meaning she's liable to become this in a few years' time. That she's already a Mama Bear in regards to Leon (going by X) and not above emasculating her husband suggests she additionally has the makings of an Almighty Mom.
- All Amazons Want Hercules: Played with extensively. Was she attracted to his strength? Was he attracted to hers? Both? Something else entirely?
- Amazonian Beauty: In the games. She's more slender like the other ladies in the anime.
- Battle Couple: Given her comments, it can be inferred that she doesn't just aid Super Arrow on the track, but with his superheroics (despite having no inherent superpowers of her own) as well! Badass Normal, anyone?
- Crimefighting with Cash: Seeing as she's the primary source of Super Arrow's income, yes.
- Beauty, Brains, and Brawn: She is literally all three.
- Bob Haircut
- Cool Shades: She possess a pair of purple Triangle Shades in X. She loses them in her victory photo from X and in GX entirely (instead wearing another pair in her GX ending), but dons them again in the anime.
- Distracted by the Sexy: In-universe, her ending in GX, the appropriately-titled "The Charm of Mrs. Arrow."
- Dumb Blonde/Brainless Beauty: Averted astronomically hard. In terms of I.Q., she's up there with Mr. EAQ (highly intelligent android), Octoman (member of a species that prides itself on its intellectual superiority), and Dr. Clash (the man responsible for most of the innovations found in the current F-Zero machines). Growing up, she received an excellent education is music and linguistics. She's a multitalented musician (to the point that she plays with the Federation Orchestra whenever she catches up with them) and is fluent in over 40 languages, including Takoran, Octoman's native tongue (a language so difficult to grasp that it was believed to be impossible for human comprehension). Thanks to her classy upbringing (most likely Homeschooled Kids to boot), she's far more than a pretty face.
- Expy: Perhaps unintentional, but her design [2] shares a few traits with that of Power Girl, such as this depiction [dead link] and as Power Woman in Kingdom Come (both drawn by Alex Ross).
- Genius Bruiser: Factoring in all of the tropes regarding her appearance and smarts, and she easily comes across as this.
- Officer, Lady, and a Scholar: Likewise, given her social status. The "Officer" part is a somewhat debatable, given that she and her husband are technically vigilantes, but overall, she fits the bill.
- Hair of Gold: There are times when she comes across as vain (such as calling herself "the most beautiful champion in F-Zero history") and overconfident ("Was such a Foregone Conclusion boring to watch?"), but her heart is always in the right place. For example, she averts being a Rich Bitch by offering up the prize money to charity.
- Everyone Loves Blondes: Considering that she's the only female in the games to actually marry, yes.
- Hair Color Dissonance: Some of her artwork from X depicts Mrs. Arrow as more of a strawberry blonde.
- Happily Married: Hence the title, "Mrs.".
- Single Woman Seeks Good Man
- Moe Couplet: She and Super Arrow have the makings of one. It's not quite Belligerent Sexual Tension and far from The Masochism Tango (although Mrs. Arrow does have to dispel rumors about this in GX), but they bring out the best qualities in each other and they really do have a loving relationship.
- Hot Amazon: Beautiful, curvaceous, and very talented? Check. And hey, she's married, so Super Arrow is obviously attracted to her. On top of this, Mrs. Arrow is built like a brick house, so she's a rare example of this trope that actually looks physically strong.
- Hot Mom: While she adopted Leon (according to X) and the jury's still out on GX, the moment it's confirmed that she's with child, she will be--without a question--a MILF. (Given her personality, probably an Almighty Mom and an Action Mom, too).
- Confirmed. Captain Falcon's ending in GX shows him rescuing her baby from a speeding train.
- Hot Teacher: She and Super Arrow founded and run the F-Zero Racing School in order to recruit and train prospective racers. She's also a private tutor for her husband, which makes for an interesting spin on a Sexy Mentor Ship.
- Iconic Item: She's never seen without that emerald/jade-encrusted necklace of hers, although the significance of it is unknown.
- Impossible Hourglass Figure
- Justice Will Prevail: She's just as keen as her husband is on keeping the peace (maybe that's why they clicked?).
Mrs. Arrow: "The Arrows go wherever evil is."
Mrs. Arrow: (on her future plans): "I'd like to take a vacation, but there is no rest for the defenders of justice."
Mr. Zero: "I've heard the justice of Mrs. Arrow is known for its severity!"
Mrs. Arrow: "Racers who break the rules will be severely punished!"
- Lady in Red
- Lady of War: Her official title in GX is "The Elegant Mrs. Superhero."
- Lisa Ortiz: In the anime.
- Nice Hat: In episode 20 of the anime ("The Disappearance of Mrs. Arrow"), her winter wear is shown to be a pink hat that looks like an ushanka and a matching fur coat.
- Ojou: Her father is a powerful businessman in the neuroplastics industry, while her mother was the former vice president of the Milky Way Federation. As the sole heiress of these two, her childhood consisted of being catered by numerous servant and having the liberty to pursue any dream she saw fit. It doesn't help that her family appears to be loaded.
- Aunt Pennybags: Maybe. Her financial-related goals are quite altruistic in comparison to some of the other characters' plans with the prize money.
- Socialite: It's a stretch, but she does have the air and presence of one. She even resembles a more muscular version of the page picture.
- Spoiled Sweet: Definitely.
- Racing Stilettos
- She's Got Legs
- Team Mom: Despite being a better racer than Super Arrow by lightyears, she wholly devotes her time and experience to ensuring his success. Additionally, she adopted Leon (according to X) and is overly protective of him, suggesting that she's a Kindhearted Cat Lover.
- Theme Naming: She pilots the Queen Meteor, while her hubby races in the King Meteor. Both machines are similar in appearance and sport a heart decal with Cupid's Arrow running through it, complete with the words "King & Queen" written on a banner underneath. Awwww.
- Tsundere: Implied. She's a kindhearted woman, a loving and faithful wife, and a valuable friend to many. Yet, she's one of the more aggressive racers, and GX goes to great lengths to show that she has Super Arrow whipped. Her default mood is unknown, but the hints we've been given point at Type B.
- Underwear of Power: Apparently, the combination of a matching bra, thong and high-heeled boots worn over a skin-tight bodysuit is all the rage in the 26th century.
- Willfully Weak: As noted above, Mrs. Arrow spends her time defending her husband instead of actually trying to win the GP for herself.
#22 Gomar and Shioh
A pair of aliens of a little-seen race who always race as a duo, somehow both driving at once. Their double-cockpit Machine is the lightest, weakest and fastest machine in the game.
- Bash Brothers
- Fat and Skinny: Gomar is short and broad while Shioh is tall and lanky.
- Fragile Speedster: THE Fragile Speedster in this game.
- During their one-shot appearance in the anime, boosting caused the Twin Noritta to wreck its own armor.
- Fun Personified
- Heterosexual Life Partners: Everybody on their planet is paired like this. It's commonly misconstrued as Ho Yay, mainly due to their ending in GX.
- Humanoid Aliens: They're fairly humanoid.
- Scarf of Asskicking: In their case, probably not. It's actually a Scarf Of Friendship.
- Shorter Means Smarter: Shioh depends on Gomar to make the decisions.
- Twin Telepathy:
- Single-Minded Twins: Subverted. While they're usually on the same page, the duo is shown to have conflicting ideas on a few topics.
Mr. Zero: "How will you use the one billion space credits in prize money?"
Shioh: "Save it."
Gomar: "Gamble with it."
Mr. Zero: "What do you treasure most in life?"
Gomar: "My partner."
Shioh: "Money!"
#23 Silver Neelson
- Badass Beard:
- Stroke the Beard: Silver's render in GX has him doing this.
- Badass Grandpa: He's the oldest among the human F-Zero pilots, at a whopping 98 years old.
- Badass Mustache
- Bin Shimada: The seiyuu of old!Silver in the anime.
- Celebrity Resemblance: That you, legendary country singer Willie Nelson?
- Cool Helmet
- Cool Old Guy: Due to his decades upon decades of lifetime experience, Silver is a veritable cornucopia of knowledge and is considered to be an excellent teacher. Get a few drinks into him, and you can receive an entire year's worth of racing experience in the span of a single evening. Sounds like a pretty good deal.
- Dark Horse Victory: Even moreso than Jody. He's a fan-favorite due to his status and the ultimate underdog, and fans have begun to bet on him with the reasoning (via law of averages) that eventually, he'll have to win.
- Determinator: Has the longest streak of joining the races and never won a title, and yet still races for that one title of champion. Someone give this man a medal for enduring this long.
- His status as such has given him the In-Series Nickname of "Ironman Silver".
Silver Neelson: "Silver Neelson. The most aggresive old man in the galaxy!" (laughs)
- Easy Amnesia: He's 98. He probably has Alzheimer's, even though it's Played for Laughs.
- Goggles Do Nothing
- Grumpy Old Man: He's become quite cranky in his old age. With a love for more antique models, he often criticizes the newfanged machines the other pilots race in. As expected, they tend to keep their distance, believing that he's gone senile.
- Heterosexual Life Partners: He and his childhood friend, Gold Hand. How much? Gold's mind and emotions were preserved in the cybernetic systems of the Night Thunder. Truly a friendship that will last a lifetime.
- The Hyena: According to Silver, laughing is the secret behind his longevity.
- Kavorka Man: At the end of his Character Focus episode, two noticeably younger babes show an interest in him. His reaction shouts "Dirty Old Man", but to his credit, young!Silver was pretty handsome.
- Ten-Minute Retirement: Since he'll be turning 100 in a matter of two years, Silver has considered calling it quits, but knowing him, he'll still probably be competing long after he's a centenarian.
- Theme Naming: He's Silver, his best friend was named Gold.
- Weak but Skilled: As he distrusts the newer technology found in F-Zero machines, it takes a good deal of technical adeptness to properly drive the Night Thunder, a machine lacking even the secondhand technology found in vehicles like the Deep Claw and Space Angler. Silver has no qualms about this.
- When Elders Attack: In Goroh's Master Class video in GX. When Goroh doesn't yield to Silver's right of way as a pedestrian, Silver chases after him and delivers some good ol' Cane Fu to his head.
- Your Days Are Numbered: Realizing this, Silver lives each day as if it were his last (he also passes this maxim onto his fans). His last hurrah is going to be both spectacular and heartbreaking.
#24 Michael Chain
Leader of the racing gang known as the Bloody Chain, racing is all Michael has ever known. After his parents were killed in a drive-by shooting, he raced simply to get attention... and evade police. The Bloody Chain at one point boasted over 10,000 active members across the galaxy... it was at this point that Michael joined the F-Zero to represent all he had worked for. However, a losing record has caused many of its members to lose heart, and membership has dropped considerably; in a few years, it might be dissolved completely unless Michael can turn his luck around. He listens to a combination of Heavy Metal and Opera while racing because it reminds him of his parents, and is generally a very aggressive driver.
His Machine, the Wild Boar, has an A-C-C rating and was created by Asteroid Motors. Its strong armor suits itself very well to Michael's full contact racing style, but it suffers in many other areas, not least of which being actual speed and acceleration. Additionally, it's the single loudest machine to ever compete; it's rumored that the airfoils along the ship's spine were added solely to increase its sound output.
- Adaptational Badass: Quite a bit more imposing in the anime.
- Ambition Is Evil:
Michael Chain: "Fame! Money! Power! And the Grand Prix gave me them all!" (Evil Laugh)
Michael Chain (to his fellow Bloody Chain members): "Stay with me and you'll get money and women beyond your wildest dreams!"
- Badass Arm-Fold: One of his actions at the Settings screen has him briefly doing this while chuckling to himself.
- Badass Crew: Subverted oh so hard. You'd think that a group of ugly, muscular thugs would be imposing, right? WRONG! They're nothing more than a flock of Mooks, Chain himself being possibly eligible for Elite Mook status. In fact, Chain's once massive band is quickly dwindling in number due to his incompetence as a racer; it's theorized that the Bloody Chain will fully dissolve in the span of a few years (however, at the height of their power, the Bloody Chain did have 10,000 members and control over three planets...).
- Played a tad bitter straighter with his Space Racer Clan in the anime, although it's nothing remarkable.
- Bald Black Leader Guy
- Bald of Evil Bad
- Blackmail: He pressures a millionare named Truman to capture strong racers in the anime so that he can easily make it to the top, threatening to harm his girlfriend Dream if Truman didn't reply. Ryu/Rick, Lucy, and the Arrows are on his list, but band together to screw over Michael.
- Bling Bling Bang: If he wins, he plans to plate the Wild Boar in gold, turning it into the Golden Boar.
- Chest Insignia: Depending on his costume, either a dragon or an Unicorn emblem.
- Cool Shades:
- Dan Green: His VA in the dub of the anime.
- Does This Remind You of Anything?: His ending in GX. What's the first thing that comes to your mind at 0:29?
- Even Bad Men Love Their Parents: While racing, Michael listens to a combination of Heavy Metal and Opera. Why? It reminds him of his parents.
- Gonk: He and every single other Bloody Chain member. Especially the Bloody Chain members.
- I Know Karate: Takes up boxing in his spare time.
- Irony: His parents died due to gang violence. In adulthood, he's now the leader of a gang.
- Might Makes Right: "I make all the rules! I do as I want!"
- Scary Black Man: Subverted. He's a musclebound poser.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: In GX's Story Mode, after Falcon lays down some vehicular beatdown, all of Chain's lackeys pull this on the big guy himself when he orders them to stay on Falcon's trail. With his crew having abandoned him, Chain has no choice but to retreat as well.
- Top-Heavy Guy: Veers dangerously close to this.
- Weapon of Choice: The anime aptly gives him a kunai-tipped chain Whip It Good.
#25 Blood Falcon
A clone of Captain Falcon created while Falcon was in the hospital from the Great Accident. Being only four years old, he follows only Black Shadow's command and vows to destroy Captain Falcon. However, as of late he's been pondering weather or not he's actually human or elsewise.
His Machine is the Hell Hawk (Blood Hawk in America), has a B-A-E rating, weighs 1170kgs, has two DS019G and two BF2001 engines and was created by the BS Group. It was supposed to be like the Blue Falcon, but BS Group gave it much more speed in order to compete against it. However, they had to sacrifice grip, so while it is fast, it's hard to control.
- Animal-Themed Superbeing: Like Captain Falcon, but Darker and Edgier.
- Anything You Can Do I Can Do Better: Tries to Invoked Trope this on Falcon. The one time he manages to one-up Falcon in the anime ("BURAKKU FAIYA!"; the dark, purple-tinted counterpart of the Boost Fire technique), it only lasts for about five seconds.
- Blood Knight: If you see this guy on the track, use the boost to get through! You won't regret it.
- Bowdlerization: Hell Hawk is known as "Blood Hawk" in America.
- The latest Japanese games eventually started calling his racer Blood Hawk as well.
- Bring It: One of his poses has him signal to the player in this fashion.
- Cloning Blues: And guess what? He's not the only one.
- Cool Helmet
- Difficult but Awesome: In X, various Good Bad Bugs with the physics (which are very difficult to master) make him one of the top choices for setting world records.
- Divergent Character Evolution: Lampshaded when the scientists working on the Blood Hawk realize that Blood won't be able to defeat Falcon if their vehicles are identical.
- The Dragon: To Black Shadow.
- Evil Counterpart/Evil Knockoff/Evil Twin: Obviously, he's the Shadow Archetype to Captain Falcon meant to portray a "What If" scenario: an evil Falcon completely subservient to Black Shadow.
- Evil Gloating: Drops this mocking line to Captain Falcon in Chapter 6 of the GX Story Mode right before Black Shadow sends Falcon off to his impending doom.
Blood Falcon: "You [Captain Falcon] and Blue Falcon can die together!" (Evil Laugh)
- Evil Sounds Deep: Anime only.
- Fangs Are Evil
- Informed Ability: In F-Zero X, he was considered to have the best machine (due to the physics engine and all), but he's terrible in GX (due to the new physics engine), to the point of being considered the 2nd worst machine in the game and nowhere near the Blue Falcon that it's supposedly superior to.
- Knuckle-Cracking
- Psychopathic Manchild: He's a four-year-old child in the body of an evil clone of Captain Falcon. This was to be expected.
- Racing Pragmatist: "The heart of a devil! Doing whatever it takes to win!"
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: To both Captain Falcon and Black Shadow.
- Resistance Is Futile: Says this word-for-word as his televised message to Falcon. After making a death threat.
- Scarf of Asskicking: Unlike Falcon, his scarf hangs out.
- Slasher Smile: One of the big differences between him and Captain Falcon is his toothy grin.
- Spikes of Villainy: On his shoulder pads.
- There Can Only Be One: Clearly, he's suffering from a massive inferiority complex. Blood is constantly trying to prove that he's the "real" Falcon and "a hero". Naturally, the anime devotes an entire episode (Ep. 30, "Only One Falcon") to this rivalry. It doesn't end well... for Blood.
- Villains Out Shopping: His GX Master Class video is one of the laundromat videos.
- Younger Than They Look: He's only 4! Well, he's a clone of Captain Falcon, but still...
#26 John Tanaka
- All Love Is Unrequited: He is Jody's Hopeless Suitor, whereas Jody may be crushing on Falcon. Poor guy, a rose and everything...
- Butt Monkey: In the anime, due to his status as a Lovable Coward.
- Cannot Spit It Out: He won't propose to Jody until he wins the Grand Prix, an event where his chances are egregiously slim.
- The Champion: He tries to be one for Jody. Yeah...
- Dogged Nice Guy: To Jody.
- Stalker with a Crush: On his worst days, he's this.
- Eyes Always Shut: Although it could be that his eyes are just slited, as hinted by his Japanese surname.
- Fan Boy: Of Kate Alen in the anime.
- Gadgeteer Genius: Well, he wouldn't be the Galactic Space Federation's mechanic if he was incompetent. Also, it should be said that his Wonder Wasp was originally a pet project heavily modified for the races.
- Gentleman and a Scholar: Thanks to the principles he learned from martial arts.
- Good-Looking Privates
- Hermit Guru: According to GX.
Mr. Zero: "Your years as a hermit have paid off?"
John Tanaka: "Yes, I only came down off that mountain one time."
- I Know Karate: Alluded to, when John mentions "sports and martial arts" (the latter of which IS a sport) as a response to how he attained a healthy physique. Subverted later on, as he states he didn't pick up the skills to adaquately defend himself (sorry, fans, he's not a Badass Bookworm).
- Isshin Chiba: One of these days, John is going to go WRYYYYYYYY!!!, and there'll be no way to stop him.
- Meaningful Name: Like Dr. Stewart and Dai Goroh, his stats are D-A-D. He highly respected Mason Summer (Jody's father), although this could be interpreted as John asking his would-be father-in-law for blessings on his unlikely relationship with Jody.
- Mistaken for Badass: By Pico in the anime. Seriously, Pico? Seriously?
- Zoda, too. They have him tied up, screaming for mercy, but Zoda and Pico believe John to be this daring hero with nerves of steel who single-handedly figured out their schemes and is acting as The Bait so his crew can sneak up and bust them. It is hilarious how far they are from the truth; John was merely there so that he could attend Kate Alen's concert.
- His allies from the Mobile Task Force compliment John as well. John lies about how he figured out Dark Million's plan days in advance, and the entire fiasco was pure luck on John's part (for example, he trips up Pico by running away, causing Pico's foot to be tangled in a rope). Jody remarks that the team may need to start taking him serious for once.
- Non-Action Guy: He's a mechanic, not a fighter.
- Public Service Announcement: His lone driving tip. "Always remember to fasten your seatbelt."
- Robot Buddy: J-Love 1. Guess what the "J" stands for.
- Shout-Out: Listen to his theme in GX. You are now playing Space Invaders.
- Super Sentai Stance: Oddly enough, he briefly does one at the Settings screen.
- Unlucky Everydude
#27 Draq (Bellonngian Draquillie)
- Adult Child: At least to an extent.
- Ascended Fanboy: He is cocoa-crazy about the sport, and probably had a Nerdgasm when he discovered that he would be able to race alongside and against some of his heroes. He's also the Audience Surrogate; come on, you know that you'd love to live in a world like this.
Draq: "Is there anyone who doesn't want to become an F-Zero racer?"
- Big Eater: Hinted at; one of his actions involves Draq rubbing his stomach as if he's hungry.
- Gentle Giant
- Heterosexual Life Partners: With Roger.
- Odd Friendship: It's mind-boggling to fathom how one as zealous as Draq could befriend one as serious as Roger.
- Intergenerational Friendship: Roger is 41. Draq is 137.
- I Know Mortal Kombat: His training for the races? Playing the computer game.
- I Don't Know Mortal Kombat: His ending in GX, where a cheap, humiliating defeat at the hands of the CPU angers Draq to the point that he punches the screen. We feel your pain, buddy.
- Monochromatic Eyes
- Racing Pragmatist: Averted. The one thing he pays attention to while racing is making that he's fighting clean.
- Stout Strength
- We Are as Mayflies: He's 137 years old, but you wouldn't know that from his almost child-like demeanor. His age is somewhat referenced by his idolization of Silver Neelson and the Skull.
#28 Roger Buster
- The Alcoholic: When Mr. Zero asks how he enjoys his life off of the job, Roger replies, "A drink after work?".
- Ascended Fanboy: He's a more casual fan of the sport.
- Badass Creed: "No consignment is too dangerous!"
- Bald of Awesome
- Heterosexual Life Partners, Odd Friendship, Intergenerational Friendship: With Draq (see above).
- Blue Oni: To Draq's Red Oni.
- Turned on its head in the anime; there, Roger is Red, Draq is Blue.
- Blue Oni: To Draq's Red Oni.
- Hot-Blooded: In the anime.
- Knuckle-Cracking
- Surfer Dude: His accent in GX comes dangerously close to this characterization.
- Truck Meets House: His GX ending. He might have been buzzed.
- Walking Shirtless Scene
#29 Dr. Theodore Clash
- Bare Your Midriff: Unfortunately. Due to his lack of exercise, he has a noticeable gut.
- The Bartender: Works as one during Story Mode in GX.
- Cool Shades:
- Everything's Worse with Bears: His machine, the Crazy Bear.
- In GX, he reveals his latest creation: the Big Bear.
- Expository Hairstyle Change: In X, he's shown to have unruly, unkempt hair that fell down slightly below his neck. One year later, he's starting to bald, showing a receeding hairline and a prominent forehead.
- Gadgeteer Genius, Mr. Fixit: He's responsible for most of the innovations found in current F-Zero machines (he holds seventeen patents on F-Zero technology and personally oversaw the creation of eight of the vehicles currently racing), going as far as to include most of that technology in his Crazy Bear (makes you wonder why it has a "E" ranking in Grip). In addition, he converted an old F-1 fighter jet into Beastman's Hyper Speeder.
- Genius Cripple: Vaguely. As his physical condition is quite poor, he invented a backpack-esque gadget to level the playing field.
- Gentleman and a Scholar: Largely subverted, as he tends to veer into the land of Insufferable Geniuses.
- Isshin Chiba: Expecting a steamroller joke, were you?
- Maddie Blaustein: She voices Clash in the dub with a Russian accent. God bless.
- Mentors: To Lucy Liberty.
- Stout Strength: In spite of the above, he has clearly defined biceps.
#30 Black Shadow
Described as the Big Bad of sorts in F-Zero X, though this has no bearing in-game. His stated goal is to "kill Captain Falcon in front of billions of viewers."
- The Ace: He's often the most competent racer when used by the CPU in F-Zero GX.
- Affably Evil: And how. He's as civil as can be. The below line is spoken in the most polite tone conceivable.
Black Shadow: "Falcon, you've come to die? I needn't have wasted time looking for you then."
- Animal Motifs: Possibly the bull, given his vehicle's name and the horns on both his costume and F-Zero machine. Coincidentally, this also ties into the Devil-like imagery Black Shadow gives off, as Christian demonology popularized the idea of demons being depicted with horns and bull-like features.
- Arch Enemy: To Captain Falcon.
- Badass Arm-Fold
- Badass Cape
- Badass Creed: "Domination or death!" Yes, even evil has its own dogma.
- Bad Guys Do the Dirty Work/Villainous Rescue: A variation occurs in the anime; knowing that Zoda's jealousy would lead him to try to take out Miss Killer, Black Shadow sends a decoy Black Bull to save her. Subverted in that this was most likely done to further manipulate Miss Killer.
- Big Bad
- Blood Knight: It's hinted that he loves to destroy the other racers on a whim.
- Bowdlerization: The below exchange was cut from the U.S. version of GX, yet Blood and Deathborn get to avert Never Say "Die" at every moment. Great idea, guys.
Mr. Zero: "Your rivals are howling are for revenge!"
Black Shadow: "I will send you straight to hell! It will be painless, I promise you."
- The Computer Is a Cheating Bastard: Chapter 7 of Story Mode in GX is so notorious for breaking the rules (i.e. Black Shadow staying in 1st place without using his boost) that Nipple Bandit's legendary, AO-rated rant from Something Awful is listed in the quotes section of Nintendo Hard. Yeah, that bad.
- Cool Mask
- Dark Is Evil: And just to drive the point home, he's wearing all black.
- Diabolical Mastermind: Whether or not he's this or an Evil Overlord in the anime is debatable, but he whips out the magnificence like it's nobody's business.
- Eucatastrophe: In the anime. He was not expecting Zoda's interference.
- Evil Laugh, Evil Gloating, Evil Has a Bad Sense of Humor, Evil Is Cool, Pragmatic Villainy: He hits quite a few more marks, too. With all of this (and his penchant for Narm), he'd be Laughably Evil if he wasn't so disturbingly twisted.
- Evil Sounds Deep: In the anime, his voice his provided by Norio Wakamoto (Japanese) and Eric Stuart (English). Go figure.
- Fangs Are Evil: In the anime.
- Fiction 500: He considers the prize of one billion space credits a paltry sum. All of that Offscreen Villain Dark Matter seems to imply that Black Shadow has some pretty good resources at his disposal.
- Fingerless Gloves
- Genre Savvy: When Deathborn gives Black Shadow one more chance to win the F-Zero GP, how does he prepare? By eliminating the competition outside of the races when they're least expecting it. It's unknown how many racers he went after, but Falcon and Jody were on his list.
- Wrong Genre Savvy: This plan would have been foolproof had Black Shadow not lived in a world with Captain Falcon.
- A God Am I: Wants to destroy the current world and remake it in his own image.
- Kneel Before Zod: "Bow down before my power, Falcon!"
- Knuckle-Cracking
- Large and In Charge: This guy is built like a truck!
- Magic Is Evil: He displays a few unexplained powers (such as trapping Falcon with a bolt of blue energy and summoning Blood Falcon out of nowhere). Definitely evil.
- Mighty Glacier: While certainly not the best machine for setting records in F-Zero X, his Black Bull is definitely one of the best for ramming opponents into oblivion.
- Lightning Bruiser: Black Bull has the highest top speed in F-Zero GX. Snaking in GX ramps up the speed even moreso.
- Nebulous Evil Organisation: The eponymous Black Shadow Group in the games, Dark Million (which leans towards something of a Standard Evil Organization Squad) in the anime.
- Norio Wakamoto: ALL HAIL BLACK SHADOW!
- Orcus on His Throne: In the anime, complete with the mandatory Slouch of Villainy. However, the rare times when Black Shadow actually makes his presence known on the circuit, you can easily see why he's the leader of Dark Million.
- Overclocking Attack: How the Dark Reactor is overloaded, thwarting Black Shadow's plans in the anime. Memetic Mutation attributes to this to the Falcon Punch though.
- Physical God: It the games, it is rumored that Black Shadow was bestowed with Immortality and the ability to reincarnate. In the anime, he's given ample levels of Nigh Invulnerability.
- Psychotic Smirk: The moment you see this, Your Days Are Numbered.
- Red Baron: The King of Evil.
- Satan: With the horns and the black clothing, he definitely gives off these vibes.
- They Know Too Much: During his interview with Mr. Zero, it's implied that this is why he's going to burn the complex down to the ground, with Mr. Zero and the audience still inside.
- Voluntary Shapeshifting: In anime, it's revealed that Black Shadow, Don Genie and Deathborn are all one in the same, which doesn't exactly explain how all three were present in the same room at one moment.
- You Have Failed Me...: In the prologue to GX's Story Mode, Deathborn tells him he's got one more chance to win before he receives the final punishment.
- ↑ At age 14, she finished 4th place in the Galactic Games dodecathalon against competition twice her age. By 16, she was one of three people to ski across the largest section of ice on Europa Prime, the Delaney Ice Plateau. When she was 18, Jody became the second person to climb Olympus Mons, the tallest volcano in the Solar System.
- ↑ For the second link, you'll need to cut/copy the link, paste it back into the web browser, and press the "Enter" key.