Bully

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This article is about the species that first appeared in Super Mario 64. For the character known as "Bully" in the DiC cartoons, see Roy Koopa. For the bull-like enemy from Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time, see Bully (Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time).
Bully
Artwork of a Bully from Super Mario 3D World.
Artwork of a Bully from Super Mario 3D World
First appearance Super Mario 64 (1996)
Latest appearance Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury (2021)
Variants
Derived subjects
“Don't be a pushover! If anyone tries to shove you around, push back! It's one-on-one, with a fiery finish for the loser!”
Lakitu Bros., Super Mario 64

Bullies (alternately pluralized Bullys[1]), or Viking Bombs,[2] are a race of creatures introduced in Super Mario 64. They are first found in Lethal Lava Land in Super Mario 64 and its remake, Super Mario 64 DS, and have since become recurring, albeit occasional, enemies in the Super Mario series. Their name and design are a pun on the words "bully," referring to their aggressive behavior, and "bull," referring to their horns and charging attack pattern.

History[edit]

Super Mario series[edit]

Super Mario 64 / Super Mario 64 DS[edit]

Mario encounters a Bully in Super Mario 64
A Bully near Mario in Lethal Lava Land in Super Mario 64

In Super Mario 64, Bullies are black spheres with green feet, angry eyes, and two yellow bull horns. They appear in Lethal Lava Land and the second Bowser level, Bowser in the Fire Sea. Bullies are usually found on platforms and sometimes in groups. Bullies try to charge into Mario to knock him off the platform into the surrounding lava. They always move in the direction that Mario is facing. Mario does not take damage if he is hit by a Bully. He can defeat a Bully by knocking it into the lava, which can be done by either kicking, punching, ground-pounding, or diving at it. After the Bully sinks into the lava, it relinquishes a coin, which is tossed onto the platform.

Bullies have a larger variant known as Big Bullies. Two of them are respectively encountered in the first two missions of Lethal Lava Land. In the second mission, Bully the Bullies, Mario must first defeat three Bullies before he can fight the second Big Bully.

In Snowman's Land, there is a similar enemy known as a Chill Bully. It resembles the Bullies because it has a round, icy body, one gold horn on its head, and green shoes.

In Super Mario 64 DS, Yoshi can push back the Bullies by stomping on them. Bullies also appear in Chief Chilly Challenge, where they try to push Luigi into a bottomless pit.

Super Mario 3D World / Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury[edit]

Super Mario 3D World
Two Bullies chasing Mario in Super Mario 3D World.

Bullies appear in Super Mario 3D World and reappear in its Nintendo Switch port Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury, where they have been redesigned. They are now made of a blue shiny metal, their horns are golden and are bent forward with dark rings at their bases, and they appear larger than their previous incarnations. Also, they have rims on the bodies' bottoms and red eyes. They no longer grunt, and make a metal sound when jumped on. They once again charge at the player, and can be knocked back by jumping on them, using projectiles like fireballs, or tapping them on the GamePad. Bullies will pause and teeter when pushed to the edge of a platform, giving the player time to land the final hit. If they are not knocked off, they will regain their balance and continue charging at the player.

Bullies can also be defeated by using the Lucky Cat Statue. A new boss, Prince Bully, also appears in this game.

Bullies reappear in the Nintendo Switch port of Super Mario 3D World, Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury. In the Bowser's Fury mode, there are only cat variants of Bullies, which are known as Cat Bullies. Like all enemies in the game, they have cat-like traits, which are specifically fur, green paws instead of shoes, a cat-like tail, and cat ears instead of horns. Cat Bullies only appear in the Bully the Cat Bullies mission in Fort Flaptrap, where Mario has to push them into lava or defeat them as Invincible Mario to obtain a Cat Shine.

Super Mario Maker 2[edit]

Bullies appear in Super Mario Maker 2 as enemies exclusive to the Super Mario 3D World theme. If a Bully has wings applied to it, it can fly out of a pit if knocked off a ledge.

Mario & Luigi series[edit]

Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam[edit]

Bullies appear in Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam as an enemy, making this their first appearance in an RPG. They are only encountered at Mount Brrr and retain their physical appearance from Super Mario 3D World. Their main attack is ramming Mario, Luigi, or Paper Mario, who must counter it with the hammer. Occasionally, bombs will appear behind the bros., and they must jump on the Bully while it is charging in order to not get pushed into the bombs. If Paper Mario jumps over the Bully while it is charging, it will run into the bombs, causing it to explode and take damage.

Bullies make a minor appearance in the end credits where several of them attempt to ram into the Papercrafts alongside some Broozers and Mechakoopas in the Bowser's Castle portion.

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

In Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey, Bullies make an appearance in the Bowser Jr.'s Journey mode, where they are enemies and recruitable allies. They are Melee troops, and their Special Skill is Smack Back Attack.

Unused appearances[edit]

Super Mario Galaxy[edit]

Models for small and big Bullies, labeled Donketu and DonketuKing respectively, are unused in Super Mario Galaxy. Similar to Super Mario 64 and Super Mario 64 DS, their bodies are made of a flat texture showing a picture of a black sphere, instead of a fully-modeled sphere.

Profiles and statistics[edit]

Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam[edit]

Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam enemy
Bully
A Bully in battle, in Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam. HP 131 POW 98 (93) Defense 137 (99) Speed 59
Role Common Type Normal Weakness None Location(s) Mount Brrr
Level 17 Experience 80 (75) Coins 50 Item drop Super Mushroom - 5%
POW Scarf - 3%
Notice: Stats in parentheses are from the game's Easy Mode.

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

  • Bowser Jr.'s Journey profile: The go-to blokes for a strong frontal offense. Their specialty is to push through their foes using their heavy bodies.

Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury[edit]

  • "Uncover a mystery pic from Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury!" Switch news article bio: Make way for Cat Bully (a rather pushy fellow)! If you see one, try avoiding an un-fur-tunate situation by quickly moving past. But if push comes to shove, they can be defeated...

Gallery[edit]

Names in other languages[edit]

Language Name Meaning
Japanese どんけつ
ドンケツ
Donketsu
Literally "bonk butt", a way of childish playing like tussling. Game files romanize it as "Donketu" in Super Mario 64 DS and Super Mario Galaxy, and "Donketsu" in Super Mario 3D World.

Chinese 斗斗
Dòudou
Fighting; translated from the Japanese name

Dutch Bully
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French Moche (Super Mario 64)
Voyou
Petite bombe[3]
Ugly
Bully
Little bomb
German Bully
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Italian Bronco
Similar to the European Spanish name
Korean 으샤
Eusya
Exclamation when exercising brute strength; similar to "heave ho".

Portuguese (NOA) Chatucho
From chato ("annoying") and the suffix -ucho, used in forming pejoratives from nouns and adjectives.
Portuguese (NOE) Brigão
Adjective that refers to a person who often involded in fights or brawls; derived from the word briga ("fight").
Russian Задира
Zadira
Bully

Spanish (NOA) Peleón
Derived from the word pelear ("to fight") and refers to a person who is prone to be very conflictive with others.
Spanish (NOE) Bronco
Bully
Derived from the noun bronca (which means "fight" or "tussle" in Spain and "anger" in Latin America). Also, bronco as an adjective can denote a harsh person.
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Trivia[edit]

  • According to Super Mario 64 source assets, its early name is Otos. This suggests a relation to a removed enemy known as Motos. Additionally, according to early Japanese mission titles, another consideration was the name「どすこい」(Dosukoi, from a folk song).[4]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Nintendo Magazine System (AU) Issue #49, page 30.
  2. ^ Prima Bath. Nintendo 64 Game Secrets, 1999 Edition Prima's Official Strategy Guide. Page 88.
  3. ^ Nintendo official French magazine N1, page 94
  4. ^ TCRF. Development:Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64)/Dialogue & Text. The Cutting Room Floor. Retrieved August 17, 2022.