Lemmy Koopa

Lemmy Koopa (known as Hip Koopa in the cartoons) is one of the Koopalings, a clan of seven siblings that act as leaders of the Koopa Troop under Bowser (originally considered his children). Lemmy is the smallest of the group, and is often associated with childish traits due to his stature and personality. He is well recognized for his multicolored mohawk, crossed-eyes, and the rubber ball he balances atop in most appearances; his special abilities also deal with bouncy balls. Lemmy is named after Lemmy Kilmister, the founder of the heavy metal band Motörhead.

Super Mario Bros. 3
Lemmy debuts in Super Mario Bros. 3, where he and the other Koopalings aid Bowser in his conquest of the various realms of the Mushroom World. Lemmy takes over Ice Land, stealing the magic wand of its king and turning him into either a seal (NES version) or a Monty Mole (All Stars and Super Mario Advance 4 versions) in the process.

Lemmy is found and battled in the cabin of his airship at the end of World 6. He rides a rubber ball around during battle, and uses his wand to summon additional balls; once summoned, they do not disappear. The balls are obstacles and can be jumped on, but will shrink Mario or Luigi or make them lose a life if they are touched in any other way. When jumped on and withdrawing into his shell, Lemmy stays on his ball instead of jumping around. Being stomped three times defeats Lemmy, allowing Mario to return the magic wand to its king, and also turning the king back to normal.

Super Mario World
Lemmy next appears in Super Mario World, aiding in Bowser's invasion of Dinosaur Land. He takes hold in his castle, found within the Vanilla Dome; Lemmy's is the #3 castle on the map. Inside, he guards one of the Yoshies trapped inside an enchanted Yoshi Egg.

In battle, Lemmy pops out of Warp Pipes to attack, along with two Lemmy dummies; he sometimes pops out sideways or bottom-first. Lemmy and the dummies need to be avoided except for stomping; a Zigzag Lava Bubble needs to be avoided, as well. After getting stomped three times, Lemmy is defeated and forced out of a Warp Pipe into the lava below.

After being defeated, Mario literally smashed his castle to bits with a hammer.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii
Along with the rest of the Koopalings, Lemmy reappears in New Super Mario Bros. Wii. With Bowser Jr.'s lead, they pop out of Princess Peach's birthday cake and use it to capture and take her away. Lemmy is the third Koopaling to be fought, just like in Super Mario World and Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga. Like in Super Mario Bros. 3, his world has an ice theme. An icy ground is also prominent in his boss fight (in which he also rides a ball), making movement difficult due to the slipperiness. His shell is now bright orange instead of green.

Lemmy is first fought at the end of World 3's tower. He uses his wand to summon balls and bounce them towards the player; they can be jumped on for boosts, but are obstacles, otherwise. Unlike in Super Mario Bros. 3, the balls will not shrink Mario or Luigi or make them lose a life if touched in any other way besides jumping on them. If the player fails to stomp Lemmy after he summons two balls, he will ride his ball to the other side of the stage, creating the hazard of being pushed off. The ice terrain makes the drops on each side of the stage extra hazardous. The first two times Lemmy is stomped, his ball falls off the stage and he spins in his shell to the opposite side of the platform, where he creates another ball to stand on. The spinning shell inflicts damage when touched. Third stomp defeats Lemmy, who quickly gets up and escapes to the world's castle.

There, Kamek uses his magic to greatly increase the size of Lemmy's ball. Lemmy summons more balls even faster, and the player must now use them to stomp Lemmy. The large ball can also be used as a boost but inflicts damage if not approached properly. If the player fails to stomp Lemmy after he summons four balls, he will bounce his ball to the other side of the stage, creating the hazard of being crushed. Once stomped twice, Lemmy's already huge ball will grow again, making for a more difficult approach. Once stomped three times, he is defeated, this time falling off the stage.

After the credits roll, Lemmy is seen along with the other Koopalings rolling Bowser off his shell, only to have Bowser's Castle fall on top of them.

New Super Mario Bros. 2
In New Super Mario Bros. 2, Lemmy and the Koopalings arrive to kidnap Princess Peach shortly after the events of New Super Mario Bros.. Riding in the Koopa Clown Car, the Koopalings kidnap Peach from her castle, nearly crushing Mario and Luigi as they go. He is the sixth Koopaling to be fought, just like in Super Mario Bros. 3.

Lemmy is fought at the end of World Flower's castle. This battle is similar to his first encounter in New Super Mario Bros. Wii. The stage is now a conveyor-belt, however, and on the ceiling is a button that switches its direction. If the conveyor is going in the direction towards Lemmy after he summons three balls, he will change the direction by summoning another ball that hits the switch. After three stomps, Lemmy is defeated and falls off the stage.

Lemmy rejoins the other Koopalings near the end of Bowser's Castle in World 6 (and in World Star to Dry Bowser). In the Koopa Clown Car again, they try to petrify the player by flashing the vehicle's lights. Once the player reaches the corridor to the exit-door, they retreat. After Bowser's initial defeat, they use their magic to make him grow larger, much like Kamek in New Super Mario Bros. Wii. As he jumps up in his new state, he ends up knocking them down in the process. During the credits, they can be seen trying to lift Bowser up to safety, but they all get weighed down by him. Lemmy is last seen sprawled out on top of a flipped Koopa Clown Car.

New Super Mario Bros. U
Lemmy appears once again in New Super Mario Bros. U, getting his own customized airship like the rest of the Koopalings. He is the castle boss of Acorn Plains and thus, the first Koopaling to be fought. When Mario enters his airship from Lemmy's Swingback Castle, Lemmy gets shocked once again. Due to the lack of his magic wand, he now generates bombs with his bare hands, and tosses them at Mario in the style of his bouncing balls. However, he still retains his method of ramming into Mario and friends with his circus ball. Like Wendy, Morton, and Roy, Lemmy's boss battle will involve him using a weapon instead of a magic wand. After being stomped twice, he will start throwing larger bombs. After three stomps on the head, he will be defeated and fall off stage. If the player used Boost Mode and touched the bombs on the Wii U GamePad's screen just as Lemmy was about to throw them, Lemmy will be caught in the resulting explosion, yet will still behave as if he was throwing them. He ultimately survived this, however, and ended up getting picked up by Bowser Jr. He is last seen in the closing cutscene, hanging on to Bowser's tail after the airship crashes. Of note is when he attempted to board the airship, Lemmy fell off and grabbed Bowser's tail.

Lemmy has an airship with his face as the bow and his orange shell as the deck. The tail of the ship resembles his ponytail. The stern of his ship has a teal color design, similar to his shell color from Super Mario All-Stars. Like most of the airships, Lemmy's airship is equipped with a propeller at the back of his ship as well as another one placed just beneath the crow's nest. The airship is equipped with two cannons, one on each side. There are also light green lids on top of the cannons used for closing and opening the cannons. He has the smallest airship out of all his siblings. The interior of his ship has spiral shaped windows and it resembles the inside of a circus tent.

New Super Luigi U
Lemmy, like the other Koopalings, reappears in New Super Luigi U. He is the boss of Lemmy's Lights-Out Castle, and battles the same way as he does in the original version.

Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2
Lemmy appears in Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2 to reprise his role in Super Mario World. Aside from minor textual and graphical changes, the only thing new for Lemmy was the addition of a growl.

Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3
In Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3, the Game Boy Advance remake of Super Mario Bros. 3, Lemmy reprises his role. In this version, he turns the Ice Land king into a Monty Mole instead of a seal. His role was also expanded slightly with the Japanese-only e-Reader level "Hikōsen wa Tomaranai!" The level is merely a more difficult reworking of the original airship, with the player having to collect four Advance Coins before battling Lemmy. It's stated Lemmy rigged the Bolt Lifts for this level himself, however.

DIC Cartoons


In The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World cartoons, Lemmy was referred to as Hip Koopa and would often hang-out and pull pranks with his brother Hop Koopa, whom he was twins with. Hip and Hop were considered among the youngest Koopa kids, and (according to behind-the-scenes material) were six-year-olds, while the rest of the Koopa kids were in their teens. In spite of their ages, Hip and Hop prove to be capable of doing such things as carjacking and pickpocketing. Like many stereotypical twins, Hop and Hip would often share their sentences by either speaking in unison or finishing each other's lines. In the cartoons, Hip retained Lemmy's personality from the games, but his appearance was much different. He had thinner hair than Lemmy, a large overbite, one spike on his shell, and didn't appear to have a lazy eye. Also, his ball was a normal beach ball, whereas it was yellow with orange stars in the games. His voice is commonly and mistakenly attributed to Tara Strong (at the time known as Tara Charendoff), who also voiced his twin brother. However, according to The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons, Hip is voiced by Stuart Stone.

Super Mario World: Mario to Yoshi no Bōken Land
Lemmy appeared in the interactive Anime adaptation of Super Mario World. Like in the game, he was fought at Vanilla Dome. He disabled a bridge and utilized switches of differing colors in an attempt at deterring Mario from crossing over. However, Mario deduced how to cross over, with his being knocked away effortlessly. He was later seen on Chocolate Island along with Ludwig, Larry, Wendy, Roy and Morton.

Nintendo Comics System
Lemmy also appeared in the Nintendo Comics System, and out of all the Koopalings, appeared the most times in the imprint. He was depicted with low intelligence, using too many bombs to blow up a pipe when trying to help Bowser blow up the Mushroom Kingdom's main water pipes in "The Buddy System". Ironically, Lemmy was the only one who could understand Larry's picture-only dialogue. He is also a big fan of Dirk Drain-Head.

Nintendo Adventure Books
In Leaping Lizards, Lemmy and five of his siblings compete in the International Mushroom Games. If Mario, Luigi and Princess Toadstool are chosen by the reader as the offensive line in the Beetlebowl event, Lemmy catches a Hoopster, only to lose it immediately afterward when Spike, a member of the opposing Sneaks team, attacks him with an exploding watermelon.

In Koopa Capers, Lemmy and his brothers have their wands stolen by Wendy, who disappears with them shortly afterward, intent on overthrowing their father with her own army, and a super wand she plans to create by fusing her own wand with her brothers'. If Luigi, who had been coerced by Bowser into searching for Wendy, tracks the female Koopaling down to her hideout, Bowser and the male Koopalings, who had been following him, will barge in after the plumber, but decide to stave off punishing Wendy for her mutiny if she helps search for the hiding Luigi. If Luigi had acquired Boom Boom's socks earlier in his adventure, he can toss them into Wendy's simmering wand combination potion, which will release fumes that knock the entire Koopa family and their minions out for at least a week.

White Knuckle Scorin' comic
Lemmy also had a prominent role in the White Knuckle Scorin' comic. When Princess Toadstool reads a story to the Koopalings, Lemmy says "I like learning stuff", to which Morton replies "Don't let pop hear you say that! He's into ignorance! Forget everything!". Bowser, being illiterate, gets Lemmy's help reading a spell for him, which Lemmy eagerly agrees to do as he wants to show off the reading skills that he learned from Princess Toadstool. However, Bowser had chosen the wrong spell, which "transformed the entire countryside into a medieval motif", Mario and Luigi became knights in armor, and Yoshi became a "mighty charger". Later, Lemmy helps the good guys by telling them to attack Bowser by throwing Mechakoopas at his head.

Mario is Missing!
Though Lemmy doesn't appear in Mario is Missing!, he appears in some of the official artwork. In the original DOS release of the game, a portrait of him appears above a door on Wendy's floor, among four other Koopalings. In addition, audio files designated for Lemmy can be found unused within the CD-ROM Deluxe version, hinting that he was originally going to be encountered in the game itself.

Super Mario Adventures
Lemmy was also featured in the Super Mario Adventures comic. Here, he aided Bowser in his plot to marry Princess Toadstool. He first appears with his brothers, watching Ludwig play a videogame and cheering for him. After Bowser interrupted their game and scolded them, Lemmy says the princess is safely behind bars, only to find out she's missing. He is given surprisingly much spotlight in the comic, along with Wendy.

Yoshi's Safari
In Yoshi's Safari, Lemmy once again aided Bowser in attacking another land. This time, Bowser took over Jewelry Land and gave Lemmy a magic gem to guard, as well as custody over Grass Land.

In his battle against Mario and Yoshi, Lemmy would ride in a large mech resembling a humanoid Koopa Clown Car equipped with five cannons. After sustaining heavy damage from Mario's Super Scope, Lemmy would lose the use of his center cannon and begin to hop around the battlefield; eventually, after being damaged some more, Lemmy's mech would explode, flinging the Koopaling over the horizon.

Hotel Mario
In Hotel Mario, the Koopalings aid Bowser in his plot to steal away Princess Peach and hide her in several Koopa hotels in the Mushroom Kingdom. After Larry is defeated by Mario and Luigi and his hotel explodes, Princess Peach is flung into the clouds and into Lemmy's High-ate Regency Hotel, where Lemmy takes possession of her.

Lemmy is fought in Lemmy's Sky-Hideout, and attacks Mario by throwing paper planes at him while flying to different floors using a helicopter pack. He is one of three Koopalings who doesn't try to eat Mario or Luigi, possibly due to using a unique flying machine rather than walking about the stage. Like with any other stage Lemmy is defeated once all the doors in the stage are closed. Once Princess Peach is rescued, Lemmy attempts to chase after her, Mario and Luigi, only to be blown away with his hotel by a large fan activated by Mario.

Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga
After several years of absence, Lemmy made a return appearance in Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga. After hijacking Bowser's Castle and using it to attack Beanbean Castle Town, Bowletta employed the Koopalings to guard the various halls of the castle. As with most of his appearances, he was the third Koopaling to be faced.

When first encountered by Mario and Luigi, Lemmy would try to confuse them by disguising Goombas as himself; in order to engage in battle with Lemmy, Mario or Luigi would need to hit him, not a copy, with their hammer.

Once in battle, Lemmy would attack by creating more Goomba copies of himself and shooting fireballs at Mario and Luigi (along with all the other Koopalings). However, he was eventually defeated by the Mario Bros. In the Japanese version, he can also spin, like Iggy, Ludwig, and Larry.

Defeating Lemmy activated a water fountain, allowing the Mario Bros. to put out the flames blocking their path and proceed towards Ludwig.

Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam
Lemmy reappears in Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam. He is first seen with Morton, Iggy and King Bob-omb on top of Mount Brrr, where they shower the land with new enemies and terrain with the help of cannons. In Bowser's Castle, Lemmy alongside Morton command the Papercraft King Boo, which they use to battle Mario & co., but are soon quickly defeated. Later on in Neo Bowser Castle, after Mario and co. create the bridge leading to the Bowsers, he appears at the end of the bridge arguing with Iggy on who gets to push the button to summon a large cannon that is aimed at Peach's Castle. Lemmy is then encountered one final time on top of Neo Bowser Castle, along with the rest of the Koopalings, where he is fought alongside Iggy and Morton. In his battle, Lemmy runs away, but quickly appears from the background riding on top of a large circus ball, which he uses to try to crush the Mario Bros. Mario and Luigi would need to aim and throw the boomerang directly at Lemmy a couple of times to cause him to fall and get rolled over by his own ball. Lemmy will then get dizzy and remains this way until it is his turn to attack again. After the Mario gang defeats the last remaining Koopalings, Lemmy utters some last words, telling Bowser to avenge them before exploding.

Mario Kart 8 / Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
Lemmy Koopa, alongside the rest of the Koopalings, appears as a playable character for the first time in Mario Kart 8, where he is an unlockable character. His nickname in a Japanese Nintendo Direct for Mario Kart 8 is ｢すばしっこさナンバー１」, or "Number 1 in Agility" (localized as the "Ace of Speed" or "Mr. Agility Supreme" ). His emblem is a yellow silhouette of his head on a black background, similar to Bowser's emblem. Lemmy does not seem to have a lazy eye in this game, a first for any of his prior appearances.

Lemmy is the lightest member of the Koopalings (and is also among the lightest playable characters in the game, being tied with the babies and, when short in height, Miis), and as such, can get, depending on the combination, either maximum acceleration, handling, or traction attributes. However, his speed and weight are quite low as a result. Lemmy is the Normal Staff Ghost for Sherbet Land. There are also advertisements for "Lemmy's Tire Service" on some of the tracks, specifically Mario Kart Stadium, Mount Wario and DS Wario Stadium. Certain varnish types of the Circuit Special and Sport Bike also feature this advertisement on them. Despite not having a lazy eye in the game, his image on the advert does. Said image was previously seen in a group artwork released before Mario Kart 8, but in this case, his body is fully visible and there is no shading.

Lemmy's main color for his Standard parts and Pipe Frame is light blue, and his secondary color is his signature orange. The color scheme selection of his other vehicle bodies is close to that of the Light Green Miis, expect for his blue Biddybuggy and brown GLA. Strangely, despite his orange shell color, Lemmy's Circuit Special and Sport Bike use the green varnish color.

Lemmy returns in the Nintendo Switch port Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, now as a default playable character. He only shares stats with Baby Rosalina.

Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U
Lemmy, along with the rest of his siblings, make their Super Smash Bros. debut as unlockable playable characters accessible via "palette swaps" of Bowser Jr.. He is treated as a separate character, having his own voice, and the announcer calls him by name, but his attacks are identical to Bowser Jr.. He also has unique eye animations compared to the other Koopalings and Bowser Jr.; for example, when he is dizzy, his pupils move around in circles instead of having the same dizzy animation as the others. Lemmy can appear in place of Bowser Jr. in All-Star mode, like the other Koopalings. The rim and propeller of his Koopa Clown Car are colored yellow, one of his signature colors, and has a different face. However, when the Clown Car Dash special move is used, the exhaust pipes that appear behind Lemmy's Clown Car are colored orange. Lemmy's trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS shows his Clown Car with orange rim and propeller for unknown reasons. He is voiced by Lani Minella. However, alongside the rest of his siblings he appears to be reusing his voice samples from New Super Mario Bros. Wii. The title given to Lemmy in the Boxing Ring is "Wacky War Machine" (NA) or "Let's Get Wacky" (PAL) in the Wii U version.

Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros. Edition
Lemmy appears in Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros. Edition as a Dark attribute character, and as the World 2-Castle and World 2-Airship Boss. Like in Super Mario World, he is the boss of an underground world. He can perform a move called Status Barrier that protects against all status defects. He also has an attack called Blind Attack, which deals damage and hides a part of the board from the player's sight as well. Lemmy will join the player when ★World 2-Airship is completed. His Skill is Lemmy's Nightmare, which changes Wood Orbs into Dark Orbs, and Heart Orbs into Fire Orbs.

Paper Mario: Color Splash


Lemmy makes his Paper Mario series debut in Paper Mario: Color Splash. He appears in the Emerald Circus, where he is seen balancing on a giant ball. He then hides himself and the green Big Paint Star on the circus tent's roof (as despite being a skilled illusionist, the Green Big Paint Star was immune to his wand and his magical abilities, thus forcing him to pull a "sleight of hand."). After Mario defeats his minions, they encounter him on the roof, where the battle is fought. In battle, Lemmy spawns minions, like Ptooies and Juggler Bros, to aid him by using his wand. He also uses his wand to make Mario's cards disappear. He attacks by ramming Mario with his ball, although he can also use this as a feint for a magical blast attack from his wand. Hammer attacks are ineffective against him. Finally, he is capable of dodging attacks from Thing Cards. Instead, it requires that Mario distracts him with the Disco Ball Thing Card, and then using an Ice Pick Thing Card to pop his ball. If just the Ice Pick is used, Lemmy avoids the attack. If just the Disco Ball is used, Lemmy initially gets distracted, then resumes attacking after Mario finishes attacking. If Mario doesn't defeat Lemmy while he has his Wonder Ball out, Lemmy will use the Wonder Ballistic attack. Lemmy hits Mario 15 times, each dealing 10 damage each and then jumps on him dealing 13 damage, for a total of 163. Lemmy is also one of the three Koopalings that doesn't have an attack that can defeat Mario instantly when Mario has full health, even if he doesn't block them at all, the others being Morton Koopa Jr. and Roy Koopa.

Lemmy's introductory pose is based on his artwork used in the Encyclopedia Super Mario Bros. and in material released for the 30th anniversary of Super Mario Bros., while his appearance follows that of the current games, with an additional cyan-colored tuft on the back and orange stripes on the left side of the head instead of the right side. The sprite has actually an horizontally flipped version of said pose that is then flipped again by the game.

Super Princess Peach
Lemmy was originally going to appear in Super Princess Peach, although he was taken out of the final game with the rest of the Koopalings. According to his sprite sheet, it seems he would spit something at Princess Peach.

Minecraft: Wii U Edition
In the Super Mario Mash-Up Pack in Minecraft: Wii U Edition, Lemmy Koopa appears as a playable skin along with the rest of the Koopalings.

Physical appearance
Lemmy has the same yellow and tan skin complexion, as well as a green oval-shaped head, that is disproportionately large compared to his small body and features a distinctive pair of orange bars on the left-side and a multi-colored mohawk, that goes from yellow, magenta, cyan, yellow, magenta, to cyan, and ends in a long yellow ponytail that fades to a more orange hue at the tip. He has large, oval eyes that are often crossed or even pointing in opposite directions, although since Mario Kart 8 it has been shown that he normally keeps his eyes correctly aligned. He's the only Koopaling with visible eyes to lack colored irises. He was shown to have teeth in Super Mario World and a short comic in the Super Mario Complete Encyclopedia, a book published by Shogakukan and written in cooperation with Nintendo, shows him as having both teeth and eyelids, but both features have not appeared in the subsequently released games. Lemmy is the smallest of all Koopalings, around as small as Toad, as even early official material showed. He wears the same spiked metal cuffs as his male siblings (although his cuffs lacked spikes until Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga). He also has a three-ribbed plated belly and padded feet.

In his hand-drawn artwork of the redesigned version, he lacks the last blue tuft of the mohawk and the orange stripes are on the right side of his head. In Super Mario Bros. 3, the mohawk is a mix of orange, green and white and the stripes are on the left side of his head, while in Super Mario World the stripes are on both sides of his head. In both remakes of Super Mario Bros. 3, the sprites show an orange mohawk, that is completely white in Super Mario World. His shell was originally green, however, in Super Mario World it was yellow in-game due to graphical limitations, although artwork still depicted his shell as green. Starting with New Super Mario Bros. Wii, his shell became a bright orange.

Development
Lemmy has not changed much in design over the course of his appearances.

Lemmy was originally depicted with a mohawk that had colors going from pink to blue, red, yellow and then green. This mohawk sometimes was colored with another streak of pink instead of red, and the green streaks always took up the back three spikes of the mohawk. Depending on the game and the artwork, it could differ slightly, but it wasn't until Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga that it was depicted with just yellow, pink and blue in color; it was also depicted the same way in his unused sprites for Super Princess Peach. This is slightly the same as in his newest design where the mohawk itself only goes from yellow to pink and then blue, with the addition of his ponytail that blends into orange at the tip. His body looks like that of Larry's only it is smaller than Bowser Jr.'s, the pad on his belly only has three sections, and the claws on his toes are more pointed than those of the other Koopalings.

Like the Koopalings who had green shells, Lemmy's was given a unique color, orange. And aside from the spikes being updated to an off-white color they were also given yellow rings. The two stripes on each side of his head were originally colored pink, but are now orange to match his shell color. Not much else has changed aside from his snout being given a new shape due to the transition into 3D, as well as his hair given individual strands for each color.

Personality and traits
Lemmy is depicted as an immature, fun-loving child, and is said to retain a childlike innocence about him. Lemmy is also known as the "Clown Prince of Koopas", and would apparently prefer to join the circus rather than commit crimes and conquest. He is already somewhat clownish in how he loves balancing on top of his rubber ball. His love for the circus is also mirrored in New Super Mario Bros. U, as the interior of his airship resembles the inside of a circus tent and in Paper Mario: Color Splash, where he first appeared as the ringleader of the Emerald Circus. His childish and clownish traits are also evident in Mario Kart 8, where some of his stunts have him performing a hand stand on the handle of his bike or ATV, or jumping out of his kart and flailing his arms in excitement. When losing the race, he is seen crying while kicking his feet in frustration. He seems to have a passion for the cold and ice as he was the ruler of Ice Land, as well as guardian of World 3 of New Super Mario Bros. Wii. He tends to rely on tricks and gadgets rather than his own prowess, such as his helicopter pack from Hotel Mario. As of New Super Mario Bros. Wii, he is shown to have a squeaky, high-pitched voice. In the original Super Mario Bros. 3 manual, Lemmy also spoke in a manner similar to that of a young child. In an interview with Dayvv Brooks, it was revealed that Lemmy was named after Lemmy Kilmister because ''he struck me as being the kind of character who would do his own thing, no matter what anyone else thought. I think it was those crazy eyes.''. In Mario Kart 8, he also has banners called "Lemmy's Tire Service", which implies that, besides the circus, he also has an interest in automobile repairs.

In Super Mario-Kun, Lemmy is silly and childish, just like in the games. However, unlike the games were he is loyal to Bowser, Lemmy willingly betrayed him in volume 44, due to the fact that he and Mario ended up becoming friends at the end of volume 41. The Koopaling even went as far as telling Mario the secret to Bowser's defeat and supplying the group with Fire Flowers. Though it seemed like Lemmy forgot about the friendship in volume 47 (with him happily greeting Mario before throwing a barrage of bombs at the beginning of the chapter), Lemmy assured Mario in the end that he had not forgetten the events from last time and they remained on good terms with each other.

In The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World, Hip is more mischievous than truly evil on most occasions, and preferred to simply play pranks instead of cause havoc; though several episodes, such as "Life's Ruff", showed him capable of causing real chaos.

In the Nintendo Comics System, Lemmy was somewhat childish and unintelligent, and seemed more keen on simply helping his father and trying to gain his appreciation then actually causing evil. The unintelligent aspect of his character in the Nintendo Comics System was such that when Bowser read the Koopalings the riot act in Bowser Knows Best for their letting Peach escape due to the latter tricking them, Bowser specifically exempted Lemmy from blame specifically because Bowser knew Lemmy was "a blithering idiot." Like Mario and several of Bowser's minions, Lemmy also had an obsession with the plumbing based hero Dirk Drain-Head and could somehow understand Larry's picture-only dialogue, while no one else could at all. In Nintendo Adventure Books, a continuation of Nintendo Comics System, Lemmy was portrayed as somewhat crazed in demeanor and much more menacing on some occasions.

In the Super Mario Adventures comics, Lemmy's personality was, more or less, identical to those of the other Koopalings, with no real differentiating quirks or attributes.

In the computer version of Mario is Missing!, the unused voices of Lemmy depicted him as being sarcastic, as he "pretends" to make Luigi join them.

Powers and abilities
Lemmy seems to prefer using circus balls when combating his enemies. He often fights atop his ball and if his boss area has icy floors or a conveyor belt, he will use them to his advantage by trying to slide his opponents right off the edges. In Super Mario Bros. 3, New Super Mario Bros. Wii, and New Super Mario Bros. 2, Lemmy utilizes his magic wand to generate rubber circus balls, in numbers up to three (even more in his New Super Mario Bros. Wii rematch), creating great difficulty for the Mario Bros.. He also utilized various dummies as decoys when fighting Mario in Super Mario World. In Hotel Mario he flies with assistance of a propeller and throws paper planes.

In Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, he would spin like a top like Iggy, and he could also summon Goombas disguised as clones of himself, just like Wendy. In addition, in a similar manner to Super Mario World, he also attempted in Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga to confuse the Mario Bros. by splitting into copies prior to fighting them. Other than that, his abilities seem normal compared to his siblings, as he is seen walking and jumping in his Super Princess Peach sprites, and breathing fireballs in his appearance in Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, as well as spinning inside his shell for offensive and defensive purposes in New Super Mario Bros. Wii. In New Super Mario Bros. U, he also threw star-patterned bombs that bounce on the floor and once touched by Mario, a short fuse is activated that will cause the bombs to explode after a few seconds.

As evidenced in New Super Mario Bros. Wii and New Super Mario Bros. 2, Lemmy has enhanced balance and acrobatics support, by being able to maintain his balance on a ball while on an icy floor and conveyor belt, as well as performing a handstand on the ball upon the said floors before preceding to battle. Lemmy is also implied to be quite strong, especially for someone his size, since in New Super Mario Bros. U, he's able to throw several large bombs at the Mario Bros. with minimum effort, as well as being able to lift his entire weight with one hand, as mentioned earlier.

In Paper Mario: Color Splash, Lemmy shows (and describes himself as having) magical prowess. He can create illusions with his magic and has the ability to teleport in puffs of magic smoke. He is shown for the first time to be able to create the standard magic blasts (colored green) his brothers can make, as well as a variant spell that doesn't directly hurt Mario, but can make his battle cards completely disappear. His other attacks involve rapidly grinding his circus ball against Mario, spawning enemies to assist him during the fight, and transforming his wand into a circus ball rimmed with spikes across the middle (referred to as a "Wonder Ball" by Lemmy), hitting Mario with the spinning spikes.

Super Mario Bros. 3 Nintendo Power Strategy Guide
Lemmy Koopa

Also known as the Clown Prince of Koopas, Lemmy would rather join the circus.

Bio from The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 Writers Bible
''While the rest of the Koopalings are in their teens, Hip and Hop are bratty six-year-olds. These twins don't go anywhere without one another, and are always finishing each other's sentences. Silly and dumb, goofy and bumbling, they are always lost, and have probably forgotten where they were going anyway. They flunked Koopergarten. They wouldn't be a threat to the Marios and the princess, if it weren't for the fact that they have the most powerful Magic Wands, and are easily manipulated by Bully and their other siblings.

Prima Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 Guide
Lemmy Koopa

''The ‘’Lemster’’ parades around on a beach ball at the start of combat in Iced Land, and he conjures up to three more balls that bounce around the chamber before wand-play occurs. Bounce over and onto these balls instead of being cornered by them, and employ the regular takedown tactics.''

Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 Nintendo Power Strategy Guide
Lemmy Koopa

The Clown Prince of Koopas wanted to join the circus, but instead got stuck in charge of defending the frozen glaciers of Iced Land.

Mario Kart 8

 * Weight Class: Light
 * Stats
 * Speed
 * Ground: 2.25
 * Water: 2.75
 * Air: 2.25
 * Anti-Gravity: 2.5
 * Acceleration: 3.25
 * Weight: 2.25
 * Handling
 * Ground: 4.75
 * Water: 4.75
 * Air: 4.5
 * Anti-Gravity: 5
 * Traction: 4.5
 * Mini-Turbo: 3


 * Bio: "The smallest and lightest Koopaling is also the craziest! Lemmy’s quick off the starting line, but is susceptible to getting shoved around by almost everyone else."


 * Staff ghost time

Palutena's Guidance (Wii U version only)
Palutena: That's one of the Koopalings, Lemmy Koopa.

Pit: ''Hmm. The resemblance to Bowser Jr. is strong.''

Palutena: That Koopa Clown Car is the mass-produced type.

Pit: I guess as heir to the throne, Bowser Jr. would get preferential treatment.

Viridi: The relationship between Bowser and the Koopalings is a real mystery.

Pit: I kind of feel bad for them.

Palutena: That's sweet of you but not very conducive to taking them down, Pit.

Trophy information
Blue indicates exclusive to the Wii U version.

Encyclopedia Super Mario Bros.
「レミー

クッパ七人衆のひとり. 小柄な体型で、玉乗りが得意. 」

Lemmy

''One of the Koopalings. His body is small, and his specialty is balancing on balls.''

Super Mario Memorial Book
「レミー

カラフルなモヒカン頭が特徴. クッパ7人衆の中では小柄だが、その実力はあなどれない. 」

Lemmy

''He is distinguished by his colorful mohawk. Although he is small among the Koopalings, the reality is that his power cannot be mocked.''

Quotes

 * 「マリオのヤツがどこまでガンバレルか楽 しみだなー. ワールドのマップも先 へ進 むにつれ、どんどん複雑 で広大 なものになってくるよ. それはそうと、暗黒 の国 だけはオヤジしか知 らなくて何 もわかんないんだ. でも、何 か、すごい新兵器 を作 ってるのをちらっと見 たことがあるよ. 」 ("I'm looking forward to see how far can Mario go. As you advance the world maps become more complex and extensive. Anyway, our dad alone knows Dark Land and I have no idea about it. But I had glanced he had been making some great new weapons.") - Super Mario Bros. 3 Japanese instruction booklet, page 34.
 * "How far can Mario go? I hope he doesn't make it this far. Dad has many complicated tricks waiting for him in the Dark Land. I've even heard about some new weapon that dad's been making." - Super Mario Bros. 3 English instruction booklet, page 34.
 * 「マリオ・・・. おまえスゴイじょ！！」 ("Mario... You're amazing!!") - Super Mario-Kun Volume 41 (page 167)
 * "Welcome to Lemmy's Magical Circus, Mario!!! Would you like to have some fun with these magical balls? See if you can balance yourself on top of them like I can. Ha Ha Ha!" - The Super Mario Bros. 3 Nintendo Power Strategy Guide
 * " I’ve taken over all the TV stations! And I’m holding a Koopathon! I’m not going off the air until everybody sends me all their money!" - 7 Continents for 7 Koopas
 * "Lying is an excellent trait!" - A Little Learning
 * "Hey, cave klutz, try dodging this!" - A Little Learning
 * "This is a volcano!" - A Little Learning
 * " You can never predict when exactly a volcano is going to erupt!" - A Little Learning
 * "You know, Luigi, a smart guy like you ought to join up with the winners. Here's a nice turtle shell you can wear. If you can't defeat us, you might as well join us" - Mario is Missing! (unused)
 * "What's a nice plumber like you doing in a place like this? With your talents you ought to be unclogging drains somewhere, not trying to embarrass yourself as a detective" - Mario is Missing! (unused)
 * "So, you had a little trouble in the city? Not everybody's cut out to be a super hero. Take a job with us, Luigi, you could always dump our trash and maybe do a little cooking" Mario is Missing! (unused)
 * "On the level, Luigi. Put down that burning bloom man, and let's talk reason. There's no reason to get all fired up" Mario is Missing! (unused)
 * "You're very strong and powerful, pal, but excuse me for not running. I mean, you don't have a fire flower, do you?" Mario is Missing! (unused)
 * "NOOOOOOOOO!!!!" - After being defeated in his castle in New Super Mario Bros. Wii.
 * "Lemmy, Hi!" -After the player unlocks him in Mario Kart 8.
 * "Stomp stomp stomp!" - Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam
 * "So yeah... We should hear it fire any second now... It's gonna go... BOOOOOM!" - Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam
 * "Yeah! Let me at ‘em!" - Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam
 * "Heehee! I won!" - Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam (when winning against the Mario Bros. and Paper Mario)
 * "Yeah…avenge us, Master Bowser!" - Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam
 * "Thank you, thank you! It is I, Lemmy, the greatest and most humble illusionist in all the world! The things you’re about to see may shock you. They might astound you. But they’ll definitely impress you." - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "SPOTLIGHT!" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "Now, the ringmaster here is just your average, garden-variety Shy Guy. Yes, you. Don’t look so surprised." - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "Now feast your eyes on this! My magic wand! PHENOMENAL ARCANE POWER…in a slim and user-friendly stick! Now you see him…" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "What?! Where did he go? Did I vaporize him?!" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "You, sir! Have you seen him?" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "Thank you, thank you! You’re easily entertained. And now…" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "That’s right! (That’s EXACTLY right!) It’s a shiny green Big Paint Star! Now, watch closely!" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "Heeheekee! Now, wherever could the Big Paint Star have gone?" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "You, there! With the ridiculous moustache and the rusty can. Where do you think that extra-special Big Paint Star ran off to? You didn’t need that, did you? Heeheekeeeeeeeeee!" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "Well done! It seems I’ve been caught." - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "For some reason, my magic wand doesn’t have any effect on the Paint Star. So the only way I could make it disappear was to employ a little…sleight of hand. But no matter - the point of this circus wasn’t to show off my magical prowess. The point was to steal the Paint Star and embarrass you in front of a giant crowd at the same time! And now it’s time for the grand finale! Heeheekee!" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "You're back! Such tenacity. Oooh, yes. I like you! Come now - the show must go on!" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "This is it! The moment you’ve all been waiting for. The FINAL performance of Mario’s career!" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "Now you see it! Now you don’t!" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "Bye-bye, card! Surprised ya, huh? APPLAUSE!" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "Oooh! Nicely done! APPLAUSE!" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "Thing Cards?! What is this, baby’s first battle? APPLAUSE!" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "The show is in full swing. It’s almost time for the grand finale!" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "Yes! My magic wand can transform into a magic ball. A Wonder Ball! Yes, yes! Clap for the Wonder Ball!" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "A discotheque with a Disco Ball! The groove…is too much to bear! I’VE GOT TO BOOGIE! - Paper Mario: Color Splash''
 * "That Disco Ball Replica is just sooooo last decade! Can't really get into it!" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "Ooooh, you sly dog! How am I supposed to defend myself when I'm getting down? Ya dig? And now for the grand finale!" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "That Ice Pick Replica looks like it's from the bargain bin!" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "My Wonder Ball deftly avoids your pathetic attack. APPLAUSE!" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "Here it comes--the grand finale!" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "This is it! Wonder Ballistic! Eheeheekee! Go ahead and struggle! It adds to the drama of it all!" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "NOOO! You popped my Wonder Ball! Do you even know what that thing retails for?!" - Paper Mario: Color Splash
 * "Heeheekeeeee… You’re really fired up tonight, Mario. You must’ve really enjoyed the show. I admit defeat. A spectacular defeat! There’s more drama in defeat anyway. Victory is soooo overdone. And…scene." - Paper Mario: Color Splash

Trivia

 * The bombs that Lemmy uses in New Super Mario Bros. U are similar to the bombs that Bomb Kirby uses in Kirby's Return to Dream Land and Kirby: Triple Deluxe, as both sets of bombs have stars printed on them. Bombs with a similar design appear as one of the Bros. Attacks in Mario & Luigi: Dream Team.
 * Lemmy's nickname in the Nintendo Power guide for Super Mario Bros. 3, the "Clown Prince of Koopas," is likely a reference to one of the nicknames for Batman's archnemesis, the Joker (the "Clown Prince of Crime"), itself a pun on the term for the heir apparent of monarchies ("Crown Prince").
 * In the official artwork of New Super Mario Bros. U, Lemmy has a bomb in his left hand, but in-game, he has it in his right hand (the same thing happens with Roy and his Bill Blaster).
 * Lemmy's Super Mario Bros. 3 sprite has the same palette as Bowser's sprite. By extension, this also applies to Bowser Jr.'s Super Mario Bros. 3 sprite from Super Mario Maker.
 * Lemmy can be seen playing the air guitar when idle in the battle in Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam, referencing Lemmy Kilmister.