Axem Rangers
- “Axem Red: We fight for evil!
Axem Black: We live for disorder!
Axem Green: We like what we do!
Axem Pink: We struggle for chaos!
Axem Yellow: We are...
...the AXEM RANGERS!!”
The Axem Rangers are members of the Smithy Gang and appear in the game Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars. There are five Axem Rangers, each with their own distinct traits and abilities. However, all five Axem Rangers wield a small axe in battle. Additionally, the Axem Rangers have their own battleship, the aptly named Blade. Axem Red is the leader of the group.
During the events of the game, Mario and his allies enter the Barrel Volcano to locate the sixth Star Piece. Unbeknownst to the heroes, Smithy has ordered the Axem Rangers to recover the Star Piece as well. After Mario defeats the Czar Dragon, he discovers the sixth Star Piece. However, before the plumbers can claim it, Axem Red appears and swipes the Star Piece away from Mario. Then, the Axem Rangers escape to their battleship Blade. Mario follows closely behind and jumps onto the deck of the massive ship. Thus, Mario and his allies engage the five Axem Rangers. Eventually, each ranger falls, one-by-one. However, the fight is not over yet. The Axem Rangers combine their power with the Blade's Breaker Beam, and begin firing devastating blasts at Mario's party. However, even this was not enough. Ultimately, the Axem Rangers and Blade are defeated by Mario and his allies. Blade explodes and Mario recovers the sixth Star Piece.
However, this is not the last Mario and company will see of the Axem Rangers. They return in Smithy Factory, as gray, mass-produced copies of the original Axem Rangers. As it turns out, the original five Axem Rangers were merely the prototypes for an army of mass-produced Axem Rangers.
The Axem Rangers were first mentioned by another of Smithy's minions, Yaridovich. Apparently, the Axem Rangers were supposed to pick up Yaridovich after he recovered the fifth Star Piece. However, the rangers were running late, causing Yaridovich to be defeated by Mario and his new ally, Jonathan Jones.
The Axem Rangers are a parody of the Super Sentai series in Japan, which was the basis for the Power Rangers series in the United States.
The Axem Rangers
Axem Red
- “We fight for evil!”
- —Axem Red, Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
Axem Red is the leader of the Axem Rangers and a member of the Smithy Gang. Axem Red is a balanced fighter and a tough opponent for Mario and his allies. He has the ability to power up his attack and defense.
During the events of Super Mario RPG, Axem Red spearheaded the effort to collect the sixth Star Piece from the Barrel Volcano. In fact, he swipes the Star Piece right before Mario was going to claim it. Then, Axem Red flees to his battleship Blade, hoping to escape with the Star Piece. However, Mario follows right behind him. As a result, Mario's party does battle with the Axem Rangers. Throughout the battle, Axem Red witnesses his comrades give up fighting, stating some lame excuse. (If Axem Red is defeated before the other Axem Rangers, he will say: "Oh, my head is spinning!")
Eventually, all five Axem Rangers are defeated. However, Axem Red won't give up the Star Piece that easily. He rallies his comrades, and together they pour their energies into the Blade's Breaker Beam. Axem Red personally takes command of the powerful energy beam. Ultimately, Axem Red's efforts were in vain, as Mario and his allies defeat the Axem Rangers a second time. As a result, the Blade explodes in a brilliant fashion, and Axem Red dies a fiery death.
Axem Black
- “We live for disorder!”
- —Axem Black, Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
Axem Black is one of the five Axem Rangers and a member of the Smithy Gang. Like all the Axem Rangers, he fights with a small axe. Additionally, Axem Black likes to use bombs in battle. Apparently, Axem Black is the coolest Axem Ranger, as indicated by his hip sunglasses.
After an Axem Ranger is defeated by Mario, he or she gives an excuse for not being able to fight anymore. Axem Black's excuse is: "I broke my shades!"
Axem Pink
- “We struggle for chaos!”
- —Axem Pink, Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
Axem Pink is one of the five Axem Rangers and a member of the Smithy Gang in Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars. She is the only female Axem Ranger. Like all Axem Rangers, she wields a small axe in battle. Additionally, Axem Pink can use recovery magic to heal her allies. She also knows the spell Petal Blast, which can transform Mario and his allies into Mushrooms! Axem Pink is considered to be the cutest Axem Ranger.
After an Axem Ranger is defeated by Mario, he or she gives an excuse for not being able to fight anymore. Axem Pink's excuse is: "My makeup's running!"
Axem Yellow
- “I'm...hungry!!”
- —Axem Yellow, Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
Axem Yellow is one of the five Axem Rangers and a member of the Smithy Gang in Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars. He is the bulkiest of the five, and as such, has the highest physical attack and defense. Axem Yellow wields a small axe, like all the Axem Rangers. He occasionally attacks with a toxic bubble.
After an Axem Ranger is defeated by Mario, he or she gives an excuse for not being able to fight anymore. Axem Yellow's excuse is: "I'm hungry!"
Axem Green
- “We like what we do.”
- —Axem Green, Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
Axem Green is one of the five Axem Rangers and a member of the Smithy Gang. He is the skinniest of the five, and as such, he is not very strong physically. To compensate for this, Axem Green has mastered the art of magic. Although he wields an axe like all the other rangers, he prefers to use his magic to attack opponents.
After an Axem Ranger is defeated by Mario, he or she gives an excuse for not being able to fight anymore. Axem Green's excuse is: "I have a headache!"
Blade
Blade is a massive battleship used by the Axem Rangers during the events of Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars. Blade resembles a giant axe, with a great eye in the middle of the main blade. Additionally, two smaller axes hang from the side of the battleship. The main weapon of the battleship is a massive energy cannon that fires the powerful Breaker Beam. Ultimately, the battleship was destroyed by Mario and his allies.
Blade was first used during a rendezvous mission with Yaridovich in order to retrieve the fifth Star Piece on Smithy's behalf. However, for some unknown reason, Blade and the Axem Rangers did not meet Yaridovich at the predetermined time. As a result, Yaridovich was defeated by Mario and Jonathan Jones, allowing the plumber to claim the Star Piece. The mission ended in failure for the Axem Rangers and for the Smithy Gang as a whole.
However, the Axem Rangers were given a chance to redeem themselves, and were ordered to retrieve the sixth Star Piece from the Barrel Volcano. Blade was piloted to the top of the volcano, allowing the Axem Rangers to enter from above. Surprisingly, the leader of the Axem Rangers, Axem Red, managed to swipe the sixth Star Piece away from Mario and escape to the battleship. However, Mario followed right behind him and soon an epic battle erupted on the deck of the Blade. Eventually, each Axem Ranger was defeated by Mario and company. Nevertheless, Axem Red was not willing to give up. The Axem leader activated the main cannon of the battleship and started firing the Breaker Beam at Mario's party. The heroes struck back, attacking the cannon directly. As a result, the cannon overloaded, and the Blade exploded in a magnificent fashion. Luckily, Mario and his allies made it off the battleship just in time. In the end, both Blade and the Axem Rangers were destroyed, and Mario recovered the sixth Star Piece.
During the game's credit sequence, Smithy can be seen riding in Blade.
Interestingly enough, Smithy's factory administrators all wield large axes that look exactly like Blade.
