Bob-omb

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This article is about the recurring walking bomb species. For the character from Paper Mario: The Origami King, see Bob-omb (Paper Mario: The Origami King).
Bob-omb
Artwork of a Bob-omb in Mario Party: Star Rush
Artwork of a Bob-omb from Mario Party: Star Rush
First appearance Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic (1987, overall)
Super Mario Bros. 2 (1988, Super Mario franchise)
Latest appearance Super Mario RPG (Nintendo Switch) (2023)
Variants
Relatives
Comparable
Notable members
“We do our jobs, and when we're done, there's always another Bob-omb there to take our place. All any of us can hope for is to make an impact.”
—Bob-omb, Paper Mario: The Origami King

Bob-ombs (originally formatted as Bob-Ombs)[1] are living, moving mechanical bombs with eyes, feet, and windup keys on the back. They are generic enemies that first appeared in Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic, a non-Super Mario game that was later remade as Super Mario Bros. 2. Since then, Bob-ombs, along with Shy Guys, have made more reappearances than any other enemies introduced in the same game. Their appearance, intelligence, and status with Mario differ widely from game to game. They are usually a bluish-black, but some variations are pink or red. They also flash red and sometimes make beeping sounds if they are about to explode.

History

Main article: History of Bob-omb

Bob-ombs first appeared in Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic, later released in the Western world as Super Mario Bros. 2. Bob-ombs appear as both enemies and allies in the Paper Mario series. Many games of the Mario Kart series feature Bob-ombs as items. In the Mario Party series, Bob-ombs appear in several of the minigames and sometimes on the boards themselves. Bob-ombs also appear in several Yoshi platforming games.

General information

Appearance

Bob-ombs have always resembled bombs with a few differences. The main difference is that they have white eyes, feet, and occasionally arms. They are traditionally colored black, but they can also be seen in red, blue, or even green. In most games, they feature wind-up keys on their backs and fuses, though these are lacking in a few old games. The fuse is usually surrounded by a gray or blue plug. A possible precursor of a Bob-omb can be seen in the Template:Media link in VS. Wrecking Crew. Curiously, in Super Mario Bros. 2 and during the Paper Mario ending parade, Bob-ombs are shown to have arms. In some games, Bob-ombs are seen to have yellow-orange feet and legs, but others in Super Mario Sunshine have feet resembling that of a wind-up toy. Upon closer observation, it can be seen that a Bob-omb's feet and legs are a segmented exterior of a potential endoskeleton.

Color variations

Template:More images Bob-ombs can have several different colors. The following is a list of all known Bob-omb colors and their first appearances.

Image Color First appearance
DMW-BobOmb.png Black Super Mario Bros. 2
A Bob-omb resident of Fahr Outpost that appears in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. Blue Super Mario All-Stars
Pa-Patch Purple Super Mario All-Stars
Paper Mario promotional artwork: Bombette doing the "going to explode" pose Pink Super Mario 64 (as Bob-omb Buddies)
Bob-omb Buddy Red Mario Party (as Bob-omb Buddies)
The Fahr Outpost mayor from Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. Green Yoshi's Safari
Yellow Mario Kart: Double Dash!!
Magenta Mario vs. Donkey Kong
General White White Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
Goldbob.png Gold Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
Sylvia.png Silver Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
Sprite of Bub from Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door Bronze Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
Bobbery Brown Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door

Allegiance and culture

Bob-ombs are usually affiliated with the Koopa Troop, and it is assumed that they take orders from King Bob-omb, one of Bowser's high-ranking minions. However, whether King Bob-omb is the true king of all Bob-ombs is never explained. In recent years, the games have introduced peaceful Bob-omb communities that have no affiliation with Bowser whatsoever, and their homeland in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door is known as Fahr Outpost, an isolated town located in a far-off icy land. The town is ruled by a Mayor, and all Bob-ombs take orders from him or General White. These Bob-ombs are generally peaceful but seem to dislike outsiders and prefer to keep to themselves. However, by the end of the game, they become more welcoming. The Fahr Outpost Bob-ombs' culture seems to resemble that of Russia, from the clothing right down to the accents.

Also, in more than a few instances, Bob-ombs were often depicted warring each other, with it often being split between Bob-omb Buddies and Black Bob-ombs.

Roles

Bob-ombs serve multiple roles in various games. In their most common appearances, they are enemies who explode upon being irritated, although they sometimes chase after Mario upon seeing him, exploding in a few seconds. Bob-ombs can also be used as weapons, particularly in the Mario Kart and Super Smash Bros. series. Bob-ombs are also involved in several mini-games in the Mario Party series. In Paper Mario: The Origami King, it is implied that Bob-ombs "die" when they explode; but many Bob-ombs in the earlier games, including the partners Admiral Bobbery and Bombette, seem to regenerate after exploding.

The first time a Bob-omb is friendly is in Super Mario 64, when Pink Bob-ombs help Mario by opening cannons. They later appear as friendly (though some are also enemies) in the Paper Mario series.

Bob-ombs appear as items in several Super Mario sports titles. In Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, they are Wario and Waluigi's signature item. When thrown, they stand still for a moment before exploding, throwing any nearby drivers into the air. If the radius is fading, it only causes a spinout. In Mushroom City and Mushroom Bridge, Bob-omb Cars can be seen, and if a player accidentally drives into one, it will explode like the Bob-ombs that Wario and Waluigi use as Special Items. In Mario Kart DS, Bob-ombs return similarly, as they did in Double Dash!!, but this time, it can be used by any character instead of being a special one. Curiously, in the remake version of Mushroom Bridge, Bob-omb Cars do not appear. The Bob-ombs also return in Mario Kart Wii as a regular item and an obstacle in Moonview Highway as a Bob-omb Car.

In Super Mario Strikers and its sequel, Mario Strikers Charged, Bob-ombs are items, and they do almost the same as they did in the Mario Kart series. Here, Bob-ombs can be obtained alone or in a set of three. Also, a giant form of a Bob-omb, called a Mega Bob-omb, sometimes appears, acting like a normal Bob-omb, but its explosion radius is roughly four times larger, plus it sends out a shockwave, harming anyone near it. In Mario Power Tennis, the Bob-ombs appear as an item in the minigame Chain-Chomp Challenge and are also part of the audience in the Wario Factory Court.

Profiles and statistics

Main article: List of Bob-omb profiles and statistics

Nearly every Bob-omb bio touches upon their signature behavior of exploding, though some bios also make allusions to their fuses and wind-up keys.

Gallery

For this subject's image gallery, see Gallery:Bob-omb.

Additional names

Internal names

Game File Name Meaning

Super Mario Sunshine root/data/scene/pinnaBeach1.szs/scene/bombhei/nejibomb_model1.bmd nejibomb Screw-bomb

Names in other languages

Language Name Meaning Notes
Japanese ボブ[2][3][4]
Bobu 		Bob (Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic / Super Mario USA)
ボム兵へい[5]
Bomuhei 		Bomb Soldier; translated as "BombTrooper" in the Japanese version of Super Smash Bros.; officially either romanized as "Bomhei" or "Bomb Hei"
ボムオム[6]
Bomu Omu 		Bomb-Omb (Super Mario USA)
Chinese (simplified) 炸弹兵[?]
Zhàdàn Bīnɡ 		Bomb Soldier
Chinese (traditional) 炸彈兵[?]
Zhàdàn Bīnɡ 		Bomb Soldier
Dutch Bob-omb[?] -
German Bob-omb
Bombe (Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga)[?] 		-
Bomb
Italian Bob-omba
Bobomba (in some earlier games)[?] 		From "bomba" (bomb); since the word "Bomba" is a feminine noun, originally the enemy name was considered as such (singular: "la Bob-omba"; plural: "le Bob-ombe"), in later games it was decided to give make it a masculine name due to the presence of the male name "Bob" (singular: "il/la Bob-omba"; plural: "i Bob-omba")
Korean 폭탄병[?]
Poktan Byeong 		Bomb Soldier, translation of the Japanese name
Portuguese Bob-bomba[?] From "bomba" (bomb)
Romanian Template:Nowrap
Bombiță (Super Mario World television series)[?] 		Bob-omb
Diminutive of "bombă" (bomb)
Russian Боб-омб[?]
Bob-omb 		Transliteration of the international name, Bob-omb
Spanish (NOA) Bob-omba[?] From "bomba" (bomb)
Spanish (NOE) Bob-omb
Bomba[7] (Mario vs. Donkey Kong)
Bomba rosa[7] (Mario vs. Donkey Kong) 		-
Bomb
Pink bomb (5-DK / 6-DK)

References

  1. ^ Super Mario Bros. 2 instruction booklet, page 25.
  2. ^ Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic instruction booklet, page 33.
  3. ^ Super Mario USA instruction booklet, page 28.
  4. ^ Super Mario Advance Japanese instruction booklet, page 32.
  5. ^ Super Mario World Japanese instruction booklet (fold-out)
  6. ^ Perfect Ban Mario Character Daijiten, page 225.
  7. ^ a b Mario vs. Donkey Kong website (Guías Nintendo)

External links

Bob-omb coverage on other NIWA wikis:

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