- This article is about Black Shy Guys in general. For the enemy from Yoshi's Story, see Black Shy Guy (Yoshi's Story).
| Black Shy Guy | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Black Shy Guy from Mario Kart Tour | |||
| First appearance | Paper Mario (2000) | ||
| Latest appearance | Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Nintendo Switch) (2024) | ||
| Variant of | Shy Guy | ||
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- “Slicing through the mist. Paint will be spilled here today. The shy ninja strikes.”
- —Black Shy Guy, Paper Mario: Color Splash
Black Shy Guys are Shy Guys which wear black or dark gray robes and white shoes. Usually, they are depicted as more powerful than normal Shy Guys.
History
Yoshi's Story
- Main article: Black Shy Guy (Yoshi's Story)
Black Shy Guys in general first appear in Yoshi's Story, but only as a type of Flying Shy Guy. However, the only artwork for them in the game shows a black-colored normal Shy Guy, which along with the nonspecific wording of the Hint Block that talks about them suggests normal black Shy Guys may have been planned before being removed from the final game.
Paper Mario series
Paper Mario
Standard Black Shy Guys first appear in Paper Mario, where they are localized as Anti Guys. They are also known as Deadly Guys due to the fact that their attacks are extremely powerful. It is one of the strongest non-individual enemies that Mario can battle against, second only to the Amazy Dayzee, and even then, an Anti Guy has much higher HP and does not run from battle.
In the game, Mario first encounters an Anti Guy inside the Shy Guy's Toy Box. This Shy Guy is guarding a treasure chest containing a Power Plus Badge. If spoken to, it demands Mario to keep away, but the player can engage it in battle and get the Badge by beating it. Later, in Bowser's Castle, the second of three Guard Doors gives Mario a quiz. If Mario gets five questions correct in the quiz, he can pass. However, if he gets three questions incorrect, he has to face three Anti Guys at once, known as the Anti Guys Unit.[1][2]
Instead of fighting the Anti Guy in Shy Guy's Toy Box, Mario can instead bribe the Shy Guy to leave by giving it a Lemon Candy, allowing Mario access to the Power Plus Badge. However, if Mario does this, he is no longer able to fight the Anti Guy.
In battle, an Anti Guy attacks the same way as regular Shy Guys, by jumping on Mario or tackling him, except their attacks are much more powerful.
Paper Mario: Color Splash
In Paper Mario: Color Splash, they appear as a mini-boss in Violet Passage and as a regular enemy in Fort Cobalt, and will dodge any of Mario's attacks if they are not stunned. However, they are vulnerable to Thing cards. A Black Shy Guy also appears in the Emerald Circus, where it carries away the Unicycle Shy Guys' unicycle after their defeat. Their "paper" design now matches their regular counterparts, compared to Paper Mario. One serves as the third-round opponent in Roshambo Temple #8, although after Roy Koopa is defeated, it will be replaced by the Rock Paper Wizard until beaten.
The most notable Black Shy Guy in this game is the Shy Bandit.
Paper Mario: The Origami King
Black Shy Guys reappear in Paper Mario: The Origami King as enemies in the Temple of Shrooms. A Black Shy Guy sometimes comes out from behind certain pillars in the walls and attacks Mario with a paper fan, dealing a single point of damage to him. Mario can hit the enemy with his hammer to defeat it, but regardless, it does not reappear there. Several Black Shy Guys are later faced in combat. After being defeated, they compliment the last weapon Mario used during the battle.
As of version 1.0.1, Black Shy Guys can also be fought in Scorching Sandpaper West.
Unused sprites for a paper Black Shy Guy can be found in the game's data.
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Nintendo Switch)
Black Shy Guys reappear in the Nintendo Switch version of Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, and similarly to regular Shy Guys, they appear exclusively during battles. They adjust the stage nozzles to point upwards after it sprays the player or enemy. They can also pull a defeated partner off stage when the player uses Earth Tremor or during certain battle conditions in the Glitz Pit. Additionally, if Clock Out is used when the enemy is on the ceiling or too large, they hold the bomb in their place, running off once the move is finished.[3] They likely reference Kuroko, stagehands in traditional Japanese theater who dress in black.
Mario Baseball series
A Black Shy Guy also appears in Mario Superstar Baseball as a playable character and reappears in Mario Super Sluggers as a coloration of Shy Guy. In Mario Super Sluggers, however, it is renamed Gray Shy Guy. The former game marks the playable debut of a Black Shy Guy.
Mario Kart series
Mario Kart DS
A Black Shy Guy appears as a playable character in Mario Kart DS, although it only appears in the DS Download Play mode.
Mario Kart 8 / Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
In Mario Kart 8, Black Shy Guys appear mining in both Shy Guy Falls and Wii Wario's Gold Mine. A Black Shy Guy can also be unlocked as a playable character if the The Legend of Zelda × Mario Kart 8 and Animal Crossing × Mario Kart 8 downloadable content packs are purchased.
In Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Black Shy Guy is included as an alternate color for Shy Guy within the base game.
Mario Kart Tour
Black Shy Guy reappears as a Super driver in Mario Kart Tour. He was introduced in the 2019 Winter Tour. His special skill is the Bob-omb Cannon.
Mario Tennis Aces
While Black Shy Guys appear as NPCs in Mario Tennis Aces, a "Mega" version appears as a boss at the end of Rounds 4 and 8 of Shy Guy's Train Tussle. When low on health, the large Black Shy Guy will throw Bob-ombs at the players (which are replaced by Mega Bob-ombs during the Round 8 battle), which players must hit back at it to finish the round. In addition, normal-sized Black Shy Guys float around with balloons carrying crates with coins and power-ups that players can use against the Shy Guys.
Mario Golf: Super Rush
Black Shy Guys appear as NPCs once again during Mario Golf: Super Rush, being found in Balmy Dunes.
Profiles and statistics
Paper Mario series
Paper Mario
| Paper Mario enemy | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anti Guy | |||||||||
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Max HP | 50 | Attack | 10 | Defense | 0 | |||
| Role | Boss | Type | Ground | Level | 42 | ||||
| Strong | None | Weak | None | Moves | Bump Attack (10), Acrobatic Attack (12) | ||||
| Sleep? | 50%, -1 | Dizzy? | 50%, -1 | Shock? | 60%, 0 (Shy Guy's Toy Box); 50%, 0 (Bowser's Castle) | ||||
| Shrink? | 50%, -1 | Stop? | 50%, -2 | Fright? | 0% | ||||
| Air Lift? | 0% | Hurricane? | 0% | Coins | 0 | ||||
| Items | None | Run | N/A | Location(s) | Shy Guy's Toy Box, Bowser's Castle | ||||
| Tattle | This is an Anti Guy. His attacks are so intense that he's also called Deadly Guy. Max HP: 50, Attack Power: 10, Defense Power: 0 His attack power is 12 when he does an acrobatic attack, so dodge it! This guy is for real, so we'd better take him seriously. | ||||||||
- Player's Guide: Good thing you don't fight the Anti Guy very often, because it's pretty tough. The black-and-white bully has also earned the nickname "Deadly Guy" because of its high Heart Points and fierce attacks.[4]
Field Tattle
- "He's a guard named Anti Guy. He's all by himself! And he looks totally weak! Although...you never know. Appearances can be deceptive. Just look at me! Hmm... Weak? Or really strong?"
Paper Mario: Color Splash
| Paper Mario: Color Splash enemy | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black Shy Guy | |||||||||||||||||||||
|
HP | 16 | Type | Normal | Role | Boss, common | Card | ||||||||||||||
| Strong | None | Weak | None | Card drop rate | 0 | None | |||||||||||||||
| Moves | Attack (9), Blowback Attack (20) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Location(s) | Violet Passage, Fort Cobalt | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Quotes | Usual: "My belt is black too!" ~ "I know all your moves." ~ "*fwish*" ~ "......" | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Enemy class | |||||||||||||||||||||
| ENEMY_PENKI | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Dropped items | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Paper Mario: The Origami King
| Paper Mario: The Origami King enemy | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black Shy Guy | |||||||||||||||
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HP | 12 | Moves | Location(s) | |||||||||||
| Type | Normal | Paper Fan (?) | Temple of Shrooms, Scorching Sandpaper West | ||||||||||||
| Role | Common | ||||||||||||||
| Item drops | Mushroom | ||||||||||||||
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Mysterious Shy Guys shrouded in darkness. They like to throw turnip-shaped things, so watch out for that. | ||||||||||||||
Mario Kart Tour
| Statistics | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Special skill |  Bob-omb Cannon
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| Favorite courses (Three items per Item Box) |
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| Favored courses (Two items per Item Box) |
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* indicates a favored course upgraded to a favorite course after reaching level 3. ** indicates a favored course upgraded to a favorite course after reaching level 6. | ||||||||
- Mario Kart Tour Twitter: The masked man of mystery, Black Shy Guy, has made his way to #MarioKartTour! With his powerful Bob-omb Cannon special item, he's here to have a blast![5]
Gallery
- For this subject's image gallery, see Gallery:Black Shy Guy.
Paper Mario: The Origami King (unused)
Mario Tennis Aces
Mario Kart Tour
Names in other languages
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | ブラックヘイホー[?] Burakku Heihō |
Black Shy Guy | Paper Mario and Paper Mario: Color Splash |
| くろヘイホー[?] Kuro Heihō |
Mario Kart 8 | ||
| ヘイホー（くろ）[?] Heihō (Kuro) |
Shy Guy (Black) | Paper Mario: The Origami King | |
| Dutch | Zwarte Shy Guy[?] | Black Shy Guy | |
| French (NOA) | Maskache noir[?] | Black Shy Guy | |
| French (NOE) | Maskass noir[?] | Black Shy Guy | |
| German | Schwarzer Shy Guy[?] | Black Shy Guy | |
| Italian | Tipo Timido nero[?] | Black Shy Guy | |
| Portuguese (NOA) | Shy Guy preto[?] | Black Shy Guy | |
| Portuguese (NOE) | Masquito Preto[?] | Black Shy Guy | |
| Spanish (NOA) | Shy guy negro[?] | Black Shy Guy | |
| Spanish (NOE) | Shy Guy negro[?] | Black Shy Guy |
Trivia
- The Black Shy Guy's introductory quote in Paper Mario: Color Splash (shown at the top of the page) is a haiku, a type of poem in which the first and last lines consist of five syllables, while the middle line consists of seven.
- In the data for Paper Mario: Color Splash, Black Shy Guys are sometimes identified as heiho_matrix, likely as a reference to the film series The Matrix due to their clothes and mask holes resembling the dark suit and sunglasses common in the series, as well as their ability to dodge attacks being reminiscent of the series' iconic "bullet time" moment.
References
- ^ Guard Door: Prepare for battle! Anti Guys Unit! Attack!
- ^ Guard Door: Oh, but...no! NO!! You beat the Anti Guys Unit?!!
- ^ Technetium (July 22, 2024). TTYDNS: Clock Out Shy Guys? You bet.. YouTube. Retrieved July 22, 2024.
- ^ Paper Mario Official Nintendo Player's Guide. Page 101.
- ^ mariokarttourEN (November 23, 2019). Twitter. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
