RAGEY'S TOTALLY BOMBASTIC BOMBERMAN SHRINE PLACE .:. Characters

The Bomberman series is hardly story-heavy, character interaction-heavy, or even continuity-heavy, but it's still managed to conjure up dozens and dozens and dozens of fiery little fellows! The Japanese Wikipedia article was immeasurably helpful in keeping track of them all.

Japanese names are listed first, then the most popular English name, and in brackets are the alternate translations from some games. I'm going to be using varying names all over the place, just to keep things diverse, but I'll try and avoid getting confusing.

[would totally be appreciated: some sources regarding character details and better write-ups than mine!]

Shirobom (白ボン) / Bomberman (White Bomber, Cheerful White (Bomberman Land series))

Bomberman is a robot engaged in the production of bombs. Like his fellow robots, he had been put to work in an underground compound by evil forces. Bomberman found it to be an unbearably dreary existence. One day, he heard an encouraging rumor. According to the rumor, any robot that could escape the underground compound and make it to the surface could become human. Bomberman leaped at the opportunity[...]

Bomberman NES manual

In the very first Bomberman game, our hero was one of many robots working in the dire depths of the planet, creating bombs for the evil Bangering empire (see Bomberman (NES) for that kettle of fish). He wasn't too happy about this, but he heard that if a robot could escape to the surface, they would become human - but to do that, they'd need to traverse through fifty floors and fend off the security guards (walking balloons and tiger faces). He succeeded and became human; the hero of the Lode Runner games, to be precise! He wasn't out of the woods yet, though, as the rest of the Bombermen robots were ordered to chase after and stop him, while he threw them into holes and gathered gold and other such activities.

Shiro is upbeat and cheerful, all too willing to make friends with people he had once considered enemies, and like many anime protagonists, focuses a lot on training to be the strongest warrior ever, much to Kuro's dismay.

Kurobom (くろボン) / Black Bomber (Cool Black (Bomberman Land series))

Through a programming error, Dr. Mitsumori's second robot, "Black Bomberman," has gone berserk. Seeking to control the world, he has kidnapped Dr. Mitsumori's only daughter, Lisa. Now he is hiding out in the mysterious Mechanical Castle.

Bomberman PCE manual

As a rival to white Bomberman, this almighty character is quite a match for [White]'s abilities.

Bomberman Hardball manual

In Kuro's first appearance, he robbed a bank, dumped the cash into Shiro's hands and made a run for it, leaving the white bomber to be incarcerated for what looked like his doing. Subsequent appearances appeared to be cementing his position as an enemy, including kidnapping among his crimes, but by the time of Super Bomberman the two had apparently made up and become allies. They remain friendly rivals, but Kuro appears unable to catch up with Shiro's level of skill.

While Shiro is cheerful and jolly, Kuro is normally portrayed as a little more forceful, mildly frustrated at living in Shiro's shadow and being more gung-ho. From what I gather, at least! (having to work with another source than just Saturn Bomberman Fight!! would be a huge help)

"Don't get in your way...?! And just who the heck do you two think you're talking to?! [...] I hope you understand that this is what happens when you don't listen to what I have to say!"

Saturn Bomberman Fight!!; after thrashing Denta and Kotetsu

A cowgirl, one of Hudson's mascots, she's apparently an ally of Bomberman and one of his many friendly rivals. She's primarily a multi-player only character, existing to fill up a slot in the roster. Her only appearance in a game's story is in Saturn Bomberman Fight!!, where she too is taking part in the tournament to get herself some vast riches. Apparently a bounty hunter as well (judging from her encounter with Golem Bomber), she's hot-headed and gung-ho, showing very little consideration to others if they stand in her way. Kotetsu is her subordinate and, just like everyone else she meets, does not treat him with much respect.

It's implied that she and Pretty Bomber are one and the same. See Pretty Bomber's section for details.

Appearances: Super Bomberman 4, Saturn Bomberman, Neo Bomberman, Super Bomberman 5, Saturn Bomberman Fight!!, Bomberman Wars, Bomberman (PSX)

A samurai, the polite and chivalrous counterpart to Honey and another of Hudson's mascots, though not given quite as much attention as her. He's your traditional samurai - he speaks in polite, archaic dialect, holds honour and dignity in high respect, and holds a grudge against fellow swordsman, Denta the ninja. Honey is his mentor and despite implied beatings, both verbal and physical, he holds her in high regards, though certainly doesn't whitewash her ferocious nature.

Appearances: Super Bomberman 4, Saturn Bomberman, Neo Bomberman, Super Bomberman 5, Saturn Bomberman Fight!!, Bomberman Wars, Bomberman (PSX)

Bagura (バグラー) / Bagular (Bomberman Hero) (Bagulaa (Mega Bomberman), / Burglar (Bomberman Fantasy Race), Buggler (Bomberman World), urgh

But one day, invaders arrived: the evil Bagulaa and his Robot Army. [...] the pieces of Bomber Planet are crawling with Bagulaa's robot minions and animals who've been brainwashed into helping the invaders.

Mega Bomberman manual

A mad scientist and the creator of the Evil Bombermen. The only reason he's participating in the event is to fund his evil plan to conquer the galaxy.

Bomberman Fantasy Race manual

An evil scientist and the leader of the Hige Hige Bandits, he's had numerous run-ins with Bomberman in his plots for world domination, though eventually his plans seem to deteriorate into simply getting back at Bomberman. His personality's never really been made clear (at least with the limited references I've got to work with!), but he's pretty evil and likes cackling.

Bagular resurrected the Five Dastardly Bombers in Super Bomberman 3, but was soundly defeated and left without a body, rendering him as a brain in a large machine (Bagular Head) in Super Bomberman 4. After being lost in a blackhole, he suddenly reappeared in his original body in Neo Bomberman and the story arc of Pocket (as Babylon), Wars and World, only for his lost body to be referenced once again in Hero, where he's only a face on a computer screen.

However, another fellow by the same name also appeared in the Panic Bomber games around the same time, portrayed as much shorter and cartoony and lacking his distinctive beard and eyebrows. This appeared to be retconned in Saturn Bomberman Fight!!, where it was said he was a separate individual who aspired to be like him but had misheard his name, naming himself Baguro (バグロオ). That was Baguro's last appearance, but also the only appearance that actually referenced the different name and appearance. It's kind of confusing and since every single one of Baguro's appearances is in a Japan-only game, it's thoroughly unpleasant.

Appearances: Bomberman '94, Panic Bomber (PCE, SNES & Arcade - as Baguro), Super Bomberman 3, Super Bomberman 4 (as Bagular Head), Neo Bomberman, Saturn Bomberman Fight!! (as Baguro), World (PSX), Wars, Hero, Fantasy Race

50 years old. As well as a practitioner of bomb science, he is an authority figure of the Bomber Nebula. He and Bomberman are good friends. A friendly and sentimental person who enjoys Enka ballads.

Saturn Bomberman Japanese site

Despite the appearance of a mad scientist, Dr. Ein is a reasonably kind old soul and

Appearances: Saturn Bomberman, Fantasy Race, Max 1 & 2, Generation, Jetters series

45 years old. Commander in-chief of the evil organisation, the Hige Hige Bandits. Simple-minded. Enjoys praise, though he prefers to act without thinking.

Saturn Bomberman Japanese site

Appearances: Saturn Bomberman, Max 2, Generation, Jetters series, DreamMix TV World Fighters

Bomberman Fantasy Race flubs the translation, calling them the Hige Hige Dan. Dan is Japanese for gang, so it's the same basic premise.

He's Bomberman's partner in some games, but I think the Jetters continuity mixes that up. Better info when I actually start covering those games!

Louies are native to the Bomber Planet and valuable allies of Bomberman. Louies are found in eggs which appear when you blow up soft blocks. Hop onto an egg, and a Louie appears as your faithful steed.

Mega Bomberman manual

Green kangaroo-like creatures, they are friendly and helpful creatures, all too willing to help Bomberman as soon as they're freed from their eggs. They come in a variety of colours, each with their own unique abilities, some more useful than others. The Louies in Super Bomberman 5 have appearances and accessories befitting of their abilities - a Louie in a soccer shirt can kick bombs, a roly-poly Louie can roll at high speeds, and so on.

Appearances: Bomberman '94, Super Bomberman 3, Super Bomberman 5, Bomberman Hero, Bomberman Fantasy Race, Bomberman (PSX), Bomberman Land series, Bomberman Tournament (cameo), Bomberman Jetters series

I finally found. you, mew.... Sorry I didn't thank you earlier. I wanna help you on your quest, OK?

Bomberman Tournament; upon being rescued by Bomberman

A Karabon. I, uh, don't really know anything about him. Better info when I actually start covering his appearances!

Appearances: Bomberman 64: The Second Attack!, Bomberman Max 1 & 2, Bomberman Tournament, Bomberman Generation, Bomberman Jetters series

He appears on the Japanese Wikipedia article quite early on. He must be important!

The evil Carat Diamond and his cohort, scientist Dr. Mook, are holding a Robot Tournament with robots specially designed for their combat and offensive capabilities. Hoping to steal BomberMan's advanced combat capabilities, Diamond has created a fake BomberMan to go to Peace Town and kidnap the real BomberMan.

Super Bomberman manual

A terrible two whose goals for conquest merely involve a small town, something that would be quickly undermined by every other villain's desire for conquest of the world or the universe. They made no subsequent appearances, so their defeat must have left them thoroughly humbled. Pretty understandable - their Bomberman robots were terrible.

The Five Dastardly Bombers first appeared in Super Bomberman 2 - human cyborgs built by an unknown alien to conquer space, and also to defeat Bomberman. They were resurrected by Bagular in Super Bomberman 3, now granting them the ability to form a giant robot (or become vital components of it; it's not clear and kind of ridiculous looking), but that ended with their destruction once more. Then after no further appearances of note as a full team, they reappeared in Bomberman Tournament, kidnapping Max and trying to conquer the world of Phantarion, though rather than Plasma Bomber leading the group, it was Brain Bomber this time. After that, there has been no further appearances of them.

The name can be translated in various ways, but it's basically just variations upon the same definition of "atrocious," "villainous," and so on. If you want to be pedantic, it would roughly be "Villainous Bomber Five-Man Team," which is simply not a wieldy name in English.

Magnet Bomber gets no respect. In every appearance he's always been the first one to be taken down, and not even the power to magnetically control bombs can save him from being remarkably pathetic. In Tournament he remains cocky despite his former failures, and can even turn into Magnet Dragon (マグネットドラゴン), but not even that can save him from being a loser.

Golem Bomber (ゴ一レムボンバ一) / Fire Bomber (Super Bomberman 2 manual)

Despite being the group's strongman, Golem Bomber is actually rather kind-hearted, as well as a large fan of nature and wildlife. Not that you can tell this from any game besides Saturn Bomberman Fight!!, where he either remains silent or displays an aggressive attitude, not to mention his habit of doing things like throwing bombs all around, igniting the floor and resurrecting the dead in his Golem Ghost form (ゴーレムゴースト).

He does stuff in Saturn Bomberman Fight!!, befriending Mami as her protector, but aside from that I'm rather clueless.

Appearances: Super Bomberman 2, Panic Bomber (PC Engine), Super Bomberman 3, Saturn Bomberman Fight!! (playable), Bomberman Tournament

Pretty Bomber (プリティボンバー) (Cute Pink (Bomberman Land series), Ms. Flashy (Panic Bomber VB))

The only girl among the Evil 5. She is rather sly for a girl with such an innocent face.

Bomberman Fantasy Race manual

Although not the only female Bomberman, Pretty Bomber is certainly the most popular and prominent, and quite frequently appears without the rest of her team, her alliance fluctuating randomly - sometimes she's evil, sometimes she's good, and sometimes she's purely neutral. Likewise, although she's always skilled and capable of taking care of herself, some games portray her as self-indulgent and maliciously playful, while others portray her as a little more sweet-natured.

It's implied that she and Honey are one and the same - she removes her helmet in Super Bomberman 3's password screen and the title of Hi-Ten Chara Bomb, presenting herself with a similar face and hairstyle to the cowgirl, and excluding Bomberman (PSX), Honey and Pretty Bomber are never present in the same game at the same time; Honey is playable in Neo Bomberman's battle mode, but she does not appear in the single-player mode where Pretty is the damsel in distress.

In Tournament her attitude is a little more dour and has the ability to transform into Pretty Balloon (プリティーバルーン), which is actually a freaky octopus thing, despite the misnomer.

Appearances: Super Bomberman 2, Panic Bomber (PCE, SNES, VB), Super Bomberman 3, Bomberman GB 2 (playable), Neo Bomberman, Bomberman Fantasy Race (playable), Bomberman (PSX) (playable), Bomberman Land series, Bomberman Tournament, Bomberman Kart (playable), Bomberman Battles (playable)

It's pretty obvious that he's the intelligent one, and a bit of a sinister schemer. Apparently he doesn't like his allies, but there doesn't appear to be explicit reference to this in the games. Rather than being defeated properly like the others in Super Bomberman 2, he pulls a strange disappearing act where he vanishes and leaves only his cloak behind. He's the leader in Bomberman Tournament and actually fights you properly, eschewing the transformations the rest of his comrades have.

The leader of the group, despite his electricity motif his attack style focuses primarily on being fast and furious. Notably, he extended a hand of friendship to Bomberman after his first defeat, but was subsequently electrocuted by his creator, and after that has shown no signs of being good again. In Tournament he's no longer the leader, or even the second-in-command; he's just the third boss. Talk about a fall from grace. In that game he can transform into Plasma Rock (プラズマロック), a winged beast of some kind, and had the good fortune of being the one to capture Max in the first place. Although he primarily appears in green colour scheme, he was yellow on some of Super Bomberman 2's artwork and in-game.

ジャマイカ出身の陽気なボンバーマン。菜食主義者で、同じくばにボンに登場するメタルボンバーとは仲が悪い。

A cheerful Bomberman who originates from Jamaica. A vegetarian; he and Metal Bomber do not get on well with each other.

Panic Bomber W manual

[he can swing his hammer around, but it's not even dangerous enough to kill you]

[he can become invisible. judging from the party edition manual he's listed separately from the other four, so whether or not he's the leader is unclear]

とても足が速くて凶暴な、ボンバーノ男爵のペット。ボンバーノ以外の者にはなつかない嫌なイヌだ。複数の地蟹ボムをあちこちに埋めまくる。

The personal pooch of Bomber Baron, it is a very fast and ferocious creature. An unpleasant critter, the only person it treats fondly is its master. It habitually buries landmines in many places.

Super Bomberman 5 manual

通称「男爵」と呼ばれているが、その本性は詐欺師。ボンバーワンの飼い主でもある。ドクロやゲタなどをばらまいて、ボンバーマンの邪庸をする。

Known as "The Baron" because, true to his name, he is a keen swindler. The master of Bomber Wan. Scatters Skulls and Clogs behind him as he flees, much to the detriment of our heroes.

Super Bomberman 5 manual

そのあまりの怪力ぶりによる破壊活動のために囚われた。彼の破壊した物の最大級は、巨大タンカー5隻と高層ビル3つである。怪力で、爆禅を次々と股げ飛ぱしてくる。

eyyy

Super Bomberman 5 manual

A creation by Bagular to defeat Bomberman who, with no foreshadowing whatsoever, rebelled against him by throwing him off-screen before he battled our hero. He can charge himself up and emit a large blast radius from his own body, rendering himself invincible briefly in the process, but otherwise his abilities were pretty standard. He was defeated and never seen again.

A Bomberman who can transform himself into a shapeless mound, allowing him to travel through soft blocks at the expense of being unable to plant bombs or pick up items in that form. His head appears more rounded than the traditional "bevelled box" shape of most other Bomberman.

A Bomberman who can disguise himself as a soft block at will. He's shown with Bomberman at the intro when Bagular's machine arrives, implying he's close buddies with our hero, maybe. The cabinet artwork portrays him with a large yellow backpack and no shoulder pads, though in-game his goggles are his only accessory.

A female Bomberman with feline traits, most notably swift agility at the expense of her sense of direction.

A ninja-esque Bomberman who can generate illusionary bombs that disappear in a harmless puff of smoke. The cabinet artwork portrays him with fishnets beneath his tunic and light blue arms and legs, though these don't show up in-game.

50 years old. The scientific genius of the Hige Hige Bandits. An influential man whose bomb science is only rivalled by Dr. Ein.

Saturn Bomberman Japanese site

In his quest to unravel the plans of the squirrelly Mr. Meanie, Bomberman comes across big, spotted eggs. By cracking these open, he hatches one of a variety of dinosaurs. Bomberman can jump on its back and take advantage of its special power. There are five different dinosaurs that turn up to help Bomberman, each having a different special power.

American manual

A mascot machine created by Dr. Ein. The pilot of the time machine. Kepo is a pleasant creature.

Saturn Bomberman Japanese site

A friendly robot created by Dr. Ein. He knows everything about Fantasy Land so he'll show you where to go.

Bomberman Fantasy Race English manual

Next to the shuttle, you can find Kepo. Talk to Kepo if you want to save your game.

Bomberman Quest English manual

That's quite literally all we hear about Kepo. He made insignificant appearances in other games, mostly as some kind of screen decoration (dancing next to the timer in Fight!!, a cursor in Fantasy Race and a save point in Quest). His character design was likely a prototype for Pommy, who would debut just a year after Kepo's final appearance and subsequently take his place as cute sidekick/mascot, with the benefit of actually having some degree of personality.

A mysterious warrior who tests Bomberman's skill. The Bomb Kick and Bomb Throw are his standard attacks. Is he Bomberman's friend or foe?