Mega Man/Characters

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This page deals with characters from the Mega Man franchise, featuring general background information on them and tropes they provide examples of. More specifically, this page refers to characters from the original eight (and current two) Mega Man games, often called the "Classic series". Mega Man Battle Network, Mega Man Star Force, Mega Man X, Mega Man Zero, Mega Man ZX and Mega Man Legends have their separate character pages.

The characters' names will be formatted in this style: English Name/Japanese Name (Serial Number, if applicable, though not mandatory).

Heroes

Mega Man/Rockman (DLN-001)

The legendary Blue Bomber himself. A housekeeping humanoid robot built by Dr. Light who was later modified into a battle-capable robot upon his request. Mega Man is equipped with the Mega Buster, and the ability to copy techniques from the Robot Masters he defeats.

Mega Man: "I am more than a robot!! Die Wily!!"

Dr. Thomas Light/Dr. Thomas Right

The primary developer of the "Robot Master" technology that created Mega Man, Roll, Proto Man and others. He has always expressed an interest in using his inventions for the good of mankind.

Robot Masters designed by Light have the serial number DLN-XXX (Doctor Light Number).

  • Absent-Minded Professor: Actually believes Wily has changed after sending his robot to stop Wily's evil scheme 'twice! Then he believes Wily again after roughly twelve more of [1] have been foiled, the last of which involved framing Light for world domination aspirations! If Light keeps this up, he'll develop a reputation for gullibility rivaling Knuckles the Echidna!
  • Always Someone Better: Early games depict Wily as jealous of Light's higher achievements.
  • Big Good: Mega Man's and X's creator, a world-famous altruistic scientist, and all-around paragon of the benefits of useful, moral science.
  • Cool Old Guy: He's built quite his fair share of badass gizmos and robots.
  • Elmuh Fudd Syndwome: Fine Dogta Wawwey!
  • Light Is Good: Literally.
  • Mission Control: In later games especially, he gives Mega Man support on missions.
  • Mr. Exposition: Is often in charge of explaining the plot, and in later games how weapons work.
  • Not That Kind of Doctor
  • Spell My Name with an "S"/Japanese Ranguage: In the earlier games, localization for the English speaking territories alternated between rendering his name as Light, Right and Wright before making Light the standardized name. Capcom themselves consider both names to be correct since the name of his Battle Network counterpart (Tadashi Hikari) translates to Right Light.
  • Team Dad: Quite literally, seeing how Rock and Roll are his children to him.
  • Techno Wizard: This guy invented many robots, like Mega Man, the original Robot Masters, and eventually X.

Proto Man/Blues (DLN-000)

The "prototype" robot master created by Drs. Light and Wily. He was the first one to be capable of independent thought. Worried that Dr. Light would meddle with his programming, he left Light Labs to wander alone. He eventually finds his "brother" Mega Man in Mega Man 3, and fights him multiple times.

  • Aloof Ally: Although he is on Mega Man's side, he refuses to stay with Dr. Light at his lab, due to his rocky past.
    • Aloof Big Brother: He is considered to be Mega Man's brother. Not that Mega Man himself knows this (as far as Japanese continuity is concerned).
  • Badass: Is he ever.
  • Big Damn Heroes: Manages to pull these off several times. Lampshaded in Mega Man 9:

Proto Man: "Looks like you need my help... again."

Roll (DLN-002)

The third humanoid robot built by Light Labs, and is a "sister unit" of sorts to Mega Man and Proto Man. She doesn't do any fighting on the field (except in Powered Up, where she is a playable character), preferring to use her smarts and help Mega Man from the home base.

According to her character card in Mega Man & Bass, she hates cockroaches.

  • All Girls Want Bad Boys: In one manga [dead link], Roll has a thing for Bass, and Bass pretends to reciprocate to the extent necessary to piss Mega Man off.
  • Arm Cannon: Sometimes yes, sometimes no. The cell phone port of the original game gives her an almighty charge shot with limited ammo, and Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of the Superheroes and Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age Of Heroes had the Roll Buster as a weak projectile. Games released since have gone the Improbable Weapon User route.
  • Ascended Extra: Roll became something like this over the years of the franchise! In Mega Man 8, she ran a part shop in Auto's absence (Auto helped Mega Man out in the Tengu Man Stage during the flying scene). In Mega Man & Bass, She uses a communicator to give tips on CD locations for the player and boss weaknesses. In Mega Man 9, she, along with Auto, runs the part shop again. In Mega Man 10, after the 8 robot masters are defeated, she saves Mega Man's life from the Roboenza Virus, all the while still being sick from the virus herself in the beginning of the game! In the world of Capcom vs. Whatever, Roll went from a secret Joke Character in Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of the Superheroes and Marvel vs. Capcom 2 to a very powerful, and available from the very start of the game, Lethal Joke Character in Tatsunoko vs. Capcom!
    • Not to mention she's playable in Powered Up!
  • Brother-Sister Twincest: Some of her quotes in Powered Up (especially during the battle with Copy Roll) give the impression that Roll is a bit too attached to her brother.
  • The Chick: Well, as far as a humanoid robot can be a "Chick", anyway.
    • Considering she looks like a kid and has the voice of a kid anyway.
  • Damsel in Distress: Wily kidnaps her for some unexplained reason in The Power Fighters.
  • Gadgeteer Genius: If Mega Man 8, Mega Man & Bass and Mega Man 9 are anything to go by, she can create things like E-Tanks and Energy Balancers.
  • Heroic Sacrifice: A rare non-death example. Upon the defeat of the first four Robot Masters in Mega Man 10, Dr. Wily creates a prototype cure for the Roboenza virus. Rather than take the medicine, however, Roll instead saves it for the possibility of another sick robot being brought into the lab. Sure enough, just as he defeats all eight Robot Masters, Mega Man falls ill from Roboenza...
    • However, when Wily leaves behind a huge pile of Roboenza Cure Pills for Mega Man as thanks for being saved and brought back to good health at a hospital, it's safe to assume that Roll gets better, though the ending doesn't show it!
  • Hitbox Dissonance: In Capcom's crossover titles, Roll's small size makes her a hard target to hit. Tatsunoko vs. Capcom takes this up a notch by giving her a broom, a weapon with good reach, further disjointing her hitbox. See Lethal Joke Character below.
  • Image Song: First appeared in Battle & Chase and has reappeared throughout the Capcom vs. Whatever series. It's a freaking Ear Worm too!
  • Improbable Weapon User: If Mega Man Powered Up and Tatsunoko vs. Capcom are any indication, her Weapon of Choice is a broom.
    • In Powered Up, the Roll Swing changes depending on which costume she's wearing. It doesn't change if she's Mega Man 8 Roll, however.
    • Marvel vs. Capcom. Come with explosive vases.
  • Irony: The storyline emphasizes the fact that Roll was not built for combat. Ironically, she has made the most appearances in the Capcom vs. Whatever series than any other character from the entire franchise (even more so than Mega Man, who himself got Demoted to Extra as a cameo in Roll's Tatsunoko vs. Capcom ending)!
  • Lethal Joke Character: Tatsunoko vs. Capcom turns her into one of these.
    • Marvel vs. Capcom did it first. She can take out Onslaught quite handily.
    • In Powered Up, the first form of Dr. Wily can easily be stunned by the Roll Swing, as well as Mega's Mega Kick. They both also do slightly better damage to most of the bosses than the Mega Buster (as long as you don't take Mega Man C's charged shots into account, and even then, they're on par with it during the castle boss battles).
  • Little Miss Badass: She can punch out Onslaught and Yami in crossover games, not to mention the series' ultimate badass.[2] While this level of power may or may not be canon, the other robot masters in Powered Up are afraid of her. As well they should be!
  • Littlest Cancer Patient: In Mega Man 10, though it's not played for Glurge.
  • Popularity Power: Apparently, she can take Zero in a fight! Yellow Devil would have been so screwed...
  • Robot Girl/Maid:
    • Super-Powered Robot Meter Maids: In those side games where she fights. Otherwise, she's just a regular robot meter maid.
      • Well, considering how she fights in many of the games (with random objects, often cleaning utensils), maybe her superpowers are related to cleaning.
  • Skip of Innocence: At the end of Powered Up after she saved the day.
  • The Smurfette Principle: The only female Robot Master until the inclusion of Splash Woman in Mega Man 9.
  • Theme Naming: Rock & Roll, anyone?
  • Took a Level in Badass: Somewhat, though she sometimes isn't even present enough to tell either way, but Tatsunoko vs. Capcom is probably a large example. Knocking much larger opponents off their feet and repeatedly ramming them in the groin with a mop is pretty hardcore.
  • Unwilling Roboticisation: In the Brazilian comic. It was quite gruesome, indeed.
  • Zettai Ryouiki: In Universe.

Rush

A robotic dog created by Dr. Light in Mega Man 3 to assist Mega Man in his adventure. Can take on many forms, including a submarine, a hoverboard, a springy coil, and later even a Powered Armor.

Beat

After Mega Man saved Dr. Cossack's daughter from Dr. Wily, the grateful scientist created this robotic bird to aid Mega Man. Beat flies around in Mega Man's proximity, either taking out enemies in Mega Man's path or carrying him short distances.

Eddie/Flip-Top

Eddie is a small robot who was built by Doctor Light to serve as a walking suitcase. He helps Mega Man by teleporting in to give him power-ups, and occasionally by tossing bombs out of his head. He has a problem with anxiety.

  • Hammerspace: The Power Ups that he produces are certainly larger than he is. And an exploitable glitch will allow Eddie to throw more than he can fit.

Tango

When Mega Man initially failed to defeat the StarDroids in Mega Man V, Tango the cat was created to assist him in fighting the robots. His ability is to curl into a spiky ball and charge into enemy robots.

Auto/Rightot

A mechanic robot created by Doctor Light, Auto considers himself Mega Man's biggest fan. He helps the Blue Bomber by creating new accessories for him to use. He's good friends with Roll, and treats Eddie like a pet.

  • Adult Child: If his CD biography has to be believed...[3]
  • BFG: Uses a cannon/rocket launcher in the Rush Jet sections of Mega Man 8.
  • The Cameo: In the Playstation version of Mega Man X3, in Volt Catfish's intro video.
  • Doppelganger: The robot who manages Proto Man's shop in Mega Man 10.
  • Gadgeteer Genius: Light's assistant, and manager of the shop that usually sells hi-tech items.
  • Hero Worshipper: Mentioned that he's Rock's "biggest fan".
  • Otaku: A big mechanics geek.
  • Plucky Comic Relief: Provides hilarity in most scenes he's in.
  • Remember the New Guy?: A new character for Mega Man 7, but it was mentioned that he was already under Dr. Light's employ long before that time.

Villains

Dr. Albert Wily

The main antagonist of the series, and Dr. Light's former partner at Light Labs. Jealous of being overshadowed by Light's success, he reprogrammed the original Robot Masters and used them to take over the city, and would eventually attempt to conquer the world with them.

Robot Masters designed, controlled, or modified by Wily usually bear the serial number DWN-XXX (Doctor Wily Number), although some special-purpose Robot Masters such as Bass have the serial number SWN-XXX (Special Wily Number).

  • Anti-Villain: In Mega Man 10, he leaves behind cures for Roboenza following his escape, and in Tatsunoko vs. Capcom, he calls Zero his son and doesn't really care that he hasn't killed X anymore.
  • Big Bad: The mad scientist to contrast Dr. Light, using the Robot Masters in order to control the world rather than benefit mankind. Almost every game in the classic series is about stopping him.
  • The Chessmaster: He was mainly responsible for the events of almost all of the games, sometimes even doing it in such a way where the blame couldn't possibly be pinned on him. In fact, the only game that had something happen that he was not responsible for at all (or at least, he certainly didn't intend for it to go that way at all) was Rockman and Forte: Mirai Kara no Chousensha, where, although Wily did technically create Rockman Shadow, he was not involved in Shadow's attack at all.
    • This extends to the next 100 years.
  • Dangerously Genre Savvy: In Mega Man 8, one could call him this; check the page for the example.
  • Einstein Hair: He even shares the same first name!
  • Evil Counterpart: To Dr. Light.
  • Evil Old Folks: According to Mega Man & Bass's Japanese manual, he's 57 by the time the events of that game occur.
  • Final Exam Boss: In the Normal and Hard modes of Mega Man Powered Up.
  • Hijacked by Ganon: Extending into the X series!
  • Iron Butt Monkey: Try to remember that, when his Wily Machines go into their second forms, the target would usually be Wily himself, with little to no protection against a robot attack. This is at its finest in Powered Up, where he visibly flinches whenever an attack hits him!
    • He's also survived being crushed under the rubble of at least one crumbling castle, two crash landings (which, naturally, resulted in a huge explosion each time), and catching a cold. Clearly, that man has great physical health!
  • Joker Immunity: It took 6 games for Wily to simply go to jail, and even that only lasts for half a year.
  • Laughably Evil: Arguably for the entire series, but less arguable in Mega Man 10. Say it with me, guys: "The World is mine! HA-HA-HA-HA...achoo!"
  • Mad Scientist: Wily fits the archetype to a T, always plotting to take over the world with an army of robots both stolen and self-made.
  • McNinja: He claims to be a ninja in the Japanese OVAs.
  • Morally-Ambiguous Doctorate
  • Names to Run Away From Really Fast
  • Not-So-Harmless Villain: After so many times that he has decayed, you'd think that he isn't a credible threat anymore, right? Tell that to the future generations...
    • Let's not forget Mega Man & Bass, where one of his creations, King, chopped Proto Man in half.
    • And Mega Man 10, where if not for Roll, he would have won.
  • One Steve Limit
  • Paper-Thin Disguise: You mean to tell me Mr. X is really Dr. Wily in disguise? But Mr. X has a beard! And opaque glasses! And a cape! And a dot on his forehead!
  • Pet the Dog: In Super Adventure, Wily says he loves his robots and would never give them up .
    • In Zero's ending in Tatsunoko vs. Capcom, his calling Zero "son"... unless the "unfinished task" he mentioned there is "Kill your best friend in his sleep", which is entirely possible.
    • But it is shown, in Mega Man 10, he leaves the hospital, the clincher? He left probably about enough Roboenza capsules to cure an entire population.
  • Pride: He decided to Take Over the World essentially because he was sick with being in Dr Light's shadow.
  • Sigil Spam: The classic "Dr. W" logo, which always means trouble.
  • Spell My Name with an "S": Similarly to Light, in the English language localizations of the first few games, his name was rendered as Wily, Wiley and even Willy (which isn't even pronounced the same way!) before Wily became the standard English name/spelling.
  • Supervillain Lair: Skull Castle, a veritable Platform Hell. To make things more difficult, he sometimes has multiple castles.
  • Take Over the World: What he aims at.
  • Villain Override: Boosts King's brainwashing level in Megaman & Bass when it becomes clear that the self-proclaimed lord of robots doesn't particularly want to kill his own kind.
  • Xanatos Gambit: Mega Man 6 and Mega Man 7. He anticipated the possibility of being caught, and built four of the Mega Man 7 'bots to break him out if that happened.
    • Batman Gambit: After framing Dr. Light in Mega Man 9, Wily coerces the population to fund his efforts to stop him. The funding instead went into building Wily's new Fortress guardians.

Guts Man (DLN-004)

While not truly a main character, he's been in many of the games so far, normal, modified or referenced, and is one of the original six robot masters. Unlike what one would expect, he has average intelligence. Incidentally, he enjoys karaoke.

Guts Man: "It's a foreman's job to look out for everybody, but sometimes you gotta do what ain't in the blueprints!"

  • The Big Guy: When he's not under Dr. Wily's control, he's this.
  • The Brute: When he is used by Dr. Wily, he's this. He's also strong to the point where he can gain ammunition (boulders) simply by landing from a jump.
  • Dishing Out Dirt: Somewhat. He's commonly associated with earth, and throws rocks a lot of the time as an attack.
  • Dumb Muscle: Mostly because of his Animated Adaptation portrayal. However, Powered Up reveals that he has average intelligence.
    • Guts Man seems to have this reputation in-universe too, as Wily refers to him as having strength but no brains if you play as Guts Man in Powered Up. Of course, Wily isn't exactly a nice person, and compared to him, Guts Man is essentially dumb.
  • Heel Face Revolving Door: Fans are generally mixed on what happens to him and Cut Man (and the rest of the original Robot Masters for that matter) after Mega Man 1.
  • Leitmotif: His original stage theme usually accompanies his direct appearances.
    • Also the infamous DUH-NUH!
  • Spell My Name with an "S": His name has been written as either Gutsman or Guts Man.
  • Those Two Bad Guys: With Cut Man in the cartoon.
  • We Can Rebuild Him: Wily really seems to like Guts Man. This is first hinted at in Mega Man 1, where his image is dotted around the final stretch of castle for no adequately explained reason. He's then rebuilt as a giant tank in Mega Man 2, and in Mega Man 7 he's rebuilt with treads. A number of robots scattered about the sequels also bare more than a passing resemblance to him.
    • This might have happened again, as according to a supplementary manga for Mega Man 9, all six of the original Robot Masters were attempting to stop their younger brethren. It should be said that according to this manga (Rockman Megamix), Mega Man never killed his brothers; they were simply reformatted a la Powered Up.
    • Which also happens to the new group in the ending of Mega Man 9.

Cut Man (DLN-003)

Like Guts Man, Cut Man isn't a main character, but is one of the robot masters who appears the most often. While Guts Man has been used as a boss most, Cut Man has canonically been in Wily's service the longest of the original six masters.

  • Bonus Boss: Although not necessarily a difficult one, he makes his way into Mega Man X8 as a "reward" for getting good scores on Optic Sunflower's courses. He's even in 8-Bit form!
    • Also in the Sega Saturn version of Mega Man 8, as an optional battle in Duo's stage.
  • Heel Face Revolving Door
  • Incredibly Lame Pun: His introduction in Mega Man 8 has at least three puns related to cutting things.
    • Ever before then, cutting-related puns were present in the Ruby-Spears cartoon, with gems such as "Guts Man might be strong, but I'm on the cutting edge!".
    • Not to mention Powered Up...
    • A Worldwide Punomenon: He tends to attract scissor puns in general.
  • Leitmotif: If he appears, the theme used for his stage will often start up in some form.
  • Meaningful Name: Has a large pair of shears on his head, and is the first Robot Master to use a "cutter" class of weapons.
  • Spell My Name with an "S": His name was spelled as either Cut Man or Cutman.
    • Captain N apparently thought it was spelled Cuts Man.
  • Stealth Pun: Might be a coincidence; in Mega Man 1, Cut Man takes more damage from the uncharged Mega Buster than any other Robot Master in the franchise (ignoring The Wily Wars remake and Mega Man 2's Easy/"Normal" mode). Mega Man's Japanese name is Rockman, and Cut Man has a pair of scissors on his head, so...
    • Definitely not a coincidence. Keiji Inafune decided it would be a good idea to give his game a Rock-Paper-Scissors mechanic shortly after he settled on naming his hero Rockman.
  • Those Two Bad Guys: With Guts Man in the cartoon.
  • Wall Jump: In Powered Up.
  • Warmup Boss: For the game that started it all.

The Mega Man Killers

Clockwise from the bottom: RKN-001 Enker, RKN-002 Punk, RKN-003 Ballade.

Minor but memorable characters from the Game Boy games, the Mega Man Killers, consisting of Enker, Punk and Ballade, are designed for the sole purpose of destroying Mega Man. They are designated by the serial number of RKN-XXX (Rockman Killer Number) in Japanese and MKN-XXX (Mega Man Killer Number) in English.

  • Always Second Best: Inverted with Ballade; this is how he sees everyone else.
  • Arrogant Kung Fu Guy: Ballade.
  • Blade on a Stick: Enker's javelin.
  • Blood Knight: Ballade is described as being incapable of resisting a fight with any opponent who looks strong, and he is said to dislike foes that disappoint him and uncompetitive enemies.
  • Bonus Boss: All three of them are the bosses of the Special Stages in Mega Man 10. You even get their weapons from them!
  • Charged Attack: Enker can absorb enemy fire to beef up his own attack, at the cost of his health.
    • In Mega Man 10, he doesn't even lose health from the blocked hits.
  • Dumb Muscle: Ballade's bad point is described as being stupid (in the English version) and simple (in the Japanese version).
  • Expy: Ballade looks quite similar to Quick Man.
  • Fantastic Racism: Enker's Japanese spirit is described as so strong that he hates Americans. In the Japanese version, that is. In the English version, he simply hates foreign robots.
  • Heel Face Turn: Ballade.
    • Heroic Sacrifice: He self-detonates to open the way for Mega Man to escape Dr. Wily's station.
    • Face Heel Turn: He's back to working for Wily in Mega Man V and Mega Man 10; however, his apparition in Mega Man 10 isn't canon, and in Mega Man V, it's a copy of him, not the original.
  • Irony: Despite Punk's name and appearance, he actually fights fairly and is even a policy follower (if his and Bass CD Data is to be believed)!
  • Laser Guided Tykebombs: Wily built them specifically to kill Mega Man, if their group name wasn't already obvious.
  • My Weapon's Nayme Is: Enker's lance is called the Barrierd Spear. Yes, Barrierd.
  • Quirky Miniboss Squad
  • Recurring Boss/Boss Rush: All three Mega Man Killers (and Quint) return in Mega Man V for a final rematch with the Blue Bomber.
    • The three show up as the Special Stage bosses for Mega Man 10.
  • Spikes of Villainy: Punk.
  • Stealth Pun: Punk is, of course, named after the genre of music. But his dislike of the PTA invokes the other definition of "punk".
  • Super Mode: Ballade.
    • It isn't much of a transformation, though: His horns point upward and his helmet gains a face mask and visor. His body is otherwise the same.
  • Theme Naming: Like most of the characters here, their names follow the musical theme.
    • To explain, Enker is enka (a popular form of Japanese music; coincidentally, his name also sounds like the musical term encore), Punk is named after the genre of rock, and Ballade is either a form of poetry of the same name or a ballad (a narrative set to music).

Quint

A minor but memorable character from the Game Boy games, Quint is apparently Mega Man himself, pulled from the future and reprogrammed.

  • Continuity Snarl: Is his defeat how Mega Man dies? Did Dr. Light repair and reprogram him, as seems to be the case with many robot masters? Is the version of him that appears in Mega Man V a replica of some sort?
    • It should be noted, however, that Quint as seen in Mega Man II GB never explodes, but instead teleports out much like Proto Man after a battle.
  • Cool Shades: Rather much like Proto Man, and they could apply as a Paper-Thin Disguise.
  • Evil Counterpart: To Mega Man.
  • Future Badass: Oh so subverted. He's resorted to trying to kill himself, he of the charging Arm Cannon and eight or so other weapons, with a pogostick/jackhammer hybrid, and his pattern is pathetically easy.
    • This was then subverted again in Rockman & Forte: Challenger from the Future, where Rockman Shadow is believed to be a much, much, much more dangerous Quint. It turns out that he's a prototype (quite possibly a Super Prototype at that) of Quint who traveled back in time to prove himself worthy to Wily. The real Quint inexplicably has a cameo at the end.
  • My Serial Number Is Question Marks: "???-???", to be exact.
    • We do know what the question marks represent though. Want to know? Just look at the number for the first character listed on this page.
  • Theme Naming: Continuing the music theme, his name references a Quintet.
  • Time Paradox: His victory would have resulted in one of these. He's stated in Mega Man & Bass to dislike these, however.

The Genesis Unit/MegaWorld Army Corp

Appearing in the Compilation Rerelease/Video Game Remake Wily Wars, the Genesis Unit, consisting of Buster Rod.G, Mega Water.S, and Hyper Storm.H, are the three bosses featured in the secret fourth game, Wily Tower. They are given the serial number of MWN-XXX (MegaWorld Number) in Japanese and WWN-XXX (Wily Wars Number) in English.

The StarDroids/Space Rulers

Villains from Game Boy's Mega Man V. They are designated by the serial number of SRN-XXX (Space Ruler Number), even in English.

Sunstar/Sungod

An ancient super robot on which Wily based the StarDroids. He releases him against Mega Man for the final battle of Mega Man V. He promptly blows Wily off the battle field before facing Mega Man.

King

A self-proclaimed king of robots who attacked a robot museum, downloaded data on the battle robots, and created an army of robots. It turned out that he is yet another creation of Dr. Wily.

Robot Masters recruited by King (except Tengu Man and Astro Man) have the serial number KGN-XXX (KinG Number).

Other Characters

Bass/Forte (SWN-001)

A robot created by Dr. Wily in Mega Man 7 specifically to oppose Mega Man at every turn. He has a robot wolf named Treble (Gospel in Japan), with whom he can fuse to gain new powers, in a similar manner to Mega Man and Rush.

  • Animal Motifs: His helmet is shaped like a Cobra.
  • Anti-Hero: In Megaman & Bass.
  • Arrogant Kung Fu Guy: Hoo boy...
  • Badass: Although the amount of badassitude is undermined by the nigh-insufferable level of his arrogance.
    • That being said, it's been established that his only equals in the Classic series are Mega Man, Proto Man and Duo. He will tear everything else to shreds.
  • Badass Cape: In the Rockman Online trailer, he seems to have taken on his Battle Network counterpart's sense of style. It also recalls Zero's longcoat from Mega Man Zero 2.
  • Bag of Spilling: He left his Double Jump somewhere near Mega Man's slide and charge shot just in time for Mega Man 10. Also, his high jump became a long jump instead (although that actually follows basic Newtonian physics).
  • Blood Knight: His sole purpose is to prove himself as the strongest robot, so naturally, he can't turn down a fight against an allegedly-stronger opponent.
  • Damn You, Muscle Memory!: When Mega Man X and Mega Man Zero players get their hands on a copy of GBA Mega Man & Bass for the first time, his dash control will seem... obscure.
    • In Mega Man 10, Bass's dash is performed the same as Proto Man's slide (Down and jump), rather than double tapping a direction.
  • Denial of Diagonal Attack: Averted in Mega Man & Bass (both the original and the Wonderswan version) and Mega Man 10.
    • Played straight in the Power arcade games, where he was meant to be comparable to Mega Man and Proto Man.
  • Divergent Character Evolution: He started out similar to who he was created to oppose in his first game in the Vs Mode, before finally getting his semi-iconic dash and diagonal attacks in Mega Man & Bass.
  • Do Not Run with a Gun: Bass must stand still while firing his Bass Buster.
    • This did not apply to his original appearance or the Power games, as there, his Buster was more akin to Mega Man's.
  • Double Jump: His trademark in Mega Man & Bass. Preceded his "little brother".
  • The Dragon: Wily's righthand robot in Mega Man 7.
  • Evil Counterpart: To Mega Man.
    • Made more explicit in Mega Man 9[4] and Mega Man 10, where his sprites closely resemble Mega Man's.
  • Facial Markings: Which, along with the design of his helmet, makes him look like a cobra.
  • Fangs Are Evil: Whenever he gives a Slasher Smile, he gives off one of these.
  • Freak Lab Accident: How Dr. Wily discovered Bassnium, the powerful energy used to create Bass.
    • According to that same Power Fighters ending, Bassnium was later refined during the creation of Zero.
  • Fusion Dance: With Treble.
  • Gone Horribly Right: Bass's only priority is defeating Mega Man and proving himself as the "strongest robot". Since this doesn't specifically require helping Dr. Wily, or even obeying him, this has a tendency to backfire on the good Doctor. Bass's whole heroic turn in Mega Man & Bass was just him proving that he was stronger than King.
  • It Is Pronounced BASE: The pronunciation of his name. Lest we forget, he is not a fish.
  • Laser Guided Tykebomb: Like the "Megaman Killers", Wily created him to destroy Mega Man.
  • Leitmotif: His Boss Battle theme in Mega Man 7 and Mega Man 8.
    • It pops up as Bass' shop theme in Mega Man 10.
  • Meaningful Name: His name in Japan, "Forte," means "strong" in several Romance languages. Sure enough, he's obsessed with proving himself to be stronger than anyone else (particularly Mega Man).
  • The Mole: Introduced as an ally, but is actually trying to get on the good graces of the good guys to steal the Super Adapter blueprints for Dr. Wily.
  • Nobuyuki Hiyama: Explains a lot.
  • No Pronunciation Guide: Although for the sake of the music pun, it's generally agreed upon that Bass is pronounced like "base" and not the fish, despite what Mega Man 8 says.
  • The Only One Allowed to Defeat You: Obsessed with proving his superiority over Mega Man, and won't let anyone else fight him.
  • Power Copying: He shares Mega Man's abilities to mimic other Robot Masters' weapons.
  • Red Eyes, Take Warning: Any post-Mega Man 7 appearance. In Mega Man 7 (perhaps due to sprite limitations), Bass's eyes were brown, possibly to convey him as a new ally. Yeah, right.
  • Reliable Traitor: He and Wily frequently alternate between enemies and allies.
  • The Rival: To Mega Man.
  • Secret Character: Like Proto Man in Mega Man 9, he's Downloadable Content in Mega Man 10.
  • Spam Attack: Fires a stream of bullets in rapid fire to attack his enemies.
  • Theme Naming: He and Treble are named after the bass and treble clefs, obviously. Their Japanese names Forte and Gospel are apparently Japanese nicknames for the clefs as well (if it helps make it more understandable, the bass clef is also known as the "F clef", and the treble clef "G clef").
  • "Well Done, Son" Guy: His methods are seriously messed up (blow up all of your siblings?), but it's made clear he wants Wily to admit that he is his masterpiece. It's kind of sad that he's wrong too.
  • Wounded Gazelle Gambit: In Mega Man 7, he fakes injury in order to get to Dr. Light's lab and steal the enhancements for Mega Man and Rush. On the other hand, he really is weak to Shade Man's weapon...

Treble/Gospel

A robotic wolf created by Dr. Wily to help Bass the same way that Rush helps Mega Man. He can morph into a jet pack and fuse with Bass to let Bass fly for a limited time.

Reggae

A robotic bird created by Dr. Wily. His most notable video game appearance was in the Japanese-only Party Game Rockboard.

Dr. Mikhail Cossack

A brilliant Russian robotics scientist that Dr. Wily blackmailed into attacking Mega Man by kidnapping his young daughter Kalinka. Once Proto Man saved Kalinka, he was willing to help, going so far as to build Beat for you the next game.

Robot Masters designed by Cossack have the serial number DCN-XXX (Doctor Cossack Number), though due to Wily's involvement they may be given DWN serial numbers instead.

Duo

A machine from outer space that searches for "Evil Energy" to destroy it.

  1. ↑ How many games were in the Classic series between Mega Man 3 and Mega Man 10 again?
  2. ↑ That'd be Zero, for those who are curious.
  3. ↑ Pure and innocent!
  4. ↑ His outline appears in Dr. Wily's monitor in the ending.
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