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{{work}}
The characters in ''[[
Characters are listed in alphabetical order of last names. It should be noted that all the Chinese and Korean character names are rendered in the Western style (given name-surname rather than surname-given name).
[[Trivia Trope]] entries go in the [[The King of Fighters
== Athena Asamiya ==
{{quote|
* [[Action Fashionista]]/[[Unlimited Wardrobe]]
** ''XIII'' is something of an in-between. She's wearing her ''XII'' clothes, but bears the default color scheme of her ''XI'' attire. Not a new outfit in any one aspect, but together comes together to create something different.
** [[Lampshade Hanging|Lampshaded]] in ''{{'}}98'', where her intro involves her changing between her previous four outfits before settling down on her current attire.
** Lampshaded ''again'' with her Psychic 8 HSDM/LDM, where Athena changes her outfit (progressing from ''{{'}}94'' to the current costume, [[Fan Service|and sometimes adding her Princess Athena bikini]]) with each hit.
** ''[[Up to Eleven|Overkilled]]'' in ''XIII'' with her [[Limit Break|Neo MAX]] version of the above attack, [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L74ieb2Q4VU Psycho Medley 13] ([[Fan Nickname|also known as]] Psychic 12), where she uses all ''twelve'' of her previous outfits and is then aided by what appears to be Princess Athena's royal guard.
** Almost averted in ''[http://images4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20090825123461/snk/images/6/61/Athena_asamiya_95.jpg '95]'', where she wears a slightly modified version of her ''{{'}}94'' [http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100511221319/snk/images/b/b1/Athena94.jpg outfit
** Lampshaded in-game by Maxima in their single-player intro in ''XIII''.
{{quote|
* [[Action Girl]]/[[Barrier Maiden]]
* [[Animal Motifs]]
* [[Ass Kicks You]]
* [[Attack Reflector]]
* [[Breakout Character]]
* [[Crystal Ball]]: During her Shining Crystal Bit attack, she's surrounded by
* [[Cute but Cacophonic]]:
** Her ''{{'}}95'' incarnation. It can be argued that she's this anytime she yells "[[Gratuitous English|Saikou Baaru]]!".
** Also happened in ''
* [[Distracted
* [[Divergent Character Evolution]]
** Goddess Athena is a [[Proud Warrior Race Guy|proud warrior amazon]] who isn't quite a nice person to boot
*** [[Composite Character]]
** [[Idol Singer]] Athena is a nice [[Action Girl]] with [[Psychic Powers]], very charismatic, friendly
* [[Energy Ball]]
* [[
* [[Expository Hairstyle Change]]
* [[Fingerless Gloves]]: A staple of her outfits. No matter how much it changes, she always wear fingerless gloves.
* [[Flung Clothing]]
* [[Genki Girl]]: Always cheerful and optimistic.
* [[Hair Decorations]]
* [[Idol Singer]]
* [[Image Song]]:
** "Psycho Soldier
** She also has "Present Holiday
* [[Joshikousei]]
** Cynically lampshaded by Kyo ([[Hypocritical Humor|of all people]]) on ''XIII'': "No one wears sailor uniforms at your actual age anymore." Athena [[Oh Crap|isn't happy]] when he points it out.
* [[
* [[Magical Girl]]
* [[Magic Skirt]]
* [[Mascot]]: An early one for SNK. It was even believed that she had a grudge against Terry Bogard when he seemingly took the title from her. ''XIII'' demonstrates otherwise, as dialogue between the two shows that they have nothing but respect for each other.
* [[Mini
* [[Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot]]
* [[Odango Hair]]
* [[Older Than They Look]]
* [[Onee
* [[Plucky Girl]]: She's always feisty, determined and cheerful.
* [[Psychic Powers]]
* [[Reincarnation]]
* [[Rolling Attack]]
* [[Rose
* [[Shoryuken]]:
* [[Spider Sense]]
* [[Teleporters and Transporters]]: Her Psychic Teleport.
* [[They Fight Crime]]
* [[You Gotta Have Blue Hair|You Gotta Have Purple Hair]]
* [[Zettai Ryouiki]]
== Brian Battler ==
{{quote|
* [[Gratuitous English]]
{{quote|
'''Brian''': "I AM SUPERSTAR!"
* [[I Know Madden Kombat]]: American Football, specifically.
* [[The Juggernaut]]
* [[Mighty Glacier]]: Pretty slow-moving and hits the hardest out of his team.
* [[Put
* [[Running Gag]]
* [[Shoulders of Doom]]
* [[Wrestler in All of Us]]
== Rugal Bernstein ==
{{quote|
* [[Arms Dealer]]: To the extremity that he actually lived on a Nimitz-class supercarrier, and his kids have their own armored fortress airship.
* [[Artificial Limbs]]: His right hand from ''King of Fighters '95'' onward, and his glowing red eye.
* [[Attack Reflector]]
* [[Audible Sharpness]]: The Genocide Cutter. And it comes from his ''legs''.
* [[Awesomeness By Analysis]]: A talent he apparently has. [[What Could Have Been|Initially this was meant to be a part of his fighting style]], as using any special move on him in ''{{'}}94'' would have granted him the ability to [[Power Copying|do the same move to you]]. However, this turned out to be far too infeasible for the game to handle and thus was only given some moves from Geese and Krauser along with a few unique moves.
* [[The Backwards R]]: His normal theme in ''{{'}}98'', "The ЯR".
* [[Badass in a Nice Suit]]: That elegant red tuxedo he wears when you first face him in ''{{'}}94''. He loses it in all subsequent installments (the only exception is if Omega Rugal is waiting on the sidelines in ''{{'}}95''), but always wears it in the ''[[SNK vs. Capcom|Capcom vs. SNK]]'' series, even as God/Ultimate Rugal.
* [[Badass Longcoat]]: His suit evolves into this in ''Capcom vs. SNK''.
* [[Badass Long Hair]]: Starting in ''{{'}}95'', although it's a bit hard to notice.
* [[Badass Mustache]]: It fits his wealthy, yet villainous appearance.
* [[Battle Aura]]: Omega Rugal gains one in his ''{{'}}98'' [[Victory Pose]].
* [[Blond Guys Are Evil]]: His Omega Rugal form has silver hair though.
* [[Blood Knight]]: His original motivation for reviving the tournament.
* [[Cool Ship]]: The ''BlackNoah''.
* [[Dark-Skinned Blond]]: As Omega Rugal and as God/Ultimate Rugal from ''[[Capcom vs. SNK 2 Mark of the Millennium|Capcom vs. SNK 2]]''.
* [[Deadly Upgrade]]: Using the Orochi power without being of the Orochi bloodline was apparently the ultimate cause of his death.
* [[Disappeared Dad]]: To his children Adel and Rose. Adel idolizes his father enough to mimic his fighting style, and both copy his fashion sense, but Adel remarked about never being able to do things with him. On the other hand, Rugal granted them access to his vast wealth, and they live quite lavishly.
* [[Disproportionate Retribution]]: Perhaps one of the most unholy examples ever and bleeds over with [[Kick the Dog]]. Heidern was apparently annoying him with his probes into his operation (not even talking thorn-in-the-side bad, simply getting Rugal's attention) and his response is to ''kill his entire family and mercenary squadron of fifty men''. From Rugal's view, it was meant as ''mockery and provocation''. Unconventionally, also counts as his [[Moral Event Horizon]] (as this is the first genuinely heinous thing he does in the series).
* [[Eucatastrophe]]: In ''{{'}}94''. If Kyo didn't assume the worst when he saw his unconscious father, he would have never gone into an [[Unstoppable Rage]]-induced [[Heroic Second Wind]], and Rugal would have won. Kyo gets lucky for a second time in the next game.
* [[Everything's Better with Spinning]]: His "Dead End Screamer" DM (''King of Fighters '98'' move only).
* [[Evil Laugh]]: The prime example in ''King of Fighters''. He even does it as he is about to die (again) in ''King of Fighters '98''.
* [[Eye Scream]]: Goenitz sliced out Rugal's eye as they fought. Impressed that Rugal survived, Goenitz then gave him some of the Orochi power. [[Superpower Meltdown|Regard]][[Deadly Upgrade|less]]... [[Karmic Death|Rugal still died]].
* [[Fingerless Gloves]]: He loses one glove (and the corresponding hand) after his incident with Goenitz, but later installments either restore it or simply give him regular gloves.
* [[Flash Step]]: One of his ''{{'}}98''-only specials as Omega Rugal. Notable in that Rugal ''[[Combat Pragmatist|actually hits you while dashing past you]]''.
* [[Flung Clothing]]: Tosses the top part of his tuxedo off in ''King of Fighters '94'' in Round 2, and in ''2002'', his jacket falls off, along with the wires on his shoulders.
* [[For the Evulz]]: The underlying theme of his actions, sadistic humor and snark. At least some of the other villains had more (relatively) altruistic goals.
* [[Glowing Eyes of Doom]]: His cybernetic eye since ''King of Fighters '95'' (back in ''{{'}}94'', the eye was pitch black) and as God Rugal. And both are [[Red Eyes, Take Warning]].
* [[A God Am I]]:
{{quote|
* [[Kamehame Hadoken]]: The Kaiser Wave, taken from Krauser. Can be [[Charged Attack]] to become [[Unblockable Attack]].
* [[Narcissist]]: The first clue was the portraits of himself adorning the command room of the BlackNoah.
* [[Neck Snap]]: His ''King of Fighters '98'' (non-boss) incarnation has the "Dead End Screamer", which in its SDM/MAX version starts with Rugal doing this to the opponent neck (then he follows by [[Everything's Better with Spinning|spinning]] over him/her while [[Maniacal Laugh|laughing manically]]... ouch).
* [[Not Quite Dead]]: Survived detonating his ship in ''King of Fighters '94''. {{spoiler|1=Strongly hinted to have survived his apparent death in ''{{'}}95''}}.
* [[One-Winged Angel]]: Omega Rugal.
* [[Phlebotinum Overload]]: Leads to his [[Plotline Death]]. See [[Deadly Upgrade]] above and [[Superpower Meltdown]] below.
* [[Pillar of Light]]: At the end of his Gigantic Pressure DM.
* [[Poisoned Weapons]]: His ''hands''. One of Omega Rugal's ''{{'}}98''-only DMs involves impaling the opponent and supercharging them with [[Sickly Green Glow|green]], poisonous Orochi energy. This attack is made ''even cheaper'' in ''Capcom vs. SNK 2'', where God Rugal receives this move as a ''normal'' special. And it involves ''[[Flash Step|flash stepping]]''.
* [[
* [[Recurring Boss]]: Pops up in two consecutive games in the series' canon. Afterwards, he was seen as the [[Trope Codifier|ultimate end-boss]] and is so well-loved by fans, that Rugal became the [[Final Boss]] of every subsequent [[Dream Match Game]].
* [[Red Eyes, Take Warning|Red Bionic Eye Take Warning]]: After Goenitz ripped off his eye, he replaced it with an artificial, glowing red one.
* [[Replacement Goldfish]]: When Mature and Vice became [[Ascended Extra]]s in ''{{'}}96'', Rugal received two additional secretaries named Aya and Hermione in ''{{'}}98''.
* [[Right-Hand-Cat]]: His panther Rodem, who acts as Rugal's "partner" in ''{{'}}94'' and ''{{'}}95''.
* [[Running Gag]]: A meta example: his penchant for "dying" (although it only canonically happened once) has been [[Played for Laughs]] to the point that Rugal's hobby in his official bio is listed as "[[Back from the Dead|resurrection]]."
* [[
* [[Slouch of Villainy]]: The end credits of ''2002''.
* [[SNK Boss]]: [[Trope Codifier]].
* [[Sore Loser]]: See [[Villainous Breakdown]] below.
* [[Spell My Name with an "S"]]: "Luger" popped up infrequently in the first two games. This is arguably [[Woolseyism]], as a Luger is a German weapons brand while Rugal is a (presumably) German arms dealer.
* [[Status Quo Is God]]: He is always the end boss in every ''King of Fighters'' game he appears; only in ''King of Fighters '98: Ultimate Match'' was he the default boss with Goenitz and Orochi being of higher levels.
* [[
* [[Take Over the World]]: Omega Rugal's hobby is "World conquest". This, combined with the lingering question of if Rugal is truly dead and his appearance alongside the members of NESTS in ''2002'', [[Wild Mass Guessing|has the fans scratching their heads]].
* [[Taking You with Me]]: As mentioned above, in ''King of Fighters '94''; also used in ''{{'}}98'', ''R2'' and ''2002: Unlimited Match''.
* [[This Cannot Be!]]: Gets one in ''{{'}}94'' when you beat him.
{{quote|'''Rugal''': [[Bilingual Bonus|"Ma... masaka..."]] }}
* [[True Final Boss]]: His second round in ''King of Fighters '94''. Even more fittingly, him in ''2002 Unlimited Match'': you can only fight him by not losing more than 2 teammates against the "[[Final Boss]]", and you can't unlock your team's ending picture unless you beat him. Oh, and you can't continue if you lose against him.
* [[Useless Useful Spell]]: His Kaiser Phoenix HSDM in ''2002'', in which he spams Kaiser Waves over and over. It sounds good in theory, but if the first one hits, it can launch you into the air and the others tend to miss while you're airborne or on the ground, though its damage is comparable to other HSDMs. In ''2002 Unlimited Match'', it was given OTG properties... but its damage output was drastically lowered. He also tends to stop it prematurely.
* [[Villainous Breakdown]]: Happens ''twice''. The first time, he ''[[Taking You with Me|blows up his own aircraft carrier with himself still on it]]''. The second is his [[Superpower Meltdown]], and proceeds as follows:
{{quote|'''Omega Rugal''': "Even with my new power I lost. What? My body.....????? [[Big No|NO!]] To meet such a fate! But I'll be back... [[Narm|YOU JERKS!]]" }}
* [[We Can Rebuild Him]]: Goenitz definitely thought so when he restores Rugal.
* [[Willfully Weak]]: When you first face him in ''{{'}}94''. Then, his [[Rubber Band AI]] kicks in... [[Curb Stomp Battle|Oh god...]]
== Andy Bogard ==
{{quote|
* [[Always Someone Better]]
* [[Badass Long Hair]]
** [[Long
* [[Bash Brothers]]
* [[Red Oni, Blue Oni|Blue Oni]]:
* [[Chaste Hero]]
** Spoofed with a couple of his special intros with Mai, where she shows him a (fake) baby that looks like him and he looks shocked.
** His [[Ambiguously Gay]] status in the fandom was apparently also parodied in Mai's ending for ''Gals Fighters'': {{spoiler|Andy refuses to marry Mai arguing that he has secretly been a woman all this time; fortunately for Mai, it was [[All Just a Dream]], and she immediately wakes up}}.
** Alternately, Andy can easily be seen as a [[Celibate Hero]]. He ''is'' aware of Mai's interest, [[Like Brother and Sister|he just considers Mai to be more of a younger sister]] since he started training with Hanzou when he was ''very'' young. [[Unlucky Childhood Friend|Mai's luck is surely bad
** The current storylines make it clear that they definitely are a couple, so it looks like that he's at the very least gotten over that.
* [[Disappeared Dad]]
* [[Flash Step]]
* [[Hair of Gold]]
* [[Highly
* [[Ki Attacks]]
* [[McNinja]]
* [[Show the Forehead]]
** [[Forehead of Doom]]: [[Depending on the Artist]].
* [[Technician Versus Performer]]: Andy (the technician) gruelingly trained for years under ninjas to learn the art of Ninjutsu and Koppoken. Terry (the performer) simply grew up in Southtown getting into random street fights and rarely trains. Andy's quote above also supports this.
== Terry Bogard ==
{{quote|
* [[Animal Motifs]]
* [[Badass Boast]]: His "Wolves never sleep. Never." line to Nightmare Geese in ''Maximum Impact 2''.
* [[Badass Long Hair]]
* [[Bash Brothers]]: Literally with Andy.
* [[Boisterous Bruiser]]
* [[Catch Phrase]]:
{{quote|
* [[Clothes Make the Legend]]
* [[Cool Pet]]
* [[Disappeared Dad]]
* [[Expository Hairstyle Change]]
* [[Fingerless Gloves]]
* [[Gratuitous English]]
* [[Ground Pound]]
* [[Hair of Gold]]
* [[I Know Madden Kombat]]
* [[Ki Attacks]]
* [[Long-Haired Pretty Boy]]: Not quite as [[Bishonen|bishie]] as Andy, but still very handsome.
* [[Male Gaze]]: His bio states that Terry has a knack for being able to accurately guess a woman's measurements by merely glancing at her.
* [[Mascot]]: He replaced Athena as SNK's mascot after he proved more popular, which is lampshaded in the series, as Athena isn't too fond of him.
* [[Mr. Fanservice]]
* [[Nice Hat]]
* [[Parental Substitute]]
* [[Pillar of Light]]
* [[Red Baron]]
* [[Red Oni, Blue Oni|Red Oni]]:
* [[Ship Tease]]
* [[Spirited Competitor]]
* [[Technician Versus Performer]]:
* [[Vocal Evolution]]
== Chang Koehan ==
{{quote|
* [[Bald of Evil]]:
* [[Chained
* [[Counter Attack]]
* [[Death From Above]]
* [[Dumb Muscle]]
* [[Exotic Weapon Supremacy]]
* [[Fat Bastard]]: Played for utter laughs.
* [[Fire
* [[Meaningful Name]]: Koehan means "thug" in Korean. Guess what Chang is.
* [[Metronomic Man-Mashing]]: His command throw.
* [[Mighty Glacier]]: Very slow, but hits very hard with his iron ball. In ''XIV'' following the 2.0 update, he has a 1200 health rating unlike other characters who fit the trope until the 3.10 update that reduces it to 1100 along with the others of said trope.
* [[No-Holds-Barred Beatdown]]: One of his DMs.
* [[Plucky Comic Relief]]
* [[Strong Flesh, Weak Steel]]
* [[Time Stands Still]]
== Chin Gentsai ==
{{quote|
* [[Alcohol Hic]]: Carries a sake gourd all the time because he's a [[Drunken Master]]. His special intro against Kensou in ''{{'}}98'' consists of him trying to outperform his eating with his own drinking.
* [[Badass Beard]]: Typical for a chinese old master in a fighting game.
* [[Badass Grandpa]]: At 89, he's the oldest character in the series. Doesn't stop him from putting up a good fight against the younger ones. His gameplay somewhat reflects it: though short and thin, he's rather slow and can't jump too high.
* [[Badass Mustache]]: It goes along with his [[Badass Beard]].
* [[Blinding Bangs]]
** [[Peek
* [[Breath Weapon]]
* [[Comes Great Responsibility]]
* [[Confusion Fu]]
* [[Cool Old Guy]]: He can fight, boast and trash talk like most of the younger fighters.
* [[Detect Evil]]: Not to Kim Kaphwan's level, but some of his win quotes comments about how much evil he can feel from his opponet's spirits.
* [[Exotic Weapon Supremacy]]
* [[Gag Nose]]
* [[Gonk]]: His face is drawn in a slighty more cartoony and unflattering style, particularly his nose.
* [[Happily Married]]
* [[Hidden Eyes]]
* [[Improbable Weapon User]]
* [[
* [[
* [[Mentors]]: Primarily to Athena And Kensou, but also has been acting like this toward K' since ''2003''.
* [[Nice Hat]]: Always a part of his outfit.
* [[Old Master]]: For the Psycho Soldiers.
* [[Parental Substitute]]
* [[Playing with Fire]]: Not only his Gou Ran Enpou DM is a massive [[Booze Flamethrower]], his Gou En Shourai DM also has him on fire.
== Choi Bounge ==
{{quote|
* [[Awesome but Impractical]]
* [[Bald of Evil]]: Though it tends to be concealed by his hat.
* [[Cool Shades]]: He's never without his little round specs.
** [[Hidden Eyes]]
** [[Sunglasses at Night]]
* [[Everything's Better with Spinning]]: '''Many''' of his moves involve it. He can even summon a big tornado while spinning very fast in one of his DMs.
* [[Fragile Speedster]]
* [[Heterosexual Life Partners]]
* [[Image Song]]
* [[Improbable Weapon User]]
* [[Knife Nut]]
* [[Licking the Blade]]: Fond of licking his metal claws.
* [[Meaningful Name]]: Bounge (more appropriately spelled and pronounced as "Bungeh") means "lightning". It's fitting, considering that Choi is nimble and eccentric.
* [[Nice Hat]]
* [[No
* [[Plucky Comic Relief]]
* [[Rolling Attack]]:
* [[Set Swords to Stun]]
* [[This Is a Drill]]
* [[Verbal Tic]]
** In the English translations, [[Woolseyism|this is symbolized by]] Choi ending most of his sentences (at least, in cutscenes) with the words "buddy boy
* [[Wolverine Claws]]
== Goro Daimon ==
{{quote|
* [[Badass Normal]]
* [[Big Brother Mentor]]
* [[The Big Guy]]
* [[Dishing Out Dirt]]
* [[Eyes Always Shut]]
* [[Flung Clothing]]: In some of his intro poses, he may throw the top part of his gi away.
* [[Gentle Giant]]
* [[Ground Pound]]
* [[Hachimaki]]
* [[Happily Married]]: To [[Hot Teacher|Jokyojo]]. Then even have a son named Kogoro who appears to be [[Generation Xerox|passionately following his dad's footsteps]]. See Daimon's intro pose in ''2001'' for a good example.
* [[Heroic Mime]]: Kind of. While he talks during his win quotes, he has no dialogue while fighting.
* [[Mediator]]
* [[Metronomic Man
* [[Mighty Glacier]]: His movement tend to be slower than other's, but boy those throws are strong.
* [[Unnecessary Combat Roll]]
* [[Walking Shirtless Scene]]: He never wears anything for his top in all games. All the better to show his well-toned body.
== Robert Garcia ==
{{quote|
* [[Action Fashionista]]
* [[All Love Is Unrequited]]
** Heck, in his team's ''XIII'' ending, {{spoiler|he planned on proposing to Yuri in the middle of a post-tournament interview. Too bad [[Overprotective Dad|Takuma]] kept him from doing so
* [[Alternate Company Equivalent]]
** And both of their styles emphasize stylish kicking. Of note is that Robert was introduced that way whereas Ken had developed this '''after''' ''[[Art of Fighting]]'' came out.
* [[Ambiguously Brown]]
* [[Animal Motifs]]
* [[Badass Beard]]
* [[Badass Long Hair]]
** [[Long
* [[Big Brother Mentor]]
* [[Red Oni, Blue Oni|Blue Oni]]:
* [[Brilliant but Lazy]]
* [[Bring It]]
* [[Cultured Badass]]
* [[Dance Battler]]
* [[Did Not Do the Research]]
** Oddly enough, this seems to have propelled Robert to [[Badass Spaniard]] status within some circles.
* [[Dynamic Entry]]
* [[Fingerless Gloves]]
* [[Heterosexual Life Partners]]
* [[Informed Flaw]]
* [[Kansai Regional Accent]]
* [[Ki Attacks]]
* [[Latin Lover]]
* [[Memento MacGuffin]]
* [[Millionaire Playboy]]
** [[Rich Idiot With No Day Job]]
** He lampshades this in his and Kyo's pre-fight talk in ''XIII'': Kyo makes sarcastic comments about how Robert is fighting when he should be taking care of the Garcia conglomerate, but he handwaves it saying that he knows clearly about his responsibilities, but he just doesn't want to take them now when he can still join King of Fighters.
* [[No-Holds-Barred Beatdown]]: The Ryuuko Ranbu DM, shared between him, Ryo and Takuma.
* [[Sharp-Dressed Man]]: Both in and outside of battle.
* [[Shipper on Deck]]: In regards to Ryo/King.
* [[Shotoclone]]: Depending of the game though.
** [[
** [[Kamehame Hadoken]]: His Ryuugekiken special and Haoh Shokouken DM.
** [[Shoryuken]]: His Ryuuga special.
* [[Spam Attack]]: Geneikyaku/Zanretsukyaku (depending on the game), his kick-based counterpart to Ryo's [[Rapid-Fire Fisticuffs|Zanretsuken]].
* [[Tall, Dark and Handsome]]: Although the "tall" part is subjective (5'11"/180 cm is actually average in ''King of Fighters''), you can't deny the rest.
* [[Tiger Versus Dragon]]: He's the Dragon to Ryu's Tiger (this is more evident in ''Art of Fighting'', where its Japanese name is ''Ryuuko no Ken'', or "Fist of the Dragon and Tiger"). Their stances occasionally reflect their animal motifs and their disciplines are named for their respective animals, but they share a DM, the Ryuuko Ranbu (another reference to this rivalry). Much like [[Ryu and Ken]], however, their's is a [[Friendly Rival|friendly rivalry]].
== Lucky Glauber ==
{{quote|
* [[Butt Monkey]]
* [[Exotic Weapon Supremacy]]
* [[Flash Step]]: His Lucky Vision special works almost like Athena's Psychic Teleport.
* [[Gentle Giant]]: Despite being quite as impressive as his teammates, in terms of height anyway, he is by far the most easygoing and fun-loving.
* [[I Know Madden Kombat]]
* [[Nice Hat]]
* [[Put
* [[Running Gag]]
* [[Spirited Competitor]]
== Heavy D! ==
{{quote|
* [[Badass Beard]]
* [[Bald Black Leader Guy]]
* [[Cool Shades]]
* [[Extremity Extremist]]
* [[Flung Clothing]]
* [[The Glasses Come Off]]: In his intro pose. [[Butt Monkey|Unfortunately]], given that his team has had [[Curb Stomp Battle|their asses handed to them]] on [[Running Gag|at least]] ''[[Running Gag|three]]'' [[Running Gag|separate ocassions]] (Rival Team in ''{{'}}95'', New Faces Team in ''{{'}}97'', and Vannessa, Seth and Ramon in ''2000''), [[Goggles Do Nothing|the glasses probably didn't help]].
* [[Megaton Punch]]: His D! Magnum is his most devastating attack, and it consists of a sole punch lit up with an awesome explosion.
* [[Put on a Bus]]: As a part of a cruel [[Running Gag]] that many fans [[Dude, Not Funny|don't enjoy]].
* [[Rocket Punch]]: One of his DMs is a [[Ki Attacks|energy blast]] fired from his [[Megaton Punch|hand]]. Functionally, it has the same application.
* [[Scary Black Man]]: Subverted. D! is only serious in the midst of battle, as he doesn't want to come off as disrespectful to his opponents. Otherwise, he's a pretty chipper guy.
* [[Spirited Competitor]]
* [[Surprisingly Good English]]
* [[Walking the Earth]]: Their ending from ''{{'}}94'' has D! and Lucky deciding to broaden their horizons and continue street fighting. [[Wild Mass Guessing|This may have actually happened]], given their cameo-esque [[Put on a Bus]] status throughout the series.
* [[Wearing a Flag on Your Head]]: An eagle surrounded by the American flag is tattooed on his back.
== Heidern ==
{{quote|
* [[Badass Normal]]
* [[Colonel Badass]]:
** [[Commanding Coolness]]
* [[
* [[Energy Absorption]]
* [[Everything's Better with Spinning]]: See [[Exactly What It Says on the Tin|Neck Rolling]], [[Shaped Like Itself|where he gyrates around an opponent's neck]] [[Spin Attack|like a]] [[Mundane Made Awesome|merry-go-round from hell]].
* [[Eyepatch of Power]]
* [[Flung Clothing]]
* [[Good
* [[Glowing Eyes of Doom|Glowing Eye Of Doom]]
* [[Handicapped Badass]]
* [[Hired Guns]]
* [[Her Heart Will Go On|His Heart Will Go On]]
* [[
* [[Last
* [[Mangst]]
* [[Mentors]]
* [[Precision F
* [[Spell My Name with an "S"]]: A few versions of ''{{'}}94'' and ''{{'}}95'' have his named spelled as Jeidern. Maybe it's the Spanish localization?
* [[The Stoic]]: Always calm and composed.
* [[Tall, Dark and Handsome]]: For a 40-something-year-old guy who's missing an eye... Heidern's doing pretty good.
* [[Why Am I Ticking?]]: His Heidern End DM inflicts this on foes.
* [[Wolverine Claws]]: He uses bladed claws (that are hidden within his gloves) in battle. Complete with [[Audible Sharpness]] when performing Moon Slasher.
== Joe Higashi ==
{{quote|
* [[Anime Hair]]
* [[Arrogant Kung Fu Guy|Arrogant Muay Thai Guy]]
* [[Blow You Away]]: In the form of a myriad of [[Tornado Move]]s. Hurricane Upper and Screw Upper DM being examples.
** In ''XIII'', he gets the [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MVkhtzbj9d8 Screw Straight] as his Neo MAX. It's a ''horizontal'' tornado.
** Games such as ''2002'' and ''Capcom vs. SNK 2'' give Joe the even more destructive Double Cyclone, which creates two Screw Uppers that surround Joe on both sides and utterly rips anyone who's foolish enough to approach a new one.
* [[Boisterous Bruiser]]: Oh, so much.
* [[Flung Clothing]]: One of his intros has him dispose of a robe.
* [[Hachimaki]]
* [[Hot-Blooded]]: One of the earliest fighting game examples, although given [[Nobuyuki Hiyama|his seiyuu]], how could he be anything but?
* [[I Shall Taunt You]]: Used to taunt King for her not having a single title in Muay Thai, therefore assuming she isn't all that compared to him, by either sporting his champion belt before a match or just the disrespectful [[Bring It]]; from ''2002'' onwards, he became more respectful towards King as their special intros have become quite friendly, there is even a occasional polite bow before they fight. However, Joe seems to have moved back in the opposite direction, given his snide remarks to her in ''XIII''.
* [[Megaton Punch]]: He received one as his LDM in ''King of Fighters 2003''.
* [[Out of Focus]]: His relationship with Lilly Kane, and his beef with Billy because of it, simply does not carry over to ''King of Fighters'', quite jarring in comparison with his friends Terry and Andy whose [[Love Interests]], Mary and Mai, are still on their tail.
** Made all too frustrating for Joe in his team's ending for ''XIII'', both Terry and Andy get their women, Mary and Mai, embraced in their arms contratulating them for winning the tournament, the logical course of action would be Lilly appearing to congratulate Joe as well, but no, what happens is Joe being chased by the [[Camp Gay|fan]] he saved in ''2003'' (named Okama), which appears to be turning into a [[Running Gag]].
** However, confronting Billy with Joe has Billy talk about [[Big Brother Instinct|keeping her away from Joe]], so Joe's relationship Lilly is perhaps underplayed in ''
* [[Playing
* [[Rapid
* [[Tiger Versus Dragon]]
* [[Walking Shirtless Scene]]: A staple for a traditional Muay Thai fighter.
== Ralf Jones ==
{{quote|
* [[Ambiguously Brown]]
* [[Awesome but Impractical]]/[[Death or Glory Attack]]
** A good example of how this attack can be extremely impractical can be found [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oaxRP_shkIs here
** The only times Galactica Phantom really managed to avoid this were in ''EX2'', ''2001'' and ''2002'', where it became a normal special with reduced charge time. The damage it dished out took a bit of a dive, but it didn't matter since you could actually hit someone with it, particularly in ''EX2''.
** ''The King of Fighters XIV'' removed the requirement to charge Galactica Phantom, making it a far more practical attack.
* [[Badass Normal]]: He has no magical powers of any kind, barring maybe his explosive fists that burn his enemies. But even that has nothing supernatural behind it.
* [[Bash Brothers]]: Again, with Clark.
* [[Boisterous Bruiser]]: He is the more agressive and confident of his team, and he actually hits like hell!
* [[Charles Atlas Superpower]]: There's no ''supernatural'' power behind his insane Galactica Phantom. His ''[[Metal Slug]]'' incarnation takes it up even further by having him as the only character who must be hit twice to die (this being the series where everyone else is a [[One-Hit-Point Wonder]]). Most of all, he is the only one who can ''destroy'' tanks with his ''bare'' fists.
* [[
* [[Dub Name Change]]: You might remember him as Paul.
* [[Fingerless Gloves]]: He wears them since ''{{'}}99''. Before, he had the unique fashion of wearing a single military glove on his left hand.
* [[
* [[Heterosexual Life Partners]]: With Clark. Also [[Red Oni, Blue Oni]] (where Ralf, pretty obviously, is Red).
* [[Hot-Blooded]]: About as much as Joe, if not more.
* [[Megaton Punch]]: The Galactica Phantom.
** He usually belts out a "'''DO-KAAAAAAAAAN!!!'''" when doing this, [[Saying Sound Effects Out Loud|which is essentially Ralf screaming the word "kaboom"]].
** And his new addition to the Bareback Galactica Phantom, Galactica Vanguard, in ''2002 Unlimited Match''. So powerful, it's an [[One-Hit Kill|instant kill]]!
* [[Nice Hat|Nice Bandana]]: He sometimes wears a [[Hachimaki|headband]] under it.
* [[Older Than They Look]]: Ralf is supposedly about 40 years old. Many assume Clark is older due to his looks but he's actually younger than Ralf, at only 34.
* [[One-Man Army]]: As of ''Maximum Impact 2'' and ''XII'', this is ''literally'' [[In-Series Nickname|his official nickname]].
* [[Kick Them While They Are Down|Punch Them While They Are Down]]: Bareback Vulcan Punch. Jeez, is it painful to watch.
* [[Rapid-Fire Fisticuffs]]/[[Spam Attack]]: Vulcan Punch special, as well as (in some games) Super Vulcan Punch and his Neo MAX (see [[Turns Red]] below). Ralf is one of the best at doing this kind of attack.
* [[Strong Flesh, Weak Steel]]: His Galactica Phantom SDM is one of the most damaging attacks in the same game where Chang wields a huge iron ball as a weapon.
* [[Tall, Dark and Handsome]]: It's better seen in later games, where he actually is darker-skinned and snarkier as ever.
* [[Turns Red]]: ''Literally'' during his [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GxNAlSeaolk Jet Vulcan Punch Neo MAX] in ''XIII'', which is quickly followed up by ''the'' [[Spam Attack]] to end ''all'' [[Spam Attack]]s. Imagine the [[One Piece|Gum-Gum Jet Gattling]], [[JoJo's Bizarre Adventure|MUDAMUDAMUDAMUDA]] and [[Fist of the North Star|ATATATATATATATA]] doing a [[Fusion Dance]]. Then set it ''[[Incendiary Exponent|on fire]]'' and give it a range covering half the screen in front of him.
* [[Wrestler in All of Us]]: Less than Clark, but still counts.
* [[You Don't Look Like You]]" Ralf and Clark switched to a completely different, [[Street Fighter II|Zangief-esque]] silhouette [[Art Shift|literally from one game to another]]. To the fandom's credit, [[Hand Wave|"intense training"]] ''[[Artistic License Biology|does not alter bone structure]]''...
== Kim Kaphwan ==
{{quote|
* [[Animal Motifs]]
* [[Ascended Glitch]]
* [[Badass Creed]]: "Aku wa yurusan!" See below.
* [[Badass Normal]]: All he knows is Taekwondo. That, and '''JUSTICE!''' Kim still manages to be a fierce competitor and is revered as a national hero in Korea.
* [[Boxed Crook]]: Pretty much forces this on Chang and Choi.
* [[Brick Break]]: He does a pretty neat spin on the trope in ''Capcom vs. SNK 2'' by throwing up several wooden boards into the air and breaking them away before they touch the ground. Not quite as impressive as him breaking a large column of ice in the ''Real Bout Fatal Fury'' series, but still.
* [[Can't Hold His Liquor]]: The whole reason ''[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=syewNvULmL0t this]'' transpires.
* [[Detect Evil]]: "[[Punctuated! For! Emphasis!|Aku wa yurusan! HA!!]]" ("[[This Is Unforgivable!|Evil is unforgivable]]!"). Usually coupled with a [[Giving Someone the Pointer Finger|finger point]] that rivals [[Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney|Phoenix Wright]] or a [[Glowing Eyes of Doom|gleaming]] [[Death Glare]].
** [[Lampshade Hanging|Lampshaded]] in a group of bonus illustrations for ''King of Fighters '99'': Kim sees [[Anti-Hero]] K' lurking in the background and wonders if he's evil.
* [[Extremity Extremist]]: He only uses punches with his normal weak punch moves—inputting a strong punch makes him kick, like the other two buttons.
* [[Fingerless Gloves]]
* [[Flash Step]]
* [[Glowing Eyes of Doom]]
** Which makes his ''
* [[Hot-Blooded]]: He oozes a lot of passion, either during fights or when talking about justice.
* [[Hot Dad]]
* [[Justice Will Prevail]]
** [[Flanderization]]
{{quote|
'''Kim''': "...''Boring''?" (''[[Death Glare]]'')
'''Duck''': "Did I say 'boring'? I meant '''brilliant'''. I'm enjoying ''every'' minute of it..."
'''Kim''': ".........."
'''Duck''': "I'd love to hear the rest. Please, go on."
'''Kim''': "In other words, I believe that true justice must be based on a foundation of--"
** Let us note that Kim is ''completely hammered'' during that speech.
** It should be noted that the International Taekwondo Federation's [[Badass Creed|oath]] is "I shall be a champion of justice and freedom." and "I shall build a better and more peaceful world." Kim's demeanor (which extends to ''many'' of his cohorts) could be this philosophy taken to new heights.
* [[Kiai]]
{{quote|
* [[Kick Them While They Are Down]]
* [[Legacy Character]]
* [[Love Freak]]
* [[Martial Pacifist]]
* [[No-Holds-Barred Beatdown]]: His signature Hou'ou Kyaku DM. His HSDM, LDM and Neo MAX tend to be a variant of this, [[Up to Eleven]].
* [[Team Dad]]: To Chang, Choi, his kids, May Lee, Chae Lim and ''everyone'' in his TKD school.
* [[Theme Deck]]: A more notable example. Kim's Hienzan, Hishou Kyaku, Rangetsuzan and Hou'ou Kyaku have been a staple part of not only Kim's repertoire (effective and popular enough to be retained in every game), but have nudged itself into the movesets of his fellow taekwondokas and disciples as well as that of ''Kizuna Encounter'''s Kim Sue II and Kim Hae-Ryeong from ''Samurai Shodown: Edge of Destiny''. In the case of the latter two, the inclusion of these techniques, their names (the surname of Kim) and [[Expy|their general similarities to Kim in appearance and methodology]] is a large factor for the [[Epileptic Trees|belief that they are blood-linked to Kim's family tree]].
* [[Twinkle Smile]]: One of his win poses. Complete with an [[Audible Gleam]].
** [[Eternally Pearly-White Teeth]]
* [[Vocal Evolution]]: Until ''King of Fighters '96'', Hashimoto gave Kim a rather soft, youthful voice. Since then, he speaks in a much deeper tone... unless he goes all "ATATATATATATATATA!! WATAAAA!!!" on his rivals.
== King ==
{{quote|
* [[Bifauxnen]]
* [[Bouncer]]
* [[Clothing Damage]]
* [[Cultured Badass]]
* [[Depending
* [[Fingerless Gloves]]
* [[Flung Clothing]]
* [[Foreign Fanservice]]
* [[Hair of Gold]]
* [[Hot Amazon]]
* [[Hot Chick in
* [[Hurricane Kick]]:
* [[Ki Attacks]]: Her standard projectile attack Venom Strike.
* [[Kick Chick]]
* [[Let's Fight Like Gentlemen]]
* [[Luminescent Blush]]
** Also happens to both her and Ryo in their team's ending from ''XI'' when the two realize they're alone together in a restaurant. Cue [[Date Peepers|Yuri, Robert
* [[No
* [[Promotion to Parent]]
* [[She Cleans Up Nicely]]
** It happens again in the Women Fighters Team's ending in ''XIII''.
* [[Ship Tease]]
** [[Because You Were Nice to Me]]
* [[Something About a Rose]]: One of her winposes has her throwing a rose at the direction of her fallen opponent.
* [[Spam Attack]]
* [[Statuesque Stunner]]: Among the tallest women of the cast.
* [[Sweet Polly Oliver]]
* [[Team Mom]]
* [[Tomboyish Name]]: A probable alias used to further disguise her gender.
* [[Vocal Evolution]]
== Kyo Kusanagi ==
{{quote|
* [[Badass Biker]]: His motorcycle is listed as one of his likes, implying this trope.
* [[Because Destiny Says So]]/[[You Can't Fight Fate]]: Pretty much the underlying reason for why stuff happens to him. [[Screw Destiny|Kyo vehemently refuses to believe that fate plays an integral role in his life]].
* [[Berserk Button]]: Ash Crimson. On a less serious note, being too nosy about the fact that he never graduated from high school is a sure-fire way to get smoked (Kim is particularly good about rising his hackles in regards to this; [[Hilarity Ensues]] every time they meet).
* [[Bonus Boss]]: Along with Iori in ''King of Fighters '99''. You can fight him if your end points are over 280. Win, and he becomes playable.
* [[Bootstrapped Theme]]/[[Recurring Riff]]: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ifG376LtUiM "Esaka?"] from ''{{'}}96'' is [[SNK/Awesome Music|so popular a song]] that it's probably ''the'' song of the series. It has seen multiple renditions over the years, whether it's being used for the original Japan Team, Kyo's clones or even as a bridge [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BSCSmji7OE in a completely different theme for Kyo].
* [[Bully Hunter]]: According to the ''King of Fighters: Kyo'' manga.
* [[Catch Phrase]]: "Heh heh, moetaro?" ("Heh heh, you burned?") and "Ore no... kachi da!" ("This is... my victory!").
* [[Cloning Blues]]
* [[Creepy Cool Crosses]]
* [[Divergent Character Evolution]]
** And now that Iori has lost his flames (and possesses a more physical moveset not unlike post-''{{'}}95'' Kyo), Kyo's back to his original moveset.
* [[Downloadable Content]]:
* [[Even the Guys Want Him]]
{{quote|
'''Kyo''': "Shut yo' mouth! You silly narcissistic little fancy pants! I'm going to torch you to your bones!"
'''Vega''': "Heh, heh. Relax. You should take a break before I tear you to shreds, huh?"
'''Kyo''': "I've got stuff to do. I can't waste my time with freaks like you."
* [[Every Year They Fizzle Out]]
* [[Fingerless Gloves]]: Always a part of his outfits.
* [[Finger Wag]]: His taunt. Originally, he'd only dental click while doing it ("Tsk tsk tsk"), although Kyo later says "Mou, oyasumi ka?" ("Oh, is it bedtime already?").
* [[Fun with Acronyms]]: His 707 Shiki: Doku Gaku Tori is alternatively known as the R.E.D ('''R'''ainbow '''E'''xplosive '''D'''ynamite) Kick.
* [[Hachimaki]]: Wore one until the start of the NESTS saga (not counting his Another Kyo striker in ''King of Fighters '99''). He burns his headband in a few ''King of Fighters '99'' opening poses in order to distinguish himself from his clones.
** He kept on wearing it (along with his "classic" school uniform) in several spinoff games until ''Neo Geo Battle Coliseum'', in which he appears with his NESTS Saga outfit, thereby ditching it for good (also because the outfit went to his alternate version Kusanagi).
* [[Image Song]]: Several. The main ones fans request for Masahiro Nonaka to sing are [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUEgKetLS3U "Burning Devotion!"] and [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zZSg6EKgD0 "Pieces"]. God forbid that you get him and [[Kunihiko Yasui]] (Iori) in the same room or less the fans will clamor that they sing their ''dual'' image song [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvEf6CbB4bw "The Sun & The Moon"].
* [[Jerk with a Heart of Gold]]: See the ''King of Fighters: Kyo'' spinoff manga and games for a good example.
* [[Meaningful Name]]: The [[wikipedia:Kusanagi|Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi]] is a sword that the sea and storm god Susano'o found inside of the Yamata no Orochi's body after slaying the great beast. Guess what Kyo ''Kusanagi'' does to ''Orochi'' at the climax of ''{{'}}97''.
** His [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVI1M1VlhS8 Neo MAX] in ''XIII'' is named the Ura Hyaku Ni Juu Ichi Shiki Ame-no-Murakumo, the "Ame no Murakumo" being the former name of the Kusanagi sword.
* [[Megaton Punch]]: Gains one from ''{{'}}99'' onwards in the form of his 182 Shiki. This is presumably a [[Continuity Nod]] to the killing blow Kyo landed on Orochi.
** You could also argue that the end of his Mu Shiki DM (not the SDM version though) ends with one also. At the very least, [[Punched Across the Room|they're sent flying]].
** ''XIII'' gives him (to be exact, NESTS!Kyo) another one as his Neo MAX named Totsuka, a punch so powerful, it causes a screen-filling fiery explosion.
* [[Not So Different]]: Although semi-canon at best, other media adaptations (most notably the ''{{'}}98'' drama CD, ''King of Fighters: Kyo'' and the Hong Kong manhua) insinuate that should the Kusanagi lose themselves to their darker side, they'll end up just like the followers of Orochi.
* [[Playing with Fire]]: Comes from his [[Heroic Lineage]].
* [[Power Echoes]]: Most versions of his Mu Shiki DM have an echo effect. Canonically, the Mu Shiki is believed to be Kyo's strongest skill (Clone Zero even used its data in the Zero Cannon).
* [[Public Domain Artifact]]/[[Amplifier Artifact]]: Wields the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi, which is implied to reside inside of his body.
* [[School Uniforms Are the New Black]]: He's entered several tournaments while in uniform. When Kyo stopped wearing his school clothes in ''{{'}}99'', his ''clones'' picked up the slack.
** [[Clothes Make the Legend]]: Arguably. Kyo is more recognizable as the schoolboy from the Orochi Saga. Most of his appearances outside of ''King of Fighters'' have Kyo in his uniform as well. In fact, the creation of Kyo's clones were fueled by a desire among some of the developers to include Kyo's older and more iconic look.
* [[Screw Destiny]]: While Kyo does go on to defeat [[Orochi]] just as [[You Can't Fight Fate|his ancestor did]], Kyo himself refuses to believe that his feud with Iori is influenced by the [[Kill'Em All|ancient war]] between the Kusanagi and Yasakani. Basically, he wants to just live his life as a fighter, but if others seek him out, he just will fight back so they'll leave him the heck alone.
* [[Send in the Clones]]: Used as [[Self-Deprecation]] in regards to the NESTS Chronicles. ''XI'' has Kyo making a jab at the ludicrous number of clones he's picked up over the years, almost to a [[Never Live It Down]] degree.
{{quote|'''Kyo''': "Another clone? There's enough of me to start a baseball team!"}}
* [[Shoryuken]]: His Oniyaki special.
* [[Shotoclone]]: Somewhat, during his first appearances (and by proxy, him in ''XIII'').
* [[The Slacker]]: Never graduated from high school. Lampshaded more than once in the games.
* [[Theme Naming]]: More often than not, his theme will have the word "Esaka" in it. This is also symbolic to fans of the series, as Esaka refers to the locale of the old SNK headquarters.
* [[This Is Something He's Got to Do Himself|This Is Something I've Got To Do Myself]]: ''XIII'' in a nutshell. Kyo is ''very'' fervent about making sure that he's the one who'll give Ash his just desserts, leading to him butting heads with several other competitors, including Athena (who calls him out on trying to shoulder all of the burden when he has friends who are willing to help) and Elisabeth (who has the same mindset when it comes to deal with Ash).
* [[Unusual Euphemism]]: ''2002'' has Kyo prattling on about "the pepper" in his win quote. The Japanese equivalent is more along the lines of his trademark "Moetaro" ("You [got] burned") line.
* [[Vocal Evolution]]: Kyo sounds more laid-back and relaxed in later games (as compared to his almost [[Hot-Blooded]] characterization at the beginning of the Orochi Saga), perhaps to show his maturity over the years. Nonaka has said he feels slightly detached and disappointed by this, as he saw his younger days in Kyo's more cocksure personality.
* [[Warrior Poet]]: Literally. Poetry is a hobby of Kyo's.
* [[A Worldwide Punomenon]]: Quite fond of making all sorts of quips pertaining to his natural element.
== Benimaru Nikaido ==
{{quote|
* [[Anime Hair]]: Which he styles ''with his powers'' in one intro.
** When his hair ''isn't'' defying gravity, he's a [[Long-Haired Pretty Boy]].
* [[Bare Your Midriff]]: Yup.
* [[Bishonen]]: One of the bishiest. He even models in his spare time.
* [[But Not Too Foreign]]: Half American, half Japanese.
* [[Camp Straight]]: Most fans at first thought he was gay (because of the voice and the poses); so much that in the ''King of Fighters'' 10th anniversary webpage, the staff felt the need to deny it, complete with [[Not That There's Anything Wrong with That]].
* [[Chivalrous Pervert]]: Loves to flirt with female opponents, but is ''not'' a [[Handsome Lech|lech]]. The best examples of this comes from Benimaru scolding ''Kyo'' on his ([[It's Not You, It's My Enemies|understandably neglectful]]) relationship with Yuki.
* [[Fingerless Gloves]]
* [[Hair of Gold]]
* [[Image Song]]
* [[The Lancer]]
* [[Shock and Awe]]
* [[Sphere of Destruction]]: His Raidouken DM was originally this. Whether or not it's this or a cluster of [[Energy Ball]]s depends on the game.
** His new Rolling Thunder DM is definitely this.
* [[Super Speed]]
* [[Vitriolic Best Buds]]
== Ryo Sakazaki ==
{{quote|
* [[Alternate Company Equivalent]]
* [[Animal Motifs]]
* [[Badass Arm
* [[Badass Biker]]
* [[Becoming the Mask]]: Played with. He (eventually) becomes [[Legacy Character|Mr. Karate]] II, but does not wear the infamous tengu mask.
* [[Big Brother Instinct]]: To Yuri. She does NOT appreciate it.
** However, it's implied in ''Garou: Mark of the Wolves'', ''Buriki One'' and ''Neo Geo Battle Coliseum'' that the two mellow out in later years and don't squabble as much. They're close to the point that it is apparently Yuri who tells Ryo to shave off [[Perma-Stubble|his beard]] as Mr. Karate II.
* [[But Not Too Foreign]]
* [[Catch Phrase]]
* [[Fingerless Gloves]]
* [[Hair Color Dissonance]]
* [[Heir to
* [[Heroic Neutral]]
* [[Heterosexual Life Partners]]
* [[Idiot Hero]]
* [[Ki Attacks]]
* [[Megaton Punch]]
** His [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cub--0zXs1s Neo MAX] is an upgraded version known as the Shin Tenchi Ha'ou Ken, [[Mundane Made Awesome|complete with]] [[Bullet Time|slow-mo]].
* [[Mr. Vice Guy]]
* [[No
* [[Perpetual Poverty]]
* [[Red Oni, Blue Oni|Red Oni]]:
* [[Ship Tease]]
* [[Shotoclone]]: A straight example.
** [[Hurricane Kick]]: His Hien Shippu Kyaku special.
** [[Kamehame Hadoken]]: His Kou'ou Ken special and Haoh Shikouken DM.
** [[
* [[Spam Attack]]/[[Rapid-Fire Fisticuffs]]: His Zanretsuken.
== Takuma Sakazaki/Mr. Karate ==
{{quote|
* [[Animal Motifs]]
* [[Badass Boast]]
* [[Badass Grandpa]]
* [[Bring It]]
* [[Bunny Ears Lawyer]]
* [[Cool Mask]]
* [[Counter Attack]]
* [[Demonic Possession]]
* [[Glowing Eyes of Doom]]
* [[Good Scars, Evil Scars]]
* [[Ground Pound]]:
* [[Hot Dad]]
* [[Insistent Terminology]]
** [[The Not
* [[
* [[Ki Attacks]]
* [[Knuckle
* [[Large Ham]]
* [[No
* [[Obfuscating Stupidity]]
** [[Wild Mass Guessing|Some speculate]] that Takuma may actually be [[Willfully Weak|the most powerful human in the]] ''[[Willfully Weak|
* [[Pec Flex]]
* [[Shipper
* [[Shirtless Scene]]
* [[Shotoclone]]: Off and on again, like Robert.
** [[Hurricane Kick]]: His Hien Shippu Kyaku.
** [[Kamehame Hadoken]]: His Kou'ou Ken (when it isn't a short invisible fireball) special and Haoh Shikouken DM.
** [[
* [[Spam Attack]]/[[Rapid-Fire Fisticuffs]]: Same as his son's Zanretsuken. Not always part of his moveset though.
** He also sometimes have an attack named Shouran Kyaku where he runs to grab the opponent and then barrages them with his knee.
* [[Stern Teacher]]
== Yuri Sakazaki ==
{{quote|
* [[Action Girl]]: Though her family didn't have much faith in her at first, she has always proven herself a capable fighter, like all of the others.
* [[Adult Child]]
* [[Armor
* [[Ass Kicks You]]: Her En'yoku (Swallow Wing) command normal.
* [[Attack Reflector]]
* [[Badass Adorable]]
* [[But Not Too Foreign]]
* [[Braids of Action]]
* [[Bring It]]: Yuri's particular variant involves her making silly, mocking faces at her opponents before slapping her behind.
* [[Clothing Damage]]: Like King, first two games only. This feature appears to be making a triumphant return in ''XIII''.
* [[Cute but Cacophonic]]: It somehow got ''worse'' as the series progressed.
* [[Damsel in Distress]] [[Took a Level in Badass|-->]] [[Cute Bruiser]]
* [[Everything Makes a Mushroom]]: Simply put, her [[Death From Above|Haoh Raiouken Neo MAX]] in ''XIII'' is a portable [[Nuke'Em]].
* [[Fingerless Gloves]]: Always a part of her outfits.
* [[Genki Girl]]: Yuri has always been portrayed as cheerful and optimistic, but it gets dialed up in the ''King of Fighter'' series... to the point of bodering on outright childish behavior, at times. She's even gotten snarky, albeit in playful fashion with her friends.
* [[
* [[Hair Decorations]]: Ties up her braids with a ribbon.
* [[Ki Attacks]]: The same as her dad and her brother. Unique to her is the Saifa move: a small ki shield she projects upwards.
* [[Older Than They Look]]: Taken [[Up to Eleven]]. She's supposed to be ''20'' years old, about the same age as Kyo, but you'd never know it from the way she looks, acts or sounds. You'd swear she was only 15.
* [[Overshadowed by Awesome]]: Ryo and Takuma fear that her rudimentary knowledge of Kyokugen-ryuu will lead to this. Yuri, [[Spirited Competitor|optimistic in her pursuit to improve herself]], simply ignores them and joins King and Mai in ''XIII''.
* [[Plucky Girl]]
* [[Rapunzel Hair]] in [[Braids of Action]]
** [[Important Haircut]]
* [[Shipper
* [[Take That]]: To ''[[Street Fighter]]'', specifically the [[Shotoclone]]s:
** ''King of Fighters '97'': her Yuri Chou Reppa parodies Ken's Shoryu Reppa. This is made more obvious in ''Capcom vs. SNK''.
** ''King of Fighters '98'': her Yuri Shin Chou Upper parodies Ryu's Shin [[Shoryuken]].
** ''King of Fighters 2001'': her Yuri Chou Enbu parodies Akuma's Shun Goku Satsu: she even poses like him randomly after finishing the attack.
** ''King of Fighters 2003'' gave her a desperation attack that parodies Ryu's Denjin Hadouken.
** Since around ''{{'}}97'', she also gained a spinning kick attack like the [[Hurricane Kick]] all three characters use.
** And in ''2002 Unlimited Match'', she did a [[Take That]] to her ''own family members'' by finally getting her own version of the Ryuko Ranbu technique... which eventually parodies Ryu's Shin Shoryuken.
** In the ''Capcom vs. SNK'' games, she copies [[Darkstalkers|Felicia]]'s intro pose (when fighting against Sakura) and Makoto's intro pose (when fighting against everyone else).
** Yuri also possesses an attack similar to Chun-Li's Flip Kick.
** ''XIII'':
* [[Verbal Tic]]
** That was actually something her seiyuu came up with. [[Throw It In|It stuck
** "Oodley doodley cool!"
* [[Your Size May Vary]]
== Mai Shiranui ==
{{quote|
* [[Action Girl]]: Like all of the female fighters of the series.
* [[Ass Kicks You]]
* [[Be Careful What You Wish For]]
* [[Berserk Button]]
** Later titles such as the ''Maximum Impact'' series (''Maximum Impact 2'' and ''Regulation A'', specifically) and ''XIII'' give her a third one: do '''not''' imply that she's old. In her exchange with Athena in ''XIII'', [[Twisting the Words|Mai even manages to get herself riled up by twisting her own fond memories of her days as a schoolgirl into Athena calling her old
* [[Bilingual Bonus]]/[[Visual Pun]]
* [[Boobs of Steel]]
** In the first two games, she was probably the strongest female gameplay-wise, and had looks to match, but no [[Word of God]] behind (King measured larger).
** In the rest of the games, she still looks as big as ever, but has become weakened
** Back to playing this straight gameplay wise in ''XIV''.
* [[Brainless Beauty]]: By [[Flanderization]]. One particular bad example occurs in the English translation of ''King of Fighters '95'', during her team's cutscenes: when Rugal uses somniferous gas to kidnap them the following dialogue occurs:
{{quote|'''Mai''': [[Too Dumb to Live|"Hey, look! Beauty mist!"]]<br />
'''Yuri''': It's gas, you bimbo!}}
* [[Catch Phrase]]: "Nippon Ichi!"
* [[Changing Clothes Is a Free Action]]: Can go from a kimono or wedding dress into her [[Stripperiffic]] outfit in a blink, and then back into a flashy kimono for her [[Victory Pose]], just as fast.
* [[Clothes Make the Legend]]: Except for some very subtle changes, her outfit has remained the same since her debut, and now that she's back we can see that it has not changed much (save for [[Sexy Backless Outfit|losing some fabric on the back]]); in fact, her most current outfit is based on the one from ''[[Fatal Fury|Real Bout Fatal Fury Special/2]]'', which was in turn based on her original one. With exception of one homage to Andy Bogard in the ''Maximum Impact 2''/''Regulation A'' games, her "Another" models played safe and were heavily based on her classic outfit.
* [[Cute but Cacophonic]]: Her voice was becoming increasingly more high pitched until reaching an extreme in ''King of Fighters 2003'' and ''SNK vs. Capcom: SVC Chaos'' when it became ear-grating. Fortunately, later games restored her voice to a more reasonable pitch.
** Averted with [[The Other Darrin|her new]] [[Ami Koshimizu|seiyuu]], whose pitch seems to fall into a much more bearable range.
* [[Dance Battler]]
* [[Does This Remind You of Anything?]]:
** Her [[Murderous Thighs|Toki Tsubute]] air throw that she gained in ''
{{quote|
(2002 ''winquote'') ''"Hey, don't touch the talent!"'' (Seems to be a reference to the ''[[Sailor Moon]]'' dub-based meme of talent {{=}} bust, of which Mai has quite a lot)
* [[Dogged Nice Guy|Dogged Nice Girl]]
* [[Doppelganger Attack]]
* [[Fairytale Wedding Dress]]: In ''The King of Fighters 2002'', Mai wears one in a finishing move ([http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEaUIjVjKXE see here]).
* [[Gainaxing]]/[[Jiggle Physics]]: [[Bowdlerise|Lost in the American home versions]] of ''{{'}}94'' and ''{{'}}95'', as well as reduced (even in the arcade) American versions of ''2000'' and beyond (at least for the Neo-Geo versions).
* [[Hair Decorations]]: Wears an ornamental hairpin, [[It Was a Gift|a keepsake from her late aunt]].
* [[Hammerspace]]: Where does she keep all those fans? And that's not even touching the umbrella, the kimono, the wedding dress, etc. This seems to overlap with [[Victoria's Secret Compartment]] for the paper fans.
* [[Highly-Visible Ninja]]: Lampshaded ''heavily'' in her intros for the ''SNK vs. Capcom'' games.
{{quote|'''[[Street Fighter|Ryu]]''': "People can see you coming miles away!"}}
* [[Hypocritical Humor]]: In ''Neo Geo Battle Coliseum'', her win quote against [[Samurai Shodown|Shiki]] has her criticizing Shiki's lack of clothing.
* [[Informed Attribute]]:
** Her famous bust has a measurement much smaller than what you'd imagine from her sprites/models, which were so well endowed since the start that almost any female with a larger bust by [[Word of God]] fell themselves into [[Informed Attribute]] because of her. In the official art, however, she varies from [[Your Size May Vary|average to huge]], not only [[Depending
** [[Word of God]] states that her hips are
* [[Lady in Red]]
* [[Male Gaze]]
* [[Ms. Fanservice]]: You don't say?! She knows it and flaunts it!
* [[Murderous Thighs]]
* [[Ninja Run]]
* [[
* [[Not Distracted
* [[Paper Fan of Doom]]
* [[Playing with Fire]]: Her Ryuuen Bu and several of her DM's are fire based attacks that set her opponent ablaze, when she connects with them.
* [[Put
* [[Say My Name]]
* [[Sexy Backless Outfit]]
* [[She Fu]]: Massive backflips and acrobatics are a key part of her fighting style.
* [[She's Got Legs]]
* [[Shout
* [[
* [[Single
** [[Flanderization]]
* [[Stripperiffic]]
** During ''XIII'', quite a few characters call her out on it.
* [[Took a Level In Dumbass]]
* [[Vocal Evolution]]
* [[Yamato Nadeshiko]]
== Sie Kensou ==
{{quote|
* [[All Love Is Unrequited]]
* [[Animal Motifs]]
* [[Battle Aura]]
* [[Big Brother Instinct]]
* [[Big Eater]]
* [[Brought Down to Normal]]
* [[Butt Monkey]]
* [[Call Back]]
* [[The Cameo]]
** Kensou will [[Undying Loyalty|throw himself in front of Athena]] in ''SNK Gals' Fighters'', acting as a human shield for her, capable of being hit by any move against Athena when said unique block is performed.
** In the end, [[The Power of Love|expect to see him]] in any game Athena has a major role or is [[The Protagonist]] herself
* [[Characterization Marches On]]
* [[Comic Relief]]
** [[Let's Get Dangerous]]
* [[Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass]]
* [[Demoted to Extra]]
* [[Dogged Nice Guy]]
** In ''XIII'', he's ''this'' close to confessing in his intro with her. Too bad Athena is ''way'' more concerned with their fight. In the Story Mode, he also attempts to confess his feelings to Athena, causing an understandably embarrassed Athena to promptly cut him off. Cue the Women Fighters Team expressing their sympathies to him... which in turn leads to the ladies getting catty with each other over ''their'' love lives.
* [[Eleventh-Hour Superpower]]: In the Psycho Soldier Team's special ending for ''King of Fighters '99''. Kensou triggers his Dragon Spirit after Athena is in danger of being left for dead at the crumbling site, he saves her with a dose of [[Power of Love]] and [[Undying Loyalty]]. [[Gameplay and Story Segregation|This doesn't actually do much for Kensou, gamewise, until he trains to control the Dragon Spirit's power several games later]].
* [[Fingerless Gloves]]: In ''XI''.
* [[Gameplay and Story Segregation]]: His use of the Dragon Spirit: in story, it can make Kensou fly, generate impregnable force fields, boost his powers to atonishing levels if Ron is to be believed, and when Bao used it could stop a [[Kill Sat]] instantly; now it is said that Kensou has total control over the Dragon Spirit. In gameplay, however, the Dragon Spirit has no significance whatsoever compared to how godly it is portrayed in cutscenes.
* [[Glowing Eyes of Doom]]: Basked in the power of the Dragon Spirit to save Athena in ''King of Fighters '99'', Kensou gets nice glowing eyes of blue energy.
* [[Hachimaki]]: From ''XII'' onwards as a nod to his ''Psycho Solider'' incarnation.
* [[Holding Back the Phlebotinum]]
* [[Inconsistent Dub]]
* [[Informed Ability]]:
** His forte in sports, the fact he has ''fans'', and—of course—the Dragon Spirit:
** Kensou is very good at sports in general, great at soccer in particular. This of course comes from [[All There in the Manual]] and related goodies: in the main games, this is never brought up at all.
** The fact he hangs around Athena much of the time, even when she's on tour (which might be a [[Mythology Gag]] to him being a guitarist in ''[[Psycho Soldier]]''), helped Kensou gather his own fandom. He even has a collection of plushies and stuffed animals alike recieved from his fans.
** Kensou did show off some of his Dragon Spirit powers in ending sequences twice (once in ''{{'}}99'' and again in ''2002''), but the way Ron says the Dragon Spirit can make Igniz and all other [[SNK Boss
* [[Kamehame Hadoken]]
* [[Kansai Regional Accent]]
* [[MacGuffin Girl|
* [[Older Than They Look]]: It's less noted than Athena and Yuri because changed they drastically, but Kensou has also been hit by this with the new character designs, or arguably he was always this. Kensou is 19 years old, and yet looks ''much'' younger than Kyo who is only one year older than him (20 years old); also there's Leona, who at 18 years old, in comparison to Kensou, looks like mature woman in her early tweenties whereas he seems more like a teenager.
* [[Power Floats]]
* [[Psychic Powers]]
* [[Real Men Wear Pink]]: Kensou is proud and not afraid of showing his plushie collection which was mounted from the stuffed animals he recieved from his fans, and of course he is always open for more items to add to the collection. Additionally, his favorite manga ''Seito Shokun!'' is a classic [[Shoujo Genre]] romance comedy.
* [[Spam Attack]]: A few of his attacks. It's [[Played for Laughs]] in ''XIII'', where the [[Rapid-Fire Fisticuffs|rapid firing of his fists]] in one of his DMs actually ''tires him out''.
* [[Spell My Name with an "S"]]: Due to his name being Chinese, but being often rendered to fit the Japanese spelling, Kensou is the most used one to avoid confusion for the Japanese, but ''Kensu'' is arguably the closest romanized spelling to his Chinese name: it even appeared that way in his cameo for ''[[Crystalis]]''.
* [[Sphere of Destruction]]: The Senki Hakkei Kensou fires at the end of his Seigan Senki Hakkei Neo MAX in ''XIII'', which is very similar to [[Street Fighter II|Chun-Li's]] Kikoushou.
** Earlier in the series, Kensou had a DM (Senki Hakkei) of the same type that needed to be activated up close. The force of the SDM version was so great, that the recoil sends him ''flying into the corner''.
* [[They Fight Crime]]
* [[Took a Level
** ''XIII'' is the next logical step in his [[
* [[Trademark Favorite Food]]
* [[Trophy Room]]
* [[With Great Power Comes Great Insanity]]
== Clark Still ==
{{quote|
* [[Ambiguously Brown]]
* [[Badass Normal]]: Almost every character in this cast has some sort of supernatural power or hidden ability they can utilize. Clark? He simply runs up to you, grapples with you, slams you into the pavement with a '''[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFZkXuSqjwg Ultra Clark Buster]''', and then pursues your flailing body with an elbow drop. And he does all of this without even saying a word. Grunts are accepted though.
* [[Bash Brothers]]: With Ralf.
* [[Cool Shades]]: Wears them to cover up an injury that Ralf accidentally inflicted on him while being careless with a knife.
* [[Dub Name Change]]: You might remember him as Vince.
* [[Eye Scream]]: Almost happened to him thanks to Ralf, but barely avoided it. Uses his [[Cool Shades]] to cover the scar.
* [[Kick Them While They Are Down|Flashing Elbow Them While They Are Down]]: Most of his special grapples allow Clark to add on an extra hit with his Flashing Elbow. The ''Maximum Impact'' series gives him a few additional followups to the Flashing Elbow.
* [[Fingerless Gloves]]: Unlike Ralf, he wears them only in ''XIII''. Otherwise, he wears a single military glove, like Ralf.
* [[
* [[Good Scars, Evil Scars]]: Good. It's one close to his eyes.
** [[Every Scar Has a Story]]
** [[Scars Are Forever]]: The reason he wears his sunglasses in the first place.
* [[Hair of Gold]]
* [[In a Single Bound]]
* [[Murderous Thighs]]
* [[Nice Hat]]
* [[Red Oni, Blue Oni]]
* [[Rule of Three]]
* [[Spam Attack]]/[[Rapid-Fire Fisticuffs]]: Shares the Gattling Punch move with Ralf, minus the [[Incendiary Exponent|mini explosions]].
* [[Spell My Name with an "S"]]: His surname (スティル) has been misromanized by fans as "Steel" (which is actually スティール).
* [[The Stoic]]: Like everyone else in the Ikari Warriors (except for Ralf), he is focused and straight-laced. Still not as much as Leona or Heidern.
* [[Tragic Keepsake]]: He wears two dogtags: one belongs to him, the other to a dead friend.
* [[Wrestler in All of Us]]: He's even one who actually is notable for tons of followups on his signature throws. His HSDM/MAX2DM in ''2002 Unlimited Match'' is by far one of the most variable grapples he's had in his kit.
* [[You Don't Look Like You]]: Same as Ralf. [[They Changed It, Now It Sucks|Many fans have not taken well to]] the roided-up Ralf and Clark that came from the [[Art Shift]] introduced in ''XII''.
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