Boss Basses are enemies that appear in the Mario series, as enemies that attempt to swallow the player whole. They are first seen in Super Mario Bros. 3, in some levels they jump out of the water to eat the player. They are very relentless enemies and aggressively chase Mario until they've eaten him, luckily, a Boss Bass can easily be defeated with most attacks but a new one will commonly take its place. Boss Basses are related to Big Berthas which are the female equivalents who protect the Baby Cheeps underwater while the Boss Bass hunts for it's prey on the water's surface.
In their debut, Super Mario Bros. 3, the Boss Bass is one of a few enemies who can instantly kill Mario, Boss Bass will float around on the surface of the water waiting for his prey. If Mario gets to close, Boss Bass will eat him in one gulp. With projectiles (such as Fireballs and Shells) and the effects of a Starman, Mario can kill it, although this victory is short-lived as another will take its place shortly after. Boss Basses are commonly found in Water Land and Giant Land.
In Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3, if the Orange Switche-Reader card is scanned, Mario or Luigi can obtain a coin by shooting a fireball at an enemy while in their Fire form, including Boss Bass. If Mario or Luigi collect a coin after defeating a Boss Bass with a fireball, it does not return for the remainder of the level.
A Boss Bass appears in Mario Kart DS in the game's remake of Banshee Boardwalk, a Boss Bass can be seen hopping over the bridge periodically, the Boss Bass's jumps are high rendering it completely harmless. It usually jumps whenever players race by the bridge and is also seen jumping during the course's introduction. It replaces the Giant Cheep-Cheep from the original course found in Mario Kart 64.
The Boss Bass returns in Yoshi's Island DS appearing in many levels of World 3. The Boss Bass attacks by hopping out of the water and if Yoshi is below the Boss Bass' mouth during its descent, the Boss Bass will eat Yoshi and the baby killing them instantly. The Boss Bass cannot be destroyed but it can be made to appear in the Island Museum by tossing an egg at them, Boss Basses are seen in the Tropical Section of the Aquatic Enemy Exhibit. Their leader Bessie Bass appears as the mini boss of World 3. Bessie Bass is the only Big Bertha in the game and the only one that can actually be defeated and also the one Big Bertha that can't kill Yoshi instantly.
Boss Basses do not appear in Super Paper Mario however they are mentioned by one of the Shaydes in The Underwhere who says that that he fell into the ocean once, but luckily could swim as well as a Cheep-Cheep. Unfortunately, a Boss Bass thought that since he swam like a Cheep-Cheep, he was a Cheep-Cheep and ate him.
A Boss Bass in The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3
Throughout the cartoon series, Boss Bass makes numerous appearances attempting to eat Mario. He is first seen chasing some fish around before chasing after Mario and the others, they appear in a couple of the show's episodes such as "Never Koop a Koopa."
Behind the scenes[]
Etymology[]
Their name is derived from 'boss' (large and important; a leader) and 'Bass,' a type of fish.
Trivia[]
The Boss Bass is one of the first two carnivorous Cheep Cheep varieties to be introduced in the series, the other being the Big Bertha.
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