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Fake Bowsers (also called False Bowsers or Bowser Imposters, or Impostor Bowser) are enemies that are disguised as Bowser which first appeared in Super Mario Bros.
Mario or Luigi has to fight seven of them (one in each castle). If Mario or Luigi shoot fireballs at them, it will reveal the enemies from their disguises, but if they hit the axe then the imposter will simply fall into the lava. The real Bowser is found in World 8.
The Fake Bowsers in both World 6 and 7 can throw hammers like those of a Hammer Bro. At first, they only breathe fire at long range, but when Mario or Luigi get close to a Fake Bowser, it begins to throw a volley of hammers. Since the hammers are thrown upward, Mario or Luigi can stand next to the Fake Bowser to dodge them and wait until he jumps to pass by without taking damage.
Bowser's "Brother" in the japanese version of Super Mario Bros 2
Like in the original game, a Fake Bowser appears on the first 7 castles. However a lone extra Fake Bowser can be found near the end of the 8th castle, unlike the regular Fake Bowsers this one's color palette is swapped with the underground levels, and it's not actually a disguise as his sprite doesn't become any other enemy when defeated with fireballs.
A Fake Tail Bowser makes an appearance in Super Mario 3D Land. Once Mario hits the button at the end of the bridge, the Fake Tail Bowser gets dunked into the lava and transforms back into an enemy with a Tanooki Tail. Fake Tail Bowsers are almost identical to the real Bowser, but in Super Mario 3D Land, they can be identified by their Tanooki Tails, which is evident they used the Tanooki Leaf power-up. A Goomba is the Fake Bowser in World 1, a Magikoopa in World 5 before the real Bowser finally reveals himself in World 8.
In Shadow-Play Alley, Captain Toad is cowering before the shadow of what appears to be Bowser. When a player investigates further, they will find a cut-out that is making the shadow. Knock it down for a green star.
In Worlds 1, 3 and 5, a Fake Bowser acts as the boss in the fortresses. In World 1, a Goomba is the Fake Bowser. World 3, it's a Koopa Troopa. And in World 5, it's a Buzzy Beetle.
In the Dream EventDream Figure Skating, appearing in Mario's Figure Skating Spectacular, a Fake Bowser, with a Tanooki tail like in Super Mario 3D Land, chases the players (including the real Bowser if at least one player selects him) until he is defeated. Once vanquished, the Fake Bowser reverts into a Goomba and a Super Leaf.
In Super Mario Party Jamboree, Kamek transforms a Toady into a massive fake Bowser called Impostor Bowser. This version of Impostor Bowser has a purple glow and Magikoopa magic symbols coming out of him, even if unconscious or defeated. Imposter Bowser take the place of Bowser as the host of Bowser Spaces, since the real Bowser is a playable character.
Impostor Bowser appears prominently on the King Bowser's Keep board, where he is in the middle of the Bowser Byway. Periodically, he will transform more spaces on the byway into Bowser Spaces (until turn 24), as well as changing the direction of travel should one of the Event Spaces surrounding him be landed on. Uniquely on this board, he will grab players that land on Bowser Spaces instead of them being transported to another location, and even occasionally destroy the roulette to instantly steal a star or all of their coins. He also serves as the final boss of that board in the Party-Planner Trek mode, being faced in the Bowser Crashers minigame.
Aside from Mario Party mode, Impostor Bowser is also a focal point in the "Bowser Challenges", Koopathlon, and Bowser Kaboom Squad. Both involve surviving attacks from Impostor Bowser, with the ultimate goal of the latter being to defeat him within the time limit. The real Bowser is not a playable character in any of these modes, despite the Koopathlon and Bowser Kaboom Squad modes featuring Impostor Bowser and not the real Bowser as their main antagonist.
Trivia[]
Fake Bowser was created through a glitch, though Shigeru Miyamoto thought it would be a good idea if they did not change it.[citation needed]
• ⋆-Enemy, boss, or stat exclusive to the main game. • ⋆⋆-Enemy, boss, or stat exclusive to Minion Quest: The Search for Bowser. • ⋆⋆⋆-Enemy variants differ in Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga + Bowser's Minions.
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