Best Mook

Another thread in the vein of Cappa's Best Tennis Games one.

Bosses get a lot of the glory in gaming. A test of skill or endurance or a puzzle or simply there to make sure you're powerful enough to get on with the next part of the game, good bosses are memorable. We have a thread about bosses, somewhere. Let's go to the other end of the scale, and celebrate the mook. Those poor little bad guys that can be easily dispelled with a quick jump to the noggin or cast of Fire. So, who's your favourite mook?

I'm going to go for the Hammer Brother, but only the SMB1 version.



The Hammer Brothers teach you early that there are advantages to keeping yourself as Fire Mario: they're easy to dismiss with fireballs, but it takes good timing to even get past them if you're basic Mario. Their positions in World 8 are a nightmare if you're not careful... or Fire Mario.

Oooh, nice thread idea!

My personal favourites are enemies like

these dudes:

or

these guys:

Enemies who are terrifying brick walls early in a game but who become a breeze by the end, when one has learned how to deal with them and considerably strengthened as a player. That's not quite in keeping with Zero's intent for the topic, though, so I'll shout out

The humble Bulborb
Easy dealt with if you know what you're doing, the bulborb is a big goofy looking mouth on legs. That said, they are big and hungry, so if they catch your Pikmin unawares while you're not looking they can devour them in horrifying numbers. Equal parts funny and scary, easy and challenging, Bulborbs are the perfect Pikmin antagonists.

This thread reminds me of Streets of Rage II and how they introduced names (and health bars) for the generic copycat enemies. I mean, there's probably a hundred Galsia guys in this city, so I'd often wonder (OK, not THAT often) how it could actually happen. Was there a Daily Mail story in there with a benefits scrounging mother firing out baby boys left, right and centre? Was there a cyborg operation in effect? Or was it a gang initiation process - to change your name to Galsia, because you know, gals see ya?

*tumbleweed*

Away from my videogame-obsessed life, I'd say my favourite is this guy:

Dwayne:

Top thread, although GJones has already scarred me for life. Hard to pick just one, so let's start with this fella:



Creepy and cute at the same time. Plus, is there anything they can't do? They've driven, played tennis, been in armies, flown, hopped, grown to huge sizes, been good, been bad, been weirdly emotional...

I can say what I like, but it's those noises that get me the most. They make surprisingly adorable noises.

It's got to be this:

Spoiler:

Easy to deal with but still a decent challenge to overcome when you don't have Yoshi or something it throw at it.

(side note: you ever notice all the best Mario enemies started in SMB2?)

NENE

NENE

NENE NENE







The ants of the Zelda universe, these guys exist solely to annoy and terrify Link and the player, prefering to slowly eat away at your health while swarming you and uttering that cry, the cry that will haunt your nightmares until your dying day.


NENE

'Best', not 'most likely to cause you to wake up in a cold sweat'! Otherwise I'd have picked

The_Jaster wrote:

(side note: you ever notice all the best Mario enemies started in SMB2?)

Ah but the Shy Guys' cute noises originated long after that! Besides, one of my other favourite Mario mooks is the humble . A ghost who's as scared of you as you are of it? Genius!

Here's a topical mook that's pretty cute:

Great mooks so far, team! I've got another one to throw into the ring: when a mook is a series mascot:

Gotta love the entry-level Gruntlings from Banjo Kazooie:

I have a soft spot for all the basic "walk round in circles until you see Banjo and then home in on him" baddies in the Banjo series; it's the stupid Rare voicework the does it I think - they all tend to have a staccato "rawr".

Also, recently discovered Rabites in Secret of Mana:

They actually decide to run away, when they realise they're going to get their arse kicked. On that SNES!

And of course, the Lesser Mook from Earthbound

Mook, see.

Does this guy count?

I did think about Pokémon. I'd say that if any of them count, it's Zubat. Although it's more 'most annoying mook' IMHUAOWO.

I do like the shambling Gruntlings. Dare I say it: they had more personality than any enemy in SM64.