Previous characters:
Little Mac
Diddy Kong
Anyone from Mother 3
King Dedede
Captain Olimar
Anyone from Advance Wars
Geno
Krystal
Ridley
Ike
Isaac/Felix
Ray
Bowser Jr.
Deoxys
Samurai Goroh
Meowth
Sigurd
Balloon Fighter
R.O.B.
Windwaker Link
Mike Jones(Star Tropics)
Star Tropics is one of those games that most people around the NES era remember and often have nostalgic memories of it, much like Kid Icarus. It was a Zelda-style adventure that involved a series of tropical islands and an alien menace (shades of Earthbound!) It even got a far less remembered sequel that involved time travel.
Mike Jones was the hero of Star Tropics. Like Ness, he's a kid who uses baseball bats and yoyos as weapons. But unlike Ness, Mike lacks psychic powers, but makes up for it in access to special weapons like freezing snowmen dolls, lasers, and baseballs. Similarities aside, Mike has enough to stop him from just being clone fodder.
Nostalgia is a pretty good reason to include a character, but unfortunately Mike has a huge strike against him: Star Tropics was never released in Japan. It's a reversal of the norm, I know. But just as I include several Japan-only characters, I had to put Mike on.
Reality": Poor Star Tropics. Poor, poor Star Tropics...
Lololo & Lalala(Kirby & Adventures of Lolo series)
Adventures of Lolo (AKA Eggerland) was where HAL got it's fame before being absorbed by Nintendo and going on to make Kirby (and the first two Smash Bros.). The three or so games featured the little blue blob pushing blocks to solve puzzles. Later on, Lolo(lo) and his girlfriend Lala(la) became bosses in a few Kirby titles, attacking you by, you guessed it, pushing blocks.
The connection to HAL's past, and the fact that Smash Bros. creator Masahiro Sakurai used to work for the company AND was the one who decided to make Lolo(lo) & Lala(la) a part of the Kirby series, is something that the duo's inclusion would be a nod to. Aside from...pushing blocks, I can't think of anything notable gameplay-wise they would add. They would certainly be like the Ice Climbers, that's for sure.
Reality: Not for nothing did they get nothing! Or maybe, it was
Jill(Drilldozer)
Cults can make all the difference. Earthbound and Kid Icarus both have large followings and thus deserve their inclusion in Smash Bros. Drilldozer's following isn't nearly as big as those two, but it still has one, and it deserves one, too.
But the real reason to include the main character from this game, aside from the fact that the game itself is awesome, is the fact that she would be fun and original. Who wouldn't want to drill into opponents, or smash into them with your momentum? As with a few characters that will be on this list, there's lots of potential entertainment in this character, and that's reason enough to support it.
Reality: She'll be there to Assist you, but she's not a player(able).
Lucario(Pokemon)
The last of the (in my mind) possible playable Pokemon comes from the latest games, which is brand new in NA but has been around since September in Japan. By the time Brawl comes out, they will be somewhat ingrained in the mind of the gaming community, so I don't think it's too soon. Anyway, Lucario seems to be the best representative of the newest generation.
Why this one? Well, part of it is because it had a movie, which is a real determining factor in seperating a 'face' pokemon from the rest. Aside from that, though, it has an interesting fighting style that could be considered Street Fighter-esque, which I don't believe we've really had in Smash. Also, if you losers still aren't convinced, it does look pretty cool.
Reality: The Aura got him on the playable list
Midna (& Wolf Link)(Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess)
I generally try to avoid including too many characters from franchises already filled with their major cast, Zelda among them. Still, I can't deny the appeal of the impish Midna. She's probably Link's coolest 'assistant'...but given her only real competition was a boat, it might not have been a real contest.
Midna has some magic that she could use to compose a moveset. But to really make the character interesting, team her up with the Wolf version of Link. I know it's another duo character, but it's still different enough from Diddy/Dixie and Lololo/Lalala. It would be a really great dynamic, I think, and it would certainly be an enjoyable addition to the game.
Reality: Trophy
Takamaru(Nazo no Murasamejo)
To my knowledge, Takamaru here is probably the most popular choice among the Japanese-only character possibilities. It's not hard to see why, either: he's a samurai. Samurai are awesome.
This particular samurai came from another Zelda-esque game. Like it's America-only counterpart Star Tropics, Murasamejo has a certain nostalgic appeal to some gamers in Japan, so much so that it got ported to the GBA during that whole 'Classic NES/Famicom Classics' series. Could this allow Takamaru to crossover?
Reality: Sticker and music cameo ain't bad, I don't think
Elite Beat Agents/Ouendan!
Here's another cult/design-friendly combo. Much like Jill, the EBA/Ouendan come from a critically accalimed duo of games (the former being the American counterpart of the latter Japanese one). But they are an even whackier and innovative character idea: they dance!
Beating up people by dancing? How can that NOT be awesome? They could even include some aspects of the rhythmic controls in those games into their special moves. The licensed music aspect might make choosing a theme song hard, but that's small fish.
Reality: I'm glad to see they at least got copious trophies and stickers
Black Shadow(F-Zero series)
Samurai Goroh may be the more likely and popular choice for a second F-Zero character, but Black Shadow is a very worthy contender. He just looks plain sinister, and could make an excellent 'dark' counterpart to Captain Falcon.
If Ganondorf is way different from his Melee version, they could even use Black Shadow to appease former G'dorf fans. Not by making him a clone, mind you (although if push comes to shove, I'd atleast be behind this guy being one of the chosen clones), but as a slower/bulkier Captain Falcon that I know people like to play as. In any case, he's pretty cool.
Reality: Trophy
Lyndis(Fire Emblem GBA)
Ike is popular all over. Sigurd is popular in Japan. And Lyndis here is popular in the US, where her FE became the debut of the series in North America.
Ike seems to be the obvious choice, but you never know. The developers may just want to give NA FE fans a nod and include a character they enjoy. But would it be worth the possible Japanese backlash, as the GBA games (especially the later 2) were generally unpopular over there?
In any case, Lyn's main difference from other lords in the series is that she also carries around a crossbow. She also seems a bit more samurai-like in her attacks. And if Samurai Goroh and Takamaru didn't tip you off already, samurai are HOT right now.
Reality: For gals, playability requires pants. No such rules for Assist Trophies.
Mach Rider
More obscure NES action! Like Balloon Fighter, Mach Rider came to most people's attention as a Melee trophy. But unlike BF, Mach Rider had one important factor: He looked friggin' awesome. Much like samurai, futuristic motorbikers are in.
Having another Falcon-like fast/physical fighter could be cool. Of course, Mach Rider can also explode and rebuild himself. That's a pretty cool idea, and I don't think any Brawl speculators have even though of that (I won't bet money on that, though, because I'm no gambler). If only more characters looked cool and exploded...
Reality: Sticker and the return of the awesome song from Melee
Next time: pink, mushrooms, lizards, bodyslams, sons, eyepatches, and Poo!
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