Bowser Jr. (SSBU)

Bowser Jr. (, Koopa Jr.) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. He was revealed for the game along with the rest of the veterans on June 12th, 2018. He returns with his Junior Clown Car, and the Koopalings return as alternate costumes alongside him. As in , he is unlockable, instead of being available from the start. Bowser Jr. is classified as Fighter #58.
As in Super Smash Bros. 4, 's portrayals of Bowser Jr. from various spin-off games, along with 's portrayals of Larry, Morton, Wendy, and Lemmy, ’s portrayals of Iggy and Ludwig, and 's portrayal of Roy from the New Super Mario Bros. games, were repurposed for Ultimate, in place of the Koopalings' respective voice actors from Mario Kart 8 onward.
Bowser Jr. is ranked 68th out of 82 on the current tier list, placing him towards the lower end of the C- tier. This is a very slight improvement over his 47th out of 54 placement in SSB4. Bowser Jr. has a unique bait-and-punish zoner playstyle that revolves around Clown Kart Dash for general engagement/disengagement and combos, and Mechakoopas and Clown Cannon for mindgames, stage control and setups. His endurance is notable as he takes less damage if his kart hurtbox is hit instead of his own. He possesses a varied and useful normal moveset, with his best attacks having either lingering hitboxes or good range, which serve as good poking or edgeguarding tools. Some of his notable moves include neutral attack (which is the strongest in the game while having good range and speed), up aerial (which can combo into itself multiple times) and his throws (which all have useful forms of utility).
However, Bowser Jr. has several weaknesses. His biggest weakness is his exploitable recovery, as taking any weak hit while using Abandon Ship! will easily cause a gimp. His overall mobility is mediocre, so he has to rely heavily on Clown Kart Dash for movement. While his Clown Kart takes priority over his hurtbox, Bowser Jr. himself will take more damage if his body is hit. Due to him being a heavyweight, it also makes Jr. easy to combo and juggle. His strongest KO moves require taking big risks, with Clown Kart Dash's spinout and Abandon Ship!'s swing putting him in vulnerable positions. Finally, his projectiles and general frame data are notably laggy (with Mechakoopa, an item-spawning move, being interruptible only on frame 68), making it riskier for him to create setups compared to most of the cast.
Overall, Bowser Jr. is a character that has a variety of unique strengths in his toolkit but exploitable weaknesses that are easy to take advantage of. Although his overall representation has been below-average, Bowser Jr. had nevertheless seen tournament success thanks to dedicated players such as in the early metagame and and in the post-online metagame.
==How to unlock==
Complete one of the following:
*Play VS. matches, with Bowser Jr. being the 61st character to be unlocked.
*Clear with or any character in his unlock tree, being the 6th character unlocked after .
*Have Bowser Jr. join the player's party in World of Light.
With the exception of the third method, Bowser Jr. must then be defeated on Delfino Plaza. In World of Light, he is fought on the Ω form of Mushroomy Kingdom.
==Attributes==
Bowser Jr. is a unique heavyweight fighter because his Junior Clown Car has a separate hurtbox from him, making his survivability variable. Bowser Jr. sports the 20th slowest walking speed (tied with and ), the 21st slowest dashing speed, the 26th fastest air speed (tied with and ), the 30th fastest falling speed (tied with Ike, , , , and ), slightly above average gravity and air acceleration, and low traction. All in all, these stats render his mobility somewhat poor except in the air, and as a result, many characters supersede him in terms of approach.
Bowser Jr. and his Junior Clown Car both have separate hurtboxes, much like Duck Hunt. He possesses a unique mechanic where the Clown Car takes less damage from all incoming attacks, whereas he himself takes more damage in comparison. Unlike in SSB4, the Clown Car's hurtbox takes priority over Bowser Jr.'s hurtbox: when combined with his heavy weight, this gives him above average survivability compared to a good majority of the rest of the cast, or possibly even a good majority of other characters that are of his weight class. Bowser Jr. also possesses a purely disjointed moveset and two good projectiles in Clown Cannon and Mechakoopa.
Clown Cannon can have two cannonballs in play at the same time, deals good damage and knockback, and its cannonballs travel quickly. This makes Clown Cannon good for disrupting or throwing off approaches, as well as KOing at high percentages. This is further compounded by its outstanding shield damage, making Clown Cannon a viable punishing tool. Mechakoopa is also disruptive due to its explosion effect upon being hit. The Mechakoopa always follows opponents no matter the circumstances, and explodes upon contact, serving as an excellent KO setup against launched opponents.
Clown Kart Dash travels extremely quickly, vastly making up for Bowser Jr.'s poor approach and giving him a decent burst option, as well as allowing him to easily cover long distances, both on the ground and in the air. Clown Kart Dash also deals above-average damage and knockback at maximum speed, enabling it to KO opponents at mid-high percentages. Junior can also double jump out of it, granting him potential aerial follow-ups. Abandon Ship! travels good vertical distance, allowing Junior to return to the stage if he is right below it. The Junior Clown Car itself damages opponents upon exploding, serving as a potential KO option at later percentages. While outside of the clown car, Bowser Jr. is gifted with a hammer, which deals high damage, high knockback, and has quick startup, making it a good KO option in its own right. Clown Kart Dash and Abandon Ship! can be mixed up with an air dodge, combining to give Junior an impressive recovery.
Bowser Jr.'s aerials have great utility, going hand-in-hand with his specials. Neutral aerial has edgeguarding capabilities and is effective out-of-shield because of its lingering hitbox. His forward and back aerials are great for edgeguarding, spacing, and KOing because of their high knockback, high potential damage, and good range. Bowser Jr.'s up aerial is good for juggling because of its decent speed and vertical range and serves as an additional KO option. Lastly, down aerial can shield poke, and works well with Clown Kart Dash when initiating follow-ups.
Bowser Jr.'s smash attacks are go-to KO options, all dealing high knockback and overall damage: forward smash has low ending lag, pokes shields, and can be angled; up smash has very quick startup and ending lag, pressures shields, and denies any aerial approaches; and lastly, down smash has high range and KOs, the earliest out of Junior's smash attacks.
Despite his great aerial mobility and damage-racking potential, Bowser Jr. is not without his flaws. One of his biggest problems is that his recovery is glaringly susceptible to gimps. While Abandon Ship! grants him considerable vertical distance, any weak hit will result in Bowser Jr. not being able to respawn the Junior Clown Car, and it doesn't have a hitbox outside of the Clown Car's explosion, making him very vulnerable. Another major problem that Bowser Jr. faces is a lack of viable out-of-shield options; despite his up smash being a fast out-of-shield option with decent kill power, it lacks range and leaves Junior vulnerable if it misses. Additionally, his grab is one of the slowest non-tether grabs, his aerials are either laggy or have poor range for being disjointed and his Mechakoopas will deactivate if they hit a shield, making him susceptible to punishes, and as his traction is one of the lowest in the game, this gives him a poor out-of-shield game. Bowser Jr. is also a very straightforward character, which can make him quite predictable at times. For instance, Clown Cannon and Mechakoopa are important to Bowser Jr.'s neutral game, making it easy (especially for characters such as ) to read and shut down his options. Despite his grab range being rather long, his grabs have noticeable start-up and ending lag, and his throws have low utility due to their inability to KO at reasonable percentages outside of forward throw, with only up throw possessing some combo potential. In addition, despite his high power, Bowser Jr. suffers from poor KO potential due to having very few reliable KOing options (his neutral attack finisher, smash attacks and his forward/back aerials), which is further compounded by said options being burdened with considerable ending lag, while his forward smash has low ending lag and is safe on shield, but its multihits don't connect reliably into the final hit. Many of his attacks, such as his tilts, also have poor range, so he fares surprisingly poorly against most swordfighters considering his disjointed moveset. Finally, Bowser Jr. takes more damage if he is hit but not his Koopa Clown Car, so he is very vulnerable to aerial approaches and after using Abandon Ship!, and he also struggles with dealing with pressure from his opponents. Since he always takes priority over his Clown Car when thrown, Bowser Jr. is also particularly vulnerable to being grabbed and can be knocked out earlier than a character of his weight class would by strong kill throws.
Overall, Bowser Jr. fares well with a bait-and-punish playstyle like his father does, but he can also be potent at pressuring the opponent thanks to Clown Cannon, Clown Kart Dash, and Mechakoopa. However, his slew of exploitable weaknesses can make him a bit underwhelming overall, and frequently overshadowed compared to the rest of the cast. Because of this, his results and representation have been below-average overall, like in SSB4.
==Changes from Super Smash Bros. 4==
Near the end of SSB4s metagame, Bowser Jr. had been considered a low-tier character (47th out of 54 characters), due to his linear playstyle, poor disadvantage state that included a very gimpable recovery despite its long distance, and his susceptibility to being racked damage on easier than most other characters due to the Clown Car mechanic. Likely as a result of this, Bowser Jr. has been noticeably buffed in his transition to Ultimate.
Bowser Jr.'s biggest change was to his hurtbox, as the Junior Clown Car's hurtbox now takes priority over Bowser Jr.'s own, which allows him to more reliably take less damage on average compared to any other fighter, and makes his survivability comparable to heavyweights like . Aside from this, Bowser Jr. benefits from some of the changes to universal game mechanics: the universal frame 3 jumpsquat allows Bowser Jr. to use his strong aerials more effectively, and the increase in mobility contributes to both a better grounded approach for Bowser Jr. and improves his air game and recovery. The reintroduction of directional air dodges slightly improves his recovery, allowing him to mix it up with more ease. The lower landing lag on his aerial attacks also improves their combo and spacing potential.
Bowser Jr.'s previously underwhelming moveset has received several quality of life changes. Many of his moves either connect better (such as his jab and dash attack) or have had their misleading hitboxes adjusted or their blindspots removed (such as up tilt and grab, the latter being given more range). His entire grab game has been significantly buffed, as forward throw can now KO reliably, up throw has less endlag and knockback that renders it now capable of starting combos, and down throw now deals much more damage. His special moves have seen various noteworthy buffs. Clown Cannon, a previously slow projectile with limited use, is now less punishable due to its decrease in lag and increase in lifetime if fired in the air, and two can be in play at once; it also deals far more shield damage, and a landing cannonball can now hit twice to almost break a full shield, especially if uncharged. Clown Kart Dash travels faster, allows Bowser Jr. to keep his double jump if canceled, no longer requires travel time to deal maximum damage and immediately deals higher damage if the directional key is held forward, while its spinout deals far more knockback, making the move harder-hitting in general and more versatile. Abandon Ship!'s hammer swing has more range and a longer duration. Finally, Mechakoopas start moving quicker and bite onto victims, guaranteeing that the second hit will connect.
However, Bowser Jr. has also seen some equally noticeable nerfs. In exchange for quality of life changes, many of his standard moves have seen detriments to damage and power: neutral attack deals much less damage, especially in the infinite part (though the last hit retains its extreme knockback); his forward tilt and neutral aerial now have a sourspot, with the former losing most of its KO power, and the latter having no blindspots at the cost of being less consistent; and the cannonballs of Clown Cannon can only KO if fully charged. Some of his moves, such as forward and up smashes, as well as down aerial, have altered hitbox placements that worsen their consistency, making them ironically harder to land than they were in SSB4. Despite mostly receiving buffs, a few of Bowser Jr.'s special moves have also seen some nerfs; he cannot air dodge out of Clown Kart Dash anymore, but most notably, Mechakoopas now deactivate on the ground if they walk into a shield, no longer crossing them up and allowing them to be immediately picked up by the opponent, making them much easier to use them against Bowser Jr.
Though he's mostly seen improvements from the universal changes, a few of them hurt him overall. Aside from his standing grab, his dash and pivot grabs have less range, and all of them are slower in terms of ending lag, a nerf shared with the rest of the cast. The changes to air dodge mechanics make him easier to edgeguard. The weakening of rage further pronounces the nerfs to his moveset's power and thus doesn't allow him to take advantage of it as easily due to his improved endurance, creating issues with his problematic KO potential as a result.
In the end, Bowser Jr's moveset, while not significantly changed in terms of functionality, has been heavily adjusted to be more consistent, granting many of his moves less situational use than in SSB4, whereas the more notable changes to his special moveset and his faster mobility allow him to zone opponents more effectively and approach with less risk. However, his moveset's lower power from knockback reductions and new sourspots make it slightly harder for him to close out stocks, the nerfs to Mechakoopa force him to be more cautious of his tools, and some of the changes to the engine makes it slightly harder to use some of his newfound buffs. Aside from this, Bowser Jr. also retains several of his weaknesses from the previous game, including his poor disadvantage state, vulnerable recovery, poor range despite disjointed attacks and a somewhat linear playstyle. Though he has received a few notable changes in game updates that further contribute to his notable buffs, the extent to which they work is questionable given the various buffs given to other characters, both on release and from game updates, as well as the introduction of new DLC characters which he struggles against. Thus, while Bowser Jr. is a better character in Ultimate, he has not significantly improved from his SSB4 incarnation, only keeping up with the rest of the cast.
==Update history==
Bowser Jr. has been buffed by game updates. Update 3.1.0 granted Bowser Jr. several useful buffs. Up tilt and aerial Clown Cannon had their lag decreased by varying amounts, which improved their combo potential and safety, respectively. Dash attack's edge-guarding potential was improved, thanks to its last hit's angle being lowered noticeably. Up smash's KO potential was improved slightly, thanks to a small knockback increase.
Clown Kart Dash's travel speed was increased (which also heightened its damage output by extension) and its hitbox now remains active upon its bounce, the latter of which improved its consistency. Lastly, Abandon Ship! became slightly more consistent: its grounded Junior Clown Car hitbox connects better with its explosion hitbox, while its hammer's duration and hitboxes were lengthened and enlarged, respectively.
After update 7.0.0 enlarged Bowser Jr.'s shield as part of a near-universal buff, update 9.0.0 granted Bowser Jr. his most useful buffs to date. Forward tilt and especially forward throw gained considerable knockback increases; while the former is now better for spacing and safer on hit, the latter is now a viable (albeit situational) KO option, which is something Bowser Jr.'s grab game lacked following back throw's nerf in the transition to Ultimate.
Up smash underwent several hitbox, knockback and angle adjustments in order to improve its consistency, while down smash's overall lag was decreased. Clown Kart Dash became safer thanks to its armor threshold being noticeably increased. Lastly, Abandon Ship!'s recovery potential was improved, thanks to its start-up lag being decreased.
In update 13.0.1 Bowser Jr received some more buffs and a nerf. Clown Kart Dash was given more base knockback on its spin, dash attacks damage was increased and its first and last hits had their base knockback decreased. Down tilt’s first and second hit were given less knockback growth and less base knockback, and its final hit had its launch angle adjusted to launch at a lower angle. However, Bowser Jr’s down tilt also received a nerf, only the first hit of his down tilt will hit opponents that are hanging on the ledge preventing the full move from connecting properly.
As a result of these changes, Bowser Jr. fares better than he did at Ultimates launch.
 
 
 
 
 
 
==Moveset==
*Moves that hit the Junior Clown Car deal 0.88× damage, whereas those that hit Bowser Jr. himself will deal 1.15× damage. The Junior Clown Car's hurtbox takes priority over Bowser Jr.'s hurtbox, unlike in Smash 4, where it was the opposite.
For a gallery of Bowser Jr.'s hitboxes, see here.
===Stats===
===Announcer calls===
==== Bowser Jr. ====
Bowser Jr. English Announcer SSB4-SSBU.wav|English
Bowser Jr. Japanese Announcer SSB4-SSBU.wav|Japanese/Chinese
Bowser Jr. French Announcer SSBU.wav|French
Bowser Jr. French EU Announcer SSBU.wav|French (PAL)
Bowser Jr. German Announcer SSBU.wav|German
Bowser Jr. Italian Announcer SSBU.wav|Italian
Bowser Jr. Russian Announcer SSBU.wav|Russian
Bowser Jr. Spanish Announcer SSBU.wav|Spanish
Bowser Jr. Spanish EU Announcer SSBU.wav|Spanish (PAL)
==== Larry ====
Larry English Announcer SSB4-SSBU.wav|English/Japanese/Chinese
Larry French Announcer SSBU.wav|French
Larry German Announcer SSBU.wav|German
Larry Italian Announcer SSBU.wav|Italian
Larry Russian Announcer SSBU.wav|Russian
Larry Spanish Announcer SSBU.wav|Spanish
==== Roy ====
Roy Koopa English Announcer SSB4-SSBU.wav|English/Japanese/Chinese
Roy Koopa French Announcer SSBU.wav|French
Roy Koopa French EU Announcer SSBU.wav|French (PAL)
Roy Koopa German Announcer SSBU.wav|German
Roy Koopa Italian Announcer SSBU.wav|Italian
Roy Koopa Russian Announcer SSBU.wav|Russian
Roy Koopa Spanish Announcer SSBU.wav|Spanish
==== Wendy ====
Wendy English Announcer SSB4-SSBU.wav|English/Japanese/Chinese
Wendy French Announcer SSBU.wav|French
Wendy German Announcer SSBU.wav|German
Wendy Italian Announcer SSBU.wav|Italian
Wendy Russian Announcer SSBU.wav|Russian
Wendy Spanish Announcer SSBU.wav|Spanish
==== Iggy ====
Iggy English Announcer SSB4-SSBU.wav|English/Japanese/Chinese
Iggy French Announcer SSBU.wav|French
Iggy German Announcer SSBU.wav|German
Iggy Italian Announcer SSBU.wav|Italian
Iggy Russian Announcer SSBU.wav|Russian
Iggy Spanish Announcer SSBU.wav|Spanish
==== Morton ====
Morton English Announcer SSB4-SSBU.wav|English/Japanese/Chinese
Morton French Announcer SSBU.wav|French
Morton French EU Announcer SSBU.wav|French (PAL)
Morton German Announcer SSBU.wav|German
Morton Italian Announcer SSBU.wav|Italian
Morton Russian Announcer SSBU.wav|Russian
Morton Spanish Announcer SSBU.wav|Spanish
==== Lemmy ====
Lemmy English Announcer SSB4-SSBU.wav|English/Japanese/Chinese
Lemmy French Announcer SSBU.wav|French
Lemmy German Announcer SSBU.wav|German
Lemmy Italian Announcer SSBU.wav|Italian
Lemmy Russian Announcer SSBU.wav|Russian
Lemmy Spanish Announcer SSBU.wav|Spanish
==== Ludwig ====
Ludwig English Announcer SSB4-SSBU.wav|English/Japanese/Chinese
Ludwig French Announcer SSBU.wav|French
Ludwig German Announcer SSBU.wav|German
Ludwig Italian Announcer SSBU.wav|Italian
Ludwig Russian Announcer SSBU.wav|Russian
Ludwig Spanish Announcer SSBU.wav|Spanish
===On-screen appearance===
*Flies onto the stage in the Junior Clown Car and makes a taunting facial expression toward the camera.
===Taunts===
*Up Taunt: Jumps up, sits on the edge of the Junior Clown Car and makes a tiny breath of fire, chuckling. The Junior Clown Car makes a shocked expression.
*Side Taunt: Twirls a hammer, or in the case of the Koopalings, their respective wands. The Junior Clown Car briefly closes its eyes.
*Down Taunt: The Clown Car spawns its wheels and performs a donut with an angry expression, then returns to normal. As the donut ends, Bowser Jr. / the Koopaling spins in place, briefly shaking their head as the Junior Clown Car reverts back to normal.
SSBUBowserJrTaunt1.gif|Bowser Jr.'s up taunt.
SSBUBowserJrTaunt2.gif|Bowser Jr.'s side taunt.
SSBUBowserJrTaunt3.gif|Bowser Jr.'s down taunt.
===Idle poses===
*Places his hand over his eyes and looks around. The Junior Clown Car closes it's eyes for the duration of the idle pose.
*Hops impatiently in the Junior Clown Car twice. The Junior Clown Car opens its mouth for each hop.
SSBUBowserJrIdle1.gif|Bowser Jr.'s first idle pose.
SSBUBowserJrIdle2.gif|Bowser Jr.'s second idle pose.
===Crowd cheer===
====Bowser Jr.====
 	Cheer (English)	Cheer (Japanese/Chinese)	Cheer (Italian) 	Cheer (Dutch)	Cheer (French)
Cheer 	 	 	 	 	
Description	Jun - ior! 	Koo - pa! Jun - ior! 	Bow - ser! Jun - ior!	Jun - ior! 	Bow - ser! Jun - ior!
 	Cheer (German) 	Cheer (Spanish) 	Cheer (Russian) 	Cheer (Korean)
Cheer 	 	 	 	
Description	Bow - ser! Jun - ior!	Bow - ser! Jun - ior! *claps 4 times* Bow - sy! Bow - sy!	Bow - ser! Mlad - shiy!	Koo - pa! Jun - ior!
====Larry====
 	Cheer (English)	Cheer (Japanese/Chinese)	Cheer (Italian) 	Cheer (Dutch) 	Cheer (French)
Cheer 	 	 	 	 	
Description	Lar - ry! 	Lar - ry! 	Lar - ry! *claps 3 times*	Lar - ry! *claps 2 times*	Allez Lar - ry!
 	Cheer (German)	Cheer (Spanish) 	Cheer (Russian) 	Cheer (Korean)
Cheer 	 	 	 	
Description	Lar - ry! 	Lar - ry! Lar - ry! Lar - ry! Rah - Rah - Rah! Mu - cho Lar - ry! Mu - cho Lar - ry! Eh! Eh!	Lar - ry! *claps 3 times*	Lar - ry!
====Roy====
 	Cheer (English)	Cheer (Japanese/Chinese)	Cheer (Italian) 	Cheer (Dutch)	Cheer (French)
Cheer 	 	 	 	 	
Description	Roy Roy Roy! 	Roy Roy Roy! 	Roy! Roy! *claps 3 times*	Rooooy! Roy! 	Roy! Roy! Roy!
 	Cheer (German)	Cheer (Spanish) 	Cheer (Russian)	Cheer (Korean)
Cheer 	 	 	 	
Description	Roy! Roy! Roy!	Roy! Roy! Roy! Y da - le más!	Roy! Roy! Roy! 	Roy! Roy! Roy!
====Wendy====
 	Cheer (English)	Cheer (Japanese/Chinese) 	Cheer (Italian) 	Cheer (Dutch) 	Cheer (French)
Cheer 	 	 	 	 	
Description	Wen - dy! 	Wen - dy! *claps 3 times*	Wen - dy! *claps 3 times*	Wa - wa! Wendy! Wa - wa!	Vas-y Wen - dy!
 	Cheer (German)	Cheer (Spanish) 	Cheer (Russian) 	Cheer (Korean)
Cheer 	 	 	 	
Description	Wen - dy! 	Wen - dy! Wen - dy! Wen - dy!	Wen - dy! Wen - dy!	Wen - dy! *claps 2 times*
====Iggy====
 	Cheer (English)	Cheer (Japanese/Chinese)	Cheer (Italian) 	Cheer (Dutch) 	Cheer (French)
Cheer 	 	 	 	</center> 	
Description	Ig - gy! 	Ig - gy! 	Ig - gy! *claps 3 times*	Ig - gy! *claps 3 times*	Ig-gy brille!
 	Cheer (German)	Cheer (Spanish) 	Cheer (Russian) 	Cheer (Korean)
Cheer 	 	 	 	
Description	Ig - gy! 	Ig - gy Ig - gy Ig - gy! Y da - le más! E - se Ig - gy E - se Ig - gy Eh! Eh!	Ig - gy! *claps 3 times*	Ig - gy!
====Morton====
 	Cheer (English)	Cheer (Japanese/Chinese)	Cheer (Italian) 	Cheer (Dutch) 	Cheer (French)
Cheer 	 	 	 	 	
Description	Mor - ton! 	Moooorton! 	Mor - ton! *claps 3 times*	Mmmm - Morton!	Mor - ton!
 	Cheer (German)	Cheer (Spanish)	Cheer (Russian)	Cheer (Korean)
Cheer 	 	 	 	
Description	Mor - ton! 	Morrrr - ton! 	Mor - ton! 	Mor - ton! *claps 3 times*
====Lemmy====
 	Cheer (English)	Cheer (Japanese/Chinese)	Cheer (Italian) 	Cheer (Dutch) 	Cheer (French)
Cheer 	 	 	 	 	
Description	Lem - my! 	Lem - my! 	Lem - my! *claps 3 times*	Lem - my! *claps 2 times* Lem - my!	Tous pour qui? Pour Lemmy!
 	Cheer (German)	Cheer (Spanish) 	Cheer (Russian) 	Cheer (Korean)
Cheer 	 	 	 	
Description	Lem - my! 	Lem - my *claps 2 times*	Lem - my! Lem - my!	Lem - my! Lem - my! Leeeem - my!
====Ludwig====
 	Cheer (English)	Cheer (Japanese/Chinese)	Cheer (Italian) 	Cheer (Dutch)	Cheer (French)
Cheer 	 	 	 	 	
Description	Lud - wig! 	Lud - wig! 	Lud - wig! *claps 3 times*	Lud - wig! 	Pour Ludwig : hip hip hip!
 	Cheer (German) 	Cheer (Spanish)	Cheer (Russian)	Cheer (Korean)
Cheer 	 	 	 	
Description	Lud - wig! *claps 3 times*	Luuuud - wig! 	Lud - wig! 	Lu - Lud - wig!
===Victory poses===
*Left: Jumps out of the Clown Car, hops in celebration twice, then poses.
*Up: From the side of the screen, drives the Clown Car in its go-kart form, performs a donut before coming to a stop and pulls out a hammer (or a wand, if playing as a Koopaling).
*Right: Dismounts from the Clown Car using its left grabber claw and pats it with his right hand.
BowserJrVictoryPose1SSBU.gif
BowserJrVictoryPose2SSBU.gif
BowserJrVictoryPose3SSBU.gif
==In competitive play==
===Most historically significant players===
See also: :Category:Bowser Jr. players (SSBU)
* - Although not as consistent compared to other Bowser Jr. players, he is known for his win on at , the best win from a Bowser Jr. player, and ultimately placed 9th at the event. In addition, he has placed well at several other Southern California events, including 5th at and 17th at .
* - The best Bowser Jr. player since mid-2023. He initially gained notoriety for being one of the best players in the post-COVID-19 pandemic online metagame, placing highly at many events. He eventually had his offline breakout event at , where he defeated to place 13th, and has since become the most recognizable Bowser Jr. player of this era, most notably placing 9th at , making him the highest-placing Bowser Jr. player at an open major since Young Eevey's Albion 4 run. He is ranked 76th on the LumiRank 2024.2, the first solo-Bowser Jr. player to rank in the top 100 globally.
* - One of the best Bowser Jr. players in the post-pandemic metagame, and the definitive best from 2021 to mid-2023. He possesses some of the best Bowser Jr. placements and wins of all-time, including placing 13th at defeating , 17th at defeating , and 25th at , in addition to wins over at and at . He was the first Bowser Jr. player ranked on a global ranking, ranking 132nd on the OrionRank Ultimate: Eclipse.
* - The first Bowser Jr. player to find any competitive success, and as such was considered the best Bowser Jr. player in the early metagame. He is best known for being the first and only Bowser Jr. player to place top 8 at a major, doing so by placing 7th at while defeating . Alongside his 13th-place finish at and 25th-place finish at with a win over , his performances led many to reassess Bowser Jr.'s viability, and even after becoming significantly less active in the post-pandemic metagame, his results remain some of the best Bowser Jr. performances of all-time.
===Tier placement and history===
Following the game's launch, the community immediately noticed that Bowser Jr. retained his weaknesses from Smash 4 (poor grounded mobility, susceptibility to gimps, lack of range and his playstyle being linear). Despite improvements towards his survivability, Clown Cannon (widely agreed to be one of the worst projectiles in Smash 4), and his grab game, several players claimed that the improvements were not significant enough to compensate for his retained weaknesses. As such, Bowser Jr. was considered a low-tier character at best, with some even going as far as claiming him to be a bottom 3 character.
Early patches gave Bowser Jr. several buffs that improved Clown Kart Dash and Bowser Jr.'s combo potential, allowing him to fare better in competitive play. His results by mid-2019 were also improving, peaking just outside the top 50 for July-December 2019, thanks to strong performances from players such as and . Notably, Young Eevey placed 7th at Albion 4, marking the highest placement for a Bowser Jr. player at a major, while Ketchup picked up notable wins over several top players. Thanks to the buffs and improving results, players no longer considered Bowser Jr. as one of the worst characters in the game, but had reassessed him as a mid-tier.
Unfortunately for Bowser Jr., his playerbase began declining in the post-online metagame as his best players became less active or consistent. This was a trend with some of his newer players as well: although players such as and found success at majors, either their results were inconsistent or they were seldom active. As such, Bowser Jr.'s representation slipped greatly into the bottom 10 by 2021; this decline was also reflected in his placement on the first tier list, where he was ranked 72nd at the very end of the mid-tier. Since then, his metagame had remained stagnant as his overall representation remained in or near the bottom 10. As such, his placement on the second tier list barely shifted, moving up to 70th at the top of D- tier due to falling opinions on a few other characters ranked above him.
==: Mama Peach, Where Are You?==
Most of Bowser Jr.'s opponents are princesses, some of which are teamed up with their love interest (or in Lucina's case, her father). The title refers to the event of where Bowser Jr. called Peach his "mama".
Round 	Opponent 	Stage 	Music 	Notes
1 	 	Mario Galaxy 	 	
2 	and 	Arena Ferox 	 	
3 	and 	Mushroom Kingdom U	 	
4 	 	Hyrule Castle 	 	
5 	(x2), (x2), and (x2)	Peach's Castle 	 	Horde Battle (3 at a time). The s all wear princess wigs.
*Mii Brawler costume combinations: Peach's Crown and Vampire Garb, Daisy's Crown and Nia Outfit.
*Mii Gunner costumes: Princess's Crown and Wild West Wear, Peach's Crown and Steampunk Getup.
*Mii Swordfighter costumes: Daisy's Crown and Viridi Outfit, Princess's Crown and Ashley Outfit.
6 	and 	Delfino Plaza 	 	Items do not appear.
Bonus Stage	Bonus Stage 	Bonus Stage 	Bonus Stage 	Bonus Stage
Final 	 	 	(Less than 7.0 intensity) (Intensity 7.0 or higher)	On intensity 7.0 and higher, fights alongside Master Hand.
Credits roll after completing Classic Mode. Completing it as Bowser Jr. has accompany the credits.
==Role in World of Light==
While Bowser Jr. and the Koopalings do not appear in the World of Light opening cutscene, they were all vaporized and later imprisoned alongside the rest of the fighters (except ) when Galeem unleashed his beams of light.
Bowser Jr. and the Koopalings were among the many fighters that fell under Dharkon's control upon Galeem's first defeat. Bowser Jr. is found in one of two alternating pathways on the Triforce of Power segment of the Sacred Land sub-area, guarded by various Legendary spirits.
As a side note, once Bowser Jr. is rescued, the Koopalings (due to their status of being alternate characters of Bowser Jr.), will have been 'rescued' as well, resulting in them also being available as playable characters within the story.
===Fighter Battle===
No.	Image	Name 	Type	Power 	Stage 	Music
58 	 	Bowser Jr.	 	12,500	Mushroomy Kingdom (Ω form)	
==Spirits==
Bowser Jr.'s fighter spirit can be obtained by completing as Bowser Jr. It is also available periodically for purchase in the shop for 300 Gold, but only after Bowser Jr. has been unlocked. Unlocking Bowser Jr. in World of Light allows the player to preview the first spirit below in the Spirit List under the name "???". As a fighter spirit, it cannot be used in Spirit Battles and is purely aesthetic. Each of the Koopalings have their own fighter spirits, only available through the shop. Each fighter spirit has an alternate version that replaces them with their artwork in Ultimate.
Bowser Jr. also appears as a primary spirit in the form of Shadow Mario.
SSBU spirit Bowser Jr..png|10. Bowser Jr.
SSBU spirit Iggy.png|11. Iggy
SSBU spirit Wendy.png|12. Wendy
SSBU spirit Lemmy.png|13. Lemmy
SSBU spirit Roy (Super Mario Bros.).png|14. Roy (Super Mario Bros.)
SSBU spirit Larry.png|15. Larry
SSBU spirit Ludwig.png|16. Ludwig
SSBU spirit Morton.png|17. Morton
SSBU spirit Shadow Mario.png|70. Shadow Mario
==In Spirit Battles==
===As the main opponent===
Spirit	Spirit	Spirit 	Spirit 	Battle parameters	Battle parameters	Battle parameters 	Battle parameters 	Battle parameters 	Battle parameters	Battle parameters	Inspiration
No. 	Image 	Name 	Series 	Enemy Fighter(s) 	Type 	Power 	Stage 	Rules 	Conditions 	Music 	Character
39 	 	Super Mario Series 	•Iggy •Tiny ×8 	 	3,400 	 	N/A 	•Defeat an army of fighters 	 	Lakitu 	
57 	 	Super Mario Land Series 	•Morton 	 	3,800 	Mario Galaxy (Battlefield form)	N/A 	•The enemy starts the battle with a Super Scope 	 	 	
70 	 	Super Mario Series 	• 	 	9,800 	Delfino Plaza (Ω form) 	•Sudden Final Smash•Hazard: Sticky Floor 	•The floor is sticky•The enemy will suddenly have a Final Smash after a little while•The enemy's FS Meter charges quickly 	 	 	
106 	 	Mario & Luigi Series 	•Iggy (140 HP)• (140 HP)	 	3,700 	Prism Tower 	N/A 	•Stamina battle•The enemy starts the battle with a Rocket Belt 	 	 	
168 	 	Donkey Kong: Barrel Blast 	•Wendy Team ×4 	 	1,800 	Kongo Falls 	N/A 	•The enemy starts the battle with a Rocket Belt•The enemy has increased move speed 	 	 	
346 	 	Kirby Series 	•Lemmy 	 	3,600 	Halberd 	•Item: Fire Flower 	•The enemy starts the battle with a Fire Flower 	 	 	
714 	 	Kid Icarus Series 	•Wendy •Ally: 	 	3,500 	Kalos Pokémon League (Ω form) 	•Bob-omb Festival 	•Join forces with a CPU ally•Bob-ombs will rain from the sky after a little while•Explosion attacks aren't as effective against the enemy 	 	 	
776 	 	Sonic The Hedgehog Series 	•Roy •Metal 	 	13,200 	Green Hill Zone 	•Bob-omb Festival•Item: Shooting Types 	•Bob-ombs will rain from the sky after a little while•The enemy's shooting items have increased power•Items will be pulled toward the enemy	 	 	
846 	 	Animal Crossing Series 	•Iggy 	 	9,600 	Wuhu Island (Rocks at sea) 	•Buoyancy Reduced•Hazard: Heavy Wind 	•You can't swim•Dangerously high winds are in effect 	 	 	
913 	 	Mega Man Legends Series 	•Wendy •Tiny ×2 	 	3,600 	Wuhu Island (Talon Rock) 	N/A 	•Take your strongest team into this no-frills battle 	 	 	
958 	 	Xenoblade Chronicles Series 	•Roy • 	 	8,000 	Gaur Plain (Ω form) 	•Earthquake•Flowery•Assist Trophy Enemies (Riki)	•The enemy's special moves have increased power•Hostile assist trophies will appear•You constantly take minor damage after a little while 	 	 	
1,040 	 	Splatoon Series 	•Morton 	 	3,700 	Saffron City 	•Attack Power ↑•Move Speed ↑•Item: Unira 	•The enemy has increased move speed•The enemy has increased attack power after a little while 	 	 	
1,133 	 	Famicom Grand Prix II: 3D Hot Rally Series	•Giant Roy Team 	 	1,900 	Mushroomy Kingdom 	N/A 	•The enemy favors side specials•The enemy is giant 	 	 	
1,134 	 	Famicom Wars Series 	•Metal Iggy • ×2 	 	3,900 	Gerudo Valley 	N/A 	•The enemy favors neutral specials•The enemy is metal 	 	Tank 	
1,151 	 	Stunt Race FX 	•Roy 	 	2,200 	Figure-8 Circuit 	N/A 	•Timed battle (1:00)•The enemy has increased move speed and reduced weight 	 	 	
1,152 	 	Stunt Race FX 	•Morton 	 	1,900 	Moray Towers 	N/A 	•The enemy's side special has increased power•The enemy favors side specials 	 	 	
1,318 	 	Nintendo Labo Series 	• Team (60 HP) 	 	4,200 	Wuhu Island (Frisbee Dog Park) 	N/A 	•Stamina battle•The enemy favors side specials•The enemy can deal damage by dashing into you 	 	 	
1,416 	 	ARMS 	•Giant Wendy (100 HP) 	 	3,400 	Spring Stadium 	N/A 	•The enemy has super armor but moves slower•Stamina battle•The enemy is giant 	 	 	
1,445 	 	FINAL FANTASY Series 	•Roy • ×3 	 	1,700 	New Pork City (Ω form) 	N/A 	•Defeat the main fighter to win 	 	 	
===As a minion===
Spirit	Spirit	Spirit 	Spirit 	Battle parameters	Battle parameters	Battle parameters 	Battle parameters	Battle parameters 	Battle parameters	Battle parameters	Inspiration
No. 	Image 	Name 	Series 	Enemy Fighter(s) 	Type 	Power 	Stage 	Rules 	Conditions 	Music 	Character
450 	 	Pokémon Series 	• •Larry 	 	3,700 	Windy Hill Zone 	N/A 	•Defeat the main fighter to win•Reinforcements will appear during the battle	 	Baby 	
700 	 	Game & Watch Series	• • •Morton • 	 	1,700 	Flat Zone X (hazards off)	N/A 	•The enemy favors back air attacks 	 	Turtle 	
1,472 	 	Super Mario Series 	•Giant (Moveset 2232, Cat Hat, Cat Suit)•	 	3,900 	Find Mii (Ω form) 	N/A 	•Defeat the main fighter to win•The enemy is giant 	 	 	
==Alternate costumes==
Instead of alternate color schemes, Bowser Jr.'s alternate costumes consist of the Koopalings. Bowser Jr.'s Junior Clown Car is the only one with black eyes and horizontal orange "eye paint", while the Koopalings' Clown Cars have yellow mechanical eyes with vertical black "eye paint". All of the Koopalings have their own models, voice clips, and crowd cheers. They have their Boxing Ring titles in English and other European languages, but they all share the same Boxing Ring title in Asian languages, which translates to "All-Purpose Chariot."
							
							
==Gallery==
SSBU Bowser Jr. Number.png|Bowser Jr.'s fighter card.
Bowser Jr. unlock notice SSBU.jpg|Bowser Jr.'s unlock notice.
SSBUWebsiteBowserJr1.jpg|Bowser Jr. idling on Onett.
SSBUWebsiteBowserJr2.jpg|Charging his forward smash on 3D Land.
SSBUWebsiteBowserJr3.jpg|Performing his dash attack on Princess Peach's Castle.
SSBUWebsiteBowserJr4.jpg|Jabbing at on Boxing Ring.
SSBUWebsiteBowserJr5.jpg|Performing his forward tilt towards tempura shrimp on Tomodachi Life.
SSBUWebsiteBowserJr6.jpg|Roy, Iggy, Larry, and Ludwig on Wuhu Island.
SSBUWebsite8.jpg|Taunting with Lemmy, Wendy, and Morton on Tomodachi Life.
SSBUWebsiteSnake4.jpg|Idling next to on Tomodachi Life.
SSBUTwitterAlucard2.png|Struck by Alucard on Castle Siege.
===Fighter Showcase Video===
==Trivia==
*The "Everyone is Here!" trailer features a visual glitch: when Lemmy uses his down taunt, his face disappears for a few frames at the end of the animation.
**The Junior Clown Car also shows a visual glitch, with two mouths overlapping each other when Ludwig is seen falling off a ledge.
*The render of Lemmy resembles from New Super Mario Bros. U, which is the same artwork used for his fighter spirit, and he is the only Koopaling to be completely out of the Junior Clown Car.
**Similarly, the render of Wendy resembles an from .
*Bowser Jr., Yoshi, , and are the only characters who used their default costumes in one of the spirit battles present at the game's initial release. In Bowser Jr.'s case, it is because of the Shadow Mario spirit.
**Despite that, there's no proper battle against a default Bowser Jr. in World of Light outside of himself because the only Spirit Battle in which he is present (Shadow Mario) is absent, instead finding puppet fighters of the Koopalings. The only exception to this are the false Bowser Jr.s created during battles involving Dharkon. This also applies to .
***Additionally, Ludwig was the only Koopaling not present in any spirit battle until the DLC Toy-Con Car Spirit was introduced.
***Alongside Mr. Game & Watch, R.O.B and Yoshi., Bowser Jr. is one of the few characters with a Spirit battle where all of his alternate costumes appear in a single Spirit fight.
* Prior to version 1.1.0, Bowser Jr.'s airdodge behaved exactly how it did in Smash 4 when using it out of Abandon Ship!, making him the only character to have been capable of performing multiple airdodges without touching the ground or getting hit in any version of Ultimate.
*When the game's speed is slowed down, Bowser Jr.'s Final Smash becomes noticeably more effective, hitting more times and dealing more damage. At 1/4 speed it potentially becomes one of the strongest Final Smashes in the game.
*Bowser Jr., , /, and are the only characters whose artworks on all alternate costumes on the official website do not cast a shadow.
*Bowser Jr. is the only character to have motion blur in their render (at the Clown Car's propeller).
**Lemmy is the only Koopaling without motion blur in his render.
*In the Sound Test, Larry is the only Koopaling with one less voice clip than Bowser Jr. and the other Koopalings. This is due to both his teching and carrying being the same voice clip.
**Morton also had this distinction in Smash 4.
*If Bowser Jr.'s right-inputted victory pose is performed by any Koopaling besides Roy, the propeller will stop after looping once during the post-animation.https://youtu.be/J0531h9USmI?t=1710
**A similar situation also occurred during Bowser Jr.'s clapping animation on the No Contest screen in Smash 4.
*Even though Morton's eye mark has been changed to a lighter gray in this game, his stock icon still shows it as the dark gray it was in Smash 4.
*When the Franklin Badge or Screw Attack items are equipped, if Bowser Jr. does his side taunt, the item will clip through the clown car. This also applies to the Koopalings.
==References==
 
Category:Spirits
es:Bowsy (SSBU)