History Characters / MegaManClassicHeroes

[-'''Heroes''' | [[Characters/MegaManClassicVillains Villains]] ([[Characters/MegaManClassicDrAlbertWWily Dr. Wily]]) | [[Characters/MegaManClassicOtherCharacters Other Characters]] | [[Characters/MegaManClassicRobotMastersNES Robot Masters (NES)]] | [[Characters/MegaManClassicRobotMastersPostNES Robot Masters (Post-NES)]]-]]]]]

* CharClone: Wears red, a CoolMask, and is revealed to be the older brother of Rock and Roll.

** Wily's Double Gear system was shutdown due to Light deeming it far too dangerous, which in turn got him funding for his independent thought research instead. Not only would Lights independent though circuits prove [[AIIsACrapshoot way more dangerous]] in the long term, but it would be through Wily's mechanical knowhow that would ultimately bring about an era of peace. (Albeit it wasn't Wily's intention to do so).

* CreateYourOwnVillain: As ''VideoGame/MegaMan11'' reveals, Light was the one who inadvertently set Wily down the path of villainy by getting his Double Gear project shut down. In the present day Light is painfully aware of how his actions caused Wily's descent into villainy, noting how his attempts at steering Wily away from a dangerous only caused him to charge headlong an even more extreme path.

->'''Voiced by''': [[note]]''Doug Parker'' (WesternAnimation/CaptainNTheGameMaster), ''Creator/IanJamesCorlett'' ([[WesternAnimation/MegaManRubySpears animated series]]), ''Creator/AiOrikasa'' (JP, [[VideoGame/MegaMan8 8]], [[VideoGame/SuperAdventureRockman SAR]], MMBC), ''Creator/HekiruShiina'' (Close Call audio drama, Arcade, [[Anime/MegaManUponAStar OVA]]), ''Gregory Smith'' (OVA, Ep. 1), ''Christopher Gray'' (OVA, Ep. 2-3), ''Kahoru Fujino'' ([[VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom Marvel vs. Capcom series]]), ''Ruth Shiraishi'' (EN, 8) ''Miki Ogura'' (VideoGame/CannonSpike), ''Yumiko Kobayashi'' (JP, [[VideoGame/MegaManPoweredUp Powered Up]]), ''Cole Howard'' (EN, Powered Up), ''Creator/AyakaFukuhara'' (JP, [[VideoGame/MegaMan11 11]], [[VideoGame/MegaManXDive X Dive]]), ''Creator/BenDiskin'' (EN, 11)[[/note]]
The legendary Blue Bomber built by Dr. Light. He was formerly a humanoid helper robot named Rock, (sometimes called "Mega") who was later modified into a super fighting robot upon his request. Mega Man is equipped with the Mega Buster, and the ability to copy techniques from the Robot Masters he defeats.

->For his Super Smash Bros. series entry, please see Characters/SuperSmashBros445To49

* CharacterDevelopment: He was originally a learning machine with human-grade emotions, after all. In the beginning, he's very much an innocent, wide-eyed optimist. After the sixth game, however, he has him arrested then and there, showing some exhaustion with having to deal with Wily time and time again. He also has more open displays of anger and even [[spoiler:tries to ''kill'' Wily]] at the end of ''7'' (though it's implied that [[spoiler:despite stating he's more than a robot, [[ThreeLawCompliant his programming forbids him to kill humans]]). By ''9'', he's found a nice middle ground as a HopeBringer, one who isn't afraid to [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech rake Wily over the coals a little]], but would never leave even ''him'' for dead.

* {{Battlecry}}: Mega Man often yells out "Plasma Power!" in [[WesternAnimation/MegaManRubySpears the Ruby-Spears cartoon]] when facing Wily's robots.
* BewareTheNiceOnes:
** In ''7'', where he [[spoiler:attempts to ''kill Wily'']].

* ChargedAttack: In all games from ''4'' to ''8''. He lost it in ''9'' for the sake of having Proto Man play differently from him, but got it back in ''Mega Man 11''.
* CharacterDevelopment: Yes, really. Mega Man was originally a learning machine with human-grade emotions after all, and he grows over time. In the beginning, he's very much an innocent, wide-eyed optimist. After the sixth game, however, he shows some exhaustion with having to deal with Wily time and time again, and has more open displays of anger and [[spoiler:even tries to kill Wily at the end of ''7'' (though it's implied that his programming forbids him to kill humans)]]. By ''Mega Man 9'', he's found a nice middle ground as a HopeBringer, but one who isn't afraid to [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech rake Wily over the coals a little]], but would never leave even ''him'' for dead.
* ChildSoldiers: Zigzagged, as it's more of a "superhero" thing, and Rock's been around long enough that he really is only a kid in his inability to age, but he did get his start way back when with the heart and mind of a ten year old child, yet Dr. Light acquiesced to having him fight.

* DependingOnTheArtist: Has either blue or green eyes. In the games, he usually has black hair. In other media, it's brown. The opening cutscene in ''4'' has his hair as blue, which is referenced in ''Mega Man 9''.
* EvilKnockoff: Wily sure likes doing this to him. There's the double in ''1'', ''Mega Man?'' in ''VideoGame/MegaManPoweredUp'', the Triplets in ''VideoGame/MegaMan3''...

* FragileSpeedster: Whenever he has the slide kick at his disposal he's surprisingly nimble and hard to hit and even with his charge shot he's not exactly a powerhouse. However some Robot Masters and bigger foes can chew through his life bar ''very'' quickly.

* GoodIsNotSoft: He is the kindest robot around, but that doesn't mean he will hesitate to disable or destroy any robots who are either built or reprogrammed by Dr. Wily. He even [[spoiler: attempts to kill Dr Wily in Mega Man 7.]]
* GuestFighter: Has shown up in two installments of the VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom and VideoGame/SuperSmashBros series each. He also appears in ''VideoGame/DragaliaLost'' in a crossover where he can be made a permanent addition to a player's roster.

* HairColorDissonance: He has black hair that is sometimes depicted as blue. (The latter usually involves all-black backgrounds, such as cutscenes.)

* HonorBeforeReason: In the ending of ''9'', Mega Man chooses to check on the Dr. Light robot, just in case it is a very ill Dr. Light, despite Proto Man's warning that it is a trap. This gets him promptly electrocuted for his troubles. Then, in the ending of ''10'', when he finds out that Wily himself is very sick, he decides to take him to a hospital instead of finishing him off right then and there.

-->'''Mega Man''': [[spoiler:"I am more than a robot!! '''Die''' Wily!!"]]

* OlderThanTheyLook: Every Robot Master capable of speech who talks about Mega Man being a little kid forgets that he's the second to third-oldest (depending on how much truth to Quint's backstory there is) human-built Robot Master.
* PintSizedPowerhouse: His given height by his original design is listed as 132cm, or 4'4''. From 7 onwards, his design was updated to be taller and stronger-looking, but he's still very much physically a kid.

* RedBaron: The Blue Bomber.
* RedOniBlueOni: The blue to Proto Man's red (literally, too).

* SpellMyNameWithAnS: The specific region spelling uses ''Mega Man'' with a space and ''Rockman'' without spacing or further capitals. Earlier games just swapped the words, so occasionally his name would be read "Megaman".
* SuperPoweredRobotMeterMaids: Initially, he wasn't one, since Rock was originally built for lab assistance and housekeeping, but once Light upgraded him to Mega Man, he did become this.

** In ''VideoGame/MegaMan11'', he sports an adult voice (almost on the same level as Proto Man in ''Powered Up'').
* WeakButSkilled: Compared to other Robot Masters. His standard buster shots usually do pitiful damage, and even his charge shot is weaker than most standard Robot Master attacks, but his Variable Weapon System allows him to use multiple weapons at a time instead of focusing on one weapon in particular like most Robot Masters do, giving him far more options to counter with than a normal Robot Master.
** Even without other weapons he can triumph over truly gargantuan enemies that far outclass him in raw power using only his trusty Mega Buster and agility.
* ZerothLawRebellion: Attempted. At the end of ''7'' in the English version, after having enough of Wily, he tries to kill him when Wily told him the three laws. Mega Man tells him he's more than a robot, and slowly approaches him until Bass saves Wily. In the Japanese version, Wily tells him the three laws to stop him from killing him.

** Wily's Double Gear system was shutdown due to Light deeming it far too dangerous, which in turn got him funding for his independent thought research instead. Not only would Lights independent though circuits prove [[AIIsACrapshoot way more dangerous]] in the long term, but it would be through Wily's mechanical knowhow that would ultimately bring about an era of peace. (Albeit it wasn't Wily's intention to do so.)

* SpellMyNameWithAnS: Combined with a dose of JapaneseRanguage. In the earlier games, localization for the English speaking territories alternated between rendering his name as Wright, Right, and Light, before ultimately making Light his standardized name. However, Right is still more common in Japanese sources, and thus "DRN" tends to be used over "DLN". Capcom themselves consider both names to be correct, since the name of his ''Battle Network'' counterpart (Tadashi Hikari) translates to [[BilingualBonus Right Light]]. ''WesternAnimation/CaptainNTheGameMaster'' refers to him as Wright, as confirmed by [[https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/captain-game-master-original-dr-1834995202 his model sheet]].

* AloofAlly: Although he is on Mega Man's side, he refuses to stay with Dr. Light at his lab, due to his rocky past.

* ArmoredButFrail: In ''9'' and ''10'', he takes double damage, but jumping makes him raise a shield to block attacks. In ''9'', he had double knockback, but ''10'' removed it.

* BerserkButton: Quite a few despite his calm personality:

** His dislike of Dr. Light mostly stems from Light activating an incomplete robot, which led to rather disastrous consequences for said robot (himself). Thus, when he learned that Light activated Time Man before he was completed, Proto Man was infuriated.

-->'''Proto Man''': "Looks like you need my help...''again''."

* CainAndAbel: Proto Man was working with Wily in ''3'', but pulls a HeelFaceTurn at the end. In the cartoon, he was the WorthyOpponent and a full-time baddie. It's hinted that he was simply keeping close to Wily to [[StealthMentor test his brother's prowess]] and [[TheMole sabotage Wily]].

* TheDragon: He ''appears'' to be Wily's right-hand man in ''3''...until right at the end, when he saves you after defeating Gamma (evidently, he either [[GoodAllAlong played along the whole time]] or [[HeelFaceTurn changed his mind about Wily]] behind the scenes). In ''VideoGame/MegaMan4'', he was apparently still working for Wily; after he saves Kalinka, Wily yells that he betrayed him, although it's arguably more likely that Dr. Wily didn't ''know'' about Proto Man's [[TheMole true allegiance]] until that point. In the [[WesternAnimation/MegaManRubySpears TV Series]], however, he is willingly working for Wily.
* DesperatelyLookingForAPurposeInLife: One of Proto's biggest struggles is the fact that, unlike future Robot Masters, he was created without a specific purpose or a directive to guide him, and at first struggles to define his identity as a result. In the Archie comics, for example, he decides his purpose is assisting Mega Man after his HeelFaceTurn.

* FlawedPrototype: On one hand, he has a greater degree of freedom than other Robot Masters, but on the other hand, this likely stems from his unstable core, as when Dr. Light offered to repair him at the cost of his freedom, Proto Man ran away. According to his banter with the Yellow Devil in ''Powered Up'', it's an unstable ''[[GoingCritical nuclear]]'' core. Whether this is Light's doing or part of Wily's modifications is unclear; if the former, he apparently learned his lesson by switching to solar.
* ForWantOfANail: If he had let Dr. Light remodel him to fix his power reactor, Dr. Wily would never have found him and done it himself, thus he'd never gain the ability to manufacture robots at the same level as Dr. Light and causing a conflict that ultimately had ''centuries'' worth of deadly consequences (though this was hardly intentional, or even foreseeable).
* GlassCannon: In most playable appearances, explained as his body being poorly constructed for combat (the shield was apparently crafted by Wily to compensate for his relatively frail structure). In supplementary material like the Archie Comics, his frailty is explained by the fact that a direct hit to his unstable nuclear core would inflict a ''lot'' of damage to him.

* IconicSequelCharacter: He doesn't appear until ''Mega Man 3'', but has become an important character in the series and a staunch ally of Mega Man since.

* LightningBruiser:
** In ''Powered Up'', where his Proto Buster (or Blues Buster) was replaced with the "Proto Strike" (presumably a reference to the "Big Bang Strike" from ''Mega Man & Bass'') — with the power of the Charge Shot, which was remarkably broken in that game. The trade-off was that only one shot could be on the screen at once, but that was hardly an issue since the blast is instant.
** [[DifficultButAwesome If played well]], he can become this in ''9'' and ''10'' too. His slide makes him faster than Mega Man and only mildly slower than Bass, he can negate his two shot limit by using charged attacks, and his shield lets him negate attacks (even moreso in ''10''). One just has to be wary and not take any damage, lest they fall victim to Proto Man's doubled knockback and damage vulnerability.
* LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe: He has the Proto Shield (or Blues Shield), which can block projectiles.
* MeaningfulName: His English name follows the -man suffix naming of the Robot Master, i.e. he's the ''proto''type of Mega Man and indeed all other sentient robots in the series. As for his Japanese moniker, [[StealthPun early Rock and Roll was heavily influenced by Blues.]] Blues is also known for being very sorrowful music, and Proto Man has one of the sadder backstories in the original series.
* LukeIAmYourFather: ''3''[='=]s ending. However, [[http://kobun20.interordi.com/2010/09/13/more-monday-blues/ various]] [[http://kobun20.interordi.com/2010/09/16/give-a-little-whistle/ Japanese]] sources say that Mega Man still doesn't know this. (Though in the English version of ''VideoGame/MegaMan7'', he openly refers to Dr. Light as being both characters' "father".)

* PetTheDog: Even if you take him as a villain in ''3'', he still saved Mega Man at the end.

* PutOnABus: Is nowhere to be seen in ''VideoGame/MegaMan11''.
* RedOniBlueOni: Although there's a bit of an inversion: while Proto Man is calm and composed, his rebellious nature towards Dr. Light makes him the Red Oni to Mega Man.
* TheMole: Boy, is he ''ever'' this, at least directly following ''Mega Man 3''.

* ScarfOfAsskicking: Proudly wears one.
* SecretCharacter: He's DownloadableContent in ''9''.

* SpellMyNameWithAnS: Much like his brother, expect to see Proto Man and Protoman pop up frequently.
* SuperPrototype: The Sniper Joes were mass-produced based on his design.

* TragicHero: Due to the flawed core within him, [[YouSeeImDying Proto Man is effectively perpetually dying]]. In a rather sad catch-22, if he were to ever get it repaired, it could "fix" the glitch in his coding that gives him his free will in the first place — i.e. erase what gives him his very sense of self. Nobody knows how long he has, but if Dr. Light's dialogue in ''Power Battles'' is anything to go by, it's a miracle he's still functional at ''all''. It's also debatable if he ever had his flaw fixed by Wily or even Dr. Light (during the two repairs in ''Mega Man & Bass''). It's possible that Light left his energy core alone in respect for his desire to keep his free will.

* AnimalJingoism: [[SarcasmMode What a shock]], about Tango and Rush hating each other.
* TheCameo: He makes an appearance on the counter of the shop for Proto Man in ''10''.
* ChuckCunninghamSyndrome: Disappears after the events of ''VideoGame/MegaManV'', which is never explained. The manga and comics explain this by stating that he likes to wander - either by himself or with Protoman.

* RetCanon: Downplayed, but the manga and comics state that Tango actually prefers Protoman to Megaman and often wanders off for weeks looking for the elder robot. Referenced slightly in ''10'' where Tango helps run Protoman’s shop.

* DistractedByTheSexy: In the credits sequence of ''9'', he's seen taking a photo of [[MsFanservice Splash Woman]], who is doing a ReadyForLovemaking pose atop a rock.
* {{Doppelganger}}: The robot who manages Proto Man's shop in ''10''.

* PaperThinDisguise: He's Proto Man's Shopkeeper in ''VideoGame/MegaMan10'', with a disguise that consists only of the [[CallBack Metool helmet he gave to Mega Man in]] ''VideoGame/MegaMan7''.

** In multiple official art pieces, this is practically spelled out on her part, usually through [[http://img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110611224016/megaman/images/d/da/Ensemble.png very remarkable clinginess]] or [[http://media.tumblr.com/6e2a4f9346520d670923d63d5fb6a2d8/tumblr_inline_mi6uu3Jzpf1qz4rgp.png blatant jealousy]] at him having another girl's (or woman's, in one or two cases) attention. Then again, when one considers the relationships that [[VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork Roll.EXE]] and [[VideoGame/MegaManLegends Roll Caskett]] had with [=MegaMan.EXE=] and Mega Man Volnutt, respectively...

[-[[Characters/MegaManClassicHeroes Heroes]] | [[Characters/MegaManClassicVillains Villains]] ([[Characters/MegaManClassicDrAlbertWWily Dr. Wily]]) | [[Characters/MegaManClassicOtherCharacters Other Characters]] | [[Characters/MegaManClassicRobotMastersNES Robot Masters (NES)]] | [[Characters/MegaManClassicRobotMastersPostNES Robot Masters (Post-NES)]]-]]]]]

* BonusBoss: In ''7'' he challenges Mega Man to a fight and grants him the Proto Shield after being defeated.

->'''Voiced by''': [[note]]''Akiko Hiramatsu'' (Close Call audio drama), ''Satomi Koorugi'' (JP, OVA), ''Andrea Libman'' (EN, OVA), ''Robyn Ross'' (animated series), ''Hiroki Konishi'' (JP, 8), ''Michelle Gazepis'' (EN, 8), ''Creator/KonamiYoshida'' (SAR), ''Kahoru Fujino'' (Marvel vs. Capcom series), ''Yoshimi Ninomiya'' (JP, Powered Up, X [=DiVE=]), ''Angie Beers'' (EN, Powered Up), ''Creator/HiromiIgarashi'' (VideoGame/TatsunokoVsCapcom), ''Creator/YukaIguchi'' (JP, 11), ''Creator/EricaLindbeck'' (EN, 11)[[/note]]

** Rock's hairdo is a direct imitation of Daisaku Kusama from the ''Manga/GiantRobo'' OVA.

* MyGreatestFailure: In ''11'', Dr. Light ultimately feels responsible for he and Wily's falling out and causing the latter to turn heel. Light admits that he should've tried to compromise with Wily instead of just telling him he was wrong and getting his research cancelled, as his Double Gear System could be used properly. [[spoiler: Light tries to reconcile with Wily in the end, [[RedemptionRejection to no avail]]]].

* WideEyedIdealist: Light tries to see and believe in the good of all people (even though he admits it gets him in trouble at times, as seen in the HorribleJudgeOfCharacter entry with Dr. Wily, who took advantage of Light's hopes of renewing their friendship) and endlessly strives for a dream of robots and mankind living in harmony for a better future. It was his idealism that inspired Mega Man to become the hero he would be praised as.

[-'''Heroes''' | [[Characters/MegaManClassicVillains Villains]] | [[Characters/MegaManClassicOtherCharacters Other Characters]] | [[Characters/MegaManClassicRobotMastersNES Robot Masters (NES)]] | [[Characters/MegaManClassicRobotMastersPostNES Robot Masters (Post-NES)]]-]]]]]

* MagicalGirl: Her Halloween variant in ''X [=DiVE=]'' looks like a full ShoutOut to ''Anime/MagicalGirlLyricalNanoha''.

* BadassBaritone: His voice in ''Powered Up'' is pretty deep.

* VocalDissonance: His BadassBaritone in ''Powered Up'' doesn't entirely fit him, considering that he still has a boyish appearance despite his CoolMask.

* {{Irony}}: Neither of his creations, Mega Man or X, accomplished his goal of long-lasting unification of robots. It is ''Zero'', his ArchEnemy EvilFormerFriend's creation, who was able to do this two centuries after his death.

* TheChick: Considering she looks like a kid and has the voice of a kid, is very kind, and supports Mega Man's mission from the HomeBase, she fits for Dr. Light's team.

* HorribleJudgeOfCharacter: He believes Wily has changed after ''sending his robot to stop Wily's EvilPlan '''twice!''''' Then he believes Wily ''again'' after roughly ''twelve'' more of Wily's schemes have been foiled, the last of which involved ''framing Light for world domination aspirations!'' If Light keeps this up, he'll develop a reputation for gullibility rivaling [[Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog Knuckles the Echidna]]! [[spoiler:''VideoGame/MegaMan11'' seems to imply his reasons for believing Wily's multiple deceptions is because he feels guilty for causing Wily to go down the evil path in the first place and truly wishes he would return to the good side again.]]

** [[spoiler:In the ending sequence, Light gives Auto his own Double Gear system so he can move around the defeated Robot Masters to get them ready for repairs. Auto again complains about being overworked before overheating, to which everyone [[EveryoneLaughsEnding laughs]] while Eddie just tosses him a Double Gear power up.]]