Street Fighter II: The Four Kings / Characters

NOTE: Spoilers will be left unmarked in the examples below. You Have Been Warned!

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/shadaloo4.png

Clockwise from top left: M. Bison, Vega, Balrog, Sagat.

The four highest-ranking and deadliest members of Shadaloo, all led by the shadowy dictator M. Bison. The group is first coined in Street Fighter II where they serve as a successive line of bosses to face in Arcade Mode, ending with M. Bison as the Final Boss.

For F.A.N.G, check the Street Fighter V sheet.

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In General

Degraded Boss: Street Fighter II’: Champion Edition offers downgraded versions of the previously boss-only foursome as playable characters for the first time. They go on to appear as playable characters in almost every installment of the series after that.
Elite Four: There's four of them, and they're the strongest and highest-ranking members of Shadaloo.
Fighter, Mage, Thief: Of the three who remain following Sagat's departure, there's Balrog the fighter - a brute-force boxer with no obvious supernatural traits, M. Bison the mage - using his Psycho Power to dominate his opponents, and Vega the thief - an agile assassin who favors his claw as a weapon.
Promoted to Playable: They debuted in the original Street Fighter II, and are fought in order as computer-controlled bosses whose regions appear on the world map after the other seven World Warriors are defeated. They were subsequently made playable in the game's first update, Street Fighter II’: Champion Edition.
Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: Balrog is the Manly Man to Vega's Sensitive Guy.
Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: None of them seem to like each other, openly insulting one another and refusing to cooperate unless ordered. Bison seems to actively indulge in starting petty conflicts between the other three for his amusement.
M. Bison: "My generals are trying to kill each other? This is delicious entertainment!"

Balrog

Destroyer of Rules

^{Street Fighter II}

Damn! My fists have your blood on them!

Origin: USA

Fighting style: Dirty Boxing
Appears in: SFII^*, SFA3, SFIV, SFV (DLC)

Voiced by: ^note

Portrayed by: ^note

A disgraced heavyweight boxer and one of Shadaloo's Four Devas; he joined the organization after his excessive violence got him kicked out of the pro boxing world. After M. Bison's disappearance, Balrog spends all of the riches gained from his employment, ending up right back where he started. He enters the Street Fighter IV tournament hearing that S.I.N. has some kind of "treasure" — and that Shadaloo would pay him well enough. In Super Street Fighter IV, he encounters Dudley and challenges the British boxing champion to a match between regions.

Balrog returns in Street Fighter V as a DLC character. Here, he's still working for Shadaloo, but now has his own faithful right-hand man, Ed, a bandaged child meant to be a replacement body for Bison, who Balrog saved from the crumbling S.I.N. building in IV. Together they do whatever they can to get more cash. This includes selling out Shadaloo to the Illuminati by giving out information on Operation C.H.A.I.N.S.

Being a boxer, Balrog's gameplay style allows him to swiftly close the distance between himself and his opponents, all the while weaving in and out of his opponent's effective ranges. Though his air mobility and options are not strong, his ground mobility is excellent. Similar to Blanka, Balrog's main attacks, the Dash Punch series, are all variants of the same move, able to cover many angles and serve different purposes while advancing Balrog towards his opponent. He's also by no means helpless against projectiles either thanks to his Turn-Around Punch, or TAP for short. By holding three (sometimes two, depending on the game) attack buttons for a certain amount of time and then releasing it, Balrog will declare a number out loud indicating the level of power the move has, turn around for a brief moment to avoid projectiles, then lunge towards the opponent. Higher level Turn Punches are particularly devastating, dealing unprecedented damage and sometimes gaining additional properties. He also has an invincible reversal attack in the form of the Buffalo Headbutt.

Adaptational Dumbass: Balrog isn't too bright to begin with, but his II movie counterpart is a barely sentient, cross-eyed brute without any personality.
Adaptational Intelligence: The cartoon presents him as a hacker of sorts, creating fraudulent video tapes. The UDON comics downplay this, as he's still a thug, but ends up a far more successful businessman than his original game incarnation... for a time, at least.
Adaptational Heroism: He's a good guy in Street Fighter, helping Chun-Li in her struggle against Bison. Ironically, his grudge against Bison in that film comes from Shadaloo ruining his boxing career, where he played by the rules.
Animal Motifs: The bison in Japan, as per his name in that territory — 'M. Bison'. It still holds up in English, given that several of his moves are named "Bull" or "Buffalo", and his signature move is a charging punch. One of his alternate costumes in IV is even a fully-fledged bull costume.
Awesome, but Impractical: In the IV series, Balrog's "Turn Punch" power corresponds to how long the buttons are held. At 56 seconds, it is enough to decimate most characters in one hit, but this would mean Balrog would have to do almost nothing but block during that time, avoid getting damaged (since that would remove the charge), and of course actually land the Turn Punch.
Badass Normal: Compared to the other fighters, especially those in the Shadaloo elite. Bison has his Psycho Power, F.A.N.G is a Poisonous Person, Vega has his claw and acrobatics and Sagat can throw fireballs. All Balrog has going for him is that he can punch really, really hard, and this alone qualifies him to be one of the Four Kings of Shadaloo.
The Berserker: Get him pissed off enough, and this is how he'll start fighting.
Black Boxer Stereotype: His Japanese name is an obvious parody of Mike Tyson. Other traits he borrows from Tyson include his Scary Black Man personality, his tendency to fight dirty (Tyson infamously bit off part of Evander Holyfield's ear in the 1990s) and even his A Fool and His New Money Are Soon Parted tendencies (Tyson made hundreds of millions of dollars as a boxer, but squandered a lot of it on luxuries).
Boring, but Practical: His fighting style mostly consists of charging across the screen and beating his opponents to a pulp with his Megaton Punches. While most fighters have more diverse and flashy moves, most of Balrog's moveset is variants on the same simple, brutal attacks.
Broke Episode: His ending in the GBA version of Super Turbo and HD Remix shows him living like a king with his fight winnings before he eventually goes broke. He ends up having to start over, training for his next big payday. After all, if he did it once, he can always do it again... right?
The Brute: Of the Four Kings. He's by far the most muscular and the least intelligent.
Camera Abuse: Befitting his career as a cocky, hot-tempered boxer, his intro in X Tekken has him grab the camera and yell directly into it, while his victory animation in V has him turning around and noticing the camera, walking towards it, grabbing it and taking a swing.
Charge-Input Special: He has to charge to perform his devastating "Dash Punches". These can attack from almost the entire screen with the heavy variant and have a large hitbox thanks to Balrog's massive tree-trunk arms. His Buffalo Head also uses a charge input, save for the V variant that's instead a different command.
Chronic Backstabbing Disorder: Balrog only fights for himself and whoever is giving him the biggest paycheck. He betrays Shadaloo after Urien of the Illuminati offers him big bucks in exchange for information on Operation C.H.A.I.N.S. Then, after that deal is set, he tells Ed that after he's paid, he'll bash Urien's face in anyway.
Combat Pragmatist: His move-set is comprised of numerous illegal boxing moves. His "Dirty Bull Ultra" in SSFIV is the pinnacle, combining a headbutt, foot stomp, and a wicked ELBOW to the face. Balrog seems to know this, as he finishes the super by acting carelessly innocent and smugly chuckling. He also gains a stomping move in V, and Dan's assessment of Balrog has him note that Balrog has long stopped limiting his fighting style to just boxing.
Crippling Overspecialization: Noted by Ryu during their encounter in the UDON comic book series. Balrog's punches are fearsome (before crashing Ken's wedding he's shown warming up his fists by punching over a van) but he doesn't know how to use his whole body effectively, simply relying on his ability to punch as hard as possible to win. It is because of this that Ryu gains an advantage (by checking his legs and evading his over-committed punches in order to throw him off his game).
Depending on the Writer: Balrog is usually a Punch-Clock Villain Only in It for the Money with a degree of professionalism on the job, but his win quotes are subject to Flanderization that sometimes makes him as bad as Vega.
Dragon with an Agenda: V reveals that he and his friend Ed sell their skills to anyone willing to pay their obscene fees. This includes Urien and his Illuminati group, who are specifically working against Shadaloo.
Dub Name Change: Known as M. Bison in Japan (referencing Mike Tyson) and Balrog everywhere else.
Dumb Muscle: His SSFII Turbo Revival (GBA) ending shows what would happen if he were promoted to the head of Shadaloo. His first act would be to immediately crumble the organization! It's clear Bison keeps him where he is for good reason.
Eagleland: Representing the Boorish category, Balrog is a rude and endlessly avaricious American that relies on his overwhelming might to take what he wants.
Even Evil Has Loved Ones: He comes to genuinely care about Ed. When the latter decides to part ways with Balrog in his story mode, Balrog gets pissed off and tries to fight Ed so he'll stay. Upon being defeated, Balrog can only distraughtly tell Ed to "get lost", too ashamed to even look him in the eye.
Even Evil Has Standards: Even a thug like Balrog finds F.A.N.G. to be a deplorable scumbag.
Extremity Extremist: As a boxer, he can only use punching attacks, with his kick buttons generally throwing uppercuts and elbow strikes instead. In V, for the first time, he actually gains a kicking attack, which causes him to stomp on the opponent's foot.
Fatal Flaw: Ryu notes that Balrog's obsession with money stunts his ability as a fighter, allowing him to win their fight. Ryu even says that if Balrog found the "soul of his fist" and actually grew spiritually, he would likely crush him in a Curb-Stomp Battle.
Fighting Your Friend: During Ed's story mode, Balrog fights Ed in order to prove that Ed isn't a danger to him, after Ed tries leaving him to travel on his own. After Ed beats him, Balrog ends up yelling at him to go away, sounding uncharacteristically upset.
Foil: To Dudley. Both are dark-skinned boxers, but they contrast in personality and moral standing. Dudley is a Quintessential British Gentleman who is a Gentleman Snarker at worst, and the poster child for Let's Fight Like Gentlemen. Balrog is an immoral brute who sides with the villains because they pay him better, and he has no qualms in breaking some rules if it means winning. Both also differ in playstyle: Dudley's varied list of moves gives him a powerful mix-up game up close, while Balrog's powerful charge punches and long-ranged normals emphasize footsies gameplay that he can transition into devastating punishes if he lands a counter.
A Fool and His New Money Are Soon Parted: Whenever Balrog makes a huge amount of money, he spends the next few weeks living like a king until he's bankrupt. He's then forced to start all over again, training for his next payday.
Freudian Excuse: If his Image Song, Bison's Dream, is to be taken as canon, it implies that he had a rough childhood where he lived in poverty and his parents were always fighting.
Get Out!: The end of Ed's storyline has him walking away from Balrog due to a fight stemming from Balrog's insensitivity when Ed relays his concerns about Bison taking him over.
Balrog: (genuinely distraught) GET LOST!
The Gift: While the rest of the series' main villains use esoteric powers or highly refined skills, Balrog relies purely on his prodigious talent as a boxer, and simply fights as a means to an end to fuel his unlimited greed. Even Ryu notes that if he really committed, he wouldn't have a chance against him.
Gratuitous English: Courtesy of his Japanese VA.
I GOT PAID!
I AM CHAMP!
DON'T STOP ME!
DON'T ESCAPE!
The Hedonist: A negative example, as he's extremely selfish, short-sighted, and impulsive. Balrog only wants to fulfill his vices (usually those that can be bought), but his lack of restraint causes his money to run out quickly and he eventually has to hunt for more money to fulfill more vices. Rinse. Repeat.
Hidden Depths:
- In V, Gill notes that what Balrog actually desires is companionship, not money. Considering how Balrog acts after getting defeated by Ed in the latter's Story Mode, sounding distraught at having his apparently only friend leave him, Gill may very well be right.
- Discussed by Ed in 6. While he does admit that despite him not being the best father figure and that they used to butt heads a lot, Balrog never once abused him or saw him as something to be used; accompanied by a picture of the two picking out new clothes together, with Balrog genuinely smiling.
Ed: He was a definite character, let me tell ya; he also taught me how to box. To be honest, he wasn't the greatest of father figures; I had my fair share of rough days with him. That's not to say that he roughed me up, or that I hated him. In fact, that's far from the truth. Even though I probably had value as a Psycho Power wielder, he didn't treat me any differently. Me being an experimental subject didn't matter to him. When he saw me, he saw me as a person, not an asset. I have a feeling that played a big part in me not losing myself to Psycho Power in the end.
Home Stage: "Las Vegas" / "High Roller Casino" from II, Alpha 3 and V, all set outside vibrant casinos in Las Vegas, Nevada. He gets a second one if you count the "Lair of the Four Kings" Shadaloo base in V.
In the Hood: One of his alternate costumes in IV, and he wears one as his standard outfit in V.
Informed Flaw: In V, the other characters like to deride Balrog for having an unrefined fighting style, and whilst he’s nowhere near the level of refinement of his fellow boxer Dudley, he displays plenty of finesse and hidden cunning in his move set, and even beats Necalli (who actually has an unrefined fighting style, putting it mildly) with ease in the story.
Jerkass: He doesn't give a single damn about anyone who stands in his way, and has no concept of etiquette and sportsmanship. Ed is just about the only person he is vaguely civil to.
Dudley: Does your rudeness know no bounds, sir?
Karma Houdini: In the ending of V, he quietly takes his leave after the fall of Shadaloo, meaning that he's possibly still at large in the III era.
A Lighter Shade of Black: From IV onwards. While Balrog is an amoral, violent thug willing to backstab and/or violently punch the teeth out of nearly anyone if it can get him cash, he's nowhere near the level of monstrous evil and general insanity of Shadaloo's other high-ranking members, and is even humanized a fair deal through his relationship with Ed.
Lightning Bruiser: Has above average health in some games, his dash punches throttle him across the screen in half a second, and his combos will have his opponents on the floor in no time.
Made of Iron: In the story mode, he gets back up from his fight with Ibuki and Mika like it was nothing. The girls decide to simply snatch his MacGuffin and make a run for it instead.
Megaton Punch: His signature rushing haymaker punches, and his Gigaton Blow is just a single, even more devastatingly powerful punch.
No Brows: No reason given aside from making him look ugly.
Only in It for the Money: Pretty much his driving force after falling from grace is making a fortune. His dialogue against Bison also indicates he'd gladly pick a fight with him to get more money if he thought he could get away with it. In V, he actually sells out Shadaloo to the Illuminati by agreeing to provide Urien with the details on Operation C.H.A.I.N.S.
O.O.C. Is Serious Business: In Ed's story mode, after he is beaten by Ed, he tells him to get lost in what may be the only time Balrog has ever sounded sad or anguished. The fact that Balrog sounds like he’s going to cry makes it surprisingly sad.
Parental Substitute: As the one who raised and taught him how to fight, Ed considers him to be something of a father figure. Ed in turn seems to be the one other person that Balrog genuinely cares about, though he never outright called him his kid.
Pet the Dog:
- Played with in IV, where Balrog first meets Ed. Balrog saves him from the crumbling S.I.N. facility, but then drags him through the desert while trying to find out if he can "fly or see the future." Seeing that Ed can't (apparently) do anything special at that point, Balrog just calls him worthless but continues dragging him along instead of just leaving him to die. V shows that he and Ed have forged a partnership in crime, and he's so far the only person that Balrog doesn't seem to treat with nothing but contempt, and he even taught Ed how to fight. This is the same game where he both sells out Shadaloo, and states his intention to turn on Urien once their business is done.
- Elaborated on in 6. Ed states that despite how much they ended up butting heads, Balrog never actively abused him nor saw him purely as a Meal Ticket; instead treating him like a normal human being.
Punch-Clock Villain: Zig-Zagging Trope. He takes a paycheck from Bison, but doesn't actually care about Shadaloo's plans, and barely finds any interest in the missions he's sent to do for them. But at the same time, he's ultimately a petty thug; he might not care for the greater schemes his benefactors are up to, but he'll still punch someone's lights out to steal their stuff or just because they looked at him funny.
Red Boxing Gloves: He always sports a pair and seemingly never takes them off, even if it's not adequate for the task at hand.
Red Oni, Blue Oni: The red to Dudley's blue. Notably, those are the exact colors of the gloves they wear, respectively.
Rich in Dollars, Poor in Sense: He's actually struck it rich multiple times over the years. His stupidity and vices usually lead him to squander whatever money he makes, until he suffers the inevitable Broke Episode.
The Rival: Dudley and Balrog are rivals. Dudley, a boxer who plays by the rules at all times, looks down on Balrog for being a cheating disgrace to the sport, whilst Balrog can’t stand Dudley’s censuring condescension.
Scary Black Man: A huge, tanky, menacing and openly sadistic brute who works as the muscle for an Evil Organization. Hell, Michael Clarke Duncan plays him in Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li.
Simple, yet Awesome: A key part of Balrog's game plan is simply having a fast walk speed mixed with fast, long-reaching normals that he can use to win footsies matches, and then translating that into devastating combos. As summed up by Ed in 6:
Ed: If there's one thing he was, though, he was strong. Strong as a buffalo. He didn't fight for some lofty belief, or for the love of the art of fighting. It was just him and those unstoppable fists putting down anyone stupid enough to step into the ring with him. He kept it sweet and simple, and when it comes to hitting hard, no one does it better. I hope you get a chance to face him and experience it for yourself some day!
Shirtless Scene: One of his win poses, where he flexes with enough force to rip his shirt to shreds. He also has a shirtless alternate outfit in SSFIV, and his signature outfit in V has a hidden shirtless mode.
Super Special Move: "Crazy Buffalo" is a rapid string of his signature Dash Punches, usually ending with a big, final punch to sell the power of the move.
Sympathetic P.O.V.: The song "Bison's Dream" from the II vocal album.
Tarot Motifs: Balrog represents The Tower in the 30th Anniversary Tarot Deck. The Tower represents pride preceding a fall, something Balrog is no stranger to, since he often loses whatever he gains, whether it be money, his role in Shadaloo, or his bond with Ed.
Techno Wizard: The cartoon has him doing nothing but using a computer to make false tapes. And typing with boxing gloves on!
Took a Level in Dumbass: In IV. Before, he is capable of some scheming, with hints of The Starscream towards Bison. In IV, however, he’s turned into a savage brute that only thinks about money. V dials this back a notch, where Balrog retains his greed but also regains his competence and sense for planning.
Use Your Head: In one of his grabs, the Buffalo Head, and in his second Ultra in SSFIV.
Villainous Friendship: Him and Ed. When Balrog first finds him, he only seems interested in using Ed as a tool for his own gain, but by the time of V, the two have grown to genuinely care about each other. Even Menat's win quote against Balrog says that Ed's important to him. When he and Ed eventually part ways, Balrog almost sounds like he's about to cry.
Villain Song: A whole album of them, an "audio Graphic Novel" by T-Double/TSST, entitled "Fight Money"
Wearing a Flag on Your Head: His premium costume in V has him decked out in a full Stars and Stripes outfit, consisting of a red and white striped hoodie, and blue pants with white stars on the knees.
Wrestler of Beasts: Balrog killed Dhalsim's pet elephant with a single Gigaton Punch.
Younger Than They Look: Until the introduction of Fei Long and Cammy, he was the youngest member of the II roster, being only 22 when World Warrior was released according to his (now-retconned) birthdate of September 4, 1968.

Vega

The Sweet Whisper of Death

^{Street Fighter Alpha}

^{Street Fighter II}

Handsome fighters never lose battles.

Origin: Spain

Fighting style: Spanish Ninjutsu
Appears in: SFII, SFA3, SFIV, SFV

Voiced by: ^note

Portrayed by: ^note

A Spanish ninja and bullfighter who became a serial killer after he witnessed his mother's death at the hands of his stepfather — an ugly nobleman whom his mother had married for wealth. Due to these circumstances, Vega has a strong hatred for anything he deems ugly. Vega is extremely narcissistic; he believes that he is the most beautiful person in the world, and all others are inferior to him. To keep that delusion intact, Vega wears a mask while in battle to protect his face. (Too bad the mask is easily broken.) He joined Shadaloo and quickly became one of its Four Devas, developing a creepy obsession for Cammy in the process. In IV, it is revealed that after Bison's downfall, Vega resumed his usual lifestyle until he received word that Shadaloo had been revived; he eagerly re-joined the organization and has been tasked with gathering a certain piece of data in S.I.N.'s headquarters which is the key to Shadaloo's complete revival.

He returns once again in V, now wearing the frilled shirt depicted in his first alternate costume in IV and sporting the blond hair he had in Alpha as well as the animated adaptations. Although outranked by F.A.N.G, Vega continues to act as the top enforcer of Bison's will, dealing with Shadaloo's enemies so that they don't interfere with their grandest scheme yet: Operation C.H.A.I.N.S.

Vega is the Fragile Speedster of the series. His gameplay revolves all around his amazing mobility options in conjunction with the long reach granted by his claw. His walk speed is usually the fastest in any given installment he appears in, and his jumps are both fast and give him a good angle to mix up opponents. He also boasts several other mobility tools such as his special Backflip, granting him immunity to physical attacks and projectiles for their duration. His claw grants him very long reach but can be knocked off if he takes too much damage, sometimes permanently depending on the game, giving those who play Vega an extra incentive to maintain as much of a lead as they can. In later games, even his mask can be knocked off, but unlike losing his claw this actually turns him into a Glass Cannon by buffing his damage at the cost of taking more damage. Through the use of moves that whittle away at his opponent's patience such as the Rolling Crystal Flash and Scarlet Terror, to his arsenal of high-flying acrobatic attacks such as the Flying Barcelona Attack, the Sky High Claw, and the Izuna Drop, Vega can prove to be a very frustrating character to fight against.

Adaptational Badass: Vega is presented as a very dangerous opponent, but for obvious reasons, the games treat his claw as merely an extension of his fist. Most adaptations play up Vega's deadliness by allowing his claw to actually draw blood and thus give him a notable edge in combat. The result is that in the adaptations (as opposed to the games), Vega is capable of turning any battle with him into a life-or-death situation, and even one strike from his claw can either kill people or at least make them lose consciousness from blood loss.
Agent Peacock: His flamboyance and narcissism belie his nature as a very deadly fighter.
Ambidextrous Sprite: In II, the claw on his hand always faces the screen, something not unusual for a fighting game that uses sprites. In IV, which uses 3D models, the claw still magically swaps from hand to hand in order to always face the screen in what was a deliberate choice on the part of the developers.
Anti-Air: SSFII: Turbo introduces "Scarlet Terror", a flip kick akin to Guile's Flash Kick.
Arch-Enemy: Chun-Li in II, as he finds her beauty, strength, and initial inner turmoil to be very interesting and alluring.
As Long as It Sounds Foreign: His yodelling win pose. Yodelling didn't originate in Spain, it originated in the Alps, though it's not improbable for him to have picked it up travelling through the Swiss, Italian, or French Alps.
Ax-Crazy: What makes him so lucrative to Bison's operation. His love of carnage and violence in the name of beauty makes him unpredictable and savage. In V, both his win quotes (particularly against female characters) and especially his facial expressions are absolutely disturbing.
Badass Normal: Like his fellow Shadaloo elite Balrog, Vega has no powers beyond his claws and his incredible acrobatics, in contrast to Bison, Sagat, and F.A.N.G, but he can still hold his own against most of the cast.
Baddie Flattery: But only under very specific circumstances; he'll compliment Cammy on her beauty, for example.
Beauty Is Bad: Superficially, Vega is very beautiful, and dressed in a form-fitting outfit that emphasises his toned, muscular physique. However, he's also amongst the most unambiguously evil characters in the series, displaying a sociopathic level of cruelty, and any sort of romantic attraction he exhibits is limited to perverted Blood Lust or, in terms of the series' female characters, a creepily removed appreciation for their beauty only.
Berserk Button: He goes insane if you so much as touch his face.
- In the comics, he goes straight into kill-mode when Eliza (then Ken's fiancé) slaps him in the face after he tries to force himself on her. If it weren't for Ken arriving just in time, she'd have been torn to shreds. After Ken batters him and scars his face, he seeks revenge in Bison's tournament, which ends with him getting his face even more messed up.
- This gets weaponized in IV. He can deliberately throw away his mask so that he'll be motivated into fighting more aggressively (he inflicts more damage) to protect his now defenseless (he takes more damage if he's hit) face.
Blood Lust: In the II animated movie, he perversely licks Chun-Li's blood off his claw after he ambushes and tries to assassinate her in her apartment. This is referenced in his win quote against her in V where he contemplates bathing in her blood as a beauty treatment, ala Elizabeth Bathory.
Heh-heh-heh...My hobby is to slowly peel the skins off of the rabbits I catch... especially cute little bunnies like you! And my friend here is thirsty for blood. (slowly licks her blood off his claw, clearly enjoying it) Sweeeeeeet!
Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Vega is a professional assassin, but he doesn't exactly look or act very professional. He's repellent, cocky, sadistic, dressed in a flamboyant outfit and has an unhealthy obsession with beauty. In spite of this, he's effective and reliable enough that M. Bison keeps him as one of the most prominent members of his organisation.
Camp Straight: He is unapologetically flamboyant and obsessed with his own beauty, though he only shows attraction (albeit the very creepy type) towards women.
Charge-Input Special: Traditionally in exchange for his excellent mobility, most of Vega's specials require charge inputs, namely his Rolling Crystal Flash and Sky High Claw in the II series and Alpha 3. In V however, Vega is reworked into a simpler motion-based character, with the sole exception of his Sky High Claw.
Child Hater: As evidenced in his win quote against Crimson Viper in IV.
How dreadfully dull. Nothing offends my refined senses more than children.
Confusion Fu: The prime example is the "Flying Barcelona Attack"; Vega leaps behind his opponent and off the wall, being able to perform different follow up attacks. This ranges from a simple claw slash to a Grapple Move for punishing blocking opponents,
Counter-Attack: His second V-Trigger, "Alegrias", grants Vega a parry that follows up with kicking his opponent into the air.
Dark and Troubled Past: The "accident" that involved his mother and stepfather during his childhood deeply affected him and resulted in his twisted obsession with beauty.
Dashing Hispanic: A strikingly handsome, matador-inspired Spaniard with a flamboyant fixation on beauty. But it's all a façade for a deeply violent and disturbed man.
Depending on the Artist: Vega's hair color tends to be all over the place, from brunet, to blond, to some combination of the two, depending on what game and what artist is involved with his appearance.
Depending on the Writer: In the Alpha series and IV he has respect for Cammy and several Pet the Dog moments towards her, while in V he's obsessed with driving her into despair.
Difficult, but Awesome: Vega's agility and aptitude for Confusion Fu, as well as his extremely brittle defensive values, make him very difficult to grasp. Playing his strengths to their potential, however, is a sight to behold. Much more prominent in V where players must now also learn how to use two different stances.
Dragon with an Agenda: Vega is a glorified mercenary who has fought Bison at least once in the past. Presumably, he's just competent and efficient enough that Bison is willing to forgive this.
Dub Name Change: He's named Balrog in Japan, but localized as Vega everywhere else.
Even Evil Has Standards:
- In Alpha 3, Vega questions Bison about his intentions with Cammy and is utterly disgusted when Bison says he plans to destroy her, to the point where he actually fights him to a standstill. He goes on to save Cammy and the Dolls from a burning Shadaloo building.
- He also is vocal in his disgust toward F.A.N.G's recalibration of the remaining Dolls in his V story mode, even getting into a brief fight with him. Considering his backstory, what crosses the line of Vega's standards is the wanton destruction of beauty.
  Do you not realize the ugliness in your deeds? How pathetic!
Face of an Angel, Mind of a Demon: The first thing you'll notice about Vega is how handsome he is, followed by how violent and bloodthirsty he is.
Fairest of Them All: A rare male example. Vega's defining trait is narcissism and admiration of beauty, especially his own, to the point that he goes berserk if any damage is done to his face and tries to murder those he deems ugly.
Faux Affably Evil: Vega is capable of being charismatic, but said charisma is nowhere near as authentic as his bloodlust.
Femme Fatalons: A male example. Vega is usually depicted as having very sharp fingernails in addition to his claw. V gives him a command to put his claws away, which allows him to perform some attacks (such as the Flying Barcelona Attack) with his nails—and they hurt as much as the claws.
The Fighting Narcissist: He’s a psychotic, bloodthirsty fighter and is so utterly obsessed with his own beauty that he sports a mask in combat to shield his face from damage. He displays some elements of Combat Sadomasochist in SFII: The Animated Movie, licking Chun-Li's blood off his claw with perverted pleasure.
Flower Motifs: Vega is associated with red roses; in his case, they represent blood splatters. In one of his intro poses for Alpha 3, a single rose descends from the sky. As it bursts into petals, his claw miraculously appears out of nowhere. Many of his super combos also invoke images of rose petals. In V, his first V-Trigger allows him to throw a rose at the opponent like Dudley. If it connects, he follows up with a dashing slash.
Foe Romance Subtext: Takes a disturbing interest in anything and anyone he deems to be beautiful. As such, he potentially has this dynamic with just about any woman in the series he crosses paths with, but Chun-Li and Cammy in particular get the brunt of this, as well as Sakura in Capcom vs. SNK 2: Mark of the Millennium.
Freudian Excuse: He was once a relatively normal kid, but the murder of his mother at the hands of his stepfather turned him into the vain and murderous psychopath he is today.
Gimmick Matches: His boss fight in II famously takes place in a caged arena in Spain. Vega can uniquely climb the walls, an ability that finally returned in V when his II stage was remade as DLC.
Hair Color Dissonance: Throughout the franchise, Vega has switched back and forth between being brunet and blond.
Hated by All: Not only is he disliked by the other elite in Shadaloo, including Bison, but he is also perhaps (in-universe) the most disliked character in the entire franchise. Not one character has ever had anything positive to say about him, nor does he have- or even want- any friends or companions. For comparison's sake in V, Gill's victory quote to Balrog is noting what Balrog truly wants beneath his greed; but he has nothing but utter disgust for Vega.
Highly-Visible Ninja: Just because he practices Ninjitsu doesn't mean he cares about being stealthy.
Home Stage: "Fighting Barroom" / "Flamenco Tavern" from II and V, set in a stone-walled taverna in Spain that features a cage-fighting pit. He gets a second if one counts the "Lair of the Four Kings" Shadaloo base in V.
Hypocritical Humor: His win quote against Ken in SSFIV is the pot calling the kettle black:
The concept of true beauty is lost on superficial men like you.
Immortality Seeker:
- In his SSFIV story he fights Seth in order to obtain his power and knowledge of Bison's body-swapping technique. His ending implies he has obtained some information about it from S.I.N's base.
- The American cartoon has Bison promise him eternal youth and beauty in exchange for doing a job for him, though he loses the formula by the end of the episode.
Interplay of Sex and Violence: The way he couples his intense narcissism, vocal appreciation for female beauty, and savage bloodlust create a Freudian impression of his brand of psychosis.
Jerkass: Easily one of the more unpleasant characters, given his bloodlust. He only shows any manners towards people he thinks are beautiful, and even that doesn't seem to guarantee any protection from his sadism.
Karma Houdini: In the ending of V, he quietly makes his leave after the fall of Shadaloo, meaning that he's possibly still at large in III.
Kiai: Not quite at the level of Fei Long, but you'll certainly hear him scream in battle.
HYOOOOUUU!!!
Know When to Fold 'Em: Vega has no problem with running away from a battle that's going badly for him. In fact, even if it's going well, when it's no longer amusing or exciting to him, he'll quickly lose interest.
Latin Lover: He's Spanish, and represents the antithesis of the Japanese heroic ideal, as although he's presented as a beautiful, sexy man, he's also utterly narcissistic and psychotically cruel.
Laughing Mad: His Bloody High Claw Ultra Combo in IV ends with him laughing in a manic shrill. He laughs even more in V across his whole move-set.
Licking the Blade: He has a tendency to do this if his claw draws blood.
Long-Haired Pretty Boy: He keeps his hair styled in a long braid, and is definitely one of the prettier Street Fighter men.
Macho Camp: Vega isn't necessarily camp in all his appearances, but he is preening and flamboyant, and whilst his face and fashion sense are that of a pretty guy, he has a very muscular, macho physique that wouldn't look out of place on a very manly bodybuilder.
Made of Plasticine: His mask tends to come off or break really easily. Lampshaded in his Alpha 3 Time Over pose, when he takes it off and crushes it to dust in frustration.
Maniac Tongue: His unmasked win pose in IV has him lolling his tongue out in an almost seductive fashion.
McNinja: A cross between a ninja and a Spanish matador. Maki is surprised at this.
Maki: What? A Spanish Ninja? Now I've seen it all!
Minor Injury Overreaction: A frighteningly extreme case. The slightest damage to his face is enough to send him into a homicidal rage.
Mr. Fanservice: He's bare-chested, beautiful, and sports spray-on matador pants that hug every curve.
Narcissist: He's utterly obsessed with his own beauty, and sports a mask to protect his face from being messed up in battle. He also has almost no positive relationships with other fighters, only expressing himself through vanity and violence.
Navel-Deep Neckline: His premium costume in V includes a partially-unbuttoned shirt.
Nightmare Face: His deranged facial expressions in V are enough to make spines shiver.
Ninja: A rather unorthodox one to say the least, as he uses techniques more commonly associated with matadors combined with ninjutsu.
Not Even Bothering with the Accent: Zig-Zagged; the two 1990s Japanese animated adaptations give Vega an American accent, whereas the American animated show gives him a proper Spanish accent, as do all games from IV onward.
Not in the Face!: If he's hit in the face, one of two things will happen: he'll flee the fight, or your blood is about to become the room's accent color.
- Even insinuating that his face is anything less than perfect will likely result in being run through, as he did to his unfortunate butler in the comic series, following a brawl with Ken.
- In II: The Animated Movie, Vega flies into a truly murderous rage after Chun-Li knocks him to the ground, jams her heel into his eye-socket and pirouettes on his face, leaving him a scarred mess.
  M-m-my beautiful face is ruined! (screaming) YOU BITCH! I'LL MAKE YOU SUFFEEEEEEER!
Obviously Evil: Vega's creepy mask, claw, and absolutely insane personality wouldn't be too out of place in a slasher movie.
Lucia: Jeez. A mask and claws... Do you have a T-shirt that says "Hi, I'm a criminal!" too?
Pet the Dog: He rescues Cammy and the other Dolls from a burning Shadaloo building, mostly because he doesn't believe beautiful things deserve to be destroyed. The UDON comics even have him as the one who brought Cammy to Britain so she could start a new life.
Professional Killer: He is an assassin.
Psycho for Hire: He's a professional assassin, and derives pleasure from killing.
Psychotic Smirk: He's had several over the years when he has his mask off, but especially notable are the ones he makes◊ in V.
The Rival: Primarily with Cammy thanks to Alpha 3 connecting their storylines, but he also has a rivalry with Chun-Li in the games, à la their fight in The Animated Movie. In the live-action movie he's rivals with Ryu, in the cartoon he's rivals with Blanka, and in Street Fighter II V and the UDON comics he's rivals with Ken.
Rolling Attack: "Rolling Crystal Flash" has Vega tumble forward, striking if he collides with his opponent and then finishing with a claw thrust. V replaces it with "Crimson Terror", a similar attack that instead ends with a somersault kick.
Screw This, I'm Outta Here: He bails on the Shadaloo base after Operation C.H.A.I.N.S. is shut down for good, only waiting to see if it really is the final end of Bison and Shadaloo before tossing away his mask and disappearing to parts unknown.
Secret A.I. Moves: Climbing up the fence on his Spain stage was AI-only until V.
Sissy Villain: He’s somewhat foppish and effeminate looking, with long braided hair and androgynous facial features.
Slasher Smile: It's not always visible because of his mask, but Vega has a tendency to make some really creepy faces, especially in V. Case in point◊.
The Sociopath: Vega is the best example of a true psychopath in the Street Fighter franchise. He is extraordinarily sadistic, moonlights as a Serial Killer, and only truly values his own life, with his admiration for female beauty being purely superficial given his win quotes against women almost always allude to viciously torturing them to death. It says something when even Bison seems to be aware of Vega as mad.
Bison: I put up with your insane obsession only when you are useful to me.
Spanner in the Works: In the comic series, Vega is the one who wipes out Cammy's Doll programming, which leads to her Heel–Face Turn.
Spin Attack: His first V-Skill, "Matador Turn", lets him spin place to avoid damage then retaliate with a claw slash.
Spinning Piledriver: His "Izuna Drop", a follow up to Flying Barcelona Attack, lets Vega grab his opponent and crash down with them like a drill. V introduces "Grand Izuna Drop" where Vega flips behind his opponent and then performs the piledriver from the ground; this one's only available when his claw is put away.
Stalker with a Crush: He has a fascination with Cammy and the Dolls that starts in Alpha and becomes more depraved by V. Most of Cammy's storyline involves her fending off his ambushes. Although he has a soft spot for her, Vega's narcissistic entitlement for having saved her life and unhealthy views on sexuality are his main drives to follow her with sinful intent.
Stance System: In V, he can put his claw away during the fight, which changes his available moves.
Start of Darkness: A young Vega saw his very ugly stepfather murder his beautiful mother under the belief that she was cheating on him (whether she was or not is something else); Vega went crazy and became a Self-Made Orphan by killing his stepfather to avenge his mom.
Tarot Motifs: Vega represents The Moon in the 30th Anniversary Tarot Deck. The Moon is associated with insanity, due to old myths that the full moon drove people crazy; this fits in with Vega's mental instability.
Tattooed Crook: Vega's snake tattoo is modeled after a typical Yakuza tattoo. His victory pose in Capcom vs. SNK 2 has his tattooed snake coming to life and hissing at the opponent.
Travel to Projectile: Vega's first V-Trigger, "Bloody Kiss", has him throw a rose forward. If it hits his opponent, he'll perform a multi-hitting slash attack in their wake, propping up his opponent for a juggle combo.
Villain Song:
- Mask of the Narcissist, an in-character image song from an official 1992 soundtrack.
- Spittin' Narcissism, an in-character tune written and performed by Jose the Bronx Rican. An instrumental version of the track was used as Vega's stage theme in HD Remix.
Walking Shirtless Scene: Is almost never seen with a shirt on during his II and Alpha appearances.
Wall Jump: Which helps his Confusion Fu fighting style.
White Mask of Doom: He wears a mask to protect his face from injury in battle, and freaks out if his beauty is tarnished. In IV and V, getting his mask off (either intentionally or by taking damage) lowers his defense and increases his offense at the same time.
Wicked Cultured: Vega is a Spanish nobleman and enjoys the high life in public when not brutally killing people.
Wolverine Claws: He famously wields a triple-bladed ninja claw, which he uses to indulge his perverted passion for drawing blood from his opponents.
Worthy Opponent: His rival match in IV suggests he sees Chun-Li as such.
Your strength and beauty impress. I shall remember this day.
Wrestler in All of Us: Not only does he have a standard suplex, but he also has an Izuna Drop.

Sagat

The King

^{Street Fighter Alpha}

^{Street Fighter II}

^{Street Fighter I}

Dare you challenge the king?

Origin: Thailand

Fighting style: Muay Thai
Appears in: SF (NPC), SFII^*, SFA, SFIV, SFV (DLC)

Voiced by: ^note

Portrayed by: ^note

The King of Muay Thai and former Dragon to M. Bison. He is considered a national hero in Thailand thanks to his dedication to his craft, and hosted the first Street Fighter tournament to prove his superiority as a fighter. After his scarring at the hands of Ryu, he became angry and confused, joining Shadaloo in an effort to find Ryu and avenge himself. After battling a revenge-filled Dan Hibiki (Sagat had killed Dan's father Go in retaliation for the loss of Sagat's eye), Sagat began to realize the fruitlessness of his need for revenge against Ryu; this was sealed at the sight of a Brainwashed and Crazy Ryu, so he left Shadaloo, seeking to fight Ryu instead as a true warrior. Believing himself to have lost his fighting spirit, he is challenged by Adon and defeats him, promptly reigniting it, and shortly afterward enters the Street Fighter IV tournament.

Sagat returns to the series in Street Fighter V as part of the Season 3 roster of DLC characters.

The original "anti-Shoto", Sagat takes the fundamental aspects of the staple Shoto moveset and puts his own unique spin on it with his Muay Thai techniques. His playstyle is primarily defensive, with his long reach and unique zoning capabilities compensating for his below-average movement speed. Unlike most characters with projectiles, Sagat's Tiger Shot projectile can be launched at two different trajectories, high and low, to throw opponents who are inclined to jump over them off balance. He also possesses his own version of the Shoryuken, the Tiger Uppercut (originally the Tiger Blow chronologically), a devastating anti-air feared for its immense power. Lastly, instead of the Hurricane Kick, Sagat uses the Tiger Knee (formerly Tiger Crush chronologically) to propel himself forward and go over low attacks. With these tools combined, Sagat focuses on overwhelming the opponent from full screen and punishing the opponent for approaching him, while also having tools to press the offense when needed.

Achey Scars: Received in his first big battle against Ryu. This lasts until the climax of the Alpha series. He can even draw on his hatred as a super (or as an EX Move in IV and V) to briefly buff his next Tiger Blow.
Adaptational Heroism: The Ryu Final manga emphasises his noble qualities, showing him on a rescue mission to save some kidnapped children and having a much more pronounced friendship with Ryu.
Adaptational Villainy:
- Before his past was fleshed out in the Alpha series, he was the second-to-last boss and still a member of Shadaloo.
- He’s very much a neutral character in the Udon comics, whereas the games have him going on more of an Anti-Hero trajectory.
Adaptation Relationship Overhaul: The nature of his rivalry with Ryu varies in the various adaptations. In the games, the two come to regard each other as old friends, but their relationship is more respectful than affectionate. When written by Masahiko Nakahira in Sakura Ganbaru and Ryu Final, they're shown to have an almost brotherly bond, to the point that Ryu thinks he can't fight Akuma until he's met with Sagat for sparring and advice. In the Udon comics, the animosity between them never really dissipates, and their relationship is polite but frosty.
Ambidextrous Sprite: The page image, Sagat’s scar, eyepatch and hand wraps all flip whichever way he faces.
Animal Motif: Tigers. All of his attacks have "tiger" in their names. Taken to the logical extreme in V, where a literal tiger appears in his intro to herald his presence.
Anti-Hero: A brutal and savage fighter in the ring, but also a Friend to All Children and a noble rival.
Anti-Villain: Sagat enters the first SF tournament purely to test his skills against the best fighters in the world. He’s a ruthless fighter, but he isn’t an evil one. His scarring at Ryu's hands instils hatred in him and motivates him to join Shadaloo, but he realizes that Shadaloo isn’t the right path, and his rivalry with Ryu cools with time. Now he's just a fighter who won’t settle for second place, and despite their rivalry, he and Ryu are friends, according to his ending in SSFIV.
Armor-Piercing Attack: Sagat's second V-Trigger, "Tiger Assault", gives him access to a chargeable roundhouse kick that, at full strength, shatters an opponent's guard.
Arrogant Kung-Fu Guy: In the early years of the series’ canon, he holds the original World Warrior tournament to prove he’s better than everyone else participating (initially it was claimed Ryu had won, but this was later retconned to claim that Sagat won, but took a cheap shot from Ryu after the match that left him with his chest scar. V seems to go back to the former though). It was also because of his pride that he took his scarring at Ryu's hand so personally. This side of him is shed following the Alpha series, where he has his Heel Realization upon meeting Dan and learning how dangerous Bison really is. By II and IV, he's considerably mellowed and sees Ryu as a Worthy Opponent and Friendly Rival.
Asskicking Leads to Leadership: He heads the first World Warrior Tournament after besting all of the Muay Thai world. He is not a fighter to be taken lightly.
They call me The King for a reason.
The Atoner:
- Since the Alpha games, where he realizes that his grudge against Ryu and joining Shadaloo were wrong. In IV, he distances himself from Shadaloo and seeks to fight Ryu not for revenge, but for a fair and honorable battle.
- He throws their fight in Alpha so that Dan can feel satisfied in defeating the man who killed his father.
Bald Head of Toughness: He's characterized as the no-nonsense "King of Muay Thai". He's seven feet tall, built like a brick house, and is the Final Boss of the first game. When he’s working for Shadaloo, he’s still the King of Muay Thai and a Worthy Opponent for the good guys.
Bald of Evil: In the II series (which has since been retconned), and in Alpha prior to his Heel–Face Turn.
Baritone of Strength: He has a deep voice in every game to convey his immense physical power.
Battle in the Center of the Mind: Sagat's Story Mode in V involves him fighting his inner demons. He battles a mirror image of himself that acts like he used to before seeing Ryu under Bison's control and forced into using the Satsui no Hado. It’s revealed that Sagat is also capable of using the Satsui no Hado, but manages to suppress it through sheer force of will, and he now strives to be someone truly worthy of the title of "King".
Berserk Button: While he and Ryu are polite to each other for the most part, Sagat will explode if he thinks that Ryu is holding back.
You threw the fight! Why would you deny me the pleasure of a fair victory?
Blood Knight: Sagat eventually learns that fighting is not only about winning and losing and he wants to learn the meaning and purpose of fighting.
Calling Your Attacks:
Tiger Shot!
Tiger Uppercut!
Tiger KNEE!
Character Development: Some of the most pronounced in the early series. He goes from a confident street fighting champion in the first game, to a vengeful and enraged man filled with spite for Ryu in Alpha that genuinely comes to realize just how Vengeance Feels Empty and began to turn his life around. By Alpha 3, he realized just how twisted Bison and Shadaloo as a whole were, revoked his membership as one of the kings of the organization (albeit retconning his story in II altogether), and has become a Friendly Rival to Ryu, and by IV he fully committed to a Heel–Face Turn, albeit still as a highly-spirited competitor.
Continuity Drift: He's a straight-up bad guy in II, and his ending has him looking forward to a fight to the death with Ryu. In Alpha 3, which is a prequel, Sagat is retconned to merely being consumed with despair and rage over his scarring and willingly joins Shadaloo simply to get a shot at Ryu. Tellingly, in the later remakes of II, Sagat speaks much more highly of Ryu — acknowledging that he let anger and hatred become his reason to fight — and keeps on training, in the hope that the next time they meet will be "the greatest match in history".
Covered in Scars: He's a longtime, veteran martial artist, to the point of starting his own tournaments, and he more than looks the part. Besides covering the eye he lost in his fight with Go Hibiki with a patch, he also has a long scar up his torso from where Ryu hammered him with a Shoryuken. His body sports many other scars from the countless battles he's fought — and mostly won — over the years. For very good reason is he considered the King of Muay Thai.
Dash Attack: "Tiger Knee" has Sagat leap forward with a powerful knee strike. It's a less safe option due to its long ending lag, but makes for a strong punish tool and is immune to projectiles.
Defeating the Undefeatable: This is Ryu's goal in the first game. According to the current canon, Ryu didn't defeat him (in fact, Sagat almost beat Ryu to death). That honor instead goes to Adon.
Defector from Decadence: Decides during the Alpha series that Shadaloo was merely a vessel for his revenge against Ryu, which he no longer values, and leaves the organization, realizing that what he was associating with was not an honorable way for a warrior to live.
Demoted to Dragon: He is the Final Boss in the first game, being Ryu's greatest opposition up to that point. After his defeat leading into the Alpha games, he becomes one of M. Bison's enforcers, and is the second-to-last boss in II.
Determinator: After defeating Ryu in the first tournament, he is hit with a cheap-shot Metsu Shoryuken, which is powerful enough to kill. Even though Sagat's torso is torn open from the stomach to the base of his shoulder, he is back on his feet very quickly, vowing revenge.
Evil Laugh: It's present all the way back in his original victory pose. Ever since Alpha, it's become more of a condescending laugh.
EX Special Attack: In V, both of his V-Skills empower a different special move, "Angry Charge" for his uppercut and "Hanuman Charge" for his knee. Not only do they deal more damage but also open for combos. Angry Charge makes for stronger defensive play while Hanuman is more for improving close-ranged play.
Eyepatch of Power: He lost his eye in a fight with Dan's father, Go Hibiki. Sagat then killed Go in a fit of rage.
Facepalm of Doom: For his standard grab, he holds the opponent by the head and crushes their skull before throwing them aside.
Family-Unfriendly Death: In the comics, he violently beats Go Hibiki to death in front of his son, Dan.
Family-Unfriendly Violence: Official artwork shows Evil Ryu scarring him with the Metsu Shoryuken. It's not pretty.
Fatal Flaw: Pride. His characterization prior to Alpha paints him as a highly proud and arrogant fighter, and it's his bruised ego after his fight with Ryu that causes him to join Shadaloo. As time goes on, he learns to better respect the strength of his opponents and not let the fight revolve around himself.
Final Boss: Sagat is the last opponent in the original Street Fighter.
Fireballs: The Tiger Shot and Tiger Cannon; unlike the Hadoken, these can be fired either high or low to mix up from afar. They're very fast too, being good at walling his opponent out at long distances.
Fire-Forged Friends: He and Ryu have a long and complicated history, but they have developed a deep respect as a result of their rivalry, and Sagat calls Ryu "an old friend" in his SSFIV ending.
Friend to All Children: In his ending from SSFIV, you actually see him in a tender moment with some local Thai children. (Adon's SSFIV ending has him watching over this same scene, and he very smugly concludes that Sagat has lost his bite.)
Gentle Giant: Out of the ring, Sagat gets along very well with children and doesn’t tolerate any injustice towards those in need.
The Gift: The reason Sagat chose to become a Muay Thai fighter is that the style benefits someone with height and long limbs — something Sagat has in abundance. He was able to use this to excel in the sport exceptionally fast, and revolves his entire style and technique around exploiting his superior reach.
Good Scars, Evil Scars:
- His right eye was torn out by Go Hibiki, Dan's father. This prompted Sagat to undergo a Turns Red moment and kill him in response. Hence the whole You Killed My Father thing that drives Dan in Alpha.
- As for the scar on his chest, after getting beat down by Sagat, Ryu's will to win at all costs opened him to the Satsui no Hado, Ryu blasted Sagat with the Metsu Shoryuken.
Gratuitous English: All of his attacks have him shout in English, regardless of the localization.
Tiger Uppercut!
Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow: Promotional art for Alpha shows a young Sagat with a full head of hair and looking even more ruthless than he is in the present. SSFIV brings this look back as one of his alternate costumes.
Handicapped Badass: Screw depth perception and peripheral vision, Sagat only needs one eye!
Handwraps of Awesome: Handwraps are customary equipment for Muay Thai competition; Sagat's have the bonus of making him look even more worn from years of battle.
Heel–Face Turn: Since the Alpha games, once he ditches Shadaloo and lets go of his resentment towards Ryu.
Heel Realization: It first starts in his Alpha mid-boss fight against a rage-filled Dan, and upon seeing the latter get up and keep on struggling after having lost, Sagat sees his own anger reflected in Dan's and begins to question his focus on revenge. Later, he learns of Bison and Shadaloo's true nature when Bison orders him to fight a Psycho Drive-brainwashed Ryu; he quickly undergoes a Heel–Face Turn, stalls the fight, and breaks Ryu's mind control. In IV, Ryu and Sagat are rival matches in Arcade Mode and speak to each other as honored opponents.
A Hero to His Hometown: While a brutal antagonist/rival to most characters, he's revered as a national hero in his home country of Thailand. Harming his community is a surefire way to enrage him, as seen in his V ending, in which he administers a fearsome beatdown to a group of militants who torch a Thai village.
Heroic Neutral: Of the Anti-Hero variety. Sagat is content to be left to his own devices to develop his skills and mind, but as evidenced by his stories in Street Fighter x Tekken and V, he's capable of going on a Roaring Rampage of Revenge if innocent people in his or his friends' villages are attacked.
Home Stage: Sagat's Thailand stages always feature a huge reclining Buddha statue from varying angles, as seen in II, Alpha 1, 2 & 3 and V and is typically referred to as "Ayutthaya Ruins" ("Nachapa" in Alpha 3). Also, one of the alternate modes for the "Lair Of The Four Kings" stage in V has a statue of him instead of F.A.N.G.
"I Know You're in There Somewhere" Fight: In Alpha 3, Sagat fights the brainwashed Ryu while Ken and Sakura challenge Bison. It takes Sagat's urging, plus Sakura's injury at the hands of Bison, to rouse Ryu out of his trance.
I Let You Win: Dan doesn’t actually defeat him, as Sagat feigns a loss in order to let Dan stop dwelling on his desire to avenge his father, not wanting him to succumb to the same twisted sense of obsession that he's had for Ryu since getting scarred.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Sagat has major issues with his pride and is very rude to his opponents, but he's also a deeply compassionate man who despises injustice. This quote from Street Fighter X Tekken says it all:
This disregard for the innocent has incurred the wrath of The King. There will be no forgiveness!
Karma Houdini: Suffers no repercussions for assisting the criminal efforts of Shadaloo. Though at least he wises up and makes an effort to wash away the sins of his past.
Ki Manipulation: Sagat can throw fiery projectiles at his opponent and empower his physical attacks with orange flames.
Large and in Charge: He’s 7'5" (226 cm) and 240 pounds (120 kgs), making him the fourth tallest character in the series, even standing over the mighty Zangief. He stands out in the first game as the tallest sprite and the closest thing to a Big Bad.
Launcher Move: "Tiger Rush" has Sagat step forward with a powerful knee strike, juggling his opponent into the air for combos.
Long-Range Fighter: Between his massive size and alternating projectiles, Sagat is very good at keeping opponents at bay. His close-ranged options by comparison are a bit committal and leave him at a greater disadvantage when they miss. But all of this comes together to make him a very strong punisher.
Mark of Shame: He’s ashamed of the long scar on his chest he got from Ryu's Shoryuken. It’s one of the reasons he was obsessed with revenge on Ryu, but he's since come to terms with it.
Martial Arts Headband: He used to wear a mongkhon in his youth, as per Muay Thai tradition.
Meaningful Name: "Sagat" means "to intercept" or "to stop something from advancing", though "Guardian" or "Protector" is a more lyrical translation of the name from Thai, and suits his role as both the final boss of SFI and the final challenge before players take on Bison in II.
Mighty Glacier: In II, Sagat has average mobility speed, but later appearances dial back his walk speed and force players to rely more on his exceptional range. He typically sports above-average health and his projectiles have excellent recovery, allowing him to easily create a gap that's difficult to close, keeping a Tiger Uppercut in his back pocket for those times an opponent goes airborne in order to get close.
Monochromatic Eyes: In every appearance apart from I and II. These actually serve as a mark of his character development. His ending artwork in V for the I arcade route shows that he used to have pupils, but after Ryu defeated him, he gained these, symbolizing him being "blinded by rage, hate, and revenge". As the story progresses and his character develops, they turn into full-on Prophet Eyes like Dhalsim's, when he begins to understand Ryu's path and his struggles with the Satsui no Hado.
Muscles Are Meaningful: Being a brick wall of a man does have gameplay implications; he's way bigger and slower than many other fighters and has the raw strength to make his hits count. This also means his attacks are generally less safe to throw out due to his size and mass.
My Greatest Failure:
- Before Alpha 3, Sagat considered his attempt to show compassion to Ryu after defeating him a huge mistake. He took his scar as further proof that he was the true loser of the first World Warrior tournament. Come Alpha 3, Sagat reconsiders and decides that Ryu scarring him set off a chain of events that changed him for the better.
- The fact that Adon was once his apprentice is now a source of shame for him.
Noble Demon: Even at his worst, he maintains a rigid sense of honor, never stooping to take advantage of an opponent's handicaps or moments of weakness, such as fighting a brainwashed Ryu at just enough strength to break the mind control.
Noble Top Enforcer: For Bison in II and Alpha. The only reason he's working for Bison is to have a rematch with Ryu.
No Brows: Like a lot of other fighters in the series. It makes him rather intimidating because of it.
No-Holds-Barred Beatdown: "Tiger Rampage", his critical art from V, is a long string of brutal strikes before he finishes you off with a Tiger Uppercut.
Not Even Bothering with the Accent: In English, he’s voiced with a gruff American accent, rather than a Thai one.
Pet the Dog:
- During Alpha 3, Sagat is challenged by Dan, who's seeking vengeance for the death of his father. Seeing far more of himself (and his own vengeful behavior towards Ryu) in Dan than he's comfortable with, he lets Dan win, thus preventing Dan from going down his path.
- This win quote against Sakura is one of the nicest things he's said in the entire canon:
  Believe in your own power and do not rely on mimicry of others.
Playing with Fire: His orange ki resembles flames when in action. Tiger Shots all come out like balls of fire, and any of his other specials add flame effects to signal that he's performing a stronger variant. His supers in particular make a lot of use of flames like "Tiger Destruction/Rampage" which ends with a fiery uppercut.
Power Glows: Using Angry Charge makes his chest scar glow a bright orange.
The Power of Hate: The Angry Scar power-up move was originally Sagat tapping into his hatred of Ryu to infuse his next Tiger Uppercut with more strength. Nowadays, it's implied that it's him tapping into his desire to face Ryu in honorable combat. It turns out that his lingering hatred makes him capable of tapping into the Satsui no Hado, and it tries to consume him in his Story Mode in V.
Punch-Clock Villain: During his Shadaloo days, he’s only really there to fight Ryu, rather than further the organization's goals.
Purple Is Powerful: His shorts in the first game are a vibrant purple which, besides his large size, denote him as the game's Final Boss and the king of Muay Thai.
Put on a Bus: He's nowhere to be found in III, but has been in every other instalment.
Red Baron: "The Emperor of Muay Thai"; he always refers to himself as "The King" when talking himself up.
Reformed, but Not Tamed: Even after parting ways with Shadaloo, he maintains his withering ego, belittling his opponents if they don’t match up — especially where abhorrent characters such as his former Shadaloo coworkers and former pupil Adon are concerned.
Retcon: His loss against Ryu has been retconned so that he was scarred by Evil Ryu, and he also undergoes a Heel–Face Turn post Alpha 3.
Revenge: What he wanted from Ryu. However, upon seeing that Dan has the same look in his eyes that he has for Ryu, he gives it up, realizing that the pursuit of such things is an empty virtue.
The Rival:
- To Ryu: the two have been fighting ever since the first game in the series. At first, there's a lot of antagonism, mostly on Sagat's part, but over the years, their dynamic has mellowed out to the point where they can casually spar like old acquaintances.
- To Adon: despite training under him for years, Adon thinks of Sagat as a disgrace for losing to Ryu and "tarnishing Muay Thai" and now seeks to defeat the latter to reaffirm the style's superiority.
Roaring Rampage of Revenge:
- After Go Hibiki gouged out his eye, Sagat (understandably) beat the man to death in pain and fury.
- In Sagat's V arcade ending, his village is razed by poachers. As expected, he beats them up in a brutal fashion, crying tears of blood by the end of the ordeal.
Say My Name: In his Rival Battle in IV, when he activates his Ultra.
RYYUUUUUUU!
Scarf of Asskicking: His default outfit in V includes a tattered cowl.
Scars Are Forever: The huge gash across his chest is a permanent reminder of Ryu's uncontrollable killing intent and serves as his motivation in the canonical games up to IV.
Shoryuken: After being scarred by Ryu's Shoryuken in the first tournament, Sagat develops his own version of the move in response, the Tiger Uppercut. Like Ryu's, it's invincible on hit. Sagat can also empower it with ki for a stronger hit, even setting it ablaze.
Shotoclone: Of a sort; Sagat is the series’ first "Anti-Ryu." After the original game, his ability to use Tiger Shot and Tiger Uppercut make his fighting style similar to Ryu and Ken's. He lacks a Hurricane Kick, but that isn't as iconic a move anyway. Players refer to him as an Anti-Shoto because his shotoclone moves and his sheer size effectively counteract Ryu and Ken's styles, leading to an entirely different dynamic of fighting.
Signature Move: Tiger Uppercut, which he's been honing ever since his first battle with Ryu in SF1.
Super Mode: "Tiger Assault" grants Sagat access to two melee specials, Tiger Spike and Tiger Rush, both of which give him tools to fully go on the offensive which eliminates him being weaker when aggressive.
Super Special Move:
- Tiger Genocide is a combo stringing together his Knee and Uppercut specials. Later versions add flourishes like a flaming uppercut as the finisher.
- "Tiger Cannon" is an empowered Tiger Shot that deals multiple hits, and has a much bigger hitbox. V downplays this by reducing the move to a V-Trigger.
Tarot Motifs: Sagat represents Death in the 30th Anniversary Tarot Deck. Death in Tarot represents big changes and transitions in life, which Sagat has gone through multiple times, going from a proud champion to a revenge-seeking villain, until he eventually left Shadaloo in order to fight a fair match against Ryu that isn't fueled by vengeance.
Theme Naming: Most of his special and super attacks have the word "tiger" in them. Ryu's name can be read as "dragon", and "the tiger and the dragon" has always been an idiomatic expression in Asian culture for two powerful, opposite forces.
This Is Unforgivable!: His initial reaction to (Evil) Ryu attacking him while he attempts to help him up. He reconciles with Ryu at the end of Alpha 3.
Throwing the Fight:
- In Alpha 3, Dan attempts to take revenge for his father against Sagat. Sagat, noticing that Dan has the same look in his eyes that he does, throws the match instead of pulverizing him.
- He throws his rival fight with Adon in the IV series, this time out of disgust with his former student.
Token Good Teammate: The only Noble Demon in Shadaloo. He leaves the organization by the end of the Alpha series.
Third-Person Person: Whenever he calls himself "The King."
Tiger Versus Dragon: The tiger to Ryu's dragon. Ironically, he plays much more like a dragon, being a Mighty Glacier with an emphasis on ranged attacks.
Variant Power Copying: Sagat developed his Tiger Uppercut by copying elements of Ryu's Shoryuken.
Vengeance Feels Empty: How he feels after meeting Dan; Sagat sees in Dan's eyes the same rage he feels for Ryu, and realizes that the power of hatred is limiting. He pretends to be defeated and resigns from Shadaloo to train on his own.
Walking Shirtless Scene: His default costume, only consisting of Muay Thai shorts and protective wraps.
Warrior Poet: He views fighting as a form of communication, and has many insightful platitudes as win quotes.
A true warrior is not one who always wins, but one who stands after defeat.
Warrior Therapist: As of IV, where he actively tries to understand his opponents, and especially his greatest rival, Ryu. Although helpful, he does not hold back. It even becomes a crucial plot point in his V Story Mode.
(Vs. Abel) You are not yet ready to face me. Find your path and see where it leads.
(Vs. Rose) You lost not because it was preordained but because you allowed yourself to.
(Vs. Makoto) You have mastered the basics, but you still have a long way to go, child!
We Will Meet Again: Ryu is his rival battle in IV. If Sagat wins, he'll simply say this to Ryu as an indication of his Character Development. If he’d beaten Ryu this way in earlier games, he would have gloated.
Worthy Opponent:
- Ryu — and the feeling is mutual. Their quotes in IV and Street Fighter x Tekken indicate that they see their rivalry as important to their personal development as martial artists.
- By V, he has become one to Akuma.

M. Bison

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/bisonv.png

Emperor of Evil

^{Street Fighter Alpha}

^{Street Fighter II}

Fear and respect... the supreme energy that is Psycho Power!

Origin: Shadaloo

Fighting style: Psycho Power
Appears in: SFII ^*, SFA, SFIV, SFV

Voiced by: ^note

Portrayed by: ^note

M. Bison is the Big Bad and Final Boss of II and most of the Alpha games, the leader of the multinational criminal organization Shadaloo, and the enemy of almost every character in the franchise. He is the wielder of a purely negative energy known as Psycho Power, which is fueled by evil thoughts and desires. Bison's ultimate goal is world domination, and his ambition has made him responsible for nearly every bad thing that happens in the series. Bison personally killed Chun-Li's father and Charlie, murdered T. Hawk's father and pushed his people off their native lands, and abducted teenage girls from around the world (one of them being T. Hawk's childhood friend) to serve as his brainwashed bodyguards and assassins.

In Alpha 3, Bison has completed construction of a superweapon called the Psycho Drive; it can be used to boost his power and as a Kill Sat. He is also looking for a new body, since the Psycho Power is beginning to exceed the limits of his own. He tries to take Ryu's body by brainwashing him and setting him against his friends, but they free him, and shortly afterwards, Bison is killed — but his soul somehow survives, and eventually, Shadaloo's scientists create a new body for him (albeit a severely weakened one).

Bison hosts the Street Fighter II tournament to gain revenge on those who bested him, but before he can enact that revenge, he is killed (again) by Akuma. His soul survived the Shun Goku Satsu, however, and he was once again given a new body — one which would be able to hold a much larger amount of his Psycho Power (it's a combination of his Alpha and II bodies).

In IV, Bison is attempting to revive Shadaloo from behind the scenes, and the first objective in his new scheme is to eliminate the traitorous Seth. Bison returns once more in V, now with white hair and a trenchcoat variation of his signature red military uniform. Having bid his time until all the pieces were in place, he is ready to unleash his ultimate scheme and announce Shadaloo's revival with a bang. The plan's codename? Operation C.H.A.I.N.S.

Gameplay-wise, Bison embodies the very essence of what it means to be a dictator; he is designed around oppressing and bullying his opponents into submission, being armed to the teeth with powerful attacks that have long reach and are usually advantageous when blocked. His Double Knee Press avoids all low attacks, covers a significant portion of the screen, and leaves him generally at advantage, either by knocking the opponent down or staggering them for further pressure. His Head Press and Devil Reverse form a deadly guessing game in which the opponent must quickly ascertain whether or not Bison's baiting a reaction from them. His most infamous attack by far is the Psycho Crusher - a full-screen attack where Bison torpedoes himself forward wreathed in Psycho Power, inflicting massive damage on both hit and block. The Psycho Crusher has gone through various changes through the series. Regardless, it's usually Bison's strongest option.

Actually a Doombot: Since Alpha, and likely since long before, Bison has been inhabiting bodies created for him by Shadaloo scientists. He attempts to subvert this with his plan to make Ryu, or someone of greater strength, his permanent host via possession.
Arch-Enemy:
- To Chun-Li, Charlie, Guile, and Rose. Taken to the point that the Trope Namer for But for Me, It Was Tuesday always remembers who they are.
- He sees Akuma as such, due to him coming from out of nowhere and Shun-Goku-Satsu'ing him just as he was about to battle Ryu for his body in SSF2 Turbo. Even though Akuma is stronger than Ryu, Bison still wishes to settle for Ryu as his replacement body due to the intense grudge he holds against Akuma.
Ambiguously Brown: Bison’s true ethnic background is completely unknown. He has always been depicted as dark-skinned, and was initially believed to be Asian as in his debut game because he was fought in Thailand and had Asian facial features. In later games, however, he is fought in different countries and has more inconsistent facial features across appearances. He frequently changes bodies, and neither of his names, "Vega" and "M. Bison", are tied to any particular language. On top of that, most of the characters who were/are potential replacement bodies created for him by Shadaloo are of varying ethnicities, making it ambiguous whether any given body is the original.
Ascend to a Higher Plane of Existence: Though Bison's body was destroyed by Ryu at the end of V, his consciousness lives on in the form of Phantom Bison, an incorporeal form created through his Psycho Power.
Assist Character: Cammy's Psycho Streak Super in Alpha 2 Gold has Bison appear on the scene to mow down the opposition with a Psycho Crusher. Juni gains this super in Alpha 3.
Attack Reflector: His Psycho Reflect V-Skill allows him to absorb a single-hit projectile and throw it back.
Ax-Crazy: He's extremely violent and almost always has a Slasher Smile on his face, showing his sadistic tendencies.
Badass Arm-Fold: His signature pose, whether it be teleporting, dodging attacks, or simply taunting his would-be opponents. As of V, it becomes his idle stance.
Badass Boast: He has several in various games and media. Examples include:
"My Psycho Power knows no limits!"
Badass Cape: He wears it in Alpha. Otherwise...
Badass Longcoat: Trades in his standard military jacket and cape for a trench coat (more in line with a German army officer's winter coat, circa World War II) for his V outfit.
The Bad Guy Wins: Most of his endings, though non-canon, have him destroying or conquering the world. However, a few of his endings are canon:
- His ending in Alpha 2 has him successfully capture, torture, and prepare Ryu to be his new host body, which Alpha 3 follows up on.
- In Rose's ending in IV, Bison ambushes her and reclaims... something (implied to be a significant portion of his Psycho Power) that he accidentally left within her after possessing her post-Alpha. It leaves her in a coma.
Bad Powers, Bad People: Psycho Power is pure negative energy that only truly works once you have purged yourself of all goodness. And Bison has done just that.
Better Living Through Evil: Shadaloo has a lot to offer anyone who decides to join, from money to political power to settling personal grudges to indulging perverse or sadistic pleasures. Bison doesn't care what motivates someone to do their job, just so long as they do it.
Big Bad: Of the II, Alpha, and V entries in the series. In IV, Seth is the big bad, and by the time of III and 6, Bison is dead.
Big Bad Ensemble: With Akuma for the majority of the franchise.
Big "NO!": As heard when he loses in IV.
Big Red Devil: His oh-so-fitting Halloween DLC costume in V.
Boots of Toughness: He wears metal-clad boots.
Breakout Villain: He was defeated during his debut appearance and killed by Akuma in Turbo, but later returns. He overshadows fellow villains Sagat, Gill, and Seth in playable appearances, and is considered to be the main antagonist of the series.
But for Me, It Was Tuesday: Raul Julia's Bison is the legendary Trope Namer, mocking Chun-Li mercilessly when she accuses him of killing her father. His flippant reaction to her accusation makes it into the games proper on a few occasions.
- In the '94 movie:
  For you, the day Bison graced your village was the most important day of your life. But for me... it was Tuesday.
- In the Animated Adaptation:
  Yes, yes, I killed your father, what's with you women anyway? I killed my father too, and you don't hear me whining about it!
- In SNK vs. Capcom: SVC Chaos:
  Avenge? What's that? I don't remember all of my victims, toots.
The Cameo: Among the many Street Fighter characters to appear in Wreck-It Ralph, present at the Bad-Anon meeting along with Zangief. In fact, it is he who introduces the concept of "Going Turbo", which becomes vitally important to the movie's plot.
Card-Carrying Villain: Shadaloo is bad, but he's even worse. Bison has no compunction about sharing that with anyone. His character titles include Ruler of Darkness, The Demon from Hell, and Emperor of Evil. His story mode in V calls him the "Bringer of Destruction", as his Psycho Power is pure negative energy that only works when one purges themselves of all positive traits, and in order to use his powers, Bison can't be anything other than a villain, embracing evil willingly and gleefully.
You know, Colonel, Evil is a good career choice. It has a lot to offer.
Casting a Shadow: His Psycho Power is normally portrayed as a mass of dark purple flames.
The Chessmaster: In IV, where he exploits Juri, Seth and his former underlings' personal vendettas in order to bring S.I.N to heel and regain control of Shadaloo.
Commissar Cap: Wears a Nazi-style cap that almost never falls off, no matter what attack you hit him with. The only time it actually comes off is when he removes it briefly for a taunt. When finally killed by Ryu in V, the hat is all that's left of him.
Composite Character: His later appearances don't try to differentiate between his II and Alpha incarnations. The former was his new body after his "death" in Alpha, with a slender and more average build and weaker in-story; the latter was where Bison was at the peak of his powers (but at risk of dying because of it) with a more muscular build. Bison remains as muscular as ever, with a quick Hand Wave in IV stating that the new body is more powerful than his II incarnation, but grossly inferior to his Alpha form.
Continuity Snarl: In his IV arcade intro, a Shadaloo scientist tells Bison that his new body will be able to hold all of his Psycho Power, which has previously been established as utterly impossible, even with the Psycho Drive, without an incredibly powerful host. Alpha 3 Bison wasn't even close to Bison's full potential, and it took Ken, Ryu, Sakura, Sagat, and a massive Metsu Shoryuken to force him to retreat. This was later hand-waved away with an official statement that his new body, while immensely more powerful then his II incarnation, is also hugely inferior to his Alpha host.
Cop Killer: Chun Li's father, whom he killed, was an Interpol agent. He also killed Juri's father, who was a fearsome prosecutor of Shadaloo.
Corrupt Corporate Executive: His portrayal in The Legend of Chun-Li, where he plans to take over a slum area in Bangkok to turn it into a prime real estate; he also happens to be a Badass in a Nice Suit during his battles.
Crazy-Prepared:
I will be reborn no matter how many bodies it takes! Bison is eternal!
Critical Existence Failure: One punch from Ryu filled with his as-of-yet unnamed new power which may be the Power of Nothingness, and Bison's body, filled with pure evil energy, cracks and dissolves away.
Deadpan Snarker:
- Depending on his mood. Such as in The Animated Movie.
  Guile: Bison! I'm gonna rip your lousy heart out, you filthy bastard!
  Bison: (laughs) Afraid I don't have one.
- And there's his interaction with Rose in Alpha 2.
  Rose: I'll give you until the count of three.
  Bison: 1... 2... 2 1/2... 2 3/4...
Dead Hat Shot: After he meets his demise at the hands of Ryu in V, all that remains of him is his hat. A similar shot is used in Chun-Li’s Arcade route prologue in 6 to signify that Bison is finally gone.
Death by Irony: Despite ruining the lives of so many characters and making quite a few enemies in his long villainous career, in the end, the Dictator is ultimately slain by Ryu, who not only had the least personal vendetta against him, but who Bison once sought to use as a potential vessel for his soul.
Diabolical Mastermind: The leader of a powerful worldwide criminal organization, with more than enough intelligence to run it.
Die Laughing: His reaction to his demise in V. Even as his body begins cracking and is about to explode, all he can do is laugh.
Dark Is Evil: He’s the most well known user of Psycho Power, a force often described as the dark side of the soul. Bison also gets stronger feeding off the anger and hatred of others.
The Dreaded: The amount of known characters who don't hate or fear him can probably be counted on one hand. When S.I.N. hears of his return, the stoic and arrogant Seth and his subordinates are immediately put into a cold sweat.
Dressed to Oppress: Earns his disambiguating Fan Nickname of "Dictator" thanks to his red and black uniform with greatcoat and Commissar Cap.
Dub Name Change:
- Vega in Japan, M. Bison elsewhere.
- The Final Psycho Crusher was originally named the Psycho Drive Crusher in Japanese editions of Alpha 3. Later games call it the Ultimate Psycho Crusher or Psycho Break Smasher.
Emotion Eater: V reveals that his Psycho Power, being pure negative energy, feeds on negative emotions to grow stronger. This is the crux of his Evil Plan in V where he plans to activate the Black Moons, Psycho Power-fueled EMP devices that can shut down electronics and instill negative emotions in others, allowing his Psycho Power to become stronger.
Energy Ball: His Psycho Cannon in Alpha and his Psycho Blast in V.
Equal-Opportunity Evil: Bison doesn't turn down potential minions and hires men and women from all over the world in the pursuit of evil and will pull out all the stops to gain allies, recruits, or minions by any means necessary. He offers great pay or personal luxuries and vices, makes political allies from bribery or elimination of mutual enemies, promises scientists a spectacular playground free of moral constraints or red tape, and virtually any other means that are feasible. And if none of that works, he's not above forcing you to work for him by taking you or your loved ones hostage, using blackmail, or going with plain old Mind Control, either. If Bison wants you to work for Shadaloo, it's harder not to end up doing so one way or another. Referenced and mocked in the live action movie, where Anti-Shadaloo propaganda videos depicted the diverse members of Bison's army as insulting national stereotypes.
Eternally Pearly-White Teeth: Easy to notice with how much evil grinning he indulges in.
Evil Counterpart: To Rose, who uses Soul Power, the good version of Psycho Power. They frequently clash with their opposing powers.
Evil Feels Good: According to Bison it does. It also tastes delicious.
Evil Former Friend: Bison used to enjoy friendly (well, as friendly as Bison can get) sparring matches with Sagat.
Eviler than Thou: To Seth in his ending in IV.
Evil Is Hammy: His dialogue aches with booming, pompous gusto — and let's not get started on his movie version...
Evil Laugh: M. Bison's sinister laugh has become legendary among fighting game fans.
Evil Old Folks: Bison's body sports graying hair and visible facial lines in V, presumably caused by his Psycho Power taking a toll on his host body.
Evil Plan: World domination, through a combination of Operation C.H.A.I.N.S to disrupt and destroy global electronics and feeding off negative energy to boost his already considerable Psycho Power.
Evolving Attack: A rare in-story example: In V, Bison's Psycho Crusher is used as a super and is referred to as the "Ultimate Psycho Crusher", implying that Bison has mastered at least one aspect of his Psycho Power.
Faux Affably Evil: Bison is quite capable of acting like a polite and refined gentleman towards everyone he meets, ally and enemy alike, he compliments his opponent's skill in battle if they put up a good fight, and he goes to great lengths to get others to join Shadaloo, often through bribery. But deep down, he is a remorseless, sadistic and dangerously unhinged psychopath who is the direct cause of all the misery that happens in the series and derives a sick pleasure in carrying out his nefarious schemes and monstrous actions.
Fangs Are Evil: Sometimes, when grinning, his canine teeth look a bit like tiny fangs.
Fiction 500: While the exact details on what Shadaloo owns tends not get a lot focus, Bison is shown to have a stealth bomber as his own personal jet.
Final Boss: Of II, Alpha (most characters) and V.
First Law of Resurrection: His end was supposed to come after II when Akuma sent his soul to hell, though this was retconned away by IV.
Flash Step: His forward dash in V is one of these. If his V-Trigger I is active, he can move past his opponent while doing it. More experienced Bison players use this property to mix up their opponents.
Flung Clothing: He tosses his cape away during his entrance in II.
Gameplay and Story Integration: He's a dictator, so what better way to show that by making his fighting style all about bullying and oppressing his opponent.
Genius Bruiser: He's very powerful, and he's also a diabolical mastermind who's made several attempts at world domination to expand his power.
Genre Motif: Bison's later appearances have been accompanied by techno remixes of his original theme. Even more present in V, in which almost the entire theme is techno.
A God Am I: Will at times refer to himself as a god. And really, are you gonna argue with the man who can blow a person's face up with a single touch?
You come here prepared to fight a madman, and instead, you found a god.
Got the Whole World in My Hand:
- The Lair of the Four Kings has statues of him, Balrog, Vega, and F.A.N.G in the background. The statue of Bison in particular is holding a globe in its hand.
- His win quote against Elena in Ultra IV:
  The world rests in the palm of my hand. I've no time for trifling young girls.
Graceful Loser: As he dies in V, he accepts his defeat with one last Evil Laugh before his body explodes and his essence is extinguished.
Grand Theft Me: Pulls this on Rose to ensure his survival post-Alpha until a suitable replacement body is made. He also plans on using Ryu as his host in Alpha, had Cammy manufactured as a backup body, and sees some value in Juri (according to their Rival Battle).
Greater-Scope Villain: In a sense, he is the moving force behind almost everything in the story from the time of Alpha up until some unspecified point before III. Even in IV, where he takes a backseat to Seth (a rebellious creation of Shadaloo and one of Bison's backup bodies, no less), Bison frequently alludes to the fact that he's still pulling Seth's strings; Seth just doesn't know it yet. 6 also establishes him as JP's former employer who had bestowed his use of Psycho Power.
Hero Killer: Bison killed Chun-Li's father and is also responsible for the mortal wounding and mutilation of Charlie.
Home Stage: He has the "Temple Hideout" in II, "Shadaloo Base" and the "Lair of the Four Kings" in V, and to a lesser extent "Volcanic Rim" in IV.
Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: His Psycho Punisher ultra, where he impales you with his fist.
Invincible Villain: Especially in the Alpha series. No matter what the heroes do, Bison's Psycho Drive will always resurrect him. Charlie's endings in particular are meant to portray how much control Shadaloo has behind the scenes and how resilient Bison is. And even when Charlie and Guile destroy his Psycho Drive in Guile's ending in Alpha 3, at best it's a Pyrrhic Victory as it ends with Charlie mortally wounded and mutilated while Bison survives to terrorize the world.
Jerkass: If he has some involvement in another character's life, it always involves him doing something evil like murdering somebody close to them, or something else nefarious that ruined their lives.
Join or Die: The only two choices with him: Pledge your loyalty to Shadaloo or die. And usually he's the one making the choice and striving to enforce it at all costs.
Anyone who opposes me will be destroyed!
Joker Immunity: Bison is extremely hard to kill and always comes back no matter what happens to him. Justified in-plot by his ability to exit his own body when it dies, and affix his soul to a new one. He's got a handy stable of clones which he keeps around for this purpose, pretty much ensuring he'll always come back. Even after being completely obliterated by the Power of Nothingness in V he's still alive as a vengeful spirit.
Killed Off for Real: After being kept alive for 3 games straight chronologically and 20+ years in real life, he finally dies at the hands of Ryu, who uses a Power of Nothingness-infused Hadoken to completely nullify his Psycho Power. Because Bison is Made of Evil, and the Power of Nothingness seemingly can nullify evil energy, his body cracks apart and explodes in a blaze of glory as he bitterly and maniacally laughs. However he still lives on as Phantom Bison, biding his time until he can possess a new host.
Kneel Before Zod:
- His Psycho Punisher Ultra.
  Kneel before my Psycho Power!
- And in V;
  Bow down before my Psycho Power!
Knight of Cerebus: Whether it's the comics, film, cartoon, or the games themselves, the consistent thing about Bison is that he is a deadly threat and anytime he shows up, things get very serious.
Know When to Fold 'Em: When III was released, interviews stated that Bison realized the threat the Illuminati posed to Shadaloo and that Gill had been exercising limited control over Shadaloo's doings for some time. In response to this, Bison takes Shadaloo off the radar, apparently fooling both Chun-Li and the Illuminati in the process, if Urien's dialogue with Chun-Li is to be believed.
Large Ham: While his game counterpart is no slouch, his first film incarnation is particularly hammy, and Raul Julia's performance as Bison is practically legendary.
For I beheld Satan and he fell from heaven... Like LIGHTNING!
Light Is Not Good: His "true" form in Street Fighter EX2. Up to eleven in Street Fighter EX3 with Shin Bison. White uniform, turquoise shoulder pads/shin guards and purple skin.
Lightning Bruiser: Bison deals heavy damage, can propel himself across the air and ground, and always has between average and above-average health. V's stat chart specifically lists him as high or average in every category: Power, Health, Mobility, Technique and Range.
Made of Evil: Considering that he purged himself of all of his good qualities (which went on to become Rose) to master his Psycho Power (which can be described as the literal interpretation of the trope; nothing but concentrated negative energy), he'd technically qualify. This ends up coming back to bite him at the end of V's Cinematic Story Mode, where he takes a Hadoken from Ryu, who is empowered by the State of Nothingness, which nullifies evil energy, and Bison, whose very being is fuelled by Psycho Power, fades away into oblivion.
Major Injury Underreaction: When Bison's body begins to fall apart due to Ryu attacking him with a Hadouken infused with the Power of Nothingness, his reaction is just to scoff. When his entire body begins breaking apart, he starts laughing.
Megaton Punch: He pulls out a psycho-imbued one as his second Ultra in SSFIV, the Psycho Punisher.
Mind over Matter: His Psycho Power gives him powerful telekinesis, first shown in The Animated Movie. Shown again in V with his "Psycho Impact" throw, where he telekinetically spins his opponent in midair before firing a blast of Psycho Power into their chest and knocking them away.
Mighty Glacier: Played with. In V, M. Bison has very high strength, but his walk speed is one of the slowest. However, his traditional dash is replaced with a teleport, meaning he can close the gap remarkably faster than most characters if he so chooses.
Mind-Control Device: Although other devices are the primary cause of the victims brainwashing in the Street Fighter II V series and the animated movie—Ryu, Chun-Li, and Ken respectively) in each case Bison also seems to help brainwash them with his Psycho Power which most likely is the cause of the victims getting the rarer Mind-Control Eyes trope where the sclera (the white part of the eye) changes color—in this case pink to possibly emphasize the Psycho Power.
Monochromatic Eyes: From SSFII onward, his eyes are a pupil-less white.
Mysterious Past: Nobody knows where the Dictator is from originally. Thailand, Cambodia and Ireland have all been suggested by fans of the franchise as possibilities, based on the Dictator's physical characteristics, with him having been played by both Hispanic and Caucasian actors muddying the waters further, but his true birthplace has yet to be confirmed by Capcom themselves. Overlaps with Ambiguously Brown.
Narcissist: Has a very high opinion of himself, to say the least.
A Nazi by Any Other Name: He's a megalomaniac dictator who dresses in a red Nazi-like uniform and wants to conquer the world. Barring Seth, the characters meant to be potential host bodies for him (Cammy, Abel, Ed, and Falke, with F.A.N.G also showing interest in Alex as a potential host) all have blonde hair and blue eyes.
No Body Left Behind: After he meets his demise in V all that remains is his hat.
No Brows: He has no eyebrows.
Not Quite Dead: Came back to life three times:
- Ryu destroyed his body after being freed from his mind control (Alpha 3), but his Psycho Drive regenerated him.
- Charlie killed him again and destroyed the Psycho Drive (ALSO Alpha 3). (Not canon, as revealed in V.)
- When he was revived in a weaker body and organized the World Warrior tournament, Bison (according to The Ties That Bind) killed himself to prevent his capture by the heroes (or to escape Akuma's Shun Goku Satsu, the sources are unclear). As shown by IV, he's back again.
- In a Q&A session about III, Capcom has stated that, by the time of that series, both Bison and Shadaloo are still alive and operating, although, given Urien´s quotes against Chun-Li, he is keeping a low profile.
- It appears he may have even survived his apparent death in V. If CFN profiles are to be believed, Bison has become a ghost known as "Phantom Bison".
Obviously Evil: Wears a blood-red military uniform reminiscent of the Waffen-SS, has pupil-less eyes, and controls an energy that's essentially the very essence of pure negativity itself. Also shows up to some fights ominously draped in a cape and the insignia for his enterprise is a skull with wings.
Our Founder: F.A.N.G.'s stage in V, the Lair of the Four Kings, has statues of himself, Balrog, Vega, and Bison in the background, with the Dictator himself holding a globe in the palm of his hand.
Our Ghosts Are Different: Bison's body may have been destroyed by Ryu, but he was reborn as "Phantom Bison", which is Bison's essence manifested into a ghostly form made out of Psycho Power.
Parasitic Immortality: M. Bison's "Psycho Power" is too much for his own body, so he starts to seek others to increase his lifespan, even training the "Dolls" (especially Cammy) to be his back-up bodies. Also, canonically M.Bison's body was about to explode during Alpha and has gotten a new one since II. However, the search continues in V where his body suffers the same as before but was finally put down for good by Ryu and friends.
Parts Unknown: Like the other Final Bosses in the series (Gill and Seth) and unlike almost all of the other world warriors, his country of origin is never specified.
Perpetual Smiler: Bison is almost never seen without a signature Slasher Smile across his face, wide enough to show all of his teeth. In fact, it's so omnipresent that it's become a long-standing meme, symbolic of the character himself.
Power Floats: Ever since the Alpha series, he's had the ability to fly. It's implied in II as well, where his jump is very floaty and he doesn't bend at the knees before or after, giving the impression that he's actually levitating.
Power Glows: His Psycho Power always emits a dark purple glow.
Power Limiter: His own body. Even with the Psycho Drive, his Alpha-incarnation body (the strongest host Bison has ever held) can barely withstand even a portion of his full Psycho Power. Past Alpha his hosts are even weaker and without the Psycho Drive, he is only able to manifest a tiny fraction of his Psycho Power without destroying his body. To counter this, he seeks to either synthesize an incredibly powerful host or possess somebody with great potential, such as Ryu.
Precision F-Strike: Says "I don't give a shit" to Dr. Senoh in regards to Interpol's interrogation of Cammy in The Animated Movie. In the games themselves, he keeps things mostly tame, with one exception in V — if he wins against Gill.
I have zero interest in what your plans are, but just the sight of you pisses me off.
Psychic Powers: Psycho Power, thank you very much. He can do anything from teleporting, deflecting energy blasts, levitation, and separating his body and soul.
Purple Is Powerful: His Psycho Power is purple and grants him a variety of powers that eclipses most of the cast.
Purple Is the New Black: His Psycho Power is often portrayed as dark purple flames.
Putting on the Reich: Pretty much dresses exactly like a Waffen-SS apart from his outfit being red. Not unfitting for a dictator.
Rank Scales with Asskicking: He's the leader of an international terrorist organization and is typically implied to be one of the strongest characters in series. He's often been an upper tier character as well.
Rapid Aging: As of V. His hair has gone gray due to premature aging as a result of his Psycho Power taking a toll on his body.
Red and Black and Evil All Over: His main outfit is a primarily red suit with black accents and often combined with a black cape. He is also the completely unapologetic leader of an international terrorist organization who deliberately purged himself of all of his positive qualities.
Resurrective Immortality: Via an odd form of Body Surf; Bison's Psycho Power allows him to shrug off death as a temporary inconvenience by possessing either weak willed individuals (such as the Dolls) or bodies expressly made for this purpose (such as countless clone bodies Bison has had made of himself). Even having his Psycho Power drained by Charlie before being disintegrated by Ryu only results in him being reduced to an incorporeal form.
Secret A.I. Moves: In Alpha 3, Bison has access to an entire ISM that only bosses can use. It's generally referred to as the S-Ism and shares the single stock property of X Ism, and the Psycho Cannon of A and V-Ism. It also grants him access to the most damaging move in all of Street Fighter, the Final Psycho Crusher, which does roughly 70% damage, cannot be air blocked, freezes you in place, and is usually performed on the 1st frame of your animation. Also, unlike every other normal character, he can air block in this pseudo X-Ism and has another high damage super, the Double Knee-press Nightmare. You can access his S-ISM in the console ports by selecting M. Bison with the select button. It's exactly as broken as you imagine.
Sophisticated as Hell: While Bison is far from being particularly sophisticated or polite, exclaiming that Gill "really pisses him off" in a win quote in V is quite jarring.
Self-Made Orphan: To quote the American cartoon:
Yes, yes, I killed your father. What is it with you women anyway? I killed my father too, and you don't hear me whining about it.
Shipper on Deck: A dark variation in The Animated Movie when he orders Vega to kill Chun-Li.
Speaking of interesting, what do you think of this little number, Vega? Why don't you go have some fun with Miss Li? I'm sure you can conjure something in that dark imagination of yours.
Shirtless Scene: He has a battle-damaged costume in IV which gives him slightly torn pants and shredded shirts.
Signature Move: Psycho Crusher. Even if it's not a main special move, he'll usually have a super or two that utilizes it.
Slasher Smile: His default expression.
Slide Attack: His crouching heavy kick slides Bison forward for a mobile low attack; it goes quite a bit farther than most examples.
Smug Super: The man fancies himself a god and has all the power to prove it.
SNK Boss:
- S-ISM M. Bison in Alpha 3 has a screen-filling Psycho Crusher that does the most block damage out of any move in the entire game, could not be air blocked, and if you are unlucky enough to be caught by it, took away roughly 60-70% of your life-bar. The A.I tends to activate the move during the first frame of animation for your character's attack. Oh, and the attack freezes your character until it actually hits. And you only get one shot at him; if you lose, his ending plays and the game ends right then and there.
- Bison II in EX2 has an infinite super bar, a souped-up Psycho Cannon super that involves him and his double trapping you between two beams of Psycho Power (which can be charged up to twice its normal size), and a version of the Knee Press Nightmare lifted from the MvC series where he attacks you alongside two illusions of himself.
- Bison II in EX3 is a much milder version of this trope, but would still probably make those who fear regular Bison tremble. To boot, while he's easier to reach here, he's still more aggressive than regular Bison, makes frequent use of his teleports, starts the fight with full meter, and retains his Psycho Cannon variants (although he can no longer charge them to double size).
- True Bison in EX3 is much worse than Bison II's EX2 incarnation. Hard to get to his fight, and he'll Double Psycho Cannon the crap outta you before he pulls the Mega Psycho Crusher or Triple Knee Press Nightmare. He can easily take out 2-3 characters in one go.
- Shin Bison in SFV: Arcade Edition puts all of his other boss versions of Bison ever created to shame. Fought in a special Extra Battle mission, this version of Bison has a special CPU-only V-Trigger that is permanently active and completely changes his move-set and makes it ridiculously broken. He now has the Psycho Crusher, normally only available during his V-Trigger 2, as a regular move, can cancel and link normals that he normally cannot into specials and even his super, he gets the EX version of his Psycho Blast as a regular move, and he also gains the ability to teleport dash through you which is normally only available during V-Trigger 1. Couple this with an extremely aggressive AI that's even harder than Shin Akuma, and you're going to be losing a lot of Fight Money.
The Social Darwinist: Only the strongest warriors are permitted to join Shadaloo, according to flashbacks involving him and F.A.N.G.
(Vs. F.A.N.G.) Death to the weak. That's the creed of Shadaloo.
The Sociopath: Has all the traits: arrogant, manipulative, sadistic, devoid of empathy, and willing to do whatever it takes to succeed even at the expense of others. Again, justified as his Psycho Power requires he purge himself of all of his positive traits.
Spin Attack: Bison spins while using the Psycho Crusher. Taken up a notch during the Perfect Psycho Crusher.
Story-Breaker Power:
- Psycho Power. The Animated Movie first showcased just how ungodly strong it makes Bison, and then the games made it canon. If he decides to go all out, he becomes a Physical God that can slaughter everyone and everything on the planet as though he were swatting flies. S-ISM M. Bison from the Alpha series is nowhere close to his full potential, just the maximum amount of Psycho Power his body can hold, and with just that he's able to hold his own against Ryu, Ken, Sakura, and Sagat at the same time. Literally the only downside to Psycho Power is that it requires a strong-enough host to fully wield it, and will deteriorate its user's body rapidly over time, eventually destroying them if they cannot withstand its full extent.
- V takes this even further by revealing that Psycho Power grows stronger by feeding on negative emotions. This is the crux of his Evil Plan in V where he plans to activate the Black Moons, Psycho Power-fueled EMP devices that can shut down electronics and instill negative emotions in others, allowing his Psycho Power to become stronger. By the time the cast faces him for the final battle, his Psycho Power has grown to a level that they can't touch. Charlie has to literally sacrifice himself to give Ryu a fighting chance against him.
Suddenly Ethnicity: Happens every time Bison body surfs. There is also exactly zero evidence of his original ethnicity.
Super Mode: M. Bison's S-ISM mode from Alpha 3. This is Bison harnessing as much of his Psycho Power as possible. On one hand, it powers him up to an incredible degree.^note As a downside, it causes his host body to begin to deteriorate slowly. Counter to what one may think, This version of Bison is nowhere near Bison's full power, just the maximum of what his host can withstand.
Super Special Move: "Ultimate Psycho Crusher", which has enough power to plant his opponent in a wall.
Superpower Lottery: His Psycho Power gives him a variety of abilities such as Deflector Shields, Flight, telekinesis, teleportation, energy blasts, Mind Control, and can grow stronger by feeding off negative emotions. If it wasn't for the fact that prolonged use takes a massive toll on his body, thus preventing him from using its full extent, he'd be nigh unstoppable.
Surpassed the Teacher: And apparently killed him (and most of his fellow students) as well, to make sure he was the only person in the world who could use Psycho Power.
Take Over the World: Bison's ultimate goal is to take over the world and herald it into the "Pax Bisonica", in which every nation and people will be united in peace...under his dictatorial, eternal hand.
OF COURSE!!!
Tarot Motifs: Bison represents Judgment in the 30th Anniversary Tarot Deck. Judgement represents Armageddon, and Bison's actions always leave destruction and suffering in his wake.
Teleport Spam: His Boss incarnation in the Alpha and EX series is prone to do this. In V, his basic dash becomes a teleport when using his first V-Trigger.
Thinking Up Portals: He can use his Psycho Power to open portals and appear wherever he wants. Shown mostly in cutscenes.
Third-Person Person: Usually when boasting to his opponent — "Do you DARE to challenge Bison?!" etc.
This Cannot Be!: Any ending in Alpha 3 where he dies, which is virtually all of them.
Through His Stomach: Birdie's SF route arcade ending in V shows Shadaloo has free gourmet food for all its employees, which keeps him nice and happy through Shadaloo's brutal training regimes.
Took a Level in Badass: Inverted and then played straight. In II, he was just a mad dictator with an extraordinary amount of fighting prowess and seemingly more dangerous than Sagat, but the game didn't draw much attention to it. Then The Animated Movie notably made him a far more serious and dangerous foe with his Psycho Power. Alpha, a prequel, would canonize this by making Bison bordering on a Superpower Lottery that was only held back by his own body being unable to fully use his power. A defeat later and he was majorly weakened by II, before refining his new bodies for IV and V, as well as using new strategies for improving his Psycho Power; he's practically a Physical God by the end of V's story.
The Unfettered: Bison will conquer the world, no matter who or what he has to destroy to do it.
Verbal Tic: In Japanese only. He has a tendency to use English words that aren't commonly used in Japanese, even as loan words. "Body," "fifteen," etc.
Vile Villain, Saccharine Show: Street Fighter may be more kid-friendly and humorous than the likes of other games like Killer Instinct, Mortal Kombat, and Tekken, but Bison is a much more atrocious monster than any of their villains. Though he has more comedic moments, it does nothing to hide the pure hate he is made of.
Villain Ball: In Charlie's Alpha 2 ending, after the latter is shot by the corrupt Air Force, one of them suggests they send a search team for the body. Bison declines, confident Charlie couldn't have survived. Lo and behold, Charlie returns in V, ready to finish Bison once and for all, though Bison was Right for the Wrong Reasons: Charlie did die, but because his body could be retrieved, he was brought back in just the right circumstances as a Revenant Zombie.
Villains Never Lie: One of Bison's character traits is that he doesn't lie, ever — unless you count Cammy's ending in SSFII, which was actually changed by the localization of the game. Said localization error was fixed with the release of HD Remix, which has revised endings based on better translations of the original Japanese script.
Villainous Legacy: Although Bison himself is physically dead after the events of V, his will lives on through his subordinate JP, the now ex-CFO of Shadaloo.
What Happened to the Mouse?: Capcom has mentioned that there are two other students of Psycho Power that Bison failed to kill. Nothing is known about them.
Worthy Opponent: Charlie was the first and so far only hero to earn Bison's respect by opposing him. Everybody else is simply an obstacle in his path or a weakling to be ridiculed.
You Fool!: Very fond of this phrase. It appears in half of his win quotes in IV.
You Will Be Spared: Bison is more than willing to offer mercy to those who oppose him, so long as they swear eternal fealty to Shadaloo.

Characters / Street Fighter II: The Four Kings

Alternative Title(s): Street Fighter M Bison

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Alternative Title(s): Street Fighter M Bison

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