Name: Hooligon (again) Debut: Super Paper Mario
That's right! After Mod Chikako and Mod F Boy gave their respective namesakes New Posts, it was only a matter of time that I'd give Hooligon the same treatment. It only took... over a year and a half! Yippee! Good things come to those who wait, and are made by those who procrastinate. Those are words of wisdom that will last you a lifetime!
As you can see in the image above, Hooligon is. Well. It just is! I can't tell you what this is supposed to be! This is easily one of the most abstract enemy designs in the entire Mario franchise, and I love it for precisely that reason. Even by the standards of Super Paper Mario, a game FULL of some of the series' strangest enemies, Hooligon is still weird! I don't know if I can confidently claim Hooligon as the Weirdest Mario Enemy, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's in the top 10.
I can tell you one thing that Hooligon is, and that's a rascal! I mean, the name should be the obvious sign -- Hooligon is a hooligan! Its catch card description states that it loves to wreak havoc in the depths of space, and that they blend into their habitat, waiting to attack... If you go to space, watch out! You might get Hooligon Jumpscared!
This is especially true if you end up in the Whoa Zone, which I assume is their natural habitat. They also appear on Planet Blobule, in Castle Bleck, and in the Flipside Pit of 100 Trials, but I figure the abstract enemy made of green squares is probably from the abstract place also made of green squares. If they're blending into their habitat, then this seems to be the habitat they'd be blending into!
In particular, there's just one room in the Whoa Zone full of Hooligons, with them covering every single surface. There's no escape! Not even in the third dimension, as Hooligons are one of the very few enemies in this game to be three-dimensional! If you're ever feeling down, remember: you have as many dimensions as a weird polygonal snake-type thing in Super Paper Mario (2007)! That always manages to cheer me up.
Hooligons are relatives of the red Eeligon, as an RPG like Super Paper Mario needs to give as many enemies color variations as possible to pad out its bestiary. I'm not complaining! It gives me more to talk about!
For instance, I think "Eeligon" is a funny name. Not as funny as Hooligon, but I appreciate that the localizers decided that this thing is an eel. I guess it's long, and it swims around in space, but that's about where the similarities end. Then again, if starfish and jellyfish can be fish, then sure, why can't Eeligon be an eel? I can't think of anything else it would be.
As discussed in the original post, unlike most color variations, Hooligon and Eeligon are differentiated by their behavior, rather than their health or strength. They have the exact same stats, but Eeligons are swimmers, while Hooligons are hoppers! That being said, for both of them, you need to aim for the head to deal any damage. If you hit their tails, you'll just remove one of their many square segments.
In their Catch Card description, Eeligons are described as having big egos. I don't have anything else to say on that point, I just figured you should know that.
Interestingly enough, despite the fact that Hooligon can be encountered first, appears more frequently, and has the better name, Hooligon is treated as an Eeligon variant, and not the other way around. Hooligon appears after Eeligon in the list of Catch Cards, the variant in the Flopside Pit of 100 Trials is named Dark Eeligon despite having Hooligon behavior, and in Japanese, Eeligon is Furēgon, while Hooligon is Furēgon Plus!
There's not much more to say about these guys. They only appeared in one game, and that's probably the only appearance they're ever gonna get. That being said, I appreciate them a lot. I mean, why wouldn't I? There's a reason I'm Mod Hooligon! Either way, I hope I was able to share some of that appreciation with you. :) Have a nice day
