 |
Char Aznable has declared Beldam is to be renamed to Beldam (Paper Mario) for the following reason(s): The Beldam and Beldams Please discuss it on the talk page for this article. "I told you I am not Casval, I am Char Aznable."  ✓
|
| “ | Mmmmmmwee hee hee hee! I have no quarrel with you...but I simply can't allow you to hunt for the Crystal Stars. | „ |
| ~ Beldam |
Beldam is one of the two main antagonists (alongside Sir Grodus) of the 2004 role-playing video game Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door and its 2024 remake of the same name.
She is the leader of the Shadow Sirens (Three Shadows in the remake) and a loyal servant of the Shadow Queen. She, Marilyn, and Vivian successfully trick Sir Grodus and the X-Nauts into reviving the Shadow Queen, and pretend to aid the X-Nauts in their plans. She and the Shadow Sirens try to get the Crystal Stars and try to retrieve the Magical Map from Mario.
Biography[]
Past[]
Beldam and the Shadow Sirens served the Shadow Queen at some point before the events of the game. Beldam and the Shadow Sirens came up with a scheme to resurrect the Shadow Queen so they could serve her again after the four heroes vanquished and sealed her.
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door[]
Prologue[]
1,000 years later, the warriors, the Shadow Queen and their great battle have faded into being nothing more than a legend. The seal on the palace door begins to fade and the Shadow Queen's servants, the Shadow Sirens, know the time to release their queen draws near. The Shadow Sirens join the cult of the X-Nauts; a criminal organization of unknown origin and exist to conquer the world. With this information, Beldam, the head of the Shadow Sirens, manages to convince the X-Nauts master Sir Grodus to seek out the Crystal Stars and use them to release the Shadow Queen. Grodus, who hopes to rule the world, thinks by releasing the Shadow Queen, he will be able to control her and use her to fulfill his dream. This is all a lie made up by Beldam though just to get Grodus to help in order to free her, because evil like Beldam cannot touch the seal that is on the queen.
In the game's prologue, Beldam disguises as the merchant Princess Peach encounters, though the player does not know this until later on. She offers the princess a treasure chest, saying it won't open for her since she isn't pure-hearted. She then hands Peach the box, promising to give her whatever was inside if she could figure out how to open it. Her strategy works, and Peach gets her hands on the map that shows where the Crystal Stars are located. But too many witnesses were there at the moment, so she was unable to kidnap the princess. After telling Grodus about it, he kidnaps Peach. But because the map has already been shipped to Mario, Grodus has ordered the Shadow Sirens to pursue him.
Chapter 2[]
At Boggly Woods, the Shadow Sirens are waiting for Mario and his group but Beldam misplaces the sketch of Mario, accusing Vivian of being to blame, and takes the necklace she discovered as punishment. The Sirens will not harm the player if he speaks with them. Marilyn seems to know who Mario is, but she is only allowed to utter "guh," so she cannot inform the others. When Vivian tells Beldam that she KNEW it wasn't her fault later on after he discovers the sketch, Beldam becomes angry so Mario and friends fight the witches, and when they lose, they run away, and the necklace is left behind.
Chapter 4[]
Later on, Grodus is informed by Beldam about the Superbombomb, a weapon that will undoubtedly destroy Mario. Despite his strained tolerance, he sends them on another task because he trusts her. When Beldam arrives in Twilight Town, Vivian replies that Beldam already had the lethal device when Beldam asks where it is. Beldam shouts at Vivian for being an idiot and threatens to punish her if she does not find it, while Beldam and Marilyn take "a well-earned siesta." Upon their return, they discover that Vivian has left (having joined Mario's party) so Doopliss replaces Vivian as the third Shadow Siren.
Chapter 6[]
Beldam reappears listening in on a discussion between Mario and his partners about the location of the upcoming Crystal Star. Then she appears out of the shadows, taking them by surprise. She tells them she would like to get rid of them but that she doesn't think it would be a good idea to try that on its own. Instead, she promises to beat them to Poshley Heights to seek for it. Beldam's one and only goal during Mario and company's Excess Express voyage is to prevent them from getting to Poshley Heights at whatever cost. When Grodus dispatches Lord Crump to Twilight Town to fetch the Superbombbomb, her original plan to destroy the train while they are still on board is thwarted. After a short argument between Lord Crump and Bowser, the latter decides to blast the bomb by setting it on fire. Consequently, Beldam is forced to devise an alternative plan.
Beldam somehow learns that combining gold and seashells with Nitro Honey Syrup results in a sticky explosion that can gooify the entire train and render all of the passengers immobile. In order to prevent suspicion, she has Doopliss board the train dressed as well-known actor Zip Toad. The Businessman's briefcase, which holds crucial documents, Toodles' gold ring, and the Toad Waitress' shell earrings are then taken by Doopliss. Before the scheme can be carried out though, Mario, his allies, and fellow "detective" Pennington locate Doopliss; they recover the stolen goods and return them to their proper owners. "Zip Toad" returns to his true form after the train stops at Riverside Station and takes off. Mario is then informed by a Toad that a "suspicious shadowy person wearing a hat" —possibly Beldam— went into the terminal station and turned the switch. Furthermore, there are some tiny Smorgs left there as well. However, it is never made clear if they were formally associated with the Secret Society of X-Nauts, the Shadow Sirens, or both. As Mario and his companions reach Poshley Sanctum with Pennington, they discover Beldam, Marilyn, and Doopliss have taken the Crystal Star but, as soon as they are gone, Pennington informs Mario and his companions that the "Crystal Star" they had taken was a copy and that the real one is someplace, skilfully, hidden within the sanctum.
Chapter 8[]
Even though Grodus and the Shadow Sirens have already lost six of the Crystal Stars to Mario and his companions, they come up with a strategy during the events of Chapters 7 and 8 to successfully open the Thousand-Year Door. Lord Crump is placed in charge of securing both the base and the Crystal Star that they discovered in Rogueport earlier in the game by Grodus. Grodus had intended for Mario and friends to defeat him in order to get the Crystal Star and let them through the Thousand-Year Door. He believes that the conclusion will remain the same whether Lord Crump is successful in eliminating Mario and his allies or not. Beldam (or Grodus) has Doopliss pose as Professor Frankly in order to fool Mario and company into opening the door after the professor was kidnapped and placed away in a closet. "Professor Frankly" informed the heroes that Grodus managed to enter the Palace of Shadow with Peach after finding a means to unlock the door without using the Crystal Stars. Once Mario and the others pass through the door, Grodus and the Shadow Sirens silently follow. In the meantime, Beldam and the Shadow Sirens wait for Mario and company in the "outside" area of the Palace of Shadow, and inform them that the "Professor Frankly" who persuaded them to open the Thousand-Year Door was none other than Doopliss (whom Beldam refers to as "Freak-Sheet", showing him almost as much disrespect as she did toward Vivian). Grodus is able to reach the palace's throne room after Gloomtail is defeated, as it is impossible to advance through the palace without the Star Key). The Shadow Sirens face off against Mario and his allies once more, but are ultimately defeated.
Later, when Grodus is defeated by Mario and his allies along with Bowser and Kammy Koopa in a fight against them following Grodus' defeat, Grodus kidnaps Peach and makes his way to the Shadow Queen's final resting place. Grodus, announcing himself as the new global ruler, releases the Shadow Queen, whose very existence casts the entire planet into darkness. The Shadow Queen is then given Peach by Grodus as a vessel for her spirit. Grodus tells Peach to murder Mario and company after the Shadow Queen takes control of her, but she defies him and blows him to bits, declaring that she obeys no one. Following Grodus' second blow to the skull, Beldam, Marilyn, and Doopliss emerge. Beldam then informs the Shadow Queen that she is the real mastermind behind everything, having planned every event that took place in the game, including fooling Grodus, distributing the word about the fictitious riches, and locating a virgin for the Shadow Queen to live in. After applauding Beldam and the Shadow Sirens for their efforts, the Shadow Queen offers an invitation for Mario and company to join her. When Mario and the group refuses, they fight the Shadow Queen and vanquish her in the end thanks to Peach, the seven Crystal Stars, and the desires of all of their friends. After that, Peach returns to her usual self, and Beldam, Marilyn, and Doopliss retreat.
The Shadow Sirens reform at the end of the game, and they make amends with Vivian.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Each Shadow Siren's hat color references to one of their attacks. Beldam's hat is blue, and in the second encounter against the Shadow Sirens, she uses a blizzard attack to freeze Mario and his partner.
- Since the remake includes dialogue of Vivian being teased as a transgender woman, alongside her admitting that Beldam's treatment over her feels "heavier" because of it, many have gone on to accuse Beldam of being transphobic.
External Links[]
- Beldam on the Mario Wiki
- Beldam on the Super Mario
- Beldam on the Paper Mario Wiki
- Beldam on the Nintendo Wiki
