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“ | Not too shabby, Gonzales! You got showmanship, and that's GOLD in this biz! But this here battle's just gettin' started! It's time I showed you some real moves! Back in the day, I had so many rump–kickin' moves, they had to make some illegal! | „ |
~ Grubba during his fight with Mario. |
“ | Bein' rich an' famous is diggety-dang DYNAMITE! | „ |
~ Grubba |
“ | MAAAAAAAACHO GRUBBA! | „ |
~ Grubba after transforming. |
Grubba, also known as Macho Grubba, is a major antagonist in the 2004 video game Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door and its 2024 remake of the same name, serving as the main antagonist of Chapter 3 and the overarching antagonist of the Glitzville Sequel sidequest. He is the archenemy of his secretary, Jolene.
Appearance[]
Grubba is a blue Spike with a purple shell, orange hair, and a white underbelly. He typically wears a black dress vest with a green dress shirt and red bow tie. He also wears a wide-brim black business hat with sunglasses as accessories.
As Macho Grubba, he becomes bigger and more muscular. His skin changes to an orange color, and his hair becomes spiky. His shell also gains some spikes. He retains his sunglasses, dress vest, and bow tie.
Personality[]
Grubba initially has the personality of a typical businessman. He is charismatic and loves to exaggerate things so he can get opportunities to expand his business (Mainly persuading fighters to join the Glitz Pit). Although he proves unscrupulous to say the least for many reasons, Grubba also loves when his fighters do very well, even congratulating them and giving them bonuses for hard work.
Grubba also seems to care a lot about manners as he constantly nags people who don't knock on the door unless they are new to the Glitz Pit, usually in the case of a new fighter (though after learning what he's really up to later on, in retrospect, this is likely because he doesn't want someone to happen to walk in on him when he's doing or saying anything suspicious related to his true motives).
Grubba's true nature is quite different, though. He seems to have no regard for others as long as he gets his own way. As such, he seems to believe he can do whatever he wants as long as he remains inconspicuous to his victims and/or witnesses. He is also cunning and tends to scheme when he is all alone, having no problem admitting his evil intentions and actions when alone out loud, though this allows him to be eavesdropped on more easily. Despite his adverse motives and selfishness, Grubba does seem to maintain his sense of honor at least in fighting. He often compliments Mario on his skill even on the ropes and congratulates him on putting up such a good fight despite defeating him. Even with his plans now foiled, Grubba maintains the humanity to admit gently to Jolene what happened to her brother before his reappearance, sincerely not wanting her to be any more heartbroken in her state.
Biography[]
Past[]
Not much is known of Grubba's past, but he claims to have lived in poverty most of his life before training to become a fighter. When he got too old to fight, he ended up becoming the host of the Glitz Pit. He claims that at one point certain moves he used had to be made illegal.
Chapter 3[]
Grubba is first seen hosting a fight between Rawk Hawk and the Koopinator, with Mario watching the fight in the background. When Mario realizes that the Champion's Belt Rawk Hawk is wearing looks like a Crystal Star, he decides to meet Grubba and get himself signed up to the Glitz Pit so he can win the belt.
As time goes on, Mario ranks up in the Glitz Pit and forms a bond with both Grubba and some of the other fighters at the Glitz Pit. However, Mario eventually discovers that the Crystal Star on the Champion's Belt is a fake, he also gets threatening mail sent to him. At one point, two fighters, Bandy Andy and King K, go missing. Mario finds them with their energy drained and left for dead with help from a different mysterious mail sender called X.
Eventually, after winning the Champion's Belt, Mario is told by X to sneak into Grubba's office, where he and his partner find a piece of paper which indicates that he secretly has an energy draining machine hidden underneath the Glitz Pit stage, which he had used on Bandy Andy, King K and Prince Mush, the former champion who is also the brother of Grubba's assistant Jolene. When Grubba finds this out, he flees to the stage and reveals that he used the real Crystal Star to power the machine. He uses it to give himself power, transforming himself into Macho Grubba, and fights Mario, though ultimately losing in the process.
After Mario and his partner defeat Grubba, Jolene appears and reveals that she was X all along. Prince Mush and Grubba's other victims are revived shortly afterwards. To prevent a similar situation from happening again, Jolene gives Mario the Crystal Star and takes over the Glitz Pit. What happens to Grubba next is unknown, but it is possible that he died as a result of the battle, as he is never seen again and the only mention of him is Jolene saying he's "out of the picture".
Relationships[]
Neutral[]
Enemies[]
- Mario
- Goombella
- Koops
- Flurrie
- Mini Yoshi
- Jolene
- Prince Mush
- King K
- Bandy Andy
Gallery[]
Images[]
Videos[]
Trivia[]
- He interestingly has a similar backstory to Prince Mush, the first wrestler he stole life energy from. Both started out as poor, but after becoming big in the wrestling industry, they started becoming famous and rich. However, while Mush never got greedy and started supporting his family, Grubba got greedy instantly and started draining and stealing the life energy of other fighters, because he wanted to become immortal.
- Grubba's true nature is somewhat foreshadowed when he is seen peeking in his drawers before Jolene barges into his office. He responds by telling her off for not knocking.
- Grubba is the only chapter boss in the game, aside from Cortez, that is not affiliated with either Sir Grodus or the Shadow Queen. What's more, he was the only one to use the Crystal Star he had for his own gain.
- Although Grubba cannot be directly approached in Free Roam by any means, Goombella nonetheless does have unused tattle dialogue for him.
External Links[]
- Grubba on the Mario Wiki
- Grubba on the Super Mario Wiki
- Grubba on the Paper Mario Wiki
- Grubba on the Nintendo Wiki