(Edited for grammar and spelling) Thanks for adding this to top g1 posts! Yes, we all know of Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, Peach, Bowser and Toad, but the basic enemies of the various games are what hold the game up from start to finish, and are a strong contribution to the levels. Even in the assorted sub-franchises, they play a huge part. So, here are my 5 favorite generic enemies that just hold a place in my heart as the unsung staples of the franchise, whom if it wasn't for their appearance, the games wouldn't be the same. #5: THIS FRICKIN FISH! URG!!!! Cheep Cheeps are among the more annoying enemies in the series. Cheep Cheeps most commonly are found in the water levels, and jump out right at the worst time and fish-slap you out of a power up. They play a part in making Mario water levels the most dreaded thing in all of Mario. Normally, they can be killed with ease, but when you’re underwater, you better have a third-stage power-up or it's invincible. Aside from their regular incarnation, in some games, they have a giant form that can swallow you in one gulp, defying your standard Mario rules and killing you in one shot. You know you got a cheap enemy when it can kill you regardless of whatever power-up you have. Luckily, these are rare, and if I recall correctly, they are only in Super Mario 3 and Super Mario 64. The ones in Mario 3 can be killed with a fireball, whilst the one in Mario 64 is in only 1 place. One other noteworthy appearance outside of the standard Mario games is in Paper Mario for the Nintendo 64, you get a cheep cheep partner named Sushie. While it is ridiculous having a fish partner on land who's main attack and form of movement consists of flopping like a...fish, sushie is arguably the best and one of the most diverse party members you get in the game. #4: Chain Chomps are one of the strongest generic enemies as well as one of the funniest and one of the dumbest. A giant ball with a mouth that can lunge at you with great speed, chain chomps have on numerous occasions gotten the better of me. Luckily, they are bound by a chain, making their attack radius small, and it's usually predictable when they are going to attack you. They are among the strongest enemies, simply because they cannot be killed by conventional means in many circumstances. Sometimes you can merely jump on them, others they aren't so easy. They appear as a nuisance in other sub-franchises, almost always out there to screw something up (Mario party mini games, sports game background, where they often get in the way or even attack you while you're trying to play a game of baseball). In Mario RPGs, they often have some of the highest defense out of generic enemies. They even appear once in awhile in Mario Kart games, such as Double Dash (and again in DS), blocking off a pathway and hurting you in the process. It also is involved in 2 stars for Mario 64, one being the guard of a red coin and another being the guard of a star. This thing is a *****. It has two other incarnations I know of. 1: There are puppy versions of it that appear in Mario Sunshine, going on a pyromaniac rampage. 2: In Paper Mario 2, there are red ones, which are considerably less challenging than normal chomps. C'mere, doggy doggy...see it likes me-YEEEEEOOOOOWCH!! )!&#%%)&@($*!!!!!!!!! #3: Most infamous for being the plant of nightmares, this mindless, eyeless enemy likes to hide in pipes and burst out when you least expect it...although they never go up when you're on the pipe, which is stupid. They are among the most timeless of Mario baddies, doing the same thing they've done for over 20 years on like every platform game ever. Normally, they are limited to the pipes, but sometimes, they are only limited to the ground. What makes even less sense is in some games, these guys spit fireballs. Next thing you know, koopas are going to literally **** bricks. In Mario and Luigi Superstar Sega, a few even get thunder balls! The piranha plant has an entire family too. They have: The putrid piranha (a tough enemy in paper Mario), Mother Piranha (In Superstar Saga), and most notably, Petey Piranha. Petey is a gigantic flower-shaped beast with giant fangs, leafs for arms and the worst case of food poisoning ever. His main attacks (in Sunshine) consist of vomiting toxic acid on you. Not only that, HE CAN FLY! So, let’s add that up. We got plants that can: Bite, Spit Fire, Spit Electricity, Poison, Vomit and FLY! As a side note: There is a plush made for Petey. I own it, it's awesome. #2: Although he didn't officially start as part of Mario (depends on your opinion of Doki Doki Panic), Shy Guys have been a part of the Mario franchise since Mario 2, and officially since Yoshi's island, essentially acting as the goomba archetype for subsequent Yoshi games. Sure, he isn't as strong or physically versatile as the others on this list, but shy guy is just awesome on his own. They provide comic relief to many situations. Shy Guys are for the most part independent. They are minions, but they don't have any one true boss in particular. Their primary goal is to meddle with things for their own amusement. They are also one of the most common and likeable baddies, and are playable in numerous sports games. They have variations such as ghosts, headhunters, spies, medics, etc. although none are truly serious, and are either just generic baddies or common thieves. So, who is Number 1? Well, just scroll down some and find out for yourself! #1: ...Just messin' with ya. REAL #1: BOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!...Ya, I’m not scared either, but this guy is just funny. Quite frankly, I just find boo to be quite likeable, even if their intent is to be scary. Boo's are quite cowardly and only attack when you aren't looking at them, but in most normal circumstances, they are either invincible or annoyingly difficult. They can go translucent, so even in situations where you can attack them, they got to be jerks. They can even make others around them vanish. There are also big/atomic boos, which are giant, and king boo, who is the main antagonist of Luigi's mansion, who's entire job is scaring him ****less. Put simply, I just think boo is awesome. The baddies are one of the least appreciated things about Mario Games, but really, they are one of the main things that make the Mario franchise so awesome.