Bowser Jr.

Bowser Jr. is a secondary antagonist in Nintendo's Mario franchise. He is, as his name implies, the son of Bowser, and serves as the heir to his throne. Bowser Jr. made his debut in Super Mario Sunshine, and has since helped his father to kidnap Princess Peach and battle Mario and Luigi in many subsequent games. Bowser Jr. has also taken on playable roles in spin-off titles such as Mario Superstar Baseball and Mario Strikers Charged. Bowser Jr. wants nothing more than to do his father's evil will, and Bowser's rarely seen emotional side is often brought out by his interactions with his son. His alter ego is Shadow Mario. Bowser Jr.'s defining traits are his striking resemblance to his father, hyperactive and spoiled personality, expertise in mechanics, heavy uses of the Junior Clown Car and the Magic Paintbrush, and the bib-like bandana he wears.

Bowser
Bowser Jr. idolizes his father and strives to be like him. In Mario Party: Island Tour, Bowser Jr. challenged Bowser in Bowser's Tower, and in Mario Strikers Charged, he challenges his father in one of the Striker Challenges, but aside from these instances of father-son rivalry, the two have been shown to share a close bond, appearing as partners in various sports and spin-off titles, and Bowser Jr. aids his father in many of his plots. While he cares for his son, Bowser's selfishness and single-minded determination to defeat Mario occasionally leads him to treat Bowser Jr. like a minion, and when he's wrapped up in one of his plans he has a tendency not to listen to what his son has to say. In the Nintendo Switch Online service trailer in the September 13 Nintendo Direct, during the NES portion, Bowser Jr. attempts to have his father let him play his NES game with him, though Bowser was too busy playing Ghosts 'n Goblins to notice, causing Bowser Jr. to initially walk away dejected, though after Bowser noticed this, feeling guilty, he then provides his son with an extra Joy-Con so they could play Ice Climbers together. As revealed in his Super Smash Bros. Brawl trophy, Bowser Jr. was also motivated to kidnap Princess Peach by his own affection for her, and in Mario Superstar Baseball, he continues to call her "mama", suggesting he wishes she really was his mother. In the Nintendo Switch online service trailer in the September 13 Nintendo Direct, during the NES portion showing online gameplay, Bowser Jr. and Princess Peach were shown playing against each other remotely and having a fun time, with Bowser when witnessing this looking baffled. His actual mother has not been revealed, although Shigeru Miyamoto once jokingly claimed he was the mother. Although genuinely loyal to his father, he is not above pranking Bowser, which is implied by Bowser, or rather, Dry Bowser accusing him of his transformation into such being another of Bowser Jr.'s pranks on him, although Bowser Jr. denied it, and reminded him that, if anything, he tried to warn his father against ingesting the entire Skeletone container beforehand.