Tabuu

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

File:Brawl Taboo1.jpg

Tabuu in this standard form.

Tabuu is the final boss in the Subspace Emissary mode of Super Smash Bros. Brawl and resembles a human, however appears transparent and has a strange object inside of him. He was born in a very foreign area and is the creator and ruler of the land of Subspace and its' army. A demonic spirit seeking for pure power and control, Tabuu is the true villain behind all the events that took place in the Subspace Emissary plot.

Biography

Before the events of the game, Tabuu simply appeared from seemingly nowhere and attacked the floating island of the ancients, murdering all but one ancient minister. The minister and the R.O.B.s were forced to surrender their island and free will to Tabuu. Tabuu took complete control of the island and converted it into a base of operations. The R.O.B.s were forced to become slaves under the threat of annihilation and became bitter at the world. Tabuu's main goal however was to seize complete control over the entire Smash World and use it for his own means. Eventually, Tabuu learned that Mr. Game and Watch was comprised of shadow bugs and captured him to harness this power for his own nefarious desires. Taking control of Game and Watch, Tabuu used the shadow bugs to form the dimension of subspace and form the subspace army. Not content with simply ruling the Subspace dimension, Tabuu made plans to take control of the entire world and combine it with Subspace to create a world of his own with him controlling the heroes and their battles. He somehow defeated the Master Hand and with strings of light managed to control the godly being as a literal puppet. Through the guise of Master Hand, Tabuu gained servants in the form of Ganondorf, Bowser, Wario, and several other Nintendo villains and used them to attack the Smash World and perform his will.

The villains all served Master Hand out of respect, a thirst for power, and a taste of revenge against their respective enemies. The floating island then became the site for the construction of a base of operations and bomb factory. The base would become the place where the villain’s affairs were directed from while the bomb factory would be where hundreds of subspace bombs were manufactured. Tabuu had infused the bombs with Subspace so that the dimension would appear when they are detonated. The Subspace Bomb was designed to pull an area of the Smash World into Subspace so Tabuu may use it to build up his Great Maze and increase his own power. It seemed that Tabuu wanted to increase his power to go on to other worlds, conquer them as well, and build up his own world and dimension. Along with the Subspace bomb, the Subspace Cannon was also created in the factory. These devices were made to turn others into trophies. Tabuu gave them to the other villains and planned to have them capture the heroes so that he may control their powers and battles when the Smash World is conquered and combined with Subspace.

Tabuu preyed upon the depression of the Ancient Minister and blackmailed him by holding his people hostage to lead the Subspace Army and be the dispatcher of the subspace bombs. The Ancient Minister agreed, half because he was angry and bitter at the world and half because he was threatened. Tabuu had Pikachu captured and placed in a torture device in order to harness his electrical energy to power the base. At the possible suggestion of Ridley, the main villain in the Metroid series, the army also stole Samus's suit and used it in cloning experiments at the base to not only expand the army, but also destroy a possible enemy to the army. Ridley was left at the base to destroy Samus in the event she comes for her suit, which is what Ridley was hoping for.

With his people held hostage, the Ancient Minister was forced to plant Subspace Bombs across the Smash World which would cost the lives of two R.O.B.s, a sacrifice required to set the bomb off. He was also being used as a scapegoat to distract the heroes from Tabuu and the rest of the villain's true plans. Leading the invasion, The Ancient Minister attacked the Smash World and took over the Halberd from Meta Knight and rigged it with subspace bugs. Left in the control of numerous Mr. Game and Watches, the vessel would be used as the forefront of the invasion force. Ganondorf was left to lead the operations in the floating island base and bomb factory, gave orders to Bowser and Wario, and took orders from Master Hand and ultimately Tabuu. Bowser and Wario were given Dark Cannons to capture the heroes so that their power may become Tabuus'. Construction had began on the subspace Gunship, a flying fortress rigged with a giant Dark Cannon capable of trapping entire areas in Subspace. Once it is completed, Tabuu needs for a humongous portal to be opened in order to transport the vessel from Subspace and into the Smash World.

The invasion started at the Midair stadium where Mario and Kirby were fighting with Peach and Zelda watching along with many fans. The Halberd apppeared after their battle and unleashed the shadow bugs which combined to form the army. After Mario and crew defeated them all, the Ancient Minister dispatched a subspace bomb, Mario is shot into the sky, and Petey Piranha put Peach and Zelda into cages. Though Kirby destroyed Petey and released the princesses, Wario appeared under orders to capture them. Wario turned one of the princesses into a trophy and escaped as the stadium was sucked into subspace, making it the first location to be destroyed. The subspace army continued to spread across the world as more and more areas fell victim to the subspace. Bowser was given orders to embark on a scheme to capture the Kongs. Armed with a cannon, Bowser ordered his army to steal Donkey Kong's banana hold in order to draw the Kongs out. The plan worked well and Donkey Kong was turned into a trophy and captured. Bowser attempted to do the same to Diddy and Star Fox, even employing a clone of himself to aid, but they both managed to escape.

Bowser continued to perform Ganondorf's will and captured either Peach or Zelda, turned her into a trophy, and even made an evil clone of her to aid the army. Wario in the meantime captured Ness in a ruined zoo, one of the many areas devastated by the subspace army, with the help of Porky. Eventually though, Wario lost two of his trophies to King Dedede. Tabuu ordered Ganondorf to track down the stolen trophies and throw the location they that are found in into subspace. Ganondorf and Bowser did as they were told, turned King Dedede into a trophy, recaptured the princess's trophy, and threw King Dedede's castle into subspace. The army continued their plans and threw numerous other locations into subspace, even forming tanks to self-distruct to form subspace and throw the heroes off guard.

As the story progressed, the Ancient Minister felt increasingly bad about what was happening as more and more of his friends were being killed for Tabuu's warped ambitions. Knowing what fate awaited him and the remainder of his people if they refused to cooperate, the minister had no choice but to serve those who ruined his life. While many complications rose in Tabuu's plans with King Debede interfering along with the heroes, his main objective was going exactly as planned. The construction of the Gunship was almost complete and Tabuu's sucess seemed assured at its' completion.

The heroes however were quickly showing their true potential and skills as Wario was defeated and turned into a trophy, Samus regained her suit and defeated Ridley, the Halberd was regained control of, Game and Watch converted sides, and all those who had be turned into trophies were returned to their original states with the exception of Wario, Luigi, Ness, and King Dedede. The villains saw all this as a minor annoyance as much of the world was already under their control and once the Gunship was prepared, the world would be at their mercy. Once the Gunship was prepared, Tabuu in the guise of Master Hand ordered Ganondorf to command all the remaining R.O.B.s to detonate all the subspace bombs and blow up the island in order to form a big enough portal for the Gunship to travel through. The plan was a success, despite the fact that the Ancient Minster finally rebelled after losing so many friends and joined the heroes.

The Gunship entered into the Smash World and immediately fired the cannon and sent an area into subspace. Ganondorf and Bowser were controlling the vessel and spotted the Halberd. Realizing that the heroes have taken it back from them, Ganondorf ordered the Gunship to destroy it. The Halberd exploded, but the heroes charged at the Gunhsip, distracting Ganondorf and Bowser. The distraction was used so that Kirby may fly straight through the cannon of the ship and destroy it. The plan worked perfectly and the explosion at the cannon base started a chain reaction that destroys the whole ship. Ganondorf and Bowser were angered, but calmly walked back into Subspace, escaping the heroes once more. All the heroes followed them and prepared for the final showdown in the dimension that started it all, Subspace.

Final Showdown and Destruction

Suffering a humiliating defeat, Ganondorf and Bowser enter Subspace to seek out the Master Hand whom they have been trying to please. In an attempt to steal all of Master Hand's praise and mercy, Ganondorf betrays Bowser and turns him into a trophy before approaching the Master Hand and bowing before him. Tabuu then reveals himself and the strings of light he had been using to control the Master Hand and Ganondorf, enraged, tries to free Master Hand and defeat Tabuu. Tabuu easily overwhelms Ganondorf and turns him into a trophy with a single attack and Ganondorf falls back on Master Hand and severs Tabuu's strings of light thus freeing Master Hand. Master Hand, in a weakend state, then attempts to attack Tabuu however Tabuu reflected his attack and Master Hand flew back and hit the ground. As Master Hand is not a trophy he simply layed there, mangled and unconcious.

File:Brawl Taboo2.jpg

Tabuu after getting his wings.

The heroes arrive and they turn to see Tabuu who spreads his etheral wings and releases a pulse of energy which instantly returns every fighter to their trophy form. Tabuu then uses the energy of all the lands sent to Subspace to create his own world known as The Great Maze. Luigi, King Dedede and Ness soon arrive in Subspace and, along with Kirby who is revived by one of Dedede's badges, return all the heroes back to life. The characters, heroes and villains, are forced to travel through Tabuu's maze in order to reach him for a rematch.

As they all arrive Tabuu once again spreads his wings and is ready to attack the heroes when Sonic the Hedgehog appears from seemingly nowhere and attacks Tabuu, shattering his wings. All the characters, now including Sonic the Hedgehog, face Tabuu for the Final Battle. Tabuu proves to be no match for the collective might of all the fighters and is destroyed; his grip on the worlds taken into subspace is lost and they return to the Smash World along with all the characters. Heroes and villains as allies now watch the setting sun, reveling in their accomplishment as the Tabuu cast on their world is corrected.

During the battle, Tabuu can teleport to one place to another and he can grow to a very enormous size and shoot lasers out of his eye. He can bring a gun, looking similar to the Dark Cannon into the fight and shoot a large laser at the player. Tabuu can transform into a strange type of a frame that can trap players in and then slam them into the ground. Tabuu also has the same electric strings he used with Master Hand and attach them to the player and swing the string around and then toss the player. He has a powerful attack, his winged form, that can immediatly knock out a player, no matter what the damage is. The player must be well out of the radius of attack, to not be KO'd.

Character Depiction

While his presence is not known until the end of the game, Tabuu's actions were responsible for all the chaos sweeping in the Smash World. While next to nothing is known about his past, Tabuu is shown to be an infinite and demonic spirit who cares for nothing but power. Hiding within the dark realms of Subspace, Tabuu manipulated numerous villains in his pursuit of power. Tabuu however has no concern or regard for them in the slightest, only using them until their usefulness’ has run its' course. Ganondorf and Master Hand, who may have even been killed, were both dispatched when their use was over.

Seeing the world as pathetic and unacceptable by his standards, Tabuu plans to merge it with his own dimension to create a brand new world under his complete control. As previously mentioned, Tabuu has manipulated others for his goals and will even resort to mass murder, as evident with the Ancient Ministers, to insure his own benefit and success. He is also shown to manipulate the depression of others to control the beings themselves. The Ancient Minister is a perfect example of such a manipulation, having many of his friends and family murdered by Tabuu and the rest held hostage to be used as collateral to insure the minister will cooperate. This hints that Tabuu has no true emotions, sees them as weaknesses, and will use it against his victims.

Tabuu has shown to be extremely intelligent, making complicated plans and able to manipulate others while never making his presence known until the appropriate moment. He seems to also be very technologically advanced, having created doomsday devices such as the Subspace Gunship, bomb, and cannon as well as creating a bomb factory and base. His trophy also states that he is a master of operations and has great leadership skills, shown by the mass amounts of villains he was able to rally for his cause. Other than what is shown in the story and in the trophy information, Tabuu is a complete mystery. His past is shrouded in darkness and his very species, other than a spirit of sorts, is unknown as well.

Trophy Information

Tabuu

The ruler of Subspace and master of operations. Tabuu controls Master Hand with chains of light to excise this world and build up his great maze. He used Shadow Bugs to form Subspace and manipulates the servants of Master Hand to his heart's content. Born in a vastly foreign realm, he also possesses great leadership powers. Tabuu... No name is more suitable.

Winged Tabuu

Tabuu with wings extended. The dreadful energy surges cast from these wings instantly turn all fighters back into trophies. Knowing this, King Dedede assembles all able-bodied troops and sets a timed device on each of them. This device is a brooch that, after the designated time runs out, revives all fighters wiped out by Tabuu.