Tuesday, July 29, 2025

Personal Nostalgia - Saturday Morning Shows

Saturday Morning Cartoons were a great part of my life. I watched SatAM Cartoons all of the time,I rarely missed my dose of Saturday AM goodness and if I did happen to miss it,my uncle always managed to tape some of the shows (mostly from the cbs block).

Anyway,when I was young(sounding like an old man here,lol!) There were initially 3 SatAM blocks to choose from. Each of the 3 big networks carried a fun block. Though,back then,I was avid NBC and CBS SatAM watcher...back when they had Real Saturday Morning blocks. I kinda ignored ABC for the most part. And when Fox started their block,I kinda ignored for the most part as well.

Some of the shows I watched on CBS were: Garfield and Friends(still love this show),Fat Albert(hey!hey!hey!), Cadillacs and Dinosaurs (a few times),Wild C.A.T.S.(watched a few times as well),Muppet Babies(used to love this one),Where's Waldo(a fun show),CBS Storybreak(didn't get into this much),Aladdin(fun show),The Little Mermaid(sometimes),and of course Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (best show on the block! cowabunga!).

I also watched Beakman's World,Pee Wee's Playhouse,and Hey Vern! It's Earnest! Of course,these 3 weren't cartoons,but they were still entertaining nonetheless.

For NBC,I remember watching: Alvin and the Chipmunks (decent show still),Pro-Stars(only 4 times,though i re-watched it when it began running on abc family when it was the family channel),Camp Candy(corny but enjoyable. r.i.p. john candy),The Adventures of Super Mario 3(still a favorite to this day),The New Super Mario World (entertaining,but a downgrade from the other mario cartoons),Ed Grimley(watched this a handful of times),Mr.T (i pitty da foo'),and of course Captain N (decent show that I thought was awesome.).

I also watched some non-animated stuff like Saved By The Bell,Hang Time,and California Dreams. They were fun to watch..and they still are.

In 1992,when NBC ditched their animated shows(though in their defense,some of the live-action stuff was pretty decent). I started paying more attention to Fox and ABC. CBS started airing Disney Cartoons,Fox Kids was starting to gain popularity,and ABC was starting getting good. They too started airing Disney Cartoons...as well as the Hannah-Barbera and Looney Toons stuff,which they have been doing since the beginning.

Anyway,ABC got even better a year later with the debut of an awesome batch of cartoons. Cartoons such as: Sonic The Hedgehog: The Animated Series (aka Sonic SatAM. this show got me heavely into abc's block),Tales from the Crypt Keeper(a lighthearted version of the semi-hit horror series),Bump in the Night(a weird,but entertaining show),Cro(the dude who played doogie houser's best friend voiced the title character),and of course Reboot(a show with a pretty cool concept).

And Yes,I watched them All. I even watched School House Rock when It was on.

The Fox Kids SatAM block wasn't lacking in entertainment either in 1992. They had: Batman:The Animated Series(aka the greatest batman tv show ever),Tiny Toon Adventures(amusing show),Beetlejuice(funny show,too bad the voices sucked),Tom and Jerry's Kid's(a decent show that i used to watch quite a bit),Bobby's World(a fun show),and Eek The Kat (one of the few canadian-american collab shows i liked).

I watched Fox and ABC religiously.In fact,because of this I found myself watching CBS and NBC even less. I stopped watching both in 1994. But could you blame me,ABC and Fox were awesome.

In 1994,Fox Kids got even better with shows such as: X-Men(never cared much for this show back then,though i do now),Spider-Man(loved this show),The 2nd season of Power Rangers(not live action,but still something i watched),and The Tick (spooon!)

Yup in 1994,Fox Kids became the Kings of Saturday Mornings. However their dominance would be challenged one year later by the mostly awesome KidsWB. Even though '94 was the year of Fox kids,ABC still had some cool shows up it's SatAM sleeve. Besides newer seasons of their cool shows,we also had C.O.W. Boys of Moo Mesa.

So in 1994,Fox was my main sourc for SatAM Entertainment..though i often times flipped the channel to ABC if Fox was airing an episode of a show that I didn't care for.

Well in 1995,when KidsWB debut,I had completely forgotten about NBC and CBS and often times ignored ABC. My focus was soly on Fox Kids and KidsWB. Kids WB's shows,for the most part,aired nothing but awesome cartoons made by Warner Brothers.

Both blocks had been an important part of my youth,though I watched Fox Kids more and when ABC's Block became 'One Saturday Morning',I watched that a lot as well. This block aired mostly Disney Cartoons. Some of the cool shows this block had were: Pepper Ann(one of my faves),Disney's Doug(good,but nick's version was a bit better),Recess(fun show),Mighty Ducks(ducks rock!),Quack Pack(90's version of ducktales),Fillmore(a decent show about high school kids that are detectives),The Weekenders(another really fun show),Mickey's Mouse Works(a fun show that brought mickey and co into the 90's.),House of Mouse(love the fact that all of the disney toons interact with one another),and Squigglevision(one of the few non-disney shows. it was a funny show).

OSM also had some live action segments like Manny The Uncanny. They also had this weird-ass segment called Mrs. Munger's Class. It had talking yearbook pictures..weird.

On a side note,after the SatAM goodness was done,I stay tuned to(or went back to)Fox for WWE Superstars. What Joyus Times.

Anyway,As years past,Saturday Morning entertainment went from Great to Mediocre. And it all started when 4Kids Entertainment Entered the Picture. During that time ABC's block was getting bad and the KidsWB block was getting mediocre. Though,it Did become my New primary source for SatAM Entertainment. And just for kicks,I tuned into the Fox Box (4kids block) to see what was going on.

In 2003,I started to watch the Fox Box more mainly because most of the new shows (new at that time)on KidsWB were kinda bad. Plus Fox Box was airing Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2k3.

Oh,and I Only tuned in to ABC for Power Rangers and Kim Possible,but that's all. Anyway,throughout 2004,I was alternating between Fox Box and Kids WB. Later on in the year,Fox Box became 4Kids TV and things started getting bad...so bad that i went back to KidsWB. Only a small handful of shows were watchable on the 4Kids block. Thankfully,KidsWB was getting a little better...not that much though.

In 2005,Everything got worse. KidsWB started airing,and soon favoring,Canadian crap. ABC Kids(abc's block) was also getting worse and soon the Only good show was Power Rangers. Plus,4Kids' Mediocrity seemed everlasting. It wasn't long until Saturday Mornings Died.

However,things were going fine for ABC Family. They kept me entertained until the "Kids" block was canned back in 2006. A shame I didn't pay much attention to this block in it's early years...at least the SatAM edition of it. :(

Anyway,rewinding a bit to 1999 and Toonami:The Rising Sun. I rarely watched it,as the programing was just the Toonami line-up rearranged and put on Saturday Mornings.The block didn't last long.

Also,The USA Network had a Weekend Block called 'Action Xtreme Team',but I only watched it on Sundays. I'll talk about it another time.

In 2008,Beakmen's World would air after that awful 4KidsTV Block. Sadly it was canned almost a year later. When KidsWB became CW 4Kids very few shows were good. Spectacular Spider-Man,Yu-Gi-Oh!,and Kamen Rider Dragon Knight were the Only shows worth watching.

After watching Kamen Rider Dragon Knight,I tuned into ABC for Power Rangers RPM (the final official disney power rangers series).

In 2009,I only watched the Yu-Gi-Oh! Animes and that's all...that and Turtles Forever. Sadly,Kamen Rider Dragon Night was canned (before the final 2 episodes..baka 4kids)and Spectacular-Spider Man was nowhere to be seen.

In 2010/2011, I only watched CW 4Kids (then known as toonzai) for the Yu-Gi-Oh! shows,but that's it. I soon  payed no attention to the God Awfulness that was Toonzai.

Oh,and ABC's block had gotten Way Worse. In 2012, It's became a small block of Educational Shows for Babies. Ugh! Also 2012, Saban would take over Toonzai and rename it to Vortexx, that sucked too (i'll talk more about this another time).

I'd be lying to you if I said I didn't miss my Saturday Morning Programming(especially the cartoons). Unfortunately,4Krap's Ambitions and Saban's Stupidity completely obliterated what little life traditional Saturday Morning TV had. 

As for ABC,NBC,CBS,Fox,and The WB (know known as the CW): I'll never forget the great things you gave to,not only me,but Millions of Americans. Before you went to hell,you guys were the Masters of Saturday Morning Entertainment! Thanks for the fond memories!

Well that just about wraps it up for this edition of Personal Nostalgia. Tell me what you all think? And if you want you can share your own SatAM Memories. Like to here them.

Until next time, Punch a Nazi, Kick a Commie, Resist Modern Attitudes, and Stay Gold.   

Monday, July 28, 2025

Master List - Every NES Game I've Played

In the premier episode of Master List, I'm gonna repost a List that I had on my older blog. So, today, I''m gonna be listing Every NES game I ever played.

This list will be comprised of games that physically own,followed by the ones I had on emulation.

Now,let's get to it.

The Nintendo Entertainment System: The NES was my 2nd Game System (with the Atari 2600 being the first). I actually owned 2. The first one,which I got in '86,broke,so in 1989,I got a new one (which was a hand-me down). Anyway,I used to have a lot of fun playing this thing with my friends cousins,and even my sister. Today,My NES is in semi-working condition. You can thank the original design for that.

Super Mario Bros/Duck Hunt: This game was a pack-in with My first NES. I played both games a lot. I especially loved Super Mario Bros,which my Uncle Willie helped me with. Duck Hunt was also fun. Shame I can never play it again,due to the NES Zapper not working with Modern TVs. Same goes for the other Zapper game I own,Wild Gunman.

Legend of Zelda: Got this game as a 1988 Christmas Present along with Zelda II. Had a tough time with this one at first,nowadays,it's no sweat. I own the Gold Cart versions of both this game and it's sequel.

Zelda II - The Adventure of Link: Got this with Zelda 1 on XMas of '88. Played this game more than Zelda 1. Had fun music. Especially loved the Palace theme.

Super Mario Bros. 2: Got this on my B-Day in 1989. Playing this game for the first time was a fun,yet surreal experience for me. This was due to how different this game was to the original. Today,it's one of my all-time favorite games.

Wild Gunman: Got this game and a 7 others from a relative in 89. The only other Zapper Game I have,besides Duck Hunt. Had fun playing it. 

Exitebike: '89 Gift Game 2 of 7. A fun moto-racing game that I also played a lot. The course creator mode was a cool addition.

Baseball: '89 Gift Game 3 of 7. This was my first Sports game (if you don't count duck hunt). Played this game a lot too.

10-Yard Fight: '89 Gift Game 4 of 7. It's a weak football game,but still a small nostalgic trip for me.

Top Gun: '89 Gift Game 5 of 7. It's dog fightin' on the NES! "Danger Zone" not included,unfortunately.

Mach Rider: '89 Gift Game 6 of 7. Fun racing game that allows you to shoot enemy vehicles. It was Road Blasters,before Road Blasters.

Urban Champion: '89 Gift Game 7 of 7. Urban Champion is the Grand-daddy of All Fighting Games. The game is endless,so it gets boring after a while. Still,Urban Champion deserves respect for being the very first - or,at least,one of the very first - Fighting Games ever. 

Super Mario Bros. 3: Got this as a gift in 1990. My Favorite Mario Game. The movie 'The Wizard' introduced me to this game.

Marble Madness - Got this as a gift in 1990. A fun, yet somewhat challenging game where you guide a Marble though a race under a time limit. I liked this one. Especially the music.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Got this as an X-Mas gift in 1990. One of the hardest games on the NES. Got stuck on the 'Hudson River Bomb Disposal' Mission all of the time when I was young. Now I have issues with Stages 4 and 5. Never beat this game as a result. Still like this game reguardless.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II - The Arcade Game: Got this great title in 1991 on my B-Day. Used to play the Arcade version a lot as a kid,so I was all over this port. Played this with my sister a lot. 

Vegas Dream: In 1991,my Late Grandpa (god rest his soul) bought me 4 NES games. And Vegas Dream was one of them. My dad and grandpa used to love this game. I do as well.

Mike Tyson's Punch-Out: One of the 4 games in that '91 "gift set". A very fun and addicting game. Got as far as the 2nd fight against Bald Bull.

Metal Gear: The 3rd in Grandpa's '91 "Gift Set" was Metal Gear. A very tough game that paved the way for the Metal Gear Solid series. Snaaaaakkke!!!

Renagade: The 4th and final Game in Grandpa's 1991 "Set". This game was the 1st in the famous Kunio-kun franchise,just reskinned for American Audiences. 

Donkey Kong Classics: Bought this at Toys 'r' Us in 1991. Awesome game,that sadly uses the NES version of Donkey Kong. So,no Pie/Cement Factory.

Pac-Man (Tengen Cart) - Given to me as a gift by a relative (not the same one who gave me that 7-game set in '89) in 1991. This is the only Tengen Carted NES game I own. 

Super Mario Bros.: Got this as a gift in 1991. Despite owning it already.

Castlevania III - Dracula's Curse: My first Castlevania game was a 1991 X-Mas Eve Gift from my Maternal Uncle. Difficult as all hell and I still can't beat it to this day. Same goes for every Castlevania game I own or ever played.

Ninja Guiden: I would get the entire Ninja Guiden Trilogy as an X-Mas gift in 1991 (alongside a a couple of other titles). Despite the toughness,the NES Ninja Guiden Trilogy Is Vastly Superior to the 3D Games. Fact!!

Ninja Guiden II - The Dark Sword of Chaos: The best of the Trilogy. Has more to offer than the 1st game and is more fun than the 3rd.

Ninja Guiden III - The Ancient Ship of Doom: The weakest of the Trilogy,but Still Superior to the 3D Games.

Double Dragon II - The Revenge: Besides the Ninja Guiden Trilogy,I'd also get this game and Mega Man 2 for X-Mas in 1991. This is the Greatest Double Dragon Game. 

Mega Man 2: This was my gateway into the Mega Man franchise,and I've been a Mega-Fan ever since.

Battletoads: A 1992 B-Day Gift. One of the toughest games Ever!! The infamous Turbo Tunnel was my stopping point for this game. I just didn't have the patience to practice. Still don't actually. Reguardless of this,I still think Battletoads is a Worthy addition to my collection.

The Simpsons - Bart vs the Space Mutants: Bought this at Toys 'r' Us in 1992. I Love the Simpsons. So getting this game was a must for me back in the day. I enjoyed this one.

Dr. Mario: Another '92 TrU buy. A fun puzzle game with a very memorable commercial.

Mega Man 4: The next Mega Man game I got was Mega Man 4,which was on my B-Day of 1992. I would get The 1st and 3rd games soon after. 

Mega Man: Got this and Mega Man 3 as Post-B-Day Gifts in '92. After playing 2 and 4,Mega Man 1 was a downgrade. Hard as all hell too.

Mega Man 3: The other '92 Post-B-Day Gift. Mega Man 3 is My all-time favorite game in the Mega Man Classic series. The Best of the 6 NES titles.

Widget The World Watcher: Liked the cartoon,so I decided to try the game out and bought at Toys 'r' Us in 1992. It was a decent little game. Had a sequel on the SNES too.

WWF Wrestlemania - Steel Cage Challenge: My dad bought this game used at Gamestop in 1994 and I disliked it. Why? 3 things - Bad Controls,Slow Characters,and An Evil CPU. Now tbe game isn't too bad with another player,but best of luck trying to find someone to play it with you. Instead of playing this game,I just keep it as a collectable.

Mega Man 5: Got this and Mega Man 6 for X-Mas of 1994. The fun and unique stages kept me coming back.

Mega Man 6: The weakest of the NES Mega Man titles and the Only one published by Nintendo in North America.

Bomberman: The first NES game I bought at Gamestop in 1999. My buddy,Phil got me into the Bomberman series.

Final Fantasy: Bought this at Gamestop in 1999. My buddy,Phil also got me into this series as well. After playing Final Fantasy 7,I wanted to experience the game that started it all.

Castlevania: Bought at Gamestop in 2000. Because I had the 3rd game in the trilogy,I wanted to get the other 2 as well. Fun game,but very hard.

Castlevania II - Simon's Quest: Bought This at Gamestop in 2000. The first Metroidvania,before the genre was even known as such. My experience with this game was both harsh and confusing.

Double Dragon: Bought This at Gamestop in 2000. To complete the Double Dragon trilogy on the NES,I had to get this game and the 3rd installment. Fun title,but lacking compared to it's sequel.

Double Dragon III - The Sacred Stones: Bought at Gamestop in 2000. The Waekest of the NES Double Dragon Trilogy. Wasn't a huge fan of it. Today,I just keep it as part of my collection. 

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III - The Manhatten Project: Got this at Gamestop in Late 2000. A very difficult,but fun game. and the first Completely Original TMNT Beat-em Up since the 1st arcade title.

Tetris (Nintendo Version): I've played this game over at a relatives house back in the Early 90's and loved it. I already had the Game Boy port,so I passed on owning the NES version. But,Years later in 2000,I bought this game on a bargain at Gamestop. Tetris on the NES would mark the Final game I ever got for the system.

And now for the games I've played through Emulation!

Jackie Chan's Action Kung-Fu: A fun game,with good music. I recommend this title. 

Metroid: I love this game.  Sure its really hard and can get confusing without a guide,but I love this game. I later would get it off of the Wii Virtual Console.

Kid Icarus: Not as fun as it's sister series,Metroid,but it's still a decent game. It got 2 sequels,one for the Game Boy called Myths qnd Monsters and the incredibly awesome Kid Icarus Uprising. All 3 games are super hard.

Final Fantasy II: The Real Final Fantasy 2. Didn't really care for this game too much,just wanted to see what the game was like. Had an interesting level-up game mechanic,though.

Final Fantasy III: The True Final Fantasy 3. This game introduced the Customizable Jobs System,a system which would be improved upon in Final Fantasy 5.

Rockboard: More like Rock-Bored! Look,I'm all for a Mega Man boardgame,but just not this. The rules were a bit confusing,the gameplay wasn't that good,and the music was mediocre. I played a fan translated version of this game.

WWF Wrestlemania: WWF's first console title. It's just okay. Nothing special.

WWF Wrestlemania Challenge: I hated the isometric style of this game. The play control was lacking too.

WWF King of the Ring; The Best NES WWF game. Have this for the Game Boy,and it's pretty much the same. The only differences between the 2 are: 1 -Color and 2 - Undertaker and Bam Bam Bigelow are playable in this version. 

Gradius: Wanted to try out the first title Konami's Shoot em-Up franchise,so I downloaded this game. Gotta say,it's a really good game.

Maniac Mansion: I've heard of this game and how cool it is,so I decided to give it a shot. It's as cool as they say,but the point-and-click nature of this game isn't very ideal with the standerd NES controller.

Rad Racer: Square's first racing game. good game,but the VR mode was unnessasary.

Rad Racer II: The improved sequel. VR Mode not included.

Tetris 2: Have the Game Boy version,so I wanted to try out it's NES counterpart. It's basically the same game,only with color.

Street Fighter 2010: The Absolute Worst Street Fighter Game Ever!! EVER!!!!!

The Krion Conquest: A cute,but hard-as-hell Mega Man clone. The sprites look very Mega Man-esque too.

Adventure Island: The first game in a forgotten franchise. Adventure Island was very hard,but had a certain charm to it. 

Bomberman II: Played this only for the battle mode,which was introduced in this game. Though it improves upon everything from the original.

Donkey Kong 3: Stanley the Bugman is one of Nintendo's Forgotten Heroes. Tough tomplay without a turbo controller.

River City Ransom: The 1st game I downloaded off of the Wii's virtual console. A fun,but tough,Beat 'Em-Up that's a localization of the 2nd Kunio-Kun game. NES fanatics consider this game Legendary.

Kirby's Adventure: The 2nd NES title I got off of the Nintendo VC. I've never had a chance to play a Kirby game before,so I just had to get this. I had a fun experience with this game and could easily tell why this title was held in such high reguard.

Mighty Final Fight: Don't let this game's SD looks fool you,this is one Super Tough game.

Quite a long list,huh? Well,I plan on doing one for Every System I've Ever Played in the near future,so look out for that.

I'm done for now,so I'm gonna head out. So until next time, Punch a Nazi, Kick a Commie, Restist Modern Attitudes and Stay Gold.  

Friday, July 25, 2025

My Youtube Channel

For the first Link, I'm gonna share my Youtube Channel (yup, I Have one of those.). Even though, I Don't have any videos of my own, I Have a wide collection of vids from other users. So if you're interested in various things Retro, like gaming, music, commercials, tv shows, and more, stop on by my channel and enjoy.

https://www.youtube.com/@ModernVintageTV0 

Mega Man Factoids

For the first episode of Factoids, I'm gonna be reposing My Mega Man Factoids from my original blog...only This time I'll be adding in the Corrections to some of the facts that I posted. I'll also add in one or 2 New facts about one of my all time favorite franchises.


Anyway,let's get started.

Let's kick things off with a piece of trivia from the latest entry,Mega Man 11. As many of you know,most X Series Maverick Bosses receive name changes when brought to the West.

Well,Capcom has finally done it with the Classic Series. 2 Robot Masters got name changes for unknown reasons. Impact Man and Bounce Man are called Pile Man and Rubber Man,respectively,in Japan.
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And now,let's continue with the game that started it all,Mega Man 1.

Mega Man 1 was made by Capcom under Keiji Inafune,who was still a rookie at the time. Because Inafune wanted a more detailed game,he decided to make Mega Man blue..this was due to the NES color palette having more Blue.
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During development of Mega Man 1,everyone at Capcom Japan was having a bit of trouble coming up with a name for the game and it's title character. They eventually came up with these names: Mighty Kid,Knuckle Kid,Battle Kid,Rainbow Warrior Miracle Kid,and Battle Rainbow Rockman. They chose the 5th name,but shortened it to just Rockman. The rainbow part comes from Mega Man's ability to change colors every time he equips a Master Weapon.
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There were a few unused ideas that never made it to the first game. There were plans include 8 Robot Masters instead of just 6. 2, an Aquatic Robot Master and the Legendary Bond Man were scrapped. Though the Aquatic Robot Master, known as Bubble Man, was repurposed into Ice Man.

Bond Man received concept art and was even featured in a Manga by the legendary Hitoshi Ariga,creator of the Mega Man Megamix and Mega Man Gigamix Mangas (though with a different design).

Besides Bond Man and Bubble Man, the other 6 Robot Masters designed at that point were Cut Man, Guts Man,Bomb Man,Elec Man,Fire Man, and Oil Man. Bubble Man was reworked into Ice Man and Oil Man got cut along with Bond Man. Oil Man was later revived for Mega Man Powered Up,though with a redesign.And Bubble Man's name was saved for the the next game. 

Bubble Man's weapon fired bubbles the player could ride on. And Oil Man's weapon made enemies slip.

Additionally, Bond Man had a different design to the more commonly-known Ariga one, and he used a handheld helicopter blade to fly. This helicopter is also included as a weapon, likely as a utility before the Magnet Beam was created.

Anyway,Bond Man's weapon would've stopped enemies in their tracks. This attribute was given to Ice Man's weapon.  dropped due to limited cart space.

And according to developers,Mega Man's helmet crest would've also changed shape depending on which weapon he was currently using. This look would've been inspired by the heroes of Ninjacaptor,a Japanese Toku show. 

However,due to software limitations,this was never implemented. We Would see this idea revisited and reworked in Mega Man 11,however.
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Also,the MM1 story was gonna be a bit longer. After defeating the Robot Masters,Rock would've returned home and Dr.Light would've informed him that Roll was captured by Wily. Rock would've stormed Wily's lab to rescue his robo-sis and stop the mad scientist. During those final stages,Rock would've battled Roll,who would've been converted into a Giant Mech. These story ideas were dropped quickly.
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Thanks to Capcom USA not understanding Japanese Fiction Naming Customs,Rockman was changed to Mega Man in the U.S. See,the reason why Rockman is named Rockman,is because his civilian name is Rock. Obviously,Capcom USA didn't get this,and changed the name. Plus,they thought Rockman sounded wimpy.
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Due to a very short deadline,Capcom USA had less than a few hours to create the American Box Art for MM1. And so Bad Box Art Mega Man #1 was born.
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Now let's talk about the most Famous game in the franchise,Mega Man 2!

Capcom Japan didn't want a Mega Man 2 at all,but Keiji Inafune still felt that the series had life. So he struck a deal with his superiors,and they agreed to let him make the game,if he and his team worked on it in their own spare time. Inafune agreed and Mega Man 2 was eventually created.
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There were some concepts that never made it into MM2. Once such concept was that Mega Man could burn the trees in Wood Man's level if he used Atomic Fire on them. It was scrapped due to software limitations. Another concept was that the Piko-Piko Master battle was gonna be much harder,with the boss taking away floor space.

Another unused concept was the Player Select option,where you can choose either Mega Man or Roll.
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Also in MM2,A Metool Generator was created,but for some reason went unused. It can still can be found within the games Data,though.
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Mega Man 2 was a bit rushed, as according to Akira Kitamura, the games producer, the game's bosses were to have multiple weaknesses, including that Damned Boo-Beam Trap from Wily Stage 4. This and a few other things were abandoned due to Capcom's deadline.  

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Mega Man 2 was also the first game to feature a Boss Design contest. Unfortunately,it was Japanese only.
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For unknown reasons,Capcom USA used some strange concept art of Wood Man in the Mega Man 2 manual,instead of his official art.

This 'concept' Wood Man had a Leafy Breastplate and a... Fiery Fist!? A fire wielding Wood Man? Truely Bizzare.
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There are 2 very famous Japanese Music Video tributes to MM2,'Okkusenmon' and 'I Can't Beat Airman'. Both are cool to listen too.
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The U.S. Version of 2 had a difficulty selection. This was put in place to help American Gamers get into Mega Man. Normal is the easy mode. While Difficult is the True normal mode.
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Going back to MM1 for a second to give you this interesting tidbit: Journey's song "Faithfully" sounds similar to Elec Man's stage music. Listen to Both Songs and you'll agree.
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Here's another bit about Mega Man's origins.

Mega Man was loosely based on Astroboy. Both are robots created by a kindly scientist and fight evil. Plus in MM1's ending,Rock has a similar hairstyle to the legendary anime hero. And, to add on to this, Capcom thought about acquiring the Astroboy license, before they decided to just make something original. 
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Here's something amusing: Sailor Moon's Tuxedo Mask is very similar to Protoman. They Both look basic,yet cool. They have pre- entrance gimmicks (proto has his whistle and tuxy has his roses). And They are always there to save the Main Hero of the series.(sailor moon and mega man).
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While we're on the subject of Anime Comparisons!

Mega Man and Protoman are loosely based on Speed Racer and his older brother,Racer X. Proto and Racer X are the long lost older brothers of Mega and Speed respectively,who disappeared after an accident. Plus,both Racer X and Proto are mysterious and they save their younger brothers.
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Moving right along..

Various Mega Man characters have made cameo appearances in other Retro Capcom Games.

Mega Man,Roll,and Rush make a small cameo appearance in Super Gem Fighter. Also making a Cameo is Mega Man X,Zero,and Iris.

In Marvel Super Heroes vs Street Fighter,there is a Mega Man banner in the mall stage. In that same stage a person in a Mega Man costume is surrounded by a crowd of people.

In Megaman Legends 2. Ice Man and Kalinka are pictured on some Manga. Best of all,in the bar is a TV showing a Rockman Anime. Also,In one of the Mega Man Battle Network games,there's a poster of Duo(i think in lans room).
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Felicia and Mega Man must be friends,because In Super Gem Fighter,she uses his moves. In this brief cosplay,the Night Warrior can attack with a Short-Range Mega Buster Shot and has a Slide Kick.
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Now on to My personal favorite game in the Classic Series,Mega Man 3.

Mega Man 3 has a host of unused and altered content. For example: There is minor evidence to suggest that Wily Stages 4 and 5 were supposed to be a single stage. The biggest giveaway is the fact that the Boss Rush and the Wily Battle usually take place in 2 different stages (Wily Stage 4 and Wily Stage 5 respectively), where in other Mega Man titles, the Boss Rush and Wily battle take place in the same stage.

Also in Mega Man 3,there is reason to believe that the Final Stage was originally gonna be longer. Biggest proof comes from the Large Energy Capsule at the beginning of the stage. There's also the stage theme,which is too long for a short stage.

Speaking of long/short music. The Wily's castle theme was a bit longer then what we normally hear. This is because the music was supposed to be part of a longer scene. The music was initially supposed to begin a bit after Dr.Light informs Mega Man that Wily stole Gamma.

Speaking of,Wily was supposed to rise above a city and up to a mooned night sky. In the final,the city and moon are deleted. Don't ask me why.

Gemini Man level once had Saturn-esque Planets in it's background.

According to the MM3 Prototype,Magnet Man and Snake Man were originally gonna host Doc Robot...Not Needle Man and Spark Man. The Proto Stage Select screen shows that Snake Man and Needle Man and Magnet Man and Spark Man have swapped places. More evidence of this comes hidden inside the MM3 Rom,where broken tiles from Magnet Man's level can be found. Doc Robot's host levels have a 'broken' theme to them.

And finally,In the Rockman 3 Beta,Protoman transforms himself into Break Man in Gemini Man's level,while in the Final,he just stands there for a few seconds. This is evidence that Proto was supposed to transform into Break Man then and there,but Capcom either forgot to implement it or decided not to use it due to technical issues,as if you visited Gemini Man first,you'd face Break Man in other levels. That might've been a bit too tough to program in,a problem Capcom didn't wanna deal with,so they left the transformation out.

More proof that Mega Man 3 was somewhat rushed.
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Next up..Japan-Only Titles!

There've been a small number of Mega Man games that never saw release outside of Japan in Any form...not even in Compilation games.

The first game to stay in the land of the rising sun,was Rockboard. Rockboard was a Japanese-style board game,similar to Monopoly. Mega Man only appears as the GamesMaster,and not as a player character. There were 5 Playable Characters: Dr. Light,Dr.Wily,Dr.Cossack, Kalinka Cossack, and Roll (in her first playable appearance).

The reason for the lack of a U.S./Euro/Aussie release was simple: It was an NES game made in 1993. The game was quite text heavy and by the time proper translations would've been completed,it would've been 1994,the year that the NES officially became obsolete.

The next Japan exclusive game was The SNES/Super Famicom version of Mega Man and Bass. We would eventually get the GBA port,but it's somewhat watered down and inferior too the original.

Next up is Super Adventure Rockman,which was mostly an FMV game. But unlike the ones seen on the Sega CD,this one's actually good.

The Japan exclusive Wonderswan handhelds would get their own Mega Man titles...3,in fact. The first was for the Original Wonderswan called, Rockman and Forte: Challenger from the Future. It was a traditional platformer with a Really High difficulty level,in fact,some stages are downright unfair.

The next 2 games were for the Japan-Exclusive Wonderswan Color. These games were part of the Battle Network series. We have Rockman EXE WS,which was an extremely hard platformer,with some unfair elements. Capcom would do this type of thing again for the Battle Network series with Mega Man Network Transmission for the Game Cube.

Rockman EXE Battle Chip GP was a Tournament-style game using Battle Network's battle mechanics. In this game you can play as a Navi other than Mega Man,which was cool. Unlike the other 2 Wonderswan games,this one received a port on the Game Boy Advance,which was released worldwide.

The Neo Geo Pocket Color,which sold poorly in the States,had a Mega Man title too: Rockman Battles and Fighters. This Japan-exclusive was an 8-bit compilation port of the 2 Arcade Titles,Power Battles and Power Fighters. The game looks pretty good,plays good too.

Rockman Complete Works was a PSX re-release of the 1st 6 Mega Man titles. Bad News: it's Japanese Only, Worse News: it's 6 individual discs that were sold separately,Good News: Each game has some cool extras,Even Worse News: Our version of Complete Works,Mega Man Anniversary Collection,lacks these extras.

Rockman Battle and Fighters was a PS2 exclusive compilation disc that contained the 2 Arcade games....with a few extras.

Other Japanese Battle Network/EXE exclusives include: Rockman EXE 4.5:Real Operation,a game that takes place between EXE4 and EXE5; Rockman EXE: The Medal Operation,an Arcade title; And Operate Shooting Star,a remake of EXE1,that doubles as a crossover between EXE and Ryuusei No Rockman.

And finally,Various Mobile Games were also kept in Japan,including,Rockman DASH: Great 5 Island Adventure and the infamous,Rockman XOver.
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Back to Mega Man 1! The opening to Bon Jovi's (She’s A Little) Runaway sounds like the character select screen in Mega Man 1. Listen to Both Songs and you'll see (hear) what I mean.
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Here's some more nutty trivia: The Krion Conquest is an NES game that has heavy Mega Man influences,so heavy that it could be considered a Clone. The sprite art and main heroine are solid proof of this. Nice game,but the difficulty level is extremely high.
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It's Mega Man 6 Time!

Keiji Inafune wanted to end the Classic Mega Man series at 6,so that he could focus on the then-new X Series. However,Capcom wanted more Classic Mega Man and convinced Inafune to let the Series continue.

And unlike with the "X6 Fiasco" (I'll talk more about that later),Inafune warmed up to Capcom's decision and even had a hand in the creation of most future classic series titles.
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Initially Mega Man 6 was never supposed to leave Japan,but Nintendo of America stepped in and volunteered to both publish and translate the game for North America. Capcom reluctantly agreed to Nintendo's request and Mega Man 6 was brought to North America.

The reason for Capcom refusing to release the game outside of Japan varies. But it gave Nintendo temporary co-ownership of all things Mega Man 6 in North America. Full ownership would eventually revert back to Capcom USA in late-1996.
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Mega Man 6 is the ONLY game in the whole franchise to have Robot Masters designed by North Americans. Famed magazine,Nintendo Power,in conjunction with Capcom USA,held it's own Robot Master design contest for the game. Thousands were submitted,but only 2 got excepted. Knight Man and Wind Man were designed by Daniel Vallee and Michael Leader respectively.
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And the nutty trivia just keeps on coming!

Capcom's Viewtiful Joe looks similar to Protoman. He's a red-clad hero who wears a mask similar to Proto's visor,as well as a short scarf.
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Guts Man is Wily's Favorite Robot Master. Here's proof: Statues of Gutsman can be found in Wily's final stage in MM1. The Gutsdozer in MM2. MM3 has the Gutsman-like Junk Golems. MM5 has Stoneman,whose a brick-themed Gutsman. And MM7 has the Gutsman abomination,Guts Man G.
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The Mega Man franchise is chalk full of musical references!

Mega Man's real name is Rock. His sister's name is Roll. Rock and Roll....get it? Also Rock has an older sibling named Blues aka Protoman. Break Man,Protoman's/Blues' one-time identity,is also a musical reference (to breakdancing,an uber popular dance style of the late 80's and early 90's).

Beat and Tango,2 of Mega's pets,also have music based names.

Mega Man has a rival named Bass,who has a wolf named Treble. Their Japanese names are Forte and Gospel. Plus,Wily has a pet bird called Reggae.

Some of Wily's other robots are also named after musical terms (enker,quint,ballade,and punk).

Duo is also a robot whose named after a musical term.

For the X Series,we have the Twins Techno and Middy. And the Mavericks in American version of X5,are all named after members of the band,Guns 'n Roses.

The Battle Network series and Legends series both contain musical references too. But,I'll let you guys find them yourselves.

It's strange,but with all of these musical names,Capcom has yet to create a musical-based Robot Master.

The Archie Mega Man Comic has Tempo,the civilian alias of Quake Woman,an Archie exclusive Robot Master.
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Now some trivia related to Dr.'s Light and Wily.

Dr.Wily looks is based on Albert Einstein. Dr. Light was loosely based on Thomas Edison...though His look was based on Santa Clause.
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Here are 3 bits of trivia on X and Zero.

X and Zero are the only ones in their respective families that are not named after musical terms. X was named after his unlimited potential and Zero was named after Kamakaze Fighter Pilots, as well as Patient Zero, due to him carrying an infectious virus (the wily virus).
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In Mega Man's Power Battles ending,Dr.Light mentions that he's working on an Advanced AI program. This is the ONLY reference to X in the original series. In Bass' Power Battles ending,Dr. Wily mentions that he's creating a powerful Robot that will destroy Mega Man. The robot Wily's talking about is none other than,Zero. But Wait there's more: In Bass' Power Fighters ending,Zero is not only talked about,but his plans are actually shown.
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Classic Mega Man's looks and mindset are that of a 12-year-old boy. While His Brother X,who's supposed to be younger,has the looks and mindset of a 17-year-old. Zero has a slightly older mindset.
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Since Mega Man 4,Dr. Wily has been using the Disappearing/Reappearing saucer as his final attack. Stupid and Repetitive Crapcom!
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Here's an interesting fact that connects Evil Energy,Roboenza,and the Maverick Virus.

Believe it or not,The Evil Energy from Mega Man 8 is basically a prototype of the Maverick Virus from the X series. The Roboenza virus from Mega Man 10 was created from the Evil Energy. And in turn,Roboenza was modified into the Zero Virus,which eventually became the Maverick Virus in the X Series.
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This next bit is for all the Sony Haters.

Due to Sony of America's hardassness,Mega Man Battle and Chase was not allowed to come to America,so it didn't. However,it was included as a hidden game in the Mega Man X Collection. 

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Sony America and Capcom USA were unsure if Mega Man 8 and Mega Man X4 would sell in the States,due to most American Gamers moving on to 3D gaming. And to add oil to this fire, were American Gaming Journalists,who claimed that Playstation Gamers wouldn't be interested in 2D platformers. This line of thinking was eventually discarded by Capcom USA and Sony of America and the Mega Man Games were released Stateside.  .

Capcom Always intended for Mega Man 8 to be on the Sony Playstation, And Sony of America agreed to approve the game if it had something special over the Saturn version. What they got was a collector's full-color anthology booklet enclosed with the first editions of the North American release.

The Saturn version has more content due to Capcom having the extra time to polish the game after the PS1 release.  
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Classic Series Music had a way of sneaking into the X series!

In Mega Man X1 and the PS1 version of Mega Man X3 contains remixed versions of the "Selected Boss" theme from the original series. Part of Mega Man X5's Intro theme is a remixed version of Mega Man 3's "Get Weapon" theme. Also in Mega Man X5,a remixed version of the Mega Man 1's "Fortress Boss" theme is played during the battle with the Shadow Devil.
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Random Tidbit # 2,000! The Joes and Metools are the Franchises most recurring stage enemies. They appeared in many forms throughout the series.
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Here's the first bit of Legends Trivia.

In Japan,Mega Man Legends is called Rockman DASH. DASH is an acronym which stands for Digouters Adventure Story in Halcyon Days. (shouldn't it be DASHD instead?)

Anyway,Digouter is the Japanese name for Diggers.
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Here's the ONLY bit of Mega Man and Bass Trivia.

Most of the enemies in Mega Man 8 are reused in Mega Man and Bass. Judging by how well the PSX/Saturn graphics are handled on Super Famicom/SNES,the system was more powerful than we thought. However,despite the 32-bit graphics,the Music and Sound is still 16-bit. In fact,most of the sound effects were recycled from Mega Man 7.
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Here's 4 more MM1 tidbits. Last ones,I promise!

Mega Man 1 is the only game in the series that doesn't have a "Map" for Wily's Skull Fortress Or a "Get Weapon" Screen. It's also the only game where Mega Man lacks Buoyancy when in water and spikes can still kill him if he's invincible.
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The first part of Mega Man 1's ending theme is also the 1st part of Mega Man 2's Intro theme.
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Mega Man 1 is the Only console title in the Franchise with a Scoring System
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Mega Man 1 was created because Capcom wanted to really bust into the home console market. Prior to Mega Man,all of Capcom's console games were just ports of their arcade titles. They wanted something original,a game that was exclusively for the home console market.
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Here's an example of careless translation!

In Mega Man 7,Mega Man threatens to kill Dr.Wily. However,in Rockman 7 Rock does no such thing. Mega Man's "Threat" is nothing more than a localization error.
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Here's some more MM7 trivia for ya: In Spring Man stage,you can find Astro Man's plans hidden in the background.
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Believe it or not,there have been some Mega Man Classic titles where Dr.Wily was Not the Final Boss. These titles are: Mega Man 5 GB,where the final boss was Sunstar; Super Adventure Rockman,where the final boss was Ra Moon's Shin Yellow Devil aka The Ra Devil; And the non-canon Rockman and Forte:Challenger from the Future,where the final battle was with Rockman Shadow.
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Auto Survived Through The X-Series?! Acording to Capcom Japan he did! See,in Volt Catfish's MMX3 PS1 intro,Auto can be seen watching TV. The scene is very brief,so it's kinda 'blink and you miss it'. The canonicity of this moment is questionable and might just be an Easter Egg.
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Here's a fun bit of trivia for ya: When we Americans first played Mega Man 6,we thought that Yamato ment Samurai. However,thanks to the Internet,we now know what the True meaning of that word is.

A Yamato is a Japanese word that describes Japan itself. It was originally a province in Feudal Japan,where it was the center of Japanese cultural and political activities. The word “Yamato” is beloved by many Japanese because of what it symbolizes.

On a similar note: Tengu Man is based off of a mythological Japanese demon with wings and a long nose. They are sometimes associated with birds...mainly crows.
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One final piece of MM6 trivia for ya.

Europeans Never got Mega Man 6 when it was first released. So they never had a chance to play the game (ligitly) until it was released on the European Virtual Console on June 2013.
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How about some Battle Network trivia?

As you know most Original Series robots have Battle Network counterparts. Only instead of robots,they're Net Navis. The only Robot Masters that Don't have Navi Counterparts (yet) are Crash Man,Hard Man,Gemini Man,Crystal Man,Centaur Man,Spring Man,Burst Man,Clown Man,Grenade Man,Frost Man,Astro Man,Pirate Man,Dynamo Man,Time Man,Oil Man,All but 1 of the American PC Robot Masters,All but 1 of the Rockman and Forte Wonderswan Robot Masters,All of the Mega Man 9 and 10 Robot Masters,All of the Mega Man 11 Robot Masters,The 3 Members of the Genesis Unit,2 of the 3 Mega Man Killers,and The Stardroids.

Clock Man from Rockman and Forte WS and Shark Man from Mega Man 3 PC were 2 obscure Robot Masters that were turned into Net Navi's. Though ClockMan.EXE's only appearance was in the Japan exclusive,Rockman EXE Operate Shooting Star.

Also,Punk was the Only Mega Man Killer to ever receive a Navi version.
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Ring Man's Navi counterpart is Ring,a female Navi who made her only appearance in Mega Man Battle Chip Challenge. She's basically what a RingMan.EXE would look like if he was genderbent.
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And now even More Random trivia.

Dr.Wily's 1st stage theme in Mega Man 2 is by far the most popular Mega Man theme ever. In fact,This song has been remixed and rearranged many times by loyal Mega Man fans. Some consider it overraded.
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The Mega Man Starforce games have EXE/Battle Network models hidden within them for testing purposes.  
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Time for some genderswapping madness.

Mega Man 9's Splash Woman is the first (and so far only) Female Robot Master. Though this originally wasn't the case,Splash Woman was originally Ocean Man in the game's planing stages.

There Was a female Robot Master in the planning stages,however,named Honey Woman,who would eventually become Hornet Man. Because he still wanted a female Robot Master,Keiji Inafune replaced Ocean Man with Splash Woman,as he believed that the Water Element would be better suited for a Female.

This was a really good decision on Inafune's part.
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Random Robot Master trivia time!!

Toad Man,Snake Man,Slash Man,Hornet Man,and Sheep Man are the only 5 Robot Masters that are designed after Animals. Tengu Man doesn't count,because he's not based on an Animal.

On a related note: Tengu Man,Splash Woman,Junk Man,Shade Man,and Centaur Man are all based on mythical creatures. Junk Man is based on the Frankenstein Monster,in case you guys were wondering.
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Did you know..

That due to a rushed job,Mega Man Soccer's Ending/Credits isn't properly programmed into the game. They're still in the game,they just don't load during normal play. The Ending/Credits can only be viewed with a cheat device.
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Speaking of rushed development....

The Game Gear Mega Man title was also rushed,as there are many parts of it that seem incomplete. Plus,Wave Man's stage plays Gravity Man's Music. Wave Man's music is used for the Game Over Screen. Why? because,US Gold,a 3rd rate company,made the game. Capcom only gave it licensing rights. Kinda like those lame Mega Man PC titles.
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While on the topic of the PC Games...

Mega Man had 2 crappy PC games,each game had it's own set of Robot Masters. Volt Man,Sonic Man,and Dyna Man are from the First PC game. Blade Man,Oil Man,Water Man,Shark Man,Torch Man,and Bit Man are from the Second. Even though it's the 2nd PC game,it's called Mega Man III. What the hell happened to Mega Man II PC? I guess we'll never know.

While the PC1 Robot Masters somewhat original in design,the PC3 bots are "Frankensteined". Wave Man PC is a modified Air Man with the fan replaced with water jets; Shark Man uses parts from Snake Man and Gemini Man; Bit Man uses parts from Crash Man,Hard Man,and Spark Man; Torch Man is a modified Magnet Man without the magnet and a torch arm added; Blade Man PC is a modified Metal Man with spikes and a blade launcher; And then there's Oil Man PC,who is a modified Flash Man with an oil shooter and an oil can head.

Also,each of the PC3 bots have the same movements and their standing poses are recycled from Mega Man PC1's Volt Man. Lazy!

Finally,as I mentioned earlier,Shark Man was eventually given an EXE counterpart in the form of SharkMan.EXE.
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Yay,more random trivia...

The rotating shield weapon has been a Mega Man tradition for as long as I can remember. Most Mega Man games have this type of weapon.

The only games that Don't have a Rotating Shield Weapon are: Mega Man 1,Mega Man 3,Mega Man 8,and Mega Man and Bass.

Mega Man 2 has the Leaf Shied,Mega Man 4 has the Skull Barrier,Mega Man 5 has the Star Crash,Mega Man 6 has the Plant Barrier,Mega Man 7 has the Junk Sheild,Mega Man 9 has the Jewel Satillite,Mega Man 10 has the Water Shield,and Mega Man 11 has the Acid Barrier.

Even the terrible titles had Shield Weapons. Rockman and Forte WS has the Flame Mixer and Mega Man PC has the Force Field.
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Want More MM7 love? Coming right up!

Mega Man 7 is a great big homage to the previous games in the series. For example,That one path in Freeze Man's level,where you get the Rush Search,is very reminiscent of the end of Flash Man's level.

Freeze Man's stage also seems to be a mix between Ice Man's level and Skull Man's.

The final stretch of Cloud Man's stage is reminiscent of that final platforming area in Air Man's level. It even has similar enemies.

Slash Man's theme sounds similar to Wave Man's.

Turbo Man's stage contains homages to both Fire Man's stage and Quick Man's stage.

In the Proto Man battle,Proto himself lacks a health bar,just like in Mega Man 3.

The stage music of the Robot Museum is a medley of Guts Man,Heat Man,and Snake Man's themes.

The All Clear music (the tune that plays when you beat dr.wily) is a 16-bit remake of the All Clear music from Mega Man 3.

Burst Man's stage contains a small homage to the final Disappearing/Reappearing block section of Heat Man's stage.

There are many many more homages not listed here,try to discover the rest for yourselves. Or,I can make a comprehensive list sometime in the future.
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Random trivia time again! Hope you're not too sick of these?

The Yellow Devil,in fact,is the most revisited Fortress Guardian in the history of the franchise. It made it's debut in Mega Man 1. Without the Pause-Glitch Trick,the thing is very tough to beat.

The Yellow Devil returned in Mega Man 3,as the Yellow Devil mk.2. This battle was easier. Yellow Devil mk.3 appeared in the Arcade title,Mega Man Power Battles. It's successor,Yellow Devil mk. 3.5,was fought in Mega Man 2: The Power Fighters,the sequel to Power Battles.

The next Devil to appear was The Green Devil aka the Jello Devil. It was fought in Mega Man 8. A weaker,more pathetic version of the monster was fought in Mega Man and Bass.

Other Devil's include: The Grey Devil from Rockman and Forte WS,Dark Moon from Mega Man V GB,The Mini-Devil's and The Twin Devil in Mega Man 9; The Block Devil from Mega Man 10,who's insanely difficult on Normal and Hard modes; The Shadow Devil from Mega Man X5; Mega Man 11's Yellow Devil mk.3 (mk. 4 in reality) and the Rainbow Devil from the Mega Man Zero series.
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Did ya know that thanks to Sega of America,we never received the Genesis exclusive,Mega Man:The Wily Wars in cartridge form. Instead Sega wanted the game to be an exclusive to their then-upcoming Sega Channel. Sega got what they wanted,but we Mega Man fans didn't,as many of us didn't own a subscription to the Sega Channel. The Sega Channel wasn't that great to begin with. While America was screwed over,Europe got an official cartridge. 

The Wily Wars was eventually released on a limited edition Sega Genesis Cartridge in North America a few years ago. AND, later, was a game on The Sega Genesis Mini. And, Later Still,was made playable on the Nintendo Switch via the Online Service.
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Here's something you guys likely didn't know..

The Voice Acting for the U.S. versions of Mega Mans 8,X4,and X7 were all done in Japan by English speakers.

This explains why those games have such bad voice acting.
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Here's a Bass and Treble facts for ya:

Bass was created soley because Keiji Inafune no longer considered Proto Man to be a proper rival. Bass and Treble's early names were Baroque and Crash respectively. Both names musical references. Also,Treble was initialy a Doberman,not a Wolf.
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And now...Even More Random Trivia!!

Mega Man Wily Wars's Wily Tower contains 3 selectable bosses that could be considered Prototype Mavericks. BusterRod G,HyperStorm H,and MegaWater S,likely inspired Capcom to make all selectable Bosses in the X series Animaloid.

On a similar note these 3 bosses were inspired by characters from the legendary Chinese Novel,Journey to the West. BusterRod G was inspired by Son Wukong (aka Son Goku),the main hero of the story.
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Want more Battle Network trivia?! You got it!

Mega Man Battle Network 1 was originally gonna be 3 games. One starring Lan and Mega Man,one starring Mega Man Buster and his NetOp,Seimei Kazami,and the 3rd starring Mega Man Blade and his NetOp,Roudou Kazami. The 3 games would've had an interconnecting Story and the Lan/MegaMan game was to go alongside the then-upcoming Anime.

The Buster and Blade Mega Men and their stories were scrapped during early development.

Also,A guy named Mike Kenan was originally gonna be Roll.EXE,and then Bass.EXE's,owner. Mike would've given Roll to Mayl at a later time.

However,Mike was dropped during early production and Roll became Mayl's Navi from the beginning. While Bass became an Independent Navi.
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I have lot's of favorite Robot Masters,but Keiji Inafune's favorite Robot Master is Elec Man.
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During thier development,some Robot Masters were given prototype names.

Bright Man was Pearl Man,Pharaoh Man was Miira Man,Dive Man was Diver Man,Napalm Man was Bit Man,Plant Man was Flower Man,Tomahawk Man was Geronimo Man,Yamato Man was Musha Man,Blizzard Man was Spur Man,Burst Man was Shabon Man,Cloud Man was Smoke Man,Junk Man was Franken Man,Slash Man was Claw Man,Shade Man was Vampire Man,Turbo Man was Dash Man,Cold Man was Freezer Man,Burner Man was Blast Man,Ground Man was Driller Man,Magic Man was Magician Man,and Dynamo Man was Coil Man,Crash Man was called Missile Man,Bubble Man was called Water Man,Quick Man was called Boomerang Man,Metal Man was called Rolling Man,Hornet Man was called Sting Man (after his sex change,that is),Tornado Man was called Weather Man,Concrete Man was called Cement Man,Plug Man was called Plasma Man,Galaxy Man was once called Space Man,Jewel Man was called Diamond Man,and Search Man was called Commando Man.

And,as stated earlier,Splash Woman was once a male Robot Master called Ocean Man and Hornet Man was once a female Robot Master called Honey Woman.
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The Mega Man series is one big realm of musical references. And here's another:

Neon Tiger's Stage music sounds similar to "My Michele" by Guns N' Roses. According To Capcom Japan and Keiji Inafune,It's all a Coincidence.
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Random Trivia Time Again..this time for the X Series.

Mega Man X4's Web Spider's design was inspired by Bospider,a Fortress Boss in Mega Man X1.
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Hope you're not sick of the music related trivia either? 'Cuz,we're not through yet.

Like the Original Series,the Mega Man X Series remix's and reuses music. For instance - In Mega Man X5,Tidal Whale's 'Final' theme is a remixed version of Bubble Crab's (although originally this wasn't the case).

The Rangda Bangda's theme in X5 is a remixed version of the 'Fortress Boss' theme of X1. Plus,Dr Light's X5 capsule theme is the same as his X1's.

Megaman X2's 2nd X-Hunter Stage Theme is used for the 1st 2 Stages of Gates Lab. Also in X6,The Final Battle theme is a mix of Sigma's X1 and X2 Battle Themes.
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Did you check out Frost Walrus' Stage? Blizzard Buffalo and Chill Penguin can be seen damaged and frozen in the backround. Buffalo can be seen at the beginning of the Stage and Chill Penguin can be seen during the mid-boss battle.

I totally missed this while playing X4 for the 1st time.
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Here's another example of a Translation Screw-Up.

In Blizzard Buffalo's PS1 and PC intro,his name is misspelled. He's called Bilzard Buffalo in that intro.  
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As you know most Maverick Bosses in the Main Series are all based on creatures from the Animal Kingdom. However,there are a couple of exceptions. We have Spilt Mushroom from X4,Spike Rosered from X5,Tornado Tonion from X7, and Optic Sunflower from X8.
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Here's more music trivia! Infinite Mijinion's Music was inspired by the song "Final Countdown".
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Did you know that during the battle with Metal Sharkplayer in X6,he will often times summon the 'Ghost' of a past Maverick. He'll summon either: Sting Chameleon from X1,Magna Centepede from X2,or Blast Hornet from X3.

When Sharkplayer's Weapon,the Metal Anchor,is charged up by X,X summons the 'spirit' of Storm Eagle.
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Mega Man X5 has a bunch of Beta tunes,as well as an Unused one.

Tidal Whale's Stage,Dr.Light's Capsule,Stage Select,Mission Report,and The Ending all had different music than in the Final Game. For an unknown reason,Capcom swiped out Tidal Whale's original theme for a remix of Bubble Crab's.

Anyway 'Armageddon' was a song that was Supposed to play when you fail to blow up the Space Colony Eurasia,but for some reason Capcom neglected to put it in the final game. In the Final,the scene is silent.
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You likely didn't know that Axl was added into the series solely because Capcom wanted a hip,young character to represent a new generation of Mega Man X titles.
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Did you know that The Mavericks of Mega Man X5 have similar stages to Mega Man X4's.

Spike Rosered's stage is similar to Web Spider's. Crecent Grizzly's stage is similar to Slash Beast's. The 2nd part of Dark Necrobat's stage is similar to Cyber Peacock's. The 'stairway' section of Shining Firefly's stage is similar to Split Mushroom's.

The 'Land Chaser' section of Volt Kraken's level is similar to Jet Stingray's. Spiral Pegasus' stage is similar to Storm Owl's. And Burn Dinorex' stage is similar to Magma Dragoon.

Unfortunately,there is no similarities between Tidal Whale's stage and Frost Walrus'...Other than the fact that Both Bosses Battle you in a big Room.
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Here's something interesting: Mega Man X3 is the Only Mega Man X game has no Fire Maverick.

We have: Flame Mammoth from X1,Flame Stag from X2,Magma Dragoon from X4,Burn Dinorex from X5,Blaze Heatnix from X6,Flame Hyanard from X7,and Burn Rooster from X8.
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As you likely knew,The Mega Man X5 Mavericks are named after the Band Members of Guns N' Roses. The most noticeable being Axl The Red aka Spike Rosered being named after Axl Rose.
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Did you know that Street Fighter Moves have been used in The Mega Man X Series.

In Mega Man X1 you can receive Ryu's 'Hadouken'. In X2 you could get Ken's 'Shoryuken'. Also in X2,Flame Stag's weapon,in X's use,strongly resembles a fiery version of Guile's 'Sonic Boom'. In X4,Magma Dragoon has 'Shoto' moves.

Also in X4,a charged up Rising Fire looks similar to a fiery 'Shoryuken'. In X5,When X is wearing his Gaia Armor,he can use a move that's similar to Chun-Li's 'Kikoushou'. In X8,X can use the 'Shoryuken' if he's wearing his Ultimate Armor.

X8's Burn Rooster has Akuma's 'Tenmakujinkyaku',a move that Zero gains from the Maverick. Also in X8,Zero gains the Shoto's 'Tatsumakisenpukakyuu' from Dark Mantis. These moves can only be preformed using the Zero Knuckle.
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Here's one of the most interesting bits of trivia on this list:

Mega Man X5 was supposed to be the Final Major entry in the Mega Man X Series. Inafune wanted to end the X Series to focus on the upcoming Zero series. Capcom,however,had Other plans....
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Were you aware that The X Series has a decent amount of Unused Content and Beta Elements.

Mega Man X had a Jellyfish bot that drilled down,an Anglerge mid-boss that blew air out at X,and a Hoganmer who jumped around.

Plus,Vile had some extra attacks while in the ride armor and there was an unused path to Launch Octopus. None of these things are found in the Final.

In X2's Beta there was: A Ride Armor Rider,sans his Ride Armor,A Carry Arm that damaged you, And even a Test Enemy that looked like a Chain of Large Weapon Power-Ups.

In X3's Beta there was: An unused Ride Armor boss,Mavericks having a Maverick Insignia instead of a Doppler one, A Ganseki Carrier that moves left and right,and a Wild Tank enemy that rose up from the ground.

There was also an alternate way into Blast Hornets room. None of these things are found in the Final. Also Bit and Byte had a different look,as did Neon Tiger.

X4's Beta had a creepy looking unused mugshot,which was used as a placeholder. And in X7's Beta,X was playable from the Start.

It's also worth noting that all SNES X games have a strange unused 'W' health bar. No one really knows what this bar's purpose was.
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Did you know that Mega Man X6 is the only game where the Mavericks keep their Original Japanese names.
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Here's an example of Capcom oversight: In the official X3 Artwork,Bit always carries a shield,yet in the games he doesn't have one.
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Here's some more Beta Trivia for ya:

ln the Mega Man 8 Beta,Frost Man stage and the Stage Select had different music.

On a related note,Mega Man 4 and 7 had unused mini-bosses. The Mega Man 4 boss was a Sphinx in Pharaoh Man's level who attacked with plasma pellets and boulders.

The Mega Man 7 boss was a hovering robot that attacked with it's spike fists,it also had an electric attack.

However,as an Easter Egg,The MM7 Lost Mini-Boss can be seen in a busted-up/destroyed state at the beginning of Shade Man's stage.
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Here's something amusing! When a Mega Man X fan listens to the song "Saved By Zero" by The Fixx,they can't help but to think about Zero saving X. XD
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Did you know that some Maverick Weapons were based off of Robot Master Weapons and Vice Versa. It's true. Here's a brief list.

Boomer Kuwanger's Boomerang Cutter = Cut Man's Rolling Cutter
Launcher Octopus' Homing Torpedo = Dive Man's Dive Missile
Spark Mandrill's Electric Spark = Spark Man's Spark Shock
Morph Moth's Silk Shot = Dust Man's Dust Crusher
Gravity Beetle's Gravity Well = Galaxy Man's Blackhole Bomb
Jet Stingray's Ground Hunter = Snake Man's Search Snake
Spike Rosered's Spike Ball = Knight Man's Knight Crush
Volt Kraken's Triad Thunder = Elec Man's Thunder Beam
Blaze Heatnix' Magma Blade = Sword Man's Flame Sword
Dark Necrobat's Dark Hold =  Bright Man's Flash Stopper

Here are some of the Master Weapons that were based on Maverick Weapons.

Burner Man's Wave Burner = Flame Mammoth's Fire Wave
Freeze Man's Freeze Cracker = Chill Penguin's Shotgun Ice
Clown Man's Thunder Claw = Wire Sponge's Strike Chain
Pirate Man's Remote Mine = Manga Centepede's Magnet Mines
Nitro Man's Wheel Cutter = Wheel Gator's Spin Wheel
Ground Man's Spread Drill = Tunnle Rhino's Tornado Fang
Astro Man's Copy Vision = Split Mushroom's Soul Body

I think I missed some,but You get the idea. May make a complete list one day.
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Did you know that Frost Walrus is the first Maverick to have 2 songs used for his stage. One for the 1st half and One for the 2nd half. This Idea wouldn't be reused until Mega Man X8.
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Here are 2 bits of trivia on The X-Hunters!

The X-Hunters were originally gonna be in X1,instead of X2. I don't know all of the details,but according to some Concept art,this seems to be the case.
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Also there were originally 4 X-Hunters planned and Violen was gonna have a 2nd form.

However there wasn't enough time or money to implement them. This 4th X-Hunter was gonna be female and the 1st female villain of the entire Mega Man Franchise. it's gotta make you wonder what the 4th Zero Part was gonna be?
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Continuing on from that X5 tidbit: Capcom Japan Created Mega Man X6 without Keiji inafune's knowledge (ie. behind his back). Inafune initially wanted to end the X Series with X5,but later decided that an X6 should be made,however he wanted to wait. He wanted time to come up with fresh new ideas,weapons,and armor for the game. As well as an X Series replacement for Zero.

However,Capcom ignored him and made X6 anyway. Inafune later apologized to the fans for Capcom's deed and promised to make sure the Mega Man franchise is handled with more care in the future.

Had Capcom Japan waited,like Inafune wanted,X6 would've been on the PS2 (and maybe the gamecube).
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Did you know that out of all of the games in the Original Mega Man Series,Keiji Inafune hates Super Adventure Rockman the most. He considers the action scenes and some of the attitude too unfitting of the Classic Series.
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Did you also know that both Mega Man Powered Up and Maverick Hunter X were remakes of Mega Man 1 and Mega Man X1 respectively. Both were supposed to be the start of a brand new continuity for their respective series.

Inafune planned to recreate the first 8 Mega Man titles,as well as the first 6 Mega Man X titles..including his Own version of X6.

However,due to extremely poor sales of MMPU and MHX,this never came to be. PSP Sucks!
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Here's yet another interesting piece of random trivia.

The Final Enemy in the Original (Robot) Time-Line is Sera from Mega Man Legends 2...for now,at least. On that same note,Mega Man Starforce 3's Crimson Dragon is the Final Enemy of the Secondary (Network) Time-Line...at least,for the moment.
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Here's some common knowledge that I'm gonna drop anyway:

Originally, Keiji Inafune wanted to make Zero the main hero of the Mega Man X Series,but Capcom feared that no one would except him as a Mega Man. So Hayato Kaji's Mega Man X was chosen to be the New Mega Man,instead.

Years later,Inafune created the Mega Man Zero series.
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Here's a piece of X1 prototype trivia that very people are aware of:

Mega Man X1's Intro Stage was originally supposed to be a White City instead of a highway. This city had RT-55J as a Mid-Boss,as well as an unused flying flamethrower enemy. The White City isn't in the final game.
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Random Trivia #20XX! The Original Series Characters Aren't the Only ones to get EXE/Battle Network counterparts. Iris,Colonel,and even Zero have Net Navi counterparts.

Shockingly we never had EXE versions of X,Alia,Vile,or Sigma...at least,not yet.
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Did you know that Zero has died 3 times within the course of the Franchise. Once in X1,Again in X5,and Again in Zero 4,this time for good.
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Here's something funny: It's rumored that Sigma's appearance was based on The Original Series Character,Doc Robot.

Also,contrary to popular belief, Sigma's look was Not inspired by Sagat...or M.Bison for that matter.
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Here's something strange: During the initial battle with Optic Sunflower,The Final Weapon From Mega Man X4 can be seen in the Background...even though it was destroyed in X4.
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And now something Really Interesting: Zero was originally gonna have his own Ultimate Armor for Mega Man X4,but for whatever reason,it was scrapped. Instead of Ultimate Armor,Zero has his 'Kuro Mode',which does nothing but change his color to black.

The Ultimate Armor for Zero would've been made by Dr.Wily,Zero's creator.

Thankfully,in future titles,Kuro Mode becomes an actual power-up for Zero.
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Let's talk about the Ruby-Spears Series for a bit,shall we?

There were plans in place to create a Mega Man X spin-off animated series,but due to the main series cancellation,this plan was scrapped.

Capcom and Hamilton Comics/Publishing planned to create a comic adaption of the show,but it never came to be. Again,thanks to the show itself being canned. The comic would've been helmed Dan and David Day, 2 dudes who worked for Marvel.


Despite it being an adaption of the Classic Series,Ruby-Spears Mega Man is so loose,that it can be considered it's own Mega Man Series.

Initially,the Series was to have an art style just like Capcom's official art. There are a few reasons for the drastic change in art style:

Reason 1 - The Anime style wasn't that popular in America and we were used to a more American look to our cartoon shows. This was before the Anime Boom in 1997.

Reason 2 - In America,The 'Kid Hero' was looked down upon,so Mega Man,Roll,and Proto Man were aged up. This attitude later changed in the early 2000's.

And Reason 3 - Muscular Heroes and Villains were the Thing in 90's America.

The reason why the Mega Man 6 Robot Masters weren't in the show is because during the creation of the 1st season (1993),Capcom were still undecided as to whether or not to bring 6 over to the west. By the time the decision was made,however,the 1st season's production was just wrapping up.

As to why they weren't in Season 2. It's because Nintendo of America owned the license to Mega Man 6,thanks to them publishing tbe game in North America. Ruby-Spears likely didn't wanna pay extra licensing fees,so they've decided to just leave the MM6 Robot Masters out. The license was only temporary however,and in a few short years,it expired and went to Capcom USA.

Also,Bass and the Mega Man 7 Robot Masters weren't in the show due to the Game being made at the same time that Season 2 was.

One final tidbit,Roll RS has over 30 different gadgets/tools/appliances installed into her Utility Arm.

May dedicate a whole post to the RS series in the future.
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Here's some more Interesting Stuff:

The Mega Man Legends Series hosted a few firsts for the Franchise: The first Female Villain (tron bonne),The first Love-Triangle (rock-roll-tron),The first Evil Mega Man (mega man juno),The first female Final Boss (sera),The first Non-Robot Mega Man (rock voulnutt),The first 3D Mega Man title (mega man legends 1),The first to have an entry that Doesn't feature Mega Man at all (misadventures of tron bonne), and The first to Not follow the traditional Mega Man formula (ie. select a stage,destroy it's boss,take his weapon,repeat 7 more times and go to the fortress levels).
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Duo was originally supposed to be a Robot created by Dr.Cossack,but it was later decided that he'd come from space instead.

Despite this change,Duo still has Russian influences in his design. The 4 divits in his armor resemble coat buttons,while the top part of his head resembles Russian headwear.
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Did you know that Servbots are more popular in Japan,then they are in the States.
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In a very early build of Mega Man X (possibly the one with the white city), there was a Manticore Maverick boss never seen in the final game. X8 also has a lost Maverick boss, a Big Cat with a hook on his tail, which was only seen in a single piece of artwork that depicted him with the games 8 bosses and X.

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And finally,The Mega Man Franchise has over 150 entries. 

And that about does it for this first edition of Factoids. Hope you leaned something. 

Until next time, Punch a Nazi, Kick a Commie, Resist Modern Attitudes, and Stay Gold.  

Thursday, July 24, 2025

Top 210 Live-Action Shows

Well, It's 2025 and America's Entertainment Industry has gotten worse. So, I've decided to make a list of my Top 210 Non-Animated Shows. 

Welcome to the debut of Top Whatever! 

A few notes before I begin. 1 - This List is for Archive Purposes. 2 - The List Will be in No Particular Order. 3 - Live Live-Action Shows Only. No Animated Shows will be on this list, I'm saving those for their own. 

And 4 - This is My Own Personal list, so please keep that in mind.

Well....Here we go.

210 - The Phil Silvers Show

209 - Old Ali,Tyson,and Foreman Fights (that's cheating, but who cares.)

208 - The Greatest American Hero

207 - Give Me a Break!

206 - Silver Spoons

205 - Double Dare

204 - WWF Saturday Night's Main Event

203 - Computer Chronicles

202 - Dinosaurs (the 90's TV sitcom)

201 - Big Bad Beetleborgs

200 - The Riffleman

199 - Gunsmoke

198 - Bonanza

197 - Batman (1966)

196 - The Munsters

195 - The Beverly Hillbillies

194 - Bewitched

193 - The Addams Family

192 - I Dream of Jeannie

191 - Get Smart

190 - Gilligan's Island

189 - Little House on the Prairie (has it's moments, especially in the later seasons.)

188 - All in the Family

187 - The Jeffersons

186 - Good Times

185 - Sanford and Son

184 - What's Happenin'

183 - Welcome Back, Kotter

182 - WKRP in Cincinnati 

181 - Taxi

180 - Fantasy Island

179 - Charlie's Angels

178 - Three's Company

177 - Happy Days

176 - Lavern and Shirley

175 - Mork and Mindy

174 - The Muppet Show 

173 - Archie Bunker's Place

172 - MacGuyver

171 - Diff'rent Strokes

170 - The A-Team

169 - What's Happenin' Now!

168 - Amen

167 - 227

166 - The Cosby Show

165 - Who's The Boss?.

164 - Growing Pains

163 - The Facts of Life

162 - Alf

161 - The Hogan Family

160 - Roseanne

159 - Married....with Children

158 - Family Ties

157 - The Wonder Years

156 - Full House

155 - Perfect Strangers

154 - Knight Rider

153 - Doogie Howser MD

152 - Family Matters

151 - Star Trek - The Original Series

150 - Star Trek - The Next Generation

149 - Saved By The Bell

148 - Charles in Charge

147 - Golden Girls

146 - Night Court

145 - Coach

144 - Mr. Belvedere

143 - Zorro 

142 - Mr. Wizard's World

141 - Pair of Kings (sometimes)  

140 - Frasier

139 - Walker - Texas Ranger

138 - Touched by an Angel.

137 - Power Rangers (both the Saban Era and the Disney Era)

136 - V.R. Troopers

135 - Super Human Samurai Syber Squad.

134 - Livin' Single

133 - Spider-Man (the 1970's show)    

132 - Ultra Violet and Black Scorpion  

131 - Villains of Valley View 

130 - Clarissa Explains it All

129 - The Adventures of Pete and Pete

128 - Salute Your Shorts

127 - Hey Dude

126 - Are You Afraid of the Dark? 

125 - All That

124 - Keenan and Kel

123 - Cousin Skeeter

122 - The Amanda Show

121 - Boy Meets World

120 - Sister Sister

119 - Sabrina, The Teenage Witch

118 - Smart Guy

117 - Hangin' with Mr. Cooper

116 - Cosby

115 - The Nanny

114 - Home Improvement

113 - Step by Step

112 - Saved by the Bell - The New Class

111 - California Dreams

110 - Hang Time

109 - The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air

108 - Blossom

107 - 7th Heaven

106 - Goosebumps

105 - Mystic Knights of Tir Na Nog

104 - The Parent Hood

103 - Malcolm and Eddie

102 - The Brothers Garcia

101 - The Waynes Bros.

100 - The Steve Harvey Show 

99 - Hercules - The Legendary Journeys 

98 - Xena - Warrior Princess

97 - Young Hercules

96 - The Monkees 

95 - Ninja Turtles - The Next Mutation (venus aside, it's not too bad of a show)

94 - Star Trek - Deep Space 9

93 - Star Trek - Voyager

92 - Tyler Perry's House of Payne

91 - Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns

90 - The Haunting Hour

89 - The Aquabats Super Show

88 - Kamen Rider Dragon Knight

87 - Once Upon a Time

86 - The Muppets

85 - Car 54, Where Are You?!

84 - The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis

83 - The Honymooners

82 - Newhart

81 - The Bob Newhart Show

80 - The Love Boat

79 - Kung-Fu

78 - M*A*S*H

77 - Matlock

76 - Diagnosis Murder

75 - In the Heat of the Night

74 - Barnaby Jones

73 - Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.

72 - Hogan's Heroes

71 - Kolchak - The Night Stalker

70 - Lost in Space

69 - Time Tunnel

68 - The Flinstones

67 - The Jetsons

66 - The Twilight Zone

65 - That's So Raven

64 - Kickin' It

63 - Lab Rats

62 - Mighty Med

61 - Crash and Bernstein

60 - Pair of Kings 

59 - Aaron Stone

58 - K.C. Undercover

57 - Girl Meets World

56 - Gamers Guide To Pretty Much Everything 

55 - Liv and Maddie

54 - Renegade 

53 - Wheel of Fortune

52 - Jeopardy

51 - Beakman's World

50 - Pee Wee's Playhouse (only because, I have some nostalgia for the show)

49 - Game Pro TV

48 - Video Power

47 - The Weird Al Show

46 - Hey Vern! It's Ernest. 

45 - Legends of the Hidden Temple

44 - Get The Picture

43 - Finders Keepers

42 - Figure It Out

41 - Nick Arcade

40 - Nick GUTS

39 - American Gladiators

38 - WMAC Masters

37 - Family Game Night

36 - The Odd Couple (the original; sometimes) 

35 - Highway to Heaven (sometimes)

34 - Benson

33 - WWF Superstars

32 - WWF Prime Time Wrestling

31 - WCW Thunder

30 - WWF Monday Night Raw

29 - WWF Action Zone

28 - WWF Livewire

27 - USWA Wrestling

26 - WCW Saturday Night

25 - WCW Monday Nitro

24 - WWF Tuesday Night Titans

23 - WCW Main Event

22 - WCW Pro

21 - Lucha Libre (mostly just 90's and early 2000's AAA and CMLL)

20 - Doc (the 2001 billy ray cyrus show)  

19 - This Old House (the bob villa era)

18 - The Price is Right

17 - Al TV (the weird al videos and segments mostly) 

16 - Family Feud (mainly from the 90's and early 2000s)

15 - Wagon Train (sometimes)   

14 - The 3 Stooges (the curly and shemp eras only) 

13 - The Big Valley

12 - The Wild, Wild West

11 - Svengoolie

10 - The Incredible Hulk

09 - Swamp Thing (the 90's series)

08 - A Different World

07 - Thunder in Paradise

06 - The Crocodile Hunter (r.i.p. steve irwin)

05 - The Dog Whisperer

04 - Dogs 101

03 - Where in the World is Carmine Sandiego?      

02 - Saved by the Bell - The Collage Years

01 - America's Funniest Home Videos   

CTV-i


 

I've talked a bit about this before on my old blog. So, I've decided to talk about it here. CTV-1 is (Was) something Special (to me, at least) from my Teen-Hood. Something that is (Was) near and dear to me, something Nostalgic. Something that was completely made obsolete by the Internet. 

This is Staten Island Community Television's CTV-i.

Now, Before I talk about the service itself. Here is a brief history.
 
CTV-1 (short for Community Television Interactive) was created as a spin-off channel in the Early 90's as an Interactive Information Service for those with Touchtone Phones. Staten Islanders would tune in to Channel 56 on Staten Island Cable (later known as Time Warner Cable), dial-up the number (727-0235) , and enjoy everything CTV-1 had to offer.
 
From The Early 90's to the Early 2000's, CTV-i Was The place for At-Home Information and Fun for Staten Islanders.
 
So,what happened to it? Why isn't it still around? Simple - The Internet! Once that grew, usage of CTV-i shrank. And by Late 2000, the Service was rarely used, causing CTV to shut it down a year later in 2001.
 
CTV-i was something that me and my buddies used to watch and use a lot during the 90's. It is missed.

In 1996, my best buddy,P. K. (real name withheld due to him hating getting name dropped in public), introduced me to CTV-i , which He had been using and watching since 1993. So when he told me about it, I decided to check it out and I was hooked. When I wasn't using the service (mainly to play the interactive games and trivia), I was watching it to see what the other users did.
 
The service used an older computer Operating System (i think it was Amiga) for it's presentation, with Synthwave/Vaporwave playing in the background. Later this was replaced with music from a popular Radio Station (which CTV did have).
 
When logged in to the service, the user was greeted with a male digitized voice welcoming you to the service.
 
It would either say - "Welcome to CTV-i,The Interactive Information Service,from Staten Island Community Television!" or "Welcome to CTV-i, The Interactive Information Service. Select an Option from The Express Entry Menu!"

The user would then use their Touchtone Phone as some kind of remote control, with the options repped by a number on the phones keypad.

To access an option of the Service, all the User had to do was press the corresponding number on the Phone. (Ie. if an option was repped by the number 7, all the User had to do is press 7.)
 
Some of the Services CTV-1 included were - Information about NYC Transit, Employment Listings, General Info About Community Civic and Cultural Organizations, as well as Fun Stuff like Interactive Stories,Trivia, and Quizzes. 

Sometime in '98/'99, CTV-i would introduce a "Kids" section, where the little ones could play kiddie games such as fun with Shapes, Numbers, and Colors.

Created as a "Mascot" for this section was a character called Sock Boy. Later, Sock Boy would get a sidekick, a stick figure with a circle head, known as Stick Guy.

There was also various vector graphic bumpers. One of which depicted a close-up shot of a smiling woman wearing shades that had lenses that spun in multiple colors. Next to her was a message telling you that You Were Watching CTV-i. Fun stuff.

Anyway,the service was on a time limit, each session would last around 2 minutes. Once those 2 minutes were up, the session would end for that caller. A caller also ended their session by either hanging up the phone, completing an Interactive Story, or getting a "Game Over" on an Interactive Story.

I think there was another way to end the session, but I forgot what it was.  

Once the session was over, a female digitized voice would say - "We appreciate You using CTV-i. Thank You for calling and please call again!"

Now, let's talk more about what's available for the service. Besides the stuff mentioned above there was also News Briefings (including weather, traffic, and construction), Various Bulletin Boards (including animal adoption and lost and found, special events, and personal engagements), Sports Scores (includes racing,boxing,and wrestling results), The CTV Show Schedule (ch.24,ch.34,and ch.35), Movie Times, and Directories.

Now I'll talk about my favorite part of the service, and the part me and my buddy P. K.would use the most - The Interactive Stories. 

CTV-i had 3 Interactive Stories during it's run - The Adventures of You,Adventures of You 2, and Adventures of You 3.   

In "The Adventures of You", You take the role of a Staten Islander who finds a Gem and it makes you shrink. You eventually get abducted by, and later befriend, a bird. It ends with You (still shrunk) and the Bird foiling a Bank Robbery.  You then become a Hero known as The Bird Master. 

In "Adventures of You 2", You come across a mysterious forked road at night - one path leads to a Creepy Old House, the other leads to the Unknown. The Unknown is a trap, so the only way forward is though The Haunted House. If you Do decide to stay in the Unknown, You'll be attacked by Evil Monsters (with evil eyes)

Anyway, before entering the House the User Must get by an Evil Witch/Vampire. After defeating her, the User needs to reach the Exit, but not before getting by all sorts of Evil Beings and Traps. One such entity is the Evil Pharaoh.

Once you finally exit the House, it's daytime and the skies are clear. After that the game ends.

"Adventures of You 3" has You adventuring in Space. There were nasty Aliens involved and you could get lost in Space. But other than that, I don't remember this one much.

CTV-i was one of the many different things that shaped my Youth. And I'm glad to have watched it (and used it) during it's prime.

One of my fondest CTV-i memories is from the Summer of '96/'97, where I would watch it in the backroom of my house, while sucking on Jolly Ranchers (remember those).

And that's gonna do it for this Personal Memory Trip. Hope you learned a little something about Staten Island's Community Television.

So Space Cowboys, Until Next Time - Punch a Nazi, Kick a Commie, Resist Modern Attitudes, and Stay Gold. 

Personal Nostalgia - Saturday Morning Shows

Saturday Morning Cartoons were a great part of my life. I watched SatAM Cartoons all of the time,I rarely missed my dose of Saturday AM good...