Bowser is one of the most iconic villains in video game history. The Koopa King has been the primary antagonist throughout the Mario series, trying almost every entry to try to best Mario and falling short. However, despite his heinous tendencies, Bowser also has a side to him that can be rather likable.
The layers that Bowser has as a character are rather unique, from showing he wants to care about his son to teaming up with Mario when it best suits his agenda. It's because of these unique plot turns that Bowser has plenty of weird moments across his many appearances.
10 Fighting A Trophy
Bowser gets angry rather easily, so beating up on an object out of pure rage isn't the most surprising thing for the evil lord to do. However, it is a bit weird given the sequence in Subspace Emissary, the adventure mode in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Throughout the story, Bowser and Ganondorf worked together to serve Master Hand in gathering trophies, the statuettes the different fighters turn into.
However, after Ganondorf betrayed Bowser by turning him into a trophy, Bowser was understandably enraged. A little later, after Ganondorf gets turned into a trophy and Bowser is himself again, Bowser attacks Ganondorf in his trophy state, even though he knows it doesn't actually do anything to The Legend of Zelda villain. It's a very funny moment in the story, but definitely weird given its ineffectiveness.
9 Eating Too Many Pills
One fascinating thing we learn about Bowser is that he will consume almost anything. That is a major theme over the course of Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story. At some point in the story, Bowser would become rather bloated with the number of things he ate.
In the side story Bowser Jr.'s Journey, Bowser Jr. offers his dad some of the medicine that was used to cure some of the blorbs in the game. But instead of taking one pill, Bowser downs the entire bottle. Because of this, he loses so much fat that he becomes Dry Bowser.
8 Accidentally Making Himself Possessed
In Paper Mario: Color Splash, a core component of the game revolved around painting parts of the world. So it's only fitting that the primary reason Bowser becomes the main antagonist of this game is because of the paint.
Near the start of the game, Bowser finds some paint on Prism Island. Bowser decides that he wants to make his shell look like a rainbow. So without hesitation, he paints his shell in a rainbow, but when the colors begin to mix, it turns a deep black. This then turns Bowser into a possessed Koopa King who begins to destroy everything around him.
7 Training Wario And Waluigi In Unique Ways
Bowser isn't the only character in the Mario universe known for causing hijinks. Wario and Waluigi may be a little less harmful, but the two of them get into a lot of shenanigans. This is especially true during the sports titles where they would do anything for riches and glory.
In Mario Power Tennis, Wario and Waluigi lose to Mario in a match, and after committing an act of vandalism, the duo falls down into a trap set by Bowser. It is here that Bowser puts them through intense training to try to beat Mario. However, the tactics Bowser uses are questionable, such as making Wario outrun a Chain Chomp on a treadmill and stretching Waluigi's back furiously.
6 Being Scared Of Mario's Outfits
No matter the circumstance, it always seems like Bowser doesn't care about the dangers in front of him. He always will stand up to Mario even with the deck stacked against him and he will take on pretty much anyone that cares to pick a fight.
That's why it's rather strange that in Super Mario Odyssey, a game where players are able to change up Mario's look, Bowser shows a little bit of fear before the final battle. This only happens with specific outfits Mario wears, including the Skeleton Suit, the Zombie Outfit, and the Boxer Shorts.
5 Attacking The Sprixies
Super Mario 3D World is one of the more unique titles in the Super Mario series. For example, this is one of the rare times that Princess Peach does not get kidnapped, which is likely why she is a playable character in the game.
Instead, Bowser specifically targets a bunch of Sprixie Princesses from the Sprixie Kingdom. He puts a bunch of them in jars and hides them in castles in a bunch of different worlds throughout the kingdom. It's never fully explained why Bowser does this, making this a strange turn for Bowser to move away from his usual schtick.
4 Trying To Melt Antarctica
While it could be argued that it is somewhat removed from the Mario canon, Mario is Missing! is still a game that Nintendo authorized as an educational experience. It was set on Earth and Bowser was once again up to his devious schemes.
The plan Bowser formed for this game was to melt Antarctica and flood the Earth. This was going to be done without much reason given outside of wanting to loot the world of its riches. On top of that, the method that Bowser is using to melt the giant glacier continent is using a lot of hair dryers.
3 Riding A Clown Car
The Koopa King has had plenty of modes of transportation over the course of his video game life. There is the airship that was first introduced in Super Mario Bros. 3 and there are the various cars he uses to race in Mario Kart. However, no vehicle of Bowser's is more iconic than his clown car.
First introduced in Super Mario World, this hovering shell transports him through the air and has been used as a central part of boss fights in multiple game entries. But the reason why this is so weird is that it is never explained why Bowser specifically wanted to ride in a clown car. This becomes further weird given the fact that one of the costumes Bowser is scared of in Super Mario Odyssey is the Clown Outfit.
2 Lying To Bowser Jr. About Peach
Bowser Jr.'s first appearance in the franchise is Super Mario Sunshine, where he disguises himself as Shadow Mario to kidnap Peach and frame Mario for the mess caused on Isle Delfino. When Junior decides to drop his disguise, he refers to Princess Peach as his "mama" and that he was just trying to steal her back from the "evil" Mario.
It is later revealed that Bowser fed his son the lie of Princess Peach being Junior's mom to convince him into going after Mario. Bowser Jr. figures out that his dad was lying, but doesn't hold it against him, which may make some wonder why Bowser had to lie in the first place.
1 Kidnapping Princess Peach
It's the Super Mario Bros tale as old as time. From the very first game in the franchise, Bowser's goal has been to kidnap Princess Peach and keep her locked away in the castle. There are various reasons why Bowser may do this, which range from his love of Princess Toadstool to the ultimate goal of taking over the world.
Regardless, while fans of the franchise are certainly used to the idea that Bowser does this and will likely do it again, it is awfully weird that Bowser just wants to keep kidnapping her (or anyone). Especially knowing that he will likely have to fend off Mario, which he hasn't had much success with.