Super Sonic Blast Man (スーパーソニックブラストマン Sūpā Sonikku Burasuto Man?), also referred to simply as Sonic Blast Man (ソニックブラストマン Sonikku Burasuto Man?), SSB, or SBM, is a character appearing in the Puzzle Bobble series. He is a superhero whose strength is usually demonstrated via his powerful punches, having traveled from his home planet to live on Earth in order to stop evil and uphold peace.
Originating from the Taito-developed arcade title Sonic Blast Man, he has since made appearances in several Puzzle Bobble games as a playable character. He originates from the world of an arcade game titled Real Puncher, which unlike most of the other fictional arcade titles in Puzzle Bobble 3, is a real game released by Taito and the sequel to Sonic Blast Man.
Biography[]
Appearance[]
Super Sonic Blast Man resembles an average human, despite his alien heritage. He possesses a fairly muscular build, and is usually depicted in an moderately armored superhero costume. He wears a silver helmet with a visor, a radio dish, and two antennae attached on either side, as well as a yellow scarf, called the SBM Muffler (ＳＢＭマフラー Esu Bī Emu Mafurā?), around his neck. His suit also possesses blue shoulder pads as well as a blue chestplate with a built-in clock and television receiver embedded on either side. The bottom layer of his suit appears to be rather form-fitting, and is colored gray with a yellow stripe resembling a lightning bolt around each arm and leg. Super Sonic Blast Man also wears blue boxing gloves, a belt with a device called the Digital Gong (デジタルゴング Dejitaru Gongu?) in place of a buckle, and blue trunks. He also wears blue knee pads, and blue and yellow boots that he made himself by altering a pair of boxing shoes.
In his civilian identity as Sonny Brand, he is usually seen wearing a brown business suit with a red tie and glasses. Underneath his helmet, he has brown hair.
Personality[]
Super Sonic Blast Man has a very heroic personality, being willing to drop anything at a moment's notice to help people in need or fight evil. He is dedicated to his duties as a superhero, however, he tends to take things too far at times, and has been shown accidentally causing unnecessary damage as well as being rather quick to escalate things into a battle. He takes great pride in his powerful punches, often shouting his catchphrase, "Taste my punches!" (私のパンチを受けてみろ！ Watashi no panchi o ukete miro!?) when attacking. Additionally, he is also shown to be slightly oblivious at times, and generally carries himself in an over-the-top manner.
In his civilian identity as Sonny Brand, he is stated to be rather mild-mannered and unassuming, contrasting greatly from his personality as Super Sonic Blast Man.
Abilities[]
Super Sonic Blast Man's main ability is his incredible strength, which can be seen by his powerful punches. His gloves are made out of a material called Sonic Blastnoid (ソニックブラストノイド Sonikku Burasutonoido?) that amplifies the power of his punches by several hundred times. His signature technique is the Dynamite Punch (ダイナマイトパンチ Dainamaito Panchi?), an extremely powerful technique in which he punches the ground with one hundred megatons of force, damaging and knocking back any nearby enemies.
Aside from his powerful punches, Super Sonic Blast Man also skilled in general combat, and is able to manipulate energy around himself in order to perform special techniques. Some of his other techniques include the Sonic Upper (ソニックアッパー Sonikku Appā?), an uppercut that leaves a shockwave behind, the Rolling Punch (ローリングパンチ Rōringu Panchi?), a powerful wind-up punch, the Blast Shot (ブラストショット Burasuto Shotto?), a move where he grabs the opponent and sends them flying with a flurry of rapid close-range punches, the Screw Bomber (スクリューボンバー Sukuryū Bonbā?), in which he leaps into the air, performing a spinning clothesline, the Vortex Cannon (渦動砲 Kadō-hō?), a spinning uppercut performed while surrounding himself in energy, the Blast Straight (ブラストストレート Burasuto Sutorēto?), a punch that creates a short-range shockwave, and the Sonic Inferno (ソニックインフェルノ Sonikku Inferuno?), an powerful punch that sends a burst of energy flying forward from his fist. Super Sonic Blast Man is also able to use a variety of combat throws, including the One Hand Throw (ワンハンドスルー Wan Hando Surū?), the Sonic Blast Man Tomoe Nage (ソニックブラストマン巴投げ Sonikku Burasuto Man Tomoe Nage?), and the Giant Swing (ジャイアントスイング Jaianto Suingu?), as well as kicks such as the Rolling Sobat (ローリングソバット Rōringu Sobatto?).
Super Sonic Blast Man's suit contains numerous devices and gadgets to aid him in his heroic efforts, including a radio antenna and receiver that allows him to intercept transmissions, shutter-type 3D glasses that allow him to see in stereoscopic 3D, a muffler made of alien materials that is able to protect him from heat generated by explosions, a built-in clock to tell time, and a nine-inch built-in television that is compatible with all types of broadcasting systems.
History[]
Background[]
Super Sonic Blast Man is a hero of justice who hails from Planet Sonic Blast (ソニックブラスト星 Sonikku Burasuto-sei?), living on Earth in order to protect the planet from anything that might threaten its peace. In his civilian identity, he goes by the name Sonny Brand (ソニー・ブランド Sonī Burando?), and works as a programmer at a computer company. As Sonny Brand, he presents himself as a mild-mannered, bespectacled young man, but when danger arises, he becomes Super Sonic Blast Man, a brave hero who will stop at nothing to maintain peace and fight against evil. As Sonny Brand, he is in a romantic relationship with his boss, Mary Cooper (メアリー・クーパー Mearī Kūpā?), but cannot reveal his true identity to her.
In Sonic Blast Man for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, he saves the world from a number of threats, culminating in a final fight with his arch-enemy, Heavy Blast Man (ヘビーブラストマン Hebī Burasuto Man?). In the game's sequel, Sonic Blast Man II, he teams up with two other heroes; Sonia the Blast Lady (ソニア・ザ・ブラストレディ Sonia za Burasuto Redi?), a speedy female warrior from Planet Sonic Blast, and Captain Choyear (キャプテン・チョイヤー Kyaputen Choiyā?), an ex-Navy colonel rebuilt as a cyborg after an accident during training. Together, the three fight against the evil Yafu (ヤフー Yafū?), an alien bent on taking over the Earth.
Puzzle Bobble 3[]
Super Sonic Blast Man appears as a playable character in Puzzle Bobble 3, having been brought to Bubble World alongside numerous other protagonists of various arcade games due to Drunk's magic. Desperate to return to his own world, he faces off in a series of puzzle battles against the other protagonists in order to find and defeat Drunk.
In Super Sonic Blast Man's ending, he defeats Deb and Drunk and leaps into the air heroically, however, he accidentally rams his head into a building, causing it to partially collapse and leading the other characters to run away in a panic.
Bust-A-Move Millennium[]
Super Sonic Blast Man appears as a playable character in Bust-A-Move Millennium. In the game's story mode, he is encountered in Hero Land. He approaches Bub, asking if he needs any help, to which Bub responds that he is looking for Drunk. At this, Super Sonic Blast Man challenges him to a fight, hoping to see who has the stronger punches, but due to Bub's hesitation, he instead decides to challenge him to a puzzle battle instead.
After the match, Super Sonic Blast Man compliments Bub's skill, directing him to a fork in the road and asking him to choose which direction to take. Regardless of which direction the player chooses, Super Sonic Blast Man makes his leave without elaborating on whether it was the correct choice or not, much to Bub's chagrin.
Other Appearances[]
Arkanoid vs. Space Invaders[]
Super Sonic Blast Man appears as a selectable co-pilot for the Vaus in the Taito crossover game Arkanoid vs. Space Invaders.
Trivia[]
- Super Sonic Blast Man's dual identity as a quiet, bespectacled office worker is a pastiche of tropes common to superheroes in American comics, most notably the DC Comics character Superman and his civilian identity as the mild-mannered reporter Clark Kent.
