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"I'm number one!"
—Birdie (Street Fighter)

"Hey!"
—Birdie (Street Fighter Alpha series)

"Oy! It ain't too late to run off to Mum now...
(Hey! 逃げるなら今のうちだぜ? Hey! Nigerunara ima no uchida ze??)
"
—Birdie (Street Fighter V)

Birdie (バーディー Bādī?) is a video game character from the Street Fighter series, first appearing as a non-playable opponent in the original Street Fighter, before becoming playable in Street Fighter Alpha. He is a hulking to obese British punk rocker who fights using chains.

Biography

Appearance

Birdie's appearance has changed with each of the Street Fighter games that he is featured in, though he is generally depicted as a very tall (about the height of Sagat), late 1970s British punk rocker. In the original, he is shown as a tall, muscular man with pale skin a blonde mohawk (depicted as orange-red during combat); his outfit is that of a typical punk rocker, with blue jeans and a dark leather vest, studded bracelets, and combat boots. Interestingly enough, Birdie's early Street Fighter V design was nearly identical to his original appearance.

In the Alpha series, Birdie is a hulking, black man with blonde mohawk and a wide, pointy brown mustache that extends to the sides of his head to become sideburns. His lips are now larger, and he also has a tattoo of a red heart on the side of his head and sports a patently impossible hole in the center of his Mohawk, giving his unique hairstyle the appearance of a sharp bird's beak. Birdie's excuse for his drastic change in appearance is that he was pale due to being sick.[10]

His outfit is also changed: his leather vest is now blue and sports a wide, pointed collar; he also wears a necklace with rectangular, yellow beads and a round, red one in the middle, along with several other accessories. These include round, red earrings; fingerless blue gloves; thick, metal bracelets; and brown, oddly pointed shoes, which are more common to punks in Japan than in England.

In Street Fighter V, Birdie has gained a beer belly, and appears much more overweight, in addition to looking grimy and disheveled. His punk attire is updated, with torn jeans, a chav-punk jacket with a large up-turned collar and more detailed combat boots that have replaced his brown pointy shoes. He also gains a tattoo on his stomach, reading "Life Like Dice". His Mohawk is also animated more realistically due to the shift from sprites to 3D models; the unusual hole is also absent. His alternate costume is a yellow and black biker jumpsuit similar to Rufus' but in a Shadaloo motif.

His second costume appears similar to the late Freddy Mercury of the U.K. rock band Queen. His Mohawk is loose downward and, along with his mustache, dyed in black. He wears a yellow flak vest, white shorts with red outlines and matching white and red sneakers. The tattoo on his stomach is not seen.

Personality

Birdie's character is very fitting of the "dim-witted brute" archetype. He is violent, short-tempered and generally unkind to others around him, and has an unsettling habit of licking his chain attached to his wrist before and/or after combat. However, he is shown more positively in the expanded media of Street Fighter; for example, in the Alpha manga, he is shown to be friends with Ryu, and allies himself with Chun-Li.

In Street Fighter V, Birdie is presented as more of a comical glutton who enjoys eating, even during fights. Although still just as rude and brash, Birdie seems to be markedly less aggressive towards others, likely due to the fact that he is no longer a part of Shadaloo. He is also very conscious of his Mohawk and hates wearing any hats, as he believes it would mess up his hairdo.

Character Relationships

Karin

When Birdie is running away from Shadaloo, he meets Karin at her estate. After they fight in a battle, she makes him work for her and pays him in return with food.

Ibuki

To be added...

Ken

Ken seems to have some unexplained history with Birdie. They both presumably battled (or at least met) in some form as Ken recognizes Birdie to some degree, though not being 100% sure due to Birdie's weight gain. They both battle with Ken emerging victorious and that Ken himself still not recognizes on who Birdie is after the match and forgetting about him when meeting up with Karin.

Story

Prior to his criminal career, Birdie was a professional wrestler, teaming with occasional rival Titanic Tim (from the Slam Masters series) as the "500 Million Trillion Powers". He turned to a life of crime when his wrestling career ended, doing some street fighting on the side to add to his income, as well as nightclub bouncing.

Main Article: Street Fighter

During the events of the game, Birdie was apparently sick (causing him to look paler).

Joining Shadaloo

Main Article: Street Fighter Alpha 2

Despite this setback, Birdie rose up the criminal ranks. He eventually became aware of an organization called Shadaloo and, tracking down their leader, M. Bison, demonstrated his fighting skills to join them. However, Bison only wanted a test subject, and used Birdie to perform painful and demeaning experiments. Birdie resolved to get even.[11]

Street Fighter Alpha 3

Sneaking into a Shadaloo data room, he learned about the Psycho Drive machine, not aware that M. Bison was watching him. Thinking he could use it to overthrow Bison and become lord of Shadaloo himself, he set out to find it. Bison sent Balrog to kill Birdie, but Birdie convinced Balrog to help him instead by telling him how the Psycho Drive could make them powerful. Hindered by Balrog's incompetence, however, Birdie couldn't find the Drive before it exploded.

Street Fighter V

Prologue - 'On The Run: Extreme Hunger!'

In his character story, Birdie is shown walking out, fed up from Shadaloo and ignoring F.A.N.G (who is the reason for him leaving); after losing them, and fending off Chun-Li (who was trying to arrest him for questioning), he ends up at the Kanzuki Estate. He fights Karin, and leaves her impressed with his skills; when she asks why he left Shadaloo, Birdie (while having a sumptuous meal) casually answers that he "didn't like how they handled business" (the last straw being that of their newest dress code, and ultimately irritated by being told mandatory orders to wear a hat, hiding his hairdo).

Karin decides to offer Birdie to stay at the Estate as her guest, wishing to test her leadership abilities (reasoning that, if he were to betray her, it would mean she is unworthy still); he eagerly accepts when he is reassured that it means free and unlimited food, whenever he wants. As first order of business, Karin smugly presents him with the challenge of facing one hundred of her bodyguards, much to his shock.

A Shadow Falls

Birdie plays a small role in the general story. He is first seen gorging down chicken legs when the first Black Moon detonates over New York, powering off electricity there and signals. Later, Birdie holds März captive while all the other fighters are getting the keys for the Black Moons at the Kanzuki Estate after being captured during an attack by Karin. März escapes after Birdie is beaten down by Aprile and Noembelu. Birdie participates in the second attack on the Shadaloo base, fighting Février, complaining that she is using guns, while she points out he uses his chains as a weapon. He is with the rest of the other fighters as the base explodes, meeting with Ryu and Chun-Li, who got out after defeating M. Bison.

Gameplay

Fighting style

Birdie combines brawling with wrestling.[7] His favorite techniques involve headbutting the opponent through the use of his attacks, Bull Head and Bull Horn.

Moveset

Bull Horn offers a moment of invulnerability to projectile attacks and can be used to close the distance on Birdie's opponents. His Bull Head is a full on charging headbutt but using it leaves him completely open so the player should use it carefully.

His arsenal of moves also includes grappling techniques, such as Bandit Chain and Murderer Chain. The player should use his other attacks to get in close, then use grappling techniques to cause damage.

For his appearance in Street Fighter V, Birdie's playstyle is changed to combine his previous grappling prowess with strong defensive options, making him both intimidating from up close and at a distance. Birdie's first V-Skill allows him to consume one of three food items, with varying effects. Eating a doughnut simply adds to his V-Gauge. Eating a banana leaves the peel out for the opponent to slip on. Drinking an energy drink allows him to roll a can along the floor, creating a makeshift projectile. The banana peel and energy drink deal little damage, but can cause Birdie's opponents to stumble, leaving them open for a follow-up attack. Birdie's second V-Skill lets him control the air using bubblegum as an arcing projectile that he can also deflect other fireballs with. His first V-Trigger functions similarly to Makoto's Tanden Renki. Birdie eats a chili pepper that turns his skin red, gives all of his attacks a 20% damage increase, increases his movement speed and adds armor to his Bull Head and Bull Horn special moves. His second V-Trigger gives Birdie access to new attacks using his chain and increases the damage dealt by his Hanging Chain and Bull Revenger .

Cameo appearances

Birdie appears as a card in the SNK vs. Capcom: Card Fighters Clash series. He also makes a non-playable appearance in Super Gem Fighter Mini Mix.

In his Super Street Fighter II Turbo ending picture, Ryu can be seen fighting a street thug that appears to be Birdie, though whether or not it is actually him is unconfirmed.

Comics

Street Fighter Alpha manga

Birdie appears in the Street Fighter Alpha manga series, where he is shown in a surprisingly more positive fashion; Birdie is a leader of a group of drug dealers, but is a close friend and companion to Ryu, as he was the first person (other than Birdie's own mother) to be kind to him. He proves to be a violent but honorable ally, even teaming up with Chun-Li (who had previously tried to arrest him) in order to stop Ryu from killing everyone while under the influence of the Satsui no Hado.

UDON comics

Birdie also appeared in UDON's Street Fighter IV comic, where he was seen "ripping heads off baby dolls for ammo" when Abel found him while searching for information on the S.I.N. organization. The two fight, with Abel emerging the victor.

Animations

Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation

In Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation, he is the most prominent of the Alpha characters, and is depicted with an American accent and an oddly noble and heroic personality. Though just as arrogant and violent as his game counterpart, he still implored Ken and Chun-Li to leave him and escape with the others even though his ki was being extracted, and he continuously defends them from Dr. Sadler's android enforcer despite being severely beaten several times. He is last seen being taken to safety.

Street Fighter II V

In the episode The Revenge Of Ashura, one of Rose's men resembles Birdie due to having Mohawk hair.

Street Fighter cartoon

Birdie makes his first animated show appearance in the episode The Medium is the Message, along with several other characters from the Street Fighter Alpha subseries. Birdie was one of several competitors in a tournament taking place in Chhatarpur, India, though his role, along with the other Alpha characters, was minimal. He was shown facing Adon near the beginning of the episode, though the outcome of the brawl was unknown. Later on, Guile and Blanka took on Guy and Birdie in a 2-on-2 match, winning handily.

Birdie makes a second appearance alongside fellow Alpha character Sodom in Cammy and the Bachelor, taking on a much more central role than previously. The two characters, under the employ of Bison, are responsible for a crime spree causing havoc across London. This crime wave catches the attention of Delta Red, whose attempts to stop it are thwarted by Bison and his henchmen. Birdie, in contrast to his cameo appearance in "The Medium is the Message", has several speaking roles, and his character is expanded upon somewhat. The episode raises the possibility that Birdie is either a hired hand for or a member of Shadaloo, in direct comparison to his involvement with the organization in Street Fighter Alpha 2/3.

Subpages

Quotes

Birdie/Quotes

Gallery

Birdie/Gallery

Sprites

Birdie/Sprites

Music

Trivia

  • He is named after the golfing term "Birdie." The other English character from the first Street Fighter game; Eagle, is also named after a golf term.
  • As mentioned above, one of Birdie's rivals is Titanic Tim from Capcom's Slam Masters series of wrestling games.
    • Furthermore, when Birdie and Titanic Tim were a wrestling tag team, they had went by the name "500 Trillion Powers", a parody of the wrestling manga/anime series Kinnikuman's "20 Million Powers".
  • In Birdie's stage in the original Street Fighter, several posters of Velvet Underground (recognizably enough, from their album The Velvet Underground and Nico) can be seen on the walls, as well as a painting of the name of former Capcom USA VP of Sales and Marketing, Bill Cravens.[12]
  • In Hakan's opening in SSFIV, he is shown beating and interrogating a punk who closely resembles Birdie's original design.
  • Birdie is the first black British character in the series, followed by Dudley.
  • Birdie is the second heaviest Street Fighter character at 507 pounds, just behind Abigail at (584 pounds), and followed by Hugo (440 pounds) and Rufus (408 pounds).
  • Birdie's current appearance is very similar to that of the late WWE wrestler Nelson Frazier Jr., who was well-known by his wrestling ring names Mabel, Viscera, and Big Daddy V.
  • Birdie's stomach tattoo has a similar design to that of current WWE professional wrestler, former UFC fighter and former AEW professional wrestler CM Punk.
  • Birdie is the first fighter whose neutral pose can damage the opponent. In Street Fighter V, he picks his nose and flicks the booger at the opponent which acts like a projectile attack.
  • Rose and Birdie's stage in Street Fighter Alpha:Warriors' Dreams is based on Bruce Lee's Way of the Dragon film, where Bruce Lee as "Tang Lung" fights Chuck Norris as "Colt" in the Colosseum in Rome. The background is identical to the movie, and even includes the stray cats who are passing by the stage.
  • Birdie gaining a significant amount of weight after retiring from professional wrestling is reminiscent to the many professional wrestlers who have let themselves go after their retirement.
  • Birdie looks very similar to Zeed, the first opponent faced by Kenshiro in the manga/anime series Hokuto no Ken (Fist of the North Star). His appearance may be based on him.
  • Birdie's story in Street Fighter V resembles much the one of Cracker Jack (from the Street Fighter EX games), who was an ex enforcer for Shadaloo, fleeing the organization to a billionaires daughter, Blair Dame, and becoming her bodyguard in return for protection.
  • Birdie's battle costume in Street Fighter V resembles the late Queen frontman Freddie Mercury, as it has Freddie's jacket, mustache, and pants. Additionally, a crown is placed upon Birdie's head.
  • Due to Street Fighter V being on more modern hardware, Birdie's chain actually wraps around his opponent depending on their size by opponent bases. In previous games attacks like Illusion Spark and Take No Prisoners have the wrapping object merge into the character hit.
  • In the cartoon, Birdie and Burke are the only British characters that are voiced by Paul Dobson and Garry Chalk, the two actors who are born in the United Kingdom.

See also

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Street Fighter V site
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Street Fighter V Stat Card
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 http://www.capcom.co.jp/sfv/chara_birdie.html
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 All About Street Fighter ZERO3 page 058
  5. How old is the birdie of the first STREET FIGHTER? (初代STREET FIGHTERのバーディーは何歳の設定 ?) Answer: 29歳. from QUIZ STREET FIGHTER ACADEMY
  6. from the official account of the Capcom Artwork Team
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 Street Fighter: World Warrior Encyclopedia 2015
  8. Street Fighter V
  9. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XrEQ21wNRa8
  10. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xPwZIUMIgDI#t=4m55s
  11. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1dq1-dj4RI
  12. http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=13590
  13. [1]
Street Fighter series Playable Characters
Main Series
SF Logo Ken · Ryu
Street-fighter-ii-logo The World Warrior Blanka · Chun-Li · Dhalsim · E. Honda · Guile · Zangief
Champion Edition Balrog · M. Bison · Sagat · Vega
Super Cammy · Dee Jay · Fei Long · T. Hawk
Super Turbo Akuma
Ultra Violent Ken
SFAlogo Alpha Adon · Birdie · Charlie Nash · Dan · Guy · Rose · Sodom
Alpha 2 Evil Ryu · Gen · Rolento · Sakura · Shin Akuma
Alpha 3 Cody · Juli · Juni · Karin · R. Mika
Alpha 3 Upper Eagle · Maki
Alpha 3 MAX Ingrid
Street fighter iii logo New Generation Alex · Dudley · Elena · Ibuki
Necro · Oro · Sean · Yang · Yun
2nd Impact Gill · Hugo · Urien
3rd Strike Makoto · Q · Remy · Twelve
Street fighter iv logo IV Abel · C. Viper · El Fuerte · Gouken · Rufus · Seth
Super Hakan · Juri
Arcade Edition Oni
Ultra Decapre · Poison
SFV-Logo-R-3 V F.A.N.G · Laura · Necalli · Rashid
Season 2 Abigail · Ed · Kolin · Menat · Zeku
Season 3 Falke · G
Season 4 Kage · Lucia
Season 5 Akira · Eleven · Luke
Street fighter 6 logo 6 Jamie · JP · Kimberly · Lily · Manon · Marisa
Year 1 A.K.I.
Year 2 Mai (Guest) · Terry (Guest)
Spin-offs
Street Fighter The Movie Logo Arkane · Blade · F7 · Khyber · Sawada
Street-fighter-ii--the-animated-movie Cyborg
Sfexlogo EX Allen · Blair · C. Jack · Darun · D. Dark
Hokuto · Kairi · Pullum · Skullomania
EX Plus Bloody Hokuto · Cycloid-β · Cycloid-γ · Garuda
EX2 Hayate · Nanase · Shadowgeist · Sharon
EX2 Plus Area · V. Rosso
EX3 Ace · Bison II
Marvel vs. Capcom Logo MSHvSF Cyber-Akuma · Dark Sakura · Mech-Zangief · Shadow
MvC Shadow Lady
SFO Shin
Street Fighter Characters
Playable Ken · Ryu
CPU Only Adon · Birdie · Eagle · Geki · Gen · Joe · Lee · Mike · Retsu · Sagat
Street Fighter Alpha Characters
Alpha Adon · Akuma · Birdie · Charlie · Chun-Li · Dan · Guy
Ken · M. Bison · Rose · Ryu · Sagat · Sodom
Alpha 2 Original Dhalsim · Evil Ryu · Gen · Rolento · Sakura · Zangief
Console Shin Akuma
Gold Cammy
Alpha 3 Original Balrog · Blanka · Cody · E. Honda · Juli · Juni · Karin · R. Mika · Vega
Console Dee Jay · Fei Long · Guile · T. Hawk
Upper Eagle · Maki · Yun
MAX Ingrid
Street Fighter V Characters
Original Birdie · Cammy · Chun-Li · Dhalsim · F.A.N.G · Karin · Ken · Laura
M. Bison · Nash · Necalli · R. Mika · Rashid · Ryu · Vega · Zangief
Season 1 Alex · Balrog · Guile · Ibuki · Juri · Urien
Season 2 Abigail · Akuma · Ed · Kolin · Menat · Zeku
Season 3 Blanka · Cody · Falke · G · Sagat · Sakura
Season 4 E. Honda · Gill · Kage · Lucia · Poison · Seth
Season 5 Akira · Dan · Eleven · Luke · Oro · Rose
CPU Only AS · Aprile · Decapre · Enero · Février · Juli · März · Peter
Phantom Bison · Santamu · Satsuki · Shadow · Shadow Lady · Two P
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