Let’s be real for a second. When Nintendo first showed off the Super Mario Odyssey Broodals back in 2017, the collective reaction from the fanbase was basically a giant "Wait, what?" Everyone expected the Koopalings. We always expect the Koopalings. Instead, we got a group of four lanky, eccentric, rabbit wedding planners from the moon. It was weird. It was jarring. Honestly, at first glance, they felt like a B-tier replacement for Bowser’s usual heavy hitters.
But here is the thing about those rabbits. They aren’t just random enemies thrown in to fill a gap. They serve a very specific mechanical and thematic purpose that most people totally overlook because they’re too busy missing Iggy and Lemmy. The Broodals represent a shift in how Nintendo handles mid-bosses. They aren't just walls of HP; they are specialized tutorials for Cappy mechanics. If you’ve spent any significant time speedrunning the game or even just doing a casual 100% completion run, you start to realize how much thought went into their weirdly specific move sets.
The Design Philosophy Behind the Moon Rabbits
The Super Mario Odyssey Broodals are essentially the "anti-Mario" team. While Mario is all about fluid movement and hat-throwing precision, the Broodals are clumsy, arrogant, and heavily reliant on their own gear. You’ve got Topper, the short one with the stack of hats; Rango, the tall one who uses his hat like a spinning saw; Spewart, who is... well, he’s the gross one; and Harriet, who basically uses bombs as a fashion accessory.
They aren't from the Mushroom Kingdom. They are from the Moon. This is actually a deep cut into Japanese folklore regarding the "Moon Rabbit" (Tsuki no Usagi). It’s the kind of detail Nintendo loves to bake into their world-building without explicitly explaining it to the player. In Japanese myth, rabbits live on the moon and make mochi. In Odyssey, they live on the moon and plan weddings. It fits. It makes the world feel bigger than just the same three biomes we've been visiting since 1985.
Why Topper and Harriet Change the Way You Play
Take Topper, for instance. He’s usually the first one you encounter in Cap Kingdom. He seems simple. You just knock his hats off, right? But Topper is actually teaching you about "hitbox management." If you just rush him, you get punished. You have to learn the timing of the Cappy throw to clear out his defenses. It’s a basic skill, but it's the foundation for every high-level capture in the game.
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Then you have Harriet. She’s arguably the most "human-like" in her AI patterns. She doesn't just wait for you to jump on her. She retreats, she uses verticality, and she forces you to use Cappy as a defensive tool to deflect her bombs back at her. This isn't just a boss fight; it’s a combat tutorial. If you can’t beat Harriet, you’re going to have a nightmare of a time in the later kingdoms where the environmental hazards require that same "deflect and counter" rhythm.
Spewart and Rango: The Mechanical Outliers
Spewart is the one most people find annoying. He covers the arena in poisonous goop. It's messy. It’s frustrating. But look at what the game is doing there. Spewart forces you to use Cappy to clear a path. This is a direct introduction to the "cleaning" mechanic used in several Moons throughout the game, like the ones in the Wooded Kingdom or the Luncheon Kingdom. He isn't there to be a grand challenge; he's there to make sure you know how to use your hat as a vacuum.
Rango is the oddball. He’s tall, lanky, and his fight is all about the spin throw. You can’t just jump on him. His hat protects his head like a literal shield. You have to knock it over, then use the flower bounce to get enough height. It’s a lesson in verticality. Most players just "brute force" these fights, but if you pay attention to the arena design, each Broodal is trying to show you a specific way that Cappy interacts with the physics of the world.
The Robo-Brood and the Late Game Pivot
By the time you reach Bowser’s Kingdom, the Super Mario Odyssey Broodals stop being individual threats and start acting like a coordinated unit. The Robo-Brood fight is a masterpiece of boss design because it combines all four mechanics into one giant, clunky mech.
You need the height from Rango's mechanics, the precision from Topper’s hat-stacking logic, and the timing from Harriet’s bombs. It’s the final exam. If you’ve been paying attention to how they fought individually, the Robo-Brood is a breeze. If you’ve been winging it, that fight is going to take you twenty tries.
What Most People Get Wrong About the Broodals
The biggest complaint I hear is that they are "too easy." And yeah, if you’re a veteran platformer, you can probably take them down in sixty seconds. But ease doesn't mean bad design. The Broodals are meant to be recurring roadblocks that build familiarity.
Think about the music. Each Broodal has a slightly different arrangement of their theme. It builds a sense of personality that the Koopalings, quite frankly, have lost over the years due to overexposure. We’ve seen Larry and Morton a thousand times. We haven't seen a rabbit with a vomit-based attack pattern since... well, never.
How to Master the Broodal Encounters
If you want to actually enjoy these fights instead of just rushing through them, you should try to beat them using only the "intended" mechanic for that specific fight.
- For Topper: Don't just jump. Use the spin throw to take out all his hats at once. It’s much more satisfying.
- For Harriet: Wait for the big bombs. If you time your hat throw perfectly, you can knock her out of the air before she even lands.
- For Rango: Use the hat as a platform. It’s the fastest way to get the killing blow.
The Broodals are a testament to Nintendo's "show, don't tell" philosophy. They don't give you a pop-up tutorial on how to use Cappy defensively; they just give you Harriet and a bunch of bombs. It’s elegant. It’s weird. It’s exactly what Mario Odyssey needed to feel like a fresh start for the franchise rather than a nostalgia trip.
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Actionable Insights for Your Next Playthrough
If you’re heading back into Odyssey to hunt for those last few hundred Moons, pay closer attention to the Broodal rematches on the Dark Side of the Moon. The gravity is different there. It changes the entire physics of the fight.
- Check your hat throw distance. In low gravity, Cappy stays out longer. Use this to create "zones" that the Broodals can't walk through.
- Focus on movement first. Don't worry about attacking Harriet or Topper until you’ve mastered the rhythm of their movement. They are very predictable once you see the "loop" in their AI.
- Use the captures. In the boss rush, don't forget that the surrounding environment often has small captures (like the Spark Pylons) that can be used for positioning.
The Super Mario Odyssey Broodals might not have the legacy of Bowser's kids, but they are far more integrated into the core mechanics of their game than any boss since the 64 era. They are the teachers of the Odyssey, dressed up in ugly suits and hats. Next time you see them, give them a little more credit before you stomp on their heads.