Blanka

Blanka
Street Fighter series character

Blanka in Super Street Fighter II, drawn by Bengus
First game Street Fighter II (1991)
Designed by Akira Yasuda
Voiced by (English) Kevin Seymour (The Animated Movie)
Scott McNeil (The Animated Series)
Taliesin Jaffe (2008–present)
Voiced by (Japanese) Unshō Ishizuka (The Animated Movie)
Go Yamane (Street Fighter EX series)
Yūji Ueda (1998–present)
Motion capture Kim Repia (The Movie game)
Portrayed by Robert Mammone (The Movie)
Fictional profile
Birthplace Brazil
Nationality Brazilian

Blanka (Japanese: ブランカ, Hepburn: Buranka) is a fictional character in Capcom's Street Fighter fighting game series. He first appeared in the 1991 video game Street Fighter II as one of eight playable characters, and was subsequently featured in sequel and spin-off games. Blanka is also present in a number of Capcom's crossover games, including the SNK vs. Capcom series. The character has appeared in other media adaptations of the franchise, including an animated film, a live-action movie, an animated television series, a comic book and manga series.

Blanka was originally designed as a human character by Akira "Akiman" Yasuda, and underwent several re-conceptualizations during the production of Street Fighter II before reaching his final depiction as a feral savage with green skin and long orange hair. Blanka's backstory is that he was once human, but after a plane crash in Brazil he mutated (resulting in his green coloring and his ability to generate electricity). Blanka was generally well received by critics and fans, becoming one of the most popular characters in the franchise.

Conception and design

Creation

Designed by Akira "Akiman" Yasuda, the concept behind Blanka emerged in an early design as an African man named Anabebe who was raised by a lion.[1] After the release of Final Fight, Capcom again approached Street Fighter II and considered several designs for the Blanka character (including a masked wrestler modeled after Tiger Mask and a ninja-style warrior).[1][2] His design later changed to a large man with thick hair and sideburns, named "Hammer Blanka".[3] The staff then adopted Blanka's feral appearance, because they felt the game would be "dull" with only human characters.[4]

Characteristics

Blanka's most prominent physical characteristic is his green color, initially attributed to his consumption of chlorophyll from plants to blend into his jungle environment.[5][6] However, when Street Fighter was brought to the U.S., Blanka's coloring was attributed to his being struck by lightning during the electrical storm in which his plane crashed.[7][8] In Street Fighter II Blanka's skin is yellowish-green, but later versions of the character are bright green.[9]

Blanka fights in a self-taught, animalistic style.[5][10] In several of his special moves he rolls into a ball, launching himself at an opponent.[5][11][12] In Blanka's signature attack, he crouches and emits an electric current shocking anything it touches.[5][13][14] Although Blanka growls in combat,[15] except for Street Fighter Alpha 3 he uses words in cutscenes.[16][17][18][19]

Appearances

Video game

Blanka first appears in Street Fighter II, when he sees his mother (who tells his backstory) after he competes in the World Warrior tournament.[16][20] According to the story, Blanka was born as a boy named Jimmy who was involved in a plane crash in the Amazon rainforest.[7][20] Although in the initial games Blanka's mother says the plane crashed when he was "a little boy", the manual for Street Fighter IV says it happened when he was a baby.[16][21] After the crash he was exposed to electric eels, triggering the mutation which changed his appearance and gave him electric powers.[20] In Street Fighter Alpha 3, a prequel to Street Fighter II,[22] Blanka rides on a truck to civilization for the first time.[23] After defeating Zangief,[19] Balrog and the leader of the Shadaloo criminal organization M. Bison,[24][25] Blanka joins old friend Dan Hibiki[26] and Sakura (Dan's pupil) to destroy Bison's "psycho drive" weapon.[27] Blanka then returns to the jungle.[28]

In Street Fighter IV, whose events are set after Street Fighter II,[29] Blanka, living in a town, feels out of place and decides to travel the world.[30] At the end of the game, Dan helps his mother find him in Hong Kong.[17] In Super Street Fighter IV, Blanka enters a worldwide tournament to be recognized by people so his mother will be proud of him.[18] When he returns home, the townspeople visit him and he plays games with the local children.[31]

Blanka also appears in several spin-off titles. He is a playable character in the later Street Fighter EX series games Street Fighter EX2 and Street Fighter EX3,[32] Capcom vs. SNK, Capcom vs. SNK 2 and the home version of Street Fighter: The Movie.[33] Blanka is a playable character by default in the PlayStation Vita version of Street Fighter X Tekken,[34] and via downloadable content in the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions.[35] He is a boss character in Street Fighter X Mega Man.[36]

Other media

Blanka briefly appears in Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie, when he is lowered from a cage and defeats Zangief.[13] The live-action Street Fighter film combined Blanka and Charlie into one character.[13] Charlie is taken captive by Bison, who subjects him to genetic testing to create the perfect soldier.[37][38] Blanka was played by Robert Mammone,[13] while Kim Repia played the role in its home console video game adaptation. The American cartoon series retained the film's origin story for the character, as he and Guile search for a cure for his mutation.[39] In UDON's Street Fighter comic adaptation, Blanka is used as a living weapon by Shadaloo until he is rescued by Delta Red (Cammy's squad). Returning to his senses, he reunites with his mother. Blanka is an opponent faced by Ryu, Guile, and Chun-Li in the Street Fighter manga history, and makes a cameo appearance in the Disney film Wreck-It Ralph.[40]

Reception

Blanka has been described as a fan favorite by video game media UGO Networks, IGN, GameSpot and 1UP.com,[41][42][43][44] with IGN calling him "one of the most recognizable Street Fighter characters".[5] GamesRadar said that Blanka "never quite approached Chun-Li's popularity, but has gained a strong fan following nevertheless".[20] Sharing ninth place with Ken Masters in the Japanese magazine Gamest's 1991 best-character list,[45] in the 1992 poll he finished 38th.[46] Blanka was voted 20th in Capcom's poll of 85 characters for the series' 15th anniversary.[47] In 2008, the character was the tenth-most-popular video game character (out of 500) in the United Kingdom.[48] Although Blanka was well received by Brazilian gamers, Capcom was criticized for its depiction of Brazil. Capcom producer Yoshinori Ono, surprised when told that Blanka is popular among Brazilians, apologized for the poor impression of the country given by the character.[49] When the Brazilian program Custe o Que Custar asked people in Spain who the best-known Brazilians were, Blanka ranked third (after Gisele Bündchen and Pelé).[50] In 2009, after Rio de Janeiro was chosen to host the 2016 Summer Olympics, an internet meme spread making Blanka the games' unofficial mascot.[51] A 2012 meme said that O Maior Brasileiro de Todos os Tempos, the Brazilian version of 100 Greatest Britons, had chosen Blanka the "Greatest Brazilian of All Time".[52]

IGN ranked Blanka seventh of its "Top 25 Street Fighter Characters", noting his unique characteristics,[7] and GameDaily placed Blanka fourth on its "Top 20 Street Fighter Characters of All Time" list.[53] He was ranked the franchise's 17th-best character (out of 50) by UGO as initially "hook[ing]" gamers and "an indispensable part of Street Fighter now."[41] Including Blanka on a list of "The 30 best Capcom characters of the last 30 years", GamesRadar staff said that they could include all of Street Fighter II's characters but would only choose "the wildest of the crazy characters in the game. Blanka exemplifies the special brand of insanity that made us love Capcom."[54] Edge's James Leach called him "by far the best character" in Street Fighter II.[55] GameSpy called Blanka one of the "25 Extremely Rough Brawlers" in video gaming, praising the brutality of his attacks.[56] The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review described the character as resembling "some ridiculous hair-club-for-Hulks member", although his electric attacks made him an effective character.[57] Computer and Video Games, GamesRadar and Game Revolution also noted the difficulty of fighting Blanka.[54][58][59] Blanka has been called a "monster" and "weird",[60][61] and GamesRadar said he "is a bit goofy looking in the Alpha series"[22] (described by GameSpot as "comical").[62] GameDaily and GamesRadar joked about the character's "sweet" ending (in contrast to his appearance),[20][53] and Empire called his ending "the worst ... in the game."[9]

References

  1. 1 2 Capcom Sound Team Alph Lyla (1992-11-15). "Making of Street Fighter II". Capcom-004: Street Fighter II Complete File (CD/booklet). Capcom. p. 1.
  2. ↑ Staff (April 1992). "The Making of Street Fighter II". Electronic Gaming Monthly (33): 103.
  3. ↑ Capcom Sound Team Alph Lyla (1992-11-15). "Making of Street Fighter II". Capcom-004: Street Fighter II Complete File (CD/booklet). Capcom. p. 4.
  4. ↑ Prandoni, Claudio (October 24, 2011). ""No início de 'Street Fighter II', Blanka era um humano normal", diz produtor da série; veja entrevista" (in Portuguese). UOL Jogos. Archived from the original on November 8, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Clements, Ryan (January 30, 2009). "Street Fighter IV: Blanka". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on November 8, 2014. Retrieved May 4, 2014.
  6. ↑ Gilbert, Henry (March 16, 2013). "Gaming's most green characters". GamesRadar. Future plc. Archived from the original on November 8, 2014. Retrieved May 4, 2014.
  7. 1 2 3 Smith, D.F. (August 7, 2008). "Top 25 Street Fighter Characters - Day IV". IGN. p. 4. Archived from the original on November 8, 2014. Retrieved August 15, 2008.
  8. ↑ Gonzalez, Annette (March 9, 2010). "Genetically Mutated Characters: Side Effects Include...". Game Informer. Archived from the original on November 8, 2014. Retrieved May 4, 2014.
  9. 1 2 "The Evolution Of Street Fighter – How The Characters Have Evolved Over The Decades". Empire. Bauer Media Group. February 11, 2009. p. 5. Archived from the original on November 8, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  10. ↑ Jensen, K. Thor (February 29, 2012). "Best Street Fighter Tattoos". UGO Networks. IGN Entertainment. Archived from the original on March 5, 2012. Retrieved May 4, 2014.
  11. ↑ Capcom USA (1998). "Characters: Blanka". Street Fighter Alpha 3 instruction booklet (booklet). Capcom USA. p. 15.
  12. ↑ "Street Fighter X Tekken official web manual". Capcom. Archived from the original on November 8, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  13. 1 2 3 4 "Street Fighter Week: The evolution of Chun-Li and Blanka". GamesRadar. Future plc. June 23, 2012. p. 11. Archived from the original on November 8, 2014. Retrieved May 4, 2014.
  14. ↑ Capcom USA (1992). "The World Warriors: Blanka". Street Fighter II instruction booklet (booklet). Capcom USA. pp. 20–21.
  15. ↑ Frear, Dave. "Review: Street Fighter Alpha 3 (Game Boy Advance)". Nintendo Life. Nlife. Archived from the original on November 8, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  16. 1 2 3 Capcom (1991). Street Fighter II. Capcom. Blanka's mother: Jimmy...? Are you my long lost son, Jimmy? / Blanka: Who are you? Why would I be your son? My name's Blanka. / Blanka's mother: My son was lost in an airplaine crash over Brazil when he was only a little boy. Wait! That anklet... I gave that to you on your birthday! / Blanka: Mommy! / Blanka's mother: Jimmy!
  17. 1 2 Capcom (February 17, 2009). Street Fighter IV. Capcom. Scene: Blanka's ending cut scene. Blanka: Dear, Mama, I'm Hong Kong. -Jimmy / Blanka's mother: Jimmy! / Blanka: Mama!? What are you doing here? / Blanka's mother: Oh, Jimmy. I just love spending my time with you! It makes me so happy! Let's go home now, sweetheart. / Blanka: People still stare at me sometimes, but I don't le it get to me. It's OK to make mistakes once in a while. As long as I get to spend time with my Mama, everything will be just fine...
  18. 1 2 Capcom (April 27, 2010). Super Street Fighter IV. Capcom. Blanka: Dan taught me how to be a better man. I'm gonna win this tournament. If win, I can earn everyone's respect. Mama will be so proud. Mama always takes such a good care of me... Most people are scared of me, but not her... I'll come back a new man, Mama. One you can be proud of. Just you wait and see!
  19. 1 2 Capcom (June 29, 1998). Street Fighter Alpha 3. Capcom. Zangief: How could I lose such a fight?! Great Leader, I am very sorry... I've failed my mission... I could not destroy Shadaloo... / Blanka: Uwo uwo? <What is this Shadaloo?>
  20. 1 2 3 4 5 "Street Fighter Week: The evolution of Chun-Li and Blanka". GamesRadar. Future plc. June 23, 2012. p. 1. Archived from the original on November 8, 2014. Retrieved May 4, 2014.
  21. ↑ "Street Fighter IV manual" (PDF). Capcom. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 8, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  22. 1 2 "Street Fighter Week: The evolution of Chun-Li and Blanka". GamesRadar. Future plc. June 23, 2012. p. 2. Retrieved May 4, 2014.
  23. ↑ Capcom (June 29, 1998). Street Fighter Alpha 3. Capcom. Narrator: Blanka lived as he pleased, deep within the jungle of the Amazon. One day, he unwittingly hitched a ride on a poacher's car. Curious and excited, Blanka now ventures into the outside world.
  24. ↑ Capcom (June 29, 1998). Street Fighter Alpha 3. Capcom. M.Bison: Ha ha ha! You saved me time by defeating that Russian dog... As your reward, you'll now have the honor of fighting Balrog! / Blanka: Uwoooooo! <Your toy soldier's going down!>
  25. ↑ Capcom (June 29, 1998). Street Fighter Alpha 3. Capcom. M.Bison: This... This can't be... I cannot be defeated! But I won't be destroyed as long as I have the "Psycho Drive"! Wa ha ha ha ha ha ha! / Blanka: Uwoooooo! <No! He's getting away!>
  26. ↑ Capcom (June 29, 1998). Street Fighter Alpha 3. Capcom. Dan: Jimmy...?! You're Jimmy!! / Blanka: Uwon!! Uwon!! <Oh! My dear old friend Dan!!> / Dan: Long time no see...! I owe you my life, you know! How about a match? Let's see if you're as strong as you were! / Blanka: Uwho!! <OK! That's an excellent idea!>
  27. ↑ Capcom (June 29, 1998). Street Fighter Alpha 3. Capcom. Dan: This place sure smells evil... The bad guys must be here! Let's destroy the entire base! Well, then again... This place is enormous! How can we destroy it? / Sakura: Well, I suppose you could destroy its power source. That would be a start! / Dan: My number one disciple never fails me! Okay, let's find it! Ha ha! That must be what we're looking for! Jimmy! Let me see that move you always do! / Blanka: Uwhoo! <Right!> UWOOOOOOO!! <UWOOOOOOO!!> Sakura: Master Hibiki... It looks like it's going to explode.... Dan: Yahoo!! Let's get out of here!!
  28. ↑ Capcom (June 29, 1998). Street Fighter Alpha 3. Capcom. Narrator: Blanka ran off to the horizon, as free as the wind... The outside world has much to offer to his curiosity!
  29. ↑ Tan, Nick (February 17, 2009). "Street Fighter IV Review". GameRevolution. CraveOnline. Retrieved May 18, 2014.
  30. ↑ Capcom (February 17, 2009). Street Fighter IV. Capcom. Blanka: As long as you're here, Mama, I don't mind living in town. I can still do my street fights, and the best part is that I get to be with my Mama. But, I'm sad. Why am I sad? Because my being here has only made things hard on you. Everyone stares at us and they talk bad behind our backs. That's why I have to leave. I can't be here anymore. Wait for me, Mama. I'll come back when I won't be an embarrassment to you anymore.
  31. ↑ Capcom (April 27, 2010). Super Street Fighter IV. Capcom. Blanka's mother: Jimmy! You have company! Blanka: What? Company? Blanka's mother: That's right. These folks saw the article about you and wanted to meet you in person! Blanka: Me!? Blanka's mother: Well, Jimmy. Looks like we finally made some friends. Why don't you bring some fruits for our guests? I'll go put some tea on.
  32. ↑ "Street Fighter Week: The evolution of Chun-Li and Blanka". GamesRadar. Future plc. June 23, 2012. p. 4. Retrieved May 4, 2014.
  33. ↑ "Street Fighter Week: The evolution of Chun-Li and Blanka". GamesRadar. Future plc. June 23, 2012. pp. 6–7. Retrieved May 4, 2014.
  34. ↑ Cox, Kate (April 10, 2012). "Street Fighter x Tekken Vita Version Features New Characters, Cross-Console Play with PS3". Kotaku. Gawker Media. Retrieved May 4, 2014.
  35. ↑ Goldfarb, Andrew (July 6, 2012). "Street Fighter x Tekken Gets Character DLC This Month". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  36. ↑ Carter, Chris. "Strategies for all eight [robot] masters and more". Destructoid. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  37. ↑ Sharkey, Scott (2010). "Greatest Scenes of Street Fighter: The Movie". 1UP.com. IGN Entertainment. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  38. ↑ "20 Things You Didn't Know About Street Fighter II". 1UP.com. IGN Entertainment. 2011. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  39. ↑ "Street Fighter Merchandising: Merchandise Whore-yuken". 1UP.com. IGN Entertainment. p. 3. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  40. ↑ Herrmann, Tom (November 5, 2012). "‘Wreck-It Ralph’ Brings Back Disney Classic Elements In A Contemporary Style". International Business Times. IBT Media. Retrieved June 13, 2014.
  41. 1 2 Furfari, Paul. "Top 50 Street Fighter Characters". UGO Networks. IGN Entertainment. Archived from the original on September 26, 2013. Retrieved May 4, 2014.
  42. ↑ "Street Fighter Alpha 3 Review". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. January 13, 1999. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  43. ↑ "Street Fighter Alpha 3". IGN. Ziff Davis. May 19, 2000. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  44. ↑ Mielke, James (February 17, 2009). "Street Fighter 4 Review". 1UP.com. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  45. ↑ 第5回ゲーメスト大賞. Gamest (in Japanese) (68): 20. Archived from the original on July 8, 2008.
  46. ↑ 第6回ゲーメスト大賞. Gamest (in Japanese) (84): 20. Archived from the original on July 8, 2008.
  47. ↑ "ランキング集計発表!". GeeStore. December 19, 2005. Archived from the original on December 19, 2005. Retrieved October 20, 2011.
  48. ↑ Laughlin, Andrew (October 22, 2008). "Sonic voted UK's favourite character". Digital Spy. Hearst Corporation. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  49. ↑ Azevedo, Théo (February 23, 2008). "Produtor fala sobre "Street IV" e 'se desculpa' por Blanka" (in Portuguese). UOL Jogos.
  50. ↑ "Blanka, o orgulho do Brasil" (in Portuguese). Max Andrade. May 12, 2008. Archived from the original on February 10, 2009.
  51. ↑ "Yes we créu! Internautas elegem mascote da Olímpiada do Rio". O Estado de S. Paulo (in Portuguese). Grupo Estado. October 2, 2009. Archived from the original on October 7, 2009.
  52. ↑ "Internautas tentam eleger Blanka como "O maior brasileiro de todos os tempos"". O Povo (in Portuguese). April 23, 2012. Retrieved April 19, 2014.
  53. 1 2 Workman, Robert (2008). "Top 20 Street Fighter Characters of All Time". GameDaily. AOL. Archived from the original on December 5, 2008. Retrieved November 13, 2008.
  54. 1 2 "The 30 best Capcom characters of the last 30 years". GamesRadar. Future plc. June 25, 2013. Retrieved May 4, 2014.
  55. ↑ Leach, James (September 5, 2013). "Assessments of character, from Mario to Kratos". Edge. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  56. ↑ Staff (August 11, 2009). "25 Extremely Rough Brawlers". GameSpy. IGN Entertainment. Retrieved August 13, 2009.
  57. ↑ Severs, Jessica (February 25, 2009). "Article: 'Street Fighter IV' a knockout with superb cinematics, gameplay". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
  58. ↑ Scullion, Chris (July 11, 2013). "Video: Blanka is a troll, with hilarious consequences". Computer and Video Games. Future plc. Retrieved May 4, 2014.
  59. ↑ Dodson, Joe (September 9, 2004). "Street Fighter Anniversary Collection Review". Game Revolution. CraveOnline. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  60. ↑ Molina, Brett (September 20, 2012). "Developers reflect on 25 years of 'Street Fighter'". USA Today. Retrieved May 4, 2014.
  61. ↑ McLaughlin, Rus (February 16, 2009). "IGN Presents the History of Street Fighter". IGN. Ziff Davis. p. 2. Retrieved May 4, 2014.
  62. ↑ Kasavin, Greg (October 9, 2001). "Capcom vs. SNK 2 Import Review". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
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