Captain Syrup
Captain Syrup is a ruthless and greedy pirate captain and the leader of the Brown Sugar Pirates. Since she is so greedy, Syrup is a rival of the master of greed himself, Wario. Her base of operations is Kitchen Island and her pirate ship is named the S.S. Teacup.
Captain Syrup first appeared in Super Mario Land 3: Wario Land. In this game, the protagonist Wario, still reeling from his defeat at the hands of Mario and the loss of his castle, sets out to find new riches. However, instead of finding a job or traveling the world for lost treasure, Wario decides to make his fortune the old fashioned way-steal all the treasures he can from someone else. That someone happened to be Captain Syrup.
As such, Wario travels to Kitchen Island in an attempt to steal all of Captain Syrup’s treasure, including a giant golden statue of Princess Peach (which, coincidentally, Mario is also looking for). Wario battles members of the Brown Sugar Pirates as he ventures across the island, taking whatever treasure he can find. Ultimately, Wario decides to raid Syrup Castle, the location of Captain Syrup and her hoard of treasure.
When Wario arrives to challenge Syrup and plunder her fortunes, the pirate captain summons a genie from a magic lamp. Captain Syrup hops onto the genie’s shoulders, and the two fly around, launching fireballs at Wario. Eventually, Wario defeats the genie. However, Captain Syrup escapes by blowing up her castle, promising to get her revenge. In the end, Wario takes his loot back home, including the statue of Princess Peach. However, Mario arrives and takes the golden statue away from the greedy anti-hero. Wario still has most of his treasures though, and he buys himself a new castle.
Captain Syrup strikes back in Wario Land 2. In this game, Captain Syrup reforms her pirate gang and renames them the Black Sugar Pirates. She leads her pirates in a raid on Wario’s castle and steals all of his riches. As such, Wario returns to Kitchen Island to retake all the treasure that was stolen from him. Wario battles Syrup several times during this adventure (instead of just once). In battle, Captain Syrup will throw bombs and ride monsters to attack the greedy anti-hero. Ultimately, Wario defeats Syrup in combat and re-steals all her treasure. Captain Syrup has not been heard from since.
Trivia
- Captain Syrup is the first female main villain in the extended Marioverse, coming before Cackletta, the Shadow Queen, the Golden Diva, and the Elder Princess Shroob.
- Captain Syrup is the first character since Bowser to be the main villain in multiple games. Later, King K. Rool and Bowser Jr. would appear as the final boss in more than one game (however, Bowser Jr. always appears with his father). Donkey Kong was a final boss in two games before the appearance of Bowser.
- Captain Syrup is Wario’s first nemesis in his role as a protagonist. If non-starring roles are counted, Mario is Wario’s first nemesis, followed by Syrup.
- In the American instruction manual of the game Wario Land: Super Mario Land, Captain Syrup is referred to as a “heâ€. Thus when players reach the final level, they will be surprised to learn that the ruthless pirate captain is not a man, but a beautiful woman.
- Captain Syrup is one of the few female Human characters in the Marioverse that is not a princess, a damsel in distress, or a sports player.
