Jump to content

Glass Joe

Edit links
This is a good article. Click here for more information.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Abryn (talk | contribs) at 19:44, 25 May 2011 (→‎Racial stereotyping: Fixed.). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Glass Joe
'Punch-Out!!' character
Drawing of a skinny, shirtless man with red hair, red boxing gloves, and white-and-red shorts and shoes. He is looking to the left and appears scared.
Glass Joe, as depicted in Punch-Out!! for Wii. Designed by Eddie Viser.
First gamePunch-Out!! (arcades)

Glass Joe (グラス・ジョー) is a fictional boxer from Nintendo's video game series Punch-Out!!. He first appeared in Punch-Out!! for arcades in 1984 and made his first console appearance for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) of the same name in 1987. His most recent appearance was in Punch-Out!! for the Wii. In these games, he is the first boxer players fight and is decidedly weak. He was originally designed by Shigeru Miyamoto in the arcade game. The character was redesigned for the NES game by Makoto Wada and by Eddie Viser for the Wii game; he was voiced by Christian Bernard in the latter.

Glass Joe is considered by critics, including freelance writer Sumantra Lahiri, to be a racial stereotype of French people, due to his ineffectual nature and cowardice. The stereotype was expanded when the developers of the Wii game, Next Level Games, introduced Glass Joe's love for luxurious things, such as gourmet coffee, by means of a series of cut scenes before the match with him. Other critics commented on these stereotypes, including editors for GamesRadar and Retronauts. He is considered an icon of Nintendo and one of the most well-known characters in the Punch-Out!! series. He has been used as a symbol for weakness by critics from media outlets, including Wired, UGO Networks, Nintendo Power, and TeamXbox. His name has also been used by sportspeople to comment on either a specific sportsperson or a kind of sportsperson.

Concept and creation

Glass Joe is a French boxer, hailing from Paris. He was designed by Shigeru Miyamoto in the original Punch-Out!! arcade game, and was redesigned in the NES Punch-Out!! by Makoto Wada and by Eddie Viser for the Wii Punch-Out!!.[1][2][3] He design is notably skinnier than the player-character Little Mac's.[4] He is voiced by Christian Bernard in the Wii Punch-Out!!.[2] He has characteristics of racial stereotypes of French people, including cowardice and weakness which are demonstrated by the quote "Make it quick ... I want to retire" in the NES game.[5][6] His low level of difficulty has also been attributed to his poor blocking and reaction time.[7] In between matches in the Wii game, most of Glass Joe's dialogue consists of him counting to ten in French.[8] Glass Joe is the first and weakest opponent for Little Mac in every game he appears in.[9][6] He holds a record of one win to 99 losses.[10] His name was conceived by Genyo Takeda as a play on the fact that he has a glass jaw, which signifies his inability to take a head blow. Next Level Games, the developer for the Wii game, depicted Glass Joe as fashionable by showing him in front of multiple French landmarks, including the Arc de Triomphe and the Eiffel Tower.[1] In the Wii game, Glass Joe is associated with French foods such as baguettes and croissants, as well as "fancy coffee".[8][11]

Appearances

His first appearance was in the first Punch-Out!! game for the arcades in 1984. Afterward, he appeared in Punch-Out!! for the NES (previously known as Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!) in 1987, and in 2009 in Punch-Out!! for the Wii. Glass Joe was one of the first characters revealed for the Wii game.[12] The Wii game features a mode called Title Defense, wherein Glass Joe and other boxers are modified to be made more difficult. In this mode, Glass Joe is depicted with protective headgear. The cutscene before this fight with Glass Joe shows a doctor performing an X-ray examination on Glass Joe and determining that he has a weak jaw, thus the headgear.[6] According to an editor for UGO Networks, Glass Joe's role in the arcade game was to give players a "sense of accomplishment" with the hope that players would spend their money trying to beat the more difficult opponents that appear later. According to an editor for GameSpy, Glass Joe gives players a "false sense of familiarity" for when more difficult opponents appear in the Wii game.[13][14]

Cultural impact

Glass Joe has become an icon of Nintendo and is considered one of the most identifiable characters in the Punch-Out!! series.[15][16][17] He was featured as part of a series of trading cards which depicted a Punch-Out!! boxer on each of them.[18] GameDaily's Chris Buffa listed Glass Joe as one of the most unappreciated Nintendo characters and expressed a desire to see him in another game, but with a "fighting chance".[19] The Daily Telegraph's Tom Hoggins described Glass Joe as a "deliriously entertaining creation" and a "wimpy French man".[20] G4TV's "jmanalang" referenced knocking out Glass Joe as a memorable moment in his video game history.[21] In his review of Super Punch-Out!!, Allgame's Skyler Miller commented several times on the character's absence. He felt that it didn't "seem right to have a Punch-Out!! game without him".[22]

Glass Joe's name has been used as a negative title applied to real-life sportspeople such as Derek Anderson, Darnell Dockett, and the players on the North Penn football team.[23][24][25] ESPN's Bill Simmons wrote that the fight between boxers Wladimir and Chris Byrd was like watching "Glass Joe become the champ in Mike Tyson's Punch-Out".[26] New York Yankees pitcher A.J. Burnett stated that "the last thing you want to be is a Glass Joe".[27]

Critical reception

Racial stereotyping

Drawing of a man in a turtle neck at a café. He is holding a baguette and standing in front of the Eiffel Tower.
Glass Joe as he appears in the Punch-Out!! cut scenes.

Glass Joe's French stereotypes have been discussed by critics such as writer Sumantra Lahiri and Eurogamer's Oli Welsh.[5][28] GamesRadar's Brett Elston wrote that Glass Joe embodies numerous French stereotypes, which included cowardice, an affinity for fancy or expensive things, and that they "apparently must live within 100 feet of the Eiffel Tower at all times".[8] IGN's Craig Harris called him a "baguette-loving Frenchman who speaks in fluent Pepe le Pew dialect" in the Wii game, whereas in previous versions he found him to be a "generic, weak white guy".[29] One member of the Retronauts podcast stated that he identified Glass Joe as simply a "weakling" until he learned more about French stereotypes.[30] Wired's Chris Kohler used the croissants as an example of how the game enhanced the ethnic stereotypes found in previous games.[11] GameDaily's Chris Buffa felt that the stereotypes could be considered "funny or insulting", while Giant Bomb's Ryan Davis felt that someone would have to have a sour disposition to take offense or be insulted by them.[9][31]

Difficulty

His low level of difficulty has contributed to his iconic status. Nintendo Power listed Glass Joe as one of their favorite "punching bags" in video games.[32] He has been used as a litmus test for the usability of NES controllers such as the U-Force and the Power Glove.[33][34][35] GamePro's Will Herring called Glass Joe a "criminally fragile" character that fans of the series grew up with.[36] GamesRadar's Mikel Reparaz included him in his list of the "13 unluckiest videogame bastards". He added however that there is something "weirdly poignant about a man who fights a hundred matches and loses all but one of them, but keeps on fighting".[18] UGO's Chris Plante listed the fight with him as the 15th greatest NES moment and wrote that it was more memorable than the in-game fight with real life boxer Mike Tyson.[7] Meanwhile, other critics have mocked Glass Joe for his weakness. GamesRadar's Brett Elston wrote that he has "forever been the lamest boxer in the series" and that "he can barely throw a punch".[8] GamePro's Dave Rudden listed him as the 11th skinniest video game character and wrote "the fact that his losses almost outnumber his weight speak more about his ineptitude as a boxer than the inability for skinny dudes to fight".[4] GameDaily's Robert Workman wrote that Glass Joe was a "wuss" and a "no-talent schlub who has no business stepping into the boxing ring".[37] Game Informer's James Cowan called the fight against Glass Joe a "total joke".[38] Wired's Earnest Cavalli described Glass Joe as a "living metaphor for physical weakness".[39]

While he is known for his weakness, his appearance in the Title Defense mode of the Wii Punch-Out!! received attention for his increased difficulty. Kotaku's Michael McWhertor found this incarnation of Glass Joe who he described as a "frail French fighter" and a "perennial punching bag" to be surprisingly difficult.[40] Editors for GamePro used Glass Joe's new incarnation as a demonstration of how difficult the Title Defense mode could be.[41] Official Nintendo Magazine's Chris Scullion wrote that while they were initially worried that the Wii game would be too easy, Glass Joe offset those worries.[6] GameSpot's Tom McShea wrote "the sad fact is, you will lose to Glass Joe, for maybe the first time in your life".[42] 1UP.com's Scott Sharkey found the difficulty of Glass Joe surprising after fighting Mr. Sandman, the final boss in the earlier mode.[43] Nevertheless, Game Informer's Bryan Vore still found him "tremendously easy".[44]

References

  1. ^ a b Iwata, Satoru (2010-06-10). "Iwata Asks - Punch-Out!!". Nintendo. Retrieved 2010-08-05.
  2. ^ a b "Punch-Out!! Release Information for Wii". GameFAQs. Retrieved 2011-05-08.
  3. ^ "Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! Release Information for NES". GameFAQs. Retrieved 2011-05-08.
  4. ^ a b Rudden, Dave (2009-08-20). "The 11 Skinniest Video Game Characters". GamePro. Retrieved 2010-08-05. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  5. ^ a b Huling, Ray (2009-01-13). "Punch-Out!!'s Black Eye". The Escapist. Retrieved 2010-08-05.
  6. ^ a b c d Scullion, Chris (2009-05-21). "Wii Review: Punch-Out!!". Official Nintendo Magazine. Retrieved 2010-08-05. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  7. ^ a b Plante, Chris (2010-02-27). "Top 20 NES Moments". UGO Networks. Retrieved 2010-08-05.
  8. ^ a b c d Elston, Brett (2009-05-20). "Fun with stereotypes: starring Punch-Out!!". GamesRadar. Retrieved 2010-08-05.
  9. ^ a b Davis, Ryan (2009-05-19). "Punch-Out!! Review". Giant Bomb. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
  10. ^ Barnwell, Bill (2008-08-28). "The Ballad of Glass Joe". IGN. Retrieved 2011-05-24.
  11. ^ a b Kohler, Chris (2009-05-19). "Review: Punch-Out!! Is an Absolute Old-School Knockout". Wired. Retrieved 2010-08-25. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  12. ^ Thomas, Erin (2009-03-31). "Punch-Out!! - hands-on". GamesRadar. Retrieved 2011-05-08.
  13. ^ "Sports - A Brief History of Boxing Video Games - UGO's Boxing Greats". UGO Networks. Retrieved 2010-08-05.
  14. ^ Scott, Ryan (2009-05-18). "Punch-Out!! Review". GameSpy. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
  15. ^ Ashcraft, Brian (2009-04-28). "Yet Another New Character Coming to Wii Punch-Out!!". Kotaku. Retrieved 2010-08-05.
  16. ^ Vivek (2009-05-18). "Punch-Out!! Review". Hardcore Gamer. Retrieved 2010-08-05.
  17. ^ Orry, James (2009-04-21). "Punch Out!! modes detailed - Punch-Out!! for Wii News". Video Gamer. Retrieved 2010-08-05.
  18. ^ a b Reparaz, Mikel (2009-02-13). "The 13 unluckiest videogame bastards". GamesRadar. Retrieved 2010-08-05.
  19. ^ Buffa, Chris (2008-09-03). "Most Unappreciated Nintendo Characters". GameDaily. Archived from the original on 2009-04-11. Retrieved 2010-08-05.
  20. ^ Hoggins, Tom (2009-05-29). "Punch Out!! review". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2010-08-25. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  21. ^ jmanalang (2008-08-30). "The Definition Of Hardcore Gaming". G4TV. Retrieved 2010-08-05.
  22. ^ Miller, Skyler. "Super Punch-Out!! - Review". Allgame. Retrieved 2010-08-31.
  23. ^ Burke, Chris (2009-08-15). "Round 1 of Browns' Quarterback Fight Goes to Brady Quinn". AOL News. Retrieved 2011-05-08.
  24. ^ Florio, Mike (2009-10-30). "Rolle, three others fined in Cardinals-Giants game". NBC. Retrieved 2011-05-08.
  25. ^ Lohn, John (2009-12-05). "Ridley is the boss in District One". Delaware County Daily Times. Retrieved 2011-05-08. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  26. ^ Simmons, Bill (2003-06-21). "Heavyweights are a dying breed". ESPN. Retrieved 2010-08-27.
  27. ^ Girardi, Joe; Pavano, Carl (2010-06-10). "Healthy A.J. Burnett produces on mound for New York Yankees as he manages pitching approach". New York Daily News. Retrieved 2011-05-08. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  28. ^ Welsh, Oli (2009-03-25). "GDC: Punch-Out!! Wii Hands On". Eurogamer. Retrieved 2010-08-31.
  29. ^ Harris, Craig (2009-03-25). "Punch-Out!! Hands-on". IGN. Retrieved 2010-08-05.
  30. ^ Kohler, Christ; Parish, Jeremy; Sharkey, Scott; Barnholt, Ray (2009-05-14). "A History of Punch-Out!!". Retronauts, Wired. Retrieved 2011-03-04. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  31. ^ Buffa, Chris (2009-05-18). "Culturally Insensitive Games". GameDaily. Archived from the original on 2009-05-22. Retrieved 2011-03-04.
  32. ^ "Nintendo Power 250th issue!". Future US. 2010: 59. {{cite journal}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  33. ^ Csatari, Jeff (1989-05). "Electronics". Boys' Life: 15. Retrieved 2010-08-29. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite journal requires |journal= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  34. ^ Caoili, Eric (2009-05-18). "U-Force Power Games ROMs Released". GameSetWatch. Retrieved 2010-08-31.
  35. ^ Castro, Radford (2004). Let me play: stories of gaming and emulation. Hats Off Books. p. 52. Retrieved 2010-08-29.
  36. ^ Herring, Will (2009-05-18). "Punch-Out!! Review from GamePro". GamePro. Retrieved 2010-08-25. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  37. ^ Workman, Robert (2009-05-18). "Retro Rewind: Then and Now: Punch-Out!!". GameDaily. Archived from the original on 2009-05-22. Retrieved 2011-03-04.
  38. ^ Cowan, James (2009-11-16). "Game Informer's Top 100 Games Of All Time (Circa Issue 100)". Game Informer. Retrieved 2010-08-25. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  39. ^ Cavalli, Earnest (2009-04-28). "Punch-Out!! Website Teases New Mystery Fighter". Wired. Retrieved 2010-08-29. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  40. ^ McWhertor, Michael (2009-05-19). "Punch-Out!! Review: Call It A Comeback". Kotaku. Retrieved 2010-08-05.
  41. ^ "The 7 Best Second Quests". GamePro. 2009-06-19. Retrieved 2010-08-05. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  42. ^ McShea, Tom (2009-05-18). "Punch-Out!! Review for Wii". GameSpot. Retrieved 2010-08-06.
  43. ^ Sharkey, Scott (2009-05-15). "Punch-Out!! Review for Wii". 1UP.com. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
  44. ^ Vore, Bryan (2009-09-22). "A Fantastic Throwback that's More than Just a Nostalgia Act - Punch-Out!!". Game Informer. Retrieved 2010-08-05. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Glass_Joe&oldid=430897793"