- "My work is not for Maverick Hunters. I've never trusted your approach. Therefore, I won't cooperate with you."
- ―Shining Firefly, Mega Man X5
Shining Firefly, known as Shining Hotarunicus[3] (シャイニング・ホタルニクス Shainingu Hotarunikusu) in Japan, also known as Izzy Glow[4] is a character from the Mega Man X series. Shining Firefly was a firefly-based Reploid who was in possession of the Laser Device needed to repair the Enigma cannon.
Characteristics[]
Shining Firefly is a short Reploid with a firefly design. He possessed wings on his back and antennae on his head, a shirt collar around his neck, and a face resembling goggles and a mustache to emphasize his intelligence. He had mostly red and black armor, which accentuated his luminescent wings and abdomen.
Firefly is a reclusive and anti-social genius. He is a Doctor of Engineering and the world's leading researcher in laser technology. Firefly had a somewhat pacifistic side, rarely allowing any of his work to see the light of day out of fear that it would be used to create weapons. Firefly also distrusted the Maverick Hunters, expressing reservations about the methods they used. Nevertheless, Firefly was always fascinated by the famous Hunters X and Zero and harbored a desire to analyze their data.
History[]
Firefly is a Doctor of Engineering and was the world's leading researcher in laser technology, though his pacifistic nature resulted in him keeping most of his inventions unreleased out of fear they would be used for destructive purposes. Firefly had a laboratory near the Kuril Islands.
Due to the large scale virus outbreak he is already infected by the time the Maverick Hunters arrive at his lab. While still in his right mind, he asks the Hunters to put him down before he becomes a Maverick. The Hunters fulfill his wish and terminate him, giving the doctor a glorious death in battle.
Strategy[]
Shining Firefly has a relatively simple pattern. He flies forwards while teleporting about, stopping to shootF-Laser firefly shots or fire large laser beams from his abdomen. At low health, he also attacks by throwing balls of light and then pulling them back. He is weak to the electricity of Tri-Thunder or E-Blade.
|
Tackle (体当たり Taiatari)[5] |
|---|---|
| Shining Firefly hovers forwards, then teleports to another location and hovers forward again, repeating. As he takes damage, he moves faster each time. | |
| Damage: 3:4:5 | |
|
Flash Laser (ウイルレーザー Uiru Rēzā, "Will Laser")[5] |
| Firefly launches a firefly drone that targets the player, leaving a trail of light that can also deal damage. The drone can be destroyed. | |
| Damage: 3:4:5 | |
|
Prism Laser (プリズムレーザー Purizumu Rēzā)[5] |
| Firefly shoots a laser horizontally from his abdomen, descending as he attacks. He uses this attack after losing a quarter of his health. After losing 75% of his health, he may shoot the laser vertically from above too. | |
| Damage: 5:7:8 | |
|
Prism Shot (プリズムショット Purizumu Shotto)[5] |
| Firefly places eight balls of light across the floor, then crosses the arena and pulls them back to himself. He uses this attack after losing 75% of his health. | |
| Damage: 3:4:6 |
Data[]
Stage[]
Dialogues[]
Laser Device required[]
Shining Firefly: What a graceful entrance...
X: This laboratory is so badly infected by the virus, there's no other way for me to enter.
Shining Firefly: Humph! You Hunters always do that... My work is not for Maverick Hunters. I've never trusted your approach. Therefore, I won't cooperate with you.
X: Doctor... I don't have time to argue with you. Please understand.
Zero: Dr. Shining Firefly, will you do us a favor?
Laser Device unrequired[]
Shining Firefly: Woooooo... I feel dizzy... I seem to have been infected by the... ...virus... I'm feeling an urge to attack you...
X: Doctor! Are you all right? Come to the Hunter base with me...
Shining Firefly: No... It's too late... I'm losing consciousness...
Zero: Dr. Shining Firefly... Oh, am I too late?
Other appearances[]
Shining Firefly appeared as an Unit Card in TEPPEN.
Other media[]
Archie Comics[]
Firefly appears in the Mega Man, Sonic the Hedgehog, and Sonic Boom crossover event Worlds Unite, which also includes the Mega Man X franchise. He is one of numerous Mavericks revived by Sigma-1 to form an army.
Rockman X5 Manhua[]
Shining Firefly plays a role in the manhua version of Mega Man X5, having worked on Spike Rosered, which would prove to be his undoing. Spike Rosered thus has his face's bottom half changed to have a mouth with sharp teeth, à la a shark, and has gravely wounded the insectoid doctor in his rampage.
Gallery[]
Artwork[]
Sprites[]
Production notes[]
Developer comments
"This boss was also settled on from the start. He's not plain evil, he's an intelligent, stubborn professor. I think he got a design that nicely echoes my mental image of him. There's actually a goof-up, though...I screwed up his coloring in the middle of designing him. There were two versions, red and yellow, and I'd decided on yellow, but things went crazy and I had a dot picture made with the unaccepted red. I noticed this at the last stages of the development, but by then it was too late."[6][7]
Designer comments
"The majority of an actual firefly's body is blackish, so I designed him that way, but I didn't want to get people thinking, "Is this a cockroach?" I thus considered red, yellow, or white (doctor's coat) schemes, ultimately choosing red. He's a red-faced old man. His white mustache and glasses convey his scientist feel."[6][7]
"I was told that Firefly would be a sort of professor like character, so that could only mean two things: glasses and distinguished facial hair! The red stripe I put along the top of his head is supposed to be a sort of bald look." -Haruki Suetsugu, Mega Man X Official Complete Works, 2009[2]
Trivia[]
- In the original American release, Shining Firefly was named Izzy Glow, after Izzy Stradlin, the former guitarist of the rock band Guns N' Roses.[8]
- Shining Firefly is one of the few bosses who has a weapon that can kill someone who is weak to it in one shot. In this case, it's his Flash Laser, which can defeat Dark Necrobat in one hit provided Dark Necrobat doesn't hit the firefly itself or X with his body or attacks.
- Shining Firefly is the second boss from the Mega Man X games to go Maverick on-screen. The first is Volt Kraken.
- Interestingly, Shining Firefly's wings are orange in his official artwork, but his in-game sprite's wings are green.
- His Japanese name "Hotarunicus" is derived from "hotaru", Japanese for firefly.
- Firefly is a boss in the X Challenge Vol. 2, where he is fought alongside Armored Armadillo.
References[]
- ↑ MM25: Mega Man & Mega Man X Official Complete Works. 2013.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Mega Man X Official Complete Works, UDON Entertainment Corp. 2009. pg.50. Retrieved on March 30, 2012.
- ↑ Listed as "Shining Firefly" in Mega Man X Official Complete Works.
- ↑ Mega Man X5 PlayStation release and Mega Man X Collection
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Boss File: Shining Firefly, Compendium of Rockman X. p. 81.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Rockman Elysium: Production notes about the cast of X5
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Capcom Community: X5 Developer/Designer Note translations
- ↑ Protodude's Rockman Corner: Alyson Court Talks Mega Man X5 Guns N' Roses References