| “ |
So yeah... next thing I remember after merging with Niles was... waking up back here. It's been peaceful! But... also kind of lonely... |
” | —SMG0 telling Mario, SMG3 and SMG4 about his past with Niles, SMG4 Movie: REVELATIONS | ||
SuperMemeGuardian0, colloquially known as Zero, was a pivotal character in the SMG4 series. He was the overarching protagonist of the Cosmology Saga, serving as of the two protagonists (alongside Melony Melone) of the Revelations Arc.
Due to the false assumptions of SMG1 and SMG2, he was seen as the main antagonist of the Genesis Arc and responsible for the deaths of both Spudnick and Axol. It wasn't until the SMG4 Movie: REVELATIONS that Zero's past was revealed when Mario, SMG3 and SMG4 ended up meeting the real SMG0: he and his avatar, Fred, originated from a universe called Mage, until the corruption of memes led Zero to seek out the God Box and in turn, it created Niles to help him create the Internet Graveyard and the Meme Life Cycle.
However, this proved to be a mistake as Niles allowed the God Box to corrupt him into a virus and he used this new power to accidentally kill Fred and then force SMG0 to merge with him to become Eldritch SMG0, all in Niles' quest to create a perfect universe, until years later when Zero was split apart from Niles years later when Axol died, causing Niles to secretly enter Melony's mind in order to use her to open the God Box so he could re-merge with SMG0 in order to finish what he started.
Upon finding Zero and becoming a virus again, Melony and Niles' fight woke up SMG0 and allowed him to find Niles controlling the virus' brain. After interfering with the controls and making Niles stop his futile quest for a perfect universe. Despite everything Niles had done, Zero still assured him the two of them would be together regardless and decided to walk into the light as Eldritch SMG0 gave up on hunting Mario and let itself die in the God Box's explosion, ending the threat it posed to the universe at the cost of Zero's life.
Appearance[]
SMG0's true form has a very childlike and arguably the most simplistic appearance in the series, due to him being a blue, one-eyed stick figure who wears a red bandana and baseball cap. On his cap is a symbol of a zero befitting of his status as a Super Meme Guardian, albeit with the slash leaning towards the left as opposed to Niles' zero eye which always is in reverse by leaning to the right. He bears an identical resemblance to Fred, the only difference being his skin is blue instead of red and his number "0" on his cap instead of Fred with the first letter of his name.
His form changes dramatically due to Niles' virus presence inside of him. His skin turns purple and becomes more wrinkly with textures missing on small parts all over while his lower half is completely gone and instead his ribcage and spine are exposed along with his textureless insides as the spiked bones trail up his back. His mouth becomes filled with razor sharp fangs, his neck swells horribly into a crater-shape and spikes pertruding out on all sides while a giant, ring-shaped horn is stuck inside of his head and his shoulders become more exposed as well. Most notably is the giant red eye with a white reversed "0" iris that indicates that Niles is in control of this mutated form.
Personality[]
SMG0 is as innocent as he is kind-hearted, loving nothing more than playing with his avatar Fred and partner guardian Niles, before the latter began his conquest for the "perfect universe" after being corrupted by the God Box. He is very cheery and always helping those who need it, even if he doesn't know them, showing great generosity and goodwill; such as when he took the unconscious Mario, SMG3 and SMG4 to his home inside of the God Box after their ship crashed in front of him despite the fact that it almost landed on him.
He is also courageous as when he awoken inside of Eldritch SMG0, despite his worry and confusion, he was willing to give his life to allow Mario, Melony, SMG3 and SMG4 to escape the God Box alive as he believed they didn't deserve to be dragged down with his and Niles' failure and threw himself in the way of Niles to prevent Eldritch SMG0 from killing them, even though he knew it would mean his and Niles' demise. However, despite all that Niles had done, SMG0 was willing to forgive his evil half and assure him that being together was enough and encouraged him to find Fred with him again in the next life, proving he has great empathy and strength of heart for being able to forgive even Niles' horrible atrocities which caused the rest of the SMGs, along with their friends, to despise him and instead wished to help his partner find peace again.
Despite being unconscious when Niles is controlling him, a small part of SMG0 is able to manifest for a short while through Eldritch SMG0, such as when he weeped "HELP..." after Niles had murdered Spudnick in front of SMG1 and SMG2, showing horror at what his counterpart was doing while he was helpless to do anything but watch and when Niles was about to kill Melony and the others as the God Box was in the process of self-destructing, SMG0 got in the way, forcing Eldritch SMG0 to stand down and allow them to escape and helping Niles to heal his sorrows, bringing some semblance of peace to Eldritch SMG0 in its final moments.
Powers and Abilities[]
Power Level: A-tier (presumably)[]
SMG0's true power is unknown given how little was shown of his true form before he and Niles perished in the God Box's destruction. Being a Super Meme Guardian, it's assumed that Zero has the same basic powers as SMG1, SMG2, SMG3 and SMG4 and would be on the same level as them. However, SMG0 also has wizard-like powers inherent to his game, Mage, that he shares with his avatar Fred, such as shooting fireballs from his fingertips or waving his hand to summon shields to block them.
True form[]
- Basic wizard powers: Based on their 1v1 game, SMG0 can shoot fireballs from his fingertips and can summon shields to block them, as shown while playing with Fred and the memes.
- Meme energy transmutation: Being the first Super Meme Guardian, SMG0 has the same powers as the others but since he wasn't meant to have a partner, its assumed that he differs from them as he can use his meme powers by himself. However, it's unknown if his powers are weaker than the other SMGs since they combine their strength to use their meme powers.
- Independent form: Unlike his successors, who were sent into their universes as modded recolors of their avatars, SMG0 was always part of the Mage program as the CPU player who was a blue variant to Fred's red color. Thus, his form isn't compromised if Fred dies, as he appears exactly the same many years after Niles destroyed Mage.
- Expert cooking skills: SMG0 is shown to be very proficient in the art of baking, specifically with sweets such as cake and tea. He could prepare for SMG3, SMG4 and Mario after he brought them to his treehouse inside of his pseudo-universe, despite there being a presumed finite amount of materials to use as ingredients inside of his small pocket world.
Assimilated by Niles[]
Although SMG0 is the basis for Eldritch SMG0, he has no control over this form and is rendered unconscious. Because of Niles combining his own powers with that of SMG0, their eldritch form is that of a god but with the former in total control of everything that happens because to the God Box granting him the powers of a virus, allowing him to take over SMG0 like a parasite.
This form is so powerful that it makes Niles one of the strongest characters in the series, with Melony's Fierce Deity form rivaling it and the God Box being the only entity more powerful. The virus' corruptive power is so strong that it eclipses Waluigi, Francis and SMG3 who all had superpowers and can even bypass an avatar's invulnerability, destroying entire universes.
Weaknesses[]
True form[]
- Meme Dependency: Despite having never been shown to use his meme powers, as a Super Meme Guardian, SMG0 requires memes in order to use his superpowers.
Assimilated by Niles[]
- Host dependence: If Niles (as Eldritch SMG0) chooses to assimilate into another being, he risks losing his grip on Zero if the host dies. After being slain by Melony at his request, Axol's demise caused a rippling effect that forced Niles and SMG0 back into their original forms and deprived Niles of his godly power.
- Power of another God: Due to Eldritch SMG0 being a god, the only thing that can equal him is another creature of similar godliness, such as Fierce Deity Melony. At her full power, Melony is the only one capable of actually harming Eldritch SMG0 and can even awaken SMG0 inside the mindscape, breaking him free of Niles' chains and allow him to intervene in Niles' control over their merged eldritch form, who unknowingly to them saved her, Mario and the other SMG's lives.
Trivia[]
- After Niles killed Spudnick, SMG0 pleas out "HELP..." to SMG1 and SMG2, foreshadowing that the real SMG0 was a prisoner within Eldritch SMG0 and was able to take control momentarily to cry out for help before Niles took back control of their merged form.
- For the first half of the Genesis Arc, Niles (as Eldritch SMG0) was referred to as Zero, with his true name being hinted at until it was confirmed in the second half:
- SMG1 and SMG2 calling SMG4 and SMG3 "Four" and "Three" while they refer to Eldritch SMG0 as "Zero", due to believing him to be the real SMG0.
- Just like SMG1, SMG2, SMG3, and SMG4, Eldritch SMG0 arrived in SMG1 and SMG2's universe via a Guardian Pod.
- In the second stream, after she watched the Anniversary, Meggy theorized that Zero's real name was actually SMG0 and that he got corrupted by some kind of power.
- In SMG4: SMG4 Goes Insane, an insane SMG4 was about to tell Mario his theory that Zero might actually be SMG0, but was knocked out before he could finish speaking.
- In SMG4: The Other Universe, Mario was the first to directly refer to Zero as "SMG0", confirming his status as a Super Meme Guardian.
- If Niles succeeded in making Mario his new avatar, as SMGs take the appearance of their avatar, this means that SMG0 and Niles would have become Mario Recolors. This is backed up by one of Niles' lines in the WOTFI 2021 rap, where he talks about his "fresh new form".
- It is unknown if SMG0 is actually a prototype for the Super Meme Guardians, due to the fact that unlike the other meme guardians, he didn't have a partner before Niles was created by the God Box, he isn't a modded recolor that was born from a Guardian Pod but was instead the CPU player of Mage and didn't lose any textures from Fred's death.
- SMG0 is the eleventh character who’s death was taken seriously, after Clone Mario, Desti, Francis, Greg, Spudnick, Auri Bori, Axol, Box Club Leader, Fred and Terrance.
- He is the first Super Meme Guardian to have perished, but unlike Niles, he chose for that to be his fate.
- SMG0's personality and tone very closely resemble that of Serial Designation N from Murder Drones, who is also voiced by their shared VA, Michael Kovach. Similarly, Niles' personality and tone very closely resemble that of Jax from The Amazing Digital Circus, who is also voiced by Kovach.
GMOD models[]