Big Boss

Big Boss (ビッグ・ボス) is the codename of the legendary soldier who founded the special forces unit FOXHOUND. He also served as the founder of the private military contractor nation Outer Heaven in South Africa and later founded the nation of Zanzibar Land in Central Asia. Big Boss was considered by some to be the "greatest soldier in the 20th century" and a brilliant military leader. He was hailed as a war hero by admirers and feared as a tyrant by his enemies. As a result of the Les Enfants Terribles project, he is the "father" of Solid Snake (his subordinate and later nemesis), Liquid Snake and Solidus Snake.

Prior to earning the codename Big Boss, he served as a field operative for the FOX unit under the codename of Naked Snake during the Cold War. His real name being John, while he was called Jack by close acquaintances.

Early Years
Big Boss's military career dates back to 1950. During his tenure, he joined the Green Berets and became The Boss' apprentice. In 1954, John, as was his name, was involved in the Bikini Atoll testing of the first airborne detonation of a hydrogen bomb. During his time under The Boss' tutelage, she taught him everything about combat, weaponry, survival, espionage, destruction, psychology and foreign languages like Russian. They also developed CQC together. The Boss and John went their separate ways on June 12, 1959.

After The Boss left him, John fought alongside Python during a covert operation in Vietnam stating later that he was one of the few soldiers he could completely rely on in battle. The two were involved in a top secret mission together, where Python was shot and presumably killed, sometime around 1961. Snake later re-joined the Green Berets where he was recruited by the fledgling FOX unit.

On August 24th, 1964, John was part of the Virtuous Mission, in which he was to rescue a defecting Soviet scientist named Nikolai Stephanovich Sokolov. It was during this mission that he was given the codename "Naked Snake." However, this mission failed, due to the defection of The Boss.

A week later, FOX unit and Snake were assigned Operation Snake Eater, in which the objective was to eliminate The Boss and her new Soviet ally, Colonel Volgin, rescue Sokolov and destroy the Shagohod. It was during this mission that Snake came across the prototype designs for the TX-55 Metal Gear and Metal Gear REX from Granin, who was sending them to a colleague in America. This colleague was presumably the grandfather of Hal Emmerich, a.k.a. Otacon

During this mission, Snake had his right eye accidentally damaged by Ocelot's Colt Single Action Army, while in captivity for torture, in order to save EVA's life. However, he succeeded in completing the mission, and killed The Boss and Colonel Volgin. For this, he was awarded the code name Big Boss and the Distinguished Service Cross by President Lyndon Johnson.

Big Boss, however, was heavily affected by Operation: Snake Eater, thanks to the fact that he had to kill his old mentor, The Boss, and after finding out that the whole operation (including The Boss' supposed defection) was a ruse set up by his government to avoid taking the blame for a nuclear attack while secretly getting their hands on the Philosophers' Legacy, Big Boss lost sight of what he was fighting for, and with it, his patriotism for his country. Because of this, he decided to retire from FOX.

When direct American involvement in the Vietnam Conflict started the following year, Big Boss participated in Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol (LRRP) along with teams of Green Berets and Army Rangers. His skills in combat earned him the "great legendary soldier" moniker. Once the conflict had ended, Big Boss took part in more than 70 missions attached to groups such as the SOG (Studies and Observation Group) and the Wild Geese (a fictional mercenary unit). He also met up with a war orphan named Frank Jaeger at Mozambique in 1966, and escorted the child to an orphanage where he could be taken care of.

In 1970, the FOX unit was considered rogue after its members organized a revolt and took over a base in South America known as "La Peninsula De Los Muertos". Big Boss was taken prisoner by Cunningham (a member of FOX).

Still going under the name Naked Snake, he met Roy Campbell, a member of the Green Berets who was sent to take care of FOX. The two managed to persuade various members of the Red Army which FOX were commanding, to join forces with them and rise up against the renegade members, forming the early beginnings of what would become FOXHOUND. Para-Medic and Sigint also helped Boss in defeating FOX and clearing their names, as well as Major Zero's (they were all partially blamed for the up-rising). Afterwords, Big Boss officially formed FOXHOUND, to carry on the tradition of the FOX unit and to give a home to the soldiers he had recruited during the San Hyeronimo Incident.

While there, Big Boss once again met Frank Jaeger, this time going under the code-name Null. The two fought on a number of separate occasions. He also met Python once again, who had in fact not died during the Vietnam War but was kept alive by the CIA and trained as an "anti-Snake" knowing a lot about Big Boss' fighting style, Big Boss eventually defeated him. Big Boss then went on to kill the renegade FOX unit's leader, Gene, and then afterwards, deactivated the new Metal Gear RAXA that FOX was threatening to launch into the United States. Gene left Big Boss with a large cache of funds and supplies that he intended to use to construct Army's Heaven on "La Peninsula de los Muertos".

The Patriots & Les Enfants Terribles
Ocelot and Major Zero later extended an invitation to Big Boss to join them in the forming of a new organization known as "The Patriots". This organization was to be set up in honor of The Boss' last wish. Big Boss, who knew her better than anyone else, was chosen by Zero to be an icon, a hero, to the world. Zero wanted to turn Big Boss into a legend, and started spreading stories about him, some true, some exaggerated, and some outright lies. Big Boss later became infuriated with Zero's lust for power, and was sick of playing the role of a puppet.

Afraid of losing Big Boss, Zero planned a secret project. In 1972, Big Boss was found in a coma and Zero brought his unconscious body to a lab where his genes were extracted to make genetically enhanced soldiers. This project would be known as "Les Enfants Terribles". Solid Snake, Liquid Snake, and Solidus Snake were produced in this program, and were known as the "Sons of Big Boss". However, this was the final straw between the two, and Big Boss left The Patriots, determined to oppose them. He left the United States, drifting around the world, before finally deciding to create his own organization and created his dream fortress, his own philosophical idea known as Outer Heaven. Big Boss also returned to the U.S. to covertly take command his special forces unit FOXHOUND.

In the 1990s, Big Boss used the exorbitant amount of money he had collected over the years (a large part of which was the money given to him by Gene) to covertly create the fortress of Outer Heaven, all the while ostensibly remaining the commander of the U.S.'s elite FOXHOUND unit. Big Boss kidnapped Russian scientist Dr. Drago Pettrovich Madnar and forced him to develop the next Metal Gear prototype, called TX-55 Metal Gear. It was a weapon system designed to give Outer Heaven military supremacy over the West, and thus giving Big Boss the power he needed to confront The Patriots.

When FOXHOUND was commissioned by the U.S. to infiltrate Outer Heaven and destroy Metal Gear, Big Boss first sent in his most trusted soldier, Gray Fox; once Gray Fox was captured, Big Boss sent in Solid Snake, at that time FOXHOUND's greenest, least experienced member. Big Boss figured that there was no way that a rookie like Solid Snake could fulfill such a mission, that his efforts would delay further action by the West and buy Big Boss enough time to complete Metal Gear's development.

However, much to Big Boss' surprise, Solid Snake succeeded in disbanding Outer Heaven, recovering the Metal Gear research data, and destroying Metal Gear itself. Faced with the failure of his plans, Big Boss confronted Solid Snake in the heart of Outer Heaven, and revealed his identity as Outer Heaven's mastermind. Big Boss laughed at the astounded Snake and told him the truth behind his mission. While serving as commander-in-chief of FOXHOUND, Big Boss also ran a mercenary dispatch company utilizing his connections and capitals from his own years as a merc. He was planning on to build this company a larger military establishment, and he built Outer Heaven as its base. His purpose for sending the rookie Snake was to cause information confusion amongst the West. However, Big Boss miscalculated. He never thought Solid Snake would make it this far. After Big Boss activated the base's self-destruct countdown, the two of them engaged in one-on-one combat, with Big Boss dodging between crates and firing at Snake with a machine gun. Even in his advanced age, Big Boss proved fast and dangerous, but Solid Snake eventually managed to apparently kill him.

In reality, Big Boss managed to escape Outer Heaven. In 1999, he took control of another nation known as Zanzibar Land. Recruiting war orphans from across the Third World and raising them as soldiers, Big Boss hoped to create a nation by and for soldiers, where soldiers were honored and not treated as tools. Big Boss also recruited Gray Fox to his cause. To ensure Zanzibar Land's success, Big Boss once again commissioned the creation of a more advanced Metal Gear prototype, known as Metal Gear D. This time, Dr. Madnar developed the new model on his own free will, after being institutionalized into an asylum in the US. It is rumored that Dr. Madnar also provided Big Boss with cybernetic body parts to compensate for the injuries he received in Outer Heaven.

Solid Snake once again managed to infiltrate the enemy nation and destroy Metal Gear. Snake eventually defeated Fox in unarmed combat and, bruised and unarmed, was once again confronted by a machine gun-wielding Big Boss. Having spent his entire life on the battlefield, Big Boss could not conceive of a world without war. Big Boss paraphrased his mentor's final challenge to Snake before challenging his son to one final battle.

"Whoever wins, our battle does not end. The loser is free from the battlefield, but the winner must remain there and the survivor must live his life as a warrior until he dies."

- Big Boss to Solid Snake, Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake

Snake managed to cobble together a makeshift flamethrower using a can of hair spray and a cigarette lighter and used it to incinerate Big Boss.

Big Boss's body was recovered by the U.S. Government and it was discovered that he was, in fact, alive. He was injected with nanomachines to induce a sort of eternal coma. For Zero, Big Boss was an irreplaceable icon and more importantly, an irreplaceable friend. Big Boss' genome was then used to discover "soldier genes", which the US government gave to the Next Generation Special Forces via gene therapy.

To further make the world believe he had died, a grave was laid next to The Boss' grave which read: "A Hero Forever Loyal To The Flames Of War, Rests In Outer Heaven. 193X - 1999"

Although badly burned, his body was much later recovered by EVA (with the assistance of Raiden), who put him back together using pieces of his sons, Liquid and Solidus. When they were finished, Big Boss looked as though he had never been burned. When GW was later properly destroyed, it led the way open into JD, which in turn revealed the location of Zero. Big Boss, now fully revived, headed to find him. As Solid Snake stood in front of Big Boss's grave after having nearly attempted to kill himself, Big Boss emerged from out of the shadows with Zero, telling his son that there was no hatred between them. Despite his advanced age, Big Boss was still a formidable fighter, being able to disarm Snake, and then embrace him in a fatherly hug, with apparent ease. He told Snake about the history of the Patriots, and the struggle between himself and Zero. As Zero sat as a vegetable in a wheelchair, Big Boss comments that although there was bad blood between him and Zero, all he felt now was a deep sense of longing, and pity. He pondered whether Zero hated him or feared him. Big Boss switched off Zero's air supply, killing him and finally ending their conflict forever. Before long, Big Boss started to feel the effects of the new FOXDIE virus that was injected into Snake and requested Snake to take him over to The Boss' grave where he stood and saluted, echoing his salute 50 years beforehand. He commented that ever since the day he killed The Boss, "he was already dead." Lighting a final cigar (with much assistance from Snake), Big Boss finally made peace with his son. Seconds later, Big Boss, the greatest soldier who ever lived, passed away at the very grave of the woman who taught him everything.



"This is good...Isn't it?"

- Big Boss's final words.

Legacy
Big Boss is perhaps the most influential figure, his very own ideology being adopted by many admirers. The dream of a unified world, passed to him by The Boss, formed the basis for Outer Heaven, a land, where, in his words, "every soldier will have his place, and where they will answer to no government". As he stated during Operation Snake Eater, he would die for his country if necessary, however he found that there was no point in doing so, a realisation eventually causing him to create Outer Heaven. Big Boss knew there is no way that he could change the world even if he was the greatest soldier, but he always fought for what he believed in.

"Fighting was the only thing I was good at, but at least I fought for what I believed in..."

- Gray Fox

Big Boss also saw Solid Snake as a soldier rather than a son, because of the conflict between him and Zero, but he always knew Snake was loyal to the end. As a last chance to prevent any more mistakes, Big Boss said to his son that he should spend the rest of his life not as a soldier, but as a man. Spending his entire life fighting and experiencing sorrow, Big Boss made it clear that no men should die for another person's cause. One should believe in oneself and fight for what one believes is right.

Other Appearances
Big Boss appears in Super Smash Bros. Brawl as both a trophy (as Naked Snake) and sticker. His trophy description is as follows:



"As a member of the special-forces unit FOX, Naked Snake assassinated The Boss and ruined the Shagohod, a Soviet nuclear weapon. Years later, he was used to plant the seeds of Les Enfants Terribles, a project designed to create cloned super soldiers. The three Snakes - Liquid, Solid, and Solidus - were thus born. He would then embrace his name, Big Boss, and duel Solid Snake."

Also, several of Naked Snake's camouflage suits appear as color swaps for Solid Snake.

Big Boss also appears as the second-to-last boss in the NES sequel to the original Metal Gear, Snake's Revenge. He guards the final fortress where Metal Gear is located. At first, he fights with a machine gun just as he did in the original Metal Gear. After being shot several times, Big Boss reveals that he survived his injuries from Outer Heaven through surgeries that turned him into a cyborg; he then transforms into a 12-foot tall RoboCop-like robot, and proceeds to chase Solid Snake around while spitting fireballs at him.

While Snake's Revenge is non-canonical, it should be noted that the final battles against Big Boss in Snake's Revenge and Metal Gear 2 are quite similar. In both games, Big Boss can use doors to chase the player around from one screen to another. The only difference between the two games' sequences is that Big Boss doesn't transform into a cyborg in the canonical sequel, Metal Gear 2.

In Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake, when the player calls George Kessler during the final battle, he mentions a rumor about Big Boss receiving cybernetic "snatcher" organs from Dr. Petrovich after losing his limbs, right ear and right eye (which was already missing in the original game) in battle. While some fans interpret this as a jab directed at Snake's Revenge, it's a reference to Kojima's previous game, Snatcher. Dr. Petrovich appears in Snatcher as the founder of the Snatcher Project

Trivia

 * In the Japanese version of MGS4, Big Boss is voiced by Chikao Ōtsuka; uncoincidentally, he is the father of Akio Ōtsuka, who plays Solid Snake (And in the case of "Snake Eater" and "Portable Ops", Big Boss/Naked Snake himself);
 * It should also be noted that during a conversation with one of his support crew in Portable Ops, that Big Boss mentions that he wanted to be an instructor after Snake Eater;
 * Big Boss' look in the original MSX version of Metal Gear was modelled after actor Sean Connery. Like other characters, this image was updated during later releases of the game to reflect his look in MGS1 official artwork, which was also carried over to his appearance in MGS4.