Zangief/Pop Culture

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A popular and memorable Street Fighter character, this page lists Zangief's references in general pop culture ever since his introduction in Street Fighter II.

Street Fighter Edit

Capcom games Edit

• His name was mentioned in the wrestling game Saturday Night Slam Master by Biff Slamkovich's losing quote "Comrade Zangief was right! You all play cheap!", implying that he is friends with Zangief.

Other video games Edit

• In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Bowser has a Piledriver-like move.

• Zangief was possibly the inspiration for Juri Karamazov, an NPC student in Rockstar Games' Bully. He uses Zangief's piledriver as well as several wrestling moves reminiscent of Zangief's fighting style. He also has a thick Eastern-European accent, similar to Zangief's.

Comics and Manga Edit

• In the manga chapter 113 and episode 15 of 2nd season from Hayate no Gotoku, Zangief addresses Nagi and makes her some ramen. Here, he is parodied as a thug, though he is wearing glasses.

• Zangief makes an appearance in the Club Nintendo comic "Super Mario Klemp-Won-Do: Muskeln sind nicht alles!" (English translation: Super Mario: Plump-Won-Do: Muscles are not all) as Mario's first opponent. Mario defeated him by running around him in quick circles, causing Zangief to fall over dizzy.

Television and Animations Edit

• In episode 9 of Yu Yu Hakusho, a character strongly resembling Zangief is clearly seen standing in the background. However, he has a scar on his chest instead of his signature triangular chest hair. This may have been an homage to both Zangief and Sagat.
• In the season 6 episode of Regular Show, The Real Thomas, a character resembling Zangief appears as one of the representatives of Russia in the U.N. conference.
• In the 13th episode of the Beyblade Metal Masters season Zangief makes a cameo as the barman from the train

Movies Edit

• Zangief was featured in the opening act of the 2012 Disney film Wreck-It Ralph (voiced by the film's director Rich Moore) as part of a villains support group, even though he is not a villain himself, and tells Ralph that just because he's a Bad Guy, does not make him a bad guy. According to the screenwriter, Phil Johnston, Zangief was a source of frustration for him when playing Street Fighter in his childhood.^[1]

Internet Edit

• Zangief is the source of an internet meme known as "Zangief Kid". A boy named Casey Heynes is a victim of bullying from another school colleague named Richard Gale. While being bullied at his school yard, Casey stands up for himself by immediately picking up Richard and smashing him painfully into the ground with a bodyslam, which is one of Zangief's moves.^[2]

• Zangief was pitted against Mike Haggar in one episode of Death Battle and won. This is due to him being younger and spends more time honing his combat skills as well as sparring with brown bears which are considered to be more dangerous than bull sharks; the animals his opponent spars with.

ReferencesEdit

1. ↑ Zangief’s Heart of Hearts: Phil Johnston on Wreck-It Ralph
2. ↑ http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/zangief-kid