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Billy Lee (ビリー・リー Birī Rī?), originally known in the West by the localized nickname of "Hammer",[1] is one of the two main protagonists of Technōs' Double Dragon series of beat 'em up games. He is the twin brother, training partner and in some occasions even rival of Jimmy Lee. He is a master of Sou-Setsu-Ken, a legendary Chinese martial art which he mastered at a young age.

Billy is also the boyfriend of Marian, who is often captured by rival gangs (mainly the Black Warriors) in order to lure him and his brother to reveal the secrets of their fighting technique.

History and appearances

Double Dragon

Heir to the Chinese martial art, Sou-Setsu-Ken. Billy Lee began learning Chinese Kenpou from his father at 12 years of age and mastered several martial arts forms during the following eight years until he turned 20, when he inherited the title of "Sou-Setsu-Ken Master" and established the Sou-Setsu-Ken Dojo with his twin brother to teach citizens how to defend themselves from the Black Warriors.

Double Dragon II: The Revenge

At the young age of 20, he and his twin twin brother became legendary masters of a Chinese style of Kenpou called Sou-Setsu-Ken. In the first game, Billy saved his girlfriend Marian from the clutches of the Black Warriors, but now, Marian was killed by this gang and Billy is looking to avenge her death. Billy is Player 1 and wears dark blue clothing in the original arcade version and direct ports of the game.

Double Dragon II (Game Boy)

After the Black Warriors were gone, Billy and Jimmy joined a training hall called the "Scorpions". In only a few months both brothers became teachers. A fellow member named Anderson became jealous of them and framed Billy for the murder of Wright, another instructor. The Scorpions' leader, Gordon, gave out orders to hunt down Billy. Billy eventually managed to defeat Anderson and clear his name.

Double Dragon 3: The Rosetta Stone

Heir of Sou-Setsu-Ken. He started to learn Chinese Kenpou from his father since he was 12 years old and learned several fighting styles for eight years until he turned 20, when he became the heir to Sou-Setsu-Ken. He recently returned from a training mission and is now facing his biggest challenge yet: to find three Rosetta Stones.

Super Double Dragon

One half of the Double Dragons. Billy began to learn Chinese martial arts and several other kinds of fighting styles at the age of 12 and became heir to the Southern-style of Sou-Setsu-Ken at age 20.

Battletoads/Double Dragon

The twin brother of Jimmy Lee. He began his martial arts training at age 12 and became a Kung Fu Sou-Setsu-Ken master at age 20.

  • Height: 5′ 10″
  • Weight: 165 lbs.
  • Color: Blue
  • Birth date: 7-28-70-Leo

Double Dragon (animated series)

Billy is separated from his twin brother at birth. His uncle, the Shadow Master, kidnaps Jimmy. Billy is rescued by their father, John, and is placed in the care of John's master, the Oldest Dragon. Eighteen years later, Billy reunites with his brother and makes him see just how evil the Shadow Master really is. Billy is the even-tempered, responsible brother, and often dispenses wisdom to the students of the Dragon Dojo. Jimmy is the bad-tempered, trendy brother, and often dispenses serious code to the students of the dojo.

Double Dragon (film)


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Double Dragon V: The Shadow Falls

Firstborn son of the union between the Virginia Lee family and Chinese Lee clan. Billy professes an interest in New Age studies. He can sing and he likes to line dance. Especially proud of his extensive collection of cowboy boots.
~ Profile description from the Double Dragon V manual
Dossier
  • Date of birth: 10-23-69
  • Height: 6′ 2″
  • Weight: 210 lbs.
  • Eyes: Blue
  • Hair: Black
  • Likes: Milk
  • Dislikes: Shadow Master
  • Origin: Metro City
  • Fighting style: Art of the Dragon

Double Dragon (Neo Geo)

A kind hearted, justice-loving young man who grew up learning Chinese and Japanese martial arts from a very young age. With his older brother Jimmy, he created the fighting style "Sou-Setsu-Ken". Sou-Setsu-Ken is a combination of Shaolin Kenpo, T'ai Chi, karate, judo, aikido, etc. Billy runs a martial arts dojo with his brother where he works on developing and mastering the best technique, but a letter from their old instructor brought them back to the city in which they grew up. Upon hearing of Koga Shuko from Marian, Billy makes the decision to destroy his evil organization.

Personality

Billy is a happy-go-lucky fighter who is loud and proud, and most of his win quotes show him being proud of his fighting style and abilities (such as remarking having a fair fight with either Dulton or Amon). Just like his girlfriend Marian, he criticizes his opponents (like when he tells Rebecca to get up and fight, thinking she was asleep after being knocked down by him). Despite his hot-blooded personality, he seem to really care for Marian (he apologizes for beating her and asks her if she is okay).

Personal data
  • Voice: Hikaru Midorikawa
  • Birthplace: Los Angeles
  • Height: 5′ 9″
  • Weight: 154 lbs.
  • Fighting style: Sousetsuken
  • Hobbies: Playing video games, driving cars

Double Dragon Advance

The younger of the Lee brothers, Billy is a martial artist with a strong heart and body. He has learned numerous styles of martial arts since he was a child, and with his brother Jimmy, he founded Sōsetsuken at the age of 20. He is usually calm and quiet; only his brother Jimmy is capable of stopping him.

Profile
  • Height: 175 cm
  • Weight: 72 kg
  • Fighting style: Sōsetsuken
  • Specialties: Kicks and nunchaku
  • Hobby: Training
  • Martial arts idol: Bruce Lee

Double Dragon (mobile)

A hot-blooded tough guy with a strong sense of justice. Not the sharpest tool in the toolbox, but he never misses a day of training. He's also Marian's sweetheart.
~ Official description
Personal data
  • Age: 25
  • Height: 178 cm
  • Weight: 79 kg
  • Hobbies: Training

Double Dragon II: Wander of the Dragons

He is the heir of the Chinese traditional martial art of Nunchaku with his older brother, Jimmy.

He has protected Chinatown against the Black Warriors for a long time and all his skills are "the real street fighting art based on Nunchaku".

He used to quietly watch on his brother Jimmy, who adored Marian. But now, he only has revenge in his mind for Marian.[4]

Profile
  • Body type: Man A
  • Gender: Male
  • Age: 25
  • Personality: A chivalrous, determined character not to be shaken.
  • Features: Sōsetsuken

Double Dragon IV

The successor of the Sōsetsuken technique, and a master of his craft. Billy currently works as an instructor with his brother Jimmy at Sōsetsuken dojos.
~ Official description

Other appearances and cameos

Rock'n Game Boy

A manga about a group of gaming enthusiasts trying to stop an evil organization in their attempt to conquer the world. The Lee brothers, Billy and Jimmy Lee, from Double Dragon fame, are featured as part of the storyline.

Kunio-kun series

Billy and Jimmy are referenced in Technōs' Kunio-kun series by a pair of recurring characters known as the "Dragon Twins", Ryūichi and Ryūji Hattori, with Ryūichi playing the part of Billy. The iconic "Double Dragon" theme even plays whenever they appear.

After the release of Double Dragon IV, Ryūichi is now based on Jimmy Lee instead.

WWF Superstars

Billy makes a cameo as a member of the audience.

Super Spike V'Ball

The NES port of the game features Billy and Jimmy as playable characters.

Notes

  • Most manuals for the games that comprise the Double Dragon series (as well as its spinoffs), including their releases on diverse platforms, coincide that Billy and Jimmy Lee are in fact twin brothers. However, some discrepancies can be found among the documentations for certain releases:
    • The manuals for the NES, Game Boy and ZX Spectrum versions of Double Dragon II only call them 'brothers', without ever stating if they are twins, or clarifying who is the older brother and who is the younger one.
    • The manual for Double Dragon III for the NES never mentions what's the relation between Billy and Jimmy, although since this game is a direct sequel to Acclaim's Double Dragon II, it can be assumed that it follows the same continuity and terminology.
    • In the manual for Super Double Dragon, they aren't stated to be twins at all, and instead Billy is stated to be the younger brother and Jimmy the older one.
    • The manual for Double Dragon V: The Shadow Falls retakes the brothers' relationship as twins, although it adds the fact that Billy was born first and Jimmy later.
      • Since Double Dragon V is directly based on the lore from the Double Dragon animated series, it can be assumed that this is also the case for the latter.

Gallery

Artworks and portraits

Sprites and models

Miscellaneous

Trivia

  • In the original arcade version of Double Dragon, Billy has blond hair and wears blue clothes, while Jimmy has brown hair and wears red clothes. Later on in the series, both characters switched hair colors (with a few exceptions where Billy is once again seen with blond hair), and in some cover artworks and promotional materials, Billy is even seen wearing red clothes while Jimmy is the one who wears blue ones.
    • According to Koji Ogata, graphic designer of several Double Dragon games, Billy's first hair color change from blond to brown was due to color restrictions during the creation of the Famicom/NES version of Double Dragon.[7]
  • In the Double Dragon comic adaptation by Marvel Comics, Billy is occasionally portrayed wearing green clothes rather than his usual blue attire.
  • In his film counterpart, when Billy is in his transformed state, his gi is capri blue instead of his usual blue.
  • In the Neo Geo fighting game, Billy's moves are lightning based, even in his transformed state.
  • In Double Dragon Neon, Billy was voiced by Jeff Luke, who also voiced Jimmy in that game.
  • The character Ryūichi from the Kunio-kun franchise of beat 'em up games (which in turn directly inspired the creation of the Double Dragon series) is loosely based on Billy Lee. The iconic "Double Dragon" theme even plays whenever he and his twin brother, Ryūji, appear, and both are often referred to as the "Dragon Twins".
    • However, after the release of Double Dragon IV, Ryūichi was instead based on Jimmy Lee, although in Stay Cool, Kobayashi-san!, Ryūichi was once again based on Billy Lee. This was intentional, as Hiroyuki Sekimoto was the director of Stay Cool, and Billy has fashioned brown hair in all Double Dragon games directed by him. However, in the game, Ryūichi is described as having a composed personality, which fits with Billy in Rival Showdown, but is a contrast to his personality in Double Dragon Advance and Double Dragon IV.
  • Billy appears in River City Girls as the owner of the Ocean Height dojo. He was voiced by Dan Avidan in this game.
  • Billy's last name "Lee" comes from Bruce Lee.
  • Billy could possibly have been inspired by the character Swan from the 1979 gangs-themed drama film The Warriors.
  • Billy (or at least his first Famicom version and later iterations) may also be inspired by the character Kenshiro from the manga/anime series Hokuto no Ken (Fist of the North Star).
    • Further supporting this possible reference, the cover artwork of the Famicom port of Double Dragon bears an artstyle reminiscent to that usually seen in said series.

See also

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 "Hammer" was Taito's localized name for Billy Lee in the original arcade version of Double Dragon. The name can be seen tattooed on his arm in diverse promotional artworks for the game.
  2. In Super Double Dragon, it is stated that the Lee brothers have established their training school, the Sou-Setsu-Ken Dojo, in Los Angeles (although later games establish they have opened several dojos all across the United States). They presumably either were born in China and raised up in the United States, or they are descendants of a Chinese family naturalized in the U.S.
  3. 3.0 3.1 Only in the animated series and not considered to take part in the established canon.
  4. An Introduction to Characters | Main Character at The Legend of Fighting Action Game: Double Dragon II.
  5. Traced from drawings of Billy and Jimmy Lee by Koji Ogata which first appeared on the spine of the Famicom packaging of Double Dragon II: The Revenge.
  6. @SatamHistorian at X (October 23, 2021).
  7. @food2han at X (July 17, 2023).

External links

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