Calypso

"I am Calypso, and I thank you for playing Twisted Metal."

—Calypso

"Their emptiness makes me whole. Their weakness makes me strong. Their destruction is my creation."

—Calypso, Twisted Metal (2012)

Calypso is the creator of the Twisted Metal contest. He grants any wish the contest winner desires, no matter what they desire. Wishes that are otherwise physically impossible are within his power. Calypso often punishes the winner with their own wish in some form of dark irony. This attribute, and his demonic-yet-charming demeanor means his character may have been inspired by the devil in folklore.

Calypso was a playable character in Twisted Metal 4, where he is seen driving a nuke mobile with a missile attached.

Background

Young Calypso from TM 2 Comic

Calypso, whose real name may have been William Sparks (referenced in Small Brawl), used to be an ordinary man with a wife and a daughter,Krista Sparks (born 1978). As an adult, he had suicidal thoughts and has always wanted to end his misery. He took a job as a stuntman hoping he would die, but never did. In 1993, he took his daughter driving and when she fell asleep, drove directly into a brick wall, killing both of them. His face was severely burned in the accident, and he was apparently dead.

He spent two solid years trapped in hell, until he escaped by outrunning a demon named Minion, and meeting Satan himself. The king of Hell turns out to be a big demolition derby fan, and offers Calypso the power to grant wishes. This on the condition that he'd host the Twisted Metal tournament in order to collect the souls of the world's best demolition derby drivers, as Minion once did in Hell. He attempted to bring his wife and daughter back to life as well, but wasn't powerful enough. With the name Calypso, given to him during his time as a mechanic and driver, he hosted the first Twisted Metal tournament in 1995.

Car Crash from TM 2 Comic

Twisted Metal also gives Calypso highly dramatic reunions with his daughter from time to time. At first, she is rebuilt as a cyborg by the FBI, and fooled into being a pawn to bring down Calypso. As time progressed and he became more powerful, Calypso was able to temporarily resurrect his daughter, but she was supposedly required to win Twisted Metal and wish for a full life. She accuses her father of using her to kill more people while he maintains that it was the only way to bring her back, but the actual nature of the situation is unknown.

Calypso in hell being challenged by Minion from TM 2 Comic

In Twisted Metal 2(set in 2006), Minion competes in the tournament for revenge and if he wins, he tells Calypso "time to rot in hell with your little sister". The sister's name is never mentioned, and no other game discusses her. The comic, however, shows that Calypso actually accidentally killed his sister when he was 12 by crushing her head by her dad's car. After doing so, he holds on to her doll and acts as if that is her sister herself.

Twisted Metal

Calypso makes his first appearance in Twisted Metal, played by a live actor (Charles Lance) with long, somewhat frizzy red hair and a badly burned face, wearing a sleek tuxedo. His voice was distorted and less human compared to the later games.

Upon winning the contest, Calypso grants the wish of whoever the player's character is. However, for some characters, their wishes backfire.

Twisted Metal 2

Calypso returns to Twisted Metal 2, this time in comic-book form. His appearance changes slightly, this time having more sleek hair, and a mildly burnt face, and appearing more charming than in the original. His wish-granting is still the same, however. He is voiced by Mel McMurrin.

Twisted Metal 3

Calypso returns in Twisted Metal 3 looking similar to his Twisted Metal 2 rendition, although his face is no longer burned at all but still retains all the qualities listed in the previous games. Every wish granted in this particular tournament managed to backfire in the face of the victor. He is again voiced by Mel McMurrin.

Twisted Metal 4

Different than all other games, Calypso is actually a contestant in Twisted Metal 4, due to Sweet Tooth taking the ring from him and now being the one to run the tournament, Calypso is once again voiced by Mel McMurrin.

Driver

Name: Calypso

Demeanor: Evil

"This is ridiculous, really. Twisted Metal is my tournament, it's my brainchild, it's mine! This will be proven soon enough... and I'll serve this same foul humiliation back to that crooked, collapsed, cortex, criminally handicapped, overly-made up clown!"

Vehicle

Type:Nuke Mobile

Handling: 1/5

Armor: 5/5

Speed: 1/5

Special Weapon: 5/5

• Nuclear Missile: Calypso employs powerful nuclear missiles which must be detonated near his opponents.

Ending

Info and Ending:

All of Sweet Tooth's henchmen attack Calypso, but he takes them down fairly easily. He rushes for Sweet Tooth and they engage in a tug-of-war over the ring. The souls start escaping from the building and it starts to fall apart. The ring then is found by a kid on the street; inside the ring, one can still see Calypso and Sweet Tooth fighting, implying that they died and their souls were captured by the ring, while still fighting for control.

Note: This ending has nothing to do with the original canon of Twisted Metal which consists of Twisted Metal, Twisted Metal 2 and Twisted Metal: Head-On.

Twisted Metal: Black

Calypso returns in Twisted Metal: Black, looking completely different from his previous renditions.

In this version, he is bald, with a black glass eye and scarring on his chest. He also does not speak in any of the cut-scenes.

His wish-granting methods in this rendition are slightly different and decidely malevolent. When confronted with a wish with violent or dark intentions (such as revenge), Calypso gives the winner exactly what they want and more; when the winner makes a noble wish (such as saving someone's life), he switches back to his classic wish-twisting ways.

Since this game takes place inside Sweet Tooth's head, Calypso can be seen as a more benevolent, alternate form of Sweet Tooth, since he is bald, is missing one eye, and has heavy burns on his chest.
During Outlaw's ending, in the split second before he is shot, the terrorist faces Agent Stone and reveals a black glass eye and chest wounds consistent with the scarring on Calypso's chest, suggesting that the Terrorist is Calypso himself. This specific Terrorist can also be seen in Roadkill's cutscenes.

Twisted Metal: Small Brawl

In Twisted Metal: Small Brawl, Calypso is reimagined in a more comical, less violent form. Now with the first name of "Billy", Calypso is portrayed as a black-shirted, spiky-haired bully who steals lunch money, forces the others to write his homework for him, and generally harasses the younger, smaller children in the neighbourhood. He still hosts the Twisted Metal tournament, but with remote-control vehicles rather than the full-sized machines of earlier games.

As usual, Calypso grants the wish of whoever wins his tournament, although it is unknown if he does so through supernatural powers or simply by being sneakier and more influential in the neighbourhood than the other kids. Due to the lighter nature of the game, however, Calypso occasionally ends up with the short end of the stick, either as a side effect of the winner's wish (e.g. Needles) or because the champion has come to make him pay for his bullying ways (e.g. Agent Stone).

Profile: "Billy" Calypso is a rude, despicable boy, who only picks on the smaller kids in the neighborhood. A true bully to the core, he takes lunch money and extorts homework assignments. Calypso is the kid that everyone avoids at school and wishes he would get expelled or put in detention forever... Now's your chance to get even!

(even though the only characters to ever REALLY get revenge were Sweet Tooth and Mr. Slam.)

Twisted Metal: Head-On

Calypso's rendition in Twisted Metal: Head On is sort of a combination of his previous renditions. He still retains his sleek suit, hair, and figure, but has the glass eye and is balding on the top of his head. Again, his wish-granting methods are still the same; rarely granting anyone's wish to their satisfaction. Interestingly, Calypso's mind is switched with Sweet Tooth's in one-ending against his will.

Twisted Metal (2012)

Calypso returns in Twisted Metal PS3 as the master of the tournament, once again.He is played once again by a live actor (G. Russell Reynolds). He is seen as the President of his own company Calypso Industries, which he might have set up as a cover for the Twisted Metal Tournament.

This rendition of Calypso bears more resemblance to his appeareance in Twisted Metal 3, maintaining his sleek business suit and straight down hair but unlike some other appearances he has no burns on his face. As with other Twisted Metal games, his wish-granting abilities stay the same; often never giving what the contestants truly wish for.

SPOILER**

Upon the three contestants wishes, the following happens;

Sweet Tooth's ending shows him being placed in the coffin of his daughter. She was shown to have committed suicide ten years ago. He ended up trapped with her corpse in Sweet Tooth's daughter's grave. (He wished to be taken to where she was hiding all these years.)

Mr. Grimm's ending shows him being taken back (as his current age) to the night where his father was killed. Rather than be taken to the stunt show where Grimm's father actually dies, Mr. Grimm was teleported to the back of his father's car instead. This spooked both his younger self and his father, and Mr. Grimm accidentally ended up causing an automobile accident, inadvertently killing his father. He was then shot by his younger self. (He wished to be taken back to the night his father was killed.)

Dollface's ending shows her being taken to "the largest runway" which is actually an airport runway. She is later hit by an airplane, and is seen as the only way the mask was removed. (She wished to be at the center of the biggest runway, shining brightly.) Calypso then makes a statement, saying "You're right Ms. Sparks, you do shine the brightest..."

It is then revealed that Calypso is actually the devil and his office building is a tower of hell, in which he keeps all those who die within the Twisted Metal tournament for eternity. This is a similar concept to the ring, but instead the souls are in hell. Calypso captures the Preacher, although it is unknown how or when this happened, and he appears in hell with all the other victims of the tournament.

Downfalls

Despite his powers and penchant for twisting even the most innocent of wishes, Calypso has suffered a few defeats over the course of the series. His various downfalls are usually hypothetical and non-canon, proven when he appears alive and well in the next game.

Twisted Metal:

• Darkside - Mr. Ash comes to claim "Black", his wayward demon, whom in this title, is the source of Calypso's powers. Calypso is distressed as Mr. Ash takes back Black and leaves.
• Mr. Grimm - Mr. Grimm has no wish but to collect Calypso himself. Calypso questions Mr. Grimm's proposal stating that they "had a deal" and he "needs more time", only for Mr. Grimm to retort, "There will be no deal this time." Calypso is then chained to the back of Mr. Grimm's motorcycle, screaming in fear as the two head off into the distance.
• Pit Viper - (Text ending only) The driver wishes for a million dollars under the guise of Angela Fortin, but is actually Amanda X, an assassin who kills Calypso because she was hired by the people of L.A. to do so. She still takes the money. Though it's implied he survived.

Twisted Metal 2:

Grasshopper - Krista has no wish, despite being a robot, and revealing her plan to kill Calypso, she succeeds when he breaks down by her appearance, and before the bombs detonates an explosion, embraces her in joy. The L.A.P.D later thanks the player for winning (and putting an end to) Twisted Metal.

Shadow - Mortimer also does not make a wish, instead telling Calypso that he has brought a "gift": the souls of everyone killed due to Calypso's tournament. The vengeful spirits surround Calypso and carry him away, only for him to escape and grab on to the wing of a plane.

Minion - He has not come for a wish, but to merely get revenge on Calypso for stealing his powers and "stripping me of MY birthright" (which explains why Calypso can grant wishes) apparently eleven years ago (as according to Minion). Calypso gets intimidated, and when Minion forces him to be sent to Hell, he begs to be spared, but Minion, says, "Time to rot in hell with your little sister", and drops him laughing.

Twisted Metal 4:

• Prior to the beginning of the game, Calypso was dethroned by Needles Kane (Sweet Tooth), who took the ring that was the source of his powers. This forced Calypso himself to join the next Twisted Metal tournament in order to reclaim his power and gain vengeance on Sweet Tooth.
• Calypso's Ending - After he wins the competition, Calypso storms into Sweet Tooth's lair and demands his powers and the competition back. He and Sweet Tooth fight over the ring, causing the souls in the ring to escape and destroy the building around them. A child later finds the ring, showing both Calypso and Sweet Tooth trapped inside it, still fighting for control.

Twisted Metal: Black:

• Sweet Tooth - Sweet Tooth had already thought of killing Calypso (as noted in Sweet Tooth's prologue), when they first met to discuss the competition, and what Sweet Tooth desired, so when he finally wins, Calypso offers a vial, that will cure the curse (due to the apparent fact that the vial contained the blood of the Preacher who attended Sweet Tooth's execution), but then Sweet Tooth would have to stop his killing ways (the consequence being the vial's effects will wear off, resuming the curse). However, Sweet Tooth would much rather live with the curse than stop murdering so he shatters the vial underfoot ("a man has to have his....priorities."), and proceeds to slice Calypso's neck "as well as I had ever killed anyone" (and amazingly, he isn't decapitated, the scene ends with Calypso lying dead at Sweet Tooth's feet). Now that he is "free", Sweet Tooth intends "to be the greatest (serial killer) of all time".

Twisted Metal: Small Brawl:

• Sweet Tooth - Calypso shows Sweet Tooth the ice cream truck that happens to resemble his R/C car and wonders why he would only think about ice cream when he could have anything he wanted. Sweet Tooth then smiles maniacally. Sweet Tooth drives the truck with Calypso strapped on the front. While Calypso screams, begging to stop the truck, police cars are seen chasing it.
• Crimson Fury - Agent Stone encounters Calypso in a computer room, along with his pet cat. Stone gets a water pistol and sprays the cat, causing it to attack Calypso.
• Outlaw - Officer Roberts declares that he is putting Calypso under arrest, revealing a large missile within his vehicle. As Calypso nervously backs away, he inadvertantly falls into a manhole, leaving Officer Roberts' rocket to hit a real police cruiser; although this obviously backfired on Roberts, it could still be considered a negative outcome for Calypso.
• Shadow - Calypso is in front of an outhouse that may be his secret base, explaining that Mortimer's frog is causing so much noise, he can't get inside. Mortimer then explains that the frog must have been exposed to some kind of radiation and quickly leaves the scene, saying: "On second thought, you can keep the frog." The frog in the outhouse grows in size, collapsing it and eating Calypso alive.
• Slam - Slam encounters Calypso in a dirt area and attacks with his R/C vehicle. Calypso mocks his efforts, but Slam points out that a full-sized loader is right behind the bully. Later, Calypso finds himself buried up to his neck in dirt, saying "Okay, I can live with this...." However, out of nowhere, a porta-potty falls on top of him. Moments later, a construction worker enters the porta-potty, and Calypso begins screaming.

Twisted Metal: Head-On:

• Sweet Tooth - Needles decides that he has had enough of being a mere contestant, and wishes that he and Calypso would switch places. Despite Calypso's protests, his powers activate, switching his mind with Needles. From his new position of power, Needles kills Calypso with the latter's former guards (now loyal to Needles, due to the switch) and becomes the master of the Twisted Metal tournament.
• Crimson Fury - Calypso tries to convince Agent Shepard to claim his prize, but instead gets arrested by a swarm of FBI agents. This is allowed because Agent Shepard technically didn't make a wish, so Calypso is not in control of the situation.

Trivia

• In Twisted Metal 2, the only endings in which Calypso does not thank the player for playing are Grasshopper's, Minion's, Outlaw 2's and Roadkill's. (He dies in Grasshopper's, is sent to hell in Minion's, also he cries when Minion tries to send him in hell, and never got the chance in Outlaw 2's and Roadkill's - though he was briefly glimpsed at the end of the latter).
• In Twisted Metal: Head-On, two characters look much like Calypso; Agent Shepard and Mortimer Scharf. This could imply something for a later Twisted Metal game, whether this is canon or not, still remains unknown.
• Twisted Metal: Black reveals that Calypso will only grant your wish without tricking you if the contestants have sadistic issues (most notable for Dollface, Junkyard Dog, Raven, Mr. Grimm, Crazy 8 and Warthog). Dollface had a wish of personal desire, but Calypso found a way to add some sadism to the end result (By attaching the keys to a series of machines that will set off a chain reaction and kill the captured Mr. Creole.) Bloody Mary's wish was also for personal gain, but Calypso gave her a man that, even upon brain surgery, could not be attracted to her.
• Despite the fact he grant wishes, he can't use the ring to defend himself (such as when Cousin Eddy choked him or when Agent Shepard arrested him, furthermore he can't refuse the wish, such as when Sweet Tooth wished to switch bodies). So as a bottom line, Calypso can't use the ring to get himself out of a tight-spot.
• Obviously Calypso is shown to be creative in a sadistic way such as most of the characters endings in any TM game (except Black, due to the characters having a thirst for vengeance) had their wish turned around.
• Calypso shares his name with Greek mythology's nymph of the same name. In Greek myth, Calypso was a sea nymph from Homer's Odyessey who tempted the hero Odysseus with immortality under the condition that he remained on her island. She even went so far as to hold him hostage for seven years until she was ordered by Zeus (through Hermes) to release Odysseus. This reflects off of Calypso's personality in many of the games, offering the contestant any prize they desire in return for their participation in his contest.
• Calypso's name literally means "to conceal," which hints his penchant for turning the contestants' wishes against them or even worse, keep knowledge hidden from the contestants as he has done with Sweet Tooth (regarding the whereabouts of Sophie Kane), John Doe (knowledge of John's former life in the FBI), and Dollface (Presumably the one responsible for giving Dollface the mask under the alias of Ospylac).
• Because the ring can maintain his youth, therefore prolonging his life span, it's possible that Calypso has lived 100+ years (as stated by Mr. Grimm in TM:1). However, in TM:4, Sweet Tooth took the ring from him and he hasn't died from rapid aging, how that happened was unknown (though it may be possible that he simpily started aging normaly again instead of rapidly catching up to his real age). Besides, as stated in the Background section, Calypso is believed to have been a "ordinary man" and had wife and child (Krista Sparks) born in 1978 which would make his advance age improbable.
• Despite the ring's power, Calypso has shown to age into an elderly man (most notably in TM:Head-On), either because of a plot hole, or the creators wanted to make some adjustments to him. But in Twisted Metal (2012) he was shown to be in his 30's.
• Calypso's Twisted Metal: Black appearance looks similar to his appearance in Twisted Metal: Head-On; Only in Twisted Metal: Head-On, he has hair.
• The only games that Calypso is not taken down in is Twisted Metal 3 and Twisted Metal (2012). In both games he is seen in great health after the outcome of everyone's wishes.
• Twisted Metal (2012) does say "Thanks for playing Twisted Metal" only after seeing the secret ending after the credits. It's done by Calypso's voice actor, so it is intended to be Calypso saying it. If you have the subtitles on, they indicate that it is indeed Calypso thanking you for playing Twisted Metal.
• In Twisted Metal (2012), it is implied that Calypso is the Devil, mainly by the Preacher, however there are other signs, such as the Calypso Industries tower turning into a demonic tower of flames for a brief second. In a painting of the macabre vision of the tower, the souls of the contestants who have been killed in the contest are inside a hellish domain with mutiple chambers, including the soul of the preacher himself. Furthermore, whenever he grants wishes, his eyes glow red, as does he, which does not happen in previous games. While granting Mr. Grimm's wish, his voice takes on a deep and demonic tone for a brief second as well.
• In Twisted Metal (2012), it is possible that Calypso helped create Dollface, as she was given her mask by a Dr. Ospylac (Calypso spelt backwards).
• In Twisted Metal 2012, Calypso keeps a trophy case filled with items from earlier Twisted Metal games, such as:
  • No-Face's "modified" boxing gloves (TM:B)
  • Amanda Watts' damaged and fossilized helmet (TM2)
  • Mr. Creole's special key for Dollface's mask (TM:B)
  • John Doe's FBI badge (TM:B)
  • Mike and Stu's plane tickets (TM2)
  • The teddy bear of the little girl killed by Agent Stone (TM:B)
  • Charlie Kane's immortality potion (TM)
  • Raven's voodoo dolls (TM:B)
  • Three bricks from Whittlebone Tower (TM2)
  • A paper bag (TM)
  • The flight recorder sought by Agent Stone and Commander Mason (TM)
  • The Blades of Chaos from the God of War series
  • By the end of the game, Calypso expands his collection with artifacts from his three latest contestants (TM 2012): Sweet Tooth's machete, the license plate from Mr. Grimm's father's truck, and Dollface's mask.
• Along with these, the trophy case also features front covers of Twisted Metal 2 and War of the Monsters, two of the games developed by the now-defunct Incognito Entertainment.
• Note that the items above are only from three Twisted Metal games (TM1, TM2, and Black.) In the bonus video in Twisted Metal: Head On: Extra Twisted Edition, called "Twisted Metal: The Dark Past", Creator David Jaffe explains that these are his three favorite Twisted Metal games. These three games are also the most popular with many fans of the game.
• Calypso looks very different in the beginning cutscene and his character bio in Twisted Metal 4 from his character model in the ending of the game and all throughout Twisted Metal 3. It is unknown why this is, but probably due to a humorous possibility that they couldn't make TM3's rendition of Calypso have any other facial emotion than his twisted smile.
• The Calypso Industries building in Twisted Metal (2012) contains a room that is apparently a disco hall, implying that Calypso has a fondness for disco. The game tips make fun of this, saying that "Calypso must have disco fever." In the cutscenes where his office is shown, however, he always listens to classical music.