The T-00 - also dubbed "Mr. X" - is a Model 103 Tyrant created by the Umbrella Corporation. It appears as a recurring threat in Resident Evil 2 and its remake, as well as in the Memories of a Lost City scenario in Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles.
History
The T-00 was one of a series of mass-produced Tyrant B.O.W.'s developed by Umbrella. In the fall of 1998, it was deployed on a mission into Raccoon City in the Arklay Mountains which, at the time, had suffered a horrific viral outbreak that had left the majority of the population as ravenous undead creatures. The T-00's mission was to locate a sample of the G-Virus developed by William Birkin and return it to Umbrella.
The T-00 was dropped into Raccoon City via helicopter along with five other T-103 units. While the T-00 went in search of the G-Virus, the others would engage in combat against several U.S. soldiers and mercenaries still within the doomed city. The T-00 was dropped over the Raccoon Police Department building, smashing through the roof and landing within the hallway. Inside, rookie police officer Leon S. Kennedy felt the building shake and went to investigate the disturbance. Upon sighting Leon, the T-00 attacked. Though unarmed, it possessed incredible strength, punching through walls as it pursued Leon. Leon's bullets did little to slow the creature down and he ran. The Tyrant lost track of Leon and resumed its primary mission.
Hours later, the T-00 had arrived in Umbrella's underground NEST facility where William Birkin had been working on the G-Virus. There, it encountered Leon once more, and a mysterious woman known as Ada Wong who had retrieved a G-Virus sample. The monster attacked the two, but during the fight it was knocked over a railing and fell into a pool of molten slag. However, this did not kill the creature; with its limiter coat destroyed, the T-00 mutated into its "Super Tyrant" phase and rose out of the molten metal stronger and more agile than before.
Leon faced the mutated T-00 near the laboratory's train platform. With its enhanced strength and speed, the creature had become immune to the small arms Leon was carrying. Fortunately for Leon, a shadowy figure (believed to be Ada Wong who had faked her own death a short while ago) threw him a rocket launcher, and Leon used the weapon to blow the Tyrant to smithereens.
In the 2019 remake, the T-00 appears several times in both Claire's and Leon's subsequent campaigns, but was defeated through different means in the two stories.
In Claire's campaign, the Tyrant followed Claire and Sherry into an orphanage when the later was kidnapped by Brian Irons. In its attempt to grab Sherry and kill Claire, it was attacked from behind by Birkin. The former scientist gutted the T-00 with his malformed claw, before then attacking both Sherry and Claire in an elevator leading into the sewers. There are no further appearances of the Tyrant in Claire's campaign from then on.
In Leon's campaign, the Tyrant pursues the rookie cop throughout the campaign. One noted incident was the B.O.W. being responsible for the death of the reporter Ben Bertolucci by punching his fist through the wall and crushing the man's head with its hand, shortly followed by the monster getting pinned against a wall in the RPD's underground car park via a rigged van by Ada Wong, who was saving Leon from the former before leaving the doomed police station. It even pursues Leon through the NEST, finally culminating in a final battle with Leon on a moving platform. Instead of falling into a pit of molten metal, the Tyrant loses its coat and part of it's face in a set of explosions cause by premature detonations of the facility's self-destruction, causing only one part of the T-00's body to enter its super form. After recovering a rocket launcher sent by Ada, Leon finally destroyed the monster once and for all, obliterating its upper torso and ending the monster for good.
Appearance
Like all T-103 models, the T-00 was a large humanoid figure that stood at nearly eight feet tall and had smooth gray skin without any hair. It wore a dark, muddy-green trenchcoat that was lined with bulletproof material to protect it from gunfire. It also wore black padded gloves and heavy boots. In the 2019 remake of Resident Evil 2, Mr. X's appearance has undergone a few changes. His eyes have noticeable irises and pupils whereas they were completely white previously; the skin on his face appears saggy, almost melted, and he wears a black fedora hat and coat.
Super Tyrant
After losing its coat and mutating, the T-00 develops hardened black tissue over its arms, chest and back. Its hands have expanded and its fingers have lengthened and hardened into razor-sharp talons that can shred through metal.
The T-00's Super phase appears significantly different in the Resident Evil 2 remake. It has only lost the upper portion of its limiter coat and still maintains its trousers and boots. Its mutation does not appear to be as extreme as in previous games; only one of its arms has altered, appearing as twisted red sinews ending in long, sharp claws. While its torso appears somewhat expanded, it has not developed black growths, though its heart is now visible in the centre of its chest.
Abilities
As with all Tyrants, Mr. X possesses superhuman strength and durability. He is strong enough in his standard form to effortlessly pick up an adult human with one hand and has been shown to smash through brick, marble and concrete with sheer brute force. He can easily withstand small arms with or without his bulletproof coat and can only be stunned by higher caliber firearms. He is capable of recuperating from injury at an accelerated rate with gunshot wounds closing almost as fast as they open.
When its limiter coat is destroyed, the T-00 transforms into its Super Tyrant phase. It becomes completely immune to small arms, grows long sharp claws that can tear through metal and can run faster than the best human athlete. By this point, the T-00 is only vulnerable to heavy explosives and artillery-grade weapons.
Trivia
- The T-00 has also been known as "Mr. X" and "Trenchy". The Mr. X moniker has primarily been used in promotional material while Leon uses the name "Trenchy" in Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles.
- In the Resident Evil: City of the Dead novel by S. D. Perry, the name "Mr. X" is coined by Claire Redfield. Not knowing what a Tyrant is, she gives the creature this name as her own means of identifying it while it hunts for her and Sherry Birkin.