From Orson Scott Card Wiki

Contents 1 History 2 Miscellaneous 3 Notes 4 Trivia 5 Quotes 6 Related Articles 7 External Links 8 References

[edit] History

Bonzo (real name Bonito de Madrid) is described as a strikingly beautiful boy, of aristocratic Spanish lineage from the town of Cartagena. As commander of Salamander Army he suddenly has Ender thrust upon him when Ender is promoted from his launch group. Bonzo was forced to give up a veteran soldier (a toon leader) to make room for Ender, and is further furious because Ender has virtually no experience in the Battle Room whatsoever. Bonzo takes out these frustrations on Ender and as a supposed punishment, he forces Ender to do desk work when his army is practicing, and only allows him to participate in battles after 4 minutes, however, Ender is forbidden from firing his gun. This causes Ender's individual soldier ranking to be high, and Bonzo hopes that this will help him trade Ender to some other army. When Ender is told to stop practicing with Launchies Ender antagonizes Bonzo by privately threatening to have Bonzo "iced" (or kicked out of Battle School) if Bonzo does not rescind the order. Ender inadvertently makes the situation worse by trying to be nice and explaining to Bonzo how Bonzo should rescind the order. When Ender enters battle with the "Condor Army" and fires his gun, thereby turning a defeat for Salamander army into a draw, Bonzo is infuriated. Bonzo later trades him to "Rat Army," and hits Ender for disobeying his orders to not fire his gun. This backfires on Bonzo, however, and he loses the discipline he had with his army, because they knew Ender's "disobedience" had turned a defeat into a draw.

Later, Bonzo becomes provoked beyond sanity when Ender, now a commander, defeats Salamander Army in a battle. Ender, enraged at the Battle School teachers, accidentally humiliates Bonzo during the end of battle ceremony. Bonzo, and a group of his cronies, corner Ender in one of the Battle School showers. Trapped in the showers, Ender manages to use Bonzo's Spanish honor against him and shame Bonzo into engaging in one-on-one combat. Evading Bonzo with the slipperiness of his still-soapy skin, Ender quickly ends the battle by smashing his own head into Bonzo's nose, which in turn pierces his brain and kills him. Bonzo is sent home to his family in a bodybag, ironically on the same shuttle that transports Ender back to Earth on short leave. Ender never truly realizes that he killed Madrid until Hyrum Graff's court martial, where the vids taken of the fight are used in an attempt to prove that Ender was abused by the Battle School staff.

The Bonzo incident is pivotal in Ender's development, as it forces him to realize that he must fend for himself at all times, as the teachers refuse to offer him help—an attitude fostered by Graff. Believing isolation was the environment under which Ender would become the military genius needed for the Third Invasion, Graff attempts to put a psychological barrier between him and the other Battle School students at every opportunity. Despite this goal, he never intends to endanger the life of any student of the Battle School. By forcing Ender to take on Bonzo alone, without any adult intervention, Graff makes a mistake that stays with him through the rest of his career, one he continues to think of when making future decisions, and validating his own work.

Bonzo is also the main character of a short story, released in the second issue of "Orson Scott Card's Intergalactic Medicine Show", called Pretty Boy. This short story, taking place before Ender's Game, explores Bonzo's childhood, detailing some of his family life and some events that contribute to his sense of honor and eventual downfall.

[edit] Miscellaneous

[edit] Notes

• No special notes.

[edit] Trivia

[edit] Quotes

[edit] Related Articles

[edit] External Links

[edit] References