Ulrich Stern

Ulrich Stern
File:UlrichS4.jpg Ulrich on Earth.
First appearance	"Garage Kids" (test pilot) "Teddygozilla"
Portrayed by	Barbara Weber-Scaff (English)
In-universe information
Occupation	Junior high school student, Lyoko Warrior
Family	Mr. Stern (father), Mrs. Stern (mother)

Ulrich Stern is a character from the French animated television series Code Lyoko.

Character outline

Ulrich is the silently-strong introvert of the group. Ulrich would seem to be the bravest member of the group, willing to fight off the various creatures and humans Xana possesses and sends after them. On Earth, Ulrich wears a jersey with a vest over it and he wears cargo pants, all varying shades of green. In the fourth season his outfit changes. His clothing is mainly the same, only different colors and his vest is replaced by a jacket.

Ulrich doesn't say much about his personal life and is evasive when someone asks him about himself or his family. His parents, his father in particular, are very hard to please and have high expectations of their son. He also has trouble expressing his feelings, mainly where Yumi Ishiyama is concerned. A common theme in the series is Ulrich only admitting to something after a brush with death or an otherwise dire scenario. Yumi, in turn, seems to want him to talk but can't get him to admit to anything.

In addition to his troubles with Yumi, Ulrich has to her relation, he is often forced into humoring her in order to get something from her father.

Powers and abilities

File:Ulrich3d.jpg

Left: Ulrich's first outfit.
Right: Ulrich's season 4 outfit.

Ulrich's Lyoko attire is modeled after a samurai, though for mobility reasons the armor is largely absent. An Oni is drawn on his back. The back of Ulrich's ID card shows three round symbols believed to be stylized chrysanthemums, a type of Asian flower. He gets a new outfit in the fourth season, which trades his more loose-fitting clothes for a tighter body suit. He has two swords strapped to his back, instead of just one to his side. The original sketch has some sort of tracking device over his left eye, but this is dropped in the final product in favor of the original headband.[1]

For travel on Lyoko, Ulrich uses the Overbike, a one-wheeled motorcycle (monocycle) developed by Jeremie. It's capable of flight, but does not do so normally. In fact, is the only vehicle of the three that does anything other than hover.

Ulrich's main weapon on Lyoko is his katana, which becomes a pair in the fourth season. The swords can cut through monsters with ease, and can also deflect lasers, though specialized attacks such as a Blok's ice beam or a Megatank's elliptical laser cannot be deflected. Ulrich can hold the latter at bay, but the force of the attack always overcomes him.

Ulrich has two extra powers on Lyoko: super speed and cloning. His super-speed ability, dubbed "Super Sprint", allows him to move several times faster than normal, leaving a yellow trail behind him. In this state, he can run up walls and propel himself with great force through the air. Ulrich's cloning ability allows him to produce two fully-functioning clones at will, though they can only take one hit each before dying and die automatically is Ulrich is taken out. Ulrich uses this ability in one of two ways: "Triplicate", which just creates two clones; and "Triangulate", where Ulrich and his clones surround an enemy in a triangle formation while simultaneously creating a barrier consisting of yellow afterimages of himself. The clones can also be drawn back into Ulrich in a process called "Fusion."

Aside from his Lyoko-based powers, Ulrich is a capable martial artist, having trained in the art of Pencak Silat. Various episodes show him taking classes at the school led by Jim Moralés, the PE teacher. Despite the extra training, Ulrich is the most straightforward fighter on Lyoko, rarely using martial arts except when facing an opponent unable to be defeated through force alone (William Dunbar, for instance). In the second season episode "Vertigo," it is revealed that Ulrich suffers from vertigo, a chemical disorder that causes dizziness, but it does not seem to be a concern for him on Lyoko.