Title- Rolling down the River.
Ok, I actually don’t know what this episode was based on (and I doubt many kids who watched it had a clue either) but I found it far more enjoyable than the last episode. The setting was more interesting, the characters were more fun and Koopa was pretty humorous. Mark Twang was a cool character, I was going to say an unusual character to help the Mario Bros, but then again there weren’t really a set character stereotype in this show who would team up with the Mario Bros so I guess really I’d be wrong there. The mouth of the river was kinda cool, and reminded me a lot of the character in Pirates of the Caribbean 2 Tia Dalma who was also in a swamp. I dunno really why I thought of her actually…
There were actually some quite funny moments, like the ‘heroes’ being the ones who were cheating at cards. Also there was a cameo from Clawgrip, the only boss of the game SMB2 who never was a second in command to Koopa.
Overall a pretty fun episode, I’d say slightly above average for the series.
Sunday, May 2, 2010
The Super Mario Bros Super Show Episode 4
Title- Mario’s Magic Carpet.
Another episode based around a pop culture tale, this time I think it’s Aladdin, but I’m not sure. It’s not really one of the direct adaptations, more just using a similar setting. Basically they’re searching for Aladdin’s lamp (which is pretty illogical if Aladdin already owns it, but whatever.) and they get captured by this Sultan guy who makes the princess become part of his harem. Then Koopa shows up as we can’t have an episode without him, and buys the Princess off him. Meanwhile the Mario bros find the lamp and some genie and a load of stuff happens. I dunno, I just can’t enjoy this episode, there are only a couple of moments that I find memorable about it but other than that it really is one of the shows worst, a real example of pure drudgery that this series could occasionally fall into (not too often though thank god.)
What was interesting? Well I found the idea of using a swirling quicksand pit as a execution type place kinda cool, reminded me of the sarlacc pit out of Star Wars (the giant mouth in the sand Jabba tried to force them into.) Also, the idea that Luigi speaks Pidgit was really out there. Finally, I suppose the idea of the flying carpets practically being cars was kinda funny I suppose.
Overall, a pretty dull episode, maybe hampered by the fact I don’t really enjoy stories set in deserts to begin with.
Another episode based around a pop culture tale, this time I think it’s Aladdin, but I’m not sure. It’s not really one of the direct adaptations, more just using a similar setting. Basically they’re searching for Aladdin’s lamp (which is pretty illogical if Aladdin already owns it, but whatever.) and they get captured by this Sultan guy who makes the princess become part of his harem. Then Koopa shows up as we can’t have an episode without him, and buys the Princess off him. Meanwhile the Mario bros find the lamp and some genie and a load of stuff happens. I dunno, I just can’t enjoy this episode, there are only a couple of moments that I find memorable about it but other than that it really is one of the shows worst, a real example of pure drudgery that this series could occasionally fall into (not too often though thank god.)
What was interesting? Well I found the idea of using a swirling quicksand pit as a execution type place kinda cool, reminded me of the sarlacc pit out of Star Wars (the giant mouth in the sand Jabba tried to force them into.) Also, the idea that Luigi speaks Pidgit was really out there. Finally, I suppose the idea of the flying carpets practically being cars was kinda funny I suppose.
Overall, a pretty dull episode, maybe hampered by the fact I don’t really enjoy stories set in deserts to begin with.
The Super Mario Bros Super Show Episode 3
Title- Butch Mario and the Luigi Kid.
Yet another takeoff, this time of a western movie. This one’s based on I think Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid but don’t quote me on that. This is also the first episode in which Koopa actually takes on an alter ego, as Kid Koopa (who might be a takeoff of Billy the Kid but I dunno.) We also get some creative uses of enemies from the games. Instead of guns, the characters have pocket sized Cobrats (the snakes who hid in jars and shot bullets at you from them) which they use as guns. Also, Ostros are used as horses and many other enemies appear such as Pokeys, Snifits and Tweeters.
This episode is also notable for being the first appearance of Mouser, who was a boss from the game SMB2 and appears pretty regularly as Koopa’s second in command. Even when Mouser appears in episodes with the other characters that are sometimes Koopa’s second in command, he often seems to be the one above them.
So what about the episode, well it was pretty basic fun, there were some weird moments, like when a group of Mouser’s Snifits fail to make it over a river and drown he actually starts crying over them, it’s kinda surreal really in this cartoon. Other than that, there are some pretty humorous moments, like the way the Mario Bros keep finding their wanted poster going up, but it’s not really one of the best episodes.
Overall, a pretty average episode, it’s got some funny moments.
Yet another takeoff, this time of a western movie. This one’s based on I think Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid but don’t quote me on that. This is also the first episode in which Koopa actually takes on an alter ego, as Kid Koopa (who might be a takeoff of Billy the Kid but I dunno.) We also get some creative uses of enemies from the games. Instead of guns, the characters have pocket sized Cobrats (the snakes who hid in jars and shot bullets at you from them) which they use as guns. Also, Ostros are used as horses and many other enemies appear such as Pokeys, Snifits and Tweeters.
This episode is also notable for being the first appearance of Mouser, who was a boss from the game SMB2 and appears pretty regularly as Koopa’s second in command. Even when Mouser appears in episodes with the other characters that are sometimes Koopa’s second in command, he often seems to be the one above them.
So what about the episode, well it was pretty basic fun, there were some weird moments, like when a group of Mouser’s Snifits fail to make it over a river and drown he actually starts crying over them, it’s kinda surreal really in this cartoon. Other than that, there are some pretty humorous moments, like the way the Mario Bros keep finding their wanted poster going up, but it’s not really one of the best episodes.
Overall, a pretty average episode, it’s got some funny moments.
The Super Mario Bros Super Show Episode 2
Title- King Mario of Cramalot.
So, onto the episode which started the trend of having a parody of some pop culture story. This one is based on the Legend of King Arthur. Basically, Mario and friends come to the land of Cramalot (I see what you did there). Mario is guided by Melvin the Magician to pull the golden plunger and become king of Cramalot, then Koopa steals the plunger. Koopa had marched in and taken over when the previous king died, so he stole the plunger to stop Mario’s claim to the throne.
There are some pretty funny moments, mainly to do with Luigi. One part I remember that was funny was how after Luigi’s been cowering during the battle, when everything’s over he appears with the rest of the group trying to look heroic. Also cool was that we got to see a few new enemies, the first being Beezos (shy guys with wings) and the second being Koopa Troopers and Koopa Paratroopers.
One thing I find humorous is that there was a takeoff of Merlin in Paper Mario called Merlon, and you know if you’ve read any of my other articles on here I love trying to draw parallels between the games and cartoons.
Overall, a pretty fun episode, typical of the series.
So, onto the episode which started the trend of having a parody of some pop culture story. This one is based on the Legend of King Arthur. Basically, Mario and friends come to the land of Cramalot (I see what you did there). Mario is guided by Melvin the Magician to pull the golden plunger and become king of Cramalot, then Koopa steals the plunger. Koopa had marched in and taken over when the previous king died, so he stole the plunger to stop Mario’s claim to the throne.
There are some pretty funny moments, mainly to do with Luigi. One part I remember that was funny was how after Luigi’s been cowering during the battle, when everything’s over he appears with the rest of the group trying to look heroic. Also cool was that we got to see a few new enemies, the first being Beezos (shy guys with wings) and the second being Koopa Troopers and Koopa Paratroopers.
One thing I find humorous is that there was a takeoff of Merlin in Paper Mario called Merlon, and you know if you’ve read any of my other articles on here I love trying to draw parallels between the games and cartoons.
Overall, a pretty fun episode, typical of the series.
Saturday, April 24, 2010
The Super Mario Bros Super Show
The Bird, The Bird!
King Mario of Cramalot.
Butch Mario and the Luigi Kid.
Mario’s Magic Carpet.
Rolling down the River.
A History In Animation- Pokemon Rivals
Pokemon Rivals
Since I’ve got the protagonists done now I thought I’d get the rivals done next since they are the most recurring characters in the games beyond the protagonists. The rivals are basically a character who will usually start their journey at the same time as the player and pick their pokemon team depending on what the player picks (so they’ll pick the starter that your starter is weak to.) The rival then meets up with you at various points in the game and battles you. Sometimes they team up with you too at certain points but these occurrences are very rare. Some of the rivals almost directly appear in the anime, whereas others have similarities but are not direct counterparts.
Blue Oak/Gary Oak
The most famous of the rivals and possibly one of the most definitive is Blue. He not only appears in more games than any of the other rivals, but he also was the one who achieved the most in the games than any of the others, becoming the champion of the Kanto League. Blue was infamous for appearing always ahead of the player and gloating about how much further ahead he was in comparison to the player. His name would be on the list of challengers who beat the gym leader in every gym you travelled to as well. Blue did change however as when he’s beaten by the player at the very end of the game he loses his position as champion. In the next game the player could travel to Kanto and would find that the gym that was originally owned by the Team Rocket boss Giovanni now has Blue as it’s leader. He’s still as cocky as ever though and badmouths the player until he’s beaten, then he promises he’ll beat him next time. Gary is pretty similar in comparison. Firstly he looks far more like the original game art for blue with the blue shirt and pendant or whatever around his neck. In appearances after the Johto series he starts wearing his outfit from the remake of the original games. Personality wise he’s exactly the same, being an arrogant jerk who’s always one step ahead of Ash. The anime takes this to even more of an extreme by giving him a group of cheerleaders who follow him around and a red car he drives around in (and they’re meant to be about 10 years old I believe…) In later series Gary, similar to Blue becomes less focused on becoming a Pokemon Master and less arrogant, but unlike his game counterpart he tries to follow in his grandfathers footsteps and becomes a Pokemon researcher. Gary is different from Blue in the fact that Blue must be beaten to progress through the game, therefore in the story of the game Blue never beats Red (except possibly in the very first battle which can be lost.) Gary on the other hand has beaten Ash all but once, and even after he became a researcher he managed to beat Ash. Finally in both versions Gary and Blue are Professor Oak’s Grandson.
Silver/Paul?
Silver is a real departure from the other rival characters. He is possibly the worst of them all as his first Pokemon (in Johto at least) is stolen instead of given to him and it’s implied that he abuses his pokemon. He’s constantly saying that he despises the weak and he physically attacks the player on occasion (usually just pushing them out of his way.) A rather important plotpoint (that is also a spoiler so please don’t read this if you’re planning to play through the new G&S remakes.) is that he is Giovanni’s son. This is only implied in the original games but is shown in the secret Celebi event in the remakes.
When looking at Silver’s anime counterpart(s?) we have a problem. The reason for this is that in the anime special, ‘Legend of Thunder’ with Gold’s opening we see a character who is meant to be Silver in the anime (the redhead with the rhino above.) There is however another character who in my opinion is actually the anime counterpart of Silver. Paul is the main rival of Ash in the most recent series. Paul is very similar to silver, firstly whilst his hair’s not red, it’s a similar style to silver’s. Secondly is his personality. Paul despises weak Pokemon and throws away the ones he deems weak. He pushes them to the extremes and calls them (as well as most other people) pathetic when they fail him. This is best shown in him making his Chimchar basically get beaten up by his other pokemon just so he can use his special ability (which only happens when Chimchar is under extreme stress.) Paul has some backstory but as of yet nothing indicates that he is related to Giovanni at all and he didn’t make any comment on Team Rocket when they attack (then again he barely took any notice of the Trio and as such might of not believed that they were part of Team Rocket.) I believe that Paul is the same character from the opening to the special episode, the reason why is because it’s revealed that Paul has been through Johto, Kanto and Hoenn, meaning that they could be the same character. Paul also enters competitions without the real ambition to win, often simply using them as a way of testing out which of his Pokemon is deserving of being on his team. At the end of the day, the guy’s an asshole, even more so than Gary or any of the other rivals.
Wally/Drew
Sadly I am not actually all that up on Ruby and Sapphire so I don’t actually know much about this character. He’s pretty unique compared to most rivals as he doesn’t actually become a rival until part way into the game and is a sickly kid (with what some believe to be asthma). Drew on the other hand is always going around with a rose and is very confident and critical, as well as popular. He’s also a co-ordinator which means he’s not a trainer who battles for badges but in contests instead. The only reason I think Drew is at least an adaptation of Wally is because his hair’s green and he’s May’s rival in the anime.
Barry
Barry is pretty much the only rival other than Gary who’s pretty much his game counterpart in the anime. In the games, Barry is always rushing around and hyper, saying he’ll fine people if they don’t meet him or do something quickly enough. Barry is probably the least jerkish of the rivals (other than Wally but he’s sort of a semi-rival.) and is just overly self assured and cocky. He rarely badmouths the player. In the anime Barry’s pretty much the same rushing around everywhere and being overly cocky. One strange difference is that in the anime Barry is in awe of Paul and believes he’s the perfect trainer. Barry isn’t like Paul however as he doesn’t mistreat his Pokemon, but he does release ones he thinks are weak. Barry’s father is Palmer who’s part of the Sinnoh battle frontier.
Since I’ve got the protagonists done now I thought I’d get the rivals done next since they are the most recurring characters in the games beyond the protagonists. The rivals are basically a character who will usually start their journey at the same time as the player and pick their pokemon team depending on what the player picks (so they’ll pick the starter that your starter is weak to.) The rival then meets up with you at various points in the game and battles you. Sometimes they team up with you too at certain points but these occurrences are very rare. Some of the rivals almost directly appear in the anime, whereas others have similarities but are not direct counterparts.
Blue Oak/Gary Oak
The most famous of the rivals and possibly one of the most definitive is Blue. He not only appears in more games than any of the other rivals, but he also was the one who achieved the most in the games than any of the others, becoming the champion of the Kanto League. Blue was infamous for appearing always ahead of the player and gloating about how much further ahead he was in comparison to the player. His name would be on the list of challengers who beat the gym leader in every gym you travelled to as well. Blue did change however as when he’s beaten by the player at the very end of the game he loses his position as champion. In the next game the player could travel to Kanto and would find that the gym that was originally owned by the Team Rocket boss Giovanni now has Blue as it’s leader. He’s still as cocky as ever though and badmouths the player until he’s beaten, then he promises he’ll beat him next time. Gary is pretty similar in comparison. Firstly he looks far more like the original game art for blue with the blue shirt and pendant or whatever around his neck. In appearances after the Johto series he starts wearing his outfit from the remake of the original games. Personality wise he’s exactly the same, being an arrogant jerk who’s always one step ahead of Ash. The anime takes this to even more of an extreme by giving him a group of cheerleaders who follow him around and a red car he drives around in (and they’re meant to be about 10 years old I believe…) In later series Gary, similar to Blue becomes less focused on becoming a Pokemon Master and less arrogant, but unlike his game counterpart he tries to follow in his grandfathers footsteps and becomes a Pokemon researcher. Gary is different from Blue in the fact that Blue must be beaten to progress through the game, therefore in the story of the game Blue never beats Red (except possibly in the very first battle which can be lost.) Gary on the other hand has beaten Ash all but once, and even after he became a researcher he managed to beat Ash. Finally in both versions Gary and Blue are Professor Oak’s Grandson.
Silver/Paul?
Silver is a real departure from the other rival characters. He is possibly the worst of them all as his first Pokemon (in Johto at least) is stolen instead of given to him and it’s implied that he abuses his pokemon. He’s constantly saying that he despises the weak and he physically attacks the player on occasion (usually just pushing them out of his way.) A rather important plotpoint (that is also a spoiler so please don’t read this if you’re planning to play through the new G&S remakes.) is that he is Giovanni’s son. This is only implied in the original games but is shown in the secret Celebi event in the remakes.
When looking at Silver’s anime counterpart(s?) we have a problem. The reason for this is that in the anime special, ‘Legend of Thunder’ with Gold’s opening we see a character who is meant to be Silver in the anime (the redhead with the rhino above.) There is however another character who in my opinion is actually the anime counterpart of Silver. Paul is the main rival of Ash in the most recent series. Paul is very similar to silver, firstly whilst his hair’s not red, it’s a similar style to silver’s. Secondly is his personality. Paul despises weak Pokemon and throws away the ones he deems weak. He pushes them to the extremes and calls them (as well as most other people) pathetic when they fail him. This is best shown in him making his Chimchar basically get beaten up by his other pokemon just so he can use his special ability (which only happens when Chimchar is under extreme stress.) Paul has some backstory but as of yet nothing indicates that he is related to Giovanni at all and he didn’t make any comment on Team Rocket when they attack (then again he barely took any notice of the Trio and as such might of not believed that they were part of Team Rocket.) I believe that Paul is the same character from the opening to the special episode, the reason why is because it’s revealed that Paul has been through Johto, Kanto and Hoenn, meaning that they could be the same character. Paul also enters competitions without the real ambition to win, often simply using them as a way of testing out which of his Pokemon is deserving of being on his team. At the end of the day, the guy’s an asshole, even more so than Gary or any of the other rivals.
Wally/Drew
Sadly I am not actually all that up on Ruby and Sapphire so I don’t actually know much about this character. He’s pretty unique compared to most rivals as he doesn’t actually become a rival until part way into the game and is a sickly kid (with what some believe to be asthma). Drew on the other hand is always going around with a rose and is very confident and critical, as well as popular. He’s also a co-ordinator which means he’s not a trainer who battles for badges but in contests instead. The only reason I think Drew is at least an adaptation of Wally is because his hair’s green and he’s May’s rival in the anime.
Barry
Barry is pretty much the only rival other than Gary who’s pretty much his game counterpart in the anime. In the games, Barry is always rushing around and hyper, saying he’ll fine people if they don’t meet him or do something quickly enough. Barry is probably the least jerkish of the rivals (other than Wally but he’s sort of a semi-rival.) and is just overly self assured and cocky. He rarely badmouths the player. In the anime Barry’s pretty much the same rushing around everywhere and being overly cocky. One strange difference is that in the anime Barry is in awe of Paul and believes he’s the perfect trainer. Barry isn’t like Paul however as he doesn’t mistreat his Pokemon, but he does release ones he thinks are weak. Barry’s father is Palmer who’s part of the Sinnoh battle frontier.
A History in Animation- Various Mario Power-ups
Power-ups
Since I’ve already done an article on the Fire Flower, which is amongst the oldest and the power-up with the most changes, it won’t be included in this article which tackles the majority of other power-ups.
First of all is the only power-up other than the Fire Flower and the Super Mushroom that debuted in Super Mario Bros, the Starman. In the games the Starman allowed Mario temporary invincibility, which meant he could run into enemies unharmed, but also it allowed him to kill enemies by simply touching them. In the Super Mario Bros Super Show, the Starman would often turn Mario, Luigi or the princess into Super (Name) which gave them super strength, fire powers and even on one occasion the ability to fly. They were not completely invincible however and also unlike the games, they could keep the ability for a long time. When the Starman appeared in AOSMB3 and SMW it was exactly like the game version. Mario or Luigi would flash different colours whilst gaining invincibility (which usually consisted of the super strength to throw enemies like Koopa, Sledge Bros and even some Wrigglers into space). Appearance wise the Starman followed the original version perfectly, as did invincible Mario.
Next up we have what is many people’s favourite power-up, the Racoon Leaf, or as it’s called in the show, the Super Leaf. This power-up has only appeared in SMB3 (and remakes) and so it only appeared on TAOSMB3 too. It was probably the most common power-up on the show apart from the Frog suit, it also played a slight role as the mascot since Racoon Mario appears on the title screen for each episode and the DVD case. It was a perfect adaptation of the game version except they seemed to be able to fly indefinitely, whereas in the game it was only available after running and for a short time. 
Since I’ve already done an article on the Fire Flower, which is amongst the oldest and the power-up with the most changes, it won’t be included in this article which tackles the majority of other power-ups.
First of all is the only power-up other than the Fire Flower and the Super Mushroom that debuted in Super Mario Bros, the Starman. In the games the Starman allowed Mario temporary invincibility, which meant he could run into enemies unharmed, but also it allowed him to kill enemies by simply touching them. In the Super Mario Bros Super Show, the Starman would often turn Mario, Luigi or the princess into Super (Name) which gave them super strength, fire powers and even on one occasion the ability to fly. They were not completely invincible however and also unlike the games, they could keep the ability for a long time. When the Starman appeared in AOSMB3 and SMW it was exactly like the game version. Mario or Luigi would flash different colours whilst gaining invincibility (which usually consisted of the super strength to throw enemies like Koopa, Sledge Bros and even some Wrigglers into space). Appearance wise the Starman followed the original version perfectly, as did invincible Mario.
Next up we have what is many people’s favourite power-up, the Racoon Leaf, or as it’s called in the show, the Super Leaf. This power-up has only appeared in SMB3 (and remakes) and so it only appeared on TAOSMB3 too. It was probably the most common power-up on the show apart from the Frog suit, it also played a slight role as the mascot since Racoon Mario appears on the title screen for each episode and the DVD case. It was a perfect adaptation of the game version except they seemed to be able to fly indefinitely, whereas in the game it was only available after running and for a short time.
Next up and related to the Racoon suit is the P-wing. In the game this was the racoon suit, but with ability to fly constantly as opposed to having to gain speed. In the cartoon this wasn’t a factor with the Racoon Suit so there’s no real difference other than the P that appears on them. The P would appear on their chest in-game too, but only on the map screen.
Finally for SMB3, is the Frog Suit. Basically the suit is exactly the same as you can see above it’s a suit that allows Mario, Luigi or whoever else to swim far better. They even humorously talk about it as if it was a raincoat telling people to wear their Frog Suit out as it’s raining. You might be wondering why There’s a pic of a Blue Toad above? Well it’s because this is the closest the games have come yet to a Toad version of the Frog Suit. I can’t compare anything as they’re too different but I thought I’d put it here anyway.
Next up, a SMW exclusive, Cape Mario. Cape Mario in the show is practically the same as the game, in fact even more than the Racoon Suit as sometimes he does the open parachute move that you see above rather than hover on the spot. He also does the cape spin to attack enemies. Not much more to say, it’s probably the most true to the games power-up on here.
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