Mario Continuity

One thing that gets tossed around from time to time is the idea of "Mario's continuity" which everyone thinks is too complicated to figure out mainly ever since Yoshi's Island came along and threw out the notion that Mario and Luigi were from Brooklyn and were instead born in the Mushroom Kingdom and the idea of Shyguys and Bob Ombs from SMB2 showing up in later games despite SMB2 being a dream. For the most part Mario is not a series hell bent on continuity especially since like Zelda, this was a series that originated in the early days of gaming where story was more of an afterthought.

Only when HyruleHistoria came out did Nintendo finally come up with an official timeline only to find out that there were THREE timelines after Ocarina. One with adult Zelda and no Link (leading to Wind Waker and it's follow ups). One with Young Link heading off to Termina (MM) and one where Link dies going back to the old 8 bit games. Zelda's timeline is a clusterf*** to figure out. Metroid and Starfox have pretty set timelines. And Pokemon is sort of its own thing with a new kid in a new land each time.

So I don't have time to go through the entirety of the Mario timeline that I pieced together though feel free to search my blog archive if you like.

Just a few main issues.

If Mario was a baby on Yoshi's Island, how did he end up as a Brooklyn plumber? Simple. After Partners in Time where adult Mario and Luigi saved their baby selves from the Shroobs, Mario and Luigi's parents realizing their sons were destined for greatness, fled the Mushroom Kingdom to protect their sons given how they were kidnapped by Kameck (Yoshi Island DS) and then the Shroobs. They found their way to Brooklyn where Mario and Luigi grew up. Eventually fate led them back to the Mushroom Kingdom in the arcade Mario Bros. and SMB

If SMB2 was a dream, what's with Shyguys, Bob-Ombs and Pokeys? Well Mario encountered Shyguys as a baby in Yoshi's Island thus Shyguys represent a repressed memory where Bob-Ombs were a premonition of the future and the same could be said with Pokeys and Ninjis that showed up in SMW.

For obvious reasons I don't include Dr. Mario in my continuity nor do I worry about edutainment crap and that CDI abomination of a game. But if you have a question regarding a possible Mario continuity, feel free to ask.

I actually think only the primary console games follow any official canon. And even that is incredibly loose. But I don't think Partners in Time had anything to do with it.

My own two cents is just that the stork carrying the Marios was travelling through the Mushroom World, and maybe Mario and Luigi's parents were from our world and somehow got to the Mushroom World (warp pipes seem to be the popular theory).And then they took the babies back home... Or something.

As for Shy Guys and such originally appearing in Mario's dreams, well, that's just the first WE saw of them, as you said, Yoshi's Island confirms Mario saw Shy Guys previously. Besides, in Mario's World I wouldn't think it out of place if the creatures themselves could find ways into dreams.

Very few games actually acknowledge the continuity (Super Mario World and Super Mario Sunshine are the only ones that I can think of that have blatant references to Mario's past).

On the subject, I just want to point out how people always say the Galaxy games seem to contradict each other with the Star Festival thing, but it's never referred to as such in Galaxy 2. Either they're just watching shooting stars, or the events of Galaxy reversed time slightly. 

Well when it comes to the conflicting stories of Galaxy 1 and 2 is that Nintendo stated that alot of SMG2's levels and stages were leftover ideas from the first and had the Wii allowed for it, it would've probably been DLC so more or less an expansion pack of SMG1 so they cobbled together some story about Bowser growing huge and Mario helping a lost star but I do think Nintendo could've TRIED to tie the two together a little better. Yeah people don't play Mario for the story but still.

In a way tieing SMG2 to SMG1 is like tieing The Lost Levels (aka Japanses SMB2) to the NES triliogy as it mostly feels like a super hard expansion pack of the original. In that sense US SMB2 feels more canocal now looking back. So for those making Mario timelines, treat Lost Levels and SMG2 as expanision packs.

Back to Yoshi's Island, the problem with the ending is you see Mario and Luigi end up at a Mushroom Shaped house. Once again Nintendo with a lack of forsight could've saved the cannon had the stork just landed at a normal looking house, since people here don't live in Mushroom shaped houses, this means at least as babies Mario and Luigi lived in the Mushroom Kingdom. Often forgtten wsa Yoshi's Island DS the direct sequel to Yoshi's Island which surprisingly does an amazing job of filling in some holes in the cannon. Seriously go back and play:(SPOILERS)

For one, anyone who read the manual for Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins, Mario states that he knew Wario from his childhood as a sort of rival. Now that short Nintendo Power comic aside, Yoshi's Island DS confirms that in fact Mario did know Wario as a child even if just for that adventure. More importantly, at the end of that game we learn something very interesting. It shows each baby getting a star: Mario, Luigi, Peach, DK, Wario and even Bowser and it says "but there are seven stars" then we see the last star appear over a Yoshi egg that hatches. A baby green Yoshi hatches and this is THE Yoshi as in the one who debuted in Super Mario World. The Yoshi's as a group passed down the story of the baby Mario they knew was destined for greatness to save him. Bowser was clearly born in Dinosaurland which makes plenty of sense being a giant, monsterous reptile as well as the koopas may have originated there and Bowser grew up, left Dinosaurland taking his army of giant turtles with him. Thus upon his defeat in SMB3, Bowser took his last airship (the sunken ship) and returned to the land of his birth remembering what the Yoshi's did to him, conquering them and trapping them in eggs.

See?

Expanding on the SMG/SMG2 dilemma, stardust does fall, but the festival itself is never refered to. An idea was thrown around that Super Mario Galaxy 2 happened before the first one. This would explain why Rosalina doesn't seem to know who Mario is in the second one. She might have just forgotten about him in SMG, because who knows how long ago it was.

Although, the fact that Rosalina is telling the lumas the story of Mario's adventure just adds another wrinkle to the problem.

DOUBLE POST

(Deleting it would keep the post count in this thread the same; stupid glitch :x)

Expanding on the SMG/SMG2 dilemma, stardust does fall, but the festival itself is never refered to. An idea was thrown around that Super Mario Galaxy 2 happened before the first one. This would explain why Rosalina doesn't seem to know who Mario is in the second one. She might have just forgotten about him in SMG, because who knows how long ago it was.

Although, the fact that Rosalina is telling the lumas the story of Mario's adventure just adds another wrinkle to the problem.

GamerofMario1

Thank you! Everyone always acts so confused because the Star Festival "only happened once every 100 years" but then happened again in Galaxy 2. But in SMG2 they never referred to it as such. Just "stars falling from the sky." Like I said, the ending to SMG probably had a lot to do with it. Remember how Lumas and other Galaxy enemies/allies appeared in the Mushroom Kingdom at the end? I think it effected Mario's world in ways like that, so now stardust falls from the sky and whatever.

Or like I previously said, it's possible that the events in Galaxy's ending reset time to before the events of Galaxy. 

[QUOTE="GamerofMario1"]

Or like I previously said, it's possible that the events in Galaxy's ending reset time to before the events of Galaxy.

SloganYams

Oh God we don't even want to go there because then you get into Sonic Next Gen's ending territory of everything resetting and then it can lead to a brain anurism.

But here's a neat little tidbit to contenplate.

Everyone loves Geno from SMRPG. He was playable in one game, made a cameo in another and yet whenever a new SSB comes out everyone wants Geno. Hell I had no idea why Square didn't make him unlockable in Mario Sports Mix but then this is Square we're talking about.

So some wish Geno would appear in another game right? Who isn't to say he hasn't? Despite his rabid fanbase, they all seem to forget that A)Geno's doll form was not his true form. He was a little star that possessed the child's toy and B) Geno wasn't his real name. He simply took the name of the doll because he said his star born name was too hard to pronounce in our tounge.

So if Geno is not a doll and in fact a small star spirit, he could've showed up in other games taking another form......

Maybe a cut little star that helped out Peach in Paper Mario?

[QUOTE="SloganYams"][QUOTE="GamerofMario1"]

 

Or like I previously said, it's possible that the events in Galaxy's ending reset time to before the events of Galaxy.

kbaily

Oh God we don't even want to go there because then you get into Sonic Next Gen's ending territory of everything resetting and then it can lead to a brain anurism.

But here's a neat little tidbit to contenplate.

Everyone loves Geno from SMRPG. He was playable in one game, made a cameo in another and yet whenever a new SSB comes out everyone wants Geno. Hell I had no idea why Square didn't make him unlockable in Mario Sports Mix but then this is Square we're talking about.

So some wish Geno would appear in another game right? Who isn't to say he hasn't? Despite his rabid fanbase, they all seem to forget that A)Geno's doll form was not his true form. He was a little star that possessed the child's toy and B) Geno wasn't his real name. He simply took the name of the doll because he said his star born name was too hard to pronounce in our tounge.

So if Geno is not a doll and in fact a small star spirit, he could've showed up in other games taking another form......

Maybe a cut little star that helped out Peach in Paper Mario?

I'm actually leading the parade of people who want Geno in SSB. :) Fun fact: Geno was consistently ranked in the top five of most wanted characters in SSBB in the Japanese poll they had in 2006.

But nah, Geno's never been in another game (except Superstar Saga). Twink was supposed to be a young star kid, whereas Geno's real form was supposedly extremely old and wizened.

Square hold an iron grip on all the Mario RPG characters (y'know, because Square obviously has a lot planned for them). I just hope Square actually does something people actually want (for once) and allow Geno to be in SSB4.

As for Galaxy resetting time, please don't ever compare it to a modern day Sonic storyline. There's no small army of stupid tertiary characters in Mario games. :P 

[QUOTE="GamerofMario1"]

Expanding on the SMG/SMG2 dilemma, stardust does fall, but the festival itself is never refered to. An idea was thrown around that Super Mario Galaxy 2 happened before the first one. This would explain why Rosalina doesn't seem to know who Mario is in the second one. She might have just forgotten about him in SMG, because who knows how long ago it was.

Although, the fact that Rosalina is telling the lumas the story of Mario's adventure just adds another wrinkle to the problem.

SloganYams

Thank you! Everyone always acts so confused because the Star Festival "only happened once every 100 years" but then happened again in Galaxy 2. But in SMG2 they never referred to it as such. Just "stars falling from the sky." Like I said, the ending to SMG probably had a lot to do with it. Remember how Lumas and other Galaxy enemies/allies appeared in the Mushroom Kingdom at the end? I think it effected Mario's world in ways like that, so now stardust falls from the sky and whatever.

Or like I previously said, it's possible that the events in Galaxy's ending reset time to before the events of Galaxy. 

Maybe so. Then, the same basic plot happened again in SMG2, but perhaps much of the universe changed with the ending of SMG. But some things stayed the same, like with the ball that Mario uses in both games, but it is found on another planet.