No contest here. I mean the whole reason I wanted 3D Land was seeing the Tanooki suit return but it's funny with it's origins.
As someone who read the short lived Mario comics, they did a story called Tanooki Suits Me where Princess Peach had a museum opening and Luigi messed up the tuxedo rental and forgot to reserve one for Mario so Mario shows up to this museum opening in a raccoon suit and is rather pissed and hiding in the corner waiting for this event to end. A little old man comes up to Mario and says "Wow that's an original Tanooki suit." To which Mario says "I thought this was some old ratty raccoon costume leftover from Halloween." The old man tells Mario the story of an old tailor named Tanooki who made magical suits that could have any number of magical abilities but sadly his order load got too high and he was getting too old and retired his shop. The story goes on that as the party is winding down, Mario finds a button on the costume's belly, hits it and turns into a statue, however he has no idea how to reverse it. Luigi and Peach think Mario went home early, everyone leaves the museum and Mario is stuck. During the night Bowser and a group of Mousers come in and rob the place (Peach and her ever vigilant security system) taking statue Mario with them. Turns out Bowser plans to sell these art pieces to Wart (yep he's in the comics a couple times) so you get the only story in the comics where Bowser and Wart are seen together. Mario seeing the dealings going down is upset and wishes to change back which apparently was the magic words to un-solidify himself. He tells Wart that all of the paintings Bowser stole are fakes. Wart gets mad, takes back his cash and stomps out, Mario gathers up the stolen paintings to return to the museum and Bowser is just wondering who this familiar looking raccoon is.
But for years I wondered "why a raccoon that flies and turns into a statue" in the states, it seems so odd I mean when you consider the more practical flying devices Mario had in other games: magic carpets, capes, Yoshi with wings, wings on his hat. And then I came across the studio Ghibli movie Pom Poko which tells the tale of the Tanooki in Japan is the animal god of mischief and has the ability to transform and fly but unlike Mario they use their magical (as the English dub says) "pouches." Magical pouches that only males have between their legs? You know, FOR KIDS!!
Anyway here's a clip from that movie if you're interested but don't watch it if you don't want happy memories of raccoon Mario destroyed for you. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nq9Sxp2mkZk
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