Mario

For the series of games Mario is in, see Mario (series).

Mario (マリオ ,Mario), formerly and originally under extraofficial terms known as Jumpman, and originally developed under the nickname Mr. Video, is the titular main protagonist of the Mario series and the mascot for Nintendo. Mario's full name is Mario Mario.

He was created by Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto, and has appeared in over 200 games. Originally, he only appeared in platform games. However, he now also features in sporting games, racing games, and fighting games and others.

He is considered by many to be the most famous character in video game history, and is known to many as "The Face of Video Games," having 6 games out of the top 10 on the list of best-selling video-games of all time.

Mario is a short Italian plumber who lives in the Mushroom Kingdom. In the Mario series, he uses his well-known jump and combat abilities to stop Bowser from kidnapping Princess Peach and taking over the Mushroom Kingdom. Along with Luigi, has had other friends such as Yoshi and Toad.

Along with Bowser, he has had other enemies such as Fawful, Wario, and Donkey Kong. In the cartoons Mario was voiced by Peter Cullen Saturday Supercade, WWF/E Hall of Fame wrestler-turned manager the late "Captain" Lou Albano in The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, Walker Boone in The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World.

In the live-action movie Super Mario Bros., he was played by the late Bob Hoskins. In the video games, Mario is currently voiced by Charles Martinet.

Personality
Mario is basically a simple character without a solid personality since he was meant for players to integrate their own personality into his character. When his demeanor is shown, Mario is aggressive and impulsive, sometimes going head-on into things without much meditation.

Despite these potential flaws, Mario is a brave and kind-hearted hero with a strong sense of justice, morality and righteousness. He puts, more often than not, other people's needs before his own, and he is willing to risk his life to save millions of others from the forces of evil.

Although Mario is generally a good-natured person, it seems he doesn't enjoy losing much, often when losing in spin-off games (i.e. Mario Party) he has a sad look on his face, and in Luigi's ending in Mario Power Tennis he seems to be congratulating his brother, but he intentionally steps on Luigi's foot because he lost to him in the tournament.

He remains quiet but when he talks he talks heavy and harshly. In the cartoons, Mario speaks with a characteristic Brooklyn accent, but his current incarnation — voiced by Charles Martinet — has a blatant Italian accent. Mario is also funny and comical, along with friendly, persistent, and always knows what he is doing. In addition, he enjoys Italian foods such as pasta, but does not like pizza as much.

Physical appearance
Mario appears as a short and stocky adult man in most of his appearances. Most of the time, he is wearing his trademark outfit: his red cap (with the M symbol), blue overalls with yellow buttons, red shirt, white gloves, and brown shoes. He has short brown hair, fair skin, and a thick dark-brown mustache. His hair has a two sideburns. Mario has three large bangs, all of which point upward, as well as a sprout-shaped cowlick.

Mario's looks were a product of the limited graphics technology of the time: his arms would vanish with a shirt of a solid color, hair could not be properly drawn, detailed or animated; and the head could not host a proper mouth. As the developing team, headed by Shigeru Miyamoto, wanted a properly detailed character, so they gave him overalls, the mustache, the cap and a big nose, in order to make a recognizable sprite. Mario's looks have been mostly unchanged for much of the franchise's history, except for the first games: in Donkey Kong, he had red overalls and a blue shirt, and in Super Mario Bros his sprite had red overalls and a brown shirt, while the artwork retained the original red/blue outfit. It wasn't until Super Mario Bros. 2 that Mario got his current clothes. Unsurprisingly, due to the notoriety of the first Mario games, his appearances in merchandising and the Super Mario Bros. Super Show cartoon segment, his clothes had the Donkey Kong palette.

In addition to his trademark clothes, Mario has used several other outfits depending on the activities. He has been seen with several sporting clothes (tennis, soccer, golf) and he wore lighter, more laid-back shirts in Super Mario Sunshine, in tune with the tropical vacation setting of the game. Although Mario's age is never really confirmed, Super Smash Bros. Melee says that Mario is 26 years old when reading the description of his trophy in the game.

Early life
The Stork was carrying Mario and Luigi. Kamek snatched Baby Luigi and the Stork with Mario falling onto Yoshi. Yoshi and his travel companions work together to help Mario save Luigi while the Toadies attempt to chase them. After the defeat of Baby Bowser, Mario reunited with Luigi and Yoshi freed the stork. The stork continued carrying Mario and Luigi to the parents' home and leaves Mario and Luigi by the porch.

Donkey Kong
Mario knew that Donkey Kong has kidnapped Pauline onto a dangerous construction site. Donkey Kong taunted and teased Mario until Mario defeated Donkey Kong and Mario rescues Pauline. For revenge, Mario kidnapped Donkey Kong inside the cage. Mario prevented Donkey Kong Jr. from rescuing Donkey Kong, Donkey Kong Jr. caught up with Mario which he failed keeping Donkey Kong captive.

Mario Bros.
Mario and Luigi meet each other again. They work as plumbers inside the sewers of New York.

Mushroom World's first invasion
Mario heard about Bowser summoning dark magic into the Mushroom World turning Toads into inanimate objects, Princess Peach was also kidnapped by Bowser that she cannot undo the spell. Mario defeated Bowser and rescued Peach, who assigned him a new quest.

History
Mario first appeared in 1981, in the Donkey Kong arcade video game, as a carpenter named "Jumpman." There are two possible theories why Mario was named such: a heated argument ensued between Nintendo's warehouse landlord Mario Segale, and the president of Nintendo at the time, Minoru Arakawa. After a resolution was brought between the two, fellow Nintendo employees chose to name the character in the game Mario, after him.

There was a family-owned restaurant nearby Nintendo of America called Mario and Luigi's.

Due to hardware limitations at the time, Miyamoto dressed Mario in red overalls and a blue shirt to contrast against the background. He also gave him white gloves, so that the player could see the arms moving on the screen.

A cap was added so that Miyamoto would not have to animate the character's hair when he jumped up and down. However, Jumpman did not originally have a mustache.

The black pixels mistaken for a mustache were actually the space between Jumpman's nose and mouth; The black was just the black background. However, fans of the game mistook it for a mustache, so in all later games and artwork, Mario was given a mustache.

Mario was developed as a "go to" character for games that could be put in any title as needed. At the time, Miyamoto did not expect Mario to become popular. Over time, his appearance has become more defined, for example a red "M" in a white circle has been added to his hat, and gold buttons have been added to his overalls.

He has appeared in many television programs, video releases, comic books, and a feature-length film. He has also spawned a series of branded merchandise.

Luigi
Luigi is Mario's younger twin brother. Luigi usually joins and accompanies Mario on his adventures, serving as the secondary protagonist (although Mario has been known to go on adventures by himself). Through the years, Mario and Luigi have maintained a brotherly love for each other as shown in games like Luigi's Mansion and the Mario & Luigi series. In addition, the two of them are normally paired together in sports titles and spin-offs and although Luigi has shown to be slightly jealous of Mario at times (as he admits in Paper Mario), he loves his brother very much and looks up to him as a positive role model. For his part, Mario seems to allow his sibling rivalry to get the best of him when competing directly with Luigi. When Luigi receives a trophy in Mario Power Tennis, Mario is shown slapping Luigi's back and stepping on Luigi's foot intentionally.

Princess Peach
Princess Peach Toadstool is Mario's close companion since childhood. Mario saves Peach from Bowser. After his rescue usually she bakes him a cake or kiss him. Since Peach's debut appearance, the two have been largely speculated to be in a romantic relationship. It is mentioned that Peach is Mario's girlfriend according the official European Mario website.

In Luigi's Mansion, she sends Toad to help Luigi search for his brother, and in Mario Party 5, Peach and Mario are called "Cutest Couple". They also share chemistry together in Mario Superstar Baseball and Mario Super Sluggers, as they are "buddy players". Mario Power Tennis even goes as far as showing Mario himself telling Peach of his love for her in Peach's victory scene. Peach responded with a smile and blew a kiss. Also, in Mario's victory scene in Mario Power Tennis, Peach gives him a small kiss on his cheek. They both show deep devotion to each other as depicted in many of the games, especially in the Paper Mario series. In the comic "Warios Weihnachtsmärchen", published in the German Club Nintendo magazine, it is even revealed that they spent their graduation ball in school together, and that Peach decided in favor of Mario and against Wario. Mario and Peach are the Secret Staff Ghosts for Rainbow Road in Mario Kart: Double Dash!!. The official guide describes them at this: Aw, isn’t that cute? Mario and Peach are together again, zipping down the Rainbow Road and leaving the player coughing up their dust.

In the first Paper Mario, one of the Toads tells Mario to take Peach on a date to Shooting Star Summit. For the official guide of Yoshi's Island DS, in the description for the level Baby Mario and Baby Peach: Dynamic Duo, Nintendo mentioned that before the "romantic entanglements" in their adult lives, they teamed up as babies to stop evil. Also the official guide for Mario Party 8 stated that Peach is the apple of Mario's eye. Rosalina in Super Mario Galaxy even referred to Peach as Mario's 'Special One'.

Rosalina
Rosalina befriended Mario in Super Mario Galaxy. She trusted him enough to help her restore the Comet Observatory, and in return she helped him to defeat Bowser.

Toad
Toad is shown to be Mario's good friend. Toad usually helps Mario with supporting roles and gives him advice. In the Mario cartoons, Toad was shown to be a close friend of both Mario and Luigi's, as he would commonly be seen assisting them in stopping King Koopa's evil plots. Toad even helped in domestic situations, alongside Princess Peach. Throughout the issues of the Nintendo Comics System, the comics often portrayed Toad to being Mario's loyal and trusted sidekick. In Super Mario 64 and it's DS remake, Toad completely trusted Mario throughout his adventure. In the Super Mario Galaxy games, Toad often relied on Mario to back him and his brigade up in various situations during the adventure.

Yoshi
Yoshi is Mario's best friend. They have gone on many adventures together, not to mention he saved and helped Mario when he was a baby. Mario occasionally rides Yoshi, although Yoshi has been known to be as good as Mario on his own two feet. Mario and Yoshi are often seen together trying to foil Bowser's plans. Yoshi can eat enemies too, which helps Mario a lot on his adventures.

Wario
Wario is Mario's rival. Their relationship started out very violent with such acts as Wario stealing Mario's Castle in Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins, but their rivalry has settled down in later games. The two even teamed together in Super Mario 64 DS (though they did attack each other possibly for fun in the intro). Nintendo Power has stated that Wario is Mario's cousin, but this is unconfirmed. In the Super Mario Kun comics, the rivalry between the two characters is frequently a theme.

Bowser
Bowser is Mario's nemesis and foremost enemy. Bowser and Mario have had a long history of antagonism and rivalry for Princess Peach. However, Mario almost always defeats Bowser one way or another. Bowser always tries to find a way to take Peach from Mario and have her all for himself. Bowser is jealous of Peach's friendship with Mario, as he admits in Super Paper Mario. Occasionally, Bowser is on the same side as Mario when they shared a common enemy, as shown in Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, Super Paper Mario and Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story. Oddly enough, Bowser has saved Mario from a few obstacles, as shown in the last cinema in Mario Super Sluggers; Bowser stops a Bullet Bill from taking out Mario. Of course, Bowser's only reason for saving Mario is so that he needs a rival and he wants to destroy Mario himself. Mario (along with Luigi and Yoshi) is also one of the three main heroes that Bowser hates, as they always get in the way of his plans.

However, at the end of Super Mario Odyssey, Princess Peach "rejects" both Mario and Bowser. Mario is patting the back of Bowser's shell in sympathy (which is unprecedented), before kicking off on his face to get back onto the Oddysey before Peach leaves without them.

Sonic the Hedgehog
Sonic is the mascot of Nintendo's competitive company Sega and Mario's friendly rival. In Adventure Mode on the DS version of Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games, he joins with Sonic to save the snow spirits from Bowser and Dr. Eggman. Since they would both risk their own lives to save others with no hesitation, and are always hunting more adventure, it's safe to assume these similarities have made them good friends. Mario and Sonic have currently starred in 5 crossover games together: Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games, Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U.

Alter Egos
Mario appears as many forms throughout the game franchise. He uses various items to unlock these forms. However, Mario can't unlock alternate forms in certain games such as Donkey Kong and Mario Bros. Certain items give Mario the ability to use "one hit kills" on his enemies. Some items aren't for offense, but for defensive moves. There are also items that are exclusive to just one game or game series; some of these items are the Bee Mushroom (Super Mario Galaxy series), the Propeller Mushroom (New Super Mario Bros. Wii + New Super Luigi U), and the Tanooki Suit (Super Mario Bros. 3 + Super Mario 3D Land). In the game Dr. Mario, Mario is in an alternate form (as Dr. Mario) throughout the entire game. He also makes an appearance as Dr. Mario in Super Smash Bros. Melee.

Cameos

 * Mario made a cameo in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. A picture of him along with other Mario characters, such as Luigi and Yoshi could be seen outside of a window in Princess Zelda's room in Hyrule Castle.
 * In The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, he appears in several portraits within NPC homes.
 * Mario made a cameo in The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask as a mask hanging in the Happy Mask Salesman's backpack.
 * In Kirby Super Star, as well as its remake Kirby Super Star Ultra, he and Luigi can be seen in the crowd when battling King Dedede, and Rock Kirby can transform into a golden Mario statue.
 * Mario makes a cameo in the Japanese-only Captain Rainbow as a portrait above Tracy's (from The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening) throne. An empty portrait and Link are sitting to the left of his picture. The portrait is Mario's artwork from Mario Party DS.
 * Mario makes a cameo as the referee in Mike Tyson's Punch Out!! and it's remake.
 * In the same game, he also appears in a new paper cut out. Next to him are two lines of text. One reads "Daddy, come home!" and "I Found a Key!" What one of these lines apply to the Mario photo in unknown.

Landmark Games

 * Donkey Kong
 * Mario Bros.
 * Super Mario Bros.
 * Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels
 * Super Mario Bros. 2
 * Super Mario Bros. 3
 * Dr. Mario
 * Super Mario World
 * Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
 * Super Mario 64
 * Paper Mario
 * Mario Teaches Typing
 * Mario Teaches Typing 2
 * Mario Tennis (tennis series)
 * Mario Golf (golf series)


 * Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
 * Super Mario Sunshine
 * Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga
 * Super Paper Mario
 * Mario Super Sluggers (baseball series)
 * Super Mario Strikers (soccer series)
 * Super Smash Bros. (fighting series)
 * Super Mario Galaxy
 * Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games
 * Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games
 * New Super Mario Bros. Wii
 * Super Mario Galaxy 2
 * Super Mario 3D Land
 * New Super Mario Bros. 2
 * New Super Mario Bros. U
 * Super Mario 3D World
 * ''Super Mario Odyssey

Trivia

 * According to the team name, Super Mario Bros., this states that Mario and Luigi's last names are "Mario", but this is not true. It has been confirmed by Shigeru Miyamoto that they have no last name.
 * In the classic games and in the DIC cartoons, Mario used to have red overalls and a blue shirt underneath. But it was later changed to blue overalls and a red shirt.
 * Mario has always had his signature cap, ever since he was a baby.
 * Mario used to have a very low, New York voice instead of high-pitched Italian.
 * Mario is one of the very few Nintendo characters who actually talk in sentences.
 * Mario was in the most games to be playable.
 * Mario's name before Jumpman was supposed to be Mr. Video.
 * Mario, along with Luigi, were intended to have cameo appearances in the 2012 Disney film, Wreck-It Ralph but Bowser made an appearance instead. But since the producers of the movie were unable to put him into the plot, and they did not want to make him make a cameo, he was not included. However, Mario is mentioned by Fix-It Felix Jr. during the party scene as being "fashionably late as usual". It has been promised by the director that he will return for Wreck-It Ralph 2.
 * In the first appearance from Donkey Kong in 1981, Jumpman used to be a carpenter, but then in his own game as Mario in 1983, he now appears to be a plumber throughout the rest of the Super Mario series.
 * Mario was ranked #1 best video game character in Nintendo Power's 250th issue.
 * Eventually Mario and Luigi's surname was confirmed to be Mario by Miyamoto himself. Apparently he decided to go along with it, despite stating they have no last name prior to this.
 * In a 1993 Nintendo Character Guide, created to ensure that third party companies didn't misrepresent the characters, Mario is revealed to be of the species "Homo Nintendonus".
 * Despite people assuming that Mario said "So long, gay Bowser." when throwing Bowser in Super Mario 64, Charles Martinet has confirmed that Mario was saying, "So long, kinga Bowser."

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