Mario and Luigi: Sibling Rivalry

[Golden_Griff]

Okay, I've been thinking about this for a while (gosh I'm lazy about posting).

No, it's not a new game, by the way

I don't know how many people are aware of this but in the world of Nintendo fandom there are a lot of Luigi fans that absolutely despise Mario. Among the many reasons for this dislike of Mario stems mainly from the idea that "Luigi doesn't get enough attention."

But, what if the tables were turned?....

What if Luigi was in Mario's shoes and Mario in Luigi's? Would things be different? Some people think if that was the case Luigi would then be the object of hate and Mario would have fans all over. On the other hand, some people think that there would be no difference; Luigi would still be loved and Mario would just fade into the background.

Another thing I thought of that may change the attitudes of hard-core Luigi fans: what if the Mario Bros. were a male and female pair of twins? Maria and Luigi or Mario and Luisa?

Who would fans pick as their "number one" if the Mario Bros. were triplets?

Who would fans pick if Mario and Luigi had the same body structure? age difference? How about if the myth of "good twin/bad twin" was more into play?

Personally, I favor Luigi more than Mario. However, that is not the same as saying that I absolutely hate Mario--he's cool too, just not as cool as Luigi

I'll now open the floor for discussion.

[Azier the Swordsman]

Feh. I say make Wario the main hero (besides the WarioWorld/Land spinoffs) and Mario and Luigi the main villains. Wario is so much cooler anyways. *wishes they would make a Bowser World game*

[Golden_Griff]

Alright! A fellow Wario fan! I totally agree! *high-fives Azier*

Uh...*ahem* I meant let's keep other characters out of this This is between Mario and Luigi

[LorentzForce]

I don't know, they look pretty similar to me except for the colour in my NES version of Super Mario Bros, so it must be the colours.

Maybe 1P is better than 2P in people's thoughts when seeing the joysticks.

[righteous_slave]

I think a lot of the Lugi love/Mario hate comes because of two reasons. One, Luigi is the underdog. Mario is who you play if you are player one in Mario Bros.and Super Mario Bros., he is the only one in all of the Super Mario Land (GB) and in Super Mario World. As a result of this over exposure, some people just think the little guy needs to be stood up for.
The other reason is some people just want to root against the super-popular. Mario is the superpopular of the two, so some people just pick Luigi to rebel.
I like them both, but I always pick the Princess in SMB2, just because she can fly.

[TroutNinja]

They elluded to this problem in Mario and Luigi Superstar, the Mario RPG for GBA. Mario was the great Hero... and throughout most of the game poor Luigi was just "The green guy with Mario." But he had his fans show up later on. I like Luigi as well, mostly because he's misunderstood.

[Golden_Griff]

*nods head attentively*

Uh-huh, uh-huh.

Yeah, I don't know much about that game but I do hear things like that about it.

I just realized I didn't answer my own question(s):

Another thing I thought of that may change the attitudes of hard-core Luigi fans: what if the Mario Bros. were a male and female pair of twins? Maria and Luigi or Mario and Luisa?

Who would fans pick as their "number one" if the Mario Bros. were triplets?

Who would fans pick if Mario and Luigi had the same body structure? age difference? How about if the myth of "good twin/bad twin" was more into play?

I do think the general population's attitudes would change if the relationship between Mario and Luigi was one of the above circumstances.

[TroutNinja]

Well, the female twin might change some attitudes... and would also change the entire setup of some the games methinks. I mean... would we have Princess Peach or Prince Apple(or some such fruit)?

[Gilgamesh]

Meh.

Both are equally laol.

(lame + cool = laol)

(Lame= Gilgamesh)

[Golden_Griff]

Well, the female twin might change some attitudes... and would also change the entire setup of some the games methinks. I mean... would we have Princess Peach or Prince Apple(or some such fruit)?

Prince Apple? Lol

Meh.

Both are equally laol.

(lame + cool = laol)

(Lame= Gilgamesh)

Laol? That's a new one

[LorentzForce]

Ahem, it'll be Prince Plum. They must both start with the letter P

What a plum of a prince it would be. Whatever that means.

[Rogie]

I grew up wanting to change my name to Luigi (and still collect Luigi toys, figures, etc.), so I may have a stake in this.

I think that most of us Luigi fans like Luigi more because there's never enough of him available in comparison to Mario. Think about it: all through the 80's, you could see Mario just about anywhere, but rarely Luigi. Also, if you still find anything dealing with Mario today, Luigi is rarely in sight. Perhaps it's that smaller amount of exposure that makes Luigi so much more special. If Luigi had as much exposure as Mario, then we might not love him as much.

Think about it this way: if anime was widely accepted and distributed in the U.S. to the point that NBC had an anime show in its "Must-See TV" lineup, then would anime be as special to us dedicated anime fans? That struggle, anticipation, and desire for more would be regularly satisfied so that we wouldn't be as ecstatic in our enjoyment of it. In my opinion, the anticipation is almost always better than the actual event (but I'm sure that Heaven is an exception in this case!!!).

So, back on topic, long live Luigi! And long live the Luigi fans!

[Norimoru]

Ok, I think there book cool...but Luigi is just more fun.

Example: In Super Mario 3...I think...you can play as Mario or Luigi. Luigi is the JUMPING KING! I loved that!

So you see...Mario was my first favorite and since then Luigi has been my man!

[LorentzForce]

Norimoru: That was Super Mario 2. You could choose between Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach and Toadstool (sp?). Mario was average in all terms, Luigi could jump for longer, Peach could 'glide' and Toad is very 'fast'.

[Golden_Griff]

Oh man, Toad was the coolest in that game! Or maybe it's because I'm always doing things in a hurry

I grew up wanting to change my name to Luigi (and still collect Luigi toys, figures, etc.), so I may have a stake in this.

I think that most of us Luigi fans like Luigi more because there's never enough of him available in comparison to Mario.

When I was a small child I had the biggest crush on Mario; I remember drawing a picture of him and I in one of those romantic Italian row boats But now, Luigi's number one! Well, he's up there with Wario anyway

Half of what I'm thinking is what you said Rogie. The other half makes me think that Luigi just has a more likable personality.

[Rogie]

Half of what I'm thinking is what you said Rogie. The other half makes me think that Luigi just has a more likable personality.

You know what, I think he has a better personality, too, now that you say it. Mario's too cocky, y'know? Luigi must overcome his fears to be a hero, and plus, he was always the funniest character in the old Mario cartoons. Anyone remember those?

[Golden_Griff]

Ahem *raises hand*

Although for some odd reason I can't really sit and watch them now (maybe because of the animation?) , I do remember the Mario cartoons (The Super Mario Bros. show, Super Mario World, and Super Mario Bros. 3--don't know the exact names).

Luigi always seems to be the more mature twin in the games, but in the cartoons he was a little bit more goofy than Mario.
I remember on one episode (with the live action) Luigi was being chased around by a wild mob of fans And there was the one where everyone was turned into weird flamingo-chicken creatures. And then...well, I'll be talking all day

We have a SMB Show video of the episode where King Koopa got super-sized (funny how when he was shrunken back to size the buildings around him got bigger instead of him actually shrinking).

I like the Bowser in the cartoons better, me thinks. Nice and green

Okay, just rambling off at the mouth now...

I'm still hoping for that Adult Swim version of the Mario Brothers

[greyscale42]

Warios the best but Mario comes in second. He gave Nintendo its needed boost and Luigi was just an after thought. *runs away screaming* DONT KILL ME!!!

[Azier the Swordsman]

[quote="Golden_Griff"]Oh man, Toad was the coolest in that game! Or maybe it's because I'm always doing things in a hurry



When I was a small child I had the biggest crush on Mario]

o_O

Sonic's better than all of them, anyways. (My Opinion)

[Jasdero]

Heh. Luigi was my favorite. Because he was slighty taller, he jumped higher. ^^

[Golden_Griff]

o_O

Sonic's better than all of them, anyways. (My Opinion)

Now, now, keep ya Sega biases out of this please

Heh. Luigi was my favorite. Because he was slighty taller, he jumped higher. ^^

Yeah, but Luigi does that weird sliding thing too (well, at least in SSB). That makes me nervous about playing as him.

[Nate]

The Japanese SMB 2 (known as the "Lost Levels" in Mario All-Stars for the SNES) also differentiated between Mario and Luigi. Luigi jumped higher than Mario, but it was more difficult for him to stop sliding if you reversed direction (which led to me falling down many a pit on the Luigi game).

And (can't remember who posted it) yes, in Mario and Luigi Superstar Saga for GBA, the programmers obviously noted Luigi's lack of the limelight and made it amusing. He was usually called "Mr. Green Guy," or just referred to as Mario's brother (or his sidekick). Also, at the very beginning when Luigi jumps on board Bowser's ship, Bowser asks something like, "Hey! Who are you! Are you a new recruit for the Koopa Troopas?"

Also...

[SPOILER]There's one part where Mario eats a poisoned mushroom and gets sick. Luigi must search for a cure, but when he's given a description of the area he must go to, he gets scared and starts shaking all over. He is unable to jump during this time, so you're forced to go to a mushroom house where a Magikoopa casts a spell on Luigi to make him think he's Mario, thus giving him courage! [/SPOILER]

Luigi also shows up in Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars for SNES (AWESOME game). First, on Star Hill, where all the wishes fall from, there is a star with the wish: "I wanna be a great plumber like my brother Mario." Also, at the end of the game Luigi is leading the victory parade.

I think Luigi has better taste in women though...I like Daisy a lot better than Peach...even though MARIO was the one who rescued Daisy from Tatanga in Super Mario Land!

[Golden_Griff]

Luigi also shows up in Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars for SNES (AWESOME game). First, on Star Hill, where all the wishes fall from, there is a star with the wish: "I wanna be a great plumber like my brother Mario." Also, at the end of the game Luigi is leading the victory parade.

I think Luigi has better taste in women though...I like Daisy a lot better than Peach...even though MARIO was the one who rescued Daisy from Tatanga in Super Mario Land!

What? I don't remember that about the RPG--oh wait, I never finished that game. *shrugs*

Yes, I agree about Daisy I don't know for sure how that match came to pass though But they make a great couple

[Jasdero]

Heh. Luigi was my favorite. Because he was slighty taller, he jumped higher. ^^

Yeah, but Luigi does that weird sliding thing too (well, at least in SSB). That makes me nervous about playing as him.

Jah, in SSB he does. I never play him in SSB because I always ended up falling off the "arena" whenever I made him jump. But back in the day, with Super Nintendo, Luigi was fun.