it just seems like a great day to talk about some Mario maybe it has to do with the new Super
Mario Bros movie in theaters today or I'm just feeling nostalgic probably both but I thought it
would be fun to look back on some Mario cartoons specifically the meme filled world of the Super
Mario Bros Super Show a wonderful combination of Animation live action and of course PSAs
did you know that you have rights just like grown-ups ah they just don't make them like
they used to anyway as a massive Mario fan my love for the series goes beyond the games and
I have some fond memories of the show while the show is older than I am thanks to the internet
holding them up for the world to see I have been very well acquainted with this show throughout
my life so for today let's take a look back at how wacky and weird this Super Show really was
from the fun and Goofy live action segments that would feature guest appearances to the
animated Mario show segments and of course some of the bonuses that came along with the show like
The Legend of Zelda cartoon yeah this is the Super Mario Bros Super Show well in that case
the show only ran for a handful of months in the later part of 1989 but packed together a bunch of
fun content while it was on just being the start of Deke entertainment's involvement in Mario
content yes this is pronounced Deke you weirdo the show would Premiere Monday through Friday
being this every weekday program that would give us first and foremost an introduction to the show
through live action with a live studio audience as Mario played by Wrestling Hall of Famer Lou Albano
and Luigi played by Danny Wells as they spend time in their basement Workshop in Brooklyn New
York where they do their regular Plumbing work or just goof around especially when a special
guest would come out for the day and partake in some Shenanigans obviously right around this time
in history Mario was a hot franchise taking the World by storm with the original 1985 Super Mario
Bros game really helping shift the course of what Mario is and will be known for having both
Super Mario Bros 2 and 3 coming out in the same year in 1988 and did you know that Super Mario
Bros 2 is actual with a plethora of other games that the characters were in or from his playable
Origins with Donkey Kong the animation space was already in full swing of taking Mario to other
mediums outside of gaming and while I could make a video discussing the long history of that you
know Mario in animation which I may do at a later Point anyway it was really the Super Mario Bros
Super Show that left this long lasting impact for the generation of Gamers it was on TV for
and for every other generation of kids sends to discover and realize man the 80s sure was weird
in an endearing way but how did this come to be what drove this decision for Nintendo to allow
Deke to make a production out of this and play around in their toy box of wonder that they were
still just kind of building up at the time well it was thanks to Andy Hayward the at the time
CEO of Deke who tried to make this happen over the course of a year where then he was able to finally
acquire the license from Nintendo the Mario Bros is such a unique property we had to do it in a
different way we wanted to do a cartoon but also do a show that extended beyond the cartoon but in
saying that it wasn't just the Mario IP that is the interesting part here but the fact that it
was going to be all about the greater Nintendo franchises mixing them into this Power Hour of
content that through the recognizable faces of the Mario Brothers would bring us other animated
segments of stuff like Castlevania Metroid Double Dragon The Legend of Zelda and more with that last
one though the Legend of Zelda actually coming to fruition with Mario it was all in the hope
of brand awareness for Nintendo they were big and Popular by several metrics we can judge for back
then but still nowhere close to where or even what Nintendo is today also just the thought of
a Metroid show in the similar art style sounds pretty freaking awesome and I'm really sad that
it doesn't exist stuff like Double Dragon would eventually come to be a thing but on its own and
separate from anything Mario and it wouldn't be until half a decade later anyway for now
it was just the Mario Bros Super Show with Zelda sometimes we'll be right back and boy am I Steve
now back to our story what's this the show was simple enough we meet live action Mario
and Luigi we meet a guest star which could range from people like actual athletes people acting
and portraying other famous people throughout history and actors from various shows of course
but you can't forget the great Obi-Wan cannoli yeah how could you not want to watch this show
these live action segments would be the bookends of the show covering the opening and the outro
it would be pretty funny seeing these moments accompanied by a life studio audience and it
was just this small little goofball Affair for only a handful of minutes at a time and if you
do drugs you go to hell before you die ah yes the PSA public service announcements public service
announcements were also a thing since World War II was starting but of course developed
into more than just a regular announcement for news now having the 80s filled with anti-drug
PSAs specifically nowadays the only PSAs people really care about are these Pokemon cards sorry
didn't mean to flex on you so hard right there but come on Captain Lou telling you that drugs are bad
while wearing the Mario hat yes this is what I need to keep me going right now leave them
alone you wouldn't want to be wrong okay that's just fantastic these are great and I don't know
why I love them so much okay just one more no you are right and use them please okay let's now take
a look at the cartoon side of things where we get the introduction of the Mario wrap also
known as the plumber app an incredibly 80s rap song that is so powerful and nostalgic it was
used to advertise the new Super Mario Bros movie heck it may even be in the movie I haven't seen
it yet as I'm making this video there's also do the Mario that plays at the end for the
credits and that's pretty great too but with the show itself we get some Wacky Adventures in the
Mushroom Kingdom and Beyond mostly Beyond with Mario Luigi Princess Toadstool and Toad they're
all just be getting themselves into various circumstances that often cause Mario to spout
off about Italian food with like three orders of free spaghetti to go ravioli Macaroni foreign
to be fair they make plenty of references to Italian food in the live-action stuff as well
so it's great that they all kind of feel cohesive here these animated moments would be parodies for
the most part following along different popular movies at the time just adding in their own
Mario Flair we would also get to see a bunch of bad guys with Bowser sorry King Koopa and
his henchmen always causing some sort of issues with King Koopa really getting into the spirit
of all these themes so with all that being said there is really no cohesive story here it's these
characters getting into situations that follow the plots and themes of other popular things until the
next episode or would be completely different things were pretty random and inconsistent but
never in the way of trying to do that on purpose it always went for fun first logic second while
it's now old itself it feels like a throwback to animation before its time just being a silly
cartoon that leaves you entertained trust me if you expect more than that and you go back and
watch these You're Not Really Gonna Get Much out of it and if I'm being honest when I look
back at this show the animated segments are not even my favorite part the live action bits are
because I feel more nostalgic towards them for some reason but I still do love the animation it
feels like they had to make it for cheap and had to rush production with constant errors that can
be found and it not being the highest of quality out there in comparison to well most things but
I don't know what to tell you there's some charm to that all the stories being these parodies were
directly from Andy's decision since pulling from the games themselves was like trying to
find a deeper meaning from a learning ABC's book there really wasn't much there well sure he could
just be saving the princess from King Koopa but they wanted to give it some flavor some different
spice and this is really hit or miss for a lot of people but then why did it feel so cheap all of
it in general from the live action to the cartoon bits why I think it really boils down to how to
profit from the show and pay Nintendo their portion for Deke to be able to acquire these
licenses I mentioned Nintendo demanded extensive royalties so the cheaper and quick they could make
the production the more money that came in could be split better to both Deke and those working on
the show and then Nintendo Lou and Danny would be working on this show six out of the seven days in
a week hopping back and forth between the live action set to record those segments than having
to drive to a different location to record their voices for the cartoon it was made and produced
fast on all fronts but the show was a hit becoming a big enough hit with viewers that it quickly was
syndicated and earned wide appeal so much so that celebrities and athletes themselves would
reach out to be in the live-action segments on their own since their kids would be fans of Mario
in general and what would be cooler than seeing your parents on the show with live action Mario
and Luigi probably plenty of things but you'll just go with it okay on the other hand a lot of
critics at the time panned the show slamming it as a disappointment or just being bad in general
with even more modern Outlets looking back on it and claiming it to be awful or as IGN once
put it the biggest offender among hendo's many embarrassing moments but don't be worried the
reviewers still said that the animated segments were interesting to look back on so that counts
for something right they also gave it a 7 out of 10. I don't know anymore I'm just as confused as
you the series itself isn't as great as it could have been sure the production feels rushed I am
sure plenty working on the show felt overworked and you may even look back on the show as mostly
cringe with a nostalgic Center that may be worth the bite but not the whole meal and yeah that's
kind of how I feel I see the charm I feel the charm but it's so stuck in the 80s that trying
to expect more from it feels like bullying the jokes don't really land most of them are about
pasta so they just make me hungry but at least I have a smile on my face while I'm watching it
serves as this time capsule for animation on TV as well as experimental TV it's weird and if you
know me and know this channel I love weird it's a term of endearment for the most part and I do
enjoy looking back at this show so what else was there to round out this show I feel like there's
something so green Legend filled that I haven't really mentioned too much about yet oh that's
right that once a week special segment in the show The Legend of Zelda yeah how about showing
us some scenes from the next Legend of Zelda stay tuned don't go away we'll be back foreign
wake up you're gonna miss the show yep I have to cover this since it's technically a part of the
show every week Monday through Thursday we would get the Mario animation segments being the filling
of the show with a bonus teaser of the upcoming animation of The Legend of Zelda that would take
up the Friday slot instead of the animation for the Mario brothers the Legend of Zelda cartoon
is a wild example of hey it's the 80s and it sure was a show and if that statement makes you upset
well excuse me princess have you seen this cartoon we all just have to embrace it for what it was we
follow link who yes has a voice here in the series as well as Princess Zelda where they must defend
Hyrule from Ganon as he wants to rule and conquer the land shocker you know maybe kidnap Zelda along
the way what he really wants all along is to get Link's Triforce of wisdom piece as Ganon has the
Triforce of power piece and I have the Triforce of Courage piece because I'm so brave for making
it through this show I love how link is shown to be in this series though compared to being this
silent protagonist we play as in the games you know really being and feeling like you're this
tough Warrior and nothing can stop you and nothing really bothers you at all but here in the cartoon
link is the most sarcastic all about himself person there is to help Zelda it's kind of like
a chore for him he has a fleshed out personality of this slacker type that somehow still gets
things done and to me that's funny he just wants kisses from The Princess maybe a little too much
but at the same time is annoyed by her they're constantly bickering about whatever but somehow
he's still in love with her and Zelda is a tough character who can take care of herself until she
can't requiring Link's help a lot of the time but refuses to always just be this Damsel in Distress
it's so wild as the show had full range to go in whatever Direction they wanted with references
and dialogue based on characters or catchphrases from other Media or comedians that the writers
just really liked and took a lot of influence from whatever the case may be though after a few months
of the Super Show existing it went away thanks to Nintendo not really having an interest in seeing
that version of what the show was continue so yes this show after one season after only a couple
months was canceled but that doesn't mean the partnership between the two companies was over
Deacon Nintendo would still produce some further Mario content together other forms of programs
like Club Mario but as far as the Super Mario Bros Super Show that's really it it was a combination
Pizza Hut and Taco Bell that served you some fun bits of live action and some fun bits of colorful
cartoon adventures all with some incredible theme music sprinkled on top for good measure there are
plenty of other Mario only specific animation that maybe we should talk about at some point on the
channel as this was just one instance of it found within this show but it really works here in the
context of working in tandem with the live-action bits having the voices of Lou and Danny carry over
between both it's silly it's Goofy and it was a lot of fun fully trying to dive back into it all
before going to see the newest iteration of the Mario Bros and animation so please let me know
your thoughts on the Super Mario Bros Super Show in the comments down down below do you love it do
you hate it do you meme on it let me know thanks so much for watching like And subscribe later
foreign
[Music]