#Popple and rookie

[sucharandomwolf]

Popple and Rookie

[galansu]

Popple and Rookie - Nintendo High

a lot of dorky writing under cut about me talking about their designs

I gave a slight redesign to them, or maybe it's just a style thing. It's always infuriated me that Rookie is basically just Bowser with a mask on in the original game/remake. No distinguishing traits between the two, which could lead someone to believe they're the same character. That's why I liked his design in Nintendo High, they did him a lot of justice. I also really liked how playful Popple's design is, making him look like a little miscreant. I still think Rookie needed a little bit more, and I thought he'd look good with his hair being there. I also didn't realize that he was wearing a black hoodie under his blue jacket, and by the time I did I was already happy with giving him the grey sweater. I wanted them to look like dorky troublemakers rather than goofy villains.

^ Nintendo High Designs ^

^ Designs from Superstar Saga + Remake ^

I'm happy with how it turned out.

[darknoverse]

Happy very late Superstar saga anniversary lol

Was supposed to finish this one like two weeks ago but uni projects held me and Shaked me violently instead oops

But hey it's finished now

[peanut-tyrug]

I kinda wanna make a Superstar Saga AU that’s just “What if Cackletta won?”

Like Peasley wasn’t able to warn Peach about Cackletta’s arrival and her voice is actually stolen. The Beanbean Kingdom falls, and Queen Bean and Lady Lima are taken hostage. Peasley is the only one of the Royal family that isn’t trapped in the castle, and is roaming around in Chucklehuck Woods

Peasley has become a bounty, and Cackletta wants him. He’s trying to avoid being caught, but also devise a plan to rescue his family and save the kingdom by himself. The bros may try to help him, but he’ll refuse, wanting to take matters into his own hands

Maybe, at some point, Peasley could realize that he isn’t ready to fight Cackletta. He especially can’t do it alone. He eventually lets the Bros help, trusting them to assist him in his endeavors

Even the Mushroom Kingdom has damage from Peach’s explosive vocabulary, buildings and homes in ruins. And the Bros have to take down Cackletta, who is now even more powerful than she already was

I had a thought that maybe Cackletta shuts Fawful out bc of how power hungry she became after her wish was granted, and also she feels she doesn’t need him anymore. He either becomes his own independent villain, or becomes an ally to the Bros (but the latter seems very unlikely)

I’m not entirely sure if it’s in character for Cackletta to let Fawful go, but it’s a good idea to entertain I think. I’m aware that they respect one another, but I wanted to give Cackletta and Fawful more in this AU than just being a villain duo. Therefore, Cackletta betrays Fawful

A friend brought up how Fawful considered betraying Cackletta, so I had an idea that there could be a whole battle between them, but Fawful doesn’t win

Rookie could also some moments about getting over his amnesia and eventually wants to team up with the Bros for his own gain, despite Popple not wanting him to leave him. Popple would eventually just abandon Rookie once he remembers who is and wants to get back in power and take down Cackletta

This is kinda just all I have right now. Idk if I’ll make something with it, but this is still a good idea I think

[zihette]

November 17th, 2003 - The day Mario & Luigi: Superstar saga released. 20 years ago, this game graced the GBA and brought wonderful memories to people all around the globe.

I wanted to draw something nice for the 20th anniversary, given I've somehow missed all prior anniversaries in the 8 years I've been obsessing over this game :'') Character close-ups under cut!

Happy birthday. Come on... again!!!

[monsieurdotpng]

Popple & Rookie - Mario & Luigi: 20th Anniversary edition artworks. ⚒️

[mouldycakes]

3 times Luigi was directly (and indirectly) referred to as 'mama' by Nintendo

Episode 13 "Mama Luigi" of the Super Mario World cartoon from 1991

Interview of Alphadream's devs about the development and story of 'Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time' (original page was deleted around the time AlphaDream went out of business - WayBack Machine archive version available) here:

"--ちょっと大人向けのギャグも随所にありますよね？ 窪田：子供だけでなく、大人にも受け入れられやすい物を目指していたので。実は、前作の方が比較的大人向けのネタが多かったんですよ。今回は完全に世界を意識していたので、わりと控えめですよー(笑)。これは裏設定なんですが、この作品ではマリオとルイージがそれぞれお父さん的キャラ、お母さん的な子守役を分担しているんです。どこまでそれが実現出来たかはクエスチョンですが、その部分が伝わっていれば嬉しいです。"

Google Translate (so it may not be 100% accurate, but they do use and I recognize 'motherly/mother-like' Jpn characters to refer to Luigi):

--There are some gags for adults here and there, right? Kubota: We were aiming for something that would be easily accepted not only by children but also by adults. Actually, the previous work had a lot more material for adults. This time I was completely conscious of the world, so I'm pretty modest (lol). This is a secret setting, but in this work Mario and Luigi play the roles of a father-like character and a mother-like babysitter, respectively. The extent to which this was achieved is a question, but I would be happy if that part was conveyed.

Page 53 of the Mario and Luigi RPG 4koma manga (in panel 3 basically Luigi is mom):

Source for the Japanese ver.: https://twitter.com/ToldUBoutStairs/status/1259787872368025600

Translation was done by @navigationsubs ! Check their translation notes right here:

If anyone knows another time this happens, feel free to add or tell me to add it!!!

[krizeros]

Hunt for the Jade Raven

FT nintendocaprisun as the phantom thief

Big thanks to RexAura on twitter for commissioning me to draw this!

[duckapus]

The relationship qualities that allow for Bros Moves have a great deal of overlap with but are not entirely the same as the qualities that allow for Drift Compatibility.

Mario and Luigi, of course, could easily do both.

[twilighttyto]

im a little slow

i just realized I have 30 followers what the hell LMAO. Thanks for sticking around y'all. Keep being weird, the world needs more if you.

[bean-n-shroob]

BEST MARIO & LUIGI VILLAIN POLL!!!

ROUND 2

[roscolate]

Our overpowered boys beat Rookie so bad he died then came back just to have paralyzing heartburn 😭😖

In Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, the game may become glitched simply due to the player being too powerful.

If the player overlevels Mario and Luigi enough to kill Bowser/Rookie in the Woohoo Hooniversity battle against Popple and Rookie in a single attack on the first turn, the game will make him reappear after being defeated simply because it did not account for the player being able to kill him this quickly.

Rookie will remain in his shocked pose for the remainder of the battle, including the results screen, and not perform any actions otherwise.

Main Blog | Patreon | Twitter | Bluesky | Small Findings | Source

[brittle-doughie]

I noticed that you mentioned Curious Cupcake as a direct sibling to Crowned rather than a distant relation in this post: https://brittle-doughie.tumblr.com/post/763651654696452096/dont-take-this-seriously-this-is-the-unhinged So I was at a crossroads as to what I should do. Should I... A: Just say it was a mistake and move on B: Rework Curious Cupcake's lore to fit this revelation I chose the latter because I thought it would be more fun on my end and I'd like to see what you'd think about my proposals. There are two questions I must answer when it comes to Curious being a direct sibling and thus part of the royal bloodline: why is she a detective and why is she all the way over in the Witch's Castle? --- My first idea was of Curious not actually being an assistant, but rather she THINKS she is. That's right, I'm pulling the amnesia card. I was thinking "What if Y/N Cookie and Curious had a similar dynamic to Popple and Rookie from Superstar Saga?" and applied that. I don't know where the witch's castle is geographically or if it's even on Earthbread but this first idea of mine is operating under the assumption that the Witch's Castle exists somewhere on Earthbread. So my idea goes like this: Curious Cupcake is away from the Cupcake Kingdom on some diplomatic mission when something happens in the destination, and Curious is caught in the crossfire. A bonk on the head later and she forgets she's a princess of the Cupcake Kingdom. Between then and the events of Witch's Castle she eventually picks up the delusions of being a detective's assistant (as well as the attire and magnifying glass). This would both explain why she's a detective and why she's over in the Witch's Castle, as well as giving her an MIA status in the CRK timelines. --- My second idea pays homage to her character inspiration. In this theoretical, Curious Cupcake gets ill and passes away. In the CRK timelines she simply stays dead and maybe visits as a ghost. In the Witch's Castle timeline, White Chocolate Raspberry Cupcake Cookie would do some cookie necromancy to bring Curious back to life. This would go wrong and shunt Curious off to the Witch's Castle and maybe warps her mental state to give her those delusion of detective-hood. --- My third idea is a lot simpler: she stepped down of her own volition, wishing to be a simple detective's assistant --- (As a sidenote. If Crowned Cupcake has brute force, Royal Icing has social manipulation, and Princess Frosting has adaptability. I'd say Curious Cupcake would have a intermediate magic knowledge perhaps?) Anyway, those are my ideas of a lore rework to fit Curious Cupcake as a true sibling of Crowned Cupcake.

These are solid ideas, though I will have to lean towards the revelation being the former, I tend to forget things I’ve seen or wrote long ago and it can lead to conflicting conclusions later on.

But don’t let that stop you from exploring these concepts.

[darknoverse]

Got silly listening to Dirty Harry by Gorillaz and I had to draw the sillies

Cuz they're funky losers/pos

✨Close ups!✨

Alsoooooo rookies

[peanut-tyrug]

Meant to make this earlier, but this is meant to be a poster for @luigiman64 and I’s Superstar Saga AU, Long Live the Wicked!

Here’s the first Chapter if you wanna go read it :)

[wfagamerants]

Mario & Luigi as a series, loves its villains. I really can’t think of any other Mario series that gives its bad guys this level of attention and spotlight, as well as recurring appearances for several villains exclusive to the series.

While Fawful is an obvious example in regards to this, I’d actually say it’s none other than Bowser himself who really embodies all of this and manages to effectively be the third main character of the series, with a genuine arc to his name.

Bowser’s role in the series already starts out very uniquely. While he does start off wanting to kidnap Peach, as per usual, her now explosive voice makes her less than desirable to have around in his castle, so he promptly teams up with the Mario Bros, starting off Superstar Saga.

At this point in time, Bowser is a genuine ally, giving the Bros a ride to the Beanbean Kingdom and even giving them tutorial hints during their battle with Fawful, but things go downhill fast for the big guy.

From that point forward Bowser:

Ends up stuck in a cannon and held at ransom

Gets shot out of said cannon and suffers amnesia.

While amnesiac, becomes the rookie lackey of Popple, suffering two defeats at the hand of the Bros.

Takes another fall and lands back heavily injured in Stardust Fields, where Fawful and Cackletta find him, leading to the latter possessing his body. From this point, Bowser himself vanishes from the plot, aside from his body being rented out by Cackletta as a vessel.

Even once freed, he falls with the exploding Bowser Castle and when delivered back home, is just dropped off there.

Not much goes right for Bowser in SS, despite not taking an antagonistic role he ultimately ends up on the brunt of a ton of punishment and really is the one in need of saving from the big bad, once his body is taken over.

The Minion Quest side-mode in the 3DS remake does a little to expand on Bowser’s role in the game. We do get to see how he actually got his amnesia (Captain Goomba fell on him) and he gets a moment to fight back by knocking Fawful away, during an attempt to abduct him while unconscious.

That stuff is nice, but more than anything this game emphasizes an aspect of Bowser that will become important later on. The loyalty his minions have for him.

Putting the player into the viewpoint of a common Goomba does a lot to show how much Bowser’s minions think of him and how much they will band together to get their beloved ruler back. When Rookie Bowser fails to recognize Captain Goomba it really does make for a sad moment, that adds a sense of drama to Bowser’s role, which is otherwise largely played for laughs. Very fitting, given the change in viewpoint.

Partners in Time puts Bowser into a role that’s both unique and closer to what we expect from him, at the same time.

While his child self is a recurring nuisance that actively takes part in the plot at numerous points, adult Bowser is absolutely clueless about the greater plot going on. He shows up to kidnap Peach, who is actually Princess Shroob in disguise and lands in a time hole, never even realizing he’s time traveling.

Despite being locked out of the loop, Bowser does manage to make the most out of his role. He decides to turn the volcano in the past he fell into, into a new hide-out, teams up with his younger self, after some arguing and is able to emulate the team-work the Bros have with their younger selves, really well.

Following his boss fight, Bowser is kicked out of the past and by extension, the plot. He does reappear for a for a post-final boss encounter, but that one is not only over quickly, but also just pretty strange and doesn’t add anything to the story, though Bowser eating things he really shouldn’t, in this case, the mushroom-fied Elder Princess Shroob, will become important next game.

Bowser’s Inside Story just straight up is Bowser’s game. He may share the spotlight with the Bros, but on the whole, this is in very, very large amounts, his story. It also marks what I consider to be the big turning point in Bowser’s story in the series.

While Bowser falls victim to Fawful’s scheme, having his minions captured, his castle taken over and being given the Vacuum Mushroom to mindlessly inhale Peach and the Bros. That said, unlike Superstar Saga in particular, this time, Bowser fights back.

Bowser does need the help of the Bros, starting out without even his fire breath, but with that extra push, Bowser ends up recovering his lost abilities, gains new ones altogether and even learns to weaponize the new vacuum ability he got from Fawful’s mushroom.

We get to see Bowser be a brutish meathead, but he does manage to get himself out of problematic moments, if often with unknowing help from the Bros. Through this, Bowser reclaims his castle, fights through Fawful’s forces, survives what would otherwise be fatal moments and in the end, finishes off Dark Bowser with style.

I am not going too deeply into individual moments, because it is more the greater picture. Bowser went from an unlucky victim of the antics around him, to being out of the loop on what was going on, to one of the main stars, showing what he is capable of through his raw strength, ability to overcome whatever is thrown his way and the loyalty of his minions who upon rescue, assist him for his special moves.

The Jr’s Journey side-mode reinforces Bowser’s care for his minions we already got hints of, by showing that several Goombas of his kingdom suffer from the Blorbs and that him coming to the meeting at the beginning really was him wanting to take part in it. 

Outside of that, the story is very disconnected from what Bowser is doing, being way more about Jr’s story and development. That said, what role he does have, along with how Jr and his troops refer to him, truly show Bowser to be the big good of his kingdom, building on what Minion Quest established. 

We also do get the occasional check-in on when the stories take place relative to each other and those really do feel like getting a look at how Bowser’s antics look to minions and allies of his that aren’t directly involved in any given game.

Dream Team gives Bowser another entirely new role to play, this time teaming up with the new big bad of the day, Antasma.

I am going to say something maybe a bit contentious, but to me, Bowser in Dream Team is the best example of continuity anything in Mario has ever pulled off.

A lot of this is communicated really effectively through gameplay. In his first battle, Bowser’s moves include:

A sliding punch.

Him rolling up in a spikeball.

His usual fire breath.

And then much later in the game, we get a giant Bowser battle.

All of these are techniques that he learned through help of the Bros (Sliding Punch, Spikeball), recovered (Fire Breath) or was previously only able to pull off with their help (Giant Bowser) in BiS.

The Bros and by extension the player, has helped Bowser that whole time and powered him up. Now he’s a villain again and makes use of those new abilities to be YOUR problem to deal with. You helped create this monster.

And on top of gameplay examples, Bowser really shows how much he has learned on the story side of things too. He goes along with what Antasma does and gets a cool new castle out of it, which to me read like Antasma buttering Bowser up for an eventual betrayal.

Then one did indeed happen and it was Bowser betraying Antasma instead, having gotten everything he wanted out of him and thusly taking off with the Dream Stone to take charge all by himself.

I understand some didn’t vibe with this, because the RPGs are a rare time we get new villains. For me though, as someone who played all the RPGs, it was a really cool thing to see Bowser defy expectations and be the one overthrowing the new villain, without needing to be on the hero's side to do it. It’s a nice reminder he is the main villain of the franchise for a reason.

All this comes to a close with a boss battle against Dreamy Bowser. Bowser powered up to be able to summon whatever he wants and power up his usual abilities to a never before seen extreme.

The battle also gives some nice thematic pathos to both sides. Mario and Luigi for many of the attacks, are seen protecting each other or working together, while Bowser shows he thinks highly enough of his minions to summon dream versions of them to aid him. It genuinely really does feel like a true finale.

That sentiment also goes for another aspect of Bowser’s character in this series: Bowser’s dynamic with Luigi. Back in SS, Bowser barely even remembered him and even as the series went on, he’d always view him far more dismissively, never even calling him by name.

Dream Team gives Bowser and Luigi their most direct 1 on 1 confrontation (Yeah, Mario’s there, but he’s largely support) via their giant battle and through that and the final Dreamy Bowser battle, Bowser finally gains enough respect for Luigi as an enemy to recall his name.

Following all of this is Paper Jam. There are many things that can be discussed on how many aspects of it were handled, but strictly speaking Bowser, I think it’s a fitting conclusion to his arc in the Alphadream era.

After being kicked around, unaware of the plot around him, fighting the big bad and teaming up with the big bad, before backstabbing him, Bowser and his paper counterpart are just the villains outright, from start to finish.

While conceptually, much of what we see is fairly standard Bowser stuff, the context we see it in makes a big difference. Many call the new Neo Bowser Castle a lazy name and concept, but to me it again, stands as a good example of continuity. Unlike Dream Team, Bowser doesn’t need Antasma to get his sweet new castle, he just makes it himself through planning and ruthlessly capturing and enslaving Toads in mines to gather materials to fuel it.

Similarly, all it takes for Bowser to launch an attack on the kingdom following the Jr duo's defeat, is his own resources and the new final boss form of the day also doesn’t require a McGuffin of any sort. It just takes Paper Bowser going along with it.

Bowser pulls off all the stuff you’d expect from the Mario RPG villains with very little extra help. All he needs is the cooperation of another Bowser and together they stand tall as the main threat. I understand the circumstances around Paper Jam can muddle things, but to me, this is a really fitting and satisfying way to close out Bowser’s arc across all these games.

Time will tell what Brothership does with him. Given everything that happened I wouldn’t blame them if the game is seen as a bit of a relaunch and I have full confidence it will be a good role.

Mario games do whatever they want and I think Bowser’s progression has already concluded very well, so I am more than game to see them do more things with it.

This write-up is a companion piece to this video by my dear friend Mod Mamono, all about M&L villains, check it out here: