#koopa kid is baby bowser

[lore-of-the-mushroom-kingdom]

Koopa Kid Is Probably Baby Bowser

So in a previous post I've put forth speculation on who Koopa Kid is. At this point I do believe Koopa Kid is Baby Bowser who a bit older than the one in Yoshi's Island and Partner's in Time.

First off we know Baby Bowser is one of the various names for Koopa Kid outside of Mini Bowser. I think they are one that's slightly older than the Baby Bowser seen in Yoshi Story. This Baby Bowser seems to be a bit bigger than what we've seen in previous games, and has better speech. They also have at this point ditched their bandana or entirely, and now wears spiked armlets. This Baby Bowser is also aware of who Mario and the Yoshis are. While in the other games he didn't know who Mario was yet until Partner's In Time, and in PIT he didn't seem to hate Yoshis yet.

Finally at this point Baby Bowser is capable of wielding Magic. Koopa Kid is shown to be able to wield magic, wears spiked arm bracelets, doesn't wear a bib or bandana, is a bit bigger than the younger Baby Bowser, looks like Baby Bowser, and is even called Baby Bowser at times. So I think Koopa Kid is Baby Bowser.

The information in this post is outdated, see the following post for more information.

[goofybandit]

Triple Trouble!

[bootyliquor9000]

adding onto my previous post abt me getting back into bowigi: here are the koopalings!!!!!

listen igot lazy with the alt texts

[eris1521987]

These are symbols I made of Mario objects, and 2 characters. I hope y'all like it.

[heloflor]

Kind of love Nintendo’s weird stubbornness in making Bowser a father. First the Koopalings in the NES and SNES eras, then the Koopa Kids in the N64, and then Bowser Junior on the Gamecube and onwards, with the Koopalings being brought back as well (rip Koopa Kids). Special mention to Mario and Luigi Partners in Time with Bowser spending 5 minutes with his younger self and going “this is my child now”.

Nintendo really took one look at this giant evil fire-breathing turtle and went "Yep, that's the one who will be a dad !"

[hkpika07]

Get ready for me exploding in the tags

what's everyone's favorite mario character?

[shapeshiftinterest]

more kid!bowuigi, story bookish coloring

young bowser will now be drawn with the non spiked versions of his arm and neck bands to separate his design from junior’s

anyways here’s them as hanging out cuz either:

kamek kidnapped baby luigi to be prince bowser’s playmate

luigi got lost and prince bowser was like ‘it’s free baby/ friend’

luigi just wandered into koopa kingdom, kamek’s looking for his parents, and prince bowser is watching over him until they’re found

this is either an alternate universe where their kid versions are friends, or it’s from the partners in time game and their younger selves are hanging out for a bit

images:

playing ghost hunter/ luigi ran into a haunted mansion and bowser followed him in because he didn’t want kamek nagging him if luigi got hurt

bowser babysitting luigi, who is drawing

bowser either finding luigi, who was collecting fire flowers, or bowser being a bodyguard and threatening someone off screen in case they tried to mess with luigi

naptime with kamek putting a blanket over the 2

[palskippah]

Hi! Some Bowuigi fanbaby thoughts!

So, since Bowser can shapeshift his size and stuff, he often goes very small (almost Mario movie small askldsa) to play with Magma, who loves to have a very small version of her dada that she can pick up and hug as she pleases.

Also, Bowser did the same with Junior, and when Magma's in koopa form, she reminds him way too much from when Junior was a baby koopaling, so he's like kinda nostalgic because his little boy has grown so much :'''v (he's never gonna recover emotionally from this).

Also, Luigi takes lots of photos of Magma and the rest of the kooaplings c: He became their mom and started snapping photos of his babies like crazy, and to not run out of space on his phone, he prints the photos like in both big and small formats and they're hung at the walls of any place of the castle (to the older koopalings' embarrassment).

Also also, headcanon that Luigi is a known crybaby, my guy's very emotional, but so is Bowser. Like he used to usually go to anger and frustration and that's where he stayed and that's why people think he doesn't cry easily or stuff. But at times (especially regarding his children), he can have his silly crying eyes on because he's so proud of them and loves them very much. Or he's sad because they used to be smaller and they're growing and becoming their own koopas and accomplishing good things and some of them just aren't koopalings anymore (like Ludwig).

Like, you can bet the first time Junior laughed when he was a baby, years back, Bowser was on the floor crying his eyes out but also laughing because it was the most beautiful sound he had ever heard :'v (maybe Kamek was like 🧍🏻‍♂️right beside him, because at Bowser's silly sounds, Junior laughed more and Bowser weeped even harder, and it was like a never-ending cycle).

Got carried away 😔 Bowser and Luigi love their kids, as a summary.

[ask-the-koopa-family]

Yaaaaay Cleo is heeeere !

Art/ocs/story are mine dont copy/repost

#bowser

#bowserjr

#koopalings

#supermariobros

#supermario

#bowserxoc

#canonxoc

A few months passed , and Cherry could go into labor at any minutes and then one day.. In the living room of Bowser’s Castle. Bowser and Cherry are seated on their couch, chatting peacefully. Suddenly, Cherry places a hand on her stomach and winces, feeling a sudden pain.

Cherry: breathing heavily 

"Bowser… I think… it’s time!"

Bowser: sits up, alert but calm 

"You mean… now?"

Cherry: with a nervous smile and a small sigh

 "Yes… our baby is coming!"

Bowser’s face lights up, but he remains composed. Around them, however, it’s a different story. The castle stirs with general excitement and panic. Servants murmur anxiously, a Goomba drops a stack of blankets, and a Koopa Troopa nearly trips while making a quick turn. Other servants scurry around, uncertain about what to do.

Bowser: in an authoritative tone, raising his hand 

"Calm down, everyone! This isn’t our first baby, so let’s show some nerve!"

The servants freeze, listening attentively, impressed by Bowser’s confidence.

Bowser: pointing at the Goombas 

"Goombas! Get some blankets and warm water for Cherry. turning to the Koopa Troopas And you, get a fire going to warm the delivery room. "noticing Kamek "Kamek!"

Kamek, watching from a corner with a kind smile, immediately steps forward, nodding.

Kamek: "Yes, Lord Bowser? How can I assist you?"

Bowser: gesturing to the Koopalings and Bowser Jr., who have arrived, wide-eyed 

"Kamek, keep the kids occupied. Keep them calm and away until everything’s done. Got it?"

Kamek: bowing" Of course, Sire. You can count on me."

Bowser Jr.: tugging at Kamek’s sleeve, concerned "But… I want to see the baby! is it coming soon?"

Kamek: with a reassuring smile 

"Don’t worry, Junior. You’ll see the baby very soon. But for now, let your dad be with Cherry, alright?"

Bowser leans toward Cherry, gently taking her hand to help her up from the throne.

Bowser: in a soft voice

" Come on, Cherry. I’m here; everything’s going to be fine."

Cherry: faintly smiling but reassured 

"Thank you, Bowser."

Kamek watches the couple disappear toward the delivery room, then turns back to the children, who look at him eagerly.

Wendy: with bright eyes

" Do you think the baby will look more like Dad, or like Cherry?"

Ludwig: arms crossed, serious 

"Doesn’t matter, as long as it has the Koopa spirit."

Larry: enthusiastic 

"Maybe the baby will have horns like Dad!"

In the delivery room, a few hours later, Bowser is by Cherry’s side as she holds their newborn daughter in her arms. She’s exhausted but glowing with happiness. Their baby is a little girl with flaming red hair like Bowser, small horns on her head, and a Koopa tail at the base of her back.

Cherry: smiling, weary Look,

"Bowser… its a girl! Our little daughter... She’s beautiful…"

Bowser: tenderly, his big smile softening 

"She’s perfect, Cherry. A true Koopa princess."

Cherry gently strokes the baby’s cheek, pride and tenderness filling her gaze.

Cherry: whispering 

"What shall we name her?"

Bowser remains silent for a moment, thinking as he watches their daughter with affection.

Bowser: softly 

"She deserves a special name… one that symbolizes her strength, beauty, and uniqueness. Something unique… just like her."

Cherry: with a dreamy smile 

"How about… Cleo?

Bowser: repeating softly 

"Cleo… Yes, it suits her. It’s both strong and gentle. Sounds like a noble name."

Cherry: smiling 

"And in an ancient dialect, it means “glory.” Cleo… it’s perfect for a princess who will shine without needing to fight."

Bowser: proudly 

"Cleo, the one who’ll bring glory to the kingdom… without lifting her claws, like her old dad. Haha!"

Cherry laughs softly, squeezing Bowser’s hand in an emotional moment. They share a knowing smile, thrilled with the name for their daughter.

Kamek enters discreetly, followed by the Koopalings and Bowser Jr., all eager to meet the baby. They enter cautiously, as if entering a sanctuary.

Bowser Jr.: staring wide-eyed 

"She’s so tiny… and she has horns like Dad!"

Wendy: in awe 

"And red hair, like Dad, too! whispering She’s so pretty!

Morton: enthusiastic 

"Welcome, little sis! We’ll protect you, promise!"

Ludwig: serious but moved 

"Yes, welcome, Cleo. We’ll be here for you."

Iggy: examining Cleo curiously 

"Ohhh! A hybrid Koopa princess! She’s unique, incredible!"

Lemmy: amazed 

"She’s going to be our best friend, I just know it!"

Cherry watches them all with a serene, tender smile as each child gazes at Cleo, fascinated and already protective.

Cherry: whispering to Bowser 

"Look at how much they already love her… we have a wonderful family, don’t we?"

Bowser: holding her close 

"Yes… the best family."

The children, still mesmerized by little Cleo, continue murmuring amongst themselves. Meanwhile, Bowser and Cherry enjoy their moment in silence until Cherry leans toward Bowser with a playful smile.

Cherry: whispering with a mischievous grin 

"Don’t forget our deal, my King… you remember, don’t you?"

Bowser lets out a light groan, rolling his eyes.

Bowser: feigning resignation 

"Yes, yes… feeding Cleo during the night for two weeks… "sighs but smiles 

"I should have known you’d be right."

Cherry: laughing softly 

"And I should have bet for a whole month!"

Bowser: amused, glancing at Cleo 

"Enjoy it, Cleo. Your dad lost the bet, so he’ll be watching over you every night…"

Cherry bursts out laughing, and Bowser eventually smiles, a bit resigned but tender.

Bowser: whispering 

"Alright, Cherry… a deal is a deal. But remember, this is the only time you’ll win."

They share a knowing smile as Cherry rests her head against him, clearly pleased. Bowser gently holds little Cleo in his arms and gazes at her lovingly.

The children, gathered around their parents and Cleo, admire their new little sister with awe and affection. The castle, filled with warmth in this family gathering, seems more peaceful and united than ever.

The End!

[legobiwan]

I know we've all been talking about revisiting the Super Mario Brothers Supershow since the release of the movie, but as a Super Mario Brothers 3 cartoon enthusiast, I would like to give you all a compelling list of insane reasons you should go watch this on YouTube right this instant:

The opening theme kind of slaps.

A lot of people get turned into dogs for some reason???

George Bush (Sr) ends up kidnapped by the Koopas and sent to the bottom of the ocean? Which, honestly, may have been the best outcome for 90s American politics.

Peach is into surfing and has an implied fling with some California stereotype surfer dude on Hawaii. Get it, Peach.

You want de-aging tropes? Baby Mario and Luigi? Get 'em here.

Luigi is sent to seduce Wendy Koopa and succeeds. (This is Mario's plan, meaning Mario has utter faith in his brother's natural rizz). You have to watch this for Luigi's voice change, it's incredible.

Speaking of seduction, Luigi is mistaken for a 1,000 year-old mummy's husband. Mario is mistaken for...their son.

Yes, the brothers get into a BLOWOUT fight and it's amazing. Mario ends up brainwashed by Ludwig's mind-control device and the brothers have a very brief altercation.

I don't what the deal is with the Mario franchise and brainwashing/possession/mind control, but in a separate episode, Luigi and Bowser fight over a mind-controlling music box.

Peach is apparently a big Milli Vanili fan (you have to love the 90s) and rope Mario and Luigi into going to a concert in the Real World. Look at these two DORKS compared to Peach, who is effortlessly fashionable. (Granted, Toad gave them bad intel, but I don't think either brother has been "cool" in his entire life).

NERDS.

Mario ends up with a case of PTSD after almost drowning. I wish I was kidding, but this episode goes kind of hard if you think about it. (Not to mention the fish lady who is relentlessly pursuing him for marriage).

The Boys Do Venice.

Bowser takes a "Nice Guy Potion" in order to try to sabotage an election.

Three words: Zombie Trash Koopas

A family from Wichita end up in the the Darklands in their very typical station wagon. Hijinks ensue.

Some of the later episodes kind of turn into awkward Saturday afternoon specials with messages about gossip, racism, recycling, and worker's rights, which isn't exactly what one would expect from a Mario Brothers cartoon, but if you remember the 90s at all, this kind of tracks.

This being said, the episode where the Koopa kids go and try to take over the 7 continents relies on some unbelievably (awful) hilarious stereotypes (again, it was the 90s). But we do get to see Luigi on ice skates, which is a win.

Bowser kidnaps Luigi as bait. It works.

I'm just going to leave you all with this final screenshot.

[batneko]

bowuigi A/B/O idea, except we're 100% going with alpha Luigi and omega Bowser (he wears a collar, he has a kid with no "mother," think about it people!!!)

So, in the Mario world there's a LOT of different types of people. Toads and mushrumans like Peach don't technically have gender at all, it's just outward presentation. And even the groups that have A/B/O dynamics don't always express it in the same way. With Koopas, omegas are quite rare but they're expected to be big and strong instead of dainty and swooning. Gotta protect the eggs, after all!

But there's a lot of social capital to be gained from Having An Omega, and no matter how respected and feared Bowser is it's never quite enough to stop some alphas from thinking they can own him.

(choose your own angsty adventure for where Junior came from)

That's one of the reasons he's so fixated on Peach. Not only does she not have any expectations because of his gender, but no one else looking at them as a couple will either!

Then along comes the Mario brothers, both of them reeking of alpha, repeatedly dominating him and taking away what he thinks is the key to a happy future... It's maddening.

-

Mario and Luigi were never exactly typical alphas. They're too short, too friendly, they cook and clean and help out around the house. Of course all those traits made them plenty popular with women and omegas (if the ladies don't find you handsome they should at least find you handy), so the occasional bully or rude comments stopped bothering them a long time ago.

It didn't take them too long to adjust to their new world, but sometimes they're still surprised by things. It's never occurred to them that koopas might have alphas and omegas. Aren't they reptiles? (No.) Although Bowser smelled sweet, they just assumed that was what the big koopas smell like (technically true) and didn't worry about it.

-

Then there's another villain trying to take over the world, and to get Bowser out of the way they dose him with hormones and trigger his heat. Mario doesn't hesitate to chase off the villain, but Luigi hangs back to make sure Bowser is okay.

Bowser is furious. Mad at the villain, mad at his own body, mad that he doesn't know any alphas he can actually trust. If there was somebody he could just fuck and get this out of his system, he'd chase that other villain down and teach them a lesson the hard way. But instead he's going to have to lock himself away until it passes, and...

And then he smells Luigi.

He's frustrated, angry, and his brain is only working on about half capacity. He growls, "Put out or get out."

And Luigi, who is still reeling from the realization that Bowser's scent wasn't a coincidence after all and is also only thinking at half capacity, says, "Are you joking or is putting out an option?"

-

Afterward, they don't talk about it. Luigi understands that it was an emergency and Bowser's not interested in him. And he's still adjusting to thinking of Bowser as an omega, so he can't exactly say he's interested in Bowser either. They defeat the villain, save the world, and Bowser seems satisfied with the beating he got to give. Job well done.

Later on Luigi sends a polite message to make sure Bowser is still all right and never hears back. In fact, nobody hears anything from Bowser for months.

When they finally run into each other again, Bowser is carrying a tiny baby koopa in his arms. Exceptionally tiny, actually, with big blue eyes and a tuft of dark hair.

Luigi is pissed. He and his brother are not quick to anger, especially not for alphas, but you don't just bear a man's child and not TELL him. He's been a papa for months and he doesn't even know the baby's NAME? Bowser didn't even ASK FOR INPUT ON IT? ITALIAN NAMES ARE BEAUTIFUL. THEY COULD HAVE NAMED HER AFTER HIS NONNA.

Bowser is absolutely flummoxed that this is the part Luigi is most upset about, but agrees that she can have a middle name.

(And then ✨awkward dad romance✨ ensues.)

[lore-of-the-mushroom-kingdom]

Clones in the Mario World

A little fact many people overlook is the cloning of characters in the Mario World through various means.

One way is through power-ups such as the Copy Flower from Mario & Luigi: Partner's In Time, and the Double Cherry from Super Mario 3D World. Another way we've seen was through Belome is able to make clones of Mario and friends.

Another way is magic like we see with the Fake Bowsers who are enemies like Goombas transformed by magic. As well as illusion copies we see characters like the Koopalings create with their magic wands.

Characters like the Yoshies, Mario, Luigi, and Wario are also able to put on special hats that allow them to transform into one another, thus technically making clones. However, these hats don't work on everyone as seen with the Goombas.

Since clones are so common this could explain that second Mario seen in Donkey Kong Junior, or that could just be Luigi. But this could also explain all the Luigis in ScareScraper and ScreamPark, these Luigis could be clones created by any of the various means listed above. We have also seen Bowser make bubble clones of the main cast before as well.

Finally is the Mini Bowsers, so something interesting we've seen them do is duplicate themselves in Mario Party 5, which would explain why there is so many of them. But there is an extra detail here. When working on this post I found something, the phrase Kuppa-sama no bunshin being used to refer to Koopa Kid. The word bunshin while it can mean offspring and the localizers seem to have interpreted it to have mean that it doesn't just mean offspring. The word bunshin can mean alter ego but primarily clone or doppleganger. The word bunshin I've seen used for specific type of Ninjutsu called bunshin no jutsu which means exactly that. So the Koopas Kids are Kuppa-sama no bunshin or Bowser's clones/dopplegangers. The cloning thing also seems to be a theme with the Mini Koopas due as seen in Mario Party 5.

[childofsardior]

I kinda feel bad for Kamek. He needs a break too. What's the likeliness of Bowser giving him a full day off and keeping his kids safe and out of trouble for just one day?

I must admit, I feel bad for him, too ^w^'

I thought about your ask for a while (thanks for asking btw!), and I ended up with the following scenario:

Kamek would be reluctant to ask Lord Bowser for an actual day off - let's be honest, the old man is the one keeping that mess of a Royal family and probably the whole Dark Lands Kingdom together, and he knows it. But I can see him loosing his patience a couple of times during their vacantion and coming to the point he's visible tired due the continuous pranks and kids disobeying on purpose.

At that point the possibilities are splitted in two: Kamek asking the King for a break (or taking a break anyway, I'm quite sure he could do that being the official tutor/caretaker of the King since he was a baby, in my HC, so he can take some liberty himself) or Bowser, noticing a dead tired Kamek and forcibly sending him away for a day. And Kamek would instantly teleport himself halfway around the world, in a perfect place to relax and being taken cared off from sunrise to sunset.

And since I loved this idea, I made a doodle too:

Kamek's Spa Day

"Come on Kamek, just go. It won't be hard for the Koopa King to take care of his own hatchlings for 24 hours!" *said Bowser while grabbing Jr. by his shell while pinning Larry to the sand with his tail*

But thanks to the Cartoony Coincidence, it ended somehow like this:

[marinerainbow]

Ok, listen. I know that there is so much potential for angst in the royal koopa family, and I love what people have done with them! Bowser favoring his only blood son and spurring resentment within the Koopalings. Ludwig and Junior having a rivalry- especially in regards to the throne. All the kids feel neglected because of their dad's emotional blockage and him focusing on taking over the world instead of family, etc. I truly love what people can do with all this royal drama and angst potential!! I want to write novelizations of some of your guys' adaptations of the koopalings + Junior and Bowser!!!

(Long post that's a positive rant incoming/my headcannons of the Koopa Royal Family incoming)

... but after watching the Mario movie, seeing the old Nintendo Power comics, and getting back into Mario, I caN'T HEADCANNON BOWSER BEING A BAD DAD OR THE KOOPA KIDS BEING MISERABLE WITH HIM! 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺 YOU'RE TELLING ME THAT THE SAME GUY WHO ANNOUNCED TO HIS WHOLE KOOPA ARMY THAT HE WAS GOING TO PROPOSE TO PEACH, THE SAME GUY WHO WROTE A WHOLE ASS LOVE SONG FOR THE PRINCESS, THE SAME GUY WHO PLAYED GOLF WITH MARIO, WOULDN'T SET HIS WHOLE KINGDOM ON FIRE FOR ALL OF HIS BABIES!?!?

Don't get me wrong, he definitely has anger issues, and I believe in MatPats Bowser's backstory theory. I'm certain there have been plenty of instances he messed up as a dad. And having a bunch of kids, sometimes some of them slip his attention- at least the first year or so when he first had them and was learning how to Dad. But I'm telling ya'll, if my Bowser ever heard any one of his kids, from his eldest Ludwig or his only darling daughter Wendy or his baby son Junior, were feeling any sort of bad, he'd be like "Oh Hell no!" And take that child out one-on-one and give them lots of love, lots of assurance, and set fire to any fool who tried to tell him that they aren't really his kid.

One time, Bowser got so mad and roared within Lemmy's presence and made the baby boy cry. To this day, after he's long made up for it, Bowser still feels so guilty and heartbroken that he did that and has vowed himself to never let himself get that angry around his kids again... Unless when it came to Mario because they know in that instance, his fury isn't directed at them.

THIS IS THE SAME GUY WHO, EVEN THOUGH BOWSER JUNIOR DISOBEYED THE SCREEN TIME ALERT IN THAT NINTENDO SWITCH PARENTAL CONTROLS VIDEO, HE HESITATED TO SHUT OFF THE CONSOLE BECAUSE HE DIDN'T WANT HIS SON DEVASTATED!!! And- And we see in Bowsers head, he imagined Junior to be sad and heartbroken! Junior is still a baby, and he's a little spoiled, so more than likely, he would have thrown a tantrum if Bowser had switched the console off. But BOWSER DIDN'T HESITATE NOT BECAUSE OF THE HEADACHE A TANTRUM WOULD CAUSE, BUT BECAUSE HE DIDN'T WANT TO BREAK HIS SONS HEART! I CAN'T EVEN 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

I'll take it this far; you guys wanna know what my headcannon on who is Bowsers' successor? Well, in my headcannon, when he adopted the koopalings and had Junior, he knew it was going to be an issue. And he loved ALL of his kids so much, he didn't want to have to choose between any of them! The rest would hate him and the chosen one! All of his babies would start fighting! So what is a koopa king to do? 🤔🤔🤔 well, as we see in Super Mario Wii and in Super Mario Bros 3, he lets his kids run the world's he takes over! They all have their individual world/kingdom to rule!!! He makes sure that A L L of his kids get to be kings and a queen! Until Mario ruins it all saves the day. If Bowser had his way, the whole world would really be family run instead of just Bowser run.

Again, I must emphasize how much I absolutely ADORE everyone else's depictions of the royal koopa family. One of my favorites is Tyrranux's dark Mario AU that I found on Deviantart years ago, and one of my favorite blogs for the koopalings asktehkoopz shows a much-more-wholesome-but-still-angsty depiction of the family. This post is not AT ALL intended to bring you guys down! This post is to show you guys how weak I am compared to you. I love angst and dark themes, but... I CAN'T do it with the koopa family! They are wholesome and loving while attempting to take over the world in my headcannon 🥺🥺🥺🥺

So, tldr; in my headcannon, outside of invading kingdoms and kidnapping princesses every other week, Bowser is a loving, emotional, a bit goofy, not so great at disciplining his kids unless it's really bad like when Bowser Jr. Turned him into a monster in Bowsers Fury, dad who would blow up his whole kingdom if any of his kids got hurt.

[toadtowngazette]

Mario Misconceptions: Baby Bowser, Bowser Jr., and Koopa Kid

This will be a new series where I discuss common misconceptions in the Mario franchise! This time I'm talking about the still very common idea of Bowser Jr. being the same entity as Baby Bowser, as well as the Koopa Kid from Mario Party causing confusion relating to these two.

Now, most seasoned Mario fans will know the difference between the two, but I will clear up any misconceptions here, with images provided, as the designs are often one of the main reasons people get confused.

In short, "Baby Bowser" is Bowser as a young koopa in the past, and "Bowser Jr." is Bowser's son in the current day and age.

Here you can see the differences between them. Note that in older depictions of Baby Bowser, he isn't wearing a bandana, meanwhile Bowser Jr. always wears one, showing the obvious differences in their design. Confusingly, Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time depicts Baby Bowser with a white (albeit featureless) bandana. This design alone is most likely the main reason so many have confused the two, since Bowser Jr. wears a similar bandana. However, Bowser Jr.'s bandana always features a face of some sort, whereas Bowser's bandana as a child has nothing drawn onto it.

Finally, I want to mention the "Koopa Kid" from the Mario Party series. Introduced in the first game in the series "Mario Party", they act as helpers to Bowser during the games.

They appear similar to Bowser, but only younger, leading some to think the main Koopa Kid (featured on the left in the image above) was either his past self, or alternatively his son, thinking it was merely an early design of Bowser Junior. The name of the Koopa Kid in some instances is actually "Baby Bowser", causing much of the confusion. They are still called "Koopa Kids" almost everywhere else, however.

While it's almost certainly confirmed that none of them are Bowser Jr. or Bowser himself, it is still unknown whether not they are related to Bowser in some form, if at all. The Super Mario Wiki mentions more specific details of this topic in the image below:

As one can see, the game's dialogue and naming has caused a large amount of the confusion. Koopa Kid's nature seems to imply they may either be split off from Bowser, like a copy of some kind, or simply just his son.

The main Koopa Kid's ability to split into three beings (featured on the right of the Koopa Kid image) as shown in Mario Party 5 may possibly imply the original's origin to be Bowser's copy. His Japanese description being 「クッパさまのぶんしん」 seems to partially support this theory, as 「分身」 can mean "one's other self" as shown in the wiki screenshot. None of this is 100% confirmed however, and is simply speculation on my part.

Koopa Kids as a whole have since stopped making appearances in games, most likely due to the redundancy of now having Bowser Jr. existing as the "Bowser's young helper" role. This is shown by the fact that any remakes of old minigames featuring them now replace them with Bowser Jr. instead. They may also have stopped appearing to not cause further confusion on this subject.

One final thing: "Koopa Kids" is a phrase that many official sources call the Koopalings, but this is largely phased out and is mostly used in the older media, although still used in other languages today. The Koopalings are not confirmed to be related to the Koopa Kids from Mario Party, despite the similar naming in some places.

I think that's all I really have to say on this topic, so I hope this cleared up any misconceptions on these characters and their relationships with one another! Thanks for reading.

Credit goes to Nintendo and all affiliated parties, and to the Super Mario Wiki.

[heloflor]

After getting into Mario with a more “fandom” kind of mindset, and more specifically getting a bigger interest in the RPG games, something that amuses me a lot are the people in youtube comments trying to argue that the Koopalings aren’t Bowser’s children.

Like, don’t get me wrong, I know Miyamoto retconned their link to Bowser. But the funny thing is, even to this day, Nintendo themselves are still writing those kids as if they were related to Bowser !

Seriously :

- In New Super Mario Bros Wii and Wii U, the Koopalings are attacking the castle along with Junior/Bowser, thus putting them on the same level of importance as Bowser and his son. The ending cutscenes do the same thing, especially the one in Wii U that just screams “they’re a family”. Plus, all the Koopalings serve as world bosses, which was kinda Junior’s role in DS, yet again putting them on the same level.

- In New Bros U, they all have their own ship. The only character to have a ship with their face on it before had always been Bowser.

- As I’ve seen someone point out in a comment section, the Koopalings are different skins of Junior in Smash Ultimate, again putting them on the same level as Bowser’s son. They might also be skins of Junior in Mario Maker 2 but I’m not sure on this one.

- In New Bros 2, they’re using a giant clown car, which is implied to belong to Bowser as Bowser and Junior are the only ones with a recurring clown car and Junior’s is too small. I doubt Bowser would let just about anybody use his car.

- On top of that, each has their own clown car in Smash.

- You know that icon/logo of his head thing that Bowser has (the one we see in games like 64 when we die) ? Bowser Junior had had one for a while now and more recently each Koopaling were given one (I think you can see them at Nintendo World in Bowser’s castle ?).

- Since they were originally created as Bowser’s children, they’re the same type of Koopa as him, and that fact hadn’t been changed in recent years. Hell, outside of Ludwig in Mario World and the fights in Superstar Saga, the Koopalings are never shown to breath fire, yet in the remake of Superstar Saga, they chose to keep the fire breath (except for Ludwig ironically enough). They could’ve easily removed the fire breath to make them more similar to Boom Boom, especially since Boom Boom has recently been shown with spikes on his shell, but they chose to keep this ability. Granted their shell plastron is different from Boom Boom, but that’s another design change Nintendo could make to set them apart from Bowser (giving them the same shell as Boom Boom to make it seem like they’re the same species, instead of keeping them as “Royal Koopas”).

In short, the Koopalings’ design wasn’t changed after the retcon, making them, Bowser and Junior the only members of that specific type of Koopa, thus implying they might be related. It’s also not helped by them having magic (which only Magikoopas and Bowser have) + being high-ranked members of the army. They might also be the only minors in the army, which raises a few eyebrows as to how they got the job (why would Bowser hire a bunch of children/teenagers to put in charge of his army ? Granted some like Ludwig, Roy and Wendy might be adults by now but I can’t bring myself to see Lemmy and Larry as anything other than teenagers).

- Saw a video of the bosses in Paper Mario Color Splash, and the minions (paratroopas) address Ludwig as “your evilness”, which is pretty reminiscent to how Bowser is called by his army, most notably by Kamek (“you grouchiness”, stuff like this)

- Baby Bowser and Bowser Jr are referred to as “young master” by Kamek. In the RPGs, the Koopalings are sometimes called “master [name]” (and “mistress Wendy”) when talked to individually. Note that both this point and the previous one are for the English version tho, not the Japanese one (no idea how they’re called in Japan).

- There’s that one Super Mario Adventures comic made in the 90s that was apparently re-released a few years ago (something like 2017-2018 ?), aka well after Nintendo retconned the kids’ relationship with Bowser (around 2012). Yet, in this comic, at least in the English version, the Koopalings are explicitly said to be Bowser’s children, with him saying he wants to marry Peach so they can have a mom + the kids calling him dad. And I don’t think they changed this dialogue in the re-release ?

- Bowser Jr’s Journey. Just, Bowser Jr’s Journey. After seeing all the cutscenes of this game, it is a crime that those kids aren’t related ! Hell there’s literally a moment where Junior pulls out the “I’ll tell dad !” card on Roy ! And let’s not forget stuff like the interactions between Junior and most notably Ludwig/Morton/Roy, Junior saying “us Koopalings” at some point thus including himself amongst that group, or stuff like him singing “I’m the one who wears the crown” making it sound like he’s saying “I’m the one chosen amongst the eight of us”. Then there’s the “family drama” vibe in the first half, the cute moments etc (Also unpopular opinion but after seeing that game, Ludwig should still be the heir of the throne. He has what it takes to be a fantastic king ! Granted Junior is still extremely young and could learn and mature.)

- Also about Jr’s Journey, the main conflict actually works a lot better if you imagine the kids to be siblings, with the Koopalings talking down to Junior because he’s the baby of the family + they resent him for taking the throne from them, while Junior is tired of his siblings babying him + he’s that kind of kid who orders the older siblings around because he thinks he has the power to do so. Them being siblings also justifies why Junior changes his mind so easily during the beach scene and then is quickly shown to be strongly attached to the others (getting happy when Iggy gets his memories back, ordering Ludwig to stay with him from now on, that whole adorable scene with Morton etc).

Meanwhile, if you see the Koopalings as nothing more than high-ranked underlings, it’s weird why they would have such an issue with Junior, the son of their king who is also their boss, and likewise it’s weird why Junior would take such issue with them only to have such a quick change of heart. Idk, I feel like if they weren’t siblings they probably wouldn’t spend that much time together, making both their whole conflict and strong bond a bit weird. And in general their interactions in this game read more as people who are widely different and wouldn’t usually be friends yet still love each other, which is the kind of dynamic many siblings tend to have (isn’t there a poll going around about whether you’d be friends with your siblings if they weren’t your siblings, and the option winning is “we wouldn’t be friends” ?)

- According to their page on the Mario wiki, during an interview revealing them in Mario Kart 8, Miyamoto used a word that means either “underlings” or “adopted children” when mentioning their relationship to Bowser (btw I know it’s the most popular headcanon anyways but them being adoptive children is just perfect. It would explain why 1. Some might be young adults while Bowser is younger than 40 depending on how old you see him, 2. Why they look so widely different from Bowser and each other, 3. Why Junior is the rightful heir).

- Also according to the wiki, the Italian and German versions of Mario and Luigi Paper Jam has mentions of them being Bowser’s kids, which I find hilarious. The translation teams didn’t give a fuck !

So yeah, when it comes to the Koopalings not being Bowser’s kids : who’s gonna tell Nintendo ?

(Side note about the whole idea of “Bowser clearly likes Junior more and neglects his older kids” : what if instead it was just that the Koopalings are teenagers/young adults now so Bowser is giving them their space + have them busy with royal duties, hence why he doesn’t spend that much time with them ? Plus, in all the examples that put the Koopalings on the same level as Junior, it’s pretty evident that they have the same privileges)