I loved them as a kid but Bob Hoskins and John Leguizamo took them to a whole new level for me lol interestingly enough, I felt that the Mario Bros movie also drew some inspiration from this show too for e.g. they were Italian-American and lived in a Brooklyn apartment and in the movie they just so happened to live in a Brooklyn apartment too
To me, Lou and Danny will always be the best voice renditions of Mario and Luigi respectively. A shame they couldn’t be the voices in the games themselves.
Well the early 8-bit games I don't think they had the ability to do that kind of voice stuff in them compared to the later games. Not sure when Captain Lou died, but something tells me that he would be the last person to say Issa me, Mario. Although I knew early on it was Lou Albano, one of my classmates in high school tried to ruin a childhood memory by claiming that in fact was Ron Jeremy playing Mario.
I definitely disagree with them being one of the best, Martinet perfected the voices, but Lou and Danny are absolutely a close 2nd. They did a great job portraying the personalities of the duo, and unlike the other DIC Mario voices, Captain Lou wasn't just some gruff sounding brooklyn guy, he sounded warm and friendly like a Mario voice should.
As an 80s #GenX kid, I raised my own kids with plenty of things from the 80s and 90s. They really enjoyed the Super Mario Bros Super Show, and it definitely stood the test of time.
Older millennials remember it fondly too. We were just fairly young at the time. For whatever reason tho, later syndication I personally saw had the live action parts still in them, so I remember it even better from those reruns.
As a kid i LOVED this show SOOOOO much because it was (and to me it STILL is) the most faithful TV show adaption of the NES Super Mario Bros. games. Heck, they even included enemies, power-ups AND sounds from the actual games. And the live action segments were awesome. I love their Brooklyn basement apartment. And all the interactive things worked into the set.
captain lou was probably the most wholesome individual to emerge from the wrestling scene in the 70's and 80's. he often portrayed a bad guy but he was about as good of a person you could ever hope for.
@@bezoticallyyours83 Yee, it's because he dropped out of actual on stage wrestling fairly early on but became famous just due to his personality and skills as a manager.
I loved when he was a 'heel' (i.e. villain) manager for Don Muraco. There's a famous clip of Lou feeding Don a meatball sub while he brutalises a jobber. And then after the match, Lou slips on the sub and falls on his bottom. Muraco has said that was a legit slip and not planned. You can see Don quickly looks away from the camera as he burst out laughing. 😄
When did it become popular to call other grown men Wholesome?🤣 What is this weird shit I'm noticing online. I have never seen so many people use this word to describe other people, let alone other grown men...lol! And I'm in my mid 40s and was raised by a mother who was born in 1918 and father who was born in 1925. So my vocabulary is quite extensive.
Finally someone that grew up in the 80s made a video on what it's like watching the Mario cartoons and other video game media back then. A real treat for the 90s and 2000s babies! Thank you!
My thoughts exactly while running through the DVDs. It's hard to do a full rewatch, but luckily there are some gems in there. I hated Koopa Klaus thanks to Toad, but I liked the more tender than usual live action segment.
Captain Lou and Danny Wells will always be the real Mario Brothers to me! R.I.P. You two. You made mine, and hundreds of other childhoods that much better!
Great video, but you got a few things wrong. Like DiC didn't cancel the show, Nintendo did according to Danny Wells. Also, some early home video releases of the show still had the live action segments in tact. (At least, in America.) The American DVD boxsets had to exclude 4 live action segments though due to legal issues. (Possibly with the guest stars.) There were also actually 65 episodes, if you count the 13 Zelda episodes. (Which still had the Brothers via the live action skits.) Princess Peach was originally called "Princess Toadstool," outside Japan. (Before renaming her Peach, her Japanese name for Super Mario 64.) Meanwhile, Bowser was originally called "Koopa," or "King Koopa" in Japan, and as a result was occasionally called that in the merchandise, and instruction manual. According to show writer Perry Martin, in regards to Indiana Joe. "All I can tell you is, that’s not how I wrote it. In my script, the character is described as “a dashing caricature of Harrison Ford in a leather jacket and a fedora hat.” But when the designs came in from the art department, the guy was faceless. At the time, I assumed that meant his face had not been finalized and the artists were still working on it. But if the show went out that way, then it was probably because of legal concerns. Perhaps DIC was afraid of getting sued by Harrison Ford or George Lucas. I think they could have come up with a better solution, but again, that was out of my hands."
I remember that episode and I thought, as a kid, it was done that way on purpose. Knowing the information you shared that’s pretty embarrassing for DIC and Nintendo. Someone should’ve drawn ANY face on the character. Unprofessional!
Exactly. I came here to make the same comment. King Koopa was actually King Koopa and Princess Toadstool was actually Princess Toadstool as gamers would know.
You mentioned the “Mario Bros” commercial as the first live action Mario, but it’s also worth mentioning that the first animated Mario was in the Saturday Morning Ruby Spears cartoon, SATURDAY SUPERCADE that featured 7 minute segments of DONKEY KONG cartoons withMario voiced by Peter Cullen - yes, Optimus Prime, obviously higher pitched.
Yep, and the titular character of Donkey Kong himself was voiced by classic children's entertainer Soupy Sales with Frank Welker voicing Donkey Kong Jr. in some segments. I still find it amusingly trippy that Peter "Optimus Prime" Cullen himself was originally the voice for Mario.
Personally, I feel that a lot of elements of this show still persist in Mario media today, albeit somewhat subtly. For as good or bad, or cheesy or cringe it might be today, this was still kinda the foundation for adapting Mario. I think the live action segment could have evolved more if they kept with it through SM3 and SMW; becuase those segments have a charm to them becuase Lou and Danny have such chemistry and as you say have a sorta 'classic comedy duo' feel to them like Abbot and Costello.
I agree, but sadly, DiC made two mistakes that killed the live action segments: recasting the voices of Mario and Luigi (who are also no longer with us) and deciding to package the SMB3 and SMW cartoons with the second and third season of Captain N.
@Andy Witmyer what first made me realize it is that a moment in Mario Sunshine where he's dreaming about pasta. Mario being pasta obsessed shows up is several games and is also one of Cartoon Mario's main personality traits.
I honestly miss the old school Mario back story; that he an Luigi were plumbers from Brooklyn and that Bowser was an evil wizard who turned the mushroom people into blocks.
That's sad. I remember watching that show as a kid along with Zelda too. And I liked the live action segments that made it what it was. Yeah, I'm 39 now & don't remember everything that I watched as a kid, but I do remember that I loved the show. Thanks Minty yet again for showing people about shows/movies us old folk grew up with. May the actors rest in peace. Keep up the good work.
Thank you for this, Minty.. I was 12 when this came out and it was one of my absolute favorites. This look back gave me such a good wave of nostalgia and good vibes, and it's good to know the live action segments were restored on DVD.
From what I read, the "Duck" at the end of Albano's "Do the Mario" was actually him losing his balance, and catching it. The producers decided to just leave it in. "Bowser" was likely an issue as a famous Doo-Wop singer still big enough at the time was "Bowser". Also, the Princess's name was Toadstool as seen in everything up to SMB3. Her actual name is "Peach Toadstool".
It took me YEARS to figure out why that damn phrase was stuck in my head, and where it was from lol Apparently Club Mario episodes on in the background while I got ready for school in 5th grade had an effect.
The naming of the characters in the show is in line with the western release of the games at the time. Princess Peach was only known as Peach in Japan. She was called Princess Toadstool in both manuals of SMB1 & SMB2 in the USA. The same goes for Bowser. He was called “King Koopa” in the first game in the USA. The N64 was the first time westerners were informed of the Japanese names being canon. The opening letter to Mario in Mario 64 is signed “Princess Toadstool, Peach.”
Best I can tell though later on with newer gaming systems and new games there was two separate characters Princess Peach and Princess Toadstool particularly later versions of Mario Kart as well as the table top Paper Mario RPG
You're right about Princess Toadstool/Peach, but Bowser was called "Bowser, King of the Koopa" in the US SMB1 manual. Calling him Koopa was more in line with the Japanese version of the game. Renaming him Bowser was a Nintendo of America localization change.
For a long time I thought people forgot about these guys. Their skits were always hilarious and entertaining as a kid and would watch the Nintendo shows early morning. Thank you for the video
I definitely remember this show! The live actors always made a good effort! I liked the dynamic between Link and Zelda. I liked the portrayal of Zelda as a pragmatic and brave woman who would fight alongside Link to protect Hyrule.
I didn’t realize how old this show was as a kid, I grew up renting the show from Redbox, and Netflix. It definitely has a place in my heart and especially the dance at the end. Me and my brother always did it along or sung it. I never realized how janky some of the show was ahaha…. I still have allot of the show on DVD!
Sgt. Slaughter: "Can you guys hurry it up? I'm double-parked out here." Luigi: "How can you be double-parked? It's a one-way street!" Sgt. Slaughter: "I parked a TANK on top of a CHEVY!" Best joke that took me way too long to understand, WELL into adulthood before it dawned on me.
Man, this show will forever be one of my favorites and one I grew up with. Albano and Wells will forever be THE original Super Mario Bros. Showed this show to my kids and they love it to this day. Great video Minty, my hat’s off to you on this one!
I was happy to recently find it for free on Roku, and showed it to my 4 year old great nephew, and he loves it as well, and I told him it was based on a video game I grew up playing, and then he wanted to play it as well, so I started him off with the OG Super Mario Bros, and it was funny, and cute watching him trying to figure it out as I did, and now every time I babysit him, all he wants to do is either watch Mario, or play one of the games, and for that Captain Lou, and Danny Wells will always be my Mario, and Luigi.
Always so informative and your editing is wonderful in this. The sound fx and titles are so nostalgiac. Thanks for doing you and doing the Mario Minty.
I loved this show growing up. There has always been something about Mario Bros I have always really liked since it was the first video game I really got into when I was growing up. I still think about that game and how I used to play it all the time and loved it. I really liked it when they would show the Zelda series on here also. I never really knew when they would show Zelda on TV and always tuned in hoping it would be on but then it would not, and I would be really bummed. I never really knew it was only shown once a week till you mentioned that in this video. When it would come on I was always really happy lol. Great job on this and explaining this in such detail.
I remember watching this as a kid and loving it. Especially the live action stuff. So when Mario's Bros 3 came out me and my friends wanted to know where the "real Mario and Luigi" were as we saw them as the real ones.
I'm a early 80's child and I couldn't agree with you more on everything u said about this. I smiled and nodded my head the whole time. What great memories!
Same. There was something magical about seeing the elements of the game on tv. Each week you'd wonder what Mario things you would see. Maybe a hammer brother, maybe a spiney.
Captain Lou and Danny Wells will always be Mario and Luigi to me as well. I grew up while they were airing, and they've always stuck with me. Same for The Legend of Zelda, and Captain N, although we couldn't get the station Captain N played on the vast majority of the time, so the only time I got to see it was when the station came through. For those younger than me; "Station" is "Channel" and I grew up during a time when the stations we got depended on your location, and whether you had cable tv. Anyway, in adulthood, I decided to get Super Mario Bros. Super Show, The Adventures of Super Mario 3, Captain N, and The Legend of Zelda box sets. The Captain N set is complete, unlike some other versions which are missing the episodes with Link and Zelda. The way I kept in touch with Zelda and Mario when I couldn't watch it anymore, was through a promotional VHS tape that was sold to get people interested in the shows. It started off with Mario (the Elvira Episode, minus animation), then switched to Zelda (Sing for the Unicorn; imo the best episode), and finished out with Mario again. The Mario segments were from two different episodes I believe, and were only the live action parts. It was presented as though Mario Super Show was showing off Zelda, rather than a Mario cartoon. Seeing Mario throw his popcorn when Luigi scared him, always made me laugh. Later seeing Mario unravel mummy-luigi was also funny.
That 'Well excuuuuusse me princess' depiction of Link cracks me up every time. Even as a kid I was like WTF? And his facial expression hahaha That should definitely be his Canon persona. Some patronising runt. Modders need to start including him in romhacks or fangames. And Elvira in the Super Show?! Wtf?
i was lucky enough to meet capt lou irl, my old boss (from 14 yrs ago) was friends with capt lou. he was the coolest and genuine person. inspiring moment for sure. rip capt lou, much love and respect sir. sleep easy my friend
Man, this is my childhood. I always felt so lucky to be able to catch it in the mornings, and was so happy to have a VHS of Koopzilla. I was so happy to find it years later, with the live sections included, and be able to do the Mario all over again. May Captain Lou and Danny Wells RIP, they are my favorite actors that live on in my memories.
I remember just BEING happy finding the DvDs for these for the first time. Like "Holy crap they ACTUALLY made a tv show for them too!?" And yeah for the lomgest time, I NEVER questioned the live action segments or the lack of mario or luigis then Iconic voices being by Charels Martines were instead by a pro wrestler and a stage performer, but I soaked it up and loved every second. Looking back, its still a blast! Its a medium that brings the casual strangeness of the world of Mario and just runs with it. And yes, Lous "Do the Mario" is an iconic time-killer staple passtime to this day. Rest in Peace, you legend
She was always Peach in Japan, but Toadstool in America up until Mario 64. (The same thing happened with Sonic the Hedgehog's nemesis, Dr. Eggman. In America, his name was changed to Dr. Robotnik, but eventually they switched to the Japanese name.)
I remember one Friday ordering a pizza, because I would be home alone. The pizza was super late, so it was free. Plus just in time to watch the weekly Zelda episode. Good times.
I was already familiar about Capt. Lou Albano because his name was in the Rock n' Wrestling cartoon. I was only disappointed he didn't do any wrestling moves in the show as far as I can remember
Minty, that's would have been the best thing on TV back then to see a Castlevania short. That was one of my favorite franchises. I just wanna say thank you, from the bottom of my heart to making my childhood memories alive and well again. You're simply amazing.
Remember watching this is and had forgotten how good it was.Captain Lou and Danny Wells known actors and performers before the show with all the guest stars,pretty damn cool
My weirdest, most vivid memory of the Super Mario Bros Super Show was watching it one December afternoon, when the power went out. A local electrical plant exploded, and due in part of the place my father worked being nearby suffered damage, the family was worried for him. Thankfully, he made it home that evening safely. And now, this feels like a Stickerbush Symphony checkpoint moment.
I grew up with this show and the legend of Zelda and I absolutely love the shows! Captain Lou and Danny Wells will always be the best Mario and Luigi and keep on doing the Mario in heaven! R.I.P Captain Lou and Danny Wells!
The live action segments were even better than the cartoon. Lou Albano and Danny Wells were fun as Mario & Luigi. The guest stars like Elvira & Sergeant Slaughter were cool. "CLUB MARIO" was awful.
Love this show growing up. Thank you for the memories of watching it. As soon as I found it on DVD I had to buy it. I still watch it to this day. Keep up the amazing work Minty.
Another childhood show that no modern day studio could ever replicate the true magic of. Another reason I'm looking forward to the new movie. As trailers make it feel like a blend of real and animated charm from super show.
I LOVED this show as a kid. I had a VHS tape with a few of these live segments and a Zelda episode called "The Ringer." I was terrified of the SMBSS episode where Luigi was possessed by the green slime. It legitimately frightened me and I had to go out of the room whenever it came on, lol.
These guys will always be the real Mario brothers to me. I still got some of the vhs tapes. The dvd release removed the songs for some reason replacing them with stock music, probably a copyright thing. Tho the Norwegian dvd release kept all the music, it`s not the same without "rolling down the river" and "shaddap your face".
Yeah, the same issue plagues Captain N. At some point they lost the rights, so most of the versions you can find have some generic, royalty-free music limping along in the background, instead of Billy Idol's "White Wedding" or whatever other thematically appropriate song they picked for that episode.
I loved this show as a kid! I think it only aired once in its entirely on cable and then reruns but it disappeared once the other shows came about. I agree, it was so cool seeing live action and then the cartoon. I didn't mind the laugh track cuz sitcoms were the prime time entertainment at the time so it made us kids feel common as adults.
I remember getting the box set of this show at target when I was a kid and I absolutely loved it. I was already a big mario fan from when I first played the GameCube back in the day so watching the whole show on DVD was a blast.
Dic was well known for mixing cartoons and live action well before the Super Mario Bros Super Show. They first did Kidd Video in 1984 with Saban Entertainment. It was about a live-action band who gets kidnapped by a cartoon guy called the Master Blaster and taken to a cartoon world called the Flip Side. It also had live-action music videos.
I grew up too watching this show and I LOVED it! I have the DVD collection. It was a show I still today enjoy. I don't watch it hardly anymore but that doesn't mean I wouldn't watch it if I saw it on the tube. I too had hoped to of gotten to meet both Lou and Danny but never did. It would of been a dream come true. I even can remember having a Super Mario Bros. cake for one of my birthdays. It came with a plastic figure. Soooo damn cool as a kid when your cake comes with a toy. It was of Mario on a vine. Like he was either climbing it or sliding down. I was big fan of the games of them then and now. I can't wait for the movie to come out. I'm excited!
I got to be in the audience for the Koopa show, I remember how tiny the set and audience section were (I mean, you could see how small it was on the show, but actually being there it seemed even smaller). I also remember that those of us who got the troopa helmets to wear, had to give it to someone who didn't have it, during the commercial breaks. They invited me to be in the audience after I submitted a drawing to their art contest.
I loved this show back when I was eight, and yep you described how the show would go thorough the weeks M-F the super Mario bros cartoons but Friday's would be Legend of Zelda, boy what a treat. Minty thank you for reviewing this late 80's childhood classic.
The super show was one of my favorites. As a kid I always wondered why it disappeared. Also, as a hue WWF fan I remember seeing Albano and getting excited to see Captain Lou playing Mario
Great video as always! If I may add to your #5 entry, Maurice Lamarche would go on to voice Inspector Gadget in future DiC projects. Also, for entry #2, here in the U.S. of A., The series' first DVD box set (released by Shout Factory) did include the live action segments. However, the later budget friendly release (released by NCircle Entertainment) showed just the cartoons.
Straight from wiki: In Japan, Peach's name has always been Princess Peach (ピーチ姫, Pīchi-Hime, Princess Peach) since her debut in the original Super Mario Bros. in 1985, but she was localized as "Princess Toadstool" in the English-language manual. The English version of Yoshi's Safari, released in 1993, contained the first usage of the name "Peach" in the Western world, though she was called Princess Toadstool in Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3, released in 1994. In Super Mario 64, released in 1996, she uses both names in a letter addressed to Mario, signing it "Peach". From the 1996 game Mario Kart 64 onward, the name Peach is used in Western versions.
yeah, how the fuck he think she's been peach in the west in the early 90s and 80s? She was first called Peach in Yoshi's Safari thought, they're kinda wrong.
Ever since learning her name as being Peach, I've always considered Toadstool to be her last name. Especially since I feel like the word Princess is seldom used with the name Peach. It's usually either Princess Toadstool, or Peach, which to me implies her full name as being Peach Toadstool.
I always took the live action sequences as taking place after Mario and Luigi had returned from their adventures in the Mushroom Kingdom, therefore they were older. I was a teenager, probably a little older than the target audience for the show when it aired, but I enjoyed it. Hell, I'm 50 now and still consider myself a kid.
Hey Minty, Pixel Game Squad just found a treasure trove of stuff from this and so many other DIC shows from the ‘80’s/‘90’s. Everything from production cells to pre-production sketch’s. Model sheets and so much more. Hopefully you can get something from the sale they have coming up soon.
Whats amazing is that I only love this show cause it was played in reruns growing up on YTV in canada, and ya know what they didnt show? The follow up cartoons. I'd like to think that they knew the charm was from the live action segments giving us kids something tangible while also entertaining us with the animation was what worked. Whatever it was, it worked cause it gave a second generation an appreciation for the show.
Captain Lou slipping at the "Just Like That" part of the song is why I sing that phrase to this day, in his voice. It caught my attention when he slipped.
Back in '89-'91, my grandparents watched me on the afternoons. Grandma worked. Grandpa? Oh, he stayed home, and he was fun. He'd say "you can watch whatever you can find until Matlock comes on. When it's Matlock time, give me the tv remote and then you get it back after Matlock". One of the shows we wound up watching together was the Mario Brothers Super Show. As the years went on, one wish I honestly had was to meet Lou Albano so I could do something personal. No, not seek an autograph. I wanted to shake his hand and thank him for those wonderful afternoons spent with my grandfather. For me, those days were pure magic.
I love this show to absolute death. As the Nerdtendo I am, I watched this show constantly as a kid, and would always jump off a chair whenever Bowser would jump off the cliff. Still the best TV show ever(with jackass as close competition)
I absolutely loved this show. I remember I would always watch it after school as a kid and I would never miss The Legend of Zelda every Friday. I also would always "do the Mario" along with Captain Lou at the end of each episode.
I remember me and younger brother would watch Super Mario Brothers Super Show when it aired on TV in the 90's after school. It was fun seeing Lou Albano and Danny Wells as Mario and Luigi in live action. They will always be Mario and Luigi to me.
Janet Jackson’s Black Cat was used as the base for the original intro song before the one we all know and love came about. I swear, I can’t find anything about this on the internet, but it went, “We’ll take you anywhere you want to go….”
As a kid I enjoyed this show, felt like I could rarely catch it on tv though. The actors played a great job in my opinion considering how fresh it was. Very glad this show existed ^-^
I love this show! I’m so glad this show is getting the respect it deserves yes it’s cheesy but that’s the charm.Captain Lou and Danny wells were great together and When I think of the Mario brothers I think of them.
Same here, The Super Mario Bros. Super Show was one of my favorites growing up. Mario, to date has had five different voice actors as of the 2023 Super Mario Movie. Charles Martinett being the fourth person to voice Mario. I also liked the Super Mario 3 and Super Mario World cartoons but they werre missing something when they didn't have Captain Lou Albano and Danny Wells as Mario and Luigi. That being said Walker Boone didn't do a bad job as Mario.
Each episode featured two main theme songs used during its broadcast: "Plumber Rap" - composed by Shuki Levy,[23] the theme was performed by Albano and Wells - first to open up the show, and repeated again to open up the Super Mario Bros. animated segments. "Do the Mario" - performed by Albano in front of a greenscreen of the animated show's backgrounds, it acted as the closing theme for The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, and was composed around the original "Overworld" theme from the Super Mario Bros. video game.
The opening raps were absolutely not performed by Albano and Wells. It was 100% the Wayans Brothers. I don't know how anyone could listen to them and believe otherwise.
13:17 I always noticed the final step as well, It was always clear to me then, and even now, that it's just Lou Albano recovering from almost losing his balance after landing poorly in the ending jump.
Maurice LaMarche has had a pretty incredible career. These days, he's probably best known as the voice of Kif from Futurama (as well as providing voices for a lot of the lesser known characters such as 1 of the sewer mutants and the Egyptian inspired alien high priest). However, the first time I became aware of him was for a short lived series called The Chimp Channel (not to be confused with my channel, The Neon Chimp Channel) where he voiced TV Executive Harry Waller (physically played by a Chimpanzee called Chubbs who sadly ended up living in a dodgy roadside zoo, last I heard he had been rescued and was taken to a sanctuary, I have found a video of a Chimpanzee called Chubbs in a sanctuary in Texas who appears to be the right age so it's possible he may have had a happier outcome than many Chimps used in entertainment).
thank you for bringing back some of my best television memories, I have shared this with my daughters, and my eldest daughter has shared it with her kids too, thanks again, please keep up the great work, and stay safe, and also Merry Christmas
I remember watching this show at 10 years old and enjoying it. Fridays with the Zelda cartoons were my favorite. I think they may have rerun the live action portions in the US for at least a little while, but I might be wrong. As for the live action costumes, they actually were wearing blue shirts, albeit a light blue. I think they did this on purpose. In 1989 there were still a good number of black and white TVs out there, and the dark blue would not have contrasted very well against the red and green overalls on a black and white set. I don't have any real knowledge of the show to base this on, but that is my educated guess. Thanks for the nostalgia Minty!
I think one aspect that made this show so unique and interesting is because the live action segments kinda played into giving it a non-linear narrative experience. The live action segments we got to see were, fairly obviously, supposed to be in the past before Mario and Luigi got sucked into the Mushroom Kingdom and having them playing side by side along with the 'present' cartoon sequences gave it more depth, with dare I say almost a sense of lore. I remember as a kid watching this, I was always wondering and theorizing if there was going to be a final episode that tied the live action and cartoon segments together with the incident of them finding the warp pipe. XD
I remember my favorite episode, it was the one where bowser and his minions were vampiric and wanted to drink all of the marinara sauce! Didnt hold up very well...
I remember this one! It was so funny! My favorite was when Koopa was forcing Princess Toadstool to marry him and in return he’d let the Mario Brother’s go and release her toadstool subjects from being frozen as rocks. Of course he crossed his fingers behind his back when he agreed. They played the “White Wedding” song by Billy Idol in that episode!
Yeah, that's really weird that the live action segments were taken out of so many home releases. Even the Netflix version has the live segments still in it. Since the show originally came out in fall 1989, it did not have a lot of source material. It has only Super Mario Bros 1 and Super Mario Bros 2 (and remember, that's the USA version of Super Mario Bros 2, not the Japanese version) to go off of. Therefore, the show mainly depends on fairly tales, well-known intellectual properties (Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Mad Max, Karate Kid, etc.) and other creative common intellectual properties. And they actually made it work. Since all 52 episodes are self-contained (because kids can't follow overarching plot lines), the directors and producers did not need to connect all the stories. Thus, episodes can merely take one of those intellectual properties, insert Mario in place of the main character, insert Luigi, Toad and Princess Toadstool in place of support characters, insert King Koopa in place of the antagonist, and you have your episode easily written for you. The episode pretty much writes itself. I hate to call it lazy, but that's what it really is. You can see it in other aspects, too. For example, scene and setting panels are reused constantly. As another example, it was quite easy to find animation bloopers. Mario's voice would come out of Luigi's mouth and vice versa. Mario and Luigi would sometimes color swap. I know this was a quick cash grab by taking a popular intellectual property and turning into another form of media, so I don't want to be too critical, yet at the same time, I do. There have been other video games turned television episodes that have done a wonderful job of it. This show was mainly pandering to you typical 80s/90s kid, from the video game property itself to putting in other icons of the 80s, like rap (which was the big, new thing in the day). Then again, though, those are more recent than Super Mario Super Show, so I guess television had a lot to learn about adapting a video game into a television series. Overall, I had fun watching the show. I enjoyed joking that Super Mario Super Show predicted staples in future Mario games (for example, I jokingly thought the one motocross episode predicted bikes added to Mario Kart). I enjoyed the guest celebrities reminding me who was famous in the 80s and 90s. I enjoyed finding out that many of the voice actors of this show ended up voicing video game characters. Perhaps this show got their foot in the door for this. I've heard that the Mario cartoon based off of Super Mario Bros 3 and Super Mario World are much better because they have more source material with which they could work. Perhaps I will check them out another time. As for now, I'm looking forward to Illumination movie, which will have more source material to work with (hopefully).
I actually loved the show, even if I thought the live action versions of Mario and Luigi looked weird. Just loved seeing the characters brought to life... and the song is still great XD
I used to watch this show when I was little, and liked both the silly humor of the live action and the cheesiness of the cartoons. Though, when I was reintroduced to it through the "F you, Luigi" clip (I know he says "thank you"), it made me want to revisit to see any adult humor I might have missed.
this show was great in my childhoog rewatched it last year it still holds up i also remember those songs like surfing bird and more in the show but the rewatch torrent i watched had all of them removed and had just random sounds or music instead for some reason
This show was my childhood. It even intertwined my other love for pro wrestling as well. Albano was a great manager back then too. And the timing after the Rock N Wrestling Era was too perfect for this. And seeing some of my favorite wrestlers like Roddy Piper and Sgt Slaughter on Super Mario was the best thing ever!
Also Princess Toadstool was Peach's original name in the States. So that's why they called her Toadstool in the cartoons. SMB3 also calls her by Toadstool. US didn't know the name "Peach" until Super Mario 64.
I love love loved this show growing up as an early 80’s baby. We’d play Mario Brothers on the elementary school playground! I always wanted to be Princess Toadstool but the boys never picked me 😭. I remember sometimes in the show the voices didn’t match which characters were speaking and I used to get so annoyed! Also, I was eagerly waiting every episode for Princess Toadstool to make an appearance in the live action segment and I was so heartbroken she never did. I guess they were supposed to be the Mario Brother’s BEFORE they get sucked down the drain? 🤷🏻♀️
Captain Lou and Danny Wells, one of the best Mario brothers duos of all time. R.I.P.
Bob hoskins and John ligiuzamo were pretty fucking badass
Agreed, Captain Lou, and Danny Wells will always be my Mario and Luigi. 👍
This was a stupid show. Lol
@@chocolateface4885 they had to be seeing as they were drunk during the entirr shoot!!!"
I loved them as a kid but Bob Hoskins and John Leguizamo took them to a whole new level for me lol interestingly enough, I felt that the Mario Bros movie also drew some inspiration from this show too for e.g. they were Italian-American and lived in a Brooklyn apartment and in the movie they just so happened to live in a Brooklyn apartment too
To me, Lou and Danny will always be the best voice renditions of Mario and Luigi respectively. A shame they couldn’t be the voices in the games themselves.
Well the early 8-bit games I don't think they had the ability to do that kind of voice stuff in them compared to the later games. Not sure when Captain Lou died, but something tells me that he would be the last person to say Issa me, Mario.
Although I knew early on it was Lou Albano, one of my classmates in high school tried to ruin a childhood memory by claiming that in fact was Ron Jeremy playing Mario.
@@eddieschwab864Ron Jeremy did in fact play Mario for a Porno Parody
@@eddieschwab864 Captain Lou Albano died in 2009. I've read it was a heart attack.
I definitely disagree with them being one of the best, Martinet perfected the voices, but Lou and Danny are absolutely a close 2nd. They did a great job portraying the personalities of the duo, and unlike the other DIC Mario voices, Captain Lou wasn't just some gruff sounding brooklyn guy, he sounded warm and friendly like a Mario voice should.
As an 80s #GenX kid, I raised my own kids with plenty of things from the 80s and 90s. They really enjoyed the Super Mario Bros Super Show, and it definitely stood the test of time.
It sure did! Mario was/is a huge part of my childhood.
As a Xennials I watch this as a kid after school at 3 pm and Fridays was legend of Zelda
That's how my father raised me as well. So much 80s culture which I eventually caught onto and now love
Older millennials remember it fondly too. We were just fairly young at the time. For whatever reason tho, later syndication I personally saw had the live action parts still in them, so I remember it even better from those reruns.
great parenting my father did the same also and now im obsessed with even the original star trek
As a kid i LOVED this show SOOOOO much because it was (and to me it STILL is) the most faithful TV show adaption of the NES Super Mario Bros. games. Heck, they even included enemies, power-ups AND sounds from the actual games. And the live action segments were awesome. I love their Brooklyn basement apartment. And all the interactive things worked into the set.
Idk I would say super mario bros 3 was the more accurate show. No idea what the super mario world one was doing though
Agreed 💯%
captain lou was probably the most wholesome individual to emerge from the wrestling scene in the 70's and 80's. he often portrayed a bad guy but he was about as good of a person you could ever hope for.
I never actually saw his wrestling, but I did see him in Cyndi Lauper videos alongside this show.
@@bezoticallyyours83 Yee, it's because he dropped out of actual on stage wrestling fairly early on but became famous just due to his personality and skills as a manager.
As wholesome as Juice WRLD too
I loved when he was a 'heel' (i.e. villain) manager for Don Muraco. There's a famous clip of Lou feeding Don a meatball sub while he brutalises a jobber. And then after the match, Lou slips on the sub and falls on his bottom. Muraco has said that was a legit slip and not planned. You can see Don quickly looks away from the camera as he burst out laughing. 😄
When did it become popular to call other grown men Wholesome?🤣 What is this weird shit I'm noticing online. I have never seen so many people use this word to describe other people, let alone other grown men...lol! And I'm in my mid 40s and was raised by a mother who was born in 1918 and father who was born in 1925. So my vocabulary is quite extensive.
Finally someone that grew up in the 80s made a video on what it's like watching the Mario cartoons and other video game media back then. A real treat for the 90s and 2000s babies! Thank you!
Loved this show as a kid. The cartoons were OK, but the live action segments were phenomenal.
My thoughts exactly while running through the DVDs. It's hard to do a full rewatch, but luckily there are some gems in there. I hated Koopa Klaus thanks to Toad, but I liked the more tender than usual live action segment.
Yeah I didnt remember much of anything about the cartoons, the live action segments are what I remembered.
Fr. If those two weren't really Italian plumbers, the pre-teen me didn't want to know
Captain Lou and Danny Wells will always be the real Mario Brothers to me!
R.I.P. You two. You made mine, and hundreds of other childhoods that much better!
Great video, but you got a few things wrong.
Like DiC didn't cancel the show, Nintendo did according to Danny Wells. Also, some early home video releases of the show still had the live action segments in tact. (At least, in America.)
The American DVD boxsets had to exclude 4 live action segments though due to legal issues. (Possibly with the guest stars.)
There were also actually 65 episodes, if you count the 13 Zelda episodes. (Which still had the Brothers via the live action skits.)
Princess Peach was originally called "Princess Toadstool," outside Japan. (Before renaming her Peach, her Japanese name for Super Mario 64.) Meanwhile, Bowser was originally called "Koopa," or "King Koopa" in Japan, and as a result was occasionally called that in the merchandise, and instruction manual.
According to show writer Perry Martin, in regards to Indiana Joe.
"All I can tell you is, that’s not how I wrote it. In my script, the character is described as “a dashing caricature of Harrison Ford in a leather jacket and a fedora hat.” But when the designs came in from the art department, the guy was faceless. At the time, I assumed that meant his face had not been finalized and the artists were still working on it. But if the show went out that way, then it was probably because of legal concerns.
Perhaps DIC was afraid of getting sued by Harrison Ford or George Lucas. I think they could have come up with a better solution, but again, that was out of my hands."
I remember that episode and I thought, as a kid, it was done that way on purpose. Knowing the information you shared that’s pretty embarrassing for DIC and Nintendo. Someone should’ve drawn ANY face on the character. Unprofessional!
Exactly. I came here to make the same comment. King Koopa was actually King Koopa and Princess Toadstool was actually Princess Toadstool as gamers would know.
I always just thought that Indiana Joe's faceless face was just an artistic choice. I strangely never questioned it.
@@ObiWanBillKenobi lol came here to make the same Princess Toadstool comment
💯💯💯
I loved this show so much. It still holds a special place in my heart.
You mentioned the “Mario Bros” commercial as the first live action Mario, but it’s also worth mentioning that the first animated Mario was in the Saturday Morning Ruby Spears cartoon, SATURDAY SUPERCADE that featured 7 minute segments of DONKEY KONG cartoons withMario voiced by Peter Cullen - yes, Optimus Prime, obviously higher pitched.
Yep, and the titular character of Donkey Kong himself was voiced by classic children's entertainer Soupy Sales with Frank Welker voicing Donkey Kong Jr. in some segments. I still find it amusingly trippy that Peter "Optimus Prime" Cullen himself was originally the voice for Mario.
Personally, I feel that a lot of elements of this show still persist in Mario media today, albeit somewhat subtly. For as good or bad, or cheesy or cringe it might be today, this was still kinda the foundation for adapting Mario. I think the live action segment could have evolved more if they kept with it through SM3 and SMW; becuase those segments have a charm to them becuase Lou and Danny have such chemistry and as you say have a sorta 'classic comedy duo' feel to them like Abbot and Costello.
I agree, but sadly, DiC made two mistakes that killed the live action segments: recasting the voices of Mario and Luigi (who are also no longer with us) and deciding to package the SMB3 and SMW cartoons with the second and third season of Captain N.
@Andy Witmyer what first made me realize it is that a moment in Mario Sunshine where he's dreaming about pasta. Mario being pasta obsessed shows up is several games and is also one of Cartoon Mario's main personality traits.
I honestly miss the old school Mario back story; that he an Luigi were plumbers from Brooklyn and that Bowser was an evil wizard who turned the mushroom people into blocks.
That's sad. I remember watching that show as a kid along with Zelda too. And I liked the live action segments that made it what it was.
Yeah, I'm 39 now & don't remember everything that I watched as a kid, but I do remember that I loved the show. Thanks Minty yet again for showing people about shows/movies us old folk grew up with. May the actors rest in peace.
Keep up the good work.
The REAL voice of Mario.
RIP Legends.
Thank you for this, Minty.. I was 12 when this came out and it was one of my absolute favorites. This look back gave me such a good wave of nostalgia and good vibes, and it's good to know the live action segments were restored on DVD.
Hi! I like your profile pic and the girl's bangs!
This show has a special place in my heart... Thank you Minty...
same
Same here, and I'm glad it's free to watch on Roku, as I recntly showed it to my 4 year old great nephew who loves it as well.
@@CommodoreFan64 dude that is awesome
@@CommodoreFan64 that's great dude i think i'm going to do the same thing i'll show it to my nephew as well
From what I read, the "Duck" at the end of Albano's "Do the Mario" was actually him losing his balance, and catching it. The producers decided to just leave it in.
"Bowser" was likely an issue as a famous Doo-Wop singer still big enough at the time was "Bowser". Also, the Princess's name was Toadstool as seen in everything up to SMB3. Her actual name is "Peach Toadstool".
Oh.
From what I found out, is that Captain Lou Albano was high during that, hence why the mistake at the end of the song.
@@JadenYukifan28 Did not know that part.
Then again with all the WWF torture, can you blame him? :)
@@georgef551 Not really, but that was what I read somewhere.
"Peace, love, recycle" was drilled into my 12 year old brain with this show. Thanks for bringing good memories back. ☮️❤♻️
Oh gods you reminded me of fun
Yes! CLUB MARIO!
It took me YEARS to figure out why that damn phrase was stuck in my head, and where it was from lol Apparently Club Mario episodes on in the background while I got ready for school in 5th grade had an effect.
This was one of my favorite cartoons growing up. I legit used to to do the Mario after every episode. Good times, man.
The naming of the characters in the show is in line with the western release of the games at the time.
Princess Peach was only known as Peach in Japan. She was called Princess Toadstool in both manuals of SMB1 & SMB2 in the USA. The same goes for Bowser. He was called “King Koopa” in the first game in the USA.
The N64 was the first time westerners were informed of the Japanese names being canon. The opening letter to Mario in Mario 64 is signed “Princess Toadstool, Peach.”
Yep. Thank you for saving me some typing.
literally used the find feature to see if someone brought this up
Best I can tell though later on with newer gaming systems and new games there was two separate characters Princess Peach and Princess Toadstool particularly later versions of Mario Kart as well as the table top Paper Mario RPG
@@eddieschwab864 there isn't. There's only one. Princess Peach is Princess Toadstool.
You're right about Princess Toadstool/Peach, but Bowser was called "Bowser, King of the Koopa" in the US SMB1 manual. Calling him Koopa was more in line with the Japanese version of the game. Renaming him Bowser was a Nintendo of America localization change.
For a long time I thought people forgot about these guys. Their skits were always hilarious and entertaining as a kid and would watch the Nintendo shows early morning. Thank you for the video
I definitely remember this show! The live actors always made a good effort! I liked the dynamic between Link and Zelda. I liked the portrayal of Zelda as a pragmatic and brave woman who would fight alongside Link to protect Hyrule.
Well ex-SCUUUUUUZE me, Princess.
Loved watching it every Friday after school. FYI they show it on the Tubi app.
God I loved this show. Really sad that this was the only Zelda animation we got even though Mario had 4 different versions.
AS bad as the Zelda cartoon gets lambasted, I actually quite enjoyed it.
Well, excuse me, Princess!
Yeah, really enjoyed the Zelda cartoon...even more then the Mario ones.
I had no idea there was a Zelda tv show
There was a more superior version that showed up on "Captain N" with the same VAs, so there's that.
I didn’t realize how old this show was as a kid, I grew up renting the show from Redbox, and Netflix. It definitely has a place in my heart and especially the dance at the end. Me and my brother always did it along or sung it. I never realized how janky some of the show was ahaha…. I still have allot of the show on DVD!
Sgt. Slaughter: "Can you guys hurry it up? I'm double-parked out here."
Luigi: "How can you be double-parked? It's a one-way street!"
Sgt. Slaughter: "I parked a TANK on top of a CHEVY!"
Best joke that took me way too long to understand, WELL into adulthood before it dawned on me.
Loved this show and couldn't wait for Fridays!
Man, this show will forever be one of my favorites and one I grew up with. Albano and Wells will forever be THE original Super Mario Bros. Showed this show to my kids and they love it to this day. Great video Minty, my hat’s off to you on this one!
Indeed. Albano makes a better Mario than Bob Hoskins ever did.
@@jeremyriley1238 I agree!!
I was happy to recently find it for free on Roku, and showed it to my 4 year old great nephew, and he loves it as well, and I told him it was based on a video game I grew up playing, and then he wanted to play it as well, so I started him off with the OG Super Mario Bros, and it was funny, and cute watching him trying to figure it out as I did, and now every time I babysit him, all he wants to do is either watch Mario, or play one of the games, and for that Captain Lou, and Danny Wells will always be my Mario, and Luigi.
Always so informative and your editing is wonderful in this. The sound fx and titles are so nostalgiac. Thanks for doing you and doing the Mario Minty.
I loved this show growing up. There has always been something about Mario Bros I have always really liked since it was the first video game I really got into when I was growing up. I still think about that game and how I used to play it all the time and loved it. I really liked it when they would show the Zelda series on here also. I never really knew when they would show Zelda on TV and always tuned in hoping it would be on but then it would not, and I would be really bummed. I never really knew it was only shown once a week till you mentioned that in this video. When it would come on I was always really happy lol. Great job on this and explaining this in such detail.
I remember watching this as a kid and loving it. Especially the live action stuff. So when Mario's Bros 3 came out me and my friends wanted to know where the "real Mario and Luigi" were as we saw them as the real ones.
I'm a early 80's child and I couldn't agree with you more on everything u said about this. I smiled and nodded my head the whole time. What great memories!
Same. There was something magical about seeing the elements of the game on tv. Each week you'd wonder what Mario things you would see. Maybe a hammer brother, maybe a spiney.
Same. Pure golden nostalgic memories of watching Saturday morning cartoons. 🤘
Captain Lou and Danny Wells will always be Mario and Luigi to me as well. I grew up while they were airing, and they've always stuck with me. Same for The Legend of Zelda, and Captain N, although we couldn't get the station Captain N played on the vast majority of the time, so the only time I got to see it was when the station came through. For those younger than me; "Station" is "Channel" and I grew up during a time when the stations we got depended on your location, and whether you had cable tv.
Anyway, in adulthood, I decided to get Super Mario Bros. Super Show, The Adventures of Super Mario 3, Captain N, and The Legend of Zelda box sets. The Captain N set is complete, unlike some other versions which are missing the episodes with Link and Zelda.
The way I kept in touch with Zelda and Mario when I couldn't watch it anymore, was through a promotional VHS tape that was sold to get people interested in the shows. It started off with Mario (the Elvira Episode, minus animation), then switched to Zelda (Sing for the Unicorn; imo the best episode), and finished out with Mario again. The Mario segments were from two different episodes I believe, and were only the live action parts. It was presented as though Mario Super Show was showing off Zelda, rather than a Mario cartoon.
Seeing Mario throw his popcorn when Luigi scared him, always made me laugh. Later seeing Mario unravel mummy-luigi was also funny.
That 'Well excuuuuusse me princess' depiction of Link cracks me up every time. Even as a kid I was like WTF? And his facial expression hahaha That should definitely be his Canon persona. Some patronising runt. Modders need to start including him in romhacks or fangames. And Elvira in the Super Show?! Wtf?
i was lucky enough to meet capt lou irl, my old boss (from 14 yrs ago) was friends with capt lou. he was the coolest and genuine person. inspiring moment for sure. rip capt lou, much love and respect sir. sleep easy my friend
Man, this is my childhood. I always felt so lucky to be able to catch it in the mornings, and was so happy to have a VHS of Koopzilla. I was so happy to find it years later, with the live sections included, and be able to do the Mario all over again. May Captain Lou and Danny Wells RIP, they are my favorite actors that live on in my memories.
I remember just BEING happy finding the DvDs for these for the first time. Like "Holy crap they ACTUALLY made a tv show for them too!?"
And yeah for the lomgest time, I NEVER questioned the live action segments or the lack of mario or luigis then Iconic voices being by Charels Martines were instead by a pro wrestler and a stage performer, but I soaked it up and loved every second.
Looking back, its still a blast! Its a medium that brings the casual strangeness of the world of Mario and just runs with it.
And yes, Lous "Do the Mario" is an iconic time-killer staple passtime to this day.
Rest in Peace, you legend
She was called princess toadstool in Mario brothers 1,2 and 3. The name peach wasn’t given to her until Mario 64.
Ty for clarifying. I always wondered what was up with that.
Guess mario got to get some in 3d etc and well peach lol
She was always Peach in Japan, but Toadstool in America up until Mario 64. (The same thing happened with Sonic the Hedgehog's nemesis, Dr. Eggman. In America, his name was changed to Dr. Robotnik, but eventually they switched to the Japanese name.)
Coincidentally Bowser was always Koopa in Japan. That's why his army is called the "Koopa Troop".
Sorry but she was also peach in MB3
She signed every letter with peach
I remember one Friday ordering a pizza, because I would be home alone. The pizza was super late, so it was free. Plus just in time to watch the weekly Zelda episode. Good times.
I was already familiar about Capt. Lou Albano because his name was in the Rock n' Wrestling cartoon. I was only disappointed he didn't do any wrestling moves in the show as far as I can remember
Well, he was way past in his ring career by the time this came around and was quite a bit old. He couldn't really do them anymore by that point.
Dude. I got choked up. Thanks for reviewing and putting a spotlight on a huge part of my childhood in the 80s. They definitely deserved a nod.
Minty, that's would have been the best thing on TV back then to see a Castlevania short. That was one of my favorite franchises. I just wanna say thank you, from the bottom of my heart to making my childhood memories alive and well again. You're simply amazing.
Remember watching this is and had forgotten how good it was.Captain Lou and Danny Wells known actors and performers before the show with all the guest stars,pretty damn cool
My weirdest, most vivid memory of the Super Mario Bros Super Show was watching it one December afternoon, when the power went out. A local electrical plant exploded, and due in part of the place my father worked being nearby suffered damage, the family was worried for him. Thankfully, he made it home that evening safely. And now, this feels like a Stickerbush Symphony checkpoint moment.
I grew up with this show and the legend of Zelda and I absolutely love the shows! Captain Lou and Danny Wells will always be the best Mario and Luigi and keep on doing the Mario in heaven! R.I.P Captain Lou and Danny Wells!
The live action segments were even better than the cartoon. Lou Albano and Danny Wells were fun as Mario & Luigi. The guest stars like Elvira & Sergeant Slaughter were cool. "CLUB MARIO" was awful.
Same opinion.
I agree. (Or at least I did the last time I watched the show. I haven't seen it in years.)
Never saw the "Club Mario" version. Super Mario Bros. Super Show is clearly superior though.
Club Mario was every bad 90s trope rolled into one. My brother and I would mock the Club Mario segments ala MST3K.
Thank you for the nostalgia. Such a great trip back to my childhood. Keep up the good work
Love this show growing up. Thank you for the memories of watching it. As soon as I found it on DVD I had to buy it. I still watch it to this day. Keep up the amazing work Minty.
Another childhood show that no modern day studio could ever replicate the true magic of. Another reason I'm looking forward to the new movie. As trailers make it feel like a blend of real and animated charm from super show.
True story, I got into a huge fist fight with Luigi’s son. His name was Matt, when we were Around 12 during this
Shows run.
Thanks for a great video, Minty!! Now I wanna get Super Mario Bros Super Show on DVD! Gotta have the live sections!
I LOVED this show as a kid. I had a VHS tape with a few of these live segments and a Zelda episode called "The Ringer." I was terrified of the SMBSS episode where Luigi was possessed by the green slime. It legitimately frightened me and I had to go out of the room whenever it came on, lol.
These guys will always be the real Mario brothers to me. I still got some of the vhs tapes. The dvd release removed the songs for some reason replacing them with stock music, probably a copyright thing. Tho the Norwegian dvd release kept all the music, it`s not the same without "rolling down the river" and "shaddap your face".
Yeah, the same issue plagues Captain N. At some point they lost the rights, so most of the versions you can find have some generic, royalty-free music limping along in the background, instead of Billy Idol's "White Wedding" or whatever other thematically appropriate song they picked for that episode.
Gotta have the VH tapes for the OG music. I have a few but lotta good that does with me with no VCR!
I loved this show as a kid! I think it only aired once in its entirely on cable and then reruns but it disappeared once the other shows came about. I agree, it was so cool seeing live action and then the cartoon. I didn't mind the laugh track cuz sitcoms were the prime time entertainment at the time so it made us kids feel common as adults.
I remember getting the box set of this show at target when I was a kid and I absolutely loved it. I was already a big mario fan from when I first played the GameCube back in the day so watching the whole show on DVD was a blast.
Dic was well known for mixing cartoons and live action well before the Super Mario Bros Super Show. They first did Kidd Video in 1984 with Saban Entertainment. It was about a live-action band who gets kidnapped by a cartoon guy called the Master Blaster and taken to a cartoon world called the Flip Side. It also had live-action music videos.
I grew up too watching this show and I LOVED it! I have the DVD collection. It was a show I still today enjoy. I don't watch it hardly anymore but that doesn't mean I wouldn't watch it if I saw it on the tube. I too had hoped to of gotten to meet both Lou and Danny but never did. It would of been a dream come true. I even can remember having a Super Mario Bros. cake for one of my birthdays. It came with a plastic figure. Soooo damn cool as a kid when your cake comes with a toy. It was of Mario on a vine. Like he was either climbing it or sliding down. I was big fan of the games of them then and now. I can't wait for the movie to come out. I'm excited!
I got to be in the audience for the Koopa show, I remember how tiny the set and audience section were (I mean, you could see how small it was on the show, but actually being there it seemed even smaller). I also remember that those of us who got the troopa helmets to wear, had to give it to someone who didn't have it, during the commercial breaks. They invited me to be in the audience after I submitted a drawing to their art contest.
Ooo!
I loved this show back when I was eight, and yep you described how the show would go thorough the weeks M-F the super Mario bros cartoons but Friday's would be Legend of Zelda, boy what a treat. Minty thank you for reviewing this late 80's childhood classic.
I couldn't wait till Zelda every week
"Well excuse me, princess!"
@@robert48044 I know right when were a little kids the show (little did we know would teach us about a little thing called routine )
@@tenebrousoul9368 'LLLLLIIIIINNNNNKKKK!!!!'
@@ciscodeer9094 I remember one Friday something else came on an I was so pissed like wtf is this.
I grew up watching these shows. This brings back so much fun memories
The super show was one of my favorites. As a kid I always wondered why it disappeared. Also, as a hue WWF fan I remember seeing Albano and getting excited to see Captain Lou playing Mario
Great video as always! If I may add to your #5 entry, Maurice Lamarche would go on to voice Inspector Gadget in future DiC projects. Also, for entry #2, here in the U.S. of A., The series' first DVD box set (released by Shout Factory) did include the live action segments. However, the later budget friendly release (released by NCircle Entertainment) showed just the cartoons.
Straight from wiki:
In Japan, Peach's name has always been Princess Peach (ピーチ姫, Pīchi-Hime, Princess Peach) since her debut in the original Super Mario Bros. in 1985, but she was localized as "Princess Toadstool" in the English-language manual. The English version of Yoshi's Safari, released in 1993, contained the first usage of the name "Peach" in the Western world, though she was called Princess Toadstool in Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3, released in 1994. In Super Mario 64, released in 1996, she uses both names in a letter addressed to Mario, signing it "Peach". From the 1996 game Mario Kart 64 onward, the name Peach is used in Western versions.
yeah, how the fuck he think she's been peach in the west in the early 90s and 80s? She was first called Peach in Yoshi's Safari thought, they're kinda wrong.
Ever since learning her name as being Peach, I've always considered Toadstool to be her last name. Especially since I feel like the word Princess is seldom used with the name Peach. It's usually either Princess Toadstool, or Peach, which to me implies her full name as being Peach Toadstool.
I always took the live action sequences as taking place after Mario and Luigi had returned from their adventures in the Mushroom Kingdom, therefore they were older. I was a teenager, probably a little older than the target audience for the show when it aired, but I enjoyed it. Hell, I'm 50 now and still consider myself a kid.
Hey Minty, Pixel Game Squad just found a treasure trove of stuff from this and so many other DIC shows from the ‘80’s/‘90’s. Everything from production cells to pre-production sketch’s. Model sheets and so much more. Hopefully you can get something from the sale they have coming up soon.
Weren't those included on the DVD extras for this show, years ago?
The whatnot auction is tomorrow btw. Dec 15th
Whats amazing is that I only love this show cause it was played in reruns growing up on YTV in canada, and ya know what they didnt show? The follow up cartoons. I'd like to think that they knew the charm was from the live action segments giving us kids something tangible while also entertaining us with the animation was what worked. Whatever it was, it worked cause it gave a second generation an appreciation for the show.
I grew up in the town that Captain Albano lived. He was a local treasure and a great man. Thank you for giving him such recognition
he was good friends with Cyndi Lauper and she had him cameo, along with other WWF wrestlers, on her Goonies song, Good Enough.
@@SiccDeville they maintained their friendship over the years. She attended his wake when he passed.
@puckfinn I grew up in the same town and remember his commercials for a local business
@@jedizzo111 absolutely. The local cable access commercials.
Here’s one I found for the Greek village
ruclips.net/video/Uv9-mHdPL4I/видео.html
Captain Lou slipping at the "Just Like That" part of the song is why I sing that phrase to this day, in his voice. It caught my attention when he slipped.
"The only time we.sleep on the job is when they're paying us by the hour" is a line I got from this show and still say, thirty years later.
Back in '89-'91, my grandparents watched me on the afternoons. Grandma worked. Grandpa? Oh, he stayed home, and he was fun. He'd say "you can watch whatever you can find until Matlock comes on. When it's Matlock time, give me the tv remote and then you get it back after Matlock". One of the shows we wound up watching together was the Mario Brothers Super Show. As the years went on, one wish I honestly had was to meet Lou Albano so I could do something personal. No, not seek an autograph. I wanted to shake his hand and thank him for those wonderful afternoons spent with my grandfather. For me, those days were pure magic.
Absolutely LOVED this show. Great video Minty, brought back a lot of great memories.
I love this show to absolute death. As the Nerdtendo I am, I watched this show constantly as a kid, and would always jump off a chair whenever Bowser would jump off the cliff. Still the best TV show ever(with jackass as close competition)
I absolutely loved this show. I remember I would always watch it after school as a kid and I would never miss The Legend of Zelda every Friday. I also would always "do the Mario" along with Captain Lou at the end of each episode.
I remember me and younger brother would watch Super Mario Brothers Super Show when it aired on TV in the 90's after school. It was fun seeing Lou Albano and Danny Wells as Mario and Luigi in live action. They will always be Mario and Luigi to me.
Another classic from childhood. You really need to do more videos on animated movies and shows.
Janet Jackson’s Black Cat was used as the base for the original intro song before the one we all know and love came about. I swear, I can’t find anything about this on the internet, but it went, “We’ll take you anywhere you want to go….”
As a kid I enjoyed this show, felt like I could rarely catch it on tv though. The actors played a great job in my opinion considering how fresh it was. Very glad this show existed ^-^
When I was a kid, I figured the live action shots were them semi-retired back in Brooklyn. The cartoon was just them retelling the glory days.
I grew up watching this show as a kid, we had all of them on vhs. It’s still my favorite Mario cartoon just because of the live action segments.
I love this show! I’m so glad this show is getting the respect it deserves yes it’s cheesy but that’s the charm.Captain Lou and Danny wells were great together and When I think of the Mario brothers I think of them.
I loved this show, as a kid. Hard to imagine Mario went through a few different voices, but it is what it is.
Same here, The Super Mario Bros. Super Show was one of my favorites growing up. Mario, to date has had five different voice actors as of the 2023 Super Mario Movie. Charles Martinett being the fourth person to voice Mario. I also liked the Super Mario 3 and Super Mario World cartoons but they werre missing something when they didn't have Captain Lou Albano and Danny Wells as Mario and Luigi. That being said Walker Boone didn't do a bad job as Mario.
Each episode featured two main theme songs used during its broadcast:
"Plumber Rap" - composed by Shuki Levy,[23] the theme was performed by Albano and Wells - first to open up the show, and repeated again to open up the Super Mario Bros. animated segments.
"Do the Mario" - performed by Albano in front of a greenscreen of the animated show's backgrounds, it acted as the closing theme for The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, and was composed around the original "Overworld" theme from the Super Mario Bros. video game.
The opening raps were absolutely not performed by Albano and Wells. It was 100% the Wayans Brothers.
I don't know how anyone could listen to them and believe otherwise.
13:17 I always noticed the final step as well, It was always clear to me then, and even now, that it's just Lou Albano recovering from almost losing his balance after landing poorly in the ending jump.
Minty Thanks Brother for all the hardwork you do to do these awesome videos, I learn alot from it. Really Appreciate it!
With his letterman jacket on, Minty looks like CAPTAIN N: THE GAME MASTER!
Captain M: The Minty Master!
Thank you so much for doing this episode. I loved this show as a kid and to me it was a real gem
Maurice LaMarche has had a pretty incredible career. These days, he's probably best known as the voice of Kif from Futurama (as well as providing voices for a lot of the lesser known characters such as 1 of the sewer mutants and the Egyptian inspired alien high priest). However, the first time I became aware of him was for a short lived series called The Chimp Channel (not to be confused with my channel, The Neon Chimp Channel) where he voiced TV Executive Harry Waller (physically played by a Chimpanzee called Chubbs who sadly ended up living in a dodgy roadside zoo, last I heard he had been rescued and was taken to a sanctuary, I have found a video of a Chimpanzee called Chubbs in a sanctuary in Texas who appears to be the right age so it's possible he may have had a happier outcome than many Chimps used in entertainment).
He also voices Lrr and Morbo on Futurama.
i remember him as the voice of Egon from the cartoon Real Ghostbusters and Extreme Ghostbusters.
thank you for bringing back some of my best television memories, I have shared this with my daughters, and my eldest daughter has shared it with her kids too, thanks again, please keep up the great work, and stay safe, and also Merry Christmas
I remember watching this show at 10 years old and enjoying it. Fridays with the Zelda cartoons were my favorite. I think they may have rerun the live action portions in the US for at least a little while, but I might be wrong.
As for the live action costumes, they actually were wearing blue shirts, albeit a light blue. I think they did this on purpose. In 1989 there were still a good number of black and white TVs out there, and the dark blue would not have contrasted very well against the red and green overalls on a black and white set. I don't have any real knowledge of the show to base this on, but that is my educated guess.
Thanks for the nostalgia Minty!
I think one aspect that made this show so unique and interesting is because the live action segments kinda played into giving it a non-linear narrative experience. The live action segments we got to see were, fairly obviously, supposed to be in the past before Mario and Luigi got sucked into the Mushroom Kingdom and having them playing side by side along with the 'present' cartoon sequences gave it more depth, with dare I say almost a sense of lore.
I remember as a kid watching this, I was always wondering and theorizing if there was going to be a final episode that tied the live action and cartoon segments together with the incident of them finding the warp pipe. XD
I remember my favorite episode, it was the one where bowser and his minions were vampiric and wanted to drink all of the marinara sauce! Didnt hold up very well...
That reminds me of a Vegetarian duck Vampire I used to watch at my Grandmas, Count Duckula
I remember this one! It was so funny! My favorite was when Koopa was forcing Princess Toadstool to marry him and in return he’d let the Mario Brother’s go and release her toadstool subjects from being frozen as rocks. Of course he crossed his fingers behind his back when he agreed. They played the “White Wedding” song by Billy Idol in that episode!
Yeah, that's really weird that the live action segments were taken out of so many home releases. Even the Netflix version has the live segments still in it.
Since the show originally came out in fall 1989, it did not have a lot of source material. It has only Super Mario Bros 1 and Super Mario Bros 2 (and remember, that's the USA version of Super Mario Bros 2, not the Japanese version) to go off of. Therefore, the show mainly depends on fairly tales, well-known intellectual properties (Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Mad Max, Karate Kid, etc.) and other creative common intellectual properties. And they actually made it work. Since all 52 episodes are self-contained (because kids can't follow overarching plot lines), the directors and producers did not need to connect all the stories. Thus, episodes can merely take one of those intellectual properties, insert Mario in place of the main character, insert Luigi, Toad and Princess Toadstool in place of support characters, insert King Koopa in place of the antagonist, and you have your episode easily written for you. The episode pretty much writes itself. I hate to call it lazy, but that's what it really is. You can see it in other aspects, too. For example, scene and setting panels are reused constantly. As another example, it was quite easy to find animation bloopers. Mario's voice would come out of Luigi's mouth and vice versa. Mario and Luigi would sometimes color swap. I know this was a quick cash grab by taking a popular intellectual property and turning into another form of media, so I don't want to be too critical, yet at the same time, I do. There have been other video games turned television episodes that have done a wonderful job of it. This show was mainly pandering to you typical 80s/90s kid, from the video game property itself to putting in other icons of the 80s, like rap (which was the big, new thing in the day). Then again, though, those are more recent than Super Mario Super Show, so I guess television had a lot to learn about adapting a video game into a television series.
Overall, I had fun watching the show. I enjoyed joking that Super Mario Super Show predicted staples in future Mario games (for example, I jokingly thought the one motocross episode predicted bikes added to Mario Kart). I enjoyed the guest celebrities reminding me who was famous in the 80s and 90s. I enjoyed finding out that many of the voice actors of this show ended up voicing video game characters. Perhaps this show got their foot in the door for this. I've heard that the Mario cartoon based off of Super Mario Bros 3 and Super Mario World are much better because they have more source material with which they could work. Perhaps I will check them out another time. As for now, I'm looking forward to Illumination movie, which will have more source material to work with (hopefully).
I actually loved the show, even if I thought the live action versions of Mario and Luigi looked weird. Just loved seeing the characters brought to life... and the song is still great XD
Excellent video, descriptions and analysis. Thanks for creating this
I used to watch this show when I was little, and liked both the silly humor of the live action and the cheesiness of the cartoons. Though, when I was reintroduced to it through the "F you, Luigi" clip (I know he says "thank you"), it made me want to revisit to see any adult humor I might have missed.
this show was great in my childhoog rewatched it last year it still holds up i also remember those songs like surfing bird and more in the show but the rewatch torrent i watched had all of them removed and had just random sounds or music instead for some reason
I loved this show so much. Haters can hate, but the joy this show brought to me and thousands of other kids drowns that out.
This show was my childhood. It even intertwined my other love for pro wrestling as well. Albano was a great manager back then too. And the timing after the Rock N Wrestling Era was too perfect for this. And seeing some of my favorite wrestlers like Roddy Piper and Sgt Slaughter on Super Mario was the best thing ever!
Also Princess Toadstool was Peach's original name in the States. So that's why they called her Toadstool in the cartoons. SMB3 also calls her by Toadstool. US didn't know the name "Peach" until Super Mario 64.
Amd I remember Club Mario. Nothing special. Just the two '90s teens being two teen '90s teens playing TV show hosts.
I love love loved this show growing up as an early 80’s baby. We’d play Mario Brothers on the elementary school playground! I always wanted to be Princess Toadstool but the boys never picked me 😭. I remember sometimes in the show the voices didn’t match which characters were speaking and I used to get so annoyed! Also, I was eagerly waiting every episode for Princess Toadstool to make an appearance in the live action segment and I was so heartbroken she never did. I guess they were supposed to be the Mario Brother’s BEFORE they get sucked down the drain? 🤷🏻♀️
I adored this show as a child, thank you so much for this video, and reminding me of such a wonderful memory
I still have a few official VHS tapes of this show. Ahhhh nostalgia!