Voluntary reading ahead, (don’t let musings of mine derail the thread)
I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about how they could turn Mario into a TV series over the years. Though I would MUCH prefer it to be CG than live action. I always enjoyed watching people play Mario, as well as playing it myself. I would dream of a show that’s “adventurous”, (not unlike Ducktales and Indiana Jones), with a thread linking most Mario games together chronologically. Each episode would be a tale told by someone in the Mario universe, and have a different “look” to it. For example; when it came time to tell Mario’s origin story, (Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island), it would be narrated or introduced by a Yoshi. Due to Yoshi’s child-like persona, the episode could look like it was created with pastel crayons, just like the game.
The Mario 64 episode would be told by a Lakitu. A reporter in the Mushroom Kingdom who was filming Mario and/or Princess Peach for a story, and wound up in the middle of Bowser capturing the Princess and Mario going to save her. The episode ark would be uncut… as in, everything, from beginning to end, would be recorded with Lakitu’s camera. Something that would be difficult if it were live action.
Another thing would be physics. Unlike ‘Ducktails’, for example, Mario can only jump so high and so far. Sure, he would have special shoes that make him jump better than your usual pudgy man with short legs, (developed by Professor Egad), but there’s a limit… just like there is in the game. I would want the show to be grounded in some ways, because it’s more intense when you know the character’s not ‘invincible’… unless you get a Super Star Power Up. lol. Basically, The more vulnerable the characters are, the more suspenseful I think it would be.
I’ve worked out in my head how to incorporate many of Mario’s games into the story, including Donkey Kong and the original Mario Bros. Though some of the games would be less of a focus of the series and wouldn’t require a full episode dedicated to it. There’s also the question of where Mario comes from, (Today, he’s got an Italian accent, but it would said that he came from Brooklyn, while Yoshi’s Island had him delivered by a stork to his supposed parents). Also, are they twins, or is Mario older.
I wouldn’t stick with EVERYTHING in the video games, (Super Mario Bros. 2 [USA] would have a surprise ending that acknowledges the game’s ending, but takes a different turn.) Also, Toad, (of the Toadstools), would have a surprising characteristic that’s not in the games… a somewhat humorous nod to his persona in the games.
End of my idea for a Mario TV Series.
I think making LoZ a live action show would be a pretty big risk. Jragon has an interesting idea of making it an adventure show with little dialogue and interaction. Thanks for sharing that… it would be interesting to see a show go that way.