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September 27, 2007 - Image 12

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Text
Publication:
The Michigan Daily, 2007-09-27

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I

2B - Thursday, September 27, 2007

SUPER MARIO RPG: THE LEGEND OF THE SEVEN STARS (1996)
The one Mario to rule them all

By MARK SCHULTZ
Daily Arts Writer
Many of today's self-professed "Mario"
addicts would have trouble naming the first
Mario game where the best playable charac-
ters were Bowser, a giant marshmallow who
could control the weather and a doll that
came to life and shot cannon-balls out of his
arm. To most gamers, Mario getting his ass
whooped by a sensei the size of his mustache
is not nearly as familiar an image as Mario
duckingunder Bowser's feet to axe downthe
bridge. "Super Mario RPG" is as forgotten as
"Mario is Missing!" in the franchise para-
digm, and that just isn't right.
The opening of "RPG" is a testament to
the fact that every Mario game before this
was just a prelude. Princess Toadstool is
kidnapped and Mario voyages to Bowser's
Castle to bring her back and have a parade.
But in the middle of the obligatory fisticuffs
between hero and villain, a great explosion
tosses both fighters from the castle, caus-
ing Bowser to lose his throne and his self-
respect.
It only gets weirder. Mario must collect.
seven stars scattered throughout his uni-
verse -one remarkably larger than "Super
Mario World" - in order to pacify an army
of nether-worldly foes who engage in the
utterly deplorable task of destroying falling
wishes from Star Road. From here, Mario
must fight a murderer's row of enemies - be
it old-school koopas or rabid dogs - and
retrieve all seven stars.

The characters of "Mario RPG" are the
single weirdest group of video-game char-
acters I have ever encountered. Some of
them are friendly: the neurotic townspbople
who seem to be relatives of Toad, a parable-
spouting frog named Frogfucius and brain-
locked composer Toadofsky. The bosses who
impede Mario's quest are just as colorful.
They include a Yoda-talking anthropomor-
phic bow named Bowyer, a spear-throwing
pirate shark named Jonathan Jones and a
giant wedding cake named Bundt. I have a
special affinity for the ethereal Culex, who
proclaims, "I am matter, I am antimatter ...
I consume time, and I will consume you!"
Pretty badass, huh?
The genius of "Mario RPG" is how it
makes its typically inaccessible genre friend-
ly to a broader audience. It's not too difficult
and not too long (relatively, at least), and it's
peppered with enough familiar characters
that plunging into a game genre so vastly
different from the traditional side-scrollers
doesn't seem like such a scalding bath.
The only negative thing I can say about
this game is that it ruined RPGs for me for-
ever. This was the first RPG I had ever played
and I haven't touched one since. Any RPG I
play for the rest of my life will be a colossal
letdown, because I'm confident I will never
play a more funny, engaging and satisfying
game than this one. What other RPG would
have the pop-culture sensibility to make one
of its bosses a parody of the Power Rang-
ers just a year after the first movie was
released?

The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
CALIEN DAR
The Daily Arts guide So She
hesS upcoming events
Today 9.27.07
Crazy Love
7 and 9:15 p.m.
$6.2s with student ID/$8.50
At the Michigan Theater
FestiFools!
5 to 7 p.m.
Free
At the Campus Safety Services Building,
Room1309
Insert Applesauce Here:
a Multimedia Dance
Collaboration Extravaganza
8to SIp.m.
Free
At the Duderstadt Center's Video Studio

6

6

a

Seriouslv, a zen character named Fr

It's hard to understand why this game
doesn't have the legacy of other Mario
games, but I think I've figured it out. "RPG"
was released in 1996, the same year as Nin-
tendo'64. As soon as 64 came out, this game
was inevitably overshadowed by "Mario 64,"
which had better graphics and more acces-
sible gameplay. Moreover, the strength of
most RPGs is their complexity. Standard
"Mario" fans who were used to simple sto-

rylines and games you could play for two
minutes or two hours, might not have been
ready for the many layers inherent in a game
where five characters embark on a "Wizard
of Oz"-like quest to save the world and find
themselves.
Trust me, this game will help you see
every Mario character in a new light. Buy it,
play itandthenburn everyother RPGyou've
ever owned.

Tomorrow 9.21.07
The University of Michigan
Remembers Gerald Ford
Free
At Joan and Sanford Weill Hall's
Annenbereg Auditorium
Clumsy Lovers
8 p.m.
$13.s/$18.s
At the Ark
Symphony Band
8 p.m.
Free
At Hill Auditorium

WHAT YOU SHOULD BUY THIS WEEKEND
WEEK IN REVIEW

MARCEL MARCEAU, the paradigmatic
French mime with the white face
paint and striped shirt, died Saturday
at 84. Moment of silence? @ A
second DUI charge for KIEFER
SUTHERLAND ("24") this week
means that if convicted, he'll get a
mandatory five-day sentence.@"
The crewmember for "THE
DARK KNIGHT" who died
Monday appears to have
been off-set at the time.
The man died after the
test vehicle he was
driving crashed into
a tree. @ ALICIA
SILVERSTONE went
naked for a PETA
ad. Not as good as
when she ignored
that bitch on "The View."
*9Apparently JUSTIN
TIMBERLAKE cancelled two
shows on the West Coast
earlier this year because
he was hung over. Not sure
his fanbase even knows
what that is, but whatever.

U AT THE NEWSSTAND
GQ: 50 years

ingly cathartic and spiritual.
This is brutal stark tragedy;
peoplsuferue nd it couldn tbe
more mesmerizing.

Men's glossy GQ celebrates its
6oth birthday this month (with
an issue weighed down by more ON DVD
cologne samples than usual).
Check ut its lead feasire on the
50 most stylish men of the past W rite us for a free
5o years - cover boy Jack Ken-
nedy tops the list. Copy of the new
'Knocked Up'
O AT THE STATE THEATER
A new pop tragedy

O ON THE RUNWAY
Fashion Week: the
last days
With the endless supply of
criticism floating through the
media, the New York and London
Fashion Weeks seem to have come
to a close years ago, but for serious
enthusiasts, the month-long event
is still on. Being in-the-know on
Milanshows is amust;reviews
will continue to surface through
the end ofthe week.

at the movies
There are many things that
make "Eastern Promises" worth
watching, especially David
Cronenberg's direction (and
maybe that naked bathhouse
fight). The film is a rare experi-
ence, hard-driving and master-
ful. Violent and sometimes hard
to watch, the effect is surpris-

It's stoner fare and a serious
social statemenrt. Sort of. You
can see lovabie guion Seth Rog
knocki up babe
Katherine Heigl
again and again if
you submit your
best story about
a one-night stand
gone awry to artse-
ditors@umich.edu.
ditorsgocirnicb.edci.
We've got copies of
the newly released
DVD - first cime,
first served.

>PHOT

Sri
,ynyu r
} y' ::
y v j 'w +

Saturday 9.22.07
100 Years, 100 Views: A
Centennial Celebration of
the Arb
8 am
Free
At Nichols Arboretum
Manhattan Short Film Fes-
tival
7 p.m.
$6.75/$8.50
At the Michigan Theater
Midnight Showing:
Donnie Darko
Midnight
Free
At the State Theater
Sunday 9.23.07
Percussion Ensemble:
Drago Boat Race
Noon
Free
At Gallup Park
The War: a Ken Burns Film,
Part 4 of 7
8 p.m.
PBS
Fred Eaglesmith
7:30 p.m.
$20/$25
At The Ark
Please send all press releases
and event information to
artspage@michigandaily com.
DAILY
ARTS.
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