Jump to content

Super Mario Bros. Z

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 82.132.187.234 (talk) at 22:34, 24 September 2020 (→Production and broadcast). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Super Mario Bros. Z
File:SMBZ.jpg
Cast of SMBZ (Clockwise from upper left: Sonic, Luigi, Mario, Yoshi, and Shadow, surrounded by the Chaos Emeralds)
Genre
Created byMark Haynes (Alvin Earthworm)
Written byMark Haynes (Alvin Earthworm)
Directed byMark Haynes (Alvin Earthworm)
Starring
Theme music composerMichihiro Kuroda (Rockman EXE Axess Opening Theme)
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
Production
ProducerMark Haynes (Alvin Earthworm)
EditorMark Haynes (Alvin Earthworm)
Production companyAlvin Earthworm Productions
Original release
NetworkNewgrounds (2006–2016)
YouTube (2016–present)
ReleaseApril 22, 2006 (2006-04-22) –
March 30, 2012 (2012-03-30)

Super Mario Bros. Z (abbreviated SMBZ) is a British Flash animated crossover action web series that debuted on Newgrounds on April 22, 2006. Created by Mark Haynes (also known as Alvin Earthworm), the series follows the five courageous heroes Mario, Sonic, Luigi, Shadow and Yoshi as they race for the search of the seven Chaos Emeralds that will grant the user unlimited power, and determine the fate of the world, against Metallix (originally Metal Sonic), a robot bent on becoming the most powerful being in the universe after destroying Mobius. Haynes and IGN have described the series as "Super Mario and Sonic the Hedgehog meets Dragon Ball Z".[1] The first episode has been viewed over nine million times,[2] and many episodes have received views in the millions.[3]

During its initial run, nine episodes were released, with an interval of 2–16 months between each episode. Super Mario Bros. Z was highly influential, garnering universal acclaim from viewers for its visual style and giving new light to sprite animation on the internet. Being very memorable, it was even praised by Newgrounds founder Tom Fulp, who raised the file limit of the website to allow Haynes to upload the eighth episode.[4][5] On Newgrounds, the series was interactive in the form of a visual novel, without the option of alternate routes. The series was initially cancelled with the release of the incomplete ninth episode on March 30, 2012. In subsequent years, several unofficial attempts at reviving the series, including a Kickstarter campaign for a feature-length film finale intended to lead into a sequel series titled Super Mario Galaxy X,[6] which received a takedown notice from Nintendo.[7]

On January 8, 2016, Haynes announced a reboot to be in development, uploading the first episode to YouTube as well as creating a Patreon to crowdfund SMBZ; however this Patreon later received a takedown notice from Nintendo on February 15, 2016.[8][9] In March 2020, the series resumed development, with Haynes premiering a 4K resolution remaster of the original series, including Dolby audio support and retaining the original aspect ratio as a way to send off the original continuity, developed in conjunction with Alen Alic and TruExtent.[10]

Storyline

In the original series, the story is centered in the Mushroom Kingdom where Sonic and Shadow were survivors of mass genocide in Mobius, their homeworld, caused by the robot Metallix (Turbo Mecha Sonic). After escaping their universe in pursuit of the banished Chaos Emeralds, they meet up with Mario and Luigi, later encountering Yoshi in a quest to stop the major threat the Chaos Emeralds and the persuing Metallix represents.

Before the arrival of Sonic and Shadow, Mario and Luigi are competing against Wario and Waluigi until Bowser and Kamek interfere in a takeover plot of the Mushroom Kingdom. At the dire peak of Mario's defeat, a mysterious capsule containing the pair prompts Bowser's takedown. The group subsequently go on the hunt for the Chaos Emeralds, with Yoshi finding one and nearly being killed by Metallix. While healing at Mario's House, the group continues the hunt with the help of Professor E. Gadd, but are interrupted by the Koopa Bros. Travelling to Yoshi's Island to acquire yet another Chaos Emerald, both the Koopa Bros. and the Axem Rangers X interfere, the three groups engaging each other in battle, before the arrival of Metallix, who kills off both rival teams as the heroes bareely escape with their lives and the four Chaos Emeralds.

The group then searches for the fifth Chaos Emerald, which they learn can be acquired in the Minus World. Upon retrieving the Emerald and returning to the Mushroom Kingdom, they discover Princess Peach to have been kidnapped by Bowser. The heroes formulate a rescue plan to save her, but Shadow is fed up by Sonic's perceived lack of focus on the Emerald hunt and leaves the team to collect them on his own, later engaging Metallix in battle alone in a desert for the sixth Chaos Emerald.

Elsewhere, Doctor Eggman, the creator of Metallix and Sonic's former archenemy, is revealed to have survived the destruction of Mobius and allied himself with Bowser, using a combination of his scientific methods and the magic of Kamek to create "Mecha Mario", a robotic duplicate of Mario designed to kill him. After facing Captain Basilisx, Bowser's ruthless second-in-command equipped with razor-sharp claws and the ability to turn people to stone, Mario and Luigi prepare to battle Bowser's children, Bowser Jr. and the Koopalings, while Sonic goes to rescue Peach himself.

After the original storyline is eventually completed, Haynes has stated his intent to have the Metallix, after being defeated by the groups imbued with the power of the seven Star Spirits, whose power would be established to equal that provided by the seven Chaos Emeralds, reconstitute himself as a sixth blue member of the Axem Rangers X, all rebuilt by a returned Smithy and Basilisx, looking to regain power, all unaware of who Metallix truly is.

Characters and cast

  • Dr. Mario Mario – a resident of the Mushroom Kingdom, after being enlisted by Sonic the Hedgehog, he sets out to stop Metallix (Turbo Mecha Sonic) from collecting all of the Chaos Emeralds.
  • Luigi Mario – a resident of the Mushroom Kingdom, and the younger twin brother of Mario, who assists in preventing Metallix (Turbo Mecha Sonic) from acquiring the Chaos Emeralds.
  • Sonic the Hedgehog – a former resident of the destroyed planet of Mobius, who flees with the surviving Shadow to prevent Metallix (Turbo Mecha Sonic) from acquiring the Chaos Emeralds, seeking the assistance of the champions of the Mushroom Kingdom, Mario and Luigi, after learning they can match his running speed, which led to him being known as "the fastest thing alive".
  • Shadow the Hedgehog – a former resident of the destroyed planet of Mobius, who flees with the surviving Sonic to destroy Metallix (Turbo Mecha Sonic), for personally having killed his significant other, Rouge the Bat, in front of him.
  • T. Yoshisaur Munchakoopas – commonly known as Yoshi, they are a member of the Yoshi clan of Dinosaur Land and one of the seven Star Children, who joins their friends and benefactors Mario and Luigi (to whom they owe a life debt for saving them and their brethren from Bowser and the Koopalings) in their fight against Metallix (Turbo Mecha Sonic) with Sonic and Shadow.
  • Metallix – known in the original series as Turbo Mecha Sonic and informally known as Mecha Sonic, he is a robot created by Dr. Eggman serving as an evolution of Metal Sonic, created for the sole purpose of destroying Sonic the Hedgehog - however, he rebels against his creator and destroys Mobius, and begins searching for the Chaos Emeralds. The character was redesigned for the reboot series due to Haynes' belief of the original design to be underwhelming and inconsistent with the character's original portrayal in Sonic & Knuckles.
  • Wario and Waluigi – the cousins of the Mario brothers who seek to steal the Chaos Emeralds with Wario and sell them for money.
  • Princess Peach Toadstool – the ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom, and often kidnapped by Bowser. She offers aid to Mario, Luigi, Sonic and Shadow as they search for the Chaos Emeralds.
  • King Bowser Koopa – an enemy of Mario and Luigi and father of Bowser Jr. and the Koopalings, who seeks to acquire the Chaos Emeralds and conquer the Mushroom Kingdom.
  • Professor Elvin "E." Gadd – a resident of the Mushroom Kingdom and mentor of Luigi who aids him, Mario, Sonic, and Shadow in trying to find the Chaos Emeralds.
  • The Koopa Bros. – a group of four ninja Koopa Troopas, each with a different shell color, who are loyal members of the Koopa Troop, led by Bowser. Named Red, Black, Green and Yellow Ninjakoopa and based on the four titular characters of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series, they are one of many groups seeking to acquire the Chaos Emeralds.
  • Axem Rangers X – an evolved version of the Axem Rangers, a group of five axe-wielding fighters who seek the Chaos Emeralds and power of Metallix (Turbo Mecha Sonic) for themselves in order to forge themselves a sixth member to serve as their new leader, who formerly fought Mario under the orders of Smithy in Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars.
  • Captain Basilisx – the captain of Bowser's Koopa Guard stationed on the Omega Doomship, with the ability to turn people to stone with his gaze, who seeks revenge on Mario for having killed his best friend during the events of Super Mario World. Basilisx's name is in reference to the mythological beast of the same name, while his three claws per hand which can be drawn out and retracted are inspired by the Marvel Comics character Wolverine.

Episodes

Reboot series title card.
Reboot series title card.
BookNameEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast airedNetwork
1The Turbo Mecha Sonic Saga9April 22, 2006 (2006-04-22)March 30, 2012 (2012-03-30)Newgrounds
The Metallix Saga PilotJanuary 8, 2016 (2016-01-08)[a]
1The Metallix Saga2March 1, 2020 (2020-03-01)TBAYouTube
The Turbo Mecha Sonic Saga 4K RemasterMarch 7, 2020 (2020-03-07)
Shorts—2June 1, 2020 (2020-06-01)July 11, 2020 (2020-07-11)
2The Smithy SagaTBA2022
  1. ^ This is the date the pilot launched on Newgrounds; the first broadcast of the pilot on YouTube was on January 8, 2016.

The Turbo Mecha Sonic Saga (2006–2009; 2012)

No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleWritten byAnimated byOriginal air dateProd.
code		US viewers
(millions)
11"Bowser's Return"Alvin EarthwormAlvin EarthwormApril 22, 2006 (2006-04-22)V1012.81[11]
The Super Mario Bros. Z saga begins....
22"Warriors from Another Dimension"Alvin EarthwormAlvin EarthwormMay 22, 2006 (2006-05-22)V1022.15[12]
The battle between Mario and Bowser begins, but Bowser has an ace up his sleeve...
33"The New Threat"Alvin EarthwormAlvin EarthwormJuly 10, 2006 (2006-07-10)V1032.03[13]
The Mario bros team up with Sonic and Shadow to find the Chaos Emeralds.
44"Here Come the Koopa Bros."Alvin EarthwormAlvin EarthwormSeptember 19, 2006 (2006-09-19)V1042.40[14]
Sonic tells his backstory, and the Koopa bros join the hunt for the Chaos Emeralds.
55"Troubles on Yoshi's Island"Alvin EarthwormAlvin EarthwormFebruary 12, 2007 (2007-02-12)V1052.66[15]
Our heroes pursue the Koopa bros to Yoshi's Island. Where things are not what they seem...
66"Brawl on a Vanishing Island"Alvin EarthwormAlvin EarthwormMay 27, 2007 (2007-05-27)V1063.53[16]
The battle continues on Yoshi's Island as Mecha Sonic ominously approaches!
77"Secret of the Pipe Maze"Alvin Earthworm and an Unknown Writing PartnerAlvin EarthwormOctober 1, 2007 (2007-10-01)V1072.47[17]
Our heroes continue their search in the pipe maze, where a long-forgotten secret lies...
88"The Great Doomship Offensive"Alvin Earthworm and an Unknown Writing PartnerAlvin EarthwormOctober 9, 2009 (2009-10-09)V1082.78[18]
Can Mario and his friends save Peach from Bowser once again?
99"The Two-Shell Treaty"Alvin EarthwormAlvin EarthwormMarch 30, 2012 (2012-03-30)V1091.57[19]
As Mario recovers from his defeat at the hands of Basilisx, with help from Luigi, the brothers prepare their counterattack. Meanwhile, Shadow has a deadly encounter with Mecha Sonic...
"The Two Shell Treaty" was omitted from the 4K remaster of the 2006 Super Mario Broz. Z series due to it being incomplete. The cancelled following episode was to be titled "Mario Clash".

The Metallix Saga (2016; 2020–present)

No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleWritten byAnimated byOriginal air dateProd.
code		US viewers
(millions)
111"Fierce Battle Between Fierce Rivals"Mark HaynesMark HaynesJanuary 8, 2016 (2016-01-08) (Newgrounds)
March 1, 2020 (2020-03-01) (YouTube)		V1103.22[20]
Mario competes against Wario in the final round of a Smash tourney, but Bowser and Kamek interfere in a takeover plot of the Mushroom Kingdom. At the dire peak of Mario's defeat, a mysterious capsule with two otherworldly heroes prompts Bowser's takedown.
122"The New Threat"Mark HaynesMark HaynesTBAV111TBD
Sonic and Shadow team up with Mario, Luigi and Yoshi to find the Chaos Emeralds.
123"Genesis of Metallix"Mark HaynesMark HaynesTBAV112TBD
Sonic's past is explored.

Shorts

No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleWritten byAnimated byOriginal air dateUS viewers
(millions)
11"re: Look at this dude - You're not the Captain"Mark HaynesMark HaynesJune 2, 2020 (2020-06-02)0.95[25]
Published in response to a meme take of "Look at This Dude" depicting a Koopa Troopa laughing at the physical appearance of Captain Basilisx, to which Basilisx responds violently.[21][22][23][24]
22"Mecha Sonic vs. Bowser & Perfect Cell & Perfect Nazo (The epic rematch)"Mark HaynesMark HaynesJuly 11, 2020 (2020-07-11)0.57[26]
Frustrated from his defeats at the hands of Bowser, Perfect Cell, and Nazo, Mecha Sonic went back to the lab where he was first created and hooked up to Eggman's Supercomputer to reap invaluable data from the strongest beings on Mobius and fully unlock his latent abilities. The self-proclaimed god is now more powerful than ever and is so confident in his newfound strength that he not only issued a challenge to his past opponents but he wishes to take them all on at the same time.
Will Mecha Sonic get his retribution or will his arrogance be his undoing?

The Smithy Saga

Production and broadcast

Super Mario Bros. Z uses an anime inspired style of Flash animation in the style of Dragon Ball Z,[27][28] Conceptualised as a remake of Dragon Ball Z featuring characters from the Mario and Sonic series, inspired by various similar parody concepts Haynes had watched on Newgrounds, the first episode was animated over the course of one month, with new episodes released every few months for the following three years. Voice talent clips used by Haynes to represent characters include Charles Martinet, Kazumi Totaka, Ryan Drummond, Sean Schemmel, David Humphrey, Jason Griffith, Andrew Chandler, Kenny James, Samantha Kelly, Jen Taylor, Mike Pollock, Chris Rager, Lani Minella, and Dameon Clarke, with Andrew Raskin and Patrick TeNyenhuis of the web series Bowser's Kingdom making cameo apperances reprising their roles as protagonists Hal the Koopa Troopa and Jeff the Goomba in the eighth episode of the original series, "The Great Doomship Offensive".

SMBZ premiered on Newgrounds on April 22, 2006,[11] its eighth episode releasing October 9, 2009,[18] and unfinished ninth episode released March 30, 2012. A reboot was announced on January 8, 2016, with a pilot releasing to Newgrounds on January 8, 2016 and the series premiere releasing to YouTube on March 1, 2020.[29]

As of September 2020, the series' new YouTube channel has over 30,000 subscribers and over 30 million views.[30] SMBZ has also produced spin-off media focused on supporting characters, as well as bonus material including "Making of" and "Behind the Scenes" videos, as well as "Extra Credit" (outtakes), available on Haynes' Patreon and Ko-Fi pages.[31]

Reception

Super Mario Bros. Z attracted interest immediately, and is widely seen as a major influence in helping to establish and legitimize Flash animation in the public eye; the first episode was featured on Destructoid, who described in as "[the] greatest Flash series you will ever watch",[32] and had 50,000 views within a day, and has been acknowledged by Nintendo.[33][34] IGN described the series as "Super Mario and Sonic the Hedgehog meets Dragon Ball Z",[1] with the first episode having been viewed over nine million times across Newgrounds and YouTube,[2] and most episodes have received views in the millions.[35]

Bit 128 of Podcast One described the series as "ag[ing] like a mostly fine wine."[28] Noah Meyer of The Patriot Online described the series' reboot as "a non-conventional thrill-ride" which "blows the entire original series out of the water in quality", praising the use of voice clips and replacement of the Mario Kart tournament from the original series with the Super Smash Bros. tournament.[27]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Life, Nintendo (January 9, 2016). "Video: Super Mario Bros. Z, a Stylish Sprite-Based Animated Series, is Back". Nintendo Life. Retrieved October 2, 2018.
  2. ^ a b Rich, Ignacio (March 28, 2015). "10 webseries fan que no deberías perderte". IGN España (in European Spanish). Retrieved October 2, 2018.
  3. ^ Camf, Willy (November 12, 2009). "Professor Willy – Super Mario Bros. Z". WillyRenan. Retrieved November 12, 2009.
  4. ^ Anonymous (August 11, 2015). "Return to Super Mario Bros Z.". Millenium. Retrieved August 11, 2015.
  5. ^ Metta, Tom (June 8, 2015). "Super Mario Bros. Z (#14)". Awesome Fantasy News. Retrieved June 8, 2015.
  6. ^ Nestor, Trevor (September 16, 2013). "Super Mario Bros. Z the Movie: A project in Simi Valley, CA". KickTraq. Retrieved September 16, 2013.
  7. ^ Nash, Miller (October 21, 2013). "Copyright notice on Kickstarter: Super Mario Bros. Z the Movie [Submitted by Miller Nash LLP]". Kickstarter. Retrieved May 22, 2014.
  8. ^ yoshiller (February 16, 2016). "Super Mario Bros. Z creator faces Patreon trouble after a Nintendo DMCA claim". GoNintendo. Retrieved February 16, 2016.
  9. ^ Dwyer, Macklin (February 17, 2016). "Nintendo Takes Down Super Mario Bros. Z Patreon -". mxdwn Games. Retrieved October 2, 2018.
  10. ^ "Mark Haynes – YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 2020-08-06.
  11. ^ a b "Super Mario Bros. Z ep 1". Newgrounds. Retrieved 2006-04-22.
  12. ^ "Super Mario Bros. Z ep 2". Newgrounds. Retrieved 2006-05-22.
  13. ^ "Super Mario Bros. Z ep 3". Newgrounds. Retrieved 2006-07-10.
  14. ^ "Super Mario Bros. Z ep 4". Newgrounds. Retrieved 2006-09-19.
  15. ^ "Super Mario Bros. Z ep 5". Newgrounds. Retrieved 2007-02-12.
  16. ^ "Super Mario Bros. Z ep 6". Newgrounds. Retrieved 2007-05-27.
  17. ^ "Super Mario Bros. Z ep 7". Newgrounds. Retrieved 2007-10-01.
  18. ^ a b "Super Mario Bros. Z ep 8". Newgrounds. Retrieved 2007-10-09.
  19. ^ "Super Mario Bros. Z Episode 9: "The Two-Shell Treaty" (full length...)". YouTube. Retrieved 2020-03-02.
  20. ^ "Super Mario Bros. Z (Episode 1)". YouTube. Retrieved 2020-03-02.
  21. ^ "Look at This Dude – You're Not the Captain". YouTube. Retrieved 2020-05-30.
  22. ^ "Look at This Dude – Henry Koopa". YouTube. Retrieved 2020-06-03.
  23. ^ "Look at This Dude 2 – Lineland Road". YouTube. Retrieved 2020-06-03.
  24. ^ "You are not the captain of this boat". YouTube. Retrieved 2016-12-18.
  25. ^ "re: Look at This Dude – You're Not the Captain". YouTube. Retrieved 2020-06-02.
  26. ^ "Mecha Sonic vs Bowser & Perfect Cell & Perfect Nazo (The epic rematch)". YouTube. Retrieved 2020-07-11.
  27. ^ a b Meyer, Noah (January 21, 2020). "Rising Sun First Impressions – Super Mario Bros. Z Reboot". The Patriot Online. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
  28. ^ a b Cast, The B+t (March 25, 2020). "Bit 128 – Super Mario Bros. Z Retrospective". Podcast One. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  29. ^ "Super Mario Bros. Z (Original Series 4K REMASTER)". Mark Haynes. March 7, 2020. Retrieved March 7, 2020 – via YouTube.
  30. ^ "About Super Mario Brox. Z". Mark Haynes / Alvin Earthworm. Retrieved August 10, 2015 – via YouTube.
  31. ^ "Buy a Coffee for ☕ Mark Haynes ☕". Retrieved March 2, 2020 – via Ko-Fi.
  32. ^ Aziz, Hamza CTZ (June 19, 2007). "The greatest Flash series you will ever watch; Super Mario Bros Z". Destructoid. Retrieved June 19, 2007.
  33. ^ Whitehead, Thomas (January 9, 2016). "Video: Super Mario Bros. Z, a Stylish Sprite-Based Animated Series, is Back". Nintendo Life. Retrieved January 9, 2016.
  34. ^ Whitehead, Thomas (February 16, 2016). "Super Mario Bros. Z Creator Launches New Patreon Page After Nintendo Takedown". Nintendo Life. Retrieved February 16, 2016.
  35. ^ Dankers, Patrick (February 9, 2020). "Super Mario Bros. Z – Returning after 3 Years". Nintendo Reporters. Retrieved February 9, 2020.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Super_Mario_Bros._Z&oldid=980153999"