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From Sam

How could Raphael Raven come back to Lavalava Island in Paper Mario if he was blasted into the sky and turned into a constellation in Yoshi's Island? And why did the Yoshis become friends with him all of a sudden in Paper Mario?

Well, Raphael wasn't actually turned into a constellation, that was just a weird cartoony visual effect that is liable to happen anytime a character is knocked into the distance. How'd he come back, I couldn't say, but clearly the journey gave him a change of heart as he's patched things up with the Yoshis. Rats, I say.

From Sam

Why are Boos so shy?

Boos and other ghosts aren't supposed to be seen by the living, so they must try to conceal themselves from view. No, there's no shady love interest or anything like that.

From Denny W. Koopa

What do each of you do now that Nintendo doesn't put you in games any more?

Well, without a salary coming in, we had to sell the castle to the highest bidder, but apparently no one wanted a dark castle full of lava and traps so we only got ten coins for it. Now we've been hanging out on street corners, rattling around cups for change and holding signs that say "Will work 4 food". It's a terrible existence, but what else can we do? Most of us live this way, but Roy got himself arrested for trying to steal moldy bread from the grocery store, and we had to kill Morton because he was scaring away our "customers". Ludwig's gone completely insane as well, he's not a pleasant sight to behold.

... Yeah. Look, man, I'm sure I've said this before, the games Nintendo makes are only examples of the many adventures we and the Marios have been involved in. There are many adventures that haven't made it to your gaming consoles yet. In fact, the few games we do appear in don't even scratch the surface. Of course, Nintendo doesn't have time to make games out of all of them, nor do they even know about all of them. Nintendo people poke around from time to time, and once in a while they'll ask us questions so they can better figure out how the adventure went, but for the most part we're hardly affected by the production of the games.

So, to answer your question, we're living the same lifestyle we always have.

From Bobby

In the episode The Beauty of Kootie, how come you didn't use your own wand to hide your tail?

I didn't have it on me at the time. I mean, where would I have been hiding a wand while I was wearing a tight dress?

From Bobby

In the episode Reptiles in the Rose Garden, how come you didn't use the wand to zap America into the Mushroom Kingdom?

Wands don't have unlimited powers, you know, they can only do certain things, and then only when you know how. My wand can't transport a whole country, and I'm pretty sure none of my brothers' wands can either, which is why we needed a special invention. Even then, we only transported the White House... which is ugly, by the way.

From Bobby

In Yoshi's Safari, why didn't you have a shield to protect your head in the boss stage against that flying anvil? Also, where'd it come from?

Ok, I don't really know anything about that anvil freak. I didn't bring him along, I mean, my bombs were stronger than his horseshoe thingies anyway. Did you ever notice that he's one of the only minions in that game you haven't seen fighting with us before? Weird, huh? I think he was just an annoying resident who decided to help but ended up hurting us, sorta like Embert in The Good, the Bad, and the Torte, which you should read if you haven't. (Yes, that is a very rare endorcement, savor it while you can.)

Now, why didn't I have a shield for my head? Well for one thing, it wouldn't have been an issue if it weren't for Mr. Anvilman, who was not part of the plan, as previously explained. But more importantly, I refuse to wear anything that will obstruct the view of my beautiful, gorgeous face, even though I'm sure Mario is way too stupid to appreciate it. That's why I couldn't use a robot like my brothers. Even ducking into the pipes in Mario World was a borderline decision for me, since my face was not visible at all times.

From Hott Rodd

Over the years of Mario games, Bowser just seems to get bigger and bigger every time Mario fights him. Do you know if you Koopalings will get to be that big or bigger when you’re full-grown?

Ok, first thing's first: Bowser's size in the games has never been exactly accurate. Because it's considered graphically impressive for bosses to be large, Bowser has generally been as large as the system could handle. That's why Bowser started off only as large as Mario in Mario 1, but by Mario Sunshine he's many times bigger. Sometimes, for convenience, Bowser appears smaller. For example, in Mario RPG Bowser wouldn't have fit in battle mode with two other characters if he was many times larger than Mario, so he was scaled down considerably.

All the bosses in Mario 64 and Mario Sunshine were considerably larger than the portly plumber. The trouble is, since we're kids, it would be illogical for us to be very large, certainly not larger than Mario. As a result, we would be small bosses, not very graphically impressive. This, I believe, is part of the reason why Nintendo has opted not to put us in games recently... though by no means is it the whole reason.

From AJ-Con

What's the deal with Goombas? Did Bowser REALLY think Goombas could be any match for Mario?

Goombas are plentiful, mindlessly follow orders, and practically work for peanuts. They're the perfect minions... well, except for the part where they're as weak as cardboard. But actually, they were never really expected to defeat Mario, though Bowser likes to roar at them for not doing so. Instead, they were simply supposed to come in large numbers and tire Mario out for an easy kill by a stronger minion, like a Hammer Brother or something. Why not just replace all the Goombas with Hammer Brothers? With so many strong minions, a rebellion would be easy...

From Terry

If Sub-con was just a dream, how did Birdos, Bob-ombs and Shy Guys come to life in future Mario games?

Argh, stupid Sub-con questions. They're so hard to answer in a way that makes sense. Ok, first thing's first, the events of Mario 2 were not "just a dream", they really happened. Dreaming is one way to get into Sub-con. You can sorta think of it as sleepwalking, insofar as you're asleep but it's really happening, except you have enough consciousness to control yourself. Sub-con is a real place, though, and it is possible to get there by warp pipe as well. Some of those characters may have left through a warp. Also, not all Birdos, etc. lived in Sub-con anyway.

From Damage

Why does the Mushroom Kingdom map look different in different games?

The games have featured different parts of the Mario games, and therefore have maps that reflect the varying locales. The Mushroom Kingdom is much larger than any one game lets on.

From Young Link

Koopalings will transform into goo when out of their shells. What happens if the goo of two or more young Koopas is mixed?

Liquid Koopas, as opposed to Liquid Plumber, do not mix with other liquids, including each other. It's sort of like what happens if you pour slime into water. They stay pretty much seperated so that it's easy to take out just the slime. Of course, sometimes little bits will drift away, and then you have to hope it wasn't anything important.

From Bobby

How could Culex be in Final Fantasy 2 and Super Mario RPG?

I'm not sure that Culex is actually in Final Fantasy 2. Some people say he is and others say he isn't. Did he have a slightly different name? Or maybe there's confusion about whether we're talking about the NES or SNES FF2, the former of which was not originally released in the states. Those early titles in the series get messy, and I'm not an expert on Final Fantasy... Anyway, why can't Culex appear in both games? Mario appears in tons of games. I certainly don't see any evidence that these two games happened at the same time. Did Culex die in FF2? If so, maybe SMPRG happened first.

From Bobby

If Mario learned Fire Orb, Ultra Jump, etc., why didn't he use them in his future games?

This is an excellent question, one I've actually been pondering for quite some time, and to be honest, I'm not sure. The best I can come up with, which I don't vouch to be true, is that the Stars fueled his magic abilities. Jump is a standard move for Mario, but usually he can't throw fireballs without a Fire Flower... until he comes in contact with a Star. Then, as long as he has it, his magic ability increases considerably. But when the Stars are sent back to Star Road, his magic ability returned to normal. Of course, this isn't a perfect explanation. Players might well earn Fire Orb before finding the first Star. Technically, they could earn all Mario's magic abilities before finding the first Star. Of course, just because the player can get these moves doesn't mean it actually happened that way. Nintendo might have decided to ignore that bit about the magic because it would have made the beginning of the game much more difficult.

So, in short, my guess is that the Seven Stars fueled Mario's magic, but only while he had them in his possession, and Nintendo ignored (or didn't know) this. I'd be curious to hear any other theories... I'll leave this one open.

From Bobby

Why don't Bloopers attack Mario while he's on the ground?

The same physics that allow some Bloopers to fly also prevent most Bloopers from reaching the ground, including the sea floor.

From GameQube

Why can't Mario swim in Mario 2?

Well, most of the water in Mario 2 isn't stagnant like in other games, but instead comes in falling form (that is, waterfalls). Not even Mario can swim up one of those, least of all while sort of sleeping. I guess there's some water around where those whales are in that one course, but it might have been too cold to swim in, kind of like the water in those ice courses of Mario 64.

From Coco

In the Mario cartoons, how did Bowser get Wart's minions to capture Peach?

Like many other people, you're assuming that all minions of a given species work as one under the same leader. This is not the case. In Paper Mario, for example, you can clearly see that not all Goombas, Koopa Troopas, or Boos work for Bowser. Similarly, not all Shy Guys, Flurries, and Birdos work for Wart. So Bowser didn't need to go to Sub-con and convince Wart's minions to work for him, he just found his own.

But now you might be wondering, if some Flurries and Birdos work for Bowser, how come we've never seen them in video games? I mean, Flurry has not appeared outside of Mario 2, while Birdo was an enemy in Mario RPG but not on Bowser's side. The answer is twofold... well maybe more, but I'll only offer two answers. The first is that the adventures Nintendo has turned into games represent only a small portion of our quests against Mario, and not all the minions at our disposal were involved in these episodes. The other answer I'll offer is that the games, though accurate in many ways, certainly do not recreate the adventures perfectly, and it is very possible that some of the enemies we used were left out of the games. In other words, Flurries could have appeared in the true adventure that came to be called Mario 1, for all you know, even though Nintendo did not include them in the game.

From Cool Guy 1

Many people say that Stanley the Bugman, from Donkey Kong 3, is Mario's cousin. Is this true?

I've heard this rumor a lot, but I'm really not sure. I've never seen Donkey Kong 3, so I have no idea as to whether the game said this, or whether Nintendo said so somewhere, or whether it's just a rumor. I can tell you that if Stanley exists, he's never come to the Mushroom Kingdom, and I've never heard Mario talk about him... not that I've had a lot of heart-to-hearts with Mario.

From Cool Guy 1

In Super Mario Bros. 1 at the end of each castle you battled Bowser or one of his servants disguised as him. Why did they so stupidly stand on that bridge over lava with the axe? Didn't they realize that Mario or Luigi could've turned that axe and sent them into the lava pit below? And furthermore, why didn't they just go up to the axe and turn it when Mario or Luigi showed up so that it would've sent them into the lava instead? Yeesh! There must've been something really wrong with their heads!

Alright, this is the last time I answer a question that tries to rationalize what some character did. This is already the third I've posted, the first being why didn't Reznor fight off the wheel and the second being why didn't Boom Boom keep his spikes extended, and there are many more I haven't posted. Look, I'm not a psychiatrist, and I can't tell you why they were stupid. The only thing that should matter so far as you're concerned is that they were stupid. Yeah, it probably wasn't the brightest thing in the world to stand on a thin bridge with an axe nearby. But then again, everything seems clearer in hindsight... well, except for what happened last night. I'm drawing a big blank there.

From Jordan Koopa

What control does Iggy have over Yoshi's Island in Mario World?

Little to none. Although we retained some power over Grass Land, Desert Land, etc., we kept precious little over in Dinosaur Land. This is mostly due to the greater distance between Dark Land and Dinosaur Land as opposed to Dark Land and the Mushroom Kingdom, plus we were far less rooted in Dinosaur Land; we have many minions loyal to us in the Mushroom Kingdom, but not so many in Dinosaur Land (most of the minions you see in Mario World, we brought with us). Of all us Koopalings, Iggy probably has the least power over his section of Dinosaur Land (except perhaps Larry, who never really had his own) because Yoshi's Island, in addition to being small, is home to a very inhospitable force: Yoshis. As a result, Yoshi's Island contains very few minions loyal to us, and thus Iggy has virtually no power.

From Bobby

In Recycled Koopa, if you were so upset about the garbage, why didn't you just turn it into stuff like jewelry?

We really can't change things into other things. There was that one episode where Larry made me look like a human, but that's just it: he didn't change me into a human, he just made me look like a human. Plus, this kind of magic is only temporary, and can only be used on individual objects. It would have taken longer to change each piece of trash into something we really want than it would have just to throw it away.

From Bobby

In Mario 1, why does Mario drown when he falls in water while in a land course, even though he can swim in underwater courses?

This reminds me of a similar question about why Mario can't swim in Sub-con. Once again, I'm going to have to chalk it up to waterfalls. It's always the waterfalls... even if you can't see them.

From Bobby

In a previous question, you said that Lemmy is bad at walking but good on his ball. But in the Mario cartoons, he only rode his ball in one episode, and in other episodes (like A Little Learning) Lemmy can walk perfectly! What's the secret?

I didn't mean that he's gonna trip and fall, just that he's not as comfortable on the ground. Anyway, the cartoons were too short (hatch a plan, carry it out, and get defeated in about 12 minutes) to include little details like Lemmy wobbling around... particularly when the cartoons didn't give him a personality separate from Iggy.

From Map42892

Why in Super Smash Bros. Melee and Super Mario RPG did Mario get to shoot fireballs without using a Fire Flower?

Excellent question. Smash Bros. first. We believe that Smash Bros. didn't actually happen (for more on this, see the timeline in Morton's Basics). If it did happen, it was during a time rift or alternate dimension, in which case Mario could have had powers we doesn't ordinarily have. You may recall that, in addition to the fireballs, he had a cape in Melee, even though you can't see it except when he uses it. In the original Smash Bros. he could also get large at will, as if picking up a Super Mushroom, as his taunt. Obviously, in this rift/dimension/whatever, all the characters had the best of their abilities, even if they usually need an item to use it. You could ask this same question of many of the other fighters as well.

Now for Mario RPG. This is a tricky one, but it goes back to a question I answered a while back. The question asked, basically, why Mario lost his magic moves after Mario RPG. After all, we don't see him using Ultra Jump or Ultra Fireball except in that game, least of all without a Fire Flower, so what gives? My answer was that the Stars he picked up gave him special powers, but only while he had them in his possession. Thus, he lost those abilities when he released the Stars after beating Smithy. And so, in case you haven't realized what I'm going to say yet, I believe that the Stars also allowed Mario to throw fireballs without a Fire Flower.

Or, if you don't buy that, it could just be because all the magic moves in that game were fueled by Fire Flowers after all, sometimes known simply as Flowers. You know, Flower Tabs, Flower Jars, Flower Boxes... hey, when do I get some Flowers? Hmph.

From Dirty Ted

In Super Mario World, how did you guys survive falling in the lava or disappearing?

Well, there are those who are convinced we didn't survive, even though we appear in two games after that. For those of us who disappeared, that was just us warping out. We pretty much did the same thing when defeated in Mario 3, but the game showed it differently. And for the ones who fell in the lava, Koopas are resilient to lava, which is how Bowser survives it in several other games. So they too were able to warp out, though you didn't see it.

From Bobby

What game systems do you and your brothers have?

Well I don't have any, thank you very much. But in our castle you'll find Nintendo, Super Nintendo, Gameboy Color, Nintendo 64, and GameCube. There's no Gameboy Advance because Lemmy and Iggy have taken to playing roms on the computer. I'm not really sure whether the Nintendo actually still works, the rest do though. As far as non-Nintendo systems go, Bowser's old Atari is still kicking around. And rumor has it there's a Game Gear hidden somewhere in the castle, but you'll have to ask Lemmy about that.

From kamek sinister

When is Bowser's birthday?

July 13th.

From kamek sinister

How tall is Waluigi?

Oh, I'd say about 7 and a half feet when his knees aren't all bent like that.

From Fondz3@aol.com

How come in most Mario games it takes one hit to defeat a Goomba, but in Paper Mario it takes two conks on the head to defeat them?

Well, this is only the case very early on in the game. If Mario gets a stronger Hammer or pair of Boots, or Peach's amulet thingy, then he can kill them in one hit. Why can't he do it at the start of the game? Although the Star Spirits revived him, Mario was still weaker than usual owing to his fall.

From kamek sinister

Is Bowser overweight?

Well, that's hard to say. Bowser's probably the heaviest Koopa, but at the same time, he's also the largest. I'd say that his weight is fine, given his size. Certainly any weight he has is due to muscle anyway... or that huge shell of his.

From kamek sinister

What kind of spells does Kamek have? If he used spells could he beat Bowser in a fight? Would it be close?

Kamek specializes in size-changing spells, as you've seen, but he can do a lot more. In RPG terms, he strikes me as something like a Time Mage. He doesn't really use strong elementals like a Black Mage, and he certainly doesn't heal people like a White Mage. No, he works with status effects, and they can be quite powerful if used right.

Could Kamek beat Bowser in a fight? I used to think he couldn't, or at least he believed he couldn't, because otherwise he'd have done it by now. However, nowadays I think he could beat Bowser, but chooses not to. As Bowser's chief advisor, he can exercise a lot of power. If he were to kill Bowser, the new king might not allow him that kind of authority. And if Kamek himself became the new king, he might have trouble commanding the same kind of respect from the troops as Bowser does, and so still have less power than he does now.

From Ara

How would you rate the Koopalings' magic power?

None of us are really known for our magical powers. It's not that we're bad at it, per se, it's just that the Magikoopas are way better, and Bowser will turn to them for magical services before us. Lemmy and Iggy are probably the best of us when it comes to magic, while Roy and Ludwig are the worst.

From kamek sinister

How old is Yoshi?

Yoshis can live to be quite old, and certainly the green dino is a lot older than Mario because he was old enough to save the pesky kid. Yoshis aren't big on birth certificates, though, so it's hard to tell. I'd say he's at least 60, but technically he could be a lot older.

From Silly Koopa

How did Baby Ludwig learn to drive in Mario Kart Double Dash?

Well, for starters, "Baby" Ludwig is a bit of an exaggeration. Young Ludwig (as opposed to SSBM's Young Link) is more like it. Anyway, driving is easy, and it's not like any of these characters actually had a license to drive like that. Plus, if there's anyone who can pick up driving quickly, it's Ludwig and all his technical know-how.

From Silly Koopa

How do Babies Mario and Luigi appear in the same place as their older selves?

I was wondering when someone would ask this. It's a complicated situation, but to make a long story short, the Marios built a time machine and went back in time to retrieve their younger counterparts. They reasoned that us Koopas would eventually figure out that we could knock off the Marios by going back in time ourselves and killing the babies, and that the babies would be safer in their custody. Fortunately for them, the Marios have been more careful about keeping the babies from being kidnapped than the princess. Unfortunately for us, our other attempts to change the past (for example, Toddler Terrors of Time Travel) have not been successful.

From Silly Koopa

Is Daisy Luigi's girlfriend?

Grr... I bet you think this just because they were partners in Mario Tennis. But someone had to be Luigi's partner, and that doesn't necesarily make them a couple. Perhaps you'd have liked to see Mario and Luigi as a team, and Peach and Daisy as a team, rather than crossed? Regardless, I have no evidence that Luigi and Daisy are anything more than friends. Besides, if anything, Luigi should get Peach and Mario should get Daisy, since we've never actually seen Luigi rescue Daisy.

From Bobby

How can small Mario eat a Mushroom if it's the size of him? Wouldn't he get sick from eating the whole thing?

When it comes to Mario, expect the unexpected - and unexpect the expected. You wouldn't think that eating a Mushroom would cause you to double in size. But since this does happen in Mario's case, why would you expect this to make him sick? The Mushroom is wild.

From William

If Wart does not like vegetables, why does his Dream Machine shoot out vegetables?

Most machines give off steam or smoke. This one gives off vegetables, is all. Freaky, true, but things don't always make sense in dreams.

From Ho-oh 59

In Super Mario 64, if Mario defeated the Bob-omb King by throwing him down, why is it that the Bob-omb King would get hurt if Mario threw him down on the mountain peak, but would not take damage if Mario threw him off the edge of the mountain?

Good question! Well, the thing of it is, Bob-ombs don't get defeated by being thrown per se. But usually when they're thrown, they get so mad that they explode. King Bob-omb had a somewhat higher tolerance, so he didn't get mad enough to explode when thrown... at least not right away. When Mario threw him down three times, he got so upset at his inability to defeat Mario that he gave up the Star and exploded. But when he got thrown off the mountain, he got upset in a different way. Since Mario broke his rules, he became more determined to win the fight. So he only got angry enough to explode when Mario bested him while following the rules.

From physickoopa

How can a Raccoon Suit or a Tanooki Suit help Mario fly? For the Tanooki Suit, wouldn't the stone part weigh him down?

Just part of the suit's magic, I guess. The only suit that kinda acts like the animal would is the Frog Suit. The closest I can think of is that raccoons are kind of like squirrels, and there's something called the flying squirrel... it can really only float, but then again Mario can only float as well. As for the Tanooki Suit, the flying and stone abilities are independent of one another and interchangeable, so Mario's not flying (floating) while weighing as much as rock. Excepting that I'm of the notion that he weighs as much as a rock on a regular basis...

Really, the only surprise here is that it took five years for someone to ask this question.

From Hutch

How does the P-Wing let Mario fly? Why does it turn into a Raccoon Suit when you're in the next level?

The P-Wing lost some stuff in translation into the game. For those of you who don't know what the P-Wing does, when used on the map screen, it transforms Mario into Raccoon Mario. Then in the next course, he can fly continuously until he hits an enemy. Very useful in certain courses, as you can imagine. Now, as for the real life P-Wing. First, the item itself doesn't turn Mario into Raccoon Mario. He must already have the power of flight through the Raccoon or Tanooki Suits, or else the P-Wing won't do him any good. The game dropped this requirement and just turned him into Raccoon Mario, probably because it would have been more difficult to make the item work only when Mario's wearing one of those two suits. Second, the real life item actually lasts until Mario lands (or gets hit, since he'd lost his power of flight). Nintendo dropped this piece within the courses, but assumed that by the time Mario would make it over to the next course, he would have touched down at some point, and so didn't let the player carry it over. The real Mario, of course, wasn't confined to levels and could fly for long distances, but flying is tiring even with the P-Wing, so even at the risk of losing its power he had to take breaks. So, he wasn't able to skip whole lands that way, or anything like that.

From Hip Koopa

Why do the Koopalings work for Bowletta? Don't they realize their dad is in there? Don't they want to save him?

Now, you might be thinking that it was painfully obvious to any idiot that Bowser was being possessed. But consider these things:

-We'd never met Cackletta before. So we certainly didn't say, "Bowser looks a lot like Cackletta today! What's up with that?"
-Bowser has some strange habits... or haven't you noticed? If you want to see him in some strange get-ups, try watching SMBSS, and keep in mind that the cartoons were relatively tame insofar as other weird things Bowser has done. So, comparitively speaking, his appearance didn't seem especially unusual.
-Those who stand up to Bowser are likely to be fried. Or thrown in the dungeon. Or both. Or worse. (And standing up to Bowletta probably wouldn't have gone any better.)

So yes, we didn't realize that anything fishy was going on until afterwards. And in case you were wondering, we didn't get in trouble for helping Cackletta. Bowser was so dazed after the incident that we were able to convince him that it never actually happened.

From Joanie Koopa

Are Koopalings born with their shells?

No, we are not born with shells. Since our goopy selves aren't terribly mobile, we have to rely on someone else (likely a parent) to bring us a shell. After that, though, we can fend for ourselves pretty quickly.

From Joanie Koopa

How do Koopalings take baths?

We go in the tub. But what you probably mean is, how do we take a bath without our shell on? Well, we don't. Once we have a shell, we rarely take it off except to change it, and that's just for aesthetic preference. Goo doesn't take up a lot of space, so it's rare that we outgrow our shells.

From Dirty Ted

What are you and your siblings' greatest fear?

You know, it's hard to be scared of very much when you have a father who might throw you in the lava pits just to suit his fancy, and who periodically expects you to take on a plumber who, more than likely, will end up beating you within an inch of your life. With all that, we become pretty much fearless. But, I guess we do have a few fears. Ludwig fears the absence of technology. I think Lemmy fears the ground. I've heard Roy dislikes light, and Iggy is just afraid of Roy. Morton is afraid of the sound of things ripping. Larry is afraid of worms. As for me, I'm afraid that someone might send me a stupid question. Oh, wait, that always happens.

From Ho-oh 59

How much do Mario, Luigi, Peach, Daisy, Yoshi, Wario, and Waluigi weigh?

Mario weighs in at around 170 pounds, Luigi a bit lighter at 150. The princesses are both around 115, Yoshi somehow manages to weigh 130 even though he's always eating. Waluigi is just a bit lighter than Luigi, maybe 145 or so, while Wario is the heavy-weight of the bunch, coming in at about 210.

From Bobby

If King Boo doesn't have feet, how can he push the pedals in Mario Kart Double Dash?

The cars in Double Dash have hand levers attached to and behind of the steering wheel. You squeeze the left one to go faster, the right one to go slower. This allowed King Boo as well as short characters like Babies Mario and Luigi to drive even though they could not reach the pedals.

From Martin

Who do you think is an overall better sorceror, accounting for both in and out of battle, Kamek or Kammy?

Oh, it's no contest. Kammy is no match for Kamek. At least, when he was in his prime, anyway. He's not as powerful as he used to be, so maybe she'd stand a chance. But when he was younger? No way. Anyway, we love to hate Kamek. Kammy, we just hate.

From Nermal

Where does the fire come from? I mean, I know that you breathe it out... but where is it located?

We actually don't store fire, but we do store stomache acid. That acid is slightly flamable, so if it's mixed with enough oxygen it will burn. So, all we gotta do is take a deep breath, churn up some stomache acid, and blow! Of course, our mouths are designed to handle high-temperature flames. If we swallow those flames, though, it's serious heartburn...

From Slimer49'r

How can Koopas put clothes on without them being ripped by their shells or tails?

Our clothes have zippers in the back, so we can unzip them, slip the clothes on, and then zip them up around the spikes and tail.

From Waluigi's Twin

In Luigi's Mansion, Luigi found Mario's Hat and Mario's Glove, but when he first saw Mario, all his clothing was still on! How is that?

An excellent question. Mario did lose his hat and glove (and Star). But he looked so unusual without his trademark hat that King Boo wasn't satisfied. So he got van Gore to paint his hat and glove back on. Now, usually you can't just paint on one of these 2D prisons and expect it to affect the subject within. But when you paint like van Gore, things are different. Or if you have magic paint, that helps too. But anyway, yeah, van Gore gave him another hat and glove.

From Martin

Do people like Kamek and Kammy live in the Keep, or do they live in other buildings in Dark Land?

They live in the Keep, because when Bowser wants to see one of them, he wants to see them NOW! Not in however long it would take them to travel from wherever they live. Of course, Bowser could probably shout that far...

From King Boo

Wendy, does Roy ever hit you? I mean you're a girl and he's a boy. If so, do you hit him back?

Not too often. He knows I've got Bowser wrapped around my claw, and I'm sure he remembers the time I kicked him in the face. Don't think he cuts me any slack for being female. I'm quite the powerful woman.

From Martin

How was Bogmire created? I know it said it is the product of the mansion's dispair and hatred, but how did this create Bogmire?

Just as Bogmire has shadows, Bogmire is himself a shadow. Or perhaps a reflection, a reflection of fear and evil. When a place has enough evil energy, it may be possible to harness that energy and channel into one place, creating a Bogmire. With so many ghosts in the mansion, coupled with Luigi's fear, there was definitely enough energy, especially once Luigi reached the graveyard. King Boo would have easily been powerful enough to channel the energy into Bogmire. I only wonder why he didn't do this more than once. Bogmire might have been a more common enemy rather than a one-time boss. I guess Boos like having evil energy around, and they can't feed off it once it's sent into Bogmire.

From Martin

Which is more powerful, a Shy Guy or a Goomba?

Shy Guys are definitely more powerful. Yup, a little more endurance, a little more attack strength... not that Mario would ever notice, of course. Shy Guys are also much more likely to attain a stronger form. Goombas can't hope to become much more than a Paragoomba, which is definitely more dangerous but not a whole lot stronger, whereas Shy Guys have many more varients to choose from.

From Bobby

If Susan likes Larry so much, then why don't the rest of you like her? After all, Larry's her love target!

It is true that Susan annoys Larry more than the rest of us, but she is still quite annoying to all of us. Much as I'm glad to cause Larry a hard time, I don't want it to come at my expense. Also, Bowser's not the nicest guy in the world, as you may have noticed. There's not much nice to go around, so any nice thing he does for Susan is likely something he's not doing for me. And my siblings. Of course.

From The Fire Toad

Wendy, I was playing Paper Mario when I started to wonder which Toad is the Toad? I must have beat the game fifty times without knowing. Which one is Toad?

Toad the Toad is the one you find in the cabinet in Peach's Castle. Staying by her side, loyal as always... and as cowardly.

From Bobby

In Yoshi's Island, the intro showed and said Kamek swiped Baby Luigi and left the stork behind, but when Yoshi and Baby Mario defeat Baby Bowser and find Baby Luigi, the stork was tied up!

Obviously Kamek or his Toadies went back for him. They probably thought they still had Mario, before they found out Yoshi had him. Then they probably kidnapped him to ensure he wouldn't get in the way, and perhaps so he could help care for Luigi.

From Bobby

How much can a Goomba carry before he's squished?

Mushrooms are rather soft, and Goombas are none too strong, so I expect it's the rare Goomba that can life more than five pounds.

From Bobby

What dimensions does the dungeon equal? You know, like measurements?

Our standard dungeons have floorspace of three feet by three feet, with an adjustable ceiling which we will move to about an inch above the prisoner's height. These cells are not large enough to accomodate all prisoners, so there are larger cells as well. Special prisoners may be granted stays in cells as large as twenty-five feet square, in which you will be certain to find an impressive array of torture devices.

From reptile

In Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga, why did some of the Koopalings have time Bob-ombs?

Cackletta felt that if Mario and Luigi were able to get as far as Roy (the fifth to face Mario), then we were likely to need some extra help. Regular castle minions wouldn't do, because Mario would already have faced so many of them. But time Bob-ombs might have done the trick. Didn't, though. I told Cackletta to start them on a lower number...

Well I did...

From Martin

Why's the Beanbean economy so much better than the Mushroom Kingdom's, and for that matter everywhere else we've seen?

Constant invasions of the Mushroom Kingdom take their toll on the value of the gold coin, since residents can never be sure that their coins will be worth much tomorrow. The Beanbean Kingdom isn't under seige nearly as often. Also, the Mushroom Kingdom has many more ? Blocks, the contents of which really undermine the treasury.

From Wario Bros Fan

How can Mario shoot fireballs underwater?

Mario's fireballs are self-fueling, in a similar way to how oil can allow fire to burn on top of the water. This allows his fireballs to last for a short time even underwater.

From Bobby

On the Koopa Cruiser, why didn't Bowletta just burn the crates Luigi set down?

The Koopa Cruiser, repaired though it was, wasn't in very good shape. If Bowletta had tried to burn the crates, she likely would have set the entire ship ablaze. I'm sure Bowletta wasn't thinking terribly clearly at the moment, which is why Fawful had to stay behind to help her realize that. After all, he could have flied around just as soon as he grabbed his helmet.

From Bobby

Why didn't Bowser just use his fire breath attack in the first place in Paper Mario at the start of the game? It caused 10 HP damage!

Bowser wanted a shot at beating Mario without the Star Rod (which he had to use in order to power up his fire breath attack). If he could do it, it would have served as a huge morale boost for him, and he didn't have much to lose since he could always fall back on the Star Rod if the battle wasn't going well.

From Bobby

In Superstar Saga, how come the order Mario fought you guys in Bowser's Castle is the same as Mario World?

Cackletta was too busy to give us specific instructions, so she told us to order ourselves as we liked. At the time, the order we'd prepared for Mario World seemed the most natural...

From DaKingKoopa

Can some Koopas breathe elements other than fire depending on their interests?

Due to our various traits, Koopas may have stronger or weaker fire breath than others, or even none at all. But I have never known a Koopa to breathe something other than fire, and I don't think personal inclination would have much of an effect on this.

From Ho-oh 59

In Super Mario Bros. 3, if you pick up an Ice Block, you can't hold it forever, or it will melt into nothing. So how do the Ice Blocks stay frozen in levels outside of Ice Land (like Worlds 5-2) without getting melted by the outside temperature? If it was cold enough for the Ice Block to freeze in World 5-2, wouldn't the lake there freeze as well?

Your reasoning is a bit flawed, because in any level, icy or not, the blocks hang around for as long as Mario stays on the screen - unless he picks them up. The deciding factor is the fact that Mario is holding them. He must have really warm hands, and why not? He often throws fireballs from them. And they're enough to melt Ice Blocks.

Also, small amounts of water, such as unfrozen Ice Blocks, will freeze more quickly than lakes.

From Cokey

How high can Paratroopas fly?

Paratroopa wings aren't very strong (explaining why they fall off when Mario jumps on one), and so Paratroopas can't fly very high. In fact, most of the height achieved is from the Paratroopa's jump off the ground. Then the wings pretty much only help to maintain that height. Most Paratroopas can't jump terribly high either, but there are some exceptions.

From Alex

What would the Mushroom Kingdom look like if it was drawn on a map? Where would the eight lands be? Would they be connected or separate?

Grass Land, which includes Peach's castle, is in the center of the kingdom. Desert Land is towards the north. Water Land is towards the southeast, Ice Land the southwest and west, with Pipe Land in between to the south and Giant Land to the east, separating Water Land and Desert Land. The ground portion of Sky Land is to the northwest, while the sky section floats over the rest of the lands. Dark Land is not part of the Mushroom Kingdoms. The lands are connected, but Mario used warp pipes to get between them in Mario 3. Otherwise, he'd have been obliged to take a different route.

From Alex

If the kings of the seven lands are ruling them then why does everyone say that Princess Peach is the ruler of all the lands?

Although they are called kings, since Grass Land and the other six lands (not including Dark Land) are all part of the Mushroom Kingdom, which is run by Peach, they might better be called governors. Each of the seven lands used to be its own kingdom. When they united into one, there came to be one ruler of all the lands, but the local leaders kept their titles.

From Antwan

Of all the Koopalings, which one has the strongest fire breath attack?

Ah... There used to be a time when only Ludwig was known to breathe fire. Now, of course, following Superstar Saga, it has been seen that we all can do it. Even Lemmy! But listen up, Lemmy's Land sleuths. Mysteries do not get updated, and there are some that rely on the fact that Ludwig is the only one who can breathe fire. If ever you read a Mystery and a Koopaling is identified simply as breathing fire, it's gonna be Ludwig. Of course, Lemmy won't accept that as a clue anymore...

Anyway, Ludwig's fire breath is still the most developed, and it is the strongest.

From ServantOfNobility

How come you, your brothers, and your dad look different than other Koopas?

Well, I don't think we really look that different. You have to keep in mind that Nintendo, for a number of reasons, isn't going to put the same level of detail into the normal Koopas as they do the bosses, and so the normal ones are going to look the same. If you were to see Koopas in person, they would all look somewhat different. Now, Royal Koopas do wear spikes shells (but we're not born with them), and we may get to be bigger than your average Koopa because we get better food and work out and stuff. And we're more likely
to have jewelry or other special artifacts. But the difference is not as distinct as the games would have you believe - except for Bowser.

From Martin

Is Kamek related to Bowser in any way (such as a cousin or something)?

Kamek is actually Bowser's godfather, not that this earns him any respect from Bowser. There is no blood relationship.

From Bobby

What does a Mini-Mario do, and what would you do with one?

Well, now that's a loaded question. Mini-Marios don't seem to do a whole lot. Well, they jump around a bit, and they're likely to follow whoever they say. Mostly they're just annoying little chatterboxes that won't shut up. They do know a lot of saying, although many of them are stupid Mario catchphrases.

What would I do if I had one? Pfft, chuck it. Maybe you'd think I'd want to torture it, but I'm sure it won't scream like Mario would, so that just doesn't do anything for me. In any case, there's no way I'll ever have one, because if Bowser found one in our position I'm sure the owner would be fried before he could start making with an explanation.

From Crazy Bowser

How come Dry Bones in Paper Mario have hair, but regular Koopa Troopas don't?

Well, Koopa Troopas usually do grow hair, but it is the style among Koopas to shave it off. There are some exceptions, the first that comes to mind is Koopie-Koo, Koops' girlfriend from Paper Mario 2. When something dies, not all the cells in its body will all die at the same time. Some will linger on for a bit, even if this is generally for a very short time. Cells at the top of the head may have just enough time to grow a little more hair before they die as well, and of course, the Koopa Troopa won't be shaving it off then. This tiny bit of hair may stick around, or it may not. A dead body can't sustain a full head of hair, which is certain to decompose, so you're not likely to find a Dry Bones with more than a few strands of hair.

From Agahnim Koopa

Why did Goombas not appear until World 4 in Yoshi's Island?

Goombas are very common in the Mushroom Kingdom, but they're much less so in Dinosaur Land, of which Yoshi's Island is a part. The fact that Goombas don't appear until World 4 in Yoshi's Island will seem less surprising when you consider that they didn't appear until the Forest of Illusion, the fifth area, of Mario World. I think a few too many Goombas ended up as dino snacks.

From Agahnim Koopa

Was there ever a MOM?

Well, insofar as there was a female Koopa who came before all other female Koopas, yes. But DAD is considered to have been the first Koopa ever, male or female, to have spawned the rest of the species, to have given the Koopas control over Dark Land with a mandate to takeover the rest, and to be watching over us still. There is no MOM figure with a similar role, or with that name.

From Agahnim Koopa

If doomships are made of wood, wouldn't a single fireball destroy them?

One has to hope they wouldn't, since many of them come with explosives and such onboard. The wood is coated with a fireproof material. You can sort of thing of doomships as being laminated, only they're wood, not paper (obviously).

From Agahnim Koopa

Which Koopaling is most resourceful?

Well, it depends what you mean by resourceful. Lemmy and Larry are both known for their ability to think quickly on their feet, so this is commonly called resourceful. But resourceful can also mean making good use of, well, resources. Ludwig can make inventions out of just about anything, so he's definitely the most resourceful in that regard.

From Agahnim Koopa

Why did Morton get Donut Plains?

The Donut Plains is the warmest area in Dinosaur Land, aside from the lava caves in the Valley of Bowser. It's also a large area, so the Koopalings in the nearby areas could be well clear of Morton and his mouth.

From Jacob C

What were the Koopa Bros. like before Paper Mario? And, are they actually brothers?

The Koopa Bros. are not actually brothers, but they bonded when trying to protect themselves from Kent C, who was particularily fond of picking on them. Early on they were respected in their village, as they tried to protect other villagers as well, despite the fact they were hardly stronger than those they sought to help. But that respect got to their head, until they started to think themselves better than the rest in the village. When Kent C. finally left the village, the Koopa Bros. took over and were nearly as bad as he was. Then when they found those bandanas, it was all over.

From The Fire Toad

In SMRPG, when Bowser throws Mario with the Hurly Gloves, why doesn't Mario take any damage?

Well, Mario does look pretty helpless while being thrown, but in fact, he is able to bounce off enemies harmlessly - to himself, that is - if he can get himself into a certain position. This is why Bowser can't throw him when Mario has fainted. He'd get shredded then.

From The Fire Toad

Why were Koopa Troopas so hard to find in Super Mario 64?

Well, you do have to keep in mind that Bowser used a much smaller army than usual in this adventure. This is because the quest took place within Peach's castle and it's subworlds, rather than across the Mushroom Kingdom as in other quests. So, it's not surprising that there aren't a whole lot of different enemies seen in this game, or that most kinds of enemies are only seen a few times. As far as Koopas are concerned, they took a big hit in Mario 1 and The Lost Levels, which took place just before Mario 64 (see the timeline in Morton's Basics). Goombas took a big hit too, for whatever it's worth, but there are so many of them, it hardly mattered. Finally, Nintendo put much fewer Koopas into the game than maybe they should have, because they didn't want Mario shell-riding through all the levels.

From aflay

Can Yoshis actually talk normally, or do they have a hard time?

Well, around Lemmy's Land, the green Yoshi is known to speak without pronouns. This became popular because he speaks this way in the Mario World cartoons, and I guess it's kind of cute. However, it must be noted that the cartoons cannot be taken as strictly accurate with respect to Yoshi, because in one episode he is born and cared for by Luigi, whereas we know from Yoshi's Island that Yoshi is older than the Mario Bros. Despite the way he talks in the cartoons, Yoshi speaks normally in Mario World, Mario RPG, and Mario 64. (Though, in this latter game, it is arguable whether he spoke at all. He certainly didn't say what was attributed to him.)

As for other Yoshis, it's more of a mixed bag. In Mario RPG, Mario can only communicate with other Yoshis through the green Yoshi, suggesting that they are speaking another language. In Superstar Saga, the Yoshis speak in parenthesis, as though they're not speaking English here either, but this time Mario does understand them. Finally, in Paper Mario, Yoshis speak normally. Among baby Yoshis, the ones from Yoshi's Story don't seem to be able to speak, other than to say the name of their species and the occassional exclamation, whereas Yoshi kids from Paper Mario and Gonzales Jr. from Paper Mario 2 appear to be able to talk just fine.

So, the bottom line is, how well Yoshis speak seems to have to do with what tribe they come from. Some tribes are more familiar with English than others, and not all tribes speak the same native language. But, they do all have a big appetite. I can tell you that.

From General Cheep

Does Plit use those message boxes from Super Mario World as telephones? If not, what are they for?

Most items that you see in the games really do exist, such as the power-ups, various sorts of platforms, and so on. However, the message blocks are an exception. Mario did not get advice from blocks during his actual quests, nor are they used as phones. Message blocks do not actually exist.

From Lemmys Girlfriend

Out of your brothers, which would be most likely to get rid of Mario and Luigi? What is that brother's biggest flaw, that hinders his chance of doing this feat?

I'm going to go out on a limb and say Roy. Kidnapping the princess and forcing the Marios into perilous situations is rarely a problem. Ludwig, in particular, is especially good at this. But we've never been able to finish them off. Roy, the strongman of the group, is probably the one in the best position to really finish the job, if he could just hone his skills a bit. Roy's about as smart as a brick, so he may have some trouble doing those things I said we generally accomplish easily. But, yeah, if someone were to go up tomorrow and beat the Marios, I'd guess it would be him. If not me.

From General Guy

In Mario and Luigi, what is Kamek doing in Little Fungitown? Did too many defeats from the Mario Bros. cause him to lose his mind and start practicing hypnotism in a far-off land?

Well, he did lose his mind. It wasn't from too many defeats though. The guy was pretty old in Yoshi's Island, when Mario and Bowser were babies. Now that they're grown up, Kamek's ancient, and often has a hard time keeping it together. He sort of drifts in and out of sanity. When he's healthy, he's still quite sharp and can advise Bowser quite handily. But when he's not healthy, he tends to go off and do stuff like this.

From william

What kind of material is a Kuribo's Shoe made of?

Kuribo's Shoes are made out of a special, and rare, type of rubber. It's very thick, so it won't get pierced easily. It also doesn't weigh much, so it doesn't impede jumping. Mario would do well to try to find some of this material on his own. He's not likely to get it handed to him anymore, as once we discovered that the Shoe was more of a help to Mario than to the Goombas who wore it, we required them to go barefoot.

From Bobby

In the adventure he had during Paper Mario 2, how did Luigi beat that statue if he threw Blooey and
missed the gem on the statue's forehead?

I have to confess that I'm not all that familiar with Luigi's adventures in the Waffle Kingdom. A pretty odd and mysterious tale, that. But it is my understanding that when Blooey hit the lava, he bounced up and hit the statue. Then he hit the lava a few more times. So, the job got done alright, just in a messier fashion than Luigi had probably hoped for it.

From Ash (The Legend Killer)

In Mario 64, why does Mario take more damage when he loses his hat?

Mario's hat is like Mario's trademark symbol. He always wears it, and it can be identifies him as a superhero. When he's not wearing it, enemies will often assume that he is not at his best, which would explain why he lost it. This boosts their confidence, and their attack power, and thus, Mario takes more damage. I am aware that this doesn't explain why Mario takes more damage from falling in lava as well, but you can chalk that up to a Nintendo oversight, similar to how Mario can apparently breathe through his shoes.

From Marioslilgrl

Is anyone in your family left handed?

Quite a few of us, actually. In fact, you can even see most of it in the Mario 3 manual. Ludwig, Iggy, and I are right handed, while Larry, Morton, and Roy are left handed. Lemmy is balancing his wand on his right hand, but he actually identifies himself as being left handed. I consider it most appropriate to say that he is ambidextrous, though.

From The Fire Toad

How come Yoshis can swim in games like Yoshi's Story, but not in Super Mario Sunshine?

This is the difference that everyone gets all huffy about, and yet no one seems to mind that Yoshis on Delfino Island apparently have the ability to change color based on what they eat, and apparently don't have the ability to make eggs out of what they eat. I'm going to level with you: I don't know why Yoshis on Delfino Island are this way, in contrast to Yoshis in all the other games. But I can tell you that they really are this way. It's not like Nintendo made it up to annoy their customers or anything.

From The Fire Toad

Why do Toads wear mushrooms on their heads?

What are you asking me for? You're a Toad, you should be telling me!

But seriously, for Toads, it is simply considered indecent to be seen when not wearing a mushroom cap. Toad did take it off in front of others in one episode of the Mario 3 cartoon, but there weren't any other Mushroomers around (well, not any that were conscious, anyway), so it wasn't so bad. Aside from that, they serve as some protection (not much, mind you, but they need what they can get), a status symbol, and a means by which they don't look quite as ugly as they would otherwise.

From Agahnim Koopa

How loud does Morton talk?

I wouldn't say that Morton generally talks much louder than anyone else. Maybe just a little. It's just that he won't shut up. He doesn't seem to be able to whisper, but he doesn't go around shouting most of the time.

From Agahnim Koopa

Why do some of the Koopas have sunglasses in Paper Mario 2?

Those would be the Koopa Troopas you have to fight. You may have noticed that none of the Koopas found in villages wear them. It is true that a number of the Koopas in our army wear shades, since they believe shades make them look cool. But the real reason Nintendo put shades on them in the game is to differentiate them from the friendly (to Mario) ones found in towns. Other enemies found in both towns and battles have similar differences. For example, the Goombas in Rogueport (aside from Frankly, who looks different enough from regular Goombas) have a strange cap on their head.

From aflay

In Mario Sunshine, Mario can lose his hat when an enemy takes it. Afterwards, Mario will gradually take damage until he gets it back. What is happening?

It's sunburn, plain and simple. The hat keeps the dangerous rays off his head, keeping him safer. The hat may also make him a little warmer than not, but not enough to cause any damage. I've never seen SMS Mario in the water without his hat, and don't know how his health meter responds in such a situation. But if his health does drop even then, I would say that's just a Nintendo oversight, like how Mario takes double damage when he hits lava when not wearing his hat in Mario 64.

From Agahnim Koopa

Why did Bowser give the Whistles to Larry and Morton instead of, say, Lemmy and Ludwig?

Larry and Morton were the farthest away from safe Castle Koopa. They were also the youngest. Bowser wanted to provide them with an escape route home in case of trouble. But keeping the Whistles on their person wouldn't have been a good idea, because they might drop them if they were defeated before they could get away. Bowser knew Mario could use the Whistles too. So, instead he had Larry and Morton hide the Whistles elsewhere. The hope was that they would be able to get to them if they needed to, but that Mario wouldn't be able to find them. Incidentally, the Whistle found in 1-3 was not known to us.

From Agahnim Koopa

What color blood do Koopas have?

Oh, it's red all right. Well... It's actually blue when on the inside, if I remember my biology. But, yeah, it's the same color as humans', so... go away.

From ghettobananachris

If the Bowser statues are alive, what were they before they were carved into images of Bowser? Living rocks?

Well, if by alive you mean they can move, then sure they're alive, but so are many others things you might not wish to call living. Some of them can move, but really they're not much more than a laser that activates when they are stimulated in a certain way. In this case, that way is to see Mario. But take that "see" verb lightly, since I'm not saying that they are aware of anything. Anyway, they're basically mechanical. So no, they didn't used to be living pieces of granite.

From Dark Knight

Why does Koops wear a bandaid over his nose in Paper Mario 2?

Well, one time Koops got a cut on his nose. I don't know the specifics, but in any case, he put a bandaid on it. Now he can't take it off because he's afraid it will hurt. You would think the bandaid would have fallen off after a while, but he must have used an extra-sticky one. I think he was afraid his nose would fall off otherwise. It's pretty sad, really.
 

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