ClassicRadar: The many faces of Mario

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A unique look at Nintendo's mascot he'd rather forget

The Mario Bros Era

Still sticking with the pudgy coward look Mario officially had on DK Jr art, he appeared in the first game to bear his name lookingbasically the same. Sure he's now a plumber instead of a carpenter/animal whipper, but just so you're clearit's him, they provided a helpful arrow. That was helpful, because you might get him confused withLuigi, as Mario Bros was the first time his fairly identical twin showed up.


Above: At least they were able to get their noses under control


Sing-a-long time!

Here's a one-two punch of classic, strangeads which don't feature Mario, but Luigi. The red one's absence is felt as Luigi screams for his assistance like the gutless invertebrate we all know him to be. First here's the ad that appeared in tons of comic books in the early '80s:

We only found out recently that this print ad had a companion TV commercial, which we present to you now in its YouTube glory. Sing along now that you know the words.


Above: The proto-Luigi's Mansion


A very important message

Speaking of old commercials, we came upon this other one for Nintendo's Game & Watch games. G&Ws weresimplistic games mixed with a plain LCD clock, which was killer entertainment in the early 80s. You never know when playing Manhole you'll want to know the time. Mario Bros even had their own G&W title:


Above: The first DS

Though it's pretty differnt from the arcade classic. Of course that game was included in this now controversial commercial:

In case you missed its shocking revelation in the first few seconds, here's a still image:

Not only does Donkey Kong's barrel-throwing humiliate Mario in front of his girlfriend, it makes it look like he's been secretly bald allthese years. Well, we want you to know this isn't true. Instead, this is probably the biggest blunder ever in official Mario art history, as it appeared in a fully animated, expensive commercial. Believe it in your hearts children, Mario has a full head of hair. Just look at this conclusive proof:

Even when flashing his t'aint to a Goomba, Mario loves to show off his real hair. Now some could argue that his change in hair color from black to brownproves it's a hair piece, but don't listen to them, they're just bitter Sonic fans. The war is over guys!

Henry Gilbert
Henry Gilbert

Henry Gilbert is a former GamesRadar+ Editor, having spent seven years at the site helping to navigate our readers through the PS3 and Xbox 360 generation. Henry is now following another passion of his besides video games, working as the producer and podcast cohost of the popular Talking Simpsons and What a Cartoon podcasts.