Wait… What?
A man of many (often red) hats, Mario has been called out by his creator, Shigeru Miyamoto, saying that the iconic character’s medical career isn’t just shady, it’s completely invalid.
Miyamoto spoke with IGN recently to discuss The Super Mario Bros. Movie which released on April 5th. The mastermind behind the Mario character seemed to be satisfied with the film, especially with the depiction of Mario as an everyman hero.
However, the discussion took a bizarre turn with Miyamoto taking shots at one of Mario’s most infamous roles, painting Dr. Mario as a corrupt, fraudulent and perhaps even illegal practitioner of medicine.
“Mario’s a blue-collar, he’s a regular person. So, even when he becomes Dr. Mario, there’s a sort of, like, shadiness, like ‘can I trust this person?’” Miyamoto said.
Okay, maybe it wasn’t that extreme a statement, but Miyamoto raises serious concerns about Mario’s pill-pushing persona. How many plumbers do you know that double as medical specialists? Something is definitely up.
For those who don’t know, Mario’s medical history stems from the 1990 puzzle video game titled Dr. Mario where Mario assumes the role of…you guessed it… a doctor.
Nintendo might have started to clue into Mario’s shady practices a few years back, when the mobile game Dr. Mario World was shut down in November 2021.
Thankfully, the Nintendo giant put his worries aside and praised Mario for his heroic evolution in the film.
“I think that’s the kind of image that’s carried down for generations as Mario. And to see that image kind of coincide, and then evolve into something of a hero is something that I’m really happy to see,” Miyamoto said.
Image credit: Flickr
Source: IGN
