Do you consider Mario as a "Super Hero" ?

[Redstar]

He has a cape, so, yes.

But in all seriousness, Mario does fit some of the prerequisites of the superhero archetype, though I'm sure Phlibbit (being our resident comic expert) could make a more apt comparison.

[Prime Evil]

No, but that's not a knock on Mario. Okay, he isn't a superhero in the same way that Odysseus and Flash Gordon aren't superheroes...they're just ordinary men without special powers who nevertheless rise to the occasion and become truly extraordinary.

Better still, he's a humble, blue-collar plumber, and that gives him perspective.

[Serum]

Batman doesn't have any superpowers. I consider the movie incarnation of Mario and Luigi to be superheroes, in the same way that Batman is a superhero. After all, his nickname in the games is "Super Mario," and in the games he has the ability to jump fairly high, perform advanced acrobatics with the most minimal of effort and occasionally throw fire from his palms or become a frog or a raccoon or a bumblebee. I'd say he's a superhero.

[Prime Evil]

Batman doesn't have any superpowers.

I have to disagree with you there. He has, in fact, the most amazing superpower of all: an unlimited bank account.

[Serum]

Batman doesn't have any superpowers.

I have to disagree with you there. He has, in fact, the most amazing superpower of all: an unlimited bank account.

Mario can throw fireballs from nothing but his bare hands, grow to enormous sizes when he eats mushrooms, fly when he has a cape and breathe under water when he's dressed as a frog. His weakness is losing his hat and he's always saving people. He's a superhero. I HAVE SPOKEN.

[JayOfSuburbia]

As much as I like him I don't consider Mario a super hero. Super heroes are often defined by comic books, such as Bat Man and Super Man. These are comic book super heroes, in current pop culture when you say super hero to someone these are the faces that appear in their minds not Mario. And its not because Mario's quality's as a hero are viewed as less super its because he's really from a video game.

True Mario had comics and super man had video games but its not where Mario came from his origin is from a video game. So if you want to look at it this way we have to ask other questions such as, is Link a super hero? or Samus? Lara Croft, (who could be considered very bat man like) or Master Chief? I say no, they're not super heroes, they're video game heroes.

[Serum]

Super heroes are often defined by comic books...

That's a very narrow-minded view, super-heroes can come from anywhere, they don't just have to be from comic-books. Why do so many people think superheroes have to come from the pages of a graphic novel?

[JayOfSuburbia]

Super heroes are often defined by comic books...

That's a very narrow-minded view, super-heroes can come from anywhere, they don't just have to be from comic-books. Why do so many people think superheroes have to come from the pages of a graphic novel?

because when you say to anyone on the street "who is a super hero?" they say Super Man, Bat Man, Spider Man not Mario. When you ask video game fans we get into deep meaningless discussions about the definition of the word its self. Perhaps the answer is yes and no, perhaps if we must ask if something is art then it is because you had to ask, the fact that we spend so much time thinking about it may prove its truth to some and perhaps the same applies here.

[superwesleybros]

because when you say to anyone on the street "who is a super hero?" they say Super Man, Bat Man, Spider Man not Mario. When you ask video game fans we get into deep meaningless discussions about the definition of the word its self. Perhaps the answer is yes and no, perhaps if we must ask if something is art then it is because you had to ask, the fact that we spend so much time thinking about it may prove its truth to some and perhaps the same applies here.

Mario had a graphic novel....so Mario is a SUPER HERO!

[JayOfSuburbia]

because when you say to anyone on the street "who is a super hero?" they say Super Man, Bat Man, Spider Man not Mario. When you ask video game fans we get into deep meaningless discussions about the definition of the word its self. Perhaps the answer is yes and no, perhaps if we must ask if something is art then it is because you had to ask, the fact that we spend so much time thinking about it may prove its truth to some and perhaps the same applies here.

Mario had a graphic novel....so Mario is a SUPER HERO!

ah but I already covered this, Mario has comics and Super Man also has video games. This doesn't make Super Man primarily a video game character and Mario having a graphic novel does not make him primarily a comic character either. And therefore while he is super, in my mind at least he's not a true super hero.

[superwesleybros]

ah but I already covered this, Mario has comics and Super Man also has video games. This doesn't make Super Man primarily a video game character and Mario having a graphic novel does not make him primarily a comic character either. And therefore while he is super, in my mind at least he's not a true super hero.

Fair enough, I respect your Opinion.

[Redstar]

As much as I like him I don't consider Mario a super hero. Super heroes are often defined by comic books, such as Bat Man and Super Man. These are comic book super heroes, in current pop culture when you say super hero to someone these are the faces that appear in their minds not Mario. And its not because Mario's quality's as a hero are viewed as less super its because he's really from a video game.

As Phlibbit has said before (and has been argued by literary experts/comic book experts) super heroes are merely the latest expression of an innate desire for mythological heroes. Comic book "super heroes" just follow the archetypes defined by Hercules, Achilles, Gilgamesh, Horus and others... They less than a god, but more than a man. Something to strive for. A truly Nietzschean superman.

[Serum]

As much as I like him I don't consider Mario a super hero. Super heroes are often defined by comic books, such as Bat Man and Super Man. These are comic book super heroes, in current pop culture when you say super hero to someone these are the faces that appear in their minds not Mario. And its not because Mario's quality's as a hero are viewed as less super its because he's really from a video game.

As Phlibbit has said before (and has been argued by literary experts/comic book experts) super heroes are merely the latest expression of an innate desire for mythological heroes. Comic book "super heroes" just follow the archetypes defined by Hercules, Achilles, Gilgamesh, Horus and others... They less than a god, but more than a man. Something to strive for. A truly Nietzschean superman.

We're not really bringing Nietzsche-like concepts into this conversation, are we? Dude, it's Mario.

[Redstar]

We're not really bringing Nietzsche-like concepts into this conversation, are we? Dude, it's Mario.

The discussion is on what defines a super hero, so I feel that Nietzsche's teachings on the concept of the "Ãœbermensch" are relevant. Early heroes of mythology and folklore sometimes fell into his definition of an "Ãœbermensch" due to their Jungian archetypes.

I'm not saying whether Mario is a super hero or not, but super heroes are certainly not a concept restricted to comic books.

[Serum]

I'm not saying whether Mario is a super hero or not, but super heroes are certainly not a concept restricted to comic books.

That's exactly what I've been saying this whole time, even though a lot of superheroes come from comic-books, they don't all come from comic-books, and I hold Mario as a superhero because of what he does, not where he comes from.

[JayOfSuburbia]

We're not really bringing Nietzsche-like concepts into this conversation, are we? Dude, it's Mario.

The discussion is on what defines a super hero, so I feel that Nietzsche's teachings on the concept of the "Ãœbermensch" are relevant. Early heroes of mythology and folklore sometimes fell into his definition of an "Ãœbermensch" due to their Jungian archetypes.

I'm not saying whether Mario is a super hero or not, but super heroes are certainly not a concept restricted to comic books.

I think at this point its become more of a semantics argument, in my opinion as I've stated before I believe super heroes are of comic books. The early heroes of mythology and folklore do indeed fit the description of a super hero but I don't think that Hercules in his day or when I assumed he was worshiped was referred to as a "super hero" he was refereed to as a god. Even as a mythological character we simply don't call him a "super hero," we call him a Greek god.

Jesus and Buddha did super human things too but we don't call them super heroes. That's why I don't call Mario a super hero by what he does but by what he is, Mario is a video game character.

[Serum]

I think at this point its become more of a semantics argument, in my opinion as I've stated before I believe super heroes are of comic books. The early heroes of mythology and folklore do indeed fit the description of a super hero but I don't think that Hercules in his day or when I assumed he was worshiped was referred to as a "super hero" he was refereed to as a god. Even as a mythological character we simply don't call him a "super hero," we call him a Greek god.

Jesus and Buddha did super human things too but we don't call them super heroes. That's why I don't call Mario a super hero by what he does but by what he is, Mario is a video game character.

Okay, you bring up some good points. But keep in mind, the legends of old you speak of are thousands, if not tens of thousands of years old. And they were written in languages that have changed drastically over the course of the last ten-thousand years.

Look at Superman, he's like a Greek god, because humans don't know all that much about him. Can Superman even die under normal circumstances? Does he age on Earth the same way he would have on Krypton? I think not, and thus, this makes him godlike.

Mario, while not particularly godlike, exhibits some godlike powers: the ability to jump high and come down unscathed, occasional flight if he has a yellow cape, the ability to breath underwater if he's dressed in a frog suit and most importantly the ability to summon fire from his bare hands after touching a flower and throw the fire at his enemies, vanquishing them-- now that I think about it, Mario's characteristics do fit the characteristics of a god.

But what I was getting at with the whole language thing is that ten-thousand years ago, the word "god" could have been held in the same vein as the way we use the word "superhero" today. And ten-thousand years from now, people probably won't even speak the same languages we do today-- if anything, it will all be one massive language and the study of "Old World" languages will be taught in schools and universities from here on Earth to the ones on the colonies on the Moon, Mars, Pluto and beyond.

So, in conclusion, Mario is a god, superhero or whatever.

[JayOfSuburbia]

I think at this point its become more of a semantics argument, in my opinion as I've stated before I believe super heroes are of comic books. The early heroes of mythology and folklore do indeed fit the description of a super hero but I don't think that Hercules in his day or when I assumed he was worshiped was referred to as a "super hero" he was refereed to as a god. Even as a mythological character we simply don't call him a "super hero," we call him a Greek god.

Jesus and Buddha did super human things too but we don't call them super heroes. That's why I don't call Mario a super hero by what he does but by what he is, Mario is a video game character.

So, in conclusion, Mario is a god, superhero or whatever.

Remind me to slap you IRL later...

[Redstar]

I think we can all agree that Mario is superhuman and a hero, but probably not strictly a "superhero."

[Serum]

No, for the love of-- he's got a cape, he can fly, he shoots fire from his bare hands and for being an obese plumber in his mid-thirties he can perform incredible acrobatics with minimal of effort. He's a superhero!

[Serum]

No, for the love of-- he's got a cape, he can fly, he shoots fire from his bare hands and for being an obese plumber in his mid-thirties he can perform incredible acrobatics with minimal of effort. He's a superhero!

I think Mario is chubby not obeese.

Fat is fat, anyway you slice it. Believe me, I know firsthand.

[Redstar]

No, for the love of-- he's got a cape, he can fly, he shoots fire from his bare hands and for being an obese plumber in his mid-thirties he can perform incredible acrobatics with minimal of effort. He's a superhero!

I think Mario is chubby not obeese.

Mario is fit in the way that men were fit in the early 20th century when all that "healthy" meant was having three squares a day and working with your hands.

Yes, he's overweight, but he's also active and strong.