Pauline Discussion & Other "Shippings"

[Serum]

I don't know why everyone has this preconceived notion that Mario and Princess Toadstool are an item. Mario is not dating Peach, no matter how heavily it's implied, it simply is not. Mario has been dating a girl named Pauline since 1981, when he rescued her from a rogue and untamed Donkey Kong. Now, he's been living in the Mushroom Kingdom for so long, I don't know if Pauline is living with him, or if he visits Brooklyn a lot to see her, but all I know is that Mario and Peach are not in a relationship and that Pauline is probably friends with the Princess as she overlooks Peach kissing Mario from time to time for rescuing her.

But the question on my lips is, if King Koopa is Mario's greatest enemy, why does he keep kidnapping Peach? I mean, sure Peach and Mario are good friends, but I don't think that them being in a platonic relationship is enough for Mario to keep saving her time and again. However, my working theory is that Mario and Pauline actually got married many years ago and because of Pauline's buddy-buddy relationship with Peach, I imagine Mario not wanting to rescue Peach when she gets kidnapped, but Pauline standing in the corner with a rolling pin, waving it threateningly at Mario telling him to go rescue the damn princess.

As far as other shippings go, Luigi and Daisy are definitely an item-- as the movie so clearly told us, and through most of the games as well. But still, someone said in another thread that Pauline has been appearing in recent games. I haven't really played a new video-game in about ten years, now, so the question I have is: What are some of the newer games featuring Pauline as a major character? I haven't seen Pauline mentioned since... well since her name was changed to "Daniella" in the Super Mario Bros." movie and she was implied to be Scapelli's daughter/sister in some of the early screenplays. Whatever happened to Pauline?

[Redstar]

The problem with your theory is that, up until a few years ago, Mario and Luigi had no real ties to New York, Donkey Kong or anyone named "Pauline."

The idea that Mario became a plumber in Mario Bros. and then stumbled into a strange new world with a pipe-motif in Super Mario Bros. is only really the way for the cartoons and American game manuals to create a cohesive story throughout the series when in actuality the character was just rebooted several times before finding a genre that worked for him.

So, the "Mario" (or Jumpman) of Donkey Kong is not really the same Mario from Mario Bros. or even Super Mario Bros. He's a different character entirely. The current "Mario" does in fact have romantic feelings towards the princess that she reciprocates, though due to the nature of the series this is only ever heavily implied. (Mostly within the RPG games)

However, the recent Mario vs. Donkey Kong series does feature Pauline after a 12-year absence. One would think that this is an acknowledgement of the original Donkey Kong, but as the "Donkey Kong Country" version of DK appears I believe the games are just an homage to the original story in a way that works it into current canon.

[1upmushroom]

I too have a little problem with this MarioXPeach thing. First of all, Mario is mainly a guard. He protects the princess or saves her from evil. That's what a soldier and/or guard does. So it only seems fitting that they have no romance. It's Mario's job to save her, not because he likes her.

And even if there IS something, it's mostly to do with Mario. After saving her many times Peach begins to grow on Mario but to her, there is nothing. Not that she means to be cruel, it's just that she believes it's his job to do so.

As for Pauline, well not all relationships last, maybe there wasn't even a serious relationship. Mario just felt responsible for what happened and he wanted make things right.

[superwesleybros]

What is wrong with Mario and Peach being a couple? I think it's a nice touch to add some sort of love between characters otherwise things would be repetitive and boring.

Luigi and Daisy, yes.

Toad and Toadette, maybe.

but come on, why not Mario and Peach? It's cute for youngsters who want to see love and the mushy stuff.

IMO, Mario and Peach are a couple but they keep it quiet so Bowser doesn't go on a rage-fit and destroy the whole mushroom kingdom.

I have spoken on the issue. lol

[Serum]

There has got to be some strong feelings between Mario and Peach, why the heck would Mario put his life at risk to save this woman every single time she gets kidnapped by Koopa.

I would think it has something to do with the mountains of gold Peach is sitting on. She probably pays him in abundance for his services.

[Serum]

Everyone's got a price. For Mario, saving princesses and other damsels and citizens in distress is just his job. I don't even think he's a licensed plumber anymore-- he's practically the Mushroom King.

[superwesleybros]

Kicking turtle shells in an underground level qualifies as plumbing in my book.

[Serum]

In fact, since we haven't seen or heard from the King since "Super Mario Bros. 3" for NES, I think it's safe to assume that in the latter-day game canon Mario has secretly wed Peach and is the Mushroom King, as well as the Mushroom Kingdom's greatest warrior. Why this information isn't divulged to us in the current canon is a mystery-- but I'm still under the assumption that Mario and Peach are not an item and that Pauline is really a friend of Peach's who insists Mario save her whenever she gets herself into some sort of conniption, that is getting captured by Bowser or something. Then again, I'm the one looking for a more cynical, down-to-earth Mario, rather than a midget with a handlebar mustache who speaks with an accent that borders on a racial slur.

Maybe, and this is just me shooting out wild ideas, here: Maybe Princess Toadstool and Pauline are the same person. Like, maybe when Mario discovered the Mushroom Kingdom after the events of "Donkey Kong" and the first "Mario Bros." on the Atari 2600, maybe he took Pauline over and she was really the long lost princess from the other side and decided to settle under her original birth name-- Peach Toadstool, and reign over the kingdom. But that still leaves a few loose ends untied, like Pauline's guest appearances in more recent games-- her differing appearance from Peach and different personality. Maybe Peach is just a figment of Pauline's imagination-- sort of a "Fight Club" deus ex machina, here, but that's all I can really come up with on her.

[Redstar]

There is such a thing as over-thinking a series explicitly stated by Miyamoto to not be about story. I think your theories are better suited for the Wild Mass Guessing page of TVtropes.

[Phlibbit]

Redstar's right. The Mario games have never been about story, which is why the film is so great for coming up with what it did. I just don't get it when fans of the games say that the movie doesn't have the same story.

Now Zelda, on the other hand--the story in that series is extremely important, with everyone trying to connect the games' storylines. Nintendo finally released their official timeline for the series, which is pretty interesting.

[Serum]

I'm a writer, it's my job to over-think absolutely everything.