Okay. Go
Jim:ahead. Go ahead. Ahead. Hello, and welcome to The Studio Demands It, where every week we take a property that simply had to be made into a film or a TV series, and we determine how to satisfy the studio's crazy ass demands and make a better film than what we got. Mhmm.
Jim:This is an exercise in creative thinking where we will challenge ourselves to conceptualize, pitch, and craft a property based on the stipulations of this hypothetical Hollywood overlord. Overlord. I am Jim Burzelic, and it's written I I have it written here. Jim Buzzrelic Buzz Buzzrezelic.
T.C.:I have known how to spell your last name for years now because of Misfit Heights. I had to write it so many times working on your poster
Jim:Yeah.
T.C.:That this, Griszkojak and Burzelic Yeah. Which are two, like, impossibly Eastern European names.
Jim:Ingrained in your name.
T.C.:Like, b u r z z z z z Yeah.
Jim:That that's exactly it. It's just it's just in numeral it's z's repeating.
T.C.:Z's repeating. Good. Good. Good.
Jim:So I'm Jim Burzelic, and with me always is Luigi to my Mario, T. C. De Witt.
T.C.:It's a me, a T. C. To Luigi or something? Like, why is it wa Luigi? Because that makes him a Luigi version of Wario, who's already a reverse version of Mario.
Jim:That that is what he is. He's a so he's some sort of mutant. He's not yeah.
T.C.:He's He's not reversed Luigi. Correct. He's I'll turn it
Jim:into Technically, that theoretically also recontextualizes Luigi. Mhmm. Luigi isn't necessarily Mario's brother. He's he's an alternate Mario. Oh.
Jim:So he's an alternate Mario the same way Waluigi
T.C.:So are are saying he's the ultimate Wario? Yes. Oh, yeah. No. That that's Macho Man.
Jim:Or I guess I maybe just saying they're brother they're brothers, and so Waluigi isn't a reverse Luigi, he's just Wario's brother.
T.C.:Yeah. Okay. Alright. Fine. I'm a Wario and I'm
Jim:a It's a it's it's what I don't remember the full quote from Spaceballs. I'm your roommate's second cousin's ex boyfriend. So what does that make us? Absolutely nothing.
T.C.:You know, this is fun jumping it, like, going into two episodes in a row now Yeah. Video game related. Mhmm. This is we shoulda had a crossover with David over at another Zelda podcast and had it, which is fine. We can just do another video game episode in the future, but I just don't want anyone to be under the con con I don't want anyone to be confused that Jim and I are gamers.
T.C.:Because I realized that after we recorded our last episode that we approached it strictly from a filmmaking perspective, filmmakers who have played games. But Sure. I would I don't call myself a gamer. I would never maybe maybe for a time because of how much Halo I played, I would have been a gamer at that capacity. But I I I've never been a hardcore gamer.
T.C.:I never buy games new. I I just beat Grand Theft Auto four, like, a few months ago. Like, I don't I'm not are you a gamer?
Jim:Like I I consider myself a gamer, but not necessarily a hardcore video gamer. Mhmm.
T.C.:Oh, yeah. Because you're like a table topper.
Jim:Yeah. Yeah. Lot lots of tabletop games. Mhmm. But as far as video games go, like, I'm I'm no slouch.
Jim:I've I've buried a good forty hours into Slay the Spire.
T.C.:Oh. I don't know what that is. Yeah. It's a it's a Sounds sexy. Card game on Steam.
T.C.:Oh, a steamy card game. Tell me more. What am I doing? Uh-huh. No.
T.C.:No. I'm I'm committing to this. Yeah. Tell me more about Steam. These aren't innuendos.
T.C.:Why do you keep assuming they're innuendos?
Jim:Is just how I talk.
T.C.:This is just my normal voice. Like, I there there I have some video like, video games have been pivotal to me in in certain regards, like getting that first Nintendo as a kid, buying my first Super Nintendo, Nintendo 64. Clearly, I'm a Nintendo and not a Genesis guy.
Jim:And it also come you you might say that you're of an older video gaming generation.
T.C.:I that's true. I don't I appreciate the vastness of games like Red Dead Redemption two or Grand Theft Auto five. Sure. But they're so big. They're so beyond left to right, get to the princess that that's just not I I already commit so much time to film Mhmm.
T.C.:I can't also commit time to move to
Jim:To to video games.
T.C.:Video games. Right? Like, choose your battles, and if I was just obsessing over that's why I don't read as many comic books as I used to do. That's why I don't like, there are certain things that I just had to pull back on in terms of hobbies because adulting. Yeah.
T.C.:Adulting.
Jim:So that being said, we're gonna do some more video games.
T.C.:Yes, we are. Well, go ahead. There's a little more writing.
Jim:So so the Mario and Luigi ref oh, there's more to read.
T.C.:Yes, there is.
Jim:Oh, I thought you just highlighted okay. So never so where to begin? Where do we begin? We have our ridiculous pile of studio properties, many of which we have gotten from our listeners who went to studiodemandsit.com where you can submit a demand.
T.C.:Yeah. Demand things from us. You can send
Jim:us any demand you'd like as well as name your fictional studio. I'm loving what you folks throw at us last episode.
T.C.:I believe you. Yes.
Jim:I did not read that line. Last episode was all about video games, and while we avoided the super obvious ones, we did say Mario Jumpman deserves his own full episode.
T.C.:Get that right. Come
Jim:Mario Jumpman deserves his own his own full episode. So that's what we're here to do today.
T.C.:Good job on the so because there's, like, five or six o's there.
Jim:There are.
T.C.:You read it. Good Thank you. So that's what we're gonna do today.
Jim:Yeah. Studio Demands a Super Mario Brothers trilogy? Yeah. Dude, you're doing. Oh, that's a that's a curve.
Jim:I was only gonna do one movie.
T.C.:You want to do I I I do think that there is well enough Mario to draw from that you could we could conceivably pitch a trilogy right now.
Jim:Oh, it's already forming in my brain.
T.C.:Good. Let's let you before we even started, you knew we were gonna this is one of rare occasions where we we jumped into this episode knowing
Jim:what we're doing. There's no surprises here. I mean, only by about twenty minutes.
T.C.:Oh, you're right. Right. I don't want anyone under again, under the impression miss like, don't So someday
Jim:someday we may do like, we've been thinking about it for two weeks Yeah. But not not yet.
T.C.:We we made this decision moments ago and decided to roll on it. So, yeah, we we do kinda have an idea of it. So but Jim, your gears are already turning here.
Jim:Already.
T.C.:Yeah. You have not seen the existing Mario Brothers movie, Super Mario Brothers starring John Hoskin Bob Hoskins Yep. John Leguizamo, Dennis Hopper. It's awful. And I and it's almost sad that you haven't seen it for how bad it is.
T.C.:It is just one of the worst ad adapt video game movies. It's so bad. It's so the like, halfway through production, they decided, no. It's gonna be a comedy. Like, it's it's it's a study in bad.
Jim:So I have a I'm I have a terrible feeling that they may have been thinking along the same lines as what I am currently baking.
T.C.:Well, this is what we're gonna find out, and I'll be ready I'll write a shit out of the sky.
Jim:So it's a we're gonna make a Super Mario Brothers movie franchise. Mhmm. Ideally, a trilogy here.
T.C.:Start start with one. Let's keep it simple. We can expand using things like the other Mario games to draw from. But for now
Jim:Mhmm.
T.C.:Let's see what you got, Jim. Okay. Throw I will I will play studio Oh, no. That could be I'll play studio Madman right now.
Jim:Do you have any other stipulations before we begin?
T.C.:Live action. K. Okay. That's I I I know that's crazy because it would really lend itself to an animated film. If Pixar were doing it, they would then sure.
Jim:But the whole idea here is the by doing it live action with CG special effects and surrounding stuff like that Mhmm. The idea is to play up the fantasticalness of it. Yes. Right? So the point to doing it is kind of marrying the real with the unreal.
T.C.:Mar it's marrowing. The what? You said marrying. I'm telling you it's marrowing.
Jim:Oh, mar marrying. That's Yes. Okay. Good.
T.C.:Get with it, Jim. Come on.
Jim:Nah. Yes and.
T.C.:Yes and. So
Jim:I think the place I would begin is framing the the entire story similar to an Alice in Wonderland.
T.C.:Okay. I like so we are we gonna start in New York and end up in the Mushroom Kingdom? I think so.
Jim:Okay. That that that that's where I'm currently headed. We start with the Mario Brothers. They they are plumbers Mhmm. And they get called on a job.
T.C.:Okay. So far, you are replicating the existing? No. It's okay. I I will not actually, you know what?
T.C.:I'm not gonna I'm not gonna
Jim:keep doing that. No. The thing well, that that could be a problem. Right? If I'm just recreating that movie.
T.C.:You're already I can guarantee you'll do a better job than they did. And aesthetically, if you created something very similar like, is the reality they're leaving before they go to the Mushroom Kingdom a straight up our reality or is it a hyper reality in the realm of not with the monsters, but in the realm of, Pokemon, Detective Pikachu? Just a stylized cool our world.
Jim:You you mean, like, are are the things of the Mario world already prevalent in Just, like,
T.C.:how how how hyper real are we looking at the real world before they go down the rabbit hole or down the the green pipe that leads them to the Mushroom Kingdom?
Jim:So I'm thinking I'm thinking Mario and Luigi, they're not I would I wanna cast comedians.
T.C.:Mhmm.
Jim:So it's it's already gonna have a bit of hyperreality to it in that they're gonna be
T.C.:Jokers.
Jim:Yeah. Like, if you get A little a little cartoonish in their in their behavior. Mhmm. Right?
T.C.:So you got Josh Gad and
Jim:Oh, that's not bad. I was I was thinking the first one that came to mind for me was Jack Black as Mario. Okay. It might be a a little too much on the Italian accent.
T.C.:You know what? I don't think we need to lean too heavily on that. Like
Jim:like imagine Italian an Italian version of Nacho Libre. Nacho.
T.C.:Actually, I think what you do is you have them show up at the gig like for their plumbing gig or whatever and they're like, hello, we're the Mario Brothers and and then once the client has gone like, oh jeez, okay, drop
Jim:the Oh, like that's a shtick?
T.C.:It's their shtick.
Jim:Yeah. That's not bad.
T.C.:So then even when they get to the Mushroom Kingdom and
Jim:They they're like put on the shtick. Yeah. Right at first they're
T.C.:like If when they get to the Mushroom Kingdom and like Yeah. What are you, some sort of warriors? We are warriors from a New Yorker. That's is that how all people from New York talk? Luigi, help me out here.
T.C.:You're on your own, brother. Get us out of here. And then they dropped you. Think then then you play up the I think there's something fun there. And I think Jack Black with the right script is very funny.
T.C.:Sure. When he's like cut loose and like gets to riff, not so good. Like seeing him in interviews and whatnot Mhmm. He's he is a funny guy. His YouTube channel is quite humorous when he's just kinda being himself.
T.C.:But with the right script, Jack Black is a pretty good casting choice there. I I wonder if you could really go weird with Luigi and cast like Aziz Ansari or something and like not make them literally brothers. Right? Like, having just giving up to him to kinda like
Jim:Try trying to embrace the notion of the companies called Yeah. The Mario Brothers Yeah.
T.C.:Yeah. Exactly. That they're not actually brothers. And and and and honestly, imagine Aziz Ansario doing a Luigi voice like, oh, I'm a Luigi. Come this out of here, brother.
T.C.:Like trying to pull off the the Italian. That itself kinda lends to some silliness, I think.
Jim:It could. Yeah. It could. Not totally sold on it, but not not not not sold.
T.C.:Yeah. Okay. You're you're you're on the fence on it, which is fine. It doesn't have be on Zs, I'm sorry, but I'm thinking just give an opportunity to diversify the cast a little bit. Sure.
T.C.:You know? But I do think Jack Black could quite possibly be he has proven he can jump on board of a franchise, and I don't know if he can lead it though is the question. Because, like, he's great in Welcome to the Jungle, Jumanji two.
Jim:Mhmm.
T.C.:And he he is great as second banana sometimes. But, you know, it be worth if you surround him with the right cast, if you get the right supporting cast around him.
Jim:Sure.
T.C.:He could it could probably work with him in the lead. I think so. Okay. Yeah. I'm on board with Jack Black.
T.C.:So they
Jim:So I'm the the way it begins, it starts New York, our our world, albeit goofy. Mhmm. So I'm I honestly, I think to give an idea of to to frame our real world, imagine, and and I know not all of our audience may like this, but imagine the new Ghostbusters movie.
T.C.:Yeah. I was thinking similarly.
Jim:So it's Closer. Closer?
T.C.:Yeah. Just a
Jim:little bit. There we go. So right. So it's the real world, but everyone's a little bit comedic. Mhmm.
Jim:Mhmm. So so nothing but we're not even gonna spend a lot of time in this world. Yeah. Because honestly, even starting at the client might not be a bad idea. Like, starting at ringing the doorbell.
Jim:Mhmm. I think what I would wanna do, I'd wanna do something like Disguise. The client who that's hired them, they don't know it right away because they are disguised, but it is actually the princess who has hired them in disguise.
T.C.:Okay. Okay.
Jim:And takes them into the basement, and there's this giant like like like, they're they're this huge plumbing problem. Like, oh, this
T.C.:is this is before.
Jim:This is a huge problem. And they they, like, have to crawl down in there. We make, like, a couple Mario Brother reference like, the video game, the original Mario Brothers references. They're they're crawling through these tunnels. And and I what I'm imagining is Alice in Wonderland style.
Jim:I don't know if they they bust a pipe or something. They slide down this this big pipe Yeah. And they come out in another world. Mhmm. And so now they're there.
Jim:And I'm I'm I'm kinda doing huge broad strokes here. Maybe That's okay. Maybe we could do a little more that.
T.C.:I I have an idea for for some more flat stuff that we can do, but I'll
Jim:come back
T.C.:to I made a note.
Jim:To not have it be a a Wizard of Oz clash of black and white to color Munchkin Land. Mhmm. They come out in in an underworld to give reference for the video game, so we don't necessarily see the difference there. They're just in a cave of some kind. Yeah.
Jim:And they quickly climb out of the cave. They're like, we need to get out. Where where are we? We're deep under New York, of course. Let's let's get out.
Jim:And so once they crawl out once they crawl out, that's when
T.C.:You get your
Jim:They're they're in they're
T.C.:in Do see moment?
Jim:A a little bit, but it it's it's still not quite there. It it doesn't happen until they crawl out. They realize they're like in this almost like like idyllic cartoony esque woods because it's live action. So so we're we're in this forest.
T.C.:I'm getting excited right after Very going
Jim:bright looking forest, and they're like, how do we how did we end up way out here? And that's when, like, they see a mushroom moving.
T.C.:Mhmm. Mhmm.
Jim:Like, what is that? And then they, like, look and it has eyes. It'd be this tiny little, like, fist sized thing so you can you
T.C.:can make it on it. Yeah. Aw. Oh, what? Luigi?
T.C.:What?
Jim:It was looking at me weird. And that's when like a giant one comes thundering out from behind a tree and they have to run away.
T.C.:And then break through the trees and you see a Dorothy moment. Right? Sure. Yeah. And that, we talked about this last episode, you get your music cue in the score of like, and like have them see
Jim:Oh, sure.
T.C.:That you have your orchestrated version of the original Mario theme as they like look out and they're like, what? Where are we? Cut cut the egg. Cut the egg. The thing's still chasing us.
T.C.:Let's get out of here.
Jim:Yeah. And then from from there, we gotta we gotta either get them to the palace Mhmm. So that they can get their true job The true mission. Yeah. Or or just something to start to maybe get them to to their their version of Munchkin Ville.
T.C.:Well, like, they they Where
Jim:they will make We just wanna
T.C.:go home. Like, I think we can lean into the Alice in Wonderland Sure. Wizard of Oz. Don't think there's any reason not to there's plenty of world to explore beyond that template, but I don't think there's anything wrong with with leaning into that in terms of if their first goal is, we just wanna go home, we don't know where we are, we're just on a job, where's the pretty lady who hired us? Mhmm.
T.C.:And then learning like, oh, you you can't go home. You can go home if you want, but the pretty lady who hired you is actually our princess and she has been kidnapped. So you can go home and we'll just figure out. It's like, I believe we can't go. We should probably help her.
Jim:I don't think she can be kidnapped yet.
T.C.:Well, not the very this is like the end of the first act into the second act where it's like
Jim:Sure. Well, I think I think they need to meet up with her. Mhmm. And be like, wait. You're the client.
Jim:Like, yeah. I needed you to come down here. Like, you duped us. You you just Shanghai'd us. And she's like, yeah, because I I really need this help.
Jim:And they're like, woah, that's not cool. And she's like,
T.C.:I Why did
Jim:she once I get this thing back from from Bowser, I I can Oh, he's
T.C.:helped me. Why did they hire why did she need them specifically? Specifically? Was Was this this a kind of a three Amigos situation where she assumed they were oh, man. Deep reference.
T.C.:You can have it's the Mario Mario and Sons or whatever. Like, there was three there was their dad looking all heroic and the two of them underneath him, but their dad's passed away and they've taken on the the family business. And she's like, I needed to hire you three. I don't know who the third guy is because you guys are hero like like three amigos. She was under the misconception that they were heroic if just the advertisements for their plumbing business made them look like badasses and she mistook that as
Jim:Like, what what if we started the movie with that? With with this cheesy Mhmm. Local local ad Yeah. For the Mario Brothers and they're doing ridiculous versions of
T.C.:like Super Mario.
Jim:Will eliminate pests. Right? Like it shows them shoveling turtles
T.C.:Yeah.
Jim:Out of a out of a sink or something.
T.C.:Yeah. Yeah. That's your opening shot, like, and
Jim:then, like And so that's and that's why she was that's why she was convinced Yeah. Because, oh, they're eliminating turtles and mushrooms and that's my problem.
T.C.:And then ding dong, make it to this Mhmm. Very nice mansion. Oh, yeah. In fact, their advertisement that's like cable access, which makes me feel like this might be worth setting in like the nineties, if you wanna lean into the current nineties nostalgia we're kinda getting in the past few years. Their their music for their ad should be the original Mario Brothers music, not the Super Mario Brothers theme that you get from
Jim:Okay. Your
T.C.:light pick game. Just little little details like that would be, like, fun. Like, oh, man. That's good. Did you hear the song at the beginning of the very movie?
T.C.:That's from Mario Brothers.
Jim:So I don't I don't I don't think we need to necessarily make it a period piece? Just yeah. I'm You could you could lean into that. You could have one of them complaining about using this old music.
T.C.:What do
Jim:you mean? It's it was free to use.
T.C.:It's public access. It's free it's to use. Okay. So they they she dupes them in together because she thinks they're heroes. They wanna impress her.
T.C.:Oh, yeah. We'll take care of your problem downstairs.
Jim:The the same as as Dorothy is told, well, you gotta go defeat that queen to get out of here. That's what the princess tells them to do this. Or or not not even necessarily that they need to beat Bowser. There's a castle with a thing, and that once I get that, I can help get you home. What do you mean?
Jim:You got us down here. How can you not just well, we can come up with I don't have a thing right now.
T.C.:Reasons. Reasons. Reasons.
Jim:Because of reasons. Yeah. Okay. Fine. And so they do that.
Jim:They go and they get the thing, and they come back. Okay, princess. Take us home. Your prince the princess has been kidnapped. Oh, By who?
Jim:By Bowser. Who's Bowser? He's a giant turtle with red hair.
T.C.:What? Sounds that's that sounds made up. You're literally talking to a guy with a mushroom head. Is that his hat, or is that his head? Believe that there's a giant turtle monster that we have to defeat.
T.C.:Okey dokey. Yeah. I think that's funny. Like Yeah.
Jim:Like, they're like into some of those things.
T.C.:Okey dokey. Let's do this.
Jim:Oh, actually, that could be kinda fun. Then then when they when they encounter the first group of bad guys or whatever, like, and who are you supposed to be? It's a me. It's a me, Mario. Oh, I've heard
T.C.:about this guy. He would did you know what he did over in
Jim:the Mushroom Kingdom over in one Terrible.
T.C.:I get how about this? The because they have the the crappy opening commercial, they're they present themselves as heroes, but they're they're not only frauds to her, they're frauds in that their business is falling apart. They need money. So every chance they can grab gold coins, one of them is constantly pocketing them. We could Luigi seems to be the sidekick in this scenario, so constantly pocketing gold coins.
T.C.:Every time they kick a turtle and coins fly out of its butt, Is this gold? And he, like, bites it. Like, dog, that came out of him. Actually That came out of him.
Jim:Well, I I think that's that's too much. Yeah. That's too on the nose having it come out of the things. What if there's just gold lying around
T.C.:everywhere that's just wood? Oh, we don't have a we don't have currency in this. What are talking about?
Jim:Were you talking about? Stones? Those are just
T.C.:These are nuts. Stones. So constantly pocketing. Oh, and I mean, if you wanna
Jim:I don't I don't even think it needs to necessarily be one of like, I kinda like the idea like once they find it up, Mario Mario's the one in front and he's just like like, on the side tapping tapping. Pick those up. Pick those those up.
T.C.:Oh. Oh. Right. Picks up one. Nope.
T.C.:Pick all of them up. And even going so far as and this this might seem obvious, but, you know, you write it the right way Mhmm. Is having them survive something because they have they've got gold coins in their pockets or something. You know, this the idea of, like, someone surviving a shot to the chest because they have the bible sitting there, or, like, they have a book sitting in their front pocket. It's, the coins protecting them at some point later on in the film because they've literally packed themselves or one of them has packed themselves with armor essentially.
T.C.:So like if they're getting bit by one of like the the hammer brothers are like, and they're like, oh, how'd you do that? Do you know how much gold is in my pocket right now? Amazing.
Jim:Yeah. Maybe.
T.C.:That that could be something. It doesn't have to be like a big a big plot point but like I
Jim:was I was saved by my greed.
T.C.:He's on the ground like, I'm dying. I was saved. You're not dying. I was saved by my greed. Avenge me.
T.C.:Get up.
Jim:Right. So so so I guess that's that's our and so now the princess is kidnapped. So now our characters with their with their MacGuffin Mhmm. Have to go find the person who can use the MacGuffin. Yeah.
Jim:And and so that becomes our our main quest.
T.C.:Find the whoever can help them save the princess. And Yeah. Once they
Jim:Oh, but they don't know where they're going. Yeah. So that's why Toad now has to basically guide them. So we have our we have a trio. We I don't know if we want so somewhere early in the either by the end of the first act or early in the second act, I imagine they would find Yoshi.
T.C.:Oh, okay. I wouldn't add I I I wouldn't say no Yoshi in this. I'd say let's lean into as much of the original Super Mario Brothers as we can. Let's keep the plot fairly simple. Let's not dive into the other existing worlds.
T.C.:If we're gonna if we're gonna dive into any other existing worlds from from the Mario universe, either two or Mario Land, Where like, let's just keep it contained so that we don't blow the whole wad in the first movie. If if if we make a successful enough first movie, we can get a second and a third one. And the second one can be Mario World where you get you can introduce Luigi, you can get the cape or the he has the cape in Mario World where he can fly. Right? So maybe in this first one, we could just do one, two, and three.
Jim:Three has Yoshi. No. No. Did it?
T.C.:Mario World is when Yoshi Three showed on Super has the raccoon tail, tanooki suits, the hammer brother suits. Two, which was not originally a Mario Brothers game that they ported over and made Mario.
Jim:Two introduces a bunch of cool bad guys that we probably should incorporate, but it is a dream. So I don't think we need to use the main villain from it.
T.C.:No. Wart, I think, is the main villain. Right? He could be an underboss at some But I think yeah. Don't I I wouldn't introduce you, Yoshi, I see where you're going to try to get a fourth party in there to see the wizard.
T.C.:I I I Just just the three of them? Yeah. Yeah. And I think Toad being kind of the what would be the nebish, the guy with the glasses, I'm not really much of a fighter, guys. I'm real quick, though.
T.C.:Like, leave it to these two. I would love to I see
Jim:I I hate I I feel like this is I actually like Aziz and sorry for that.
T.C.:For Toad instead of Luigi. Okay.
Jim:Okay. And just hit sort of his his style.
T.C.:I don't wanna do it.
Jim:And and him telling him, don't go over them like like I don't know. I just yeah.
T.C.:Okay. Okay. And and how how realistic, how cartoonish are we looking at Toad then? Like, does he have a mushroom head? Like, is this some is this an can we have a very kid friendly Guillermo del Toro level of design here?
T.C.:Right? Like
Jim:Oh. Oh. Making like They're creatures. Obviously mushroom people? Yeah.
Jim:Yeah.
T.C.:Yeah. Yeah. I I think there's something fun to be had there.
Jim:There there could be. However, we're gonna have lots of them. And the I because Princess Toadstool is also technically one of them.
T.C.:Right. Is she a is she a mushroom person, or
Jim:is I she don't I don't
T.C.:know full lore. Interesting. I I always assumed Princess Toadstool was human.
Jim:I don't remember which side it fell.
T.C.:You know what? In our in our third movie, we find out she's actually from the real world, and she's exploring this whole dark backstory. That's for the third movie. That's where you go there. That's what you do in the third movie.
T.C.:That's what you get with you. So so they have It could yeah.
Jim:It could be either way. They it it could be a full on CG
T.C.:Mhmm.
Jim:Monster person.
T.C.:Yeah. I I'd like to see a mix of both. Like, having having because the thing is, remember,
Jim:our our our Goombas are already monstrous mushroom people.
T.C.:Right. Our Koopa Troopas because now And
Jim:by monstrous, they are still cutesy because I think one thing we didn't necessarily drive home is this is going to be a under PG 13. This is gonna be a PG move.
T.C.:PG maybe a mid range PG 13 movie. No no f bomb will be heard in this. Yeah. Absolutely. I think you had said something speed racer off.
T.C.:Mike was a
Jim:Well, I I meant more no. Well, that that was that was my pitch for a a Mario Kart movie.
T.C.:Gotcha. Okay. Well, we'll get to that. Do they they get to Bowser, save the princess, but they have to they didn't defeat Bowser? They're ready to go back home, and then it's a matter of, like, no.
T.C.:You pissed him off. And now, yeah, you saved the princess, but he's destroying the land. You got you made this mess. You gotta help us out here. And everything they learned along the way, they go back and face off against Bowser with Princess Toad still at their side, with Toad fighting alongside them.
Jim:I think they defeat Bowser.
T.C.:Okay. Just get to the princess, defeat.
Jim:Okay. And by by defeat, like like, they don't kill him. No. No. They they drive him off.
Jim:I I think Bowser and his Koopas are actually invaders. Oh, okay. They're they're trying to take over. Like like, they're from elsewhere. They're from Koopa Land, and they're trying to invade Mush the Mushroom Kingdom.
Jim:And so the the Mario brothers drive him off, and they're like, thank you so much. We'll send you home now. And that's when Mario and Luigi, they they, like their their journey has has, you know what? Maybe we'll we'll stick around a little a little longer. We'll stick
T.C.:around a Barry.
Jim:Yeah. I don't don't know why yet, but something like that.
T.C.:Some sort of I I think that the we there could be and obviously, there needs to be a much longer story here with some subplots to interweave in here. Some other characters we're not thinking of quite yet. Like, what's the one who tosses the orange spiky turtles like Laquita? You know, the Yeah. Characters like that, the Hammer Brothers that are in there, under the going underwater and and dealing with the fish and the the octopi.
T.C.:So I think there's some fun locations to go to that could give us some interesting set pieces. But I think keeping the plot simple, getting them to learn about themselves as brothers, change enough that they appreciate what they have, giving them that, like, no place
Jim:learning that they're that they're they're heroes in this world, and and maybe they're a little more tough than like, maybe this is a little maybe I'm doing a little too much John Carter of Mars here.
T.C.:No. That's not
Jim:But like, maybe they they learn that they're a little tougher here than than in the real world.
T.C.:A little more super, if you will. Yes. But I do think we send them back home to Oh. Like, because they got all their money, they can save their business, they maybe their mom is Pauline and they I don't know. We don't have to have that element in it, but that they do go back to return if we wanna do the full hero's journey.
T.C.:They return back home from whence they came, changed with a new look at life. And instead of having, like, sudden this is what happened in the original. Princess Toad still comes back and is like, Mario, Luigi, we need your help again. Come on. And that's how the movie ends.
T.C.:I wanna have it like I'd have them go back. They've said their goodbyes, they get back to the real world, and both of them see the world differently now. And they both want to go back to the Mushroom Kingdom, but neither of them wanna like admit it until they both kinda like you can see them both longing to go back to the world that they feel they truly belong so that they can then admit, you know, like, hey, maybe we should go make sure that pipe is taken care of over at Princess Toast.
Jim:We did never fin we we never actually finished that job.
T.C.:Yeah. I mean, we should Yeah. Yeah. You know what I mean? If you want.
T.C.:I mean if you want. Like, even though everything did end up working out for them in the real world, they truly belong in the Mushroom Kingdom. So then they go back in the house and then they're like maybe they're like looking at the pipe. This is wow. This is where the adventure began.
T.C.:And then maybe through the pipe, you hear, like, some sort of noise around that, and they look at each other, like, let's go. And then roll credits as they jump back into the pipe. So Maybe. Yeah. You kinda see you looked like you went somewhere with your ideas or your head.
Jim:Well, the the the two notions is what if at some point they receive a MacGuffin of their own, or maybe that it's how they get back to the real world is a magic whistle.
T.C.:Oh, yeah. Mario Brothers three whistle.
Jim:The the warp whistle.
T.C.:Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
Jim:And then the other thing is I'm I'm imagining a stinger after having defeated Bowser. Maybe this is too early to do it, but some sort of stinger a la the end of Avengers showing Thanos
T.C.:Mhmm.
Jim:We do something showing Wario. Wow. Wow. Wow. Yeah.
Jim:And that that might be too soon. Wow. Wow. Wow.
T.C.:Wow. Wow. That might be too soon. I think bringing Bowser back for the second one. Actually, you know what?
T.C.:Wario's not a bad idea, but I don't know if we spoil we tease him necessarily. Maybe there's something that could tease him in the way they teased War Machine in the first Iron Man, like, next time, baby. Like, something real or like the the gauntlet in the back of the of the treasure room in the first Thor, something really small and sneaky
Jim:Mhmm.
T.C.:Of the 10 rings behind the people who kidnapped Tony Stark in the first time. Something real small that could potentially hit it hit it into Wario Mhmm. Because Wario would be a good villain for the second one. But I do think the the potential that maybe Bowser could also come back should be on the table.
Jim:Oh, Bowser's definitely gonna come back. I think so here actually, here's here's why I think Wario and Waluigi would be good for the second one.
T.C.:Just to make I'm trying to decide if they're playing both versions. If like Jack, like, plays Wario or if you get like John Goodman or if you get Josh Gad is what I said. If you get someone to play ops. But anyway, you said here's why it's
Jim:a good idea. I would wanna get someone to to play ops. Oh. Okay. So Jack here's here's Josh Gad was He's in Book of Mormon.
Jim:Yeah. Okay. What's the what's the name of the guy who was in Fantastic Beasts?
T.C.:Oh oh my god. The oh, Dave Fogler.
Jim:Dave yeah. Maybe maybe have him be Mario and Jack Beck be be Warrior. Oh, no. No. No.
T.C.:I I don't think Dave Fogler can carry a movie on his own.
Jim:Balls of Fury?
T.C.:No. So point proven. Why is it good to have why do you think actually, you know what?
Jim:Let's The reason the reason I I think because I think Wario is way more of a mug
T.C.:Yeah.
Jim:And Jack Black can mug. Right?
T.C.:Then it should be him playing both characters, I think, is your is your chance there. Oh, okay. Yeah. But but you had said why why is Wario the good choice for the
Jim:So so I think what what that second movie is about then is these mirror versions of Wario or of Mario and Luigi show up. And I I don't know what they're after this time, but now it's they're basically racing to get it for, like, something about, like, whoever gets this thing, it it's the key to the kingdom, and so they need to get for the princess.
T.C.:Well, want you then didn't worry.
Jim:Was like, no. I'm gonna be the freaking king. I'm gonna be the princess.
T.C.:Well, I want you to think about that for a minute. Let's take a quick break here and we'll come
Jim:back. Okay.
T.C.:So here's a commercial for everybody. Yay.
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Jim:Yeah. Yes.
T.C.:Okay. So so we have I think we have a pretty solid first movie. Right?
Jim:I think so.
T.C.:Yeah. Think we you had mentioned off mic that they're, like, running from that goomba in the beginning. They're like Mhmm. Physics are a little different here. Jump a little differently.
Jim:Yeah. So I imagine like, we so we sorta I really I I'm I'm imagining it akin to John Carter. Mhmm. John Carter, Mars, John John Carter, which I watched again recently and was not as bad, but also just as bad as
T.C.:As you remember.
Jim:It kind of was was marked.
T.C.:You know, that movie would have been better if this if the aliens had been played by people in makeup and not CG. It would have been it would have been yeah. It would have just been already better to have that physical tangible being in front of them. I actually Star Trek style.
Jim:Having watched it a second time, that to me wasn't the thing that damned it.
T.C.:Oh, I just think that's one element that would have improved it. The more humanity in the film would have helped enhance it. But you know what? I don't wanna talk about John Carter Myers. I wanna talk about freaking Mario Brothers Take
Jim:take from that is early on when John first gets to to Mars, he he he starts moving weird because the gravity is different Mhmm. Because he's from a heavier gravity planet.
T.C.:And so the mushroom kingdom has a
Jim:little different Mushrooms. Yeah. I I our our our characters, they're they're running away from this mushroom. Mhmm. And I I I imagine they they get to a wall or something, and they're they're they're trying to well, first, they're trying to jump to to to reach the top.
Jim:Mhmm. And and when one of them makes an actual effort to jump, like, they they just shoot up. They shoot up. And they're like, what? And so they they learn that they can they can actually jump really high in this world.
Jim:Jump, man. Very short yeah. Yes. Oh, maybe maybe that's what it is. One of them does it, like Luigi does it.
T.C.:Who does have a better jump in Mario
Jim:too. Yeah. And then Mario's like for whatever reason, Mario panics and doesn't and instead or maybe he stumbles, like he trips over himself and crashes into the wall and just blows a hole through it. So they they basically learn that they have this kind of super strength, and they're able to basically punch bricks apart.
T.C.:Mhmm. That's cool. I think that's a that's a good way to introduce the concept from the game.
Jim:And and and so now now, like, now they they look at their own limbs. They're like, we're we're like superheroes. You don't have to say the words, but we're like superheroes.
T.C.:We're super Mario. No. That's a little that's that's almost more on the nose than anything else I just said. Rescue the princess, go through the kingdom, make their way home again, fight Bowser a couple times to defeat him.
Jim:Just to to, you know, cross our t's and dot our i's. They they learn all the things, like, they they learned that they can eat a mushroom and grow bigger. Mhmm. And so we have a scene where, like, one of them gets really big, It stomps all over some turtles. Scene.
T.C.:Yeah. And then they just shrink back down. It's like, boy. Oh, oh, that's a good cut. If you squash the little one at the beginning, the big one chases them.
T.C.:Later, one of them gets big, and that one that chased him, they're like, you again, and they're trying to step on
Jim:him. Something like that.
T.C.:Yeah. And then he shrinks back down. They're like, I'm I'm gonna run again. Yeah. And then get the
Jim:Yeah. The same with, like, the the fire flower. Mhmm. Right?
T.C.:That that Oh, I forgot. Yeah. Little bit.
Jim:Thing that they regularly have in in there.
T.C.:Yeah. And I think there's plenty of gags to be put in here, physical references to the game. But following the pretty much the standard hero's journey Yeah. Through it get them home again. Keep it a rather relatively contained film.
T.C.:If we could get as if we could get even close to Wreck It Ralph meets Alice in Wonderland Yeah. We've nailed it. Like, I think that's a fun movie. It pays it pays a lot of homage and respect to the original source material, and, and we get them back in the end. I think having them return home with all the money they've collected, save the their business, but then wanting to go back to the Mushroom Kingdom leaves us open for a second film.
T.C.:Now you've presented that Wario is the villain in the second one. Now I'm I'm curious here. If we just play with the original Mario Brothers for the first movie
Jim:Mhmm.
T.C.:Do we want to have hints of the second and third one in this first movie so that the next time we come back and we're going up against Wario, we have hints of of we can bring Yoshi in. We we play with Mario Land.
Jim:I think Yoshi does come into the second one, and I I'm already imagining a scene where the war the Mario Brothers and the Wario Brothers Mhmm. Both encounter the Yoshi and several Yoshis.
T.C.:Mhmm.
Jim:And because of the the Wario brothers' demeanor, they basically get rejected and like, fine. We don't want this. We don't We need you anyway.
T.C.:Well, we don't need you, you little lizards. Yeah.
Jim:And meanwhile, our our heroes do make friends with them and are able to
T.C.:Utilize them as As mounts. Mount. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
T.C.:Okay. And so playing more in the Mario Land realm, I think, I think hints of two and three in the first one are fun. I think if we move more to the Super Nintendo era, the Yoshi era essentially of Mario, that's something that can play in the second one. Whatever a MacGuffin might be, but thinking more settings wise, having Mario Kart get a moment, like, if they have to race a race moment in it, having a ghost house in one of these moments, and the fact that the the here's the here's the the problem here. If Wario and Luigi are antagonistic to them trying to do what they need to do, Mario Land, if we're going into the Super Nintendo Yoshi era, dealt with Bowser and his kids because every main castle was one of his children.
Jim:I don't want I actually I it seems like you're kinda trying to
T.C.:follow Mario World. Mario World. I'm sorry. Someone was someone's been screaming at me in the future like, he was at Yoshi was Mario World. Like, I get it.
T.C.:Yeah.
Jim:I I don't really wanna follow necessarily the order of the games.
T.C.:Okay. Okay.
Jim:Because I actually you're jumping ahead of what I wanted. I I want the second one to be a competition between the pairs of brothers.
T.C.:Okay.
Jim:And in the end, Mario wins. And I I don't know. Maybe they extend a hand of because they're the good guys. Mhmm. They're like, no hard feelings, and Mario's like, yeah.
Jim:So what I imagine what I want from the third one is what happens is Bowser shows back up with his family Okay. And a bigger army, and Mario has to team up with Wario Mhmm. Reluctantly. So now these four characters plus plus Toad and Princess Mhmm. So we have our our ensemble of, I guess, six characters, now have to go defeat Bowser Okay.
Jim:And his
T.C.:Yeah. So then in the second film, let's let's get obscure. Let's have references to two and three. Let's have references to Mario Land, the Game Boy game, with hints of Mario World, with Yoshi, just touching on some of these things and having a Mario Kart type scene, having having, like, Waluigi and Wario playing tennis together. Like, just having having little having them run across a golf course with, like, a bunch of little toads, hey.
Kate:Get out of here. Get out on now.
T.C.:Like, because Mario Golf was fun. Right?
Jim:Having So I'd
T.C.:having them just come
Jim:I would versus each other. For for that, I'd I'd probably wanna put all of that together. What I would do is I'd have them come across some kind of Mushroom Kingdom country club Yes. That's been abandoned or whatever. And so and so that that's why they have all these different sports things there.
T.C.:Is that Wario and Waluigi's base is, like, an abandoned Mushroom Kingdom country club, so they can play tennis and they they have a golf course to themselves. Yeah. So so these two competing for some sort of MacGuffin that and and and in ultimately, the end, it is a Wario is the supervillain they have to destroy. Right? Like, seems kind of an even match type
Jim:of thing. I wasn't thinking I I wasn't initially thinking that. You you think it should be something that Wario has has concocted? I I Like, he he's pulling the machinations behind the scenes?
T.C.:No. I I just think that if our first movie has a little bit of escalation, like, wanna get home, gotta save the princess, gotta defeat Bowser, gotta this Bowser is a big problem that needs to be defeated. If the second one starts out simple enough like, hey, we need to get this thing, and the Wario brothers show up and it's like, okay, and they're both competing. And then it escalates to, oh, no. Now that Wario has succeeded where Mario and Luigi's failed, he wants to destroy the world kind of situation, and now they have to defeat him.
Jim:What if, I don't necessarily know how to pull it off. What if, Wario and Waluigi show up? They're these mysterious strangers who look a lot like these other two. Mhmm. And they start so so the Mario brothers have been doing all kinds of good things for the Mushroom Kingdom, and the the Wario brothers
T.C.:You hold cold open as they defeat Wart.
Jim:Oh, sure. Yeah. There you go.
T.C.:There's your cold
Jim:open. Well, though, again, it was a dream. Whatever.
T.C.:Hey. We're well, this is it's just referential. Continue. Wario's But
Jim:Wario shows up, and they're kind of doing anti missions. Like like, they're kind of they're showing up and saying, we did this, princess, so now we control this part. And it's like for whatever reason, it's it's not like it's not the invasion Bowser did, which was we are, like, a nation taking over. Instead, it's like, by technical reasons, yes. You you did this by our rules, so you've you've taken over the country club.
T.C.:How am I gonna win?
Jim:I know if that's necessarily compelling enough that that, basically, he's got this this master plan of of undermining the kingdom Mhmm. And stealing it from them by their own rules. And so Mario and Luigi have to somehow outdo them that way. That that might be too contrived.
T.C.:Don't know. I you might be on to something there. I think the second movie could could play into, some of the more obscure things, that having it be a contest of sorts. Like, look. If they do all this this mission, this mission, and this mission, then they will take over the kingdom because that's just the way our laws work.
T.C.:And then Mario and Luigi can be like, oh, then we better do it first.
Jim:So maybe that's the way it starts is Yeah. Mario and Luigi, oh, Mario and Luigi, you guys are so helpful. Can you go take care of this haunted castle? And they go to do that. And, like, Wario and Waluigi scoop in and and do it first, and then they, like, we did it.
T.C.:Can we
Jim:So, Princess, you have to pay us now.
T.C.:Can we do a thing where people can't tell them apart? Like like, initially, if all the toads look as look the same to Mario and Luigi and they're offended by that, like, come on, man. And then, like, they think Mario and Yes. While Romeo, like, they confuse the two and it's like Yeah. We don't look at what is wrong
Jim:with you? The purple one doesn't even use normal words.
T.C.:That's all he says. I I'm sorry. It's just you're so similar.
Kate:Like, we
T.C.:don't even wear the same clothes. Aren't you? Aren't no. We're not. Aren't you?
T.C.:No. We're not. I but I don't know what the the stakes of the second film aren't. Like, it's pretty low stakes. Right?
T.C.:Because, like, Bowser taking over the kingdom, that's a villain to defeat. He's he's the big bad. Yeah. I I think maybe if the first half of the film is this sort of pseudo competition between Wario and Mario, the Wario brothers and Mario, if it escalates to Wario being a super villain Sure. Even like rejecting Waluigi that Waluigi is like comes to Mario and Luigi is like, wow.
T.C.:Wow. Wow. I don't like, Mario's like, I don't know. Like, Luisa's like, shh. I'm listening.
Jim:Did Yoshi fall down a well?
T.C.:Uh-huh. Yeah. Go ahead. What? Wow.
T.C.:Wow. Wow. Mhmm. Mhmm. Yeah.
T.C.:Like, Luigi understands. Yeah. And Mario's like, what's going on? It's like, well, okay. This is what he told me.
T.C.:And then then it's Mario, Luigi, and Wow Luigi having to go defeat Wario. If Wario has reached supervillain conquer the world status, that that escalates it enough. Sure. Because if it's just them competing along the way, that's not exciting as a follow-up film. That's like Okay.
T.C.:A Yeah. It's like a short film follow-up. Yeah. I think if we want this to be the second film, I'm not saying that you have to Empire Strikes Back yet. I still think you can end this with with a definitive single story here, but it needs to have stakes that
Jim:So what if it's some sort of MacGuffin that gives Walui or Wario, some sort of great power? Yeah. Right? And and so then they the idea is, in in the end, our heroes remove that from him, which restores him to his normal, just regular greedy stuff. It's like, hey.
Jim:I got it. Don't be such a jerk. And he's all like,
T.C.:okay.
Jim:Wario. I don't I don't know.
T.C.:I'm gonna pitch I'm pitch this a because you got something there. If his MacGuffin gives him great power. Right?
Jim:Mhmm.
T.C.:His whatever the MacGuffin might be, and maybe there is a Mario game equivalent that we can use here.
Jim:The invincibility star?
T.C.:The invincibility star. Sure. He crosses into the real world with all the powers. Mario and Luigi only have their abilities in the Mushroom Kingdom. When they go back to the real world, they're human again, While Luigi sorry.
T.C.:Wario figures out after they're camp competing along the way and is maybe while Luigi I don't know. But he gets into the real world, and now Mario and Luigi have to go back to New York, maybe bring princess Toadstool with them, maybe bring Toad with them, maybe bring Yoshi with them or whatnot, and now they have to defeat Wario in the real world. And maybe that's just the final act. Maybe that's just the third half or the third the third the third part of the film.
Jim:Yeah. Third half.
T.C.:Yeah. Third half. Yeah. Then the escalation is he it's not it's not just a Bowser two point o trying to take over the mushroom kingdom, and he he can he can even say that. It's like, I've grown beyond the mushroom kingdom.
T.C.:And then he goes to New York and is like, now I would take over this world. And now Mario and Luigi have to defeat him in New York City because because you could go so far as once they save the day, now they're heroes in New York. Like
Jim:Okay.
T.C.:Now they've become world famous, not just mushroom world famous. I'm
Jim:I'm kind of I'm kind of okay with this.
T.C.:Because it I I'm I'm not Toad eating shawarma, like there's some real, like, real humor to be had and like, how would these characters exist in the real world? Sure. Right? And I don't think this needs to be the whole gimmick of the movie, I just think this could be the the big finale. If it feels like, what Wario's a bad guy.
T.C.:This has been a lot of fun, but is this really just the two of them competing to save the Mushroom Kingdom again? And he's like, screw this. And then he goes to New York. Yeah. You get your you get your almost like Ghostbusters Ghostbusters two kinda save the city.
T.C.:And something we don't get enough of But
Jim:then then we have Ghostbusters two.
T.C.:I don't want Ghostbusters. This is not this is not Viggo, the key Yeah. You the buzzing of flies to him. I I think getting him there raises the stakes because if the second movie does?
Jim:Yeah. I I'm I'm I'm not sure if I'm I'm not yet sold that those are the stakes I wanna raise it
T.C.:to. Then I'll even go
Jim:It it's okay because what that does is it I I think what ends up having to happen is then the third movie has to be about Bowser and his kids not taking over the Mushroom Kingdom. They are now following suit, and they're coming to the real world.
T.C.:I'd okay. Let's let's say let's say we go with the second movie being Wario getting that third acted, attack of New York situation right here where they defeat him. And it doesn't have to just be him coming in, he has all the Mario powers in the real world, and they don't Mhmm. Which I think is a challenge for them as heroes. It's not easy for them.
T.C.:They have to fight with real physics. Is he he unleashes the Mushroom Kingdom bad guys into New York as well. It's not just defeat Wario. There's Goombas running around. There's Koopa Troopas.
T.C.:There's Hammer Brothers. There's, Bullet Bills. They're like and I don't wanna go pixels on this. I wanna
Jim:Yeah. That's right.
T.C.:That's where where
Jim:I started thinking.
T.C.:Don't wanna go into that version, that territory because let's we can we can pare it down to just save the neighborhood kinda situation so that then it becomes the myth of Mario, and he doesn't literally save all New York and become this world famous hero. Let's let's just say we can figure out a way to smooth this out and then make that third act work and not look like Ghostbusters 2,000. Right?
Jim:Okay.
T.C.:Not look like Pixels. Yeah. Let's say that's how we escalate it. I think the third movie should maintain more of the fantasy element, more of the fantastical in the Mushroom Kingdom. But it's Bowser and his kids.
T.C.:They're not gonna take over the Mushroom Kingdom. They're going to take over the world. Mario world. Right? Because Mushroom Kingdom is just one world, one land in the entire whatever that world is called.
T.C.:Yeah. And so Bowser's an is gonna is maybe he take he crushes the Mushroom Kingdom in the first act. Like, the first scene is Bowser is back. He destroys the castle. The princess is he's like, oh, great.
T.C.:You're gonna kidnap me? And he's like, no. I'm not gonna kidnap you. There's no point anymore. I I'm beyond the Mushroom Kingdom, and so go ahead.
T.C.:Go get your hero. I'll be waiting. And then all his kids start to crush. Because it's not just like a linear get to Bowser just and stop situation. Now his kids are spread out all over, and Mario and Luigi and whoever else they wanna rope in from the the first two movies and maybe a couple new characters, you essentially get sort of a pseudo Mario World Avengers situation.
T.C.:Yeah. Where it's like we got seven kids to or six kids to deal with and Bowser. They're not taking over the Mushroom Kingdom. The Mushroom Kingdom is small potatoes to compare to all of this going on now. We're not going to New York.
T.C.:Maybe one kid goes in New York, but I think the second movie is your real world situation. Think Raiders of the Lost Ark and and Last Crusade with Temple of the Doom in the middle there. Right? Temple of Doom is is the it's not in the desert. It's not a a holy artifact, a Christian artifact.
T.C.:It's not Nazis. It's the outlier.
Jim:Yeah. But it doesn't I I I don't think that using that as as your example, I don't think that frames it as it's not that it starts with Indiana Jones fighting Nazis and then sidetracking to India Mhmm. Which for the convoluted analogy, that's what's happening with our Mario movie here. Mhmm. And and tying tying our Mushroom Kingdom world to the real world through through just the transition.
Jim:I I may maybe I'm putting too much emphasis on that. I'm I'm I'm just afraid of that sort of being this overbearing thing, which, like, would just like, well, what would they even care if they can just take over this whole other other world, or why don't our heroes just well, because our our heroes are heroes. That's why they don't just abandon.
T.C.:I'll I'll solve that for you. Is that the that the MacGuffin is destroyed? Mario figured out how to use this one thing, this one time to cross the powers, to cross the worlds, and they destroy it. That's how they defeat him in the end. So there is no crossing the Mushroom Kingdom into the real world anymore.
T.C.:Like, you can't bring the powers and the forces from one to from the magical mushroom Kingdom to the real world. If you destroy that in the second movie, like, it's like destroying the kraken in the opening shot of the third pirates movie. What a waste of the kraken. Destroy the kraken in the first one or in the second one and I'm not going on a pirates of the Caribbean tangent. That's a whole another story.
T.C.:But if if they destroy the MacGuffins, Bowser doesn't even have the option, and he doesn't have any interest in the in the crappy real world.
Jim:Sure.
T.C.:They have terrible pizza. He he's interested in conquering this world, and he's not interested in the kingdom of the Mushroom Kingdom anymore or princess toadstool. And you can introduce Daisy Sure. In in the third movie.
Jim:Other other royalty from other kingdoms?
T.C.:Yeah. I
Jim:actually don't know Daisy's story.
T.C.:I she's Toadstool's Luigi. She's she's Peach's, like like, okay. If if if it's if it's do you do you see where I'm going with this? Like, third movie is is Yeah. Is save that world.
T.C.:Our world.
Jim:That that's that's that's a decent way to to to kinda it it allays my concerns about that second plot. Mhmm. So, yeah, I I think destroying whatever that MacGuffin is, I think, clearly delineates the real world from this magical world Yeah. From from their their mushroom Narnia. Mhmm.
Jim:Yeah.
T.C.:That's good.
Jim:Because, I mean, essentially, at this at that point, we establish
T.C.:It's like a mushroom Narnia.
Jim:We we establish that Mario and Luigi can go back and forth. It's not they don't have to choose one or the other.
T.C.:Right. They have the ability to go through the pipe and go through. Mario, I think it was all a dream. It wasn't a dream.
Jim:I I think I'm I think I'm okay with that.
T.C.:The the the I I I I That
Jim:they that they can go back and forth?
T.C.:Mhmm. That they don't have to pick one or the other.
Jim:Yeah.
T.C.:But it's it is it's oh, and and we had talked about exploring the backstory of Peach that she that she's human. I think just in in the mushroom kingdom, there are humanoids.
Jim:Sure. Yeah.
T.C.:Maybe there's something weird about her. We don't know. She has mushroom toes or something. She's got cloven feet. I don't know.
T.C.:We've never seen it. The dress is very long. But that third movie being bigger, the biggest one, it's the end of the trilogy.
Jim:And it it's it's where like, I I like the idea. That's that's why I pitched it. I like the idea of the Mario Brothers having having to reluctantly work with Wario and Wallo e.
T.C.:For the third one. Yes. A 100%. I love I love, like And they
Jim:have oh, they have to coordinate a plan, and then, like, at the end, a la Loki always having to do something Yeah. While, Wario Wario, like like, just on the verge of doing it, he he goes and tweaks a thing which makes it harder because, like, he's gonna do it for him.
T.C.:Dang it, Wario. And and the thing is that, like, Waluigi is reformed by the like, in the third movie, I think he's, like, he's reformed, but he still does, like like like, rude things, but he's not evil. Right? So, like, it comes down to, like, okay, we need to recruit as many people as we possibly can. Let's go down to the dungeon and get Wario to come out there to get so you have Waluigi's like, I'm a he says he's here to help us.
T.C.:Yeah. Yeah. I got it. Alright. Let's go get your dumb brother.
Jim:Or or I'd I'd I maybe it undermines him as his own character, but I like the idea of Waluigi kind of sycophantically following Wario.
T.C.:Like, I don't
Jim:even care what the plan is. I'm I'm
T.C.:with you. Whatever you say, brother. Okay. May may maybe there's some some fun to be had with War Waluigi one way or the other, but, getting print, princess Daisy involved.
Jim:Oh,
T.C.:sure. I'm trying to think if there's any other Mario hero characters we could come that could come into the mix here. There's the newscaster from Mario Kart. He's he's
Jim:I had no idea. Nope.
T.C.:He's on he's the one that holds the camera in Mario 64. Like, there's a character on a cloud. He's not the one that chucks the orange Yeah. Spiky turtles. He's he I I'm sure he has a name, but, getting, like, one of the the, Koopa Troopas who is in Mario Kart, like, having him be one of the helpers that, just getting a team together to kinda spread out and and take care of Bowser.
Jim:Establish that some Koopas don't wanna work with Bowser.
T.C.:Right. Yeah. Yeah. Like a good Koopa. Yeah.
T.C.:But here's thing. They they defeat all the kids over mini boss, and then they all have to come together to defeat Bowser. Let's go full Godzilla. Bowser gets huge.
Jim:Oh, sure.
T.C.:Yeah. That they have to defeat him. Mario, let's you know, maybe Luigi saves the day since Mario always gets all the credit. Like, maybe Luigi strikes the final blow. I love the idea that they stay they're equals through this.
T.C.:Mario's the hero, but I do like the idea that they always are are partners. They work together.
Jim:I think Avengers style I I think Luigi can be a linchpin, but I think Mario has to drive it home.
T.C.:Okay. He's still the Tony Stark of this franchise. Yeah.
Jim:Okay. But just an idea, like so Wario does kinda betray them. Mhmm. And and I like like, he he takes one of the the wands. Right?
Jim:Like, didn't all the kids have
T.C.:Oh, Yeah. That's right. They did.
Jim:So the the kid he defeats, he takes the wand. And when he when they when they all show up saying, we've defeated your children, Wario, like, the way he betrays them. Like, he, like, does some magic so he becomes giant.
T.C.:Oh, why why why are you Because oh my god.
Jim:And he starts stomping around, like, and he's like, how am I gonna wean? And, like like, it seems like he's like, the it's the twist is that he's the gonna in the in the end, gonna take over, and Bowser's like, no. No. No. Where do you think that magic and so he grows big.
Jim:Basically, just just gives one one, like, haymaker blow to Wario.
T.C.:Wow. Who's Wow. Who's
Jim:just Wow. Who's then just now out of the fight, and then our heroes have to Defeat them.
T.C.:Defeat Love it.
Jim:Love it.
T.C.:And they defeat him in the end, and they they they win. The trilogy ends with a heroic destruction of Bowser. All the kingdoms are saved.
Jim:Of his floating castle thing?
T.C.:Yes. Yeah. Like, just Bowser's defeated with a with a final definitive
Jim:Mhmm.
T.C.:This is the end of the trilogy. I wanna throw in
Jim:a a little Does does he finally, go into his shell and Mario just kicks it?
T.C.:I wanna I wanna I have a post credits thing here. K. Because I think that that there is a conclusion here. We can wrap up any, like, little subplots we might create over the course of the three films. Not that I want this to be, like, a definitive trilogy, but if we're if it's if it's going to be, it's going to be.
T.C.:Mhmm. Little tie ups here and there. Luigi gets with Daisy. They decide to stay in the Mushroom Kingdom. They're not gonna go back to New York anymore.
Jim:Okay.
T.C.:Little things like that. Wrap up toad subplot or whatnot. The little post credits stinger I wanna have here is we are now aware that the Mushroom Kingdom is part of a much bigger world. Right?
Jim:Mhmm.
T.C.:So I think the last little bit would be Mario. And this this is the end of the trilogy, and we have no guarantee of making any other movies even though we're putting this little stinger at the end. If this stinger exists, I want people to be excited, but we will not see a sequel to this movie for five years or more.
Jim:Sure.
T.C.:Unless this is, like, makes Marvel fun.
Jim:Of course.
T.C.:Yeah. We are aware now that this grand kingdom exists, that there's other kingdoms beyond this.
Jim:Uh-huh.
T.C.:Having Mario out exploring with Luigi, maybe they're just out there to see what this world holds. They've only seen such a small amount of it cutting through the woods and coming into and greeted by a character from Hyrule, and that's the end of your movie. That's the end of this trilogy with the just the hint of what could potentially be a Smash Brothers movie or a Zelda franchise or what have you. That's how I would end this whole trilogy was it would be just a glimpse at Hyrule Castle or maybe Zelda or maybe Link. You think you're stroking your beard and you don't look happy.
Jim:Well, I like the idea of making a Zelda movie. Mhmm. I don't know if I like tying it to the Mario Brothers.
T.C.:Okay. I just wanted to throw it out there. I'm I'm thinking in terms of of franchising it. I'm thinking in terms of the the even the even the random the wild speculation of a Smash Brothers movie. Like, just that.
T.C.:Like, even if it's even if we do make a Zelda movie and it's like the Scorpion King where it's not really connected to Mummy Returns.
Jim:I think I I would rather I think plat I would rather play with a cheeky notion of it instead of so what you do is is almost like as a credit sequence, postcards of them exploring. So you see postcards Welcome to Hyrule. Pictures of the of them in places. Mhmm. So you can see one where they're in Hyrule or or maybe maybe they're they're messing with the the Triforce or you see Wario trying to sneak off with one of with one of the triangles.
T.C.:Just a hint at
Jim:it. But you can then it wouldn't just be that one. You then see postcards from many different worlds that the Mario Brothers are visiting with with their friends.
T.C.:Oh, just
Jim:You see them with Kirby.
T.C.:Oh, yes. Yeah.
Jim:Yeah. Yeah. With
T.C.:Ash Ketchum. Right?
Jim:Yeah. Yeah. In a spaceship with Star Fox.
T.C.:Yeah. Oh, I love that.
Jim:Yeah. Just In the in the stands at a a at a hovercraft race for At zero. Captain Falcon.
T.C.:Yeah. Yeah. I think that's that would be a really exciting way to end it. So people are like, oh, man. You know, hit Twitter.
T.C.:We gotta see it. They're gonna make a Smash
Jim:Brothers movie.
T.C.:And and they maybe they won't. Maybe they will. Maybe they won't. But, like, I think, yeah. I thought that this is amazing.
T.C.:Like, you haven't seen the original Mario Brothers movie. It's garbage. Don't even feel something like this with with a an aesthetic like Jumanji two, with an aesthetic with that that is like detective Pikachu. Something that is fun and and adventurous and tongue in cheek without too much meta humor with no fart jokes with no I know they're plumbers, but we don't need any poop humor in this. Like, let's let's treat with some respect.
T.C.:I think that there's there's an opportunity here to create an an adventure film that we don't really see a lot of.
Jim:Visually, it it maybe this is too old to be referencing, but, visually, I'm act I actually imagine it like toys.
T.C.:Wow. I'd have to that's Rob Williams. Yeah. He put a lot of effort in that. So I wanna have to go back and look at that, but I think with the mod a modern yeah.
T.C.:Okay. I'm kind of remembering bits of it. I think with, with someone like Gore Verbinski attached who who successfully did the Pirates of the Caribbean movies would be the right feel for this. I don't want unfortunately, Spielberg's beyond his prime. He would not be someone to do something like this.
T.C.:Yeah. Peter Jackson, he's kind of worn out his his his Lord of the Rings style. I think someone there's probably some fresh blood that can be brought into this. Yeah. But, yeah, I think that
Jim:don't I don't need a a a real like, a hyper realistic mushroom kingdom. I'm I'm imagining, like
T.C.:Fun. Yeah. Let's have some fun with it.
Jim:Like, even like, like, even the woods the woods, the plains, the deserts, like like, it all Like, did you see the It all looks very stylized.
T.C.:Did you see the day's tape shoot? Yeah.
Jim:The the reason the reason I don't think that's a great example is because it is it is a I I I think they do a good job making a realistic setting Mhmm. With Pokemon in it.
T.C.:Okay. So you're you wanna go beyond that. And I'm all with you. Want I I want
Jim:it to be a little more hyper real.
T.C.:Yeah. I'm almost like almost like the the live action recreations they've been doing in some of the Disney movies that are are a little more like, a little bit like the Tim Burton, Alice in Wonderland. Tim Burton cannot direct these movies. He'd be a terrible choice this
Jim:Visually, though, I yes. I that that's a that's a decent example.
T.C.:That sort of production design. Oh, yeah. 100%. Oh, man. I I I would love to I would write this trilogy with you right now.
T.C.:Alright. Let's do it. Okay. Let's do it. Well, I I know this wasn't a request or a demand from any of our listeners per se.
T.C.:It was something that we really felt compelled to to knock out because we the idea started coming to us after our last episode. Yeah. But I'm I'm wondering if we've if we've left out any Mario lore Oh, likely. I'm I'm sure we did. So what did what did we leave out?
T.C.:What did we forget? Tweet at us. Hit us up. Let us know. We'd love to continue this conversation.
Jim:Because we we didn't touch on anything that, like, Galaxy
T.C.:Oh, no. Right.
Jim:Or anything Yeah. Unleashes.
T.C.:Yeah. That I mean, we'd mentioned the underwater kingdom in a sense. Like, Yeah. There's so much more to explore here, I think that, we're gonna keep brainstorming as we as we wrap up here, but I kinda wanna Oh, yeah. Yeah.
T.C.:Yeah. Get the episode wrapped up here. So I I you did that. Do the details. Do the details.
T.C.:I mean, you did the intro on this. Don't you wanna do the details?
Jim:Got five whacks on.
T.C.:No. So let me get up the notes here. So first of all, thank you guys for listening. If you do wanna tweet at us, I'm at t c's big head.
Jim:I'm at five wax on, that two bach wax on.
T.C.:Bach wax. At five wax on. And and let us know what we missed out here, what what could could improve on this. Maybe we oh, casting who I was thinking like Naomi Watts for Princess Toadstool or some some Charlie Starrano. If I'm being honest, I just wanna keep picking her for everything.
Jim:I I I can I'm I'm I'm blanking right now, but oh, no. I remember I wanted to do what's her name? Dang it.
T.C.:I'll let you think about that real quick because I tell people who to go over to studiodemandsit.com where you can send us a demand. You, you get to pick your studio name. Just tell us what you want us to to take a crack at, and we've been getting some real fun ones. So please keep them coming. Thank you so much for our listener engagement.
T.C.:We're having a lot of fun with this. You can subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts and Google Play. Tell your friends. Tell your family. And, yeah, and like I said, you can find us on Twitter individually, or you can find us at Studio Demands It on Twitter as well if you wanna make a request there.
T.C.:Quick shout out to Six Five Media for giving us this platform. Thank you so much. We we have a ball doing this. And, yeah, I know we would do it whether we were being recorded or not. So it's nice to have it's nice to have a home.
T.C.:It's nice to have an audience. So thank you, Six Five Media, for that. So everyone very much. Go check out their other stuff. Video game related, another Zelda podcast is much more informed video game conversation than we're giving you right here.
T.C.:So, what do
Jim:you got, Jim? Mila Kunis.
T.C.:Oh, as princess Toadstool? Yeah. Interesting. I would
Jim:Right. I'm I'm
T.C.:curious to
Jim:see what's your time imagining her as a blonde.
T.C.:Right.
Jim:But, but I I like, the comedic styling that I'm trying to to set up here, I think should be great. I think you Or I guess Emma Stone.
T.C.:I I thought Emma Stone
Jim:as well.
T.C.:I thought Emma Stone as well. The only little, like, I don't know, is the age gap between Jack Black and Mila Kunis and Sure. Emma Stone is something But you know what? Who's who's to say their relationship can't be platonic? Why does it have to be romantic?
T.C.:Like, maybe that's a little subversion of expectation there as well. Maybe. Cool. Yeah. I I'm I Let's keep chatting about this.
T.C.:But let's wrap it up here. So thank you everyone for listening. I'm T. C. I'm Jim Burzelic.
T.C.:And this is the end of another episode.
Jim:I'm just Jim. I'm Jim. I'm You're TC. Yeah. I'm Jim.
T.C.:And I'm TC. It's a me, you TC.