Mushroom King

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This article is about the character from the games. For the character from the Super Mario Bros. film, see King (film character).
Mushroom King
Mushroom King from Nintendo Comics System
The Mushroom King, as he appears in the comics
Full name King Toadstool
Species Human (and/or Toad)
First appearance Super Mario Bros. (1985, mentioned)
How to win at Super Mario Bros. (1985)
Latest appearance Super Mario (Super Mario: Yoshi Island 3) (1996)
“Excuse me, everybody! I just closed the peanut butter jar on my tie. Can somebody help me?”
Mushroom King, "Cloud Burst"

The Mushroom King (also referred to as King Toadstool or just Toadstool in the Super Mario Bros. comics) is a seldomly seen ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom and the father of Princess Toadstool. Although he is said to rule alongside the princess, he is a figure that is absent in the video game series. He resembles a human, with the top of his head resembling a Mushroom person's. He does make somewhat notable appearances in other early media such as the Super Mario Bros. comics, Nintendo Adventure Books, and the strategy guide illustrations for Super Mario Bros. He is also mentioned on Princess Toadstool's profile in a 1993 character guide produced by Nintendo of America.

History[edit]

Super Mario Bros.[edit]

The Mushroom King is briefly mentioned in passing in English localizations of the manual.[1] With few exceptions such as Super Mario Bros. Deluxe,[2] this is generally not included in subsequent releases as the Japanese manual does not mention him.[3] The Official Nintendo Player's Guide mentions that he ruled the kingdom with a queen.[4] Although unmentioned in the games themselves and the Japanese manual for Super Mario Bros., he was mentioned and shown in the Japanese guidebook How to win at Super Mario Bros., wearing a mushroom cap like Mushroom people do.

Super Mario Bros. Monogatari[edit]

The How to win at Super Mario Bros. illustration is remade in the introductory page of the Super Mario Bros. Monogatari activity book, where the king retains his beard, now bigger and white, and mushroom cap, now adorned with a gemstone.

Hisshō Technique Kan Peki-ban[edit]

At the end of the Super Mario Bros. chapter, Mario takes Princess Peach back home and then departs on his way while the entire kingdom, including the princess, the king, and the queen, bids him farewell. The royals are depicted with the same appearance they had in How to win at Super Mario Bros.: the king has a mustache, a goatee, and a Mushroom person-like piece of headgear with the crown on it.

Yukio Sawada's manga[edit]

Famicom Meiro: Super Mario/Makaimura[edit]

In Super Mario Meiro, the Mushroom King appears in the last panel, welcoming Mario and Peach back home. He has the usual Toad-esque design from previous media, with a white beard, red clothes, a green robe, and a yellow mushroom with red spots.

Super Mario-kun[edit]

The king is mentioned once in the thirteen volume of Super Mario-kun, where he is stated to be the sponsor of the fierce survival race.

Super Mario Bros. activity books[edit]

At the beginning of one of the Super Mario Bros. activity books, the Mushroom King can be seen with Princess Peach living peacefully until Bowser and his Koopa Troopas take over the Mushroom Kingdom and kidnap Peach.

Super Mario Bros. (Valiant Comics)[edit]

Mushroom King
The Mushroom King in the Super Mario Bros. issue Magic Carpet Madness

In the Super Mario Bros. Valiant Comics, the Mushroom King is the de jure leader of the Mushroom Kingdom. However, he is depicted as scatterbrained and dimwitted, so his responsible daughter often performs his royal duties as de facto ruler in his stead. Wooster, the "chief mushroom assistant" and the king's personal subject, is occasionally at odds with him due to his lack of intelligence.

Based on the Mushroom King's role, it is likely that he was based on the kings from Super Mario Bros. 3 as he plays a similar role in the comic strips (having a magic wand that is often taken by Bowser's forces and being transformed into various animals) and closely resembles the king of Grass Land. One story also implies that he is frequently kidnapped by Wart.

Super Mario Kodansha manga[edit]

Caped Mario stopping a nuclear Banzai Bill
Mario stops a Banzai Bill, while the king is oblivious to the danger, in Super Mario Bros. 4: Super Mario World 6.

The Mushroom King appears sporadically in Kodansha's Super Mario manga, one of the few depictions in which he is simply a human being. Due to his age, he handles situations calmly and is often seen simply as an announcer during sport or public events. A recurring gag sees him praying and ringing a standing bell, completely oblivious of the chaos and dangers surrounding him. He cares for Peach but also trusts her to be capable of facing the dangers she encounters and Mario to protect her.

In Super Mario Land 3, he is the principal of the Kinoko Gakuen and is later seen as the announcer of the baseball match between the students and Bowser.

In Super Mario Land 4, the Mushroom King is briefly seen near his daughter while she welcomes Princess Daisy to the Mushroom Kingdom.

In Super Mario Bros. 4: Super Mario World 6, the king nominates Mario as chief detective of the Special Kinoko Police. He is later seen in some scenes in minor roles.

In Super Mario Bros. 4: Super Mario World 7, he is briefly seen praying, unaware of the kaiju battle happening right outside the castle walls.

In Super Mario Kart 1, the castle is flooded and the king calls Mario and Luigi to repair the leak. During the job, Mario and Luigi accidentally break a supposedly precious vase, and, in order to pay the damage, they enroll in the BomBom Cup kart race. By the end of it, the king is confused, revealing that the real vase was improperly stored in a safe location and the one that was broken was a normal vase. Later, he sponsors the Special Cup race, with the winner being made king for a day. Mario ends up winning the cup, but has to do a mountain of paperwork for a day, and also misses the chance of bathing with Peach.

In Super Mario Kart 2, while aiding his daughter with the Battle match, he tries to get the racers' attention by claiming that Peach will be the prize. In this volume, the king has a more cartoony design, having big eyes and a plumpier appearance.

In Super Mario Kart 3, the king initially prohibits Peach from taking part in the Super Mario Cart Rally, deeming it too dangerous for her and threatening to take her allowance. Peach manages to sneak into Mario's kart, so the king, assisted by Toad, decides to follow the race under the disguise of the heroic Cannon Ball Z, who in turn is disguised as Mototin. In every chapter, when Peach is in immediate danger, Cannon Ball Z appears to save her by throwing roses. In the last chapter, with Bowser in the lead, Cannon Ball Z follows him to stop him so that Peach can win the race, but ends up blowing up both of their vehicles. Not wanting to leave his "future father-in-law" on the road, Bowser decides to carry him to the finish line on his back, a futile effort since they were disqualified for losing their karts.

In Super Mario Land 2 - 6-tsu no Kinka 2, Princess Peach convinces Mario to give up reconquering Mario Land and calls her father to come and pick them up. The king and Toad arrive on a submarine, but it is attacked and sunk by the octopus. Peach and Mario dive into the ocean to save them and, after defeating the octopus, the heroes use him as a hot-air-balloon to re-emerge. Later, the group is attacked by Warudeijī on the Hippo's hill and tries to beat her to the Poro space ship in the Hippo's statue, but they arrive too late. The Hippo then sends Mario, Luigi, and Peach to the Space Zone with his bubbles. In the meantime, Toad, the King, and the Hippo build a new space ship and later arrive to help Mario fight Tatanga.

In Super Mario Land 2 - 6-tsu no Kinka 3, the king supports Mario during the final battle. In the after-story, Wario's dark power influences the king's subjects to stage a coup and hijack a missile to destroy Mario's castle so no one can have it. Upon Wario's defeat, the subjects regain their senses.

In the Mario Paint Theater sequence in Super Mario: Wario no Mori, the king reveals to Mario that he never told Peach that Santa Claus is not real, so he drags Mario and Yoshi into helping him leave presents for her daughter as Santa.

Zur Fernseh-Serie Super Mario Bros. - Spiele und Geschichten[edit]

The Mushroom King is briefly mentioned in the Zur Fernseh-Serie Super Mario Bros. - Spiele und Geschichten story "Der überlistete Häuptling", where Mario mentions that the king's daughter Princess Toadstool has been captured by Chief Koopa and his Koopa Troopa warriors.

Nintendo Adventure Books[edit]

The Mushroom King appears in most of the Nintendo Adventure Books, continued from his depiction in the Super Mario Bros. comics.

Profile[edit]

Nintendo Comics System trading card[edit]

Royal Ruler and father of the kidnappable princess in Mushroomland

AS benevolent (and muddle-minded) leader of the Mushroom people, the King spends most of his time getting transformed into various creatures by his archenemy, King Koopa. That's when he's not busy getting his tie unstuck from the peanut butter jar.

HOBBIES: Gardening, running the kingdom, asking nearby friends and enemies to help him run the kingdom.

Gallery[edit]

Names in other languages[edit]

Language Name Meaning Notes
Japanese おうさま[5]
Ōsama
King KC Mario
キノコおうこくこくおう[6]
Kinoko ōkoku kokuō
King of the Mushroom Kingdom Super Mario-kun
French Roi Champignon[7] Mushroom King Super Mario Bros. comics
German Mushroom-König[8] Mushroom King
Italian Re dei Funghi[9][10] King of Mushrooms Super Mario Bros., NES Classic - Super Mario Bros.
Re di Mushroom[11] Mushroom King Super Mario Bros. Deluxe
Swedish Kung Champinjon[12] King Mushroom

References[edit]

  1. ^ "The only one who can undo the magic spell on the Mushroom People and return them to their normal selves is the Princess Toadstool, the daughter of the Mushroom King." – 1985. Super Mario Bros. instruction booklet. Nintendo of America (American English). Page 2.
  2. ^ "It is said that only the daughter of the Mushroom King, Princess Toadstool, can break the evil spell and return the inhabitants of the Mushroom Kingdom to their normal selves." – 1999. Super Mario Bros. Deluxe instruction booklet. Nintendo of America (American English). Page 2.
  3. ^ Super Mario Bros. Translation Comparison: Manuals. Legends of Localization (English). Retrieved June 26, 2024.
  4. ^ "The Mushroom people were ruled by a good king and queen." – Yamashita, Tatsumi (1987). The Official Nintendo Player's Guide. Tokuma Shoten. ISBN 999832369X. Page 28.
  5. ^ Kazuki Motoyama (1992). Super Mario Bros. 4: Super Mario World 6. KC Deluxe (Japanese). Page 14.
  6. ^ Super Mario-kun Volume 13, page 131
  7. ^ « Les champignons vivaient en paix, gouvernés par le gentil Roi Champignon et sa fille, la Princesse Champignon. » – 1992. Super Mario Bros. no 1. Comics USA / Glénat (French). ISBN 2-87695-184-3. Page 3.
  8. ^ Super Mario Bros. Video-Comic-Magazin
  9. ^ Super Mario Bros. Italian manual. Page 2.
  10. ^ 2004. NES Classic Super Mario Bros. European manual. Nintendo of Europe (Italian). Page 95.
  11. ^ Super Mario Bros. Deluxe European manual. Page 103.
  12. ^ Nintendo Magasinet Nr 1 1990