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Fridge Brilliance
- One of the mook species guarding the X-Nauts' base is called "X-Yux". Using Goombella's "tattle" ability reveals that the name is actually pronounced "Cross Yux". What is the significance of that? Perhaps all of the X's relating to the X-Nauts are actually pronounced "Cross", making the organization the "Cross Nauts". That does include, of course, the sapient computer that eventually decided to side with Peach over the X-Nauts. The computer's name? "Tec-XX". Given the pronunciation, that would be "Tec Double-Cross".
- The name "X-Nauts" or "cross-naughts" is also a pun related to Tic-Tac-Toe.
- During the Excess Express chapter, you can find several celebrity magazines with articles featuring Zip Toad, in the drawer in his room. At first it seems like a little detail to show that Zip Toad is kinda stuck-up/self-obsessed, but since he's actually Doopliss in disguise, it makes a lot more sense that Doopliss could be reading them to try and learn Zip Toad's character so that he can imitate him better!
- Related to that, there's one that's played for laughs in Pennington's cabin. Inspecting the drawer in his room reveals he has several detective novels stowed away. With the later reveal that his "detective" schtick is just a hobby, this explains why Pennington is so incompetent: everything he knows is taken from those novels. In other words, he's just handling real-life cases by copying the cliché detective stories he's read about because that's all he knows! The presence of the detective novels also serves as foreshadowing that Pennington's not a real detective.
- Speaking of Pennington, why doesn't he ever recognize Mario? Penguins can't see the color red.
- People may think that Flurrie refusing to be seen without her necklace was petty, and to be honest, it probably is. However, Let's Player Naka Teleeli, in his playthrough of the game, mentioned that the necklace at least made her look like she was wearing a shirt. Without the necklace, Flurrie would look like she was stark naked.
- On the way to Creepy Steeple in a chapter full of pigs, the player must use Flurrie to blow away three obstacles made of straw, sticks and bricks in that order. Sound familiar?
- Whenever someone in Twilight Town wonders who got turned into a pig by the bell, that person is always the next one to fall victim to the curse. Ask not for whom the bell tolls or it tolls for thee!
- Doopliss is named that because he "dooped" everyone into thinking he was Mario, Zip Toad and Professor Frankly. And in the German version, his name is a reference to Rumpelstiltskin who asks the hero to guess his name. Brilliant! It's also a riff on "Duplicity" which shares the root "duplex" (two) with duplicate. That he does in fact dupe the townspeople and the party is a bonus bit of wordplay (dupe is technically French, from (tête) d'uppe, (the head) of the hoopoe, which was held to be an especially stupid bird).
- Defeating Bonetail nets you a grand total of... one Star Point. Players will naturally rage at this... until realizing that this is the game's way of saying, "You just beat the hardest enemy in the entire game. You don't need to level up anymore!"
- Cortez's forms. First, a four-armed skeleton holding each of his weapons. Then, a hunched-over skeleton with some gem in the torso. And finally, his head and his weapons. Why do his forms progress like this? He's falling apart.
- Cortez's boss theme is heard twice in the game. Once when you fight him aboard his ship and then a second time when he joins forces with Mario and crew to face off against the X-Nauts' ship. The boss theme's title is "Ship Battle with Cortez".
- Grubba's power-sucking machine seems strange for him to use until you realize it's essentially sucking souls to feed them to him, much like how Tubba Blubba eats souls (or in his case, Boos).
- How come the impenetrable defenses of the Iron Cleft brothers never manage to get further than 10th place in the Glitz Pit? Because the guys directly above them are Spike Tops. Iron Cleft have unbeatable defenses, but only have an attack of 4, Spike Tops have a defense of 4.
- However, one of the Iron Clefts explicitly states that their spikes can "penetrate any substance" (exact words), so it's Fridge Logic, really.
- That's what he says, but if you super guard you'll take no damage so it can't be true. There are attacks that can't be super guarded too (and thus, may really pierce through anything).
- Also, while their spikes may certainly be capable of penetrating any substance, there's no indication that the Iron Clefts have trained enough to be able to produce the force necessary to do so.
- However, their attacks do, in fact, pierce defense, which can be tested by wearing DEF-boosting badges or using Koops. It stands to reason, then, that their spikes would penetrate the Spike Tops' defense.
- They probably aren't fulfilling Grubba's conditions anymore, so they never fight higher ranked opponents.
- The Iron Clefts could be staying at rank 10 on purpose as a way to prevent anyone below them from moving to the major league. They clearly show that they're not above fighting dirty when they ambush Mario right after a battle to take advantage of him being tired out from the match and even mock him for it, so intentionally preventing fighters from getting to the major league is perfectly in character for them.
- There are a few hints in Chapter 4 that Mario isn't himself after the first Doopliss battle. These include his posture when standing and holding up the Crystal Star, his tinny voice, and the fact that the game doesn't declare a newly learned Special Move upon "chapter completion". Also, if you have the W Emblem badge equipped during the battle (changes Mario's color scheme to that of Wario's), he will suddenly change back to his normal color scheme.
- Throughout the game, the Crystal Stars and the bosses guarding them display some parallels, due to the Crystal Stars' powers.
- Hooktail has the Diamond Star, which grants you power over the earth. Hooktail will use an earthquake move similar to the one you gain from beating her. It also explains how she can fly despite the tiny wings — with Gloomtail and Bonetail confined to a thousand-year-old palace and a miles-deep prison, there's no reason to assume they even can fly, as the dragons look much too heavy. Using the Diamond Star's power would remove that limitation.
- The Emerald Star is received after stopping a boss who employed a timed bomb. As a reward, you get to use a bomb that stops time. Although, this is unrelated to Crump himself. It could be that it has something to do with the Great Boggly Tree, no doubt hundreds of years old, maybe thousands.
- When Mario obtains the Gold Star, he's able to use Power Lift to boost his attack and defense. That explains why Grubba was able to increase his own attack and defense.
- In a similar vein, in the confines of his own chapter, Doopliss can monitor the whole area, morph people into pigs, break through reality to ambush you, and remove an actual letter from your phonetic capabilites, that is to say, your character-entering screen. Why? The power of the Ruby Star is art. This gives it near-limitless power in a game where everything from the environments to the inhabitants are paper. Notably, the next time you fight him, he doesn't take advantage of such power, because he's been separated from the Ruby Star.
- Cortez possesses the Sapphire Star, which grants you Sweet Feast. The reason he's impossible to beat isn't because he's a ghost, that's just why he won't die. The reason he won't stay down despite having a meager 20 health is because he keeps replenishing it throughout the fight.
- The Garnet Star, though lacking a boss, grants you Showstopper, which lets you end some fights without even trying. Garnet is often thought of or mistaken as a ruby, relating to the fake-and-switch nature of the Sanctum's scenario. Since the Star lets you blow away the easier fights, you're getting rid of them as "not real".
- The boss of Chapter 6 is Smorg, so there is a boss associated with the Garnet Star. However, it's not really associated; Smorg lives in Riverside Station and hitched a ride on the Excess Express to pick a fight with Mario in retaliation for him smacking it around. Smorg has no connection to Poshley Sanctum.
- Finally, the Crystal Star in the X-Nauts' base gives Mario the ability to deal massive damage in a huge explosion, similar to the one that almost takes out their base upon Crump's defeat.
- In Glitzville, when X directs you to go into the storage room, you catch Jolene threatening a guard's job over hearing noises in the storage room. She is probably so intent on no one knowing about the noises because she thinks the guard heard Mario, and she was the one sending Mario in there. That's also why she's surprised when she sees you. Mario just got in later than expected/the guard heard Ms. Mowz, despite her boasting.
- Why are the X-Nauts such lunatics? Their base is on the moon.
- Why can Mario use Action Commands right at the beginning of the game when the first game required him to get the Lucky Star first? Because Mario most likely kept the Lucky Star! Meaning that if he ever found himself on another adventure, he'd be prepared!
- And in a case of Fridge Humour... in the Japanese version, Peeka the Boo has bunny ears. As the main page points out, she's a Playboy Bunny Boo. Or in other words, a Playboy Boo-ny.
- The fact that Paper Mario (both the original and TTYD) is an RPG makes a lot more sense when you realize Tabletop Roleplaying Games are often referred to as "Pen and Paper" games.
- In Chapter 4, after the first battle with Doopliss, you find out that he stole Mario's body, name, and allies. In a sense, he won. All he has to do is leave. Except he can't, because in order to leave Twilight Town via the warp pipe, he needs his own name. Doopliss may have stolen Mario's appearance, but his own name didn't change. Doopliss hid the letter "p" so Mario couldn't use it to identify him, but that also prevents him from writing his true name and escaping.
- Some brilliance regarding Vivian: in the Japanese version, she's a trans woman. It's also implied that the Shadow Sirens have an incredibly long lifespan, easily thousands of years long. Vivian was originally a man's name, but has become a common woman's name through its usage as such.
- At one point during the Pirate's Grotto, you must sail through a stormy sea in Boat form, against a backdrop that is not inside the Pirate's Grotto. Why, then, are you still inside the Pirate's Grotto on the other side? Well, you did have to cross a rickety bridge to get from the starting area to the entrance of the Pirate's Grotto dungeon, and Cortez's boat is hidden close to the starting area...
- Upon meeting the first Black Chest Demon, Frankly is almost immediately suspicious. Most people might just chalk this up to how Obviously Evil it is, but also, it just talked about how Mario was the only person who could hear it. And Frankly heard it.
- In both of the original games, the best FP recovery item that you can get without Item Crafting is Jammin' Jelly. In Japanese, it's called "Royal Jelly". No wonder it gives you so many Flower Points, you're eating something that comes from bees.
- A small but still clever moment happens in the third chapter of the game. Mario and Co. are spying on Grubba and Jolene having a private conversation. After Jolene leaves, Grubba continues to muse to himself about the recent disappearances. This causes one of Mario's partners to start talking out loud, resulting in Grubba to be on alert. You easily outsmart him though by making an animal noise and he continues on none the wiser. Upon leaving the area however, you immediately get a threatening email from the chapter's main villain, warning you one last time to back off from your investigation. But, what caused them to send you another email? How did they know you were snooping in the airducts? Did you actually believe Grubba would fall for that "animal in the duct" trick?
- Grodus still tries to obtain the Crystal Star from Poshley Heights before Mario, despite that Mario already has five of the others and Grodus needs all seven to open the door. But he wouldn't have needed to worry about confronting Mario once he had the Garnet Star, since he could just use Showstopper to wipe him out, no problem. With two Crystal Stars, he'd even have the 2 SP necessary to be able to use that special move.
- Even though they are in the room, the Shadow Sirens never attempt to assist the Shadow Queen during the final battle with Mario and co, even when they gain the ability to damage her. Then you realize that they are most likely still recovering from their own battle with Mario that didn't happen very long before, meaning that they would most likely just hinder their boss.
- The L and W Emblem badges, which change the color of Mario's clothes to match Luigi and Wario respectively, are obtained in ways that correspond to their respective characters. Luigi is known for his high jumping ability, and the L Emblem is located on a high ledge that requires performing several spring jumps to reach (in the house of a person who thinks Mario is Luigi as well). The W Emblem is bought from the merchant in Rogueport at a staggering 360 coins, making it the most expensive badge in the game... which perfectly fits in line with Wario, who is greedy and egotistical, and loves money over anything else. Putting both of them on turns Mario into Wa- Luigi.
- Mario starts the game with 100 coins, unlike the games before and after where he starts with zero. This is because he was dropped into those adventures unexpectedly, whereas this time he knows he's going on a treasure hunt with Peach and is able to adequately prepare for the trip. He also starts the game with the hammer for the same reason.
- When helping Bud find a birthday present during Chapter 6, talking to Zip Toad will have him tell Mario he only gives out autographs to hot girls, and taking out your female partners will yield no reaction whatsoever. This seems like a case of Gameplay and Story Segregation, right? Well, later on it's revealed "Zip Toad" is actually Doopliss in disguise, so it makes perfect sense why he would refuse to give Mario an autograph: if he had, he would have been helping Mario! (Or not, since Bud actually wanted the engineer's autograph, but Doopliss had no way of knowing this).
- As for why your female partners don't even get so much as a comment despite Doopliss needing to stay in character? Simple: he recognizes Goombella and Flurrie from his brief time transformed as Mario, and Vivian helped Mario beat him up, so Doopliss can't bring himself to say anything, Zip Toad or not. Plus, there's no doubt Beldam must have told him all the horrible things about Vivian, like how unbelievably ugly she is, and how she screws up every task she's given. The only exception is Ms. Mowz, but she's optional, so it wouldn't make sense for her exclusively to have a different reaction from him.
- The Superbombomb lost by the Shadow Sirens in Chapter 4 and found by Lord Crump after Chapter 5 doesn't seem to hold much purpose in the game's plot besides being a MacGuffin to help Mario recruit Vivian. In Chapter 6, Beldam anonymously threatens to blow up the Excess Express in a "sticky, yummy explosion," courtesy of a Nitro Honey Syrup bomb. Taking both of these factors into account, the Superbombomb was undoubtedly meant to be used to threaten the train, but then Bowser accidentally detonated the bomb while fighting Crump, causing Beldam to have to improvise.
- When confronting Grodus in Chapter 8, he makes no mention of Vivian joining Mario's side if she happens to be your active partner at the time. In fact, he doesn't bring it up at all at any point. This seems odd since he's been working with the Shadow Sirens since the beginning of the game. However, this makes more sense when you take into account that Vivian was the "screw-up" of the group. Grodus probably didn't really care since he figured they were better off without someone that unreliable anyway, or if he did care, he had more important things to deal with (Mario, the Crystal Stars, and the Shadow Queen) so he didn't think to say anything.
- Supporting this, Grodus treats his own underling Crump as expendable after his repeated failures, and he quickly writes off Beldam and Marilyn as useless after they fail to stop Mario in the Palace of Shadow. Grodus no doubt doesn't tolerate failures, so he likely wrote Vivian off as expendable as well. We only see him talking to Beldam, so it's also likely he simply didn't care about them in general and just kept them around because Beldam was feeding him information.
- This would also explain why Grodus was so furious when he found out TEC was helping Princess Peach. Not only did his own computer betray him, it was the second betrayal he had to deal with in such a short amount of time. And unlike Vivian, TEC was specifically designed to be perfect, so his betrayal no doubt hit Grodus on a much more personal level compared to Beldam's "useless" sister.
- Mario's in possession of the Magical Map, which points him towards the location of each Crystal Star. How then, could the X-Nauts have possibly known about the Crystal Stars in Hooktail Castle and Boggly Woods if they didn't have the map to tell them? Well, there's a certain NPC in Rogueport named Grifty who will tell you the story about the original four heroes for a few coins. His stories reveal said heroes hid the Crystal Stars in Hooktail Castle, Boggly Woods, Creepy Steeple, and Keelhaul Key, meaning the X-Nauts simply paid him to tell them the locations! The X-Nauts already had one Crystal Star that they found in Rogueport (which was likely what prompted them to go to Grifty, who has knowledge about them), leaving two unaccounted for:
- The Garnet Star in Poshley Sanctum. The X-Nauts initially had no idea of its location until Beldam overheard Mario's partner mention it. What they didn't account for was the Sanctum owner had a supply of fake stars for the specific purpose of deterring thieves, giving Mario the opportunity to grab the real one without opposition.
- The Gold Star in Glitzville. The X-Nauts never learn of its location, and indeed, neither the X-Nauts nor the Shadow Sirens make any appearance in Glitzville, and the chapter overall has nothing to do with them.
- Given the fact that the Champion's Belt in Glitzville was regularly showed off and clearly had what looked like a Crystal Star, why didn't the X-Nauts realize that the Gold Star was hidden there? Simple, the star on the belt is fake and an observant eye can tell when they get close enough. And while Mario had a magical map telling him that the Crystal Star was there, the X-Nauts likely wrote off the place once they saw the fake star since they had no way of knowing that the real thing was also there.
- Also, given that Glitzville is an artificially floating island, it's probably the farthest from the original resting place of the Gold Star, as there's little chance it existed back when the Crystal Stars were first hidden. Why would the X-Nauts assume that some random island where people fight each other would be the hiding place of a Crystal Star?
- Why didn't Vivian seem to know the X-Nauts' base of operations was on the moon (which would have given Mario and co. a great advantage)? Because Grodus' office was located below the surface of the moon, and the Shadow Sirens travel by going underground into the shadows, meaning Vivian wouldn't have seen anything to clue her into the location. Not to mention, the location was irrelevant to their mission, and Vivian knows better than to start questioning her sister about things.
- Why didn't Grubba drain Rawk Hawk despite him doing so to the first champion, Prince Mush, and planning to do it to Mario, the third champion? Because everyone that Grubba either drained or planned to drain all got too involved in things that Grubba didn't want them knowing. Prince Mush discovered the blueprints to Grubba's machine, so Grubba drained him to keep him quiet. Bandy Andy and King K accidentally stumbled across him using it, so he drained them for the same reason. As for Mario and Jolene, he realized they were starting to get too close to figuring out what he was up to, so he planned to drain them like he did to Jolene's brother to stop their investigation. Rawk Hawk, meanwhile, while strong, was nothing more than an airheaded jock that genuinely had no idea what was going on behind the scenes, so Grubba figured he wasn't a threat since Rawk Hawk wasn't suspicious of him.
- Grubba correctly predicts Mario is after the Crystal Star, and he sends Mario several emails threatening him to back off. It's only after it's become clear these warnings were ignored that Grubba begins to consider draining Mario. As for Jolene, Grubba specifically asks her if she's ever heard of the Crystal Star, heavily implying that he knows she's aware of his secret, that she's helping Mario, and that he sees right through her saying otherwise. Rawk Hawk on the other hand, has never heard of the Crystal Star, so there was no danger of leaving him alone since he wouldn't be poking around looking for the real thing. It's possible Grubba realized this fact once Rawk Hawk received the champion's belt and didn't recognize the star on it was a fake.
- Rawk Hawk becomes champion at the very start of the chapter. It's possible Grubba was initially planning on draining him, but changed his mind once Jolene and Mario became too much of a threat to ignore.
- It's easy to laugh at Bowser for being Locked Out of the Loop and not getting any Crystal Stars throughout his interludes, but he did reach several places where Crystal Stars were. It's just that Mario got there first. And unlike Mario, Bowser didn't have a magic map that tells him where each Crystal Star is for free. If Bowser had got there first, he would have ended the game with several Crystal Stars in hand.
- On the topic, the two locations that Bowser successfully managed to reach with Crystal Stars? Rawk Hawk's belt and Poshley Sanctum. The two locations with fake Crystal Stars, and the two that are shown off to the general public. So it would have been easy for Bowser's troops to find them, and Bowser didn't have the map to tell him that they were fake, so him and Kammy didn't even know the fakes existed in the first place.
- When you initially visit Rogueport Sewers, you're only encountered with basic enemies (Goombas and Spinias) that are relatively easy to deal with. However, once you finish Chapter 5, you'll see that several of Bowser's Elite Mooks (Koopatrols, Hammer Bros, and Magikoopas) will populate the area instead. The Bowser intermission after Chapter 5 involved him and Lord Crump summoning their minions to fight each other at Twilight Town (which was interrupted by a bomb going off). With so many troops summoned, it's most likely possible they set up camp at Rogueport Sewers afterwards while Bowser and Kammy continued on their shenanigans.
- When Luigi is recounting his stories of the Marvelous Compass, the partners end up falling asleep... all except for Admiral Bobbery. This makes sense, given that Bobbery is a sailor, who's very likely no stranger to hearing tall tales, and probably told a few himself in his heyday.
- How did Grodus and Beldam manage to get ahead of Mario in the Palace of Shadow if they needed him to open and go through the door for them first? Well, Mario and Co did get sidetracked fighting Gloomtail and solving riddles in the underground city area...
- When Doopliss disguises as Frankly, there's a few hints indicating something is off.
- The most obvious is how Mario and co run into "Frankly" right after leaving the teleporter room, rather than returning to his lab. Doopliss knew where Mario was going to be and waited for him.
- "Frankly" asks if Mario found Peach, and when Mario (well, his partner) says no, he reveals that he saw someone taking Peach through the Thousand-Year Door. Why would he ask if Peach had been found after seeing that? He likely made it up on the spot to guide Mario toward opening the door instead of going searching for Peach.
- And as for why he asked if Peach had been found, it's likely that Doopliss didn't know Grodus was going to leave the base; he's the newest member of a dysfunctional group that's basically just mercenaries for Grodus, so he probably doesn't get told these things.
- "Frankly" doesn't bother explaining how Grodus and Peach could have possibly gotten through the door without the Crystal Stars when Mario's partner asks, instead running off straight to the door demanding Mario follow him. Since Doopliss was lying, he obviously didn't have an actual explanation, so he changes the subject as quickly as possible to lead Mario to the door.
- One that's easy to miss is how "Frankly" claims Grodus and Peach went through the door, yet when you go there, the Crystal Stars unlock the door in a dramatic cutscene that damages the wall the door is on as it opens for the first time in a millennium. If someone had already gone through the door, there'd be signs of entry and not nearly as much ceremony - like how whenever you go through the door afterwards, it opens and closes just like a normal door.
- After beating the Shadow Queen and saving Peach, Frankly arrives and reveals he found a treasure chest on his way over. Talking to Frankly in the postgame has him reveal that inside the chest was a Dried Shroom, which disappoints Mario (and likely the player) while Frankly sees the silver lining as this confirms that Mushrooms were typical food items a thousand years prior. But why was a Mushroom in a treasure chest? The same reason most items have been in treasure chests! It was just a standard chest containing a standard item, like the ones Mario has come across all throughout the adventure. Only difference is Frankly found it instead of Mario.
- This also becomes a brilliant Brick Joke when you remember the scene with Petuni all the way back in Chapter 2: she was going to give her brother a mushroom as a gift, only for her to get captured and the mushroom to turn into a Dried Shroom from the time spent in the cage. This explains why a Dried Shroom was in the chest Frankly found: it was a regular mushroom that had gone bad from sitting in a chest for 1000 years.
- Even though Vivian is surprisingly Locked Out of the Loop from Beldam's plans, during Peach's intermission after completing Chapter 4 (which she joins your team), she gets knowledge from TEC that Grodus is intending on freeing a demon to take over the world. It feels almost as if you found out the same time that Vivian joined your team, meaning if Vivian had a bit more knowledge, she would've told you roughly the same thing.
Fridge Horror
- Many of the phone-calls you can answer in the telephone booth are really funny, then you get some that sounds like family members calling for someone... someone who might have tried to become big in the Glitz Pit, but never came home... and even though a stranger answers the phone, they still are talking as if they hope that this stranger maybe is their Long-Lost Relative... that's just sad...
- At the bottom of the Pit of 100 Trials is Bonetail. This means that a giant, skeletal dragon has been living underneath Rogueport all this time. Who knows? What if it didn't start out skeletal?
- Considering that Grifty says Bonetail, Gloomtail, and Hooktail were the Shadow Queen's pets, and that the Pit of 100 Trials was built as a prison for the Queen's enemies, it's safe to say that a lot of people met their end there.
- At one point you must look behind a crate. You'll see a few of Mario's new friends lying on the ground, not moving. You can say they're stunned, until you see the flies.
- The situation is somewhat helped by the fact that they react to Mario talking to them (one gasps out a warning, while the other gives a wordless response), proving that they're alive. And they both show up perfectly healthy at the end of the level. On the other hand, consider that they aren't the first fighters that have had their energy drained. They're rescued and Prince Mush (the other known victim) is found, but what if there were others?
- In Rogueport, there seems to be some dried reddish-brown stuff on the ground. One could easily pass this off as dirt, until you realize that it's next to the gallows, and that it's found nowhere else in town...
- It was found in one other place in the Japanese version. Next to a Toad-shaped chalk outline.
- That nobody reacts to the gallows at all, as if it's an ordinary thing to have in every town is frightening on its own... as if it's normal to execute people in the public... I know it was normal during The French Revolution, but still...
- Not to mention the entire human skulls that casually decorate Rogueport's fenceposts.
- The ending of the game has Beldam apologizing to Vivian for her actions and promises to be nice to her. That would be a heartwarming moment, except Beldam hasn't received any comeuppance for her actions, and abusive relationships often has the abuser lure the victim into a false sense of security to continue. What's not to say that she'll continue mistreating her?
- In this case, I'd say the insurance is a simple shift in the perceived balance of power. Beldam has been thoroughly trounced, and Vivian has shown both significant growth in strength and will. Beldam will likely realize that Vivian isn't going to have any of the previous abuse, and has the power to back up her will. In addition, if Beldam does somehow manage to overpower Vivian, she now has several powerful friends who are more then ready to back her up.
- It's a good thing Bowser just happened to appear and interrupt Grodus right before he was about to finish off Mario. If he hadn't, the Shadow Queen would have been able to conquer the world unimpeded.
- On that note, losing to Bowser and Kammy would lead to the same outcome, as the two have no idea about the Shadow Queen or the nature of the Crystal Stars, and they wouldn't stand a chance against her dark magic. In other words, if Bowser had won, he would have brought about the end of the world, making his victory meaningless. The guy really can't catch a break in this game.
- This also means the only reason Beldam's plan to revive the Shadow Queen was foiled was due to sheer dumb luck.
- Grubba had sucked the life out of Prince Mush, King K, and Bandy Andy. And those were his only known victims. While Andy and King K were fortunately still alive and Mario rescued Prince Mush, there's still all of Grubba's previous victims he didn't (or couldn't) save. Think about that.
- Grubba specifically states that Prince Mush "isn't around these parts no-more". That's right, Grubba just admitted he MURDERED somebody, and he spent years carrying on like nothing happened and continued working with his victim's sister on a daily basis, whom (at least he thought) was none the wiser. All this in a Mario game!
- Prince Mush presumably wasn't Grubba's first victim, and he definitely wasn't his last. Grubba himself hides the evidence and pretends to be the kindly old manager of the Glitz Pit. Grubba is the closest thing the Mario series gets to a serial killer.
