Mario

Mario is a character from the Super Mario fandom.

Character
Mario is the protagonist in most games of his series, and is one of the main heroes that goes on adventures alongside his younger, twin brother Luigi to save Princess Peach from Bowser. He is a short but adventurous, resourceful, curious and heroic hero who will always go to the rescue and protect innocents and princesses, In every instance, Mario has successfully defeated Bowser and saved Peach. Mario has also saved Princess Daisy and Pauline in the past. From these events, he is regarded in-universe as a celebrity similar to that of a superhero.

Canon
Princess Peach

Mario and Peach are childhood friends that have been shown to have implied feelings for each other. Due to their close relationship, Mario goes out of his way to save the princess from Bowser. Mario never blames her for it nor asks for a reward, however she will still give him kisses and cake as thanks.

Pauline

In the events of Donkey Kong, Mario and Pauline were once boyfriend and girlfriend. When Pauline was kidnapped by the title character, Mario rescues her. Although they are not dating anymore, they have been shown to be good friends since Super Mario Odyssey.

Princess Daisy

Princess Daisy of the Sarasaland empire was kidnapped by Tatanga during one of Mario’s adventures. This resulted in him rescuing her. After saving her, several promotional items such as comics and music portrayed the duo are a romantic pairing. However, after Daisy’s reintroduction in Mario Tennis, the duo were made to be friends instead.

Quotes
"It's-a me, Mario!"

- Mario, Super Mario 64

"Let's-a go!"

- Mario, Super Smash Bros. for Wii U

Fanon
Mario, with his status as the titular character of the Super Mario franchise, is regarded as one of the most famous video game characters in the world, with several units of his games being sold in the billions. His face can be seen on multiple forms of memorabilia and different forms of media. However, fans have mixed opinions on the character, whether it be his personality being too “bland”ーakin to Mickey Mouse in how he is merely “the mascot” to someーor some accusing the plumber of being abusive due to misconceptions or grimdark fanworks. Counterclaims, however, have formed in the plumber’s defense.

In terms of romantic ships, Mareach is bar none the most popular in the series, with over 300 fan-made fictions on Archive of Our Own. However, some prefer Marline due to it being “the original pair” and its nostalgic appeal. Bowsario is favored by some, due to it ending the series’ main conflict with love. From these, polyships have formed as well.

For the non-romantic, the Mario Brothers themselves are a fairly common familyship in the fandom, with some either having their relationship be similar to canon, grimdark, or fairly light hearted. Even outside of fanart and fanfiction, the pair may be depicted together in fan games or be referenced in other forms of media.

Fandom
FAN FICTION
 * Mario (Super Mario) tag on FanFiction.Net
 * Mario (Super Smash Brothers) tag on FanFiction.Net
 * Dr. Mario (Super Smash Brothers) tag on FanFiction.Net
 * Baby Mario tag on FanFiction.Net
 * Dr. Mario (Super Smash Brothers) tag on FanFiction.Net
 * Baby Mario tag on FanFiction.Net

DEVIANTART

PIXIV

TUMBLR

Trivia

 * Mario's first appearance in any form of media was in Donkey Kong. At the time, Mario was known as Jumpman and Mr. Video Game.
 * During development, he was nicknamed Ossan. Ossan means “middle-aged man” in Japanese.
 * In early media, Mario was shown with red overalls. His shirt color would range from either being yellow, orange, or blue. He would also sometimes be bald as well.
 * The first instance of Mario’s last name also being Mario was in the live action Super Mario Bros. movie.
 * His current voice actor, Charles Martinet, has been rewarded a Guinness World Record for voicing the character one hundred times.
 * The 1993 Nintendo Character Guide states Mario’s species as “homo nintendonus” However, Kenta Motokura has confirmed Mario as human.
 * Mario’s name is speculated to have come from Mario Segale, the former landlord of Nintendo of America’s office.
 * Mario has been depicted as having a tattoo on his left arm in an ad for the Game Boy Advance SP. . However, outfits in Super Mario Odyssey without sleeves do not show the tattoo.
 * According to Nintendo, March 10 (or MAR10) is Mario Day.
 * A fairly common trend in Mario games is Mario reverting back into his 'retro design.' In Super Mario RPG, Mario can turn into an 8-bit Mario at Booster Tower. Super Paper Mario turns any character who interacts with the superstar into their pixelated counterparts. Lastly, Super Mario Odyssey has several 2D sections with a similar aesthetic to Super Mario Bros.
 * For the Mushroom Princess costume in the Bayonetta series, Mario is featured as a plush keychain.
 * Furthermore, as Bayonetta, she will adorn Mario’s mustache and hat when using chain chomp in her normal outfit.
 * Mario's likeness is depicted as a costume in some of the following game series: Tekken, Fatal Frame, and Monster Hunter.
 * Mario has appeared as an easter egg in both Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask.
 * Mario is one of the artworks inside Hyrule Castle alongside Luigi, Bowser, Princess Peach, and Yoshi.
 * The character of Talon is heavily based off of Mario design-wise.
 * The Happy Mask Salesman owns a wooden Mario mask on his back.
 * Mario’s final smash, Mario Finale, is based on the fire flower power-up.
 * In all installments of Super Smash Bros., Mario has an alternate color scheme bearing white overalls, a tribute to said power-up.