Author's Note:

Today is Mario Day! Wahoo! And to celebrate, I'll be doing a Mario-centric chapter involving a certain amusement attraction. You might already know what it is. In addition, I will also be covering Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse a bit since it'll be remastered to the Switch. Only a bit. Now for the reviews:

"Well...Nintendo is adding Metroid Fusion to the NSO Expansion Pack games lineup on March 9. An SA-X appearance (thanks to Dimentio, of course) will help the current arc a lot, no?"

Ooh! I like that idea a lot. This story can use Metroid villains other than Ridley. Guy w the Jokes has a joke:

"What do you call a surf and turf without the turf? A missed steak. Uh oh! You got me hungry for some surf and turf, now!

Sadly, I had to google this one to understand the joke. Now I have learned something new about Australia. TIME TO GO seems upset about something...

"This is getting weird fast. What even is a "Vault Hunters"? I came here expecting a Smash story, not...whatever the hell it turned into. You're making me wish that Dimentio will destroy Omnis Adest with their residents in it, those freeloaders have nothing to do with Smash!"

I take it that you have never played Borderlands - or read chapter 232. A big oof either way. Last is David:

"Have the Dragon Quest Heroes like Eight or Luminary had any screen time yet? (Maybe include a date scene with Eight and Jessica)? Will Fake Coco appear alongside Fake Crash? (She's only in the multiplayer mode of Crash 4). Is the Mature content one of the reasons the Catherine characters haven't appeared yet? (Call me slow for asking that). And finally, do you hope that WWE brings back the NXT TakeOver events? (They've been absent since the NXT 2.0 change)."

Not much screen time for the DQ heroes lately. Fake Crash will only appear (if he does appear, that is). The Mature content is...one of the reasons. And as much as I missed NXT Takeover, events like those just wouldn't vibe with NXT 2.0. The new PLEs that they do like Stand and Deliver give the brand a new sense of personality. (Also, Shawn Michaels is a great booker, just saying...)


Episode 377: Universal

"Today was a very big today...Mario's birthday! (And Luigi's birthday, as well.) Mario's (and Luigi's) birthday was on March 10th, so it was a very special occasion for the plumber (and his younger twin brother).

Some people go out and do something fun on their birthdays. Others chose to stay in and just take it easy on their special day. Being the adventurous one, Mario obviously went with the former option and wanted to go on a vacation. Where he wanted to go for his birthday was a place that fellow birthday boy Luigi had in mind.

Mario: It's my birth-a day today! And Luigi's birth-a day too, I guess. Today we'll be turning... *pauses* ...one-a year older! Wahoo! To celebrate, Luigi and I have-a taken our families to Super Nintendo World, at Universal Studios Hollywood. I'm standing in front of the entrance right now. *points back at entrance gate*

Luigi: The last time Mario and I went-a on a vacation for our birthday was six-a years ago when we all went-a to Disney World. Akuma had enough deep-a pockets to bring everyone on board. Sadly, our fun day had to be cut-a short...stupid Donkey Kong pulling a Harambe.

Pit: I don't know why, but I suddenly want to pull my pants down. Well, here goes nothing!
Joker: Pit for the love of...please keep your pants on! We are in a public space. Do that outside the cafe!
Pit:
Public space? We literally live inside this mansion. Whaddaya mean, "public space"?

Quite frankly, Mario couldn't invite everyone and their mother on the trip; only select individuals from the mansion and tower were on the plumber's guest list. Link, Donkey Kong, Wario, Yoshi, Kirby, the Ice Climbers, Mr. Game and Watch, Sonic, the Crash clan, Red the Pokemon Trainer, Villager, Rayman, both Wii Fit Trainers, the Inklings, Little Mac, Captain Falcon, Olimar, and Pac-Man were just some of the folks that Mario invited. It was a very big traveling party, but nothing that Mario couldn't handle.

"It's $135 to get in," the worker at the ticket booth said to Mario as if the plumber was some average joe off the street. Mario was deeply offended, as he looked to the side in disbelief.

"Do you not know who I am?" the offended Mario asked the worker, before taking a step back so that the worker could see him in full. "I'm-a Mario!"

"Prove it then." Prove it Mario did, as the plumber performed a jump that made the crowd applaud. Even the worker was impressed. "Wow, that was kinda nice! Still gotta pay up, though."

"Mama mia..." Mario was left in disappointment, as he faceplanted unto the ground in bitter defeat. Not even performing his signature jump could earn him a free ticket to Super Nintendo World.

"Welcome to the club, buddy..." As the worker waited for someone among Mario's traveling party to pay up, Peach, holding Lou, stepped over Mario to speak with the worker in private.

"It's his birthday," the princess quietly informed the worker, who made note of this as her demeanor towards Mario changed. "I'll pay for everyone else."

"We can totally make that work." So Peach handed her debit card to the worker, who looked past Peach and saw all the folks that were a part of Mario's ginormous crew. "You're gonna pay for all of these people...?"

"I have to pay for my own ticket," spoke up Hunter, one of the traveling members, as he stood next to Spyro. Mario wanted to leave him behind in Seattle so badly, but Peach talked him out of it.

"The cheetah has to pay for his own ticket; I got everyone else covered," Peach told the worker, who nodded her head as she swiped Peach's debit card. Once the transaction was made, the worker handed Peach back her card.

"Let me print up the tickets..." Since there was such a large group, a whole string of tickets had to be printed up. "...and since it's his birthday, I guess Mario gets in for free."

"YIPPEE!" cheered Mario as he instantly sprung up to his feet, while the worker handed Peach the tickets. Everyone in Mario's party save for Hunter now had a ticket to get inside.

"You can thank me later," Peach said to Mario, as she went around giving a ticket to each person. As Hunter went up to the ticket booth to pay for his ticket, Luigi cut in line.

"It's my birthday too," Luigi informed the worker, who cocked her head to the side as she looked at the green plumber in utter disbelief. Luigi sighed deeply as he frowned. "Mario's my twin-a brother..."

"I thought that your birthday was on June 21st." The worker couldn't be any further from the truth, and it only made Luigi even more displeased. "No biggie, you can get in for free as well..."

"What a coincidence - it's my birthday as well!" exclaimed Hunter, attempting to ride the birthday train to a free ticket. (Just perfect, no need to rush.) The trick had zero effect on the worker, as Hunter looked back at Spyro. "Hey Spyro, you got a hundred dollars on ya?"

"Asking the wrong person!" shouted Spyro, who preferred carrying gems over dollar bills - granted the purple dragon hardly spent any, but he considered it to be a good flex. If not a great one.


One of the bigger names to not join Mario's trip to Universal Studios was Cloud, as his decision to not celebrate Mario's birthday in Los Angeles shocked several people. Obviously, those people didn't know Cloud all that well since Cloud was a known hater of fun. Aerith knew it first-hand, and the rest of Cloud's friends knew it too.

However, Cloud chose to stay behind at the mansion for a good reason. With Link and Zelda off on vacation, Cloud had to fill the authority role in their absence. It harkened back to the days when the swordsman was the man of the mansion for the first couple of months of 2021.

"Keep up the good work, Dark Pit, you're killing it man," Cloud said to the doppelganger as he did his mansion stroll, passing by a bathroom. Cloud's deadpan delivery made it hard for Dark Pit to determine if Cloud was genuine or not.

"Mr. Game and Watch can't come back soon enough," grumbled Dark Pit, who was stuck scrubbing the toilets - along with cleaning the floors, mowing the lawn, trimming the hedges, and measuring the grass. Most of which were tasks that Mr. Game and Watch would handle himself.

"Cloud, Cloud, I finally did my taxes," Steve ran up to the swordsman to inform him, his robotic voice underscoring how happy he was. "Reward me please."

"Want a reward for paying your bills too? Here you go." Cloud dug into his pocket, pulled out a small lollipop, and handed it to Steve. Steve took the lollipop as he happily walked away with joy.

"Cloud, you promised me a lollipop," Alph approached the swordsman from behind, as Cloud dug his hand into his pocket...only to realize a second later. "Do I still get one?"

"Gonna get one later, Alph. Just be patient." Leaving his trust in Cloud, Alph went to the nearest elevator as he was heading back to his bedroom. Cloud let out a sigh as he made his way to the foyer.

"Greetings, Cloud! Up top!" greeted Master Hand, hovering in the middle of the hallway while holding his hand up for a high five. Cloud left Master Hand hanging as he ignored the giant hand.

"Save your sycophancy for another day..." Cloud hurried down the staircase, picking up the pace just in case Master Hand dared to follow him.

"See you around, my G!" Master Hand clicked his finger at Cloud, who could be heard groaning even from a distance. Master Hand showed regret afterward. "That was oddly out of character."

Master Hand: Cloud being the authority again brings me back to the good ol' days. The days when Cloud was the man in charge before he went down the crazy path. Still crazy to me that Aerith still liked Cloud after the stunt he pulled. It has led me to believe that she would give crazies like Richard Rameriz second chance after second chance.

Cloud went down to the foyer, where he saw two visitors present - Dr. N Gin and Yuffie. Both N. Gin and Yuffie had a bone to pick with someone, and fortunately for Cloud, it wasn't him.

"Cloud Strife!" N. Gin shouted the swordsman's name in full, as Cloud was coming down the stairs. Cloud saw the pouty face that N. Gin had, and wondered what the issue was. "I am deeply upset..."

"Dr. N. Tropy moved in with E. Gadd?" assumed Cloud, under the guise that Tropy took N. Gin's room and N. Gin was kicked to the curb. "No shame in letting a superior mind stay at your digs." Hearing that made N. Gin's blood boil.

"Cortex is the superior mind!" N. Gin raised his voice as he got super defensive, only to catch himself as he returned to the subject. "I'm upset that Master Cortex didn't let me tag along with him to Super Nintendo World."

"Sounds reasonable - don't want too many kinds to wind up having nightmares. Then again, with Cortex down there, they'll have nightmares regardless..."

"Master Cortex ruined my plans! We were supposed to meander around in matching suits!" N. Gin pulled out two matching rompers, both of which looked terribly unflattering. Yet N. Gin found no fault in them.

"Do not ever try that on. Our eyes don't need to be tarnished forever." Moving on from N. Gin, Cloud went over to speak with Yuffie who was also sporting a pouty face. "And what's your problem, Yuffie?"

"It's not fair - Luigi and Daisy wouldn't let me come with them on the trip," explained Yuffie, who was stuck at home with Polterpup; her complaints were similar to N. Gin's. "But Hunter gets to go, and he's still in the doghouse with Mario!"

"Yuffie, all you do is mooch off of Luigi and Daisy." Had been doing so since 2016. "They kept you at home for their own sake...and for your sake as well."

"That reminds me, I was in the middle of eating all the ice cream in Luigi's freezer. Thanks for the reminder, Cloud." So Yuffie exited the mansion and returned to Luigi's room, as she had some cookies n' cream ice cream left to devour.

"I'm gonna go try my romper on," N. Gin said to Cloud, holding up a pink romper as he walked away to go find a suitable changing room. "I want you to rate how I look on a scale from five to ten."

"I'd rather not," responded Cloud, feeling extremely bad for any unfortunate soul who saw N. Gin in his pink romper. Champion Link would approach Cloud from behind, doing his best not to alarm the swordsman.

"How's it coming along?" Champion Link asked Cloud, as he only slightly startled the swordsman. Still counted as a win in Champion Link's book. "With the whole man of the mansion stuff."

"Isn't nothing that I haven't handled before. Very easy to put your foot down when you're already used to everyone. For better and for worse.

"Ha, yeah, I feel ya. So...is there anything I can help you with?" Champion Link looked at Cloud as if he was going to say yes - like the swordsman had something readily available for him.

"Not in particular, but thanks for asking." Cloud walked away, but he didn't get that far as Champion Link ran over and jumped right in front of him.

"If you ever have a need, you can always call on me. I can be your assistant!" But Cloud didn't seem all that interested in Champion Link's offer, as he walked past the Hylian.

"Oh, Cloud, I have tried on my pink romper!" N. Gin called out to the swordsman, who immediately went in the other direction as Champion Link's face sank. "Come and see me in all my glory!"

Champion Link: I don't get it. How is it that Researcher Zelda gets to fill in for Zelda, but I don't get to fill in for Link? Does Master Hand love Cloud that much after he banished him to Arcadia Bay? What does he have against me?! It's just *sighs* ...it's just not fair.


Before he and his gang could head off to Super Nintendo World, Mario had to establish some ground rules first. Mario had everyone gathered around, as he only had a few things to share.

"This should go without-a saying, but please respect-a public property," Mario stressed to everyone while keeping a close eye on a certain Koopa King and his favorite child. "That goes-a out to you most especially, Bowser."

"Why do you always have to single me out, man?" frowned Bowser, who along with Bowser Jr. had just got through spraypainting "the Mario Bros. stink" on a Jurassic Park mural. Mario left Bowser alone, for he knew that the message would be lost with him.

"Leave my papa alone, he has never done anything wrong!" Bowser Jr. defended his father to Mario, as Bowser snatched cotton candy from an unsuspecting child. The child cried his eyes out, as Bowser shared the cotton candy with Bowser Jr.

Bowser: Bowser Jr. came with me for Mario's birthday not just because he's my favorite. He's the only child of mine allowed to come because his siblings are grounded. Wanna know why? When I asked them who my favorite child was, they would mention themselves for some strange reason. How selfish and delusional of them!

"Ignore him, he's not going to listen," Zelda advised Mario, who followed the princess's advice as he hoped that Bowser and his son would be on their best behavior. He would hate to be booted out of an amusement park again on his birthday.

"If you wish-a to buy something, you must spend your own money," Mario continued; he didn't have to worry much since mostly everyone (save for Hunter) had some moolah to spend with. "Dollar bills, rupees, gems, I don't care. Don't ask-a me and Peach for cash."

"Looks like I'll be putting my gems to good use," Spyro said to Diddy Kong, as he had kept gems in his wallet but had seldom spent them. The only way he would spend those gems was if a bear wearing a tuxedo forced him into it.

"Dang it..." the male Inkling frowned as he angrily stomped his foot on the ground. Maybe next time the youngster should bring more than $20 with him to an amusement park.

"You can always ask-a me and Daisy for cash," Luigi said to the others as he smiled and clicked his fingers at everyone. A death glare from Mario made Luigi's enthusiasm quickly go away.

"Also, when-a we go to Super Nintendo World, we'll go in as a family," Mario continued explaining, as this was the third and final point that he wanted to share before the big day. "Yes, that means we'll go in together. I saw you about-a to raise your hand, Spyro."

"I wasn't even going to raise my hand," responded Spyro, only to look over at Rayman and see Globox next to him taking out a magic wand. "Globox, why do you have that wand?"

"Globox wants to go to Harry Potter World instead!" replied Globox as he waved his wand around - who knew that the amphibian was a Harry Potter fan? Apparently, Rayman and Barbara didn't know.

"That's not even the right wand," Fox pointed out to Globox, who had a basic magician wand in his hand. Rookie mistake. Globox saw an old man walk past by, and wanted to cast a spell on him.

"Azarath Metrion ZINTHOS!" Globox cast his spell on the old man, and the old man stopped in place...and nothing happened to him. He just stared at Globox, completely dumbfounded.

"Nice meeting you as well," the old man responded to Globox as he continued on his merry way, while Globox held his wand out waiting for the spell to take effect. The old man walked away unaffected, as he got off pretty fortunate.

"There was so much wrong with that interaction that I don't even feel like pointing it out," remarked Falco, as a satisfied Globox put his magic wand back in his imaginary pocket. Globox was confident that the old man would be affected by the spell later in the day.

"Does liking Harry Potter inherently make him a bad person, according to social media?" questioned Yoshi, as he recalled a controversy involving J.K. Rowling that was of high notoriety not so long ago.

"Only terminally online-a folks would think so," replied Mario, hoping that he wasn't throwing too much shade at anyone. But the time for talking was done. "Enough dilly-dallying! Let's head-a on in."

"You lead the way, birthday boy," Link gave the green light to Mario, as Luigi looked over at the Hylian as if he was left out. "I mean, birthday boys..." Mario and Luigi both led the pack, as they guided everyone to Super Nintendo World.

"Remember to stick together," Bowser reminded Bowser Jr. as he stuck close to his son, making sure to not ever leave him out of his sight. "A whole lot of crazies at parks like these."

"You got it, pops!" Bowser Jr. assured his father, promising to stick by his side until the day's very end. The young Koopa turned around as he and Bowser followed the group, and saw Globox casting a "spell" on several dudes in Minions costumes...


Joker: Pit could've gone on the trip with Kirby, but his insistence to leave while on his job so many times has ruined his opportunity. Even then, I would've kept his butt at the cafe anyway.

While Kirby went on the trip to Universal Studios, his buddy Pit was forced to stay behind and work at Cafe Leblanc. It was a soft punishment for the many instances of Pit leaving his job, with the most recent prime example being in episode 375.

Because he was about to miss out on a day of fun at Super Nintendo World, Pit was salty as he worked at the cafe. The angel was looking grumpy as he served coffee, and the patrons were quick to notice.

"Here's your stupid coffee," Pit said to Larry in an apathetic tone, slamming the cup down on the counter as he splashed coffee all over the place. The angel walked away, too unbothered to clean up his mess.

"I see that you have adopted me as my spirit animal," Larry said to Pit as he took his coffee and sipped it, not wasting any time to let it cool down. "I strongly advise you not to do that."

"He's not in a good mood right now," Viridi informed Larry, as Pit went ahead and fixed a bowl of red curry. Pit took the red curry to Rean Schwarzer, who was seated at a table with his students Kurt and Altina.

"Enjoy your curry," Pit said apathetically to Rean, slamming the bowl down hard on the table just as he did with the coffee. Some of the bowl's contents landed outside the bowl, and unto Rean's lap.

"Hot, hot, HOT!" Rean shouted in scorching pain as he ran out of the cafe fanning the flames from his crotch. Kurt and Altina did their best to hold in their laughter, as Pit returned to his post.

"he's going as fast as his legs can curry him," Sans joked about Rean, unsuccessful in garnering a single laugh. He definitely didn't earn a laugh from Pit, who was glaring at the skeleton out of annoyance.

"Nobody thinks that your jokes are funny, Sans..." said Pit, being rather blunt with the skeleton as he sat against the wall and buried his face in his knees. Joker, Viridi, and even Incineroar all had their eyes on Pit.

"Never seen him with this much of an attitude," Joker quietly discussed with Viridi and Incineroar, unable to recall the last time he saw Pit so upset. The only instance that he could recall was when Pit was devastated after losing to Kirby in thumb wrestling.

"Even I can't seem to get through to him," stated Viridi, who knew that Pit was really down in the dumps if he refused to communicate with his girlfriend. "He'll be like this all day..."

"True, but he got what he deserved. I'm only teaching him a lesson." Suddenly there was a knock - not at the Cafe Leblanc door, but rather on the countertop. Joker broke from the conversation, as he met Lavenza at the counter.

"Sorry for disturbing you," Lavenza apologized to Joker, as the sincerity in her apology was quite palpable. "Just one humble request: I'd like some curry for...the prisoner."

"The inmate? You've only referred to me as an..." Joker suddenly paused, as he realized two things - one, only Caroline and Justine called him an inmate, not Lavenza. And two, the inmate that Lavenza was talking about was someone other than him.

"A bowl of orange curry for Magolor, if you don't mind."

Lavenza: Sonic asked that I keep Magolor company while he's gone. I asked the buddy cops to make me their temporary prison guard, and so that's how I ended up at Magolor's side.

"The buddy cops asked that I don't feed Magolor, but I could tell that Magolor was hungry," continued Lavenza, as Toon Link and Young Link apparently wanted Magolor to starve. "His growling stomach was like that of a lion's roar."

"Curry won't fill him up much, but it'll do," responded Joker as he got to work and prepared a bowl of orange curry for Magolor. An idea entered Joker's mind, as Joker looked back at Pit. "Pit, you mind making a delivery?"

"Sure, whatever - I'll do what you want," replied Pit, his voice muffled as he still had his face buried in his knees. The angel really wanted to say no but obliged Joker nonetheless.


Super Nintendo World was accessible through a large warp pipe, and entering the attraction that way only seemed fitting. Once Mario exited the warp pipe and into Super Nintendo World, he took in all the sights and sounds as tears were welling up in his eyes.

"It's...it's beautiful," the plumber smiled with joy, with tears now running down his face. Mario dropped down to his knees as Peach stood next to him, not nearly as emotional as her husband was.

"...is he going to be okay?" asked Samus, who had Pikachu perched on her right shoulder, as Mario suddenly started breaking down into tears. Peach tried to comfort Mario, who slapped his wife's hand away as he wished to cry alone in peace.

"Let's ask again after an hour or two," replied Sonic, and the crying fit from Mario raged on as Mario fell down to the ground and cried some more. "Come to think of it, an hour or two sounds generous at this point..."

"Really, Mario? You never cried this much when your kids were born!" Cappy said to Mario, who didn't want to hear any of Cappy's crap as he grabbed the talking hat and tossed him afar. Fortunately, Cappy didn't land on anyone's head.

"Can you hurry up with the crying?" Donkey Kong called out to Mario, who paused his crying as he looked back at Donkey Kong - who was still standing in the large warp pipe along with a handful of others. "Some of us want to get inside Super Nintendo World too."

"Sorry, got a little carried away there," Mario apologized to Little Mac as he stood up and went to go grab Cappy, moving out of the way so that everyone else could access Super Nintendo World. Everyone had arrived.

"This place looks FANTASTIC!" exclaimed Pac-Man, as the eater of ghosts was taking in Super Nintendo World with a giant smile on his face. For a lot of folks, it was as if they were on cloud nine.

"So many colors!" marveled Coco, taking note of how vibrant and colorful Super Nintendo World was. Sonic and Crash saw some warp pipes in the nearby corner and hopped right on inside.

"Hey, you can't just leave me behind!" Aku shouted at Crash as he floated over to where the bandicoot and Sonic were. Aku looked inside the warp pipe, seeing that Sonic and Crash were still there.

"Uh, Mario, I don't think these warp pipes work," Sonic poked his head out of the warp pipe as he called out to the plumber, feeling slightly disappointed. "We didn't end up in the sewers."

"That's because those-a pipes are probably props," responded Mario, as Sonic looked up in realization like a teenager whose entire childhood was just ruined. Crash hopped out of the warp pipe, and he stuck the landing.

"Ta-da!" the bandicoot cheered with his arms out wide, as he expected everyone to clap for him. But much to his chagrin, the others were too busy soaking in Super Nintendo World.

"I'm gonna do it, Nana, I'm gonna jump through this painting!" Popo said to Nana, standing inside Peach's Castle while in front of a Super Mario 64 painting. Popo jumped into the painting, only to bang his head and fall against the wall.

"Totally knew that was gonna happen," smirked Nana, as Popo was lying on the floor rubbing his aching head. Play stupid games, win stupid prizes - as the old saying goes.

"Are those coins real?" Wario asked Kirby as he pointed at four gold coins that were on a high ledge, next to a Piranha Plant animatronic. "I must see for myself! Show me the money!"

"Please don't hurt yourself," Kirby advised Wario, who started his climb up the ledge only to be squashed by a moving Thomp animatronic. Wario was flattened in an instant. "I just said, don't hurt yourself!"

Kirby: Joker allowed me to take the day off so that I could go to Super Nintendo World. That means that I can take a day off from babysitting Pit while on the job. But it seems that I'm stuck babysitting Wario. Which can't be any worse, I hope.

"I'd hate to be under there," Zelda spoke with Link as she witnessed Wario being crushed by the Thwomp. But when Zelda looked to her left, she saw that Link was no longer standing next to her! "Link? Where'd you run off to?"

"Will there be a Legend of Zelda attraction coming soon at Super Nintendo World?" Link asked a worker, who was nervously eyeing to the side as he walked away from the Hylian. Link followed after the worker. "Please tell me there'll be a Legend of Zelda attraction soon..."


With Fox and Falco at Universal Studios, the pilots entrusted Itsuki to show MC Ballyhoo the ropes in regard to Star Records. Ballyhoo was asked by Fox and Falco to help get Star Records out of their financial funk, and Ballyhoo was more than happy to help.

"Here is our payroll," Itsuki said to Ballyhoo in the Star Records room, handing the emcee a list of all the talent that was signed to Star Records. Each line on the list came with the talent's name and their base salary.

"Asuka? Didn't think she'd give up martial artist for singing," remarked Ballyhoo as he skimmed through the list, revealing his lack of familiarity with Star Records. That was why Ituski had to get Ballyhoo caught up to speed.

"Not Asuka Kazama...also, Asuka isn't a singer. She's a co-host of a cooking web show called Microwave Idol Mamorin, with Mamori Minamoto and Ashley."

"Have you tried airing this web show on Twitch? That's one way to reel in easy money! Just have the girls boil some bathwater, and men will send in their donations like crazy!"

"I don't think we'll be doing that anytime soon..." Itsuki took the payroll from Ballyhoo after the emcee was done looking, afraid of what other crazy ideas Ballyhoo had going on in his mind.

MC Ballyhoo: That Hop fella introduced me to Twitch last week. Seemed like a very forward-thinking platform, based on what I've watched. You can rake in money by just sitting in front of your webcam and talking about whatever! Who even needs talk shows these days?

"Don't mind me, just peeking in," Cloud said to Itsuki and Ballyhoo as he peeked inside the Star Records room, curious as to how Itsuki was handling Ballyhoo by himself. "How's it coming along?"

"It's been well so far," replied Itsuki, offering a positive report about his discussions with Ballyhoo - although he did fear that things would go off the rails. "Thanks for asking."

"Yeah." After giving his half-hearted response, Cloud brought his head out of the room and walked away...only to run into Champion Link. Cloud groaned at the sight of the Hylian.

"Look, I really hate to be persistent," Champion Link said to Cloud, who ran his hand down his face as he couldn't be any more unbothered. "But I just want to be useful today."

"You wanna be useful? Here's a suggestion: leave me alone." Cloud hustled down the hallway, briefly looking over his shoulder to ensure that Champion Link wasn't following him. Champion Link remained where he was.

"Well, that was rude." Champion Link watched as Cloud hurried down the stairs, as the elevator doors nearby opened. Researcher Zelda exited the elevator, encountering Link.

"You look pretty bummed out," Researcher Zelda said to Champion Link, who was standing where he was as he had something reminiscent of a thousand-mile stare going on. "Lost your Sheikah Slate again?"

"I want to help Cloud out, and prove my worth to him and Master Hand. But he won't let me."

"Is that so? Maybe I can work something out. I'll go pull a few strings for you..."


Having a Power Band was an absolute must for anyone at Super Nintendo World. Mario and a couple of others went to a kiosk outside to purchase their Power Band and placed their band around their wrist.

"So you know there's an item called the Muscle Band?" Red the Pokemon Trainer discussed with Ganondorf, who had some difficulty putting his Power Band on due to how large his wrists were. "What if a Pokemon used a Power Band to boost their physical moves?"

"Wouldn't that have the same effect as the Muscle Band?" asked Ganondorf, who gave up on putting on the Power Band as he tossed his wristband onto the ground. Mario gasped as he ran over to the Power Band, bringing Jennifer along with him as he picked the Power BAnd up.

"Silly Ganon! You need this to have-a fun at Super Nintendo World," Mario told Ganondorf as he tried to return the Power Band to the demon lord, only for Ganondorf to fold his arms and look away.

"If that's so, then I'll just take myself to Hogwarts." Ganondorf would remain where he was for now, as he saw Mario taking out his phone and holding his device up to his Power Band. "What is that you're doing?"

"Syncing my Power Band on-a the Universal Studios app." Mario pulled up the Super Nintendo World section of the Universal app before showing the phone screen to Ganondorf, as he was creating his profile. "Which one should-a I go with? Jumping Mario or Waving Mario?"

"You're the man in those images..should be asking yourself that." Finding Ganondorf to be no help, Mario was forced to make his own decision. He would ask Jennifer for guidance, but he didn't trust his daughter's judgment.

"Mario! We have an emergency!" Bowser approached the plumber with absolute haste, as a genuine emergency was afoot. Just the thing that happened to happen on Mario's birthday. "My son, Bowser Jr...he's gone missing!"

"Uh-huh...anyway, I think I'm going with-a Jumping Mario," responded Mario, completely ignoring Bowser as he made his final selection. Bowser growled angrily as he snatched the phone out of Mario's hand.

"Are you not listening to me? I said that Bowser Jr. went missing!" Bowser looked at Mario, waiting for the plumber's reaction, and before Mario could say anything his attention was caught by a man wearing a Mario costume.

"It's-a me! Mario!" Mario brought Jennifer over to the man wearing the Mario costume, getting his daughter close and comfortable while a distraught Bowser looked on. "Look, Jennifer! It's me in-a costume form."

"Do you not want your phone back?" Bowser called out to Mario as held up the plumber's phone, but Mario was currently in dad mode so he couldn't hear. Taking matters into his own hands, Bowser used Mario's phone to call Bowser Jr.

Bowser: Told that boy to stick together, and what does he do? He runs off and abandons me. So not only are seven of my eight children selfish delusional brats, but my favorite child is a straight-up liar!

"Come on, pick up, pick up..." Bowser said after making the call, forced to hear the dial tone ring several times. Once the phone went to voicemail, Bowser ended the call and was about to throw Mario's phone onto the ground - Andy Samberg style.

"There's-a my phone!" exclaimed Mario as he returned to Bowser to retrieve his phone, just as Bowser was about to throw it. Mario returned to Jennifer so that he could take a picture with his daughter and Costume Mario. "Say cheese, Jennifer!"

"Cheese!" Jennifer smiled at the camera, as Mario took a nice little family selfie with his daughter. One for the memory books. Crash stood with Coco off to the side, as he wanted to have his moment with Costume Mario.

"Whatever you do, do not hit him below the belt," Coco instructed Crash, who moan in sadness as he walked away. Crash's plans were immediately dashed.

"HAS ANYONE SEEN MY SON?" Bowser shouted out loud at the top of his lungs, but everyone at Super Nintendo World was too busy enjoying themselves to hear the Koopa King's cry for help. Bowser was clearly in a great deal of distress.


Lavenza returned to the police station, sitting in a chair next to Magolor's jail cell. Lavenza was pleasant company for Magolor, who appreciated how genuine the young girl was.

"Do you think that I smell?" Magolor candidly asked Lavenza out of the blue, anticipating the response that he would receive. The alien had attempted a few smell tests, but a lack of nose made for questionable results.

"Aliens don't smell," replied Lavenza, as she made Magolor feel better about himself. Magolor could take confidence in that staying in the jail cell for a few weeks hadn't affected his body odor.

"Okay then, so it must just be in my head..." Appreciating Lavenza for her honesty, Magolorhad a second question to ask the young girl. "...do you think that I look ugly?"

"Special delivery!" Joker announced from outside, as he and Pit entered the police station with some orange curry. Pit was holding the bowl of curry while holding a pair of oven mitts. Sometimes he forgot to wear those when handling hot food.

"For me?" Indeed, the orange curry was for Magolor, as Pit presented the curry to the alien. The prison bars were in the way of delivering the curry, however.

"Can someone open the door?" asked Pit, and Lavenza would come through as she dug into her pockets to pull out the prison keys. Only thing was, she didn't know which pocket she stuck them in!

"Oh dear...please forgive me," said Lavenza as she was checking her pockets thoroughly, while Pit and the others patiently waited.

Toon Link: As our voluntary prison guard, Lavenza was given a prison key for opening Magolor's door. But we only gave it to her as a test. If Lavenza lets Magolor out of that cell, even for using the bathroom, she'll be fired in a heartbeat.

"Donut holes are better, but sprinkled donuts aren't far so behind," Young Link discussed with Toon Link, as the buddy cops went inside the police station. The buddy cops gasped when they saw Pit and Joker, worried that the orange curry was for Magolor (which it was).

"Uh...this curry was for Lavenza," Pit explained to the buddy cops as he quickly handed the bowl of curry to Lavenza, while also giving her a spoon. "Can't let her starve while on the job."

"You have my thanks," Lavenza thanked Pit, playing along as she took the curry and ate a spoonful of it in front of Magolor. What did the buddy cops think of Lavenza eating while on the job?

"She's taunting Magolor by eating in his face. Nice!" Young Link commended Lavenza, as the buddy cops were impressed by the "savagery" that the young girl was putting on display. Toon Link even wanted to clap in approval.

"Lavenza, you're killing it, man...I mean, woman!" Toon Link pointed at Lavenza as he and Young Link got their ticket books from the drawers of their desk. "Ready to go, Hutch?"

"No, I'm not ready." Not on the same page with his partner-in-crime. Toon Link looked dumbfoundedly at Young Link, who waited for a couple of seconds before saying, "Now I'm ready."

"Took you long enough." So the buddy cops left the police station, now with their new ticket books so that they could write up more tickets. Once the coast was clear, Lavenza handed the curry back to Pit.

"Perhaps the key is in my shoe," assumed Lavenza as she checked her left shoe...and would you know it, she found the prison key as she pulled t out. "Aha!"

"Hurry up, the bowl is burning through my mitts!" yelled Pit, amazed at how Lavenza was able to hold the bowl of curry without burning her hands. Lavenza used the key to open Magolor's cell door, thereby allowing Pit to give Magolor his curry.

"Come to papa!" exclaimed Magolor as he accepted his orange curry, before turning around and scarfing it down in one gulp. The alien still hadn't found the confidence to eat without privacy - or even the restraint to consume his meal slowly.

"Enjoyed it, Magolor?" Joker asked the alien, whose rubbing of his stomach made the answer super obvious. That orange curry must've hit the spot. "We can give you seconds if you like."

"I'll happily take another bowl. Bring it on!" So Magolor handed the empty bowl to Pit, as he waited for his second bowl of curry to come. But before Pit and Joker could leave... "Thanks for the curry, Pit."

"Oh, uh, you're welcome," Pit humbly replied, even though Joker did most of the curry-making. But that word of thanks from Magolor did do a bit to ease Pit's current mood...


Wanting to do Champion Link a solid, Researcher Zelda briefly stopped by the tower to have a word with Yuri Kozukata. Researcher Zelda explained to Yuri Champion Link's situation, and Yuri had a solution.

"Ask Cloud to wear this," Yuri instructed Researcher Zelda as she handed the princess a Japanese ritual mask. "That is called the Mask of the Lunar Eclipse."

"So exotic..." Researcher Zelda inspected the Mask of the Lunar Eclipse, inspecting both the front and the back as the mask caught her intrigue. "...how did you even obtain this?"

"Won't say; it's a secret. But I can tell you this much - it came from Rougetsu Island. A serial killer held kidnapped girls captive there, and many of the girls lost their memories..."

"...yeah, I think I've heard enough. But I'll put this mask to good use. For Champion Link!"


He may not have obtained the four gold coins he saw on the top ledge, but Wario did find an easier way to earn some gold at Super Nintendo World - by hitting the golden question blocks. Wario stood underneath a question block with his Power Band, as he jumped multiple times to hit the block and get a coin sound effect.

"Show me the money," said Wario after he was done jumping, arms outstretched as if gold coins were going to rain on him. Seconds passed, but nothing happened. "Wah, that question block must be broken!"

"Question block's broken?" a worker perked up, as he inspected the question block that Wario was jumping underneath. To the worker, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. "Thought we had this fixed overnight."

"Have you seen this man anywhere?" Yoshi asked a worker while holding up a picture frame of Chris Pratt donning the Mario hat and mustache. "He's so cool!"

"No, I have not seen him," replied the worker, baffled that Yoshi would ask such an asinine question. But it was far from the most ridiculous question he was asked while on the job.

"But this is Universal Studios Hollywood! There's literally a Jurassic Park attraction. How can Chris Pratt not..." Giving up hope, Yoshi stormed off in defeat.

Yoshi: Mario came to Super Nintendo World to celebrate his birthday. Crash came to Super Nintendo World to harass the lovely people wearing Mario costumes. I came to Super Nintendo World to get an autograph from the cast of the Super Mario Bros movie. Want an autograph from Chris Pratt the most, since he's my favorite actor. *looks at his picture of Chris Pratt* Perhaps the mustache and cap threw that worker off. Yeah, that must be the reason.


Not only did Yuri know about the origins of the Mask of the Lunar Eclipse, but she also knew what it was capable of. So she and Miu sneaked to the mansion just to scope things out with Researcher Zelda and Cloud.

"I hear chatter," Miu whispered to Yuri as the two friends wandered into the foyer; they arrived right on time as they witnessed Researcher Zelda speaking with Cloud while holding the mask.

"Found that mask outside the mansion," Researcher Zelda explained to Cloud, who was inspecting the mask to see how suspicious it was. Cloud's suspicion radar was beeping like Road Runner on a treadmill.

"So it's like, some sort of tribal mask?" assumed Cloud, open to placing the mask at the mansion's lost-and-found. The only problem was, the mansion didn't even have a lost-and-found.

"Could be. Try it on and see if it works!" At first, Cloud was doubting of Researcher Zelda, cynical even, but he took the princess's word for it as he placed the mask on his face.

"And now...we wait," Yuri whispered to Miu, keeping a low profile as Cloud had the mask entirely over his face. Nothing was happening at first, but then...

...Cloud started acting funny, doing some sort of weird tribal dancing. All the while, the swordsman was making a weird humming noise which had Researcher Zelda greatly concerned.

"Cloud, are you okay?" Researcher Zelda asked the swordsman, who kept making that weird humming noise as he tribal danced his way down the hallway. Yuri and Miu ran up to Researcher Zelda, who took notice of the two friends. "You wait right here while I get Champion Link."

"What are we waiting for?" questioned Yuri, only for Researcher Zelda to leave the foyer without a response. Rather than wait, Yuri and Miu went to go find where Cloud wandered off to.


Super Nintendo World had a gift shop called the 1-Up Factory, and it was the go-to place for everyone's Mario needs. Want a Mario doll, or even a Mario t-shirt? Just stop by the 1-Up Factory and get what you want.

"Don't tell me you plan on wearing all those shirts," Samus said to Diddy Kong, who was taking multiple shirts of Mario and Luigi off the clothing rack. Save some for the other folks, Diddy!

"Who said that I was wearing them? I'm collecting these!" responded Diddy, ready to check out as he went to the nearest cashier. Samus rolled her eyes and sighed as she walked away.

"Pika pika!" Pikachu said to Samus, as he pointed at a stuffed toy on a shelf in the form of a gold star. Samus saw the stuffed toy and failed to see the appeal behind it.

"I'm not buying that," stated Samus as she put her foot down, only for Pikachu to look at the bounty hunter with an innocent look in his eyes. It was hard for Samus to resist, as she sighed deeply. "Why do you have to be so cute...?"

"Stuff is less expensive than I thought it would be," remarked Spyro as he was checking out some keychains, undecided on what to spend his gems on. Hunter approached Spyro, holding something that caught his eye.

"Spyro, you have to buy me this," Hunter stressed to the purple dragon as he revealed to him a green Luigi cap, refusing to leave Super Nintendo World unless he had the cap in his possession. "Give me your gems!"

"But Mario made it clear that you have to spend your own money." Spyro wouldn't even dare to let Hunter borrow any of his gems, so he would've said no to his friend regardless.

"That's the thing - I don't have any money! I'm broke!" Hunter was in a great deal of distress, as he badly wanted to purchase the Luigi cap. That cap had his name written on it.

"Someone said they need-a some money?" inquired an eavesdropping Luigi as he waltzed his way over to Hunter, resting his elbow on the cheetah's shoulder. "I got-a you covered."

"Luigi!" shouted Mario, looking sternly at Luigi like how a parent would look at their child after they broke all the dishes in the kitchen sink. Luigi was just about to pull out his wallet when Mario called him out.

"Uh, sorry buddy, you're on your own..." Luigi patted Hunter on his upper torso as he walked away from the cheetah, leaving him alone. With no other option, Hunter reverted his attention back to Spyro.

"As he said, you're on your own," Spyro said to Hunter as he continued to look at the keychains, entertaining the idea of buying one. What Spyro would use a keychain for, he didn't know.

"You'll be mine real soon..." Hunter quietly vowed to the green Luigi cap, as if he were Gollum and the cap was his beloved ring. His precious.


Cloud was acting out of sorts, and it was all because of the mask that he was wearing. Yuri and Miu tried to keep up with Cloud, who had wandered into the gaming room acting a fool.

"Been a lot quieter around here without Bowser," Lucario said to Meta Knight, who nodded in agreement as Cloud danced past the two friends. Both Lucario and Meta Knight looked back at Cloud, understandably concerned.

"Cloud, your sense of rhythm makes me uncomfortable," Meta Knight informed the swordsman, who was hardly listening as he was dancing away. "Please stop dancing so that my personal image of you isn't tarnished."

"I dunno, I kind of like his dance moves," commented Skull Kid, a big fan of Cloud's tribal dancing; he was even taking a few pointers!

Skull Kid: I'd give Cloud's performance an eight out of ten. That humming noise wasn't it; had he done maniacal laughing, I'd give Cloud a perfect score. But I will say though, he gets pointers for the mask!

"What's with that mask you're wearing, Cloud?" Terry asked the swordsman, who probably couldn't hear a thing as the mask had likely possessed him. Cloud just danced his way out of the gaming room, passing by N. Gin who was still wearing his romper apparently.

"Eek!" N. Gin shrieked in terror, jumping to the side Cloud danced down the hallway. Yuri and Miu appeared, having missed Cloud, as N. Gin saw the friends and smiled. "Hello, ladies...like my romper?"

"Well...we've seen worse. Much worse," replied Miu, to which N. Gin took as a back-handed compliment. Long as it wasn't an outright insult. "Anyway, have you seen Cloud?"

"He was wearing a tribal mask," Yuri explained to N. Gin, who suddenly recalled the man in black with blonde hair that scared him out of his wits.

"Yes, I have seen him! For a split second, I thought Cloud had gotten a very bad facial. But it was the mask that made him ugly!"

"Wouldn't say that the mask really affected his looks. But I can tell you one thing, that mask shouldn't be causing him to act like that..."


Champion Link was on a treadmill at the fitness center, getting his cardio in as he waited to be of service to Cloud. He relied upon Researcher Zelda to make stuff happen behind the scenes and fortunately for him, Researcher Zelda came through.

"Champion Link, Cloud is in trouble!" Researcher Zelda ran inside the fitness center to inform Champion Link, who was working up a sweat on the treadmill. "He wore a mask on his face, and he's been seemingly possessed..."

"Cloud needs my help?" Champion Link perked up, before hopping off the treadmill while it was still running. The Hylian then reached for his tunic lying on the floor, picking it up to reveal his Master Sword. "Say no more..."


Mario was getting hungry, so he and his family went to Toadstool Cafe to grab a bite to eat. Sonic and the Crash clan had arrived at Toadstool Cafe along with Toad, looking to find their seat.

"Look, Toad! It's one of your cousins," Sonic said to Toad as he pointed at a television screen on the wall, which featured Chef Toad. Chef Toad was in the kitchen wearing a chef hat on his head - so he was essentially wearing two hats, in a sense.

"Oh, so you think that every Toad and their mom is a cousin of mine?" Toad questioned Sonic, putting the blue hedgehog on the spot as he started a small scene. Sonic and the others looked afraid, as Toad laughed it off. "I'm just kidding!"

"Phew...thought that Toad was gonna beat you up there," Crunch said to Sonic, as he would've lost plenty of respect for the hedgehog if Toad handed his butt to him. Crunch and company carried on, as they walked down the line into the cafe.

As expected, Toadstool Cafe was packed, as nearly every table was occupied. A whole lot of chatter was in the restaurant, as everyone was enjoying themselves and the food. Fortunately for Toad, Sonic, and the bandicoots, there was a table available for them.

"They oughta open a Toedscool Cafe in Paldea," joked Sonic, only for his joke to not land as Coco rolled her eyes in response. A server appeared, holding several menus.

"Welcome to Toadstool Cafe!" the server greeted Sonic and company, greeting them with the same warmth that a regular Toad would provide. "Would you all like a menu?"

"Sure thing!" replied Toad, as the server gave Toad and everyone else their menus. The server was looking at Toad with sudden intrigue. "I don't like the way that you're looking at me..."

"Ah, an actual Toad! This is a very special occasion. How about a free Mount Beanpool Cake, on the house? Our pleasure!" The perks of being a Toad in Super Nintendo World.

Luigi: What?! Toad got a free cake from Toadstool Cafe? It's not even his birthday! Mario has gotten lots-a of preferential treatment, while I've been left-a with goose eggs. Why does everyone forget about-a me?
Man: Green Mario! *runs up to Luigi, holding his phone out* Can a take a selfie with you?
Luigi: People can't even get my name right! Mama mia... *storms off*
Man:
No, Luigi, come back! It was supposed to be a joke. A joke!

The server took Toad and the others to their table, which happened to be already preoccupied...as Cortex and Uka were both present. Cortex was sitting at this table and was stunned to see Toad and company sitting down.

"I'll be right over with your cake!" the server said to Toad, before heading to the kitchen to have Toad's Mount Beanpool Cake prepared. As everyone was looking through their menus, Cortex looked at them stunned.

"What gives? I reserved this table just for myself!" Cortex frowned at Toad and company, as he had wanted to eat alone in peace. If he couldn't dine in with Tiki, then he preferred to dine in alone. Uka notwithstanding.

"Is it too late to ask to move to another spot?" Crunch asked Coco, uncomfortable with the idea of eating with Cortex in public. Coco was too busy looking through her menu to care enough to respond.

"Yoo-hoo!" a certain princess called out to Toad and company, who looked over and saw Peach and Mario sitting at an adjacent table with their kids. "How are you liking the cafe so far?"

"We literally just got here," replied Coco as she was holding her menu, with Aku looking over the bandicoot's shoulder. Coco felt Aku breathing on her neck. "You're not getting anything, Aku."

"But the Fire Flower Spaghetti & Meatballs..." whined Aku, jealous that Coco and the others could eat food without fail while he couldn't. Aku floated over to Crash, with an ulterior motive in mind. "...Crash, my boy, do you like spaghetti and meatballs?"

"Crash isn't going to feed you," Uka said to Aku, who moaned in defeat as he lowered his head. So much for that. "Do you ever see me complaining about being unable to eat human food?"

"You spend too much time complaining about my existence anyway," Cortex muttered under his breath, as he was waiting for his order to be taken. "When is someone going to take my order already? Been waiting for thirty minutes!"

"Hello! I will be your waiter for today," said a waiter as she went over to the table, addressing everyone at the table except Cortex. That left Cortexs very much beside himself. "Any of you ready to order?"

"If I were-a you, I'd order the Mario Burger," Mario leaned over his seat and whispered to Sonic, who was narrowing his choices on what to order. "No bias whatsoever." Mario helped Sonic with making his final decision.

"I'll take a Mario Burger," Sonic said to the server, pointing at the item on the menu. The server nodded her head as she jotted down Sonic's order.

"And I'll have the Mario Mini Burger Adventure Set kid's meal," said Crunch, jumping the gun before the server could ask Sonic what drink he wanted. Everyone looked at Crunch crazily. "What, I'm on a diet!"

"Will my order be taken?" Cortex asked the server, who proceeded to take Toad, Crash, and Coco's orders...before leaving the table. Cortex grunted as he slammed his fist, while Uka laughed.

"Attention, please! Can I have your attention please?" one of the Toadstool Cafe servers addressed everyone in the cafe, as the chatter died down quickly. "Some of you may already know this, but today is Mario's birthday."

"And Luigi's birthday," Mario reminded the server, as everyone in the cafe cheered for and applauded Mario. The server heard Mario and made sure to give Luigi his proper respect.

"Not only that, but it's Luigi's birthday as well. Let's give him a hand!" The reception for Luigi paled in response to Mario, but there was still a decent amount of cheers and applause. Better than nothing.

"They're gonna sing to him happy birthday," Rayman grinned at Barbara, sitting at a table with the barbaric princess. Interestingly enough, Rayman's other friend Globox was nowhere to be found...

Rayman: Globox passed up the chance to visit Super Nintendo World, just to be at the World of Harry Potter. Sucks for me, since I'll only be seen in public with Barbara. Everyone will think that we're a couple! At least with Globox around, it wouldn't be as ambiguous.

Barbara: What if your friend is an atheist, and it's their birthday, and you wish to sing them happy birthday? How would you even sing that last part?

"Who's ready to sing happy birthday to the birthday boy?!" asked the server, and everyone was absolutely game as they cheered...everyone except for Cortex, who remained salty with the server. And one other villain.

"HOLD IT!" shouted Bowser as he ran over to Mario's table, taking all the attention away from birthday boy Mario as everyone's eyes in Toadstool's Cafe were on him. "No one is singing happy birthday just yet."

"Why not, it's-a my special..." Mario was about to snap at Bowser, only to be silenced when Bowser placed his index finger on the plumber's lips. The gall of Bowser to silence the birthday boy.

"We can't sing happy birthday to Mario because a serious matter is afoot. My son, Bowser Jr, is missing!" Bowser expected to hear a few gasps and murmurings among the cafe crowd, but the response was only minimal.

"You can't hijack Mario's moment like this," Rayman said to Bowser, not one bit surprised that the Koopa King would do something like this when Mario was the center of attention. "That's very selfish of you."

"Wanting to find my son and making sure he's safe is selfish? What does selfish even mean in your book, Rayman?" Bowser put Rayman on the spot, interested in what the limbless hero had to say.

"If you care so much, then just have someone call Bowser Jr.'s name out on the intercom!" suggested Barbara, sharing what she would do if she were in Bowser's shoes. But Bowser wasn't so keen on the idea.

"No can do, sister - doing that is a major sign of weakness as a loving parent. Either Junior comes to me, or I come to him!"

"Okay Bowser, we've heard enough," said Rayman, as he had grown tired of Bowser and his spiel. The limbless hero just wanted to sing, darn it! "Let us sing happy birthday to Mario already."

"Grr! I've just had it with you!" Bowser would take out his frustration on Rayman, as he marched over to the limbless hero and grabbed his neck. Well, Rayman didn't have a neck, but his oxygen was cut off regardless.

"Hands off my man!" Barbara shouted at Rayman, leaping onto the Koopa King as Bowser dragged Rayman out of the cafe. Barbara held onto Bowser for dear life, as Bowser carried Rayman outside.

"So who wants to sing happy birthday to Mario?" Mario's server asked the crowd, only to receive an emphatic collective cheer. Just what the server would've liked to hear. "On the count of three! One, two..."


Wario was greatly disappointed during his time at Super Nintendo World, for he was unable to collect a single gold coin. Rather than taking his complaints to the workers, the fatso instead complained to Link and Zelda as if they cared.

"Why is it so hard to get gold coins?" Wario asked Link and Zelda, who were preoccupied with playing one of the three key challenges at Suepr Nintendo World. The key challenge they were playing involved hitting a POW block to send a green shell out of a warp pipe, to hit another POW block.

"It's not that difficult - just hit the question blocks with your Power Band," replied Link as he struck the POW block in front of him with his wrist. A green shell popped out of the warp pipe above, hitting the blue POW block. Link earned his first key in the process.

"I did, but my pockets remain empty! I should have up to fifteen gold coins by now!" Wario was willing to unleash his inner Karen and take his complaints to the manager - or at least the owner of Universal Studios.

"Wario, they're not real coins; they're imaginary," Zelda had to break it to the fatso, who was beyond devastated as he felt stupid the whole time. Stupid was one feeling that Wario despised the most.

"Screw this...I'm done!" Showing how done he was, Wario took off his Power Band and threw it unto the ground. A few onlooking workers gasped as Wario stomped on his Power Band.


Pit and Joker had a second bowl of orange curry ready to go, and they brought it to the police station for Magolor to consume. Magolor had the bowl in his hands and scarfed it down like it was his last meal on earth.

"In case you couldn't tell, the buddy cops hardly feed me," Magolor explained to Pit and Joker in an apologetic manner, wiping away some orange substance from his mouth. "Sonic is my only source of food."

"Then that curry should be a hearty lunch for you," Joker said to Magolor, who was inching towards the door as he was prepared to head back to the cafe. "Well, Pit and I better..."

"Wait! Stay a bit longer. I wanna speak with Pit." Looking back at Joker with worry - only for Joker to beckon to him - Pit nervously approached Magolor.

"Look man, if you wanna eat me I'm not for sale..." Pit said to Magolor, as he thought of many residents more edible than him. Lucario was at the top of his list, oddly enough. "...also, I don't taste that good. Trust me, I tasted my own skin."

"I'm not gonna eat you, silly! I just wanted to ask about Kirby."

"Ask what about Kirby? How it's unfair that he gets to go on a trip and I don't?"

"Wanted to know what he thinks of me. Does he still want to be my friend?"

"Well, he does talk about you occasionally during work. Lemme tell you something real quick..."

"You know, Pit, you might want to stick around," Joker encouraged Pit, as he pulled out a chair for the angel to sit in. Placed it next to Lavenza.

"But you literally got on me for missing time from work. And you want me to miss time now?"

"At least I'm authorizing you to miss time. Big difference. Now, why don't you sit down, and share with Magolor what Kirby said about him?"

Joker: On the one hand, I don't want Pit to be absent, but on the other hand I wish that he wasn't there. It's sort of like a two-edged sword.

"I'll keep him from leaving," Lavenza assured Joker, who had Lavenza's word as he exited from the police station. Left with no choice, Pit sat in the empty chair as he turned to face Magolor.

"I'ma try to keep this short and simple..." Pit said to Magolor, as he had a job to get back to. If only he had that same energy on most other days.


All done with his meal at Toadstool Cafe, Mario took his family to Bowser's Castle area of Super Nintendo World to partake in the Mario Kart challenge. Jennifer and Lou couldn't be in the challenge since they were too young, so Mario and Peach had to carry the family mantle. They wouldn't be alone, for the Inklings were playing with them.

"Shoot Wendy, shoot-a Wendy!" Mario barked orders at Peach, as he and his wife were wearing AR headsets. They were seeing all sorts of Mario Kart racers in front of them, as they fired green shells.

"I'm trying!" responded Peach, whose aim was terribly off as she was only striking the Fish Bones that were underwater. Mario was ahead of Peach, but frankly not by that much.

"I have no idea what I'm doing, but I'm having so much fun!" shouted the female Inkling, who was firing shells all willy-nilly not caring who she struck - or if she struck anything at all. The adrenaline rush she had was unreal.

"It's not about-a having fun - it's about winning!" shouted Mario, only obsessed with winning today because it was his birthday. If he lost the Mario Kart challenge, it would be a bad look for him. "Peach, please don't drag me down!"

"I thought that we weren't playing on teams?" assumed Peach, now taking the female Inkling approach of firing green shells in every which direction. She did get one racer, so that was a plus.


Inside Bowser's Castle away from the Mario Kart ride was Luigi's family, as Luigi and Daisy were babysitting Mario's kids. Luigi was checking out the stuff that was on display, which included several Mario Kart trophies.

"Gonna win-a that cup one day," Luigi guaranteed to Charles as he pointed at a trophy up above, which featured the Universal globe. That Universal Cup trophy was gonna be Luigi's soon, or so he believed.

"You can't even win the Mushroom Cup," Daisy joked with Luigi, who took his wife's joke seriously as he looked at her with a death glare. Daisy was laughing it up. "I was just kidding, relax!"

"Well, please don't joke-a like that, sweetie. It hurts-a my self-confidence." As Luigi led Charles away from the Universal Cup trophy display, he would bump into Yoshi, who was holding his picture frame. "What's that you got there, Yoshi?"

"Just a picture frame of Chris Pratt," replied Yoshi as he held up the picture frame of the famous actor. It was a regular picture, with no Mario hat or mustache. "I've been dying to get his autograph."

"Why on earth would Chris Pratt be at..." Daisy was about to ask Yoshi, only to be shushed by Luigi. The princess kept silent as she allowed Luigi to handle the conversation.

"Have you tried-a the Jurassic World ride?" Luigi asked Yoshi, who looked at Daisy and gave her a wink. Daisy got the hint, stifling her laughter. "He's probably been going on that same-a ride over and over again the entire day."

"Haha, I can totally see him doing that!" replied Yoshi, envisioning Chris Pratt riding the Jurassic World ride from daybreak to sundown. "He's so cool. Thanks for the tip, Luigi."

"No problem." So Yoshi took his picture frame with him, as he was about to leave Super Nintendo World and venture out to another locale at Universal Studios Hollywood. As Yoshi left, Luigi smiled while Daisy let out a laugh.

Luigi: Yoshi will be on that Jurassic Park ride all day in the hopes-a of finding Chris Pratt. It'll be hilarious. We might even leave-a him behind.


Cloud remained possessed by the Mask of the Lunar Eclipse, now dancing outside in front of Anna's shop. Anna and Master Hand were huddled together, with Anna recording Cloud on a phone that Master Hand had given him.

"I'd love to have my phone back today, please," Chrom said to Anna, standing off to the side, as Master Hand quietly shushed the prince. Chrom groaned.

"You stop the recording by accident, I'm closing this shop down..." Master Hand threatened Anna, using a scare tactic to ensure that the merchant wouldn't screw up the recording. But Anna was adept at recording with a phone, unlike Chrom.

"...and done!" Anna quietly announced as she tapped the stop button, with Cloud's dancing now on video. The merchant then handed Chrom back his phone. "Send that video to Isabelle at your earliest convenience."

"Why did Isabelle have to say no...?" wondered Chrom as he got his phone back, before going back inside the mansion. Master Hand hoped that Chrom would send the video, or else he would annoy him to no end.

"I heard that Cloud was a good dancer, but this is hilarious!" Master Hand discussed with Anna, while Cloud was dancing out in the open for everyone to see. Was Cloud even that aware of his surroundings?

"Yet you called both Tifa and Aerith liars," Anna smirked in response, and would you know it, one of the two ladies showed up. Tifa, who had just returned from her jog, came to the mansion and was perplexed by Cloud.

"What in the...?" Tifa furrowed her brow as she came over to Cloud, who was tribal dancing without a care in the world. Cloud hardly sensed Tifa. "...what has gotten into you, Cloud?"

"You and Aerith were right, Tifa - Cloud can really go!" Master Hand said to Tifa, forgetting that he was supposed to keep his voice low so as to not disturb the possessed Cloud. But Tifa was about to see if Cloud was really possessed at all.

"That mask must have him feeling himself." Tifa was readying a punch, as she anticipated Cloud getting close. Once Cloud got close enough, Tifa punched him in the face, and then something amusing happened.

"Ow! Not so hard, Tifa," Cloud shouted in pain as he stopped the tribal dancing, causing both Master Hand and Anna to gasp. As Cloud stood still, Champion Link came outside with his Master Sword.

"Cloud! I'm here to save you!" shouted Champion Link as he ran down the porch steps, charging at Cloud with his Master Sword. The Hylian used his sword to knock the mask off of Cloud's face.

"Champion Link, wait for me!" Researcher Zelda called out, exiting the mansion and going down the porch steps as the mask fell on the ground. Champion Link stood over the mask and was about to stab it with his sword, until...

"Not another move!" someone shouted from afar, as Champion Link looked up and saw Yuri running over along with Miu. Yuri scooped up the mask before Champion Link had a chance to stab it.

"I was just about to destroy that mask," Champion Link said to Yuri, certain that he was on the cusp of destroying an evil force. "Why did you have to take it?"

"One thing I should mention about this mask..." said Yuri, nearly out of breath as she was huffing and puffing a bit. "...this Mask of the Lunar Eclipse...is only meant to make you see the dead."

"So it doesn't make you do some crazy ritual dance?" Researcher Zelda asked Yuri, feeling a bit miffed that the young woman left out this vital information.

"Seems like you cracked the code. Congratulations," Cloud sardonically congratulated Researcher Zelda, who felt pretty stupid; Champion Link was very much in the same boat.

Yuri: Would've told Researcher Zelda the full lore of the mask, but she was super gung-ho about doing a favor for Champion Link. On another note, Cloud was really committed to his bit.

"Does that mean you weren't possessed all along?" Master Hand asked Cloud, who was rubbing his face grateful that the mask was fully off. "Anna and I won't feel bad for laughing at your expense?"

"I acted 'possessed' to keep Champ off my scent," explained Cloud as he looked over at Champion Link, who was looking down at the ground with his Master Sword in hand. "Plan was a success up until now."

"Just wanted to help out in any way I can..." muttered Champion Link; understanding where the Hylian was coming from, Cloud went over to Champion Link and placed his hand on his shoulder.

"Word of the wise - don't be such a tryhard. Maybe Link can show you how to not do that." Cloud was about to enter the mansion, only to be stopped when Tifa jumped in front of him.

"Where are my thanks for 'saving' you?" Tifa asked Cloud whimsically, with a smirk on her face as she leaned in close to Cloud like how Aerith would.

"Oh, uh, thanks Tifa. Appreciated it." Having given Tifa her thanks, Cloud went on inside the mansion as he looked to continue the rest of his day.

"Sorry for not filling you in on the mask's lore," Yuri apologized to Researcher Zelda, watching as Champion Link put his Master Sword away and went on inside the mansion. "Didn't want to say anything that would hamper Champion Link..."


Mario honestly didn't want to leave Super Nintendo World. To him, it was like his second home - his home away from home. But the attraction had a limit of people that it could allow, and the workers argued to Mario that he and his crew had to leave.

"No! You can't do this to me!" shouted Mario, holding onto a mushroom platform for dear life as Little Mac and Doc Louis were both pulling on him. "I have so much left-a to do..."

"You have literally done everything here," Little Mac said to Mario, slightly amused at how a day of fun reduced the plumber to a bratty little kid. "Went to the gift shop, ate some food, did the key challenges, went on that Mario Kart ride..."

"But I haven't been-a to the restrooms. Let me check-a out the restrooms just once!" Mario hadn't been to the restroom once today? His bladder must be pretty strong.

"Okay, but just this once," instructed Doc Louis, as he and Little Mac released their grip on Mario. Once Mario let go of the mushroom platform and was back on his feet...he immediately ran to the Toadstool Cafe. "Mario!"

"He just wants some takeout food," Hunter defended Mario, who ran inside the Toadstool Cafe with Little Mac and Doc Louis hot on his tail. Hunter was holding his green Luigi cap, as Spyro came over to speak with him.

"Please tell me you paid for that yourself," Spyro asked Hunter, hoping that the cheetah had asked someone for money. The way that Hunter was looking to the side suggested otherwise.

"Obviously, I did, or I wouldn't have this cap." Spyro wasn't the only person suspicious about Hunter, as an eavesdropping worker confronted the cheetah.

"Show us your receipt," the worker commanded Hunter as he held his hand out. Hunter dug into his imaginary pocket to pull something out...only to then make a run for it a split second later.

"Sure aren't doing yourself any favors," Coco said to Hunter, who was tackled to the ground by the worker. The worker wrangled with Hunter over the green Luigi cap, eventually obtaining it.

"Uh, Coco, Crash just hit Luigi below the belt!" Crunch called out to the blonde bandicoot, and it wasn't the actual Luigi that was affected. It was the person wearing the Luigi costume, who was on the ground in pain as Crash proudly stood over him.

"Seriously, Crash?" Coco went over to reprimand her brother, who was celebrating his "victory" over the costumed Luigi by shaking his clasped fists. Hitting a park worker in the groin was one way to risk getting a temporary ban.

"I like how stuff is going down just when we're about to leave," Ganondorf said to Rosalina, standing with the mother of Lumas as he watched the chaos unfold. Ganondorf loved seeing chaos, and he got his fix in for the day.

"And I liked the high score I got from doing those key challenges," responded Rosalina, bringing Ganondorf's attention to a leaderboard that had her name on it near the top. Ganondorf couldn't care less as he waved off Rosalina.

"You mean the stupid key challenges that can't be done without a Power Band? Why is that Power Band so important anyway..."

"Aw, you're only upset that you can't get that Power Band on your wrist. But it's fine; I defeated Bowser Jr. after I got all the keys, just for you."

"WHERE IS MY SON BOWSER JR?!" bellowed Bowser, refusing to leave - or let anyone in Mario's traveling party leave - until his favorite son was found. Bowser had already searched every nook and cranny of Super Nintendo World.

"He'll show up soon, don't you worry," Peach assured Bowser, who was willing to burn Super Nintendo World to the ground with his flame breath. He'd do the same to the rest of Universal Studios if he had to.

"Oughta care a bit more, Peach; Bowser Jr. is your biological son!" Bowser got Peach to look at him funny, and Bowser shrugged in response. "I mean, you never outright denied it..."

"Come on, Dr. Cortex! Give me just one-a nibble," Mario said to the evil genius, as he followed him out of the Toadstool Cafe. Little Mac and Doc Louis were behind Mario.

"The cafe promised me a free burger because of my excruciatingly long wait time," Cortex informed Mario, being super protective of his grub by holding the paper bag it was inside close to his chest. "It's for me, and me only!"

"I can always buy-a you another burger. Let me have-a that one!" Sensing what Mario was about to do, Little Mac and Doc Louis took a hold of the plumber and dragged him away from Cortex. "I can buy you another!"

"Good riddance..." Cortex was about to take the burger out of his bag and eat it, only for Bowser to swat the bag out of the evil genius's hands. Fortunately for Cortex, his precious Mario Burger was still protected.

"No one is eating anything until I can find my son!" shouted Bowser, as he saw a worker eating from a bag of trail mix and knocked the bag out of his hand. "Show me where he is!"

"Globox enjoyed Harry Potter World!" gleamed Globox, finally arriving at Super Nintendo World while holding his magic wand. Accompanying him was a certain turtle creature. "Wouldn't you think so, turtle kid?"

"I have a name, you know..." replied the turtle kid, who was in fact...Bowser Jr! Bowser went wide-eyed when he saw Bowser Jr, as he ran up to the young Koopa and hugged him.

"MY BOY! Bowser Jr, I've found you!" rejoiced Bowser as he picked up Bowser Jr. and swung him around, making for a heartwarming display of embrace. "Thought I lost you forever..."

"Haha, take it easy pops!" Bowser Jr. would be placed back on his feet, as Bowser wiped away a happy tear from his eye. "Didn't mean to alarm ya, but Globox needed a plus-two."

"Azarath Metrion ZINTHOS!" exclaimed Globox, proving Bowser Jr's point as he cast a spell on a few workers with his magic wand. The concerned workers took a couple of steps back from Globox.

Bowser Jr: The guys who were dressed us as minions accompanied us to the World of Harry Potter. Globox genuinely thought that he had those three under his spell. When in actuality, they were just chaperones...not just for me, mind you.

"So...does this mean I can eat my burger now?" asked Cortex as he picked up his paper bag, checking to see if his Mario Burger was in one piece. Which it was, much to Uka's disappointment.

"It's time-a for us to head out," replied Peach, before looking around for Mario...and soon looking up and finding her husband on the ledge where those four gold coins were. "Really, Mario?"

"Five-a more minutes?" Mario kindly asked Peach, who gave Mario a stern look; Mario sighed as he scaled down from the ledge. "Let me do the roll call..."


Joker was so busy at Cafe Leblanc, that he totally forgot about Pit at the police station. The young man went to go check on the angel and saw him having a friendly conversation with Magolor.

"You're so warm and friendly compared to Dimentio's guys," Magolor said to Pit in a complimentary manner, enjoying every minute spent with the angel. "They almost want nothing to do with me!"

"Maybe it's because you stink," joked Pit, causing Magolor to do a sniff test and sniff his armpits with his nonexistent nose. It was Joker's first time today seeing Pit in happy spirits.

"Having a great conversation, you two?" Joker asked Pit and Magolor, glad that he killed two birds with one stone today. "Feel free to return to the cafe when you feel like it, Pit."

"Got it!" responded Pit, as Joker left from the doorway returning to the cafe; Pit returned his attention to Magolor a second later. "As I said, Kirby hopes you do the right thing, and ditch Dimentio, Magolor."

"I hope so too..." said Magolor, having taken Pit's words as a sign that Kirby was considering him as a friend. That was all he could ever want.


Mario and his crew were out of Super Nintendo World, as each and every person had enjoyed their time there. For Mario, it was a birthday well spent - and since the day was still young, he was most likely going to remain in Universal Studios Hollywood until dusk.

"Think we're missing somebody," remarked Fox as he scanned the entire group, leading Mario to fret that he missed someone during the roll call. "Where the heck is Yoshi?"


Yoshi happened to be at the Jurassic World ride, asking folks repeatedly for the whereabouts of Chris Pratt. Eventually, the green dinosaur was kicked off the ride by the ride operator.

"Chris Pratt is NOT at Universal Studios Hollywood," the ride operator kindly informed Yoshi, who raised his finger as he was about to ask a question. "And he will not be here tomorrow either."

"Then email it is..." responded Yosi, admitting defeat as he walked away from the ride operator with his Chris Pratt picture frame. "...I can make electronic autographs a thing."

Yoshi may not have gotten a chance to meet Chris Pratt, but he was fortunate to know a guy perhaps cooler than Pratt himself...Mario.