Mario franchise strategy guide/Bosses/Wart

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File:Wart Nintendo.jpg

Wart as he appeared in a Super Mario Bros. 2 strategy guide in the premiere issue of Nintendo Power.

Wart (マム, Mamu) is a fictional character most commonly recognized from the Western version of the video game Super Mario Bros. 2, which was derived from the game Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic, released only in Japan. Wart is the game's final boss and appears in the last room of the Level 7-2. Wart is a regal, fat frog, with a crown on his head and a robe that can scarcely conceal his big belly.

Concept and creation

File:WartEarlyAppearance.jpg

Wart's original and early appearance, as first seen in Yume Kojo: Doki Doki Panic.

Wart was the creation of Nintendo designer and producer Shigeru Miyamoto. He was decided to be an evil main villain. Miyamoto had created Wart as a over-sized frog with claws and fangs, with a white belly. To make him look more evil and menacing, Wart has to look more both like a green-ish crocodile and a frog. The fact of making him look like that, Wart loses his palm hands and feet, having claws on his hands and feet, similar to that of Bowser's claws. To envision Wart as a king, he needed some clothes on him; a big crown, a big necklace and a large blue cape (in a different color on Wart's cape of his sprites), also some golden bracelets. Not a regular king but an evil king who also wants to rule over the worlds or the secret dimension in the unnamed storybook in Yume Kojo: Doki Doki Panic, as his worlds. Wart was always referred to as Bowser's frog counterpart, or considered as Bowser's relative (mostly as his cousin) by fans, because of this.

The fictional frog character was first named マム Mamū ever since his first model Yume Kojo: Doki Doki Panic. Until developing a different Super Mario Bros. 2 in US, he was renamed as Wart. He was more popularly known as Wart than Mamu since Super Mario All-Stars or Super Mario Advance, even though he still has his Japanese name, despite the fact he was renamed as Mamu in The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening.

After claiming that the original Super Mario Bros. 2 from Japan was difficult than its predecessor, and developing another Super Mario Bros. 2, Wart was decided to be a perfect choice to have a "Bowser role" for the game, replacing the Koopa King. By the fact he was decided to be the main villain of that game, the developers turned Yume Kojo: Doki Doki Panic into Super Mario Bros. 2, as Mario game, since the original game was not that popular either. It turned to be and have a brand-new sightly different and special story, instead of the same story of kidnapping Princess Toadstool and saving her, including the Mushroom Kingdom and the Mushroom Retainers, like the previous Mario games. It was that first time when mostly Wart, Mario and Luigi crossed paths.

Since Yume Kojo: Doki Doki Panic and Super Mario Bros. 2, Wart still gained the same appearance, respectly. His new artworks were made specially for Super Mario Bros. 2. After that, Wart's appearance is sightly different, looking more like a crocodile (in the Nintendo Comics) or a toad (in The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening). He was more resembling King Koopa, especially looking like his crocodilian twin with his tail resembling Bowser's in the Nintendo Comics and was looking less bigger in The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (a toad is a bit smaller than a frog though). Despite all of that, Wart is still one of the frog race, although simply because of the "frog" term in Frog's Song of Soul.

Wart appears on various remakes of Super Mario Bros. 2, usually in Super Mario All-Stars. In Super Mario Advance, Wart finally has his first voice actor. Despite his currently only appearances in remakes of Super Mario Bros. 2, it counts him as appearing as much. In the Mario series, Wart is always referenced and mentioned.

Characteristics

According to the instruction manual to Super Mario Bros. 2, Mario has a dream in which a voice pleads for his help. The voice explains that Wart has taken over Subcon, the land of dreams, but that Mario can defeat him by taking advantage of Wart's severe allergy to vegetables. As the game progresses, however, Mario and his friends see nothing of Wart until the final room. There, Wart challenges Mario — or Luigi or Toad or Peach — by moving back and forth on his small platform, occasionally stopping to spew forth bubbles that can cause damage.

To Wart's detriment, the room also contains a strange contraption that has three funnel-shaped pipes that shoot out vegetables — both turnips that appear throughout the game, but also rare vegetables sprites like tomatoes that Nintendo presumably created for this level alone. Mario — or whichever hero the player chooses — must catch the vegetables, then throw them into Wart's mouth. If the vegetable hits the bubble, it evaporates. Another trick easily exploited by Luigi and the Princess is to stand behind Wart (he won't do anything) and throw it when he opens his mouth.

Once Wart is force-fed seven vegetables, he will blow a few puffs of smoke, turns dark, then gets KO'd. In the game's finale, the player will see the freed denizens of Subcon — a small, red-suited, white-faced fairy folk that the game's credits also refer to as "Subcon" — pass his unconscious body off screen, presumably where he is disposed of, jailed, or otherwise exiled (see Link's Awakening). In the Super Mario All-Stars version, while Wart is being carried off, a strange, red liquid (possibly the potion or blood) has formed around his eyes.

Finally, the game ends with a shot of Mario sleeping, indicating that the entire adventure may have been a dream. The game's entire cast of heroes and villains then scrolls across the screen, ending on Wart, who laughs suspiciously before fading away. Despite that ambiguous exit, Wart never appeared again in a Mario game, excluding the remake of Super Mario Bros. 2, which was featured in Super Mario All-Stars and also ported to Super Mario Advance. In Super Mario Advance, Wart spoke, and did so in an angry, grumbly voice (provided by Charles Martinet). His introduction was "I am the Great Wart! Wah, ha ha!!" and would croak "ribbit" when hit with vegetables.

Personality

Wart is known to be prideful, rude and menacing, his goal is to rule over Subcon and becoming its king. He would probably do that to the rest of the worlds or kingdoms, no matter how hard and risky it may be for him, never giving up until he succeeds, even though he ever fails at it. However, he has enough strength to conquer one whole world with his own strength and his 8 bits alongside him to increase his chances. Despite he knows himself to be really evil, Wart has a somewhat calm attitude when Link meets him, being more of a supporting character and an ally of the game for Link, unless Mario, Luigi and/or one his friends shows up instead of Link, he will start to fight them. Wart has even a great jealousy, as shown more towards Mario, in his return to attack Subcon in BS Super Mario USA, its kingdom and the king, stealing the golden statues of his archnemesis who defeated him 8 years ago, also planning for revenge on Mario if he comes back, as a threat. If anyone else challenges Wart, he will fight back.

Wart's favorite and faithful servant is Birdo, as shown in the Japanese commercial trailer of Super Mario All-Stars to be much more like close friends, except for others. It was suggested if Prince Froggy from Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island and Wart Jr. from Animal Crossing are his sons, that would be a possibility, since Wart Jr. has the same name as Wart with a Jr (Wart Jr.'s father is not mentioned in Animal Crossing series) and a frog who is a prince, would have been one of his children of the frog king with different names. However, it is said that Wart Jr. is really Wart's son because of it though it was not confirmed, as for Prince Froggy, it is unknown if he is or not.

Abilities

Wart's abilities are not much known. His most usual abilities is his strength and mutiple bubbles he spits, proving to have affiliation with water. Wart is able to use magic and to travel from dimensions to dimensions, even going to the outside world, as shown in Yume Kojo: Doki Doki Panic to struck his giant clawed hand from the storybook to kidnap the two children who read it. This may probably prove that Wart is very large in the outside world. Wart is very alergic to vegetables, very much to his weakness, which has to be thrown in his mouth six times, otherwise, any other efforts are futile, it would be impossible to injure him.

Appearances in other games

In Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic, Wart abducts the youngest brother and sister from an Arabian family by snatching them away through an enchanted storybook. This game's heroes — siblings Imajin and Lina and parents Mama and Papa — fight Wart in the same manner, however. And again, killing Wart frees the mysterious red fairy folk in this game as well.

He returns again in the Satellaview title, BS Super Mario USA. Wart can be found in every tube while being in Subspace, where his room are similar to that of the prequel's last level, Mario must fight him.

Curiously, Wart appears as a helpful character in The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening, under the name "Mamu" (Japanese for wart). He teaches Link a new song to play on the ocarina, "Frog Song of Soul." Also note that Link's Awakening, like Super Mario Bros. 2, takes place inside what is presumably a dream.

In the Nintendo GameCube title Animal Crossing, one of the possible residents players could have live in their town is a frog named Wart Jr. The nod to this Wart is a small one, as they share the same name, not appearance. Wart Jr is brown, with a bumpy looking face. Wart Jr. is however, very grumpy. In the Nintendo DS sequel Animal Crossing: Wild World though, Wart Jr. occasionally mentions his plan of conquering the world, but it is foiled by various jock characters.

In Mario Superstar Baseball, Wart is mentioned in Shy Guy's bio and especially in Super Paper Mario, where Wart is referred to Cyborg Wart, as it is a comic book owned by Francis, where he Wart has the main character of the comic book.

Non-game appearances

File:ComicWart.jpg

Wart makes an appearance in the Super Mario Bros. comics.

Wart himself never appeared in the Super Mario Bros. television series, even though his many minions were regulars during the first season. It is possible that the producers merged Wart and Bowser into King Koopa for the animated series, especially since the latter's animated design borrows some features from Wart (most notably the crown on his head and the more crocodilian face).

Wart made two appearances in Valiant Comics's Nintendo Comics System imprint. In Cloud Nine, Princess Toadstool's father, King Toadstool, looking to buy a new mattress, as his current one is too lumpy. Disguised as a bed salesman, Wart takes the King up into the clouds and advertises a bed-shaped rain cloud as a Cloud Nine mattress. As the King rests up on that cloud, it causes rain all over the Mushroom Kingdom, but is quickly patched up by the Mario Bros. Oddly, his character design resembled a crocodile rather than a frog.

In Tanooki Suits Me he appears as a prospective buyer of several priceless pieces of artwork Bowser had stolen from the Mushroom Castle's Royal Art Gallery.

Wart also appeared in book six of the Nintendo Adventure Books, titled Doors to Doom. He appeared as a skateboarder who ended up helping Mario and Luigi when they became lost in Subcon after travelling through a warp zone. Wart looked thin and more like a crocodile.