Half and Half
This set of two DVDs includes final seasons of the two television series (which are actually part of the same show; most episodes feature a segment from both franchises). Captain N: The Game Master follows the adventures of Kevin Keene and his VG comrades through a neverending variety of different videogame worlds—from Final Fantasy to Castlevania to even Tetris. Super Mario World, on the other hand, is a continuation of the Super Mario Bros. series of cartoons (immediately preceded by the Super Mario Bros. 3 variety), set this time in Dinosaur World, which is populated by broken-English-speaking cavemen and a rather embarrassing rendition of Yoshi (but hey, it works). Featured on the set are seven episodes of Captain N (now only ten minutes apiece) and thirteen segments of Super Mario World (also ten minutes in length).
Super Mario World
Super Mario World is definitely the focus here, as there are more segments of it in total, and generally they’re more entertaining than the selection of Captain N episodes included. A few of the episodes are pretty disappointing (most notably Born to Ride, in which Yoshi runs away to join a gang bent on Mario and Luigi’s destruction), but for the most part they’re at least entertaining. They’re definitely produced with a younger audience in mind, and unlike other kids’ shows from the time (such as Animaniacs), which are undeniably amusing for all ages, older viewers will find that these shows are just a little too heavy on the cheese for their liking. The low point of every episode is the short musical number, which invariably features some pretty ridiculously bad song work (though kids will enjoy it, somehow).
Apart from that, however, there is some more sophisticated humor scattered throughout the show—most of which is concentrated within the episodes featuring King Koopa, which are already the best of the bunch regardless. The Koopa Kids make occasional appearances as well, but nothing beats good old dad, who straddles the line between despicable villain and lovable source of comedic relief quite gracefully. Koopa always manages to communicate his “evil” plan with a hefty dose of intelligent humor and alliterative spice; he honestly isn’t featured enough on this DVD set.
Even still, the nucleus of the series is the Mario Bros., usually joined by Princess Toadstool and newcomer Yoshi, and sadly abandoned by Toad. Their adventures never stray too far from Dinosaur Land in Super Mario World, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t some pretty creative tales. Amongst all thirteen of the episodes on the set, here are my personal favorite segments from the Mario World array:
· King Scoopa Koopa – In a poke against McDonald’s and the rest of the fast food trend that has swept American society, King Scoopa Koopa follows Koopa’s plan to conquer Dinosaur Land through the introduction of an addictive (yet thoroughly unsavory) food stand that sells a greasy variety of snacks, featuring his own Egg Scoopa Koopa sandwich. Mario, Luigi, and Yoshi (along with the rest of the village) quickly succumb to Koopa’s plan and gorge themselves with Scoopa Koopa sandwiches, but before long it’s obvious that these things will give you more than just arterial plaque—they actually turn you into a chickadactyl! Mario and the Princess rush to rescue their Gallusized peers, complete with a clever reference to Dr. Mario and the usual hearty helping of gaming references. This is my personal favorite episode of the bunch.
· Mama Luigi – Although this is the last episode on the set, it’s actually written as though it’s the first installment in the Super Mario World cartoon series. Yoshi asks Luigi to tell him a bedtime story, and Luigi elects to retell the tale of his finding baby Yoshi during the Mario Bros.’ first trip to Dinosaur Land. A wide variety of environments and a focus on fast-paced adventure from start to finish, this episode seems fit for a dreamy bedtime story, and will have videogame fans smiling contentedly at all of the different elements accurately realized.
· Rock TV – King Koopa’s got another crazy plan, and this time it involves using television to rot the brains of the cavemen living amongst him. There’s just one problem: television hasn’t been invented yet. So Koopa quickly throws together a bunch of boxes powered by magikoopas, all of which syndicate the same diabolical propaganda. Fortunately, Koopa’s production quality is shaky at best, and a design flaw in the Mario Bros.’ television set leads them to dispose of it in a nearby lake. While I didn’t enjoy it quite as much as the above two episodes, this one is full of character, and good number of laughs, too. Interested in a remote? Koopa says you’ll have to get on the waiting list; it’ll be another few thousand years before it’s invented.
Captain N: The Game Master
The Captain N assortment of segments is unfortunately the worst of the series. They suffer from lackluster animation (which pales in comparison to that of the first two seasons of the show), uninspired storylines, and an overly condensed sensation arising from the fact that the show has essentially been trimmed from the original 22 minutes in the first two seasons all the way down to around ten. Even the best of the seven Captain N episodes is hardly as entertaining as the worst Super Mario World cartoon. Nonetheless, I’ve chosen my favorite of the seven, and it’s honestly the only one worth mentioning:
· The Fractured Fantasy of Captain N – In the land of Final Fantasy, Captain N is hypnotized into believing that he’s actually evil. A helpful (yet cunning) witch named Matoya informs Mega Man and Kid Icarus that in order to resuscitate him, they’ll need the magic of the light crystal. Unfortunately, this crystal is closely guarded by Astos’ minions. This episode is at least entertaining, but it still suffers from the same issues as all the rest of the Captain N segments in this set. Nevertheless, it’s probably the best one here.
Sound/video quality-wise, these shows are virtually untouched from their original form, and that isn’t exactly a good thing. The video has an aged look to it and artifacts are frequently noticeable. In terms of extras, there’s almost nothing here at all… not that it’s expected that there would be if you consider the source material. So if you’re buying this DVD for anything beyond the original content, you might want to reconsider.