Worm (Super Mario Galaxy)
| Worm | |
|---|---|
 Screenshot from Super Mario Galaxy | |
| Species | Caterpillar |
| First appearance | Super Mario Galaxy (2007) |
| Latest appearance | Super Mario 3D All-Stars (2020) |
The worm[1] is a giant caterpillar from Super Mario Galaxy. It is harmless and has its own gravitational pull, allowing Mario (or Luigi) to walk along its body as if it is a planetoid. It lives in the Gusty Garden Galaxy, where it can be found inside one of the three apple-shaped planets during "The Dirty Tricks of Major Burrows." Each apple has at least one stump on its surface that disturbs the worm once ground-pounded, causing it to tunnel into the next nearest apple. This forms a permanent bridge between these planets that ultimately connects all three apples. Striking the stump in the final, red-colored apple causes the worm to poke its head out of the surface, allowing Mario to reach a nearby Launch Star. The worm does not appear anywhere else in the game. The spots on its body suggest it may be related to Wigglers.
The character is likely based on the culturally ubiquitous trope of the "worm in an apple,"[2] itself potentially influenced by the apple-eating larvae of widespread pest insects such as Cydia pomonella, Grapholita lobarzewskii, and Rhagoletis pomonella. A similar character from Donkey Kong 64 is also derived from this trope.
Gallery
Prerelease screenshot from the 2007 Game Developers Conference
Prerelease screenshot from E3 2007
Screenshot from Super Mario Galaxy
Naming
Internal names
| Game | File | Name | Meaning
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Super Mario Galaxy | StageData/ObjNameTable.arc/ObjNameTable.tbl | GreenCaterpillarBig | Big Green Caterpillar |
| 虫食い惑星オオムイムイ (Mushikui Wakusei Ōmuimui) | Planet-Eating Bug, Big Muimui |
Names in other languages
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | ムイムイ[3] Muimui |
A Kansai dialect slang term equivalent to「虫」(mushi, "worm" or "larval insect") | |
| French | Ver géant[6] | Giant worm | |
| German | Muimui[4] | Romanization of the Japanese name | |
| Italian | Millepiedi[5] | Millipede |
References
- ^ Black, Fletcher (November 9, 2007). Super Mario Galaxy: PRIMA Official Game Guide (Collector's Edition). Roseville: Prima Games (American English). ISBN 978-0-7615-5713-5. Page 35, 172.
- ^ "Worm in an Apple. TV Tropes (English). Retrieved November 10, 2023.
- ^ Sakai, Kazuya (Ambit), kikai, Akinori Sao, Junko Fukuda, Kunio Takayama, and Ko Nakahara (Shogakukan), editors. (October 19, 2015). 『スーパーマリオブラザーズ百科: 任天堂公式ガイドブック』. Tokyo: Shogakukan (Japanese). ISBN 978-4-09-106569-8. Page 126.
- ^ --- (October 12, 2017). Super Mario Encyclopedia - Die ersten 30 Jahre (Deutsche Ausgabe). Hamburg: Tokyopop (German). ISBN 978-3842036536. Page 126.
- ^ --- (November 15, 2018). Super Mario Bros. Enciclopedia: La guida ufficiale Nintendo (Edizione italiana). Milano: Magazzini Salani (Italian). ISBN 889367436X. Page 126.
- ^ Super Mario Galaxy, Le Guide Officiel. Prima Games, page 172
