Talk:Paper Mario (character)

Mentions
Referencing the other games Paper Mario appeared in, even cursorily, ought to be at least mentioned, if not covered in great detail. Using only Paper Jam content makes it sound more like Paper Mario was created from wholecloth (metaphorically) than having been established prior. I liked how Anonymous added it, and was planning to do that myself. Phineas81707 (talk) 21:24, 25 February 2016 (EST)

Well there's the "Mario was previously depicted as Paper Mario in the four Paper Mario series games." blurb at the beginning of the page, but it sounds strange and doesn't explain to the reader why the article is set up to only talk about Paper Jam (spoiler: it was a community vote.

I agree in that there should probably a blurb among the lines of "Mario was depicted in this form in the previous paper mario games but this article only deals about his appearance as an individual character in Paper Jam [because]. The Transformers Wiki frequently "talks to the reader" to explain its coverage decisions (for example). Why can't we do that, again? --Glowsquid (talk) 21:42, 25 February 2016 (EST)


 * The proposal about how to cover these subjects is here, btw. Basically, the previous Paper Marios were using the paper stuff as a style but it was still regular Mario, whereas in M&L:PJ, we now have a separate Paper Mario character interacting with regular Mario. This follows the same logic as Metal Mario (form) and Metal Mario (character). It also avoids retroactively claiming the Paper Mario series was set in a pocket dimension paper world that didn't exist until the writing of M&L:PJ, which is breaking policy against speculation and stringing games together into a cohesive narrative that doesn't actually exist. It's also the easiest yet still consistent way to deal with all the info from both M&L:PJ and all the Paper Mario games. For full explanations for all these points, see the proposal. Anyway, I rewrote the intro to make it a bit more clear how we're making a distinction, but without getting into a fourth-wall-breaking discussion of our policies or whatever. -  22:30, 25 February 2016 (EST)

"But there is no indication that those games took place within the book"
Doesn't every Paper Mario game start off with a book?
 * One sign your comments with tildes ( ~ ) and two, it said "the" book, not "a" book. The sentence was referring to that specific book in Paper Jam. 18:49, 13 April 2016 (EDT)

Something opening up with a storybook style intro detailing a plot synopsis while making 4th wall humor or making a visual joke about paper or tape does not at all suggest that the world and characters in the game or story actually take place within a book in universe. The Paper Mario games take no more place inside a storybook world than the Mario&Luigi games and the platforming and party series games do. At most all it does is imply that we the players are being presented the game as if it were set in a storybook by the developers themselves ala several Disney movies and Don Bluth's Thumbelina. Nothing however suggests that in the canon of the series in universe itself that the Paper Mario games take place in any other world or are less real world than the world of all the others games in the Mario series.

Paper Jam having a cast of Mario alternate universe characters who just so happen to live in a literal world of paper because of their dimension existing within a storybook does not retroactively make the previous Paper Mario games and their characters and settings not exist in the same universe/dimension as the 2D and 3D Mario platforming games and the Party game franchise. Paper Mario itself has Luigi's Diary make specific mention to the Mario Party, Mario Tennis, Mario Golf, and Mario Kart games as well as has background setup for Luigi's Mansion as well as his future characterization as being cowardly and afraid of ghosts in later games. That's a direct link and continuity nod between the Paper Mario games and the 3D games which proves that the Paper Mario games aren't a literal world of paper but just an art style that resembles paper that take place and exist within the normal Mario world.

It's all just an art style. Paper Mario no more takes place in a different world made of paper not connected to the world of the 3D games than the 2D Mario games take place in a 2 dimensional sprite based world not connected to the world of the 3D games. Paper Jam is the exception to the rule, not the standard and that's why this wiki doesn't treat them as the same character because they canonically aren't and each game has nothing in them implying they are. 12:28 AM 19 April 2016
 * um, dude, you know we reject canonicty arguments, right? 02:33, 19 April 2016 (EDT)

Fun fact for future reference
Actually, there is proof that the Paper Mario in the original games is meant to be the Mario. Goombario references the original Super Mario Bros. while tattling Goombas, and specifically says "They've been around since you were in Super Mario Bros.!", so clearly the Mario in the original game is the same as Mario in the main series. Goombella also mentions the Mario Bros. series itself when tattling Stewart. -- 12:11, 26 April 2016 (EDT)