Vivian

"I'm... I'm sorry Sis. This Mario is the only person who's ever been kind to me..."

- Vivian

Vivian is a major character in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. Vivian originally worked as a member of the villainous Shadow Sirens alongside her sisters, Beldam and Marilyn. Later, Vivian defects from the Shadow Sirens and joins Mario as his fifth party member. Although she suffers from an inferiority complex, throughout the events of the video game, Vivian's character develops as she learns to respect herself.

Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
Vivian's first appearance in the game is during the interlude following Chapter 1, during which she and her two sisters are sent by Sir Grodus to ambush Mario in the Boggly Woods. When Mario arrives there, however, he learns that the picture they were to use to identify him was misplaced by Beldam, who is quick to blame Vivian for the loss. Mario is forced to battle the sisters when he comes to claim Flurrie's Necklace, which Vivian had found in the woods. Upon her defeat, she departs with Marylin and Beldam, leaving the necklace behind.

After Mario's name and body are stolen by Doopliss, Vivian appears in Twilight Town alongside her sisters, who plan to defeat Mario using a Superbombomb. When the weapon turns up missing, however, Vivian is once again blamed and left to search for it. When Mario finds the bomb and returns it to her, it turns out to be broken, but she thanks him nonetheless for his help and, after learning of the theft of his identity, resolves to return the favor by helping him, unaware that he is truly Mario. Using her powers, Mario eventually learns Doopliss's real name, and the duo corners him at the top of Creepy Steeple. Upon learning Mario's identity, Vivian is reluctant to assist in the ensuing battle, though she returns to his side after three turns, having decided that he treats her better than her sisters and is more deserving of her help. Following Doopliss's defeat, Mario stands up for Vivian when she is questioned by his other partners; she ultimately thanks him by handing him the Crystal Star and thus joins the team.

At the very end of Mario's adventure, Beldam and Marilyn end their villainous activities and promise not to mistreat Vivian again. When Mario is preparing to leave Rogueport, Vivian is about to tell Mario that she has a crush on him, but decides otherwise, saying that she thinks he and Princess Peach will make a good couple.

Super Paper Mario
In Super Paper Mario, Vivian appears as a Catch Card won by winning the Duel of 100 in the Sammer's Kingdom. Francis also has a Vivian plush doll and there is a painting of her in Mario's house.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl
In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Vivian appears as a Sticker.

Powers and Abilities
Outside of battle, Vivian possesses the same ability Lady Bow has in Paper Mario, but Vivian's works in a more interesting effect, as instead of literally turning invisible, Vivian can pull Mario into their shadow, where they can hide and nothing can get them. This allows them to get past objects that move over them, and avoid sight from enemies and their attacks. Vivian possesses the strongest magic of any partner in the game.

Attacks and Stats
At Initial Rank (-), Vivian has 15 HP. At Super Rank (*), Vivian has 20 HP. At Ultra Rank (**), Vivian has 30 HP. Vivian is one of the most versatile characters in the game.

Gender
In the Japanese version of Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, Vivian was said to be a male. It is openly stated in Vivian's character description, which is roughly translated as "One of the shadow group, Vivian appears to be a girl but is really a boy." (in Japanese: 「カゲ三人組の一人だった　オンナのコのようで　ホントは　オトコのコ」). Additionally, Goombella's Tattle reads: "That's Vivian. Of the shadow group, she's the youngest sister... er, brother." (in Japanese: 「『ビビアン』よ　カゲ三人組の一人で　いちばん下の妹　・・・じゃなくて　弟ね」).

While Beldam uses the term "majotachi" (meaning a group of sorceresses) to refer to her, Marilyn and Vivian as a collective, she also calls Vivian "man". Despite this, female pronouns such as "her" and "she" are used when referring to Vivian, which may be because it is considered proper to refer to transgender persons by the gender they identify themselves with. In addition, Goombella's letter indicates that her choice to be identified as female is accepted by her sisters as part of their efforts to be nice to her after the events of the game.

In the English version of Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, all references to Vivian being male are removed. All instances where attention was drawn to Vivian's gender were also removed, such as replacing Beldam's "man" quotes with "Plug-Ugly" insults. Some translations in the PAL region maintained the Japanese version's portrayal of Vivian, such as the Spanish version. In the Italian version, on the other hand, the character is female, but it is said several times in the game that she was male before, and Beldam initially contests Vivian's assertion that she is a "shadow sister" (sorelle ombra) like them. The French version keeps the original Japanese description of Vivian being transgender: like in the Italian version, with Beldam explicitly calling Vivian a boy when Vivian tried to call them "three sisters" and then cutting her off when she tries to protest.

Catch Card

 * Card Type: Rare
 * Card Description: It's Vivian from the last Paper Mario adventure. She was a great friend once she split from her sisters.
 * How to Obtain the Card: The Duel of 100 in Sammer's Kingdom needs to be completed in order to obtain all Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door partner cards from King Sammer.

Trivia

 * During the battle with Vivian, she can use Fiery Jinx when her HP is low, but when Vivian joins Mario's party, she has to be Super Ranked to learn that ability.
 * Vivian is the second of four characters in the Paper Mario series (with Lakilester being the first, Bowser being the third, and Luigi/Mr. L being the fourth) to battle Mario and join his party.
 * Vivian is the only party member in Mario's Tattle Log.
 * If the player looks through Professor Frankly's trash can after fighting the Shadow Sirens, Vivian's Tattle could be found while Marilyn's and Beldam's could not. This foreshadows that Vivian would join the party and not be rebattled with the other sirens later, as only Tattles of one-time enemies could be found in the trash.
 * Vivian also has sprite data for Super Paper Mario, even though she didn't appear in the game.
 * If the player performs Veil's stylish command after all of the enemies are defeated, no star power is awarded.