by Alice-Ginevra Micheli, Contributing Writer
We all have that feeling. You know the one: You finish watching a movie and something about it hits you in just the right spot. Whether it was the theme, the story, or even the characters, there was a quality about it that almost makes you want to turn around and go back a second, third, or even fourth time!
Bar the reality of living in the movie theater for the rest of your days, you turn to the rest of pop culture and start to look for other avenues where you can find that same feeling.
Well I’m here to make this plight easier for all. Each month, I take a piece of pop culture that was prevalent in the social consciousness — whether it is a movie, TV show, or something else — and then recommend other forms of media for those who want to stay in that world a little bit longer.
Welcome to your One Stop Pop, internet!
It would be difficult to think of a video game brand that is more iconic than that of Nintendo. From this, it would be difficult to think of a game within the Nintendo oeuvre that is more iconic than Mario. After the disaster that was the ‘90s attempt at a live action adaptation, it’s hardly surprising how long it’s taken for the little Italian plumber to come back onto our screens, and with the release of the new Super Mario Bros. film, my, what a splash he has made.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie has enchanted audiences far and wide, resulting in the movie absolutely SMASHING all box office expectations. This has cemented that not only will there be more, but there will possibly come a time where Mario movies are as commonplace as Marvel movies.
So if you’re one of the many who fell in love with this technicolor dreamscape, boy, do I have some recommendations for you.
Book: Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
Where better to start with our recommendations than with a book that is all about the development and passion required to create a long-standing video game?
Mario has been around for 38 years, and is showing no signs of disappearing from our pop culture conscious any time soon. So you have to imagine that there is a lot of passion, blood, sweat, tears, and potentially compelling stories that must sit behind the creation of these characters. If delving within these is something that interests you, then this book might be able to begin scratching that itch.
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow blew up BookTok last year with its intimate look into the inner and outer lives of game designers. Within, two friends — perhaps platonic, perhaps not — come together in order to take the video game world by storm. Spanning 30 years, from Cambridge, to California, this novel examines the multifarious nature of identity, disability, failure, the redemptive possibilities in play, and above all, our basic human need to connect.
Many have described this book as YA for adults, exploring all the mature themes one might be desperate to dive into in a way that is accessible for many different types of readers. Add to that how it acts as a peek behind a creative curtain the general public seldom has understanding for, and this is sure to tickle any video game geek’s fancy.
Anime: BOFURI: I Don’t Want to Get Hurt, so I’ll Max Out My Defense
Now our recommendation is about to get a lot more colorful. How do we do this, you may ask? Why, by recommending a show that will fulfill anyone’s desire to be inserted into the colorful and exciting game world as Mario himself is in the titular movie.
So where better to look for this kind of content, than in Isekai anime? For those who don’t know, Isekai is is a subgenre of fantasy in which a character is suddenly transported from their world into a new or unfamiliar one. So, in short, someone literally being transported into a brand new video game world.
However, I’m not going to recommend an entire genre, as that might be a little bit cruel, and not what we do here at One Stop Pop. Instead, might I cast your mind towards the specific recommendation of Bofuri?The concept is as follows: One night, Kaede Honjō decides to join the newest VRMMO game. However, when designing her character, she decides to gives up all other skills for the sake of being nearly invulnerable, and therefor avoid getting hurt. This results in her becoming a slow but formidable defender in combat.
It sounds more convoluted than it is, but this show is really a lovely breath of fresh air. Given that the plot surrounds characters who are just playing a game in their down time, there isn’t much in the way of stakes, beyond what a player would normally feel when being confronted with a boss battle, which is a relief in many ways.
It’s also as wholesome as a show can get, with the friendships and adventures that Kaede and her friends experience, making every viewer feel like they’re part of this convoluted family.
Video Game: Kirby and the Forgotten Land
Okay let’s get more obvious with it now. I am of course talking about recommending a game from the head studio itself — Nintendo. Now, I’m not going to go so simple as to recommend any of the Mario universe games, as I’m sure you’d have gone through and played those to your heart’s content by now if you’d wanted to.
Instead, I’m going to recommend a newer game that many would be surprised to find out actually lives in a world completely separate to the one of Toads, coins, and stars. I am of course talking about the newest Kirby game, Kirby and the Forgotten Land.
If you like anything about Mario — I’m talking the gameplay, the coloring, the cutesy characters, the extremely gentle tether of a story that it’s all based upon — you can find it all, and more in this game.
The plot begins with a strange vortex appearing one day, filling the sky. Suddenly, Kirby finds himself sucked into a strange, new world without his Waddle Dees, and must now team up with his new mystical companion, Elfilin, in order to rescue his friends and make his way back home.
That’s pretty much the gist of it, and as a bonus, this game is also available in a multiplayer mode! Fun for all ages, and with new sucky-in powers, this really is a whirl of a time.
YouTube Music Mix: Super Mario 🍄 Lofi HipHop from Lofi Culture
Now, we can’t finish off today’s article without dipping into the world of music. Mario is an especially revered video game — and now film — series when it comes to its instantly recognizable melodies.
So it’s no surprise, in the day and age of deep zoning and soulful working, that someone would create a mix designed to help people get in the zone with the sly assistance of a little nostalgia.
Lo-fi has taken the music world by storm, but in a very cool and subtle way. It’s also no surprise to find that many people’s favourite IPs have had the very same formula applied across their recognizable rhythms.
When it comes to the world of the Mushroom Kingdom, however, my personal favourite is the almost two-hour track created by Lofi Culture. You’ll find plenty that you recognize throughout its runtime, while also being lulled into a very calming and gentle presence of study/nap/work inducing music.
Not to mention that it is also paired by some very cute. and Easter egg-riddled, art by artist PIXEL JEFF, which you could easily find yourself lost in for hours at a time.
What I particularly love is that although it is within the lo-fi genre, there is still plenty of life to this mix, allowing you moments of just bopping your head along in solidarity before getting back to whatever it was you were doing.
So here we are, after having gone on an incredible, hue-tastic adventure through all the different why’s regarding The Super Mario Bros. Movie’s success. There are some chill beats, colorful platforming, joyful watching, and intimate deep dives to be had. Hopefully its successfully entertains you for at least some of the wait that will remain until Mario 2 or the Luigi’s Haunted Mansion movie releases. I shall return next month with what set the world on fire in May. So until then, thank you for visiting SiftPop’s One Stop Pop; we hope to see you again soon!
You can read more from Alice-Ginevra Micheli, and follow her on Instagram and Letterboxd