The Fish That Should've Gotten Away
"The Fish That Should've Gotten Away" is the first comic ever created in Valiant Comics's Nintendo Comics System imprint and one of the Super Mario Bros. comics. Its title is a parody of the term "the one that got away," which is used in fishing to describe the loss of a catch.
Plot synopsis
Mario, while leaping over a lake from a pier, begins to bemoan the fact that he is being chased by a large horde of enemies. However, Mario looks on the bright side of things, believing that nothing else could go wrong for him today.
Suddenly, after he stomps on a Clawgrip and avoids a Piranha Plant, Mario is surprised to see a talking fish, who introduces himself as Stanley the Talking Fish, and follows Mario. Oblivious to Mario's predicament with the dozens of nearby monsters, Stanley begins to pester Mario about his girlfriend, Barbara the Bush. Stanley asks Mario for advice about his relationship with Barbara, as some Trouters begin to tell Mario to ignore the talkative Stanley, while trying to eat him.
Managing to reach some nearby land, Mario begins trying to get Stanley to go away while avoiding various creatures, with Stanley still wanting dating advice. Seeing a nearby Warp Pipe, Mario jumps into it as Stanley still tries to talk to him.
Inside the Warp Pipe, Mario finds himself in a dark area filled with speaking trees and bushes, who, at the mention of Stanley, begin to swoon and ask Mario if he knows Stanley. Mario tells the nearby bushes that of course he knows Stanley; he taught him everything he knows.
Characters
- Mario
- Stanley the Talking Fish
- Hammer Brothers
- Venus Fire Traps
- Shyguys
- Beezos
- Spinies
- Trouters
- Clawgrips
- Gunions
- Fryguys
Notable mistakes and errors
- Excluding Stanley, the Trouters featured in the comic have light-purple fins and lips, though later appearances depict the fins and lips as yellow. Additionally, the Gunions in the comic are colored green instead of red, while the Fryguys are colored completely yellow.
- In The Best of Super Mario Bros., the symbol on Mario's cap changes from pink to blue throughout the comic.
Names in other languages
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| French | Un poisson nommé Stanley[1] | A fish called Stanley | |
| German | Der Fisch, auf den man verzichten könnte[2] | The Fish, that could have gotten away |
Notes
- According to an info page in Nintendo Comics System No. 1, the story was drawn live in front of journalists during a January 1989 conference where Valiant announced the Nintendo Comics System line. Held at the defunct New York Palladium, the artists drew on larger boards and used darker inks on the background to make the art more visible to the attendants.[3]
- Some of the enemies chasing Mario in the comic are Gunions, making this the only Super Mario Bros. comic to include any Super Mario Land enemies, outside of the Game Boy comics.
- At the start of the comic, Mario says that he is being chased by Sparks. Despite Mario saying this, no Sparks actually appear in the comic.
References
- ^ 1992. Super Mario Bros. no 1. Comics USA / Glénat (French). ISBN 2-87695-184-3. Page 45.
- ^ Super Mario Bros. Video-Comic-Magazin
- ^ Nintendo Comics System Book Collection
