Recap / SMG 4 If Mario Ran Nintendo

Mario becomes the boss of Nintendo and helps develop their next major title.

After getting caught trying to find inside info on a new Super Mario game, Mario tries to escape by disguising himself as Shigeru Miyamoto. Unfortunately, when Reggie Fils-Aimé comes into his office, he finds himself being dragged into the development of Nintendo's next big title...

Tropes:

• Big Damn Heroes: At the end of the episode, the real Shigeru Miyamoto comes back and single-handedly saves the company by making Cooking Mario.
• Cringe Comedy: Mario's meeting with the investors runs on this, with Mario trying to come up with a new villain on the spot while the investors just stare in bewilderment.
  Mario: Okay, hear me out... (puts a picture of Barney with Dark Bowser's face onscreen) He's-he's like Bowser, but he's... oh, he's MEAN! He's a mean guy! Bad! He's... bad... bad guy... he's Bad Guy! Oh, he's Bad Guy! And he wants to open... the Dark Dimension! Oh, he's evil big bad... bad... Bad Guy.
• Epic Fail: New Super Flappycraft Party Modern Warfare & Knuckles 3D is so terrible that just showing it off instantly causes Nintendo's stocks to crash, nearly dooming the company.
• Friction Burn: The employee in charge of the game's music burns his hands off from playing the piano so fast.
• Headphones Equal Isolation: Thanks to his headphones, Miyamoto manages to spend the entire development of New Super Flappycraft Party Modern Warfare & Knuckles 3D in the bathroom, not coming out until AFTER Nintendo’s finances take a turn for the worst.
• Identity Impersonator: While Shigeru Miyamoto is in the bathroom, Mario steals his hat and tie to use as a disguise, thus kicking off the plot of the episode.
• Mean Boss: Mario, being Mario, is very rude to "his" employees while in disguise.
• The Most Dangerous Video Game: Downplayed with Super Smash Bros.: Motion Control Edition. The trailer outright encourages the viewer to use it as an excuse to give their friends a No-Holds-Barred Beatdown.
• Oblivious to His Own Description: Mario tells the crew to make a new main character for the upcoming Mario game, unaware that said character is himself.
  Mario: People are tired of seeing this ugly-ass guy, whoever he is. Draw something new!
• Paper-Thin Disguise: Mario's Miyamoto disguise consists of nothing but a top hat and tie, but he still manages to fool everyone until the real Miyamoto comes back.
• Pointy-Haired Boss: Unsurprisingly, Mario's ditziness manifests just as much in the way he runs the company. He changes the main character of the upcoming Mario game because he didn't recognize himself and blew the company's entire budget on spaghetti.
• Potty Emergency: The reason Mario was able to get away with impersonating Miyamoto is because the latter was in the bathroom the whole time (in other words, at least a day).
• Rage Breaking Point: Reggie goes into Tranquil Fury mode when he learns that his "boss" was an imposter, but he doesn't truly flip his lid until Mario tries Stealing the Credit for saving Nintendo—at which point, he evolves into "Reggiegigas" and throws Mario out the window.
• Stylistic Suck: Mario's "game", "New Super Flappycraft Party Modern Warfare & Knuckles 3D". The graphics, music, and gameplay are all blatantly crap, and it almost causes Nintendo to go bankrupt.
• Take That!:
  • The developers' meeting at the start of the episode is one toward the stagnation of the New Super Mario Bros. series, with the developers cheering when someone comes up with the idea of "New New Super Mario Bros."
  • "Super Smash Bros.: Motion Control Edition" is described as being made with "the same shitty controls from Skyward Sword."
  • Nintendo Labo is advertised as a single slab of cardboard that costs $80.