YMMV / Super Mario Bros. Z

General

• Can't Un-Hear It: Due to how well the voice works for the character, good lucky trying to not imagine Andrew Chandler's Cooler voice when reading anything else involving Turbo Mecha Sonic/Metallix.
• Follow the Leader: Years after Super Mario Bros. Z was canceled and especially after the reboot was announced, several sprites series were inspired by it, especially crossovers of Mario and Sonic, which was no surprise due to its popularity. However, a decent chunk of them failed to last more than three episodes because they used the same premise as Super Mario Bros. Z in their first episode: they would start with Mario in a fighting tournament (Super Mario Bros. Calamity at least started with a picnic, but the premise wasn't that different apart from that, and this series only lasted a single episode), then have Mario fighting Bowser, who then obtains a new form and nearly kills Mario before Sonic and a few of his friends show up to change the tides of the battle. As for the fight scenes, while they were praised overall, some shots and attacks seemed copied from Super Mario Bros. Z, which caused most of those series to end up being too similiar to SMBZ overall or even to each other, causing difficulties in standing out from both it and each other and even resulting in some accusations of plagiarism by some viewers.
• Hilarious in Hindsight:
  • One of the visual gags in Episode 3 has Mario meet the Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros. 3, and Super Mario World version of himself. 9 years later, Super Mario Maker would have the three come together with Mario's modern look in the same place.
  • The Yoshis in this series are compared to Namekians from Dragon Ball Z, especially the whole parallel that both of them had their homes destroyed by a sun-like attack. Around a year later after the Yoshi's Island arc, Dragon Ball Z Abridged came to be ... and one of the first few jokes was comparing Piccolo to a Yoshi.
  • Axem Green and Black's attack against Sonic and Shadow resembles Sonic and Tails' double spin dash from Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode II.
  • As noted on the Trivia page, had the series not been cancelled in its original run, one of the arcs would've seen the Axem Rangers return, with parts of Metal Sonic being used to create a Blue Axem Ranger. Take a wild guess what color one of the extra rangers in 2 entries from the franchise the Axem Rangers are an Affectionate Parody of (Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger and Uchuu Sentai Kyuranger, both released after the series was canceled), would be^note admittedly, a lighter shade, but still.
  • In the original run, there was a dramatic scene where Sonic triggered Shadow by bringing up Maria. Many years later, the 3rd Sonic Twitter Takeover has Shadow being (much more calmly) triggered by the question "How's Maria?", except this time it's Played for Laughs.
  • The Axem Rangers are quite obviously a stand-in for the Ginyu Force. However, unlike the Ginyu Force originally, the entire team is Killed Off for Real, including the Red Axem Ranger (Captain Ginyu, the character Red is based on, survived the events of Z). Take a wild guess what ended up happening in Dragon Ball Super when the series retold "Resurrection of F"? That's right, Ginyu gets Killed Off for Real - he even gets vaporized like Axem Red!
  • Shadow's more Vegeta-esque characterization becomes this in later Sonic games, where Sega's mandated that he essentially becomes Sonic's angry rival who doesn't work well with others. In other words, just like Vegeta pre-Character Development. Also crosses over with Harsher in Hindsight since at least SMBZ Shadow considered Rouge and Omega his True Companions; Canon Shadow wasn't even allowed do that anymore (at least until recently).
  • While Episode 2 of the reboot was in production, a fan created a version of the Yoshi versus Mecha fight where the roles are reversed, thanks to Yoshi's swallowed Emerald powering him up. After the episode premiered, it was shown to be eerily prophetic.
  • The Super Mario Bros. Movie gives us a Mook Lieutenant for the Koopas that persistently goes after Mario and nearly kills him, similar to Basilisx.
  • In Episode 1, Kamek threatens to turn Peach into a Goomba unless Mario stops attacking Bowser. Come Super Mario Bros. Wonder, one of the effects of the Wonder Flower is to turn the playable cast, among which Peach is included, into Goombas.
• Iron Woobie: Sonic has to qualify for this. In spite of having all of his friends brutally murdered and his home world all but completely destroyed by his most dangerous nemesis to date, he sure doesn't look like he's seriously affected by it, only showing his pain in small lapses from time to time. Compare him (who is fairly in character most of the time) to Shadow (who is almost completely out of character most of the time) who fits in with the below trope.
• Just Here for Godzilla: The fight scenes are undeniably magnificent, so it's no surprise that some viewers don't really care for the plot or jokes.
• Memetic Mutation:
  • The brutal beatdown of the Axem Rangers at the hands of Mecha Sonic is punctuated with a very effective use of Suddenly Voiced, and the sheer badassery of the line combined with this makes for a memetic phrase among fans.
    Turbo Mecha Sonic: I'LL CRUSH YOU!!!
    • The usage of the line in question in the IDW Sonic comic has not gone unnoticed.
  • Yoshi is about to Pay his Taxes/IRS Metallix ^ExplanationWith the meme that Yoshi commits tax fraud, a lot of commenters remarked that the brutal beatdown that Yoshi received was actually punishment for not paying his taxes, and that Metallix worked for the IRS
  • Someone turned Metallix finding Yoshi swallowing the Chaos Emerald Actually Pretty Funny into a snowclone of the "CEO of Memes Knuckles" meme.

Super Mario Bros Z (OG)

• Awesome Music:
  • The remixed Super Mario World theme, also know as the Matrix remix.
  • The Doomsday Zone, used as Turbo Mecha Sonic's No-Holds-Barred Beatdown music.
  • Show No Tears, Captain Basilisx's battle theme.
  • Back To Mad, during the intense brawl on Yoshi's Island before Turbo Mecha Sonic showed up.
    • At least two of those have some sort of meta-CMOA to them as well, The Doomsday Zone remix was originally part of an OC Remix project that played on the "old-timey radio" feel of the opening, only to rock the 'eff out. "Back To Mad" was made famous for being used in a flash animation called "Rockman Neo", which depicted a dark third generation for the Mega Man franchise (before Mega Man ZX happened, that is; Neo, incidentally, is what the Mega Man Legends series is known as in Japan).
  • The opening song used in Episode 7 and 8.
  • Crisis City, used when Sonic becomes Fire/Solar Sonic in episode 8.
• Base-Breaking Character:
  • The Big Bad himself, Turbo Mecha Sonic. Many like him as an Evil Is Cool Knight of Cerebus, but others deride him as a full-on Invincible Villain responsible for mass murder.
  • Basilisx. People were split between those who believe that he was right in calling Mario, who has had a whole history of games fighting Koopas and other enemies, out on what might be questionable actions and morality, and those who believe that Basilisx is a hypocrite with a huge case of Moral Myopia, when also considering that Bowser and the Koopas have had a long nasty history of being repeated aggressors against the Mushroom Kingdom and their treatment of other races and Mario was being the defender in trying to stop their aggressive takeover.
• Can't Un-Hear It: Super Mario Bros. Z is one of the main reasons that Mecha Sonic has a significant fan following. In absence of an official voice, this series's use of Cooler's lines effectively became the de facto voice of the character. Other fan animations and Game Mods that feature Mecha Sonic often reuse Cooler's clips, or record lines that follow that interpretation.
• Complete Monster: Turbo Mecha Sonic is a power-hungry lover of destruction who seeks the seven Chaos Emeralds to become a god. Created when Metal Sonic merged with Dr. Eggman's other Sonic robots, Mecha Sonic instantly attempted to murder his creator before crashing the Death Egg into Mobius. Realizing his taste for annihilation, Mecha Sonic wiped out nearly all life on Mobius and brutally murdered all of Sonic and Shadow's friends, including the young Tails and Cream. Travelling to the Mushroom Kingdom to seek the Chaos Emeralds, he killed an innocent Goomba and thrashed Yoshi to obtain his first two Emeralds. After butchering the Axem Rangers, Mecha Sonic blew up Yoshi's Island out of spite, nearly wiping out the Yoshi tribe and killing the Koopa Bros. in the process. Obsessed with both ultimate power and destroying everything in his path, Turbo Mecha Sonic horrifies anyone who crosses paths with him that lives to tell the tale.
• Evil Is Cool: Turbo Mecha Sonic got a following for being the most powerful character in the series, having taken down most of the other fighters on his own, often in ruthless, brutal fashion.
• Fandom Rivalry: With Ed Edd 'n' Eddy Z. Some have claimed EEnE Z is simply a ripoff of SMBZ (it's not, by the way). Lampshaded in Episode 19 of EEnE Z:
  Corey: Wait... ah shit, how many people will call this show a "Super Mario Bros. Z ripoff" for that?
• Growing the Beard: Episode 3 of the original series. At this point the stakes have been established and the writing and pacing have hit their stride. As for the animation and action sequences? The action before was decent but slightly stilted, repetitive and drawn-out. It's around this point that the action fully grew into the slick, inventive and spectacular action that defined the series that would only increase in ambition as the series went on.
• I Knew It!:
  • One of the most popular theories for how Mario would be saved from Basillix involved Luigi using the power of his Tanooki suit to recover from Basillix's stone gaze. The first scene for the unfinished Episode 9 reveals that this is indeed what was going to happen.
  • Portions of the fandom expected Alvin to cancel the original series due to how long he was taking with each episode after 6, especially when he kept insisting that he wanted to do 3 sagas in 15-episode installments. Much to their dismay, he did.
• Jerkass Woobie: It is all but outright confirmed that the reason for Shadow's current Jerkass nature is due to rage in regards to Turbo Mecha Sonic murdering Rouge and Omega, the only two people he could ever openly consider friends.
• Mis-blamed: Contrary to popular belief, Shadow the Hedgehog did not hit Mario during the fight with the Koopa Bros. in Episode 4. He was actually knocked into Mario by Black Ninjakoopa offscreen. It is an understandable mistake, though, since Shadow has hit his team-mates in other fights, including kicking Sonic into Semi-Super Metal Sonic, and kicking Mario out of his way during the battle against Semi-Perfect Turbo Mecha Sonic during the battle on Yoshi Island.
• Misaimed Fandom: There has been a good amount of fans that root for Mecha Sonic over Metal Sonic, largely due to the huge publicity the character has gotten by using this particular robotic copy as the main antagonist. However, what is overlooked is that Metal Sonic is Mecha Sonic in this continuity, just having overboard in his need to best Sonic while overthrowing the doctor, which is not unlike his role in Sonic Heroes pushed up to eleven.
• Moral Event Horizon: Turbo Mecha Sonic destroying Mobius along with its inhabitants during Sonic's recounting of his home world (Sonic's and Shadow's friends being chief among the innumerable casualties). Everything he does afterwards is just him relishing in his evilness.
• Older Than They Think:
  • Many cite this series as what elevated Mecha Sonic to Memetic Badass status online and made him so popular in the Flash animation world. While this is true, this isn't the first time Mecha Sonic was given such a role - Sonic's Quest for Power is an animation even older than SMBZ, and Alvin has cited it as an inspiration in the past. He even used the same Bass-inspired design of Cyber Mecha Sonic for Metallix!
  • In the original series' version of Episode 8, Sonic finally gets to try a Mario Bros. power up in the form of a Fire Flower, which turns him into a crimson version of himself with Playing with Fire abilities that the fans nicknamed "Fire/Solar Sonic". In fact, a fire-controlling Super Mode of Sonic called Solar Sonic had actually appeared in Sonic the Hedgehog (Archie Comics) #71, albeit as a one-off form.
• Signature Scene: Yoshi's fight with Mecha Sonic for its brutality compared to the fights in the previous episodes.
  • Mecha Sonic's obliteration of the Axem Rangers is considered one of the best fan-animated fights ever.
• Song Association: "Back to Mad" is perhaps best known because of this series.
• Strawman Has a Point: Shadow proposing to collect the rest of the Emeralds and stop Turbo Mecha Sonic over saving Peach is received with disgust. Nevermind the fact that Turbo Mecha Sonic already ruined a planet and Bowser never harms Peach.

Super Mario Bros Z (Reboot)

• Awesome Music:
  • Mario Minor by PowerGlove, the theme for the new reboot. It's fitting for the grand return.
  • The preview of the reboot series' first episode's seventh scene does not waste time generating hype. Going with the fireball fight between Mario and Bowser is Fire by Scooter. Say it with me now: one, two, three, FIRE!!
  • GaMetal's rendition of "Bowser's Rage / King of the Koopas", used during the fight with Metal Bowser.
    • In fact, Alvin also requested a remix of the Koopaling battle from New Super Mario Bros Wii. He stated that it was fulfilled as a special thanks for using the remix from above. Implications have it that this song will be used in a future episode.
  • Type-03, which serves as the score for the absolute onslaught Metallix unleashes on Yoshi. As if it wasn't perfect enough that Metallix borrowed Fulgore's sound effects.
• Broken Base: Mostly regarding the reboot. While many were glad that the series got a second chance, the news of it and the changes made split the fanbase:
  • The series being rebooted in general instead of continuing from Episode 9 of the original series. Those who were happy with this felt that Alvin would now be able to do the older episodes justice now that he was significantly better at animation than he was back then, and that rebooting the series gave him the chance to fix the issues that he and fans had with the original series. Those against it felt that the series would widely be treading the same ground for years until it got to where the original series left off and were afraid that Alvin's infamous Schedule Slip and Creator Breakdown tendencies would come back and prevent the series from even getting that far, something only exacerbated when Alvin did fall back into these habits, leading to a 5 year gap between the releases of Episode 1 and Episode 2.
  • Episode 1 changes the Mario Kart racing tournament into a Super Smash Bros fighting tournament. On one hand, fans like that this fits the Super Mario Bros. Z universe more than kart racing would, and gives the Mario Bros' amazing fighting capabilities more credence, since some found Mario and Bowser breaking into DBZ style combat in the middle of a kart race in the original run to be a little jarring. On the other hand, kart racing is a Mario series staple and served as a good contrast to how different (as in, light-hearted) Mario's world was before Metallix's appearance. Some also believe a fighting tournament isn't something that Princess Peach would advocate, as most things Mario-related aren't too violent (although Mario Strikers is an exception).
  • Turbo Mecha Sonic being redesigned into Metallix. The reboot's Metallix design was actually planned to be used in the original series as Mecha Sonic's "Perfect Form", but is now his base form. One camp of viewers are glad that the villain got a graphical upgrade to go with the new reboot. The other camp finds his older look more intimidating and uncanny in comparison to the new design. This also makes fans wonder what his new final form will be like in the reboot, and has some worried that whatever it will be, it won't hold up.
  • Alvin has admonished Episode 7 and doesn't plan to incorporate it into the reboot. His word basically amounts to [heavily paraphrased] "It was too expository and doesn't really gel with the rest of the series plot". There are those that agree with these sentiments, and those that feel that the episode worked fine and loved seeing the series go 8-bit for its signature fight scenes for an episode.
  • Similarly, Alvin doesn't plan to reintroduce Basilisx (at least, not in the first saga), saying that he took up too much screen time that could've been better reserved for Bowser Jr. and the Koopalings or Metal Mario. Basilisx being a Base-Breaking Character as is, this news resulted in mixed feelings as well.
• Character Rerailment: A common form of praise regarding the reboot is how Luigi was portrayed. The original show was often prone to playing up his cowardice too much to the point where his personality was almost contemptible. Here, he's still a Lovable Coward, but he will always step in if his friends and family are in danger.
• Improved Second Attempt: For a deadly machine built specifically to be Sonic's superior in every way combined with other models to become even more powerful, Turbo Mecha Sonic had a bit of trouble getting the Emerald from the much slower, but highly-resilient Yoshi in the original run. The reboot changes this up by giving Yoshi a power boost from the Chaos Emerald he ingested, dragging the fight on even longer and making it more believable that Metallix needed to take the fight seriously.
• Memetic Loser: Following his retirement in the reboot and replacement by Metallix, Turbo Mecha Sonic has fallen under this umbrella. This was eventually made Ascended Fanon, as in shitpost animations made by Alvin after the reboot's release, Turbo Mecha Sonic is still featured in them, this time as the Butt-Monkey to jokes.
• Signature Scene: In the reboot, we have Metallix's fight against Yoshi, significant in the reboot especially for establishing how utterly brutal fights in SMBZ will be allowed to get, along with the expanded-upon presentation and story.
• Unexpected Character: In the revived series, King K. Rool and King Boo are antagonists, the former replacing the planned appearance of Wart. The former is especially surprising considering that Donkey Kong has not appeared in the series.
• Viewer Pronunciation Confusion: Metallix didn't really have any official pronunciation, so many people went on board to saying his name as "Meta-licks", while Alvin himself confirmed it's supposed to sound like "Metallics" after seeing reaction videos of people pronouncing it as the former.

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