Supper Mario Broth: Special Zone, Issue 16 (Patreon)

 Welcome, everyone, to the 16th issue of Supper Mario Broth: Special Zone.  

Today, we are going to take a look at the many illustrations from a 1988 Japanese guide for Super Mario Bros. 3.

The Art of SMB3 Kanzenhan

There are several official Japanese guides for Super Mario Bros. 3, which is relatively unusual given how most Mario games, particularly later ones, only get one. The game's high difficulty and abundance of secrets meant that many players desired to have a guide, so Nintendo decided to license out the rights to several different companies. 

One of the guides is the 1988 Super Mario Bros. 3 Kanzenhan. Unfortunately, I cannot provide an ISBN for the book as it was printed without one; a wide adoption of ISBN for guides in Japan happened only around 1990. In contrast with typical guides that would provide only maps and screenshots with occasional large illustrations for chapter headings and only reusing official art inbetween (such as the Nintendo Power guide for the game), the Kanzenhan guide has many unique drawings illustrating aspects of the gameplay. It is for this reason that I have decided to isolate the drawings and present them in this article.

There are too many of them to be uploaded as individual images; thus, I have compiled all illustrations from a single chapter into one image each. The commentary will go through them right to left, top to bottom.

First, a look at the front cover:

The simplistic illustration style without shading or much detail is what allowed the artist to create so many small drawings in the guide. Note that Mario is being shot out of a cannon by Peach on the cover; this does not happen in the game and was in fact only introduced to the series in Super Mario 64 (Super Mario World if shooting out of pipes counts, as well). There are currently no instances of Mario being shot out of a cannon by Peach, although Sprixies and Toads have done it before in Super Mario 3D World and Land.

The table of contents. You may recognize this image from US media as well, particularly Nintendo Power; however, this version is not cropped as closely on the bottom, allowing a better look at the castle. For being the Water Land castle (which we can tell due to the King being a Spike-like creature, which only happens to the king of Water Land), the castle seems to be very high up in the sky and not surrounded by any water.

Now, on to the small illustrations from the table of contents up to the end of World 1 (you may want to zoom in on the image if you wish to see it in full detail):

Row 1, image 1: Raccoon Mario drawing above the dedication in the beginning of the guide.
Row 1, image 2: Most of Mario's forms in the section explaining power-ups.
Row 1, image 3: Mario pointing at a Super Leaf in the same section.
Row 1, image 4: In the Level 1-2 section, showing the infinite lives trick whereby Raccoon Mario can keep stomping Goombas coming out of the pipe and fluttering long enough for the next Goomba to spawn.
Row 2, image 1: Note Block illustration in the Coin Heaven section.
Row 2, image 2: Map of the brick structure in Level 1-3 with the hidden Note Block.
Row 2, image 3: Falling platform explanation in the Level 1-4 section.
Row 2, image 4: Explanation how to get the coins under the falling platforms.
Row 3, image 1: Explanation of autoscroll being impossible to revert in the same section.
Row 3. image 2: Image from the Level 1-4 section showing that a White Mushroom House is unlocked when finishing the level with 44 coins.
Row 3, image 3: In Level 1-Fortress, shows how to dodge the spiky ceiling (duck under the alcove)
Row 3, image 4: Kicking a Koopa shell in Level 1-6.
Row 4, image 1: In Level 1-6, showing how the platforms reverse movement when hitting the animated track endpoints.
Row 4, image 2: Shows that a Koopa Paratroopa must be stomped to reach the goal in Level 1-6.
Row 4, image 3: Larry Koopa.

Row 1, image 1: P-Switch function illustration.
Row 1, image 2: Illustration warning to slow down before Thwomps in the Level 2-Fortress section.
Row 1, image 3: Mario fighting Boom Boom in Level 2-Fortress.
Row 2, image 1: Accessing Question Blocks above Brick Blocks in Level 2-3.
Row 2, image 2: Angry Sun level illustration.
Row 2, image 3: Mario using a Twister to jump high in the Angry Sun level.
Row 3, image 1: Tip for using a Koopa Troopa shell to knock out the Angry Sun.
Row 3, images 2,3,4: Various illustrations of Buzzy Beetles/using Buzzy Beetles to open passages in Level 2-Pyramid.
Row 3, image 5: Morton Koopa Jr.

Row 1, image 1: Mario needing to decide what door to pick in Level 3-Fortress1.
Row 1, image 2: A very specific illustration; it depicts Mario grabbing the card out of the Goal Roulette in Level 3-4 and defeating Lakitu and his Spinies with it. If enough Spinies are on screen during this, it is possible to gain extra lives.
Row 1, image 3: Warning of currents coming out of pipes in Level 3-5.
Row 2, image 1: Warning of properly timing jumps on rotating platforms in Level 3-6.
Row 2, image 2: Ilustration of a Stretch in Level 3-Fortress2.
Row 2, image 3: Another very specific illustration; Level 3-Fortress2 has a Fire Flower in a Question Block but little use for it - the Stretches cannot be defeated with it. The drawing shows Mario being happy and crying at the same time.
Row 3, image 1: Warning of becoming trapped in a narrow passage in Level 3-8.
Row 3, image 2: Illustration of Mario getting a Frog Suit from a Question Block in Level 3-9.
Row 3, image 3: Wendy O. Koopa.

Row 1, image 1: Hoisting a Big Koopa shell in Level 4-1.
Row 1, image 2: Illustration of the effect of the waterfalls in Level 4-1 on Mario, keeping him down.
Row 1, image 3: A Cheep-Cheep attacking Mario in Level 4-2.
Row 2, image 1: Tip that it is possible to carry Koopa shells while flying.
Row 2, image 2: Warning of falling Spinies in Level 4-3.
Row 2, image 3: A Hot Foot in the Level 4-Fortress section.
Row 2, image 4: Another Boom Boom battle illustration.
Row 3, image 1: Frog Mario in Level 4-4.
Row 3, image 2: Illustration of the Spiny Eggs becoming Spinies when hitting ground underwater in Level 4-4.
Row 3, image 3: A Bull's-Eye Bill in Level 4-5 (known as Missile Bills at the time).
Row 3, image 4: Iggy Koopa.

Row 1, image 1: A Nipper Plant in Level 5-1.
Row 1, images 2 and 3: Showing that Mario can either pass over the dome in Level 5-1 or enter it.
Row 1, image 4: A Buster Beetle in Level 5-2.
Row 1, image 5: Raccoon Mario to show a Raccoon Leaf being available in Level 5-2.
Row 2, image 1: How to defeat a Shoe Goomba in Level 5-3 so that it leaves the Shoe behind.
Row 2, image 2: A Shoe Goomba.
Row 2, image 3: A Boo for Level 5-Fortress1.
Row 2, image 4: Mario in Level 5-Tower.
Row 2, image 5: Illustration of Mario using a vine in the sky in Level 5-Tower.
Row 3, image 1: Warning of the rapidly spinning platforms in Level 5-4.
Row 3, image 2: An illustration of Lakitu in Level 5-4.
Row 3, image 3: Mario dancing on Donut Blocks in Level 5-5.
Row 3, image 4: A Flame Chomp in Level 5-6.
Row 4, image 1: A Lakitu in Level 5-7.
Row 4, image 2: Entering the bonus area that brings Mario back to the ground in Level 5-7.
Row 4, image 3: Lava Bubbles in Level 5-Fortress2.
Row 4, image 4: Another Boom Boom battle.
Row 5, images 1 and 2: More Spiny and Lakitu illustrations for Level 5-8.
Row 5, image 3: Showing the diagonal scrolling in Level 5-9.
Row 5, image 4: A humorous illustration of Mario being acrobatic in Level 5-9.
Row 5, image 5: Roy Koopa.

Row 1, image 1 and 2: Ptooies from Level 6-1.
Row 1, image 3: Demonstration of ice physics.
Row 1, image 4: Mario on a cloud platform around blocks in Level 6-2.
Row 2, image 1: Mario on a cloud platform again. These two illustrations are a reference to mythical character Sun Wukong from the classical Chinese novel Journey to the West; who rides a cloud in the same manner. The blocks in the other image are a reference to the heavenly tower he ascends using that cloud in the story.
Row 2, image 2: Another Boom Boom battle.
Row 2, image 3: Mario running away from Roto-Discs in Level 6-Fortress1.
Row 3, image 1: Illustration for Level 6-3, which is made almost entirely of ice blocks.
Row 3, image 2: Mario being attacked by a Piranha Plant in Level 6-6.
Row 3, image 3: Level 6-8 is temperate despite being in Ice Land, which this ilustrates.
Row 4, image 1: Mario picking up a coin in an ice block in Level 6-10.
Row 4, image 2: A Muncher being thawed from an ice block in Level 6-10.
Row 4, image 3: Lemmy Koopa.

Row 1, image 1: Mario dashing past a Lakitu in Level 7-3, where successive Question Blocks release Super Stars when reached while Mario still has a Super Star active.
Row 1, image 2: Blooper Nanny in Level 7-4.
Row 2, image 1: Tip that Statue Mario can destroy Roto-Discs.
Row 2, image 2: Mario lamenting the slow movement of the platform in Level 7-6.
Row 3, image 1: Mario using a Super Star to dash over Munchers in Level 7-7.
Row 3, image 2: Luigi examining a Venus Fire Trap in a section over how those can be defeated in Level 7-8.
Row 3, image 3: Ludwig von Koopa.

Row 1, image 1: The first tank level of World 8.
Row 1, image 2: The lava-ship level of World 8.
Row 1, image 3: Mario being grabbed by one of the hands in the hand level area of World 8.
Row 2, image 1 and 2: Illustrations of Mario storming the airship fleet level of World 8.
Row 2, image 3: A Rocky Wrench riding an airship.
Row 2, image 4: Mario in Level 8-1.
Row 2, image 5: A Bullet Bill in Level 8-1.
Row 3/4, left side: These three illustrations appear throughout the guide regularly as a generic "tips" graphic. Even a guide with this many custom drawings still needs to use placeholders from time to time.
Row 3, middle: Raccoon Mario flying over the dunes in Level 8-2.
Row 3, right: Illustration from a segment on Warp Whistles, found in this section of the guide.
Row 4, right: Final illustration of the story; Mario points towards Bowser's Castle where Peach is waiting, with the second tank level of World 8 being the last obstacle left. For an unknown reason, there are no illustrations of Bowser anywhere in the guide, despite four Boom Boom battle drawings and all Koopalings being represented.

The last page has this paper doll-style illustration of Mario and his different outfits. As a joke, Peach and Luigi are also shows as Mario's outfits (although Super Mario Odyssey, 29 years later, does finally allow Mario to dress as Peach and Luigi).

The back cover. I hope this compilation was able to be entertaining.

This  concludes today's issue. Thank you very much for reading.