There’s no video game hero who is more well known than Mario. He has gone on hundreds of adventures through various versions of Super Mario Bros. and its spin-offs. He’s always there to rescue Princess Peach and save the day. However, there is room for other heroes in the Super Mario Bros. universe.
One obvious one is Mario’s brother, Luigi. Luigi has been apart of many of Mario’s adventures as an optional character to swap in or as a partner. But sometimes, the game’s main antagonist Bowser also gets some time in the hero spotlight. It doesn’t always happen for these two, but there are a few notable heroic moments.
10 Luigi: Finding The Key
Luigi’s latest example of heroics doesn’t come from fighting bad guys but from looking for something very important. At the beginning of Paper Mario: The Origami King, Luigi set off to find the key to Princess Peach’s castle, even though the castle itself had been uprooted and brought to a volcano. Throughout the game, Mario and Olivia discover Luigi in poor circumstances but with a key that helped the pair advance in the game, despite it not being the key he was looking for. Despite these hilarious moments, Luigi came through in the end, unlocking the castle for his brother to take on King Olly.
9 Bowser: An Unexpected Partner
Bowser is obviously not known for playing nice, which is why it was stunning to see Bowser team up with his mustached rival in Super Mario RPG: Legends of the Seven Stars. Princess Peach had found herself in trouble again after she fell into Booster Tower, landing into Booser, who is obsessed with the prospect of marrying her. Mario is locked out of the tower and is unable to get in. That is until Bowser shows up and decides to break down the door for Mario, then subsequently joining Mario on the adventure.
8 Luigi: The Prettiest Princess
Mario and Luigi have had many adventures, but no game has truly had them work together like the Mario & Luigi series. In Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, however, there were moments Luigi had to shine on his own.
For example, Luigi had to help Mario overcome Bean Fever, going into the dangerous Guffawha Ruins in order to find a cure. Despite being so scared he couldn’t jump, he pulled through. On top of this, he also temporarily posed as Princess Peach in order to trick Fawful and Bowletta into abducting him instead of the actual princess.
7 Bowser: Becoming The Sumo
Going back to Origami King, Bowser also had his fair share of helping Mario defeat the true antagonist of the story, King Olly. Being folded up by Olly early on, Bowser had to deal with walking around like a folded note. Despite this, he still was able to lead the charge against the Origami King by letting Mario borrow his ship. After this, he would later become folded into paper sumo by Olivia in order to take down Olly, who also took on a similar form. His success in the battle helped bring Mario one step closer to saving the kingdom and Toads everywhere.
6 Luigi: Searching For Mario
Luigi has had many memorable moments as a protagonist, but one game that is more known for its meme-worthiness than Luigi saving the day is Mario is Missing! This educational game for both Nintendo consoles and computer systems has Mario, Luigi, and Yoshi looking to stop Bowser from melting Antarctica. When Mario takes candy from a stranger that happens to be Bowser in disguise, he is kidnapped by the Koopa King. Luigi spends the game looking to rescue Mario while also stopping Bowser from following through on his plot.
5 Bowser: Holding Up Ceilings
During the events of Super Paper Mario, Bowser joins Mario, Peach, and Luigi as they looked to stop the worlds from being destroyed. He realized that if he didn’t help, he wouldn’t be able to rule over the world himself. During an encounter with O’Chunks, one of Count Bleck’s minions, he decides to take on the brute himself. After beating him, the gang nearly gets crushed by a falling ceiling. Bowser and O’Chunks work together to hold up the ceiling as Mario and friends pass through, allowing them to get closer to Count Bleck.
4 Luigi: Saving The World In His Sleep
The Year of Luigi was a fun one as many of the Mario games that year focused on Luigi in various ways. One of these games in Mario & Luigi: Dream Team. In this game, “Dreamy Luigi” assists Mario as they work together to save Princess Peach from a dark figure who has kidnapped her into Luigi’s dreams.
The dream version of Luigi has various abilities called “Luiginary Work,” where he can transform in ways that help Mario advance through his dreamscape. One of the most heroic moments in the game is when Dreamy Luigi grows huge to take on a boss all by himself.
3 Bowser: A Mustached Koopa King
This may not count as a heroic moment for Bowser himself, but without him, Mario and Peach likely would not survive the final series of events in Super Mario Odyssey. After crashing Bowser and Peach’s wedding and defeating Bowser in an underground arena, the core of the moon begins to collapse. With Bowser knocked out, Mario throws Cappy at Bowser’s head to take over the Koopa King’s body. In the sequence of events, Koopa Mario is able to carry Peach back to the service of the moon before they perish.
2 Luigi: Defeating King Boo
Luigi has saved the day many times, but nothing compares to the three times in which he dealt with spooky places and took down King Boo in the Luigi’s Mansion series. The original game has Luigi receiving a notice that he won a mansion through a contest he didn’t partake in. Nonetheless, Luigi goes there only to find out the mansion was an illusion for King Boo to capture Mario and Luigi. With Mario trapped in a portrait, Professor E. Gadd provides Luigi with a vacuum device to take on the ghosts and rescue Mario. Overcoming his fears in all three games, Luigi has earned the hero tag.
1 Bowser: The Protagonist
Bowser being a protagonist is incredibly odd, but in Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story, he takes on that role along with the usual two plumbers. After Fawful convinces Bowser to eat a “Lucky Mushroom,” Bowser goes to Peach’s Castle and sucks up almost everything in sight, including the Mario Bros. and Princess Peach. Looking to stop Fawful from conquering the Mushroom Kingdom and Bowser’s Castle, Bowser sets forth on an adventure while Mario and Luigi work to keep Bowser going strong while they’re inside him. Bowser still gets his butt kicked in the end, but that’s after saving everyone.
NEXT: Mario: 5 Best Bowser Boss Fights In The Series (& The 5 Worst)
