Title card
Return of the One True Hero is the third season of Stupid Mario Brothers. It is unknown who exactly the title "One True Hero" refers to, and is likely a carryover from the early development of the season, seeing as prophesies of a "chosen two" are revealed. The season completes the dark metamorphosis the show underwent in the previous season, with less comedy and action in favor of more comprehensive drama and character development.
The season's main theme (or at least implied) is the question of whether someone is truly evil by nature or by choice, a trait present in Wario, who believed he had to seek his revenge, but he still had some good buried in him, and the Voice was once a neutral force that was gradually tainted by his master, who long ago was consumed by pride, wrath, greed, and envy from his brother's decisions, making him go insane.
Season Three starts off where Season Two left off. Mario is cornered by Wario, now armed with the Stone of Righteousness and Nether Saber, but through some unexplained intervention, Wario's weapon malfunctions and Mario is able to escape with his life. Regrouping with newcomers Solid Snake and Otacon and the others, the Mario Bros. must form a plan to stop Wario's path of vengeance before it is too late for everyone. But how did Mario escape so easily? Is there something he's forgetting? What dark secrets lie dormant in his subconsciousness and who are the mysterious voices that seem to steer them all like pawns in a game of chess?
The season began on December 3, 2008, with the airing of "This time, It's Personal!" and ended with 15 episodes on April 9, 2009, with the airing of "The End of the Beginning."
Episodes[]
| Episode | Episode Name | Release Date |
|---|---|---|
| 31 | This time, It's Personal! | December 3, 2008 |
| 32 | Like Hyrule, but not | December 10, 2008 |
| 33 | Metal Gear Stupid | December 17, 2008 |
| 34 | Basketball Diaries | December 24, 2008 |
| 35 | Snake VS Guard | January 8, 2009 |
| 36 |
January 15, 2009 | |
| 37 | Old Friends, New Enemies | January 22, 2009 |
| 38 | The Advent of Snake's Mission | January 28, 2009 |
| 39 | Man is protected from what lies beneath | February 4, 2009 |
| 40 | Something Crazy This Way Comes | February 12, 2009 |
| 41 | Regeneration | February 24, 2009 |
| 42 | Blood Money | March 2, 2009 |
| 43 | The Zero Hour | March 9, 2009 |
| 44 | Bloody Confrontations | April 2, 2009 |
| 45 | The End of the Beginning | April 9, 2009 |
Production notes[]
Top: Re-filmed shot from winter 2008. Bottom: Original shot from July 2008
RMA Productions was initially quite skeptical at the possibility of a third season, having only enough budget to finish the second, but a recalculation showed that they could get primary filming done on a budget of $500.
Most of the season's production coincided with the end of Season Two's in the summer of 2008, with donations from fans backing the funds. Most filming was finished around the end of August and the season was scheduled for airing in December and a single teaser was released. Rather than having viewers wait several months otherwise devoid of content, RMA Productions and Randumb Productions collaborated to produce more than 15 so-called "filler" videos, including the Ash and Brock spin-offs and sketches like Taking and Entering.
By November, YouTube News had made its debut and two more trailers were uploaded. Around this time, RMA Productions made the decision to alter the script and add entirely new scenes, characters and subplots to the season to coincide with the upcoming film (then still codenamed Season Four). Many scenes that tonally conflicted with the season were scrapped and replaced, such as Wario comically trying to enlist followers to join his quest. Some scenes or entire episodes were entirely re-scripted and filmed, such as "Snake VS Guard", as many shots for the episode had become corrupted by winter. In a more extreme case, episodes 43-45 were entirely re-shot, and in the case of "Bloody Confrontations," this caused a massive lapse in special effects editing, delaying the episode for almost a month.
Any information about the original versions remain uncertain and no footage from them has ever been shown, though it is likely Waluigi had a smaller role because Douglas Orofino had gone away to college during the summer.
Critical Reception[]
The season is often hailed by some to the best season in the series' run, critics and fans praising its tighter story and character development. A great deal of anticipation was built up for the season following its announcement and it was a success, with its first episode earning almost 5,000 views on its initial broadcast and the whole season garnering over four million views after four years.
Trivia[]
- This was the first season where official titles were given to the episodes, starting with This time, It's Personal!.
- This is currently the only season where an episode was delayed due to massive special effects taking over a month to edit. From this season on, all future seasons had minimum special effects (e.g. Season Four)