I was aware all week that The Super Mario Bros. Movie trailer would be dropping this week, and I knew I wouldn't be ready.

I wasn't ready...

Illumination didn't just knock this one out of the park - they hit a grand slam! I've basically been in shock ever since seeing the trailer, and had to find where my jaw had hit the ground! In fact, I'm already pretty late getting this update out, as I have already lost count of the amount of times I have rewatched it in awe!

I don't think Bowser could be represented any better! He absolutely dominates nearly the entire trailer! The style, tone, and direction they chose to go with him is absolutely perfect! It seems very reminiscent to the intimidating Bigger Badder Bowser as part of Bowser's Fury!

There's just so much to love here, and I'll try to unpack it as best as I can! Right out of the gate, the arrival of Bowser's Fortress was chilling. Everything from the glowing eyes and mouth of the Bowser statue at the front, to the very intimidating horn-heavy music, the amazing sound engineering when the spiked anchors hit the ground - there could have been no better entrance for the Koopa King. When he was first seen, he stomped in like an absolute beast!

The first well-lit glimpse of him from the front was mesmerizing: everything from the reptilian scales on his arms, to the texture of his snout, his unbelievably realistic-looking mane. It was shocking. This was an introduction fit for a boss!

Then we get to hear Jack Black's take on the voice of Bowser for the first time. If you weren't told it was him, you wouldn't believe it. I guess that's why they call it voice acting! Knowing that Jack Black had experience as a previous voice actor lead me to believe that he was pretty much perfectly cast to voice this beloved character!

I was wondering if he was going to sound like Po from Kung Fu Panda, and was hoping that he would at least deepen his voice, or that they would maybe add some reverb or something to it in post. He seemed to nail a rough, gruff, gravelly sound you would expect from such a character, and it absolutely works in my opinion. Here's an example of Jack Black demonstrating the voice of "the biggest, baddest, turtle dragon alive" at New York Comic Con earlier today:

Another thing that pleasantly surprised me was just how superb the animation itself was. Bowser was so expressive when he spoke. I swear on some frames you saw shades of vintage Jack Black in there. In the span of like 2 seconds, Bowser would shift from an intimidating glare to a psychotic stare, all within the same sequence!

The story itself also seems very interesting so far - especially with how it looks like there will be an original storyline! I love the army of snowball-throwing pengiuns that showed up at Bowser's gate, and I can't wait to learn more about them! I was really hoping the trailer wouldn't involve Bowser snatching Princess Peach for the millionith time.

Bowser's firestorm of flame spewing out of his mouth towards the end looked absolutely incredible as well (bless you Print Screen button). Finally, we have a strong, menancing Bowser villain once again! Everything about his mannerisms just seems totally spot-on.

Despite King Bowser Koopa stealing the show for the first 65% of the entire trailer, there's still the rest of the movie to talk about I guess, lol. It looks fine to me, and I'm sure the rest will be as well. Some of the other characters only have like one line to say, so there may not be enough of a sample size to go on yet. Some characters like Princess Peach and Donkey Kong have yet to make their introduction yet.

Now, although I will admit that I definitely had my worries about this movie (especially the trailer with how important first-impressions are), do recall that I also had my Cautiously Optimistic About the Upcoming Animated Mario Movie TBS post on October 11th last year (I promise I didn't change anything in it!). It's always a great feeling when you set your expectations responsbility based on history, only to have them blown out of the water to the upside!

I'm not the only one either. Everything I have seen about this movie trailer reveal today has been nothing but overwhelmingly positive everywhere I have looked across the internet. It seems to be the complete opposite as the very first original Sonic the Hedgehog trailer (where the studio was basically forced overnight to redo Sonic's character design after it was universally panned).

The Super Mario Bros. Movie was originally scheduled to be released on December 21, 2022, but was moved back to April 7, 2023. This is fine by me, as I would rather have the development team have an extra four months to work on it so that it isn't rushed. It looks like a labor of love already, and I just hope that they can keep that incredible buzz and momentum going! Their execution has been incredible so far!

I am SO excited! (What gave it away? =p) - I don't think I could have imagined it would turn out this good!