Is Bowser truly even a "King?"

[Indigo]

I've been thinking about this for a while, and it dawned on me: despite him being the Koopa King, Bowser doesn't have his own kingdom. Think about it: he's pretty much always seen inhabiting his castle somewhere within the Mushroom Kingdom itself, right?

In SMB3, he resides in "Dark Land," which is simply a patch of wasteland that's even referred to in some versions as just "Bowser's Castle."

In Paper Mario, his castle is built directly underneath Peach's Castle.

In the NSMB games, Bowser's Castle is in a volcanic wasteland at the edge of the Mushroom Kingdom. Indeed, in NSMBU, he doesn't even bother kidnapping Peach, instead deciding to trap her within her own home, presumably because it's the kingdom he wants, after all.

In M&L:PiT, his Castle is located right off the coast of the Toadwood Forest.

M&L:BIS is the biggest point of evidence toward this fact. Not only is Bowser's Castle just a few short strides from Dimble Wood, but Bowser even refers to himself as a Mushroom Kingdom resident; if you recall, after he invades Peach's Castle, he informs Peach that "I live here, Your Royal Genius! I've got as much right to be in this meeting as anyone!"

So... how did Bowser get the title "King Koopa," and the loyalty of thousands of Goombas and Koopas?

My theory: Peach's ancestors were at war with Bowser's ancestors long ago. Eventually, Peach's predecessors won, firmly ousting the Koopas and creating what is now the Mushroom Kingdom. The Koopas, in the meantime, retreated to a remote, desolate wasteland on the farthest edge of the Mushroom Kingdom, plotting a scheme to take back the Mushroom Kingdom and avenge their precursors, all under the rule of the current leader in the royal bloodline: Bowser.

Or something along those lines. What do you guys think about all this? What's your take on Bowser's mysterious kingship?

[Vent]

He was born into it. There were probably several King Bowsers/King Koopas before him. Either that or he's a king in the barbaric sense: He got where he is by being, bigger, tougher and a bit smarter than everyone else. The Nintendo Power guide for Mario RPG even had a short blurb about this.

He's also mentioned that he loves rock and lava so I doubt he wants any other kingdom besides his own. And if he does he probably wants to terraform it to suit his own tastes like he usually does. Otherwise Peach seems to be his number one goal.

I also assumed he used the power of the Star Rod to teleport his castle underneath Peach's so he could hoist it into space. The same castle is seen again flying through space in Mario Kart: Super Circuit minus Peach's Castle on top of it.

[videogamemaster6]

Dec 22, 2012 20:19:58 GMT -5 Vent said:

He was born into it. There were probably several King Bowsers/King Koopas before him. Either that or he's a king in the barbaric sense: He got where he is by being, bigger, tougher and a bit smarter than everyone else. The Nintendo Power guide for Mario RPG even had a short blurb about this.

He's also mentioned that he loves rock and lava so I doubt he wants any other kingdom besides his own. And if he does he probably wants to terraform it to suit his own tastes like he usually does. Otherwise Peach seems to be his number one goal.

I also assumed he used the power of the Star Rod to teleport his castle underneath Peach's so he could hoist it into space. The same castle is seen again flying through space in Mario Kart: Super Circuit minus Peach's Castle on top of it.

This exactly.

[Koopalmier]

The Koopa Kingdom is part of the Super Mario Bros. backstory though.

Here's how I believe it works:
- The Koopa Kingdom is located on an unnamed barren island ("Dark Land"). While barren, volcanic areas are where the king's castle is supposed to be according to Koopa tradition, the entire island is nothing but rock and lava - and on top of that, it's a rather small country. Kamek, one of the sorcerers of the army, eventually becomes the caretaker of Prince Bowser, and wishes that the kingdom takes over the Mushroom Kingdom (which is much bigger, and very close by), and puts that idea in Bowser's mind.
- After the events of Yoshi's Island, Bowser's Castle is almost completely destroyed. The Koopa Troop moves to the Mushroom Kingdom, where they are accepted by the rulers and the population. But they still secretly plan to take over the kingdom, by marrying Princess Peach to Prince Bowser.
- After the past events of Mario & Luigi 2, the Koopas are chased off the kingdom because of Bowser's attempt to kidnap the princess, and they return to the Koopa Kingdom.
- Many years later, the Koopa Troop tries to take over the Mushroom Kingdom again, until they are beaten at the heart of their very kingdom in Super Mario Bros. 3. So they move to find another area for their castle, effectively abandoning the Koopa Kingdom, which is never mentionned again from there on.
- After failing to take over Dinosaur Land and Jewelry Land, the Koopa Troop builds their castle in the Mushroom Kingdom again, and since Super Mario RPG, are constantly abandoning castles that Mario conquered, or moving castles, or constructing multiple castles that only serve as trap-filled dungeons. The only castles that were never seen to be conquered/moved/destroyed are the one in the credits of M&L1, the one in TTYD, the one in SPM and the one in BIS (and those could all be the same one).
- Paper Mario is the final time Bowser and the Koopa Troop were seen as being extremely feared by the Mushroom Kingdom and despised by Peach. Since then, Bowser seems to be more like a troublemaking partner of the kingdom than a real conquering villain. Peach seems to not hate him anymore, Bowser constantly participates in the kingdom's sports events, the Koopa Troop managed to create a city of their own in the kingdom (Neo Bowser City), and since the Koopa Troop is the major armed body of the kingdom and Bowser has defended the kingdom himself several times, it isn't farfetched to think the Koopa Troop is actually part of the Mushroom Kingdom's army now. We could even say the Mushroom and Koopa kingdoms merged, or the Koopa Kingdom became part of the Mushroom World union (which is the Mushroom Kingdom plus the 7 worlds of SMB3).


Recap:
The Koopa Kingdom was the Koopa Troop's home nation, but was abandoned or simply stopped existing as the troop started trying to invade other places, until managing to live in the Mushroom Kingdom like they wanted (Bowser still kidnapping Peach only out of lust and selfishness, and probably a bit to annoy Mario too). If the Koopa Kingdom still exists, then it either merged with the Mushroom Kingdom or became part of the Mushroom World.

And Bowser is still a king because he's the ruler of the Koopa troop, and of whatever is left of the Koopa Kingdom.

[Clive Koopa]

Yes Bowser is the king of the koopas and the king of the entire Koopa Kingdom.