The Daily Online VIdeo Fix: Mario Brother Parodies

Since Donkey Kong's inception over 25 years ago, American pop culture has been fascinated with Mario, the hero character from the Nintendo's addictive video game. Soon after the success of DK, Mario was given his own adventure, starring Mario the plumber and his brother Luigi. CLICK HERE to get the full history of Mario Brothers according to Wikipedia

There has been a ton of merchandising, spin-offs and other schlock out there that has furthered the Mario Brothers legacy, but in terms of original online video I think the two videos below are great examples of quality content that have stuck a chord with audiences. Both videos are very different, but each are successful in their own way.

"Mario: Game Over" by POYKPAC was nominated for Best Comedy Video of 2007 in the Youtube Awards. The talented comedy troop had racked up an impressive 9,600,000 views and was originally posted in May 2007. Writer/Director Ryan Hunter does a great job with the cast. The down-home effects add to the charm of this indie production as well. I love that these guys just went out and made this on their own. No branding, sponsors, etc., just some good old fashion talent and determination.

On the other side of the spectrum comes Seth McFarline's short, which is part of his new original online series CAVALCADE. The series are a bunch of humorous shorts that are made for those with severe ADD. The pieces are quick, funny and have that McFarline flair. In case you have been living under a rock, Seth MacFarlane is the creator of Family Guy and American Dad. This online venture is sponsored by Burger King, which I think is a very smart move for the burger flipping giant. This Mario video has reached 6,100,000 people in one month. My only issue with the video is I wish it was longer.

Nintendo, thanks for giving us Mario. Hopefully, someone will soon make a few online videos with Activision's PITFALL hero. That guy was nuts, too!