Decommissioning Mario

The day has finally come for Nintendo to retire Mario... by permanently delisting Super Mario 3D All-Stars and Super Mario Bros 35 from the Nintendo Switch eShop, removing the Game & Watch Super Mario Bros Edition and physical versions of Super Mario 3D All-Stars from official Nintendo retail stores, removing Adventures of Super Mario Bros 3 from Netflix amid the show's availability on Paramount+, and shutting down the Wii U Super Mario Maker online servers. Speaking of Super Mario Maker, only the original game for the Wii U will have its online servers close their doors for good. The Super Mario Maker 2 servers will continue running. All the levels created for Super Mario Maker's online servers will disappear, including the troll levels that have given many players high levels of frustration. Looks like this could be the start of a dark age for Mario fans... until Mario Golf: Super Rush comes out on the 25th of June, 2021...

Super Mario Bros © Nintendo.

Stabbed By Schezo 2

If there was any one person Schezo should stab, it would be Professor Oak's grandson Blue. Blue was the basis for Ash's original nemesis Gary because Blue bullied Red in the Generation 1 Pokemon games. Gary's death at the hands of Schezo was covered by a previous comic about Schezo's stabbings. Therefore, stabbing Blue to death will deliver justice for Red and millions of Pokemon fans worldwide.

Disappointed by the Fairly OddParents series finale? Vicky should perish for all the bullying she did to Timmy Turner, and Schezo the white-haired swordfighter from Puyo Puyo would be the right executioner for the job.

Magikoopas are warlocks who transmute brick blocks into various objects including coins, super mushrooms, fire flowers, and enemies such as Goombas and Koopa Troopas. The most prominent Magikoopa is Kamek, who has been a recurring antagonist in the Mario games since Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island. He could be the culprit behind Bowser's villainy. But then again, he was one of the few people who witnessed the Goombas turning traitorous because of the Toads bullying and persecuting them. Unfortunately, Kamek would definitely be on Schezo's target list because Schezo would be better off venting his anger on Nintendo villains in the name of vengeance for Sega's exit from hardware production.

Bowser should perish already after more than 35 years of being up to no good. From my perspective, Nintendo's villains should be the ones suffering the wrath of angry video game players who dislike villains so much that the only good villain is a permanently dead one. Also, if Nintendo dislikes us because of our alleged violation of copyright law and our so-called acts of intellectual property piracy, then Nintendo's villains are going to suffer the wrath of those who dislike them so much that they want the villains dead, and Schezo seems to be the right person for that job, because he would like to impale Nintendo's villains in the name of vengeance for Sega.

An Important Letter

A comic with a bonus panel? Is it just me? Or did I purposely choose to follow in the footsteps of some webcomics?

With only one week left before the European Union Copyright Directive comes into force to censor the web on copyright grounds, this comic may potentially be the last comic I will post on this blog. I will still be posting comics while I still can. But I can assure you, if the letter and the bonus panel are any indication, this will be the beginning of the end of freedom of expression on the World Wide Web as we know it...

Update: Article 13 will only come into force on the 7th of June, 2021. This means I will still have time to post as many comics as I can before that day comes. However, digital freedom is becoming a thing of the past as far as I'm concerned...

Update: The European Union Copyright Directive came into force, but I am still around. I guess I can continue to be a content creator for now...

Beach Soccer Swimwear

In my honest opinion, the female attire for Super Mario Strikers, being a crop top that leaves the midriff exposed and a pair of short shorts, would be better suited for a beach soccer setting. In fact, this comic is about a female person putting on her bikini as innerwear before wearing the crop top and shorts from Super Mario Strikers to get ready for a beach soccer match.

Miyuki's Protest

In this comic, Miyuki is unhappy not because she does not like fanservice. She is unhappy about the Larry Nassar scandal that revealed a huge abuse scandal in USA Gymnastics as well as the mistreatment of homeless people in Tokyo by the police that is evicting them from the Olympic Games venues. That's why she is protesting against the injustices relating to the Olympics.

If you want to know why Miyuki is wearing Rosalina's leotard, that's because Rosalina does not wear her leotard from the Rio 2016 Edition of Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games in the Tokyo 2020 Edition, and therefore, Miyuki can wear it. The reason Miyuki is holding a protest sign while wearing a leotard is because she stands in solidarity with gymnasts who had been victims of sexual abuse. Miyuki is also protesting against the injustices that nojukusha (Japanese slang for homeless people) are suffering from due to police brutality, which also led to the unlawful arrests of activists, one of whom goes by the name of A-san, whose arrest in 2016 for obstructing "official duties" was considered an unforgivable injustice.

Perhaps the Olympic torch relay was a mistake when it was first introduced, and the Olympic torch relay did not even originate from the Ancient Greeks that conceived the original ancient version of the Olympics at all. Yet another reason for the Olympics to be cancelled and abolished. For all the good intentions the Olympics promised, including peace, we had received almost nothing from it...

Update: The delayed Olympic Games in Tokyo has gone ahead as planned and concluded as scheduled. The campaign to cancel it was not successful.

Up In United Arms

I cannot believe I have not featured anything related to MapleStory in my comics until now. Maybe it's time MapleStory got more attention in my comics...

Attention, all readers. If you are fed up with all the injustices going on throughout the whole world, it could be time to rise up in united arms, regardless of what weapons you are using.

Below is a detailed explanation for all the weapons featured in this comic:

The bronze dagger is known for being the weakest weapon in the history of the RuneScape game in both RuneScape 3 and Old School RuneScape. Steel daggers are significantly stronger than bronze daggers in both RuneScape 3 and Old School RuneScape, and are commonplace with special forces all over the world.

In RuneScape, farmers fight using pitchforks, and pitchforks have always been a symbol of angry mobs.

The 2020 edition of Looney Tunes has decided to remove guns from the show. This means Elmer Fudd will no longer be using his shotgun. However, Warner Bros did not remove dynamites from the 2020 edition of Looney Tunes. Therefore, enjoy laughing at cartoon explosions while we still can, because weapon control laws will tighten the noose on our childhood memories.

Shotguns, handguns, Uzis and dynamites have always been weapons featured in many games in the Worms series, which has been known for the many hilarious deaths of worms due to these weapons.

In the Command and Conquer games, technicians use their pistols to defend themselves. Unfortunately, it's useless against buildings and most vehicles. Only in the hands of super commandos do pistols do any damage against vehicles, with the most prominent example being the Metal Slug games.

The AK-47 has become a symbol of Russia's military power, as well as a common weapon of Russia's client states. Unfortunately, terrorists have idolized the AK-47, and that's no good.

Wands have largely been the favourite weapon of choice for many magical girls, including Rit from Rod Land and Soldam, and being a magic user is quite common for many female MapleStory and RuneScape player characters. This is why Rit's magic wand, MapleStory's Ice Wand and RuneScape's Mystic Wand are featured in this comic.

The stick grenade was originally used by the German Army during World Wars 1 and 2. Unfortunately, it failed to help Germany win both World Wars, which they obviously lost. In the Metal Slug series, the stick grenades are deployed by the playable characters as well as mid-boss Allen O'Neil.

Dynamites have always been a favourite weapon of the Crazy Ivan from Red Alert 2. In fact, the Crazy Ivan is one of the most humorous units in the game along with any explosive unit that blows up enemies.

Sais have been a mainstay in all things ninja, including MapleStory. The most prominent user of sais has to be Raphael from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

MapleStory is just one of those games where you can use silly weapons, and one of those silly weapons is a steel pipe.

Gonbe and Tago from Ikki use bamboo spears to fight for justice. Just as pitchforks are the weapons of angry mobs from Western countries, bamboo spears would be the best choice for the Japanese or East Asian counterparts to the pitchfork.

#NOlympics

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is disrespecting the 80% of Japanese people who want the Tokyo Olympic Games cancelled or postponed. In fact, more than a third of Japanese would like the Olympics cancelled, even if the pestilence gets defeated by the time the Olympic Games begins. But we should not stop at cancelling the Tokyo Olympic Games. We should cancel all upcoming Olympic Games and abolish the Olympic Games altogether.

Currently, Japanese netizens are calling for not only their own countrymen, but people from other countries to boycott the Tokyo Olympic Games, whether there is any cancellation or not.

Even the 2011 Tohoku Earthquake survivors are saying that the Tokyo Olympic Games will not benefit them, and every single person from the Fukushima nuclear accident victims group that took part in a survey on their opinion on whether the Tokyo Olympic Games will rebuild the areas devastated by the 2011 earthquake said NO.

As a supporter of freedom, justice and liberty, I can only tell my Japanese readers to continue pushing on in the fight against corruption.

Update: The delayed Olympic Games in Tokyo has gone ahead as planned and concluded as scheduled. The campaign to cancel it was not successful.

200 and counting

Author's Note: Neo Retro Union would like to thank its readers for reaching the incredible milestone of 200 comics published. This webcomic would not be able to survive the toughest of times without your support. In fact, we will have to embrace for the worst that is yet to come. The future will not be positive as far as I am concerned.

Fun Fact: It was less than a year since the 100th comic was first published, and now the 200th comic has been published. I guess I am capable of incredible stuff.

Piracy Is Just Piracy

Author's Note: Although I am opposed to every internet censorship bill in existence, I do not condone digital piracy. However, there are some mean people who thinks fair use and abandonware are lame excuses for the justification and rationalization of digital piracy. Such people should be thrown into the same prison cell as the digital pirates they despise because they, and not the digital pirates, are the reason the Internet is becoming less friendly. This is why we need clearer fair use guidelines and not harsher penalties for any form of digital piracy. No matter how lenient the current restrictions are, I still think they are very harsh by my standards.

Speared

Imagine if two characters from Nintendo games known for using spears got into a fight. In this case, we are talking about Shy Guy and Waddle Dee, both of them having been known to wield spears in combat. It's highly likely it will end in a draw where both combatants perished.

#BoycottNintendoDay

Author's Note: This comic marks the 4th Anniversary of the Nintendo Switch's worldwide launch. But it also marks the final countdown to the biggest boycott Nintendo has ever faced in their history.

In four weeks' time, Nintendo will be faced with the biggest boycott in their 132-year history. For all their anti-consumer business ethics, from taking down fan games to the removal of several Super Mario Bros 35th Anniversary-related products, Nintendo will pay for all the injustices they did to their fans. For Nintendo, getting boycotted for making bad decisions is nothing new. But this boycott will be very special, because it will be the boycott where many consumers will close their wallets on them.

Stabbed By Schezo

Note to self: Wearing red or black will hide bloodstains.

Let's face it. Professor Samuel Oak lied to everybody who went on a quest to become the very best that no one ever was. Not to mention that not only was he originally going to be the endgame in Pokemon Red and Blue, but he was actually a very terrible mentor to many people, including his own grandson, and let's not forget about his nepotism. That's why Schezo Wegey from Puyo Puyo should impale him.

Don't worry about King Arthur. Even if Schezo impaled him, only his armour will break, but he would still be just fine. This was demonstrated in Project X Zone, where King Arthur got caught in a world-destroying blast, but only his armour got destroyed, and he was still intact in his underwear.

Schezo's stabbing spree wouldn't be complete without a Sega character, or in this case, a villainous Sega character. And no Sega villain is more prominent than Dr Ivo Eggman Robotnik. The Dr Eggman featured in this comic getting stabbed is the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive version.

If Game Theory taught me anything, the Toads from the Super Mario series could actually be a far bigger threat than Bowser would ever be since 1985. Not only did they insult Mario, Luigi and many people who played Super Mario Bros by telling them that their princess is in another castle, but it turns out that they are not mushrooms at all, and possibly parasites. If Toad insulted Schezo, Toad would definitely get stabbed by the white-haired sword-fighter.

Ash Ketchum's original nemesis Gary "Shigeru" Oak must die for all those times he bullied Ash and for all the Pokemon fans, myself included, that he tormented since 1996, by getting impaled by Schezo, and I don't care if this grandson of Professor Oak was named after Mario's creator Shigeru Miyamoto. Justice must be delivered, whether it is too morbid or not.

Speaking of Shigeru Miyamoto, it turns out that he actually liked Waluigi. Also, Masahiro Sakurai did not say that he disliked Waluigi. It was because Waluigi was a very unsympathetic character, and Luigi's self-proclaimed rival has to suffer huge levels of misfortune for being mean-spirited. Waluigi was portrayed as the most unlikable character in the "Brawl in the Family" webcomic. Therefore, Schezo should impale Waluigi and put him out of his misery.

In the name of Justice

Credits to Mediacorp and Channel NewsAsia (CNA) for the image in this comic.

In 2019, Japan restricted high-tech exports to South Korea. This made South Koreans unhappy because South Korean companies Samsung and LG are the main customers of these high-tech exports from Japan. As a result, South Koreans staged a "Boycott Japan" protest, calling for a boycott of Japanese products and Japanese companies. One of those Japanese companies that was targeted by the boycott campaign is Nintendo, who in recent years, has been negatively criticized for their anti-piracy campaign when it comes to intellectual property protection and shutting down fan-made projects for allegedly violating their trademarks and copyrights, resulting in people threatening to boycott them.

So if you want to fight for digital freedom, please share this comic to show your support for victims of oppression during 35 years of imperialist rule.