Koopa the Quick has deceived us all; the truth is revealed. Consider becoming a member to support this channel's goal of getting an assistant editor! / zoomzike
SLIGHT CORRECTION I made an oopsie by claiming that none of the Koopas are affected by Tiny Huge Island even though there's a small Koopa Troopa in the very footage I showed! I still hold to this theory despite that, especially with people bringing up the Wiggler evidence and how Koopa the Quick talks about how he feels different when holding the power stars!
I think people would be fine, seeing as he only shows up once mario has nabbed a power star... and the fact he's going up against mario, a hero of the land
The greatest example of Power Stars affecting the user's size, is Wiggler, who immediately shrinks after handing his own Power Star... so you may ask why KTQ doesn't shrink immediately if that's the case, but the reason why Wiggler's change was instant, has to do with him getting beaten up rather than just running around like KTQ, there's a clear difference in energy consumption because Wiggler ALSO ran around a lot while getting hit on the head, Koopa the Quick had enough Star Power to remain big for a while, but he eventually ran out of it, thus returning to regular Koopa size.
Also wiggler only shows up until like a far later stage. Maybe they couldn’t figure out how to make things shrink until they got around to making the wiggler. KTQ being an early character already would mean they’d have to change his code or maybe even redo him entirely to get him to shrink at that point.
@@cheezeebutter452 That is true, nowadays it would be as simple as adding a command to make him shrink after his dialogue is over, but it's hard to tell if they didn't do it because whether they didn't have enough time to do it or it was much harder or straight up not possible back then. It could also be that no one had really thought about it, which would be kinda funny to think of.
Some more evidence to support this theory: In Super Mario Galaxy 2, Bowser greatly enhances his size by using the Power Stars. It is established in-universe that they do indeed have the ability to change one's size, so it is easy to see how one Power Star could make Koopa the Quick as large as he is
Even in this game, Wiggler explicitly increased his size with the Power Star, and shrinks when he gives it away. That said, that could also be counter-evidence, because he shrinks immediately, and Koopa the Quick does not.
@@klop4228 maybe it's KtQ's training (and thus more able body) keeping him big even after his star is gone? wiggler just seems like a random wiggler with a star and doesn't appear to do anything another wiggler wouldn't, so he shrinks immediately
@@klop4228 It could be because Wiggler had to use more of the power of the star in fighting you than KTQ does racing you, leading to the power fading much easier.
Which can be explained by how he was _fought_, not simply ran against. Perhaps forcing an enemy to give up a power-star via combat is a lot more draining, which causes the size change to occur instantly.
I freaking loved Koopa the Quick as a kid. Honestly I wish he'd still show up - Odyssey was a perfect chance for one of the racing koopas to just be called Koopa the Quick.
@@vibriribbon3323 New LORE the golden Koopa is Koopa the quick. Cause that would make sense to me cause uh let's say he learned how to go fast without the power stars and uh worked out with Sonic during the Olympics or something...
What I find interesting is that he also implies his speed - or at least a portion of it - comes from the Power Stars when he says "Wow, have you gotten fast! Have you been training on the sly, or is it the Power of the Stars?" It makes me wonder what other abilities can be gained from the Power Stars or if any other characters in this game have been utilizing it. And if Toad used it, what would he want from it?
You still gotta give credit to Koopa The Quick. His size may give him a small edge, but overall it's still his running speed that helps him keep up. Heck, he probably stumbled upon the Power Star by accident the first time due to how they're usually native to Peach's Castle before Bowser stole all of them. I wouldn't say he's being deceitful as he never really brags about (or even mentions) his size and is willing to give up his power star(s) when he loses, probably just seeing his size change as a "Eh, that's cool I guess" kind of deal. He's still a pretty cool guy if you ask me.
My theory is that when he lost the race with Mario in bob-omb battlefield he asked Bowser for stronger power star. When he loses with Mario gain in tiny-huge island he gives it to Mario because he is such a nice koopa
This power star idea you had got me thinking, maybe the worlds inside a painting are all due to a power star, like when King Whomp is defeated he turns back to a tower, maybe all enemies have a power star and would turn back into something else (like Goombas would turn into mushrooms) Also, Koopa the Quick can run faster than he does normally, if you beat Koopa the Quick before he does, he will run twice as fast if he's not within 1500 units near Mario
@@Zadamanim i think you're onto something here. could it be situation where stars (and to a lesser extent, coins) are capable of enhancing one's ability (like with KtQ, and other enemies who have new behaviours in SM64) OR extending one's life (1-up at 100 coins)?
@@tekayo63 Possibly, this goes deeper than we thought. Maybe, some sort of thing happened and a bunch of coins fell on some objects, this caused them to come to life. Why they want to kill Mario is because they see Mario as an intruder on their homeland, in fact, the reason Mario can even jump into paintings is probably because some sort of power star accident happened, and it opened up this portal to different worlds in those paintings
@@varietychan This also makes sense since Bowser has an extra large power star, and he's very large and has additional moves in the final fight and can take more hits than when he's holding a key. When he loses that star, we use it to release peach from the stained glass window. Mario also enters a stained glass window to go into the slider level and the brick wall for dry dry desert, so the magic doesnt just apply to paintings. It seems the power stars do in fact grant people power in sm64.
Realistically I feel like the reason there's no other big koopa troopas is that the developers wanted Koopa the Quick to stand out, and it would be weird if this recurring NPC looked literally identical to a random enemy. Still, a fun theory.
I like to think that Koopa the Quick won't allow a smaller Koopa Troopa to stick around where he's racing Mario, because then Mario could use that Koopa's shell to race him. Koopa the Quick arrived to Bob-Omb Battlefield at the same time as another Koopa, but made him leave so Mario couldn't use him to cheat. Regarding King Bob-Omb, I don't think he literally turns into a cannonball, but rather has a simplified design so it doesn't look weird rolling around. Mario Golf Super Rush has a similar idea in its opening cutscene, where King Bob-Omb rolls down a hill without his crown being visible.
I have an additional theory on top of this Since Koopa the Quick does normal training its possible he doesn't need the Power Star to be a better racer, but instead he uses it as a way to talk to Mario. Think about it: Mario has trouble jumping on/killing enemies that are either the same size as him or bigger. We already see how he treats regular Koopas in the game. So by using the Power Star to make himself bigger, he's able to approach Mario without the plumber trying to kill him outright.
Really interesting theory but I am not fully convinced. One of your arguments to counter the counter argument has one flaw. You mentioned killing the small Koopa doesn't affect Koopa the quick. However the game doesn't suggest that what happens to one enemy happens to the enemy in the other version of the island. You can defeat other enemies which have a counterpart but their other version will still be around. Also some enemies don't have a counterpart like one of the Chuckyas on the upper part of the mountain. Now, the website is a pretty convincing point which I can only counter with a theory that they messed up the choice of the picture. Big Boo is also listed as a seperate enemy and boos aren't even native to tiny huge island. Yet he is a special boo that is stronger than regular boos. His size might be because of his power star as well since we can already see ingame that a power star can enlargen creatures. Just look at wiggler. Yet they seem to shrink imediatly after they give up the power star. Koopa the quick remains big. The point is, even if big boo became big because of the power star it would mean he is still a boo and wouldn't need a seperate entry in the character list. Yet he does have one so Koopa the quick would also need to have a seperate entry from normal Koopas to follow consistency. I know these videos are for entertaining purposes and it is a pretty good video. I just like digging into theories to see if I can find evidence that supports or contradicts them. I don't intend to come off as someone who just wants to debunk everything. My evidence could still be flawed as well and having open discussions about things like this to get new perspectives is pretty fun.
Here's some food for thought; you make the assumption that "the game doesn't suggest that what happens to one enemy happens to the enemy in the other version of the island", but what if _no_ enemies actually have an altered version? There is _no_ reason to believe that a big Goomba in one version is the _same_ Goomba in the other version other than them being in the same relative position, and even _that_ doesn't stay consistent. Furthermore, this would explain why certain enemies, like the Chuckya you mentioned, don't show up in a certain form either, because the island _does not have two versions of the same enemy_ Even if this idea is false, I believe the second point about being able to see the small Koopa Troopa _before Koopa the Quick arrives at the island_ is still undisputed. The point you make about "Big Boo" has a critical flaw in that the website does _not_ call him "Big Boo", but "Master/Boss Boo", which implies that the reason for giving him his own section is _not_ because of his size (as you claimed), but because of his position in the Boo hierarchy (that he runs the place), which would solve the inconsistency you speak of. Thank you for your points!
@@zoomzike There's also one thing to be considered about each enemy on Tiny Huge Island that doesn't have a big counterpart. They're all small enough to fit through the warp pipes leading to the huge side and don't necessarily have to be natives of the island. They could just be Bowser's forces. We know he sends them out through levels because he did the same with his submarine in Dire Dire Docks. We also know there is only one small variant of the koopa troopa on the tiny side of the island who is in the same exact spot as Koopa the Quick, meaning they're pretty much all but confirmed to be the tiny and huge counterparts of each other. In short, there are no other large koopas on the island because there is only one koopa native to each side of the island and Koopa The Quick gave up his life of crime to be a racer.
also, the official websites can be... questionable. for instance, the japanese and american websites disagree on which games count as part of the super mario series.
There's also the Koopa in B.O.B. that appears after KtQ is beaten. There's no real evidence other than timing to suggest it's the same koopa, and that's pretty shaky at best. The website mentioned in the video does list a small koopa, found only on THI, which suggests (though maybe not outright proves) the island can in fact alter the size of koopas. Whether or not this affects the theory is a debate in itself, since we don't know the "laws" that determine how or when the island works. Finally, there's Bowser. Even without a power star, he's still clearly larger than other koopas, which means large koopas do inherently exist. (Unless Bowser isn't the same exact species, anyway) Aren't there other Mario games that feature natively large koopas?
@@professornervegrates6268 super mario galaxy 2 features supermassive galaxy, which contains a planet with 3 giant koopas. granted, this also takes place in an area with likely size-changing shenanigans, but it is further proof that whatever's going on there could potentially effect koopas.
You may be right about this, but I think the enemies on Tiny Huge island aren't the same ones in different versions, they're different creatures that happen to be in similar places, in the corresponding versions. That would explain the reason some enemies don't have big or small versions there
I don't know, but I like to think about Tiny Huge Island as Twin Islands rather than Mario visiting the same island on different sizes... so it's a headcanon, but that's what the disappearance of many enemies in the Huge Mario/Tiny Island parts led me to believe.
Don't other enemies also show up as alive in the opposite island size for that island after dying though? Like, if you kill a tiny goomba, it's giant equivalent will still be there. I remember this being an important detail for the 100 coin star.
Commenter Ben Goodwin said: "I think the enemies on Tiny Huge island aren't the same ones in different versions, they're different creatures that happen to be in similar places, in the corresponding versions. That would explain the reason some enemies don't have big or small versions there" Which I find to be an awesome point and entirely plausible! It would explain a lot of inconsistencies around the island, not _just_ Koopa the Quick.
@@zoomzike I personally never saw it as "parallel dimensions." I imagined it being like two nearby islands where life evolved differently. I found out years later this is actually a real thing, it's called Island Gigantism and Island Dwarfism. Tiny and Huge island have their own offshoots of goombas and piranha plants. But the fly guys and koopas and such aren't indigenous to the islands.
@@JrIcify Except some actions in one island affects the other such as ground pounding the peak of Tiny land drains the lake up there on both islands, flooding Wiggler's Lair. This proves that both islands are one and the same.
@@JrIcify I never thought of it as a parallel dimension, I just assumed that going through the pipes would spit Mario out in the same place, but put him through an enlarging or shrinking process. It's the same physical space with the same creatures, the only thing that's changed is Mario's size. As for why killing an enemy in one size doesn't kill the corresponding enemy in the other size, I chalk that up to game limitations.
Miyamoto: This is an important NPC that we need the player’s attention drawn too. Why don’t we make him bigger? ZoomZike: Conspiracy theory mode engaged
Nice theory! I'm surprised you didn't mention the Wiggler boss though. You literally see Wiggler shrinking after he has given you the Power Star. That's also evidence that Power Stars can make someone grow in size, like Koopa the Quick. :)
I already found that theory before and I think it makes a lot of sense, Power Stars can give a lot of power to the user, they rebuilt Peach's Castle at the end of the game, gave life to King Bob-Omb and King Whomp and make enemies like the Wiggler, and Koopa the Quick bigger. They even made Bowser super strong in the last boss fight
Everyone has been confused by the stars at some point. They're called power stars but they don't give you power. We all just stopped questioning it though. And we stopped questioning the giant koopa too. It shows how we'll accept any nonsense in order to move forward.
Thanks, now I feel traumatized over the many times where I hit and stole the shell of that koopa without knowing it was my poor buddy who just lost the race.
this might also explain why the chain chomp is so abnormally massive. its because it's guarding the power star, and although its not directly using the star, its pretty clear that the power stars effect seems to have a radius, since koopa the quick and king bomb omb can toss the star and they don't immediately shrink.
Couldn't it be possible that the koopas, flyguy etc went through the pipe that Mario uses to traverse between the two islands? Which is then how a small koopa ended up on the huge island. Since Mario doesn't change size it could be that these mini-koops are just smaller due to nature, and Koopa the Quick is what a normal koopa looks like. Maybe everyone else is the outlier and not him.
I really liked the video, very compelling argument. Now, while citing the website was a nice addition, I was a bit surprised that you didn't add Wiggler to the King Bob-omb getting big argument. Wiggler literally shrinks immediately after giving you its power star and complains that everything started going wrong after it got it, suggesting that the increased size was a hassle to it.
I was partly concerned that by bringing it up that people were gonna mention how Koopa the Quick _doesn't_ immediately shrink down after losing _his_ power star, so I didn't decide to use that as a piece of evidence. Someone made a good point though about how you _fight_ the Wiggler for his power star, which could explain why he immediately shrinks instead of Koopa the Quick, who you merely race.
Question: Could the power stars affect you based on your desires? For example, Koopa the Quick growing in order to help him be faster, the cannonball becoming Big Bob-omb (wanting to be real/alive), etc. (They were the only two instances I know of/I haven't beaten the game yet).
This could also apply to the Whomp King at whomp's fortress who says something about how he's tired of being stepped on and used for building, and after defeating him, the top of the fortress where you fought him becomes a tower.
All of these considerations should be confronted with the Japanese version of the game, wherein Koopa the Quick is not a special named character and may in fact be a different entity in BOB and THI. From the Mario Wiki: "Despite the size difference, Japanese materials treat Koopa the Quick interchangeably with the game's Koopa Troopa enemies."
That quote you said links to the very same website I use in the video at 5:00; I also mention in this section that said website treats Koopa the Quick as a normal Koopa Troopa
To be fair mario has also gained power stars. Mario not gaining any size or strength but enhanced knowledge of the area around him to take the optimal path to beat koopa. So its fair game
I think that the reason that Koopa the Quick held on to the power star to be bigger so that he can fit in with fellow big enemies at the big world. He may have been bullied for being normal size in the big world, so he hunted down a power star to fit in. He then claimed that the reason he had the power star was to give a reward to those who beat him, when it was really to be big. This was his cover-up because he believed that no one would be able to beat him, therefore he would never have to give it up. However, when Mario beat him, he had to follow through and give up his power star. So in order to remain big, he hunted down another one in another world, leading him to give that one to Mario when he is beaten again, etc.
That said, I never did buy into the "third cannonball is Big Bob-omb's remains" theory, for the simple fact that he very clearly shatters into pieces upon defeat.
This can’t be! Koopa the Quick, he called us on cheating… but he was cheating by using a power star to boost his physical ability! …eh. He likes to race, and that’s what matters
Possibly; some enemies (like the Wiggler as well) have been shown to increase in size with a power star, but people like Mario don't for some reason. Not sure how it would affect Toads.
@@zoomzike Mario uses the Power Stars to increase his physical strength, maybe the Toads use them to increase their courage? ...Or maybe I'm just thinking too much about the Triforce right now lol.
so fun. thought you were gonna connect his size to Bowser's... Koopa the Quick has been Bowser disguised, attempting to get close to and learn more about his adversary, _anime style_ I like your more subtle approach 😄 as an amateur SM64 speedrunner, he's a character I've encountered many times, but his context and existence is taken for granted. so cool that with only a little more suspension of disbelief... you can deduce this hidden, yet totally plausible bitta koopa trivia even 20+ yrs later. I mean, maybe y'all gamers had theorized this already... But it's the first time I've ever stopped to ponder, "how did K the Quick get so dummy thicc?" JOON ZUME BAYBAY
There are Koopa Troopas that look like Koopa the Quick, but they were pretty much not shown at this point in the Super Mario series, so I suppose you're right. Interesting details of you to notice!
curious as to why you never mentioned the Wiggler - that one makes it pretty unambiguous that power stars can make you big! when you defeat him and he spits out the star it literally shows him shrinking
Ngl, I expected a funny joke video but this is actually very compelling. Never really thought about Koopa the Quick's size, just always assumed he was bigger than the other Koopa Troopas. Seriously, very very good video and you earned a subscriber with this one
This is the equivalent to coming to the realization that the BLU Scout at the keypad door at the beginning of Meet the Spy was the one fooling the REDs the entire time.
I always like the idea that Turtles within this universe are sort of the super race that they can just become naturally stronger than everybody else like how the Koopa kids aren't even Bowser's children and yet they have around the same abilities as him maybe the Koopas can just use Star Energy more efficiently than random worms
And if you think about the star enhancement mechanic, it would explain why Mario needs 70 power stars to get up the stairs. He needed the boost of 70 stars to be fast or powerful enough to bypass the loop barrier
The reason that some enemies on the huge form of the island aren't huge is probably the same reason that Mario isn't huge: They just came from elsewhere.
I haven't seen any of your other videos, but this one is Art. Because it uses the same format as history channel programs and it is about something so dumb and so niche, and so un-verifyable, but it's presented as something so important and so worth investigating... this is art and I don't say that lightly.
When I got about halfway through this I expected you to bring up another contender for a larger enemy. The Wiggler. When you first come across him he's gigantic (Granted he's in the big island when you fight him, and Mario's small) but when defeated he also shrinks in size after the loss of his power star.
now i'm wondering, does this mean koopa the quick either: a) stole a power star from peach's castle b) asked bowser for one or c) just took one laying around bob-omb battlefield/tiny huge island? it's probably c tbh, but _maybe_ the bowser one could be true?
I love how it's ちびノコノコ for the normal Koopa Troopa and ノコノコ for Koopa the Quick, as if Koopa the Quick is the normal-sized one, and all the other ones are smaller versions
"consider the fact that king bomb-o-bomb also gave up his star when defeated by Mario" *Shows the king being murdered by Mario so he could loot the star from the king's remains in the next heartbeat*
I remember this game, countless, happy & surreal childhood memories from this old gem, like many. Until My cartridge was accidentally stepped on one day. R.I.P, Mario World... U are missed.
4:26 This opens another rabbit hole, that being that the Tiny and Huge forms of Tiny-Huge Island aren't actually the same location, and we know this because of the inconsistencies with this Small Koopa Troopa in the Tiny form of Tiny Huge Island that you detailed here.
I’ve never thought of that. So many theories you can make about SM64. I used to play this game on my Wii. It’s my childhood. I loved to blj and explore the world that way😂.
What if Koopa the Quick is a sort of rarer subspecies to normal koopa troopas. It would explain the absence in pre-race Tiny Huge island, the two Koopa sizes in the large island, and how the Wiggler shrinks immediately, but he never does explicitly ingame. Plus how he's the only large Koopa in Mario 64, yet there's large variants in games like Mario Galaxy 2 and Mario Bros U, and dating back to Mario Bros 3. He could just be the same type of Koopa as the other large ones in the other games, just that he's the only one (or one of the only ones) in the paintings.
for the record mario also doesn't kill (most of the time), he knocks out his enemies with stylised animations so it doesn't mean anything if they come back/"wake up" like just leaving a room and coming back does it in some games
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SLIGHT CORRECTION
I made an oopsie by claiming that none of the Koopas are affected by Tiny Huge Island even though there's a small Koopa Troopa in the very footage I showed! I still hold to this theory despite that, especially with people bringing up the Wiggler evidence and how Koopa the Quick talks about how he feels different when holding the power stars!
Just wanted to say thank you. Now I have something to look forward to as I stay up till 3 AM. June Zoom really coming in clutch for content.
You’re cutting it closer and closer every day, but I don’t mind cuz I’ve been staying up late anyway
Bro got it out 2 minutes before deadline 🥶
I think people would be fine, seeing as he only shows up once mario has nabbed a power star... and the fact he's going up against mario, a hero of the land
hi
I can't believe that Koopa the quick would resort to SED (Size Enhancing Drugs), I'm shaking and crying right now, what a fallen idol
1:18 You can see here the small Koopa the Quick
No no no he got STDs (Size Tripling Drugs)
literally vomited on myself when i heard
Bruh, he just ate a Super Mushroom
Mario's been doing the same for years and no one bats an eye. This is Koopa discrimination if I've ever seen it.
The greatest example of Power Stars affecting the user's size, is Wiggler, who immediately shrinks after handing his own Power Star... so you may ask why KTQ doesn't shrink immediately if that's the case, but the reason why Wiggler's change was instant, has to do with him getting beaten up rather than just running around like KTQ, there's a clear difference in energy consumption because Wiggler ALSO ran around a lot while getting hit on the head, Koopa the Quick had enough Star Power to remain big for a while, but he eventually ran out of it, thus returning to regular Koopa size.
Also wiggler only shows up until like a far later stage. Maybe they couldn’t figure out how to make things shrink until they got around to making the wiggler.
KTQ being an early character already would mean they’d have to change his code or maybe even redo him entirely to get him to shrink at that point.
@@cheezeebutter452 That is true, nowadays it would be as simple as adding a command to make him shrink after his dialogue is over, but it's hard to tell if they didn't do it because whether they didn't have enough time to do it or it was much harder or straight up not possible back then.
It could also be that no one had really thought about it, which would be kinda funny to think of.
this game will never die
So Wiggler literally got the star power beaten out of him lol
Not even acknowledging Bowser in SMG2
Some more evidence to support this theory: In Super Mario Galaxy 2, Bowser greatly enhances his size by using the Power Stars. It is established in-universe that they do indeed have the ability to change one's size, so it is easy to see how one Power Star could make Koopa the Quick as large as he is
Even in this game, Wiggler explicitly increased his size with the Power Star, and shrinks when he gives it away.
That said, that could also be counter-evidence, because he shrinks immediately, and Koopa the Quick does not.
@@klop4228 maybe it's KtQ's training (and thus more able body) keeping him big even after his star is gone? wiggler just seems like a random wiggler with a star and doesn't appear to do anything another wiggler wouldn't, so he shrinks immediately
@@klop4228 It could be because Wiggler had to use more of the power of the star in fighting you than KTQ does racing you, leading to the power fading much easier.
E
I WAS THINKING OF THAT TOO!
Mario has no right to be criticizing others for using foreign substances to increase in size. That would only make him a hypocrite.
Interesting. Wiggler is another enemy with enlarged size that shrinks upon giving up its power star, though the effects are more instantaneous.
Which can be explained by how he was _fought_, not simply ran against. Perhaps forcing an enemy to give up a power-star via combat is a lot more draining, which causes the size change to occur instantly.
@@zoomzike you put the comma after the underscores, fail
@@saltyralts gotta hate it when that happens.
@@zoomzike same with king bomb-om
Thought this was gonna lead into “Haha it’s because Super Mushrooms are a drug” but this sure is a theory that can be believed. Awesome video :o
@Pixelcraftian I almost believed that too
i mean, wouldnt it just be hilarious and original though? i should make, like, a billion super mario flash animations where this is the only joke...
E
@@Mizai no he is a real TH-camr who makes videos and has a discord server that he is active in
@@tripplordofinconvenience9953 What
I freaking loved Koopa the Quick as a kid. Honestly I wish he'd still show up - Odyssey was a perfect chance for one of the racing koopas to just be called Koopa the Quick.
They’re his sons because I said so
@@vibriribbon3323 source: I said so
@@vibriribbon3323 I am taking this as my new canon.
@@piranhalettuce yes exsctly
@@vibriribbon3323 New LORE the golden Koopa is Koopa the quick. Cause that would make sense to me cause uh let's say he learned how to go fast without the power stars and uh worked out with Sonic during the Olympics or something...
Keep in mind, you can only race him after getting one power star of your own, so you're on even footing with him when you race him.
What I find interesting is that he also implies his speed - or at least a portion of it - comes from the Power Stars when he says "Wow, have you gotten fast! Have you been training on the sly, or is it the Power of the Stars?" It makes me wonder what other abilities can be gained from the Power Stars or if any other characters in this game have been utilizing it. And if Toad used it, what would he want from it?
Become transparent when you're not near him?
What other powers? Could be anything
@@pixelfoxshouse it's a really impractical version of the one ring
Toad would use the Power Star just for power so Bowser can't lock him away again.
You still gotta give credit to Koopa The Quick. His size may give him a small edge, but overall it's still his running speed that helps him keep up. Heck, he probably stumbled upon the Power Star by accident the first time due to how they're usually native to Peach's Castle before Bowser stole all of them. I wouldn't say he's being deceitful as he never really brags about (or even mentions) his size and is willing to give up his power star(s) when he loses, probably just seeing his size change as a "Eh, that's cool I guess" kind of deal. He's still a pretty cool guy if you ask me.
My theory is that when he lost the race with Mario in bob-omb battlefield he asked Bowser for stronger power star. When he loses with Mario gain in tiny-huge island he gives it to Mario because he is such a nice koopa
This power star idea you had got me thinking, maybe the worlds inside a painting are all due to a power star, like when King Whomp is defeated he turns back to a tower, maybe all enemies have a power star and would turn back into something else (like Goombas would turn into mushrooms)
Also, Koopa the Quick can run faster than he does normally, if you beat Koopa the Quick before he does, he will run twice as fast if he's not within 1500 units near Mario
most enemies turn into coins when defeated, i wonder if coins are like stars but not as powerful? You do get a star for collecting 100 coins too
@@Zadamanim i think you're onto something here. could it be situation where stars (and to a lesser extent, coins) are capable of enhancing one's ability (like with KtQ, and other enemies who have new behaviours in SM64) OR extending one's life (1-up at 100 coins)?
@@tekayo63 Possibly, this goes deeper than we thought. Maybe, some sort of thing happened and a bunch of coins fell on some objects, this caused them to come to life. Why they want to kill Mario is because they see Mario as an intruder on their homeland, in fact, the reason Mario can even jump into paintings is probably because some sort of power star accident happened, and it opened up this portal to different worlds in those paintings
@@Zadamanim Coins have an image of star embossed in them, further linking them to power stars.
@@varietychan This also makes sense since Bowser has an extra large power star, and he's very large and has additional moves in the final fight and can take more hits than when he's holding a key. When he loses that star, we use it to release peach from the stained glass window. Mario also enters a stained glass window to go into the slider level and the brick wall for dry dry desert, so the magic doesnt just apply to paintings. It seems the power stars do in fact grant people power in sm64.
I like how he doesn't even address that at 0:48 he says that Mario might've gotten faster due to "the power of the stars". Literal proof
I mean you never had to press a run button in the OG game, and you could wall jump
Realistically I feel like the reason there's no other big koopa troopas is that the developers wanted Koopa the Quick to stand out, and it would be weird if this recurring NPC looked literally identical to a random enemy. Still, a fun theory.
They could have just change his color like the pink bob ombs if that were the case.
He pulled a fast one on us.
I like to think that Koopa the Quick won't allow a smaller Koopa Troopa to stick around where he's racing Mario, because then Mario could use that Koopa's shell to race him. Koopa the Quick arrived to Bob-Omb Battlefield at the same time as another Koopa, but made him leave so Mario couldn't use him to cheat.
Regarding King Bob-Omb, I don't think he literally turns into a cannonball, but rather has a simplified design so it doesn't look weird rolling around.
Mario Golf Super Rush has a similar idea in its opening cutscene, where King Bob-Omb rolls down a hill without his crown being visible.
Doctor: Do you overthink?
ZoomZike: Well...did you know that the Koopa The Quick is actually just a normal koopa with a powerstar?
No, everyone else just underthinks.
@@thesuperMasterSword fax
I have an additional theory on top of this
Since Koopa the Quick does normal training its possible he doesn't need the Power Star to be a better racer, but instead he uses it as a way to talk to Mario.
Think about it: Mario has trouble jumping on/killing enemies that are either the same size as him or bigger. We already see how he treats regular Koopas in the game. So by using the Power Star to make himself bigger, he's able to approach Mario without the plumber trying to kill him outright.
This implies that, since KTQ could get and collect power stars, he could have helped Mario out on his quest, but decided not to
Really interesting theory but I am not fully convinced. One of your arguments to counter the counter argument has one flaw. You mentioned killing the small Koopa doesn't affect Koopa the quick. However the game doesn't suggest that what happens to one enemy happens to the enemy in the other version of the island. You can defeat other enemies which have a counterpart but their other version will still be around. Also some enemies don't have a counterpart like one of the Chuckyas on the upper part of the mountain.
Now, the website is a pretty convincing point which I can only counter with a theory that they messed up the choice of the picture. Big Boo is also listed as a seperate enemy and boos aren't even native to tiny huge island. Yet he is a special boo that is stronger than regular boos. His size might be because of his power star as well since we can already see ingame that a power star can enlargen creatures. Just look at wiggler. Yet they seem to shrink imediatly after they give up the power star. Koopa the quick remains big.
The point is, even if big boo became big because of the power star it would mean he is still a boo and wouldn't need a seperate entry in the character list. Yet he does have one so Koopa the quick would also need to have a seperate entry from normal Koopas to follow consistency.
I know these videos are for entertaining purposes and it is a pretty good video. I just like digging into theories to see if I can find evidence that supports or contradicts them. I don't intend to come off as someone who just wants to debunk everything. My evidence could still be flawed as well and having open discussions about things like this to get new perspectives is pretty fun.
Here's some food for thought; you make the assumption that "the game doesn't suggest that what happens to one enemy happens to the enemy in the other version of the island", but what if _no_ enemies actually have an altered version? There is _no_ reason to believe that a big Goomba in one version is the _same_ Goomba in the other version other than them being in the same relative position, and even _that_ doesn't stay consistent. Furthermore, this would explain why certain enemies, like the Chuckya you mentioned, don't show up in a certain form either, because the island _does not have two versions of the same enemy_
Even if this idea is false, I believe the second point about being able to see the small Koopa Troopa _before Koopa the Quick arrives at the island_ is still undisputed.
The point you make about "Big Boo" has a critical flaw in that the website does _not_ call him "Big Boo", but "Master/Boss Boo", which implies that the reason for giving him his own section is _not_ because of his size (as you claimed), but because of his position in the Boo hierarchy (that he runs the place), which would solve the inconsistency you speak of.
Thank you for your points!
@@zoomzike There's also one thing to be considered about each enemy on Tiny Huge Island that doesn't have a big counterpart. They're all small enough to fit through the warp pipes leading to the huge side and don't necessarily have to be natives of the island. They could just be Bowser's forces. We know he sends them out through levels because he did the same with his submarine in Dire Dire Docks.
We also know there is only one small variant of the koopa troopa on the tiny side of the island who is in the same exact spot as Koopa the Quick, meaning they're pretty much all but confirmed to be the tiny and huge counterparts of each other.
In short, there are no other large koopas on the island because there is only one koopa native to each side of the island and Koopa The Quick gave up his life of crime to be a racer.
also, the official websites can be... questionable. for instance, the japanese and american websites disagree on which games count as part of the super mario series.
There's also the Koopa in B.O.B. that appears after KtQ is beaten. There's no real evidence other than timing to suggest it's the same koopa, and that's pretty shaky at best.
The website mentioned in the video does list a small koopa, found only on THI, which suggests (though maybe not outright proves) the island can in fact alter the size of koopas. Whether or not this affects the theory is a debate in itself, since we don't know the "laws" that determine how or when the island works.
Finally, there's Bowser. Even without a power star, he's still clearly larger than other koopas, which means large koopas do inherently exist. (Unless Bowser isn't the same exact species, anyway) Aren't there other Mario games that feature natively large koopas?
@@professornervegrates6268 super mario galaxy 2 features supermassive galaxy, which contains a planet with 3 giant koopas. granted, this also takes place in an area with likely size-changing shenanigans, but it is further proof that whatever's going on there could potentially effect koopas.
You may be right about this, but I think the enemies on Tiny Huge island aren't the same ones in different versions, they're different creatures that happen to be in similar places, in the corresponding versions. That would explain the reason some enemies don't have big or small versions there
Which actually _further_ supports the idea that Koopa the Quick and that small Koopa Troopa are not the same! Good point!
I don't know, but I like to think about Tiny Huge Island as Twin Islands rather than Mario visiting the same island on different sizes... so it's a headcanon, but that's what the disappearance of many enemies in the Huge Mario/Tiny Island parts led me to believe.
Don't other enemies also show up as alive in the opposite island size for that island after dying though? Like, if you kill a tiny goomba, it's giant equivalent will still be there. I remember this being an important detail for the 100 coin star.
Commenter Ben Goodwin said:
"I think the enemies on Tiny Huge island aren't the same ones in different versions, they're different creatures that happen to be in similar places, in the corresponding versions. That would explain the reason some enemies don't have big or small versions there"
Which I find to be an awesome point and entirely plausible! It would explain a lot of inconsistencies around the island, not _just_ Koopa the Quick.
@@zoomzike I personally never saw it as "parallel dimensions." I imagined it being like two nearby islands where life evolved differently. I found out years later this is actually a real thing, it's called Island Gigantism and Island Dwarfism.
Tiny and Huge island have their own offshoots of goombas and piranha plants. But the fly guys and koopas and such aren't indigenous to the islands.
@@JrIcify Except some actions in one island affects the other such as ground pounding the peak of Tiny land drains the lake up there on both islands, flooding Wiggler's Lair. This proves that both islands are one and the same.
@@enforcerridley158 That's a good point, although that might be artificial like the bridge and wiggler's fence floor are.
@@JrIcify I never thought of it as a parallel dimension, I just assumed that going through the pipes would spit Mario out in the same place, but put him through an enlarging or shrinking process. It's the same physical space with the same creatures, the only thing that's changed is Mario's size. As for why killing an enemy in one size doesn't kill the corresponding enemy in the other size, I chalk that up to game limitations.
Miyamoto: This is an important NPC that we need the player’s attention drawn too. Why don’t we make him bigger?
ZoomZike: Conspiracy theory mode engaged
I didn’t even know Koopa the Quick has lore within the game.
Koopa the Quick more like Koopa the Thicc
Nice theory! I'm surprised you didn't mention the Wiggler boss though. You literally see Wiggler shrinking after he has given you the Power Star. That's also evidence that Power Stars can make someone grow in size, like Koopa the Quick. :)
I already found that theory before and I think it makes a lot of sense, Power Stars can give a lot of power to the user, they rebuilt Peach's Castle at the end of the game, gave life to King Bob-Omb and King Whomp and make enemies like the Wiggler, and Koopa the Quick bigger. They even made Bowser super strong in the last boss fight
Everyone has been confused by the stars at some point. They're called power stars but they don't give you power. We all just stopped questioning it though. And we stopped questioning the giant koopa too. It shows how we'll accept any nonsense in order to move forward.
Mario usually returns the power stars to the castle, execpt when he has all 120 and decides to use one on himself to have an advanced triple jump
Thanks, now I feel traumatized over the many times where I hit and stole the shell of that koopa without knowing it was my poor buddy who just lost the race.
this might also explain why the chain chomp is so abnormally massive. its because it's guarding the power star, and although its not directly using the star, its pretty clear that the power stars effect seems to have a radius, since koopa the quick and king bomb omb can toss the star and they don't immediately shrink.
Very cool theory. He must train enough that by Odyssey he doesn't need a power star anymore.
Couldn't it be possible that the koopas, flyguy etc went through the pipe that Mario uses to traverse between the two islands? Which is then how a small koopa ended up on the huge island. Since Mario doesn't change size it could be that these mini-koops are just smaller due to nature, and Koopa the Quick is what a normal koopa looks like. Maybe everyone else is the outlier and not him.
all of a sudden the "mario grows big everytime he gets a powerstar" mod makes alot of sense if we take this theory into consideration.
I really liked the video, very compelling argument. Now, while citing the website was a nice addition, I was a bit surprised that you didn't add Wiggler to the King Bob-omb getting big argument. Wiggler literally shrinks immediately after giving you its power star and complains that everything started going wrong after it got it, suggesting that the increased size was a hassle to it.
I was partly concerned that by bringing it up that people were gonna mention how Koopa the Quick _doesn't_ immediately shrink down after losing _his_ power star, so I didn't decide to use that as a piece of evidence. Someone made a good point though about how you _fight_ the Wiggler for his power star, which could explain why he immediately shrinks instead of Koopa the Quick, who you merely race.
Hot take: Koopa the quick is actually Il Piantissimo
I personally like to believe that Koopa the Quick is the Koopa we play as in Mario Kart.
I am so glad I found your channel. From the Mario vids to the much needed SA2 love, it's such a refreshing change of pace!
Question: Could the power stars affect you based on your desires? For example, Koopa the Quick growing in order to help him be faster, the cannonball becoming Big Bob-omb (wanting to be real/alive), etc. (They were the only two instances I know of/I haven't beaten the game yet).
This could also apply to the Whomp King at whomp's fortress who says something about how he's tired of being stepped on and used for building, and after defeating him, the top of the fortress where you fought him becomes a tower.
@@copeland5348 Thanks for the info!👍
When you wish upon a star, _doesn’t matter who you are_
All of these considerations should be confronted with the Japanese version of the game, wherein Koopa the Quick is not a special named character and may in fact be a different entity in BOB and THI. From the Mario Wiki: "Despite the size difference, Japanese materials treat Koopa the Quick interchangeably with the game's Koopa Troopa enemies."
That quote you said links to the very same website I use in the video at 5:00; I also mention in this section that said website treats Koopa the Quick as a normal Koopa Troopa
“It would be so awesome… It would be so cool”
-Koopa the Quick (Last seen in Tiny Huge Island)
To be fair mario has also gained power stars. Mario not gaining any size or strength but enhanced knowledge of the area around him to take the optimal path to beat koopa. So its fair game
Good work as always Zike! I love how this has just as much attention to detail as your Identifying Luck series
i like how he just hits us with the 'king bo-bomb became a cannon ball' like nothing
I think that the reason that Koopa the Quick held on to the power star to be bigger so that he can fit in with fellow big enemies at the big world. He may have been bullied for being normal size in the big world, so he hunted down a power star to fit in. He then claimed that the reason he had the power star was to give a reward to those who beat him, when it was really to be big. This was his cover-up because he believed that no one would be able to beat him, therefore he would never have to give it up. However, when Mario beat him, he had to follow through and give up his power star. So in order to remain big, he hunted down another one in another world, leading him to give that one to Mario when he is beaten again, etc.
That said, I never did buy into the "third cannonball is Big Bob-omb's remains" theory, for the simple fact that he very clearly shatters into pieces upon defeat.
This can’t be! Koopa the Quick, he called us on cheating… but he was cheating by using a power star to boost his physical ability!
…eh. He likes to race, and that’s what matters
I would never have thought that! Thank you so much!!
Everyone: why are you so big?
Koopa: it would be so awesome, it would be so cool
Interesting theory. Question: If the Power Star gave him his size, does that mean the Toads could also raise their size with one?
Possibly; some enemies (like the Wiggler as well) have been shown to increase in size with a power star, but people like Mario don't for some reason. Not sure how it would affect Toads.
@@zoomzike Mario uses the Power Stars to increase his physical strength, maybe the Toads use them to increase their courage? ...Or maybe I'm just thinking too much about the Triforce right now lol.
@@rjante2236 Who is getting a buff in wisdom then?
I personally think koopa the quick is a normal koopa that is just an absolute unit
Considering in Mario Galaxy 2, Bowser can shrink/grow in size with the presence of a grand star...
that normal sized koopa is a baby koopa trooper, he'll grow to full size
Never would I have ever thought that Power Star doping would be a thing
I really enjoy Zoom June and your videos in general. Keep it up!
so fun. thought you were gonna connect his size to Bowser's... Koopa the Quick has been Bowser disguised, attempting to get close to and learn more about his adversary, _anime style_
I like your more subtle approach 😄 as an amateur SM64 speedrunner, he's a character I've encountered many times, but his context and existence is taken for granted. so cool that with only a little more suspension of disbelief... you can deduce this hidden, yet totally plausible bitta koopa trivia even 20+ yrs later. I mean, maybe y'all gamers had theorized this already... But it's the first time I've ever stopped to ponder, "how did K the Quick get so dummy thicc?"
JOON ZUME BAYBAY
tbf, most Koopas Mario meets don't live long enough to grow that big. This one just got lucky
Koopa the Quick gets caught juicing with power stars. Smh. How heros fall.
This is what you get when the english teacher didn't take his meds
There are Koopa Troopas that look like Koopa the Quick, but they were pretty much not shown at this point in the Super Mario series, so I suppose you're right. Interesting details of you to notice!
I thought I've seen every video topic known to man on sm64, and I was very wrong
Feels like this game has an infinite amount of topic potential dude haha
This video is amazing.. I can't believe I'm still learning more about this game to this day.
curious as to why you never mentioned the Wiggler - that one makes it pretty unambiguous that power stars can make you big! when you defeat him and he spits out the star it literally shows him shrinking
Dude honestly this is my new favorite channel, it's so interesting and well done
Ngl, I expected a funny joke video but this is actually very compelling. Never really thought about Koopa the Quick's size, just always assumed he was bigger than the other Koopa Troopas. Seriously, very very good video and you earned a subscriber with this one
this is the kind of game theory I like to watch
made my day, thank you
This is the equivalent to coming to the realization that the BLU Scout at the keypad door at the beginning of Meet the Spy was the one fooling the REDs the entire time.
I love these somewhat silly deepdives into games that look past what's seemingly presented!
I always like the idea that Turtles within this universe are sort of the super race that they can just become naturally stronger than everybody else like how the Koopa kids aren't even Bowser's children and yet they have around the same abilities as him maybe the Koopas can just use Star Energy more efficiently than random worms
Neat analysis video! Thanks for uploading!
And if you think about the star enhancement mechanic, it would explain why Mario needs 70 power stars to get up the stairs. He needed the boost of 70 stars to be fast or powerful enough to bypass the loop barrier
The reason that some enemies on the huge form of the island aren't huge is probably the same reason that Mario isn't huge: They just came from elsewhere.
I haven't seen any of your other videos, but this one is Art. Because it uses the same format as history channel programs and it is about something so dumb and so niche, and so un-verifyable, but it's presented as something so important and so worth investigating... this is art and I don't say that lightly.
When I got about halfway through this I expected you to bring up another contender for a larger enemy. The Wiggler. When you first come across him he's gigantic (Granted he's in the big island when you fight him, and Mario's small) but when defeated he also shrinks in size after the loss of his power star.
That's a great example about Koopa the quick that Koopa the quick is a normal Koopa who loves to run races on a competition.
now i'm wondering, does this mean koopa the quick either:
a) stole a power star from peach's castle
b) asked bowser for one
or
c) just took one laying around bob-omb battlefield/tiny huge island?
it's probably c tbh, but _maybe_ the bowser one could be true?
oh hey me
But has it been observed how Koopa the quick shrinks after he gives the Power Star? SO power Stars are not proven to increase his height.
I love how it's ちびノコノコ for the normal Koopa Troopa and ノコノコ for Koopa the Quick, as if Koopa the Quick is the normal-sized one, and all the other ones are smaller versions
"consider the fact that king bomb-o-bomb also gave up his star when defeated by Mario"
*Shows the king being murdered by Mario so he could loot the star from the king's remains in the next heartbeat*
He may be Koopa the Quick, but no one is quick enough to run away from truth.
BROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
my mind is blown and i will never unsee this
I remember this game, countless, happy & surreal childhood memories from this old gem, like many. Until My cartridge was accidentally stepped on one day. R.I.P, Mario World... U are missed.
You blew my mind today
Also Wiggler is a pretty good example of the effect a power star can have on an enemy
This actually makes since.
I think he just went off-screen to practice, after all he confirms that Huge Island is his home place so he's just a big Koopa
4:26 This opens another rabbit hole, that being that the Tiny and Huge forms of Tiny-Huge Island aren't actually the same location, and we know this because of the inconsistencies with this Small Koopa Troopa in the Tiny form of Tiny Huge Island that you detailed here.
I’ve never thought of that. So many theories you can make about SM64.
I used to play this game on my Wii. It’s my childhood. I loved to blj and explore the world that way😂.
what if koopa the quick dances when the new super mario bros music starts to play bah bah?
Ooh, I've never thought much about Koopa the Quick before, but this is an intriguing theory!
This is the best video on this damn site.
I was thinking you were also going to mention that shortcut ol' Koopa took in Bob-Omb Battlefield where he ran up the ultra-steep slope.
These videos are so weird and random and I love them.
I honestly love overanalyzing small stuff like this to make headcanons
Brilliant analysis
What if Koopa the Quick is a sort of rarer subspecies to normal koopa troopas. It would explain the absence in pre-race Tiny Huge island, the two Koopa sizes in the large island, and how the Wiggler shrinks immediately, but he never does explicitly ingame. Plus how he's the only large Koopa in Mario 64, yet there's large variants in games like Mario Galaxy 2 and Mario Bros U, and dating back to Mario Bros 3. He could just be the same type of Koopa as the other large ones in the other games, just that he's the only one (or one of the only ones) in the paintings.
This video opens the possibility that the koopa that organizes races in smo is actually koopa the quick
This an incredible dive into a deeply hidden Easter egg and I completely agree
for the record mario also doesn't kill (most of the time), he knocks out his enemies with stylised animations so it doesn't mean anything if they come back/"wake up" like just leaving a room and coming back does it in some games
It’s funny, I also had the exact same theory when I was a kid.
1:18 You can see here the small Koopa the Quick
OMG ITS ZOOMZIKE!!! I REMEMBER WATCHING THIS CHANNEL AS A KID. I’M GOING TO SUBSCRIBE RIGHT NOW