12
teams will face off on a dizzying race around the Nintendo universe, through
the various nations, peoples, and cities along the way. The tasks will be intense, the traveling
arduous, and the tension palpable. At the
end of the journey lies $5 million in cash, a vacation of a lifetime, and the
title of Amazing Race Champions. This…is
the Amazing Race: Nintendo Universe
Here’s
your host…Phil Keoghan.
Race Leg #1 – Mushroom
World
“Welcome
all to The Amazing Race: Nintendo Universe.
In this season of our fabulous show we will take you around the world,
to all corners of the gaming world, from its most historical and quaint locals
to its most demanding and breathtaking.
Our casting call was far and wide, as well over 300 of your favorite
characters sought to be a part of our inaugural season in the pixilated
goodness we find ourselves in. Only 24
will embark on the journey, in 2-person teams.
On this night, we will introduce you to our contestants.
Where
we stand now is the Yoshi Green House, a little known relic of Nintendo’s
earlier years. Making its first
appearance in Super Mario World in 1991 and referred to then as “Yoshi’s
House”, the Yoshi Green House is the home of the leader Yoshi as well as a
great number of the dinosaurs, which come in many colors and are indigenous to
the island that bears their name. The
original structure was made out of a connection of trees, held together at the
base by brick columns. Many other houses
of similar construction were created over the years and were showcased in Super
Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island.
To
assist me in bringing out our contestants are perhaps Yoshi’s Island’s
most revered citizenry – Yoshi and Baby Mario.”
Yoshi
and Baby Mario come out, at which point production whispers into Phil’s
microphone. “Oh right, neither one can
talk. Well, we’ll have to do this the
old fashioned way.
“First
up, I present to you Team Plumber – from Mushroom Kingdom…Mario
and Luigi!
Second,
we have Team Primate – from Kongo Jungle…Donkey and Diddy Kong!
Third,
it is team Psychic – from Eagleland – Ness and
Lucas!
Fourth,
we have team Knight – from Gallia – Ike and
Lyn!
Fifth,
it is team Royalty – from Hyrule – Link and Zelda!
Sixth,
we have team Hunter – from Zebes – Samus and Ridley!
Seventh,
we have team Villain – from Popstar – Dedede and Metaknight!
Eighth,
we have team Starfighter – from Corneria – Fox and Krystal!
Ninth,
we have team Freighter – from Hocotate – Olimar and Louie!
Tenth,
we have team Daredevil – from Mute
City – Captain Falcon and
Jody Summer!
Eleventh,
it is team Antagonist – from Pallet
Town – Ash Ketchum and
Gary Oak!
The
12th and final team is team Blur – from Green Hill Zone – Sonic and
Tails!”
The
12 teams gather around in the front of the green house, most of whom have big
smiles on their faces.
“As
you know, the first leg of the race will begin from this spot. The mat behind you is a map of the Nintendo
Universe. These will serve as the
beginning and ending points for all legs of the race. In each leg of the race you will have to find
your way through the country to various locations, and then complete challenges
at those locations. When you do, you’ll
receive your next clue and you’ll proceed to the next location. At the end of each leg you’ll check in at
this mat once again.”
“With
that, you can come forth and receive your first clue in the clue box here.”
The
various teams come forward to receive the clue.
Captain
Falcon: You must take the Cheep Cheep Ferry across the sea north to Delfino Plaza.
Once there proceed on foot to Chef Torte’s Pizzeria.”
A
few minutes later the teams are given their provisions, food, and money (in
this case, coins, since we’re in the mushroom world). The host and production lines them up on the
starting map.
“Racers
on your marks…get set…go!” The host
shouts as the Yoshis throw eggs and spit watermelon seeds into the air. The 12 teams race off the line to the ferry,
which is on the beach about a half mile away.
Naturally, the faster teams get there first, and since there are only 3
ships there at any one time, that gives them the advantage.
Sonic/Tails,
Fox/Krystal, and Falcon/Summer get there first, and start riding across the
sea.
Sonic:
Hey this is pretty easy; those slower teams are no match for us.
Fox:
Yeah, I get you, that giant dragon thing and the bounty hunter in the suit will
probably be out first.
Falcon:
Their moves are weak. We’re the best
bounty hunters here, aren’t we Jody?
Summer:
You bet!
They
land on Delfino Plaza and look for the Pizzeria. Meanwhile six other teams are on their way
across the sea. Just Olimar/Louie,
Dedede/Metaknight, and Samus/Ridley are left on the north beach
of Yoshi’s Island.
Dedede:
Well this stinks.
Metaknight:
If you would move your bulging butt we’d be on that ferry by now!
Dedede:
I can’t help it, my stomach hurts, and I beat you at gourmet race!
Metaknight:
Only because you’re better at putting things in your mouth!
Olimar:
I just hope our suits don’t malfunction…HFP wasn’t too thrilled about us taking
off all that work time.
Louie:
You think he rigged them to give out on us?
Olimar:
I’m just saying. Nah, you’re probably
right…but let’s just take it steady.
At
the other end, Fox and Krystal locate the pizzeria first.
“Here
we stand at Chef Torte’s Pizzeria, an oracle to quintessential Italian
cuisine. Built from an old structure of
sandstone and marble and of European architecture, it is one of the oldest
buildings in Delfino and lies right between the Delfino Square and Peach Beach Mario Kart
Tracks. Here, the contestants will have
their first task of the leg, in which they must make 40 pizzas, complete with
all the fixings, including mushroom world’s well-known staple, red
mushrooms. The pizzas must be declared
good by Chef Torte and or his apprentice.
Once 40 pizzas are made, the teams will receive their next clue.”
Jody:
Alright, let’s make some pizzas!
Krystal:
What’s a pizza? Never heard of it.
Captain
Falcon: Can’t even read this stupid thing…makes me want to falcon punch it.
Jody
Summer: Calm down dear, if you can’t read a book how will we ever win the race?
Despite
her early confusion, Krystal picks up the recipe and masters it quickly. Her and Fox quickly jump out to a lead on the
other teams. This is before Mario and
Luigi arrive five minutes later, Link/Zelda and Ness/Lucas right behind
them.
Mario:
Okey-dokey, time to show them how it’s done!
Luigi:
I'm-a Luigi, number 1 pizza maker!
Mario:
Start kneading the dough…I’ve-a got the rest of it!
Mario
and Luigi, no doubt because of their affinity for such food, pass all the
teams, including Fox and Krystal and complete the 40 pizzas to receive the clue
just as the final group arrives from the ferry.
Captain
Falcon: Figures that Chef Torte likes all their pizzas!
Zelda:
They just make it look so easy.
Mario:
We need to take the Wiggler Bus up to Bandits Way
Park. Let’s go Luigi!
“Teams
must now head northward on the bus to Bandit’s Way Park. This natural preserve to the southwest of Mushroom Kingdom is the home of mushroom world’s
most notorious thieves, Croco. Here the
teams will receive their next clue.”
Luigi:
There’s the clue box. What do we
have? Head to Peach’s Castle Grounds and
pick up 20 marked balls or harvest 50 mushrooms at Moo Moo Farm.
Mario:
I’m thinking the balls will be easier, let’s go there.
Meanwhile
back at the pizza parlor…
Lyn:
We’re doing pretty well; we’re catching up to the other teams! Fetch me the cheese!
Ike:
Got it. I’ll keep kneading the dough.
Across
the room, the monkeys are well, monkeying around.
DK:
No banana? **punches into a large bag of cheese, causing it to go everywhere.
Diddy:
**Holds two pepperonis up over his eyes, and plays peek-a-boo with DK.
Across
the way, the villains get down to business.
Metaknight:
We didn’t so well on the way here Dedede.
Dedede:
Sure, but making pizzas, this oughta be easy, we’ll catch up in no time!
Metaknight:
What’s a pizza?
Dedede:
**rolls eyes… (Are you kidding me, why did I have to be paired with this
loser?)
Donkey
Kong: Gon-grawl! Gon-grawl!
**Accidentally knocks over a big bag of flour, drenching Dedede in total
whiteness. Dedede gazes at DK with a
murderous look on his face.
Fox
and Krystal make it to Bandit’s Way.
Fox:
Detour! Pick balls or pick shrooms!
This
challenge is a detour. At a detour,
teams are given the choice between two tasks to complete; they only need to
complete one to move forward unless they are u-turned by another team. If a team is u-turned, they will need to
complete both tasks to move forward. A
team can only u-turn another team once in the race, so teams will have to
consider at what point to use it.”
Fox:
Golf ball collecting or mushroom harvesting.
Which should we do?
Krystal:
I don’t know much about either…it’s your decision Fox.
Fox:
Let’s do the balls, it’s probably not that hard.
“Peach’s
Castle Grounds Golf Club, the oldest private golf club in the Nintendo World,
features a championship level 18-hole layout, complete with chain chomps lining
the fairways. In the detour challenge,
teams will need to go to the driving range, and pick up specially marked balls
with the Amazing Race logo on them.
Thirty players will be hitting the balls at the same time, so teams will
have to avoid the balls as they are hit.”
Mario:
Look out Luigi!
Luigi:
**moves just before a ball hits him in the face. Well, this is-a more a-dangerous than I
thought Mario. How many do we have?
Mario:
I’ve got 4 so far. We need twenty. **dodges another ball. Fox and his lady friend have arrived, we need
to move.
Back
at the pizza parlor…
Lucas: Get me the pizza sauce, I’m out!
Ness: I can’t reach it, it’s
too high!
Lucas:
PK Freeze! **ice goes atop the
refrigerator and freezes the sauce vat, dropping it to the ground, where the
ice breaks. A piece slides into Ridley
and knocks him over.
Ridley:
RAWR! **comes after Lucas who cowers in
the corner while Samus tries to stop her partner from eating him.
Samus:
Sorry, he’s a bit territorial. (Couldn’t
I have a partner who’s…I don’t know…human?)
Link
and Zelda reach Bandit’s Way in fifth place.
Zelda:
We have to choose between picking golf balls or picking mushrooms.
Link:
Let’s go for the farm, I’m good at farming tasks.
“Moo
Moo Farm, one of the largest agricultural preserves in the gaming universe and
home to the Mario Kart track of the same name, is where nearly 20% of the
mushrooms in Mushroom
Kingdom are
produced. At this juncture, the workers
will dump the mushrooms onto a giant turntable, and the teams will have to
activate a giant rake to sweep them into their basket. Normal mushrooms are worth 1 point, special
golden mushrooms are worth 3, but some of the vegetables are poisonous, which
subtract 3 points. Once a team reaches
50 points, they will be given their next clue.”
Zelda:
You’re right Link; you’re a natural at this.
We’ve already got 34. We might be
able to win this leg if we keep at it.
Link:
Just keep pointing them out. See there’s
a golden one! **Link activates the crane
and rakes in the golden mushroom plus 2 other regular mushrooms.
Zelda:
You’re amazing! That’s 5 in one shot!
Link:
Well, it’s not like I didn’t work hard every day when I was in Ordona…
Ash
and Gary are in
6th place when they find the clue box at Bandit’s Way. That’s when they find something that nobody
else has seen, a special path leading behind the clue box. The two trainers follow it to a bushy area
where a second clue box lies.
Ash:
Fast Forward? Whoa, they didn’t talk
about this in the production meeting.
Gary: Well let’s
see what it is. Take the tram to Toad’s
Midway and ride the roller coaster!
Ash:
Sweet, I love roller coasters. Let’s go!
“In
many stages, there is a fast forward challenge, in which the first team to
correctly complete the fast forward can skip straight ahead to the finish of
the current leg, called the Pit Stop.
The site of this leg’s Fast Forward is Toad’s Midway Amusement Park. This park, which doubles as a Mario Party
Board Map, is home to over 30 rides and attractions, including the biggest
roller coaster in the mushroom world, called Toad’s Turnpike. On the roller coaster, the teams will have to
hold two ice cream cones in their hands and not lose any of the scoops while
going around the course, which includes two loops. Teams can pick up a scoop if it lands in
their lap, but if it falls out of the car they fail the challenge.
Ash:
Aaaahhh! Woooohooo!
Gary: Oh crap.
Ash:
What? Don’t tell me you…
Gary: I did.
Ash:
Oh great! Now we came out here for
nothing and we have to go back!
Gary: I’m still a
better trainer than you!
Ash:
If we get eliminated first leg, I’m sending Charizard over and burning up all
your clothes and your stupid car!
Gary: Simmer down
Ash; you’re just jealous because your mom likes a Mr Mime more than you.
Ash:
Why you little!
Ash
and Gary start
fighting as the ride comes to a stop, and production has to break them up.
Back
at the golf course…
Krystal:
That’s 20. Fox we have it, let’s get the
clue!
Fox:
**grabs the clue. It’s a roadblock clue. “Who’s ready to get airborne?”
Krystal:
Wow, nice one for us…I think you should do it though.
Fox:
Definitely.
“Teams
must now proceed to Royal Raceway Mario Kart Track, where one of the two team
members must complete this leg’s roadblock challenge. In a roadblock, only one of the team’s
members can work toward completing the challenge, without help from their
partner. On this track, built in 1997
and featured in Mario Kart 64, racers must strap themselves into a standard
edition Mario Kart car and race three laps around the track, avoiding the other
random karts driving about as well as all the assorted items that can slow you
down. The track is best known for its
giant ramp jump that leads across the moat and over toward Peach’s Castle. Once racers complete 3 laps, they will
receive their next clue.”
Mario:
I’m-a going to catch you Fox!” **pulls out a red shell. The shell homes in on Fox’s kart and hits,
causing him to tumble off onto the grass and down the slope into the water.
Luigi:
Nice-a-shot Mario. Now hit that hill and
we’ll be on our way!
Back
at the golf course, Olimar and Louie are picking up the golf balls.
Olimar:
**golf ball bounces off his helmet.
(Good thing I have this thing, these golf balls would really hurt
otherwise. Due to their suits and
protective helmets, Louie and Olimar surge through the challenge and pick up
ground. They head off for Royal
Raceway. Right behind them are Dedede
and Metaknight. But when the latter team
reaches the route information marker…they find that they have been u-turned.
Dedede:
son of a…who u-turned us? **sees the
pictures of Sonic and Tails. Why those
little twerps!
Metaknight: We’ll show them…but another time. We have some mushroom picking to do.
Donkey
Kong and Diddy Kong finally have the 40 pizzas made and are in last place
reaching Bandit’s Way.
DK:
OOHH-WAAHH!
Diddy:
**jumps up and down pointing toward the bushy area with the fast forward
clue. DK passes Diddy and opens the
clue.
DK:
**smiles big, showing all his teeth.
Diddy
and DK, due to their climbing and vine-swinging abilities, know exactly how to
keep the ice cream on their cones despite looping upside down. They successfully complete the challenge, and
Diddy throws his hat up in the air and DK claps as they are handed their clue.
“Teams
must now head on foot right down the road to Peach’s Castle. This castle, perhaps the most recognizable
building in the Nintendo universe, was originally created in 1985 from a heavy
brown quartzite rock and appeared in Super Mario Brothers. The old castle eventually became difficult to
maintain, and the modern castle was built of a pristine ivory marble. It was completed in 1996 and appeared first
in Super Mario 64. The castle serves as
the Pit Stop for this leg of the race.
The last team to arrive here…may be eliminated.”
Back
at the Mario Kart track, Mario finishes far ahead of Fox, and grabs his
clue. Mario and Luigi take off for
Peach’s Castle. About halfway up the
road, they see the two Kongs approaching from the other direction. It turns into a footrace to see who will
reach the castle first.
Meanwhile
back at Moo Moo Farm…
Samus:
No Ridley, you press the red button here use the crane…no no that’s the blue
one that’s the rotator…oh for goodness sake just let me figure it out. There we go, that’s one. **notices that Ridley has eaten the mushroom
out of the basket. Ridley! Don’t eat the mushrooms! We need to put 50 of them in the basket, are
you listening to me?!
Meanwhile,
on the Royal Raceway track, Link duels with Ness.
Ness: **drops a banana peel
into Link’s path. Take that pretty boy!
Link’s
kart spins around for several seconds and then starts moving again. He picks up a golden mushroom from an item
block and uses it to surge right past Ness.
Link:
Mushrooms are for adults only kid…ha ha!
Near
the end of the track, Link looks to finish ahead of the rest but suddenly a
blue flying shell comes flying after him.
The explosion rockets him high up into the air and into the water.
Link:
Din! Now I’m all wet. As he waits for Lakitu to pull him out, he
sees Captain Falcon riding past.
Captain
Falcon: Get out the way…medieval fief! (These cars aren’t as good as ours in Port Town,
but these items rock!)
At
Peach’s Castle Grounds, Mario and Luigi enter the castle foyer. There is no sign of Donkey and Diddy although
they cannot be sure that they didn’t find a shortcut to beat them to the Pit
Stop. At the Pit Stop is the mat with
the map of the Nintendo Universe on it.
Toad and Toadette stand on either side of the mat, with host Phil
Keoghan standing next to Princess Peach.
Princess
Peach: Welcome to Mushroom
Kingdom. **curtsies
“Mario
and Luigi”
Mario/Luigi:
Yes…
“Congratulations…you
are team #1.”
Mario/Luigi:
YEAH!! The two start high-fiving each
other.
Luigi:
I'mma-Luigi, number 1!
“Mario
and Luigi, as the winners of this leg of the race…you two will receive free
food courtesy of Chef Torte’s Pizzeria for a year…plus a pair of limited
edition, 2011 custom Mario Karts!
Mario:
Momma Mia Luigi!
Luigi:
Daisy will be very happy to learn this…we’ll drive around town in style first
day after the race ends.
Mario
looks adoringly at Peach, who gives him a wink.
Donkey
and Diddy come down the path about a minute later.
“Donkey
and Diddy Kong…you are team #2.”
DK
and Diddy high-five one another as Toadette and Toad both hand them banana
splits with mushrooms in the middle.
Meanwhile
back at the track, Metaknight duels with Gary.
Gary: You’re
going down, mask brain! **Grabs a green
shell and throws it Metaknight.
Metaknight:
We’ll see about you…prima donna punk.
**takes out a lightning bolt, which shocks Gary and turns him small. Gary falls
behind quickly, to the point that Ness appears
behind him and runs him over, making him flat as a pancake.
Gary: Yikes, this
isn’t good.
The
teams continue to stream into the castle one by one. Before long only a few teams remain to be
checked in. Ike and Lady Lyndis come
across the cobblestone bridge and into the castle with clearly nervous looks on
their faces. They fear the worst.
Peach:
Welcome to Mushroom
Kingdom.
“Ike
and Lyn.”
Lyn:
Yes…(gosh I hope we’re not last)
“You
are team #8.”
Ike/Lyn:
Whew! The two turn to hug one another as
they find relief that they are advancing.
With
the sun setting in the background, the remaining teams file in. One last team straggles home in last place,
their fate unknown.
Peach:
Welcome to Mushroom
Kingdom.
Thank
you.
“Samus
and Ridley…I’m sorry to say that you are the last team to arrive. I am sorry to report that you have been
eliminated from the race.”
Samus
turns away from Phil and hands Peach a spark ball and whispers something in her
ear. She then blasts Ridley straight out
of the castle doorway with her gun.
Samus:
The producers can fix your doorway, Peach.
Keep the change you filthy animals!
Leg
1 roundup –
1st
– Mario/Luigi
2nd
– DK/Diddy
3rd
– Fox/Krystal
4th
– Falcon/Summer
5th
– Sonic/Tails
6th
– Olimar/Louie
7th
– Link/Zelda
8th
– Ike/Lyn
9th
– Metaknight/Dedede
10th
– Ness/Lucas
11th
– Gary/Ash
12th
– Samus/Ridley (eliminated)
Back to Story Menu