Toad (character)

Toad, also known as (Kinopio キノピオ in Japanese), is a humanoid mushroom that is both a single character and the collective name of the "Mushroom People" found in the Mushroom Kingdom. The Toad species first appeared in Super Mario Bros. 2.
As a singular character of the Mario franchise, Toad is known for being the long-time servant and attendant of Princess Peach. He always tries to protect her; however, he prominently fails almost every time during the events of her kidnapping. Despite his cowardice, Toad is notable for being one of the few characters who help the Mario Bros. through a variety of different ways throughout their adventures. Toad has even made his fair share of heroic contributions as seen in games such as in Wario's Woods (a game that features Toad himself as the main hero) and Super Mario Bros. 2.
== Biography ==
Toad first appears as a singular character in Super Mario Bros. 2 as one of the four playable characters. In the game's story, he and his three friends (Mario, Luigi, and Princess Peach) had to help the people of the land of Subcon by defeating the villainous frog (known as Wart) from taking over their kingdom. Among the four characters, Toad was both the strongest and fastest character; however, he had the worst jumps. Toad himself is stated to be the chief guard of the Mushroom Retainers (Toad who were kidnapped in the events of the previous game, Super Mario Bros.). In Super Mario Bros. 3, he begins the story by writing a letter to Princess Peach warning her about Bowser and the Koopalings who were taking over the Mushroom Kingdom and asks her to send help. He also appears in the game by helping Marioand Luigi through running the Toad's Houses (areas that provided power-ups or extra lives for the Mario Bros.). The character then goes on to star in Wario's Woods where he prevents Wariofrom taking over the Mushroom Kingdom with his monsters. Thanks to his courage and the help of Birdo and the fairy named Wanda, Toad manages to defeat Wario in the end and chase him out of the Woods (thus reversing the antagonist's control over the woods and monsters). For the next few years, Toad appears in many of the Mario spin-off games such as the Mario Kart series Mario Party series (where he is often featured as a playable character) and various other sports games.
Toad appears in 3D series games such as Super Mario 64 where he was the first Toad that Mario met in Peach's castle, and he explains much of the back story of what had happened to Mario. In Super Mario Sunshine, Toad (as he was named in the instruction booklet) accompanied the princess, Mario and Toadsworth with four other Toads to Isle Delfino as one of her attendants. In the Super Mario Galaxy games, he is the captain of the Toad Brigade (naming himself as so by having a headlamp). As a result, he was appointed as the Toad Brigade Captain by his fellow Toad Brigade members. Much of Toad's original personality is retained in the Galaxy games (once again being impatient and cowardly yet loyal) and he assists Mario on his adventure throughout the galaxies in this game as well as its sequel. In Super Mario 3D Land, Toad plays the role as Mario's sidekick as he continually assists the hero by providing him with assistance through the red Toad Houses (which Toad himself runs) and the provision of cannons for the airship levels. Toad also appears in a certain few levels where he must be spotted through the binoculars to see the help he would provide (such as tossing down star coins near to Mario or providing free power-ups/1-Up Mushrooms).
In other games, he acts as an instructor, such as in the earlier Mario Party games, and helps guide characters in other games. As with the games, Toad plays a major supporting character in other forms of media starring Mario. He usually tags along with Mario in the various cartoons and comics as a sidekick.
In the Super Mario Bros. live-action film, Toad (portrayed by Mojo Nixon) was re-imagined as a street musician and one of the poor inhabitants of Dinohattan, all of whom were descended from dinosaurs; unhappy with King Koopa's rule, Toad was placed under arrest by King Koopa's police force for singing "anti-Koopa songs" and placed in custody, where he befriends Mario and Luigi. Toad is later forcibly devolved into a Goomba, but apparently retains his humanity, as evidenced by his kindness towards Princess Daisy and the fact that he aids Mario and Luigi, giving them the devolution gun that is ultimately used to end the threat of King Koopa.
== Personality ==
Toad is mostly a cute and happy guy, almost to the point of being childish. He is humble and innocent, with most of his official artwork displaying him with a wide smile. He usually doesn't get angry, more likely to be scared. Toad is also a bit cowardly but is always willing to help his friends.
=== Powers and abilities ===
In Super Mario Bros. 2, Toad played very similarly to the other characters by jumping on the enemies and picking up various objects to aid him. However, out of the four characters, Toad was the strongest character and as well as the fastest character in terms of running and vegetable uprooting speed. Wario's Woods marked the return of Toad's superhuman strength and the game also gave him the ability to run up walls. His speed from Super Mario Bros. 2 also seems to be implemented in the Mario Kart games as he is often a rather speedy racer. In Mario Party 3, Toad had used a hammer though this has yet to be seen in future games.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii gave Toad balanced stats, thus allowing him to play similarly to the Mario Bros. He also was given abilities such as the ground pound, spin jump, and the wall kick. He is also able to use his superhuman strength to carry objects and characters much larger than himself with ease. He can also use power-ups, such as Fire Toad (allows him to shoot fireballs), Propeller Toad (allows him to propel into the sky for flight purposes) and more.
Super Mario 3D World gives Toad the ability to run very fast unlike in New Super Mario Bros. Wiiwhere he was well-balanced. However, he cannot jump very high and falls quickly. Toad retains the ability to shoot fireballs as Fire Toad when he obtains a Fire Flower, and able to climb up walls and perform claw attacks in Cat form by acquiring the Super Bell.
== Trivia ==
* Though Toad and Toadette neither appear in Mario Power Tennis, they are depicted on the tournament roster in the intro cinematic.