Mushroom Guard

*This article is about the TV show. For the titular group, see Mushroom Guard (group).*

**Mushroom Guard**is a computer-animated television series, focusing on the adventures of the titular group.

This show is essentially a Nintendo version of Skylanders Academy, though it also takes inspiration from shows such as Big Hero 6: The Series, the original Teen Titans series, and the Ducktales reboot. The show uses "Lifelight" as its theme song.

## Premise

Mario has been protecting the Mushroom Kingdom for many years. But when a new villain threatens the Kingdom, Mario realises that he and Luigi aren't getting any younger, and they aren't always going to be there for the Kingdom. Mario thus sets out to establish a new team of heroes.

The team consists of:

* **Mario** and **Luigi,** the team leaders
* **Daisy,** the princess of Sarasaland
* **Berry** and **Gold,** two Toads who had accompanied the Mario Bros on previous adventures
* **Zac** and **Sarah,** two best friends from Inkopolis, and the main focus of the story

## Characters

### Mushroom Guard members

* **Mario:** The leader of the group. Plays a "supporting leader"  role in the story. Fights with his fire powers.
* **Luigi:** Transports the group by piloting the Mushroom Guard Helicopter. Will sometimes stay out of the action and play a "mission control" role, but will fight with his Poltergust at other times.
* **Daisy:** The princess of Sarasaland, who moved to the Mushroom Kingdom to live with Luigi. Fights with martial arts.
* **Berry:** A Toad who has accompanied the Mario Bros on previous adventures. Adopts a "ninja" motif throughout the series, and thus fights with ninja-themed weaponry. Based on Blue Toad's canon appearance.
* **Gold:** Another Toad who has accompanied the Mario Bros on previous adventures. He is Berry's younger brother, and he fights with a bow and arrow, while also using rollerblades to move around in battle. Based on Yellow Toad's canon appearance.
* **Zac:** The protagonist of the story, who moved from Inkopolis to the Mushroom Kingdom, and got caught up in the Mario Bros' adventures as a result. Fights with a Splattershot and Ink Bombs. Based on Inkling Boy's canon appearance.
* **Sarah:** The deuteragonist of the story, and Zac's best friend. Fights with an Inkbrush and Slosher. Based on Inkling Girl's canon appearance.

### Recurring Allies

* **Princess Peach:**Ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom, she briefs the Mushroom Guard on their missions.
* **Toadette:**Peach's loyal assistant, who sometimes takes on Peach's role of mission briefing.
* **Yoshi:** The Mushroom Guard regularly visits him on Yoshi's Island. He will sometimes lend a hand in battle.
* **Agent 3:** An Inkling with a mysterious past. Acts rude at first, but befriends Zac and Sarah later. Although she later helps out the Mushroom Guard on some of their missions, she is not an official member of the team, instead playing an "honorary true companion" role.

### Antagonists

* **Bowser:**Made peace with the Mushroom Kingdom prior to the start of the series, but returned to his villianous ways in S1:E3, alongside his Koopa Troop.
* **Bowser Jr and the Koopalings:**Accompany Bowser on his evil schemes. They are also seen on their own sometimes.
* **Kamek:**Although he is a member of the Koopa Troop, he will sometimes work independently as well.
* **Dr. Hex:** A new villain, original to the TV show. She debuts in the first episode of the series.

## Episodes

* S1:E1: "Heroic Beginnings, Part 1": The episode starts in Inkopolis, with Zac and Sarah competing against each other in Turf War. They then talk about how they don't get to travel outside of Inkopolis very often. Zac and Sarah then remember that time when they were invited to the Mushroom Kingdom for a kart racing championship. The two of them apply to attend a university in the Mushroom Kingdom, and get accepted. Zac and Sarah arrive in the Mushroom Kingdom, just in time to see mysterious villain Dr. Hex threaten the Kingdom...
* S1:E2: "Heroic Beginnings, Part 2": Mario and Luigi confront Dr. Hex, but she escapes. Deciding they need backup, they call up a few old friends: Daisy, Berry, and Gold. Zac and Sarah follow the group, but Mario tries to tell them that it's too dangerous. The Inklings then surprise Mario by utilizing their Turf War skills to capture Hex. As she is escorted to prison, Mario decides it's time to establish a new team of heroes. And thus, the Mushroom Guard is born!
* S1:E3: "Peacekeeping Day": After the Mushroom Kingdom's kart racing championship, Bowser and the Koopa Troop had given up on attacking the Mushroom Kingdom. Today marks 1 year since the Koopa Troop agreed to a truce, and the Mushroom Kingdom is throwing a Peacekeeping Day Party to celebrate! Unfortunately, Bowser and his crew betray the Mushroom Kingdom and return to their villainous ways.
* S1:E4: "An Inkredible Grocery Run": Based on the Pokemon episode "A Shocking Grocery Run". While Zac is at the shops, the Koopalings storm the place, leaving Zac trapped and forcing him to call up the rest of the Mushroom Guard as backup.
* An episode where the residents of the Mushroom Kingdom are brainwashed and turned evil. This ends up affecting the Mushroom Guard members as well, until it reaches the point where Zac must shut down the source himself, and fight his friends in the process!
* The Mushroom Guard is given two missions at the same time! It is decided that Mario, Luigi and Daisy will handle one of the missions, while the remainder of the team is given the other mission. When Zac asks who will be the leader of his mission, Mario says that Zac can be "leader for a day." This goes to Zac's head, and he eventually learns that he isn't ready to be a leader just yet, and delegates leadership duties to Sarah.
* Zac and Sarah meet Agent 3 for the first time. She offers to help them...if one of them can stand up to her in a gladiator's tournament. (This episode is a homage to Super Smash Bros.)
* Bowser and the Koopa Troop attempt to kidnap Peach, and end up kidnapping Zac instead! The rest of the team sets out to rescue their friend. Zac's initial escape attempt is foiled by a tranquilizer dart, and Sarah carries Zac to safety while the latter is still asleep.
* Lately, Zac has been disappearing without letting anyone know. Sarah thinks this means he doesn't want to be her friend anymore. She eventually finds out about a hobby that Zac wants kept secret, and learns to respect her friend's privacy.
* An episode that flashes back to when Zac and Sarah first met: Sarah had defended Zac from bullies in school.
* Zac gets framed for a crime and sent to jail. It's up to the rest of the group to find the real culprit, and clear their friend's name!
* Remakes of the Super Mario Bros 3 episodes "True Colors" and "Misadventures in Babysitting"
	+ True Colors remake: Mario and Luigi's roles are reduced, with Zac and Sarah replacing them in some scenes
	+ Misadventures in Babysitting remake: Unlike in True Colors, Mario and Luigi are completely absent from this episode, with Zac and Sarah serving as the main focus.
* A story arc that involves Zac becoming trapped in an alternate dimension.
	+ While Zac is trying to get back to his own dimension, he comes across a town ruled by a tyrannical dictator. He rallies the townspeople and frees them from the clutches of the dictator. The townspeople ask Zac to become their new leader, but he declines, since he wants to get back to his friends.
	+ Zac comes across an alternate dimension counterpart to the Mushroom Guard: a group known as the "Order of the Flower." The members of the Order of the Flower create a portal that takes Zac home.
	+ During this story arc, several episodes focus on the Mushroom Guard's attempts to cope while one team member short.
* After escaping from prison, Dr. Hex manages to infiltrate Peach's Castle. Since Bowser and the Koopa Troop are holding up most of the Mushroom Guard outside the Castle, Zac sneaks in to fight Hex himself. Once again, Hex is captured and sent to prison.

## Shorts

* Agent 3 Theme Song Takeover: Agent 3 invites Zac and Sarah to see her star in a new TV show.

## Other Adaptations

* Mushroom Guard: The Movie
	+ A feature film based on the TV series.
* Mushroom Guard: Hero's Path
	+ An RPG-adventure game. The player can choose to play as either Zac or Sarah. Throughout the game, you make dialogue/action choices, in a similar vein to Telltale Games titles. (In particular, the "choices" element of the game is inspired by Minecraft: Story Mode.) The RPG elements of the game are taken from Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle.
* Mushroom Guard Warriors
	+ A musou/warriors game.
* Books
	+ Several episodes have been adapted into books, starting with both parts of "Heroic Beginnings."

## Opening Sequence

*Main article: Mushroom Guard/Opening Sequence*

## Trivia

In Japan, the official title of the series is "Mushroom Guard: Heroes of the Mushroom Kingdom," similar to how the Kirby series is known as "Kirby of the Stars."

## Links

* Mushroom Guard on Fantendo
* Mushroom Guard on The Mario Fanon Wiki