The extremely recognizable purple antagonist, Waluigi, is a weirdly trendy Nintendo character. For months or years at a time he will fade into the background of the Super Mario lore, and then suddenly some event will have countless Nintendo fans (or gamers in general) talking about the lanky goofball. This most recent Waluigi fad centered on people wanting to see the mischievous miscreant elevated from an assist trophy to a full-on playable character in Super Smash Bros Ultimate. While there’s still a chance that the purple menace might become playable, the odds, as always, aren’t in his favor.

A consequence of this recent movement is a massive increase in articles, videos, and fan art centering on Waluigi. Fans around the world have decided that if Nintendo won’t give the antagonist the credit he’s due, then they will. This is totally understandable, as the core of Waluigi’s character is basically just everything that makes Wario great, pushed to an even more absurd extreme. He’s even zanier, cruder, and unpredictable than the original ‘Wa’ nemesis, and it’s hard not to love him for those qualities.

If anything, Waluigi’s newfound popularity has made countless people realize how great this secondary character is. While Mario is a childhood cornerstone to earlier generations, Waluigi possesses his own unique charms. There are plenty of things that the taller, thinly mustachioed man can do that that the face of Nintendo cannot. These are 25 things that Waluigi can do that Mario simply can’t, and can probably never hope to do.

He Can Reach The Top Shelf

Even if it’s often to his benefit in his many adventures, Mario is pretty shrimpy. While his exact height seems to fluctuate between games and official guides, Mario is usually several times smaller than the baddies he needs to beat.

Waluigi, on the other hand, is one of the tallest human characters in the series. He towers over most other citizens of the Mushroom Kingdom, and seems like he’d be able to get through his everyday life a lot more easily than the vertically challenged Mario. Especially if Waluigi stopped slouching all the time. Imagine a Waluigi that is even taller!

Be Friends With Someone Other Than His Brother

Although it’s implied that Wario and Waluigi are brothers, like how Mario and Luigi are brothers, the relationship between the two antagonists is actually pretty ambiguous. Some materials list them as brothers, while others describe them solely as friends. The latter seems a bit more likely as the two don’t look all that similar and, if that is the case, that means that Waluigi is able to hang out with someone besides his brother, unlike Mario. Hopefully, Mario isn’t too jealous of Waluigi’s ability to be friends with non-relatives. In fact, we are sure that Waluigi has a lot of friends behind the scenes.

Casually Be Multicultural

Mario is a character that’s recognized around the world, and in Super Mario Odyssey he can wear articles of clothing tied to some of these cultures. Waluigi, however, has always subtly contained markings from different cultures. The upside down ‘L’ on his hat is also the symbol for the Greek letter ‘G.’ Although the origins of Mario and those close to him keep jumping from Brooklyn, to Italy, to the Mushroom Kingdom; Waluigi will always have this small detail associated with him.

Be Affordable

Waluigi and Mario were both included in the official Nintendo version of the Monopoly board game. In this game, Waluigi is associated with the first, and least expensive, tile in the game while Mario is found on the final and most expensive space. Ever a man of the people, Waluigi is affordable and in many ways, the character introduces the upcoming investors playing the game into the world of finance. Waluigi offers those playing the first opportunity to move beyond their humble financial beginnings, while Mario only caters to the wealthy.

Maintain His Maturity

Baby Mario on Yoshi From Yoshi's Island DS

Unlike Mario, Luigi, and Wario; Waluigi does not have an infant counterpart. Waluigi only appears as an adult in his official game appearances, while the toddler versions of the other three characters appear in the Yoshi’s Island series and Mario Kart games. Perhaps, Waluigi never was an infant and instead appeared in the Mushroom Kingdom as a divine, and fully grown man. Or maybe Nintendo just doesn’t have much interest in giving Waluigi a backstory; both possibilities seem equally likely. Still, we prefer to believe that it's due to the fact that Waluigi is just so powerful that he can't be transformed into an infant.

Troll Nintendo Fans Again And Again

Waluigi is either himself a troll, or a means for Nintendo to inadvertently troll their audience. For a stretch, fans thought Waluigi would appear in Super Mario Bros. U when Nintendo said there’d be a purple character in the game, but that turned out to be Nabbit. Then, purple and yellow chairs appeared in the background of a Smash Bros focused Nintendo Direct, only for the character to go unmentioned. With Nintendo pulling the character away from gamers time and time again, it’s no wonder that Waluigi is a fan favorite character.

Rock A Rose On The Tennis Court

Waluigi appears in Mario Tennis Aces and makes a powerful case for his inclusion in more Super Mario titles. In this game, when he performs a special move, Waluigi clutches a rose between his teeth, strikes a fierce pose, and then fires off an almost-impossible-to-return ball. With this special shot, Waluigi is as powerful as he is majestic and we would all be so lucky if such a passionate man appeared in more games. But alas, the emotion behind this move is sadness, for Waluigi knows he’ll never get his due in the franchise.

Endure Rejection

Waluigi is clearly romantically interested in Princess Daisy. In this way, he and Mario are rather similar, as Mario time and time again demonstrates his affection for Princess Peach by saving her from peril. While both end up being rejected, Waluigi is able to get on with his life while Mario is still rescuing Peach whenever she’s in trouble. Maybe it’s just because Waluigi and Daisy rarely appear in a game together, but the implication is that while Waluigi still has a crush on Daisy, it’s not an all-consuming part of his life like Mario’s love for Peach.

Represent A Series He’s Never Stared In

In some ancillary materials and even a few crossover games, Waluigi is often listed as a character from the WarioWare series. However, the lanky goofster has never appeared in any of the WarioWare games. Waluigi only ever appears in games with an ensemble cast, and the WarioWare titles exclusively focus on Wario and the characters introduced in that franchise. Waluigi, ever a good sport, is more than likely happy to promote the games starring his dear friend Wario, even if he never appears in them.

Carry Himself Like A Heavyweight

Waluigi is thin and gangly to an almost concerning degree. Even with his considerable height, it’s unlikely that he weighs all that much. However, the Mario Kart games frequently classify Waluigi as a heavyweight character. Now it’s possible that Waluigi could just be incredibly dense, but it’s far more likely that Waluigi’s sheer confidence makes him a sizable contender in these games. Then again, the developers could have just wanted a more even spread of different classes of characters.

Cameo Like A Champ

Even if Waluigi doesn’t appear as a playable character in too many Super Mario games, he cameos better than just about any other character in the franchise. His stage, Waluigi Pinball, appears in Mario Kart 7, despite the actual character getting cut from the games. Waluigi is so generous that, even if he isn’t able to fully appear in a title, he is still willing to grace it with his likeness and improve it demonstrably. The more Waluigi in any given game, the better.

Manipulate The Masses

In Mario Party 3’s story mode – that’s right, some of the Mario Party games actually have a story mode – Waluigi appears as the games main antagonist. While players are under the impression that Bowser is the big bad of the game, a twist towards the end of the reveals that Waluigi was manipulating the King Koopa and the other characters. From the shadows, Waluigi subtly controls the actions of those around him and influences them for his own gain.

Kick Some Behind, Literally

Waluigi’s leg strength is the stuff of legend in the Mushroom Kingdom. Okay, that might be a bit of an exaggeration, but the power of Waluigi’s kicks is nothing to shake a leg at. He’s strong enough to send Bowser flying in Mario Party 3 and his leg strength is often denoted in games with an athletic focus. Even if he does appear to be mostly skin and bones, it seems like Waluigi can kick his enemies away, rather than just jumping on top of them. If we ever get a new Mario Soccer game, expect Waluigi to be one of the best offensive characters.

Fight For His Honor

Most Mario games have the plumber fighting to save Princess Peach. Waluigi, however, made his debut fighting for his honor after he was wronged by those around him. In Mario Tennis for the Nintendo 64, Luigi insults Waluigi and is disgusted with the idea of his counterpart playing tennis with the rest of the cast. Waluigi is totally justified in acting as the antagonist in this game, because he was legitimately wronged by Luigi, and quite frankly the younger Mario brother deserves to be taken down a peg or two for his mean actions. Waluigi deserves love too, just like Wario!

Own An Island

In Mario Party 3, Waluigi owns an island. Appropriately named Waluigi Island, this area acts as the final level of the game and is a testament to Waluigi’s money handling and investment skills. Mario doesn’t have anything close to an island and we aren’t even sure if he has a plumbing business anymore! Mario is far too busy running around the world and going on crazy adventures to save up enough money to buy an island. Waluigi, on the other hand, keeps his head down, saves up his hard earned money, and bought an island after presumably years of effort.

Rule With The Power Of Dance

Waluigi is the primary antagonist of the Dance Dance Revolution: Mario Mix game, which is a totally real GameCube game that came out in 2005. In the game’s story mode, Waluigi steals several mystical artifacts and rules over the citizens of the Mushroom Kingdom with the power of dance. Sure, Mario busts out some moves over the course of the game, but his moves don’t influence the Kingdom and the player as much as Waluigi’s. Mario just doesn’t have the passion for dancing that clearly drives Waluigi.

Maintain His Mysterious Origins

 

At this point in the Super Mario canon, the plumber has so many origin stories that only the most dedicated fans can keep track of them all. His backstory has gotten retconned so many times that it’s impossible to say for sure where he’s from or even how old he is. Waluigi is on the complete other end of this spectrum. His origins are also extremely mysterious, but that’s because they remain almost completely unexplored. Waluigi is so popular because he’s so minimally defined, that people can imprint whatever traits they want onto him. Hopefully, one day we will see more of his origin story, but it would also be okay if we didn't.

Rock Some Pointed Shoes

By now Mario’s standard attire is nothing short of iconic. Nearly everyone recognizes the video game star in his plumber’s attire and trademark cap. However, Waluigi has his own sense of style that far outshines Mario’s. It takes a lot of confidence to wear yellow, pointed shoes so casually. It’s clear Waluigi is putting way more thought into his look than Mario, and deserves his status as an emerging fashion icon. This purple and yellow fashionista’s look might not be as popular as Mario’s, but it’s definitely fiercer. Waluigi wants to stand out from the norm and we would imagine a lot of people take notice when this stylish fiend is in the room.

May Be An Elf

Even if Mario’s status as a human was somewhat called into question with the introduction of more realistic people in Super Mario Odyssey, Nintendo insists that the character is a human being. This claim is a bit more dubious for Waluigi, though, as his prominent elf-ears imply some kind of unusual heritage. Could Waluigi have a magical heritage that plays into why he’s an outcast in the Mushroom Kingdom and forced into the fringes of society? Maybe, or Nintendo could have just wanted him to look a bit goofier than he would with regular ears.

Reach Meme Status

Mario is undoubtedly a cultural icon that signifies various values, and therefore fits into the traditional definition of a meme. Waluigi, however, is the internet’s favorite Super Mario character and fits within the modern use of the term. People have shared the clip of Waluigi chopping in Super Mario Strikers more times than someone can possibly keep track of, and there are countless photoshopped images of Waluigi on the internet. Mario might have a special place in everyone’s heart, but Waluigi has a special place on the internet. In fact, his meme status only seems to grow larger as fans shout for the icon to be in more Mario titles.