Pauline (Nintendo)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Pauline | |
|---|---|
 Pauline in Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis. |
|
| Game series | Mario series |
| First game | Donkey Kong (1981) |
| Creator(s) | Shigeru Miyamoto |
Pauline (ポリーン Porīn?) is the damsel-in-distress and heroine of the original Donkey Kong, as well in the 1994 Game Boy game of the same name and Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis. She is best known as Mario's first romantic interest prior to the introduction of Princess Peach.
[edit] History
In the original Donkey Kong, she is held captive by the Donkey Kong and it's Mario's objective to climb up the construction site and rescue her. Along way the player can collect various feminine articles that Pauline has dropped for bonus points. In the same way that Mario was originally called Jumpman in Japan, Pauline was originally known as Lady. The name Pauline was chosen for the character during the game's distribution in North America after Polly James, the wife of Nintendo of America's warehouse manager, Don James.
After Donkey Kong, Pauline only made a few cameo appearances in a couple of early NES games (Pinball and Famicom BASIC) before fading into obscurity for years. Princess Peach, introduced in Super Mario Bros., supplanted Pauline's original role as Mario's primary romantic interest and heroine in the Mario games.
She would come back several years later in the Game Boy remake of Donkey Kong. While previous depictions of Pauline (such as in the arcade game's cabinet artwork) portrayed her as a blonde, Pauline was redesigned as a brunette in the new version, presumably to distinguish her from the more popular Peach. As in the original game, she is taken captive by Donkey Kong.
She returns once again in Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis, using the same design she had in the remake. She appears this time as a guest VIP at the grand opening of the "Super Mini Mario World", a theme park based on the Mini-Mario toys. Unlike previous games, her relationship with Mario is portrayed as a platonic one instead of a romantic one.
[edit] In other media
- On the Saturday Supercade's Donkey Kong shorts, Pauline was Mario's niece instead of his girlfriend. (To modern fans, this would cause some confusion, as it would indicate that Pauline would be Luigi's daughter, or the daughter of an unknown sibling of Mario.) Her voice was provided by Judy Strangis.
- In the live-action Super Mario Bros. movie, a character named "Daniella" appears as Mario's girlfriend. In that sense, Daniella could be based on Pauline. The character was portrayed by actress Dana Kaminski.
- Pauline appeared in a Japanese Donkey Kong manga by Kazuki Motoyama (who authored several other Super Mario manga series) based on the Game Boy remake. In the manga, she and Donkey Kong Jr. are trapeze artists and the main attractions in a circus owned by Peach. Like in the game, Pauline is taken captive by Donkey Kong, who attempts to get his son back from the circus.
- Pauline also appeared in a series of American Donkey Kong coloring books.
