Mario & Luigi: Partners In Time - Hollijolli Village / Final Boss | Reacting To Video Game Music!

[@ScorpionCovers]

Holli Jolli village is set in a Christmas themed Toad village where the antagonist aliens known as the Shroobs had invaded and destroyed pretty much everything. If you listen again, the song is essentially a sad version of Jingle Bells.

[@FSAPOJake]

Mario has its fair share of darker games, like Super Paper Mario. But this one easily takes the cake. In every other Mario game, Toad Town is a lively, colorful, peaceful town. In Mario & Luigi: Partners In Time, it was taken over by an alien invasion force that sucked the life force out of the town's residents, and you even see the dead or nearly-dead Toads fused into trees in the forest leading to the town, some of them begging for help from Mario with what little energy they have left. HolliJolli village definitely has plenty of its own issues. It definitely doesn't live up to its namesake in this game.

[@IllegallySam]

So to give some context for why I requested these songs specifically, a while back, in another reaction to Mario music, you said something along the lines of how you couldn’t really imagine Mario having darker music, so I went requested two songs that fit the bill from arguably the darkest Mario game, lol. While not every song in the game has a similar melancholic vibe, a lot of the music is far from upbeat. You obviously know the context for Holli Jolli Village now, but for the game as whole, basically, a time machine gets invented, Peach volunteers to test it, and arrives in the Mushroom Kingdom of the past, which has been ravaged by an alien invasion. So Mario & Luigi need to team up with their baby selves to fight back against the aliens and save Peach. Many of the locations in the past are similarly destroyed by the invasion (and yes, there’s a decent amount of implied death for a Mario game, lol). Very unusual game for the Mario series tonally, and not even the rest of the Mario & Luigi games are like this. As a result of all of that, the final boss theme is basically the final showdown between two different worlds, the Mushroom Kingdom vs the entire Shroob race, Mario & Luigi against the leader, the last standing member of the alien invaders, Elder Princess Shroob. That’s why it’s so emotionally charged, it’s not just the end of the brothers’ journey, it’s the last stand of an entire alien race. It’s not just good vs evil, it’s a battle for survival. For Mario & Luigi as a whole, Yoko Shimomura has composed all of the music for the series up until the most recent game, which has a different composer (Mario & Luigi: Brothership, which came out last month on Switch). They were all on Nintendo handhelds, from GBA to DS to 3DS and now Switch, and are pretty unique RPGs. Basically, you control Mario with the A button and Luigi with the B button (and X/Y control any additional characters depending on the game), both in the overworld and in combat, and battles feature some real time elements while still being turn based, where you can dodge or counter pretty much every enemy attack using timed button presses. Later games even basically turn attacks from both sides into 30+ second minigames, lol. The series is beloved for many reasons, and the music is a big reason why. Can’t wait until you get to hear more from these games!

[@vortexmorphiousdx8871]

I consider PiT and SPM the Mario games with the deepest and darkest Mario stories and lore overall, even to date.

[@OuterWildin]

Yes, this game and Super Paper Mario are incredibly grim, but that’s what makes them special

[@baka1fred642]

@vortexmorphiousdx8871 brothership may end up as the darkest mario game

[@OuterWildin]

@@baka1fred642 Really? I just got the game and am starting to play through it. This makes me even more intrigued

[@vortexmorphiousdx8871]

@@baka1fred642 I haven't finished it yet, but I am looking forward to it! :)

[@MayroSMM]

The DS had sequenced music like a lot of older systems so the wacky audio compression from the videos wasn't all that different from the real game. That sound effect at the beginning isn't part of the song though, I guess the uploader wanted to include the boss' voice for effect. There are some covers that were able to reverse engineer the original uncompressed samples and apply them to the game data which are definitely interesting, but I think the compression limitations were more than likely taken into consideration when composing. 14:29 That one is fake. Google serving you that is quite funny.

[@miila1083]

What are you doing here!? :0

[@woomigi_64]

@@miila1083 i was thinking the same thing lol

[@Kniffel101]

2:16 "It sounds like a JRPG!" Yup, spot-on! =D

[@wesnohathas1993]

Figured this would be the top comment. lol

[@MrLopiu]

The Final boss theme for this game is particularly sad for a reason. Basically, at the end you're fighting the ruler of the "aliens" in question, who invaded the Mushroom Kingdom and are trying to wipe it out to implement their own civilization because their home planet became uninhabitable. This final boss is very high stakes and very tragic because by the end of it, regardless of which side wins, a whole civilization will be doomed.

[@frontgamet.v1892]

This Guy just stumbled upon one of the greatest Nintendo soundtracks in this Franchise. The Entire franchise but Especially Mario and Luigi Dream Team Bros, which has an option in the menu that shows you EVERY soundtrack of the game so you can just sit back and listen.. Like How great is that?? But also Bowsers inside Story is Great. I recommend: - Mario and Luigi Superstar Saga: Cacklettas and Final Cackletta Battle Theme / Boss theme / Fawful Theme - Bowsers Inside Story: Deep Castle / Boss theme / Bowsers Castle / Dimble Woods theme / The best one: In The Final - Mario and Luigi Dream Team Bros, Oh boy: Boss theme / Bowsers Theme / Sacred Somnom woods theme / Antasmas Normal and Battle theme / The Law of Pyjama and top of Pyjama theme / Adventures End / Dreams Forbidden Depths Yeah that's about It. My favourites and I'm actually gonna leave some money behind not just so you read this and check out these TOP TIER themes but also because I love your reactions. In Case you didn't read my comment on the last Cyberpunk reaction: Please ceck out the entire SAMURAI album but especially "Black Dog" and "Like a Supreme" would blow your mind. Also, there are literally Metal covers or Editions with lyrics for example of Antasmas theme or Cacklettas soul theme and they just SLAM. Especially the Metal covers of GaMetal Love you guy's ❤️

[@HayatoEvoker]

We are walking ever closer to In The FInal, Yoko Shimomura's crowning jewel of the Mario & Luigi series

[@Cool-Vest]

I'ma be honest, I think Adventure's End is better, even if it's a little less popular.

[@HayatoEvoker]

@@Cool-Vest Adventure's End is definitely really good, so are Cackletta Soul, Princess Shroob and even the Final battle of Paper Jam, those are all great songs, I just feel In the Final has a vibe that none of them can match

[@frontgamet.v1892]

Yes and Adventures End AND Antasmas theme. In general the soundtrack is just S+ tier.

[@jvdach4652]

One of my favorite games of all time 😊

[@CjJello]

18:14 - I think this statement is really funny because the Mario and Luigi series is notorious (to me, at least) for having the final battle be some form of Bowser. In Partners in Time, after you beat the 'final boss' elder shroob sister, Bowser shows up pretty much right before the credits, eats a weird mushroom, and you have to do a little bonus battle against him as he's powered up by the elder shroobs ghost. In one way or another, it kind of always comes back to Bowser in the end (as far as I know, I haven't beaten the newest one yet)

[@dustinbragg1921]

This was one of the darkest Mario games ever. The Shroobs are one of the most intentionally cruel and legitimately evil antagonists not just in the Mario universe, but Nintendo games in general.

[@BobzBlue]

The DS has a 16 bit audio processor but only outputs 10 bit audio. Similar to the SNES where it has a 16 bit processor but only outputs 8 bit audio. Some rips are able to maintain the 16 bit audio with certain methods...

[@mario4160]

Cool, I think this is the debut of the Mario & Luigi series. I loved all of the games and the music is really good, especially the battle ones. I hope you get to experience more in the future. Also Luigi is kinda a scaredy cat. He gets scared pretty easily and prefer to avoid conflict. But he does overcome his fears when the situation calls for it.

[@prof_kolorado]

About the continuity question: Mario games usually don't have any meaningful continuity aside from like, tiny references here and there. The Mario RPGs are probably the most involved the series gets with storytelling, and even then they're mostly stand-alone. There is some ongoing continuity connecting the games - characters returning and so on - but for the most part, any of the RPGs can be enjoyed without prior knowledge.

[@extremeboi9207]

Imagine if he reacts to Adventure's end or Grand finale from the Mario&Luigi series, his jaw would drop so low lol

[@MauriceBendo]

i really like seeing your reaction to all those insane video game soundtracks. Keep it up. I would also like to recommend the Final Boss Phase 2 Music from Mario & Luigi Paper Jam. In general, the Mario and Luigi series has so much great Music, so it's worth it to deep dive into the series haha

[@mr.mystere4999]

The thing about Hollijolli Village is that it's thoroughly been trashed and everyone is gone. A few minutes later, the bros find the village mayor hiding for dear life in his own chimney only to get sucked up through the chimney rather violently. The bros then face off against two or three Shroobs only to get their butts kicked very thoroughly. This right here is only the beginning of the game.

[@diggory4ii385]

The compression is just it being a DS game; theyre all like that.

[@romanzbazin]

15:00 The mario franchise is split into multiple sub series, you have Mainline Mario games (Galaxy, Odyssey, Wonder) Mario Kart games Mario Party games Mario Sports games (Strikers, Tennis, Golf) Yoshi games Wario Games Luigi Mansion games and Mario RPGs (Mario + Luigi, Paper Mario, Mario + Rabbids) I get its confusing for someone who is not really a nintendo fan but i hope it atleast helped.

[@dm_mighty]

This song (as far as I'm aware) is called "Another's Requiem" and that fits the theme very well. Also, I've said this before, but if you want some amazing Mario RPG music then you need to listen to something from Paper Mario: The Origami King. That whole game is phenomenal.

[@GamingWithPatrick87]

"A certain game with hearts and kingdoms" I see what you did there lol. Mushroom head guy is Toad.

[@ag9953]

This is by far the darkest a Mario game has ever gotten, mainly because the alien invasion happens in the past, when everyone was a baby and nobody could fight it so the aliens took over in literal hours. Moreover, the things the aliens did went far beyond what any villain has ever done to the Mushroom Kingdom, it wasn't even about control or destruction, they were out to literally CONSUME the inhabitants of the kingdom, and in the meantime they tortured and tormented them. The saddest part is that the places the brothers visit aren't foreign, it is places within the kingdom, including places from their past like Yoshi's Island where the yoshis lovingly took care of them as babies, and what happens there is heartbreaking given that context. No Mario game ever got as dark or depressing as this one, and the final boss music portrays it perfectly, it's not a malignant theme like Cackletta's or Dreamy Bowser's, it's a theme of pure sadness and desperation.

[@JoeDan54]

Yup, Partners in Time has a lot of darker music than you'd expect. The Toad Town theme is another prime example. Hell, even the credits theme sounds unhappy. If you're still looking for winter themed music, check out "Slippenglide Island" from Mario & Luigi: Brothership.

[@geekley]

Personally, Mario & Luigi Partners in Time is one of the games that mostly "represents" the DS era to me, along with WarioWare Touched!, Zelda Phantom Hourglass, Bomberman Land Touch! and Trauma Center. Not necessarily the best entries of their own series on the DS, but the ones I have the most memories for what "was" the DS, and how they used the dual screens and touch. Number one being WarioWare -- that one is the quintessential DS experience!

[@keith_squared]

Yoko Shimomura, as the GOAT, has been the primary composer for almost every Mario & Luigi RPG title. she is incredible.

[@geekley]

Yes, Mario games don't have that much of a story continuity, like, say the Zelda games (since the official timeline). Even the RPG games are pretty much self-contained stories, at most with a certain continuity in entries from the same series. E.g. in the RPGs, there's Super Mario RPG, the Paper Mario series, and the Mario & Luigi series. Pretty independent, in fact there's M&L Paper Jam, a cross-over with 2 different Marios. So, while you can imagine a larger "Mario universe", the games don't bother too much in keeping story/etc consistent overall so as to not constrain the development too much. Even in Mario Galaxy, there's both the "player Luigi" and the "NPC Luigi". So basically Miyamoto doesn't want you to bother too much about story in Mario. Another case is the movie's (baby) Mario, who you might imply to have a different origin story than the games (Yoshi's Island series VS Brooklyn).

[@mitilimorres88956]

Gotta see in the finale/ the grand finale for bowser's inside story it's THE Mario & Luigi theme up there with the battle themes for best music in the series

[@LoiValdes]

The final boss theme is called Another Requiem and you can definitely tell it was composed by Yoko Shimomura She mostly uses a really Mario like style for most of her M&L music but for the final bosses she lets the Kingdom Hearts style out

[@oneish7454]

That's actually a fan name, the titles have never been revealed.

[@went22]

The second screen integration in this game is absolutely zilch until the big reveal: you scrub out a dirty parchment... and it reveals that there's a second princess Shroob (the Elder) who is the real villain. Anyway, Yoko's soundtracks in this series are glorious. Some of the best boss themes in her resume.

[@MemoryTAS]

To be fair, it's also used for just showing the map and having a vertically extended battle screen where things will travel between screens and you need to pay attention to both

[@jvts8916]

Holli Jolli is *supposed* to be the Christmas area... but it's also been razed by the time you get there.

[@lukers9819]

This was one of my first games and I loved it! And even to this day I still enjoy it for it's darker tones for a Mario game! On your way to Holli Jolli Village, you see a whole fleet of alien space ships heading there. By the time you make it to the Christmas themed village, the whole town is destroyed. Most of the houses are in shambles and there are craters in the ground everywhere. You help a Santa looking Toad get unstuck from his hiding place in the chimney, only to see him immediately abducted by the aliens. You then find out later that the Toads are being abducted from this village and taken to the Vim Factory to suck up their blood and power the alien spaceships. The final boss theme is definitely too short and not the greatest them to just listen too, but I think that it fits the mood well. It is like the end of the world, not in a bombastic cataclysmic kind of way like most JRPGs, but in a sorrowful kind of way. You are fighting the Alien Princess, who has been trying to wipe out all life in the Mushroom Kingdom and terraform it so that the planet is hospitable for the alien race, whose own planet is dying. The alien princess just lost her sister to the Mario Bros, and she is willing to do literally anything to kill you in this fight, including destroying her own people's ships and forcing them to make kamikaze attacks on the Mario Bros. Because failure to defeat them means her entire race will die out. Destroyed Toad Town and Yoob's Belly (exploring the insides of a giant mutant Yoshi that eats normal Yoshis and turns them into more mutants) are other particularly dark areas of the game. The whole game isn't all this dark and there are lots of silly jokes in it too, but I appreciate the game's willingness to explore ideas not typically explored in Mario games. And that isn't even touching on the time travel mechanic!

[@heizeemazecave6901]

Has nobody submitted Christmas NiGHTS into dreams yet? That whole game's soundtrack/theme is dedicated to the holiday.

[@X4X5gaming_and_more]

No way, Partners in Time! Such an underrated gem, and yet you covered it anyway. This has just made my entire day In context to the final boss theme, it's official name is "Another's Requiem". In this fight, it quite literally decides whether Mario and Luigi save their kingdom, and destroy the Shroobs, or if the Shroobs save their own, and completely destroy the Mushroom Kingdom. And keep in mind, they invaded the Mushroom Kingdom because they were on the brink of extinction if they didn't find a new home. Something to think about!

[@SacredFaerie]

While Elder Princess Shroob's theme, Another's Requiem, is probably less well known than The Grand Finale from the next Mario & Luigi, I personally think this is my favorite Mario & Luigi final boss theme. I'm sure picking has already ended, but for a christmas episode I'd love to hear Holy Night's Sugar White (Also translated as Sugar White of Christmas Eve) from The Sound of Kirby Cafe 2, a medley of snow themes from the Kirby series. Though I think KZbin is particularly aggressive about taking down Kirby Cafe soundtrack uploads unfortunately, can't find them on KZbin.

[@Neo-Metal17]

I can never pick a favorite but it's definitely between Another's Requiem and Cackletta Soul.

[@lucar1154]

Another title for the final boss theme is "Another's Requiem". That's because the battle against the final boss will decide the fate of two whole people. The loser... will be exterminated.

[@akiraikaray6752]

Now we need him to react to In the Final!

[@raptyrn1290]

I'd quite highly recommend checking out the whole Penny's Big Breakaway OST, but some standouts for me at least are Refracting Feelings, Balearic Birds, and Jig's Up Penny. Beautiful tunes from Tee Lopes!

[@marcossegon5433]

What I like the most about this game is how dark the lore gets when you actually think about it. (big spoilers ahead) You got a children's game where an industrialized and imperialist species drained its entire planet's resources, invaded another one because of it and trapped its main intelligent species in trees that suck the lifeforce out of them to turn it into fuel so that they can keep their activities going. Some of these activities include gladiator-style matches for entertainment and a literal walking egg factory that produces biological abominations that takes the form of a type of giant yoshi. They also destroyed the towns of the planet's natives and remodeled some of them to their own tastes. On a more individual level, you have the final boss of the game, the Elder Princess Shroob, who was trapped inside the cobalt star that was necessary to power the machine the Princess Peach used to travel back in time and also to defend herself from the Shroobs when she arrived, managed to successfully deceive the brothers through the entire game into rebuilding the star so she could be freed. You got a game about an entire kingdom fighting for their life against an industrialized and imperialist force that came out of absolute nowhere, didn't speak the mushroom kingdom's language and had no interest in diplomacy, yet are capable of tricking others into fulfilling their plans for them. Unlike Bowser, the Shroob aren't cute or goofy. They are actual monsters and a huge threat from beginning to end. And failing to win means an entire nation, potentially a whole planet, is doomed to slavery and the same environmental catastrophe that doomed the previous home of the Shroobs. Oh and you end the game by making it rain salt water, which is the Shroob equivalent of acid rain, killing every single one in the proccess. Yeah we solve the situation by basically committing a Shroob genocide through climate engineering. This is a game that touches imperialism, environmental questions and gives a surprising amount of detail on Shroob culture and all the horrible things they do, ending everything by wiping them out of existence as an species. All in a game that is for 3 years old according to age rating systems. Sure, it might not be as in your face with the nasty stuff like Earthbound, but this game has some really dark stuff for a kids game just like Earthbound the moment you stop to think about what just happened.

[@unknownbowser1439]

Yes, I love the Mario and Luigi series! (profile picture unrelated)

[@berrgp64]

And so the first reaction to the Mario & Luigi series is about a Christmas-themed village being invaded by aliens. It seems all your first reactions to Mario are more "out there" tracks. I guess the more standard ones are too well-known for people to request.

[@vincentpey3929]

Sounds like a JRPG because it is a JRPG

[@segafan2437]

The Mario&Luigi series ARE jrpg games. Might be the best i have played. Great memories as a 14 year old getting Mario&Luigi; Bowser's inside story for christmas and not being able to put it down.

[@sharpshooterxigbar5713]

Holli jolli village is one of the first places you visit in the game. A bit of spoilers below I guess; Mario and Luigi go to the past to stop an alien invasion. Purple Mushroom-looking aliens Invade the planet in search of food, and Holli jolli village is one of their victims. It’s a “Christmas” style village but it really sets the tone of the DARK Mario game you will experience for the rest of the game. Toads live here and they abduct them to use as FUEL!! This game was so scary to play as a kid.

[@dodiswatchbobobo]

HolliJolli village is the first location you travel to in the game. Let’s just say it sets the tone. Absolutely decimated. The Mario equivalent of dead bodies everywhere.

[@emanresu2425]

I always feel a tiny bit silly calling a Mario game "dark" -- I mean, this game is still about Mario & Luigi fighting mushroom monsters from space alongside their baby selves, it's not like we're doing too much angsty melodrama here -- but Partners in Time definitely has a uniquely gloomy atmosphere in places. I like how Hollijolli Village is clearly "supposed" to be a generic Christmas-themed town, but it's never actually seen in that state, since it's already in ruins by the time you arrive. The final boss theme is so strangely and beautifully tragic in tone. It seems like it _shouldn't_ really fit the context of an action-filled boss battle, yet it somehow feels perfectly suited for it in the game, IMO. (Also: "Partners in Time" is a 10/10 punny subtitle)

[@jonieljoestarzawarudo8172]

14:31 here's some clarification. That game you just read does not exist. There is a Mario & Luigi game on Switch, but that's Mario & Luigi Brothership. There is no "Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time + Baby Bowser's Pilots". That game is completely made up.

[@CassiusStelar]

The mario RPGs get incredibly dark for some reason and we love them for that. A subset of the franchise that started with living weapons stealing people's wishes and was followed up by Bowser... Doing the exact same thing a few years later quickly evolved into a trio of sub-franchises full of body horror, murder, mortal peril, unrequited love, self sacrifice, LESBIAN SPACE RABBITS FROM ANOTHER DIMENSION Oh also Rayman is in one of them and that's a pretty cool crossover but given he's owned by the same company that owns the stupid Rabbids who are already in that same series, it's not like it's out of left field

[@vladi3862]

this final boss theme is veeeery different from the other ones in the mario & luigi series. the other final boss themes are very epic and orchestral. "the grand finale" is the fan favourite, but there's a high chance you already know it because it's so popular. i prefer "adventures end" because it's orchestral and it sounds very threatening

[@BobzBlue]

Partners in Time wouldn't be my first choice... I wouldn't have expected this before SSS and BIS. Of course it's to fit the theme.

[@deathpie24]

@@BobzBlue this was only chosen because of Christmas

[@Dlf212]

Except for the most recent Mario & Luigi game (brothership), yoko shimura did the entire soundtrack of all the other Mario & Luigi games.

[@jvts8916]

This game's darker tone gives a lot of interesting tracks. Really recommend Toadwood Forest

[@deathpie24]

The Mario & Luigi series is about the only one to have a consistent continuity, even the paper games branched off with forgotten characters Paper Jam as the crossover is about the least Most mainline games are a new story each time

[@zackblade3856]

Someone needs to recommend this man Over Shiver Mountain and Cold Reception from Paper Mario 64

[@Hamantha]

Is we’re talking darker music, I received the castor themes from Inside Story

[@rockwizard5]

MARIO AND LUIGI

[@cameronjensen4581]

Bro, bro, bro. You GOTTA take a listen to Transformers Devastation's Soundwave boss theme! Unforgettable guitar riffs in that one

[@GreatRaijin]

I personal found the princess shroob fight harder and the ost better than the elder princess shroob 🤷‍♂️

[@HelloSayEm6]

Do ALL the Mario and Luigi Final Boss themes!!!!

[@Xxblade17]

Ayee

[@rezahydra]

I… didn’t know there was a DS Version, wildly. I had only played the game on GBA after beating Inside Story once I found a used copy of the cartridge. Never did end up beating it unlike Inside Story but… yeah just… shocked to know there’s a DS version.

[@C_Arson]

Partners in Time was never on GBA. It was always original to the DS. The only GBA game from the Mario & Luigi spin-off series is Superstar Saga, the first game in the series.

[@rezahydra]

@ I have the GBA cartridge still. I can even show it if I ever find you in a place I can send a picture at. It works amazingly, shows the right copyright and everything. I am slowly beginning to realize I was in the minority however.

[@C_Arson]

@@rezahydra If you truly have a GBA Partners in Time cartridge, then it's not an official Nintendo product, regardless of what the copyright says. If you don't believe me, try finding Partners in Time GBA on Google (or any other Search Engine), and you'll find no evidence that an official GBA version exists. If one did exist, it would be very easy to find.

[@Otaku03494]

Bro what are you talking about? PiT has never been on on GBA. Just DS and Wii U as a Virtual Console.

[@rezahydra]

@ I’m confused now myself. I’m not lying either, I have the GBA cart, again I can send pictures even playing it on my old GBA SP. I’m confused now myself… Trust me, I’m not trying to spread false information, I’m just confused.