[the Octopus]

Originally Posted by Tazy Ten

Cartoons and comics don't count, SD.

Not what she meant.

Originally Posted by SMB Instruction Booklet

Object of the game/Game description

One day the kingdom of the peaceful mushroom people was invaded by the Koopa,
a tribe of turtles famous for their black magic. The quiet, peace-loving
Mushroom People were turned into mere stones, bricks and even field horse-
hair plants, and the Mushroom Kingdom fell into ruin.

The only one who can undo the magic spell on the Mushroom People and return
them to their normal selves is the Princess Toadstool, the daughter of the
Mushroom King. Unfortunately, she is presently in the hands of the great
Koopa turtle king.

Mario, the hero of this story (maybe) hears about the Mushroom People's
plight and sets out on a quest to free the Mushroom Princess from the evil
Koopa and restore the fallen kingdom of the Mushroom People.

You are Mario! It's up to you to save the Mushroom People from the black
magic of the Koopa!

Originally Posted by SMB2 Instruction Manual

One evening, Mario had a strange dream. He dreamt of a long, long
stairway leading up to a door. As soon as the door opened, he was
confronted with a world he had never seen before spreading out as
far as his eyes could see. When he strained his ears to listen,
he heard a faint voice saying "Welcome to 'Subcon', the land of
dreams. We have been cursed by Wart and we are completely under
his evil spell. We have been awaiting your arrival. Please defeat
Wart and return Subcon to its natural state. The curse Wart has put
on you in the real world will not have any effect upon you here.
Remember, Wart hates vegetables. Please help us!" At the same time
this was heard, a bolt of lightning flashed before Mario's eyes.
Stunned, Mario lost his footing and tumbled upside down. He awoke
with a start to find himself sitting up in his bed. To clear his head,
Mario talked to Luigi, Toad and Princess about the strange dream he
had. They decide to go to a nearby mountain for a picnic. After
arriving at the picnic area and looking at the scenery, they see a
small cave nearby. When they enter this cave, to their great surprise,
there's a stairway leading up, up and up. It is exactly like the
one Mario saw in his dream. They all walk together up the stairs
and at the top, find a door just like the one is Mario's dream. When
Mario and his friends, in fear, open the door, to their surprise,
the world that he saw in his dream spreads out before them!...

That being said, it sounds more like Miyamoto is leaning towards humor, while Koizumi wants to take it seriously. I don't think the interview has it in proper context.

Personally, I don't think Miyamoto should really be involved in the sequels much, anymore. He's a strong creative type, which means he will want to change too many things unnecessarily, and will not pull from past influences. In fact, he oftentimes seems preoccupied with avoiding creating similar concepts to his prior ideas.