Item of the week #21

[Dark Seraphim]

Fire Flower



First Appearance: Super Mario Bros. (NES, 1985)
Latest Appearance: Super Mario Galaxy 2 (Wii, 2010)

One of the most iconic items in the Mario franchise, while ironically also being the one to change its look the most out of any of the power-ups. Ring flowers, petals, tulips, changing Mario into orange overalls, or maybe white ones with a red shirt . . . or maybe just a feather in his cap . . . the Fire Flower is one of the old stand-by's when it comes of items with offensive power.

In most of its appearances however the Fire Flower's powers stay, more or less, constant with a few variations, Mario turns into Fire Mario, and can shoot fireballs from his hands. General use allows Mario to shoot his fireballs, which destroy many of the enemies on screen, except for any with fire resistance, heavy armor, or are otherwise immortal (such as Boos and Thwomps). Usage differs only slightly between games, in the Paper Mario series Fire Flowers are one time use items, but still rain down fire for damage, in Mario Galaxy fireballs are larger and do more damage, but are harder to control and their use is given a strict time limit, in the Smash Bros. series the Fire Flowers no longer provide fireballs, but instead a flamethrower-type effect until their power runs out and need to be tosses away (for one more fiery hit if it bonks anyone).

The Fire Flower has appeared in the lion's share of Mario games, mainstream or otherwise, with only a few exceptions. Fireballs popping out of Mario's palms are as recognizable as his overalls or his quest to save Princess Peach. Sure its a simple effect overall in comparison to the flight, incorporeal, super bounces, and flash freezing we get nowadays, but the Fire Flower is still a classic that has survived longer than most power-ups in the Mario universe.

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Item of the week #1: Hammer
Item of the week #2: Boo Mushroom
Item of the week #3: Metal Cap
Item of the week #4: Tanooki Suit
Item of the week #5: Ice Flower
Item of the week #6: Thunderbolt
Item of the week #7: Coconut Gun
Item of the week #8: F.L.U.D.D.
Item of the week #9: Bob-omb
Item of the week #10: Kart
Item of the week #11: Mini Mushroom
Item of the week #12: Boo
Item of the week #13: Warp Pipe
Item of the week #14: Pixl
Item of the week #15: Koopa Clown Car
Item of the week #16: Hammer Bros. Suit
Item of the week #17: Vibes
Item of the week #18: Carrot
Item of the week #19: Spring Mushroom
Item of the week #20: Vanish Cap

[Metal Mario]

The Fire Flower is still one of the best items to have on hand in New SMB and New SMB Wii.