The History of Nintendo, The Musical

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xR5DaYuDWYs[/youtube]

To celebrate their 400th comic strip, Brawl in the Family creator Matthew Taranto put together a wonderful and well-thought out musical number chronicling the long history of Nintendo as a special gift to his fans. At just under four minutes, Taranto drew, wrote, and sung the entire piece that highlights Nintendo’s humble beginnings making Hanafuda cards in the late 1800s to their release of the Nintendo 3DS in 2011.

It’s quirky, fun, educational, and showcases what talent Taranto has as an artist. Just one question though: How awesome would it be for a Nintendo musical to become a reality as a Broadway staple?

Hit the jump to read the lyrics to The History of Nintendo.

V1:
Just sit back and relax, my friend.
Today’s lesson won’t take too long.
And to make it more interesting,
It takes the form of this nerdy song.

The year is 1889,
Before the accolades and awards.
Nintendo got its start
From making hanafuda cards.

V2:
For a century, they grew and planned
To discover just what sells.
Making vacuums and Ultra Hand
And love testers and love hotels.

But they soon zeroed in on games
Like the Game & Watch and Color TV.
In ’81, they made Donkey Kong,
And the rest is history.

(refrain)
This is the history of Nintendo.
Spanning the years, hanafuda to Mario…
Straight from Kyoto, with a guy named Miyamoto,
This is the history of Nintendo.

V3:
1985: Future stars like Link and Samus, and portly plumbers hit the scene.
’89: All our mothers took our Game Boys to play Tetris on that tiny screen.
’91: Super Mario World taught us we could fly while riding dinosaurs.
’94: Virtual Boy had us seeing red, returning systems to their stores.

(bridge)

’96: Let’s-a go with Mario to new horizons…
’98: Pokémania caught our hearts and dollars too.
2001: The GBA and GameCube lost some marketshare that day.
But we still loved to play Smash Bros. Melee…!

(refrain)
So goes the history of Nintendo.
From Ana to Kat, Pikachu to Lucario.
A fierce crescendo peppered with strange innuendo,
This is the history of Nintendo.

2004, the DS.
2006, the Wii.
2011, the 3DS, a DS in 3D.
2012, the Wii U, out by this year’s end,
And so my friend, well now you know the history of Nintend…o.

(coda)
Hanafuda, Ultra Hand, Sheriff, Kirby’s Pinball Land,
Wild Gunman, Superman(?), Mario Land, Jam With the Band,
Mega Man 1 through Mega Man 7, DK ’94 and Rhythm Heaven,
Mega Man 9 and Mega Man 10, Darkwing Duck, DuckTales, Talespin,
Dragon Quest, Diddy’s Quest, Simon’s Quest, Gargoyle’s Quest,
Master Quest, Mystic Quest, Puzzle Quest, Fester’s Quest,
Yamauchi, Miyamoto, Iwata, Sakurai, Sakamoto,
Tezuka, Totaka, Itoi, Arakawa, Kondo, Yokoi,
Ocarina of Time, Link to the Past, Link’s Awakening, Majora’s Mask,
Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, Pokémon Blue and Killer Instinct,
Little King’s Story, Epic Yarn, Actraiser, Terranigma, Illusion of Gaia, Soul Blazer,
Final Fantasy, Super Metroid, Cool Spot, MC Kids, and Yo Noid!,
Mega Man X, The Thousand-Year Door, Punch-Out!!, Resident Evil 4,
F-Zero, Hey You, Pikachu!, Viewtiful Joe and Lufia 2,
Kid Icarus: Uprising, Zelda 1, Golden Coins, GoldenEye, Golden Sun,
Mother, EarthBound, Mother 3, Brawl in the Family!

This is the history of Nintendo!
From Nester to Ness, Waluigi to Wario.
Soon to be taught in schools all over Tokyo,
To solve the mysteries of Nintendo…
This was the history of Nintendo!

Harrison Milfeld is a writer, editor, and freelance journalist from Missouri. Ever since he could walk, Harrison has been an avid fan of the world of Nintendo. For years, he has purchased every one of the company's subsequent products (yes, including the Virtual Boy and eReader). It wasn't until he was a young teen when he bought a PS2 that he began to embrace cross-console relations, a decision he doesn't regret. When he's not gaming, Harrison is looking to break into the magazine journalism industry and realize his dream of becoming a features reporter.