Artist exhibition, cosplay contest organized to honor the current ruling monarch of the fanart kingdom.



As part of a recent preview for its upcoming New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe, Nintendo showed off one of the game’s new power-ups. Called the Super Crown, the item allows stocky mushroom girl Toadette to transform into a form similar to that of Princess Peach.

But fan artists theorized that perhaps the Super Crown doesn’t just make its wearer look more regal, but specifically like a princess. And so was born Bowsette, an amply endowed female version of reptilian Super Mario franchise antagonist Bowser/King Koopa.

Since the very first Bowsette illustration was posted to Twitter on September 20, over 1,400 additional drawings have been shared. Witnessing the emergence of a new genre of visual art, Japanese Twitter user @sumihii sprang into action and has organized an event dedicated exclusively to celebrating Bowsette/Princess Koopa fandom.

▼ The announcement tweet

The gathering has been christened Project Crown (Oukan Keikaku in Japanese), and will take place one month from today, on October 27 (the October 28 date shown in @sumihii’s tweeted photo is a typo). The Kawasaki Municipal Industrial Promotion Hall conference facility, just south of Tokyo in the city of Kawasaki, will serve as the event’s venue, with both art exhibitors and Bowsette admirers alike invited to take part.

▼ The Project Crown logo even has a bit of a Mario game vibe going, with its cartoony font and bright primary colors.

The event’s official website lists its program as:

● 10 a.m.-11 a.m.: Staff entrance and setup

● 11 a.m.-12:15 p.m.: Exhibitor entrance and setup

● 12:30 p.m.: General admission

● 12:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m.: Independently produce dojinshi art/manga sales

● 3:30 p.m.: Crossdressing (men dressed as women) cosplay contest

● 5 p.m.: Event closes

Meanwhile, Twitter user haniwa (@ayyk92), the artist who drew the very first Bowsette illustration, seems overwhelmed by the character’s explosive popularity.

> follower count is now x100 from before this started

> bunch of artists I follow and even Dragon Maid's made fanart

> got a Know-your-meme entry

> there's a top trending tag on Japan Twitter

What the hell is happening, I'm flattered but also a bit scared now pic.twitter.com/RMC8aQOmf8 — haniwa (@ayyk92) September 23, 2018

And how does the company that created Bowser, Peach, and the Super Grown that sparked so many imaginations feel about Bowsette? When contacted by Japanese media outlet J-Cast, Nintendo said:

“In regards to the artwork that has been posted on the Internet, we would like to decline to comment.”

Nintendo really is sort of stuck between a rock and a hard place here. On the one hand, the game developer has a long-standing tradition of handling its creative processes in-house, and isn’t really the sort of company to publicly endorse or otherwise legitimize fan-created original characters. On the other hand, it’s readily apparent that, right now, nothing anyone says is going to slow down the Bowsette hype train, and so keeping quiet it really about the only option Nintendo has.

Related: Project Crown official website

Sources: Ketto, Twitter/@sumihii via Jin, Twitter/@ayyk92 via Jin (2), J-Cast via Otakomu

Featured image: Twitter/@Erojiji3