As devoted fans of Mario's classic platforming adventures, we'd very much welcome the idea of a few Warp Pipes dotted around our local town centre, but some residents in Walsall, UK aren't quite on the same page.
As reported by Birmingham Live, Walsall Council has spent taxpayers' cash on some new plant pots to "promote a feeling of wellbeing and safety" and to "enhance" the town centre. The council has received a total of £1.5m to spruce up two areas in the West Midlands town, and Councillor Adrian Andrew says that the new planting aims to "create a more social space outside the Walsall Art Gallery."
Unfortunately, local residents aren't best pleased with the new arrivals, blasting the pots for looking like Super Mario Warp Pipes and explaining that the money could have been spent on other, more important things.
Andrea Loveridge, a local florist, said, "We've had so many shop closures in the last few years and the best thing the council can come up with is these garish monstrosities. It beggars belief. It makes the place look more like something from Super Mario Brothers. They look like those warp pipes Mario jumps down."
Supermarket worker Sue Morrisson adds, "Everyone is calling them Mario pipes, it makes us a bit of a laughing stock."
We can understand why residents would want the money to be spent more wisely, especially in a town described by Sue as "dilapidated and tired looking," but we imagine local Nintendo fans won't be too upset:
Thanks to Max for the tip!
[source birminghammail.co.uk]
Comments 82
Damn that looks so cool, it's super mario in real life! Not sure what they're complaining about.
Seems like someone needs magic mushrooms as well!
So they’re Sony fans. Got it.
Bunch of Sony Ponies!
It's the most interesting Birmingham has ever been 😂
Those poor plants in the pots - they will be trampled to death by those looking for a photo op.
Mario's aesthetic works for the gameplay...but it's so ugly in real life. I thought the theme park was bad, but this is rough 😂
Gah, the whole place looks awful. The Multiprint shop that hasn't had a facelift for 40 years, multi-coloured tarmac, black bollards everywhere, ugly box-like flats in the background. I see someone has already discarded an empty plastic bottle in the far right warp pipe. It's a hell hole!
The only legitimate concern should be that Shinzo Abe will suddenly pop out to promote the Olympics.
Also: "hey, it's the pipes from Flappy Bird!"
time to wait for doug bowser to offer a cease and desist to the entirety of Birmingham
It's Birmingham, dog poop on the floor makes it look an improvement. These pots are fine.
Looks fine. They want some brownish-red planters like every other town, and that no one would give a flying fig about their existence? At least they’ll prompt something other than sheer indifference..
Who let Karen out?! But seriously, what again is so bad about it? The green color? Geez... some people have way too much free time.
The issue is the contrast between the large green planters and the awful flooring. They need to bring in some grass, astro would be OK, put it down the middle surrounding the planters to bridge the contrast, and then bring the tables and chairs into the middle too.
I get the negativity around the planters, but they're only a part of the problem with that space.
Also, nothing stopping local residents and businesses getting involved with making the space better...!
Also to everyone referencing Birmingham... that's where the news outlet is based. The plant pots are in Walsall...
Looks alright to me - the main problem seems to be the plants in them look drab and dying. Pots that size need something bigger and more colourful.
Pfft, Sony puts its logos in London, amazing!
Nintendo puts Mario pipes in Birmingham, outrage!
This country!
Perhaps us people who comment on a Nintendo site are a bit biased, but I think they're awesome!
It is extremely ugly. That’s a very strong green. Probably would have looked better had they imitated the parallel lines to imitate the warp pipes. But still bad colour for urban landscaping.
The green is almost luminous it doesn’t imitate natural greens we are use to seeing so it makes the pots really contrast with the surroundings in a very busy way. It’s poor design and I see why people are a little annoyed.
Leave them be, by order of the Peaky Effing Blinders !
There are no Nintendo fans there, sad.
@Rohanrocks88,
Doubt anyone will get fired over this, local councils are a law unto themselves.
@johnvboy More likely the person will be promoted to Senior Community Vegetation Receptacle Installation Officer.
How depressing! People will moan about anything! Go to any high street or town in England and there are plenty of flower troughs and objects erected that look far worse than this! As for the 'tax payers money' I highly doubt it would have cost any different to use other types of troughs/pots.
Good on the council for trying to make something colourful and different.
People will truly moan about anything. A little bit of colour in your life won't kill you.
They could have been done better though, one way or another, I'll give them that.
They Warp to Nintendo World in Japan, saves having to get flights
Imagine being sad enough to complain about this, they're literally standard plant pots but green. People are so miserable
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Clr5rGK1UQ
Reminds me of this
Yeah i totally understand the backlash. Making it into a "mushroom Kingdom" is the last thing that needs money wasted on at the moment. Wonder what kids think? But again, new playgrounds in a similar style might have gone down better, as it is separated as, for the childrens wellbeing.
@BulkSlash,
Without a doubt, our local council put three massive model wheelie bins on a grassed round about, looked awful, funny thing people kept chucking rubbish/garbage in them.
I like them even without the comparison. Its something that needs getting used to.
The pots are bad, the plants look like Charlie Brown’s Christmas tree, and there’s nothing nearby in the pictures that matches any of it. It’s like they spent it all on the pots and had no cash to go around for the plants.
If we can trust the internet (ha) the town has a population right under 300,000 and a working aged pop of around 170,000. The project was 1.5m pound, or around 2.1m usd. Yeah, I’ve wasted a lot of money in my life, and I live in a state in the US where a multibillionaire was somehow allowed to subsidize construction of an NFL stadium, but man they could have done better with this. Granted, this sort of thing might be considered to be art or as an attraction to keep people around the area, spending money nearby, which is good, but oh my god just dump the cash into the school system or urgent care clinics next time, or just fix up the buildings and businesses in the square. Or at least get prettier plant, a row of dogwoods would have done the trick fine. Woof
The thing I’ll remember form this is that Mario is really part of our culture now, as anyone could say, ‘this is from those Mario games’. Not a lot of games could do that.
"It makes the place look more like something from Super Mario Brothers. They look like those warp pipes Mario jumps down."
Surely that's a good thing?
How can they be mad at that?
I would be so happy if my country did this
Instead they invested a lot of money on a big clown nose
@eltomo @eltomo
I don't think whether Nintendo had anything to do with this like Sony had with London as they were put out by the Local Council.
As if Nintendo were involved with this they'd probably be up and down the Country.
I like it, seems cost effective, some Beton with colour
"Fun stuff ensues - Boomers unamused.
In other fresh news, the Sun was warm today."
I feel like we have to introduce you all to local journalism. It’s like video games journalism but instead of complaining about Mario 35 being shut down, they complain about cycle lanes.
I can sympathize, if your community was given so much money and ended up with that. They're pretty ugly, and chances are if you know anything about Mario you'll immediately make that association.
@Scouter98 haha, I know, joke gone wrong!
Personally, I could see these promoting tourism. I'd go just to see these! People will complain about anything.
I'm all for more plant life in urban zones, but yeah... Not sure if they did it on purpose to look like a warp pipe, but whatever the reason, this shade of green clashes with everything else in the vicinity. It doesn't look so good (green is my favorite color, in most of it's shades)
I mean, this genuinely could boost the economy there.
Those are awesome! Don't know what people are complaining for. I guess they're just boring fuddy duddies.
I think that's one of the coolest things ever lol. Hell, if anything it should be marketed as an attraction in that area. Ah well, can't please everyone.
That was definitely intentional. I love it.
Has anyone tried going down any of the pipes? Could be a hidden warp zone in one of them!
They just improved Birmingham with those pots. Why would anyone have a problem with that??? Stupid woke people of today..... Ohhh well!
Would it look better or worse if they were Super Mario World's multi-color warp pipes?
yeah they do look ridiculously stupid. idiots
Even without the green paint, the planters don't look like a good use of those pedestrian spaces. Looks like someone unqualified set it up.
Those are really fugly.
Besides the fact that those are pretty cool, if there really is an issue, then they could compromise and just paint them a different color?
Seriously, today it feels like people are just itchy for an excuse to complain about something.
They look pretty neat 😂
I mean even without the nintendo reference those are pug fugly. I can only assume this was planned to get a rise out of people and bring them in that way.
They look great, and if anything, all this press should boost tourism
If anything, it's getting them free publicity
Bust out the stencils and stickers and get some Mario on those STAT
I absolutely LOVE it! C'mon Birmingham; be happy for this, life is too short to be taken seriously.
Nintendo puts Mario pipes in Birmingham, outrage!
This country!
@eltomo I've two questions, my good British fellow (from a Canadian who's never visited):
1. Is this report from the Murdoch press?
2. Isn't this always how a certain loud sector of British society/government greets cool (or at least flamboyant) cultural stuff? The Beatles, the Sex Pistols, and so on?
Super Mario in real life! Spaghetti!
Follow the money ...
@Deady Those plants look out of place in those pipe-pots, I will say. Are they supposed to be trees? One of them looks like birch, which is a strange choice for a town centre, but all of them look rather... well, weedy. I shudder when I see how treeless certain large cities are, but a town of that size? Here in Canada, we would be rather displeased at such a scene; there are plenty of species that should abound, and your climate is milder...
(Dogwoods are pretty nice; they're flowering around me now. But I've always found that they can't take harsh urban conditions...)
They don't look like Mario pipes though... Like the shape is all wrong.
I will admit they stick out like a sore thumb. I don't hate them though.
Imagine how much of an arsehole youd need to be to have a problem with Mario themed plant pots.
I get the argument of better things to spend the money on than town decorations, but decorating your town with Mario warp pipes makes it look much better, not a laughingstock! How dare you describe such cool works of art as "garish monstrosities"!
They seem a bit bright, but I like them! Also town greenery is a valid way to spend money on by the council.
Not complaining. This may be the closest we in the UK get visiting Super Nintendo World this year!
That whole area in that screenshot reeks of a council really out of touch with what people want and need.
Also, I really like Birmingham.
@acNewUpdates Yeah, id kill to have those in my town
Someone must put a giant piranha plant in one?
I actually like them. I'd visit just for that.
@InkIdols Same here. I'd love it.
I mean they could've executed it better, but they don't seem that bad and it'd probably be really cool if they fully committed & leaned into the whole idea!
It's silly...but I think looks cool. We've had road construction in same spots for last....15 years or so, I say screw it and get some warp pipes around here, money better spent imo
People will go up in arms about anything. With everything going on in the world, the only laughing stock are the people who get upset over something trivial like this.
My friend was so excited when she saw these earlier and had to show me right away. I love them.
They do look rather tacky since they don't really go with the look of the square. 🤷♂️
I agree. They look so out of place.
@Kimyonaakuma Thats odd I think it looks fantastic lol.
They look like eyesores to me.
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