Unsurprisingly for such a long-running and far-reaching video game franchise, the Mario series has accumulated an enormous character roster over the years. There are several mainstays such as Luigi, Princess Peach, and Bowser, of course, but many other characters have stuck around long after their initial debuts. As a result, it's hard to imagine a new Mario Kart game without Yoshi or Rosalina being part of the cast.
However, there are those who don't have as long a shelf life. Many Mario sequels and spin-offs, the RPGs in particular, introduce one-and-done characters who serve their purpose and then never return, even when they prove to be fan favorites. Then there are characters who seem like they ought to have been more important, but for whatever reason simply don't catch on. The Mario series is rife with these friends and foes who vanished just as quickly as they appeared.
10 Tatanga
The Mysterious Spaceman Tatanga was the main antagonist of Super Mario Land on Game Boy, having taken over the kingdom of Sarasaland and kidnaped Princess Daisy. While Daisy has gone on to make numerous appearances in the series since then, her extraterrestrial captor has been MIA.
His only other major appearance was in Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins, where he was demoted to being one of Wario's lackeys. Other than a cameo appearance as a spirit in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Mario's alien enemy appears to have slipped into obscurity.
9 Kiddy Kong
Rare made countless positive contributions to the Donkey Kong series, revamping the character's look and giving him a whole host of new enemies and allies. Diddy and Dixie Kong became fan favorites, but the same can't be said of Kiddy Kong, Dixie's infant sidekick from Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!
Kiddy already had big shoes to fill, and his off-putting and juvenile design did very little to help. His role was taken over by his older brother Chunky in Donkey Kong 64, who is somewhat more well-remembered, if only for being "one hell of a guy" according to the infamous DK Rap.
8 Wart
Many characters and enemies from Super Mario Bros. 2, including Birdo, Shy Guys, and Bob-ombs, have become mainstays of the series. Others haven't been as fortunate, particularly the boss characters like Mouser and Fryguy. Their amphibious leader Wart, the vegetable-hating tyrant of the dream world Subcon, has likewise made few appearances since then.
Oddly enough, Wart did make an important appearance in a later Nintendo game, but it wasn't a Mario one. He returns as an ally in The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening using his Japanese name Mamu. Link's Awakening was full of references to the Mario games and dreams figured heavily into its story, so it actually makes sense for it to feature a character who represents both.
7 Timber
Rare's Diddy Kong Racing wasn't always going to feature Donkey Kong's little buddy in the starring role. The concept featured a cutesy tiger called Timber as the protagonist but, on the suggestion of Shigeru Miyamoto and to increase the game's brand recognition, his spot was usurped by Diddy.
It would explain why, despite Diddy's name being front and center, Timber has the most relevance to the game's plot. It's his island that is attacked by the villainous Wizpig and he's the one who gathers the rest of the racers to oppose him. He was going to get a second chance as the star of Dinosaur Planet, before getting pushed aside for Sabre, who also got the boot when that game finally turned into Star Fox Adventures.
6 Toadsworth
This elderly mushroom retainer was first introduced in Super Mario Sunshine, accompanying Mario and Peach on their vacation. Since then, he continued to play supporting roles in various Mario titles, typically as a close assistant to Peach. He has a larger claim to fame than most of the other obscure Mario characters, so what's the problem?
Well, for about ten years' worth of Mario games, Toadsworth has seemingly dropped off the face of the planet. His last major role was in 2013's Mario & Luigi: Dream Team, and since then he has been relegated to the smallest of cameos. His role as close confidante to the Princess is much more likely to be filled by some other nondescript Toad instead.
5 Wanda
Wanda made her sole major appearance in the Japan-only Super Famicom gameMario & Wario. A Lemmings-style puzzle game, Mario & Wario has the player using a mouse to guide Mario and friends out of harm's way, all while their vision is obscured by objects that Wario has dropped on their heads. This involves clicking on blocks, switches, and enemies to give the blinded heroes safe passage.
Wanda essentially acts like a glorified mouse pointer, making interacting with objects somewhat more interesting than just clicking on them with a regular cursor. While some aspects of Mario & Wario are still referenced in later Nintendo games, primarily Wario's M/W bucket, Wanda herself rarely gets much attention. It must be rough getting upstaged so often by a bucket.
4 The Tiki Tak Tribe
When Retro Studios revived the Donkey Kong Country series, they decided to introduce some new enemies for the Kongs. The result was Donkey Kong Country Returns' Tiki Tak Tribe, a clan of living Tiki mask/musical instrument hybrids. Most of the standard minions resemble bongos, while the boss characters are based on various other instruments such as maracas and xylophones.
Donkey Kong fans did not seem so enthused about them, finding them more generic than the Kongs' long-running foes the Kremlings. Retro Studios would not bring back the Tiki Taks for the sequel Tropical Freeze, instead replacing them with the Snowmads, who also had a somewhat mixed reception.
3 The Broodals
Super Mario Odyssey introduced a new set of henchmen for Bowser in the Broodals, a crew of lagomorph wedding planners. They hail from the Dark Side of the Moon, a reference to ancient folklore which claims that an image of a rabbit can be seen on the surface of the Moon. Like Mario does with Cappy, they primarily defend themselves with their dangerous headgear.
Apparently, the Broodals did not prove particularly popular, as they have yet to appear in any Mario games post-Odyssey. They haven't joined the rest of the cast in karting, golfing, or any other of their various activities. They don't even have a spirit in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. While it might not be fair to count them out just yet, the future prospects for these bunnies look rather grim.
2 Jimmy P
For many of the WarioWare games, the family of disco-dancing Jimmy T has been in charge of the "mix" levels, where microgames from previous levels are all jumbled together. WarioWare: Twisted and Touched introduced his parents and siblings respectively, but for Smooth Moves, Jimmy T hosted the first of the "mix" levels himself. The second introduced a suspiciously familiar character: Jimmy P.
Sporting a yellow afro, a Hawaiian shirt, and a tan, Jimmy P otherwise looks exactly the same as his blue-haired counterpart. The Mario series is no stranger to recolors or clone characters (that's how Luigi started off, after all), but Jimmy P was maybe a bridge too far.
1 Stanley the Bugman
After enjoying success in 1983's Mario Bros., carpenter-turned-plumber Mario did not return for the third outing in the Donkey Kong series. Instead, Donkey Kong 3 stars a different tradesman: an exterminator called Stanley, who'd previously starred in the Game & Watch title Green House. Donkey Kong is disturbing the vermin inside Stanley's greenhouse (far from the strangest thing he's done), forcing the bugman to grab his spray to repel the horde.
Donkey Kong 3 was a departure from the previous games in the series, being more of a shoot-'em-up like Galaxian with some light platforming. Stanley wasn't exactly a charismatic hero either, essentially resembling Mario without his iconic hat or mustache. The game didn't sell as well as its predecessors and effectively put the DK franchise on ice until its revival in 1994 with Donkey Kong on Game Boy and Donkey Kong Country. The ape himself may have got a second wind, but Stanley wasn't so lucky.