When it comes to Mario lore, I feel like people have said āMario is like Mickey Mouseā so much that it doesnāt register and allot of people canāt see it anyway so I got a better oneā¦
Sometimes it branches out into its own continuity.
But that doesnāt mean the entire franchise is continuous.
Sometimes it likes to be meta or reference its own history for fun.
That doesnāt automatically create a timeline, cuz then they wouldnāt be allowed to make references, which would just be boring.
Sometimes our main character has extra careers.
Sometimes thereās multiple of them. Sometimes they are one person.
Sometimes it changes the rules of its universe.
Thereās no right or wrong version of their story. You can do what you want with their world because the point of these characters is to PLAY with them.
(Actually I think the real reason people cant see Mario as an episodic franchise is because for the most part itās setting stays the same) like being in a brand new location every time makes it easier to think āoh this is its own thingā)