Harold Ruiter

Review of Zaanlands Lyceum

Waluigi is the ultimate example of the individual ...

Waluigi is the ultimate example of the individual formed by the signifier. Waluigi is a man who is only seen in mirror images; lost in a mirror palace he is a reflection of a reflection of a reflection. You start with Mario - the wholesome Italian sanitary superman, you reflect on him to create Luigi - the same but a little less. You invert Mario to create Wario - Mario became skeptical and libertarian - and then you reflect the inversion in the reflection: you create a being that can only exist in reference to others. Waluigi is the real man, without the other characters he reflects, inverts and parodies, he has no reason to exist. Waluigi's identity comes only from what and who he is not - without a broader frame of reference he is nothing. He is not his own man. In a world where our identity is shaped by our distorted relationships with brands and commerce, we are all Waluigi.