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{{quote|I LOVE YOU ZEEPPELIN! No! Don't you dare call this beauty a blimp! It's the Zeeppelin!|Brock|Mario & Luigi: Dream Team}}
'''Blimps''' are a type of transportation that appears in the [[Mario (franchise)|''Mario'' franchise]] which either take [[Mario]] and other characters to a different location or are used as background objects. They are similar to their {{wp|Blimp|real world counterparts}}, but their design may differ depending on the game.

==History==
===''Mario Kart'' series===
====''Mario Kart: Super Circuit''====
[[File: MKSC Luigi Blimp.png|thumb|left|The Luigi blimp]]
In ''[[Mario Kart: Super Circuit]]'', a [[Luigi]] blimp can be seen in [[Luigi Circuit (GBA)|Luigi Circuit]] and [[GBA Sky Garden|Sky Garden]]. In Luigi Circuit, the blimp waits until the third lap to take off and fly around, whereas it is directly in the air in Sky Garden.
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====''Mario Kart: Double Dash!!''====
A Luigi blimp also appears in ''[[Mario Kart: Double Dash!!]]''{{'}}s [[Luigi Circuit (GCN)|Luigi Circuit]] floating in the air above the racetrack, this time being a 3D model. This blimp does not appear if the players are racing in split-screen mode. It also appears on Luigi Circuit's logo.

====''Mario Kart DS''====
In ''[[Mario Kart DS]]'', the Luigi blimp from ''Mario Kart: Super Circuit'' reappears in {{classic|GBA|Luigi Circuit}} but the blimp cannot be seen in the course outside of the demo version of the game. In the GBA track, the blimp starts to take off on the second lap.

====''Mario Kart Arcade GP 2''====
Blimps appear again in ''[[Mario Kart Arcade GP 2]]'' in various different styles and colors, sometimes referencing to a certain character. A red blimp and a green one can be seen in [[Mario Highway]] and a [[Waluigi]] blimp can be spotted floating above the race track in [[Stadium Arena]] while following its layout. However, this blimp is not present in [[Waluigi Stadium (arcade)|Waluigi Stadium]] even if the track takes place at the same location as Stadium Arena.

====''Mario Kart Wii''====
In ''[[Mario Kart Wii]]'', a blimp appears in [[Luigi Circuit (Mario Kart Wii)|Luigi Circuit]], this time being a [[Cheep Cheep]]-shaped blimp and not a Luigi balloon. It can be seen taking off from a landing platform in the middle of a lake located inside the race track and flying overhead afterwards.

====''Mario Kart Tour''====
[[File:MKT Tour Blimp.png|thumb|The blimp in Singapore Speedway]]
A blimp with the ''Mario Kart'' logo appears in the background of [[Singapore Speedway]], where it is flying in the background. It is featured as a course element in the R and R/T variants, where the player can perform [[Jump Boost]]s by bouncing on it. In the Coin Rush variant, the blimp is used to carry a [[Ring (Mario Kart series)|Boost Ring]].

===''Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door''===
[[File:CheepCheepBlimp.png|thumb|The Cheep Blimp floating.]]
In ''[[Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door]]'', a large, Cheep Cheep-shaped blimp called the '''Cheep Blimp''' appears. Its only purpose is to take Mario to the floating town of [[Glitzville]]. Mario must obtain a [[Blimp Ticket]] from [[Don Pianta]] in order to ride the Cheep Blimp. A Cheep Cheep conductor named [[Stewart]] operates the Cheep Blimp.
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===''Mario Party 8''===
A special blimp appears in ''[[Mario Party 8]]'' which can be seen on the boxart and during the opening sequence of the [[Star Carnival]], after having selected the file, while two [[Goomba]]s with a red ''Mario Party 8'' banner are passing through the screen.

===''Mario & Luigi: Dream Team''===
In ''[[Mario & Luigi: Dream Team]]'' appears the '''Zeeppelin''', the blimp used to carry Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Toadsworth, and some Toads from Peach's Castle to [[Pi'illo Island]]. The name "Zeeppelin" comes from the word {{wp|zeppelin}}, a rigid blimp invented in Germany, with an extra "e" to make it match many other spellings in the game (Zeekeeper, Zee Parts, etc.). During the flight, Luigi falls asleep and dreams of Antasma coming on board, which is when Toadsworth teaches Mario how to fight. After the fight, Luigi dreams that the Zeeppelin crashes, though in reality, it lands safely in [[Pi'illo Blimport]] (as stated by another Brock).

==Gallery==
<gallery>
MKDD Luigi Blimp Model.png|The Luigi blimp as it appears in ''Mario Kart: Double Dash!!''
MKW Cheep Cheep Blimp Model.png|The Cheep Cheep-shaped blimp from ''Mario Kart Wii''
LuigiCircuitLogo-MKDD.png|Logo of Luigi Circuit from ''Mario Kart: Double Dash!!'' with a Luigi blimp
StadiumArenaRight.png|The Waluigi blimp floating above the track in Stadium Arena in ''Mario Kart Arcade GP 2''
LuigiCircuit-CoursePreview.gif|''Mario Kart Wii''{{'}}s Luigi Circuit's course preview of where the Cheep Cheep-shaped blimp takes off
MP8Scene.jpg|''Mario Party 8''{{'}}s group artwork for the boxart
</gallery>

==Trivia==
*The music accompanying the Cheep Blimp's flight is an arrangement of the athletic level theme from ''[[Super Mario Bros. 3]]''.

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[[Category:Aircraft]]
[[Category:Mario Kart: Super Circuit]]
[[Category:Mario Kart: Double Dash!!]]
[[Category:Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door objects]]
[[Category:Mario Kart DS]]
[[Category:Mario Kart Arcade GP 2]]
[[Category:Mario Party 8]]
[[Category:Mario Kart Wii]]
[[Category:Mario & Luigi: Dream Team]]
[[Category:Mario Kart Tour]]

[[it:Dirigibile]]