You know, March tenth. If you squint, the letters "March tenth" look just like the word "Mario." (You sort of have to look through the screen a little. If it's difficult, try doing it with the letters of "the tenth day of March" – apparently a little easier for beginners.)

Last year, Charles Martinet announced that, while he'll stick with Nintendo as "Mario ambassador," he's retiring from recording the in-game voices of Mario and (many) friends. His whimsical, bold and unprepared audition turned out to make him unsurpassably canonical, and Mario perhaps better known and loved across the world than Mickey Mouse.

It was the trailers for Super Mario Bros. Wonder and "WarioWare: Move It!" that revealed comments from people pointing out that the voice of Mario and Wario apparently hadn't been done by Martinet. Two things must have been true: the commenters had pretty good ears, and the new guy – still a single person for all of them, one Kevin Afghani – was doing a pretty good job. I couldn't tell until listening much more closely. He'd publicly tweeted to express his gratitude for the privilege, but his entrance hasn't received much public acknowledgement from Nintendo in the way Martinet's exit has. Perhaps he has to earn it, which feels satisfying. "Imitator" is more commonly used as denigration, but I also found it satisfying that Nintendo's staff has taken the time to find a skilled imitator of a truly established cast.

This morning's announcement, though, began with a familiarly joyful cry which sounded off in a few identifiable ways. If he remains on the job, I can already feel this one guy – just a guy – is going to be the subject of some close scrutiny for years.

So many close and critical eyes and voices must take practice to receive, but that's what happens on the tail of a tradition of such towering success.