winstein
Bob-omb
Regardless of what you think Mario was called back in 1981, it can be agreed that his first game is born in an arcade and his first villain is the titular Donkey Kong. That game turned out to be a success and gave the developers a character that they could use where they see fit. The success of the game made Donkey Kong a household name, which is helped because the game is named after the villain rather than the hero, and in some cases, the hero Mario was overshadowed by the villain.
That is not to say that Mario was obscure, because he managed to still be popular, since he's still the hero after all. In fact, he's gotten more games beyond Donkey Kong and I daresay he's more flexible as a hero, which is why he's gone on to have a two-player game Mario Bros. where he invites his brother Luigi into the video game business, and the success of that game gave rise to Super Mario Bros. The overnight success of Super Mario Bros. became the basis of which Mario's universe is based on, and as such, the villain Bowser became Mario's primary villain as a result.
It would be a while when Donkey Kong returned to the mainstream after a few bouts of villainy, such as invading a greenhouse in Donkey Kong 3 and returning to kidnap Pauline again in the Game Boy's Donkey Kong game. After that, Donkey Kong was reinvented as a new character, and this version is essentially a hero and that's how he's normally viewed ever since. But then, that's not always the case...
That's right: even the modern Donkey Kong plays villain too! Though it's only restricted to Mario vs. Donkey Kong more or less, Nintendo saw fit to return Donkey Kong to the villainous roots where Mario must face off against this version of Donkey Kong as he kidnaps Pauline and steals toys. But perhaps his deeds aren't as severe as Bowser, who's managed to maintain a record of not only kidnapping Peach but also causing trouble where he goes (like stealing wands from the kings in several kingdoms).
Donkey Kong: he's certainly an iconic character, and he's also a villain before. But the question now is: is Donkey Kong an iconic Mario villain? In terms of villains, Bowser took a lot of spotlight that none of them got to shine too bright, so for example, RPG villains hardly shine much (especially the ones in Mario & Luigi, where Bowser pretty much steal a spot in all games). But Donkey Kong's also pretty well known and is Mario's first ever villain. What do you think?
Thank you for reading.