Postby Squishy Rex » Tue Jan 12, 2021 3:30 am
It's hard to take the official source for the events of both SMB3 or World as true due to one discrepancy.
If the Sunken Ghost Ship is one of Bowser's airships from SMB3 (as stated by SMW's instruction booklet), then that would mean that the events of SMB3 actually happened (meaning it wasn't a stage performance) like the theory suggests that Nintendo had previously confirmed. If SMB3 was a stage play, then the airship/Ghost Ship in question would most likely not be a legitimate one, only a stage prop. And it would probably only consist of the features needed to make it appear like more than just a hanging prop or something screwed to the background.
If we believe that SMB3 was a stage play, and discredit SMW's instruction booklet on the other hand, then the Ghost Ship cannot be from the events of SMB3 as it is a legitimate airship, or at least it was prior to ending up under the water.