In 2012, the Queen of England had parachuted into the Olympics stadium to make a dramatic entry at the opening of the London games. It was actually an actor who took the plunge dressed as the Queen. It served the purpose. The Queen is, after all, Britain's biggest soft-power asset. On Sunday night, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, dressed as Nintendo's Mario, emerged from a pipe at the Maracana. Abe chose to play the plumber that is one of Japan's best-known exports. Like the Queen, Mario has now become a part of Olympics memories.