Best Mario RPG game..?

I freaking love the Mario RPG games.. I played all of em and completed all of em with the exception of Partners in Time (Still going to complete it someday)

But well the best Mario RPG game i played is not in line with these games.. Its actually mario tennis GBA..

Stunning I know..

Heres the story.. I bought that game when i saw it for 10 euros in the bargain bin. I loved mario tennis on GC so i just thought it would be the equivalent..

But no it is not.. its actually a full blown RPG that (funnily enough) does not envolve Mario that much.. You play a girl or a boy that wants to be a good tennis player.. and you play with several characters to be the top dog.. The funny thing is that you gradually get better.. at first you dont have Power Shots (like in Mario Power Tennis) but you will learn them and you can even customize em..

I found it very very well written and well paced and it had some great Mario Tennis Gameplay as well.. But first and foremost.. the mix of a sports game with a full blown RPG just blew my mind..

Mario Tennis on GBA is really the best Mario RPG game I played for that alone.. (yes its even better then Golden sun)

Paper mario: The thousand year door was my favorite out of all the one I have played.

Haven't played Super mario rpg though...