Is 'Super Mario Bros.' a surrealist masterpiece?

PBS has just launched a new Web series called Idea Channel, which "examines the connections between pop culture, technology and art."

In its inaugural episode, host Mike Rugnetta suggests that Super Mario Bros. is more than a video game -- it's a work of surrealist art.

This is hardly a new idea; for example, artist Cory Arcangel has been making this point for years. There's even a genre of music...