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#this is no hate to botw or its link hes great
chessentans · 2 years
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I don't think people who act like Botw has the most feral iteration of Link have played Skyward Sword recently because Skyward Sword Link is WILD. Like Yeah Botw goes bomb fishing and catches small fuzzy animals with his teeth but he's a polite young man who helps those out around him. Skyward Sword Link despite his dopey little face is a MENACE. He will fling your chandelier on the ground in the middle of a crowded restaurant for having 5 USD on it. He WILL give your love letter to the shitter ghost to use, despite the fact that there is a ton of paper in literally the next room over. He WILL take a nice eight hour snooze in the shop you keep flying via peloton bike and make you lug his ass back to a distant island. Like he is completely and utterly fucked in the head and it makes the fact that he's the first one so much funnier
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ganondoodle · 3 months
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not sure if i have talked about this before but i also really hate how gorons are treated in totk
they are one of my fav and i know they are unpopular and were always kinda slot into the "big fat stupid rock people" role, but i do think totk is one of or the worst case yet; all regions get some life threatening event (ignoring how stupid it is to put the issues you need to solve in the exact same spots as in botw with most changes being also reversible so the actual changes to the environment of the map are largely some small rocks sprinkled about) and they get .. drugs (haha)
like i dont wanna downplay anything but their problem being that they are obsessed with eating (>_>) some drugged rock that makes them mean and lazy (even if the reason is fine ... if i remember right and didnt make up that they had to dig elsewhere for food bc of death mountain losing its lava flow, the execution is my problem -like the vast majority of this game is a ok to great idea with passable to horrible execution of it) and arent even a danger to you (which i thought at first when you approach goronia the normal path and two gorons start to walk towards you if you come near saying creepy shit- i thought they are gonna attack me or lure me into a trap but again .. only to find them wanting me to pay to be let through (i think??) and all other drugged ones are largely just ... eating or lying around ........
like it would have been cool if that drugged rock stuff made them actually agressive, like the friendly easy going rock people being turned into something akin to a starved animal after eating poison bc they were at risk of starving sounds alot more .. impactful and scary (even if it would still be about food, which idk about you but the only kind of fatter npcs, even if non human, being made all about food is .. hm, aside from other possibly bad implications from this, but im trying to roll with the idea of it)
and then poor yuno being put in a stupid (stereotypical?) wrestler outfit and hes LITERALLY being mindcontrolled is so ...... ugh (again, idea is ok but- you get it) and then him being told by two CHILDREN that that obviously not zelda might not be zelda and it not only being the only time that idea is openly said until its "revealed" that hhhwhat?? it was a fake one?? in the mid battle of the "story" and he doesnt even believe it (both bc haha hes stupid and cant understand such a thing and also link not being able to tell anyone ... even his friends ....... ) is just so disrespectful, its ok not to be the smartest guy in the room (tho in totk pretty much anyone is made so much dumber for no reason...) but it being so clearly the gorons that get treated like this just annoys me so much, you know no one of the other races would be treated like that
(not to reach a little but it also plays into how koga is portrayed, like i love him to death and there are things that largely the gameplay only implies of him not being that incompetent, but hes clearly meant to be laughing material, the boss of the band of 'evil' assassins being lazy, incompetent and 'childish' is funny right?? and although i hc that the either super thin or super beefed up appearance of yiga members are just an appearance like their disguises of normal people to seem more unified and less indentifyable- that is still only a hc and then koga being the only character that is visibly fatter (aside from ... the gorons and .. king dorephan??) it puts a pebble more onto the pile of pebbles of little annoyances)
also yuno saying, post mid "story" battle, that no one actually knows anything about ganondorf aside from him being evil and it going complete ingored and never mentioned again feels like the type of thing a games does when they are critized for soemthing and instead of changing it they put a line in the game essentially saying "yeah we know but we are not gonna do aynthing about it lol" (like thinking of the line ashe from league of legends, whos design has been critized alot bc shes running around in a stupid tiny dress in the snow lands of their world, got when her dialog was updated that made her say sth like "yes im wearing a little dress in the forever winter land, deal with it lol" which perhaps was supposed to be a joke but it just feels like a "lol we know, fuck you")
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victimsofyaoipoll · 9 months
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Round 1
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Propaganda Under Cut
Yona
She’s the fiancé of prince Sidon, (arranged marriage) and since Sidon is almost always shipped with link, people went feral the second they saw her. She’s genuinely very kind and cares about her people and wants Sidon to be happy! She is NOT jealous, she wants him to hang out with his Best Friend. I have seen firsthand in real-time, people being SO misogynistic and cruel, and saying she’s ugly. She’s good in a crisis, very friendly, has a great design, and she doesn’t deserve the hate in the slightest!
I'M DESPERATELY TRYING TO FIND CUTE ART OF HER AND SIDON AND QUITE LITERALLY EVERYTHING REGARDING HER IS JUST STRAIGHT UP BLATANT HATE AND DENOUNCING HER AS SOME LAST MINUTE ADDITION TO THE STORY AS ORCHESTRATED BY JOHN NINTENDO TO STOP SIDLINK FROM BEING CANON LIKE THIS IS THE THE JOHNLOCK CONSPIRACY OR SOME MESS... i just want to see cute art of a green shark woman with a lovely smile :((((
so the breath of the wild fandom is pretty well known for REALLY liking prince sidon aka that one really tall fish guy. and they're also really well known for shipping him with link because every fandom needs a gay ship right. so then the sequel (totk) comes around and it's revealed that sidon has a fiance now and it's not link it's some zora girl from another domain. the game hasn't even been out for a month but i've seen people act so vile towards her like yona get behind me!!!!
Zelda
She spent 100 years in a metaphysical wrestling match with an ancient and primal evil after seeing it destroy almost everyone and everything she held dear in the hopes of saving the few that remained and Link's main goal after HIYAHing his way out of a amnesia-inducing coma was to come in and tag team said evil in order to save her and like 90% of the memories he can regain focus on their relationship with each other and its gradual improvement up to the point where Link fucking dies protecting her and it's the push she needs to awaken the power to push back the blight and PEOPLE ARE STILL OUT THERE IN THEIR POST-CANON FANWORKS TRYING TO TELL ME THAT LINK FUCKS OFF AND LEAVES HER ALONE TO GO SMOOCH THE HOT FISH PRINCE BECAUSE ZELDA WAS BEING TOO OVERBEARING OR WHATEVER AND HE COULDN'T DEAL WITH THE EXPECTATION??? LIKE ZELDA'S WHOLE FUCKING ARC WASNT ALSO ABOUT HER STRUGGLING WITH EXPECTATION AND FAILING TO LIVE UP TO IT AND YOU WANT ME TO BELIEVE THIS WUALITY THEY BOTH OSTENSIBLY HAVE IN COMMON WOULD DRIVE A WEDGE BETWEEN THEM?? WHERE'S ZELDA YOU COWARDS?? I DON'T EVEN CARE IF YOU DON'T WANT HER AND LINK TO BE TOGETHER, JUST STOP DIMINISHING THE GRAVITY OF THEIR RELATIONSHIP AND MAKING ZELDA SUCK FOR NO REASON. SHE'S A BIG NERD! SHE GETS TOO IN HER OWN HEAD! SHE'D DO ANYTHING TO HELP THE PEOPLE SHE CARES ABOUT! SHE UNASHAMEDLY AND EXCITEDLY TRIED TO FEED HER PERSONAL KNIGHT A LIVE FROG IN THE NAME OF SCIENCE! HOW CAN YOU NOT LOVE HER 
Im specifically saying botw Zelda here because oh my gOSH this poor girl can get made out to be like a horrible bitch when people. want link to get that shark dick. on average she doesnt get thattttt badly treated compared to some others but goddamn.
title character but people hate her because they want link to get w sidon. so she gets fridged or entirely forgotten even though shes literally his canonical soulmate and they have been reincarnated together hundreds of times (w ganon but whether u make em poly or make him the long suffering third wheel is up to you). people will be like oh but zelda was mean to him that one time (??). be serious w me rn. she just got removed from fandom entirely and if that isnt the epitome of victim of yaoi idk what is.
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noraiir-arts · 11 months
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Does anyone else have very complicated ways of shipping?? like when i say "i ship them" i don't mean "oh they love each other so much they kiss each other and will be together forever" i ship characters but in a way that's unique to only them and/or only in certain scenarios
Like, for example Zelink- I think pre-calam zelink was one sided, i dislike post-calam zelink, but i sort of like totk zelink (yes i know they are the same two people) but only certain dynamics??? but i also think that its the type of love that goes unsaid, they just look out for and support each other, maybe its not entirely romantic but they are closer than friends. It's the type of closeness you can only get by knowing that no matter what lifetime you are in the other will always be there. I don't think its necessarily the type where they hide behind pillars to make out, or try to stay in a committed relationship, but more of a tired love, one that has been renewed throughout hundreds of lives, each time being something different.
But take skyward sword, i believe that it's easier to see romantic zelink here
or Miphlink - I don't really ship this, but it's a tragic one-sided love story that Mipha knew was doomed from the beginning. The other woman. Was never given enough time to tell Link how she felt, yet even if she had time he might not have returned her feelings. Now he barely remembers her. Maybe 100 years later she's a little embarrassed of herself, of what she wrote in her diary. Maybe it was a simple crush, mistaken for undying love and has dwindled over the past century. But now it's a sad love, the type where she grieves for what used to be, and what never will. But after being saved from Ruta she switches her sights towards the domain. She can see how much her brother has grown and is so proud of him. She knows Link will never remember her fully, but maybe it's for the best. No matter what, she will always be there to heal his wounds.
Tbh i was dragged into Revalink kicking and screaming, but now it's one of my favorites. - Their dynamics work so well, but oh no it's so sad. Started from a one-sided "rivalry" to some sort of friendship. Link never hated Revali, he didn't even dislike him. And Revali just wanted Link to be impressed, to understand why he was chosen for his role as pilot, and he wanted Link to prove himself to Revali (honestly i can go on a on about why revali was harsh to link in botw if anyone wants me to) But over time they both start to realize that they are more similar to each other than any of the other champions. They weren't born into noble families or blessed with magic. Revali learns about the vigorous training Link underwent after pulling the sword, and Link learns that Revali isn't the son of the elder or was an important figure in his village before becoming a champion, but a simple warrior just like Link. Their friendship grows and they become a great team, surprising mostly everyone. Maybe it grows into something more. Maybe neither of them know it. Maybe they just never admit it. Revali knows Link doesn't remember him. He doesn't want him to. He tells Link not to go asking about him to the princess. It's for the best, he will still be there to help Link after all. Maybe it's cruel to keep him from knowing. Well, Revali will be gone soon anyway. Maybe he hopes that Link will at least remember good things about him.
Honestly I love revalink aus, they are my fav!!
I think of Zelimpa (aoc) like a mix of how i described miphlink and revalink but im too tired to explain it rnnnnn
oh also urbosa/zelda's mom but i think that goes unsaid
but anyway these are just a few. Most of the time i can't use words to exactly explain something pictured in my head, (synesthesia is so silly) but i tried my best
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gay-jesus-probably · 10 months
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(Feel free to ignore this-! I’m just happy to hear someone’s deep takes on Zelda)
I really love your deep dives and interpretations/discussions on the Gerudo people and their history, influence and life in BOTW/TOTK (I totally agree with all you’ve said)
I just want to ask/Point out (after reading your imperialism post about TOTK) didn’t the Zora for many years like- not want to serve or be a part of the Hylian families army either? Like, even before Mipha’s death, weren’t the Zora very much against conforming to the Hylian’s rules and such? (In every game?) I’m a bit confused on how Hyrule is split up, the Zora’s having their own kingdom(s), the Rito and Goron’s having elder’s/their own leaders but still serving the royal family??
It’s always bothered me how these separate races all still have statues to the Goddess Hylia (Started in BOTW) and not their own deity’s to pray to or follow (Like the Zora praying to Nayru makes sense, or even something like Jabu Jabu to bring back- or the Rito could’ve prayed to Valoo, a great dragon or something.)
It just feels like Nintendo COULD’VE put so much care into all their races stories and histories! But oops no this game will be for Kids(TM) and we can’t put anything too deep or serious. Makes me sad :( I wanted to see them in a deeper context.
Oh yeah, it's very weird that they just put zero effort into explaining some of the worldbuilding. I mean, in BOTW it makes perfect sense to have the races be off doing their own things! It's post apocalypse, Hyrule does not exist anymore, these different communities have no real reason to interact with each other! And I really liked that BOTW outright showed that there was no particular effort for diplomacy, but people still got along as individuals - I liked that we saw different races hanging around each other. I loved that there were Gerudo in Goron Town to trade for their gems, I loved that Goron were allowed into Gerudo Town because they're a race of rock people that legitimately don't have any real need for gender and just use masculine terms by their own choice, and the Gerudo understood that. And I loved the whole Tarrey Town sidequest, because it actually felt really satisfying to build up a new town that had inhabitants from all the races, not for any particular reason, but just because they were people that wanted to live there and work together. They didn't need a big central government to make it a whole Thing; they were just getting by.
And we also saw the less good side of these things, like that one guy in Hateno that greeted you at the gate, and decided Link was trustworthy specifically because he was Hylian, making it clear that xenophobia still existed. I like that Kass was kind of thrown by Link asking if he was a giant bird, and the implication that Link was being kinda insensitive there and Kass was choosing not to be offended. I liked that there was a Hylian couple on their honeymoon in Rito village because the guy genuinely loved the town and its culture, while his new wife looked down on the Rito and hated being around them. And I liked that the older Zora still held a grudge against Hyrule for many things, up to and including the fact that Mipha died defending it, and the older generation would rather risk everyone's wellbeing than accept help from a Hylian that had been involved. And I like that you can run into other Hylian's near Zora's domain that outright tell you Zora have been trying to recruit them to do something important, but they all refused to get involved because they don't think that those weird fish people could have anything serious going on and it all seemed really sketchy.
My point is, BOTW really did feel like it'd been a hundred years since the end of the world, and everyone was just trying to get by and live their lives. You saw people being open minded and accepting other races for no other reason than the fact that they were all people, and you saw people being petty and bigoted just because they didn't trust people that looked and acted differently from them, but for the most part people were all just getting by and doing their own thing. BOTW gave the impression that Hyrule had been an equal alliance between the Hylian's, Zora, Goron, Rito and Gerudo (and with the Sheikah having a considerably less equal role, specifically built on the Sheikah having been forced to submit to cultural genocide to save their own lives, and the Yiga clan being the survivors that fought back instead), with Hyrule acting as sort of the core of the alliance, if only due to literally being in the geographic middle.
I mean fuck, the existence of the Divine Beasts suggests that things are equal! Yeah, Hyrule has a royal family with holy powers due to literally being the descendants of a Goddess, and they're the ones that always get the reincarnation of the Hero that's the only one who can wield the bullshit OP magic sword... but they don't get a Divine Beast (Link's dinky little DLC motorcycle doesn't count). The Divine Beasts were specifically made to be weapons of mass destruction, and they were specifically made for the non-Hylian races. That really does suggest an active effort being taken to balance the scales, that the ancient people saw that only Hylian's were granted divine favour, and so if the gods wouldn't give that power to other races, they'd fucking make it themselves. The existence of the Divine Beasts feels like a promise to keep everyone on equal footing, and say what you will about pre-Calamity Hyrule, but they didn't even question keeping that promise.
...And then in TOTK, all of that's just gone. The Sheikah aren't their own people with a complicated relationship to the throne, now they're just Hylian's with a different aesthetic. The 'alliance' between the races turns out to be built on Hyrule's first King and Queen pointing their stockpile of magical nukes at everyone and asking them politely to become their subjects, and pretending not to notice the implied threat that they'd magically nuke anyone who refused. In BOTW the Sheikah race being sworn servants of the Hylian royal family was acknowledged as a fucked up situation, and that power imbalance being horribly abused in the past was what created the Yiga clan. In TOTK, we're outright told that Rito, Goron, Zora and Gerudo all exist for the sole purpose of serving the Hylian royal family, and that is framed as a good thing and the proper way of the world; the first sign of Ganondorf being evil is that he refuses to submit.
And even putting all that super gross ancient past stuff aside, the present day is equally fucked. Hyrule has been gone for a century. In BOTW, few people even remembered that Zelda had ever existed, and of those people not many of them cared. Nobody was really interested in having a central government, they were all getting by just fine on their own. And again, it was made pretty clear that the pre-calamity situation had been an actively maintained collective alliance between independent nations. There was a reason that people were predicting that Hyrule's monarchy would be abolished in TOTK, and that's because we all saw that there was literally no reason for anyone other than the Sheikah to respect Zelda's authority as a ruler - the Zora were the only other people to still remember her, and they were completely done with the Hylian royal family anyways. If Zelda rolled up declaring herself the Queen of Hyrule anywhere else, she'd be laughed out of town, because that's the standard response to a random teenager showing up and informing you she was actually the highest authority in the land. Zelda had no inherent authority left at the end of BOTW, if she wanted to be in charge, she'd need to earn it. That's the state of the world that we were shown.
Except nope, nevermind, Zelda's the almighty God Princess of the world and literally everyone mindlessly accepts her ultimate authority. She can order people to strip naked and walk into a monster den to die for her amusement, and they would immediately do it without asking any questions (yes I know the underwear thing was a misunderstanding, but the fact that everyone jumped to follow the misheard order without a single question is horrifying). And the imposter Zelda arc just hammers home the point that Zelda is in a completely unearned, lifelong position as dictator of the world, and literally nobody cares if she abuses that power. Zelda brainwashed Yunobo and forced him to ruin his own business and nearly destroy his own people? He's just worried she'll be angry that the mask keeping him brainwashed was destroyed. Zelda summons a giant monster to attack Yunobo and Link then walks away? Oh my god, the giant monster Zelda just summoned to kill us might hurt her, we have to save Zelda from it! Zelda literally openly attacks King Dorephan and tries to murder him? He'd rather go missing in the middle of a crisis and suffer alone in hiding than let anyone know that Zelda just tried to kill him. I don't understand why they bothered with the fake Zelda arc, because literally nothing the fake Zelda does is allowed to have consequences.
It just doesn't make any goddamn sense. Nobody feels real anymore, there's no politics between the races, there's no reason for anything being the way it is now. The entire world of Hyrule has been reduced to just Zelda's Fanclub, and nobody would ever consider doubting her for a second. I don't understand why the fake Zelda arc is in the game, because it's never actually allowed to be part of the story. Nobody actually cares about 'Zelda' tormenting people, and so we're told that there is literally nothing that can possibly happen to make Zelda lose her authority. There's no stakes. We're not supposed to care about anyone who isn't Zelda, we're not given any real reason to care about Zelda herself, and so why the fuck are we still here?
...I've distracted myself a lot here lmaoo, I'm not really sure where I was going with all of this beyond just rambling about shitty writing and bad continuity. The point is, BOTW had some really good writing and worldbuilding. That Hyrule felt like a real place inhabited by actual people, and the different races were their own, independent people. When they worked together, it was a sign of them putting time and effort into reaching out to each other and meet on the same level. Meanwhile TOTK feels like it's made of fucking cardboard most of the time.
(Also for the record I agree that the Goddess statues being Literally Everywhere was kinda fucked, BUT I'm willing to let it slide as a matter of just game design; that's where you go to trade spirit orbs for upgrades, so you want a spot to do that in every major town for player convenience. And using different deities in different areas wouldn't work, because the players are introduced to the mechanic with a goddess statue; they're not gonna naturally assume that the statue of a giant fish can do that too, so most of them would assume the statue is scenery and just ignore it. I thought it was at least a nice touch that the goddess statues had different decorations in some towns, and that some towns put the statues away from the main areas; it gave the impression that while everyone while worshipping Hylia was widespread, everyone was doing it differently, and in some places it wasn't very popular - just look at the Kakariko statue being in the middle of town with a well maintained pond surrounding it and torches to draw more attention to it, then compare that to the Gerudo Town statue being down a side street on the edge of town, away from the main gate, with nothing of any real importance nearby, and nothing to get people's attention. It really works with the Sheikah's culture being built on their devotion to the Goddess, while the Gerudo's history with Hylia and her followers is a lot more complicated, and so their statue's location implies that worship of Hylia is pretty unpopular among the Gerudo.)
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rawliverandgoronspice · 9 months
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Nah, your mention of the teacup scene was honestly perfect, because, just like P-Z it just feels so weird, and just kinda pointless/disjointed. Heckers, even the people I know who LIKE the story of totk, did not seem to like the teacup scene. Also, if I can throw in: It felt like a scene that, in its idea, should have been in the DLC. Maybe actually focus on just Sonia and Rauru as people, instead of the weird "talking around the bush, your powers don't work, Link, and the other piddly talk." Like in the botw DLC, the focus was more on a "slice of life" peek into the Champion's life. It's such a waste of main-story content, and literally established nothing new. Heck, I actually hate that scene because it's just such a lazy way for Rauru to find out who Link is, and then later tell Ganondorf about Link. Additionally, while we're talking about disappoint scenes/bad writing. Zelda's "I didn't remember anything from being a Dragon." It was such a bad cop-out, and it annoyed me to no end. They didn't need to mention it, leave it up to the player to interpret if Zelda remembers, and what she might have remembered or forgotten. The way it gets dropped is also like a hard rock. Riju: "So how was it?" Zelda: "Lol idk, don't remember." It's weird how you can put Botw-Zelda's sacrifice against Totk-Zelda's sacrifice, and Botw she just sacrificed a lot more, even though Totk really plays up the severity of the "Sacrificing yourself to become a dragon"-thing, only for it to just be the most overhyped McGuffin to get Zelda back into her time.
Hey, thanks for the follow-up!
Yeah, agreed. I have talked extensively about the dragon problem somewhere??? I'll try to find it. Here! Which is basically that even if I agree the dragon thing is super cool and powerful and visually jawdropping and emotionally something, it's... kind of not a lot of what it claims to be.
But in addition to that, you made me think of something else by having this comment; there are multiple times during voiced cutscenes specifically where lines are used (I say used because every voiced line costs *so much money* so producers will always beg you to keep them to a minimum) to reassure the player that nothing truly bad is happening.
The thing with Zelda telling you she doesn't remember her time as a dragon is a great example, but there are many more. The first time I actively noticed it was during the Sealing cutscene where Rauru dives in to put his hand in Ganondorf's uhh tender heart (and he steals his magic? I wish something was actually done with that it could have been great if Rauru was corrupting himself voluntarily or something), and there is a whole dialogue where Ganondorf goes "hahaha thousands of years will pass in the blink of an eye", which could be a way to just brush off Rauru's actions as negligeable, but could also be a way to minimize the toll of time taken on both of them the same way it did for Zelda, especially since they semi-turn to stone immediately after. There are a lot of dialogue bits that feel like they are here for damage control and reassure us that the nice things are nice and the bad things are bad (a lot of the gerudo Sage dialogue also reads like that to me as well).
But yes, in general, it is a game that is incredibly averse to consequences, which does a lot of harm to its narrative tension in my opinion.
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doomed-era · 5 days
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also. i was going to ask this before but i didnt know how to word it: any zelda tropes you like/dislike? stuff like fairies being guides for link or the concept of sages/Legendary Sword or how link and zelda are always depicted or reoccurring characters like impa or beedle or epona. though theres probably not. a lot of tropes considering most games are vastly different from each other. uhh yeah if youve got nothing . things that were done from a zelda game that you liked?
OOH. tbh I had to think about this a bit (my gripes are usually with the fandom and how they depict the tropes as a Strict Narrative Rule) but! I do have some
UH ONES I HATE. this is gonna be long no matter what so it's going under a cut
Number one has got to be making link into a super special boy for basically no reason!!! being from a special type of knights is. so irrelevant to everything else about alttp link that I think a lot of people legitimately forget this. it barely ever comes up and it's honestly not that important to the story except as an excuse for why link's the only one that can grab the pendants and pull the master sword, which. why not just have him be the one to do this because he's just really determined? Ocarina of Time...tried this, sort of? almost completely irrelevant AGAIN. in twilight princess and wind waker they are just some guy basically and this is the best direction they could have gone with his character. except they ruined it in botw and ss and I will neverrrr forgive them for this. botw link beats up grown men at five years old he's like superbaby instant knight and I HATE it. it's just stupid. I don't even care that it applies pressure to him as a character and seems to affect him; they could have just made it an in-universe lie and it would have had the exact same effect so genuinely screw that trope
number two is calling random soldiers knights stop fucking doing this. i dont care that its fictional fantasyland it annoys me
number three! the 3D games' great fairies! I hate almost all of them the oot/mm great fairies are freaks, botw ones are so pretty but they're creepy as hell, and twilight princess is just a naked lady and it's stupid I hate her. wind waker minish cap and alttp fairies are gongeous though
number four. everyone thinking link is cool and or hot. I hate this in universe and in the fandom. I don't care that the devs wanted to make him """"cool"""" he's 100% always a LOSER!!!!
number five I hate the hijacked by ganon trope in zelda games so much. STOP ffs please let ganon/ganondorf take the spotlight we all love him. or let another villain be the main baddie
ok now for ones I like :)
nunberone...SENTIENT MONSTERS SENTIENT MONSTERS BABEY SENTIENT MOSNTERS ILVOE SRENTIERHSDJKFHSFHAAAAA
GRRAAA ITS A SECRET TO EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!!!! MOE THE MOBLIN!!! KING BULBLIN SAYING HE FOLLOWS THE STRONGEST SIDE!!! THE ENTIRE DARK WORLD ITS SO
two. npc companions...rips off my shirt to reveal another shirt that says I LOVE MIDNA AND TATL AND EZLO AND KING OF RED LIONS AND GHOSTIE ZELDA AND MEDLI AND MAKAR AND TETRA AND SIDON AND YUNOBO AND
number three...I love random gods and spirits that are just hanging out because. keaton malanya zephos satori light spirits what have you. theyre great I need more of that.
number four incredibly weird npcs. need i say more
number five soldiers being extremely incompetent and dumb or getting possessed. soldiers as enemies or easily corruptible people
number six that one character that doesn't like link. you know what i mean (revali. groose. mido. iirc ralph? maybe? I haven't played much of the oracle games)
number seven hyrule with a dark and bloody past. and not only that but a fairly simple presentation of it that's clearly hiding a more complex underbelly. its just neat to see simple, clear-cut writing tell you so much with so little. it's a big reason I love alttp; it's simple but there's so much grief in it
number eight uh. clawshot/hookshot :] good stuff
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merriclo · 1 year
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y’all know how i made a joke abt how i shouldn’t make a linkverse based off of how i play each game? well. i’m having thoughts so here’s how i think each link would be based off of how i played their games:
warning i have not played every zelda game (or completed any aside from botw at this point) so these are just the ones that i actually have my hands on or have watched several play throughs of
Skyward Sword:
DUDE IS PISSED. THE ENTIRE TIME.
very much a reluctant hero at the start
“i’m not gonna find ur fuckin kikwi— fuck ok fine whatever ur lucky fi is on ur side.”
he does want to help and he likes doing side quests, but he was just so worried about Zelda that he became irritated and just wanted to get on with it
has no rupees ever definitely not because of impulse spending how dare u even imply such a thing
violently in love with Zelda
in the scene in the beginning where he realized Groose locked up his bird, he was livid. if Zelda didn’t step in he would’ve thrown hands
actually such a bafoon he is so confused
horrified of spiders. he just about sobbed the moment he saw the big ones in the skyward temple
loves his birdie so much. they are besties beyond comprehension. they talk shit.
so so bad with directions. dude is lost constantly.
has a lot of emotional maturity but still struggles with bursts of frustration, especially when confused
felt so guilty for knocking down the chandelier in the Lumpy Pumpkin
Ocarina of Time/Majora’s Mask:
very confused very often
he tries his very hardest but still needs help
“……..” “link. link do u n—“ “no no i’ve got it i know what to do” “……” “ok fine navi what do i do” “throw bombs in the eyes” “FUCK”
that being said he gets so happy every time he figures it out himself it’s great
first time he saw a peahat he just about sobbed
“NAVI. NAVI WHAT THE HELL IS THA— OH HYLIA ITS MOVING ITS MOVING ITS MOVING NO”
ready to slap Mido at any time
will sit and listen to malon sing for hours
very self conscious and doubtful that he has what it takes to be the hero. after Majora’s Mask he’d be more confident in his abilities but still scared he’s not as skilled or smart as the other Links
the biggest worrier. he does everything out of fear of other people getting hurt
if i do a whole linkverse thing i’d want him to be in the awkward teenage stage and attempt to be a big brother figure to the younger ones, but be awkward abt it and fumble a lot
fucking hates bowling
i have so many thoughts about what happened during Hyrule Warriors. so fucking many.
Wind Waker:
so fuckin lonely. dude is on the seas constantly with only a boat to talk to. he is so alone.
Aryll is his number 1 bestie and he really struggled with being without her lively presence at first
medley and him are also really good friends !! he thinks she’s so neat and just. nice
thinks Tetra is literally so cool. the coolest. she’s so cool no he definitely doesn’t have a crush on her what are you taking abt
thought the barrel was the funniest shit ever and always giggles at the memory of it
got so annoyed when the king tried to parent or guide him at all. excuse you big man let him travel the oceans. don’t stop him from sailing at that point. let him be free.
that being said li’l guy Roams. he got to places he didn’t have the proper equipment for way too early and only got the proper equipment because he realized that it could help solve that puzzle or something
so into the side quests. he loved going about and helping people at every turn, it reminded him of going about the village and helping his neighbors
that being said the joy pendents were like pulling teeth. he did it just because he like things to be complete, but it sucked. he was so annoyed the entire time.
loves the koroks so much they’re wonderful
if i actually end up doing the linkverse i think he’d be about 15, maybe 14, but unlike oot and mm link he already went through his shithead stage and has practice with being a big brother
definitely doesn’t hum sea shanties to himself when he thinks he’s alone. definitely not. never.
Tri-Force Heroes:
in my head tfh link is the same as albw link so. =)
mostly used dopples
DUDE IS FILLED WITH ANXIETY
he’s very quick to react and is very aware of his surroundings, but struggles with focusing or honing in on any one element
very good at solving the puzzles
the combat, however? not so much. the totem system was really something to get used to and he prefers not to fight with it. using it to get to places is no big deal (though annoying at times) but the fighting is just plain aggravating
super fashion forward (obviously)
he LOVES Madame Couture and her apprentice, and has a soft spot for all of the townsfolk
he became to attached to townsfolk so quickly actually. like he loves the people of Hytopia so much.
his self esteem was put through the goddamn ringer and he has a lot of self worth issues because of it yes i was personally insulted by the mass amount of bear sweater insults. it was a cute sweater fuck off
that being said he covers it up with an egotistical front, taking on aspects of Madame Couture’s personality in an attempt to be more accepted in Hytopia
he’s still a total diva btw. don’t let the self esteem issues fool you he knows he looks good now
he’s also probably one of the nicer Links, even if he might slip up and call ur gloves tacky on accident every once in a while
if he tries to help someone outfit wise it’s just because he really cares and wants them to be respected, not because he thinks he’s better than them
gets frustrated really easily and quits what he’s doing only to come back ten minutes later and try again
emotions wise he’s sort of all over the place, very theatrical (both because of Ravio and all of Hytopia)
Hytopia made him realize he wasn’t cis or straight. he doesn’t know if he wants to be with Madame Couture’s apprentice or Princess Styla, or if he wants to be them.
yes princess styla was part of my gay awakening leave me alone
if i do go through with this i’d def want to explore this link’s dynamic with both Ravio and botw link. ravio because the constant praises would be such a contrast to the critiquing of Hytopia, and botw link because gender
Cadence of Hyrule:
k i’m not gonna lie i don’t know this one too well But i really wanted to include it. idc if it’s not canon. fuck you.
LITTLE BARD BOY. BABY.
gets so upset with himself when he misses a beat. like unreasonably so.
hums a lot !!
in the linkverse i like the idea of him being like 10 and adoring oot/mm link because of the ocarina. despite how much he fumbles, i think coh link would love him and think he’s so cool. imagine a little kid admiring their older sibling even if the older sib is lame as hell
k that’s it for coh link lmao sorry it’s so short. i love him i do i’m just new to the game
Breath of The Wild:
dlc is canon idc what nintendo says. the zelda encyclopedia said the timeline is up to my imagination and i’m imagining very intently.
relatively calm and peaceful aside from the bursts of extreme anxiety and sadness
will sit for hours and listen to Kass
rlly wants to be great pals with Sidon (and they are, to an extent) but gets a little overwhelmed by all of the compliments and praise
he will fight anyone who insults him though (looking at you, traveler who called him creepy. fuck you.)
literally just wants to be some guy, and to an extent he is (to the townspeople at least). he’s just some rlly skilled fighter who likes to cook and is kind of quiet and odd to them. but hey he’s really helpful and is always looking for something to do
loves Kakariko village!! he’s basically Cottla and Koko’s older sibling and is trying to get Paya to be more relaxed.
speaking of Paya, their dynamic is a bit weird? there’s definitely something there, but at that moment neither of them are ready for any kind of relationship
loves the great fairies, thinks they’re so pretty and nice we’re ignoring the weird cutscenes. i hate them.
the one hit obliterator quest was a one of the most anxiety inducing things in his life and he hated it. as soon as it was over they just laid facedown in the dirt for a while
is a horse girl
Teba became their father figure but neither of them will ever admit that
head over heals for his Zelda. thinks she’s so sweet and smart and just wants to make sure she’s okay
while Gerudo Town was definitely the place he realized he wasn’t cis, he always had the thought in the back of their mind, and even though Bozai really creeped him out, that’s what solidified the non-cis realization
i love the genderfluid botw link headcanon can u tell
loves all of the champion’s descendants so much. they visit them whenever they’re in town.
feels so guilty about burning things. like yes he can and will do it but he’ll be upset about it. he tries to protect the environment ok?
koroks 🤝 botw link
pondering the idea of him being kind of non human and a little magic because of the Sheika tub. if so he’d be even closer with the koroks because they have some connection to sheika magic i think (korok seeds = inventory expansion and all that stuff)
LOVES PURAH. THEY’RE BESTIES. they have dinner together and link’s her lil test subject <3
he needs his map. he is lost without it. he’ll happily be lost don’t get me wrong but he will take 10 extra hours to get somewhere
oh also ADHD incarnate. cannot stay focused for shit.
if i actually do this they’d be besties with tfh link. fashion and genderqueer buddies.
OKAY SO THATS IT FOR NOW !! special thank you to @astral-catastrophe for encouraging me to do this, it’s actually so fun to think about !
ignore how halfway through i actually started developing characters and then got tired and stopped. shh. don’t worry abt that.
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umbramatic · 5 months
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With the confirmation of the Zelda movie happening eventually I felt the need to scream (CLICK THROUGH): 
-To start, a disclaimer: This would have been closer to the announcement but I was on a trip and then still busy after, so bear with me
-The obvious: This will either be really great or really terrible and either way i am here to devour the memes
-I'm not one of those people who thinks a live action zelda is impossible to make work - if HARDER to make work - and video game movies have recently and slowly been dragging themselves out of the Pit Of Despair and I liked the Detective Pikachu movie and the Sonic movies and the Mario movie but this movie could still easily be really bad and slide them further back into it, especially with some of the people producing it. We'll just have to wait for trailers to cast more judgment. Nintendo having a stranglehold on production again does give me hope weirdly - hopefully things will at least be On Brand
-since condensing most zelda game plots could be Hell I feel like they should honestly do an original version of the zelda story that just follows all the Best Of Tropes like with the mario movie (hey maybe it fits into the timeline somehow and we're all forced to acknowledge it as Lore) but if not I honestly want to see them do Skyward Sword, since it was the origin point. Only problem is no Ganon, so I doubt it. 
-I doubt any of the Toon Link games would be chosen since it's not animated, nor any games focusing primarily on particularly young links since Hollywood hates working with kids. So I feel like the most likely ones are Ocarina Of Time (the most defining Zelda at this point even post-BOTW and TOTK), Breath Of The Wild, or Twilight Princess (both of which would be cool). But who knows this could be like Detective Pikachu and we get an oddball pick. 
-Someone suggested Jason Momoa as Ganondorf and honestly I want it -For Link, not Tom Holland because that's the Meme Bad Pick, obviously. I'd honestly say Thomas Brodie-Sangster or Timothée Chalamet
-As for Zelda... Zelda Wiliams. It would be funny and Robin would have been proud. 
-If The Rock does not play a Goron character I will be upset
-I feel like Link not speaking is a lost cause probably (even if i think it would be really funny if they cast a big name and he communicated only in grunts) and I'm not opposed to making him doofy because Link is often doofy but by god do NOT make him snark. I'm not even as hard on the MCU and its quips as everyone else is at this point and I actually normally like snarky characters often but if Link talks in ironic quips all the time I would probably die because it doesn't fit him and  the Zelda franchise at all. (Also need I remind you we have gotten smarmy Link twice before and both times were awful)
-Given everything we know about it it feels like this film is going in a straightlaced, at least semi-serious, probably dark fantasy film. Which is fine by me but. 
-Someone said this film wouldn't be helped by a lot of easter eggs as the Mario movie was. I'm inclined to agree. But I still want to see the easter eggs because I'm drooling at what that could mean for Zelda. 
-On a related note I hope there are a lot of like. Genuine fans on the team of this movie. It seemed to help the Mario movie and maybe the second Sonic movie and in at least one instance the Detective Pikachu movie. If they get proper Zelda fans on board it could go a long way
-Please don't make it an isekai. It was fine for Mario because it's been in Mario lore before but again it doesn't fit Zelda. 
-Overall, again, I don't care if this movie is good or bad, just if it's INTERESTING. I want to either laugh with this movie or at it. I want the fandom to have fun with this. And I want to soak up the memes like a sponge.
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needfantasticstories · 6 months
Text
Zelink post-BotW Fluff: Swimming Lesson
TW: none
Link loved the squelch of saltwater sand between his toes. He couldn’t believe Zelda hated it so much, but he didn’t mind carrying her into the water as she laughed and yelled at him to put her down, to the delight of her students. 
Every day he learned more about the princess. Like him, she wasn’t the same person who began a century long pause on life. Yet while he rested and healed in safety, she battled to hold back the full might of Gannon to save what remained of their beloved land.
And he’d never let her forget her strength. He had faith in her.
Link saw her smile and ignored her halfhearted protests. He ran into the cool wave, turning her back towards the spray so it would not splash her eyes. 
She gasped and laughed along with the gang of children running beside them, giggling and diving into the waves. 
They shouted instructions to her, deftly swapping roles of teacher and student, “Pinch your nose, or breathe out! In one, two, three!” they instructed her. 
She held her nose tightly in one hand and held Link’s shoulder in the other.
Link plunged down into the wave. Beyond the thin, swirling veil of white foam shone sunlight spears piercing a world of sapphire blue. 
They came up, and she gasped for air. She struggled to catch her breath as Link moved her to his back.  He walked just beyond the shallow waves near the shore, then followed the shoreline in the calm, gently pulsing water. 
Zelda laughed as she memorized the shape and color of each coral from above, whispering their Sheikah names to herself, connecting them to her texts, Link guessed. 
The water-sure children paddled and dove nearby, and led the pair further into the calm bay.
Zelda nervously wiped dripping water from her eyes.
“You’ll get used to it!” one child shouted, “Now you’ve gotta learn how to kick your legs!”
She froze, but Link pulled her down carefully. 
“This will be easy. Probably easier than your riding lessons,” he assured her quietly.
“But I broke my ankle…” she said, turning white.
“Oh," He cursed his memory loss again, "Well, easier than shield surfing then…”
“You used three fairies the first day!” She glared playfully at him.
“But you didn’t. It’ll be fine. I promise.”
That seemed to satisfy her.
The children watched as their teacher, Miss Zelda, floated nervously on her stomach, arms forward and legs straining to stay flat, supported by Link’s left arm, and gripping his right arm for dear life.
“I'm not sure I should have agreed to this,” she laughed, but her smile showed both fear and excitement. 
“He’s got you! It’s okay, Miss Princess!” Kinov called as he blocked splashes from his little brother, Zuta. 
Zelda smiled at Link. He smiled back at her and offered a quick, encouraging nod. 
She kicked her legs, as hard as she could, as the students cheered. 
It had been her deal to them: if they’d spend a week learning to read Zora script, she’d let them teach her to swim. It meant a great deal more when they realized how much she did not enjoy sand.
The children laughed and cheered at her kicks as she grew more confident in the peaceful water. 
“Now swim!” they shouted, and splashed her. 
“Stop! The fish!” A girl shouted. 
Zelda slowed her kicks. She was getting the hang of the water’s buoyancy, its resistance to her movement and the flowing echoes of her motion, its wide, gentle breaths in and out. 
The kids watched the water quietly as they tread or stood in the rocking mass.  Slowly, they watched schools of fish return. 
“They’re back,” one said with a grin.
“Yay! Fishies!”  A young girl whispered.
“Are you ready?” Link asked.
Zelda wiped her eyes, smiled nervously, and gasped, “Just let me catch my breath for a moment. This water is just so… so endless…so bright…” the children did not wait for her, and dove while she scanned the silver horizon, lost in a contemplative trance. 
He hoisted her onto his shoulders to see the horizon better. It was all still new to her, this endless sea. 
Link recalled his first time seeing it. He didn’t understand who he was back then, or where he’d come from, except what the old man and old woman told him, before he really understood his history with King Rhoam and Chief Impa. 
He was just trying to stay alive long enough to recover his scattered memories, standing near the cliffs above the village. He had finished a battle for his life against a gang of blue bokoblins with a rusty soldier’s sword, a long stick, and a few carefully timed bombs as he battled high on a cliff near a shrine. 
He recalled struggling to catch his breath after the battle, still shaking from adrenaline, ears ringing. A rare fury had surged in him: the world he’d so abruptly awoken to harbored so much evil, and all because of his failure; one he couldn't even remember. 
Then, he’d turned around. Beyond the cliffs near his feet, Link saw the impossible: another world, shimmering like a mirror and made entirely of water. Only a few tiny islands, like small bowls floating precariously, darkened the giant mirror’s surface. The world’s end, he’d thought. 
Ocean, came the taste, the smell of a memory. 
He’d glided down to look closer at the mirror's cracking edge, white waves, and soon discovered a village with kind people; it was a place of healing, peace, and rest. He slept to the heartbeat of the sea. 
For the first time since he awoke, he knew he could find good in the world beyond the Calamity. 
He often returned between adventures, especially whenever he discovered a new memory. Here, he’d prayed final goodbyes to sweet Mipha, fatherly Daruk, wise Urbosa, and even the proud, lonely Revali before they faced Gannon together. 
“Wow, you’re strong, mister!” one boy said as he looked up at Zelda, the taller princess easily supported on his shoulders. The child dispelled Link’s reflections as they splashed. 
“Come see the fish!” The children begged, bored with the pair’s long gaze at the midday horizon. 
Link walked closer to them as Zelda slowly returned to the present. He wondered what she thought. Did it change her too? 
The children led them a little deeper into the water. Link guided Zelda to his arms and helped her float, as before, so she could look down into the water. He stepped carefully around the coral as swells brushed up to his shoulders. He felt a little unprepared without his Zora armor. I should get used to not relying on specialized equipment so much, he thought. 
“Come see!” The children said, and they dove below. 
“I’m ready,” Zelda confirmed before he asked. 
“Open your eyes,” he said, winking just before he dropped under the surface with her.
Schools of fish swam over the giant purple and pink gardens of coral. Kelp forests swayed in the mouth of the bay, giant fish swimming in and out. Tiny red fish darted all around them. 
Zelda made a sound of surprise, bubbles billowing, and he rushed her back to the surface. 
“Are you alright?” 
“Oh my goodness! Yes, I’m fine. Just so surprised! I didn’t see most of them from up here! I recognize the eels from my texts! Do they get very big?” She asked, looking a little nervous.
“Let’s find out,” he answered and rose up in warning before diving again. 
Tiny, ribbon-like eels of turquoise swam nearby. A yellow fish swam by, and Zelda reached a hand out to it. It puffed up like an octo balloon, and wiggled awkwardly away. 
The feel of Zelda’s soft hand gently returning to his shoulder made him feel strange: a mixture of peaceful and tense. It was oddly similar to the feeling before a fight, that queasiness, yet his body felt slower, seeking to match her gentleness. He shook it off and intentionally tensed up as he spied a new fish. He mustn’t ever be off his guard.
A child swam over and pointed toward shore. 
“Princess, I have a message for you!” Called a male voice as they surfaced. 
Link carried Zelda to shore. She wiggled down and, though she winced ever so slightly as her feet touched the warm sand, she still walked with the grace of a queen, in spite of her soaked clothes. 
“Who sent it?” Zelda asked, taking the scroll from the Hylian traveler. 
“It’s from Lady Riju. She has a request you visit at sunrise tomorrow,” the messenger read, and showed the note to Zelda.
“Very well. Can you confirm to her that we’ll be there?” Zelda said, taking the blanket Link offered and wrapping it on him with a grin. He grinned back and got another one from the children, who had followed them ashore. As the messenger left, they took Zelda’s blanket back, yelled, and chased her with it yelling “Like-like! Zelda’s a shield!” 
She ran, and for once, Link did not rush to defend her.
“Caught you!” a little boy squealed behind him and caught Link’s leg. Link recognized him as Zuta, Kinov’s little brother. The poor boy always seemed one step, one instruction behind. He must have misunderstood the others, Link realized. 
Link laughed, and tousled his hair, “You did! Clever! Now, let’s catch the teacher!” he said, and picked up the pace to chase the others, Zuta still holding his leg.
TBD (1578 words) by SkipBreaker Chapters: 1/? Fandom: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild/Tears of the Kingdom Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence Relationships: Link/Zelda (Legend of Zelda), Impa & Zelda (Legend of Zelda) Characters: Link (Legend of Zelda), Zelda (Legend of Zelda), Impa (Legend of Zelda) Summary: Who is Zelda, without a Kingdom or Calamity? Who is Link without the Champions and a clear mission?
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kiddokori · 9 months
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but you're so right about everything with totk. you put it in words so well 😭 idk if you found memory 9, so i won't spoil anything, but it was SO GOOFY look up gmod smile after you watch it and explode instantly. loftwings would've made the game infinity better, like skeleehorses can go over gloom (such a silly name btw) and horses are always great, but there's nothing to ride in the sky??? missed oppurtunity imo. i basically play with no tech becuase i hate using it 😔 i have much to say on this game and sadly most of it around the plot isn't thatg nice
SKELEHORSES CAN GO OVER GLOOM??????
but no yeah i dont enjoy the tech lol. i think modern tech in fantasy is a slippery slope from “woah cool its so interesting how this fantastical society developed things we never couldve thought of” to “this isnt even fantasy its just sci-fi with medieval paint slapped over it” thats what botw vs. totk is to me. we went from giant magical mechs and tech that felt more like sentient creatures to a straight up four wheeler. also its just clunky. to me. vexes me.
i am playing it very slowly for several reasons so im not far im only two memories in (trying to do them in order) lol but im not impressed by the writing either again ive only beat the rito “dungeon” idk what to call it. it was fine. really felt like they just tried to replicate the divine beasts but it didnt work. the weird disembodied voice felt forced in totk its just this random exposition guy that felt like he was just there for the sake of mimicking the structure of the champions talking to you where in botw that makes sense because they’re important characters that you learn more about and play a role in the story and also they literally died and their souls were trapped in their beasts. and totk was like ah shit ah fuck we gotta have another disembodied voice throw this guy in there and have him lore drop on you. who is he. who cares.
and then the divine beasts were like interesting involved puzzles there was one i thiiiink the camel you literally had to turn entire parts of it to line up electrical signals to get places and unlock things it was a little frustrating but i had to think about it!! same with the elephant you had to control the entire mechanism to move things and you had to Think about it. the rito ship was just go find these things. ok the divine beasts were also that with the terminals but you had to work for it. totk really just went go walk around for awhile and find them. no real puzzle to it. there was a little bit with the doors/levers but it did not feel nearly as involved or thought through.
i will say i did like the boss fight the ice guy. cool guy. looked cool baller music neat new little thing you had to do to beat it i liked it. that was cool i will give them that they know how to get me pumped for a boss fight
ok but the cutscene with zelda near the beginning was goofy as hell. just straight up like woaaaahh she floated into the sky thats crazy!!! whaaat!!!!! felt extremely silly. i was sitting there like is this a gag is this supposed to be funny i cannot tell. very much threw me off. could not take seriously
also. fucking. got rid of her again. if they wanted to have the same success of botw maybe they should’ve gee idk changed the formula again and let zelda be with us. a two player zelda game would be so cool. even if it was still single player and we could just interact with her and have her with us im thinking kindof last of us/resident evil 4 style where she helps you do certain puzzles or helps you fight like other npcs. even if she just stayed at the base and helped purah with research and you could talk to her thatd be more interesting. GIVE HER TO ME!!
the intro really just felt like oh we have to get rid of zelda again because we need link to be alone so we can copy botw uhhhhh magic rock teleports her to the past yeah yeah that works. they decided they needed this to happen and then made a story to excuse those choices rather than actually construct something cohesive.
im not even halfway through the game so i dont wanna be tooo hard on it or form strong opinions but id rather be pleasantly surprised than disappointment after getting my hopes up. i havent been spoiled for anything but i have seen people complain in general so im kinda leaning towards disappointment lol. like its zelda im still having fun i just also am looking at it from a critcal point of view and i have plenty to say. i used this as an excuse to talk for a looong time anyways. im currently working on getting specific horse colors that i preplaned by looking at this horse chart to name after characters from a book i like ✌️ i didnt pay 70 dollars to not have any fun with this game so help me god i am going to enjoy Some of it
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graveyard--dog · 11 months
Text
While the story of TotK is much more compelling compared to that of BotW, it is held back by a severe lack of strong characterization and Nintendo's insistence on this "tell, don't show" method of storytelling for this era of Zelda games.
There are many, many details missing from the story of TotK. This becomes obvious pretty early on once you start collecting geoglyph memories, but on a first playthrough it's pretty easy to ignore the gaps in favor of the juicy story we're being told, as well as the spectacle of Ganondorf every time he's on screen. But despite being the main character, Ganondorf's story as told to us is the weakest, flattest, most unimaginative characterization in both games.
Ganondorf is the star of this game. This is undeniable. Almost every time he's on screen, it is accompanied by some of the biggest, flashiest, most genuinely terrifying displays of power we've seen in the entire Zelda canon, let alone from other incarnations of Ganondorf. The game is more than happy to show us how much power Ganondorf has. But aside from how powerful he is, what are we really shown about TotK's Ganondorf? What do we actually learn about his character?
We are shown nothing of the circumstances of his birth or how he came to be the way he currently is. We are shown nothing of his relationship with the Gerudo, or what they may think of him, his actions, or his goals. We are never shown why he's so hell-bent on conquering (destroying? it's unclear, really) Hyrule, or why he seemingly hates the Zonai, or… anything, really! All we are told from others is "he's evil!", and all we are told from Ganondorf himself is "i hate light and think peace is for cowards!".
It wouldn't be so bad if these gaping holes were only confined to Ganondorf, but they aren't. Because we are shown nothing of who this Ganondorf is or why he has these motivations, we not only have no idea of what he thinks of the other characters in the story, we have no idea how the other characters feel about Ganondorf. All interactions with Ganondorf in TotK can be boiled down to an exchange of:
"You can't stop me, you are too weak!"
"Yes we will, because of Link!"
"Ha! We shall see…!"
This has the consequence of flattening out every other character in the game to match Ganondorf's tragically flat characterization. They have nothing to play off of, so everyone has to match the flat writing of the main character.
Not only is Ganondorf's characterization lacking in detail, so is everything regarding the characterization of King Rauru, Queen Sonia, the sages, and Ancient Hyrule. We are shown absolutely nothing of what the founding of Hyrule was like, or even what it looks like. We are shown absolutely nothing about the kind of rulers King Rauru and Queen Sonia are, or why they are the rulers in the first place (other than their powers, maybe?). We are shown virtually nothing about the sages of the past (we don't even see them use their abilities in that cutscene we have to watch 4 times over LOL). We could replace Rauru, Sonia, and all 5 sages with talking plants that have secret stones and the story would not change in the slightest.
All we ever get is: "This is Ganondorf. Look how bad and evil and scary he is! 😰 These are the good guys! 🙂 They fought Ganondorf, but he was too bad and evil and scary for them. 🙁 Now Link must defeat him! 😤"
I really hope that there's some sort of Ganondorf-focused DLC down the line. This game's plot is great, but the story and its characters leave a lot to be desired once you have time to sit down with it.
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lilflowerpot · 9 months
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hello again~
I'm here to ask a question about LoZ. so, I have a friend who plays and recommended it to me because she knows I love open world games and breath of the wild is (apparently) one of the best open world games ever and I've been hesitating ever since. she might be a little biased tho lol
and like. there's a sale going on right now for botw, so the recommendation just kind made itself known in my memory again
anyway so, basically I'm here to ask if it'll be worth it? I mean, the general consensus wherever I go seems to be 'amazing, go get it u won't regret it'
(and, this is totally optional, but if you could answer asap that would be great because idk when the sale ends, thank you)
p.s I love little blade. you're amazing
I think it's obvious by now that I am a //massive// Zelda fan so tbh I'm likely no less bias than your friend lmfao, but that being said I'm going to try and give as balanced a response as possible!
Pros
BotW is beautiful, and I mean b e a u t i f u l . The graphics have this lovely watercolour quality to them as an ode to the artstyle used in Skyward Sword, but more crisp & refined. Unlike a lot of the big open world games (looking at you skyrim) BotW doesn't sacrifice colour or try to be "gritty", but rather leans into that soft-apocalypse, studio ghibli vibe.
The narrative is equally lovely and fulfilling, and depending upon what order you collect Link's memories in you will likely have a different gameplay experience. You'll also meet a lovable cast of characters to whom you'll end up unreasonably attached, which will ultimately break your heart in the end,,, I apologise in advance, but I promise you it's worth the pain.
On that note, do it for my bitch-ass bird son. You'll know him when you meet him.
Link can jump. This will mean very little to you if you've not played a LoZ game before, but my boy can fucking JUMP.
You can also climb pretty much everything (bar like one specific material) which means if you want to get to that Cool Thing Over There, then with a mix of mix of ungodly arrogance, sheer willpower, and a lot of stamina potions, you can. If you suffer from the magpie brain (ie. you see a new shiny thing and become immediately sidetracked from your original objective) this will mean that you take about 10x as long as you should to do literally anything, but my god is it fun.
The soundtrack gives me feelings that I cannot put into words, and the voice acting is //phenomenal//. Importantly, Link himself does not have a voice actor which is the only correct choice considering he's been heavily implied throughout the entire LoZ franchise to be an elective mute, and I would have //hated// hearing him speak.
Link is also just a very sweet & funny golden retriever boy who occasionally sasses back like nobody's business. 10/10 protagonist.
If you like women, you will like them even more by the end. If you don't like women, there's a 90% chance you'll seriously reconsider it upon meeting [REDACTED].
The game has something for everyone: you like exploring? Well you're going to do a lot of that. You like collectables? There are so many outfits (that you can dye to your liking!) and a wholeass compendium to fill out. You like puzzles? You'll certainly find your fair share. You like combat? The basic mechanics are what you'd expect with there are enough different enemy types to keep it interesting, but dO NOT FIGHT A LYNEL WITHOUT MAKING SURE YOU HAVE ENOUGH WEAPONS BC THEY WILL BREAK AND LEAVE YOU WITH A VERY ANGRY VERY MEAN MAN TRYING TO KILL YOU.
It is genuinely very good value for money, and even more so if you can get it on sale! Not only do you have the mainline game & all its side-quests, but there's also the expansion pass, and, of course, an entire sequel just ready and waiting!
Cons
Sometimes the open world can feel a little too open. Considering the game's context, it makes sense, but comparatively games like Skyrim feel more densely packed with Things To Do, whereas BotW has several areas of overgrown nothingness that are lovely to look at, but not especially interesting (though this is better rectified in TotK).
You can't swim underwater. This was not rectified in TotK, though I dearly wish it had been.
A lot of fans used to complain about the temple format of p much every Zelda game up until this point, so the developers essentially removed temples altogether and instead replaced them with only four (technically optional) Divine Beasts, plus Hyrule Castle itself. I... did not like this. I'm a big puzzle girlie, and though BotW has shrines scattered across the landscape—most of which are puzzle-based—I personally felt that this substitute was lacking in comparison to the original. TotK does improve on this by reintroducing temples, but I still could have gone for a few more (Skyward Sword was the opposite of this, with very linear gameplay which a lot of people hated, but I personally will stand by SS's Ancient Cistern until my dying breath, and Twilight Princess had some really innovative temples that I have replayed several times over).
On a semi-adjacent note, the final boss just... wasn't my favourite. That's not to say it was bad, only as boss fights go I've had better (I did, however, like the final segment of that fight).
You will develop an immediate fear response to the Guardian music.
Ultimately though, I absolutely do think you should buy it, and am jealous that you'll get to have that bright-eyed bushy-tailed first-time experience, because believe me, if I could erase my memories and play BotW all over again, I would.
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abyssal-cryptid · 11 months
Text
Still more thoughts about Tears of the Kingdom (SPOILERS! like seriously. in this one)
I love this game
So much
I had to find a guy for a quest but was like
"Im going to check out this well first"
AND BOOM HE WAS THERE
Alao the brown breakable rock break with one hit, blue with two and black with three
Seemingly
Matches the bombs it takes to break them
Tulin, whose village is dying, watching me search for pretty clothing
"Link please my family is dying Link we have to go Link"
The frostbite set is stunning
Finally a hairdo that lets Link have long hair
I hate the Sages
Not really but my god did they make their AI absolute trash
Theyre always in the way except when you need them to solve a puzzle
And if you have more than one Avatar present good luck getting the one you need
I HATE THE WIND TEMPLE BOSS
Not as much as I hated Queen Gibdo but
Why was crossing a spider and scorpion necessary
"Brave Fledgling"  what if I cried
Tulin is so good
So is this making it canon that the time 10 000 years ago was still after every other game
I dont know the timeline is weird
But if there was both Zora and Rito at the time of Rauru
This is so confusing
Ive both heard and seen Rauru sacrifice himself multiple times now can these dead Sages give me new info
Zelda my beloved
Marry me please
Also so the only other Demon King we have ever had was Demise so is Ganondorf him or after him
WHAT IS THE TIMELINE HERE
The Sage calls Tulin "my brave fledgling"
Someone call me something so loving one day
Tulin is so excited to be a Sage
He is so happy to fight alongside Link
Hes so happy to save the world
I love him
What a boy
Boys will be boys is from now on only about Tulin
WAIT IS EVEN HE TALLER THAN LINK
Shortest Hylian
I got a third ring
Bring a gerudo bow to this boss fight if you can it makes life so much easier
I havent been to Death Mountain at all yet
Done all other Temples and fully mapped Hyrule before ever going near Gorons
The extra snow melted
TEBA GAVE TULIN THE GREAT EAGLE BOW
IM CRYING
REVALI IM SO PROUD OF OUR BOY *shakes the ghost of Revali*
PSSHHH YUNOBO LOOKS DUMB AS SHIT
I HATE HIM
Was already my least favorite in BOTW
But now he is a major asshole too
Fuck that
Bastard
Im not helping him
Im gonna go blow up his company
If this guy becomes a Sage I swear
I'll drown him in Death Mountain myself
The ember headdress is probably the best headpiece in the entire game
The Ember set is genuinely the best set
Its so pretty
Im gonna go see what these look like dyed
After that beating up Yunobo
But fashion comes first
IF YOU DYE THE EMBER HEADSET IT DYES LINKS HAIR
BLUE HAIR LINK
PINK HAIR LINK
BEST DAY EVER
THE SAME GOES FOR THE FROST OUTFIT
I love Cece
She is the only person matching my love of fashion in this game
I just realised why the evil Zelda is wearing Zonai clothes
Omg
Smart
Or maybe Im dumb
"Oh Yunobo was wearing a mask making him evil" no Yunobo is just like that
This sucks I hate everything to do with Death Mountain
Worst place
I have to use the machines AND GO TO THE DEPTHS??? NOOO
Nintendo you will be hearing from my lawyers
When I die Im going to ask Rauru wtf were the Zonai doing in the depths
No because if youre going to have a cutscene and then make a second cutscene three steps further just fucking make it one cutscene
Yunobo is a "young little rock"
Left that for now
Found Champions leathers
Found Royal Guard boots??
They were in the king's study
King's diary wasnt there so like is it canon Zelda was able to read it?
Misko was a good guy actually, hiding all these clothes for me
Me, in the depths: I wonder where this strange Sheikah tower leads
The Yiga hideout in Akkala:
The only ancient sheikah tech still working is Hateno Tech Lab travel point
I spent some time in the depths and FOUND THE ANCIENT CENTRAL MINE
Fought Kohga
GOT AUTOBUILD
Finally the shrine censor
And travel medallion? You treat me so well
Already had that prototype
ALSO GETTIN SENSOR+ IMMEDIATLY
Badass feeling
Omg Robbie's compendium database is so cute
Got all three upgrades immediatly
Fully stocked purah pad
WAIT THREE TRAVEL MEDALLIONS???
BASED
MY FAVORITE MONEY MAKER IS BACK
I like to kill the hebra great game because they drop gourmet and prime meat and cooking those and they sell for a good price
Horse and bullet time
Many coins
Zelda's memories are so sad
Been giving my friends a fashion show of my favorite clothing
I am again so gay for Sonia and Zelda
My god
ZELDA
BABYGIRL
ZELDA I FORBID THIS
ZELDA YOU YOU
ZELDA
ZELDA
NO NO NO NO NO DONT
MY DEAREST ZELDA
ZELDA
MY LOVE
I am sobbing crying screaming
Im so upset
Zelda being the light dragon is so unfair for her
She deserved happiness and freedom
Not losing her humanity and personhood
YOU CAN MAKE ELEMENTAL WHIPS
Kinky
I went into the strange thunder cloud
WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS
Why is it taking me into the depths
Not again
Alright Sage of Spirit
I'll make your mech suit for you
That took a while
But owl head statue
Mineru my beloved
Oh.my god this is hell
Worst part of this game so far
EASILY
DONT MAKE ME FUCKING CONTROL THIS WHEN THE CONTROLS ARE THE WORST THING EVER CONCIEVED
Im leaving this temple also undone I DONT CARE THIS FUCKING SUCKS
I hate it
Fuck this
Why do game devs come up with shitty awful bad as hell stuff to do in their games AND MAKE THAT MANDATORY
I just quit the game no lie
Fuck that
I did it and I was being dramatic, it wasnt that hard
Mineru is so goddamn gorgeous
They designed this game for me specifically
I should get back to drawing furries
Mineru holding my hand which is her brother's hand
Tears
Mineru I love her
I have not beaten Fire Temple yet
I just cant
Depths
Darkness and puzzles and fire
Also dont like Yunobo
I feel so bad for Mineru
Zelda :(
Why doesnt Link get a secret stone
RAURU WAS MINERU'S LITTLE BROTHER ::'ÖÖ
Where did Zelda's special stone come from when its a time stone and Ganon stole Sonia's time stone
Mineru I will not go get the Master Sword
Demon Ganon is hot idc
RAURU WHY WOULD YOU
Ganon: "Link. I look forward to meeting him" goes into slumber
Damn all of Rauru disintergrated but his hand
I have to find the light dragon
Eugh
The dragons dont have schedules in this apparently
Sadly
Mineru so was in love w Zelda
Everyone is putting too much weight on Link's shoulders
Fine I'll finish the fire temple
*2 hours later* I hate it here
I did scam those puzzles as much as I could
Worst puzzles
Worst boss too
Marbled gohma
Fucking awful
I nearly died about 11 times
Rip my food storages
I really need to cook more
Special stone for Yunobo booo
Little rock is adorable pet name tho
Ancestor Goron is fine af
WHY DOES NO ONE MENTION THE DIVINE BEASTS BUT YOU CAN FIND THE DIVINE BEAST HELMS AND NO ONE MENTIONS THE BEASTS
Ive heard this story four times now
Fucking hell cant we get anything new
Someone give me a 200k word fanfic where Ganon awakens but is not evil
I need Ganon Zelda Link friendship
End the cycle
Watching Brian David Gilbert and Unraveleds rn
LMAO YUNOBO'S SPECIAL STONE IS ON HIS DICK
We have established this is not a PG channel
Ok fine I like Yunobo
Daruk was better tho
Ive found most memories why cant I say anything to these people about thats not Zelda
I know Zelda is the light dragon
Running around Hyrule Castle for 'Zelda'
About to do bossfight w Ganon
Can I do a flurry rush? No
I just hit or die
Life is like that
No clever tactiques just caveman brain and trying
Evil "Zelda" is fun
Why is Ganon like one of those movie posters here
Why is he still not rehydrated
Ganon I have dick to suck hurry up
"You will not live to see another sunrise" Ganon the sun is rising rn
Woo Phantom Ganons
Fuck yeah
Lets see if I can kill them aka can I finally take on Gloom Hands (I wont)
Ganon's so arrogant
YAY MY FRIENDS ARE HERE
FUCK YEAH
I LOVE YOU ALL
MY SAGE BUDDIES
Not Lynels
Still the hardest enemy in game
Ok so if youve found Mineru and have the Master Sword already, the convo after the fake Ganon fight Purah goes "Youve already found the fifth sage? AND you have the master sword? Why didnt you say so before"
Usually youd get quests for those
It was funny
Why is the limit of horses I can have ten ::((
The Charged shirt is actually so so slutty I love it
IT GLOWS IN THUNDER STORMS
FUCK YEAH
So I finally cleared The Deku Tree's little stomach bug
And like it is so funny how easy the Gloom Hands and Phantom Ganon become when youre in late game
I was sweating about it and then it was so easy
And Im bad at combat
Ok not to brag but I killed a white lynel. First time ever. Also first time ever I killed a lynel without Urbosa's help
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a-pale-azure-moon · 11 months
Text
I've barely scratched the surface of TotK and I can feel my brain wanting to disappear down the Zelda rabbit hole. I am desperately trying to keep at least half of it in my writing brainspace but damn is it hard. There's so much temptation to just plop down with my Switch for the next eight hours and forget about everything else.
Anyway, I'm still very early in but I'll put my ramblings under the cut just in case.
-I know the popular joke was that TotK is just "$70 DLC." Obviously it is not with all of the new content, but it genuinely feels like I'm playing BotW again, only with new tools and new places to discover. And I don't consider that a bad thing! I spent almost 300 hours playing BotW and still wished there was more I could do (aside from hunting down all the Koroks because screw that), so I'm happy to be revisiting this world and exploring it all over again. Though I won't lie that I miss having all the gear and upgrades I had by the end of BotW. I'd forgotten how easy it is to die in stupid ways early on.
-Holy hell is there so much to explore. Maybe too much. Even with the nudges the game gives you, it's really hard to know where to even begin once you leave the Great Sky Island. I haven't even done any of the main dungeons yet; I've just been wandering around looking for shrines and seeing what's changed. It's even more daunting knowing there's stuff in the sky and in the depths to explore as well.
-The Depths freak me out. I've only been in there once and I'm not eager to go back until I'm stronger. Never been a fan of dark places in video games; you never can know what's lurking there, waiting to ambush you.
-It's nice to see all the familiar NPCs. Bumping into Purah and Robbie right away made me smile.
-It's also nice to see that Hyrule's been rebuilding since the end of BotW, but that evidence of the Calamity still exists (Castle Town especially). It makes the world feel that much more organic and real.
-That opening sequence was choice. Like, the approach to Ganon's lair, with the increasing gloom and the ominous music, literally sent shivers down my spine. Good shit.
-Ultrahand is amazing and I've only just begun to really play with its powers.
-To whomever at Nintendo designed the Gloom Spawn/Grabby hands/Nightmare Fuel, I hate you. May all your bacon burn for the rest of your life.
-I miss the Bomb runes SO MUCH.
-What happened to all the Sheikah technology anyway? I totally get dismantling all the Guardians considering they were the scourge of Hyrule for a long time, but did the towers and the Slate just...stop working?
-I'm fascinated by Rauru (and no, it's not just because he has Dimitri's voice, though I won't lie that it makes him that much more appealing, lol). So, we know that's his right arm that Link is "borrowing," and all of Link's new powers specifically come from that arm. And that same arm was keeping Ganon sealed away for....some length of time I'm not aware of yet, but I'm guessing it was awhile. And the new shrines are implied to contain fragments of Rauru's power as well. Just how powerful is this guy? Also, the reveal that he's the first King of Hyrule too (and married to a Hylian woman!) just makes things more interesting.
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Also, also, look how adorable he is! I want to pet his ears and brush his hair! But I also want see him go ham at some point because the game sure as hell implies that he's god-like and I'm here for it.
...But it'll probably also make me sad because he's well, dead now and it's likely because sealing Ganon away cost him his life. =(
(I'm still reeling that Rauru's voiced by Chris Hackney, and it's even more wild with Matt Mercer being the voice of Ganon. How is it that the VAs of both of my FE husbands wound up in this game? Thanks for making sure the brainrot never ends, Nintendo!)
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thegeminisage · 1 year
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Hmm. 20-22 inclusive …. making you be negative 😈 I’m assuming you’ll do zelda but as a scholar I’m also interested in your spn thoughts so you pick mwah
oooh dealer's choice this is so tough...what if i just answer for both LMAO im so sorry ok Lets Go
20. part of canon you found tedious or boring
for zelda: i really, really wish i liked wind waker. i wanna like wind waker so fucking bad. i love wind waker's story. i love wind waker's ganondorf. i love how bright and cheerful the graphics are contrasted with how solemn it is underground. i love the dungeons and the gameplay. but god i HATE the cartoony little balloon heads. it takes me right out of those serious moments. i don't mind stylization but if it could have been just a LITTLE BIT. less stylized. just a LITTLE LESS like animal crossing characters. it's beautiful to look at but for a game with such serious hidden elements WHICH I LOVE i find trouble taking it seriously.
for spn: god, all of crowley's little arcs. he was almost never interesting, and while you can excuse bad writing for cas because it's cas, you can't make crowley happen. fetch is never gonna happen! you can show me his fun hot mom and his dead son and it still isn't happening! he's just the walking talking embodiment of the "angels and demons are just like OFFICE WORKERS" trope which i hate so fucking deeply because it's the least sexy direction they ever took and the exact opposite of what i want from my angels and demons. all of the middle seasons suffered deeply from this. crowley COULD have been interesting, but tbh, i liked him best in the season they killed him off.
21. part of canon you think is overhyped
for zelda: i could do wind waker again but actually i completely understand the hype, bc wind waker is a great game even if i can't deal with it like a normal person. same with botw - i found most of the joy thru exploration, so it just didnt Hit on replays the way other zeldas do, but its influence cannot be understated and the hype is deserved. what if everybody is right all the time to hype any and everything about zelda?? oh wait actually. sorry. twilight princess ilia. idk if people hype her but if they do theyre wrong. love and light to her, she's Fine, but it feels kind of like a knockoff of malon (superior) and i generally dislike when link has romantic interests besides zelda, even if the love interest gets amnesia (wistful sigh). this sin was especially egregious bc zelda barely has any screentime at all, but i forgive tp for this because what screentime she DOES have is spent being in lesbians with midna. so it works out just this once due to the power of gay people, but that's some thin fucking ice. anyway, sorry to ilia and ilia fans for being a misogynist
for spn: i hate canon claire. i can't get into it in depth but like...sorry, even without the issue of My Own Claire Ideas, i still don't know if i could do it. being gay does not save her from having the exact same "damaged but spunky teen girl" personality given to almost EVERY OTHER TEENAGE GIRL (or young woman) on the show. to some extent she, krissy, mary from the winchesters, charlie, jo, alex, etc etc all have the same personality with a few defining quirks tacked on as an afterthought. do i love some of these characters? yes, of course. are they well-written? absolutely not <3
22. your favorite part of canon that everyone else ignores
for zelda: in general, i think skyward sword gets a bad rap despite lanayru desert's entire (waves hand vaguely) and zelda being a fucked up evil goddess who canonically manipulates link's love for her. AND GROOSE. never forget groose. more specifically i think not enough people have acknowledged 1. the champions corpses are definitely still in those cockpits 2. oot link essentially became a stalfos by walking into the lost woods without navi and never came back. hello?? generally those dark little implications that u have read between the lines to get <3
for spn: oh baby its michael!dean. i waited so long and i only really got what i wanted for one episode but it was so good. it was SO good. no one else is as hype about the fact that it took nine REAL LIFE YEARS to get there. a DECADE of my finite time on earth. but ohhh was it ever worth the wait. what else could i possibly write 100k+ about
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