the legend of zelda twilight princess vol 9

And yet, observe how this volume almost entirely comprises of original events - Link’s confrontation with his dark side continues, familiar apparitions taunting and lamenting his suffering as he’s forced to face the convictions fueling his journey. It’s a good thing, then, that Himekawa’s otherwise-masterful extrapolation of the original game eventually carries the arc to success, and we get back on track to the 2006 game’s dungeons. (In this case, having gone drunk on the Master Sword’s power for his own purposes) The ensuing split between him and Midna as he duels self-doubt and greedy arrogance within the throes of darkness just comes a little too quickly for us to accept, and I’d be lying if I said it didn’t cast an uncomfortable taint onto the arc’s conclusion in Volume 7 here.

It’s not that this is a tired cliche: we mustn’t forget that Link’s reluctance to heeding the mantle of Hyrule’s Hero was what drew us to Himekawa’s incarnation in the first place - even as he gradually steadied further commitment to the role, it’s only natural this peripheral reasoning would eventually have him lose sight of his true goal. The last volume of Akira Himekawa’s superb The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess adaption hit upon an awkward snag: namely, a vital step of the Hero’s Journey rushed by an inexplicable segue into pride’s downfall as opposed to natural, functioning character development. Link and the Twilight Princess get back on their feet.

The legend of zelda twilight princess vol 9