365 Days of Manga, Day 235: The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time

THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: THE OCARINA OF TIME • VIZ • Akira Himekawa • All Ages
The Virtual Console re-release of the classic video game seems like a decent excuse for releasing Akira Himekawa’s The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time manga today, ten years after the original Nintendo 64 version. (Another possible explanation: manga publishers are desperate to find “All Ages” manga, free of objectionable content, to pad out their “kids’ ” lines.) The plot follows the video game closely; the young hero Link is raised among the elves in the Kokiri forest, then leaves the forest in search of his destiny, which involves traveling in time and saving the princess Zelda, and the whole kingdom, from the evil sorcerer Ganondorf. Speaking as someone who loved the original game and still hums “Epona’s Song” from time to time, it’s hard to suppress my warm feelings for the game and admit that this is really just a competently drawn manga for six-year-olds. For teenage and older readers, the adaptation is just too rushed to have much emotional impact; the story feels awkwardly video-gamey, struggling to mention every side-quest and boss fight in a limited number of pages, and still leave room for comic relief. Himekawa’s art is not awful, but already looks somewhat dated; he’s at his best when he draws cute cartoony things with big paws (like baby dragons and ponies, and the young versions of Link and Zelda), but the adult characters look stiff and awkward.
** (two stars)
Today’s winner is Eric B. of Pennsylvania. Congratulations, Eric!