Angels and Demons: Majora's Mask part 6

  I'm gonna take a moment to step back from the story and look at something I find to be pretty important.  Within the story of Majora's Mask exists a sort of conflict that doesn't exist in any other Zelda game.  Most games in the series pit Link against some power hungry sorcerer like Vaati or Ganon who are pretty much the antithesis of the sort of Everyman that is Link. The villain of Majora's Mask shares more similarities with Link than any other character in the series.  As such it would seem like the two are just two sides of the same coin.





   Some would say to this, "Doesn't Link already have a dark counterpart?" I recall that the counterpart in question, Dark Link, first appeared in the previous game, but most my memories of that have been repressed given that this segment was in the midst of the accursed Water Temple (I think I heard a very rare bird fall out of a tree when I typed those words just now).  Even when Dark Link shows up in later games like Four Sword Adventures, there really isn't any detailed exposition about what he is or where he came from.  The Skull Kid is such a great villain because he has something more than the other villains: a motive driven by sorrow and rage.

   The Skull Kid, like Link, grew up in the woods.  As mentioned before, Skull Kids are children who die in the Lost Woods of Hyrule (that hasn't ceased to be morbid).  It's safe to say that this Skull Kid was originally from Hyrule just like Link since there are none other like him seen in Termina.  Also like Link, Skull Kid was greatly alienated by those around him.  He mentions in the previous game that he is mocked for having a plain face (which is a cruel joke seeing how all the skull kids are identical).  Likewise, Link is mocked by several children in his village for not having a fairy, which is an identifying feature of all residents of this village.  Both of these characters have a sudden change in their lives when they become friends with fairies.  Link befriends Navi who summons him to his quest, while Skull Kid befriends Tatl and Tael when they find him crying in a hollow log during a storm.

   Both Link and the Skull Kid come across magical items.  Skull Kid stole Majora's Mask from the Happy Mask Man while Link was given the Ocarina of Time from Princess Zelda.  While the power of the Mask is almost limitless, it is easy to abuse and capable of corrupting.  The Ocarina of Time only has power in careful hands, and the knowledge of its power comes from trials of knowledge and discipline (and a cool ninja with a harp).

  Once Skull Kid left Link in the cave, both characters were left with a fairy.  Tatl became Link's reluctant ally while Tael became Skull Kid's prisoner.  I feel that this is a largely visual nod to the similarities of these characters since Skull Kid clearly won't be asking Tael for advice on how to deflect stones with a shield.

  Perhaps the greatest similarity between these two characters is how neither character has anything that made them unique or more likely to become a hero or a villain than anyone else around them.  Prior to Ocarina of Time, there had only been three Links, the one from Skyward Sword, the one from the Minish Cap, and the one from Four Swords.  The Link of this game and the previous doesn't start off with some adventurous spirit or need to achieve glory.  When all future incarnations of Link look back at the legends, they generally look back to this one, and they are all pretty much humble yeomen with less than thrilling lives.  Skull Kid has no name, no discerning features aside from the mask, and no remarkable powers or cruel motives of his own.  It becomes more and more apparent that he is only looking for a friend, which is similar to what Link was doing at the start of the game.  However, Skull Kid is too mischievous to retain his friends as he proceeds to do some really horrible things which leads to his anger and growing cruelty to spite others.  Link also meets many miserable people that dislike him and try to thwart him (probably for slashing through their gardens and breaking all their pottery), but his qualities that render him the hero are his convictions and his persistence.

  Although Link and Skull Kid only had one confrontation in the entirety of the franchise, I still believe that he remains one of the most memorable antagonists from the series.  Sure, there will always be Ganon as the primary villain of the series, but Skull Kid represents this sort of idea that evil doesn't always manifest itself in a manner worthy of loathing.  Even though Skull Kid is deserving of pity and is truly feeble behind the mask, it is his unchecked neglect leads him to cause such widespread torment and destruction.  It is fitting that Skull Kid should be the ultimate villain to face against the relentless hero that is Link.

  Now back to the story, where we find our hero in a swamp.