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The Legend of Zelda #3
The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask
After sealing Ganondorf in the Sacred Realm, Link returns to the time when he was a boy. Peace has returned to Hyrule, but his old friend Navi is missing. While wandering the forest in search of Navi, he meets Skull Kid, who is wearing Majora's Mask, an artifact said to grant your wishes. The mischievous Skull Kid steals the Ocarina of Time from Link and turns Link into a Deku Nut!
216 pages, Paperback
First published February 26, 2001
65 people are currently reading
1,705 people want to read
About the author
Akira Himekawa
102?books505?followersAkira Himekawa is the collaboration of two women, A. Honda and S. Nagano. Together they have created nine manga adventures featuring Link and the popular video game world of The Legend of Zelda, including Ocarina of Time, Oracle of Seasons and Four Swords. Their most recent work, Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, was serialized in Shogaku Rokunensei.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 203 reviews
December 2, 2014
This book was astounding to me. And probably to a lot of other people too. This book was based of the hit Zelda game, The Legend of Zelda, Majora's Mask. Which was the sequel game to TLOZ, Ocarina of Time. Yet this game/book had a much different tone than any other Zelda game/book. The other books had some sort of humor, adventurous, and all-around happy feel to them, all while still maintaining a set goal. This book/game was different though. It had a more dark and depressing feel. Which isn't really a bad thing to me, because I'm okay with that and I liked what nintendo did to the series, even if it was only for a short time.
The plotline follows Link wandering with his trusty steed, Epona, through the forest looking for his fairy companion, Navi, who left after the events of Ocarina of Time transpired. As they wandered, a skull kid (a impish-like creature), followed by to fairies. One yellow, and the other purple. It seemed to be wearing a mask. The skull kid stole Epona, and ran away. Link follows, and when he catches up, the skull kid uses some sort of magic to turn Link into a deku scrub (a bush-like creature that has a wooden face, hair shaped like a bush, and a snout-funnel thing for a mouth). The yellow fairy pushes Link, and before the yellow fairy catches up, skull kid leaves. Tatl, the yellow fairy, accompanies Link and tries to stop the skull kid . They wander through a tunnel, which somehow transports the pair to Clock Town. Link finds a mysterious mask seller, named The Happy Mask Salesman. This odd man sells masks from all around the world. He tells Link and Tatl to bring back his mask the Majora's Mask. The skull kid was wearing it. The mask controls whoever wears it. It has dark powers. Now Skull Kid is planning to bring down the moon in three days. And thats how long Link has to save the land of Termina, where Clock Town resides.
Link is the kind of person that tries to do the right thing and help whenever he gets the chance. In Ocarina of Time, Link was just a kid. And then he was sealed in the Temple of Time for seven years. When he wakes up as an adult, he's still a kid inside, so he's not too mature. And as soon as he did mature, he was sent back in time and was just a kid again, yet with an adult's mind. Now a bit older, he witnesses what many people think to be the five stages of grief. Tatl is the angry, naggy, bossy, and all-around rude kind of person. And poor Link has to deal with her throughout the entire story.
I rate this book 5 out of 5 stars because it had every kind of genre in my ally. It had adventure, horror (sort of), and a dark kind of feel. I love stories and books like that. Plus, it's based off my most favorite game in the world. Dat grammar dough!
The plotline follows Link wandering with his trusty steed, Epona, through the forest looking for his fairy companion, Navi, who left after the events of Ocarina of Time transpired. As they wandered, a skull kid (a impish-like creature), followed by to fairies. One yellow, and the other purple. It seemed to be wearing a mask. The skull kid stole Epona, and ran away. Link follows, and when he catches up, the skull kid uses some sort of magic to turn Link into a deku scrub (a bush-like creature that has a wooden face, hair shaped like a bush, and a snout-funnel thing for a mouth). The yellow fairy pushes Link, and before the yellow fairy catches up, skull kid leaves. Tatl, the yellow fairy, accompanies Link and tries to stop the skull kid . They wander through a tunnel, which somehow transports the pair to Clock Town. Link finds a mysterious mask seller, named The Happy Mask Salesman. This odd man sells masks from all around the world. He tells Link and Tatl to bring back his mask the Majora's Mask. The skull kid was wearing it. The mask controls whoever wears it. It has dark powers. Now Skull Kid is planning to bring down the moon in three days. And thats how long Link has to save the land of Termina, where Clock Town resides.
Link is the kind of person that tries to do the right thing and help whenever he gets the chance. In Ocarina of Time, Link was just a kid. And then he was sealed in the Temple of Time for seven years. When he wakes up as an adult, he's still a kid inside, so he's not too mature. And as soon as he did mature, he was sent back in time and was just a kid again, yet with an adult's mind. Now a bit older, he witnesses what many people think to be the five stages of grief. Tatl is the angry, naggy, bossy, and all-around rude kind of person. And poor Link has to deal with her throughout the entire story.
I rate this book 5 out of 5 stars because it had every kind of genre in my ally. It had adventure, horror (sort of), and a dark kind of feel. I love stories and books like that. Plus, it's based off my most favorite game in the world. Dat grammar dough!
August 8, 2015
Ugh, I was so disappointed in this. Maybe I just went into it expecting too much -- this is the first Zelda manga I've ever read. But it was terrible compared to the game.
The art was impressive, but the writing was awful -- maybe that's just the fault of the translator, but the game was translated, too, and the writing in that is beautiful.
I wanted the manga to explore some of the deeper and darker themes of this unique Zelda game, and instead it just told the story in a simplified and much less poignant way. It felt like a light adventure story instead of a dark and powerful piece of art. Majora's Mask is far and away my favorite Zelda game (at least as far as story goes,) and I was underwhelmed by this retelling.
I did like the portrayal of Anju, but against that I really disliked Kafei. The bit with Link at the beginning, going to train as a swordsman and impressing everyone by being advanced far beyond his years, was really interesting. I liked when there were added things that brought more story, but I think those were the only ones... the rest of the time the story was simplified or changed in weird ways (why was it random animals instead of the monkey captured by the deku king? why do Link and Majora play tag instead of good guys and bad guys? why does Link kill the children on the moon?) Over-all, I've read better fan fiction for this game, and I'm really sad to be so disappointed by the manga.
The art was impressive, but the writing was awful -- maybe that's just the fault of the translator, but the game was translated, too, and the writing in that is beautiful.
I wanted the manga to explore some of the deeper and darker themes of this unique Zelda game, and instead it just told the story in a simplified and much less poignant way. It felt like a light adventure story instead of a dark and powerful piece of art. Majora's Mask is far and away my favorite Zelda game (at least as far as story goes,) and I was underwhelmed by this retelling.
I did like the portrayal of Anju, but against that I really disliked Kafei. The bit with Link at the beginning, going to train as a swordsman and impressing everyone by being advanced far beyond his years, was really interesting. I liked when there were added things that brought more story, but I think those were the only ones... the rest of the time the story was simplified or changed in weird ways (why was it random animals instead of the monkey captured by the deku king? why do Link and Majora play tag instead of good guys and bad guys? why does Link kill the children on the moon?) Over-all, I've read better fan fiction for this game, and I'm really sad to be so disappointed by the manga.
April 12, 2024
dakota thrifted this for me knowing it was my favorite childhood game. did not disappoint, huge win.
Read
September 3, 2022Majora's Mask is so fun:) I especially loved the short story extra at the end!!
February 12, 2024
My kids check these out from the library and somehow I ended up picking this up and reading it through as my bedtime reading the last few nights.
Reading a comic book based on a video game I played so long ago was an interesting experience, and not just because it's one of those "backwards" books from Japan where you have to read the panels right to left and turn the pages in the opposite direction and all of that. Ultimately I have to say the Majora's Mask story really suffers from this treatment. Maybe it's weird to say, but the world of this game in particular was so rich and vibrant, and the central mechanic of revisiting the same three-day period over and over so fascinating that the game is just far superior to this superficial and hurried book with its weird changes and disappointingly shallow story... that I know was definitely written for children... don't worry... I'm fine... I just probably won't be reading more legend of Zelda comics.
Reading a comic book based on a video game I played so long ago was an interesting experience, and not just because it's one of those "backwards" books from Japan where you have to read the panels right to left and turn the pages in the opposite direction and all of that. Ultimately I have to say the Majora's Mask story really suffers from this treatment. Maybe it's weird to say, but the world of this game in particular was so rich and vibrant, and the central mechanic of revisiting the same three-day period over and over so fascinating that the game is just far superior to this superficial and hurried book with its weird changes and disappointingly shallow story... that I know was definitely written for children... don't worry... I'm fine... I just probably won't be reading more legend of Zelda comics.
June 24, 2022
A much more episodic volume in this retelling of the game. Interestingly enough, this manga was started before the game and I can see where they tweaked the story to match. Link is still really fun but I wish this had more than one volume to tell the story to let aspects of it breath a bit more instead of cramming it all together.
January 6, 2022
Mega Coole Zeichnungen, auxh wenn ich mir gew¨¹nscht h?tte dass das ganze Buch bunt ist aber schwarz wei? kommt auch gut! F¨¹r jeden Zelda Fan zu empfehlen
March 17, 2023
This manga was amazing, I loved it so much and I can not wait to see where the rest of these mangas take me¡ I felt so much nostalgia while reading this and it made me so happy.
February 7, 2025
Read with PJ :)
October 24, 2014
The Legend Of Zelda: Majora's Mask is a Japanese manga about obviously the Zelda game Major's Mask. The story goes that Link is on his way to find Navi in the forest and he gets ambushed by the Skullkid (or Stalkid in this manga). Skullkid takes Link's Ocarina of time and leads Link of a cliff and into the world of Termina. Link must then get Majora's Mask back from Skullkid and save the land of Termina from the moon that will blow up the world if it crashes into Termina in the next 3 days. Altogether, this comic is a Zelda fans dream although it is weird to think of Link as someone who talks. The book is interesting and follows the story rather closely considering how much they had to leave out of the book to keep it exciting. I felt the book would have been a bit better if it were longer however the story that was told was sufficient enough to be very enjoyable. There is even a side story that gives you background on how Majora's Mask was made which i thought was very interesting. The art style is pretty typical of most Japanese Manga and i always love it. Overall, i would recommend his Manga to anyone who is a fan of The Legend Of Zelda and it is definitely a very good read.
December 28, 2018
The tone of of this entry does little to match the sorrow-laden dreadful echoing tale of the game.
Where the events of the game see Link revisiting the same events time and again in an attempt to get things right and gradually maneuver himself in a position to set things straight, the book takes a silly almost fickle approach to the story.
There is one time reversal and Link resolves the entire plot line in a single sequence. This removes much of the feeling of mistakes and missed opportunities. It takes out a lot of the mystery and delicate interactions that are needed to find the sweet spot.
The masks come off as silly and playful which again takes away from the depth of the story.
The art is great, the presentation is fun, and the meat and potatoes are here. It just feels a hollow lessened version of the source material.
On all accounts.
The small original bit about the origin of the mask is a unique and super fun story and nearly worth the entire read for its own merit.
Where the events of the game see Link revisiting the same events time and again in an attempt to get things right and gradually maneuver himself in a position to set things straight, the book takes a silly almost fickle approach to the story.
There is one time reversal and Link resolves the entire plot line in a single sequence. This removes much of the feeling of mistakes and missed opportunities. It takes out a lot of the mystery and delicate interactions that are needed to find the sweet spot.
The masks come off as silly and playful which again takes away from the depth of the story.
The art is great, the presentation is fun, and the meat and potatoes are here. It just feels a hollow lessened version of the source material.
On all accounts.
The small original bit about the origin of the mask is a unique and super fun story and nearly worth the entire read for its own merit.
Read
August 18, 2023This is the first of the Legend of Zelda mangas that I've read (which means I'm reading them out of order, but it was the first one I grabbed out of the boxed set that my brother bought me for Christmas), and while it seems that they're meant for a fairly young audience, I enjoyed the simplified telling of the video game plot. The manga was released in chapters at roughly the same time that the game was released in Japan, so a lot of the story is conjecture, and the book contains a non-canonical side story about the origin of Majora's mask that definitely a nice addition. The art is beautiful, and I was interested to find out that Akira Himekawa is a team of two female mangaka that are individually pen-named A. Honda and S. Nagano; the idea that women are less interested in comics and video games than men is an idea that I'm always glad to see contradicted. This book was a very quick read, so I'm looking forward to progressing through the set before long!
November 29, 2018
This is a good book, full of adventure. It is about a small boy who goes on a journey to become a great warrior. He ends up in the lost woods, a forest where children who have been lost turn into creatures of the forest and hide in the bushes and trees. One of the creatures ambushed a traveling merchant that sells masks and noticed a special mask with magical abilities called ¡°Majora¡¯s Mask.¡± The main character (Link) and this creature have an interaction. The creature steals Links¡¯ horse and takes his flute. Link follows him to another land called Termina. Termina is a parallel place to the kingdom of Hyrule where Link is from. Link gets cursed and turns into Deku Scrub (wooden figures that walk around in need of water). Link finds a way back to his normal form and encounters the creature with Majora¡¯s Mask.
This is a great book for kids to read. It has many pictures that help tell the story and help understand what is happening.
This is a great book for kids to read. It has many pictures that help tell the story and help understand what is happening.
February 7, 2016
was soll ich sagen - auch wenn das Spiel nicht mein liebstes ist so konnte ich mich doch einfach fallen lassen beim lesen dieses Manga - ich freue mich schon wirklich die anderen Manga aus dem Zelda universum zu lesen, auch ¨¹ber spiele die ich noch nicht gespielt habe :)
April 1, 2020
The Legend of Zelda: Majoras Mask by Akira Himekawa is a graphic novel based on the game by the same name that released in 2000. This book is very faithful to the story of the game and I can say that as someone who has played the original game and the remake that released in 2014. Most Zelda books and games take place in a version of the kingdom of Hyrule but this story is one of the few that doesn't. This book takes place after the events of the book series The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (and again the game by the same name), at the end of this series of books the main character Link is returned to his childhood after being frozen in time for 7 years and defeating the evil king who took over the kingdom during his slumber. When Link is sent back to his 7 year younger self his companion, Navi, runs away without warning, this is what sets the story of Majoras Mask in motion. Link leaves to the nearby woods to search for Navi, he is then attacked by two fairies, Tatl and Tael. Tatl and Tael drive Link of his horse while someone called the Skullkid steals the horse while Link is distracted. Skullkid also steals the Ocarina of Time from Link, playing this instrument allows the user to travel through time this is what Link used to be returned to his childhood. Link then chases after Skullkid until he sees Skullkid ride off into a hole inside a tree, Link follows but he then falls down inside the tree but lands safely on a large flower. Link then sees Skullkid floating in front of him with his Ocarina and while wearing a creepy mask that emits a dark purple "glow". Skullkid then turns Link into what is called a "Deku Scrub" which is like a wooden smaller version of himself. Skullkid then tells Link that his horse is probably dead and then he leaves with the fairy Tael but leaves Tatl behind. Link and Tatl decided the best way out of the tree is to team up but upon their exit they find they are in a strange land called Termina, and when they look up they see a large moon with a face that is eerily close to the ground. Link also meets a man called the Happy Mask Salesman who tells him he can turn Link back to his former self if Link gets the mask back from Skull Kid that is called "Majoras Mask". Link then explores Termina for 3 days, each day the moon moves closer, on the 3rd day Termina is celebrating a festival and that's the only time the top of clock tower is able to be reached. Link sees Skullkid atop the clock tower and he goes up himself. The moon is nearly touching the ground and Link and Skullkid engage in a battle where all Link can manage to do is knock his Ocarina out of Skullkids hand. The moon will destroy the world in a matter of minutes so Link decides to play "The Song of Time". This returns Link to the beginning of the 3 day cycle, the moon is back up in the sky for now. The Happy Mask Salesman then again sees Link and he agrees to teach Link "The Song of Healing". Upon playing this Link is turned back into a human but a "Deku Mask" is left behind and if he wears this he can turn back into a Deku Scrub. The Salesman is mad at Link after finding out he didn't get Majora's Mask back yet but he tells Link he must awaken the four Giants so they can hold the Moon up long enough for Link to get the mask back. So after this Link and Tatl travel to Terminas four corners and at each their is dungeon with an ancient boss at the end who is causing trouble for each area. The swamp corner has a boss that is poisoning the water, the mountain corner has a boss that is keeping the area stuck in a long winter, the ocean corner has pirates that are plaguing the area, and the desert are has strange "re-deads" which are like zombies plaguing that area. Link then stops all of the bosses who then each drop a mask of their own that Link collects. After beating each Link meets a giant, the giants tell him to play the "Oath to Order" when the time is right for them to come. Now Link returns to the clock tower on the third day and calls the giants to hold the moon, then the Mask removes itself from Skullkid and flies into the moon, Skullkid apologies and says he was manipulated by the mask. Link then has to give up all of his masks to fight Majora except for one, "The Fierce Deity's Mask". Link and Majora then fight and Majora states that it's always like this, you play the hero and I'll be the villain. Link defeats Majora and the moon is returned to normal forever. I really liked this book for many reasons. You get to know the residents of Termina and see how they react to the moon, it's really sad there are some who refuse to leave the town in search for safety because they love their home. Seeing these people makes you want to see Link save the world even more. I also like how big a role music plays in this story, Link also plays the Song of Healing for those who he finds struggling. I also love how this story deals with villains, Skullkid isn't bad he was just lonely and drawn to Majoras Mask because he thought it would make people like him. As for Majora, it seems to struggle with who is really right, who is really the Hero and the Villain? This book is really good especially if you've played the game or read previous books.
May 28, 2019
Majora's Mask is a faithful successor to Ocarina of Time. As with the games, this version of Link is clearly the same character and actually remembers some of the events of Ocarina of Time. As far as pacing, the story seems to jump around a lot, expecting a lot from the reader in terms of remembering the game and filling in narrative beats. Also, since Majora's Mask has so many "side-quests," the writers devoted one chapter to each major quest. This left the overall story feeling rather episodic, such that any given chapter could probably be removed from the story without really making the narrative progression any worse. Interestingly, it did stop to break down a few game mechanics in-narrative, such as how the masks work and why they transform Link.
I definitely enjoyed the surreal imagery, such as the part of the story that puts the reader behind the eyes of the Skull Kid as the Happy Mask Salesman narrates.
After the core story is a short non-canon chapter that explains the origin of Majora's Mask. Much like the story proper, it's a sad, surreal, and chilling tale¡ªbut perhaps too confusing to have any value on the surface.
Overall, I appreciate this book as a visual refresher of the narrative, since I haven't played the game in years. But for anyone who isn't already a hardcore Majora's Mask enthusiast, I wouldn't recommend it.
I definitely enjoyed the surreal imagery, such as the part of the story that puts the reader behind the eyes of the Skull Kid as the Happy Mask Salesman narrates.
After the core story is a short non-canon chapter that explains the origin of Majora's Mask. Much like the story proper, it's a sad, surreal, and chilling tale¡ªbut perhaps too confusing to have any value on the surface.
Overall, I appreciate this book as a visual refresher of the narrative, since I haven't played the game in years. But for anyone who isn't already a hardcore Majora's Mask enthusiast, I wouldn't recommend it.
June 23, 2020
while i REALLY ended up liking the ocarina of time manga, this one was....a little lackluster. probably not due to any fault of himekawa, but because the original game likely just Doesn't lend itself well to this sort of adaptation. it went by way too quickly, and all the atmosphere of the game was lost. i do think it handled skullkid very well though, and the bonus majora origin story was a cool touch
April 6, 2022
I guess it is difficult to adapt a game like this one to a manga.
February 28, 2023
wowowow the original side story was soooo good that i got chills. i love how well Himekawa references the original plot of the game while creating their own little world within the novel. can¡¯t wait to read more of the Zelda books lmao, i have all of the ones my library has checked out rn
June 10, 2023
It feels really harsh to give it three out of five... It felt pretty rushed, and though I've never played Majora's Mask, I know there were elements missing. I thought it would be sadder and creepier, but it wasn't. I don't mean to be hard on Akira Himekawa. Twilight Princess is one of my favorite book series, and one of few that have made me chocked up. I was hoping to get those same feelings while reading this. It did a good job summarizing Majora's Mask, but was limited by only being one book and being rated A. It did have some good moments, though!
March 26, 2019
I love Zelda so I read the book and I enjoyed it.
September 20, 2017
Majoras mask is my favprite game ever made. It has been since I first played it at the age of eight and it still is after playing the 3ds remake a few years ago. Everything about it is so strange and wonderful, it crackles with an eldritch energy the likes of which I haven't seen before or since. And to top it off it has utterly superb gameplay.
This leads me to this manga adaptation. It's great! There's a lot of the game that is left out, like ikana canyon (which I would have LOVED to see) and some of the darker elements (this is after all aimed primarily at kids) but at the end of the day this captures the strange and unique majesty of t he game very well. It even makes some changes that feel appropriate.
Chief among said changes is the happy mask salesman, a character who never feels quite right, even in ocarina of time, where he is a simple shop keep. Here, he is clouded in mystery and his motivations are questionable at best. Skull kid, easily my favorite video game villain and one of my all time favorite characters from all pop culture, is also done justice here, with him maintaining his sympathetic back story and oddly playful mannerisms.
I would have loved for this to have been at least two volumes so the author's could have worked even more side stories from the game in (like the aforementioned ikana canyon and other things like romani ranch) but what is here is superbly done, with a nice emotional core in the form of anju and kafei, easily the most involved side quest from the entire game series. The creative team of akira himekawa are wonderful story tellers, and its very telling that they were able to execute this so well even though it was released at the same time as the game, meaning they really didn't have a ton of knowledge of it.
Lastly, we get a really cool origin story of how majoras mask came to be. In the hands of lesser people it could have come across as forced and unnecessary but here it fits right in with the strange and wonderful lore of termina. This is a must read.
This leads me to this manga adaptation. It's great! There's a lot of the game that is left out, like ikana canyon (which I would have LOVED to see) and some of the darker elements (this is after all aimed primarily at kids) but at the end of the day this captures the strange and unique majesty of t he game very well. It even makes some changes that feel appropriate.
Chief among said changes is the happy mask salesman, a character who never feels quite right, even in ocarina of time, where he is a simple shop keep. Here, he is clouded in mystery and his motivations are questionable at best. Skull kid, easily my favorite video game villain and one of my all time favorite characters from all pop culture, is also done justice here, with him maintaining his sympathetic back story and oddly playful mannerisms.
I would have loved for this to have been at least two volumes so the author's could have worked even more side stories from the game in (like the aforementioned ikana canyon and other things like romani ranch) but what is here is superbly done, with a nice emotional core in the form of anju and kafei, easily the most involved side quest from the entire game series. The creative team of akira himekawa are wonderful story tellers, and its very telling that they were able to execute this so well even though it was released at the same time as the game, meaning they really didn't have a ton of knowledge of it.
Lastly, we get a really cool origin story of how majoras mask came to be. In the hands of lesser people it could have come across as forced and unnecessary but here it fits right in with the strange and wonderful lore of termina. This is a must read.
October 11, 2018
This is a fun little book! I read the Legendary Edition, and it was my first experience with manga. I figured reading a story I already know and love would be a good way to get introduced to the genre. It's really cool seeing all my favourite Zelda characters come to life, and to see a side of Link that we don't get to see in the games: his voice. Link is actually a real character in this book, not just a reflection of the player!
Because Zelda games--Majora's Mask included--are mainly based around action, puzzles, and dungeon-crawling, they had to take some liberties with the story. This usually involved working the boss of every dungeon into the pre-dungeon events. This worked pretty well mostly of the time, but it also made things move too quickly sometimes, making it hard to follow. The biggest sin was when they condensed the entire fourth section of the game (Ikana Castle and Stone Tower Temple) into two pages. It comes out of nowhere, and it skips over one of the most emotional scenes in the game! However, most of the story cuts were understandable, as there's a ton of content in the game.
Interestingly, the translation to English didn't see the same political changes as did the game translations. Namely, the Skull Kid is still called a demon, rather than an imp, and he's still got blackface, rather than a scarecrow face. There may be some other translation differences, but I couldn't tell.
There's also a bonus story at the end that offers some very interesting information, but I won't spoil it. Just let it be known that the bonus story is definitely worth reading.
Overall, I enjoyed reading this manga. It was a way to interact with my favourite game of all time in a completely new way. However, the plot cuts impacted the flow of the story and sometimes made it confusing. I'll definitely check out the other Zelda mangas.
Because Zelda games--Majora's Mask included--are mainly based around action, puzzles, and dungeon-crawling, they had to take some liberties with the story. This usually involved working the boss of every dungeon into the pre-dungeon events. This worked pretty well mostly of the time, but it also made things move too quickly sometimes, making it hard to follow. The biggest sin was when they condensed the entire fourth section of the game (Ikana Castle and Stone Tower Temple) into two pages. It comes out of nowhere, and it skips over one of the most emotional scenes in the game! However, most of the story cuts were understandable, as there's a ton of content in the game.
Interestingly, the translation to English didn't see the same political changes as did the game translations. Namely, the Skull Kid is still called a demon, rather than an imp, and he's still got blackface, rather than a scarecrow face. There may be some other translation differences, but I couldn't tell.
There's also a bonus story at the end that offers some very interesting information, but I won't spoil it. Just let it be known that the bonus story is definitely worth reading.
Overall, I enjoyed reading this manga. It was a way to interact with my favourite game of all time in a completely new way. However, the plot cuts impacted the flow of the story and sometimes made it confusing. I'll definitely check out the other Zelda mangas.
October 30, 2015
The Legend Of Zelda ¡°Majora¡¯s Mask¡± by Akira Himekawa is about a boy named Link who is on the search for his fairy friend Navi. While wandering through the forest in search of Navi, he meets skull kid. The devious Skull Kid steals the Ocarina Of Time from Link and turns him into a Deku Scrub. Link then ends up in the world of Termina where he has to go through four temples to find a special power that will help him defeat Skull Kid for good and save Termina.
The theme of this book was that not everything can be done in day and quite honestly, that makes a lot sense to me because the downside to Link¡¯s adventure is that he only has three days to save Termina and stop Skull Kid. The author did a great with this book because the game it¡¯s based off of wasn¡¯t even out yet and the story was almost exactly like the game. I think anyone could read this book because you don't have to read the other books in the series to understand what happens in Majora¡¯s Mask.
"As those three days repeat over and over, he'll be smacked around so many times...
it's awful! He's a little weak. He needs me to protect him! I apologize for all the bad things I said to you, just... Hmph! I definitely don't need to take orders from you! So you're just going to leave the Skull Kid alone?! What about my brother?! Get back the mask and help Tael!! Please!¡±
I would have to give this book a solid 5 due to the fact that the author¡¯s interpretation of the story was identical to that of the game despite the fact that the game wasn¡¯t even out yet as well as adding subtle differences.
The theme of this book was that not everything can be done in day and quite honestly, that makes a lot sense to me because the downside to Link¡¯s adventure is that he only has three days to save Termina and stop Skull Kid. The author did a great with this book because the game it¡¯s based off of wasn¡¯t even out yet and the story was almost exactly like the game. I think anyone could read this book because you don't have to read the other books in the series to understand what happens in Majora¡¯s Mask.
"As those three days repeat over and over, he'll be smacked around so many times...
it's awful! He's a little weak. He needs me to protect him! I apologize for all the bad things I said to you, just... Hmph! I definitely don't need to take orders from you! So you're just going to leave the Skull Kid alone?! What about my brother?! Get back the mask and help Tael!! Please!¡±
I would have to give this book a solid 5 due to the fact that the author¡¯s interpretation of the story was identical to that of the game despite the fact that the game wasn¡¯t even out yet as well as adding subtle differences.
August 7, 2018
I¡¯m not usually one for skipping mid-way into a series but this was the first edition available back on Free Comic Book Day when I picked it up. I was excited to dive into my second manga after reading Pokemon earlier in the year.
I like to think that reading manga is reading outside of my comfort zone. Considering both of my manga reads to date have been about video games I have played, I think perhaps I am kidding myself on that one.
It was initially weird to me that the character of Link was able to talk in the story. He is notoriously silent in the video game but once I was a few pages in I was enjoying reliving the excitement of the game through the book. There are some understandable differences in the story line and these edited out a lot of what you experience as you play through the game. It didn¡¯t take anything away from my enjoyment though. It was still a nostalgic read.
There is an additional short story at the end that left me perplexed. Now I am very good at imagery, symbolism, reading between the lines etc. but I just didn¡¯t get it. That left a rather sour taste for me.
This is very much a book that fans will enjoy. I¡¯m not sure how well others would appreciate it.
Taking that into account, overall this is a 4* read.
I like to think that reading manga is reading outside of my comfort zone. Considering both of my manga reads to date have been about video games I have played, I think perhaps I am kidding myself on that one.
It was initially weird to me that the character of Link was able to talk in the story. He is notoriously silent in the video game but once I was a few pages in I was enjoying reliving the excitement of the game through the book. There are some understandable differences in the story line and these edited out a lot of what you experience as you play through the game. It didn¡¯t take anything away from my enjoyment though. It was still a nostalgic read.
There is an additional short story at the end that left me perplexed. Now I am very good at imagery, symbolism, reading between the lines etc. but I just didn¡¯t get it. That left a rather sour taste for me.
This is very much a book that fans will enjoy. I¡¯m not sure how well others would appreciate it.
Taking that into account, overall this is a 4* read.
July 24, 2018
This Legend of Zelda comic book is mostly about Link wearing masks like the Zora mask and the Goron mask. This is the story of the Legend of Zelda Majora's Mask video game. In the book, the big plot is about the Skull Kid - a bad guy - getting ahold of Majora's Mask, which is a special mask kept by the mask merchant. It is a special mask that the mask merchant says not to touch because you will get evil and the Skull Kid touched it and turned evil.
The Skull Kid takes Link's horse Epona and transforms link into a Dueku. Link has to find people with masks that he can wear to transform into the creature in each mask.
Link has to travel to Clocktown to stop the Skull Kid from bringing down the moon. After awhile, Link realizes that it was not the Skull Kid who wants to bring the moon down. It was the Majora's Spirit in the mask that was making the Skull Kid do it.
Luckily, the Four Gods held the moon up to stop it from coming down. Link gets changed back into a Champion and the Skull Kid takes off Majora's Mask and thanks Link for saving him.
My favorite part was when the Skull Kid takes off the mask, because I was relieved that he was saved.
The Skull Kid takes Link's horse Epona and transforms link into a Dueku. Link has to find people with masks that he can wear to transform into the creature in each mask.
Link has to travel to Clocktown to stop the Skull Kid from bringing down the moon. After awhile, Link realizes that it was not the Skull Kid who wants to bring the moon down. It was the Majora's Spirit in the mask that was making the Skull Kid do it.
Luckily, the Four Gods held the moon up to stop it from coming down. Link gets changed back into a Champion and the Skull Kid takes off Majora's Mask and thanks Link for saving him.
My favorite part was when the Skull Kid takes off the mask, because I was relieved that he was saved.
February 2, 2018
This is the last of the series that is about one of the games I have actually played (or even seen played), so from this point on I'm in new territory.
As far as this manga goes, I think it was done very well. I'm not sure if this is mentioned in my previous reviews, but this is the perfect play through. I mean, I don't know anyone who went through Majora's Mask without having to go back in time at least once more to get everything you need. I will say, the storytelling in this manga was fantastic. I spent a lot of time thinking about when I wasn't reading it, and wanting to read more when I was reading it.
My only issue, which to be fair there are disclaimers everywhere, is the stand alone story that the authors wrote. They explain that it was written prior to the game actually being released, so I give it a pass. But it really felt like filler. And that's not exactly what I look for in my manga. I want story. I want interest. Not just..... filler.
As far as this manga goes, I think it was done very well. I'm not sure if this is mentioned in my previous reviews, but this is the perfect play through. I mean, I don't know anyone who went through Majora's Mask without having to go back in time at least once more to get everything you need. I will say, the storytelling in this manga was fantastic. I spent a lot of time thinking about when I wasn't reading it, and wanting to read more when I was reading it.
My only issue, which to be fair there are disclaimers everywhere, is the stand alone story that the authors wrote. They explain that it was written prior to the game actually being released, so I give it a pass. But it really felt like filler. And that's not exactly what I look for in my manga. I want story. I want interest. Not just..... filler.
February 10, 2017
In the 2nd book of Akira Himekawa zelda series, Link is no longer in Hyrule,but Termina. He must save four giants. You must read this if your intrested in manga, and "The Legend of Zelda!"
July 19, 2019
After saving Hyrule from doom in the future and being sent back in time, Link is on a search for his companion Navi, who has disappeared. Unfortunately he is intercepted by a imp called Skull Kid who happens to be in possession of a cursed, yet powerful mask. Skull Kid curses Link and so begins his journey to save Termina.
Legend of Zelda is my favorite video game. The fact that they are making manga off of the different games makes me very happy. These books basically add more story content. I love them and the art style and eagerly await the new releases.
-some violence
-slight horror
Legend of Zelda is my favorite video game. The fact that they are making manga off of the different games makes me very happy. These books basically add more story content. I love them and the art style and eagerly await the new releases.
-some violence
-slight horror
January 10, 2018
This is such a good adaption of the Majoras's mask game into a book, while parts of this is different the story is amazing and easy to read. Not only this but the graphics in it is great and one that you need to check out.
The bonus story at the end to explain where the mask came from also makes this a must read for me as even if it isn't true it does give you a little bit more closure about the whole story.
The bonus story at the end to explain where the mask came from also makes this a must read for me as even if it isn't true it does give you a little bit more closure about the whole story.
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