Where do I begin!

So, I picked up a copy of the manga adaptation of ‘A Link to the Past’ yesterday. Despite the size of the book, I assumed it would follow the game in every detail. Boy, was I wrong! Crammed into 180 pages, our beloved link skips over all the intense and memorable moments from the game (granted; there are a few pages with actually images that tingle my nostalgia senses) to accommodate for a soppy tail of link wishing to discover the history of his missing parents, while meeting new characters along the way that had no existence in the masterpiece that was the game I played on Super Nintendo from the age of which I was able to correctly play games and still play today. The original story has been diluted more than the beer at an all inclusive resort. however, there is the odd occasion I thought ‘I remember that!’ Like that bit where Link is an apple farmer…..or when a female character helps Link defeat Ganon with her earings…maybe not, but there is the odd image that reminds me this book is based on the actual game.

The most disappointing issue I have this book is the dungeons. I’m not kidding when I say that the first three dungeons are one page each! All those hours I spent slaughtering evil creatures, looting chests for maps and collecting keys to make my way through puzzle filled mazes have been skipped over to make way for shortly achieved climax. Not to mention the dark world; was completely brushed over in a montage.

I understand the the author probably wanted to use the games story as a basis and add his own content. I also understand that ‘Viz media,’ the publishers, wanted short stories an as many Legend of Zelda games as possible. It just would have been nice to have all the detail I remembered in there. If the story was told over a number of issues and stuck to the game I would have thrown my money at every installment.  All i can say is; if you’re going to purchase and read and of these adaptations, don’t expect to be nostalgically impressed. Instead, read it for what it is; a loosely based story of another hero of time in a quick story that, in all honesty, didn’t really need to be set around Link and its intended game.

If you are with me on this or completely disagree, let me know your thoughts! while reading this back to myself I feel I’ve come across very negative. its not actually a bad story, but the characters didn’t need to be those of Zelda.

STEVE JILLINGS