History Awesome / TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker

-->'''King Daphnes:''' Ganondorf! May you '''''drown''''' with Hyrule!!

* How about just the fact that the Triforce appears in the first place? Only one other time did the holy relic appear in the entire series (''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast Link to the Past]]''), and that was in 2D and only in the final cutscenes. You enter the battle expecting nothing more than just a fun battle against the King of Evil. Then Ganon takes out Link and, after 400 years, finally realizes the dream that he narrowly missed out on in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'', reuniting the Triforce, which floats there, massive and glowing in all its holiness. The Triforce does little more than just float there before Daphnes makes his wish, the sight of the golden relic in all its 3D epicness is breathtaking.

* [[TakashiNagasako Ganondorf's]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_vAXPRvRJs epic]] [[EvilLaugh villain laugh]].

* The Light Arrows themselves: powerful, beautiful, and reason enough to keep the magic bar topped up. Watching enemies disintegrate is so much fun!

** Not to mention he jumps ten foot into the air before [[spoiler:sinking the sword into Ganondorf's skull]] and all this happens in a flooding arena. From the unarmed child beating, the unstoppable badassery of Ganondorf's health destroying sword slashes and unbeatable defense, to the insane laughter as he [[spoiler:kneels on the floor, his head now being used as a swordholder]]... the battle is The crowning moment for Link and Ganondorf.

* Just before the final battle, Ganondorf has an unconscious Zelda in his grip, and then zooms forward and beats down Link with his ''bare fists'', knocking the Master Sword away, grabbing an utterly helpless Link, and forcing the pieces of the Triforce to unite so he can make his wish. That's not the awesome part. No, the person to get a crowning moment in this scene is [[spoiler:[[RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething King Daphnes]], who shows up ''out of freaking nowhere'' and places his hand on the Triforce before Ganondorf can]]. And his wish? [[spoiler:For the old kingdom of Hyrule to be washed away forever, along with Ganondorf. The King is willing to sacrifice his chance to revive his lost Kingdom ''just to deny Ganondorf his prize''.]]

* Just before the final battle, Ganondorf has an unconscious Zelda in his grip, and then zooms forward and beats down Link with his ''bare fists'', knocking the Master Sword away, grabbing an utterly helpless Link, and forcing the pieces of the Triforce to unite so he can make his wish. That's not the awesome part. No, the person to get a crowning moment in this scene is [[spoiler: [[RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething King Daphnes]], who shows up ''out of freaking nowhere'' and places his hand on the Triforce before Ganondorf can]]. And his wish? [[spoiler:For the old kingdom of Hyrule to be washed away forever, along with Ganondorf. The King is willing to sacrifice his chance to revive his lost Kingdom ''just to deny Ganondorf his prize''.]]

** Not to mention he jumps ten foot into the air before [[spoiler: sinking the sword into Ganondorf's skull]] and all this happens in a flooding arena. From the unarmed child beating, the unstoppable badassery of Ganondorf's health destroying sword slashes and unbeatable defense, to the insane laughter as he [[spoiler: kneels on the floor, his head now being used as a swordholder]]... the battle is The crowning moment for Link and Ganondorf.
** Even more awesome is the second version of this, which is rather hidden. Link does the behind-the-back parry, [[spoiler: stunning Ganondorf, doing a 180, and ''then'' going for the "sword in the head" of Wind Waker fame. ALL IN ONE JUMP.]]

* ''Ganon's Tower'' in this game gets major awesome points for being similar to, yet also different from the one in ''Ocarina of Time''. It is built and placed firmly next to Hyrule Castle; as if Ganondorf is trying to make a point: his evil dream is still alive and the same. Probably the most awesome of all however, is when you first enter the tower to be greeted by that familiar music that was once played so menacingly on the organ years and years ago. The music fades as Link climbs the last set of stairs and stops completely when he reaches Ganon's door. It makes the heart sink into the stomach.

* ''Ganon's Tower'' in this game gets major awesome points for being similar to, yet also different from the one in Ocarina of Time. It is built and placed firmly next to Hyrule Castle; as if Ganondorf is trying to make a point: his evil dream is still alive and the same. Probably the most awesome of all however, is when you first enter the tower to be greeted by that familiar music that was once played so menacingly on the organ years and years ago. The music fades as Link climbs the last set of stairs and stops completely when he reaches Ganon's door. It makes the heart sink into the stomach.

* The scene where Ganondorf ''pummels poor young Link with his bare hands'' is just so unexpectedly brutal, given the art style, that it cements Ganondorf's total badassery... or CompleteMonster status. Still, though Link is just a little kid, he is a little kid with a '''sword''' who has just [[spoiler:bombed down Ganondorf's front door, smashed his way through an army of guards, and killed his pet.]] The humiliating part here is that Ganondorf ''still'' treats him like a child.

*** Even more awesome is the second version of this, which is rather hidden. Link does the behind-the-back parry, [[spoiler: stunning Ganondorf, doing a 180, and ''then'' going for the "sword in the head" of Wind Waker fame. ALL IN ONE JUMP.]]
**** The above doubles as a [=CMoA=] for the developers, who were being rushed at this point in development. Most other developers would be short on ideas and would create a subpar ending, yet somehow, Nintendo produced an amazing ending to ''The Wind Waker'' that few had ever thought possible, what with the graphics style of the game. In fact, the ending was so good that Nintendo Power, Nintendo's official American magazine, called the ending one of the greatest endings on a Nintendo console of all time.

-->King of the Red Lions : ...You are surprisingly dim-witted.

-->King Daphnes : Ganondorf! May you '''''drown''''' with Hyrule!!

* The scene where Ganondorf ''pummels poor young Link with his bare hands'' is just so unexpectedly brutal, given the art style, that it cements Ganondorf's total badassery... or CompleteMonster status.
** To be fair, a little kid with a '''sword''', having just [[spoiler:bombed down his front door, smashed his way through an army of guards, and killed his pet...]] The humiliating part here is that Ganondorf ''still'' treats him like a child.

* [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujEZQbBi2Yc The famed intro]], which is the single most respectful and perfect homage to the series as a whole.
** This deserves more description. Ganondorf's reign of terror is at its peak, and the mournful violin music fades with the hopes of Hyrule...then it kicks in with the Zelda theme we all know and love, as a young boy vanquishes the evil.
* One of the most awesome moments in this troper's opinion was in the beginning of the game, when Aryll was kidnapped and Link actually tried to ''jump after the bird who did it from over a cliffside''. And, right afterwards, there's how Tetra grabbed his hand at the last second before falling down, telling him "She's gone, you idiot!! There's nothing you can do!"

** How could you forget Tetra's CrowningMomentOfAwesome just a few seconds prior to this?! She freakin' ''kicked'' [[EvilOverlord Ganondorf, lord of all evil]] ''in the face''! This deserves some respect, you guys!
* The scene where Ganondorf ''pummels poor young Link with his bare hands'' is just so unexpectedly brutal, given the art style, that it cements Ganondorf's total badassery.
** Badassery? There's probably a [[CompleteMonster more fitting phrase]] for Ganondorf after beating up a little kid.
*** To be fair, a little kid with a '''sword''', having just [[spoiler:bombed down his front door, smashed his way through an army of guards, and killed his pet...]] The humiliating part here is that Ganondorf ''still'' treats him like a child.
* The Wind Waker scene that just sealed it for this troper was just before the final battle. Ganondorf has an unconscious Zelda in his grip, and then zooms forward and beats down Link with his ''bare fists'', knocking the Master Sword away, grabbing an utterly helpless Link, and forcing the pieces of the Triforce to unite so he can make his wish. That's not the awesome part. No, the person to get a crowning moment in this scene is [[spoiler: [[RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething King Daphnes]], who shows up ''out of freaking nowhere'' and places his hand on the Triforce before Ganondorf can]]. And his wish? [[spoiler:For the old kingdom of Hyrule to be washed away forever, along with Ganondorf. The King is willing to sacrifice his chance to revive his lost Kingdom ''just to deny Ganondorf his prize''.]]

** Not to mention he jumps ten foot into the air before [[spoiler: sinking the sword into Ganondorf's skull]] and all this happenes in a flooding arena. This troper found the whole final scene to be the greatest [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome CMoA]] I have ever witnessed, from the unarmed child beating, the unstoppable badassery of Ganondorf's health destroying sword slashes and unbeatable defense, to the insane laughter as he [[spoiler: kneels on the floor, his head now being used as a swordholder]]. The crowning moment for Link and Ganondorf in this tropers opinion, so awesome in fact that I passed a stone made of pure diamond.
*** Even more awesome is the second version of this is, which is rather hidden. Link does the behind-the-back parry , [[spoiler: stunning Ganondorf, doing a 180, and ''then'' going for the "sword in the head" of Wind Waker fame. ALL IN ONE JUMP. This troper got that on his first playthrough by acident.]]
**** Actually, when you do that version, [[spoiler: you don't "parry" the attack, Link takes it full-on, Ganondorf actually smacks our hero into ten feet into the air, and on the way down, the little guy just happened to dig the sword into his skull.]]

* How about just the fact that the Triforce appears in the first place? Only one other time did the holy relic appear in the entire series (Link to the Past), and that was in 2D and only in the final cutscenes. You enter the battle expecting nothing more than just a fun battle against the King of Evil. Then Ganon takes out Link and, after 400 years, finally realizes the dream that he narrowly missed out on in Ocarina of Time, reuniting the Triforce, which floats there, massive and glowing in all its holiness. The Triforce does little more than just float there before Daphnes makes his wish, but goddamn if it didn't bring a tear to this troper's eye out of sheer awesomeness, finally seeing the golden relic in all its 3D epicness.
* For me, the showdown with [[TheDragon The Helmaroc King]] was one long moment of awesome. First, you start out running up the tower as the room floods with water below you and the King breaks the platforms behind you. Then you get to the top where he stands in your way and stares you straight in the face, only for you to [[DropTheHammer smack him in the face with your newly acquired Skull Hammer]] and send him falling straight down into the water. ButWaitTheresMore He flies straight up as the silo at the top of the tower closes, and the two of you finally have a battle to the finish, involving you baiting him into [[AmusingInjuries flying straight into the tower]] and hammering away his mask even more. At the end of it all, it culminates in the King struggling and flying straight up, flailing as the spotlights of the Forsaken Fortress shine on him one by one until he gives one last giant screech before he explodes in a glorious blast of darkness from a completely zoomed-out camera view and drops you a delicious HeartContainer from 100 feet in the air. After all he put you through by [[ItsPersonal kidnapping your sister]] and [[PlayerPunch screwing you out of saving her the first time by tossing you 50 miles out into the ocean]], words cannot do this encounter justice.

* What?! No mention of [[TakashiNagasako Ganondorf's]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_vAXPRvRJs epic]] [[EvilLaugh villain laugh]]?!

* The Shark Island secret cave. They pretty much send a freakin' army of Darknuts, Moblins, Wizrobes, Bokoblins, and Miniblins after you, and you still kick their asses. Once you are done, there will be tons of weapons lying on the ground as the remains of the slaughter. The best part? You can redo that battle as much as you want.

* A more subtle [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome CMoA]] (and probably more along the lines of [[CMoF CMoF]]) is the first meeting between Link and the King of Red Lions.

* The Shark Island secret cave. They pretty much send a freakin' army of Darknuts, Moblins, Wizrobes, Bokoblins, and Miniblins after you, and you still kick their asses. Once you are done, there will be tons of weapons lying on the ground as a marker. The best part? You can redo that cave as much as you want.

* For me, the showdown with [[TheDragon The Helmaroc King]] was one long moment of awesome. First, you start out running up the tower as the room floods with water below you and the King breaks the platforms behind you. Then you get to the top where he stands in your way and stares you straight in the face, only for you to [[DropTheHammer smack him in the face with your newly acquired Skull Hammer]] and send him falling straight down into the water. ButWaitTheresMore He flies straight up as the silo at the top of the tower closes, and the two of you finally have a battle to the finish, involving you baiting him into [[AmusingInjuries flying straight into the tower]] and hammering away his mask even more. At the end of it all, it culminates in the King struggling and flying straight up, flailing as the spotlights of the Forsaken Fortress shine on him one by one until he gives one last giant screech before he explodes in a glorious blast of darkness from a completely zoomed-out camera view and drops you a delicious HeartContainer from 100 feet in the air. After all he put you through by [[ItsPersonal kidnapping your sister]] and [[PlayerPunch screwing you out of saving her the first time by tossing you 50 miles out into the ocean]], words cannot do this encounter justice.