History Fridge / TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess

* The twilight itself seemed to put everything into a pseudo-stasis, basically taking a freeze-frame of a region, then allowing for movement. Therefore, water becomes ice, wind stops (allowing a certain valley to fill with poison), and people become nearly immobile spirits who move, if they move at all, in slow, mechanical, "pre-programmed" movements, like the regiments of soldiers moving in lockstep through Twilit Castle Town. Looking back on this, it appears to be a deconstruction of GoingThroughTheMotions as well.

* The entire [[ThePowerOfLove power of love]] subtext for the snow mansion arc is made even better by Link's receiving the [[EpicFlail Ball]] [[HappilyMarried and Chain]].

* Twilight Princess was released 8 years after ''Ocarina of Time'' (only a few days short), so when you go into the past temple after striking the Pedestal of Time, you are going back ~7 years in actual time.

* How come that various Zoras make reference to Ruto being a sage, despite the game taking place in the Child Timeline, in which the future portion of Ocarina of Time (which was when she became a sage) never happened? Because, as shown in Ganon's execution attempt, he managed to kill the Sage of Water. His death should have prompted Ruto to wake up as a sage in order to fill in for him (just like in the other timelines), so it's likely that she became a sage in the Child Timeline too.

* The final boss's death scene. It's a pretty common point of confusion the way [[spoiler:Ganondorf seems to lose the Triforce of Power. At some point, long after viewing the scene for the first time, this troper realized that he's not ''losing'' it; the crest fading out signifies that it can't save him from being impaled by the Master Sword like it saved him when he was impaled by the Sages. Master Sword trumps Triforce-granted powers. Confirmed by ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast'', where it's stated the sword was originally created with the ability to block the Triforce's power. A fragment compared to the complete Triforce is easily depowered.]]

* Each stage of the final boss [[FinalExamBoss tests Link]] in a different way: [[spoiler:for example, Beast Ganon tests his beast form against your beast form, Horseback Ganondorf tests him on horseback with you on Epona, Spirit Ganon tests Midna's spirit form against his, and Ganondorf is a final test of your skill as a swordsman. To me, Possessed Zelda is a test against you as a player, as you must use most of your skills to defeat that which you have sworn to protect.]] The analogy (that [[spoiler:Possessed Zelda]] is a test for the player himself) makes even more sense when you consider this: You are essentially "possessing" Link, as a counterpart to [[spoiler:Ganondorf possessing Zelda]].
** What's more, [[spoiler:[[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-OwAFE_kPmg Beast Ganon's theme]] is an evil variation of [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqhKc01xyBs the herding game's theme]]. It's hinting that handling Beast Ganon is no different than wrestling one of the goats back in Ordon Village.]]

* It's often wondered why Zant's men took the children of Ordon Village away and kept them hostage, as they do not do that to anybody else in Hyrule. It's possible that [=OoT=]/MM Link settled down in Ordon Village (where his descendant, TP Link, lives) and that [[spoiler:Ganondorf somehow knew this]], so it was suspected that one of the children might have inherited the Triforce of Courage. This could explain why TP Link was taken to Hyrule Castle instead of staying with the other children (as his... [[BalefulPolymorph unusual reaction]] to the Twilight pretty much gave himself away).

* Ganon's Sword is the sword used at his own execution. It created this white scar on him that was his fatal weakness. Canonically, [[spoiler:most of ''Ocarina of Time''[='=]s events '''didn't happen''' in the Child timeline, which ''Twilight Princess'' takes place in]]. No wonder he took the sword. It was likely '''the only weapon to ever seriously harm him''', considering he's never seen the Master Sword before. [[note]]And his reincarnation in ''Four Swords Adventures'' was not defeated with the Master Sword, for obvious reasons.[[/note]]

** Zant's motivations start to make more sense when you realize he was confident that since he and Ganondorf were connected, he expected Ganondorf to revive him at some point right before Midna killed him (probably due to his devoted service). However, before the heroes face him in the final battle, Ganondorf goes on a rant about how insignificant Midna's ancestors are in their attempts to gain power — the same ancestors who were Zant's entire motivation for usurping due to believing his royal family had gone soft — as well as implying that he found Zant too useless to resurrect. Have your own "god" spit on your dreams after saying he'd desire what you desire and find that he isn't as godly as you thought while he tries to use what remains of your power to stay alive, [[TheDogBitesBack and...]]
** Perhaps a simpler interpretation could be that Zant saw Ganondorf losing and came to the realization that defeating Link and therefore thought any hope he has to retaking what he lost to Link and Midna was gone. Which could mean that unlike Ganondorf, who has an impressive history of being a {{Determinator}}, Zant was DrivenToSuicide because he realized what chances he had to fulfill his desires were lost and [[KnowWhenToFoldEm saw no point in fighting anymore.]]

** Perhaps a simpler interpretation could be that Zant saw Ganondorf losing and came to the realization that defeating Link and therefore thought any hope he has to retaking what he lost to Link and Midna was gone. Which could mean that unlike Ganondorf, who has an impressive history of being a {{Determinator}}, Zant was DrivenToSuicide because he realized what chances he had to fulfill his desires were lost and saw no point in fighting anymore.

* With the nightmare fuel involved in Arbiter's Grounds in mind, let's think long and hard about what it actually is. [[spoiler:It's a PRISON. A prison where the Twili were detained before their banishment to the twilight. Think about the contents of that prison. All the redeads and ghost rats and poes, and that's the stuff that must have moved in. The skull of Stallord is ancient. Very much so. So ancient, it probably was already there, maybe even alive. And the Death Sword. ''That'' is bound in a prison. Perhaps it was some kind of guard gone wrong? And all of the chains and spikes and bones. And gears. And quicksand. And advanced machines with death-causing devices on them. You get the picture. Arbiter's Grounds was a concentration camp that culminated in banishment to another world not meant for humans.]]

* In the fight against [[spoiler:Ganon, his weak spot is the scar left by his failed execution. One might assume that this means if you're a wielder of the Triforce of Power, you don't die and your usually lethal wound becomes a rather sensitive scar instead. Now, imagine if Ganon hadn't died (e.g. because he was attacked with a normal sword instead of the Master Sword) due to this protection. After enough fights, he'd end up covered in very sensitive skin that might just hurt whenever anything touches it. Meaning he'd be in constant pain. There's no known way to just get rid of a Triforce piece, is there...?]]

** Additionally, [[spoiler:Din, who the Sages implied may have handed Ganondorf her Triforce piece as a prank (possibly even knowing what he did with it in the Adult Timeline), may have decided that her 'divine prank' had run its course, given her chosen champion had been defeated, and revoked her favor, taking the Triforce of Power away from him and leaving him to die.]]
* Each stage of the final boss [[FinalExamBoss tests Link]] in a different way: [[spoiler:for example, Beast Ganon tests his beast form against your beast form, Horseback Ganon tests him on horseback with you on Epona, Spirit Ganon tests Midna's spirit form against his, and Ganondorf is a final test of your skill as a swordsman. To me, Possessed Zelda is a test against you as a player, as you must use most of your skills to defeat that which you have sworn to protect.]] The analogy (that [[spoiler:Possessed Zelda]] is a test for the player himself) makes even more sense when you consider this: You are essentially "possessing" Link, as a counterpart to [[spoiler:Ganondorf possessing Zelda]].
** What's more, [[spoiler:Beast Ganon's theme is an evil variation of [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqhKc01xyBs the herding game's theme]]. It's hinting that handling Beast Ganon is no different than wrestling one of the goats back in Ordon Village.]]

** When Zant [[spoiler:manages to attack you at Lanayru's spring]] and when he assaults Hyrule Castle, he (albeit temporarily) is in the Light. But he's a native Twili, and if going by Midna's reaction to [[spoiler:being exposed to Lanayru's light]] and the fact she remains a shadow [[spoiler:until Zelda grants her the ability to dwell in the Light]], he should probably be in pain, or not even there at least. The thing is, [[spoiler:like when Zelda gave Midna her soul/Triforce piece/whatever she did, Zant had received Ganondorf's ability to live in the Light, and thus was able to be in the realm of Light without harm.]]

* The scene of Zant snapping his neck right before Ganondorf dies seems to be confusing on first glance, to the point that even the director didn't know about its significance. But Zant himself explains before his boss fight that when Ganon housed his power in Zant to recover, "[Zant's] desires will become MY desires". So when what's left of Zant, seeing his God's power fade and him on the brink of death, snaps his neck, he expresses his desire for Ganondorf to die. Which, despite wanting to the contrary, Ganondorf does by succumbing to the Master Sword.
** Zant's motivations start to make more sense when you realize he was confident that since he and Ganondorf were connected, he expected Ganondorf to revive him at some point right before Midna killed him (probably due to his devoted service). However, before the heroes face him in the final battle, Ganondorf goes on a rant about how insignificant Midna's ancestors are in their attempts to gain power. The same ancestors who were Zant's entire motivation for usurping due to believing his royal family had gone soft as well as implying he found Zant too useless to resurrect. Have your own "god" spit on your dreams after saying he'd desire what you desire and find that he isn't as godly as you thought while he tries to use what remains of your power to stay alive, [[TheDogBitesBack and...]]

* Twilight Princess was released 8 years after Ocarina of Time (only a few days short), so when you go into the past temple after striking the Pedestal of Time, you are going back ~7 years in actual time.

* After playing through [[VideoGame/TheLegendofZeldaSkywardSword Skyward Sword]], the City in the Sky takes on an entirely new perspective. One can only assume it's what is left of Skyloft after all these years. The place looks positively futuristic compared to olden times, but in the end, the place is falling apart, and not just because of Argorok. It's really kind of sad in that way.

%% This isn't Troper Tales or a forum. Refrain from first person entries, speculation, and "replying" to entries. RepairDontRespond is in effect here as much as any other page.

* The final boss's death scene. It's a pretty common point of confusion the way [[spoiler:Ganondorf seems to lose the Triforce of Power. At some point, long after viewing the scene for the first time, this troper realized that he's not ''losing'' it; the crest fading out signifies that it can't save him from being impaled by the Master Sword like it saved him when he was impaled by the Sages. Master Sword trumps Triforce-granted powers. Confirmed by ''A Link To The Past'', where it's stated the sword was originally created with the ability to block the Triforce's power. A fragment compared to the complete Triforce is easily depowered.]]

* Ganon's Sword is the sword used at his own execution. It created this white scar on him that was his fatal weakness. Canonically, [[spoiler:most of ''Ocarina of Time'''s events '''didn't happen''' in the Child timeline, which ''Twilight Princess'' takes place in]]. No wonder he took the sword. It was likely '''the only weapon to ever seriously harm him''', considering he's never seen the Master Sword before. [[note]]And his reincarnation in ''Four Swords Adventures'' was not defeated with the Master Sword, for obvious reasons.[[/note]]

** Zant's motivations start to make more sense when you realize he was confident that since he and Ganondorf were connected, he expected Ganondorf to revive him at some point right before Midna killed him (probably due to his devoted service). However before the heroes face him in the final battle, Ganondorf goes on a rant about how insignificant Midna's ancestors are in their attempts to gain power. The same ancestors who were Zant's entire motivation for usurping due to believing his royal family had gone soft as well as implying he found Zant too useless to resurrect. Have your own "god" spit on your dreams after saying he'd desire what you desire and find that he isn't as godly as you thought while he tries to use what remains of your power to stay alive and...

* With the nightmare fuel involved in Arbiter's Grounds in mind, let's think long and hard about what it actually is. [[spoiler:It's a PRISON. A prison where the Twili were detained before their banishment to the twilight. Think about the contents of that prison. All the redeads and ghost rats and poes, and that's the stuff that must have moved in. The skull of Stallord is ancient. Very much so. So ancient, it probably was already there, maybe even alive. And the Death Sword. ''That'' is bound in a prison. Perhaps it was some kind of guard gone wrong? And all of the chains and spikes and bones. And gears. And quicksand. And advanced machines with death causing devices on them. You get the picture. Arbiter's Grounds was a concentration camp that culminated in banishment to another world not meant for humans.]]

* Ganon's Sword is the sword used at his own execution. It created this white scar on him that was his fatal weakness. Canonically, [[spoiler:the events of Ocarina of Time ''never happen'' in this timeline]]. No wonder he took the sword. It was likely the ''only weapon to ever seriously harm him.''

** What's more, [[spoiler: Beast Ganon's theme is an evil variation of [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqhKc01xyBs the herding game's theme]]. It's hinting that handling Beast Ganon is no different than wrestling one of the goats back in Ordon Village.]]

** Zant's motivations start to make more sense when you realize he was confident that since he and Ganondorf were connected, he expected Ganondorf to revive him at some point right before Midna killed him (probably due to his devoted service). However before the heroes face him in the final battle Ganondorf goes on a rant about how insignificant Midna's ancestors are in their attempts to gain power. The same ancestors who were Zant's entire motivation for usurping due to believing his royal family had gone soft as well as implying he found Zant too useless to resurrect. Have your own "god" spit on your dreams after saying he'd desire what you desire and find that he isn't as godly as you thought while he tries to use what remains of your power to stay alive and...

* Twilight princess was released 8 years after Ocarina of Time (only a few days short), so when you go into the past temple after striking the pedestal of Time, you are going back ~7 years in actual time.

** Additionally, [[spoiler: Din, who the Sages implied may have handed Ganondorf her Triforce piece as a prank (possibly even knowing what he did with it in the Adult Timeline), may have decided that her 'divine prank' had run its course, given her chosen champion had been defeated, and revoked her favor, taking the Triforce of Power away from him and leaving him to die.]]
* Each stage of the final boss [[FinalExamBoss tests Link]] in a different way: [[spoiler:for example Beast Ganon tests his beast form against your beast form, Horseback Ganon tests him on horseback with you on Epona, Spirit Ganon tests Midna's spirit form against his and Ganondorf is a final test of your skill as a swordsman. To me, Possessed Zelda is a test against you as a player, as you must use most of your skills to defeat that which you have sworn to protect.]] The analogy (that [[spoiler:Possessed Zelda]] is a test for the player himself) makes even more sense when you consider this: You are essentially "possessing" Link, as a counterpart to [[spoiler:Ganondorf possessing Zelda]].

** Alternatively, he is the only Twili we see wearing clothes until the end when [[spoiler:Midna shows her true form]]. Perhaps clothes protect them. And looking at [[spoiler:Midna]], perhaps not everything needs to be covered, but Zant's covered from head to toe.

* Among the golden bugs you can find there are two snails. If you check their descriptions, it seems Link is not sure which one is the male and which is the female. In real life, most snails are hermaphrodites.
* The FinishingBlow is called the Ending Blow because it is the one that is the one that, in a sense, ends the game by finishing off Ganondorf.

* Ganon's Sword is the sword used at his own execution. It created this white scar on him that was his fatal weakness. Canonically, [[spoiler: the events of Ocarina of Time ''never happen'' in this timeline. ]] No wonder he took the sword. It was likely the ''only weapon to ever seriously harm him.''
* The scene of Zant snapping his neck right before Ganondorf dies seems to be confusing on first glance, to the point that even the director didn't know about its significance. But Zant himself explains before his boss fight when Ganon housed his power in Zant to recover "[Zant's] desires will become MY desires". So when what's left of Zant, seeing his God's power fade and him on the brink of death, snaps his neck, he expresses his desire for Ganondorf to die. Which, despite wanting to the contrary, Ganondorf does by succumbing to the Master Sword.
* Many players may find it a little odd that most characters react to Wolf Link in such an extreme way, and don't even seem to know what he is. Even the residents of Ordon think he's another monster instead of some canine, even though you'd think they'd have they fair share of dealings with wolves since they're a rural community that raises livestock on the edge of the forest. Well, as it turns out, there are no wolves left in Japan, as all native varieties went extinct. Given that the game is made in Japan, it actually makes a bit of sense that most of the people in Hyrule have never seen a wolf before, nor know what to do when they see one.

* With the nightmare fuel involved in Arbiter's Grounds in mind, let's think long and hard about what it actually is. [[spoiler: It's a PRISON. A prison where the Twili were detained before their banishment to the twilight. Think about the contents of that prison. All the redeads and ghost rats and poes, and that's the stuff that must have moved in. The skull of Stallord is ancient. Very much so. So ancient, it probably was already there, maybe even alive. And the Death Sword. ''That'' is bound in a prison. Perhaps it was some kind of guard gone wrong? And all of the chains and spikes and bones. And gears. And quicksand. And advanced machines with death causing devices on them. You get the picture. Arbiter's Grounds was a concentration camp that culminated in banishment to another world not meant for humans. ]]
* [[spoiler: This was likely a symbolic execution. Disagree? Let's consider that they sent ''Ganondorf'' through it to get rid of him when other attempts failed. The execution itself did seem rather ritualistic. For all we know, the twilight was just the final part of it, and they decided to just send him through. It's almost worse if it wasn't meant for execution. The sages ''willingly sent'' Ganondorf into a world that might have been filled with innocent people completely unprepared for a threat of that magnitude, as they had no Triforce to match his]]

* With the nightmare fuel involved in Arbiters Grounds in mind, let's think long and hard about what it actually is. [[spoiler: It's a PRISON. A prison where the twili were detained before their banishment to the twilight. Think about the contents of that prison. All the redeads and ghost rats and poes, and that's the stuff that must have moved in. The skull of Stallord is ancient. Very much so. So ancient, it probably was already there, maybe even alive. And the Death Sword. ''That'' is bound in a prison. Perhaps it was some kind of guard gone wrong? And all of the chains and spikes and bones. And gears. And quicksand. And advanced machines with death causing devices on them. You get the picture. Arbiter's grounds was a concentration camp that culminated in banishment to another world not meant for humans. ]]

* In the fight against [[spoiler:Ganon, his weak spot is the scar left by his failed execution. One might assume that this means if you're a wielder of the Triforde of Power, you don't die and your usually lethal wound becomes a rather sensitive scar instead. Now, imagine if Ganon hadn't died (e.g. because he was attacked with a normal sword instead of the master sword) due to this protection. After enough fights, he'd end up covered in very sensitive skin that might just hurt whenever anything touches it. Meaning he'd be in constant pain. There's no known way to just get rid off a Triforce piece, is there...?]]