Line #13 Awesome/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker


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8	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ganons_defeat.png]]
9	[[caption-width-right:350:[[LetsPlay/{{Chuggaaconroy}} SWORD THROUGH THE FOREHEAD!]]]]
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11	Awesome moments in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker''.
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13	* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KyTgvancEok&t=71s The famed intro]], which is the single most respectful and perfect homage to the series as a whole. 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.
14	* The beginning of the game, when Aryll is kidnapped and Link actually tries to ''jump after the bird who did it from over a cliffside''. And, right afterward, Tetra grabbing his hand at the last second before falling down, telling him "She's gone, you idiot!! There's nothing you can do!"
15	** The heartbreak that accompanies this scene simply makes the later [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome CMoA]] where you destroy that damned bird, complete with a kickass explosive death scene, all the greater.
16	* Link's first face-to-face encounter with Ganondorf: the Gerudo King has Tetra forcibly caught and is about to take her Triforce from her -- when all of a sudden Quill and Komali swoop in, fly her and Link out of harm's way, and then Ganon sees Valoo out his window... before Valoo torches the place down in one blast.
17	** Valoo may have stolen the show but special props need to be given to Komali in that scene, having gone from sulking in his room earlier in the game to grabbing Tetra out of Ganondorf's hands.
18	** Tetra gets a SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome just a few seconds prior to this when she freakin' ''kicks'' [[EvilOverlord Ganondorf, lord of all evil]] ''in the face''!
19	* 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 badassery. Still, though Link is just a little kid, he is a little kid with a '''sword''' who smashed his way through an army of guards, killed his pet, and has just bombed down Ganondorf's front door, in that order. The humiliating part here is that Ganondorf ''still'' treats him like a child.
20	--> '''Ganondorf:''' [[WhamLine You cannot defeat me with a blade that does not sparkle with the power to repel evil! What you hold is useless.]] Go back to the world below -- and tell that to the pathetic fools who made this blade! Its power is gone, and its edges are dull!
21	** But it swings back around to awesome when you consider that yes, he treated Link like a child, but he was forced to do so PERSONALLY. Link disabled Ganon's two dragons -- Helmaroc King permanently, and Phantom Ganon temporarily. This child took out his base of operations and forced him to deal with him himself, and that is definitely worthy of praise.
22	* Just before the final battle, Ganondorf has an unconscious Tetra 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 [[RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething King Daphnes]], who shows up ''out of freaking nowhere'' and places his hand on the Triforce before Ganondorf can. And his wish? 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''.
23	-->'''King Daphnes:''' And let our destinies finally be fulfilled. Ganondorf! ''May you '''drown''' with Hyrule!''
24	** To which Ganondorf lets out what is quite possibly the best [[EvilLaugh villainous laugh]] ever shed in a Zelda game. It sounds like at that point, he has reached the point of clear insanity.
25	** This is also a moment of awesome for Ganondorf. At this point, he has absolutely nothing left. Helmaroc King and Phantom Ganon have been killed, his troops are doomed to die under the ocean, the land of Hyrule and his tower are in the process of being erased for good, and he just gave up his Triforce of Power and immortality only to have his wish stolen right in front of him by the King. No matter what he does, he's already lost and he knows it. But instead of despairing or giving up, Ganondorf simply laughs manically, pulls out a MASSIVE set of katanas, and launches an attack on Link and Tetra in one final act of spite.
26	* Even with its controversial art style, ''Wind Waker'' probably scored a lot of points with the end of the final boss battle where Link plunges his Master Sword [[MemeticMutation RIGHT IN THE HEAD!]]
27	** Not to mention he jumps ten feet into the air before 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 kneels on the floor, his head now being used as a sword holder... the battle is The crowning moment for Link and Ganondorf.
28	** Even more awesome is the second version of this, which is rather hidden. Link does the behind-the-back parry, stunning Ganondorf, doing a 180, and ''then'' going for the "sword in the head" of Wind Waker fame. ALL IN ONE JUMP.
29	*** 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.
30	** Zelda gets one in this fight too, when instead of standing back and letting Link handle things like her other incarnations up to this point [[ActionGirl she commandeers Link's bow and starts shooting Light Arrows]].
31	** The final battle in general is improbably awesome. It's Link and Zelda working together in a final desperate duel of survival against Ganondorf ''as the ocean itself is falling on top of them''.
32	** And the cherry on top? The following games in the Adult Timeline where this takes place, ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaPhantomHourglass Phantom Hourglass]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks Spirit Tracks]]'', don't have Ganondorf as the main villain. This means that, for all intents and purposes, this incarnation of Link, TheUnchosenOne out of all the other versions of Hylia's chosen hero, managed to finally put an end to [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword the curse that Demise placed on the first reincarnations]]. In short, this [[CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass sweet-natured and somewhat dopey kid]] incarnation of Link straight-up '''[[KilledOffForReal KILLED]]''' Ganondorf.
33	* A more subtle SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome (and probably more along the lines of SugarWiki/{{Funny Moment\|s}}) is the first meeting between Link and the King of Red Lions.
34	-->'''King of the Red Lions:''' [[DeadpanSnarker ...you are surprisingly dull-witted.]]
35	* 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 several hundred 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.
36	* 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 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.
37	** Watch Link's expression in the brief cutscene after the mask is destroyed. It's the moment he realizes he knows what he needs to do to win and ''he's going to!''
38	* 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.
39	* [[Creator/TakashiNagasako Ganondorf's]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_vAXPRvRJs epic]] [[EvilLaugh villain laugh]].
40	* It's a very small Moment of Awesome, but ringing the bell at the top of the Tower of the Gods is probably the coolest and most original use of a grappling hook ever.
41	* ''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 not too far away from 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. Then 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.
42	** The cutscene that occurs when you enter the said door is also pretty awesome. Ganondorf's speech about how pathetic and hopeless the world above the sea has become really affirms his wrath and sets the mood for the upcoming battle. Then we have his transformation to Puppet Ganon which is just INTENSE.
43	* The finishing blow on Ganondorf deserves special mention, but ''every'' time you use the parry attack is a CMOA. This Link is the most acrobatic yet, and the series' 3D entries only escalate from here on out.
44	* Special mention must be made for Ganondorf's comparatively GenreSavvy nature in this one. Take note: he actually keeps tabs on the new kid despite a complete lack of (physical) connection to the Hero of Time. He then sees history start to repeat itself as Link starts clearing the dungeons and getting the Goddess Pearls, so what does he do? He figures out where the third one is, and ''completely destroys the place.'' Lord Jabbun does manage to get away with the Pearl (and props to him for that), but this event does serve as a reminder of Ganon having learned some lessons from the past.
45	* This era's Link actually deserves special mention as it becomes clear pretty quickly that unlike previous incarnations of Link, this one is [[TheUnchosenOne no hero by pre-determined destiny]]. In fact, on repeated playthroughs which allow the player to understand the Ancient Hylian language and thus characters like Valoo, the Deku Tree and Jabun, they even discuss how he wasn't chosen and was, unfortunately, like his sister, just some kid caught up in Ganondorf's plot when he volunteers for a half-baked rescue mission after she's captured. However, the kid bravely leaves his island behind, sails around the world to do what he can to save his sister and help countless others along the way; eventually repowering the Master Sword, proving his worthiness to bear the Triforce of Courage, and even '''KILLING''' this incarnation of Ganondorf and [[KilledOffForReal ending his reign for good]]. Not bad for some [[ButtMonkey "nobody kid"]] from a small island. His title, ''The Hero of Winds'', becomes a fitting one indeed.
46	** Adding onto it later, this same Link goes on to [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaPhantomHourglass explore new lands and destroy an all-powerful abomination to free both his long-time companion and an ancient king]], and then eventually become a co-founder of [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks New Hyrule]]. If ''that's'' not serious CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass, we don't know what is.

Context Awesome / TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker