Characters: The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
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Heroes
Link
Click to see Wolf Link
This Link is a simple Farm Boy living in Ordon Village who rounds up goats on the Mayor's ranch. One day, he is attacked by Bulblins and pulled into a mysterious fog known as Twilight by a Shadow Beast. After realizing he has turned into a wolf, he is rescued by the imp Midna in exchange for agreeing to help her recover the Fused Shadows to stop the Big Bad: Zant.
Animorphism: He turns into a wolf when in Twilight.
Badass: Goron-wrasslin', Gerudo-tossin', horseback-stabbin', card-carryin' badass, to be exact.
It's occasionally implied that he does speak, other characters react like he does, but he is never shown speaking and no subtitles appear.
Horse Archer: Now he can use most of his weapons while on Epona, not just his Bow. He even fights King Bulblin in a jousting match!
Hot Blooded: He doesn't talk, but judging by his manners, he definitely is this.
The Ishmael: Here, most of the focus of the game is put on Midna. Link just does the action.
Kind Hearted Cat Lover: He can pick up cats and puppies; when he does, rather than holding them above his head like Cuccos, he cradles them against his chest.
Unknown Rival: This time around, Ganondorf doesn't seem the least bit bothered about him, most likely because the Hero of Time didn't fight Ganondorf in the childhood timeline, which TP follows.
An enigmatic and snarky imp who has a mysterious connection to the Twilight that has enveloped Hyrule. She offers to help Link escape from his prison and eventually becomes his guide. She rides on his back when he's in wolf form, and hides in his shadow when he's a human.
Fisher King: She fulfills this role for the Twilight Realm.
Forgotten Phlebotinum: She can levitate titanic hunks of rock with her mind, then teleport them through space, but makes Link do all the fighting. She can fly, but chooses to ride around on his back. Justified by the fact that this seems entirely in character for her.
Hurting Hero: She feels incredible guilt about letting Zant overrun her kingdom, Ganondorf or no Ganondorf. Then, when she realizes how noble Link and Zelda are, she feels even more guilt about how she treated Link. She goes from Jerkass to Defrosting Ice Queenover the course of the game.
Spotlight-Stealing Squad: If Twilight Princess is the only Zelda you've played, you can be forgiven for wondering why all the other games focus on that quiet chap she rides around on and that other girl.
Title Drop: She sarcastically calls Zelda the "Twilight Princess" during Link's first meeting with them. It turns out that Midna is the Twilight Princess; her earlier Title Drop was a false lead.
Tsundere: Type A. She even uses the classic "I'm only helping because I have to" line if you talk to her while you're restoring the light to Eldin Province.
The Vamp: She never really tries to seduce Link, though she's rather manipulative in other regards.
Zelda
The Princess and reigning monarch of Hyrule. She was to be crowned queen, but Zant invaded on the day preceding her coronation. She gives Link advice in a tower in Hyrule Castle in which she is imprisoned.
Demonic Possession: Used on her empty body near the end of the game, while Zelda's soul is secretly keeping Midna alive.
Distressed Damsel: Link can't rescue her the first time they meet, nor the second for that matter. She gets saved near the end (third time's the charm).
Eye Awaken: Not her, specifically, but Ganon does this with her body after he possessed her, shortly before the Ganon's Puppet: Zelda battle. The result literally sends Midna flying.
Out of Focus: While she doesn't really get that much less screen-time than her predecessors (and indeed, morethansome), on average, she is less important to the plot than usual. However, she is a pivotal part of Midna's Character Development.
Parental Abandonment: The fact that she was due to be crowned queen implies that her parents have died, although they're never mentioned at all.
Played up to be the Big Bad of Twilight Princess, and later Hijacked by Ganon. He bonded himself to Ganon, whom he believed to be a god, and used this power to take over the Twilight Realm. At the opening of Twilight Princess, he is spreading Twilight all over Hyrule, and has invaded Hyrule Castle.
Ambition Is Evil: Midna states this is the reason why he was initially passed over for power.
Hijacked by Ganon: Probably the most controversial example of this trope.
Laughing Mad: Let's just say that during the final battle against Zant, he seems to laugh a lot of the time, and that it is a disturbed laugh.
Leitmotif: Has a very subtle one. In his theme music at the beginning after the Scare Chord (see below) there is a very weird sequence of six notes played on what sounds like a very discordant stringed instrument. When you are in Twilight-covered areas of Hyrule, you hear the same six notes on a flute in the BGM.
Neck Snap: He does one in Ganon's death scene for some reason.
Villainous Breakdown: Though he wasn't exactly sane from the start, only keeping a calm facade. He loses this facade once Link reaches his throne room, and he breaks down even more when their fight goes on, as his attacks get even more unpredictable as he is on his last hits.
Ganondorf
Click to see Ganon
After falsely swearing allegiance to the king, Ganondorf was exposed as a traitor by the Hero of Time, having just come back from a Bad Future where he'd taken over Hyrule. His plans to get the Triforce were foiled, and he was condemned to execution by the Sages themselves. However, even though he got his heart pierced, it didn't quite kill him, as the mark of the Triforce of Power somehow appeared in his hand, and reanimated his body. In a fit of Unstoppable Rage, he broke free of his chains, killed the Sage of Water, and took the very sword meant to execute him for his own. In a desperate move, the Sages sent Ganondorf to the Twilight Realm, in the hopes of keeping him trapped there. After wandering there for who-knows-how-long, he met Zant, and the events of the game were set in motion.
Attack Its Weakpoint: He still has the glowing scar he received from his failed execution. If anyone guesses this is his one weakpoint, they'd be right.
However, he doesn't show signs of this any other time, and this is the only item you can use to distract him. It's a long-standing series tradition (dating back to A Link to the Past) for a single non-combat item to have an inexplicable combat usage like this.
Archenemy: Averted this time, from his point of view at least, as he doesn't really know who Link is in this game.
Badass: The sages chained him to a stone and impaled him with sword, but when he got the Triforce of Power, he broke free from the chains and killed one of the sages by PUNCHING HIM IN THE FACE.
Badass BeardOf Evil: Second game in a row he has it. Looks like he's keeping it.
Badass Cape: Just watch how it flows during his battle.
Blade Lock: For the first time in the series. Slash or Jump Attack at him when he comes running at you with his sword raised and you'll lock blades. Lose, and you'll get stabbed For Massive Damage (and a brief Dark Reprise of his already dark theme). Win, and he'll be left wide open for a devastating combo (and accompanying Triumphant Reprise of his theme).
Leitmotif: Remixed with Hyrule Castle's while you progress through it. And with Zelda's for the first phase of the final battle.
Light is Not Good: Light was good when the Sages tried to off him with a Cool Sword made of the stuff, but in his hands... not so much.
Also applies to Ganondorf himself to a certain extent. While he himself has very dark clothes and skin, he still falls into the "light" category by virtue of being a light dweller as opposed to a Twilight dweller.
Lightning Bruiser: He walks pretty slow in his fight, but that's because he wants to. For a guy as massive as he is, he can move pretty quickly if he wants to. And jump absurdly high.
His Ganon form is extremely fast in spite of its size and can ram through the stone pillars in the throne room you fight it in like they aren't even there.
Magic Knight: He not only possesses powerful magic, but is also unbelievably strong and skilled with a sword.
Nigh Invulnerable: AND HOW! First he gets exposed as a traitor, which probably nets him veryharsh treatment in a prison (Arbiter's Grounds, and if they're anything to go by...). Then he gets Impaled with Extreme Prejudice by a sword made of Hard Light specially made for executing deranged madmen like him. Then he gets thrown into the Twilight Realm (and it really looks like it hurt him when he got disintegrated into the portal). Then when Link confronts him, he gets hit by his own powerful light magic spells, which should be his antithesis, then gets his still-very open scar and weak spotbrutally abused, then gets hit by Midna's One-Winged Angel form's BFS of a spear (which was enough to trigger an explosion strong enough to level Hyrule Castle), then gets turned into a Light Arrowpincushion, then gets repeatedly slashedin his scarby the Master Sword, and finally, is stabbed one last time in the chest, right where his glowing scar is, bringing this Overly-Long Gag to a subverted close. For those who skipped the paragraph, Ganondorf just refuses to die.
The chief of the Bulblin tribe in Twilight Princess, who raid Link's village at the beginning of the game. He and his minions serve as recurring enemies throughout the game, with Link fighting him four times, two on horseback, two on foot.
Always Chaotic Evil: Subverted. While he and his race appeared to be this, he only fought on Ganondorf and Zant's side because he follows the strongest side - which, after battle after battle, turns out to be Link.
"The Group" is the unofficial name for a group of freedom-fighters that met in Telma's Bar in Twilight Princess to organize a resistance against Zant. The members of this group help Link get to the last few dungeons of the game and storm the castle in a very awesome scene at the end.
Rusl
Link's mentor and big brother figure. A swordsman from Ordon village, he acts as a surrogate father to Link and gathers some old friends to form a small group of mercenaries later in the game to counter Zant's forces in Hyrule.
Happily Married: To his wife Uli, who is pregnant with their second child during the course of the game. (The newborn baby is seen briefly during the end credits.)
The Obi-Wan: He doesn't die, but he is severely injured.
Papa Wolf: He valiantly defends his family from a ferocious wolf (who just happens to be Link). Did we mention he did this while seriously injured from a recent raid on the village?
Which makes it all the more humorous later in the game where a fully recovered Rusl will cower if Link runs up to him in Wolf form in the Faron woods.
A female knight who scouts out the Snowpeak region in search of the Yeti tribe. She joins the rest of the resistance at the end of the game by storming the castle. Supplemental material explains that her father was a Hylian soldier who raised her to be a warrior like the son he never had.
Auru is the oldest member of the Group, but one of the most knowledgeable. He helps Link get over the mountains and into Gerudo Desert. He used to tutor Princess Zelda in her youth.
Shad is The Smart Guy of the group, who is usually too involved with his studies to do any fighting. However, his knowledge of ancient Hylian lore does help you get to the City in the Sky. According to supplemental material, his father worked as a butler in the royal palace.
Speaking Simlish: He's the only character, apart from Midna, who actually has a speaking scene in the game — he chants an incantation in the scene where the Sky Cannon is discovered.
Verbal Tic: His speech is peppered with quaint Britishisms, like "I say" and "old boy."
Telma
Telma is the proprietor of the bar where the Group usually meets, and she frequently helps Link throughout the game, mainly by taking care of Ilia during her amnesia.
All Love Is Unrequited: She's shown to definitely have a thing for Renado, the shaman in Kakariko Village, but he very clearly does not return her affections.
Escort Mission: Early in the game, you have to escort her covered wagon to Kakariko Village.
Gag Boobs: Link almost gets Marshmallow Hell'd following the Escort Mission. It doesn't help that they're at (his) eye level and that he's got an open-mouthed stare at that moment...
Mama Bear/Team Mom: She's very sweet and flirty and fun...until the soldiers prove too cowardly to help Ilia and the sickly Ralis, at which point she tears them a new one and tells them never to come back to her bar.
Link's best childhood friend is the daughter of the mayor of Ordon Village, and is abducted by Bulblins early in the game. A large portion of the later game is dedicated to helping her recover her lost memories. She functions in a role similar to that which Malon played in Ocarina of Time and shares Aryll's status of the "Girl who went missing and thus motivates Link to go on his quest." (But she's surprisingly not a Distressed Damsel.)
Berserk Button: Perceived recklessness with or cruelty towards animals.
Daddy's Girl: She's the apple of her father's eye.
Easy Amnesia: According to Word Of God, she was struck by a poisoned arrow when the bad guys abducted the village kids, and that's what caused her amnesia.
Leitmotif: Her theme music is a rearranged version of Epona's Song.
Memento MacGuffin: The horse whistle which helps her regain her memory.
Missing Mom: Her mother is never mentioned; it's sort of implied that Mayor Bo is a widower but never stated for certain.
Tsundere: She shows shades of being a Type B (Default mood: Dere-Dere) in the start of the game. Seems like Tsunderes of all kinds are especially likely to be attracted to Link.
Colin is one of the Ordon kids, the son of Rusl and Uli. Of all the kids, he idolizes Link the most. He himself has expressed that he wants to grow up to be just like Link.
Big Brother Worship: He has this for Link, who is considered an honorary member of his family.
Cute Shotaro Boy: He inherited his mother's soft, gentle features.
Took a Level in Badass: After he steps up as a hero, he gains respect in the eyes of the other kids, and during the credits, he can be seen carrying a sword and shield.
Malo
Another of the children of Ordon Village who gets kidnapped and taken to Kakariko Village. While there, he sets up a business called "Malo Mart", which, with Link's help, can get an additional branch in Castle Town.
Deadpan Snarker: "Time is money. If you're done shopping, then quit wasting both..."
The shaman of Kakariko Village, and one of the only residents to survive the slaughter that took place there before Link's arrival. He shelters the Ordon children and protects them until the end of the game, when it's finally safe for them to return to their own village, and is an old friend of Mayor Bo's. He counsels Link in how to access the Goron Mines.
A young girl who owns a fancy house in Hyrule Castle Town and has an obsession with bugs. One of the optional sidequests in the game is to collect various bugs scattered through the world and bring them to her.
Cloudcuckoolander: Her obsession with bugs causes her to say some....off the wall things, to be sure.
Creepy Child: Though she doesn't mean to be, so it's not that creepy.
Unless you walk out of her house while still carrying a bug. Then she turns the creepy up to 11.
Elegant Fairy-Kei Lolita: Pretty self-explanatory, though she takes the "fairy" part to a whole new level...
Everything's Better with Princesses: She refers to herself as the Princess of the Bug Kingdom, although given her age (supplemental material states that she's ten), it might simply be a game of pretend.
Some fans have noted that in medieval times (which Hyrule largely resembles), claiming to be a princess would be Serious Business, and thus theorize that Agitha really is a blood relative of Zelda. And it would explain how a little girl is so very wealthy.
Friend To All Animals: One of the few characters that isn't afraid of Links wolf form.
Impossibly Cool Wealth: The only explanation for the fact that she gives Link hundreds of rupees in exchange for the golden bugs.
Tomboy: At the very least she dresses the part as she wears overalls and a fishing hat.
Tsundere: Very tsun-tsun to Link most of the time.
Coro
Brother to Hena and Iza. A bad fisherman, he instead lives in the Faron Woods far to the south of his sisters and sells lantern oil to travellers.
Friend To All Animals: Like Agitha above, he's one of the few characters not frightened by Links wolf form (he says his sisters are scarier). Plus, a bird lives in his hair.
Funny Afro: A particularly huge one that doubles as a bird's nest.
Loyal Animal Companion: Has a talking pet bird with a similar afro who runs a shop for him deeper in the woods. The bird expresses annoyance that Coro never comes around.
Iza
Runs the Boating Minigame at Upper Zora's River. Sister to Coro and Hena.
Afro: She has an afro like her brother's, only smaller and not a bird's nest.
Two Yeti who live in the Snowpeak region of Hyrule. Yeto regularly raids Zora's Domain for Reekfish, which frightens the locals who live there. In actuality, he's a textbook Gentle Giant who is also an excellent chef. His wife, Yeta, has a shard of the Mirror of Twilight in her possession, and she has fallen ill due to its dark influence.
Cloudcuckoolander: While ill, Yeta sends Link to find the key to their bedroom, but her directions only lead him to find food items the first two times.
Gentle Giant: Yeto is quite helpful in getting to their "mansion." Of course, Yeto...
A mysterious figure known only to Link. He appears when Link encounters the golden wolf, and teaches him the seven Hidden Skills. According to the Hyrule Historia book, he's the spirit of the Hero of Time from Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask.
Unfinished Business: It's implied in his dialogue that he is unable to completely cross into the afterlife until he has passed on his sword techniques to a worthy successor.
