History Fridge / TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask

* We all know that ''Majora's Mask'' was set in a sort of parallel world to the Hyrule we knew of in ''Ocarina of Time'', which is why there are tons of characters in Termina who look exactly like the people in Hyrule (never mind the ones with slight changes, like Ruto/Lulu or the Gerudo bandits/pirates, because they're still generally the same thing). Some characters, however, are either portrayed as [[HeelFaceTurn the polar opposite of what they were in Ocarina]] (such as Twinrova) or had whatever habit they're known for bumped up several notches when compared to their role in Hyrule (such as Sakon, who was a petty thief NPC in Hyrule, but is now [[TookALevelInBadass a badass thief who is not only partially responsible for screwing over people like bomb granny and Kafei]], but also serves as one of the extremely rare examples where [[KickTheSonOfABitch Link can kill a person who was not intended to be a mook]]). Of all the characters seen in the game, the only ones that remain the same in Termina as they did in Hyrule are the Skull Kid (that is more evident in the manga than the game, to be honest) and ''The Happy Mask Salesman''. As the point above said, the Happy Mask Salesman lives on the fact he sells masks (fake faces), and nearly everything and everyone you encounter otherwise either act completely different from what they were before or ''look'' different than they were (even if it's something as simple as new clothes, new haircuts, or a [[PaletteSwap new style/color]]. Suppose Termina had served even more as a look into the mind of the Happy Mask Salesman (where everyone either showed their true faces or took on a much different look/persona under a "mask") than simply a neighboring kingdom that had secretly and mysteriously held people who look like resident Hylians?

* The Skull Kid goes from an annoying but mostly harmless {{troll}}/prankster to a dangerous monster who [[ColonyDrop calls down the Moon to destroy Termina]] just by wearing a mask. OK, [[spoiler:so it's really the mask calling down the Moon, just using the Skull Kid as a host]]. But why the Moon? Remember the Moon's Tear cutscene, and what he did after the Tear dropped: he turned around, and slapped his rear end in your direction. Skull Kid's just a prankster and an overall jackass at worst; he wouldn't want to destroy the world himself, but he let himself be used by a force of evil just for his chance to '''''[[{{Pun}} moon]]''''' [[{{Pun}} the world]] [[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JgFNf4nLGNk that rejected him]]. And the force of evil in question did [[EvilIsNotAToy what every force of evil does]] when you [[DealWithTheDevil sell it your soul for a favor]]: [[LiteralGenie made truth from your]] ExactWords [[JackassGenie in a way you didn't intend]].

** Or, if they're actually the same characters, then remember which timline this is. Ganondorf has been arrested after Link tipped off the King. Maybe Koume and Kotake decided to get far away from their old charge/overlord, physically and morally, to save their reputations.

* Zelda would surely back Link up in some way or another beyond the Ocarina of Time being left in his care, had she known what he was up to. But the intro makes it clear that Link ran off in secret to search for Navi -- even had Hyrule somehow gained an inkling that Termina's troubles were at large should it not be in some sort of parallel dimension altogether, they have no idea that their untold hero and Zelda's personal savior is having to hold the fate of an entire country, if not the world, on his shoulders in a GroundhogDayLoop of hellish proportions. And all because Link wanted to find a friend [[AllForNothing who he presumably never finds again anyway,]] cursing him with regrets that will turn him into [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess the Hero's Shade]] for many years. Neither of them knew it, but Zelda's attempt to GiveHimANormalLife and send Link to live out his days ''ruined his life'', even if he did eventually settle down and continue the bloodline.

* Zelda would surely back Link up in some way or another beyond the Ocarina of Time being left in his care, had she known what he was up to. But the intro makes it clear that Link ran off in secret to search for Navi -- even had Hyrule somehow gained an inkling that Termina's troubles were at large should it not be in some sort of parallel dimension altogether, they have no idea that their untold hero and Zelda's personal savior is having to hold the fate of an entire country, if not the world, on his shoulders in a GroundhogDayLoop of hellish proportions. And all because Link wanted to find a friend [[AllForNothing who he never finds again anyway.]]

* A much simpler reasoning that the Happy Mask Salesman and the Skull Kid act the same is that they ''are'' the same characters from Hyrule. The Skull Kid is heavily implied by the ending to be the same one as in the Lost Woods, to the left of the entrance.

** Also, since the bosses can only be fought on a loop where you've already confronted Majora, Link may be electing to use it on them to drastically speed up the fight, reversing the curses that plague Termina's four regions in the process, in order to bring about the closest thing the story has to a GoldenEnding.

** Though it's still up for debate on whether or not it was intentional, the five areas of Termina mirror the five stages of grief. Think about it for a minute.

* Though it's still up for debate on whether or not it was intentional, the five areas of Termina mirror the five stages of grief. Think about it for a minute.

* This is also mirrored in the events that take place here. Captain Keeta is put to rest with a promise to tell his men the war has ended, and Igos du Ikana, once defeated, is willing to help Link in ending the curse on Ikana.

** The Gerudo Pirates stealing the Zora eggs. Sure, they're the key to the temple, but they're stealing ''eggs''. In other words, ''[[AdultFear they're kidnapping children]]'', and ''[[InvasionOfTheBabySnatchers unborn]]'' children at that. No wonder Mikau went nuts.

* Why does the Happy Mask Salesman not seem to remember Link from their encounter in Ocarina of Time, introducing himself to him in this game? Because they had never met in the Child Timeline! As seen in the previous game's ending, Link was sent to a point in the past shortly before he first met Zelda. In ''Ocarina'', you don't get to meet the HMS until after collecting the Zora Sapphire (which is when his shop opens), which doesn't happen until well after Link and Zelda meet.
** This is backed by the fact that the Skull Kid seems to be the same one Link taught Saria's song (as he claims that Link smells like "that fairy kid who taught (him) that song in the woods"). In ''Ocarina'', this same Skull Kid is sold the Skull Mask in the HMS's sidequest, but as Link hadn't yet met the HMS at that point in the Child Timeline, Skull Kid doesn't have the mask. Perhaps having that harmless skull mask could have prevented him from taking Majora's (who knows, maybe it ''did'')...but then, Ganondorf would have taken over Hyrule.

** Alternatively, since their Terminian counterparts are slightly worse due to their thieving ways, they could be the a nod to Wario and Waluigi, who themselves are evil counterparts to Mario and Luigi in their own universe.

* One about the Hyrule Encyclopedia's theory that Termina was a false world created by the Skull Kid with Majora's Mask. A lot of people say that this is disproved by Tatl's flashbacks showing that Skull Kid was in Termina before he ever got the mask. But if Tatl and Tael are ''from'' Termina, they could just as well have FakeMemories of having been friends with Skull Kid before.