Born Unlucky? A Look At Some Less Than “Happy” Endings For Link

Many fans of the Zelda series have probably had more than one daydream about being the hero Link. Questing through dungeons, saving Zelda, battling Ganon, it’s easy to see why some would fantasize. Of course, one thing some fans may not realize is that Link doesn’t always have a pleasant ending to his adventures.

Some of the heroes get wonderful conclusions to their tales, but others? Their endings were not as cheerful. Were these Links just born unlucky? Perhaps the goddesses did not favor them as much.

Wind Waker Link had a great ending, in my opinion. He set off to rescue his sister and ended up saving not only her but the remnants of Hyrule on various scattered islands.

After that, he traveled off with Tetra (arguably his love interest) and eventually found a new land to settle as Hyrule. Spirit Tracks shows fans the two were successful in doing that. Presumably, Link lived out his days peacefully with Tetra in the new Hyrule, working to develop the fledgling nation. That sounds like a pretty good ending to me.

Compared to the Hero of the Winds, some other Links weren’t as fortunate in their concluded adventures.

Hero of Time

If any Link has gotten the shaft after their adventure, it’s the Hero of Time. This guy starts his adventure in Ocarina of Time as a child. He travels through time itself to defeat Ganondorf, save Zelda, and restore peace to Hyrule.

His reward? Well, one of two things.

A. He’s sent back in time to his childhood, a man now living in a child’s body, and the only person who remembers his travels and deeds is Navi. She leaves him, likely never to be found again. Eventually, the resentment and bitterness in his soul is so powerful, it curses him upon death, and he becomes the Hero’s Shade.

B. Link dies in the final fight with Ganon, creating the “defeated” timeline.

Once back in the child timeline, Link goes to the royal family to have Ganondorf stopped before he can attack Hyrule. The result is Ganondorf being banished to the Twilight Realm. After that, Link leaves for Termina where he has to save yet another land from destruction. The only thing he wanted was to be reunited with his partner Navi.

She was the one link he had to his old adventures, the only soul that shared his memories, and she simply vanished. Maybe Link found her again, but I’m guessing not since he ended up becoming cursed upon death anyway.

Maybe he came back to Hyrule, settled down with Malon, started Ordon Village, and died of old age. Still, that wasn’t the end of his tale. If he’d found Navi, perhaps he wouldn’t have been so restless throughout the rest of his life. Maybe he would have found peace all the way to his last breath instead of becoming the Hero’s Shade. Sadly, that just wasn’t the case.

I’d make the argument that Link would have been happier living in the adult timeline with Princess Zelda, but that’s another article entirely.

Does he find peace eventually? Yes. When he meets Twilight Princess Link and passes on all his teachings to the blood descendant, he is finally able to rest.

That said, with the unspecified amount of time between Ocarina of Time and Twilight Princess, he was cursed for quite some time, doomed to wallow in bitterness alone. Was the Hero of Time just born unlucky? Or is it simply his fault he was unable to let go of the past?

Four Adventures And No Discernible Future

The other hero I wanted to look at was the Link from A Link to the Past. This hero completes not one…not two…not three…but four quests.

He saves Hyrule, he saves Holodrum, he saves Labrynna, he… well he destroys Koholint Island, but that’s neither here nor there.

After going through three quests, the poor soul winds up shipwrecked in a coma. It takes another full adventure for him to wake up, and when he finally does, he’s still adrift at sea with no land in sight.

Now, I know there are amazing tales throughout history of people being stranded at sea, only to be rescued later. They’re fascinating stories, but the truth is, for every person miraculously rescued after being shipwrecked, there are two more that drowned, starved, etc.

Fans don’t know what becomes of the hero after Link’s Awakening, but it’s the lack of a definite positive ending that makes me question if this Link truly was born unlucky.

Think about it. He completes more quests than any other Link in any of the timelines to date, and the poor guy just can’t catch a break.

I hope for Link’s sake I’m wrong. Maybe by some miracle he floats back to Hyrule or winds up in another land. Hell, maybe he makes his way to Termina for all I know. That place had an ocean.

Unlike the Hero of Time, this Link’s resentment wasn’t his undoing. Nothing that happened to this Link could be construed as his fault, and yet, he still winds up adrift at sea and quite possibly dies a horrible death as a result. Exposure, drowning, starvation, none of those are what he deserves after saving three lands. Or… is it possible his fate was his fault? If he hadn’t obliterated Koholint Island and its residents by waking the Wind Fish could he have lived the rest of his days in peace on the island? Who knows.

What do you think about the fates of these two Links? Did they deserve better?