Daily Debate: Has Beedle Overstayed His Welcome in the Zelda Series?
Posted on August 09 2023 by Alexis S. Anderson
Beedle started out a lovable, quirky salesman but has overtime become either mean-spirited or unremarkable. And frankly, in Tears of the Kingdom, he overcharges for arrows– what’s up with that!? Is it time for Nintendo to politely insist Beedle retire? Beedle was a very pleasant sight in The Wind Waker, as he you didn’t know exactly when you would see him next and his ships were the only place to get a bait bag, bait, and hyoi pears. Ever the enterprising businessman he has several shop ships and membership levels for loyal customers with useful benefits. But Beedle’s importance has waned since his initial appearance.
I don’t remember encountering Beedle in The Minish Cap, but it seems his Picolyte wares were helpful but optional and he wasn’t even their exclusive supplier. In Phantom Hourglass, on the other hand, it was really great to see him. Any character from The Wind Waker reappearing in Phantom Hourglass was exciting just by virtue of it being a direct sequel, no matter what the character’s role in the new game. And while I don’t remember seeing him in Spirit Tracks, he is apparently the only one Link can buy a bomb bag from and a force gem that opens a new set of train tracks, so I will admit that in that title Beedle was useful.
It was fun seeing Beedle in Skyward Sword in his ridiculously inefficient airshop– at first. But then the cracks started to show with him dumping Link down a trapdoor whenever he doesn’t buy anything. Talk about poor customer service– you sir have lost my business! But he had side quests tied to him and I really valued buying wallets from his shop, so he wasn’t all bad. This appearance just began to sour me on him, and then price gouging me on arrows in Tears of the Kingdom was the last straw.
I think Beedle should have stayed in The Wind Waker string of games, with only vague references to his signature hairstyle popping up in other shopkeepers or NPCs beyond that. His appearances in Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom are unnecessary, he sells what anyone else does and the rewards for bringing him bugs I could take-or-leave. Honestly in Tears of the Kingdom he has not once asked me to trade him a bug, so all he does is charge me too much for things I can get from any other vendor.
Beedle is a strange guy, but one of many memorable “weird” part of the series that help give the franchise its charm. But as far as I am concerned, his novelty has worn off. I need a new weirdo to love, and I think it is time to leave this one behind (at least for now, or until another The Wind Waker-like game comes out).
What do you think? Should the series take a break from Beedle? Is there a new take on Beedle that might refresh his character? Share your thoughts in the comments!
Alexis S. Anderson is a Senior Editor at Zelda Dungeon who joined the writing team in November, 2014. She has a JD from the UCLA School of Law and is pursuing a career in Entertainment and Intellectual Property Law. She grew up in the New Jersey suburbs with her parents, twin brother, and family shih-tzu.
