Skull Kid

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Skull Kid
The Legend of Zelda character
Skull Kid Majora's Mask.png
Skull Kid's appearance in The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask (2000)
First appearanceThe Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (1998)
Voiced bySachi Matsumoto
In-universe information
SpeciesSkull Kid
GenderMale

Skull Kid[a], known in Japan as Stalkid, is a fictional imp who acts as series protagonist Link's ocarina instructor throughout the 1998 Nintendo 64 video game The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, and as the secondary antagonist of its 2000 sequel The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, the wearer of the titular Majora's Mask and host of Majora. He was voiced by Sachi Matsumoto.

Appearances[]

Skull Kid first appears in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Upon meeting Link in the maze-like forest known as the Lost Woods as a child, the Skull Kid plays a memory game with him, taking him for a Kokiri and rewarding him if he plays "Saria's Song" on his ocarina. Upon meeting an older Link seven years later, a fearful Skull Kid attacks him, before giving Link 200 Rupees if defeated.

In The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, Skull Kid is seen under the influence of Majora's Mask, a mask he had stolen from the Happy Mask Salesman which grants him great power but corrupts him. After cursing many of the inhabitants of Termina, including Link on his quest to find Navi, Skull Kid causes the moon to fall toward Termina, destroying it, which Link prevents by repeatedly using of a three-day time loop to free Skull Kid's old friends, the Four Giants of Termina, allowing them stop the moon from falling and free Skull Kid from the influence of Majora, whom Link then defeats. Skull Kid appears as a player character in the spin-off crossover titles Hyrule Warriors, Hyrule Warriors Legends and Cadence of Hyrule,[1] and as an Assist Trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.[2]

In gameplay terms in Hyrule Warriors and Hyrule Warriors Legends, Skull Kid appears as part of Young Link's Mask move-set during his Focus Spirit attack, pulling the Moon towards the Fierce Deity Link to allow him to slice it in half and create a massive shockwave.[3] The game's Majora's Mask DLC additionally features a Skull Kid-themed character skin costume for Lana, and features Skull Kid as the main antagonist of the Linkle-focused storyline "The Girl in the Green Tunic".[4]

In The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, set 100 years later, Skull Kid encounters the reincarnation and descendant of Link in the Lost Woods within the Sacred Grove, leading him to the resting place of the Master Sword before playing a game of hide-and-seek. When Link returns to the Sacred Grove, Skull Kid plays "Saria's Song" for Link while training him in archery using puppets.[5]

In other media

Skull Kid appears in the 2016 short fan film Majora's Mask: Terrible Fate, voiced by Joe Zieja, receiving widespread attention among The Legend of Zelda fandom and criticial acclaim.[6][7][8][9]

Reception[]

The character drew a strongly positive response from many players, with Screen Rant editor Jason Chamberlain ranking Skull Kid the third on his list of the best supporting characters in the overall The Legend of Zelda series, saying that "with [the] memorable cast of characters [of Majora's Mask], perhaps none of them are more memorable than the misunderstood 'villain' of the story, Skull Kid", who "[i]s essentially a lonely kid who los[es] his way" in dealing with themes of resentment and abandonment.[10]

The Washington Post praised "[t]he Skull Kid wearing Majora's mask [a]s the most tragic of Link's villains",[11] while Comic Book Resources declared his "character arc [to be] as moody and thoughtful as the game he hails from",[12] featur[ing] layers of depth unseen in games at the time [and] Skull Kid’s feelings of abandonment lead[ing] him to steal the mask and lash out", compared to previous antagonists such as "Ganondorf, [who] just craves power",[13] in particular their depiction in The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask manga series in which they are "painted to be a victim of circumstance",[14] and The Guardian complimented "the[ir] impish, sinister [nature]".[15] Bloody Disgusting praised the character's physical design in Majora's Mask, stating that "[w]hat immediately stands out about Skull Kid is his mask; with its heart-shaped design, vibrant colors, and other eccentric features, the mask exudes a mystic appeal."[16]

IGN editor Lucas M. Thomas listed Skull Kid as a good addition for the video game Super Smash Bros. Brawl, when he was the first likely included amongst the other characters listed.[17] UGO Networks editor Marissa Meli listed him 27th out of 50 in The Best Kids in Video Games, criticizing him as an "...ugly looking scarecrow who hates Link and uses a flute as a weapon."[18]

Notes[]

  1. ^ Japanese: スタルキッド, Hepburn: Sutaru Kiddo

References[]

  1. ^ Santa Maria, Alex (September 24, 2020). "Skull Kid Returns As DLC In Zelda Spin-Off Cadence Of Hyrule". Screen Rant. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
  2. ^ Norton, Andrew (November 2, 2020). "Deconfirmed Smash Bros. Ultimate Characters feat. Skull Kid, Shadow, Isaac, Rex". ElecSpo. Retrieved November 2, 2020.
  3. ^ Creswell, Jacob (October 13, 2020). "Hyrule Warriors Sets Itself Apart From Other Musou in One HUGE Way". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  4. ^ McElroy, Griffin (March 22, 2016). "Watch Linkle take on Skull Kid in this mission from Hyrule Warriors Legends". Polygon. Retrieved March 22, 2016.
  5. ^ Taylor Clark, Ashley (March 30, 2021). "The Endings Of Every Zelda Game Explained". Looper. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  6. ^ RicWulf, Daniel (November 22, 2016). "Zelda: Majora's Mask Fan Film Explores Skull Kid's History". Screen Rant. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
  7. ^ Whitaker, Ron (November 23, 2016). "This Amazing Majora's Mask Fan Film Explores the Origins of Skull Kid". The Escapist. Retrieved November 23, 2016.
  8. ^ Matulef, Jeffrey (November 23, 2016). "Majora's Mask CGI fan film is absolutely astonishing". Eurogamer. Retrieved November 23, 2016.
  9. ^ Myth, Phil (November 24, 2016). "Awesome fan film depicts Skull Kid's origin story". Zelda Universe. Retrieved November 24, 2016.
  10. ^ Chamberlain, Jason (January 25, 2017). "The Legend Of Zelda: 15 Best Supporting Characters". Screen Rant. Retrieved January 25, 2017.
  11. ^ Park, Gene (September 20, 2019). "Review: Every Zelda game, ranked". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
  12. ^ Buehner, Abram (April 3, 2021). "Four Legend of Zelda Characters Who Deserve a Solo Game". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  13. ^ Reynolds, Johnny (April 17, 2020). "Majora's Mask 20 Years Later: Revisiting Nintendo's Most Inventive Zelda". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
  14. ^ Kurland, Daniel (January 29, 2021). "Legend Of Zelda: 10 Characters Who Are Completely Different In The Manga". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  15. ^ Reinbold, Lotte (May 30, 2020). "The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask at 20 – still eerie and profound". The Guardian. Retrieved May 30, 2020.
  16. ^ Pementel, Michael (October 27, 2020). "20 Years On, 'The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask' is Still Link's Darkest Adventure". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
  17. ^ Thomas, Lucas M. "Smash It Up! – Costume Party". Wii.ign.com. Archived from the original on 2012-03-16. Retrieved 2011-08-19.
  18. ^ "Best Kids in Video Games". UGO.com. Archived from the original on 2012-09-08. Retrieved 2011-08-25.
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