Manga-ka: Akira Himekawa
Publisher: VizKids
Rating: All Ages
Released: March 2009

Synopsis: “After completing his training Link begins his journey to find the remaining Sages. Meanwhile, Ganondorf continues looking for Princess Zelda and plotting to capture Link with the aid of the witches known as Twinrova. At the urging of the mysterious Sheik, Link enters the Haunted Wasteland to find Zelda. The journey will be dangerous, but Link is determined to overcome Twinrova’s traps and survive to face Ganondorf in an epic final battle!”

This second volume of Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time brings an end to this arc of the story, based on the popular Nintendo 64 game of the same name. This two part adaptation follows through from the game’s beginning to end, taking readers on a journey with the Hero of Time in his quest to save the world and rid it of the evil Ganondorf.

As with the previous volume, I really loved the extra personality that characters were given that the video game just didn’t have time or the means to elaborate on. Though so much being told in such a short time means that the manga version is rather rushed in its execution, it still none the less delivers a unique experience that I, as a fan, really had fun reading. Link himself was cheeky but confident and Sheik, the mysterious fighter with unclear motives, is a little less of an enigma with more time dedicated to what they’re doing when not in Link’s presence. I also got a kick of secondary characters, such as Lon Lon Ranch’s Malon, and even Link’s trusty horse Epona and faithful fairy, Navi, had their own entertaining times to shine.

Continuing on where the last volume left off meant that this volume starred Link in his adult form for the majority of the book. I continued to be impressed by the art style which is perfect for the Legend of the Zelda franchise in its depiction of the characters and attractiveness to readers of any age. Unlike the first book however, this one does contain a little bit of visual blood and violence during the final showdown between Link and Ganandorf that may not be entirely suitable for children as a part of Viz Media’s VizKids line-up. Still, for readers young and old, this series is lots of visual fun and even the rushed adaptive pacing that plagues adaptations is notably much better handled here, making for a surprising-in-comparison, though very well appreciated, reading experience.

Overall I’d highly recommend this two-parter for manga reading fans of Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. It got better and better with each chapter, giving a whole new breath of life to the characters in a way that was refreshing, fun and well worth a read. While it may have only had time to present readers with a very slimmed down version of the game, what it did do, it did wonderfully.

Review written April 2, 2009 by Lissa Pattillo
Book purchased in-store from Chapters

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About the Author: Lissa Pattillo

Lissa Pattillo is the owner and editor of Kuriousity.ca. Residing in Halifax, Nova Scotia she takes great joy in collecting all manners of manga genres, regretting that there's never enough time in the day to review or share them all. Along with reviews, Lissa is responsible for all the news postings to the website and works full time as a web and graphic designer.