In games where Link can dress in all kinds of sturdy armor and fashionable attire, a black, skin-tight suit that has a skeleton superimposed on it by crushed Luminous Stones certainly stands out from the other clothing options. When night falls over Hyrule in Breath of the Wild and Age of Calamity, that skeletal outline glows with a ghostly light, creating one of the most peculiar outfits that Link can wear in any Legend of Zelda game.
At first glance, the Radiant Set may appear to be an amusing novelty simply meant to offer something very different from all of the other armor choices, but there’s more to it than that. The Radiant Set is a nod to the Mexican luchador Adolfo Margarito Tapia Ibarra, better known by his in-ring persona, La Parka.
The masked professional wrestlers of Mexico are famous for colorful, outlandish outfits, but there’s only been one to make a black bodysuit with a skeletal overlay recognized worldwide. La Parka gained international fame during the late 1990s with his work for Turner Broadcasting’s World Championship Wrestling.
As he wrestled in the United States, he allowed his countryman Jesús Alfonso Huerta Escoboza to use the La Parka name and skeleton-themed ring attire while performing in Mexico (sadly, Escoboza passed away in January of 2020). The original La Parka is 55 years old, but he continues to wrestle to this day throughout Mexico and the United States. He now performs under the name L.A. Park, occasionally wrestling as a tag team with his son, El Hijo de L.A. Park.
Professional wrestling may not be high on the list of cultural influences that you would expect to see in The Legend of Zelda, but it’s not terribly surprising that Nintendo would find a way to sneak it into the world of Hyrule at least once. The choreographed sport has been one of the most popular forms of entertainment in Japan for decades, where it’s widely presented as a traditional athletic competition much more so than the zany, over-the-top performances that wrestling is associated with within the West.
Many Japanese professional wrestlers have donned masks and elaborate outfits just like their Mexican counterparts, such as the multiple men to wrestle under the Tiger Mask persona, the great Ultimo Dragon, and the recently retired Jushin Thunder Liger. The original La Parka was even known to take part in tours across Japan earlier in his career.
The Radiant Set would have been a suitable homage to professional wrestling even without the skeleton outline that evokes La Parka’s outfit. The mask resembles the masks worn by famous luchadors like El Santo, Mil Mascaras, and Rey Mysterio, with familiar placing of the eye holes, mouth, and nose slits. The lacing on the back is another key detail– whether it be in Japan or Mexico, masked professional wrestlers take their guises very seriously and can’t afford to have the masks slip off in the middle of a match. That same lacing can be seen on the Radiant Set’s boots, which true to professional wrestling attire, nearly reach all the way up to Link’s knees.
The most telling feature is the oversized, gold-plated championship belt wrapped about Link’s waist. It even has a skull motif in the center, much like the original La Parka and El Hijo de L.A. Park have on their bodysuits. The only thing missing is the option for Link to undo the belt and smack a Moblin in the head with it — while the referee’s back is turned, of course.
