If there is one thing we know for certain about Hyrule’s long history, it is that the kingdom’s roster is cyclical in nature. There will always be a Princess, a Demon King, and a Hero. As the tales of Hyrule stretch over the ages, these three players remain constant. However, by no means are they the only individuals who remain present. Certain tribes and cultures have survived throughout the many years of Hyrule’s history; in fact, a rather unique group from the Hyrule of Twilight Princess, Telma’s Resistance, seem to always exist in some form or other.
The Lumpy Pumpkin, bar in the Sky of Skyward Sword, hosts a group of regulars that are always hanging out whenever Link stops by. Right off the bat, this group has an obvious similarity to Telma’s Resistance in that they congregate at a bar; but taking a closer look at their designs shows they are physically similar as well. Keet, the young man with red hair, resembles the studious red-haired Shad from Twilight Princess, who assists Link in reaching the City in the Sky. In addition, Rusta, an older bearded gentleman at the Lumpy Pumpkin, is reminiscent of Auru, the old man who assists Link in reaching Arbiter’s Grounds.
The similarities don’t end there! Physical resemblances also exist between Kina, daughter of the owner of the Lumpy Pumpkin, and Ashei, another member of Telma’s Resistance who also lends a hand to Link. You could even compare Pumm, the owner of the Lumpy Pumpkin, to Telma herself (who of course, is the owner of Telma’s Bar and leader of the Resistance). However, it is worth mentioning that the personalities of these characters from Twilight Princess are not quite the same as their Skyward Sword counterparts. This is primarily due to the fact that the vast majority of the citizens of Skyloft live in far less dire times— carefree and blissfully unaware of Link’s struggles on the surface.
It is possible that these Resistance doppelgangers are something like constants throughout the history of the kingdom. After all, the people of Hyrule are often inspired to assist the Hero in some way; if you were to dive deep into other entries in the Zelda series, I’m sure you’d be able to find other characters with similarities to Telma’s Resistance, as their passion is a recurring theme in Hyrule. Regardless of how minor the similarity appears, it’s always fun, in my opinion, to sniff out those little references and inspirations that may have come from other Zelda titles as it deepens our connection to all of the great entries in this series.
