Most people never get the opportunity to meet their ancestors, but for those lucky few who get to grow up in multigenerational households, a veritable fairy fountain of knowledge and wisdom is at their disposal. One can learn all sorts of valuable life lessons simply by listening to their elders as they recount their experiences, whether they be inspirational tales of past trials and triumphs, or funny anecdotes about family and friends. So just imagine the amazing stories to be shared when your own divine spirit has been reincarnated time after time due to a pesky curse. Through her adorable work entitled “Zelda Zelda Zelda”, artist Mimimonlon presents us with a hypothetical question: how would things play out if the timelines collided, and the current incarnation of Zelda got to speak with the spirits of her past selves?
At the center of this piece is Zelda from Breath of the Wild and the upcoming Tears of the Kingdom, who is sitting rapt as the spirits of her previous incarnations exchange stories about their respective adventures as the Princesses of Hyrule. Her eyes are turned towards her most distant ancestor, Zelda from Skyward Sword, who has a huge smile stretched across her face. The elder Zelda sports her iconic hime hairstyle (albeit whiter to reflect her older age), as well as a purple sweater similar to the dress she wore during the Sky Era. Her smile, the full-hearted and earnest smile of a dear friend, is so large that her eyes crinkle at the corners. That same smile once shone upon the residents of Skyloft and sent the mighty Groose spiraling into a lovestruck daze. Perhaps her progeny has just shared the tale of her heroic century-long battle against the Calamity. Hearing about her descendant’s brave exploits would surely put a toothy grin on the face of the original goddess incarnate. Alternatively, the two women may be swapping anecdotes about their respective chosen knights. The two boyish heroes seem to share a penchant for sleeping in, don’t they?
To the far left, we see Zelda from Twilight Princess, the dignified ruler forced to contend with the Usurper King Zant and his army of Shadow Beasts. Her dark brown locks have streaks of gray woven through them, and she wears a beautiful purple gown along with dangling earrings and a jeweled choker. She is also smiling, but unlike that of her own Skyloftian ancestor, her smile doesn’t envelop her face. It looks more like the subdued smile a proud mentor might give a pupil, dampened just a bit by the weight of their shared trauma. After all, she and her bright, inquisitive descendant were both forced to surrender their kingdoms to the forces of darkness, so it probably pains her deeply to know that the younger princess endured suffering similar to her own.
Seated behind the short-haired scholar, gazing down at her with a lopsided grin, is the most rakish, rougish princess of them all: the dread pirate Tetra! She wears a captain’s coat with one of its golden epaulets facing us. The markings on Tetra’s face are the most interesting elements of her design, because they tell tales. She’s apparently gone all in on the pirate fashion, right down to the patch draped over one eye; she must have sustained some kind of serious injury during a particularly harrowing adventure. We’ll never know if it came from the same journey or not, but Tetra also has a ragged scar snaking across her forehead above her damaged eye socket. This salty sailor has battled some rough waves, but her spunky spirit still shines through in the smile she offers her youngest descendent. It’s the kind of smile a tough old bird would give someone right before saying something like “Ya done good, kid.”
The final princess, Zelda from Ocarina of Time, sits to the far right. Her snow-white dress and silver hair contrast with the shining gold armor she wears over her chest and shoulders. As she looks upon the girl from the Era of the Wild, she has her own soft, gentle smile to offer as well. Both of these Princesses of Destiny had to be proactive and take matters into their own hands as they waited for a hero frozen in time. However, when you stop and consider the fact that a 17-year-old girl singlehandedly fought off Calamity Ganon for a century, evading Ganondorf for seven years suddenly doesn’t seem so difficult. The elder Zelda probably recognizes this, and so her smile may reflect the tremendous amount of respect she has for the newest Hylian ruler.
For years, fans like me have yearned for this kind of Avatar-esque moment in the Zelda series, where the current Zelda communes with her past incarnations in order to learn from their experiences and inherit some of their wisdom. Mimimonlon made that dream a reality with this work of art, perfectly capturing the unique essences of the brave, intelligent women who fight to keep Hyrule peaceful and prosperous. For all the attention given to the sword-wielding spirit of the hero, we should remember who truly keeps the kingdom running: these gals!
