#he isn't a cathar but he's pretty similar

[businessbadger]

wait, did i not show you all my farghul???

his name is Tahlomii (Lomii for short c:)

[pythi-the-drawing-writer]

Let's Talk About Wind Waker Ganondorf

To preface, this isn't gonna be some professional deconstruction or educated/educational essay, this is just me ranting about a favorite video game series and favorite character in said series.

So without further ado, let's rant about, in my opinion, the best villain in the entire Legend of Zelda series as of yet. The Wind Waker incarnation of Ganondorf

Visual Design: the first thing you notice and see when this guy shows up on screen. He's pretty freaking tall as per usual although he's noticeably a lot rounder, similar body type to his classic large chunky pig form from LttP although obviously more human, he still has his topaz jewelry from OoT and as per usual the iconic Dark Red, Black, and Gold color scheme.

Although the part of this design that's the most interesting is his clothing, it's very different from every other major appearance. Every human Ganondorf wears some form of armor or what seems to be some kind of armored Gerudo clothing in the case of OoT, even his beast forms from older games are usually seen in armor. But in WW he's wearing robes, specifically a somewhat modified Shenyi, but no armor, battle gear or anything. In this case his build and clothing are a lot more similar to the King of Hyrule, a nice little piece of contrast between the two and also establishes his looks as more of an ancient king rather than the conquering tyrant off OoT and TP.

Characterization and Story: The first few mentions of him already frame him as the terrifying king of darkness and all that everyone's already familiar with, helps that it's mentioned how no one dares to fuck with the Fortress. Then how do we actually meet him for the first time? We got caught by his pet bird and with barely any acknowledgement we are tossed into the ocean like a rat being tossed out of someone's home. Already intimidating, threatening, and just leagues above you to the point he doesn't give a shit about this dumbass child who thought he was hot shit. Pretty big contrast to OoT where we see him directly glare at us when he knows we're spying and personally takes us out , still intimidating but it's acknowledgement that means he's certainly considering us.

Next interaction, you get to him with the Master Sword but he is completely unphased even when you try to slash at him cause he already knows it's useless because he's already killed the sages to make sure it wouldn't work. In this instance we certainly do get acknowledged but we're acknowledged as an idiotic fool who made a useless attempt that would never work and he would certainly have killed us right there had we not just barely escape thanks to some friends. Confident, cunning, and ruthless that's the new characterization

And now the last major interaction, in sunken Hyrule. And this is where his characterization turns sympathetic with the infamous Oceans and Winds Speeches. The Oceans speech is filled with hatred and bitterness at the world, the people, and the gods although interestingly he emphasizes how, quote, "Your gods destroyed you". The most interesting thing about the Winds speech is that the tone it carries is very reminiscent, mournful and filled with a cold solace, barely any malice or evil within this speech. And with the context of the Oceans speech the line from the previous seems more directed at himself and the Gerudo. It frames him as having nothing to lose because everything has already been lost

And then, Ganondorf's laughing scene. The King has already stolen his wish from the triforce and has used it to destroy Hyrule once and for all and yet Ganondorf is laughing although oddly his laughter also sounds a bit like he's crying, with no more Hyrule he truly has nothing left to gain anymore just how he has nothing to lose. The King wished for a future for Link and Tetra and left Ganondorf with no more future possible so he takes his swords to fight properly to make sure they don't have a future either. With the only thing to gain here being just a final bit of catharsis against the Hero and princess who have plagued him across generations. And then the final words, "the wind... Is blowing" in the moment of his death he takes that singular moment to feel the final few winds of Hyrule, the winds that he coveted before it and he are overtaken by the ocean that took everything from him and that no matter what, despite the endless miles in any direction he couldn't escape.

One last thing I'd like to point out is that in every other game Ganondorf has someone else working for him, someone trying to unseal/resurrect him, some kingdom or tribe to manipulate, some lackey to do the dirty work, but in Wind Waker it's just him alone, no extra faction no second hand bad guy, no grand organizations or anything to manipulate. Like said he has nothing, nothing to lose or use.

It's been pointed out by quite a few that the cycle of the Hero, the Goddess, and Demise is a tragedy, and no more is that apparent than in Wind Waker, our hero just an ordinary boy who's not even close to related to any other heroes, our princess a girl who had made her own way in life and was happy with it, and our Demise a broken man who's works have drowned under endless ocean

Wind Waker Ganondorf is certainly an evil man and his sympathy does not discredit that. You might not be able to relate to him but you can Understand him. Wind Waker Ganondorf is my favorite Ganondorf because of the sheer nuance that went into him, the powerful characterization and design that went into him. This man is a large part of why I personally consider Wind Waker to be the Best Legend of Zelda game.