Ganon
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Ganon (ガノン?), also known as Ganondorf (ガノンドロフ Ganondorofu?), is a fictional character and primary antagonist of several games in Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda series. He is by far the most commonly-used villain in the series and frequently serves as the final boss, sometimes unexpectedly. Although he made numerous appearances in the series, he was first given a backstory in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, which was released for the Nintendo 64 in 1998. He was also given a backstory for The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures in 2004.
[edit] Character depiction
Ganon is usually depicted in one form or another in each game. Ganon's history is ambiguous and nothing can be said for certain about his past. Regardless, all three character backgrounds depict him as a powerful evil villain with an insatiable thirst for power. In Ocarina of Time, Ganondorf, born to the Gerudo tribe is depicted simply as a megalomaniacal tribal King with desire to rule all of Hyrule.
Ganon's goal is always assuming control of the Triforce or another source of power. Fiendishly clever, he often manipulates other beings for his purposes. Agahnim, Vaati, and Zant are perfect examples of such manipulations, and even Link himself has been used by Ganon a few times in order to further his plans. In most of the games, in particular, Ocarina of Time, Ganondorf seemed to be devoid of any compassion or sympathy as well as being short tempered and callous, but this pattern was eventually broken in The Wind Waker, which characterized him as a somewhat more sympathetic villain.
Although Ganondorf is depicted as purely evil in many games, The Wind Waker was the first one to explore his character in more depth. An older Ganondorf is shown not just as purely sinister, but as a man who wants power for revenge for what he had to live through in a desert, where the wind would bring death while the rest of Hyrule enjoyed rich pleasant life. In addition to this separate motive, his personality went from a sadistic personification of evil, to a more calm and collected person, but still portrayed as an extremely diabolical villain with a lust to possess the ancient Kingdom of Hyrule.
Earlier games show Ganon as a more monstrous foe, only presenting his "pig-like" form which has been most common throughout the series. The original game in the series depicted him with less detail than more modern attempts to expand upon his character. Throughout the years, Ganon has gradually grown more complex, despite earlier games such as A Link to the Past characterizing a more archetypal Dark Lord character trope. In most modern games, "Ganondorf" is used to refer to the character's human name, and the name "Ganon" is used to describe his dark, pig-like form, but other times the usage of terms can be indiscriminate such as in The Wind Waker.
[edit] Game appearances and biography
[edit] The Legend of Zelda
Ganon first appeared in the NES game, The Legend of Zelda. In this game, Ganon attacks the land of Hyrule and steals the Triforce of Power which he uses to overrun the kingdom with monsters. He later kidnaps Zelda and locks her in his lair on Death Mountain, and is the final boss and primary antagonist of the game.
[edit] Zelda II: The Adventure of Link
Ganon only makes a brief cameo in The Adventure of Link, as a shadowy figure in the Game Over screen; the plot of the game partially involves an attempt by Ganon's followers to revive him using Link's blood.
[edit] The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
In A Link to the Past, it is said that once Ganon and his army of thieves skilled in dark arts found the entrance to the Golden Land and upon entering the realm he kills his followers and touches the Triforce with "blood stained hands". He wishes to conquer the world and this transforms the Golden Land into the corrupt Dark World. Ganon summons other beings to this land and uses the Triforce to transform them into monsters for his army. His army attacks the land of Hyrule until the knights and the seven sages combine their power and seal Ganon and his army in his corrupt world.
Using the form of Agahnim, back in Hyrule, he overthrows the King and transports the maidens (descendants of the Sages) to resumes in the Pyramid of Power, where with Silver Arrows and the Master Sword Link is able to slay Ganon and use the Triforce to restore Hyrule and resurrect those Ganon killed.
[edit] The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
In Ocarina of Time, Ganondorf was known as the King of the Gerudo. Although the race is primarily composed of females, legend has it that a sole male Gerudo is born every hundred years, thereby giving Ganondorf the respective title.
Ganondorf learns of the legend of the Triforce and seeks to attain it with the aid of his surrogate mothers, Twinrova. Ganondorf made attempts to steal the sacred stones from the Gorons, Kokiri and Zoras to enter the Sacred Realm, but to no avail. He eventually killed the King and chased Impa and Princess Zelda into hiding.
Noting Link had attained the Sacred Stones for himself, Ganon seized this opportunity to seize the Triforce, but his unbalanced heart meant he only received the Triforce of Power (with Wisdom and Courage going to Zelda and Link respectively). His Triforce piece allows him to resurrect Volvagia and imprison the Gorons in Death Mountain, freeze over the Zora's Domain and overrun the Kokiri Forest with monsters. Hyrule Castle Town became overrun with ReDeads and forced its people to move to Kakariko Village. Ganondorf had seized control of Hyrule.
Seven years later, he had placed monsters in the Sages' temples to prevent them from hearing their "awakening call", but as Link awoke them one by one, he captured the final sage - Princess Zelda, leading Link into a direct confrontation. Link battles Ganondorf with Light Arrows and his Master Sword into such a state of defeat that Ganondorf is forced to destroy his tower, and, in his rage, becomes twisted into the monstrous form seen in earlier games. Zelda assists Link in holding Ganon still while he finished him off.
The Seven Sages finally imprisoned Ganondorf in the Sacred Realm where he vowed to Link and Zelda that he would return and "exterminate your descendants!"
[edit] The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages and The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons
Ganon was the hidden final boss of Oracle of Ages and Oracle of Seasons. He appears in either game only after both games have been completed via the password system. It is irrelevant what order the games are played in, but he always appears as the final boss of the last game that is played through the password system. He was revived by the Twinrova sisters, but as the sorceresses were unable to sacrifice Zelda, the ritual was incomplete and Ganon became nothing more than a 'mindless' beast bent on destruction.
His speech appeared slow and simplistic. Ganon would attack in a similar manner to his appearance in A Link to the Past, using his trident very aggressively and teleporting around the arena. His most powerful attack is a gigantic variation of the bolts of magic he uses throughout the series. At certain points in the battle Ganon would warp the battlefield, and player's directional controls were reversed. Without the Master Sword, he can only be beaten with Spin Attacks.
[edit] The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
He manipulates the course of events across the game to lead Link to take the Master Sword from its undersea resting place, releasing his full power. Ganon eventually kidnaps Princess Zelda to lure Link to him so he may steal their respective Triforce pieces and resurrect Hyrule. The King however seizes the Triforce instead, wishing for "hope". This prompts Ganondorf to start a battle atop his castle in ancient Hyrule. Link and Princess Zelda are able to defeat Ganondorf where he is petrified, with what was left of Hyrule flooded around him. In this incarnation, Ganondorf is a remarkably skilled swordsman, wielding two longswords with such efficiency as to be practically untouchable without the magical aid of Zelda.
[edit] The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures
Image:Ganonfsa.jpg Ganondorf is given an entirely new backstory in this game. Ganon, in his pig form, is the final boss in The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures. In this game, he is born to the Gerudo tribe as he was in Ocarina of Time. He is not initially described with any allusions to other games' depiction of him. It is discovered that Ganondorf has stolen a powerful trident that gives him control of incredible powers and becomes the King of Darkness. Princess Zelda refers to him seizing the Trident and becoming an "ancient demon reborn". With this weapon, he began to seize control of parts of Hyrule and build up an army to take control of the kingdom. With the Dark Mirror, he created a replica of Link, Dark Link.
He took control of the Realm of the Heavens and constructed a shrine around the Dark Mirror that increased its power and created dozens of Dark Links. He managed to cause evil across the land, leading Princess Zelda to believe Vaati's seal was weakening. Manipulating Link into freeing Vaati, and Vaati into serving his purpose, his place in the game is finally revealed as a twist ending. As in The Wind Waker, Link and Zelda team up to defeat Ganon, eventually sealing him within the Four Sword.
[edit] The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
In essence, Ganondorf is the one behind all the events of Twilight Princess. The Light Sages reveal that Ganondorf was returned from banishment (possibly citing the end of Ocarina of Time) and executed for his crimes. He is resurrected by the powers of the Triforce, however, and the sages are forced to banish him to the Twilight Realm. There, the hatred of the Twili reached to him and reawoke him. Then, posing as a god, Ganondorf gives Zant, a Twilight being denied being king (even though he was next in line), his powers. He is also the final boss, and Link battles him in four different forms. The entire battle takes place in Hyrule castle and later in Hyrule Field. At the end, Link runs the Master Sword through Ganondorf's chest. Ganondorf tells Link that "... The history of light and shadow will be written in blood!". Zant is then seen, apparently snapping his own neck, and Ganondorf's triforce mark disappears, along with his pupils. There is some debate as to if Zant killed himself, or if that scene was simply symbolic of his connection to Ganondorf. It is unknown what Ganondorf's fate was.[edit] The CD-i Zeldas
Ganon appears in his "pig" form in all three of the CD-i Zelda titles, Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon, Link: The Faces of Evil, excluding Zelda's Adventure in which he was a large muscular devil creature. In these versions he only requires one hit to defeat, and appears to be a sorceror of some sort with features based in his cartoon incarnation. His name is misspelled as Gannon.
[edit] Missing in action
In other Zelda games, Ganon is hardly touched upon, if at all. He does not appear in Majora's Mask or The Minish Cap. A nightmare shadow of him called Ganon's Shadow is his only presence in Link's Awakening.
[edit] Super Smash Bros. Melee
Ganondorf is also an unlockable character in Super Smash Bros. Melee, and is based on his appearance in the Spaceworld demo, even wielding the large, cleaverlike sword in one of his victory poses (though he cannot actually use it in combat). In Melee, he is referred to by his full name, "Ganondorf," and is a slower, heavier, and more powerful clone of Captain Falcon, performing mostly the same attacks and moves (although his regular A attack and others are different). His moves are much stronger than Captain Falcon's and he is slightly taller. Different artwork is used, however: the flame trails Falcon produces when he executes certain movements are orange or red, while Ganondorf's are black and purple, a color combination often associated with darkness in the Zelda series (see The Wind Waker and Ocarina of Time). Also, while Captain Falcon's Falcon Punch has a flame in a shape of a falcon, Ganon's Warlock Punch has no particular shape.
Generally regarded as one of the heavyweights, along with Donkey Kong and Bowser, Ganondorf is feared for his powerful smash moves. In particular, his aerial spikes can send opponents helplessly off the stage. Ganondorf also has a better vertical recovery than his fellow heavyweights. Despite this, Ganondorf suffers from lack of projectiles, and several attacks in his moveset (such as Warlock Punch) are rather predictable, and a savy fighter only needs to wait for Ganondorf to launch his punch, leaving him vulnerable for a second, and immediately attack him.
In this appearance, Ganondorf was voiced by Takashi Nagasako.
[edit] Animated series appearances
[edit] Legend of Zelda Series
Ganon was also the main villain of 1989's Legend of Zelda cartoon, which was shown as part of The Super Mario Bros. Super Show in syndication that year. In the cartoon, Ganon was peach-skinned, a pig and a wizard. He was in possession of the Triforce of Power, and, despite seemingly endless abilities and magical powers that emanated from finger tips he bungled away each and every chance he had to nab the Triforce of Wisdom. He spent most of his time living in his subterranean lair, referred to as his "castle." He was voiced by the late Len Carlson, who would later go on to voice Klump in Donkey Kong Country.
[edit] Captain N: The Game Master
Ganon (just like Link and Zelda) also appeared in Captain N: The Game Master, as a secondary villain in the episode "Quest For the Potion of Power". This was something of a continuum of Ganon's appearance in the Zelda Cartoon. The episode seems to take place after the happenings of the original Zelda game (and maybe even Zelda II), during which Ganon is weakened. Through the course of the episode he becomes revived, double-crosses Mother Brain, and is then killed again by the Reflect magic on Link's shield.
[edit] References
- Ganon
- The Legend of Zelda, Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages and Seasons, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess.
- Notes
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Categories: Animation villains | Fictional demons | Fictional immortals | Fictional kings | Fictional magicians | Fictional pigs | Fictional characters with the power to shapeshift | Fictional characters with the power to teleport | Fictional warlords | Computer and video game bosses | Super Smash Bros. fighters | Nintendo villains | Villains from The Legend of Zelda series | Fictional mass murderers
