Excuse Me Princess: Why 1989's Legend Of Zelda Cartoon Is Better Off Forgotten
Long before "The Super Mario Bros. Movie" blew everyone away at the box office, Nintendo decided to bring its popular video games to TV with animated series based on "Super Mario Bros." and "The Legend of Zelda." The "Zelda" TV show, however, was a far cry from the beloved games, becoming a relic of the video game industry for the worst reasons.
"The Legend of Zelda" animated series opens with Link (Jonathan Potts), a former adventurer who now resides in Hyrule Castle. This version of Link is nearly unrecognizable from the video games, sporting dark hair and talking more than anyone would like him to. Not to mention he's a jerk who makes countless sexist remarks and harasses Princess Zelda (Cyndy Preston), which one of the writers confirmed was an odd choice.
Another questionable creative decision comes with Ganon (Len Carlson). This version of the series' villain looks like a mix between Bebop from "TMNT" and Skeletor, sporting a boar-like head that would trip up modern "Zelda" fans. Arguably the franchise's worst depiction of Ganon, his plans never make sense or work, resulting in a horrible villain for an equally lousy show.
Will Zelda fans ever get an adequate adaptation?
While "The Legend of Zelda" animated series is more than forgettable, that doesn't mean the franchise's aspirations for an adaptation are lost. Given the massive success of "The Super Mario Bros. Movie," Nintendo could go all-in on bringing their iconic video games to life, and "Zelda" could be at the top of the list. During an interview with ScreenRant, "The Legend of Zelda" creator and Nintendo director Shigeru Miyamoto teased the possibility of continuing their partnership with Illumination to bring more of their properties to life.
"There's nothing I can really comment on at the moment," he said regarding potential movies based on video games like "Zelda" and "Starfox." "But, we started with the fact that we have a shared vision of creation, so I think there will be opportunities in the future."
Interestingly, at one point, there were negotiations with Netflix to bring "The Legend of Zelda" to life on the streaming service. Ultimately, Nintendo canceled the live-action Zelda, but it shows that the company has considered adapting the popular franchise into a TV series or movie since at least 2015. Now that Nintendo has two successful films under its belt, "Detective Pikachu" and "The Super Mario Bros. Movie," and given their interest in adapting the series, it seems like it's just a matter of time before fans get "The Legend of Zelda" on the big screen, which will hopefully make everyone forget about the animated series.