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A review by stephilica
The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords -Legendary Edition- by Akira Himekawa
4.0
(Note: I read this is in the Japanese edition, which isn’t listed on GR for some reason)
A very cutesy installment.
The humor and story may be simplistic, but it works very well in this format. Zelda has been kidnapped yet again, but Link finds himself split in four- and avatar, with his own personality, doesn’t want to cooperate.
This Hyrule also introduces Link’s father, and a childhood backstory spent running around with Zelda. The themes of teamwork and bravery are standard shonen fare, but they’re not egregious, and fit into the overall story quite well.
The real plus here is the art. It’s crisp, clean, and adorable. The color pages are truly phenomenal, but even in the black and white portions, Himekawa uses screen tones and subtle differences in eye shape, hair, etc. to differentiate the Links, as well as superb background detail.
(The Japanese level here is aimed at elementary-middle school students, so most, if not all, kanji is written with its furigana. The vocab is typically simple, excepting for some typically-fantasy usages; the hardest thing here is the aggressive slang Blue Link and some villains may use to sound “tough.”)
A very cutesy installment.
The humor and story may be simplistic, but it works very well in this format. Zelda has been kidnapped yet again, but Link finds himself split in four- and avatar, with his own personality, doesn’t want to cooperate.
This Hyrule also introduces Link’s father, and a childhood backstory spent running around with Zelda. The themes of teamwork and bravery are standard shonen fare, but they’re not egregious, and fit into the overall story quite well.
The real plus here is the art. It’s crisp, clean, and adorable. The color pages are truly phenomenal, but even in the black and white portions, Himekawa uses screen tones and subtle differences in eye shape, hair, etc. to differentiate the Links, as well as superb background detail.
(The Japanese level here is aimed at elementary-middle school students, so most, if not all, kanji is written with its furigana. The vocab is typically simple, excepting for some typically-fantasy usages; the hardest thing here is the aggressive slang Blue Link and some villains may use to sound “tough.”)