Sunday, January 3, 2010
Friday, January 1, 2010
Of Zeldas and Timelines
At the end of Ocarina of Time it is implied that two futures have been created. In what one would term the Adult Timeline, the entire land of Hyrule gathers to celebrate the defeat of Ganondorf at Lon Lon Ranch. The Sages can be seen watching over everyone and then flying across the sky. The ones they left behind look on sadly but will eventually realize that the ones they love will always be with them. The scene then cuts to Link, who finds himself once again a child in the Temple of Time with the Master Sword laid to rest. Navi flutters out the window without a word, leaving Link forever as their partnership is over and because he is not a true Kokiri child. This would hurt him as evidenced by the fact that he leaves to find her, ending up in Termina for a time. The very last scene of the game has Link once again running into the castle courtyard to meet Zelda.
From what is revealed in Twilight Princess, the outcome of this was Zelda warning them of what Ganondorf would do if he was allowed to remain free. He would never get the Triforce in this timeline since Link never opened the Door of Time, but as it turned out, he still had it since his alternate counterpart possessed it. Link left on his personal quest while the Sages tried to execute Ganondorf at the Arbiter's Grounds before he could commit any crimes. While one may argue this was wrong, it does not matter since thy failed in their attempts anyway. The piece of power saved the king, and he killed one of the Ancient Sages. They were then forced to banish him to the Twilight Realm through the mirror that was the only connection between the two worlds, left by the Goddesses themselves.
Sometime in the far off future Hyrule has had plenty of time to grow and prosper. The new hero, also named Link, has lived a quiet life far away from any hustle and bustle of the kingdom as a ranch hand. He eventually defeats Ganon again as the king of evil has used Zant, a powerful but insecure Twili to escape the realm and once again try to take over Hyrule. Again this Link bids farewell to the one who was by his side the whole time, and nothing is known of what becomes of him. Skip back across the divide to the other timeline, where Wind Waker takes place. A new Link sets out to save his sister this time, ultimately having to face the escaped Ganondorf. He finds out the pirate who he has been running into and sort of adventuring with is actually the last in line to Hyrule's Royal Family, and the King tells the two after the final battle that they need to find a new land to call home and set up a kingdom that can prosper. Link, Tetra, and her pirate crew head out on a new adventure, running into a ghost ship and defeating a new bad guy, Bellum. Skip a hundred years into the future, and their kingdom is flourishing. They even have seemingly begun an industrial revolution with the main mode of transportation being by train. A new Link once again has to set off on an adventure to save Zelda's body and stop Chancellor Cole from bringing back Malladus the Demon King. This Zelda is all but outright stated to be the granddaughter of Tetra, and Niko is still around and kicking as he narrates the game's opening sequence.
Now what does all of this have to do with two endings? Everything. The opening sequence of Wind Waker references the events that take place in Ocarina of Time. It prefaces it all by stating it is legend, which some use to discredit the whole thing, but why was it not more exaggerated then? Why did it stick so closely to what happened? When Ganon returns, there is no hero to fight him because Zelda sent him back into the past, thus erasing his existence. The Goddesses heed the peoples' cries and flood Hyrule to keep Ganon away from the Triforce and the Master Sword and to save everyone by telling them to take refuge on the mountaintops. They then go on to live on the Great Sea as seen in Wind Waker.
In Twilight Princess it too reveals what happened with Ganon. He comes back in this future as well, and events described in the game tie it to neatly to the Child Timeline. Both games reference the first defeat and return of Ganon, and those events are quite different from each other. They describe two futures that also vary greatly. Now how could Zelda send him back in time and create two timelines? Simple. She was the seventh Sage, after all. With her power as well as those of the Ocarina of Time, she told Link it was time for them to say goodbye and gave him back his lost childhood.
The very end of the game supports this with two different things going on (celebration and Link meeting Zelda again). Link and Navi kept their memories. Why wouldn't Zelda have also? Why did she look so surprised to see him? It was because she had never met him before. It seems apparent that Zelda fully intended to cause the timelines to diverge in this way, which would unfortunately lead to the destruction of Hyrule. She wanted to give Link back his time as a kid, but she also wanted to save her kingdom from destruction (kind of ironic due to what happens before Wind Waker). That second part was always her main goal, and Link, just as the Link in Twilight Princess, is a means to an end. Not to say that she didn't care about him because she obviously did, but this came later after she had grown up in hiding for seven years. She did the only thing she thought she could do that would be good for both Link and Hyrule. It probably was bad for both since her Hyrule would eventually be lost under a sea of water, and Link most likely had to deal with being an adult in the body of a child. Plus he lost Navi.
So in so far is placing these games (Ocarina, Majora's Mask, Twilight Princess, Wind Waker, Phantom Hourglass, and Spirit Tracks) creating an orderly version of the split timeline is easy. The creators wove into the storyline of each game connections to the others before it on both sides of the split. Unless they had thought about connecting them, they would not bother doing so.
This is not to say that they have always known which way the series would go. This is not possible. It started off as two games for the Famicom/NES, and it is doubtful even Miyamoto knew how far this would spread out. Still, the world of Zelda is a living, breathing thing. Each new game adds more to the universe while still maintaining the distinct sense of it being a Zelda game. At this point in time they probably do have some semblance of a timeline, even if it is not complete. It may never be cut and dry and neat, and who knows when or if the franchise will ever come to an end. For the time being, Zelda is still riding strong with rabid fans everywhere debating over a timeline that may never be fully revealed officially. What is true is that Ocarina left two timelines and endless possibilities to fill in gaps and make sequels. The latest two games continue on after Wind Waker, and with one in development for the Wii, fans can only wait and see where they think it will go.
From what is revealed in Twilight Princess, the outcome of this was Zelda warning them of what Ganondorf would do if he was allowed to remain free. He would never get the Triforce in this timeline since Link never opened the Door of Time, but as it turned out, he still had it since his alternate counterpart possessed it. Link left on his personal quest while the Sages tried to execute Ganondorf at the Arbiter's Grounds before he could commit any crimes. While one may argue this was wrong, it does not matter since thy failed in their attempts anyway. The piece of power saved the king, and he killed one of the Ancient Sages. They were then forced to banish him to the Twilight Realm through the mirror that was the only connection between the two worlds, left by the Goddesses themselves.
Sometime in the far off future Hyrule has had plenty of time to grow and prosper. The new hero, also named Link, has lived a quiet life far away from any hustle and bustle of the kingdom as a ranch hand. He eventually defeats Ganon again as the king of evil has used Zant, a powerful but insecure Twili to escape the realm and once again try to take over Hyrule. Again this Link bids farewell to the one who was by his side the whole time, and nothing is known of what becomes of him. Skip back across the divide to the other timeline, where Wind Waker takes place. A new Link sets out to save his sister this time, ultimately having to face the escaped Ganondorf. He finds out the pirate who he has been running into and sort of adventuring with is actually the last in line to Hyrule's Royal Family, and the King tells the two after the final battle that they need to find a new land to call home and set up a kingdom that can prosper. Link, Tetra, and her pirate crew head out on a new adventure, running into a ghost ship and defeating a new bad guy, Bellum. Skip a hundred years into the future, and their kingdom is flourishing. They even have seemingly begun an industrial revolution with the main mode of transportation being by train. A new Link once again has to set off on an adventure to save Zelda's body and stop Chancellor Cole from bringing back Malladus the Demon King. This Zelda is all but outright stated to be the granddaughter of Tetra, and Niko is still around and kicking as he narrates the game's opening sequence.
Now what does all of this have to do with two endings? Everything. The opening sequence of Wind Waker references the events that take place in Ocarina of Time. It prefaces it all by stating it is legend, which some use to discredit the whole thing, but why was it not more exaggerated then? Why did it stick so closely to what happened? When Ganon returns, there is no hero to fight him because Zelda sent him back into the past, thus erasing his existence. The Goddesses heed the peoples' cries and flood Hyrule to keep Ganon away from the Triforce and the Master Sword and to save everyone by telling them to take refuge on the mountaintops. They then go on to live on the Great Sea as seen in Wind Waker.
In Twilight Princess it too reveals what happened with Ganon. He comes back in this future as well, and events described in the game tie it to neatly to the Child Timeline. Both games reference the first defeat and return of Ganon, and those events are quite different from each other. They describe two futures that also vary greatly. Now how could Zelda send him back in time and create two timelines? Simple. She was the seventh Sage, after all. With her power as well as those of the Ocarina of Time, she told Link it was time for them to say goodbye and gave him back his lost childhood.
The very end of the game supports this with two different things going on (celebration and Link meeting Zelda again). Link and Navi kept their memories. Why wouldn't Zelda have also? Why did she look so surprised to see him? It was because she had never met him before. It seems apparent that Zelda fully intended to cause the timelines to diverge in this way, which would unfortunately lead to the destruction of Hyrule. She wanted to give Link back his time as a kid, but she also wanted to save her kingdom from destruction (kind of ironic due to what happens before Wind Waker). That second part was always her main goal, and Link, just as the Link in Twilight Princess, is a means to an end. Not to say that she didn't care about him because she obviously did, but this came later after she had grown up in hiding for seven years. She did the only thing she thought she could do that would be good for both Link and Hyrule. It probably was bad for both since her Hyrule would eventually be lost under a sea of water, and Link most likely had to deal with being an adult in the body of a child. Plus he lost Navi.
So in so far is placing these games (Ocarina, Majora's Mask, Twilight Princess, Wind Waker, Phantom Hourglass, and Spirit Tracks) creating an orderly version of the split timeline is easy. The creators wove into the storyline of each game connections to the others before it on both sides of the split. Unless they had thought about connecting them, they would not bother doing so.
This is not to say that they have always known which way the series would go. This is not possible. It started off as two games for the Famicom/NES, and it is doubtful even Miyamoto knew how far this would spread out. Still, the world of Zelda is a living, breathing thing. Each new game adds more to the universe while still maintaining the distinct sense of it being a Zelda game. At this point in time they probably do have some semblance of a timeline, even if it is not complete. It may never be cut and dry and neat, and who knows when or if the franchise will ever come to an end. For the time being, Zelda is still riding strong with rabid fans everywhere debating over a timeline that may never be fully revealed officially. What is true is that Ocarina left two timelines and endless possibilities to fill in gaps and make sequels. The latest two games continue on after Wind Waker, and with one in development for the Wii, fans can only wait and see where they think it will go.
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Year in Review: 2009
February: drop calculus since I'm failing; begin to get ready to sell the house; see Coraline with Mom
March: find a group on YouTube called Light Hawk Force who parodies Tenchi; get back into the Tenchi universe; come up with another Tenchi/Dragonball crossover
April: change my major from biology to anthropology and drop general chemistry, effectively dropping out of the spring semester; see Dragonball: Evolution with Andrew
May: move to San Bernardino
June: turn 23 and spend time with family and friends (Mom gets me a cool Japanese ceramic jar at an antiques store, Grandmom gets me loads of hats, and Wyatt and Carri get me a poster and Zelda themed cupcakes); hang out with Wyatt, Carri, and her dad at the Wild Animal park the day after; hang out with Eric from work and go to LA
July: take two summer classes; apply to UCR
August: hang out with Jon for a day; visit Chino Hills State Park with the fam; visit La Brea Tar Pits and a famous dognut shop
September: accepted to UCR; five year Albertsons anniversary
November: adopt two stray kittens who have been living outside of our house
December: register at UCR; graduate from Chaffey
March: find a group on YouTube called Light Hawk Force who parodies Tenchi; get back into the Tenchi universe; come up with another Tenchi/Dragonball crossover
April: change my major from biology to anthropology and drop general chemistry, effectively dropping out of the spring semester; see Dragonball: Evolution with Andrew
May: move to San Bernardino
June: turn 23 and spend time with family and friends (Mom gets me a cool Japanese ceramic jar at an antiques store, Grandmom gets me loads of hats, and Wyatt and Carri get me a poster and Zelda themed cupcakes); hang out with Wyatt, Carri, and her dad at the Wild Animal park the day after; hang out with Eric from work and go to LA
July: take two summer classes; apply to UCR
August: hang out with Jon for a day; visit Chino Hills State Park with the fam; visit La Brea Tar Pits and a famous dognut shop
September: accepted to UCR; five year Albertsons anniversary
November: adopt two stray kittens who have been living outside of our house
December: register at UCR; graduate from Chaffey
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Firsts
CD: Bad Hair Day by Weird Al
Video game/system: Super Mario for the SNES
Car: Honda Civic DX 1995
Cell phone: Nokia on Tracfone
Alcoholic drink: Popov vodka and Hot Pockets (11th grade)
Job: Albertsons as a courtesy clerk
MP3 Player: Dell DJ
Computer: Acer
Best friend: Nancy Wu
Favorite band/group: Spice Girls
Anime: Pokemon
School: Windrows Elementary
Overnight trip (with family and without): Massachusetts age 3; sixth grade camping trip to a ranch and Dana Point
Wedding: half sister 2002
Baby shower: coworker 2005
Story written: Don't Look Back
Video game beaten: Link's Awakening
Serious injury: stitches from a broken glass liquor bottle age 1
Trance CD: Best of Trance 2
Plane ride: age 3 to Massachusetts with my grandma
Nickname from a friend: Trixy (Kong, 7th grade)
Zelda game: Ocarina of Time
Video game/system: Super Mario for the SNES
Car: Honda Civic DX 1995
Cell phone: Nokia on Tracfone
Alcoholic drink: Popov vodka and Hot Pockets (11th grade)
Job: Albertsons as a courtesy clerk
MP3 Player: Dell DJ
Computer: Acer
Best friend: Nancy Wu
Favorite band/group: Spice Girls
Anime: Pokemon
School: Windrows Elementary
Overnight trip (with family and without): Massachusetts age 3; sixth grade camping trip to a ranch and Dana Point
Wedding: half sister 2002
Baby shower: coworker 2005
Story written: Don't Look Back
Video game beaten: Link's Awakening
Serious injury: stitches from a broken glass liquor bottle age 1
Trance CD: Best of Trance 2
Plane ride: age 3 to Massachusetts with my grandma
Nickname from a friend: Trixy (Kong, 7th grade)
Zelda game: Ocarina of Time
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Monday, December 14, 2009
Aussie scientists find coconut-carrying octopus
tool use in an invert
"The scientists filmed the veined octopus, Amphioctopus marginatus, selecting halved coconut shells from the sea floor, emptying them out, carrying them under their bodies up to 65 feet (20 meters), and assembling two shells together to make a spherical hiding spot."
All kinds of awesome right there.
"The scientists filmed the veined octopus, Amphioctopus marginatus, selecting halved coconut shells from the sea floor, emptying them out, carrying them under their bodies up to 65 feet (20 meters), and assembling two shells together to make a spherical hiding spot."
All kinds of awesome right there.
Monday, December 7, 2009
No surprise
Allegations of Inflated Production Estimates
The IEA has been criticized for allegedly inflating estimates of global oil reserves. Proponents of the Peak Oil hypothesis in particular have charged that the agency's published estimates are unrealistic and, in fact, they often have been subsequently revised downward. In November 2009, an unnamed "senior official" stated that the IEA consistently over-estimated global oil supply in response to pressure from the United States government.
source
Just doing a little bit of background on who the IEA is since I had to read an article for earth science. That last sentence from Wikipedia does not at all surprise me. IN fact, when I read that they had overestimated the amount of oil production, I had a feeling it had something to do with this country and our government. Sadly I was right.
The IEA has been criticized for allegedly inflating estimates of global oil reserves. Proponents of the Peak Oil hypothesis in particular have charged that the agency's published estimates are unrealistic and, in fact, they often have been subsequently revised downward. In November 2009, an unnamed "senior official" stated that the IEA consistently over-estimated global oil supply in response to pressure from the United States government.
source
Just doing a little bit of background on who the IEA is since I had to read an article for earth science. That last sentence from Wikipedia does not at all surprise me. IN fact, when I read that they had overestimated the amount of oil production, I had a feeling it had something to do with this country and our government. Sadly I was right.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
