The Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess Manga Vol 2 Review

A Midna and Her Wolf

While the previous volume of Twilight Princess focused on introducing Link and his dark past to the readers, Volume 2 dives straight into the Twilight Realm and completely focuses on the main “gimmick” featured in the video game the series is based upon—Wolf Link.

Following the surprising ending to Volume 1, which leaves Ordon Village ravaged and Link’s closest friend Ilia captured by King Bulbin, Link finds himself awakening in a strange place. Upon opening his eyes, he discovers something a bit more startling than losing his arm, as he now has four furry legs attached to his body instead. Though he cannot initially see his face, it becomes quite clear that he has somehow been transformed into a beast and has been locked away in a dark cell. However, unbeknownst to him, he’s not alone, and a fateful encounter is about to change his life forever.

Her name is Midna, and while we readers learned her true identity in the previous volume, this is Link’s first encounter with her, and it is when things become quite a bit more interesting. When she first approaches Link, she offers him a deal: she’ll break him out, but only if he does whatever she says and helps her with her very own “goal.” With little choice, Link accepts, though it doesn’t take long for the two to be at each other’s throats—literally. As Midna orders Link around, Link bears his fangs and threatens her in turn. Unphased by this, however, Midna simply electrocutes him with her magic, and with that, the two come to an understanding.

While this is a grim moment in the story, the two constantly bickering and fighting with each other provides quick moments of comic relief and helps establish their relationship right from the get-go. Although the original game also showed Link’s disdain for Midna’s request, the manga takes it so many steps further. As a reader, you can’t help but fall in love with their dynamic from the start, giving you something to look forward to seeing develop as the story progresses.

Link’s First Steps and a New Adventure

Although the second volume in the series fully focuses on the very first Wolf Link section of the game, it becomes a pivotal moment in his character development, taking his first steps toward becoming a hero. At this point in time, he’s completely unsure of himself and sees himself as a failure, but in his wolf form, he finds newfound confidence. That’s not to say he isn’t acting in his own self-interest, but there’s a new fire lit in his spirit which will carry on throughout the rest of the series. With Midna now his partner in crime, we get to see Link in a completely new way from how his story first begins, but he still has a very long road ahead of him.

During his escape from the mysterious place he learns is none other than the Twilight Realm, Link does have an encounter with a certain princess, who goes on to inform him of the events that transpired in the world. This is where Midna’s very own goal is revealed, with Link also benefiting from following along with her. To put it simply, the ultimate goal is to save the world from the new mysterious threat of Zant, who wishes to conquer both worlds of Light and Twilight, but it’ll be easier said than done. It is thanks to Zant that inhabitants of the world are becoming corrupted and transformed into demons, and only by stopping them will Link and Midna be able to restore peace. Volume 2 dives into the first of these stories, but it is later entries that will fully develop them.

Continuing to Expand the Universe

Despite Volume 2 being so focused on Link and Midna’s relationship and Link coming to terms with his new form, the volume still does what it can to provide additional context as well. We get quick looks at what happened to the other characters of Ordon Village, and there’s a scene that helps develop King Bulbin as well. Not to mention flashbacks to Zelda’s childhood which further explain events in the present, and some other surprisingly graphic moments that most likely couldn’t be put within a Legend of Zelda video game without bumping the age rating up greatly. All of these scenes add quite a bit to the overall story and help flesh out what the original game only alluded to. Of course, some of this is also completely original to the manga, but these creative liberties taken help create a better story for it. It is exactly what you’d want out of an adaptation like this, and thanks to the series spanning multiple volumes, the duo behind the series were able to take the time to fill in such gaps—unlike what we’ve seen with their past Zelda adaptations.

Final Thoughts

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess Volume 2 is actually one of my least favorite parts of the series, but it is still a very important introduction overall.

It does an excellent job showcasing Midna and Link’s relationship, I really like the attention to detail and added context to the overall plot, and I simply love the artwork, which continues to be outstanding. This is something that carries throughout the entire series, never dropping in its quality, but there are specific pages in this one that burned themselves into my memory. It does a very good job capturing the bleak Twilight Realm as well, and has a great balance between slapstick humor and drama as we finally edge our way toward the beginning of Link’s adventure. While I have no true issues with this volume, my minor gripe is that I wish they could’ve done a bit more with the final section of its story. With every volume sticking to around the 200-page mark, however, there are still some limitations, and the way things fall didn’t leave a whole lot of room. But then again, how much more could they really have expanded the game’s first dungeon’s story? Overall, they did a great job with what we got, but later stories do outshine it.

Overall, it was my initial read of Volume 2 that helped fully hook me and led me to track down the other volumes that were available at the time, before having to wait for more to release. The final pages alone made me realize how much I was going to love this adaptation of Link’s character, and I couldn’t wait to see what happened next, and knowing the source material still didn’t fully prepare me for what was to come.

For those interested in checking it out for yourself, you can do so by heading over to Viz Media’s Official Website.