Remembering The Old A Link to the Past Comic

Imagine coming home from school and finding the latest Nintendo Power peeking beneath the stack of mail on the counter. Imagine racing to your bedroom with mag in hand, plopping on the bed, and flipping through that glossy tome. Now, imagine stumbling across a full-color, 16-page comic smack in the middle. How’s that for a surprise?

This was the January 1992 issue of Nintendo Power; the comic was an adaptation of A Link to the Past, obviously meant to promote the upcoming release of the game itself. This was no cheap cash-in, though! It was a year-long adventure by one of Japan’s greatest manga artists, Shotaro Ishinomori, creator of Cyborg 009 and the first two seasons of what would become the Super Sentai (Power Rangers) series! Have no doubt in your mind that there was love poured into these pages.

Though based on Link’s SNES journey, the comic understandably omits a lot of content while introducing elements of its own. Link begins his quest by answering Zelda’s telepathic summons and taking up the sword and shield from his fallen uncle, and from there, the story moves along at an incredible clip. Rather than having to navigate though puzzle-laden dungeons, Link merely visits the resting places of the Pendants of Virtue and engages in brief confrontations with the domain guardians. Once he enters the Dark World, you only ever see him rescue three of the seven maidens (I can only assume the others are found during the sporadic time skips).

Reading through the entire comic run in one sitting gives the sense that the project was rushed through, and I know that’s not the case at all. The story is split into 12 chapters with 16 pages each, spread out across 12 months. When there’s a 30-day waiting period before the next episode, you take more time reading each panel, each text bubble. You absorb the content and let it digest, and you are more appreciative of the pacing. The comic might have been better if it was twice as long, but I doubt many kids would have been able to retain interest for another year, especially considering the game would already be several months old by the end of year one.

Even with the story’s rapid pace, a few original characters were introduced to spice up the mix. In Kakariko Village, Link meets a young boy and the town librarian, both curiously remaining unnamed. They provide Link with modes of flight to get around Hyrule, and once Link enters the Dark World, they continue to offer assistance via a trans-dimensional walkie-talkie of sorts. There’s also Epheremelda, a fairy with a jealous streak and an obvious crush on Link — not unlike Spryte from the cartoon.