Skyward Sword's IMPOSSIBLE TIME TRAVEL! | Zelda Theory

Welcome to Zelda Lore! Today we try to explain the impossible time travel issues created in Skyward Sword, the answer may surprise you...
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[@TheBreadPirate]

*5 minutes:* What a nice summary of Skyward Sword! 😄 *17 Minutes:* Everything I ever knew about Skyward Sword is a lie. 🤯

[@tobytube7951]

Huge fan

[@TheBreadPirate]

@@tobytube7951 No U

[@Draezeth]

Yoooo bread pirate!

[@undyingspy5245]

The "Dragon Break" would also explain how things from diffrent timelines in zelda is in breath of the wild

[@widojay2048]

Dammit, I was going to say that

[@oobermackn]

Wrong game.

[@AmirPrinceling]

This is actually a really good theory wow. It always kind of bugged me in Breath of the Wild how everyone suddenly just worshipped Hylia and received blessings from her when the others game had next to no mention of Hylia at all. But Hylia reattaining her divinity, becoming the goddess of time, and merging the timelines together would really make so much sense, even though it's all still a little confusing haha.

[@ErenYeager-oi6hu]

This now also supports the Botw convergence theory. It’s irrefutable now.

[@nworder4life]

I've never seen the Skyward Sword timeline so deeply delved into and you really gave me a lot to think about. I don't know if a dragon break is necessarily correct but you do point out some great inconsistencies I never noticed. One thing you forgot to mention however is Fi tells Link the Goddess watches over him at the edge of time. Fi says this when she sings during I believe the song of the hero quest, this could validate your theory about 2 Hylia's or it could suggest there was always 2 Hylia's( a spiritual deity and the mortal zelda) depending on if Fi said this before or after the time jump, Though I always thought after SS Zelda dies her spirit returned to being divine and that the Hylia you talk to in BOTW (the statues voice) is SS zelda after death. Just though I'd point it out, great video! Alot to think about.

[@armin6047]

Yeah. I see. Like. Maybe SS Zelda got kids who has the blood of the goddes (and the power future zeldas have do to this blood), while SS Zelda dies as an old woman, she returns back to being goddes Hylia. But leaving her kids behind, again with her blood. This would actualy explain a bit. I always thought that every Zelda IS godes Hylia, do to her powers. (it may stil be the case who knows) but in that case zeldas mother, Zelda and her grandmother, wold all be godess Hylia??? That would be wierd. Because in Breath of The wild Zelda says: «Grandmother heard them-the voices from the spirit realm. And Mother said her own power would develop within me.» (Memory #13) So the power they have is only because of their godes blood, wold make much more sense.

[@armin6047]

@@nworder4life I see. This clears up a few things my brother told of Zelda. He thinks he know everything. I will check out your videoes now.

[@nworder4life]

@@armin6047 I hope you enjoy it(it's just me talking in a webcam). just click the game discussion playlist to find my zelda vids.

[@spark9189]

we have actually seen one 100% confirmed convergence in zelda. the end of majora's mask. the canon ending is where you complete all of the side quests. this is straight-up impossible in one 3 day cycle, therefore there has to be a timeline convergence there.

[@avalonrector5345]

A Dragon Break explains BotW too. So many elements from all past games^^

[@HylianLuke]

Dang man, you really nailed it here. You pointed out so much stuff I've never really even thought about. The whole time travel paradox went right over my head, as I just enjoy Skyward Sword for its incredible story and music. The editing, music choices, and narration were stupendous my guy! Absolutely loved watching this. Keep it up!

[@ZeldaLore]

Thanks man!

[@houseofskulltulips]

Ah yes... weird time travel shenanigans in Zelda. Thank you for researching and explaining it. It's weird that there are two Zeldas in SS, and both Goddess Hylia and mortal Zelda in BotW. But it could work based on your theories.

[@jaehaalexander1172]

This brings into play the Grandfather Paradox. Basically, if you go back in time and kill your grandfather, one of your parents will not be born, however, if your parent is not born, then there is no you to go back in time to kill your grandfather, therefore your parent will be born and then you will be born round and round it goes.. I'm thinking same thing here. If Link went back to the past to kill Demise then there is no need for Link to return to the surface in the present, therefore meaning Demise is never killed, which means Link will need to return to the surface and return to the past to kill and around around it goes again. So it would likely be for Zelda as well. If Link defeats Demise in the past, there would be no need for her present self to seal herself, which means she would never be sealing Demise, but then Demise would resurrect so she would need to seal herself in the present. It's a never ending timeloop. It also happens with the song of storms. Game lore wise, your theory makes a lot of sense!I like your videos! Very well thought out! You have earned a new sub and I look forward to seeing the rest of your career here!

[@shinyy187]

What always puzzled me was why the developers purposely made it complicated. For example, they didn’t have to put Zelda’s bracelet on Impa when Link first landed on the surface, but they did. Same for Zelda; the developers purposely cracked open the door behind Impa so the player could see Zelda sealed in her crystal at the beginning of the game. Even though it doesn’t seem like it would be, this writing was intentional.

[@Gabriel-Tár]

Because it wouldn't make sense from Impa's POV. Impa is the one who started all this, not Link. Even though Link is the main character, things have already happened from Impa's POV. If there weren't Zelda behind the door, what would Impa be doing there exactly? Impa was there because she was watching over Zelda's seal... Just because Link, Young Impa and Zelda herself haven't experienced Zelda's sealing yet, it doesn't mean that Old Impa hasn't when she was young. Re-imagine the story from Impa's POV. Impa travels to the future and retrieve Hylia's incarnation to mantain the seal. Zelda is sealed and Impa watches over her for millennia, until she actually reaches the same time she had travelled to when she was young, i.e. Link and Zelda's era.

[@shadowedge1]

interesting for sure! I was always puzzled by that in breath of the wild. I figured the original three goddesses missed there little sister so they brought her back to keep them company and continue her divine mission. the thought of a dragon break makes sense when put this way and never occurred to me

[@magikarpkingdom9698]

Didn't expect this kind of theory, loved the whole idea of it

[@_itsmunah]

I’ve been saying this for years. Skyward sword is a paradox. A Paradox cannot exist. Therefore a timeline splits must happen. And I believe with a couple “moves” the downfall timeline fits perfectly in this split in SS. One where ganon takes over as the new demon king in beast form after Demise was defeated. This would also fix the “what if” scenario after oot which everyone knows makes zero sense.

[@ZeldaLore]

Actually, the downfall timeline would fit perfectly after the timeline split in The Minish Cap, where you fail to save Zelda and Vaati consumes the light force (an obscure ending). This idea was created by Lorulean Historian, but the idea is that the actual ending of MC has Vaati truly die, and it leads directly to Ocarina of Time, and the other ending leads to Four Swords, Four Swords5 Adventures (moving it from the Child Timeline and fixing that mess), and then A Link to the past and the rest of the downfall timeline games. This would fix virtually everything. 1. the Ganon from FSA would now be the same Ganondorf from Ocarina in a different timeline rather than a different Ganondorf. 2. FSA not only introduced the moon pearl and medallions of ALTTP, as well as the maidens, but the artstyle is a perfect blend between Four Swords and ALTTP 3. Twinrova in the oracle games would now be the same one from Ocarina, instead of being a reincarnation or whatever. The one in Ocarina's timeline dies, but the one in the split timeline lived on until the Oracle games. There's so much more, but i suggest checking this theory out, NintendoBlackCrisis did an extensive video going over it. kzbin.info/www/bejne/gX_Vk3dqfsylaZo

[@_itsmunah]

@@ZeldaLore but in the end that is a hypothetical situation. We know beyond a doubt SS should have a time split. I haven’t seen a timeline theory as good as the one I have wrote up. And I don’t have to change anything or have any hypothetical what if’s happen for it to work.

[@tomooonce7711]

Cool theory! Definitely explains a lot The only thing that might debunk this tho is Old Impa's bracelet. Zelda gives it to her only after Demise is defeated but Impa can be seen wearing it throughout the entire game if one looks closely, suggesting that somehow everything indeed happens in a single timeline

[@ZeldaLore]

I mentioned this on the video. Impa wears the bracelet throughout the whole game, and the bracelet is given to Impa after Link placed the Master Sword on the pedestal. However, the Master Sword was not in the present throughout Skyward Sword until demise was defeated in the past, despite Impa having the bracelet. It's impossible, hence the dragon break explanation

[@tomooonce7711]

@@ZeldaLore You're completely right sorry! I was just finally finishing Skyward Sword and had to think of your amazing theory and was worried it might be debunked because such a small stupid detail but you're right it doesn't!

[@carlosleather4241]

The quality of your videos is truly great, very well explained and enjoyable!

[@ZeldaLore]

Thank you!

[@landon1812]

I didn't think about these time paradoxes until you pointed them out, and I like your logical answer where zelda is brought back to her immortal form as the goddess and merges the timeline back. Great job! 👍

[@zni2870]

Your voice is so calming, definitely one of my favorite youtubers. Nice video btw.

[@ML_Vanilla]

Maaaan, I've been wondering about this for soooo long and I never found any explaination that I felt satisfied with, but with this theory everything just makes sense! This should definitly get more attention, amazing work!

[@ZeldaLore]

You have no idea how long it took to piece this theory together xD I kept thinking "maybe its a timeline split? Wait no it can't be, then maybe its a time loop? No, maybe a timeline split that leads to another timeline split? Also no, timeline convergence? How would it happen though? Oh, HYLIA!" xD thanks for watching! Glad you enjoyed it!

[@ML_Vanilla]

@@ZeldaLore My thoughts exactly, thinking about this has been keeping me awake for nights and now I'll finally be able to sleep again peacefully thanks to you xD

[@PedroDiniz12]

Curiously enough, based on the last trailer of the kingdoms of the kingdom, it looks like there are two Zeldas making some kind of pact: one in divine form and the other in human form

[@dustinakadustin]

Goddess Hylia merging the timelines to preserve Link and Zelda's original time and keep Demise sealed away: For all time...always.

[@crystaltiger105]

I love your theories they aren't just speculations they all seem like reality with so much evidence to them. You deserve more subs

[@ZeldaLore]

Thank you so much!!

[@waz207]

A timeline split in a Zelda game? Nahhh

[@pixywings]

I remember that the game did vaguely mention that Demise was powerful enough to exist outside of time and therefore had to be defeated both in the past and the present. I think that was just a quick throw away thing to explain all of the time paradoxes...but it sort of works. I like the Dragon Split theory though. It makes sense that both Demise and Hylia have powers involving Time. Demise, with the help of his minion Girahim, messed up the past. I think Hylia just tried to put things back together as best as she could to make the best possible outcome and defeat the demon king.

[@curties]

linear time travel is very confusing but possible. basically Zelda in her crystal form is sealing the body (aka The Imprisoned) while the Master Sword is sealing his soul/spirit (aka Demise). The impossible time travel is really in Oot. The solution to Link existing in the Child Timeline is super dark: either Adult Links soul overwrites Child Links soul or Zelda sends him into a timeline he didnt survive his trip to the kokiri forrest as a baby and perished together with his mother.

[@user-ji9vl9lg9i]

One of my favorite videos! I find myself coming back to this video at least once a year lol.

[@edithprince5305]

This is the kind of over complicated time travel bullshit I love the Zelda fans for rationalizing after the writing team just does whatever

[@andresbarquin]

I have a theory that when someone or something travels back in time it splits the timeline and when they travel back to the present they converge the timelines. This would explain how the dragon break may have occurred in skyward sword as the last time time travel is used, it is used to travel to the present, thus converging the timelines. In Ocarina of Time, link is sealed away in the temple of time. Note that he did not travel to the future, he was sealed away, which means that the time when link is an adult is the present and the time when he is a child is the past. He then travels back and forth to the past and present splitting and merging the timelines. At the end of Ocarina of Time, link is sent to the past by zelda, splitting the timeline into the child and adult timelines.

[@FirstNameLastName-okayyoutube]

I had a lot of criticism at the beginning but it seems like toward the end you got it really figured out. This is a brilliant Theory

[@GameparkGames]

The main problem with this is pretty much everything is named after her, all because they don't mention her doesn't mean she didn't exist and each Zelda on the path of calamity is the reincarnation of Hylia just with no memory of past lives and being the goddess herself just like Link has no memory of being the previous versions of the chosen heroes. I love time travel as well and I might try to tackle this topic on my own video because I love trying to break paradox's... It's fun

[@ZeldaLore]

I'm not denying that though. The idea is that both Zelda and Hylia would exist simultaneously. I also think that Hylia's worship didn't stop, we simply don't see it in games before the release of Skyward Sword as Hylia the deity wasn't established, although Hylians in Japanese are known as the People of Hylia.

[@acrasia5718]

Guys! This could tie into the new time loop theory going around tears of the kingdom! Both Breath of the Wild and Skyward Sword hint at a past that has been long forgotten. However, in Skyward Sword, we discover the origin of the Gate of Time, created by none other than the Goddess, Hylia during the war for the triforce. We also see the existence of time stones, said to be left behind by the surface people who were so technologically advanced, similar to that of the people in Breath of the Wild, who invented time altering devices, such as the Chronos feature on the Sheikah slate. In Skyward Sword, the Gate of Time is used after Link and Zelda use the Triforce to wish upon Demise's death. So Girahim then kidnaps Zelda, goes through the Gate of Time and frees Demise. Link then defeats Demise and seals his spirit within the Master Sword, beginning the Demises curse. He then takes the master sword back to the present time, the time where Demise was thought to be defeated after Link wished upon the Triforce, HOWEVER... Demise still exists here too. If Link defeated Demise in the past, then he would not have needed to wish upon the Triforce to defeat the Imprisoned form of Demise in the present, but the present Link returns to, has the Isle of the Goddess within the surface world. This means somehow that Demise's spirit still exist within the master sword that was brought to the present, AND underneath the Goddess statue in the same present! If the gate of time used in Skyward Sword to create this impossible paradox is the same gate of time the robot used in Age of Calamity, then Tears of the Kingdom will have to show the Goddess Hylia creating the gate of time, resulting in the time loop back to Skyward Sword!

[@xidon8267]

it's a long time since i played this game, but i ever thougt old impa is zelda hiding as impa. because of the prominent bracelet shown in the end.

[@toonman5099]

Yeah, I'm pretty sure the idea is that Skyward Sword is a Bootstrap paradox, not a Dragon Break. - Fi only seals Demise's consciousness away in the Master Sword, while his body's essence is left behind to form The Imprisoned - The Master Sword is most likely still "present", just hidden via magic to make sure events happen (most likely tied to the seal seen on The Imprisoned's head), after all Impa makes a chest appear out of nowhere at the start of your adventure when she gift's you a bottle of a Red Potion - As far as Girahim bringing Zelda back to the past to resurrect Demise and her crystal isn't present, it could just be a case of Girahim bringing Zelda back earlier than when she was encased in the crystal Because I'm not sure if the "Dragon Break" phenomenon is applicable here, because realistically it's impossible. The clearest piece of evidence that points to this not being possible in the world of Zelda is in Wind Waker. The result of the Hero of Time returning to his childhood resulted in the Triforce of Courage he obtained in the future (which branches off into the Adult Timeline), returned to the future he gained it from, but was left in pieces, because there can't be two pieces of Triforce occupying the same space, so a timeline convergence is impossible. As far as the Hylia situation, it could be that it was misinterpreted on how it went. Maybe her "giving up her immortality and reincarnated as a mortal Zelda" was more along the lines of her giving up her immortality so she could bear a child. Afterall, in Tears of the Kingdom, we MIGHT actually be meeting Hylia. So she could just be a super powerful spirit. Not to mention, if the Triforce can't coexist with itself, an object made my the Three Goddesses, why should we expect Hylia to be able to do it, when she's a lesser god to the big three?

[@omagoddd8246]

This channel deserves so many more subs than it has. Your videos are awesome

[@170skeith]

History abhors a paradox, Raziel. Even now, the time-stream strains to divert itself, finding its old course blocked by your refusal to destroy me. The future is reshuffling itself to accommodate your monumental decision.

[@happyhunting7002]

Dragon break is interesting, and from this explanation, Majora's Mask is full of them.

[@LinkLovesCrawfish]

Teara of the kindgom looking like there has to be anotber split somewhere and this game is the only other game aside from majoras mask that has time travel

[@pietroalessandrini]

I might be missing someting but an other way to explain this could be that the changes in the past change the present in real time but only from the moment the time portal is used. So everything that already happened is locked as it is but if you change the past and come back to the present time you'll see the effects of that change but only from the point in time that you took the portal. Meaning that changes in the past don't change the events between that moment and the present but only from the point in the present you return to. So for example the skyloft crushes the emprisoned, after that link goes in the past and kills Demise, that doesn't change anything in the present because the events are already set and as soon as you leave that past it stops existing. this would explain the sudden appearence of the Master Sword: from the point of view of someone in the present they would see the master sword magically appear into the pedestal but nothing before that moment would change. In the same way when zelda freezes herself in the past, in the present you would suddenly see the orange crystal appear and then disappear when she then breaks free. In summary the portal only takes people back in time of a fixed lenght, you can't freely choose when to travel to and the changes in the past affect the present in real time

[@jerrywil7012]

Actually, now that Totk has come out, even if it doesn't make complete sense, I recently realized that the timeline shenanigans in Skyward Sword could lead well into the events of Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom. Think about it: the two Switch games are essentially Nintendo's way of rebooting the series with a clean slate, hence why a bunch of events in both games' lore seem to be reimaginings of previous games' events. So, what if through all the time travel at the end of Skyward Sword, Link creates a new timeline (the Reboot Timeline) where young Impa is left garding the Master Sword and the Triforce hasn't been discovered yet or used since Demise was sealed inside the sword? It would not only simplify the placement of the new games on the timeline (just put them in a seperate one with Skyward Sword being the only game to come before), but it would also serve a perfect explanation as to why so many events contradict the lore previously established games (the founding of Hyrule by the Zonai, the absence of the Triforce with it being replaced by Sacred Stones, another Sealing War...), since none of those events would even matter anymore. I get that it might be difficult to logically explain this whole "Reboot Timeline" happening at the end of Skyward Sword, but it seems much more believable than just saying "those games take so far into the future that the the whole Kingdom of Hyrule sort of just resets"...

[@savagetruth8009]

Tampering with time doesn’t change the present of the future. It only creates a branching timeline parallel to the original

[@PogueSquadron]

I replayed SS recently and thought the same thing. The game’s story really makes no sense. As for Breath of the Wild, I’m willing to just concede that Hylia and Zelda are like a God/Jesus thing, where they’re both the same, but also different people.

[@Alex-zt3ht]

i think antother reason for the dragon break may be the destruction of the portal of time in the end, presuming impa destroyed it in the past, after link zelda and groose left, it would have made all timetravels (zelda,impa and zelda,girahim,link,groose) impossible creating another paradoxon. Maybe the way zelda physics reacts to paradoxons is that both timelapses collapse into one?

[@andresrivera9834]

That means there is a second sword to fix / replace/ fuse the master sword...

[@randomdude2026]

This is the best answer for this problem I have heard so far and it might also explain how Breath of the Wild fits into the timeline -> another Dragon Break (I mean, it is already confirmed that Breath of the Wild is at the end of all timelines) It might also be interesting that the term "dragon break" comes from Akatosh, who is a dragon and the god of time in Elder Scrolls. I think it is not too far fetched that Hylia, who is also associated with time throughout the Zelda series, might have similiar abilities.

[@ZeldaLore]

Akatosh, God of Time = Dragon Break Hylia, Goddess of Time = Goddess Break? (assuming she is the Goddess of time of course. Its either Hylia, Nayru or someone else)

[@DillonMaynard]

I love this theory as Zelda still gets to be part Hylia while it making sense within the timeline

[@andrewmah2962]

One Zelda for Link and another Zelda for Groose

[@lauren_e_s]

Skyward Sword can still be a closed time loop. The reason crystalized Zelda is nowhere to be found in the past after Ghirahim kidnaps Zelda and brings her to the past is because he travels back in time to a point BEFORE Zelda becomes crystalized. And if you look closely, the sealing spike is actually nowhere to be seen during this time, meaning the Imprisoned wasn't sealed at all yet. After Demise is sealed within the Master Sword, Impa says that she will watch over it to ensure that Demise does not reawaken. This implies that, eventually, Demise does reawaken or shows signs of leaking out of the Master Sword, so then Impa transfers him back into the Sealing Spike and then Zelda shows up from the future to become crystalized to strengthen the seal.

[@ZeldaLore]

Upon further research I made on this topic, I realized that the door being opened with the crystal missing is an error from the game which happen during cutscenes. The same thing happened in the cinematic where the Gate of Time was activated, before the cinematic and after the cinematic Zelda can be seen in the crystal behind the closed doors but during the cinematic the doors are wide open and the crystal gone. Zelda would be behind the door in the past

[@lauren_e_s]

@@ZeldaLore Ah okay that makes more sense. I think the sealing spike being missing is also an error. So what actually happened is that we start with the Imprisoned in the sealing spike. Zelda shows up from the future and enters the crystal, strengthening the seal on the Imprisoned. Then Ghirahim shows up with a kidnapped Zelda, and revives Demise in his true form. Link also comes from the future and battles Demise. Demise is sealed in the Master Sword. Link and Zelda return to the future. Demise eventually is transferred back into the sealing spike. In the future, Link kills the Imprisoned by driving the statue of the goddess into his head. Then Zelda wakes up from the crystal. Then Ghirahim kidnaps Zelda and takes her back to the past and Link follows him. Then Link and Zelda come back. The end. It's a closed time loop.

[@beezie7886]

also if there were two versions of demise that were killed/sealed, that could explain why there are two different evil presences in Hyrule (Ganon and Vati)? Just a thought I had while watching, not necessarily a theory.

[@tkc1129]

You know, the Zelda in Zelda 2 in the Downfall timeline was also claimed to be the first Zelda, and was put under a sleeping spell...

[@HylianDan]

Great video! I had been bothered by the time travel issues in Skyward Sword's finale and have generally felt that Nintendo was handwaving them away - which of course could very well be the case; the operative time travel rule seems to be "whatever feels intuitive to the player." But the ideas here are intriguing. As I thought about two Demises existing, I was reminded of how in The Wind Waker, a source of Ganondorf's power had been sealed away by the Master Sword. Made me want to give more thought to these issues.

[@mariorockysonicmegasochjag]

I can explain the master sword. You know how the gate of time is hidden at the start of the game? So is the master sword, the life tree and past red crystal.

[@BAMCIS13450703]

hylia is definitely mentioned in the lore of other games

[@chillhighjosh]

Excellent video my good friend

[@Gabriel-Tár]

This doesn't explain the bracelet paradox, though. Zelda gave Impa the bracelet at the same time that Link placed the Master Sword on the pedestal. So how did Impa have the bracelet since the beginning of the game, even before the Dragon Break happened? Logically, the bracelet should have appeared on her wrist only in the last cutscene of the game exactly like the Master Sword. There is no reason why Impa should have the bracelet in the timeline where she is watching over Zelda's seal (the line above at 12:50). Impa should only have the bracelet in the timeline where she is watching over the Master Sword (the line below + the merged line). No matter how hard we try to figure it out, Nintendo has written a story hopelessly full of inconsistencies.

[@ZeldaLore]

Hmmm, good point. Maybe Impa hid the Master Sword from Link so he tempers the goddess blade in the present. Otherwise the Master Sword wouldn't be created.

[@nathanhariths737]

Great. Now my head hurts.

[@chlorofornn2283]

watch the netflix series dark, where the whole theme is all around that concept :D

[@ZeldaLore]

I'll have to give it a watch then!

[@chlorofornn2283]

@@ZeldaLore lowkey my fave series, its in german tho. But its dubbed, still id recommend the german version with subtitles bc the actors are really good. Just make sure to constatnly pay attention bc it gets really really complicated haha

[@mayanightstar]

So you're saying Hylia is the master of 4D chess

[@oriongurtner7293]

You want to really have your mind blown? This time travel event, the one that seems impossible, the one you think converged? Yeah, this is the one that created _Termina_ Don’t believe me? Just compare the maps Termina looks _exactly_ like a distant future version of Old Hyrule from Skyward Sword Termina is not only real, it’s _literally an abandoned Hyrule_

[@VivioSaf]

Some counter arguments to these theories ... 1- The Gates of Time There's a lot of evidence that both gates perform differently. Be it because the gates were different; Link and Zelda being different classes of entities; Or because Impa blew up one of the gates. But, all the changes that are already there before the game starts, are done by Zelda, while the ones made by Link have effect "in real time", without actually affecting previous events. For example, Zelda's bracelet being with Old Impa from the start, and Groose's account of the Tree "appearing from nowhere" in the temple. (Zelda's work more like Harry Potter's time travel, while Link's is more like Back to the Future) 2- The Missing Zelda We actually didn't see Demise releasing what he took from Zelda, nor see him reverting to his "imprisoned form" ... just saying ... 3- The Break There are some alternative explanations that can be used aside from "its dragon magic". First, the "signs of other timelines" are mostly names and can be attributed to coincidental references. I mean, how come people believe that, in all timelines, there can't be another person with the same name? Even more considering how Link, Zelda and specially Impa, are so common. There are some structures and relics that are hard to believe they aren't unique. But, the twilight mirror, for example, is said to be a old relic in its game, what makes it existing before Ocarina of Time, where the split happens. Meaning, it must exist in all timelines. Also, there are fortune tellers and other mediums, it wouldn't be strange that Legends from other timelines could spread during those thousands of years, even if they didn't really happened in that timeline. Who can say, that the weren't a Zora King, who heard the tale of Ruto, and decided to make a monument, just for the sake of propaganda?

[@az-kalaak6215]

you missed the lanayru dragon too. when you go back in time, he's alive, but sick, and in the futur, he's dead. cure him, and suddently in the futur, he's simply missing. it stipulates that skyward sword time travel with the time stones can indeed change the past, without changing the memories of the present. the same applies to the entirety of the lanayru part of the game, every single time you change something in the past, it changes in the present too. since it's heavily implied that time doors are using the same magic as time shift stone, there could perfectly well be a single timeline in skyward sword which modifies itself

[@makaihana975]

I can just imagine the fight between the Goddess and Demise being similar to the battle between Seiros and Nemesis (From Fire Emblem 3 Houses). Demise swings his dark master sword at the Goddess who is cut at her flank, she deflects the dark master sword with her own Goddess sword. In a last ditch attempt, she throws the goddess sword aside and charges at Demise, pulling out the goddess Harp she plunges the sharp edge of the Instrument into Demise's chest before strumming the strings once. The musical sound creating a divine magical seal. A fatal ploy, yielding a temporary victory.

[@gorillazzillathemeh5897]

You explained it better than the MaskedNintendoBandit in my opinion.

[@Indiexboyfriend]

Whats great about this dragon break theory is that there is a literal dragon in skyward sword that you have to save with time travel as well. Its almost like a wink and a nod from the developers

[@TheKnizzine]

BotW is in the other timeline, the only other events having happened other than BotW/AoC (AoC creating another, less canonical split) is the conflict with Ganondorf the Hylia being prayed to actually being a timeduplicate zelda

[@TheRealityWarper08]

does this also explain the ending of Majora's Mask, where the credits depict the world as if every mission has been accomplished, and everyone made happy?

[@costby1105]

Yes, the ending is affected by the masks you collect, and the Bomber Mask and All Night Mask and Kafei and Anju sidquest can't be done on the same Cycle. Yet they are implied to have all happened as you only see the cutscenes if you collected the Bomber's mask and Couple's mask specifically, the implication is that the characters were still saved despite the contradiction.

[@nirelia3231]

That's a cool theory, also explains why there's 2 zeldas in the original zelda and zelda 2

[@PixelFlikss]

Really nice video man, really enjoyed it.

[@brentgrisier1738]

Doctor who kinda explains it: since zelda, link and groose etc... time traveled they experience time differently therfore not affected by timeline changes.

[@johnson1010YT]

Dragon break, aka F it, lets do whatever.

[@SuhiroSenpai]

I... certainly never expected to hear about the convoluted narrative tool that is the Dragon Break from the Elders Scrolls to ever be mentionned in a Zelda analysis... But god damn does it make sense.

[@oittisallen4057]

Well the real story is, Skyloft and the hyrulian race has always been in the heavens. But the real first Zelda was adventures of link and Zelda 1. That link had brown hair and brown eyes.

[@thelegendofzelda8974]

I LOVE YOUR VIDEOS ABOUT THIS GAME ❤. MAGNIFICENT VIDEO👏.

[@RespawnGod]

this is the same issue i have with the time shift stones, it's as though the stones don't simply have time energy related properties but rather depending on the situation has the ability to choose what time travel rules it follows such as: within the scope of an active stone a selective area is returned to a previous undetermined state where you can beat enemies that were prior to activation dead, however if you deactive and reactivate the stone the enemy doesn't return, and when you deactivated a stone the items you collected in the bubble remain in your inventory, this works well as a game mechanic but not lore wise, along with the tree of life fruit, my suggestion is that the time shift stones themselves are chaotic in nature and some unknown science or magic of the sheikah refines the powers of the stones to form such artifacts as the gate(s) & Possibly the Ocarina of Time. in summary Under normal time travel circumstances i would agree with the dragon break theory however the malleable nature of the mineral known as time shift stones can be used to untangle any time travel paradoxes if used correctly, yes link did travel back in time to seal demise prior to himself defeated demise however he had already beaten demise so through his own thread of time all the prior stuff had to happen akin to the tree of life fruit it all needed to be set up for the prior things to happen don't think of a time line as one thread but a tapestry of an infinite knot of threads knotting together whenever they connect and each thread is a single atoms(or for perspective person) timeline the knots are already made however with the ability of time travel a thread can go to an earlier(or later in some case) point in the tapestry whilst still being apart of the present side note: the reason this is slightly different in OoT is he didn't time travel forward only backwards every time you go back to the adult timeline is due to having to sleep for seven years again

[@Tony-so1zl]

Amazing breakdown

[@FalcoGer]

13:00 If we just accept that it's impossible, that would explain everything perfectly! Really?

[@Curlywhrly]

5:55 dude be default dancing of Zelda

[@Chris-gx1ei]

I think there will be infinity Timeline splits. There has to be a point where all begun and it goes on and on. The revived Demon King Demise will be sealed in the Master-Sword just to be sent back to the Sealed Grounds to be destroyed by the Triforce so Ghirahim will resurrect Demise in the Past and this will go on forever. Since there will always be "Altenate Timelines" going on, we don't know what caused this "Timeloop" and we don't know if it will ever end

[@Doctor_Odin]

A dragon break is essentially bootstrap paradox. It was probably the goddesses intention in order to deal with demise splitting herself in two. Which also means the demise’s curse is actually result Of her meddling and a gap need to be filled in and Contained amongst their 3D counterparts (mortal selves). In most forms of literature/lores gods/goddesses are not usually allowed to directly interfere with mortals. Demise seems to be both mortal(3D being) and not (4D being) while the goddess is naturally only 4D. By incarnating herself as Zelda she also became both meaning she could directly interfere with the technicality. Resulting in the elaborate nature of the story of skyward Eliminating demise as the 4D & 3D beings.

[@davidstowers1964]

And I thought the explanation of time travel and paradoxes in movies was a complete mindfuck.

[@MrAtheistQueen]

Did Groose really return to the sky? Isn't he the ancestor of the Gerudo?

[@ZeldaLore]

We see him return to the sky, but we know humans eventually returned to the surface after Skyward Sword. Groose being the ancestor of the Gerudo is a theory, although quite likely. There's also theories that he is the ancestor of the Wind Tribe, or that Batreaux is the ancestor of the Gerudo. All are theories, none confirmed.

[@getshwifty3101]

(Edit) I just realized 2 min in, that's probably what this video is about lmao (Double Edit) Oh shit, I didn't think I'd be right. Noice! (OP) Link: *kills Demise in the past* Me: Sooo.......then how did Link's adventure ever happen??? If he killed Demise in the past, then he couldn't have been sealed. And if he wasn't sealed, then he never attempted to escape and dragged Zelda down to the surface, forcing Link to follow. So, by killing Demise, Link never gets the chance to kill Demise......why doesn't this event cause any Timeline Split???

[@amirab45]

Please do a video on the Subrosians.

[@mysryuza]

Would the 2 Zelda paradox be easier to digest if Nintendo confirmed there was supposed to be two Zeldas despite evidently having two Zeldas? Unrelated to this paradox, but Anyone remember how there were two Zeldas in the time of Zelda 1 and 2, even though it was more likely that the first game’s Zelda is an indirect descendant of the sleeping Zelda (Being a great great great something grand-aunt of her)? It seemed like nobody brings it up in general. I like to imagine that there was a reform and revival of Hylia worship after archeological rediscoveries of ancient texts and small pieces of structures of the past over the years (maybe a minority group trying to revive this religion over the years in secret before the royal family found it.)

[@ZeldaLore]

There were 2 Zeldas at the start lf Skyward Sword, as you could see the crystal through the door while Zelda travelled with Impa. I think the Hylia worship has always been present, we just haven't seen it in past games as Hylia was created in Skyward Sword. As for Zelda in TAOL, yeah, I agree. Zelda doesn't reincarnate, we just follow the bloodline of Hylia's descendants.

[@mysryuza]

@@ZeldaLore Oh I know but we treat it as if it wasn’t supposed to be the case. 😂 Her creation in Skyward Sword could explain why worship wasn’t as prominent over the years lorewise, but the royal family worshipping in secret could be possible, as it would conflict with the three goddesses worship to some, or something that wasn’t spread outside the royal family until later.

[@rayoup11]

I find it funny when Zelda theories try to do this and use the word 'impossible" on freakin Zelda

[@Notorious_Notepad]

I think this is a really confusing paradox of time. The events negated the past events, which impacted future events, which caused the Zelda still in the Amber crystal to disappear due to the timeline readjusting itself. The Zelda we have is the Zelda which broke out in the future but because of the timeline negating itself, that Zelda is a Zelda which has only been in the Crystal for 5 minutes as apposed to 1000 years. This means Zelda did not break out in the future since she was not there but instead in the past as she was just recently. The bracelet was given to Impa 1000 years ago by Zelda from the past but was there in the future before Ghiriham influenced the timeline. This event did not change and had already happened. The master sword was originally not there, because of Demise it appeared now in the Future. Hope this explains it!

[@jasonworlock5113]

The one thing that is missing is the Life Tree in Skyward Sword. It was NOT in the Sealed Temple until Link placed it there in the past, Groose even mentions how it seemed to spring out of no ware. This suggest that until the past is altered there is no change in the present. Plus just like how the Ocarina of Time's Princess Zelda sent Link back to before Ganondorf could enter the Sacred Realm perhaps Ghirahim took the Skyward Sword Zelda back to before she ever arrived in the past.

[@Gabriel-Tár]

This is simply not true. Groose doesnt mention how it seemed to spring out of nowhere. Quite the opposite, he mentions how the tree has always been there.

[@jasonworlock5113]

@@Gabriel-Tár you are 100% right about Groose.

[@brandon9561]

that was a great video!

[@kratal122]

What about the Tree of Life?

[@armin6047]

It was nice!

[@stpidstuff]

Hi

[@ZeldaLore]

Hey!

[@stpidstuff]

@@ZeldaLore how are you?

[@ZeldaLore]

@@stpidstuff I'm good!

[@stpidstuff]

@@ZeldaLore good

[@0aggie0]

Ooooooor, they just forgot to add Zelda and her seal in the past 😂 otherwise, great theory!

[@ZeldaLore]

Not just that, if the Master Sword is placed in the past like Zelda was, we would see both Zelda and the Master Sword in the present from the beginning. But we only see Zelda's crystal, not thw Master Swors

[@45heisman]

Not a bad video but also duh. Tim Travel in no media no medium no explanation can ever or will ever make sense. It's paradoxical in nature so youre pointing out and explaining a flaw that exists just by the nature of being time travel. It makes as much sense as is possible and made for a good game so by that standard it did its job.

[@Sango4522]

Perhaps, the master sword took the place of Zelda in sealing the power of demise. Which is why it sits in the sealing chamber instead of Zelda. And just as Zelda, who sealed demise, was still unable to destroy him completely, sealing him int he master sword likely was the same. Which would necessitate link to use his wish in the triforce to destroy what remained of him. This makes sense because Zelda simply could not be released from that crystal prison u less something else could take her place and that something else was the master sword, which she herself could not prepare, she needed help, she needed a knight. Replacing her presence as the sealing force in the sealed temple with the master sword is exactly why link needed to create the master sword from the goddess sword and go back in time to save Zelda. Also, Hylia, being the goddess of time, sits at the edge of time. She exists and doesn't at the same time. Her physical presence in the world is gone but her divine presence is not. Also consider that in OoT and MM, Hylia is referenced directly. Tatil's prayer to Hylia to save them at the end of termina is what restored power to the ocarina of time to allow link to turn back time by 3 days. So Hylia was always there, and known, but not well known. The rest, I agree with, especially reuniting the timeline and regaining her divinity in some form. It is likely that there is a stronger connection between Hylia and Zelda than simply Hylia reincarnated in the first instance. If Hylia sits at the edge of time, but can no longer physically be in the world, it is likely that she now uses Zelda, her descendant, as her proxy. So that Zelda's presence on Hyrule essentially substitutes for the presence of Hylia herself in the world she was charged with protecting by the golden goddesses themselves. This elevated Zelda's status even more as the Important titular character of the series.

[@RealmsCrossMyths]

Using "Dragon Break" in the context of TLZ is a little weird… Since "Dragon Break" is from TES, and is just what a merging of timelines is called in TES. Like, you even have to explain what it is anyway, so why bother using a term from a different franchise's lore? Just explain what's happening, don't call it something from another franchise and then explain it. Even if Nintendo releases a in-canon name for it, I feel everyone will keep calling it a Dragon Break, despite it getting canon name.

[@ZeldaLore]

The term is used quite a lot to refer to timelines merging. It's similar to how when a game innovates a genre, that genre becomes [NameOfGame]-like, such as "Souls-like", "Rogue-like", "Metroidvania"... In this case, the "Dragon Break", rather than being caused by a dragon, it would be caused by Hylia, so of you want you could call it the "Hylia Break"

[@Adventureruler]

I don't get it

[@capnv1]

Zelda needs to stop it with the time travel lol

[@mauve8085]

what

[@callejacobson8487]

Hinner inte med Jag är förvirrad

[@JD21992]

So wait wtf? I'm not following. Zelda is and isn't in the past? What happened to present day Zelda? Is she still I'm the crystal?