Ilia, Her connection to Link *spoilers*

I agree abouut Ilia. BUT near theend, you do see that Zelda does like him by the way she looks at him. "Actions speak louder than words."

Since TP has the reputation of being the least Zelink Zelda game of all time I really would like to believe that a brief glance and a casual but also rather formal request for Links help could mean something. I would hope that TP Zelda might want to maintain control of the TOC and what better way to do that in giving Link an offer he can't refuse in being her consort/boy toy/love slave or whatever. Anything to keep Link from going back to Illia I guess.

Frankly, I don't think that IliaxLink was possible in the end. In the beginning of TP, if things had not evolved in the way they did, I think that Ilia and Link would have likely settled down, married, had kids and would have lived to a ripe old age. But the fact of the matter is, that events progressed in a way that forced both Ilia and Link to mature and grow apart from each other. The scene in which Ilia gives Link the horse call felt to me like a "goodbye scene." In addition, the final shot of Link who we see riding away from Ordon Village seems to clinch the matter.

Even as the least ZeLink game, TP's ''meeting with Ganondorf and saving Zelda'' scene still made my mother, a non Zelda player who was watching me play, believe Link was totally amazed by Zelda.
And my mother's the type to actually love contradicting me on everything.
Nuff said.
I don't even talk ZeLink with her (except when playing SSBM/B. Great games for questionable screenshots. ^o^ Especially involving Snake.)

She also thinks Midna is beautiful and laughed at Link's reaction.
He's a guy after all, no matter how innocent, XD



On Link riding away, the first time I've beaten TP I thought he was going back. It left me bitter and sad. That's not how I saw him.
Glad I was mistaking.

Yeah..I totally agree with you 100% on that one. Though I don't think it would be that unusual if Link eventually settled down with Illia, I still feel that after the escort mission LinkxIllia was never the same as it was in the beginning. And I still don't buy the Illia fanfic/theory that after the mirror shattered, Link's love for Illia was rekindled and he married her and lived with her for sometime after the mirror shattered and before he left Ordon. And so Illia is standing there happy and hopeful that her soldier boy will always loyally return to her and never be seduced and tempted by Zelda.

I've been thinking about the LiLia pairing a lot lately. A LOT. So much, in fact, that I got their fanlisting/shrine open (www.ordonship.org - I know, shameless advertising). But regardless of whether or not one ships them, it's undeniable that something was there. But something was there for all 3 girls, so that's a moot point.

A point I make in the site is that Ilia represents the past- what was. Puppy love seemed very present in their lives pre-TP quest. But everything changed, and that's that. Ilia had a lot of significance and importance in the game. I don't even like Ilia, but I'm Zelda fan enough to admit that, yes, she was important in Link's life. Another point I make is that it is a possibility that Link may one day return to Ilia. It IS possible, if nott probable. After MM, OoT/MM!Link does indeed return to Zelda- we know this because of the phrase, "a legend held dearly by the royal family". That implies that the royal family knew- obviously because Link returns to tell the tale. Even if it wasn't permanent, he still returned. If OoT/MM!Link can return to Zelda, then TP!Link can return to Ilia.

Ilia also represents the "lady in waiting" character of the story. She even states that she'll await his return. That character is important in any hero's life in any story.

Now, I don't necessarily ship LiLia, but I do respect the pairing, and I'm open-minded enough to see possibilities in that shipping.

I don't like the LinkxIllia pairing much mainly because it felt forcefed. But if that was the intent from the makers at Nintendo there is not much that you can do but accept it. Though in TP I prefer Link to hook up with Zelda eventually, it would not be shocking to me if Link chose to be with Illia instead.

One thing I've noticed recently was while playing TP again.
When Ilia got her memory back and gave Link the horse-a-majig, he accepted it, but with a saddened stare.
His dearest childhood friend regained her memory, was safe in a village with people he trusted, had grown more mature with the whole experience,
yet he looked sad.
For me, it's as if he just then realised nothing will be the same again with her.
And in my opinion, it wasn't a ''I now know true love'' kind of change.
More a ''I now realise my feelings weren't all that strong'' kind of change.
But like most of you, I won't make the jump if he does end up with her. Nor if he keeps dreaming of Midna, nor if he grows up some more and takes a step towards Zelda.
..It's weird, I find it more unbelievable to imagine him with Zelda actually.
But they look soooo good together. *ahem*

Not that I dislike Ilia (not at all). I dislike what she represents:
A normal, eventless life.

I don't like Ilia because of the prominent role she had in the story. There was nothing wrong with her, but she wasn't a particularly special character, certainly not one that deserved to have the spotlight on her for so much of the game. She took on the helpless damsel-in-distress role that Zelda's so often accused of having, and played it far more traditionally than Zelda ever did in a 3D game. She gets kidnapped, rescued, hurt, healed, and eventually she stays behind to wait patiently for Link, remembering all the times from his past and little thinking what the future has brought him. She doesn't understand the enormous responsibility he now has; she only wants to wait until her farmboy comes home and everything can go back to the way it was.

They made a blatantly obvious effort to set up Ilia as the romantic interest, to the point where there's no denying that something was going on with her and Link. I'm honestly really confused why they did that. It seemed that her only purpose in the game was to be the romantic interest, and there was no evidence why she should be, aside from her liking Link and him maybe liking her back. Her bland personality might have been more forgivable if she were really the only major girl character, but Zelda and Midna were both more interesting characters (Midna to a much greater extent), which just leaves me confused about why they gave her a significant role at all.

Now that females are being given stronger roles, it seems that many people have started hating the whole damsel in distress role. I don't see it as so bad. Really, does Ilia look like somebody who'd be able to fight off her foes? Nooo. She fits the damsel in distress role, and there's nothing wrong with that in my opinion. She's strong in her own sense. But I will argue that she DOES understand Link's enormous responsibility- that's why she says she'll wait. THAT takes a lot of strength and courage.

But eh... I like having a damsel in distress in TLoZ. It's fitting, especially for the times. Not all female characters need to be Xena, ya know?

I agree with Kokirian Klockwork on Link being with Illia would mean that he chooses to remain a goatherder instead of living the life of a hero. Its different from a LinkxMalon IMO since the ranch is WITHIN Hyrule in an ideal geographical location in relative equal close proximity to the castle and the outlying provinces. OOT/MM Link could easily saddle up Epona and ride out to deal with a problematic danger when necessary and still maintain ties with Zelda living close by in Hyrule Castle/Town. Ordon is OUTSIDE of Hyrule and I can't see TP Link making that much of a difference in being a hero from that type of location.

Now that females are being given stronger roles, it seems that many people have started hating the whole damsel in distress role. I don't see it as so bad. Really, does Ilia look like somebody who'd be able to fight off her foes? Nooo. She fits the damsel in distress role, and there's nothing wrong with that in my opinion. She's strong in her own sense. But I will argue that she DOES understand Link's enormous responsibility- that's why she says she'll wait. THAT takes a lot of strength and courage.

But eh... I like having a damsel in distress in TLoZ. It's fitting, especially for the times. Not all female characters need to be Xena, ya know?

I realize that I phrased that wrong. Let me try to clarify: To me, Ilia did not have much character beyond her role. I didn't mean to come across as putting down the damsel-in-distress role in general, but I think that there should be more to a character than just being in need of rescue. I didn't see a lot of character in Ilia. She comes across as immature in the beginning--fitting considering how underdeveloped her personality is.
Clearly you see more to her than I do. If you think she does understand Link's responsibility, then I'm simply interpreting things differently than you are. But I don't see anything in the game to indicate she even knows what Link is up against. She never says a word about the tasks Link has undertaken; every time she speaks, she's always focused on Ordon, Epona, and her memories of the time spent with Link in the village. The things he's facing now are beyond the scope of her world. She would want to understand what he's going through, I'm sure, but she'd always be looking forward to having him come home to the village and lead a normal life.

I agree with you about the damsel-in-distress role, despite what my other post might have conveyed. There's no shame in a character having a traditionally feminine role, but she should still have personality outside of the role.

To me Illia represents the more attainable relationship similar to Malon. But I generally found Illia to be annoying and somewhat physically repulsive. From a personal point of view I would rather believe Link outgrew Illia to pursue being a full time hero to maybe hook up with Zelda, Hena, Ashi, or a random Hyrule Town girl take your pick. I don't believe the CLOSER childhood friendship/relationship guarantees anything on romance so I want to believe Link outgrew Illia in the end of TP to pursue a new life outside of Ordon but still remain a close friend to Illia and the people of Ordon.