One night, after a perfect harvest, a young apple farmer goes to sleep. While asleep, Link, the young farmer, has a dream, but not just any dream, it is a cry for help from a girl named Zelda. She is trapped in the castle dungeon, so Link departs immediately. While searching the confines of the dungeon, he runs across someone else who is trying to save Zelda. This is no ordinary man, he is Link’s uncle, who is the closest thing to a father he ever knew. Unfortunately for him, his uncle was in a battle and he lost. When Link gets to his uncle it is too late to help, and in his last words, he says that Link is the last person who can help Zelda and the royal family. Now with his uncle's sword, Link continues his quest to save Zelda.

Overall

This manga is based on the 1992 video game, A Link to the Past, although the resemblance is somewhat vague. Some characters were added in the manga that weren't in the game, and they weren't just side characters. Early on, Ghanti, a bandit girl, was introduced, and she is one of the most important characters in the manga. Even though Ghanti plays an important part in the manga, not once does she appear in the game. There are a few other differences that are annoying, like when Link gets stung by a scorpion in the desert and almost dies but there isn’t even a desert in the game. This last wrongdoing is something that could make any Legend of Zelda fan shake their head in pity; when Link saves Zelda again, she, along with Ghanti, helps him defeat Ganon, which totally defies the Legend of Zelda tradition. Although there are a few moments when reading where I was thinking “That was a great part of the game”,  there wasn’t enough to balance with the discrepancies.          

Even though some parts do run counter to the game, as a story, the manga was still good. Everything blended smoothly, it just worked together. It did seem like the beginning of the book was too stretched out, and the middle was a bit choppy and fast paced. All in all it was a fine story, and any one could enjoy it, but if you are looking for a manga based on one of your favorite video game, you should look elsewhere.

ComicsOnline Gives The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past 3 out of 5 Knights Of Hyrule