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Besides the initial lack of interesting questions this week, a quick appeal to our Facebook audience has landed this as my favorite installment yet. There's some Zelda of course - but not too much Skyward Sword, some Nintendo and best of all, some completely random questions. As always, be sure to send your questions to dathenboccabella@gmail.com or @dathboc - don't hold off or be shy, send us anything that's on your mind. Now, let's get into this....

Welcome to our fifth official Zelda Informer mailbag. We're finally starting to hit our stride and get the process and format fine tuned. One more change that we've made this week is that instead of answering 10 questions specifically, we'll be answering the best, without any refines of a quota, and to keep the length as a nice brief read. As always, send your questions for next time to dathenboccabella@gmail.com, and feel free to leave feedback, suggestions and your thoughts on the questions and answers presented in the comments. In this week's mailbag we've got a few Skyward Sword questions, a few Zelda theorizing topics, and one Q&A on the Wii. Enjoy....

It was Skyward Sword's "Romance Trailer" that finally prompted me to begin this series which I'd been mentally planning for almost three years. With seven parts in "That Romantic Spark" well behind us, it has come time to revive the series, as always intended. We now come to addressing the newest Legend of Zelda title: Skyward Sword, before moving onto more complex analyses of romance in Zelda. Never for a moment did Skyward Sword's advertising campaign hesitate on playing up the game's romantic angle. Although the romance was almost left on the cutting room floor by Aonuma, the final game came through, providing not only the most definitive romance for Link ever seen in the series, but as always, plenty of other hints and options for players to speculate upon. (Read more...)...

The most popular article series in the history of Zelda Informer is back! The last time you saw an article from "That Romantic Spark" was back in November, where I left things all ready to get into Skyward Sword once it was released. Since then there's been downtime, a big return, the new years and what not here at ZI. Now, however, it is time to get back into this series, and yes, there is much more to discuss than just Skyward Sword when it comes to romance in The Legend of Zelda. So far the series has focused on Link's potential love interests in the series (assuming Link is straight) from the original Legend of Zelda right through all fifteen main titles to Spirit Tracks. We then went on to look at what the developers had to say and what relevance romance had for the series chronology. Well, now we move on to Skyward Sword and then go much further beyond. There's plenty of life left in our most-viewed series, so within this post I've compiled brief blurbs and links to the first seven parts in the series. It's not the type of series where you need to...

To be a fan of The Legend of Zelda series is to have, at some stage, asked the very question "what exactly is 'the Legend of Zelda'?" In an article early last year I tackled that very question, concluding that "The Legend of Zelda" was the very myth that drove the entire series. Ironically, it was Zelda II: The Adventure of Link - the only game in the series lacking the title "The Legend of Zelda - which defined the very Legend. The myth which connected all of the Zelda titles together; not in the sense of an official chronology, but in the spirit of the series....

IMPORTANT MAILBAG INFORMATION: Potential mailbag questions are now to be sent to: dathenboccabella@gmail.com . The comments section is now for further discussion of questions and answers from that specific mailbag. Feedback and comments on the operation of the mailbag can be left in the comments also. Just remember that QUESTIONS ASKED IN THE COMMENTS WILL NO LONGER BE ANSWERED. Welcome to our fourth mailbag. Hopefully you have taken note of the above, and moving forward can keep it in mind. Now, for this mailbag to really work you all need to get involved: ask questions, read answers, spread the word, comment, discuss, leave feedback, talk about it, rinse and repeat. This time around, for the fourth week in a row, it is pretty much all about Skyward Sword. There's a few sprinklings of Zelda question here and there as well. Something else to remember is that Zelda Informer is NOT just a Zelda website. Sure we started as a Zelda site, but now we're a leading Nintendo news source. If you're wondering why the name hasn't changed, it's for the same reason IGN is still the 'Internet Gaming Community' and not IEN, the 'Internet Entertainment Community'. Changing names is...

One of the many mysteries of the Legend of Zelda series pertains to the many reincarnations we've seen of the Seven Sages. From Seven Maidens, to the Seven Wise Men, to the seven ethereal spirits, never have we seen the sages used more prominently than in Ocarina of Time. With the need for saving and 'awakening' the ancient sages in Ocarina of Time, Rauru moreso than any - even Zelda - seemed like the constant. Yet at the same time, he was the most mysterious of them all. Rauru was the knowledgeable one. The one who recalled the times of the past when the Temple of Time was built over the ruins of the Sealed Temple, as stated in Hyrule Historia. The one who was there when the Sacred Realm was sealed away from Hyrule, with the Master Sword acting as the key. Rauru never needed Link to save him. He never appeared alongside the other sages outside of the Sacred Realm. Rauru was an enigma, but Skyward Sword seemingly had a thing or two to say on the topic, at least at first....

Hey there Zelda fans, Ben Spyrou here. I'd like to introduce you to a new article series that I'll be presenting for your reading pleasure over the next few weeks: the "Hyrulian Lore" series. These articles will cover the stories, history and lore of a few key Legend of Zelda titles and events in order to gain a tighter grasp on the legends presented in the games, and how they connect with one another, both generally and in the context of the recently revealed Zelda timeline in the Hyrule Historia book. Today we will start by looking at the newest addition to the Zelda franchise; Skyward Sword. Here we explore the story of Link as he dives into an epic quest involving a Goddess, a Demon King, the mysterious Fi and the ever sought-after Master Sword. The game introduced many critical and important elements that have a large impact on the rest of the series. Nintendo told us that Skyward Sword was the first tale in the Legend of Zelda, but how exactly does it link to the other stories we have experienced, and what new pieces of the history of Hyrule has the game unveiled for us? I...

Unlucky, ironic, typical - I'm not entirely sure what word to use to describe how after finally getting a weekly mailbag started the site went down and we were unable to continue. Nevertheless, we're back now, with answers to your questions from those many weeks ago. Skyward Sword dominates the questions, for the third time in a row - so beware of spoilers. Mind you, Skyward Sword is old news now so don't expect spoiler warnings for much longer. Hopefully in next week's Mailbag episode we'll have some questions on broader topics. In our absence there was the release of the official Zelda 'Hyrule Historia" timeline, a whole direct Nintendo conference, and the arrival of the new year. Just drop your questions for us - on whatever topic you please - in the comments of this post, and if you're lucky we'll get to it next week. On a more somber note, we have to ask people to please refrain from answering questions in the comments. The comments are for discussing the questions answered in that current mailbag, and asking questions for the next installment. If you just answer each other's questions in the comments, then there's no point...

If you're the type who spends a fair amount of time amongst online Zelda communities, much too often you will hear the statement "Zelda is in need of a reboot". There are always some fans crying out for the series to wipe the sleight clean and start afresh. A cry for Nintendo to start a new continuity just like you'd expect with Batman from DC Comics. Even with the release of the official timeline some fans still believe the third arc's "legends" approach is a mess and Nintendo should start over. Personally, I disagree entirely with anyone who voices this sentiment. The philosophy behind the development of Zelda titles has always been gameplay first and story later, but not in a bad way. Nintendo's approach to Zelda is to first craft the best gaming experience they can, and then to work it into the mythology as they so desire. Of course this means there are inconsistencies throughout the series, but it supports that each game is merely a part of the collection of legends....