Could you elaborate on why you think "Link shouldn't be a girl in any official capacity"?
Link is a character with a unique identity and personality -- he is simply EXPRESSED in a manner to be universally relatable. He has a specific identity in the games, as subtle as it is. His personalities become even more obvious in official media outside of the games.
So he's not some identity-less RPG hero that's meant to be anyone we want him to be, but rather, a character that anyone can RELATE to.
Link is not us, but instead someone we aspire to be like. Nor is he our stand-in meant to represent us, but rather, our connection -- our link -- to those worlds. We see through his eyes, not the other way around. I don't think he needs to change, nor does he become more valuable by changing.
Of course, nothing about Link's character is reliant on him being male. Although he is male, he is not explicitly "a man" in his identity -- he comes off as quite neutral. If his creator wanted to take the ESSENCE of a character and put it in a new container, like a female form, that's totally creatively legal.
But the creators do not want to do that -- and there's nothing wrong with that, nor should there be any expectation for them to. I also don't think the general desire for a Female Link is rooted in what "feels right" for the character. Rather, it seems to be much more of an appeal to our own interests & vanities -- a desire to see what WE want to see in his character. I don't think that's a compelling enough reason for it to be done in official media -- in fact, I think that's more reason NOT to do it.
Instead, I think that's where fans get to shine. With the freedom of our own creativity, we can take this universally relatable hero, create art, and say: "THIS is MY Link, a version of this recognizable, predefined character that I connected with, curated through the lens of my own life and interests -- unique to me." Whether that Link is male or female, its uniquely ours -- but we recognize and appreciate the official Link for who he is underneath and across our varied interpretations. In fact, we connect with one another through that single predefined identity.
Not only is that exceptionally cool, as we can all have our own diverse interpretations of that character -- it's a testament to the strength in his official design philosophy, not in spite of it, and I think that aspect of his specific identity is worth preserving in his official media.
That probably comes off as weird, abstract, and complicated thinking.
amandla
germansingergirl
origamiaround
gummygunk
blakekathryn
areudirty
