Skull Kid (character)


 * This article is about the character. For the race, see Skull Kid (race).

The Skull Kid is a character from The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask. The Skull Kid is a mischievous being from the Lost Woods who uses an evil mask to seek revenge on old playmates because he believes they abandoned him. The mask's power, however, becomes too much, overwhelming and then controlling him. He is the primary source of conflict in the game.

It is thought that the Skull Kid that Link befriends in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is the same as the Skull Kid of Majora's Mask, however, no confirmation of this has been made.

Biography
In Majora's Mask, the Skull Kid enjoys playing tricks and is mischievous. He was friends with the Four Giants until they left to the four temples, leaving him behind. This, at first, saddened him immensely, which in result infuriated him. He always had a thrill in pulling pranks on people, and he (ironically) never understood the reason no one played with him, causing him to start thinking that they simply weren't good enough for him. Eventually, he befriended the fairy siblings Tatl and Tael on a rainy day. They make a close friendship and play together.

One day, as the Happy Mask Salesman is traversing through the Lost Woods, the Skull Kid knocks him out and finds Majora's Mask in the salesman's bag of masks. He wears it and gains the power of the mask. Eventually, as Link travels in the Lost Woods, the Skull Kid and his fairy counterparts ambush him. They frighten Epona, causing her to throw Link on the ground, rendering him unconscious. The Skull Kid comes and pats down Link, looking for anything valuable, and settles for the Ocarina of Time. He starts to play it, waking Link. Link lunges for him, but the Skull Kid hops onto Epona to make his getaway. Grabbing hold of the horse, Link is dragged along for a bit but eventually gets shaken loose. He follows the trio into a hollow log, then falls into large hole, eventually emerging under the Clock Tower.

The Skull Kid tells Link that he "got rid" of Epona and only wanted to "have a little fun with him." He then uses the mask's power to transform Link into a Deku Scrub and laughs wildly as he prepares to lock him in the room. Link runs towards the Skull Kid, but is stopped by Tatl. Eventually, the Skull Kid and Tael reach a large door, and once Tael realizes Tatl isn't behind it, it closes shut, leaving her with Link.

The Skull Kid joins the Bombers, though he broke their rules and was kicked out. He is the reason why they don't allow non-humans to join their gang. The Skull Kid also places a large rock to block the entrance to Romani Ranch. Additionally, he transforms Kafei into a child. He also threatened to break Shikashi's instruments in the Astral Observatory and steal his Moon's Tear.

Eventually, with the power of Majora's Mask, the angry Skull Kid manipulates the Moon into making it crash into Termina. This may have been the Skull Kid's or the mask's goal. It is clear that he had gone insane, largely due to the mask's corruption.

On the Third Day, Link confronts him on top the Clock Tower and calls the Four Giants, who stop the moon from crashing into Termina. They wrestle against the Skull Kid's power, causing him to faint. Majora's Mask finally reveals itself as it's own entity and calls the Skull Kid a "puppet who can no longer be used" and that he "is mere garbage." The mask enters the Moon and invites Link in as well. After this, the Skull Kid is not seen again until the game is over.

Once Link defeats Majora's Mask, the Skull Kid becomes friends with the Four Giants again. He also retains his friendship with Tatl and Tael and befriends Link. He tells Link that he has "the same smell as the fairy kid who taught me that song in the woods..." which is a reference to Ocarina of Time.

Etymology
In manga and in early translations, his name is roughly translated as Star Kid, coming from the name Sutaru Kiddo, since the Japanese spells foreign words phonetically. However, this was an error; the character is known as "Stalkid" in Japan, a derivative of the traditional Zelda enemy Stalfos.

Skull Kid