"Excuuuuuuse me, Princess!"
If you grew up in the late eighties, those three words either make you grin or make you want to put your head through a wall. They are the defining legacy of the Legend of Zelda cartoon series, a strange, hyperactive relic of 1989 that aired as part of The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! on Fridays. It only lasted thirteen episodes. Just thirteen. Yet, decades later, we’re still talking about it. Why?
Honestly, it’s because the show is weirdly fascinating. It doesn’t feel like the Zelda we know today. There is no sweeping, melancholic score by Koji Kondo, and Link isn't the silent, stoic hero of Breath of the Wild. Instead, we got a teenager with a serious attitude problem and a Zelda who was basically an 80s action hero. It was loud. It was crude. It was definitely a product of DIC Entertainment's "throw everything at the wall" era of animation.
The Legend of Zelda Cartoon Series: A Product of Chaos
To understand why this show exists, you have to look at Nintendo in 1989. They were the kings of the world, but they didn't really have a "brand identity" for their characters yet. Link wasn't a sacred icon. He was just a sprite on a screen. So, when DIC Entertainment sat down to make a show, they had to fill in the blanks. They looked at the manual for the first NES game and maybe played Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, and then they just... winged it.
The result was a show that feels more like Moonlighting or Remington Steele than a high-fantasy epic. Link and Zelda spend most of their time bickering. Link wants a kiss; Zelda thinks he's a loser. It's a classic sitcom dynamic shoved into the kingdom of Hyrule. It’s jarring if you’re coming from the modern games, but if you view it through the lens of 80s Saturday morning cartoons, it’s actually kind of impressive how much lore they managed to squeeze in.
They used the actual sound effects from the NES games. That’s a small detail, but it matters. When Link pulls out his sword, you hear that digitized shing. When he takes damage, it’s the exact noise from the console. For a kid in 1989, that was groundbreaking. It made the cartoon feel "official" in a way that most licensed shows didn't.
Breaking Down the Trio: Link, Zelda, and Ganon
Let's talk about Link. He's the most controversial part of the Legend of Zelda cartoon series. Voiced by Jonathan Potts, this version of Link is a whiny, girl-crazy teenager. He’s thirsty. There’s no other word for it. He spends every episode trying to convince Zelda to kiss him as a reward for his heroics. It's a bit cringey now, sure. But it also gave him a personality, something the games wouldn't even attempt for years.
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Zelda, on the other hand, was a revelation.
In the 80s, the "damsel in distress" trope was everywhere. But in this cartoon? Zelda was the one with the brains. She wore a practical tunic and leggings, she carried a bow, and she was often more capable than Link. She didn't sit in a tower waiting to be rescued. She was the commander-in-chief of Hyrule's defenses. It took the games decades to catch up to the idea of a "Tetra" or a "Sheik," but the cartoon was doing it from day one.
Then there’s Ganon. He wasn't the hulking, silent beast from Ocarina of Time. He was a grumpy wizard who lived in an underground lair and spent half his time teleporting into jars. He was voiced by Len Carlson, who gave him this raspy, agitated tone that made him feel like a middle manager who was constantly disappointed by his staff. His goal was simple: get the Triforce of Wisdom. See, in this show, Link and Zelda already have the Triforce of Courage and Wisdom locked in a basement. Ganon has the Triforce of Power. Every episode is basically a high-stakes game of "Capture the Flag."
Why the Fans Hated It (And Why They’re Wrong)
If you read old forum posts or watch YouTube retrospectives, people love to tear this show apart. They hate the catchphrase. They hate Link’s voice. They hate that it’s not "dark" or "mature."
But here’s the thing: Zelda wasn't "dark" in 1989.
The original NES game was a colorful, bright adventure. The cartoon captured that energy. It didn't take itself seriously because the medium didn't allow for it. You had 22 minutes to tell a story between commercials for G.I. Joe and sugary cereal. You couldn't do a deep dive into the mythology of the Goddesses or the timeline of the Hylians. You had to have a monster of the week.
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The show also introduced concepts that actually stuck around. The idea of Link having a fairy companion? That started here with Spryte, long before Navi ever told us to "Listen!" in 1998. The show also fleshed out the world of Hyrule beyond just "forest, mountain, lake." We saw villages, castle life, and the day-to-day struggle of living in a world where Moblins might jump out of a bush at any second.
The Animation Quality: A Mixed Bag
Look, nobody is saying this is Studio Ghibli. The animation in the Legend of Zelda cartoon series was handled by Sei Young Animation and often looks... rough. Characters' proportions change from shot to shot. Backgrounds are reused constantly. Link’s hair color seems to shift between brown and orange depending on the lighting.
But there’s a charm to that jankiness. It’s hand-drawn. It has a soul. There’s a specific episode, "The White Knight," where Link gets jealous of a visiting prince. The facial expressions they give Link are legitimately funny. They’re expressive in a way that modern, flash-animated shows often fail to be. It’s expressive, kinetic, and occasionally very weird.
The Lasting Legacy of "Excuuuuuuse Me, Princess"
You can’t talk about this show without the meme. It’s impossible.
The phrase "Excuuuuuuse me, Princess" was a riff on a popular Steve Martin bit from the era. It was meant to be a funny, relatable teen comeback. Instead, it became a symbol of everything "wrong" with Western adaptations of Japanese games.
But think about it. That one line has kept this show alive in the cultural consciousness for over thirty years. It’s been parodied in Robot Chicken, referenced in World of Warcraft, and it’s a staple of YouTube Poop culture. If the show had been a boring, straight-laced adaptation, we would have forgotten it by 1991. Because it was so aggressively 80s, it became immortal.
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It also serves as a reminder of a time when Nintendo was experimental. They let people take risks with their IP. Sometimes that resulted in the Super Mario Bros. movie (yikes), but sometimes it resulted in weird, experimental media that gave us a different perspective on our favorite characters.
Where to Watch It Today
Finding the show used to be a pain. You had to hunt down old Shout! Factory DVDs or find bootlegs at conventions. Nowadays, it’s much easier. You can usually find the episodes on various streaming platforms or official Nintendo-related YouTube channels.
Watching it as an adult is a completely different experience. You start to notice the clever writing buried under the 80s cheese. The writers, including Bob Forward and Eve Forward, actually tried to give the characters arcs. There’s a genuine sense of romance and tension between Link and Zelda that you don't often see in children's programming of that era. They weren't just icons; they were people. Messy, annoying, heroic people.
Actionable Steps for the Modern Zelda Fan
If you're a fan of the games but you've never sat down with the Legend of Zelda cartoon series, you're missing a piece of history. Here is how to approach it so you don't lose your mind:
- Lower your expectations for "Lore": Do not go into this looking for connections to Tears of the Kingdom. It’s its own thing. Think of it as an alternate universe.
- Watch "The Missing Link": This is arguably the best episode. Link’s physical body is separated from his spirit, and it actually allows for some surprisingly poignant moments between him and Zelda. It shows what the series could have been if it had a second season.
- Pay attention to the background music: Notice how they remix the NES themes. It’s actually quite clever for the time.
- Look for the cameos: Characters like King Harkinian (who became a meme legend in his own right) and the various monsters from the game are rendered with surprising accuracy to the manual art.
- Accept the "Kiss" Quest: Just embrace that Link's primary motivation is getting a smooch. Once you accept that this is a teenage rom-com wrapped in a fantasy skin, it becomes much more enjoyable.
The show isn't a masterpiece, but it isn't the disaster people claim it is. It’s a loud, vibrant, and incredibly sincere attempt to bring a 2D world to life. It gave Zelda a backbone, Link a voice, and Ganon a personality. In a world of safe, corporate-approved media, there's something refreshing about a show that is this unashamedly "excuuuuuuse me" weird.
Go find an episode. Turn your brain off. Enjoy the 1980s in all its neon, sword-swinging glory. You might find yourself unironically liking it more than you'd ever admit to your gaming friends.