Sheik: Difference between revisions

1,476 bytes removed ,  4 years ago
it was agreed on the talk page to shrink this section down
Tag: Mobile edit
(it was agreed on the talk page to shrink this section down)
Line 36: Line 36:


Though Sheik has not made another appearance in a mainline ''Zelda'' game to date, her design within the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series has been updated over time to match the aesthetics of other installments in the series. When Zelda's design was changed to her ''{{s|zeldawiki|Twilight Princess}}'' appearance in ''Brawl'', Sheik was also altered to match, now using a design based on concept art the development team created specifically for ''Brawl''. Because Zelda and Sheik were split into unique fighters in ''SSB4'', their designs diverged in ''Ultimate''; while Zelda uses her look from ''{{s|zeldawiki|A Link Between Worlds}}'', Sheik was given a unique appearance combining the ''Twilight Princess'' design with the {{s|zeldawiki|Stealth Set}}, armor based on her design which is available to Link in ''Breath of the Wild''.
Though Sheik has not made another appearance in a mainline ''Zelda'' game to date, her design within the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series has been updated over time to match the aesthetics of other installments in the series. When Zelda's design was changed to her ''{{s|zeldawiki|Twilight Princess}}'' appearance in ''Brawl'', Sheik was also altered to match, now using a design based on concept art the development team created specifically for ''Brawl''. Because Zelda and Sheik were split into unique fighters in ''SSB4'', their designs diverged in ''Ultimate''; while Zelda uses her look from ''{{s|zeldawiki|A Link Between Worlds}}'', Sheik was given a unique appearance combining the ''Twilight Princess'' design with the {{s|zeldawiki|Stealth Set}}, armor based on her design which is available to Link in ''Breath of the Wild''.
{{clrl}}


===Gender dispute===
Sheik is occasionally assumed to be male or a male persona of Zelda, but it is the official stance of Nintendo that Sheik is female, just as Zelda is.<ref>[http://www.polygon.com/2014/8/5/5948989/zelda-nintendo-sheik-gender-cosplay Zelda fans debate Sheik's gender, but here's Nintendo's final word]</ref> She merely disguises herself as male, which her trophy in ''Melee'' speculates to be the result of magic; the manga adaptation for ''Ocarina of Time'' suggests that Zelda uses the Triforce of Wisdom to actually become male while disguised as Sheik, though this is considered non-canon to the games.
A popular topic in both ''The Legend of Zelda'' and ''Super Smash Bros.'' fan communities is Sheik's gender. Many say that Sheik is a female, as she is merely a disguise of Zelda; others suggest that her masculine qualities are because of an actual gender change Zelda undergoes upon transforming into Sheik, explaining the gender alteration as an effect of magic.


The issue originates from ''Ocarina of Time''; in the game, Link encounters Princess Ruto in the Water Temple. She asks Link to thank Sheik for saving her, referring to the Sheikah as "a young man named Sheik..." In addition, the manga adaptation for ''Ocarina of Time'' suggests that Zelda uses the Triforce of Wisdom to actually become male while disguised as Sheik; this adaptation, however, is officially considered to be non-canon. Zelda herself apologizes for "meeting Link in disguise", though what she means is very open to interpretation. In addition, it has been argued that the Sheik "character" is male, much like how some real-life crossdressers adopt opposite-gendered stage personas.
The ''Super Smash Bros.'' games consistently refer to Sheik as female, but the Super Smash Blog for ''Ultimate'' once referred to Sheik as male;<ref>[https://www.smashbros.com/en_US/blog/index.html?category=cat02_fighter_16 Super Smash Blog]</ref> however, an official Nintendo Twitter account which reposted the information altered it to refer to her as female<ref>[https://twitter.com/NintendoVS/status/1047018344212250625 Nintendo Versus]</ref>, suggesting it to be a mistake. Likewise, while Sheik is referred to with female pronouns in her ''Ultimate'' [[Move List]] and [[List of tips (SSBU)#Sheik|tips]], {{SSBU|Palutena}} and [[Viridi]] refer to Sheik as male in the corresponding [[Palutena's Guidance]] conversation in ''Ultimate'' (likely as an intentional joke, since {{SSBU|Pit}} knows that Sheik's true identity is Zelda).
 
{{clrl}}
While Sheik's gender in ''Ocarina of Time'' is still occasionally argued, Sheik is officially considered a female in the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series. Sheik's ''Melee'', ''Brawl'', and ''SSB4'' trophies describe her as female, Masahiro Sakurai referred to her as a female in her update on the [[Smash Bros. DOJO!!]] website, and she is referred to as female within ''Brawl's'' manual. However, Zelda's trophy in ''Super Smash Bros. 4'' refers to Sheik as "a young man", much like Ruto's aforementioned quote in ''Ocarina of Time'' (although it could be done to avoid spoilers). Before the Japanese release of ''{{s|zeldawiki|Hyrule Warriors}}'', Bill Trinen, Nintendo's senior product marketing manager and head translator for ''Ocarina of Time'', stated in an interview on August 5th, 2014 that since Sheik is Zelda in disguise and Zelda is female, Sheik is therefore also female.<ref>[http://www.polygon.com/2014/8/5/5948989/zelda-nintendo-sheik-gender-cosplay Zelda fans debate Sheik's gender, but here's Nintendo's final word]</ref>
 
On October 1st, 2018, the Super Smash Blog for ''Ultimate'' referred to Sheik as a male;<ref>[https://www.smashbros.com/en_US/blog/index.html?category=cat02_fighter_16 Super Smash Blog]</ref> however, the official Nintendo Versus Twitter account referred to Sheik as a female,<ref>[https://twitter.com/NintendoVS/status/1047018344212250625 Nintendo Versus]</ref> further perpetuating the dispute. Likewise, the game itself uses both female and male pronouns: Sheik is referred to with female pronouns in her ''Ultimate'' [[Move List]] and [[List of tips (SSBU)#Sheik|tips]], while {{SSBU|Palutena}} and [[Viridi]] refer to Sheik as male in the corresponding [[Palutena's Guidance]] conversation in ''Ultimate'' (much to the confusion of {{SSBU|Pit}}, who knows Sheik's true identity as Zelda).


==''In [[Super Smash Bros. Melee]]''==
==''In [[Super Smash Bros. Melee]]''==
9,179

edits