The episode was written by Bob Forward.
This episode originally aired on Friday, October 6, 1989.
Interesting Notes (11:37 AM - 1:20 PM)
The King believes that there's nothing better than nice air after a good meal.
Zelda calls her father "daddy" - at least to Link.
The King's name is Harkinian.
Spryte is a Princess of the Fairies.
Sing speaks only 1 line.
Zelda has a boomerang as a weapon.
Sing is named 3 times - all by Zelda.
No one speaks in the final scene.
Spryte does not appear in this episode.
Great Lines (11:52 AM - 1:20 PM)
Zelda: "You're sweet, Link. Clumsy...but sweet."
Zelda: "I still wonder where Gannon got that flying unicorn. Beautiful creatures aren't his style."
Link: "We'll ask him when we see him. Okay?"
Zelda: "She doesn't speak our language."
Link: "Oh, I'm sure she and I can communicate somehow."
Zelda: "Back off. I'll handle this."
Dumb Lines (1:20 PM)
None.
Rant (11:39 AM - 1:35 PM)
Link says he's still not used to living in a castle, and this is episode 5 (though it's possible that it was written earlier). Just how long has Link been living in the castle? You'd think that he'd have gotten used to it by now - especially not eating too much.
The King seems to have no problem with Link swinging into Zelda's window - never mind that she's laying right by the window and could easily be hurt. Further proof that the King of Hyrule is not the brightest person in the world.
I love how Zelda ignores Link's pain and concentrates on the flowers instead. =)
Again, there's a shot of a quarter-moon with stars visible. This is impossible.
I know it's not meant to be taken that way, but I find the King's exclamation of "Link! Help!", followed by Link's exclamation of "No!", amusing. :P
I love how Gannon destroys 2 of his own monsters to make Link fall. =)
The King seems to be relatively unconcerned for Link's safety, judging by his words to Gannon.
That stupid Link. He tries to get Zelda to kiss him by claiming that he's dying. Dick.
We learn the King's name: Harkinian. No indication is given if this is a given name or family name. If it's a family name, then Zelda's name would be Zelda Harkinian.
I love how King Harkinian names Zelda as his first rescuer and Link second. =)
I also love how King Harkinian momentarily forgets Link's name.
King Harkinian names Zelda first again. =)
It might seem kind of dumb for Zelda to touch the statue right after Link tells her not to, but her hand might have already been going there, and she couldn't stop herself in time.
Her second time touching the statue is an accident.
Zelda shows off more of her acrobatic skills, doing a backflip.
Stupid Link. He kicks the statue that's holding him - after calling it a "marblehead" - and hurts his toes. What did he think would happen?
Ah, the mysterious Sing, the titular (hehe) character of this episode. For the record, her presence isn't felt until her first attack at the 8:41 mark (over halfway through the episode), she isn't seen until the 8:46 mark, she isn't seen unmasked until the 9:29 mark, she doesn't speak until the 9:44 mark, and she isn't named until the 10:19 mark.
I love Sing's weapons: 3-pronged daggers that fire energy blasts.
That Sing is quite the acrobat herself - doing a somersault in mid-air.
Link likes Sing. I don't blame him. Sing is teh hawt. =)
Sing speaks only 1 line in this entire episode - and indeed in the entire series. Does anyone know what she's saying? I'd guess Chinese, judging by her name. Of course, it might just be gibberish.
I do like her voice, though. Anyone know which actor it is?
Again, King Harkinian says that Zelda will rescue him. =)
I wonder how Zelda is able to communicate with Sing. We aren't shown. Probably a lot of hand gestures.
I love Zelda and Sing's slight surprised reactions to Link pulling out a bomb. =)
King Harkinian says that Zelda is rescuing him. Hehe. He has complete faith in Zelda and seemingly no faith in Link. =)
The floor of the pit increases a bit between the last shot of it and now. King Harkinian should have fallen already.
Why does it take 2 zaps from Link's sword to "de-energize" Gannon? And what does "de-energize" mean? Make him lose his power or send him to the Evil Jar?
Well, Zelda answered that. You go, girl!
Look closely. Zelda is not faced with a choice of saving Link or her father. Link waves to her, indicating that he's okay. Besides, it would be impossible for Zelda to save either of them.
Again, the floor of the pit increases a bit between the last shot of it and now. King Harkinian should have fallen a while ago.
Go, Sing! You rescued the King!
I love how Zelda makes the excuse of being too dizzy to kiss Link. =)
Why doesn't King Harkinian wave to Sing? Ungrateful, fat idiot.
The final shot of Sing flying away on her unicorn into the night sky and waving is beautiful, but the quarter-moon with the stars is impossible.
Link exclaims "Excuuuse me, Princess!" and asks Zelda for a kiss - staples of a Bob Forward episode, apparently.
Lesson: King Harkinian has more faith in Zelda than he does in Link.
Despite Link's infamous line and demands for a kiss, "Sing For the Unicorn" is a great episode. Sing is a strong female character. Even though she appears in only this one episode, she's memorable and has made a lasting impression on fans of the series.
There are only a few good lines in this episode, since it's mostly action and basic dialogue, but the fact that I found no bad lines should indicate how good this episode is.
Zelda again demonstrates her capabilities as a fighter. She even reveals a weapon besides her bow and arrows: a boomerang. Remember that, fanfic writers. She didn't use any magic in this episode. She hasn't used magic to fight yet in this series, but we'll see that soon enough.
Overall, "Sing For the Unicorn" is a good episode. I look forward to reviewing the next one.
Usefulness ratings:
Link: 11 (defeating 3 enemies, defeating 2 statues, defeating 2 Stalfos, opening an entrance, defeating 2 centaurs, finding the magic whistle and using it)
Zelda: 5 (saving Link's life, defeating 2 statues, communicating with Sing, defeating Gannon)
Sing: 6 (defeating 3 Stalfos, defeating 2 Moblins, saving King Harkinian)
Spryte: 0 ()
Yeah, yeah, I added Sing into the contest - if only for this one episode - to see how she does. Sing does very well in fact. Working together with Zelda, they manage to tie with Link in terms of usefulness. This is the first episode of the series without Spryte (not that I missed her), so she doesn't get any points.
The running total usefulness ratings for the series so far are:
Link: 43 (5 episodes)
Zelda: 28 (5 episodes)
Spryte: 4 (4 episodes)
That's the end of my review of "Sing For the Unicorn". I'll review "That Sinking Feeling" next. See you all in my next review!