The MYSTERY of The Happy Mask Salesman's Identity! [Zelda Theory] 

What is your FAVOURITE thing about Majora's Mask? Keep up to date here! - twitter.com/Hyrule_101

The identity of the Happy Mask Salesman is nearly as mysterious as the disappearance of the fairy that lead us to Termina.

In the ending, the Salesman implies that masks contained the feelings of the people who gave them to Link. The ending itself also hints that the masks actually have an effect on the New Day. If you don't collect the Couple's Mask, then you don't see the wedding. Almost like the masks cause the events to persist outside of the loop... which may be why the masks are carried over between loops. Also, the Song of Healing does heal. It heals the souls of their regrets and those regrets become the masks. Another example of the masks as representative of feelings. Finally, you need to give Link a little credit. He saved the Goron and the Zora before he pulled the Master Sword and it's implied he somehow stops Ganondorf in the past. That said... the Salesman can sense Link's collection of masks in the ending and remarks on them. Creepy as always

Notice when the mask salesman says the evil left the mask, he almost sounds disappointed. I think he stole the mask possibly wanting to dominate Termina.

That pose-and-face combo he’s doing... that’s a well-known expression in Japanese art. It basically signifies a “pushy salesperson” or someone whose pretending to be friendly and overdoing it. It’s a good clue he’s not what he seems.

He didn't even mention the creepiest and weirdest parts. A. He shows absolutely no surprise that link literally just walked out the door, then back in with his ocarina, and what's more, expects the mask too! he clearly knows that link can time travel, and is aware of it. B. If you get a game over from the moon, you hear him laugh, and say "You've met with a terrible fate haven't you" You get a weird slow camera wobble and you are back in the clock tower with him. not outside. THAT is a little bit weird? did he rewind time himself to save us or what?

with tat line "the evil has left he mask after all", I get the feeling he LET the skull kid steel the mask. He knew Link was there and knew he was the one to purify that mask.

Finally, a worthy video! My meal will be legendary.

I played Majora's Mask when it came out when I was young and he honestly freaked me out

He's such a strange and creepy character but he's become one of my favorites from Zelda. I wish we could see more of him.

Me watching this while eating breakfast. HG: go grab yourself a snack or drink. Me: don't rub it in HG

The moonchildren looking like.him adds something to this.......

A theory I've always liked, is that the Happy Mask Salesman is Shigeru Miyamoto himself, manifested as this bizarre entity or god within the universe of Zelda. I know that may seem kind of random, but it's been a prevailing idea in the community for awhile that his character design, specifically the face and hair, was based on Miyamoto (I think it was even confirmed once?), and that his aggressive nature towards Link is a bit of projection by the devs of Majora's Mask on how they viewed Miyamoto at the time (Miyamoto initially only allowed them 1 year of development time, not to mention Miyamoto was known to "upend the teatable," as Aounuma once put it). If he is Miyamoto, that would explain all his strange, and dare I say impossible knowledge, along with his unwavering faith in Link. Perhaps he's even aware of the player on the other side of the screen? His poetic line at the end of the game, about how goodbyes not having to last forever, to me felt like it was aimed at more than just Link. At the very least, the dude actually has a Mario mask on his back, so I think that's noteworthy. Even his profession as a "happy mask salesman" could be likened to that of a videogame developer. Not just any videogame developer, of course, but the developer of some of the most globally recognized and beloved videogames to date. That's a ton of happiness he's selling right there... It would be fitting that the true god of the Zelda series who pulls all of the strings was NOT Hylia, but rather, the man who birthed the series in the first place.

The happy mask salesman is just Link’s stalker. Another one who fell for that pretty, pretty face of his.

If the HMS is a deity, he may have made Termina as a favor to Link (for his help selling the masks in OoT), rather than a test. We see in Twilight Princess that the shade regreted not being remembered as a hero, so HMS gave him a quest. Furthermore, it could also be a sort of learning opportunity to remind him of all the good he can still do, and to process having done such a great good that no one remembers.

Or maybe it’s a paradox😳 he says “you’ve met with a terrible fate haven’t you” because the time loop has already occurred for him where termina is destroyed. He already knows about everything that happened, and it’s why we always get the “you’ve met wit a terrible fate” line when we die.

HG: Let’s not ramble on for 20 minutes. Video is 20 minutes long.

I think he's just an extremely wise person. He's really intelligent and knows what powers the mask has.

I personally think that possibly...the mask salesman is a time traveller, like Link himself, who witnessed the battle against Ganon, which is why he says to Link that the task of retrieving the mask will be an easy task for him

Anyone else out there who can barely hold it together when the song of healing comes on?

Now im wondering if the Mario mask IS mario, after someone played The Song of Healing

Definitely a Demigod. I feel like we’ve seen plenty of other characters that also fit that criteria as well-not all are benevolent and I always kinda loved that about the franchise.

I enjoy that there’s so many unanswered questions about Zelda games

I would compare him to an Observer from the tv series Fringe. Observers are people that travel through time to witness past events. Also they are able to exist outside of time. The Happy Mask Salesman is a guy that can traverse time and space at will, but mostly stays in the background. That is how he knows about Link's adventures in OoT. The only reason he got involved with Link in Termina is because the Skull Kid stole Majora's Mask. As to why he had the mask in the first place, he could be immune to it's corruption because he exists "outside" of time. He also might collect and sell masks to hide the fact he has a power mask on him.

Plot twist: the Happy Masks Salesmen’s is Majora himself 😂🤣

The Happy Mask Salesman mentioned that Majora's Mask came from an "ancient tribe" that has now vanished. One of my theories is that the Happy Mask Salesman's ancestors were members of that tribe and that the tribe's specialty is creating masks that contains the essence of a being. It would explain why the Happy Mask Salesman knows so much about Majora's Mask (where it came from, what it's capable of, the fact that he found it and has it in his possession) but doesn't have specific information on what happened to the tribe. Said tribe may have been the ones who created the Song of Healing and the Happy Mask Salesman may have learned the song through research or the song was passed down. Assuming that the tribe originated in Termina, it would explain why the Happy Mask Salesman is in Termina and why he's the only one in Hyrule who's fascinated with masks. As for why he's in Hyrule, perhaps he found Hyrule during his travels and decided to set up shop. The children in the Moon have a resemblance to the Happy Mask Salesman. Since we know that the Moon's interior is...off, it may suggest a connection between the Happy Mask Salesman, the boss masks, and Majora's Mask. If we assume that the tribe that created Majora's Mask can create masks that contains the essence of a being, we can assume that they also created the boss masks since each mask contains the essence of their respective bosses. The fact that the children look like the Happy Mask Salesman may be an allusion to his connection to the tribe. Lastly, 3 colors stand out on Majora's Mask (the mask itself, not the game): bluish purple, red, and yellow. The Happy Mask Salesman's design has a lot of these colors. He wears a bluish purple coat, has reddish hair, and wears gold jewelry. This design choice may be an indication that the Happy Mask Salesman's connection to Majora's Mask is more than "the guy who found it."

Got excited when I saw who the video is from

I figured it out! The happy mask salesman is actually.......Tingles step-dad.

That theory will also explain how he is in the oracle games since they are in the fallen hero timeline taking place after ALTTP which would hundreds? Of years after OOT. Or maybe... He secretly went to the future with link and came back with him and that's how he knows it wouldn't be a big deal for him... Or maybe he has a mask that shows alternate timelines and thats how he knows... Oh I see the rabbit hole you spoke of now...

He cant be a normal hylian or terminain cause he knows about the deal made with Link 3 days before. The clock tower is strange as time does not pass there. but even if both conversation happen frozen in time there cant be two conversations happening at once at 5:59 am.

I wouldn't mind an hour long episode to be honest. In fact, I'd LOVE an hour long episode of just majora's mask theories

Perfect timing I was just checking for a new video on the Zelda series to get me in that Nintendo vibe for my sketching Edit mid-sketch: I agree with the God theory, and for my reasoning I’d like to point out the Horned statue and Malanya being referred to by themselves and others as Gods and I find it completely plausible that the Mask Salesman could be in that same vague class of “lesser gods” if that makes any sense

Honestly the Happy Mask Salesman always scared me-

Maybe he ended up becoming the cursed statue in botw

Honestly... him being a God would be one of the only theories that legit make sense. Never thought about it but yeah, it checks out to me lol. Awesome job man

The Happy Mask Salesman is the devil at the crossroads.

Wow, what a bombshell of a theory video! No, seriously. This is one of the craziest theory videos I've watched about Zelda, and it's actually really good discussion material! I had never thought about those three theories on the Happy Mask Salesman before watching this video! Nice job with this one, HG. Also, you have a girlfriend? Nice, dude! Hope you two end up having lots of happy Zelda moments together!

Here's a theory. What if the happy mask salesman is a god like in the video with the fierce deity being his counterpart like Demise and Hylia. But the fierce deity somehow died similar to Demise, That upset the balance in the world. So the happy mask salesman left to find a way to fix it, and ended up needing both skull kid and link to fix it. So he was the mastermind behind all of majora's mask.

I always see the Happy Mask Salesman as Gaunter O'dimm in the dlc of the Witcher 3. An evil identity that can exhause the wishes of people because in Ocarina of Time you deliver the masks to people that wish to posess a certain object or power like the guard of the death mountain for his kid.

If the happy mask salesman is a god/immortal, maybe he knows Link is capable because he recognises a connection between him and the Fierce Deity, who he would have also sealed into a mask.

the theory I've heard is that Happy is part of, or at least a descendent of, the same tribe that made/used Majora ages ago. That is why knows of it, it's dangers, and why all the Moon Children look like him.

HG: Let’s not ramble on for 20 minutes. Me: Congrats, you rambled on for 19:53 minutes.

I love that you always use Twilight Princess music when you do vids cause it’s definatly the best Zelda game

My personal theory is that he's an immortal magic-user who travels the world(s) looking for magic artifacts, and keeps them safe until he can find the right heroes to rid them of evil power. We've only seen him three times because only two incarnations of Link have interacted with him, and only one needed his help in only one adventure. Who knows how many adventures he's been involved in that we'll never see.

Yay! Hyrule gamer video!! Can’t wait for the future!

This could also explain the Moon Children considering they all look like him.

I’ve been waiting for this specific video to come out for some time now, yay!

Remember the picture of Demise and the Demon Lords arrayed behind him, in the intro of Skyward Sword? One of them looks like the Mask Salesman... at least as much as those abstracted ink blots can look like anything. Just like one looks like Ghirahim. Could be that he's an ancient evil playing the long game, willing to actually help in the short term if he deems that it moves pieces for him in the future.

The real threat in Majora's Mask isn't the moon crashing into the Earth, it's the fact that only Link and Skull Kid wear masks. Everyone else catches corona by the third day.

Shoutout to the Discord Family💜

That's why I love so much Zelda universe, it has so many mysteries and people do a lot of cool theories, for me, this is great!

It’s amazing to see how much you’ve grown since I first found you when you only had like 5k subs! Amazing job man

It was so weird how the Happy Mask Salesman knew so much about the mask and it's origin and just suddenly vanished at the end of the game right after he got the mask back. I think the Happy Mask Salesman is one of the people from the tribe that created Majora's Mask. Hell, he could actual be one of Majora's Mask's creators and kept his real identity secret to make sure things didn't become more complicated and dangerous.

Ok ok ok, you know my whole take on this theory - we talked so much about this character and all the possibilities 😍 you know, I can go on for hours about this, literally, haha.I love this video so so much, just like you 💜

Great video dude. I'm new to the channel, and I have to say, it feels great to hear a Scottish accent talking about my favourite game. May the Goddess smile upon you.

I like the idea of the game being a trail for Link. Kinda reminds me of the Sheikah trails. The reward is freedom from the darkness he felt for not getting credit / being abandoned by his friend and being completely healed and recognized in the form of Fierce Deity. Since the mask holds all of the love and appreciation of the people he helped in Termina.

I wonder if the salesman could be a descendant of the tribe that made the mask. That would explain why he sought it out. Maybe he’s the last member in the bloodline and wanted to preserve his culture.

HG: Ancient tribe "choughs" zonai "coughs" again Me: that was funny then me it possible zonai could have been around and or working with the sheikah or goddess hylia before SS

Fantastic video as usual sir! Love the theory on the Happy Mask Salesman being like a god, I’m so sure that’s the case he’s so mysterious and inhibits certain abilities and traits that just put him in a whole other category compared to Link and the average Hylian!

Great video one of your best !

One HUGE flaw with this theory, a flaw that disproves a lot of theories about this game that just about everyone seems to forget: LINK DID STILL SAVE HYRULE FROM GANONDORF. Despite being sent back in time to before grabbing the Master Sword and thus not fighting and killing Ganondorf as he did in the adult timeline, he did still stop Ganondorf and save Hyrule. And everyone knew of his deeds. The evidence is right in the opening of Majora's Mask, lines just about everyone seems to forget, ignore, or dismiss despite disproving a lot of theories (especially the stupidity of the Hero's Shade, but I won't get into that one). What lines? In the land of Hyrule there is a legend. A legend held dearly by the Royal Family that tells of a boy. A boy who, after battling evil and saving Hyrule, crept away from the land that made him a legend... Done with the battles he once waged across time, he embarked on a journey. "A boy who, after battling evil and saving Hyrule...", "Done with the battles he once waged across time" So what does this mean? This means that, despite Zelda sending him back in time, despite having never grabbed the Master Sword and been put to sleep for seven years, despite Ganondorf never taking over, Link was still known to be a legendary hero, his journey known by the kingdom. Seemingly INCLUDING his feats in the alternative future. Even in the Child Timeline, Link was known by Hyrule as the Hero of Time whom defeated Ganondorf. Hints of this can even be seen in Twilight Princess, but they're a little less direct. So, in regards to the questions posed around the 8 minute mark, why does the Happy Mask Salesman act as though Link is the only one capable of retrieving the mask? Why does he claim it should be an easy feat for him? Because, like ALL OF HYRULE, he knows who Link is and he knows, at least to some extent, what he did. He doesn't have to be some god or deity to know. As for the other discrepancies, how about some alternative explanations? Why does he need to leave in three days? Because he's a busy man. How can he be a busy man if he remains there doing nothing for three days? Because his business is not in Termina. As shown when you finish the game and return the mask to him, he has elsewhere to be and is just passing through Termina on his way there (or more likely, passing through the Lost Woods but had to side track through Termina after losing the mask). Being a mask salesman, he's likely traveling to set up shop elsewhere, but because Majora's Mask was stolen, he can't leave yet. But he only has 3 days to spare retrieving the mask before he needs to leave because he still hasn't even reached his destination and has a deadline. Why is he doing nothing? Because what would he do? He can't just set up shop suddenly considering how he did his business in OoT, not to mention that he would need a location to set up shop (I don't see any empty shops around Clock Town like he had in Castle Town). And he's not capable of retrieving the mask himself. So what else would he do but wait while Link retrieves the mask for him, hoping he does it in time. And of course he doesn't want to leave without the mask, especially when he knows the power it holds. How does he know the Song of Healing? Lots of characters are shown to know songs with magical powers, why is this one any different? I mean, I get the mystery of how the windmill guy knows the song of storms, but how is this any more of a mystery than how Zelda knows the Song of Time, or how the Composer Brothers composed the Sun's Song and the Song of Storms, capable of changing the time of day or bringing storms, or how Igos du Ikana learned the Elegy of Emptiness? There's so many songs with powers known by characters, the Happy Mask Salesman knowing a song that helps souls move on, with the side effect of creating masks, isn't all that weird. Besides, the fact that he has Majora's Mask is in its own the only reason he should know it. Even being a normal person that found it hidden away, it would make sense (it could have been carved onto a wall where the mask originally rested, for example). While he is mysterious and none of my points outright disprove the theory of him being a god... My point is just that none of those points are really evidence he's a god. Its a theory that has no basis or evidence backing it up, with no way of proving it any more than the theory he's a descendant of the ancient tribe or that he is Majora. But there's no way of disproving it until we're given an actual answer on who he is.

Great video! I think there is definitely something un-earthy about the happy mask salesman, especially at the end when he vanishes into thin air. But if he was just testing Link, why would he get so angry with him when he doesn’t return with the mask? 🤔

So you not gonna talk about how he just conjured a huge ass organ piano from thin air? :D

To be fair, even without knowing about the upcoming disaster or the time loop, a regular traveling salesman might have also planned to leave after 3 days since that would have been the day of the annual festival that Clock Town was preparing for throughout the game, where he would presumably have been planning to sell his wares before going to his next stop.

What if the happy mask salesman is reincarnated like Link and Zelda? He could be reincarnated into kilton in botw.

The fierce deity is nobody’s specific creation. In an interview with eiji aonuma he said “The best I can give you is just a suggestion. The best way to think about it is that the memories of all the people of Termina are inside of the Fierce Deity Mask.” I believe this to mean all the suffering and hopes of the people brought this mask to life and majora is just the easiest way for the game to give it to you. But if your theory is true then it still would be the happy mask salesman’s existence that gives it its awesome power.

TBH I think that the Happy Mask Salesman is a divine entity of happiness, and Majora represents rage and hatred. Everything connected to Majora is to do with anger and rage while the Mask Salesman is seemingly obsessed with joy and happiness.

Another great video. I would happily listen to a video an hour in length btw 😁👌🏻.

The god Theory seems to make the most sense, whenever link is involved in a "Other World." It involves a higher being of some sort. In Link Awaking we encounter the Wind Fish who is a God of the dream world, in Phantom hourglass there is Oshus Who is a Whale deity, similar to the Wind Fish. The story beats are very similar. Link is traveling outside Hyrule -> Link Mysteriously ends up in a new land -> sticks around to defeat the Evil so he may leave.

I personally think the Happy Mask Salesman is just a guy who has come across some powerful things in his travels. He might have gained some powers over time such as foresight or time travel as seen in his knowledge and his jerkyness in cutscenes. He seems a bit insane, possibly die to all the things he's seen.

Bruhhhh xD nice video! I see you have the PVC Majoras Mask! Great use of keying there!

YEEEES!!!!!! Finally more happy mask lore!! Imo the most mysterious person in the series. I hope he will be back

Hey, look who’s back! Great upload.

Oh no! he missed the opportunity to make a lord of the rings reference.

I always assumed that he is able to preform some sort of dark magic/witch craft in order to give those mask their abilities or that he was secretly working with ganon

What about the moon children could the happy masked salesman be one of theme.

I just realized when link slept for 7 years mask man went to termina and termina was destroyed.

Pretty awesome video, first of your videos I’ve seen 👍

This is probably my favorite Zelda RU-vidr, he’s very communitive to his fans.

Me, every time you say "you lovely human": ... how do YOU know I'm human? -.-

I like the idea of him being an Indian Jones type, but he knows too much, like Tom Bombadil, so he's probably an angel at the very least.

"You've met with a terrible fate, haven't you?" is this game's "It's dangerous to go alone! Take this." By which I mean: ICONIC my mini theory: the majora's mask has these bulging eyes, these eyes remind me of Koume and Kotake (Twinrova) - the two Gerudo (?) withches... MajorA, TwinrovA, both ends with an A, but that probably doesn't mean anything... So, I was thinking: maybe there is some connection to the Gerudo and Ganon(dorf)... That's all I have, really >:D

I literally was telling someone about skill share like a minute before I clicked on the vid

4 mins in and realises that I am here within the first five mins of the vid being released... Huh, that's new...

You watch MaskedNintendoBandit too? Lol :D

They have a creation story manga of Majoras Mask written by Akira Himekawa back in 2001 and I highly recommend reading it, it's at the end of the Majoras Mask legendary edition manga and it's really good.

This is just a thought based on the fierce deity mask being the Terminian counterpart to Link but if the mask salesman does grant power to masks, what if he created the fierce deity mask based off the Link of Termina to counter the power of Majora? It might explain why he knows about Link and why he knows Link is capable of regaining the mask since he knows about the Terminian Link. This is just an idea since I still haven’t completed Majora’s mask and am about to do so in my first play through after I completed the Anju and Kafei side quest (the best one in gaming imo)

I’ve been wondering about this... also like the longer video

Good video! But i have another theory, what if the Happy Salesman was actually an representation of Shigeru Miamoto in the zelda series, that is why he is so similar to Shigeru and why he has a mask of Mario, but he is like a god like the first theory that you mentined, that is not impossible because that already happened in another medias like in marvrl's comics there is a god called The One Above All, he is a represemtation of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. And that would explain why he knows everything about Link and the masks. And i'm sorry if i misspelled some words english is not my primary languge.

I love how the captions in the video still have the cues in them (stuff like [LIGHT OFF] and [PAUSE FOR SUSPENSE])

TBH when you first said "god" I thought of Loki, like he's a trickster God 🤔

We all know his real identity is Frank Sahwit.

The revenge of the masked god... to be continued in botw2 🤣🤣🤣

One thing I absolutely love about this game is how everyone has a different interpretation about basically everything. Most of all the atmosphere. Some people think this game is creepy but some think it’s hyper and basically most things you could describe a game’s atmosphere as and it would still fit this game. Even after 20 years we still have different interpretations. Absolutely brilliant.

this video is actually quite interesting and entertaining great job 👍 I like how you keep calling the mask salesman a god xD

Praise our lord and saviour, the Hyrule Gamer!

THE LAST TIME I WAS THIS EARLY TO A VIDEO I HAD A SUPER NINTENDO

Maybe mask sales man is the physical manifestation of his idea,since if we count majoras mask as a dream in links head,he basically knows everything about link like his adventures and etc dispute not being there or having a spy ,it's like when one of your emotions/thoughts manifests itself as a person you have met with,that's my idea at least

First off, nice video bro! Very well constructed and laid out. The two theories I go back and forth on are that he is a 'God' or that he was part of a lost people who worshiped Majora (I don't recall which RU-vidr I saw that Theory from so I apologize for not giving them credit!) I wouldn't though call him a 'God' persay, but more of a deity, I do like the idea that the masks have powers because of him, but I wouldn't say because he, himself, grants the power, but that through his work and experiments he created Masks and the Song of Healing. But I do think that Masks in the Zelda Universe some do inherently have magical properties, like the Fierce Deity and Majoras mask, which would have led him to his research that a soul can exist in a Mask. But that's my input on the matter, I would love to know if anyone agrees or disagrees and hear the counter points! :D

The first ad I got was a Star Wars Disney+ ad.