Irwin

Irwin
Legend of Mana Remaster artwork Legend of Mana Remaster artwork Legend of Mana artwork
First appearance	Legend of Mana (1999)
Latest appearance	Echoes of Mana (2022)
Title(s)	King of the Faeries Lord Irwin The Seven Wisdoms
Faction	His own
Role	Antagonist
Gender	Male
Species	Demi-Human/Half-Demon

“I'm not your friend. I just want to eat you up, like all demons do.”

—In-game dialogue

Irwin is a major antagonist in Legend of Mana and a recurring character in the Mana series.

Background

Irwin was conceived from the union between a human and a demon. At an unstated point of time during his childhood, Irwin befriended Matilda, who was fated to become the future priestess of the Gato Temple. Matilda treated the demon like her equal, which did not make Escad, one of Matilda's best friends, happy at all. He quickly grew suspicious of the demon, believing he would bring doom to her and all of humanity. One day, Irwin convinced Matilda to elope her duties as the next Abbess and wander into the Ulkan Mines. The young knight followed them in secret and saw the demon robbing her of her elemental powers. Escad tried to rescue his friend, but in a cruel twist of fate, it was him who ended up falling into the Underworld.

With his new powers, the demon left the world of Fa'Diel to the Land of Faeries, where he was appointed as monarch. He still sought to bring the girl of his youth into this magical world where she would become free from her heritage and duties.

History

Legend of Mana

“A half-demon who is a childhood friend of Daena, Escad, and is particularly close to Matilda.”

—In-game Encyclopedia

In Search of Faeries

Irwin makes his debut in Lake Kilma where he is seen conversing with Daena. The cat monk asks him what is he going to do with Matilda, as the power drain ten years ago made her rapidly grow old and weak. Daena orders the demon to give her powers back, but Irwin merely scoffs at the accusations. She tries to hit him, but he is to quick and strong for her. He asks Daena to give a message to Matilda that when everything comes to an end, she'll see that it was all a dream. He walks off, but the monk warrior tries to catch up to him. She hops on a portal created by Faeries just in time to enter their secret land.

Pokiehl: Dream Teller

A younger version of Matilda is seen with Irwin in a past version of the Ulkan Mines. She is seen suffocating from the gas emanating from the grotto, and worries that they might end up in a cave-in. The duo is later spotted while resting in a quiet spot in the mines. Matilda wonders why Escad hates Irwin so much, but an earthquake puts a stop to her questioning. The young priestess is glad to have succesfully left the temple on her own volition, but she is striken with terror as the might end up stuck in the cave. Irwin reassures her saying she has the spirits power with her and they will protect her. She replies she won't be able to become a priestess because friendship with demons are forbidden for the likes of her. Irwin declares he is not her friend and just want to eat her up, like all demons do, but she doesn't believe him. Irwin then tricks her into summoning Wisp to light up the way and snatches her elemental powers in the process. He tells her people should have to freedom to use their powers the way they want before chanting a spell. A young Escad comes to her rescue, but is killed in the process.

Star-crossed Lovers

After teleporting herself and her friends to the Land of Faeries, Matilda is seen atop the tower next to Irwin. She is overjoyed to see him, saying she never gave hope he'd survive. Irwin tells her she haven't changed at all, which makes her laugh as she is now looking like an old woman. The demon, however, hasn't changed much, thanks to the Land of Faeries being able to bind to one's thoughts and desires. Irwin wanted to bring her here to revert her back to her young self and to make her his wife. Matilda believes that the faeries will never accept her, but the demon states they will accept whomever he chooses, just like she accepts any human rules. He adds she is part of the Land of Faeries, but she blinbly follows the path others have set for her. The Abbess replies the only choice she have is to be free.

Heaven's Gate

Matilda reveals to her surviving friend Irwin will summon the Wyrm of Light Lucemia to destroy the world. Either Escad or Daena allies with the main character to defeat him before it's too late.

With the help of the Cancun Bird, they manage to infiltrate the flying fortress. There, they find Selva the spirit of wind, telling them Irwin is only toying with them. However, the adventurers persevere and finally reach the demon. Irwin claims his sole purpose is to eradicate vile creatures from this world, as they have taken so much land from them. The two parties engage in battle and Daena and the main character end up victorious. The fortress collapses as Irwin's body fades away, but they manage to escape thanks to the Cancun Bird.

After defeating Irwin and destroying the flying fortress, the ally will learn by a Gato Nun that Matilda has passed away and her body vanished at the same time. A cutscene of Matilda shows her landing in Olbohn's office in the Underworld. The Archdemon of Hell aks her if she's agreed to Selva's proposal of becoming the seventh Wisdom, to which she consents. Olbohn adds she doesn't need her old woman look anyomre and that Irwin felt guilty of what happened back in the Ulkan Mines. He transforms the frail lady into her younger self. The now young Matilda asks if Irwin is here and goes looking for him in the lower levels of hell.

She finds him surrounded by a bunch of Shadoles and chase them away. Irwin is surprised by her powers, but she claims it was the power of the Universe, not hers. She adds he can also create what his soul desires. Irwin states he's a demon born only to destroy, but the priestess replies he created her and helped her forge her own path. Irwin reveals her love made a shadow cast on his heart and only wishes to be reborn as a new demon whose only purpose is to destroy. He disappears into thin air, leaving the young priestess alone sobbing in silence while Selva comes to comfort her.

Sword of Mana

Irwin's summon

Irwin makes a cameo appearance in Sword of Mana. Like the Seven Wisdoms, he can be used as a powerful summon who can only be cast once in a day (once in a fight here), but only by enemies. Julius can call him forth during the second stage of the final battle, as his health runs low. Like the other seven, he deals heavy elemental damage, his element being Shadow.

When summoned, Irwin conjures a whirlwind of stormy clouds of darkness that releases a horde of Specters that inflict the Blind status. His power is comparable to that of his star-crossed lover Matilda, the mightiest summon the heroes can call forth.

Circle of Mana

Irwin makes a cameo appearance in the online game, along with several other characters from the Mana series. He appears in 8 sets of cards.

Rank	Attribute	Name	Classes				Quote
SUR	魔	ハロウィン・アーウィン	悪魔の血を引く少年	黒竜王と呼ばれる少年	[光]混沌を望む少年	[闇]破滅を望む少年	「どっちがマチルダにいっぱいお菓子を渡せるか、こいつと勝負するんだ！」 "Let's compete with this guy to see who can give Matilda the most sweets!"
SUR	魔	アーウィン	悪魔の血を引く男	黒竜王	[光]混沌を望む者	[闇]破滅を望む者	「俺は悪魔だ。破壊だけが俺の望み。さらばだマチルダ。この手に抱きしめたら、その細い体は砕け散る。」 "I am a devil. Destruction is all I want. Farewell, Matilda. If I hold you in my hands, your thin body will shatter."
SUR	魔	アーウィン	悪魔の血を引く少年	黒竜王と呼ばれる少年	[光]混沌を望む少年	[闇]破滅を望む少年	「そんなにイヤな世界なら、この俺がいずれ滅ぼしてやる。俺たちには生きる力が、自由があるんだ。どうしてそれを抑え込んだままでいなきゃいけない！」 "If the world is so unpleasant, I will destroy it sooner or later. We have the power to live, we have freedom. Why do we have to suppress it!"
SUR	魔	アーウィン[黒竜王]	悪魔の血を引く男	黒竜王	[光]混沌を望む者	[闇]破滅を望む者	「オレは『人』という醜い種を滅ぼすために、この地上に生まれて来た。」 "I was born on this earth to destroy the ugly species called 'humans'."
LGR	魔	アーウィン[真]	悪魔の血を引く男	黒竜王	[光]混沌を望む者	[闇]破滅を望む者	「オレは『人』という醜い種を滅ぼすために、この地上に生まれて来た。」 "I was born on this earth to destroy the ugly species called 'humans'."
LGR	魔	アーウィン[栄冠]	悪魔の血を引く男	黒竜王	[光]混沌を望む者	[闇]破滅を望む者	「オレは『人』という醜い種を滅ぼすために、この地上に生まれて来た。」 "I was born on this earth to destroy the ugly species called 'humans'."
SUR	魔	アーウィン	悪魔の血を引く男	黒竜王	[光]混沌を望む者	[闇]破滅を望む者	「オレは悪魔だ。破壊だけがオレの望み。愚かな創造などしない。」 "I am a devil. Destruction is all I want. I will not create foolish things."
SUR	魔	アーウィン	悪魔の血を引く男	優しき悪魔	[光]誠実な恋人	[闇]理想の敵役	「今はただオマエという呪縛から逃れたい。」 "Right now, I just want to escape from the spell of being a mom."

Echoes of Mana

While not physically appearing in the game, Stella was depicted in one memory gem:

• Finalizing Fate

General information

Personality

Irwin is a character who is inherently conflicted due to the antithetical nature of his heritage: he is a being who is the product of a union between a human and a demon. Throughout the events of the Faerie story arc, his struggle to reconcile the natural binary opposition that exists between his human and demonic sides is apparent; while the former is embodied by empathy, love and a desire for peace, the latter is defined by a reckless urge to destroy and desecrate.

As a result of his mixed heritage, Irwin is thus the subject of much prejudicial scrutiny by the inhabitants of the world of Fa'Diel. This is clearly evidenced through the hate-infused proclamations of Escad, an individual who has been conditioned to believe that demons are inherently evil and are motivated by an irrepressible urge to wreak havoc.

This hatred, one that conveniently overlooks the humanity that resides within Irwin, has inadvertently led to him being alienated and treated as a social outcast. This has in turn moulded him into an individual who is markedly melancholic and acrimonious from a young age. This is proven through his interactions with Matilda in the Ulkan Mines, where he, in response to her woeful comment on how social conventions contrived by adults restrict her from befriending him, furiously suggests destroying the world in order to free her from the fate she is bound to.

It is through this proclamation of Irwin's that one can also glean the deep love that he harbours for Matilda, as it bespeaks of the extreme nature of the indignity that he feels on her behalf, to the point where he is willing to go to such a horrific length in order for her to attain happiness in freedom. The words that he imparts to Daena in In Search of Faeries further proves this; the "dream" that he refers to in "it was only a dream when everything comes to an end" is a reference to the nightmare that Matilda undergoes as a result of her oppressive upbringing, and she will be liberated from it when the world is destroyed in his hands ("everything comes to an end").

Such garish outbursts that reveal Irwin's love for Matilda are rare, however; his antithetical heritage is one such that his love for Matilda (representing his humanity) directly opposes his instinctual desire to destroy (representing his demonic side). Unable to reconcile this difference, Irwin thus attempts to deny his love for Matilda by masking his desire to free her from a world that they both hate as an action that conforms to his demonic thirst for destruction.

Irwin does eventually attain a state of self-awakening, albeit too late after being sent to the Underworld following his death in the hands of the Hero/Heroine. He comes to the revelation that his plot to destroy the world is completely misguided, where he recognises that it is his love for Matilda, and not his demonic instincts, that has spurred his actions. His final words to Matilda in the Underworld prove as much, where he describes her as a "thorn in his flesh" and "a spell named Matilda", both of which metonymically represent the firm grasp that Matilda has over Irwin's heart, one that is at once constricting and painful ("thorn") and bewitching and enchanting ("spell"). This in turn highlights the irony that in his quest to attain the freedom to openly love the enchantment that is Matilda ("spell"), he has unwittingly allowed himself to be ensnared ("thorn") by said love to the point of no return (his heinous plot to destroy the world that ultimately resulted in his death).

Gallery

For this subject's image gallery, see Gallery:Irwin.

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  Irwin encyclopedia entry

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  Irwin encyclopedia entry

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  Irwin (boss) encyclopedia entry

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