Originally posted by The Scenario
First, let's look at how Zant acts before discovering his god.http://youtu.be/CbApgG2KAYU?t=12m34s
For context, this would be just after Zant was denied the throne. Notice how juvenile his behavior is? He doesn't get what he wants, so he throws a tantrum, runs outside, and beats the ground with his fists while screaming like a maniac. Then, when Ganondorf appears he simply stands in awe.
Next up, chronologically speaking, is this: http://youtu.be/7pNo_AptNPY?t=7m11s
This is almost a complete 180 from his previous personality. Zant is silent, wasting no time or movement as he curses Midna. A curse, lest we forget, that is stated to be from Ganondorf's magic. This is also the first appearance of Zant's helmet, but more on that later.
Now we can finally move on to Hyrule, though it's much earlier in the story.
http://youtu.be/4A9pu8Mrcig?t=4m48s
http://youtu.be/wCg0EwjQNyYThese two scenes are the player's first look at Zant, and naturally he appears competent and intimidating as a villain. One can be forgiven for thinking this is what Zant is really like. However, it is again opposite to Zant's chronologically earlier behavior, before he met Ganondorf. In any case, note for now that Zant is still wearing the helmet, it's semi-important.
For the next bit, I'm actually going back to the first video, if a different part of it: http://youtu.be/CbApgG2KAYU?t=11m
Here, we get our first real look at Zant's face, as he removes the helmet fully. The moment he does so, his behavior changes. He waves his arms aimlessly, twists his body around, and stomps like a petulant child. He's even spinning while he rants and screams like a madman. Then finally, during the boss fight, we see how Zant really is.
I'm sure we're all familiar with the big ball of crazy that is Zant's boss fight by now, so I'll just skip to the end. http://youtu.be/2Cn2DueD_7U?t=7m40s
After a battle of wild flailing and screaming, even after donning the helmet again, Zant is beaten. Now he can only scream, though there's a hesitation to his words. What happened to the Zant from before? Where is the imposing, confident villain from earlier, and why has he been replaced with this flailing, screeching lunatic?
"Already he has descended and been reborn in this world..."
And there it is. The reason behind all of this. Ganondorf has been reborn in a new body, one separate from Zant. Once again, Zant is alone, and the moment Ganondorf's influence is gone he reverts to the way he was before all of this started. An angry manchild throwing a tantrum.
We know Ganondorf can possess people thanks to Puppet Zelda, and we've even seen Ganondorf's god form completely envelop Zant. Is it really a coincidence that the moment Zant comes into contact with Ganondorf, he suddenly becomes competent? Is it just coincidence that as soon as Ganondorf gets a new body Zant regresses into the complete mess he was before? When Zant first meets Link face to face, what does he do? He starts off with a TK blast, of course. What is Puppet Zelda's first action? That would be TK blasting Midna across the room. What did the Zora do to Zant that would make him want to freeze their domain solid? I wonder if it would be the same reason Ganondorf froze them in Ocarina of Time.
It's a pretty interesting comparison, isn't it?
I never noticed this. You are a very intelligent individual. I think this is the win.