Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Plot Analysis
Written by: Squall of SeeD/Glenn Morrow
Version: Omega
First Compiled: September 16, 2005; Last Updated: January 24, 2006
***UPDATE***: For personal reasons, I'm going to be retiring from Final
Fantasy theorizing and speculation as well as pretty much anything related to
it. Take care everyone.
****NOTE****: As of January 24, 2006 no future updates for this document are
planned or intended. I will not be adding analyses of Before Crisis or Dirge
of Cerberus to this document. As such, in the next few days when Dirge of
Cerberus is released in Japan, this document will no longer serve as a
completely comprehensive guide to the various plots in Final Fantasy VII's
corner of the universe. To anyone who wishes to take that task upon
themselves, I wish you the best of luck, and you may feel free to reference
anything from this guide that is necessary to the completion of your work,
provided, of course, that proper citation and reference -- including a link --
are given to this document.
All that said, I would like to say that -- in all the time I've spent writing
these things -- I haven't enjoyed these games and their related works as I
should have. It can be fun to do, analyzing stories, but some people -- myself
being the greatest example -- can take these things grotesquely out of
proportion, and -- in so doing -- fail to just ENJOY a game, book, or movie
for the entertaining materials that they're intended to be. If you become too
wrapped up in picking something apart, you're not going to be able to
appreciate it for the work of art it is intended to be when viewed as a whole.
I say this from a -- sadly -- great deal of personal experience. This message
is addressed to everyone who reads this, but most of all, to whoever it is out
there who might be considering carrying the plot analysis torch into Before
Crisis or Dirge of Cerberus -- or any other work of entertainment for that
matter.
Remember to enjoy these works for what they are. Discussing them with friends
or even strangers on forums can be fun, sure, and that's all part of the
experience, and, yeah, sure, I even encourage you to get into a debate here
and there -- hell, maybe even a knock-down-drag-'em-out fight once or twice --
but remember to enjoy these things. Life's too short and there's just far too
much to experience and to partake of to spend all of it picking apart works of
fiction. On that note, also -- and I can't stress this enough -- remember to
enjoy LIFE ITSELF and try to experience as much of it as you can. Don't
become too bogged down in so much of this STUFF period, even if you are taking
these works of fiction for the purely entertaining value for which they're
intended. Don't take so much of it to heart. And, hey, if you have been doing
that? So what, okay? It's not the end of the world. You're still alive and
kicking. You can do something different tomorrow if that's what you want to
do. And, if you have been doing that, also don't be ashamed of it. Don't be
ashamed of any work that you have done and don't beat yourself up for things
you feel like you could have done better. Don't focus on the past. Think about
how you can make tomorrow better.
If you take anything from any of this stuff to heart, take the one ideal of
Final Fantasy that its creator sought to illustrate: Life's about experiences,
about making memories. The more you do and experience, the more you grow, and
the more the world around you grows. We're all part of a big interrelated
environment that's about that: Growth. Call it a web, or a ship, or a zoo if
you want to, but just do it. The most important thing in life is showing up
for it.
-Glenn "Squall of SeeD" Morrow
January 24, 2006
NOTE THAT THERE WILL BE MASSIVE SPOILERS FOR THE FILM AND THE ORIGINAL GAME IN
THIS DOCUMENT. DO NOT READ ANY FURTHER UNLESS YOU HAVE EITHER A) PLAYED FINAL
FANTASY VII AND SEEN THIS FILM, OR B) DO NOT CARE FOR INTEGRAL ASPECTS OF THE
PLOT OF EITHER BEING REVEALED TO YOU PRIOR TO PLAYING AND VIEWING THESE
TITLES. NOTE THAT THIS DOCUMENT IS WRITTEN WITH THE ASSUMPTION IN MIND THAT
ONE HAS PLAYED FINAL FANTASY VII AND WATCHED FINAL FANTASY VII: ADVENT
CHILDREN TO COMPLETION. THERE WILL ALSO BE MINOR SPOILERS FOR FINAL FANTASY
VI, VIII, IX, X, X-2, X-2: International+Last Mission, Tactics, Tactics
Advance, Unlimited, and The Spirits Within WITHIN THIS DOCUMENT.
:Contents:
-1) Purpose
-2) Frequently Asked Questions
-3) Theories and In-Depth Analysis
-Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children
1) The Origin of the Silver-Haired Men
2) How Sephiroth was Able to Return in Advent Children
3) The Origin of the Shadow Creepers
4) Sephiroth: Gone Forever?
5) The Final Battle Between Cloud and Sephiroth was not a Hallucination
6) Sephiroth Formed His Masamune Out of Thin Air
7) Symbolism in Advent Children
-Final Fantasy VII
1) The JENOVA Thesis
-Explanation of JENOVA and its Goal
-Explanation of the Powers of JENOVA
-Explanation of Sephiroth's Identity
-The Roles of JENOVA and Sephiroth: The Puppet Master Theorem
-Explanation of Just Who Cloud Really Was
-Cloud Was Not a Failed Clone
-The Sephiroth Clones are not Genetic Duplicates of Sephiroth
-The Purpose of the Sephiroth Clone Experiment
-The Sephiroth Clone With a "1" Tattoo Did Not Take on Sephiroth's Form, Nor
Did Sephiroth Have Such a Tattoo Himself
-The Sephiroth Forms Encountered Throughout the Game are Pieces of JENOVA
2) The Identity of the Voice in Cloud's Head
3) It Had Been Five Years Since Cloud Was Last in Nibelheim with Tifa
4) Explanation of the Lost Identities of the Black-Cloaked Sephiroth Clones,
And Why Cloud Didn't Lose His Own
5) Zack Is Not The Man In The Pipe In The Slums of Midgar
6) Vincent Is Not Sephiroth's Father
7) Aerith's Death Wasn't Necessary in Order to Summon Holy
8) Aerith Did Not Sacrifice Herself
9) Explanation of the Behaviour of the WEAPONs
10) The Battle During the Game's Ending was a Real Conflict
11) Why Holy Failed and the Truth About the Lifestream's Role in Saving the
World
12) The Cetra are not from Another Planet
13) The Promised Land Revealed
14) The Cetra Were Really Nomads
15) Bizarro Sephiroth and Safer Sephiroth: What they are
16) What Did Hojo Do to Red XIII?
17) Explanation of the Sphere Cloud Sees During The Ending of Final Fantasy
VII
18) Contrasting Cait Sith No. 1's "Death" With Aerith's
19) All that Remained of Sephiroth's Body After His Fall Into The Mt. Nibel
Mako Reactor Was its Torso
20) Vincent Does Not Have a Prosthetic Arm
21) Are Spira and Gaia Connected?
22) Analyzing the Storyline of Final Fantasy VII Based on Its Symbolism
-Bonus Essay-
Spirit Energy and Memories: The Magic of Final Fantasy
-4) Acknowledgements
(1)
--Purpose--
The purpose of this document is to shed light upon and -- offer analysis of --
the storyline of Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, the CGI sequel to Final
Fantasy VII, the Square-Enix RPG released in January of 1997 for the Sony
PlayStation game console, as well as its predecessor, the original Final
Fantasy VII.
(2)
-Frequently Asked Questions-
The first part of this document is a list of frequently asked questions
concerning the film (hey, this IS an FAQ after all) and their answers. They're
seperate from the main body of the article as they are questions with definite
answers that also happen to be very short. No theorizing required for these.
The questions that require theorizing will be further down. Note that much of
the information in this FAQ comes from the Director's Commentary included with
the Advent Children DVD. Those that are of my own devising will have "-SoS-"
placed beneath them.
*Question (hereafter abbreviated "Q"): What was the name of the form of
Bahamut that Kadaj summoned?
*Answer (hereafter abbreviated "A"): Bahamut SIN (also romanized as "Bahamut
SHIN"), or "Bahamut TREMOR." The prefix and suffixes in the names of the
alternate Bahamuts come from old Japanese fighter planes. For instance,
Bahamut ZERO is "Bahamut REKISHI" in Japanese, and NEO Bahamut is
"KAI Bahamut."
*Q: Why wasn't Cait Sith's Moogle Toysaurus in the film? It doesn't show up in
the present or in the flashback to Final Fantasy VII's last battle.
*A: The Toysaurus was left out due to the amount of extra time and work that
would have been required to render it into the film.
*Q: What does the wolf that appears at Zack's place of death, Aerith's church,
and the City of the Ancients symbolize?
*A: It's a symbol of Cloud's guilt and regret. As a result of being unable to
do anything to save Aerith and Zack, he blamed himself for their deaths. The
symbolism of the wolf also works in regard to the expression "lone wolf," as
Cloud has chosen to live away from others while he awaits death from
Geostigma. Continuing this line of symbolism, Cloud wears symbols of a wolf's
head and his motorcycle is named "Fenrir," the name bore by Loki's wolf child
in Norse Mythology.
*Q: What is the name of Cloud's new sword?
*A: "First Tsurugi," or "First Sword."
*Q: What is the name of the Limit Break that Cloud used to finish off
Sephiroth?
*A: "Choukyuu Bushin Hakazan Version 5" is its name. One of the more accurate
translations of the term is "Super Ultimate War God Champion Slash." "Choukyuu
Bushin Hakazan" was the name used for Cloud's original ultimate Limit Break,
and this was localized as "Omnislash" in English. Therefore, one can call this
new Limit Break "Omnislash Version 5."
The suffix "Version 5" was added, by the way, because the form of the attack
seen in the film was the fifth version of the attack that they developed to
use in that scene.
*Q: What were those dark clouds that Sephiroth called forth before his battle
with Cloud began? Some of them even had tendrils.
*A: It was something of a negative Lifestream, composed of the Spirit Energy
of those who had died with Geostigma. Their Spirit Energy became corrupted by
the influence of JENOVA's Cells and was, thus, under Sephiroth's control.
*Q: What is Geostigma?
*A: "Geostigma" is the name given to the side-effects of an internal struggle
between JENOVA's Cells and one's own Spirit Energy, gifted to them at
conception by the Lifestream. These side-effects result from the Spirit Energy
causing one's body to basically over-tax itself in trying to expel JENOVA's
Cells from within. These side-effects consist of extreme fatigue, open sores
on the surface of the skin, and discolouration of the skin. It is actually
these negative side-effects that contribute to an individual's death rather
than the presence of JENOVA Cells alone.
-SoS-
*Q: How did people the world over become infected with JENOVA's Cells?
*A: When the Lifestream spread over the world at the end of Final Fantasy VII,
it unintentionally carried JENOVA's remains to the population. JENOVA's body
had been blown apart inside the Planet and its pieces fell into the
Lifestream.
-SoS-
*Q: Didn't Tseng die in Final Fantasy VII? I recall Elena saying to Cloud
"...you really got guts doin' my boss in like that!".
*A: Obviously Tseng didn't die since he is present in the film sequel. While
the PlayStation version of Final Fantasy VII released in North America
certainly made it seem that Tseng had died due to Elena's statement, this was,
in fact, a major mistranslation, and was corrected with the PC version in
which Elena says "...you really got guts messin' my boss up like that!".
Also notable is that if one speaks to the wounded Tseng in the Temple of the
Ancients after he has given Cloud and company the Keystone, he will say
"I'm... still alive...." Apparently, while Cloud and the others were inside
the Temple of the Ancients, Tseng was discovered badly wounded and rescued.
Despite his massive wound, he survived. That Tseng was discovered before the
Temple of the Ancients became the Black Materia would actually explain how it
is that the other Turks would have known about Tseng being injured in the
first place.
-SoS-
*Q: Didn't Rufus die in Final Fantasy VII when Diamond WEAPON blasted his
office?
*A: As with Tseng, no, Rufus obviously didn't since he is present in the film
sequel. Rufus is never explicitly identified as dead, though Heidegger,
Scarlet, and Reeve all assume it to be the case. Though injured when he was
engulfed in the explosion that enveloped his office, he certainly did not die.
-SoS-
*Q: What were the names of the Silver-Haired Men's weapons and what kind of
weapons were they?
*A: -Kadaj's weapons-
The Souba (a double-bladed katana)
-Yazoo's weapons-
A Velvet Nightmare (a double-barreled gun designed to look like two
swords set side-by-side)
-Loz's weapons-
A Velvet Nightmare (a double-barreled gun designed to look like two
swords set side-by-side)
The Dual Hound (a pile bunker designed to function as a stun gun)
-SoS-
*Q: Do the Velvet Nightmare weapons function as swords as well or only as
guns?
*A: They function only as guns. While Yazoo does use his Velvet Nightmare to
block Cloud's sword during a fight, the weapons lack an actual blade. Both the
official North American and Japanese Advent Children websites state that the
Velvet Nightmares lack any sword function:
(Yazoo's profile on the official North American Advent Children website)
"A youth who is unbound by worldly matters and thus a bit of an enigma. Yazoo
carries the 'Velvet Nightmare,' a firearm designed after two parallel swords,
but with gun functionality only."
-SoS-
*Q: Could the title of "Gunblades" be given to the Velvet Nightmares as it was
to Squall and Seifer's weapons in Final Fantasy VIII?
*A: No. The Gunblades of Final Fantasy VIII only function as swords. The
Final Fantasy VIII Ultimania Guide states that the gun mechanism on those
weapons merely is used to rupture shells in the "firing" chamber, producing a
vibration along the length of the weapons' blades. Here follows a translation
of the Gunblade section of the Final Fantasy VIII Ultimania Guide:
(Translated by DarkAngel)
"GUNBLADE
Combining the sword with a standard shotgun’s mechanisms, the Gunblade is a
unique weapon. If you pull the trigger while the bullet is "set," a strong
wave of power will travel down to the edge of the blade, raising the attack
power of the Gunblade. By pulling the trigger at the right time, one can
release a powerful attack; however, achieving competency in usage of the
Gunblade is very difficult and therefore requires a high degree of aptitude."
Apparently, the first Final Fantasy character to carry sword-gun hybrids that
are fully functional as boths swords and guns will be Vice, the leader of the
Deep Ground SOLDIERs in Final Fantasy VII: Dirge of Cerberus.
-SoS-
*Q: What did the pink ribbons worn by Marlene and the members of AVALANCHE
represent? Also, where did each person wear their ribbon?
*A: They wore the ribbons to represent remembrance of Aerith and their bond
with one another.
-Where the Characters Wore their Ribbons-
Cloud: Left bicep
Tifa: Left bicep
Yuffie: Left bicep; also had one on her Shuriken
Cid: Left bicep
Barret: Left wrist
Red XIII/Nanaki: Just above the bangle on his left forepaw
Vincent: Right forearm
Cait Sith: Middle of his left arm
Marlene: In her hair
-SoS-
*Q: Is the city Cloud and Tifa live in Midgar?
*A: No. The city is called "Edge," named as such because it was built adjacent
to Midgar from random scrap and ruins of the original city.
-SoS-
*Q: What was that rain that Aerith brought which cleansed people of JENOVA's
Cells and disintegrated Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz?
*A: It was a representation of Aerith's Great Gospel Limit Break which would
completely heal party members in Final Fantasy VII. As far as what it was
in plain terms, the rain was Lifestream mixed with water. When looking at the
hole that Kadaj blasted into the floor of Aerith's old church, one can clearly
see the Lifestream mixing with water:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/LifestreamWater.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/LifestreamWater2.jpg
While this answers what the rain was, it still leaves this question: "Why
didn't Aerith use it sooner?".
-SoS-
*Q: Why was Rufus in that wheelchair and wearing that white sheet?
*A: Basically, he was putting on an act. He enjoyed the attention for one
thing, had fun with it for another, and the sheet also served to keep JENOVA's
remains concealed.
-SoS-
*Q: Which Limit Breaks are used in the film?
*A:
-Cloud-
(Note that the following Limit Breaks are used in this order of appearance)
1) Blade Beam (against Loz's earth-moving attack in the Sleeping Forest and
against Sephiroth)
2) Braver (against Bahamut SIN; this was the attack Cloud used when he
knocked Bahamut SIN down the first time)
3) Climhazzard (against Bahamut SIN; it was this attack which Cloud used to
defeat the Dragon)
4) Finishing Touch (against Kadaj; used when knocking him off the building
they fought upon, at which time Kadaj loses his Souba)
5) Omnislash Version 5 (against Sephiroth; this was the attack that he used to
defeat him)
(Note: Each time Cloud uses one of his Limit Breaks, Spirit Energy can be seen
surrounding his blade or being channeled through it immediately beforehand.)
-Barret-
Big Shot (against Bahamut SIN)
-Tifa-
(Note that the following Limit Breaks are used in this order of appearance)
1) Beat Rush (against Loz)
2) Somersault (against Loz)
3) Meteodrive (against Loz)
4) Meteor Strike (against Loz)
-Aerith-
Great Gospel (against JENOVA's Cells, Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz)
-SoS-
*Q: What Limit Break is it that Cloud uses during his fight with Sephiroth
that leaves three diverging slashes on the roof of a building?
*A: It was Blade Beam. As was the case in the original game, Cloud can focus
several small beams in different directions instead of channeling a single
large beam if he so wishes. This can be seen in the original game by using
Blade Beam in a fight against multiple enemies. After the target of the main
beam has been struck, the remaining enemies will then be targeted by several
smaller beams that the main beam will divide into.
-SoS-
*Q: Does Sephiroth's Masamune not draw blood, as is said to be true of the
legendary Masamune in the real world? Would this explain why Aerith didn't
bleed when Sephiroth skewered her in Final Fantasy VII?
*A: Sephiroth's Masamune definitely draws blood. The sword's blade can be seen
soaked in the blood of various Nibelheim villagers, including Tifa's father,
in Final Fantasy VII: Last Order, and in Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children,
there is blood on the blade after Cloud pulls it out of his shoulder.
The lack of blood flow from Aerith's wound in Final Fantasy VII was possibly
due to the developers wishing to avoid the game receiving a more mature
rating, or, perhaps, simply for artistic purposes.
-SoS-
*Q: Who is Zack?
*A: Zack was a First Class member of SOLDIER, Shin-Ra's elite miltary force.
He left his hometown of Gongaga nine years before the main events of Final
Fantasy VII at the age of 15 in the hopes of joining SOLDIER, and succeeded,
becoming among the best of the best, second only to Sephiroth.
He also had a relationship with Aerith Gainsborough, though this was cut short
at the age of 18 when he was assigned to journey to Nibelheim with Sephiroth
to investigate problems with the Mt. Nibel Mako Reactor. That ill-fated\
journey, would, of course, end with Nibelheim in ruins, most of its villagers
dead, Sephiroth and JENOVA's head vanished from Shin-Ra's eyes, and Cloud and
Zack -- along with the other survivors of Sephiroth's massacre -- Hojo's
captives for experimentation.
Zack and Cloud would spend the next four years as Hojo's captives, eventually,
Zack breaking free of his confinement and freeing his friend Cloud, as well.
He and Cloud journeyed back to Midgar, though Zack would be gunned down and
killed on a bluff that overlooked the city, while Cloud was left for dead, as
well, expected to expire due to his deteriorating state brought on by Hojo's
experiments. However, it was Zack's psyche -- unshattered by Hojo's
experiments due to his acceptance of himself -- that kept Cloud from losing
his sanity, as it gave him an anchor to reality, a point upon which to focus.
As a result, Cloud adopted much of Zack's habitual traits and would later
strongly remind Aerith of Zack, clueing her in to the fact that not all was
right with Cloud.
-SoS-
*Q: Who is Aerith?
*A: Aerith Gainsborough, the last Cetra, is the daughter of Shin-Ra's
Professor Gast, and Ifalna, a Cetra that Gast met sometime between his
discovery of JENOVA, and the eight years that followed. She was born in
Icicle Inn, where her mother and father had gone into hiding from the Shin-Ra
after Gast realized his mistake in identifiying JENOVA as an Ancient and
conducting experiments using its cellular material. Gast left the
organization, though whether or not this was before or after meeting Ifalna is
unknown.
Unbeknowest to Gast and Ifalna, Hojo had discovered their whereabouts on the
northern continent, though he let them go unbothered for quite some time. This
was because he wanted to give them time enough to conceive a child together,
giving him not just Ifalna, but another specimen to study. The child, of
course, was Aerith, and when she 20 days old, Hojo stormed into Ifalna and
Gast's home with Shin-Ra soldiers flanking him. Hojo intended to take the
family -- Gast included -- back to Midgar for study. However, Gast fought back
and was shot and killed. Ifalna and Aerith then became Hojo's captives for
study. For the next seven years, they were in his custody until they managed
to escape from Shin-Ra.
Badly wounded during the escape, Ifalna entrusted Aerith's care to Elmyra
Gainsborough with her dying breath, her last words being "Please take Aerith
somewhere safe." Aerith then spent the next fifteen years being raised by
Elmyra. During this time, Aerith's Cetra abilities often manifested
themselves, allowing her to not only sense that the spirit of Elmyra's dead
husband had attempted to come visit her before it was returned to the Planet
(at the time, Elmyra wasn't even yet aware that her husband was dead), but
also to discern the cries of the Planet, hear her mother's voice speaking to
her from the Lifestream, and to manipulate the flow of the Planet's Spirit
Energy and grow flowers in the church in the Slums of Sector 5, despite
Shin-Ra's use of Mako Reactors rendering the entire area within -- and much of
the area surrounding -- Midgar inhospitable for growing plants.
At 22 years of age, Aerith met Cloud Strife, a mercenary hired by AVALANCHE to
aid in the destruction of Shin-Ra's Mako Reactors. They would meet once in the
aftermath of Mako Reactor No. 1's destruction, and a second time after Reactor
No. 5 was destroyed, Cloud being lost in the explosion and falling from the
Upper Plate of Midgar to the Slums below. Rather than landing randomly in the
street or into a pile of scrap, Cloud's fall deposited him through the roof of
Aerith's church and onto the flower bed below. Aerith would soon after ask
Cloud to be her bodyguard and protect her from Shin-Ra (in exchange for one
date), and Cloud agreed. In a strange twist of fate, Aerith would find that
the habitual traits and cocky attitude that Cloud exhibited were essentially
identical to those of her former boyfriend, Zack, a member of SOLDIER that she
had not seen in five years.
Aerith knew that something was wrong with the situation, and that the person
Cloud believed himself to be was not the person he actually was. She was
unable to fully explore this matter, however, nor the matter of the
ever-deepening love triangle that formed between herself, Cloud, and Tifa.
Tragedy would strike Aerith's life and those of all who knew her. After
Sephiroth revealed his plan in the Temple of the Ancients, Aerith could feel
herself being guided to the Cetra's Ancient City on the northern continent.
She knew not what awaited her there, only that she was being led to a secret
that could possibly combat Meteor. Once Aerith arrived there, she learned that
the White Materia she had inherited from her mother, a relic she had formerly
believed to have no function, was actually the Materia that would allow one to
connect to the Planet to bring forth Holy, the ultimate White Magic Spell, the
only Spell which may stand against Meteor, the ultimate Black Magic Spell.
While praying to the Planet on an altar in the Ancient City, Aerith was
unexpectedly impaled on Sephiroth's sword as a shapeshifted piece of JENOVA
descended from above. Aerith's life ended and her spirit quickly departed,
leaving sorrow and anguish to those who had known her. However, there was some
cause for joy, though her grief-stricken companions were unaware of it for
some time. Before Aerith's life was taken from her, she had successfully
connected to the Planet and activated Holy. It was being held back by
Sephiroth's will from within the Planet, but the Spell was, nonetheless,
active and ready to stand against Meteor if it could only be released. This
task fell to her friends once they discovered that Aerith had left them with
hope to save their Planet.
The surviving eight members of AVALANCHE journeyed to the centre of the
Planet, confronted Sephiroth and the extraterrestrial "Crisis from the Sky"
named "JENOVA," and managed to defeat them. With these foes overcome, Holy was
free to make its stand against Meteor, which was now directly over Midgar and
bearing down upon it. Despite Holy being released, it had been held back for
too long, and as it struggled against the ultimate destructive Spell in the
skies over Midgar, their clash was damaging the surrounding area. Holy was no
longer able to realize its full potency after being held back for several
weeks, and Meteor was stronger. Not only was Holy's furious clash with Meteor
damaging Midgar and the surrounding area of the Planet, but Meteor was
actually winning, seemingly rendering Aerith's final act, AVALANCHE's
desperate attempts to carry out Aerith's plan, and Holy's own efforts futile.
This was not to be so, however, as Aerith's spirit was able to guide the
Lifestream to arise from within the bowels of the Planet and converge on
Midgar, its many emerald-coloured strands colliding beneath Holy and rising up
into it, adding enough strength to the Spell for it to stand equal with
Meteor. With the strength of the two Spells equal, and recognizing the concept
that the equal but opposite positive force applied to a negative force will
negate both, the White and Black Magic Spells were rendered sterile, canceling
one another out and saving the Planet. Even in death, Aerith's heart was ever
with her friends and the people of Gaia, and it was her that delivered them
salvation in their darkest hour.
-SoS-
*Q: Who is Denzel?
*A: Denzel is one of the orphans afflicted with Geostigma taken care of by
Cloud and Tifa. He had previously been the son of a Shin-Ra employee living on
the Upper Plate. When Shin-Ra destroyed the Sector 7 Support Pillar, Denzel's
mother and father were inside Sector 7 at the time and were killed in the
subsequent disaster. He was taken in by a kind woman and the two looked after
one another until Meteor's descent, when the Lifestream flooded across Midgar.
Acting as an accidental catalyst, the Lifestream had carried the remains of
JENOVA's destroyed body to the population of the world, and as it's tendrils
passed through them, the JENOVA Cells within took hold. Many -- including the
woman who taken in Denzel -- died shortly thereafter, while others, like
Denzel, would only become infected later. This infection of JENOVA Cells would
result in the widespread maladay known as "Geostigma." Over a year later,
after living with other orphaned children and fending for himself, Denzel
would be discovered by Cloud and Tifa, who would then take him into their
care.
For more on Denzel, refer to the novella entitled "On the Way to a Smile."
-SoS-
*Q: What is the Planet's name?
*A: While it's often believed that Final Fantasy VII's Planet doesn't have a
name, it, in fact, is named "Gaia." This became evident at the 2004
Electronics Entertainment Expo (E3), when the Square-Enix booth gave away
pamphlets concerning Advent Children that refer to the Planet as "Gaia." Here
is a scan of one of those pamphlets:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/AdventChildrenE3Handout.
jpg
With this in mind, recall that in Final Fantasy VII, the frozen area that must
be scaled to reach the Northern Crater is called "Gaea's Cliffs." Depending on
the phoenetic values one is recognizing, "ae" and "ai" can have the same
pronunciation, and such spellings as this are often interchangable as far as
accuracy goes when translating. In other words, an alternate spelling for the
name of that location on Final Fantasy VII's Planet is "Gaia's Cliffs."
The name of the Planet is most certainly "Gaia."
-SoS-
*Q: Is Vincent immortal?
*A: Yes. After being killed by Hojo approximately 23 years before the original
game began and then being brought back to life through his experimentation,
Vincent's aging stopped. He's now immortal, retaining the youth he had at 27
years of age even two decades later.
-SoS-
*Q: Is Vincent undead?
*A: For all intents and purposes, yes. He was murdered by Hojo when he was
shot approximately 23 years before the original game began. However, Hojo's
experimentation brought him back to life as an immortal with extraordinary
strength and powers.
-SoS-
*Q: How old was Sephiroth?
*A: While no official materials have offered an exact age for Sephiroth, it
can be roughly determined -- very roughly, I'm afraid -- due to information in
the Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Omega Guide. It's stated that Lucrecia gave
birth to Sephiroth 25 to 30 years before the original game began. Thus,
Sephiroth was 20 to 25 years old during the Nibelheim incident, and 25 to 30
years old during the main events of the original game.
Due to Sephiroth having died at the end of Final Fantasy VII and due to him
technically not being alive again until Advent Children, two years later, his
age should technically still be considered as 25 to 30 years during Advent
Children.
-SoS-
*Q: How old is Vincent?
*A: As with Sephiroth age, no exact age has been offered for Vincent. However,
unlike with Sephiroth's age, Vincent's age can be almost exactly determined
due to the time of Lucrecia's disappearance. According to the Final Fantasy
VII Ultimania Omega Guide, this event occurred approximately 23 years before
the main events of the original game, as did Vincent's murder at Hojo's hands
and the subsequent experimentation that Hojo conducted on Vincent which
revived him but left him ageless. We know that Vincent was 27 at the time of
his death and subsequent revival, placing him at approximately 50 years old in
the original game (48 to 52 years old using a 2 year margin of error), and
approximately 52 years old in Advent Children (50 to 54 years old, again,
using our margin of error).
-SoS-
*Q: How old was Zack?
*A: Zack was 18 years old during the Nibelheim incident, 22 years old at the
time of escaping from the Shinra Mansion with Cloud, and 23 years old at the
time of his death shortly before the main events of the original game began.
This information has been confirmed by Final Fantasy VII: Last Order which
shows a case file on the Nibelheim incident with Zack's profile including the
information that he was 18 years of age during the incident.
-SoS-
*Q: How old is Denzel?
*A: Denzel's age as of the present day in Final Fantasy VII: On the Way to a
Smile -- Case of Denzel is 10 years old. It is said that the Meteor incident
occurred four years before this, placing Denzel at 8 years old in Final
Fantasy VII: Advent Children.
-SoS-
*Q: Can Vincent fly?
*A: Apparently he can fly short distances, yes. Considering how reserved and
focused all of his movements are, however, it may be that he doesn't employ
this ability for extended periods of time to prevent bringing on his
transformations.
-SoS-
*Q: Can Cloud fly?
*A: Not anytime he wants to like Vincent, but he does fly briefly when
performing Omnislash Version 5 on Sephiroth at the end of the film. This is
theoretically something that anyone could do via a surge in their Spirit
Energy (what we know as a "Limit Break"), and we do witness Aerith's staff
levitating a few times in the original game while she performed some of her
Limit Breaks or casted Spells.
While he can't fly anytime he wishes, he can jump VERY high. When jumping
during earlier scenes, notice that his momentum putters out shortly before his
landings. He isn't flying at those points, but his jumps are impressive to say
the least.
-SoS-
*Q: Who is Cloud truly in love with? Aerith or Tifa?
*A: This is a matter deeply mired in personal opinion, and that is exactly how
Tetsuya Nomura, Yoshinori Kitase, and Kazushige Nojima intend to leave it.
There is no answer to this question due partly to the fact that the player's
choices influence who Cloud's affection is greatest for in the original game,
and due to the film intentionally offering no indication of who his affection
is greatest for. The only truly assured statement is "He cares about them both
very much."
-SoS-
*Q: Why does Vincent ask Tifa where he can acquire a phone when he shows up to
battle Bahamut SIN?
*A: After he rescued Cloud in the Sleeping Forest, Marlene asked Vincent if he
had a mobile phone so that she could call Tifa, due to Cloud having lost his
own during his fight with the Silver-Haired Men. Vincent didn't have one,
however, and was embarassed by Marlene's reaction of near-disbelief to
Vincent's lack of a phone. Further, Cloud informed Vincent that he would let
him know how his attempt to find forgiveness of his "sins" went -- a matter
that would likely be of personal interest to Vincent considering his own
history of accusing himself of committing sins -- gesturing with his hand that
he would call him. Vincent would be unable to keep in touch with Cloud and his
other comrades easily if he continued to conduct himself without a phone.
Therefore, he intended to buy one and "catch up with the times" so to speak.
As for whether or not he ever got around to doing this, as can be seen -- or,
more accurately, heard -- in Reminiscence of Final Fantasy VII (a video
included with Advent Children), Vincent does, indeed, acquire a mobile after
the events of Advent Children.
(Note: Thanks to my wife, Carys, for pointing out the multiple reasons why
Vincent would likely have an interest in having a phone, beyond simply feeling
embarassed at Marlene's reaction.)
-SoS-
*Q: Is Rufus truly reformed? He didn't even tell Cloud that he had the remains
of JENOVA or that he was planning to rebuild the Shin-Ra Corporation. That
seems to suggest that he had a hidden agenda.
*A: Rufus' hidden agenda was merely keeping the box containing the remains of
JENOVA hidden. He didn't want to in any way risk the Silver-Haired Men finding
it and using its contents. He didn't even tell his Turks that he had the box
with him, despite their loyalty to him. He didn't tell Cloud that the Turks
found it because Cloud was being uncooperative at the time and it was obvious
that Cloud wasn't going to join them. Thus, why Rufus said "Nothing... we
found nothing. You don't have to worry about it." Rufus wasn't going to give
Cloud that kind of information without knowing that he could count on him.
It becomes obvious toward the end of the film that Rufus was truly reformed,
as he makes a speech to Kadaj in which he says that he will submit to the
authority of the Planet and the order of life, also adding that he and the
others will be victorious over Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz in doing so.
-SoS-
*Q: Do Aerith and Zack's ghosts appear in the photograph of the entire team
that appears after the credits of the film have rolled?
*A: No, they do not. Refer to this close-up image of the photograph:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/FamilyPhotographs.jpg
As can be plainly seen here, they are not present. While the smudge near Cloud
coupled with the support joint of the structure behind him is often mistaken
to form Zack's right shoulder and face, they are not at all parts of Zack.
When seeing this occur, one's mind is merely attempting to ascertain an
identity to the image based on recognizable patterns. In other words, it's an
optical illusion formed by one's own mind. While one may argue that this was
done intentionally by Square-Enix, it should be kept in mind that this
illusion really only takes form when one is looking at a smaller version of
this photo rather than a close-up. For an example of a smaller version of the
image, look to this:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/FamilyPhotographsSmaller
.png
While one may still yet argue that since the image was rendered by people,
whatever is there is there intentionally, and, thus, it was Square-Enix's
intention that this illusion be formed, it should be kept in mind also that
there are other points of light on the photgraph aside from the smudge near
Cloud, and that they distort as the camera angle rotates; further still, there
is a light source pointing down at the photograph diagonally from above (refer
to this shot of Cloud's desk that comes before the close-up on the photograph:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/LightSource.jpg),
meaning that the smudge is intended to be glare. Further yet, it hardly makes
sense for Square-Enix to attempt to have an illusion of Zack present without
having one of Aerith. Aerith was actually a member of AVALANCHE, whereas Zack
was not. Finally, it should also be noted that both Zack and Aerith's spirits
had said their goodbyes and left together before the photograph was taken.
There's nothing logical about concluding that Square-Enix attempted to form
such an illusion intentionally.
-SoS-
*Q: The box that held JENOVA's "head" was a bit small for holding an entire
head. Was that what was actually in it?
*A: According to Takeshi Nozue, Co-Director of the film (as stated in an
interview in the Advent Children Prologue book), the contents of the box are
referred to as "the head," but what the box actually contains is just the
random remains of JENOVA's Cells. Of course, this might mean that some
material from its head was within the box, but Nozue doesn't indicate it to
necessarily be the case. They simply refer to the box's contents as "the head"
for simplicity's sake.
-SoS-
*Q: Why does Kadaj scream out in anguish when he looks into the box holding
JENOVA's remains?
*A: According to the script of the film packaged with the Ultimate Edition of
the film -- the one that includes the Advent Pieces collection -- Cloud's
sword shattered the box further after Rufus' earlier shot and damaged some of
the contents. It also goes on to say that Kadaj assumed Rufus was solely
responsible for the damage rather than Cloud. Why it bothers to say this, I
personally don't understand, as it wouldn't make a whole lot of difference who
Kadaj believed was responsible.
-SoS-
*Q: What is it that Reno often adds to the end of his sentences? What does it
mean?
*A: He's adding "to" to the ends of his sentences. It's basically used for the
same purpose that "yo" has colloquially in English: To add emphasis
(example: "What's up, yo?").
That said, he phrases it differently and with different levels of relevance
depending on how he does so. For example, he places "yo" before it on two
occasions, both times early in the movie when speaking to Tseng. This
indicates that Reno has respect for Tseng. While one should still never use
something like this when speaking to a superior, as it's considered rude, the
fact that Reno uses the more polite "yo" instead of its harsher, more
masculine form "zo" -- which he usually uses -- when speaking to Tseng
displays that he respects the leader of the Turks.
(Note: Thanks to my wife, Carys, for all this information.)
-SoS-
*Q: What is the black substance that permeates the water at the City of the
Ancients when Kadaj steps into it?
*A: It was his will.
-SoS-
*Q: Why do Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz have the children drink the water that
Kadaj's will permeated throughout?
*A: This was to activate the JENOVA Cells within them, causing their Reunion
instinct to take over. The idea was that the children would then be drawn to
the location of JENOVA's remains, allowing the Silver-Haired Men to locate
their "Mother."
-SoS-
*Q: "Aerith" or "Aeris"?: Which Should it be? What's the origin of this name?
*A: In Japanese there are the Katakana and Hiragana alphabets, as well as the
Romaji alphabet (there's also Kanji, but that's irrelevant in regard to this
matter; Romaji, by the way, is basically "Englishized Japanese," an alphabet
in which English characters are used to represent Japanese sounds).
"Aerith" -- and, consequently, "Aeris -- is a Japanese transliteration of the
English word "Earth, as confirmed by the Final Fantasy VII: Kaitai Shinsho
guide:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/Aerith.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/Aerith2.jpg
Hiragana is used for Japanese names, however, as Aerith's name isn't of
Japanese origin, Katakana (the Japanese alphabet used for words that are not
of Japanese origin) is used. The writing of "Earth" in Katakana is "Earisu."
This is because it's standard for vowels to follow consonants in Japanese
("n" being the only exception; thus, the "i" after "r") and the Japanese
language has no "th" characters, instead using "su." It will become "Aeris" as
a result of writing it in romaji (again, the alphabet in which English
characters represent Japanese sounds) to represent how it sounds when spoken
in Japanese ("Air-reese"; the Japanese "ea" sounds akin to the English "air").
"Aerith," the official romanization of the name, should technically never
occur. As it's written, it's essentially a combination of the romaji form of
the Japanese transliteration of "Earth" and the original form of the word in
English. It's technically impossible for this to occur in romaji because there
is no "th" sound in Japanese to be represented by romaji characters.
Nonetheless, it's the official romanization chosen by the creators of Final
Fantasy VII as a matter of preference, and has been the cause of a senseless
amount of debate among the fandom.
In conclusion, "Aeris" and "Aerith" are pronounced the same way ("Air-reese")
-- as both are romanizations of a Japanese transliteration -- a concept that
renders the spelling "Aerith" impossible as far as the rules -- and purpose --
of romaji are concerned. In any event, "Aerith" IS the official spelling of
the character's name, though the spelling SHOULD technically be "Aeris" in
romaji so as to properly represent the name's pronunciation. In any event, the
pronunciation should always be "Air-reese" regardless of the use of "Aeris" or
"Aerith" as its spelling.
All that said, there are two alternate -- and technically accurate -- names by
which one could choose to refer to Aerith:
1) "Earisu," the Katakana spelling of "Earth"
&
2) "Earth," the original word itself, which the Katakana spelling was intended
to represent.
(Note: A huge thanks goes to my wife, Carys, for this explanation of Japanese
reading and writing; I made quite a few errors in my "understanding" of
Japanese prior to your instruction.)
-SoS-
*Q: "Lockhart" or "Lockheart"? Which is actually Tifa's last name?
*A: "Lockhart" (without the "e") is Tifa's last name. Though it has been
published as "Lockheart" in official materials over the years, it was always
in the English versions of such materials that this misprint saw the light of
day. In Japanese materials, including the Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Omega
Guide -- which was compiled by Studio BentStuff and published by Square-Enix
themselves, the creators and owners of Final Fantasy VII -- it is spelled as
"Lockhart," indicating it to be the actual intended spelling. Just as with
Squall Leonhart of Final Fantasy VIII, there is no "e" in the "hart" part of
the name.
-SoS-
*Q: Cid's new Airship, the Sierra, bears a name reminiscent of his assistant
Shera. Is there any connection there?
*A: Yes. The Airship is actually named after Shera. "Shera" was a
mistranslation in the original Final Fantasy VII. "Sierra" is her actual name.
-SoS-
*Q: Does Reeve have an official last name?
*A: Yes. It's been officially confirmed to be "Tuesti" by Final Fantasy VII:
Dirge of Cerberus promotional materials.
-SoS-
*Q: Does Lucrecia have an official last name?
*A: Yes. It's been officially confirmed to be "Crescent" by Final Fantasy VII:
Dirge of Cerberus promotional materials.
-SoS-
*Q: Was Aerith ever intended to be revived?
*A: Perhaps the most enduring matter of speculation concerning Final Fantasy
VII is whether or not Aerith was intended to die, whether her death could be
prevented, and whether or not she could be revived after her death. In the
case all of these metters, I will touch upon them one at a time and reveal the
truth.
First, to the matter of Aerith's death being preventable. It should be kept in
mind that there is no alternate FMV in the scene where Aerith's death takes
place. This can be ascertained easily through the use of the PC Version of the
game and reading all the FMV data aon the disc, or through any computer
program that can read FMV data straight off of the PlayStation game discs.
Granted, perhaps there would be no FMV if she didn't die. However, in this
eventuality, consider how much of the storyline would be altered if Aerith did
not die:
Aside from all the dialogue that speaks of Aerith in the past tense, there's
the fact that if she were to live, going to speak with Bugenhagen during Disk
2 would be rendered unnecessary, going to the City of the Ancients after, as
well, as would the search for what became of the White Materia, in which
Bugenhagen sends the party off to find the Key of the Ancients in order to
activate the Ancient Machine in the City of the Ancients.
It was only after activating that machine that the party learned that the
White Materia was glowing a pale green, meaning that Aerith's prayer had went
through and the White Materia had already been activated. It was also the
above incident that allowed them to learn that Holy was activated, but wasn't
moving because JENOVA/Sephiroth was holding it back. Further, the party learns
that the Junon Canon had been moved and that Diamond WEAPON was approaching
Midgar while still at the City of the Ancients, which immediately preceded the
battle with Diamond WEAPON, the apparent death of Rufus Shinra, and the final
showdown with the Shin-Ra. This being the case, essentially the entire manner
in which things play out for the rest of the game beyond Aerith's death would
be altered in one form or another, with the majority of these being major
changes.
Also, in regard to both this matter, and the matter of Aerith being revived,
consider that the ending itself would have needed to be altered, as she is not
with the main party in the Northern Crater, nor on the Highwind, and only a
ghostly image of her appears in the wake of the Lifestream during the ending.
Considering how much of the game would have needed to be altered, it's not at
all possible for Aerith to be revived -- or intended to be so in regard to the
final version of the script -- while preserving the integrity of the storyline
itself. Granted, it may yet be argued that in earlier versions of the script,
such a revival was intended but later removed -- and it's also true that in
the first draft of the script, Aerith was not intended to die at all -- that
simply isn't the case and is a matter which shall be touched upon later; as
far as the original draft of the script goes, this examination is focusing
solely on the developers' intentions at the time of conceiving of Aerith's
death.
To those who may argue that GameSharks allow for Aerith to be revived, and
that there are even different lines that she will say from the generic lines
random other characters will say when in her place at that point (such as the
"I'm sick of this" line -- which can be seen farther down -- after the
snowboarding crash incident), keep in mind that GameSharks only alter existing
memory that is on the discs, and that her lines are still -- nonetheless --
pretty generic, and nothing significant in regard to the storyline, nor
anything necessarily Aerith-specific based on what is said. It's basically a
rearranging of what is already there, not something that can unlock new
aspects of the game, or be a key to unlocking the hidden parts of its
storyline. Characters such as Cid and Yuffie have lines as early in the game
as the Mithril Mines beyond the Chocobo Ranch, yet they're also generic lines.
With this in mind, any generic lines from Aerith beyond the point in the game
where she should be dead should not be regarded as significant, nor indicative
of a possible -- or intended -- resurrection.
It should also be pointed out that the GameSharks don't provide access to any
scene involving a revival of Aerith. They simply allow Aerith's battle and
envrionment map renderings to be present when they shouldn't be, just as
Sephiroth can be placed into the player's battle formation, as is shown in the
pictures below:
(Note: The first of these screenshots ("Aerith in the snow") comes from Final
Fantasy VII Citadel: http://www.ff7citadel.com/index.shtml)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/secsnow1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/sephchaos.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/BraveSephiroth_979415243
.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/UltimaSephiroth_97941524
4.jpg
This function of Game Sharks and other gamecode-hacking programs is simply to
rearrange the existing code within the game. That's why one can be at the
Northern Crater on Disc 1. The entire game, in terms of environment and
battle maps, was placed on the first disc, but the seperate discs were needed
due to the FMV sequences taking up so much space. Being that the ending FMVs
on Disc 3 are longer than most all the rest of the FMVs put together, it
should be obvious that there's no extra space for FMVs depicting altered
versions of the ending, featuring Aerith in the Northern Crater with the
party, or on the Highwind with them. In fact, Aerith being alive and being
there would completely screw-up what IS in the ending, such as Cloud seeing
Aerith's hand after the mental battle that occurs against Sephiroth's form,
Cloud saying "An answer from the Planet... the Promised Land...I think I can
meet her... there," and then Aerith appearing in the wake of the Lifestream
just as Meteor was being destroyed.
Further, being that there wasn't even enough space to take into account in the
FMVs that the player might do something as simple as recruit Vincent or Yuffie
-- due to them not being viewable in any FMVs -- it should be very obvious
that no such thing would be done with Aerith in the event of a revival. For
that matter, all of the FMV coding on the discs can be read and copied
straight from the discs themselves with programs designed for just that
purpose, and with the PC Versions of the game, all the FMV sequences on the
discs could be saved straight off the discs. No alternate ending FMVs are
present on the third disc of the game in either the PlayStation or PC format
of any version of the game.
More to the concept of whether or not such a revival was ever intended, all
the game's FMV sequences, including the one in which Aerith died and the
ending FMV, were all made during 1995. They were the first things that were
made aside from the script that the game would follow, made even before
environment maps. The game wasn't released in Japan until January 31, 1997.
The FMVs were completed more than a year before the game was released, and the
final version of the script was completed even before the FMVs.
While it has long been claimed by many that Final Fantasy VII was incomplete,
an intended resurrection of Aerith being left out due to time constraints --
and true that the original Japanese release suffered from time constraints,
and despite pushing back the release date a full month to work on the game
longer, they still failed to add in a pivotal scene of backstory (Cloud's
flashback in the Shinra Mansion basement on Disc 3 in which remembers his and
Zack's escape from Nibelheim) -- the game was completed in the half year of
time between the game's Japanese release and its North American release. The
additions made were on the order of the flashback sequence in the Shinra
Mansion's basement on Disc 3, the boss fight against Diamond WEAPON, the two
optional mega bosses (Ruby and Emerald WEAPONs), and a few other small things
in regard to Materia, equipment, and items that were added into the North
American release.
With the exception of the first addition mentioned in the previous sentence,
none of these were of absolutely pivotal importance to the main plot, yet
those who have argued that the game remained incomplete even after its North
American release expect for one to assume that such comparitively
insignificant matters were thrust to the forefront of the developers'
priorities, rather than an Aerith resurrection, which would have been a
massive plot element. Common consideration of the order of priority, as well
as consideration of the fact that the pivotal plot addition of the flashback
sequence in the Shinra Mansion's basement render such an argument ridiculus.
At this point, I wish to present the most important bit of information that
argues against the notion of an Aerith resurrection having ever been intended:
The proof. During an interview in the May 2003 issue of EDGE magazine, Tetsuya
Nomura (Character Designer of Final Fantasy VII) and Yoshinori Kitase
(Director and Co-Scenario Writer of Final Fantasy VII) speak on their
respective intentions and hopes for Aerith's death, and touch upon the matter
of a resurrection.
Nomura, concerning Aerith's death:
"Back at the time we were designing the game, I was frustrated with the
perennial cliche where the protagonist loves someone very much and so has to
sacrifice himself and die in a dramatic fashion to express that love. We found
this was the case in both games and movies, both eastern and western. But I
wanted to say something different, something realistic. I mean, is it right to
set such an example to people?"
Kitase's follow up to Nomura's comments about Aerith's death:
"In the real world, things are very different. You just need to look around
you. Nobody wants to die that way. People die of disease and accident. Death
comes suddenly and there is no notion of good or bad attached to it. It
leaves, not a dramatic feeling, but a feeling of emptiness. When you lose
someone you loved very much you feel this big empty space and think 'If I had
known this was coming I would have done things differently.' These are the
feelings I wanted to arouse in the players with Aerith's death relatively
early in the game. Feelings of reality and not Hollywood."
Kitase, concerning the fans' responses to Aerith's death, and the possibility
of her being revived:
"The world was expecting us to bring her back to life, as this is the classic
convention. But we did not. We had decided this from the beginning. There was
a lot of reaction from Japanese users. Some of them were very sad about it,
while others were angry. We even received a lengthy petition addressed to our
scenario writer asking for Aerith's revival. But there are many meanings in
Aerith's death and that could never happen."
Here, we have proof from one of the core creators of Final Fantasy VII that
no such resurrection was ever intended, even from the inception of the concept
of Aerith's death.
Finally, I wish to emphasise once more that -- contrary to popular belief --
neither the Japanese nor the International Version of FFVII included an Aerith
revival. As has been previously stated, the Japanese Version didn't feature
as much as the North American Version. As for the International Version
(re-release in Japan), it is identical to the version that North America
received, with the only exceptions being a few novelty items that are
available within the game (such as Johnny's Jacket), and a bonus disc that
came with the game in which vehicle schematics, an item list featuring
pictures of the items, and concept designs could be seen. While North America
has been shafted in regard to International Releases ever since, with FFVII it
did receive it in every capacity that relates to the storyline itself. It was
the first and only version released in North America.
In conclusion, with all the evidence born of logical reasoning, as well as the
proof from the very lips of the Director/Co-Scenario Writer of Final Fantasy
VII -- who also happens to be the Producer of Advent Children -- its is
unquestionably fact that Aerith was never intended to be revived.
Points often brought forward to argue that a revival of Aerith was intended
and why they don't actually support the notion:
(Note: These are taken from RTSmith005's contribution in falsehead's Final
Fantasy VII Plot Analysis FAQ at GameFAQs. I've reworded the points that were
made, but they still convey the same intention. Here is the URL to that FAQ:
http://db.gamefaqs.com/console/psx/file/final_fantasy_vii_plot.txt)
*Point: At the bottom of the Northern Crater, before going down to fight
JENOVA, there's a spot for everyone to stand, but there's also a ledge that's
empty where Aerith could have been intended to stand.
*Response: Technically, there's more than just one spot where Aerith could
have conceivably been placed. This, in and of itself, does nothing to suggest
that the notion was intended by the developers.
*Point: For the battle against Bizarro Sephiroth, if the player has acquired
all the game's characters (this meaning including Vincent and Yuffie), they
will have only 8 party members, not enough to form three full parties if
prompted to do so when battling the boss.
*Response: As with the matter of there being an "empty ledge" above the area
of the final battles, this alone does nothing to support the notion.
*Point: Throughout the game, Cloud has to make decisions that extend
favoritism to either Tifa or Aerith (or Barret or Yuffie, as well), yet after
Aerith's death, the matter is dropped and no longer affects anything. Surely
it was intended to affect more than just who Cloud dates at the Gold Saucer.
*Response: It does affect more than that. It affects the dialogue and dynamic
between Cloud and Tifa when they spend the night together beneath the Highwind
after Hojo's defeat and before the descent into the Northern Crater. If
Cloud's affection value for Tifa is high to moderate, their dialogue will be
much more indicative of a close relationship and strong feelings for one
another. If Cloud's affection value for Tifa is low, however, the dialogue
will be rather one-sided in regard to affection, with Tifa being openly
affectionate toward Cloud, while he seems to have little in the way of strong
attachment to her. Screenshots, as well as a script comparison of the matter,
can be found here:
http://www.geocities.com/ffviilovetriangle/LastNight.htm
(Note: This webpage is part of the website known as "Destiny Fulfilled" (http:
//www.geocities.com/ffviidestiny/) and is in no way the product of my own
labors.)
*Point: Aerith's ultimate weapon, the Princess Guard, has only seven single
slots for Materia and gains AP, whereas every other character's ultimate
weapon has eight slots consisting of four linked segments, and with none of
them gaining AP. This would suggest that this wasn't really intended to be her
ultimate weapon.
*Response: If the player were to suddenly acquire a weapon for Aerith that was
far superior to the other weapons for her in terms of its flexibility,
specifically if it gained no AP, that could possibly convey that this was
intended to be her ultimate and final weapon, thereby prematurely conveying
her imminent permanent departure from the party.
*Point: Aerith's Umbrella weapon has a higher attack power than her ultimate
weapon, the Princess Guard, yet every other character's best weapons have a
higher attack power than any of their other weapons. This could also suggest
that this wasn't really intended to be her ultimate weapon.
*Response: Again, if Aerith were to suddenly acquire a weapon far superior to
her other weapons in every regard, that could possibly convey that this was
intended to be her ultimate -- and, thus, her final -- weapon, prematurely
conveying that Aerith's permanent farewell would be soon.
*Point: When the player acquires Aerith's final Limit Break, in all
likelihood, she is already dead, as one essentially must know what they have
to do to acquire and make use of it before her death, and must go out of their
way a great deal to do so, spending a large amount of time in order to
actually make use of it. This would somewhat suggest that the player has it
before they should.
*Response: But the fact remains that the player can have it before Aerith's
death by making use of the Buggy supplied by Dio, riding it into Costa del Sol
and returning to the Midgar continent, then fulfilling the requirements for
obtaining a piece of Mithril, and later giving it to the Weapon Seller east of
Gongaga in exchange for the Great Gospel. Further, the player can make use of
it before Aerith's death provided that they raise her Limit Break levels to
the point that the Great Gospel item can be used to teach her this final Limit
Break.
The fact that she can get it before her death and use it completely undermines
this point in regard to reviving her. Further, consider that if Aerith were
meant to be revived, or were meant to remain alive, that -- with her final
Limit Break -- the latter Boss battles of the game would be made ridiculously
simple.
While true that it takes a great deal of time to actually acquire and make use
of it before Aerith's death, it's simply an extra challenge for players to
take on during the course of the game.
*Point: In front of the steps up to the altar where Aerith dies in the City of
the Ancients, there is a doorway in the background that cannot be reached.
Programmers usually don't waste the time and effort to put stuff like that in
a game if there's not supposed to be a way of reaching it or going through it.
*Response: Final Fantasy's programmers pretty much always have done that. For
that matter, they do it in VII on more than one occasion. In the first few
minutes of the game even, there's a doorway right behind the first Save Point
in the Mako Reactor that AVALANCHE blows up, yet one cannot pass through this
doorway. The programmers even bothered to render doors that can be opened into
small rooms that contain absolutely no items and where no cutscenes take
place, such as what appears to be a storage room in the inn of Sector 6's Wall
Market. One can merely open the door and take about one step forward before
they can't go any further. Things like this are just there to give the player
the feeling of actually being in a real world. The same is true of that
doorway in the City of the Ancients. If all we ever see or interact with/in is
all there ever was shown to be, it would be somewhat more difficult to immerse
oneself into the fictional world of the game, as this would remind them that
they are playing a game.
*Point: If one looks at the floor of the altar when Cloud is almost forced to
kill Aerith, there is a spiral staircase. While it's possibly intended to be
the reflection of the spiral staircase above, the glass dome around the altar
Aerith is kneeling on should already be reflecting it. There must be another
staircase beneath the altar.
*Response: There obviously isn't. Compare this picture of the support column
of the altar to the reflection on the floor when Cloud stands before Aerith:
http://photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/AerithFacingtheStairs.jpg
http://photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/AerithandCloudintheCityofthe
Ancients2.jpg
Most obviously, the spiral staircase is too wide to go down through that
column, and when considering what its depth would be in regard to that
reflection, it would be far enough down that it would already be below the
point of the column where it became narrow.
For that matter, Aerith's death scene and that environment map are riddled
with mistakes as it is. Depending on the version one is playing, when
approaching the altar, she either has her back to the stairs or is facing
them. In any event, when Cloud gets up there and holds his sword above her,
she's facing the stairs. As the FMV of her death begins, she is still facing
the stairs. When the Sephiroth form descends, it isn't wearing gloves, nor is
there a glass dome around the altar any longer. When Aerith is skewered, not
only is the Sephiroth form now wearing gloves, but the stairs are behind both
Aerith and the Sephiroth form. When the FMV ends, the Sephiroth form is now
facing the stairs and there a glass dome around the altar once again.
One more mistake added to that list is hardly a surprise.
*Point: There are solo FMV shots of each character in the game manual or on
its cover. All of these actually do occur in-game or realistically could have
(Tifa sitting on the well in Nibelheim, Vincent sitting atop the Shinra
Mansion and looking across Nibelheim, Yuffie overlooking Wutai from atop Mt.
Dachao, etc.), yet the shot of Aerith depicts her looking at the Highwind at a
close distance. When Cloud first saw the Highwind at such a distance, Aerith
was not with him. Further, Aerith is dead before Tifa, Barret, and the others
steal the Highwind later in the game. Also notable is that she's wearing a
white skirt here instead of her pink one. This is a heavy indication that the
developers intended to revive Aerith.
*Response: Aerith isn't wearing white in that FMV shot. She's wearing her
standard outfit. The manner in which the light shines on her makes it appear
as though she is wearing a white skirt, however, the pink hue of her skirt can
still be easily observed:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/Final%20Fantasy%20VII/Ae
rithandtheHighwind.jpg
As far as it having never occurred in-game goes, that's hardly to be taken as
an indication of the developers' intentions. For that matter, the FMV shot of
Barret Wallace involves him holding Marlene while standing in Aerith's church.
That hardly could have taken place during the course of the game, as Barret
doesn't see Marlene during the game after leaving her in Elmyra's care, nor
would the church have looked the same if the scene had taken place after the
game due to the damage rendered to Midgar and the church during Meteor's
descent (as can be seen by comparing shots of the church during the game to
shots of the church in Advent Children):
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/Final%20Fantasy%20VII/Ba
rretandMarleneinAerithsChurch.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/Final%20Fantasy%20VII/Ae
rithsChurchinAdventChildren.jpg
Supposing that Barret saw Marlene the day after Shin-Ra was defeated, he would
have gone to Kalm to see her and not to Midgar anyway.
While one may argue that Barret and Marlene had visited the church before the
game unfolds, that's rather going out on a limb, as it's never suggested and
needs to be kept in mind that Midgar is vast in size and the odds of Barret
having taken Marlene for a stroll through the dangerous city to Aerith's
church before they even knew Aerith is unlikely. For that matter, just because
Aerith wasn't with Cloud when he saw the Highwind doesn't mean she couldn't
have gotten as close to it as he did. The other members of AVALANCHE had to
find a way up to the upper level of Junon somehow, after all, and we're not
told much of what they did or saw on the way, with the only exception being
that we're told that Aerith DID see the Highwind:
(On the Shin-Ra Cargo Ship)
A soldier
"Umm.... It's me, Aerith."
Aerith
"Hey, Cloud. Did you see the Airship at Junon?"
Cloud
"...I heard it was big, but I didn't expect it to be THAT big."
Aerith
"That was REALLY something."
*Point: From a conversation between Cloud and Tifa rather late in the game,
there's foreshadowing of a possible resurrection of Aerith, as Tifa speaks of
Aerith having always been one to speak of the future:
Tifa
"I wonder what Aerith felt... when she was on that altar...?"
Cloud
"I'm sure she wanted to give her life for the planet..."
Tifa
"Really? I wonder? I don't think that's it at all."
"I think she didn't think she would die at all, but that she planned
on coming back all along."
"She always used to talk about the 'Next time'."
"She talked about the future more than any of us..."
*Response: The point here was not that Aerith had intended to die and return,
or that the developers intended her to do so. She, indeed, had no idea that
she was going to die, which is why she spoke of the future and of coming back
when things were finished with Sephiroth. Based on the aforementioned
interview in the May 2003 issue of EDGE magazine, we can determine that the
point of this scene was to emphasise the realistic nature of death: It's
unexpected and there's no time to prepare for it:
Yoshinori Kitase on the Subject of Aerith's Death:
"In the real world, things are very different. You just need to look around
you. Nobody wants to die that way. People die of disease and accident. Death
comes suddenly and there is no notion of good or bad attached to it. It
leaves, not a dramatic feeling, but a feeling of emptiness. When you lose
someone you loved very much you feel this big empty space and think 'If I had
known this was coming I would have done things differently.' These are the
feelings I wanted to arouse in the players with Aerith's death relatively
early in the game. Feelings of reality and not Hollywood."
*Point: Probably the strongest piece of evidence toward the truth of this
matter is that when you go back to Aerith's church on Disc 3 of the game after
getting the Key to Sector 5 in the Bone Village, you'll see her ghost appear
briefly. This is obviously part of a side quest that wasn't fully completed.
*Response: That "ghost" will actually appear even on Disc 1 while Aerith is
STILL ALIVE, appearing in the same manner as it will on Disc 3 and
disappearing just as quickly. One can return there after Aerith has been
kidnapped by Tseng on Disc 1 and see the image the same as they can later in
the game. For that matter, the children in the church say nothing which would
suggest the presence of Aerith in any form. At best, it's simply Cloud's
memories.
(Note: Much more information concerning the "ghost" phenomenon can be found at
Final Fantasy VII Citadel (http://www.ff7citadel.com/secrets/sa_church.shtml),
the first site to list the discovery of Aerith's "ghost" being visible in the
church on Disc 1, and also the only known site with documentation of
discoveries of the "ghost" made by hacking the game's code. My thanks to
Canadian Ninja for bringing the presence of the "ghost" on Disc 1 to my
attention.)
-SoS-
*Q: Did the Death of Hironobu Sakaguchi's Mother Inspire Aerith's Death?
*A: No. One of the most common misconceptions concerning Final Fantasy VII is
that the death of the mother of Hironobu Sakaguchi (Executive Producer and
story conceptualist of Final Fantasy VII) inspired the death of Aerith, or
that she was originally intended to be resurrected, yet his mother's death
inspired the development team not to bring her back to life. In either case,
this is wrong.
This belief most often arises from a misunderstanding -- or misinterpretation
-- of an interview Sakaguchi had with PlayStation Underground in 1997. In the
second issue of the quarterly CD publication, an interview with Sakaguchi was
included in which he touched upon various poins concerning the production of
Final Fantasy VII. While answering the question "Are there any new themes in
Final Fantasy VII?" he answered with the following:
"When we were creating Final Fantasy III, my mother passed away, and ever
since I have been thinking about the theme 'life.' Life exists in many things,
and I was curious about what would happen if I attempted to analyze life in a
mathematical and logical way. Maybe this was my approach in overcoming the
grief I was experiencing. This is the first time in the series that this
particular theme actually appears in the game itself. See if you can spot it!"
Where a misunderstanding arises from this is that -- either intentionally or
accidentally -- someone at some point in time replaced "Final Fantasy III"
with "Final Fantasy VII" in Sakaguchi's response, thus resulting in him having
been misquoted many times over the years. Sakaguchi's mother most certainly
did not die during the production of Final Fantasy VII. She died in 1988,
during the production of Final Fantasy III, as Sakaguchi suggested in the
actual transcript of the interview.
Of this we can be certain, as Sakaguchi wrote the foreword to The Making of
Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (published in 2001), and stated that it had
been 13 years since he lost his mother. Here follows proof concerning the
book:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/TSWBookTitlePage.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/BookCopyrightPage.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/13Years.jpg
One conceivable explanation concerning the misquoting of Sakaguchi over the
years is that some people may have confused the Final Fantasy III that
Sakaguchi was talking about with the game that was released in North America
as "Final Fantasy III" (Final Fantasy VI). Thus, the rumour may have taken off
from there, with people thinking that Final Fantasy VII was the next Final
Fantasy made after his mother's death.
Finally, it was not Sakaguchi at all who came up with the concept of Aerith's
death. It was Character Designer Tetsuya Nomura, tiring of the cliched
dramatic deaths that were so commonplace in Eastern and Western game in film,
usually involving self-sacrifice. With Final Fantasy VII, both Nomura and
Yoshinori Kitase (the game's Director) -- whom Nomura passed the idea on to --
wanted to say something about death that was realistic and final, empty rather
than dramatic, depressing instead of awe-inspiring. Thus, it was, that the
idea was not even Sakaguchi's. He merely approved it.
-SoS-
*Q: What is written on the plaque on the helmet JENOVA wears in the Nibelheim
flashback?
*A: It varies from one version of that scene to another. Thus far, there have
been three different versions of the writing on the plaque:
1) In the original game FMV showing the plaque, it said the following:
"JENOVA
MADE IN HONG KONG
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 1996
SQUER COMPANY LIMITED"
2) In Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, the plaque said this:
"JENOVA
|µ|-Era 19591010 ??
|µ|-Era 19670702 ??"
or
"JENOVA
Discovered Middle-Era October 10, 1959
Sealed Middle-Era July 2, 1967"
Notes on this:
-1-The plaque bears two dates. The first is "19591010," or "October 10, 1959."
The second is "19670702," or "July 2, 1967."
-2-In the inscription, the two Japanese Kanji characters at the end of the
first line form "Hakken," Japanese for "Discovery," and the two Kanji at the
end of the second line form "Fuuin," Japanese for "Sealed." In other words,
the plaque bears the dates of JENOVA being discovered and of it being sealed
in the Mt. Nibel Mako Reactor.
-3-In the inscription, the character between the two vertical bars at
the front of both lines is the lowercase of "Mu," the twelfth letter of the
Greek alphabet. This character was often used to denote "Middle" as it is the
twelfth of twenty-four characters in the Greek alphabet. For an instance of
its use in this manner, were one to see the following arrangement of Greek
letters, "Mu" would denote "Middle":
"Alpha-Mu-Omega"
In other words, the dates are from the "Middle-Era." Also worth nothing is
that the Greek letter before "-Era" on the monument in the city of Edge in
Advent Children is "Nu," the thirteenth letter of the Greek alphabet.
3) In Final Fantasy VII: Last Order, the plaque bore this inscription:
"JENOVA
STRICT SECRECY
SCIENTIFIC INQUIRY SECTION
SHIN-RA COMPANY LIMITED"
-SoS-
*Q: Did the Blue WEAPON that Attacked Junon Have a Name?
*A: Yes. The official name of the WEAPON that attacked Junon is "Sapphire
WEAPON." This is known due to the official toyline featuring a small toy of
the WEAPON, it including a character card clearly entitled "Sapphire WEAPON":
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/Final%20Fantasy%20VII/Sa
pphireWEAPONToy.jpg
Likewise, the official Japanese Square-Enix site's toy section refers to the
WEAPON's toy as "Sapphire WEAPON" (check the toy on the top-right):
http://www.square-enix.co.jp/shop/goods/ff_s_creatures_4.html
Finally, various official materials released over the years have referred to
the WEAPON as "Sapphire," these materials ranging from the Final Fantasy VII
Kaitai Shinsho game guide released by Famitsu/Aspect, to Final Fantasy VII
trading cards.
-SoS-
*Q: Are the WEAPONs alive or are they robots?
*A: While Ultimate WEAPON at the least is most certainly made of metal and
bears a distinctly cybernetic-looking core in its chest, it should be noted
that the WEAPONs are referred to as monsters in-game, and that they were
created by the Planet rather than constructed by Homo Sapiens. It should
further be kept in mind that if such creatures in the game as the Hell House
monster or the Dorky Face are to be taken as living creatures, then simply
because one or more of the WEAPONs might be made from materials that one
typically doesn't associate with living creatures -- especially when those
creatures were created by the Planet (the Lifestream), the source of life --
doesn't mean that those creatures are necessarily non-living.
The Planet likely used the raw materials (natural resources) that composed the
physical material surrounding the Lifestream to make its automated defense
system of monsters that came to be known as "WEAPON," and then imbued Spirit
Energy (the energy of life) into these physical materials.
-SoS-
*Q: Did JENOVA come to the Planet on Meteor, on a regular meteorite, or did it
simply smack into the Planet with its own body?
*A: According to Chapter 5 of "Maiden Who Travels the Planet," a short novella
starring Aerith (featured in the Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Omega Guide),
JENOVA came to the Planet on a normal meteor, and it was this impact which
produced the Planet's great scar that is known as "the Northern Crater."
-SoS-
*Q: Just what DID that "Watch out! This isn't just a reactor!" line early in
the game mean?
*A: Translated literally from Japanese, the line would be "Eye increase as for
this there is no simply a power plant!" Obviously, "Eye increase" became
"Watch out!" and "...as for this there is no simply a power plant!" became
"This isn't just a reactor!" As far as the context of the situation goes,
"Open your eyes!" or "Take notice!" would work better in English than "Watch
out!", as this was the first of many attempts by Cloud's subconscious to get
him to remember the truth of his past (for more on that, refer to the "The
Identity of the Voice in Cloud's Head" article in the "Theories and In-Depth
Analysis" section of this document). Note that the next time Cloud is in that
same area of a Mako Reactor, he has a flashback (the first of several) to Tifa
cradling her father's dead body in Nibelheim's Mako Reactor.
To clarify, the voice is telling Cloud that as far as the Reactor's personal
significance to him goes, it is more than just a place that supplies
electricity ("This isn't just a reactor!").
-SoS-
(3)
--Theories and In-Depth Analysis--
-Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children
In this section, we will examine the larger points of speculation and debate
concerning Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, as well as address some
analytical matters of the work. It is my hope that these articles will bring
a greater appreciation of the title to others, as they have to myself.
1) -The Origin of the Silver-Haired Men (Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz)-
The most hotly-debated aspect of Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, the CGI
(computer generated imagery) film sequel to the original Final Fantasy VII,
concerns the origin and nature of Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz, commonly referred to
as "the Silver-Haired Men" (or "SHM" for short) by the fandom of Final Fantasy
VII. Most often misinterpreted as being part of the Sephiroth Clone project
that Hojo conducted five years before the main events of the original game, or
as being individuals that were genetically altered with JENOVA's Cells prior
to birth the same as Sephiroth was, I will here explain the true nature of
these three enigmatic young men.
The official translation by Square-Enix used the term "Remnants of Sephiroth"
to refer to Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz. While this is an accuarate term, it's
somewhat inconclusive. It lacks the complete context of just what the three
are. The Japanese term used for the three is "Shinentai," which literally
means "Thought" and "Physical body." It is most commonly used to identify
spirits that manifest a physical form to remain in the world due to the need
or desire to fulfill some unfinished business from their lifetime. The word
has this connotation because the thoughts (spirit) of the deceased individual
in question manifest into a physical body.
When examining the matter of the Shinentai in Final Fantasy VII: Advent
Children, we should keep in mind just how ever-present a force the Lifestream
-- and, consequently, Spirit Energy -- happen to be, the point here being that
Spirit Energy (spirits/souls) are an authentic aspect of the nature of the
story's world, easily leaving open the door for a concept such as Shinentai to
be present. As Bugenhagen once said, while the cycle of Spirit Energy
theoretically functions in the manner that when a living life form dies, its
Spirit Energy/soul/spirit returns to the Lifestream, only for this energy to
be placed into a newly conceived life form, "there are exceptions." A
Shinentai would be a very obvious exception to this "rule."
The point being made here is that what we witness with Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz
is an actual illustration of the concept of Shinentai at work. The
Silver-Haired Men are -- quite literally -- "Spirits of Sephiroth," or
"Shinentai of Sephiroth." They are his thoughts made manifest into physical
bodies through Spirit Energy. When Sephiroth was defeated by Cloud at the end
of Final Fantasy VII, his consciousness was absorbed into the Lifestream.
However, Sephiroth's will is -- as was said by Tetsuya Nomura in The Distance:
The Making of Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children -- above all and second to
none. He refused to allow himself to be absorbed into the Lifestream to simply
become a memory. As such, his consciousness -- as it dispersed through the
Lifestream's Spirit Energy -- contaminated the surrounding Spirit Energy with
his will, and he then made himself manifest once more, though he was now
divided into three seperate entities, all with seperate aspects of his
consciousness, and, thereby, their own unique personalities.
For evidence of this, we can first look to their appearances. Like Sephiroth,
they all had silver hair, green cat-like eyes, and wore black leather outfits.
Further notable is that they were all left-handed. Sephiroth led with his left
arm when fighting, often swinging using just his left arm, but never just his
right. Even when holding the hilt of his sword with both hands, he was leading
with his left. When not swinging the sword and simply holding it, it was
always in his left hand with this hand close to the blade, clearly
establishing his left hand as his dominant hand. With Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz,
their left hands also dominated the use of their weapons. Kadaj fought the
same as Sephiroth, using his left arm to swing, even choosing to use just his
left arm in the Sleeping Forest and later when holding the box containing
JENOVA's remains in his right hand. Yazoo used his left hand for holding and
firing his Velvet Nightmare, and also when using the gun to parry Cloud's
sword strikes. Loz's Dual Hound was on his left arm, and he also used his left
hand to fire his Velvet Nightmare when firing at Cloud alongside Yazoo in the
Sleeping Forest.
We further find evidence of this concept with the Silver-Haired Men's ability
to summon and control the Shadow Creepers, beings that are also made manifest
from Spirit Energy that has become tainted by Sephiroth's will. When Cloud and
Sephiroth have their final confrontation near the end of the film, Sephiroth
summons a large dark cloud in the sky. This "negative Lifestream" as Nomura
called it consisted of the Spirit Energy of those who had died due to
Geostigma. Their Spirit Energy had become corrupted by the JENOVA Cells
present in their bodies, causing it to not only take on this dark appearance,
but also to be subservient to Sephiroth's will, as well as that of his
Shinentai. The Shadow Creepers take form out of the very same style of dark
mist as the negative Lifestream, and likewise disperse back into it when
defeated or dismissed.
Further still, we find yet four more inferences of this concept. The first is
when Kadaj places the Bahamut SIN Materia into his left forearm. Dark mist --
like that of the negative Lifestream -- rises from the spot on his arm as the
Materia sinks into it:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/DarkMist.jpg
This unnatural composition of the Silver-Haired Men would further explain how
it was that these three were able to absorb Materia into their bodies in the
first place.
For the second of these final inferences concerning the Silver-Haired Men's
origin, we will now look to when Kadaj steps into the lake in the City of the
Ancients. A dark cloud disperses from him, contaminating the water in the same
manner as Sephiroth's will contaminated countless amounts of Spirit Energy:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/Contamination.jpg
Next, we shall look to the moment when Kadaj takes JENOVA's remains into his
own body, absorbing it directly into his torso. At this time, we once again
see dark mist rise from Kadaj's body:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/Assimilation.jpg
Finally, note that when Kadaj dies, his body dissipated by Great Gospel, it
disperses into green Spirit Energy, the natural colour of Spirit Energy, no
longer black as had been the mist that arose from his form on previous
occasions:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/Salvation.jpg
The Spirit Energy of which his form was composed had been cleansed. We also
see this process underway with Yazoo and Loz after Kadaj's death.
While it might be also seem possible that the Silver-Haired Men could have
been formed of Sephiroth's consciousness as dispersed throughout JENOVA's
Cells (due mainly to their instinct for the Reunion, as well as the fact that
Aerith's Great Gospel dissipated them just as it did the JENOVA Cells within
Cloud and the other victims of Geostigma) and transformed from them, thus
making the three be entirely composed of that viral tissue, it should be noted
that they didn't feel anything actually drawing them toward JENOVA, unlike the
Clones in Final Fantasy VII, and unlike the children in Advent Children. In
fact, it was for the purpose of locating JENOVA's remains that the
Silver-Haired Men took the children afflicted with Geostigma and activated the
JENOVA Cells within them. They were to essentially be used as bloodhounds that
would lead the Silver-Haired Men to their "Mother." This is why Kadaj, Yazoo,
and Loz believed JENOVA's remains to be buried beneath the Midgar memorial
statue in Edge, as the children had formed a circle around it. Regarding the
matter of their instinct for a Reunion with JENOVA's Cells, due to the three
being Sephiroth's divided consciousness -- and with Kadaj making it clear that
the three felt an instinctual drive to become whole and could also feel the
will of Sephiroth himself -- as well as desiring the affection and approval of
a mother, this matter is easily explained in that Sephiroth's will would wish
for them to join with JENOVA's remains, thus granting him a means to manifest
himself directly once again, and they would personally desire to please
JENOVA, believing joining with JENOVA's remains to be the means by which to do
that.
As for them being survivors of the Sephiroth Copy Project, that is most
certainly not the case as none of the individuals involved in that experiment
had silver hair or green cat-like eyes; they looked just as they always had,
only now with the glow in their eyes that comes as a result of being infused
with Mako. For evidence of this, look to Cloud and the Clone branded with the
"2" tattoo, who can be seen early in the game in the Slums of Sector 5 resting
in a pipe: Cloud's hair was blonde and his eyes were blue, and Clone 2's hair
was black and his eyes were brown:
http://photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/Clone2.jpg
Further notable -- at least as far as the concept of them being JENOVA-Homo
Sapien hybrids like Sephiroth -- is that they're never mentioned in Before
Crisis or the original Final Fantasy VII. If President Shinra had them
lounging around his headquarters when Sephiroth was unavailable during
Episode 7 in Before Crisis, he would have called them in instead. However, the
individual he requested was Zack, the SOLDIER considered second only to
Sephiroth, even taking Zack off the mission he had been sent on with Sephiroth
to handle the current situation. Even Shalau Rui and Azul from Dirge of
Cerberus have made appearances in Before Crisis, so it would be absurd to
conclude that such important characters as the Silver-Haired Men would have
gone unmentioned if they existed back then.
With all this in mind, recall that Shinentai are not at all a foreign concept
to Final Fantasy. In fact, in Final Fantasy X and X-2, there are numerous
Shinentai encountered throughout the game, though we were introduced to such
individuals as "Unsent." These were individuals who were dissatisfied with
their deaths and could not peacefully go to the Farplane where their Spirit
Energy (Pyreflies) could "deposit" their memories and then be used once again
for granting life to living beings. Powerful emotions coupled with their
strong wills kept these individuals' spirits bound to the physical realm, even
allowing them to manifest physical bodies for themselves that were fully
capable of physical interaction directly from their Pyreflies. For all of the
individuals' who became Unsent, there was a case of unfinished business to
attend to, just as the concept of a Shinentai would imply.
For that matter, the concept isn't foreign even to Final Fantasy VII. Several
individuals from Beginner's Hall in Sector 7 who died when the Slums were
crushed beneath the Upper Plate can be found in the Respectable Inn in Junon,
their curiosity having prevented them from peacefully returning to the Planet.
Another example of such a concept can be seen with the vengeful spirits of the
Gi Tribe. Their hatred of the people of Cosmo Canyon allowed them to remain
present in the living world and to even manifest forms capable of physical
interaction. The hatred these spirits bore for the still-living people of
Cosmo Canyon and their subsequent manifestation as monsters is reminiscent of
the Fiends of Final Fantasy X and X-2, the malevolent spirits of the dead who
came to evny and hate the living. Yet another example of Shinentai is found
with the spirits of some Cetra within the Temple of the Ancients, their
spirits having remained behind to protect the Black Materia. Recall that
Aerith said that those were the "spirit bodies" of the Ancients; once again,
"Shinentai" translates to "thought" and "body," the mind/consciousness being
synonomus with the spirit in the Japanese way of thinking.
Therefore, in conclusion, when Sephiroth's body was dismembered, his Spirit
Energy unbound from it, and his will (thoughts) absorbed into the Lifestream,
his will contaminated that Spirit Energy it came into contact with, allowing
him some measure of control over that energy while he resised the Lifestream's
attempt to absorb him, resulting in his divided consciousness manifesting into
the three Silver-Haired Men known as "Kadaj," "Yazoo," and "Loz." It is for
this reason that they are called "Shinentai of Sephiroth," or "Remnants." His
thoughts (will) contaminated some Spirit Energy of the Lifestream, and his
powerful will allowed him to pull out of it and manifest physical bodies for
the personalities his divided consciousness took on (Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz).
The context of the term "Shinentai" clearly establishes the three as something\
that remained of Sephiroth's thoughts and manifested from them, and with this
kept in mind and then consideration given to the inferences of the
Silver-Haired Men's bodies being composed of negative Lifestream, we can
conclusively determine that Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz were essentially Shinentai
of Sephiroth in the traditional sense: They were physical manifestations of
his will through contaminated Spirit Energy.
Points Often Brought Forward to Suggest that the Silver-Haired Men were
Surviving Sephiroth Clones from the Sephiroth Copy Project or Individuals Who
Were the Result of Exactly the Same Experimentation as Sephiroth, Along with
Responses to these Points:
*Point: The Silver-Haired Men are given age-ranges on the official Advent
Children website under their profiles. Yazoo and Loz are said to be in their
twenties, and Kadaj is said to be a teenager. With this in mind, they
certainly can't be only two years old or younger. They must be survivors of
the Sephiroth Copy Project or other Homo Sapien/JENOVA hybrids.
*Response: The official website is a promotional tool, which is obviously not
intended to reveal the finer aspects of the story, and, therefore, only states
the age-ranges that the three would appear to fall under. While true that ages
aren't even given for Denzel, Marlene, or Zack on the official website,
despite us being aware of their ages through other materials part of the
Compilation of Final Fantasy VII (Denzel is 8, Marlene is 6, and Zack was 23
at the time of his death), yet age-ranges are given for Yazoo, Loz, and Kadaj,
it should be kept in mind that in the past, Square-Enix has intentionally
published erroneous and even outright false information to prevent leaking
spoilers, or to mislead players of their games into thinking one thing up
until the point that another was revealed as truth during the game itself.
This was done with the Final Fantasy X Scenario Ultimania Guide regarding
certain information about the Temples of Yevon and the nature and origin of
Sin.
That in mind, the very context of the term "Shinentai" establishes that the
Silver-Haired Men are not normal people. This word establishes that they're
something that took form from that which remained of Sephiroth's thoughts.
Considering the context of the word, plus the contaminated Lifestream that the
three are seemingly composed of, plus Sephiroth's assimilation into the
Lifestream at the end of Final Fantasy VII, we have the explanation for the
Silver-Haired Men's origin right in front of us.
The only "inconsistency" this leaves is age-ranges on a promotional website
that's obviously not supposed to give away the story to begin with, and would
intentionally mislead viewers if necessary in order to maintain the integrity
of a plot point's revelation. In this case, the viewers were obviously
intentionally misled so as to believe that the Silver-Haired Men were normal
people, rather than giving them suggestion -- or lack thereof -- enough to
ponder that they may be Shinentai of Sephiroth.
*Point: If the Silver-Haired Men underwent the same procedure as Sephiroth
prior to birth, then they would also have the attribute that he does of their
bodies being completely composed of JENOVA's Cells, and could, thus, still be
in the age-ranges reported on the official Advent Children website, and it
would make sense that they would dissipate when Aerith's Great Gospel touched
them.
*Response: While this is true, there is, however, no suggestion to this effect
offered in the film's story, nor is it very logical. If the three had been
around prior to Sephiroth's defeat by AVALANCHE in Final Fantasy VII, back
when AVALANCHE was consistently offering problems for Shin-Ra, it makes little
sense for them not to have pitted the three against the rebel group.
Further notable, once again, the very context of the term "Shinentai"
establishes that the Silver-Haired Men are not normal people. It establishes
that they're something that took form from that which remained of Sephiroth
himself, and in light of the consistent inferences to them being composed of
contaminated Spirit Energy, that is the far more likely possibility.
As far as their dissiptation due to Great Gospel goes, the influence of JENOVA
and Sephiroth is a blight to the Planet and something to be purged; Great
Gospel was used in Final Fantasy VII to the effect of complete recovery for
characters in all respects, removing all negative Status Effects and fully
restoring their HP and MP. While such things as Status Effects, HP, and MP are
aspects of gameplay and have no place in storyline matters, the implication is
obviously that the Limit Break completely purges negative influences.
Considering that the influence of Sephiroth had contaminated some of the
Planet's Spirit Energy, it fully makes sense for Great Gospel to purge the
Spirit Energy of that negative influence.
*Point: Where would the three newborn adults have suddenly acquired
motorcycles mounted with machine guns (Tetsuya Nomura stated in the Director's
Commentary on the DVD that the motorcycles have machine guns mounted on their
fronts), their clothing, and their weapons were they Shinentai of Sephiroth?
Further, where would they have acquired the skills to use their vehicles and
weapons? Further still, where would they have acquired knowledge of Cloud, as
well as a personal vendetta against him for what he did to "Mother"? Were they
individuals that melded with JENOVA's Cells prior to birth and were also part
of Shin-Ra, one can explain their battle prowess, their weaponry, and their
knowledge of Cloud and his defeat of Sephiroth (or JENOVA, as they viewed it
seperately from Sephiroth), and, thus, their enmity for Cloud, as well. This
would also explain them having Rufus' phone number. While on the subject of
their celular phones, who was footing the bill for their use of such things?
*Response: Kadaj and Sephiroth both randomly spawn their clothing and weapons
out of thin air. Sephiroth's Masamune simply appears when he fights Cloud
because he willed it to, and his clothes replaced Kadaj's when Kadaj united
with JENOVA's Cells. When Sephiroth is defeated and reverts into Kadaj,
Kadaj's clothes have returned, and Sephiroth's Masamune has become a second
Souba katana for Kadaj, replacing the one he lost earlier when Cloud used
Finishing Touch against him. That in mind, it's hardly a mystery that Kadaj,
Yazoo, and Loz are using custom weapons and have black outfits. These things
simiply manifested the same as Sephiroth's clothing and sword manifested. Note
that their clothes dissipate along with their bodies when Aerith's Great
Gospel hits them. For that matter, the very fact that Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz's
clothing would be akin to Sephiroth's suggests a subconscious connection to
him.
On to the matter of the trio's mobile phones, it's hardly a requirement that
they were using mobile phones that required a company contract. Not all mobile
phones in reality are operated through satellite relays of signals maintained
by companies that charge a fee for this service. Many operate through radio
waves relayed on the ground through towers connected to the landline telephone
infrastructure, with no fee being charged for their use. There are many mobile
phones sold that require no company contract and can simply connect to the
basic landline telephone infrastructure.
Regarding the Silver-Haired Men's skills and battle prowess, being that they
would be Shinentai of Sephiroth, it's to be expected that they would retain
some of his thoughts and/or memories, even if -- as Kadaj said -- they don't
feel like they personally knew him. By Kadaj's own admission, he could feel
Sephiroth, despite not actually knowing him on a personal or conscious level.
Further, considering that they've inherited Sephiroth's left-handed nature, as
well as his taste in clothes, his hair colour, and his eyes, it's not much of
a stretch to assume that they would inherit some of his memories pertaining to
battle. As for their enmity for Cloud, this would also arise from Sephiroth's
thoughts.
Finally, on the matter of their motorcycles, if it's plausible to assume that
the three were to be individuals that underwent the same experimentation as
Sephiroth, yet they've somehow alluded anyone being aware of them, mentioning
them, or enlisting them to take out Shin-Ra's problems for over 20 years, then
it's equally plausible, if not more so, to assume that they simply stole these
motorcycles from somewhere. A brief gander at Cloud's own motorcycle shows
that this world features some unique and interesting vehicles.
*Point: How did Rufus & Vincent know the SHM were Shinentai of Sephiroth? Who
told them? Did Sephiroth's will float down from the sky and manifest right in
front of Rufus?
*Response: Rufus knew because Kadaj tells him after laying a beating on Reno
and Rude in the first half of the film. Vincent knew because he's good at
finding things out. Notice that he's the only one to figure out what Geostigma
was too (Kadaj doesn't count; he knew what it was by virtue of who and what he
was).
*Point: Why do the Silver-Haired Men have incomplete knowledge of Sephiroth's
life and the circumstances surrounding his acquiring JENOVA's powers? All of
the other Shinentai from Final Fantasy VII mentioned above have knowledge of
their lifetimes (the guys from Beginner's Hall, the Cetra in the Temple of the
Ancients, and presumably the Gi Tribe, as well, to some extent). As
Sephiroth's Shinentai, there is little to no reason for the Silver-Haired
Men's knowledge to be so selective regarding what they do and do not know.
*Response: Sephiroth's consciousness was split into three. That's "A to B"
explanation enough regarding the incomplete knowledge of the Silver-Haired
Men. For that matter, the Shinentai in the Temple of the Ancients had
forgotten how to talk and they weren't split into three. Further still, a
certain Shinentai in Final Fantasy X and X-2 who knows lots of things
(Maechen) had probably forgotten more about his lifetime (including the fact
that he was dead) than he remembered, so Shinentai who are incomplete to start
with and who have their own personalities independent of the original
singular personality not knowing a few things is a perfectly reasonable
occurrence.
*Point: Why would the Silver-Haired Men only show loyalty to Jenova, but
apparently despise Sephiroth? Manifestations of his own will should like him.
In Sephiroth's spirit energy, Sephiroth's self-love and ego were in there.
One would think that manifestations of his own Spirit Energy would have
acquired a bit of adoration for him on top of their obsession with JENOVA.
*Response: Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz know that they are Shinentai of Sephiroth.
They also know that they aren't him and have their own personalities. They
also believe that he might return in the event that "Mother" favours him over
them. That's reason enough to dislike him right there. Children typically
don't like to think that their mother favours another of her children more.
As for the Silver-Haired Men's obsession with JENOVA, there's likely two
reasons for this:
1. Despite the Shinentai having their own individuality, they still feel
Sephiroth, something that Kadaj tells Rufus. His desire would be for the
Shinentai to find JENOVA's Cells so that Sephiroth's Spirit Energy could be
placed back into a body, giving him life once again.
2. The Silver-Haired Men are new life. They're two years old at the most. It's
natural for life forms -- especially children -- to want a mother. Rufus says
this, and it's been officially said that the theme of this movie is family. It
shouldn't really need to go deeper than Sephiroth's influence playing on them
and them desiring a mother to explain their obsession with JENOVA, but we also
have the theme of family to drive it home even moreso.
For more to consider in this regard, let's consider the psychological studies
of Harry F. Harlow. In the late 1950s, he worked with infant Rhesus Monkies
who -- like Homo Sapien babies -- need to be nursed and display a significant
spectrum of thoughts and emotions. Harlow's experiments involved taking infant
monkies from their mothers and giving them two artificial mothers, one made of
wire and the other made of cloth. The wire mother was given a bottle for the
infant to drink from, while the cloth mother was simply a source of warmth and
comfort. The infant monkies would stay with the wire mothers no longer than
was necessary in order to gain nourishment, and would then return to the cloth
mother, which, rather notably, they could only cuddle with, as it was unable
to cuddle them back, yet they still preferred contact with this artificial
mother over the other, despite it having the means by which they would gain
nourishment. Further still, when the cloth mothers were given the infant
monkeys' bottles, the infants would ignore the wire mothers altogether.
In other words, children desire affection. They want a mother who will give
them comfort. It is a natural tendency of living things to seek this
affection, and in light of Tetsuya Nomura stating in the October 2005 issue
of Electronic Gaming Monthly (Issue #196) that Kadaj -- and we can,
consequently, include Yazoo and Loz into this description, as well -- should
be regarded as a child who has not known a mother's love, the obsession of the
Shinentai for JENOVA is easily explained.
As far as loyalty to Sephiroth goes, were the Shinentai actually Sephiroth
Clones/Copies, or even Homo Sapien-JENOVA hybrids like him, rather than
Shinentai, they should be displaying such loyalties then, for sure.
Considering how obsessed they are to have a mother, their willingness to
accept whatever their mother decided (Kadaj concedes to dropping everything at
the mere suggestion from Aerith when mistaking her for JENOVA), and their
consummate desire for "her" approval, they don't exactly wreak of having a
personality like Zack's (that is to say, the personality of an individual
comfortable with theirself and who would thereby be strong-willed). That in
mind, there's no reason they should have failed to respond to Sephiroth's call
to the Reunion in the original Final Fantasy VII, and all individuals who were
weak-willed and DID respond to that call were enamored of him, which the
Silver-Haired Men obviously aren't (the notable exception to this being Cloud,
but his was a unique case on quite a few levels).
In conclusion, the three Silver-Haired Men were physical manifestations of
Sephiroth's consciousness as formed through the Spirit Energy of the
Lifestream that his mind contaminated and became enthralled by his will.
2) -How Sephiroth was Able to Return in Advent Children-
Quite simply, Sephiroth's divided consciousness (made manifest through
contaminated Spirit Energy as Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz) needed to join with
JENOVA's remaining Cells in order to grant Sephiroth the means to impose his
will and transmogrify the remains of JENOVA into his form once again. These
three Shinentai, or "Remnants," of Sephiroth then felt an instinctual urge to
acquire the remains of JENOVA and merge with them. This instinct came from
Sephiroth's desire to become whole once again and to unleash his vengeance
upon the world, and their own desire for a mother.
However, Shin-Ra, of course, interfered in this matter, the Turks recovering
the remains of JENOVA from the Northern Crater before the Shinentai could.
When Kadaj does finally acquire the remains of JENOVA from Rufus Shinra and
melds with those remains, his body transforms into Sephiroth and became the
vessel for Sephiroth's will. The reason this occurred was because Sephiroth's
will was hindered by it having been previously divided and manifested
seperately into Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz, thus, granting the three individuals
their own seperate personalities rather than them being Sephiroth himself.
With what remained of JENOVA's Cells being introduced into Kadaj's system,
however, and with him completely submitting hiimself to the will attached to
them (Kadaj believed that will to be JENOVA's rather than Sephiroth's; he was
unaware that the two were no longer seperate entities, and that, rather,
Sephiroth's consciously perceiving mind had replaced JENOVA's original purely
instinctual one), Sephiroth's will was able to to manifest itself directly
once again.
While Sephiroth only managed to complete this process with Kadaj alone due to
more interference from the Turks, it was enough for him to manifest himself
and his will through the bit of his consciousness that took part in the
formation of Kadaj and those JENOVA Cells that had been in Rufus' possession.
3) -The Origin of the Shadow Creepers-
An often-pondered question concerning the film's plot is how Kadaj, Yazoo, and
Loz could call forth and dismiss -- at will -- the large beasts that attack
Cloud early in the movie, and are later released upon the populace of Edge,
seeing as how they do this without Materia. The answer to this question lies
with the negative Lifestream that Sephiroth calls forth during his battle with
Cloud. This negative Lifestream was composed of the Spirit Energy of those who
had died with Geostigma. Their Spirit Energy became corrupted and
"JENOVA-fied," thus, it could be controlled by the Silver-Haired Men who had
similar origins.
Tapping into this negative Spirit Energy, the Silver-Haired Men could manifest
it as the beasts called "Shadow Creepers." For evidence of this, look to the
fact that the Shadow Creepers disperse into a black cloud when destroyed or
dismissed, these black clouds being akin to the large swirling mass of dark
clouds that Sephiroth later calls forth, as well as the dark mist that rises
from Kadaj's form on two occasions (once when he places Bahamut SIN's Materia
into his left forearm, and a second time when he plunges the remains of JENOVA
into his chest).
4) -Sephiroth: Gone Forever?-
An often-raised question concerning Advent Children is this: "Is Sephiroth
forever vanquished?" The answer is... "Most likely." While as long as there
are JENOVA Cells in existance, it's possible that Sephiroth's will remains on
some level -- as his will once permeated all JENOVA Cells in existance -- and
that he may one day return somehow. That said, it's most likely that he's
been vanquished to the Lifestream for all time.
As of the ending of Advent Children, a great victory has been won for
AVALANCHE and for the Planet: Many of JENOVA's Cells have been destroyed. In
fact, most have in all likelihood. Those that were within Cloud have been
destroyed by Aerith's Great Gospel, as have all those that were spread amongst
the populace of Midgar and had inflicted them with Geostigma as a result.
Further still, those the world over who may have been afflicted with Geostigma
would likely make a journey to Aerith's church in the ruined Slums of Sector 5
to be cured. On top of this, those Cells that composed the remains of JENOVA
in the box Rufus had were destroyed along with Kadaj.
It's true that Sephiroth's "body" is really all JENOVA Cells that exist, and
that it shouldn't be forgotten, nor should the fact that while most have been
destroyed, some small few remain in former members of SOLDIER, and
the Deep Ground SOLDIERs living in the catacombs beneath Midgar. That said,
how many carriers of JENOVA's Cells that there there may still be is unknown,
especially in light of the former members of SOLDIER possibly having suffered
from Geostigma in the two years since Meteor's destruction, just as Cloud had
(recall that the Sephiroth Copy Project that Cloud was part of involved the
same experimental procedures used with members of SOLDIER). With that in mind,
if the former members of SOLDIER have all died, then the only JENOVA Cells
remaining in existance as of the beginning of Final Fantasy VII: Dirge of
Cerberus (which begins one year after Advent Children ends) may be those in
the Deep Ground SOLDIERs, who will themselves be Vincent and the World
Restoration Organization's (WRO) adversaries in Dirge of Cerberus.
Anyway, back to the topic at hand, it should be noted that Sephiroth's
consciousness was unable to act through JENOVA's Cells and simply force the
remains of JENOVA in Rufus' possession to go to Kadaj, whereas in Final
Fantasy VII, Sephiroth had been perfectly capable of controlling JENOVA Cells
from all the way across the Planet. What's notable here is that throughout
most of the film, Sephiroth's consciousness was divided between his three
Shinentai, Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz, the physical embodiments of his Spirit
Energy and that Spirit Energy which his consciousness leaked into as the
Lifestream attempted to absorb him at the end of Final Fantasy VII. That in
mind, his will was unable to impose itself through JENOVA's Cells while his
consciousness was divided from them, and, further, at the end of Advent
Children, the Spirit Energy of which Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz were composed is
purged of Sephiroth's malevolent influence by Aerith's Great Gospel, this
made apparent by them dissipating into purified green Spirit Energy rather
than the black negative Spirit Energy seen several times throughout the film.
For that matter, it wasn't even red Spirit Energy such as Sephiroth's had been
at the end of Final Fantasy VII.
What this means is that Sephiroth's own already previously divided Spirit
Energy has been returned to the Lifestream, freed of his influence, where it
will be diluted even further, binding Sephiroth's Spirit Energy to the
Lifestream forevermore, his consciousness divided and his own individuality
undone. While it's true that Sephiroth has an extremely strong will
(indeed, the strongest will of all according to Kazushige Nojima and Tetsuya
Nomura), his consciousness had already been previously diluted by his first
death and return to the Lifestream, from which he only managed to escape with
his consciousness divided into three and his will not as potent as it
otherwise would have been, and Sephiroth now faces his diluted consciousness
being vanquished to the Lifestream a second time to be diluted further, only
this time sent back seperately (there are nearly three full minutes between
Kadaj's passing and the deaths of Yazoo and Loz), making his already massive
predicament all the worse in the event that his consciousness was even still
present by the time his Spirit Energy was sent back to the Lifestream the
second time.
With not even so much as tainted Spirit Energy present with Sephiroth's second
-- and final -- death, his already diluted consciousness shall be diluted
ever further into the Lifestream, leaving, at most, a whisper of hate and
malevolence.
5) -The Final Battle Between Cloud and Sephiroth was not a Hallucination-
Perhaps the greatest misconception concerning Final Fantasy VII: Advent
Children, is that the final battle that took place between Cloud and Sephiroth
was a battle in Cloud's mind, with the actual physical battle being between
Cloud and Kadaj. However, this is simply not so and I will here explain why.
First and most notably, throughout the film, the Scenario Writer, Kazushige
Nojima, served to offer foreshadowing toward the physical event of Kadaj
becoming Sephiroth. This was done first when Kadaj spoke to Rufus in Healin,
during which time he kneeled before him. Several flashes of Sephiroth himself
kneeling before Rufus instead of Kadaj are shown at this time. Shortly
thereafter, in the City of the Ancients, during his speech to the children
afflicted with Geostigma, Kadaj's form is yet again replaced by Sephiroth's
briefly at the moment he releases a wave of energy from himself. Later still,
we find that Kadaj tells Rufus that should the Reunion of the
Shinentai/Remnants and JENOVA's remaining Cells take place, Sephiroth will
return. Finally, we find Vincent outright stating that the natural development
of Kadaj's existance as a Shinentai of Sephiroth will have the end result of
him becoming Sephiroth. With all this foreshadowing and these hints offered
throughout the film up to the point of Sephiroth's return, one would have to
conclude that Nojima-san was simply incompetent in how he wrote this story if
it was not his intention that the opponent Cloud battled was really Sephiroth.
This would be true, first, because the foreshadowing -- itself a literary
device -- offered up to this point would be useless; second, because the
manner in which the story unfolded suggested the exact OPPOSITE of this battle
being a hallucination, as everyone in Edge witnessed the descent of the
negative Lifestream Sephiroth called forth (the black tendril-like clouds that
darkened the sky and descended on the ruins of Midgar were identied by Tetsuya
Nomura in the Director's Commentary on the film's DVD as something of a
negative Lifestream, composed of the Spirit Energy of those who had died
because of Geostigma), and the members of AVALANCHE onboard the Sierra
witnessed Cloud's victory. While one might argue that Cloud was simply
suffering from hallucinations due to him having been known to suffer from
mental problems in the past, those mental problems were never on the order of
outright schizophrenia, perceiving stimuli that is not at all present. Cloud
suffered from an identity crisis and a weak self-esteem, which further led to
an inability to accept himself for who he was, not schizophrenia. Even having
multiple personalities is not the same as having schizophrenia. Multiple
Personality Disorder is the case of an individual having two or more\
disconnected fragments of their psyche. Schizophrenia is the condition of
interpreting stimuli that isn't present, or interpreting it in a manner that
is not congruent with reality. Though the term comes from the Greek for
"Shattered Mind," this is in reference to the inability to properly interpret
stimuli, not in reference to a fragmented psyche.
Also notable is the very obvious fact that Cloud's identity and self-esteem
issues were more or less repaired in Final Fantasy VII, with him even coming
to accept himself for who he is, admitting his weaknesses and his true self to
those closest to him onboard the Highwind. It had been this inability to
accept himself for who he was that had made him weak enough to be Sephiroth's
puppet in the first place, and as a result of accepting himself for himself,
Cloud was able to fend off Sephiroth's will during the ending of the game. At
worst, during Advent Children, Cloud is suffering from guilt and
self-loathing, neither of which is exactly on par with schizophrenia.
Something else worthy of consideration is the simple fact that there is no
line of differentiation between reality and a hallucination produced by
Cloud's mind. While one might argue that the presence of the negative
Lifestream was said line of differentation, there's the obvious fact tha
Sephiroth was present for a full minute before he even conjured up the
negative Lifestream, and was further present for another fifteen seconds after
the negative Lifestream had begun to clear. Also worthy of noting here is that
after Sephiroth's defeat, Kadaj has a Souba once again, despite his having
been lost a few minutes before. Kadaj's second Souba is what remained of the
Masamune that Sephiroth had conjured during his appearance.
The argument has also been made that the flashes of cells (represented as the
flashes that occasionally appear during the movie with a blue flash) on-screen
marked the line of demarcation for the beginning of Cloud's hallucination, but
this argument is flawed in that such flashes occur frequently throughout the
film, even when Cloud is not present. To conclude that these were the lines of
demarcation between hallucinating and perceiving reality for Cloud is to
conclude that many characters throughout the game were suffering similar bouts
of disassociation with reality.
Also notable is that Sephiroth clearly flies, something that Kadaj and even
Cloud cannot do. Further still, Sephiroth is much more powerful than Kadaj.
During Cloud's battle with Kadaj, it was Kadaj that was on the defensive; he
was clearly outmatched. In fact, Kadaj never so much as lands a single blow on
Cloud. Sephiroth, however, had Cloud on the defensive during their entire
battle and landed several hits against him and would have actually been able
to end the fight by running Cloud through with his sword had he chosen to
skewer him in a vital area rather than in his organless shoulder. While one
might argue that absorbing JENOVA's extra remaining Cells made Kadaj more
powerful, granting him the ability to fly, greater battle prowess than Cloud,
and even a Masamune if he so wished it, there's also the very simple fact that
Sephiroth does not have Kadaj's personality.
Kadaj was a conflicted, unsure boy. Sephiroth was a self-confident, stable
man. Kadaj didn't even know if he would retain his own personality should he
merge with JENVOA's remains. He didn't know if he would be taken over by
Sephiroth or not. Nonetheless, he carried out his instinct to merge with
JENOVA's Cells simply out of the hope that it might please a mother he had
never known. Sephiroth on the other hand knew exactly what the results of his
actions would be, what he wanted, and how he was going to go about achieving
it. Sephiroth spoke and acted with confidence, even skewering Cloud through
his shoulder rather than his heart, simply because he was confident enough in
himself that he didn't believe he was going to lose, no matter how long he
dragged the battle out, or how many chances he gave Cloud to get back up. He
was intent on breaking Cloud's spirit. As he told him, he wished to give him
despair; he wanted to take away what was precious to him. Kadaj, on the other
hand, was desperate and would have taken an opportunity to kill Cloud as soon
as it arose.
On top of all that, there's also the fact that Sephiroth speaks of his goal,
taking advantage of the malady known as Geostigma to achieve his plan. The
Spirit Energy of those who died with Geostigma would become contaminated, and
would, thus, infringe upon the positive Lifestream over time. Basically, the
Spirit Energy of those who died due to Geostigma would become "JENOVA-fied,"
granting Sephiroth dominance over that Spirit Energy. Eventually, he would
have enough of this Spirit Energy bent to his will that he could use it to
assimilate the rest of the positive Lifestream.
With all this in mind, there's absolutely no indication that Cloud was
hallucinating. All indication points to what viewers of Advent Children
witnessed as the final battle having been the true final battle. The idea that
Cloud was experiencing a hallucinogenic battle with Sephiroth while actually
fighting Kadaj requires assuming many things, none of which have any support:
1) That the Scenario Writer offered continuous foreshadowing and hints that
Kadaj would become Sephiroth -- even going so far as to have Vincent outright
state that Kadaj's natural development as a Shinentai of Sephiroth would have
him become Sephiroth -- but never went anywhere with the idea in reality.
2) That Kadaj gained the ability to fly.
3) That Kadaj somehow gained a completely different personality, lost his
aggressive and desperate drive to take Cloud out at the earliest available
time, and suddenly gained a confidence boost as though he had spent a lifetime
in therapy, but despite all this, was still himself... and that he then
reverted into his old unsure, desperate-to-get-to-talk-to-Mother self after
Cloud beat him.
4) That Cloud conjured up a goal for Sephiroth who he wasn't even fighting.
5) That Cloud conceived of a negative Lifestream in the first place, and that
the Director would bother to mention this in a manner that suggests it is part
of what actually took place in the film, not in a manner that would suggest it
to be the line of demarcation between reality and insanity.
6) That Kadaj falls out of the sky, inexplicably losing his ability to fly
after being wounded by Cloud.
7) That Cloud and Kadaj had an apocalyptic, epic showdown that we don't get
to see.
8) That the Writer was a moron.
While one might argue that things in a story can be interpreted any number of
ways even despite a lack of support, this applies to themes, symbols, subtext,
and other subtleties. This does not, however, apply to events that are
explicitly illustrated or stated to have occurred. Interpretations must fall
in line with what has otherwise been presented as fact, not distort or alter
it to fit the interpretations themselves.
6) -Sephiroth Formed His Masamune Out of Thin Air-
A common question concerning Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children pertains to
how he acquired his Masamune before his battle with Cloud began. Some have
concluded that Kadaj landed in the vicinity of his Souba (his double-bladed
katana) that he dropped a moment before, and that Sephiroth then used Kadaj's
Souba to block Cloud's strike, and that he then transmutated the Souba into
his Masamune. Seemingly, support for this notion would come from the fact that
when Sephiroth is defeated and he disperses, his Masamune has been
transmutated into Kadaj's Souba. However, this is not accurate and I will here
explain why.
While Kadaj does fall in the general direction that his Souba had fallen, when
he lands, stands up, and then stretches out his arms toward the descending
Cloud, there is no indication that there is a sword in his hands:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/KadajsTransformation.jpg
Further still, we find that in the very first frame we see when the camera
angle switches from looking at Sephiroth blocking Cloud's attack to the
close-up of the two, the hilt that Sephiroth is holding doesn't have a blade
at all, and that Sephiroth had blocked Cloud's attack with his will:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/KadajsTransformation3.jp
g
We then find that Sephiroth wills a blade for his sword into existance, the
blade taking form out of thin air:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/KadajsTransformation4.jp
g
Also notable is that there are no tassles attached to either side of the hilt
that Sephiroth is holding, whereas there is a tassle attached to both sides of
the hilt of Kadaj's Souba:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/Tassle.jpg
Interestingly enough, when Sephiroth is defeated and his body reverts into
Kadaj's, the Masamune becomes a second Souba, tassles and all:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/Tassle2.jpg
Based on these observations, we can conclusively determine that Sephiroth did
not transmutate Kadaj's Souba into the Masamune, but, rather, he simply willed
it into existance, the same as his clothing and the metal shoulder plates he
wore.
7) -Symbolism in Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children-
*"Advent Children": The term "Advent" means "An anticipated arrival." In the
case of Christian Mythology, it refers to the Second Coming of Christ. In the
case of Advent Children, the title was used as the film featured the return of
Sephiroth, the "New God." The "Children" in question in the title would be
Kadaj, Yazoo, Loz, the children who were afflicted with Geostigma, and
possibly Cloud himself.
*"Kadaj": This name is a take on "Kaddish," a Jewish prayer of mourning.
*Aerith's Role: Aerith has essentially become the will of the Planet itself.
She guided its Lifestream to the salvation of humanity at the end of Final
Fantasy VII, and she again guides the will of the Planet in Advent Children,
bringing Great Gospel to cure Cloud and others of Geostigma, destroying all
JENOVA Cells that she touches with it. The symbolism here is that she has
become "Mother Earth," the name given to the spirit of the Planet Earth in
many cultures. Recall that Aerith's name is a Japanese transliteration of the
English word "Earth."
*Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz as a Trinity: According to Christianity, God is
composed of three spiritual components, or personas; one might even call them
different functions. These are the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. Man
also is said to be composed of a trinity, in this case consisting of the Mind,
the Body, and the Soul. Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz are a trinity that arose from
Sephiroth's defeat at the end of Final Fantasy VII. His will manifested them
from the Spirit Energy it contaminated, thus, they are him, though they have
different personas from his as individuals.
*Cloud Pouring Water on Denzel's Head: This is symbolic of Baptism, the
concept in which one anointed with the Spirit of God and empowered with his
authority to cleanse one of their sins pours water on the head of a repentant
sinner, the action symbolizing that the individual is cleansed of their past
evil and is granted spiritual rebirth. In the film, this was symbolized by
Cloud "baptizing" Denzel in pouring water on his head and cleansing him of the
"evil" of JENOVA's Cells, curing him of Geostigma.
-Final Fantasy VII
To better understand Advent Children, one may benefit from a greater
understanding of its predecessor, the original Final Fantasy VII. In this
section, I will offer in-depth analyses and explanations concerning some major
-- and minor -- aspects of Final Fantasy VII's plot.
1) _-The JENOVA Thesis-_
-Explanation of JENOVA and its Goal-
JENOVA is an ancient lifeform that arrived on the Planet Gaia some 2,000 years
before the main events of the game. Its landing site was the giant fissure --
and wound to the Planet -- known as the "Northern Crater." The area where
JENOVA had arrived was in the vicinity of the land known as the "Knowlespole"
in those days. The Knowlespole was likely a lush and fertile land, as it was
the home of a Cetra tribe that had cultivated it. These Cetra at the
Knowlesple had been the first to discover the Planet's wound and attempted to
help the Planet heal, using their abilities to guide the Planet's flow of
Spirit Energy to the wound. However, the wound was too severe, and would have
to be left to the Planet to heal on its own. Further still, due to the
Planet's Spirit Energy being redirected to the Northern Crater, the land
around the area of the Crater -- the Cetra's Knowlespole -- withered away, and
the Planet tried to persuade the Cetra to leave the land they loved.
As they prepared to abandon their land, a being appeared at the Northern
Crater and approached them, feigning friendship, appearing to them (either
through projected psychic illusions, or through shapeshifting) as their dead
relatives. When it got close enough, it infected those Cetra that it could
with a virus that caused insanity and physical transformation into monsters,
and then proceeded to approach other Cetra clans and do the same to them.
This being was JENOVA, the Crisis from the Sky:
Gast
"Tell us Ifalna... Where is the land called 'Knowlespole'?"
Ifalna
"Knowlespole refers to this area. The Cetra then began a
Planet-reading."
Gast
"Ifalna, what exactly does Planet-reading entail?"
Ifalna
"...I can't explain it very well, but it's like having a conversation
with the Planet..."
"It said something fell from the sky making a large wound."
"Thousands of Cetra pulled together, trying to heal the Planet..."
"But, due to the severity of the wound, it was only able to heal
itself, over many years."
Gast
"Do the Ancients, rather, the Cetra, have special powers to heal the
Planet?"
Ifalna
"No, it's not that kind of power. The life force of all living things
on this Planet becomes the energy."
"The Cetra tried desperately to cultivate the land so as not to
diminish the needed energy..."
Gast
"Hmm, even here so close to the North Cave, the snow never melts."
"Is that because the planet's energy is gathered here to heal its
injury?"
Ifalna
"Yes, the energy that was needed to heal the Planet withered away the
land... then the Planet..."
"The Planet tried to persuade the Cetra to leave the Knowlespole,
but..."
Gast
"Ifalna... Let's take a break."
Ifalna
"I'm all right... When the Cetra... were preparing to part with the
land they loved..."
"That's when it appeared!"
"It looked like... our... our dead mothers... and our dead brothers.
Showing us spectres of their past."
Gast
"Who is the person that appeared at the North Cave? I haven't any
idea."
Ifalna
"That's when the one who injured the Planet... or the 'crisis from
the sky', as we call him, came."
"He first approached as a friend, deceived them, and finally......
gave them the virus."
"The Cetra were attacked by the virus and went mad... transforming
into monsters."
"Then, just as he had at the Knowlespole."
"He approached other Cetra clans...... infecting them with... the
virus..."
A small number of uninfected Cetra banded together and mounted an assault on
the Crisis, defeating it and sealing it away, though how is not explained in
the game. JENOVA is eventually discovered by Professor Gast of Shin-Ra Inc.,
studied, and falsely believed to have been a Cetra by the Professor. Sadly, he
and his assistant Hojo extract some of the creature's Cells and use them to
the effort of enhancing Sephiroth while still in the womb of his mother,
Lucrecia, in an attempt to create a new Cetra, and thus a great many of the
problems that have to be faced by AVALANCHE and the Planet Gaia begin.
The exact details of the creature's origin are unknown, but what it is, and
what it's goal was, can be determined. JENOVA was essentially a virus. The
virus it unleashed upon the Cetra was actually its own Cells, which are stated
in-game to be capable of changing form:
"The ability to change one's looks, voice, and words, is the power of Jenova."
Viruses have two goals: 1) Survival, and 2) replication. By infecting other
life forms, JENOVA was replicating, as these other creatures would be part of
JENOVA itself, an extension of the creature.
We find further suggestion of this concept in the official Final Fantasy VII
novel, "On the Way to a Smile," written by Kazushige Nojima, which serves to
bridge the two-year gap between the events of Final Fantasy VII and those of
Advent Children. In this story, Denzel tells Reeve that those people INFECTED
(note the terminology) with JENOVA's Cells that were spread by the Lifestream
flowing across Midgar were discharging a black pus through the pores of their
bodies. With this in mind, recall that the malady known as "Geostigma" is
revealed in the film to be the result of the body overworking itself in an
effort to rid itself of JENOVA's Cells. When JENOVA's Cells entered people, at
first they would discharge this black pus, as this is the body's natural
reaction to an intrusion by viruses: One's natural immune system involuntarily
rushes white blood cells to the location of an infectious substance within
one's body in an attempt to contain it and then discharge it from the body.
That's exactly what was happening with those infected by JENOVA's Cells.
However, the virus was too strong to be removed as simply as random bacteria
would be.
In regard to the creature's gender, while it typically appears as a female
during the main events of the game, in light of its ability to change its
shape ("Sephiroth: 'Cloud... Don't blame Tifa. The ability to change one's
looks, voice, and words, is the power of Jenova.'"), and it -- or parts of it
to be more specific -- taking the form of Sephiroth during the course of the
game, it cannot be reasonably classified as female with any strong measure of
certainty, nor as male. It may very well be genderless.
NOTE: That JENOVA had taken a male's form before this point, and that the
Cetra had not even identified it as having a gender for certain, is something
that is often fallaciously made reference to based on the following dialogue:
Gast
"Who is the person that appeared at the North Cave? I haven't any
idea."
Ifalna
"That's when the one who injured the Planet... or the 'crisis from
the sky', as we call it, came."
"HE first approached as a friend, deceived them, and finally......
gave them the virus."
"The Cetra were attacked by the virus and went mad... transforming
into monsters."
"Then, just as HE had at the Knowlespole."
"HE approached other Cetra clans...... infecting them with... the
virus..."
Note that other times, JENOVA is simply referred to as an "it":
Cloud: "...Did IT get away? Jenova...?"
Barret: "Where's ITS $#&*&@ head? This whole thing's stupid. Let's keep
goin'."
Ifalna: "When the Cetra... were preparing to part with the land they loved..."
"That's when IT appeared!"
"IT looked like... our... our dead mothers... and our dead brothers. Showing
us spectres of their past."
Further, while the PlayStation Version of FFVII's script has JENOVA being
referred to as a "he" during those first parts of Ifalna's story related above
from the Original Crisis Reports seen at Icicle Inn, in the PC Version of the
script, in which many errors were corrected, all dialogue during the Original
Crisis Reports refers to JENOVA as an "it." Taking this into account, the
gender references within the PlayStation version of the script would not be
valid in regard to discussing the matter of JENOVA. JENOVA's shapeshifting
abilities and the fact that Ifalna didn't identify the creature by any gender
tells us that JENOVA cannot reasonably be considered as definitely being
female, or definitely having a gender at all.
-Explanation of the Powers of JENOVA-
Based on what we're told by Ifalna ("It looked like... our... our dead
mothers... and our dead brothers. Showing us spectres of their past."), and
the illusions that appear during the Reunion so as to display the events that
had taken place in Nibelheim five years before the main events of the game, we
know that JENOVA had the capacity to create powerful illusions of a realistic
nature.
We also know that JENOVA had the capacity to shapeshift:
Sephiroth: "The ability to change one's looks, voice, and words, is the power
of Jenova."
We're further made aware of this through separated parts of JENOVA -- such as
its arm/tentacle -- transforming into large creatures that were complete with
their own heads, despite being separated from the head of JENOVA's body, and
the main body itself. Further still, this is brought to our attention
through separated parts of JENOVA having taken on the form of Sephiroth, as
we're shown through JENOVA-DEATH's transformation and also through the
appearance of JENOVA-LIFE, as well:
Cloud
"Sephiroth!!!"
::AVALANCHE runs toward Sephiroth and stands behind him; he doesn't turn to
face them::
"This is the end!"
Sephiroth
"You're right. This is the end of this body's usefulness."
::The area goes dark and Sephiroth vanishes, leaving only a plume of dark
smoke::
Cloud
"He disappeared!?"
Tifa
"He might still be nearby......"
...
::Later, Sephiroth reappears, hovering above the party as the light returns to
the area, with his sword drawn. He descends upon AVALANCHE, knocking them to
the ground as he had done back on the Shin-Ra cargo ship. He then lands and
slowly turns to face them and assumes a battle-ready position as AVALANCHE
gets back to its feet; the battle with JENOVA-DEATH commences::
Cloud
"Jenova's cells..."
"...hmm. So that's what this is all about."
"The Jenova Reunion..."
Tifa
"Not Sephiroth!? You mean all this time it wasn't Sephiroth we were after?"
::Cloud shakes his head::
Cloud
"My fingers are tingling.
My mouth is dry.
My eyes are burning!"
Sephiroth
"What are you saying? Are you trying to tell me you have feelings
too?"
Cloud
"Of course! Who do you think I am!?"
Sephiroth
"Ha, ha, ha...... Stop acting as if you were sad."
"There's no need to act as though you're angry either."
Sephiroth
"Because, Cloud. You are..."
::The battle with JENOVA-LIFE commences; when the battle ends, the screen
fades to black::
Jenova
"Because, you are...... a puppet."
We also know that those with JENOVA Cells within them can be controlled by
Sephiroth, with his will able to permeate each JENOVA Cell, despite them being
separated. This is displayed on more than one occasion in regard to Cloud and
the black-cloaked experiments that were drawn to the Reunion, as they were
ordered to bring the Black Materia by Sephiroth.
We're also made aware that the JENOVA Cells were capable of phasing through
solid objects, and then solidifying again afterward, similar to the Martian
Manhunter/Jonn Jonz of DC Comics, as we see a form of Sephiroth phase up
through the floor in the Shin-Ra cargo ship, after having slaughtered the
Shin-Ra crew onboard.
We're further made aware of the fact these Cells could phase through solid
objects and then solidfy once again because a Sephiroth form does so at the
Temple of the Ancients, phasing down through the cieling behind Tseng,
solidifying and speaking with him momentarily before skewering him with a
sword.
As for another of JENOVA's abilities, we know that beings with JENOVA Cells
within them can fly or even just float in the air, as Cloud is lifted into the
air at the Reunion. JENOVA-SYNTHESIS itself, the form of JENOVA fought within
the Planet at the bottom of the Northern Crater, flew up to the area where it
battled AVALANCHE and was floating during the battle against it.
Based on all these things, we can conclude that JENOVA was a being of vast
psychokinetic/telekinetic and telepathic power that, through the virtue of the
afore-mentioned abilities, possessed the capacity to alter its form at will,
create realistic illusions, fly/levitate, phase through solid objects and then
solidify once again, and either itself or Sephiroth could use the presence of
its Cells in another being's body as a conduit into that being's mind.
-Explanation of Sephiroth's Identity-
Sephiroth was the son of Hojo and Lucrecia (not Vincent and Lucrecia, as is
often misinterpreted). While still a developing fetus in Lucrecia's womb, he
was brought into contact with JENOVA Cells through Gast and Hojo's
experimentation when the Cells of the ancient being were injected into
Lucrecia's womb, the Cells then melding with his still developing body and
becoming one with his natural cells, being distributed throughout his entire
body as it formed and developed. He was told that his Mother's name was
"Jenova," though why he was told this is and the intent behind doing so are
unknown.
We learn in the game that the purpose of Gast's JENOVA Project was to produce
people with the powers of the Cetra, and based on Shin-Ra's later actions in
regard to Aerith, it's likely that -- as they believed JENOVA to be a Cetra,
or Ancient, one of the original caretakers of the Planet -- they believed the
child would be a Cetra by having melded with JENOVA's Cells, and that it could
lead them to the Promised Land of the Cetra, a land of bliss, which they
further believed to be rich with Spirit Energy from which they could derive
Mako.
However, at roughly thirty years of age, while on a mission to investigate
monster appearances in the Nibelheim area, in the library of the Shin-Ra
Mansion, Sephiroth discovers the scientific journals of Professor Gast. Making
a connection between the JENOVA of Gast's experiments and the Jenova he had
been told was his mother, as well as contemplating that he may have been
produced through experiments involving Mako, he believed himself to be the son
of this JENOVA -- or, more accurately, a being produced from its genetic
material -- and that he and JENOVA were the last of the Ancients (Cetra):
Sephiroth
"Hmph... traitor."
Cloud
"Traitor?"
Sephiroth
"You ignorant traitor. I'll tell you."
Sephiroth
"This Planet originally belonged to the Cetra. Cetra was a itinerant
race. They would migrate in, settle the Planet, then move on..."
"At the end of their harsh, hard journey, they would find the
Promised Land and supreme happiness."
Sephiroth
"But, those that disliked the journey appeared. Those who stopped
their migrations built shelters and elected to lead an easier life."
"They took that which the Cetra and the planet had made without
giving one whit in return!"
Sephiroth
"Those are your ancestors."
Cloud
"Sephiroth..."
Sephiroth
"Long ago, disaster struck this planet."
Sephiroth
"Your ancestors escaped... They survived because they hid."
"The Planet was saved by sacrificing the Cetra. After that, your
ancestors continued to increase."
Sephiroth
"Now all that's left of the Cetra is in these reports."
Cloud
"What does that have to do with you?"
Sephiroth
"Don't you get it?"
Sephiroth
"An Ancient named Jenova was found in the geological stratum of 2000
years ago."
"The Jenova Project."
Sephiroth
"The Jenova Project wanted to produce people with the powers of the
Ancients..... no, the Cetra."
Sephiroth
"...I am the one that was produced."
Cloud
"Pr... produced!?"
Sephiroth
"Yes."
"Professor Gast, leader of the Jenova Project and genius scientist,
produced me."
Cloud
"How... how did he...?"
Cloud
"Se... Sephiroth?"
Sephiroth
"Out of my way. I'm going to see my mother."
He then began to believe himself to be superior to all other Homo Sapiens, and
began viewing the rest of humanity as usurpers of a world that rightfully
belonged to himself and JENOVA.
After arriving at this belief, Sephiroth proceeds to slaughter the citizens of
Nibelheim and raze the town to the ground. Zack and Tifa go after him, Tifa
attempting to kill him with his own sword, which he had left behind when he
killed her father. Cloud also follows after, determined to protect Tifa this
time, as he had failed to do years before. Tifa and Zack follow Sephiroth to
the Mt. Nibel Reactor. After taking his weapon back, nearly fatally wounding
Tifa, and then dispatching Zack when he arrives, Cloud charges into JENOVA's
Room where Sephiroth is preparing to free the being, grabbing Zack's sword
from the floor and carrying it with him as he goes, taking Sephiroth by
surprise as he enters and stabbing him through his back. While Cloud tends to
Tifa, Sephiroth takes JENOVA's head off, likely too weakened from Cloud's
attack to take the rest of its body with him, and then attempts to leave with
the head. However, Cloud goes after him again. As Sephiroth attempts to leave,
Cloud rushes him, yet Sephiroth skewers Cloud with his sword and holds him
above the heart of the Mako Reactor, a direct path into the Lifestream. This
is when Cloud -- likely in a moment of adrenaline-charged desperation before
his body gave out -- grasped the blade of Sephiroth's sword and hurled his
opponent away from him, using the sword that had skewered him as his pivot.
Sephiroth then flees, leaping into the Lifestream with JENOVA's head held to
him.
After this, Sephiroth's body is carried to the Northern Crater where the
Planet's Spirit Energy was being constantly directed in order to heal the
wound that is the Crater. There, Sephiroth's body becomes encased in Mako
(condensed Spirit Energy). In the present, Sephiroth acts as the embodiment of
JENOVA's will, acting to use the Black Materia to bring down Meteor and render
a massive wound unto the Planet. Sephiroth then intended to join with the
Spirit Energy that would be gathered as a result, and become one with the
Planet.
After Sephiroth is defeated by AVALANCHE and his body destroyed, the battle
between Sephiroth and Cloud actually takes place solely as a mental battle of
wills (as is evident by Cloud not having moved from where he was standing
before his "journey" to face Sephiroth began), in which Cloud defeats
Sephiroth's will. With this done, Holy -- the Ultimate White Magic, which
could have been able to stand against Meteor -- began to move.
-The Roles of JENOVA and Sephiroth: The Puppet Master Theorem-
The long debated matter of Final Fantasy VII: The Puppet Master Theorem; was
JENOVA or Sephiroth in control? Who was the grand manipulator, the mastermind
behind it all? I will here present the truth of the matter.
Before examining this matter, it may be best to first explain what JENOVA is
and functions as: A virus. Whatever its origins, JENOVA's behaviour 2,000
years before the main events of the game was indicative of that of a virus,
the goals of a virus being to spread and to replicate. This is exactly what
JENOVA does upon its arrival on the world of Gaia. It approaches the Cetra,
tricking them with its appearance by appearing as their dead relatives, and
then it released upon them what Ifalna referred to as "the virus." She said
that this virus drove the Cetra insane and turned them into monsters.
At face value, this may sound like an attack. But think a bit further: Ifalna
is not saying that these Cetra were being killed; rather, she is saying that
they were being TRANSFORMED. JENOVA's Cells are known to cause mutations. As
Sephiroth says at the Northern Crater, "The power to change one's looks,
voice, and words is the power of Jenova." What, then, was JENOVA releasing
upon the Cetra? Its very own Cells. It was transforming them into more of
itself. JENOVA was seeking to replicate.
We find further suggestion of this concept in the official Final Fantasy VII
novel, "On the Way to a Smile," written by Kazushige Nojima, which serves to
bridge the two-year gap between the events of Final Fantasy VII and those of
Advent Children. In this story, Denzel tells Reeve that those people INFECTED
(note the terminology) with JENOVA's Cells that were spread by the Lifestream
flowing across Midgar were discharging a black pus through the pores of their
bodies. With this in mind, recall that the malady known as "Geostigma" is
revealed in the film to be the result of the body overworking itself in an
effort to rid itself of JENOVA's Cells. When JENOVA's Cells entered people, at
first they would discharge this black pus, as this is the body's natural
reaction to an intrusion by viruses: One's natural immune system involuntarily
rushes white blood cells to the location of an infectious substance within
one's body in an attempt to contain it and then discharge it from the body.
That's exactly what was happening with those infected by JENOVA's Cells.
However, the virus was too strong to be removed as simply as random bacteria
would be.
With that touched upon, I will now move on to the events of the game itself.
I would argue that the acts of murdering President Shinra, much of the Shin-Ra
personnel in the Shin-Ra headquarters, and Aerith were Sephiroth's, being
committed while he carried out the new JENOVA's will: His own will. Sephiroth
was essentially the ebmodiment of JENOVA in a native of the Planet of Gaia,
while still retaining his own individuality. JENOVA's will was never so much
that of consciously perceiving thought processes, but, rather, that of an
instinctual beast, a virus seeking to perform one function: To make more of
itself.
What became Sephiroth's intent was JENOVA's will all along, though in a
completely different context. JENOVA Cells had been injected into the womb of
Lucrecia, Sephiroth's mother, when Sephiroth was still a developing fetus, and
there the Cells melded with his body as it developed, becoming one with every
aspect of his body as it developed into its normal infant form. In some
respects, one could argue that Sephiroth was essentially an extension of
JENOVA, or, perhaps, an evolved form of the creature, existing as a hyrbid of
it and Gaia's Homo Sapiens.
It has been argued by many that Sephiroth was controlling JENOVA, and it has
also been argued that JENOVA was outright controlling Sephiroth, yet I have
come to conclude that what we witness throughout the game was simply
Sephiroth's natural growth into that which he always was: The new JENOVA. One
might even say he was a mutation of the virus that JENOVA was.
Once Sephiroth fell into the Lifestream with JENOVA's head, his life changed.
The knowledge of the Lifestream would have become privy to him. Sephiroth
would have come to learn just what JENOVA was, and just who he was. Sephiroth
then simply desired to assume the role of that which he now was: A virus. He
wanted to become everything. He wanted the world to be his. He wanted
everything to be part of himself, just as he and JENOVA were part of one
another. He wanted to shape the future in his own image, living now as the
JENOVA virus with the mind and emotions he had as a consciously perceiving
human being:
(Inside the Temple of the Ancients, and Out)
Sephiroth
"I am becoming one with the Planet."
Tseng
"One with the Planet?"
Sephiroth
"You stupid fools. You have never even thought about it."
"All the spirit energy of this Planet. All its wisdom...
knowledge..."
"I will meld with it all. I will become one with it... It will
become one with me."
...
Aerith
"How do you intend to become one with the Planet?"
Sephiroth
"It's simple."
"Once the Planet is hurt, it gathers Spirit Energy to heal the
injury."
Sephiroth
"The amount of energy gathered depends on the size of the injury."
Sephiroth
"...What would happen if there was an injury that threatened the
very life of the Planet?"
"Think how much energy would be gathered!"
Sephiroth
"Ha ha ha. And at the center of that injury, will be me."
"All that boundless energy will be mine."
Sephiroth
"By merging with all the energy of the Planet, I will become a
new life forn, a new existence."
"Melding with the Planet... I will cease to exist as I am now."
"Only to be reborn as a 'God' to rule over every soul."
...
Sephiroth
"I'm far superior to the Ancients."
"I became a traveler of the Lifestream and gained the knowledge and
wisdom of the Ancients."
"I also gained the knowledge and wisdom of those after the extinction
of the Ancients."
"And soon, I will create the future."
As can be seen here, Sephiroth desired to become one with everything else. He
desired to make everything be a part of him. He desired to replicate.
Sephiroth's growth was essentially that of introducing conscious perception to
a viral entity that "thought" based on instinct.
Sephiroth's goal is further supported by the game's CGI film sequel, Final
Fantasy VII: Advent Children. During the film, after Sephiroth has been reborn
due to JENOVA's Cells that were in Rufus Shinra's possession merging with
Kadaj, he tells Cloud that his goal is to use Gaia itself as a vessel to sail
the cosmos until he can find another Planet, one which has not yet been
"corrupted" by the presence of Homo Sapiens. He then intends to make this
world be his new "paradise."
In summary, I would describe the matter of JENOVA and Sephiroth as an
evolution in which JENOVA's instincts became part of the will within a
human being that could be regarded as JENOVA's evolved offspring: Sephiroth.
On the whole, the plot that unveiled was formed of a symbiotic existance,
perhaps even a fusion, between JENOVA and its Gaian
embodiment/mutation/evolution, Sephiroth.
Does this mean that Sephiroth really is the Puppet Master of Final Fantasy
VII? Yes. JENOVA's instincts play out through Sephiroth, however, it was not
consciously manipulating or controlling him into doing anything, nor was he
technically controlling it. He WAS JENOVA, or, rather, it's evolved form.
There was not any puppeteering going on except that which was exerted over
Cloud and the black-cloaked Clones from Nibelheim. There was just growth.
Sephiroth could control all of JENOVA's Cells that were disembodied and could
manipulate those in whom they were injected, but he was not controlling JENOVA
because the JENOVA that the Cetra had known no longer existed and all that
remained was him. He simply grew as a mutation of JENOVA.
An argument that JENOVA controlled Sephiroth rather simply falls apart, as
it's made obvious in both Final Fantasy VII (the original game) and Advent
Children that Sephiroth's own will was being exerted. In Final Fantasy VII,
Sephiroth's utmost enmity toward Cloud and consistent mental torture of the
protagonist displays that Sephiroth himself was certainly very much aware and
active, as JENOVA would have no cause to render such agony unto Cloud, whereas
Sephiroth, one who was filled with pride -- pride that had been hurt when
Cloud overpowered him five years earlier -- would. Further still, he speaks of
JENOVA in the third-person. This continues into Advent Children, when he
speaks of sailing the cosmos "As Mother did before me."
Symbolically, Sephiroth could be described in much the same way as Jesus
Christ is described in regard to God in Christianity: An embodiment that is
not so much a separate entity as it is a separate function, or different face
to the same being. Sephiroth is to JENOVA what Jesus is to God. This was
likely set up in such a manner intentionally, as JENOVA's name is a
bastardization of the Hebrew "YHWH"/"JHVH" (commonly localized in English as
"Yahweh"/"Jehovah"), possibly combined with the Latin word "Nova" to form a
blended word meaning "New God." The music that plays as Safer Sephiroth
hatches from Bizarro Sephiroth is called "Birth of a God," reflecting these
concepts. Further of note regarding this Jesus-like symbolism is that
Christian mythology recognizes that Jesus was God made manifest in a human
woman's womb. The closest thing to such an occurrence takes place in Final
Fantasy VII's backstory regarding Sephiroth, as the Cells of JENOVA ( the "New
God") were injected into the womb of Sephiroth's mother, Lucrecia, where they
merged with Sephiroth's body as it developed. Further still, we find that the
CGI film sequel to Final Fantasy VII is entitled "Advent Children," the
"Advent of Christ" being another name for what is known as "the Second Coming
of Christ." In this film, we witness the "second coming" of Sephiroth.
In conclusion, my determination is that there was no issue of control in the
first place, as Sephiroth WAS JENOVA, but an evolved -- or, rather, mutated --
form of an instinctual, viral creature that didn't operate on the higher level
of consciousness that Homo Sapiens -- consciously perceiving beings -- do. In
fact, Square-Enix's Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Omega Guide, published in
September of 2005, confirms this, stating that Sephiroth, with his higher
level of consciousness, assumed rulership over JENOVA's Cells.
(Note: The rest of this article will contain points that are often brought up
in favour of either JENOVA or Sephiroth being in control of the other; each
point will receive a response as though it were made by one holding the
opposite view, detailing why the point fails to support the possibility in
question; note that the points brought up below do not necessarily express
the views of this author; their placement here is simply for the purpose of
recording the history of points that were brought up by both sides during the
8 years of speculation between the game's release and the official
confirmation from Square-Enix that Sephiroth was in control.)
Points Often Brought Forward to Suggest Sephiroth's Control, but Which Don't
Necessarily Support the Possibility:
*Point: Sephiroth fell into the Lifestream and gained the knowledge and wisdom
of the Ancients. He says as much himself at the Temple of the Ancients. It was
him that was doing everything.
*Response: There's also the fact that JENOVA's head fell into the Lifestream
with Sephiroth (refer to this picture: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/
Squall_of_Seed/Final%20Fantasy%20VII/SephirothsFall.jpg), so this in no way
grants Sephiroth a superior position in regard to the Puppet Master Theorem.
The whole perspective of the matter of JENOVA having influence over him is due
to the presence of JENOVA's Cells in his body and brain. Accessing any
information that he gained while floating about in there should have been
theoretically as simple as speaking into his mind or even examining its own
thoughts.
*Point: JENOVA was already braindead all along, defeated by the Cetra 2000
years before the game begins. Sephiroth just utilized its power in the
present. If the creature were not a vegetable all along, why did it wait so
long to break free or to manipulate Sephiroth into freeing it?
*Response: JENOVA was still very much alive. Ifalna's statement concerning
JENOVA at Icicle Inn should be kept in mind:
"Even though Jenova is confined, it could come back to life at some time..."
"The Planet has not fully healed itself yet. It is still watching Jenova."
Ifalna specifically tells us that the creature wasn't dead, and, further yet,
there's the fact that Sephiroth -- while standing outside of JENOVA's Room in
Mt. Nibel's Mako Reactor -- reacts as Cloud does whenever another psyche
entered his mind in how he clutched at his head after he began questioning his
origin. This suggests the possibilty that JENOVA was awake again and entering
his mind. Further still, there's the fact that JENOVA's Cells were still
functioning, as they must have been doing so in the interim between JENOVA
being discovered by Gast and Hojo determining that JENOVA's Cells would seek
to reunite if seperated, a determination that he made before Sephiroth ever
fell into the Lifestream.
As for JENOVA having waited "so long" to take action, JENOVA had been confined
for over 2000 years, and was used for experimentation while still confined for
the last 25 of those years. Considering the creature's power, whatever means
the Cetra used to confine it must have taken a toll on it and left it
weakened. It may have simply not had the power to reach out to Sephiroth all
the way across the world, or may not have even awakened once more until he
came into close proximity with it, the presence of its Cells within him
lending a "spark" of sorts to JENOVA's consciousness. What is certain,
however, is that JENOVA was not dead.
*Point: The fact that the pieces of JENOVA took on Sephiroth's form in the
first place suggests that Sephiroth was the manipulator.
*Response: Or it could simply be that he was carrying out JENOVA's will by
employing his own methods.
*Point: During the Reunion, Hojo specifically says that Sephiroth's will was
manipulating the Sephiroth Clones:
"Sephiroth is not just content to diffuse his will into the Lifestream; he
wants to maniplate the Clones himself."
*Response: Yes, it's obvious that the Reunion was being used for another
purpose. The Clones were naturally being drawn to JENOVA, but were being sent
on a side trip of sorts to look for the Black Materia as they made their way
to JENOVA for the Reunion. If Sephiroth were the one ordering them to do this,
that still doesn't remove the possibility of JENOVA having given him the ideas
for the main points in question.
*Point: The Sephiroth Clones wear black because Sephiroth does, and also
refer to him as "the great Sephiroth" and their master to whom they were to
take the Black Materia. This, coupled with the fact that Lucrecia had been
seeing Sephiroth in her dreams around the time the call of the Reunion went
out, is strong evidence toward Sephiroth having been the grand manipulator.
*Response: Again, it's obvious that the Reunion was used for another purpose,
but Sephiroth may have simply been making use of the Clones while they were on
their way to the Reunion. That still doesn't negate the possibility that
Meteor and melding with the Lifestream were JENOVA's ideas. Him serving as a
tool of JENOVA could easily involve him having manipulated the Clones and them
perceiving him as their master.
*Point: The final boss battle (the Safer Sephiroth fight) is fought against
Sephiroth, not JENOVA. If JENOVA were in control or if neither was controlling
the other, why would it put itself in danger by fighting AVALANCHE instead of
sending Sephiroth? It got killed in the JENOVA-SYNTHESIS battle. For that
matter, it's a rule of RPGs that the last opponent you fight is the true
villain.
*Response: The final boss battle is fought against a transformed Sephiroth,
obviously transformed through JENOVA's Cells, and bearing a wing in place of
its right arm that is composed of the same colors as JENOVA-BIRTH,
JENOVA-LIFE, and JENOVA-DEATH. JENOVA wasn't killed in the JENOVA-SYNTHESIS
battle. The fact that its individual parts can act while separated from the
main body, or that its head being removed from its body without killing it,
shows that the creature lived so long as its Cells remained. It had Cells in
Sephiroth.
For that matter, JENOVA's Cells are a present, active force in Final Fantasy
VII: Advent Children, based two years after the game ended. JENOVA wasn't
killed at the end of Final Fantasy VII. It was present in the final battle as
much as Sephiroth due to the presence of its Cells in his body.
As far as the last opponent fought in RPGs always being the true villain goes,
that wasn't the case with Necron in Final Fantasy IX. Not only does this
"rule" not hold true with all RPGs, but it doesn't even hold true within the
same RPG franchise as Final Fantasy VII.
In any event, JENOVA most likely needed Sephiroth's body to absorb the
Lifestream as its own wasn't of Gaia, so even were it outright controlling
him, sending his body to get destroyed wouldn't have been wise.
*Point: Sephiroth wasn't speaking at the end because he was too busy
concentrating on holding back Holy.
*Response: Sephiroth had been holding back Holy for weeks as it was, even
while he was being his usual cocky self and rambling on as before (immediately
after killing Aerith at the City of the Ancients, and at the Northern Crater).
There's no reason for holding back Holy to suddenly be such an arduous task
that he can't speak even while he talked as much as he ever did before while
doing so.
For that matter, he created realistic illusions of Nibelheim in the Northern
Crater while Holy was being held back, as well as summoned Meteor. Were
holding back Holy something that would strap one for power and focus so
greatly, one has to wonder where Sephiroth found the time and focus to
belittle Cloud and diminish his confidence in himself through both verbal
assaults and visual illusions, as well as call down a giant chunk of rock and
fire.
*Point: Sephiroth is the one promoted as the main villain by pretty much
everything in the game: He is the one that Cloud is seeking revenge upon, he
is the one with the theme that has vocals in it, and he is the one that the
party believes is their adversary. The game generally promotes the idea that
he is the villain.
*Response: Chrono Trigger does much the same thing in regard to Magus.
Granted, he is eventually revealed to not be the game's main villain, but up
until the point that one actually fights and defeats him, they've been led to
believe that he is the one behind Lavos. Everything from the little girl in
Leene Square talking about the Wizard that was defeated 400 years before to
the battle that is taking place at that very moment encourages the player to
believe that. However, he wasn't.
As far as musical themes go, Magus has the theme with the darker tone, and the
only point in the game with vocals of any kind is heard when confronting him,
it being chanting that was either his own chanting of the Spell that he was
going to use to summon Lavos, or just something added to further darken the
mood.
That said, however, Sephiroth was most certainly promoted as the main
ANTAGONIST of the game, and being a villain, that also serves to make him the
main villainous antagonist. However, that doesn't necessarily make him the
main villain, though that really depends on one's opinion of the term "main
villain." If one believes that the main villain of a game is the one that has
the greatest amount of contrast with the main protagonist, then that would be
true of Sephiroth, for certain.
For the purposes of this response, however, the term is being used to
designate the villain that is behind the tragic and villainous events taking
place, in which case Sephiroth certainly has a major hand in things, but is
being viewed more as a consenting tool toward that end rather than the
mastermind behind it.
I would describe the matter as thus: In "The Lord of the Rings," the main
protagonist is Frodo, and the main villain is Sauron. However, the main
villainous antagonist is the One Ring, created from some of Sauron's own power
and with a will of its own that can only serve to follow Sauron's will. In
this analogy, I would argue that Sephiroth is the One Ring, whereas JENOVA is
Sauron.
Points Often Brought Forth to Suggest JENOVA's Control, but Which Don't
Necessarily Support the Possibility:
*Point: Sephiroth displayed no powers at any time in his life, including the
Nibelheim incident, beyond his physical prowess, higher-than-average strength,
and what magical powers were granted to him through the use of Materia. Such
Spells as Pale Horse and Super Nova were not naturally his, and, further, it
is obvious that not all of Sephiroth's powers would have come from absorbing
Spirit Energy out of the Planet, for much of the powers that beings in
Sephiroth's form display are illusions and abilities pertaining to
telekinesis and telepathy, the telekinesis of which we see displayed when
JENOVA-SYNTHESIS flies, and the telepathy of which we know JENOVA had based on
Ifalna's description of JENOVA's appearance 2000 years before the main events
of the game:
"It looked like... our... our dead mothers... and our dead brothers. Showing
us spectres of their past."
Ifalna's recounting of what transpired 2000 years before the main events of
the game, as well as various in-game points such as JENOVA's ability to have
its Cells take on other forms and its ability to fly in its JENOVA-SYNTHESIS
form make it apparent that JENOVA was a being of vast mental power, its
abilities extending -- but not necessarily limited -- to astral projections,
telekinesis, telepathy, and generating realistic illusions. These abilities
are also those abilities displayed by Sephiroth, or someone/something that
looks like him. That being the case, we know that Sephiroth -- if it, indeed,
was him performing such acts -- would have acquired his powers of illusion and
other powers of a psychic nature from JENOVA, in which case it could have been
using him without him even knowing it. The origin of these powers strongly
indicates that it was JENOVA using HIM.
*Response: While true that Sephiroth would have acquired such powers from
JENOVA, that doesn't necessarily rule out the legendary SOLDIER from having
somehow utilized those powers independently of the creature's mind. Falling
into the Lifestream together, it may well be that JENOVA and Sephiroth's minds
linked in much the same way that Tifa and Cloud's did when they fell into the
Lifestream together in Mideel, or perhaps -- if JENOVA were incapable of
interacting with the Planet's Spirit Energy -- Sephiroth chose to reach out to
JENOVA's mind while the two were in the Lifestream and he acquired its psychic
abilities in that way. Further still, the creature may have even been letting
him use its powers without him realizing it.
*Point: Back in Nibelheim, Sephiroth states that he was under orders to take
the Planet back for the Cetra. Who gave him these orders? We never see anyone
do so. Obviously, JENOVA telepathically transmitted them to him:
Cloud
"Sephiroth..."
"My family! My hometown! How could you do this to them!?"
Sephiroth
"Ha, ha, ha..... They've come again, mother."
Sephiroth
"With her superior power, knowledge, and magic, Mother was destined
to become the ruler of this Planet."
But they...
Those worthless creatures
are stealing the planet from Mother
But now I'm here with you
so don't worry
Cloud
"What about MY sadness!? My family... friends... The sadness of
having my hometown taken away from me!?"
"It's the same as your sadness!"
Sephiroth
"Ha, ha, ha... my sadness? What do I have to be sad about?"
"I am the chosen one. I have been chosen to be the leader of this
Planet."
"I have orders to take this planet back from you stupid people for
the Cetra. What am I supposed to be sad about?"
This is the most damning piece of evidence toward Sephiroth having been the
manipulator. Who chose him? Who were his orders from? JENOVA.
*Response: The possibility that he would have been simply insane -- or just
angry -- and was assuming that he was bound to such "duties" shouldn't be
ignored, and are a strong possibility in light of how unstable he was at the
time. In any event, "I have orders..." was a mistranslation. The original
Japanese should read "I was born to take this planet back from you stupid
people for the Cetra."
(Thanks to my wife, Carys, for finding this error in translation.)
*Point: The Sephiroth forms seen throughout the game were pieces of JENOVA.
That's obviously an indication that both he and his identity were being
manipulated, perhaps even to cause Shin-Ra to believe they were dealing with
their most powerful soldier returned rogue rather than an interplanetary
menace.
We know that JENOVA's pieces took on Sephiroth's form for the following
reasons: JENOVA's Cells can change their form ("Sephiroth: 'Cloud... Don't
blame Tifa. The ability to change one's looks, voice, and words, is the power
of Jenova.'"), so it would be simple enough for its pieces to appear as
Sephiroth. When the forms of Sephiroth fly off into the air those times
they're encountered on the Shin-Ra cargo ship and in the City of the Ancients,
boss battles against parts of JENOVA follow, and in the case of the form
flying away at the City of the Ancients, something falls, it being a piece of
JENOVA. Many have taken this to mean that Sephiroth, a Sephiroth Clone with an
altered appearance, or an astral projection of Sephiroth capable of physical
interaction flew away and dropped the pieces, due mainly to Cloud's statement
on the cargo ship that Sephiroth was carrying JENOVA ("He was carrying Jenova
with him"). However, no rendering of Sephiroth carrying anything at that point
was placed into the game, even while JENOVA's head was rendered during the
scene in which Sephiroth carries it. The validity of Cloud's statement can
further be called into question as, perhaps, having been an assumption on his
part; AVALANCHE had just been knocked to the floor -- as they would be later
in the Whirlwind Maze -- as the Sephiroth form flew away, and possibly
wouldn't have had a good look at the Sephiroth form as it ascended into the
air in the first place, so with a piece of JENOVA falling and transforming
before them, he may have simply assumed Sephiroth must have been carrying
JENOVA's body.
Just for clarification, it should be noted that the Sephiroth form on the
Shin-Ra cargo ship was more than likely the entirety of JENOVA's body which
had escaped from the Shin-Ra headquarters. In the instances of the slaughter
of Shin-Ra personnel in both cases, either Red XIII or a Shin-Ra employee
makes note that the perpetrator couldn't be human (Red XIII: "No human could
have done this"; Shin-Ra employee on the cargo ship: ""....the Engine Room...
a suspicious..... character... No... there's no way.... that...... not a
human..... That thing's not human....."), and back in the Shin-Ra
headquarters, JENOVA's containment vessel appeared to have been blasted open
from within. Further, Palmer makes no note of the Sephiroth form that killed
President Shinra carrying JENOVA with it at the time of murdering President
Shinra. This is because that form of Sephiroth WAS JENOVA. Also notable is
that the Sephiroth form on the cargo ship doesn't recognize Cloud, whereas
later forms of Sephiroth that show up do.
Despite Cloud's statement on the ship, there is evidence that the second and
third JENOVA bosses (LIFE and DEATH) were actually the Sephiroth forms
themselves, transforming to face the party. First, in regard to the real
Sephiroth having been present, his real body had been encased in Mako in the
Northern Crater all this time, and could not have been off doing those things
seen in the game. Further, of his own body, only the torso remained. In regard
to the possibility of Clone transformations, when Aerith is murdered, the
Sephiroth form that killed her rises into the air and vanishes, followed by
something small falling to the ground from the spot where the Sephiroth form
had been, commencing the battle against JENOVA-LIFE.
Also consider that the Sephiroth form seen at the Northern Crater -- who
slaughters the Sephiroth Clones that had been Hojo's experiements from
Nibelheim -- descends upon the party, lands near them, turns to face them in a
battle-ready position just as AVALANCHE stands and prepares to fight, and
before the battle against this being begins, the form of Sephiroth is seen on
the environment map as being AVALANCHE's opponent, yet when the battle begins
and switches to the battle map, JENOVA-DEATH is in the Sephiroth form's place.
The scene further shows that Cloud had realized that it had not been
Sephiroth's real body that AVALANCHE had been chasing at all:
Cloud
"Sephiroth!!!"
::AVALANCHE runs toward Sephiroth and stands behind him; he doesn't turn to
face them::
"This is the end!"
Sephiroth
"You're right. This is the end of this body's usefulness."
::The area goes dark and Sephiroth vanishes, leaving only a plume of dark
smoke::
Cloud
"He disappeared!?"
Tifa
"He might still be nearby......"
...
::Later, Sephiroth reappears, hovering above the party as the light returns to
the area, with his sword drawn. He descends upon AVALANCHE, knocking them to
the ground as he had done back on the Shin-Ra cargo ship. He then lands and
slowly turns to face them and assumes a battle-ready position as AVALANCHE
gets back to its feet; the battle with JENOVA-DEATH commences::
Cloud
"Jenova's cells..."
"...hmm. So that's what this is all about."
"The Jenova Reunion..."
Tifa
"Not Sephiroth!? You mean all this time it wasn't Sephiroth we were after?"
::Cloud shakes his head::
This scene also shows that -- with the Reunion complete by killing Hojo's
experiments and some falling down into the Northern Crater where their Cells
could be reclaimed, and with the time to call Meteor almost at hand --
Sephiroth no longer needed that piece of JENOVA to go about in Sephiroth's
form, thus, the line "This is the end of this body's usefulness." Also notable
is that when JENOVA-DEATH is defeated, left behind in its place is the Black
Materia, which Cloud had handed over to a Sephiroth form earlier in the game.
At this point, one could argue that this only proves that the Sephiroth forms
are what transformed into the JENOVA bosses, and not that they are pieces of
JENOVA. However, referring back to JENOVA-BIRTH, when it is defeated, it
reverts into a tentacle of JENOVA that the party recognizes as having been
part of JENOVA's body back in the Shin-Ra headquarters:
Tifa
"I've seen this somewhere... before."
Cloud
"...Jenova. The arm of Jenova."
Aerith
"Jenova... With this thing?"
With this kept in mind, again recall that when the form of Sephiroth rises
into the air in the City of the Ancients, it is something small that falls
from its location and then transforms.
With all this in mind, the Sephiroth forms encountered throughout the game
were most certainly pieces of JENOVA -- or, in the case of the forms in the
Shin-Ra headquarters and on the cargo ship, its entire body -- in Sephiroth's
form, the exceptions to this, of course, being those seen after JENOVA-DEATH
was defeated. Both of the Sephiroth forms seen after that point were astral
projections. It should be noted that neither of these performed any kind of
physical interaction (the picture that the one inside the Crater lifted was
also an illusion), and both vanished, though not in the same manner as did the
one in the City of the Ancients, which simply vanished, only for a piece of
JENOVA to fall and emit red light, and then rise up as JENOVA-LIFE.
*Respone: All this information only proves that the Sephiroth forms were
pieces of JENOVA. This alone does not confirm JENOVA as the Puppet Master, as
Sephiroth may have been acting through these pieces. In any event, if JENOVA
wished to mislead Shin-Ra as to who they were dealing with, it could have
simply become a random "nobody" instead of taking on Sephiroth's form. For it
to have done so, there simply must be more to the matter. Of course, what more
there may be to the matter may only be that JENOVA was manipulating Sephiroth
into carrying out its will.
*Point: On the Shin-Ra cargo ship, the Sephiroth form that rises up from the
floor doesn't recognize Cloud, despite Cloud having been the very one who
threw him into the Lifestream, yet later -- at the Temple of the Ancients and
beyond -- suddenly seems to know all about him and is intent on tormenting
him:
(On the Shin-Ra cargo ship)
Cloud
"Is it........ Sephiroth?"
Cloud
"No... not Sephiroth!"
"........After a long sleep..."
"...the time..."
"...time has....... come....."
Aerith
"Look, Cloud!!"
Cloud
"Sephiroth! You're alive!"
"........Who are you?"
Cloud
"You don't remember me!? I'm Cloud!"
"Cloud..."
Cloud
"Sephiroth! What are you thinking!? What are you doing!?"
"...the time..... is now......"
Sephiroth should have recognized him, yet JENOVA probably wouldn't. Had
Sephiroth been in control at all, he should have recognized the face of the
one who threw him into the Lifestream.
*Response: The point that was made resolves itself: Sephiroth would have
recognized him; JENOVA probably wouldn't. This was simply the first step in
Sephiroth's plan to cause Cloud to question who he was and fill him with
self-doubt, as well as a bit of literary foreshadowing to all not being as it
seemed with Cloud.
-Explanation of Just Who Cloud Really Was-
Was he a genetic duplicate of Sephiroth? Was he made from JENOVA's Cells? Or
was he a real person? I will here explain the truth in full.
Cloud was a boy who grew up in Nibelheim and left around the time he was 14 or
15, in the hopes of joining SOLDIER and becoming strong like the legendary
Sephiroth. The reason he wanted to do this was two fold: 1) He wanted to
impress Tifa, and 2) He wanted to be able to protect Tifa if she ever needed
rescuing, as he had been unable to once before.
He had been an outcast among the children of Nibelheim, whereas Tifa was very
popular, and barely noticed that he existed. Then her mother died one day, and
she ran out of her house in grief and began to climb Mt. Nibel, and Cloud
followed. However, on the rope bridge leading into the mountain, Tifa missed
her step, losing her balance, and though Cloud tried to save her, he could
not, and both fell into the gorge. Cloud was barely hurt, while Tifa was in a
coma for a week, others putting the blame for the entire matter on Cloud,
believing him to have taken Tifa into the mountains.
Cloud was determined that he wasn't going to be so useless again, and so he
wanted to join SOLDIER, become stronger, and prove his worth and hopefully
gain Tifa's attention. The Spring before leaving Nibelheim, he had called Tifa
out to the town well and told her of his decision, and after doing so, she
asked him to make a promise to her that if she were ever in trouble that he
would come rescue her, which happened to be one of his reasons for wanting to
join SOLDIER to begin with, and so he promised.
He leaves Nibelheim the next Summer and goes to Midgar in the hopes of joining
SOLDIER. Of course, he doesn't make the cut and is deeply ashamed, which is
why he insists upon hiding his identity from Tifa when he returns to Nibelheim
as part of Zack and Sephiroth's entourage.
After the events that take place during their mission there (Sephiroth's
destruction of Nibelheim, murder of its People, and his assault upon Tifa,
Zack, and Cloud, culminating in Cloud defeating Sephiroth and the
silver-haired villain taking his plunge into the Lifestream beneath the Mt.
Nibel Mako Reactor), Cloud and Zack are captured by Hojo, along with the
remaining survivors of Nibelheim, and over the course of the next four years
are captives in his laboratory in the Shinra Mansion, where he performs Mako
infusion upon Cloud and the other survivors, as well as injects them with
JENOVA Cells. Hojo's Sephiroth "Clone" project was unsuccessful in regard to
Zack as his body failed to have the desired effect to the JENOVA Cells,
whereas Cloud's had said reaction, as was also the case with the black-cloaked
folks seen throughout the game, them having actually been the other survivors
of the Nibelheim massacre:
(From the Escapee Reports in the back of the Shinra Mansion's Library)
Escapee Report No. 2
Description of the time of capture.
A - Former member of SOLDIER/Number ( )
No effect could be detected from either Mako Radiation Therapy or Jenova on
him.
B - Regular/Number ( )
Reaction to Jenova detected.
Those in whom the Mako had been infused, but did not have a resistance to the
effects of Mako Poisoning as Zack and other members of SOLDIER did, suffered
from extreme Mako Poisoning, likely due to an overload of knowledge in their
minds. This is because Mako is derived from the Lifestream, which itself
contains the knowledge of those who have lived before. The result of this is
that those with a low sense of self-awareness/self-acceptance -- usually
having weak wills as a result -- lose their identities and very sense of self.
Having been unaccepting of who they were before, as so few people are, having
many other thoughts suddenly flooding their minds made it almost impossible
for them to determine their own place among them, and, as a result, they
became little more than vegetables in mind.
After four years of imprisonment, Zack manages to break himself and Cloud out
of the Shinra Mansion, and they make their way back to Midgar during the next
year, with Cloud in a semi-catatonic state the entire way, suffering from the
effects of extreme Mako Poisoning. When they finally return to the outskirts
of Midgar, Zack is gunned-down and killed by Shinra soldiers and Cloud is left
to die. Cloud, however, survives, and takes Zack's sword, stumbling his way
into Midgar, and is then found by Tifa at the train station. Due to the
fragile state of his mind at this time, he had little concept of his own
identity remaining to him, beyond that concept which he had aspired to be like
and had been able to witness in another for the last five years: Zack.
This, along with the memory-duplicating abilities of the JENOVA Cells within
Cloud, kept him from remaining with a broken mind as the black-cloaked folks
did. He had Zack's identity to focus on during his weakened state, and -- in
an attempt for him to be able to accept himself -- his mind used the JENOVA
Cells within him to duplicate what Cloud saw and heard from Zack as though
Cloud had been the one at the centre of those events himself, and then
imprinted these false memories onto Cloud's own psyche. This alone, however,
didn't provide Cloud with the entirety of his new personality. When Cloud was
discovered by Tifa at the train station in Sector 7 of Midgar, the JENOVA
Cells also duplicated Tifa's memories of Cloud, and, likewise, imposed these
onto Cloud's shattered psyche. With these two sets of duplicated memories and
mannerisms, Cloud was given a new personality that would allow him to function
as an individual once again, even if it would mean that he had a flawed
recollection of some of his past. Amongst the copied characteristics Cloud
gained, he adopted several characteristics of Zack's personality and
mannerisms at this point, even incorporating events in Nibelheim involving
Zack into his mind as events that had involved him instead.
This was made all the easier by the fact that he was now wearing a SOLDIER's
uniform, was in possession of Zack's sword, and possessed great strength and
agility due to Hojo's experimentation. Cloud had an identity to focus on with
which to pull himself out of his lost state amidst all the memories floating
around in his head that were not his own, whereas the black-cloaked folks did
not. This would later spell disaster, however.
Hojo and Cloud both later believe Cloud to have been a failed experiment due
to Cloud having never been issued a number as the black-cloaked folks were.
Cloud is first told by Sephiroth at the Reunion that he was an incomplete
Sephiroth Clone, and Cloud himself then goes on to tell Hojo that he had been
a failure. It was a result of Cloud coming to believe he had been nothing
more than a failed Sephiroth Clone and that he had been simply manufactured in
Hojo's lab that led him to simply hand the Black Materia over to Sephiroth,
allowing Meteor to be summoned forth. What Cloud did not yet remember at this
time, however, was Zack's role in his past, including the fact that Zack had
broken himself and Cloud out of the Shinra Mansion shortly before the main
events of the game began, and before Cloud could be given a number. Cloud
had, in actuality, been a success. In fact, Hojo later regarded him as the
only success:
(On the Sister Ray, near the end of Disc 2.)
Cloud
"Hojo! Stop right there!!"
Hojo
"Oh... the failure."
Cloud
"At least remember my name! It's Cloud!"
Hojo
"Every time I see you, I..."
"It pains me that I had so little scientific sense..."
Hojo
"I evaluated you as a failed project."
"But, you are the only one that succeeded as a Sephiroth-clone."
"Heh, heh, heh......... I'm even beginning to hate myself."
As can be seen from all this, the often believed concept of Cloud being a
Sephiroth Clone is inaccurate in the sense that he was a genetic duplicate of
the legendary SOLDIER. Rather, this term of him being a Sephiroth "Clone" is
intended in the sense that Cloud would be similar to Sephiroth in terms of the
experimentation conducted on him, having been infused with Mako and injected
with JENOVA's Cells.
The Sephiroth Clones are simply the people that were the survivors of
Sephiroth's massacre in Nibelheim five years before the main events of the
game, and which Hojo captured upon his arrival there shortly after Sephiroth's
defeat at the hands of Cloud. We know this based on Zangan, Tifa's Martial
Arts instructor, letter to her:
"Tifa, what's happened to our town? Was it all an illusion, or
just a dream? No, it was neither. I remember trying to get people out of
the flames, but not having the strength... Burning with anger, I went to
the reactor to kill Sephiroth."
"But he was nowhere to be found. Instead, I found you, collapsed
inside. I felt saving you was far more important than going after
Sephiroth. There were several others that were still alive inside, but I
was only able to save you."
"As I was coming out of the reactor, Shinra troops were just
arriving. I recall a scientist named Hojo was in charge. He ordered the
troops to gather up everyone still alive for the experiment. I didn't know
what type of experiment he was talking about, but I wasn't about to let
them have my dearest student."
We also know this based on the Periodic Report to Professor Hojo that can be
found in "Tifa's House" on the desk across from the piano in Nibelheim in the
game's present:
1 Clone Activity Report
Unforuntately, no 'CLONES' have left this town this quarter. As previously
reported, the 'CLONES' seem to be sensing something. But all they say is
'reunion' or 'Sephiroth' and show no other signs of activity.
Based on this we know that the point of origin for the Sephiroth Clones was
Nibelheim, and taking into consideration that Hojo had ordered the Shin-Ra
soldiers that accompanied him five years before to round up all the survivors
of Sephiroth's massacre for an experiment, these survivors are certainly the
Sephiroth Clones. Also, we know that Cloud had a real childhood and truly grew
up in Nibelheim based on the memories that Tifa helps him piece together in
the Lifestream. With all this in mind, it would be more accurate to say that
the experiments performed on Sephiroth were "cloned" rather than Sephiroth
himself.
Finally, keep in mind that the term used in the Japanese Versions of the game
was "Copy," this obviously not necessarily being indicative of the same
concept as "Clone." All that was copied was the experimentation conducted on
Sephiroth, and even that wasn't an exact reproduction.
Finally, Cloud frees his mind and becomes autonomous from Sephiroth during the
game's ending after having accepted himself for who he truly was earlier in
Mideel. Cloud had gained autonomy and a strong enough will to carry himself.
-Cloud Was Not a Failed Clone-
Perhaps the most often misunderstood matter concerning Final Fantasy VII's
plot is the matter of Cloud being a Sephiroth Clone. Aside from the fact that
many have misinterpreted this to mean that he was a genetic duplicate of
Sephiroth, there's the fact that he is so much more often misperceived to have
been a failed experiment. This is simply not the case.
Where the confusion regarding this matter arises is from Cloud and Hojo's
discourse in the Northern Crater before Meteor is summoned:
Hojo
"Ha, ha, ha... this is perfect!!!"
"It means that my experiment was a complete success!"
Hojo
"What number were you? Huh? Where is your tattoo?"
Cloud
"Professor Hojo... I don't have a number."
"You didn't give me one because I was a failed experiment."
Hojo
"What the--? You mean only a failure made it here?"
Cloud
"Professor... please give me a number. Please, Professor..."
Hojo
"Shut up, miserable failure..."
This is often cited as the evidence of Hojo considering Cloud to be a failure.
What should be noted about this is that it was CLOUD who told HOJO that Cloud
was a failure, and, bearing his "proof" in that he didn't have a numbered
tattoo, Hojo believed him. Cloud believed that he was failure based on his
lack of a tattoo, and what Sephiroth had told him moments earlier:
Sephiroth
"Ha, ha, ha......"
"I want to take you back to your real self."
"The one who gave me the Black Materia that day..."
"Who would have ever thought a failed experiment would prove so
useful?"
"Hojo would die if he knew."
Cloud
"Hojo!? What does he have to do with me!?"
Sephiroth
"Five years ago you were..."
"...constructed by Hojo, piece by piece, right after Nibelheim was
burnt."
"A puppet made up of vibrant Jenova cells, her knowledge, and the
power of Mako."
"An incomplete Sephiroth-clone. Not even given a number. ...That is
your reality."
Deceived by this false information, Cloud believed that he not only wasn't a
normal human being, being instead constructed from JENOVA Cells infused with
Mako, but that he was a failed experiment at that. This influenced what he
told Hojo, and subsequently, Hojo's feelings toward Cloud. What Cloud failed
to recall at this time was that Zack broke himself and Cloud out of the Shinra
Mansion before Cloud could be given a tattoo, for Cloud was not the failure at
all. Zack was.
In defining who is and is not a failure in the experiment that Hojo was
carrying out, one must first understand what it was that Hojo was attempting
to test with the Sephiroth Clones, and how he was going about doing so. His
Nibelheim experiment was conducted for the sake of testing his JENOVA Reunion
Theory, it stating that even if JENOVA's Cells are separated, those separated
pieces will eventually reunite:
(Hojo, at the Reunion)
Hojo
"You see, even if Jenova's body is dismembered, it will eventually
become one again. That's what is meant by Jenova's Reunion."
In order to conduct this experiment, Hojo had the survivors of Sephiroth's
massacre in Nibelheim rounded up for experimentation:
(From Zangan's letter to Tifa, as viewable on Disc 3 of the game)
"Tifa, what's happened to our town? Was it all an illusion, or just a dream?
No, it was neither. I remember trying to get people out of the flames, but not
having the strength... Burning with anger, I went to the reactor to kill
Sephiroth."
"But he was nowhere to be found. Instead, I found you, collapsed inside. I
felt saving you was far more important than going after Sephiroth. There were
several others that were still alive inside, but I was only able to save you."
"As I was coming out of the reactor, Shinra troops were just arriving. I
recall a scientist named Hojo was in charge. He ordered the troops to gather
up everyone still alive for the experiment. I didn't know what type of
experiment he was talking about, but I wasn't about to let them have my
dearest student."
These survivors included Cloud and Zack. Once captured, the two former members
of Shin-Ra and the other survivors of Nibelheim -- minus Tifa and Zangan, of
course, the former having been taken to safety by the latter -- were infused
with Mako and injected with JENOVA's Cells. A body and mind that displayed no
response to JENOVA's Cells would obviously be ill suited for testing the
validity of the Reunion Theory, as their own will may override JENOVA's
attempt to call that individual to itself. With this in mind, only the
weak-willed would be suitable for the experiment, and, thus, successful. It
was Cloud that had a reaction JENOVA's Cells, whereas Zack did not:
(From the Escapee Reports in the back of the Shinra Mansion's library; note
that Zack is Specimen A (the former member of SOLDIER), while Cloud is
Specimen B (the regular))
Escapee Report No. 2
Description of the time of capture.
A - Former member of SOLDIER/Number ( )
No effect could be detected from either Mako Radiation Therapy or Jenova on
him.
B - Regular/Number ( )
Reaction to Jenova detected.
Note also that in the parentheses where the two would have had numbers, there
are blank spaces. They had not yet received their numbers.
What's made obvious from this -- as well as the deteriorating state of Cloud's
mind after his and Zack's escape, whereas Zack seemed relatively unphased --
is that Cloud was a successful Clone, but -- at worst -- could be described as
"incomplete" rather than a failure. This is made further obvious due to Hojo
outright stating that the purpose of the Sephiroth Clone Project was to test
the JENOVA Reunion Theory, as he states that his experiment was a success when
he receives confirmation of the theory:
Hojo
"Ha, ha, ha... this is perfect!!!"
"It means that my experiment was a complete success!"
...
Hojo
"...I'm not wild about the failure part, but the Jenova Reunion
Theory has now been proven."
Further evidence for this stems from the fact that Hojo was having the Shin-Ra
employees planted in the reconstructed Nibelheim monitor the behaviour of the
Clones, and report to him when or if they were leaving the town of their own
volition:
Periodic Report to Professor Hojo:
1 Clone Activity Report
Unforuntately, no 'CLONES' have left this town this quarter. As previously
reported, the 'CLONES' seem to be sensing something. But all they say i
'reunion' or 'Sephiroth' and show no other signs of activity.
One final point of note to consider is that, in the moments preceding his
death, Hojo himself declares Cloud to be the only Sephiroth Clone that was
successful, as Cloud was the only one he saw at the Reunion, those in the
black cloaks having been killed moments before and their bodies cast down into
the Northern Crater to be assimilated by JENOVA:
Hojo
"Every time I see you, I..."
"It pains me that I had so little scientific sense..."
Hojo
"I evaluated you as a failed project."
"But, you are the only one that succeeded as a Sephiroth-clone."
"Heh, heh, heh......... I'm even beginning to hate myself."
The answer to the seemingly eternal question of Cloud's failure or success as
a Sephiroth Clone is that he, indeed, was a success.
-The Sephiroth Clones Are Not Genetic Duplicates Of Sephiroth-
While the term "clone" is used in reference to Sephiroth's Clones, what is
intended by this meaning is that they are people who underwent similar
experimentation to Sephiroth, involving their bodies being injected with
JENOVA's Cells and infused with Mako. The Sephiroth Clones are simply the
people that were the survivors of Sephiroth's massacre in Nibelheim five years
before the main events of the game, and which Hojo captured upon his arrival
there shortly after Sephiroth's defeat at the hands of Cloud. We know this
based on Zangan's (Tifa's Martial Arts instructor) letter to her:
"Tifa, what's happened to our town? Was it all an illusion, or just a dream?
No, it was neither. I remember trying to get people out of the flames, but not
having the strength... Burning with anger, I went to the reactor to kill
Sephiroth."
"But he was nowhere to be found. Instead, I found you, collapsed inside. I
felt saving you was far more important than going after Sephiroth. There were
several others that were still alive inside, but I was only able to save you."
"As I was coming out of the reactor, Shinra troops were just arriving. I
recall a scientist named Hojo was in charge. He ordered the troops to gather
up everyone still alive for the experiment. I didn't know what type of
experiment he was talking about, but I wasn't about to let them have my
dearest student."
We also know this based on the Periodic Report to Professor Hojo that can be
found in "Tifa's House" on the desk across from the piano in Nibelheim in the
game's present:
1 Clone Activity Report
Unforuntately, no 'CLONES' have left this town this quarter. As previously
reported, the 'CLONES' seem to be sensing something. But all they say is
'reunion' or 'Sephiroth' and show no other signs of activity.
Based on this we know that the point of origin for the Sephiroth Clones was
Nibelheim, and taking into consideration that Hojo had ordered the Shin-Ra
soldiers that accompanied him five years before to round up all the survivors
of Sephiroth's massacre for an experiment, these survivors are certainly the
Sephiroth Clones. Also, we know that Cloud had a real childhood and truly grew
up in Nibelheim based on the memories that Tifa helps him piece together in
the Lifestream. With all this in mind, it would be more accurate to say that
the experiments performed on Sephiroth were "cloned" rather than Sephiroth
himself.
Finally, keep in mind that the term used in the Japanese Versions of the game
was "Copy," this obviously not necessarily being indicative of the same
concept as "Clone." All that was copied was the experimentation conducted on
Sephiroth, and even that wasn't an exact reproduction.
Linguistics aside, the game shows us in very clear no-question terms that the
residents of Nibelheim who survived Sephiroth's massacre (and weren't Tifa,
who was taken to safety by Zangan, or weren't Cloud who was broken out of the
Shinra Mansion by Zack) became those black-cloaked experiments, both through
Zangan's letter to Tifa and the Periodic Report to Professor Hojo. This was
further accomplished through the obvious similarities between two of the
black-cloaked folks in one of the upper bedrooms of a house in the game's
present and the two children who had been in the upper bedroom of the original
house in that location five years earlier. Further still, to even consider
that these black-cloaked experiments were not in any way connected to the
experiment Hojo ordered the surviving residents to be rounded up for would --
when it's also pointed out that the black-cloaked folks' migrations originated
from Nibelheim -- require believing that the writers left a plothole more
massive than most of those that are present in the game already, as it would
leave the questions of "What became of the surviving residents," "What
experiment was Hojo talking about when he said he wanted the survivors rounded
up," and "Why were Cloud and Zack subjected to different experimentation from
the other survivors who were rounded up?"
To assume that the black-cloaked folks were anyone but the other surviving
residents of Nibelheim is to pose questions that can't possibly be answered,
ignore the only logical connections concerning the fate of the Nibelheim
survivors when there is even evidence presented to indicate them being the
black-cloaked folks beyond any reasonable inquisition, and to assume massive
ignorance on the part of the writers (greater in most -- if not all -- cases
than that which other plotholes in the game would suggest them capable of),
all for the sake of a Western connotation attached to a word translated by
some people who would not necessarily be well-versed in the context intended
by the writers of the story, when the original language isn't even a language
which necessarily will translate directly into English, both in terms of words
used and the context surrounding them. To put it another way, it brings up
more questions than can reasonably be assumed to require explanation when a
very simple explanation is already present.
-The Purpose of the Sephiroth Clone Experiment-
It is commonly misconceived that the purpose of Hojo's experiments regarding
the "Sephiroth Clones" was to produce a large group of people like him, with
his strength, skills, and dominance in warfare. However, this is simply not
the case, and I will here explain the true nature of the experiment.
Hojo's experiment was designed to test the validity of his theory concerning
the JENOVA Reunion. We know this for the following reasons:
At the Northern Crater, upon seeing Cloud, Hojo declares his experiment a
success, saying that the JENOVA Reunion Theory has been proven:
Hojo
"Ha, ha, ha... this is perfect!!!"
"It means that my experiment was a complete success!"
...
Hojo
"...I'm not wild about the failure part, but the Jenova Reunion
Theory has now been proven."
With that in mind, recall that Hojo arrived in Nibelheim shortly after it was
burned down by Sephiroth, bringing with him troops to round up the survivors
for experimentation, this suggesting that he had conceived the JENOVA Reunion
Theory before Sephiroth was ever even lost to the Lifestream. We learn of this
from the information in Zangan's letter to Tifa:
"As I was coming out of the reactor, Shinra troops were just arriving. I
recall a scientist named Hojo was in charge. He ordered the troops to gather
up everyone still alive for the experiment. I didn't know what type of
experiment he was talking about, but I wasn't about to let them have my
dearest student."
Further, we find that Hojo had the Shin-Ra employees planted in the rebuilt
Nibelheim monitor the behaviour of the Clones and report to him concerning
whether or not they were leaving the town. This was of interest to Hojo, as he
was waiting to see if they would be drawn to a Reunion:
Periodic Report to Professor Hojo:
1 Clone Activity Report
Unforuntately, no 'CLONES' have left this town this quarter. As previously
reported, the 'CLONES' seem to be sensing something. But all they say is
'reunion' or 'Sephiroth' and show no other signs of activity.
While one might argue that Hojo conceived the Reunion Theory later on, using
the Sephiroth Clones to test it, despite his intention having originally been
to produce an army of Sephiroth-like soldiers, the story only ever indicates
Hojo having wanted to use them to test the JENOVA Reunion Theory, that being
the only experiment which he himself makes reference to regarding them. Thus
it is that we can conclude that the purpose of Hojo's Sephiroth Clone
experiment was to test the validity of the JENOVA Reunion Theory.
-The Sephiroth Clone With a "1" Tattoo Did Not Take on Sephiroth's Form, Nor
Did Sephiroth Have Such a Tattoo Himself-
A common misinterpretation of the game's script is that the fellow that Dio
speaks of having met that had a "1" tattoo is the same individual he later
tells Cloud was Sephiroth. This has led many to believe that Sephiroth either
had such a tattoo himself, or that the body of Sephiroth Clone Number 1 from
Hojo's experiments in Nibelheim was altered to look like Sephiroth. Both of
these conclusions are inaccurate. While both individuals, of course, would
have wore black outfits, there are some very important key words in Dio's
descriptions of his meetings with the individuals -- and in his description of
the fellow with the "1" tattoo himself.
We first hear word of this fellow with the tatto from a resident of North
Corel, him saying that a young guy with a "1" tattoo was heading toward the
ropeway that leads to the Gold Saucer:
"I hear it's a big fad now in the city to get tattoos. Is that right?"
[The player can choose to have Cloud respond with "I wouldn't know" or "That's
right." If the player has Cloud respond with "I wouldn't know," the following
dialogue is said.]
"Really...? I saw a big '1' on the arm of a young guy heading towards the
Ropeway. That Black Cape he had on was really cool."
Right here we should take note that the NPC in North Corel has described the
fellow he saw as a "young guy." At 30 years old, Sephiroth certainly wasn't an
old man, but he wasn't all that young by most people's standards either. In
any case, we've not gotten a very thorough description of this individual yet,
so we must hold off on passing judgement until we learn more. We can, however,
do this with what we learn from Dio in the Gold Saucer.
When Cloud meets Dio, Dio asks him if he's ever heard of something called a
"Black Materia," as he states that a boy about Cloud's age (the fellow with
the "1" tattoo) had been asking about it. He goes on to say -- when questioned
about it by Cloud -- that he doesn't know where the fellow went. Both of these
things are key matters to keep in mind.
Dio
"By the way, boy, do you know what a 'Black Materia' is?"
Cloud
"Why d'you ask me?"
Dio
"Well, a while back, a boy your age came in and asked me if I had a
'Black Materia.'"
"I thought you might know who he was, seein' as how you're both about
the same age."
Cloud
"Did he happen to have... a Black Cape..."
Dio
"Why yes, yes indeed. And a tattoo on his hand that said '1'."
Cloud
"Where did he go!?"
Dio
"Ha ha ha, I have no idea."
What's notable here aside from the fact that he states that he doesn't know
where the fellow went is that he doesn't make mention of this individual being
Sephiroth, yet later, when he mentions having met Sephiroth, he not only knows
in which direction he has gone, but also again refers to Cloud's age, stating
that Sephiroth must be very popular among young men that age. It can be safely
determined that Dio made this determination based on the fellow with the "1"
tattoo being around Cloud's age and wearing a black cloak, attire somewhat
similar to Sephiroth's. It is then, as a result of these two bits of
information, that Dio recommends that Cloud follow Sephiroth and try to get
his autograph:
"P.S. I just recently met Sephiroth. He must have a lot of fans with boys your
age. Why don't you get his autograph? It seems he's headed toward the South of
the river, towards Gongaga."
What's relevant about this is that Dio had no idea that Cloud was pursuing
Sephiroth in the first place and, thus, there would have been no reason for
Dio to have hidden this before, only to come clean later. He simply assumed
that Sephiroth would be popular among young men Cloud's age because of the guy
with the "1" tattoo and decided to tell Cloud about it. With that in mind, had
the fellow with the "1" tattoo been Sephiroth, it makes no sense for Dio to
not have mentioned it then, then to have randomly remembered the direction in
which someone had gone when he hadn't seemed to regard them as all that
important earlier, only to then deem it relevant to mention later.
It should also be noted that -- while the fellow in North Corel spoke as
though it was only recently that he saw the guy with the "1" on his hand --
Dio said it had been "a while back" when he had spoken with the young man with
the tattoo, meaning that he makes a clear differentiation in the timeframe
from when that occurred and when he had met Sephiroth. Dio clearly states that
it was "just recently" that he had met Sephiroth, and with this statement
coming after Cloud and the others had already spent some time in the Corel
Prison. In other words, the two encounters obviously occurred at different
times, Dio's encounter with Sephiroth likely happening at some point during
Cloud and the others' time in the Corel Prison.
In summary, Dio had no reason to hide it if he had known where Sephiroth was
going, nor does it make sense for him to randomly think it important to tell
Cloud that the guy he mentioned earlier was Sephiroth when he hadn't thought
so before, nor would he have really had a reason to think Cloud would care
about such information if not for an altogether different young man around
Cloud's age being dressed in a manner similar to Sephiroth. With all this in
mind, as well as Dio's clear differentiation in describing time when he had
met the guy with the "1" tattoo and when he had met Sephiroth -- as well as
the obvious fact that the game makes no attempt to imply that they were the
same person -- there's no reason to believe that Sephiroth has a "1" tattoo,
nor that the Clone with the "1" tattoo took on Sephiroth's form.
-The Sephiroth Forms Encountered Throughout the Game are Pieces of JENOVA-
Often confused to have been astral projections or transformed Sephiroth Clones
being controlled, the majority of the Sephiroth forms seen throughout the game
are pieces of JENOVA -- as well as JENOVA's entire body -- in Sephiroth's
form. We know that JENOVA's pieces took on Sephiroth's form for the following
reasons: JENOVA's Cells can change their form ("Sephiroth: 'Cloud... Don't
blame Tifa. The ability to change one's looks, voice, and words, is the power
of Jenova.'"), so it would be simple enough for its pieces to appear as
Sephiroth. When the forms of Sephiroth fly off into the air those times
they're encountered on the Shin-Ra cargo ship and in the City of the Ancients,
boss battles against parts of JENOVA follow, and in the case of the form
flying away at the City of the Ancients, something falls, it being a piece of
JENOVA. Many have taken this to mean that Sephiroth, a Sephiroth Clone with an
altered appearance, or an astral projection of Sephiroth capable of physical
interaction flew away and dropped the pieces, due mainly to Cloud's statement
on the cargo ship that Sephiroth was carrying JENOVA ("He was carrying Jenova
with him"). However, no rendering of Sephiroth carrying anything at that point
was placed into the game, even while JENOVA's head was rendered during the
scene in which Sephiroth carries it. The validity of Cloud's statement can
further be called into question as, perhaps, having been an assumption on his
part; AVALANCHE had just been knocked to the floor -- as they would be later
in the Whirlwind Maze -- as the Sephiroth form flew away, and possibly
wouldn't have had a good look at the Sephiroth form as it ascended into the
air in the first place, so with a piece of JENOVA falling and transforming
before them, he may have simply assumed Sephiroth must have been carrying
JENOVA's body.
Just for clarification, it should be noted that the Sephiroth form on the
Shin-Ra cargo ship was more entirety of JENOVA's body which had escaped from
the Shin-Ra headquarters. In the instances of the slaughter of Shin-Ra
personnel in both cases, either Red XIII or a Shin-Ra employee makes note that
the perpetrator couldn't be human (Red XIII: "No human could have done this";
Shin-Ra employee on the cargo ship: ""....the Engine Room... a
suspicious..... character... No... there's no way.... that...... not a
human..... That thing's not human....."), and back in the Shin-Ra
headquarters, JENOVA's containment vessel appeared to have been blasted open
from within. Further, Palmer makes no note of the Sephiroth form that killed
President Shinra carrying JENOVA with it at the time of murdering President
Shinra. This is because that form of Sephiroth WAS JENOVA.
Despite Cloud's statement on the ship, there is evidence that the second and
third JENOVA bosses (LIFE and DEATH) were actually the Sephiroth forms
themselves, transforming to face the party. First, in regard to the real
Sephiroth having been present, his real body had been encased in Mako in the
Northern Crater all this time, and could not have been off doing those things
seen in the game. Further, of his own body, only the torso remained. In regard
to the possibility of Clone transformations, when Aerith is murdered, the
Sephiroth form that killed her rises into the air and vanishes, followed by
something small falling to the ground from the spot where the Sephiroth form
had been, commencing the battle against JENOVA-LIFE.
Also consider that the Sephiroth form seen at the Northern Crater -- who
slaughters the Sephiroth Clones that had been Hojo's experiements from
Nibelheim -- descends upon the party, lands near them, turns to face them in a
battle-ready position just as AVALANCHE stands and prepares to fight, and
before the battle against this being begins, the form of Sephiroth is seen on
the environment map as being AVALANCHE's opponent, yet when the battle begins
and switches to the battle map, JENOVA-DEATH is in the Sephiroth form's place.
The scene further shows that Cloud had realized that it had not been
Sephiroth's real body that AVALANCHE had been chasing at all:
Cloud
"Sephiroth!!!"
::AVALANCHE runs toward Sephiroth and stands behind him; he doesn't turn to
face them::
"This is the end!"
Sephiroth
"You're right. This is the end of this body's usefulness."
::The area goes dark and Sephiroth vanishes, leaving only a plume of dark
smoke::
Cloud
"He disappeared!?"
Tifa
"He might still be nearby......"
...
::Later, Sephiroth reappears, hovering above the party as the light returns to
the area, with his sword drawn. He descends upon AVALANCHE, knocking them to
the ground as he had done back on the Shin-Ra cargo ship. He then lands and
slowly turns to face them and assumes a battle-ready position as AVALANCHE
gets back to its feet; the battle with JENOVA-DEATH commences::
Cloud
"Jenova's cells..."
"...hmm. So that's what this is all about."
"The Jenova Reunion..."
Tifa
"Not Sephiroth!? You mean all this time it wasn't Sephiroth we were after?"
::Cloud shakes his head::
This scene also shows that -- with the Reunion complete by killing Hojo's
experiments and some falling down into the Northern Crater where their Cells
could be reclaimed, and with the time to call Meteor almost at hand --
Sephiroth no longer needed that piece of JENOVA to go about in Sephiroth's
form, thus, the line "This is the end of this body's usefulness." Also notable
is that when JENOVA-DEATH is defeated, left behind in its place is the Black
Materia, which Cloud had handed over to a Sephiroth form earlier in the game.
At this point, one could argue that this only proves that the Sephiroth forms
are what transformed into the JENOVA bosses, and not that they are pieces of
JENOVA. However, referring back to JENOVA-BIRTH, when it is defeated, it
reverts into a tentacle of JENOVA that the party recognizes as having been
part of JENOVA's body back in the Shin-Ra headquarters:
Tifa
"I've seen this somewhere... before."
Cloud
"...Jenova. The arm of Jenova."
Aerith
"Jenova... With this thing?"
With this kept in mind, again recall that when the form of Sephiroth rises
into the air in the City of the Ancients, it is something small that falls
from its location and then transforms.
With all this in mind, the Sephiroth forms encountered throughout the game
were most certainly pieces of JENOVA -- or, in the case of the forms in the
Shin-Ra headquarters and on the cargo ship, its entire body -- in Sephiroth's
form, the exceptions to this, of course, being those seen after JENOVA-DEATH
was defeated. Both of the Sephiroth forms seen after that point were astral
projections. It should be noted that neither of these performed any kind of
physical interaction (the picture that the one inside the Crater lifted was
also an illusion), and both vanished, though not in the same manner as did the
one in the City of the Ancients, which simply vanished, only for a piece of
JENOVA to fall and emit red light, and then rise up as JENOVA-LIFE. This
information has been confirmed by the Ultimania Omega Guide for Final Fantasy
VII, and should certainly be taken as accurate.
2) -The Identity of the Voice in Cloud's Head-
An often pondered matter is the identity of the voice that Cloud often hears
throughout Final Fantasy VII. I will here explain this matter.
The voice was certainly Cloud's subconscious. For the reasons why this is the
case, simply read ahead.
At one point the voice tells Cloud to ask Tifa about what happened five years
before:
(At Junon.)
"...That reminds me."
"You again?"
"...Who are you?"
"...You'll find out soon. ......But more importantly,
5 years ago..."
"5 Years ago... Nibelheim?"
"When you went to Mt. Nibel then, Tifa was your guide, right?"
"Yeah.... I was surprised."
"But where was Tifa other than that?"
"...I dunno."
"It was a great place for you two to see each other
again."
"...You're right."
"Why couldn't you see each other alone?"
"...I don't know. I can't remember clearly..."
"Why don't you try asking Tifa?"
"...Yeah."
"Then, get up!"
"Hey wake up. Wake up, Cloud!"
It would have been detrimental to Sephiroth's plans to tell Cloud to do this,
as it was Cloud's fragmented psyche that allowed him to be weak enough to
control. Learning the truth would cause him to have to piece the past
together and become "fixed," possibly solidifying his sense of self and his
mental fortitude, which would make him mentally stable enough to resist
Sephiroth's control.
Note that at the Reunion, Sephiroth makes a point of trying to cause Cloud to
question himself, breaking down all confidence in his sense of self that
remained, and, thus, making him vulnerable to control at the crucial moment of
handing over the Black Materia.
While it would have been a hindrance to what Sephiroth had in mind for Cloud
to learn the truth at that point, as it would have strengthened his mental
fortitude, it would have done exactly what Cloud's subconscious wanted. When
his subconscious speaks with Tifa in the Lifestream, it's trying to help Cloud
learn about the truth of his past, the same as the voice telling him to ask
Tifa about Nibelheim no doubt must have been, for Cloud's mind would have been
stronger had he known the truth of his past, and he would have possibly been
able to fend off Sephiroth's control.
Note also that at an earlier time than Junon when the voice spoke to Cloud, it
tried reminding him of a time that had taken place five years before in an
effort to try to get him to remember the rest of it which didn't come until
much later and with Tifa's help:
(While sleeping at Aerith's house)
"...seem pretty tired......"
Cloud
".......!?"
"I haven't slept in a bed like this ....in a long time."
Cloud
"....Oh, yeah."
"Ever since that time."
::The scene fades in to Cloud's house in Nibelheim::
"My, how you've grown."
"I'll bet the girls never leave you alone."
Cloud
"...Not really."
"...I'm worried about you."
"There are a lot of temptations in the city..."
"I'd feel a lot better if you just settled down and had a nice
girlfriend."
Cloud
"...I'm all right."
"You should have..."
"an older girlfriend, one that'll take care of you."
"I think that would be the perfect type for you."
Cloud
"I'm not interested."
::The scene fades back in to Aerith's house::
That Cloud remembering the truth of his past would have been detrimental to
Sephiroth's plans to use Cloud completely disqualifies him from having been
the voice.
Something else to consider -- and that is perhaps the greatest piece of
evidence toward this possibility -- is that in the Honey Bee Inn's &$#% Room,
Cloud actually encounters his subconscious (in the form of his younger self)
and speaks with it briefly:
::Cloud enters the room and a bright flash occurs. A translucent form of his
younger self his before him::
Cloud
"Hmm.....? You.....?"
"What are you doing in a place like this?"
::Cloud clutches his head::
"That's what I want to ask you. Should you be foolin' around
here?"
"You think problems will go away just thinkin' about them?"
::The younger form of Cloud rises and flies forward into Cloud's body::
"Oh no!"
"Help! Someone...! Hurry!"
"You can't change anything by just sitting back and looking at it."
Cloud
"What are you saying?"
"It's started moving."
Cloud
"What has?"
"Wake up!"
Note particularly that the double of Cloud in the Honey Bee Inn is a younger
form of him, just as the form of his subconscious was in Cloud's mind when
Tifa helps him piece his past together, and note also that this younger form
called to him to stop when he was handing the Black Materia over to Sephiroth
at the Temple of the Ancients:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/YoungCloud.gif
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/YoungCloud2.gif
It is with this same younger form of Cloud that the other transparent forms of
him fuse once Tifa has helped Cloud regain his past in the Lifestream. After
that, the adult form of him that was hanging overhead fused with the younger
form. Beyond this point, there ceases to be any voices in Cloud's mind as
there had been before.
Something else to consider is the following dialogue which takes place in
Cloud's head after his fall from the Upper Plate of Midgar into Aerith's
church below:
...You all right?
...Can you hear me?
Cloud
".....Yeah....."
Back then... You could get by with just skinned knees.....
Cloud
"What do you mean by 'back then'?"
What about now? Can you get up?
Cloud
".....What do you mean by 'that time'? .....What about now?"
Don't worry about me. You just worry about yourself now.
Cloud
".....I'll give it a try."
Note particularly that the the voice says "back then" Cloud could get by with
just skinned knees. Later, in the Lifestream, when Cloud's past is being
revealed, a very important aspect of the past for Cloud is unveiled: This was
when he and Tifa fell into a gorge on Mt. Nibel, Tifa suffering injuries that
resulted in a week-long coma, whereas Cloud only received skinned knees. It
was this event that propelled Cloud toward wishing to become stronger, and,
thus, inspired his desire to enter SOLDIER. Seeing as how the voice in Cloud's
head made an allusion to this very important aspect of Cloud's past, it's safe
to assume that this was once again his subconscious bringing up matters that
would possibly spark Cloud's recollection of his true past.
Finally, consider that in the game's ending, when we're shown the mental
battle with Cloud, the double that rises out of him is an adult at that point,
rather than a child, and Cloud was then easily able to either fend off
Sephiroth's mental assault, and purge his mind of his influence. This was
after the child form of Cloud's subconscious had fused with the adult form in
the Lifestream:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/Final%20Fantasy%20VII/Fi
nalConfrontationAwaits.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/Final%20Fantasy%20VII/Fi
nalConfrontationAwaits2.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/Final%20Fantasy%20VII/Fi
nalConfrontationAwaits3.jpg
While it has been argued that Zack was the voice which Cloud heard, we're
given no indication that this would be so, nor is there any logical reason as
to why Zack would have been the voice. Zack had been killed by Shin-Ra
soldiers before Cloud ever began hearing the voices, and there's no logical
reason as to why Zack's Spirit Energy would not have returned to the
Lifestream, instead hanging around to speak to Cloud, nor is any indication
given pointing toward Zack being the source of the voice.
The only logical conclusion that can be drawn -- and the only one with actual
support within the story -- is that the voice was none other than Cloud's
subconscious, attempting to get him to recall the truth of his past.
3) -It Had Been Five Years Since Cloud Was Last in Nibelheim with Tifa-
An often misunderstood aspect of Final Fantasy VII's plot concerns how much
time had passed since Cloud had last been in Nibelheim with Tifa before the
game began. I will here explain the matter in full.
It had been 5 years since Cloud had last visited his hometown. He was there
the night that it burned to the ground, and returned again alongside Tifa
during the game's present. Where the confusion concerning this matter comes
from is that Tifa believed it had been 7 years since Cloud had last been in
Nibelheim (when he left at 14 in hopes of joining SOLDIER), while he knew it
to have been 5 years. In light of many of Cloud's memories regarding Nibelheim
being revealed as inaccurate, many have believed that this meant that his
memory concerning when he was last in Nibelheim was also inaccurate.
However, one must keep in mind the circumstances surrounding Cloud's return to
Nibelheim. He had failed to become a member of SOLDIER, and, as a result, felt
deep shame and chose to hide his identity from everyone but his mother when he
returned to Nibelheim. He kept his soldier helmet on, concealing his identity
from Tifa while he was there. This truth is revealed during the Lifestream
incident in Mideel, as Tifa helps Cloud to uncover the truth of his past.
There were not only revelations for Cloud in that scene, but some for Tifa, as
well, this being, perhaps, the greatest:
Tifa
"...You came. ...You kept your promise."
Tifa
"So you really did come when I was in trouble!"
Cloud
"Sorry... I didn't get there... fast enough..."
Tifa
"It's all right... Cloud."
It was Cloud who took on Sephiroth that night in the Mt. Nibel Mako Reactor
and bested him, taking Sephiroth's blade into his own torso, but throwing
Sephiroth into the wall within the Reactor's heart and prompting him to leap
into the Lifestream. Cloud was last in Nibelheim with Tifa five years before
the game began.
4) -Explanation of the Lost Identities of the Black-Cloaked Sephiroth
Clones, And Why Cloud Didn't Lose His Own-
One's sense of self-acceptance (or self-awareness if you choose to call it as
such) seems to determine their mental fortitude. Folks like Zack and Lucrecia
accepted themselves for who they were, even if in Lucrecia's case, she wasn't
particularly fond of her self:
Lucrecia
"Lately, I dream a lot of Sephiroth... My dear, dear child."
"Ever since he was born I never got to hold him, even once..."
"Not even once. You can't call me his mother... That... is my sin..."
While she didn't like herself, as this bit of dialogue shows, she had a clear
concept of who she was in her mind: One who had failed her child and wasn't
deserving of being referred to as his mother.
In the case of Zack, we again find one who clearly expresses acceptance of
theirself, though in his case, he certainly seems comfortable with who he is,
as Aerith describes him as a ladies' man:
(In Gongaga, after meeting Zack's parents if Aerith was in the party at the
time.)
Cloud
"Aerith..."
Aerith
"What a shock..... I didn't know Zack was from this town."
Cloud
"You know him?"
Aerith
"Didn't I tell you? He was my first love."
Cloud
"............"
Aerith
"Zack.... SOLDIER First Class. Same as Cloud."
Cloud
"Strange, there aren't that many who make First Class, but I've
never heard of him."
Aerith
"That's all right. It's all in the past now. I was just worried
because I heard he's been missing."
Cloud
"Missing?"
Aerith
"I think it was 5 years ago. He went out on a job, and never came
back."
"He loved women, a real lady's man. He probably found someone
else..."
As such, Zack was comfortable with himself and had no reaction to either
JENOVA's Cells or the Mako treatment that Hojo performed on him after
capturing him along with Cloud and the other survivors of the Nibelheim
massacre:
(From the Escapee Reports in the back of the Shinra Mansion's library)
Escapee Report No. 2
Description of the time of capture.
A - Former member of SOLDIER/Number ( )
No effect could be detected from either Mako Radiation Therapy or Jenova on
him.
B - Regular/Number ( )
Reaction to Jenova detected.
Assuming that all members of SOLDIER would have a strong measure of
self-acceptance like Zack (which seems safe to infer in my opinion; the
obvious differences between Zack and Cloud were their opinions of themselves;
Aerith noted these differences, as well, calling Zack a ladies' man and -- if
the player accesses the date in the Gold Saucer between herself and Cloud --
calling Cloud a mixed-up kid), this would also account for why the Junon
Accessory Shop owner -- a former member of SOLDIER -- was not forced to go to
the Reunion. The extent of his reaction to JENOVA's Reunion call was donning a
black cloak, despite it being out of season, only slightly more of a reaction
than Lucrecia's reaction of seeing Sephiroth in her recent dreams:
"I used to be in SOLDIER. Recently, I've felt like dressing up like this... I
don't know, it's out of season, but..."
From here, one would have to make something of an assumption, though I believe
it's certainly not an inaccurate one: Most people aren't comfortable with
themselves. The massive amount of cosmetics one can see in a retail store is
proof of this. Few people really are comfortable with who they are and exude
self-confidence in all they do. If this self-acceptance were the requirement
for mental fortitude, that would explain why only a few would be capable of
entering SOLDIER (Cloud: "For better or for worse, only the strong can enter
SOLDIER."). While one might consider it a bit of a stretch to assume mental
strength to be what Cloud meant when he said that only the strong can enter
SOLDIER, considering that when he speaks of his own weakness in that same
scene, he's referring to his mental weakness, it's a safe assumption:
Cloud
"You see, someone in SOLDIER isn't simply exposed to Mako energy."
"Their bodies are actually injected with Jenova cells......"
"For better or for worse, only the strong can enter SOLDIER."
"It has nothing to do with the Jenova Reunion."
"But weak people...... like me, get lost in the whole thing."
I say he's referring to his mental weakness here because he says that weak
people like himself get lost in the experimentation that members of SOLDIER
undergo. We see him lost mentally on more than one occassion, first after Zack
broke him out of the Shinra Mansion, and later after his fall into the
Lifestream.
Cloud displays that he doesn't accept himself for who he is on numerous
occasions. Most notably, when he returns to Nibelheim as part of Zack and
Sephiroth's entourage, he wears a mask so as to prevent anyone from
recognizing him and knowing that he failed to enter SOLDIER. Further, while
there when speaking to Zack in the courtyard in Nibelheim, he shows that he
was worried with what others would think of him, this being due to his lack of
confidence in himself:
(Note that the regular soldier in this scene is actually Cloud, while "Cloud"
is actually Zack; this scene is shown to the player before Cloud's true role
in the Nibelheim scenario is revealed)
Soldier (Cloud)
"It's so boring, being on watch."
[The player can choose to say "You want to do what we always do?" or "Just
sit tight, it's your job, right?" If the player chooses "You want to do what
we always do?" the following exchange takes place.]
Cloud (Zack)
You want to do what we always do?
Cloud (Zack)
"Shall we practice?"
Soldier (Cloud)
"Practice... oh, you mean practice my pose."
"Does someone in SOLDIER always have to be careful about what other
people think?"
"...How did it go?"
::He poses::
Soldier (Cloud)
"Was it like this?"
Cloud (Zack)
"Good job!"
Soldier (Cloud)
"I really don't want to be in SOLDIER."
Now one would need to question what caused Cloud and the survivors in
Nibelheim to become lost in the first place. I believe this would be due to
the knowledge of those who had lived and died in the past contained within the
Mako that was infused into them. Early in the game, during the Kalm Flashback,
Sephiroth reveals that Materia functions the way it does because the
knowledge/memories contained within interacts between the wielder of Materia
and the Planet, manifesting Magic:
"...the knowledge and wisdom of the Ancients is held in the materia."
"Anyone with this knowledge can freely use the powers of the Land and the
Planet.
Keeping this in mind, Materia is crystalized Mako, and Mako is condensed (more
solidified) Lifestream. If the knowledge is within the Materia, then it must
have been in the Lifestream, and is, consequently, also within Mako (refer
also to what is said in Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within concerning Earth's
Gaia (Lifestream): It is said that when a lifeform dies, their soul returns to
the Gaia (Lifestream), taking the experiences of its lifetime with it;
knowledge would be part of that).
Therefore, when one is infused with Mako, their body is essentially being
flooded with not only solidified Spirit Energy, but the memories of the past
dead, as well. Obviously, this would place a strain on anyone's mind, but
imagine the strain it would place on the mind of one who wasn't comfortable
with theirself to begin with, didn't understand theirself, or didn't accept
theirself for themself. This would certainly account for why these people
would become lost. In having all that other knowledge and those other
consciousnesses flooding into their mind, it's easy to see why one who hadn't
accepted with their own self would have difficulty holding on to it amidst all
those other selves. This is what is known as "Mako Poisoning," and this
explanation for the concept has been confirmed by "Maiden Who Travels the
Planet," the short novella starring that was featured in the Final Fantasy VII
Ultimania Omega Guide.
One final bit of information to consider in this matter is that after Tifa
helps Cloud find himself in the Lifestream and his consciousness pieces itself
back together, Cloud admits his weaknesses to the rest of AVALANCHE, and
accepts himself as being weak:
Cloud
"Everyone...... I'm sorry. I don't know what to say......"
Red XIII
"Don't say anything, Cloud. All you've been doing is apologizing."
Cloud
"I never was in SOLDIER."
"I made up the stories about what happened to me five years ago, about
being in SOLDIER."
"I left my village looking for glory, but never made it in to
SOLDIER......"
"I was so ashamed of being so weak; then I heard this story from my
friend Zack..."
"And I created an illusion of myself made up of what I had seen in my
life....."
"And I continued to play the charade as if it were true."
Barret
"Illusion, huh...? Pretty damn strong for a 'lusion, I'd say."
Cloud
"I'm physically built like someone on SOLDIER."
"Hojo's plan to clone Sephiroth wasn't that difficult."
"It was just the same procedure they use when creating members of
SOLDIER."
Cloud
"You see, someone in SOLDIER isn't simply exposed to Mako energy."
"Their bodies are actually injected with Jenova cells......"
"For better or for worse, only the strong can enter SOLDIER."
"It has nothing to do with the Jenova Reunion."
"But weak people...... like me, get lost in the whole thing."
After this point, he never again displays the mental weaknesses that had
caused him to be forced into handing over the Black Materia, forced into
beating Aerith, nearly forced into kill her, and, finally, coerced into
willingly handing over the Black Materia.
During the game's ending, involving the battle with Cloud's consciousness, he
shows that he has become strong mentally, fending off the final mental assault
set against him, setting himself free and becoming autonomous. His mental
strength had grown, and had done so in a very short span of time. The only
major event that had recently come to pass involving his mind was the
defragmentation of his psyche, and his subsequent status of being forced to
come to terms with who he was, and even admitting it before those closest to
him. After accepting that he was weak, he became strong.
I doubt all of this was unintended by the writers, nor does any other
explanation I've become aware of offer reasoning as to why there is such high
variability in reaction to the Reunion displayed among those in whom JENOVA's
Cells were injected.
At this point, one could fairly ask "If all this is true, why then did Cloud's
mind not suffer the same effects as those of the other Nibelheim experiments?"
The answer, however, is a simple one: Cloud had Zack's psyche -- that of
someone whose mind wasn't shattered -- to focus on for five years, his mind
causing the JENOVA Cells within him to duplicate what they saw of and heard
from Zack -- but with Cloud in Zack's role in these false memories -- and to
then place them into Cloud's mind, all in an attempt to get Cloud to accept
himself and maintain a sense of self-identity, even if it was a false one.
Cloud was further able to maintain a sense of self-identity once he was
discovered by Tifa at the Sector 7 train station in Midgar. Just as his mind
had used JENOVA's Cells to duplicate Zack's stories and what they had seen of
Zack's abilities, then imposing them onto Cloud's shattered psyche, so too did
they incorporation Tifa's memories of Cloud onto his mind, giving him a
somewhat complete sense of self-identity, riddled with inaccurate memories
as it was.
5) -Zack Is Not The Man In The Pipe In The Slums of Midgar-
Many seem to believe that Zack somehow survived the 20 or so rounds of
ammunition that were fired into his head at close range, and then stumbled his
way to the outskirts of Midgar, where he was found and taken to recuperate in
a pipe.
This misunderstanding can be easily explained away, however.
The fellow in the pipe has a number 2 tattooed on his hand, as he is one of
the Nibelheim Experiments that received Mako infusion and JENOVA Cell
injections. We further know this because on Disc 3, should the player return
to Midgar and visit the fellow who had been looking after him, he will mention
that the sick guy who had been recuperating in the pipe left some time before,
muttering something about a Reunion.
There are a couple of reasons that we can be certain that this isn't Zack.
The first is that Aerith does not recognize him, despite Zack having been her
boyfriend that she loved so much that, upon meeting Cloud, she found herself
drawn to him because of his habitual similarities to Zack and the similarities
in personality. Were he the boyfriend that she had loved and lost, because of
whom she was then finding herself attracted to one that was greatly similar to
him, it's a safe assumption that she would at least recognize him, or that he
would have recognized her. However, neither display any recognition toward
the other.
The most conclusive evidence toward the fellow not being Zack, however, is
that Zack never received a numbered tattoo, just as Cloud did not, as they
escaped from the Shinra Mansion before that could take place.
Noting the Escapee Reports that can be read in the back of the Shinra
Mansion's Library, we can clearly see that where there should be numbers were
either of them given numbers (within the parentheses that follow the word
"number" in their descriptions), there are none and the area is blank:
Escapee Report No. 1
X Month X Day
The two escapees were located near Midgar.
Escapee Report No. 2
Description of the time of capture.
A - Former member of SOLDIER/Number ( )
No effect could be detected from either Mako Radiation Therapy or Jenova on
him.
B - Regular/Number ( )
Reaction to Jenova detected.
Escapee Report No. 3
Concerning their disposal.
A - Shot for resisting.
B - Escaped during A's resistance.
Escapee Report No. 4
Other
B's whereabouts are currently unknown.
But, we submit there is no need to pursue him, due to his diminishing
conciousness. Awaiting further instructions.
(Bolded for emphasis.)
Zack never received a numbered tattoo, just as Cloud did not. Also, again,
Aerith, the woman who loved him, did not show any recognition toward the man
in the pipe. Zack simply wasn't him.
6) -Vincent Is Not Sephiroth's Father-
It has long been argued by many that Vincent is Sephiroth's father, not Hojo.
However, this is not the case and I will here seek to explain why.
We know, of course, that Vincent was in love with Lucrecia, and in opposition
of the claim that Vincent is Sephiroth's father, it is often pointed out that
it is not implied that those feelings were reciprocated. From what we are
shown in Vincent's flashback, that Lucrecia loved Hojo seems to be clear --
such as when she rejects Vincent after what appears to be a declaration of
love to her on his part, only to find her kissing Hojo a moment later -- and
Vincent resigns himself to that fact, saying "If she is happy then... I don't
mind."
That said, however, it could still be argued that Lucrecia had a sexual
relationship with Vincent solely for the physical satisfaction of the matter
and that she didn't actually love him or intend to be with him, and when the
choice came to choose between him or Hojo, she chose Hojo. A case can at least
be built in this regard. While it's often argued that the be all and end all
of the matter was that "Vincent loved Lucrecia, but she loved Hojo," there are
a couple of points in-game that should be considered. First, when speaking to
Vincent on the Highwind after the barrier around the Northern Crater is
destroyed, he will say the following:
"Hojo...what a queer fellow. Such utter lack of scientific talent... compared
with the genius of Dr. Gast...Lucrecia chose him in order to protect him. Now
I understand...I understand...but..."
This suggests that there may have been more to the matter than simply "Vincent
loved Lucrecia, but she loved Hojo." There shouldn't have been a choice for
Lucrecia to even have to make if she just loved Hojo and hadn't expressed any
interest in Vincent.
Also notable is Vincent's reaction when Hojo reveals that he is Sephiroth's
father:
Hojo
"Ha, ha, ha... HA, HA, HA...!!"
"What will Sephiroth think when he finds out that I'm his father?"
"Always looking down on me like that."
"HA, HA, HA...!!"
Cloud
"Sephiroth is your son!?
Vincent
"......!"
Hojo
"Ha, ha, ha..."
"I offered the woman with my child to Professor Gast's Jenova
Project."
"When Sephiroth was still in the womb, we took the cells of
Jenova..."
"HA, HA, HA!!"
Vincent
"You......!"
Cloud
"I can't believe you're the one who did this..."
"The illusionary crime against Sephiroth..."
Hojo
"Heee, hee, hee, hee! No, you're wrong!"
"It's my desire as a scientist! Heee, hee, hee, hee!"
Vincent
"......"
"I was......wrong."
"The one that should have slept was..."
"You, Hojo!"
It is from Vincent's reaction that it can be determined that he had believed
himself to be the father, with it being part of his reasoning for desiring
that he be punished. He reacts with surprise when Hojo makes this relevation,
the same as the rest of AVALANCHE. He then goes on to say that he was wrong
about himself deserving the punishment he placed on himself, and that it was
Hojo that deserved it instead. There can be no reason for Hojo's revelation to
have affected who Vincent felt deserved to be punished save that he believed
the father of Lucrecia's child, Sephiroth, should be the one that was
punished. Seeing as how upon learning that Hojo was the father, he felt that
Hojo should be punished, whereas he had prior believed it was himself who
should be, he must have believed that he was Sephiroth's father beforehand.
However, he learns otherwise with Hojo's revelation that he himself was
Sephiroth's father, and Vincent realizes that it was not himself that deserved
to have been punished, but Hojo. Vincent is then absolved of his guilt and
granted a new lease on life. If chosen to be a party leader before the battle
against Safer Sephiroth, Vincent will declare "I was frozen in time, but I
feel as if my time is just beginning."
However, despite this, the manner in which the story unfolds does not suggest
that Vincent is Sephiroth's father, and only serves to contradict that he is.
It should be noted that Vincent's flashback in Lucrecia's cave first becomes
available on Disc 2, after gaining control of the Shin-Ra submarine. In other
words, this aspect of the storyline first becomes available before Hojo's
revelation that he is Sephiroth's father at the end of Disc 2 on the Sister
Ray. Considering that -- as far as the storyline's progression goes -- the
player is obviously meant to acquire the secret characters, Yuffie and
Vincent, at the earliest available time, and to do likewise with partaking of
their sidquests, chronologically, the viewing of Vincent's flashback comes
before Hojo's revelation on the Sister Ray. Hojo's revelation, thus, qualifies
as a last minute revelation, made all the more "last minute" due to Hojo being
the last opponent faced before the final battles within the Northern Crater
become available. Hojo's declaration is the last bit of evidence regarding the
identity of Sephiroth's father, and it isn't contested by anyone, not even
Vincent. In fact, rather than thinking it over, Vincent outright accepts it
and then feels that he can live a life outside of suffering for something that
wasn't his fault.
Everyone in-game accepts it as the truth, including the only other possible
candidate for being Sephiroth's father. Something to be kept in mind is when a
matter in a story has conflicting possibilities and only one has received an
outright declaration within the story without any evidence present that could
serve to contradict it, or anyone within the story opposing it, it would be
fact until new evidence that may contradict it was brought forth from a sequel
or prequel title, or by the creator(s) theirself/themselves in an interview.
This is especially the case when the introduction or development of the
possibilities are equal until one has been declared to be so and has not been
contested by something else in the story. In the case of there being no
contradictions, as there aren't in this case, what has been declared is fact
until new information is brought forth. With there being no contradiction of
Hojo's claim, which even Vincent accepts as true, it is true. For that matter,
it's not all that far-fetched to assume that Hojo would have the presence of
mind to conduct a paternity test if he believed there was a chance he wasn't
the father of Sephiroth, nor is it likely beyond the technological
capabilities of science in Final Fantasy VII to conduct such a test.
In any event, with Hojo's last minute declaration -- which is further made
"last minute" by the fact that journeying into the Northern Crater for the
final showdown with JENOVA and Sephiroth is made available immediately after
the showdown with Shin-Ra, the last battle of which takes place against Hojo
-- and the manner in which the story unfolded, Hojo has to be accepted as
Sephiroth's father until more evidence from the creators can be brought forth
to suggest otherwise. Such an eventuality is highly unlikely, however, as the
Ultimania Omega Guide for Final Fantasy VII outright states that Hojo is
Sephiroth's father multiple times.
7) -Aerith's Death Wasn't Necessary in Order to Summon Holy-
Aerith's death was not needed in order for Holy to be activated, nor does it
seem that she knew she would die in praying for Holy. While it's often
believed to have been the case, the opposite is actually true. I will here
attempt to explain why.
First, in regard to Aerith being aware of her imminent death and choosing to
sacrifice herself, this was not the case at all. In the May 2003 issue of EDGE
magazine (issue 123), there is a six-page "Making of..." feature on Final
Fantasy VII in which Yoshinori Kitase (Director and Co-Scenario Writer of
Final Fantasy VII) and Tetsuya Nomura (Character Designer of Final Fantasy
VII) were interviewed and asked about various points concerning Aerith's
death. During the course of this interview, Nomura says the following:
"Back at the time we were designing the game, I was frustrated with the
perennial cliche where the protagonist loves someone very much and so has to
sacrifice himself and die in a dramatic fashion to express that love. We found
this was the case in both games and movies, both eastern and western. But I
wanted to say something different, something realistic. I mean, is it right to
set such an example to people?"
Kitase follows that up with this:
"In the real world, things are very different. You just need to look around
you. Nobody wants to die that way. People die of disease and accident. Death
comes suddenly and there is no notion of good or bad attached to it. It
leaves, not a dramatic feeling, but a feeling of emptiness. When you lose
someone you loved very much you feel this big empty space and think 'If I had
known this was coming I would have done things differently.' These are the
feelings I wanted to arouse in the players with Aerith's death relatively
early in the game. Feelings of reality and not Hollywood."
With Kitase's words about death being unexpected in mind, consider Cloud's
dream in which he speaks to Aerith in the Sleeping Forest. Aerith intended to
handle Sephiroth on her own, and then come back:
Aerith
"And let me handle Sephiroth."
Aerith
"And Cloud, you take care of yourself."
Aerith
"So you don't have a breakdown, okay?"
Cloud
"What is this place?"
Aerith
"This forest leads to the City of the Ancients... and is called
Sleeping Forest."
Aerith
"It's only a matter of time before Sephiroth uses Meteor."
"That's why I'm going to protect it. Only a survivor of the Cetra,
like me, can do it."
Aerith
"The secret is just up here."
Aerith
"At least it should be. ...I feel it. It feels like I'm being led by
something."
Aerith
"Then, I'll be going now. I'll come back when it's all over."
Also consider Tifa's insight into her friend's intentions:
Tifa
"I wonder what Aerith felt... when she was on that altar...?"
Cloud
"I'm sure she wanted to give her life for the planet..."
Tifa
"Really? I wonder? I don't think that's it at all."
"I think she didn't think she would die at all, but that she planned
on coming back all along."
"She always used to talk about the 'Next time'."
"She talked about the future more that any of us..."
Further note that in Aerith's dialogue with Cloud in his dream, she didn't
know what she was going to find when she got to the City of the Ancients. She
only knew that something was awaiting her there and that she could feel
herself being led there. Based on Bugenhagen learning of Holy when he got
there from the knowledge floating around in the City, it's logical to assume
that Aerith did likewise:
Bugenhagen
"This is..."
Bugenhagen
"Yes...... exactly..."
Cloud
"Are you getting something?"
Bugenhagen
"...Give me a moment."
Bugenhagen
"The knowledge of the Ancients swirling around here is telling me
one thing."
Bugenhagen
"The planet's in a crisis..."
Bugenhagen
"A crisis beyond human power or endless time."
"It says, when the time comes, we must search for 'Holy'."
Cloud
"Holy?"
Bugenhagen
"Holy... the ultimate White Magic. Magic that might stand against
Meteor. Perhaps our last hope to save the planet from Meteor."
Aerith clearly had no intentions of dying, nor did she know she would. Her
sudden death was as much a surprise for her as it was for many players of the
game. Kitase intended this to be so.
While it has been argued that Aerith's statement that "only a Cetra like me"
could handle things in Cloud's dream, note that she was referring to
protecting the Planet, as the Cetra were once its caretakers:
Aerith
"It's only a matter of time before Sephiroth uses Meteor."
"That's why I'm going to protect it. Only a survivor of the Cetra,
like me, can do it."
For that matter, recall that she didn't even know what she would find when she
got to the City of the Ancients, only that she felt as though she was being
led by something and would find the answer when she got there.
With that said, we'll move now to the matter of Aerith's death being required
for Holy to be activated. The fact that Aerith didn't intend to die nor knew
that she would alone is enough to suggest it isn't so, but we'll examine each
point in regard to the matter without considering that. First, consider that
the Black Materia -- the key to activating Meteor, the ultimate Black Magic --
didn't require a death in order to summon Meteor. While true that the Cait
Sith construct had to remain in the Temple of the Ancients and be crushed to
transform the Temple into the Materia -- as someone had to remain inside and
die -- this was to transform the Temple and make the Materia accessible and
usable, not to actually use the Materia itself.
The White Materia logically wouldn't require a death either. The Black and
White Materias were like any other Materia in this respect, as we're not shown
any other Materia that required a death in order for them to function, nor is
it suggested that the White or Black Materias required such a sacrifice.
Also consider this: Sephiroth knew how the Black Materia worked. His entire
plan revolved around using the Black Materia to summon Meteor, dealing a fatal
wound to the Planet, which the Lifestream would then attempt to heal, pouring
out a huge amount of energy, which hewould then absorb. Knowing how the Black
Materia worked, Sephiroth would logically also know how the White Materia
worked from having been in the Lifestream. And obviously Sephiroth DID know
about the White Materia, as he attempted to kill Aerith before she could
summon Holy, and was holding Holy back for the entire course of the game after
Aerith summoned it:
Cloud
"Thank you... Aerith."
"Aerith's voice has already reached the Planet. Just look at the
glow of the White Materia."
"But...... how about Holy? How come Holy isn't moving?"
Cloud
"Why?"
Bugenhagen
"Something's getting in its way."
If it were true that Aerith' death was required for Holy to work -- and,
again, no other Materia, including the Black Materia, is shown to require a
death to function -- then it would have been counterproductive to kill Aerith.
If Sephiroth's intentions were to summon Meteor, initiating the key to
activating Holy (which could conceivably negate Meteor) would be undermining
his entire plan. Logically, it makes no sense whatsoever for Sephiroth to kill
Aerith if her death would be required for Holy to function. Granted, one could
argue that he were attempting to kill her before her death would matter, but
that's stepping a bit outside the realm of reasonable assumption.
Further consider that it is shown that activating Holy didn't require death
when the function of the White Materia is explained.
Bugenhagen
"If a soul seeking Holy reaches the planet, it will appear."
Many take this to mean that Aerith's spirit had to reach the center of the
Planet in order to activate Holy, however, in conjunction with the rest of
what Bugenhagen says, this is shown to not be the case at all, as "reach"-ing
the Planet in this case, merely meant "communicating with the Planet" through
the White Materia:
Cloud
"Search for Holy... How do we do it?"
Bugenhagen
"Speak to the planet."
"Get the White Materia... This will bond the Planet to humans."
Bugenhagen
"Then speak to the planet."
"If our wish reaches the planet, the White Materia will begin to
glow a pale green."
The matter was as simple as that.
Anyone who had the White Materia could have prayed for Holy, and "reached" the
Planet, as the White Materia opened a line of communication between its
holder and the Planet itself. It's possible that being at the City of the
Ancients wasn't even required, since Aerith was only performing the prayer
there because she learned about the White Materia's function there. The
concept of establishing a link between oneself and the Planet through the
White Materia isn't really any different than using any other Materia, as all
Materia contain knowledge of those who have lived and died in the past, with
these memories and knowledge acting as a link between the wielder of the
Materia and the Planet itself:
(Stated by Sephiroth in Nibelheim during the mission there five years before
the main events of the game.)
"...the knowledge and wisdom of the Ancients is held in the
materia."
"Anyone with this knowledge can freely use the powers of the Land
and the Planet. That knowledge interacts between ourselves and the planet
calling up magic..... or so they say."
For a final point, if establishing a mental/spiritual connection with the
Planet through the White Materia were not needed, and only dying was, Aerith
could have as easily thrown herself off a cliff or stood out in the open and
called out to Sephiroth to come kill her, rather than going about things as
she did.
This is not to take anything away from Aerith, or to say that what she did
wasn't heroic -- for she indeed displayed heroism in traveling to the City of
the Ancients on her own -- but to point out the facts surrounding what she
did. From the quotes from the script seen above and the interview with Nomura
and Kitase in EDGE magazine, it is obvious that she did not expect to die, and
by the evidence pertaining to the Black Materia, Materia in general, and
Sephiroth's knowledge of the Black and -- likely -- the White Materia, as well
as the quotes that establish that all that was required to activate Holy was
connecting to the Planet, it can be seen that her death was not necessary in
order for Holy to come forth.
However, that said, due to Aerith's presence in the Lifestream, she was able
to unite all other consciousnesses also within the Planet's great pool of life
energy to the effect of taking a stand against Meteor, pushing it back away
from the Planet enough for Holy to destroy it. That being the case, her death
was still a stroke of luck on the Planet's part.
8) -Aerith Did Not Sacrifice Herself-
One of the larger misperceptions of Final Fantasy VII is that Aerith
intentionally sacrifced herself for the Planet, knowing that her death would
be needed in order to save the world. This was simply not the case.
In the May 2003 issue of EDGE magazine (issue 123), there is a six-page
"Making of..." feature on Final Fantasy VII in which Yoshinori Kitase
Director and Co-Scenario Writer of Final Fantasy VII) and Tetsuya Nomura
(Character Designer of Final Fantasy VII) were interviewed and asked about
various points concerning Aerith's death. During the course of this interview,
Nomura says the following:
"Back at the time we were designing the game, I was frustrated with the
perennial cliche where the protagonist loves someone very much and so has to
sacrifice himself and die in a dramatic fashion to express that love. We found
this was the case in both games and movies, both eastern and western. But I
wanted to say something different, something realistic. I mean, is it right to
set such an example to people?"
Kitase follows that up with this:
"In the real world, things are very different. You just need to look around
you. Nobody wants to die that way. People die of disease and accident. Death
comes suddenly and there is no notion of good or bad attached to it. It leaves
not a dramatic feeling, but a feeling of emptiness. When you lose someone you
loved very much you feel this big empty space and think 'If I had known this
was coming I would have done things differently.' These are the feelings I
wanted to arouse in the players with Aerith's death relatively early in the
game. Feelings of reality and not Hollywood."
With Kitase's words about death being unexpected in mind, consider Cloud's
dream in which he speaks to Aerith in the Sleeping Forest. Aerith intended to
handle Sephiroth on her own, and then come back:
Aerith
"And let me handle Sephiroth."
Aerith
"And Cloud, you take care of yourself."
Aerith
"So you don't have a breakdown, okay?"
Cloud
"What is this place?"
Aerith
"This forest leads to the City of the Ancients... and is called
Sleeping Forest."
Aerith
"It's only a matter of time before Sephiroth uses Meteor."
"That's why I'm going to protect it. Only a survivor of the Cetra,
like me, can do it."
Aerith
"The secret is just up here."
Aerith
"At least it should be. ...I feel it. It feels like I'm being led by
something."
Aerith
"Then, I'll be going now. I'll come back when it's all over."
Also consider Tifa's insight into her friend's intentions:
Tifa
"I wonder what Aerith felt... when she was on that altar...?"
Cloud
"I'm sure she wanted to give her life for the planet..."
Tifa
"Really? I wonder? I don't think that's it at all."
"I think she didn't think she would die at all, but that she planned
on coming back all along."
"She always used to talk about the 'Next time'."
"She talked about the future more that any of us..."
The in-game dialogue of Final Fantasy VII not only serves to contradict the
notion that Aerith sacrificed herself, but the words of two of the game's core
developers establishes that she did not sacrifice herself.
9) -Explanation of the Behaviour of the WEAPONs-
An often-raised question concerning Final Fantasy VII is "Why did the WEAPONs
behave in the manner that they did?" This is asked due to them having been
created to protect the Planet, yet we typically only ever find them attacking
the Homo Sapien populace, whereas Meteor is the threat at hand. Further, it is
JENOVA and Sephiroth who would likely cause the death of the Planet once
Meteor had struck by asborbing the Spirit Energy that the Planet would send to
heal the wound rendered by Meteor. One major point of curiosity is why the
WEAPONs make no attempt to penetrate the barrier around the Northern Crater
(or blast their way under it) and seek to attack JENOVA and Sephiroth. As a
result of this, many mistakenly conclude that the WEAPONs may have been
controlled by Sephiroth. However, this is not the case. Here, I will attempt
to answer these questions and explain the behavior of the WEAPONs.
Quite simply, the WEAPONs were an automated defense system that the Planet had
originally created to defend itself from the Crisis from the Sky, JENOVA.
However, due to a small band of Cetra confronting and confining the Crisis, it
was no longer necessary to use the WEAPONs and they were placed into a state
of hibernation, to awaken again should the Planet face a crisis from JENOVA or
another threat:
(From the Original Crisis Report tapes at Icicle Inn)
Professor Gast
"Ifalna, can you comment on the thing called 'Weapon'?"
Ifalna
"Yes, Professor."
"The one the Professor mistook for a Cetra... was named Jenova.
That is the 'crisis from the sky'."
"The Planet knew it had to destry the 'crisis from the sky'..."
"You see, as long as Jenova exists, the Planet will never be able to
fully heal itself."
Professor Gast
"Back then, Weapon was a weapon the Planet produced of its own will?"
Ifalna
"Yes, but... There is no record of Weapon ever being used."
"A small number of the surviving Cetra defeated Jenova, and confined
it."
"The Planet produced Weapon... But it was no longer necessary to use
it."
Professor Gast
"So, Weapon no longer exists on the Planet?"
Ifalna
"Weapon cannot vanish. ...It remains asleep somewhere on the Planet."
"Even though Jenova is confined, it could come back to life at some
time..."
"The Planet has not fully healed itself yet. It is still watching
Jenova."
Once placed into hibernation, they would only activate during times in which
the Planet's crisis level was high enough that the Planet itself might be in
danger. Once activated, however, rather than seeking out the cause of the
threat to the Planet and targeting it, they would destroy EVERYTHING. Not just
anything that might pose a potential threat to the Planet, as is often
believed to be the case, but everything that was alive. They had no
programming pertaining to the effect of "Seek out the cause of the planetary
crisis and eliminate it." The programming was simply "Annihilate anything
that's alive." We know this because of what information Hojo reveals
concerning the WEAPONs at the Northern Crater before Meteor is summoned:
Hojo
"Weapon..."
"Then it really does exist... I didn't believe in it."
Rufus
"What does this mean?"
Hojo
"...Weapon. Monsters created by the Planet."
"It appears when the Planet is in danger, reducing everything to
nothingness."
"That's what was stated in Professor Gast's report."
His information came from Professor Gast's report. Gast's information came
from Ifalna, his wife, who happened to be a Cetra. Her information would have
come from the Planet, so it's most certainly accurate.
We are further able to ascertain this conclusion that the WEAPONs were
attacking all living things due to behavior that is mostly never shown, but is
indicated either through dialogue or through us witnessing their visual
results:
(When Tifa wakes up in Junon, a week after Meteor has been summoned.)
Tifa
"How long... was I asleep?"
Barret
"Lessee now...... Must've been about 7 days."
Tifa
"What about Sephiroth?"
Barret
"You ain't over it yet. Remember that huge light, in the Northern
Cave?"
Barret
"Since then, the crater's been surrounded by a huge barrier of
light."
"Everyone knows Sephiroth sleeps in that big hole, protected by the
barrier."
"We can't do a damn thing about it. We just gotta wait till he wakes
up."
Barret
"And on topa that, some huge monster called Weapon's been on a
rampage."
Tifa
"...Weapon?"
Barret
"Remember that huge monster that was made with Sephiroth, at the
bottom of the crater?"
"Well it's up here now. They say it's some legendary monster from the
past."
Tifa
"Weapon... is protecting Sephiroth?"
Barret
"Dunno. But he's up here goin' around tearin' shit up."
From this, we can ascertain that Hojo's information concerning WEAPON is
correct, as Sapphire WEAPON, at the least, is going about attacking randomly
("...he's up here goin' around tearin' shit up"). That the WEAPON had specific
targets is not implied.
Something else to consider is Ultimate WEAPON's behavior, of which we can see
both the results after the fact in one case, and the results as they occur in
another. First to note is that late in the game, the area in front of Junon
now features a giant crater into which the sea has flooded due to the Planet's
surface in the area having been ravaged all the way out to the ocean. There
was once a forest (full of life; full of Spirit Energy; take note of this for
a matter to be brought up soon) in this location that has since been utterly
destroyed, and Ultima WEAPON is found on Disc 3 of the game hovering over this
crater, indicating that the WEAPON is what caused the damage to the Junon
area:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/Final%20Fantasy%20VII/Ul
timateWEAPONnearJunon.jpg
Something of further consideration is that Ultimate WEAPON made an assault on
Mideel, an area of the world in which its residents lived relatively in
harmony with nature. Granted, they would have used trees to create their
villages' structures, but for the most part, they were posing no threat to the
Planet. There wasn't even a Mako Reactor on the entire continent on which
Mideel resides, and the closest one would have been on the eastern continent
at Fort Condor, with that Mako Reactor having long since fallen into
disservice. In other words, the people of Mideel were no threat to the Planet
and there must have been another reason for attacking them.
Here we come to the matter I previously mentioned in regard to the forest that
Ultimate WEAPON destroyed: The link between both of these areas that posed no
threat to the Planet were that they both contained Spirit Energy in the living
beings present.
We already know based on what Hojo said concerning Gast's report and the
behavior we see demonstrated by the WEAPONs that they will reduce "everything
to nothingness" indiscriminantly, except in regard to differentiating between
living targets/areas populated with life, and non-living targets/areas not
populated with life. The WEAPONs' targets are creatures that contain Spirit
Energy.
As for why this may be so, the WEAPONs only arise when the Planet itself is
facing a crisis. During such a time, what would likely be of greatest
importance to the Planet overall is its own survival. Thus, in having the
WEAPONs annihilate all living things, they would be causing Spirit Energy to
return to the Planet and add more strength to the Lifestream. For evidence of
such a concept, we can look to Final Fantasy VII: Before Crisis, in which
Fuhito of AVALANCHE -- attempting to assassinate President Shinra -- tells the
despotic corporation's head that his death will be of benefit the Lifestream:
Fuhito
"Heh heh. So we meet again, President Shinra. There’s no need to fear. Your
death will release your soul into the Lifestream and help this planet."
(Note: For a translation of Final Fantasy VII: Before Crisis' script, refer
to this website: http://www.freewebs.com/gunshotromance/index.htm)
Based on all of this, we can conclude that the behavior of the WEAPONs was not
to target the source of the threat to the Planet, but to annihilate all life,
strengthening the Lifestream. While it's true that this behaviour would also
be of benefit to Sephiroth -- as he intended to absorb the Lifestream -- the
behaviour we see displayed by the WEAPONs falls into the range of that which
Gast had reported when Sephiroth was still only 8 years old. The storyline of
the game offers an explanation as to what the purpose of the WEAPONs is, and
when released, we merely see them display behaviour in that regard without any
indication that they were being controlled by Sephiroth or were adhereing to
any purpose other than that which was reported by Gast.
Further notable is that in Chapter 5 of "Maiden Who Travels the Planet," the
short novella starring Aerith (featured in the Final Fantasy VII Ultimania
Omega Guide), it is stated that Sephiroth didn't have just a barrier above the
Northern Crater, but one beneath it as well, effectively cutting off contact
from both the surface world and the Lifestream; in Chapter 6, the novella
further goes on to say that by cutting off contact with the Lifestream, he was
able to prevent the will of the Planet from interfering with his plans, and
was also able to hide his presence from the WEAPONs. With the concept in mind
that he felt it necessary to hide from the WEAPONs, it becomes certain that he
was not controlling them.
Points often raised to argue that Sephiroth was controlling the WEAPONs, yet
which don't actually support the notion:
*Point: The WEAPONs wake up just as Sephiroth calls Meteor. This would make
sense as he would likely want them to act as extra protection now that he was
waiting for his plan to be fulfilled, with Shin-Ra and AVALANCHE knowing where
he is.
*Response: The WEAPONs awakened because Meteor was called and the Planet's
crisis level became astronomic. As Hojo said, they awaken during such times of
crisis. As far as the matter of protection goes, AVALANCHE only knew where
Sephiroth was because he brought them to him. He wanted them to know he was
there. It makes little sense for him to draw them to him and then fear what
they may do with this knowledge. For that matter, he had the barrier around
the Northern Crater for protection.
*Point: The WEAPONs awaken in the vicinity of Sephiroth, yet they don't just
attack him, despite him being the threat to the Planet.
*Response: Technically, Meteor was the threat to the Planet. But in any case,
that the WEAPONs would know what the threat to the Planet was is not implied.
It's only implied that they somehow knew when there was a threat. For that
matter, the parameters of their purpose was to seek out living things and
destroy them, not to actively seek out the cause of the Planet's crisis.
*Point: Even assuming the WEAPONs didn't seek out the cause of the Planet's
crisis, rather than attacking what living things there were in the area of the
Northern Crater, they fly off to seek out other targets. The Northern Crater
was abundant with life within.
*Response: During a time of crisis such as that, with impending doom hanging
overhead, efficiency would likely be the order of business. Spending one's
time digging down into that hole in the ground to vaporize a few Dragons and
Movers would hardly be as effective as reducing entire forests full of plant
and animal life to smoldering craters.
*Point: Until after the barrier around the Northern Crater is destroyed, the
WEAPONs don't attack anything but places where Shin-Ra or AVALANCHE are. After
that, they're just trying to go around and cause chaos to keep everyone
distracted.
*Response: We don't know that. Barret tells Tifa when she awakens in Junon
that the WEAPONs have been going around "tearin' shit up." Tifa had been
unsconsious for two weeks. While Barret does say that Rufus had been fighting
the WEAPONs during this time, that does not mean that they had necessarily
been targeting him and Shin-Ra. The WEAPONs were going around attacking places
on Rufus' Planet, harming Rufus' people, and Rufus had the means by which to
at least oppose the WEAPONs. It makes sense that he would be fighting them. In
any event, the WEAPONs' apparent intent on taking him out in the present may
have been a result of his interference over the course of the preceding two
weeks.
While that's somewhat heavy speculation, there's also the fact that Barret
makes no suggestion to indicate that the WEAPONs had been attacking JUST
Shin-Ra during this period of time.
*Point: Diamond WEAPON took the Sister Ray's blast at Midgar full-on in an
attempt to stop it from hitting the barrier around the Northern Crater. He was
trying to protect Sephiroth. Surely he wouldn't do this otherwise. For that
matter, it fought AVALANCHE, but then began ignoring them as soon as the
Sister Ray was preparing to fire at the barrier. While one may argue that
Diamond was trying to prevent the Sister Ray from sucking Spirit Energy out of
the Planet -- something that would render it and the other WEAPONs' actions of
late useless -- it could have just shot the cannon from where it stood instead
of wasting the time to walk toward the shore and then get in the cannon's path
to fire. It clearly intended to protect Sephiroth.
*Response: The matter of shooting the cannon before it could fire applies
logically in either situation. For the WEAPON not to simply stand where it was
and shoot the cannon or the Mako Reactors that would power it makes no sense
no matter what the situation is, as it was obviously trying to prevent that
due to disregarding AVALANCHE as soon as Rufus was informed that the Sister
Ray was prepared to fire. Most likely, however, it WAS taking action due to
the Spirit Energy within the Planet being sucked out to power the cannon based
on what we know to be facts concerning the WEAPONs, and what Cloud says as the
WEAPON walks away:
Cloud
"No, it's...... feeling something. ......Yeah, it senses murder."
With that in mind, recall that Bugenhagen described the Mako Reactors'
activities as throwing all living things away:
Bugenhagen
"Everyday Mako reactors suck up Spirit energy, diminishing it."
"Spirit energy gets compressed in the reactors and processed into
Mako energy. All living things are being used up and thrown away."
Most likely, it was sensing that Spirit Energy was about to be thrown away
that would motivate the WEAPON into action, not a concern that Sephiroth's
barrier would be destroyed.
As for why it would move into the path of the Sister Ray, this was most likely
a plot device just to get the WEAPON destroyed.
*Point: If the WEAPONs were trying to flood the Planet with Spirit Energy, why
didn't they destroy a place like the Gold Saucer? It obviously took a lot of
Spirit Energy to power that place, and it was also full of people and
Chocobos. There was tons of Spirit Energy in that place.
*Response: Like the previous point, this applies no matter what the situation.
If Sephiroth wanted to cause chaos and/or hurt people's morale, he should
attack this place. If he wanted to hurt Shin-Ra, he should attack this place,
as they own it (Dio introduces himself as the owner, but he's later referred
to as the manager by the Weapon Seller east of Gongaga, and the board
displaying the layout of the Gold Saucer near the entrance clearly shows that
it is Shin-Ra that owns it).
In any event, the Gold Saucer couldn't be destroyed as that would reduce the
player's choices of mini-games from more than 10 to just 3 (the Fort Condor
mini-game battle, the Ancient Forest, and the snowboard ride to the Great
Glacier). Even Chocobo breeding would no longer be fruitful, as the player
would be unable to race their Chocobos and train them.
For that matter, though, the position of Ruby WEAPON (in the desert near the
Gold Saucer) would suggest that the writer was trying to imply that the Gold
Saucer WAS a target of the WEAPONs, though obviously not one that could be
destroyed without severely hampering gameplay.
*Point: When Bugenhagen learns of Holy in the City of the Ancients, he says
that WEAPON will disappear along with Meteor:
Bugenhagen
"Holy... the ultimate White Magic. Magic that might stand against
Meteor. Perhaps our last hope to save the planet from Meteor."
"If a soul seeking Holy reaches the planet, it will appear."
Bugenhagen
"Ho Ho Hoooo."
"Meteor, Weapon, everything will disappear."
Bugenhagen
"Perhaps, even ourselves."
If this is true, then why would the Planet be removing its own automated
defense system unless it was being controlled by Sephiroth?
*Response: It likely isn't true. Bugenhagen was merely told by the memories
floating around in the air what Holy is and how to use it. It's not suggested
that there was a consciousness in the City that was still aware in the
present, that was monitoring the situation, and was then passing along
information to Bugenghagen on what was going to happen if Holy should be
employed. Bugenhagen and the others regarded WEAPON as something bad. The
memories in the Ancient City were informing Bugenhagen that Holy would remove
anything that the Planet deemed as bad. In his excitement -- which was obvious
-- he likely assumed that WEAPON would vanish with Meteor. For that matter, if
he was being given a list of those things which would be undone by Holy,
there's no reason that he should have to speculate on whether or not Homo
Sapiens would vanish as well. He should already know.
For that matter, though, even if the WEAPONs were under Sephiroth's influence,
their behaviour would have benefitted the Planet, as killing things as they
were would flood the Lifestream with Spirit Energy, and -- when they targeted
Shin-Ra -- would take out the biggest threat to the Planet among Homo Sapiens.
The Planet should still consider the WEAPONs of benefit to itself.
*Point: Even Tifa and Barret acknowledge the possibility that the WEAPONs may
be protecting Sephiroth:
Tifa
"Weapon... is protecting Sephiroth?"
Barret
"Dunno. But he's up here goin' around tearin' shit up."
*Response: Actually, Tifa asks Barret if the WEAPONs are protecting Sephiroth,
and Barret responds that he doesn't know. Neither of the two were present when
Hojo declared what was stated in Gast's report. For that matter, Tifa's
wording obviously expresses uncertainty:
"Weapon... is protecting Sephiroth?"
She's clearly confused by what Barret is reporting, as she knows the WEAPONs
to have been created for the Planet's defense, and them going around attacking
things seems to be a contradiction to her. As for Barret himself, he only
knows what he's seen and heard, and both of them are out of the loop in regard
to what Hojo revealed back at the Northern Crater.
*Point: In the tapes we see at Icicle Inn, it's never suggested that the
WEAPONs rise up with the intention of destroying everything. It's said that
they were created to destroy JENOVA. Hojo must have been exaggerating -- or
outright lying -- about what was stated in Gast's report. We are able to see
every other report in the game (the Periodic Report to Professor Hojo, the
Escapee Report, the Original Crisis Report) with the exception of this alleged
document.
*Response: Then it would be far too much of a coicedence that he should say
the WEAPONs awaken when the Planet is in a crisis, with them doing just that
shortly thereafter when Meteor is called, yet with it having absolutely
nothing to do with the Planet being in a crisis. In any event, like it or not,
there was more to Gast's report than that which we are able to see.
For that matter, there's even more to those tapes in Icicle Inn concerning
Aerith than we are able to see. Recall these lines from the second tape
concerning Aerith, entitled "Daughter's Record: 20th Day after birth":
Ifalna
"Video again? You just got through taping!"
Gast
".........Please don't say it that way."
"It's our lovely daughter, both yours... and mine!"
"Don't you want to capture her childhood on videotape?"
Ifalna
"If you keep doting on her like that, she won't grow up to be strong..."
Ifalna says that he "just got through taping." The only other tape concerning
Aerith is entitled "Daughter's Record: 10th Day after birth." A difference of
10 days is hardly just getting through with taping, and considering how short
that first video was, there's hardly reason for her to speak as though Gast
was excessively doting on Aerith if these are all the tapes that there were.
Based on all of this, the most simple explanation, and the only one which is
actively supported by the storyline of the game itself, is that the WEAPONs
were doing exactly what they were intended to do without any outside
interference from Sephiroth, and with the information from "Maiden Who Travels
the Planet" in mind, it is certain Sephiroth had no influence over the
WEAPONs' behaviour.
(Note: Thanks to Fade of AdventChildren.net for bringing the concept of the
WEAPONs indiscriminately destroying all living things to my attention; heavy
thanks go to Katicflis for supplying counterarguments to this matter. The only
way to make an argument stronger is to try to break it.)
10) -The Battle During the Game's Ending Was a Real Conflict-
One of the more enduring questions concerning Final Fantasy VII's storyline is
whether or not the battle between Cloud's mind and Sephiroth's form during the
ending was real or not. While certain that it was a mental ordeal due to Cloud
having not moved from his location on the ledge when he began hearing laughter
inside his head, quite often, it's argued to have been nothing more than
visceral imagery representing Cloud gaining autonomy and removing Sephiroth's
influence from his mind. However, while true that he did these things during
that battle, it was still just that: A battle. I will here explain why this is
so.
Of course, being that Cloud's body contained JENOVA Cells, his mind had been
accessed several times before this point, often to force him to do things
against his will (for example, handing over the Black Materia at the site of
the Temple of the Ancients and then proceeding to beat up Aerith). In this
particular case, the JENOVA Cells were being used to access his mind in an
attempt to completely take over his body (due to JENOVA and Sephiroth's own
having just been pulverized).
Where's the evidence for this one might ask? It's in the fact that Holy was
still being held back even after the Safer Sephiroth battle. It wasn't moving,
for the will of Sephiroth was still in play and he was still attempting to
carry out the plan to absorb the Lifestream, but in order to do so, needed a
body. The intended host was Cloud's body. Due to Cloud having come to terms
with himself in the Lifestream, his will was now too strong to be subverted,
and he easily fended off Sephiroth, expelling him from his mind. Once this was
done, the crater that led down into the area where JENOVA-SYNTHESIS had been
fought (always green up to this point) flashed white, the colour of Holy, and
Holy began to move only a few seconds later, whereas it had continued to
reside in the centre of the Planet even after Safer Sephiroth's defeat. It
wasn't until the mental form of Sephiroth was defeated by Cloud that the
interior of the Crater began to flash with Holy's brilliance, signaling that
Holy was free to move:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/HolyFlash.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/HolyFlash2.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/HolyFlash3.jpg
The only means by which to explain Holy's behavior is to account for this
mental conflict. To those who would continue to argue that a mental battle
would be unlikely, I would like to take this moment to remind everyone that in
Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within, Aki acquires the Eigth Spirit during a
dream sequence, it plunging its tentacles into her dream form's stomach, where
they came into contact with her child. In light of the rather "A to B" manner
in which things play out (Sephiroth's mental form is dispersed and Holy
subsequently begins to move with nothing else falling between the events that
could have possibly triggered Holy's movement), I would conclude that the most
logical explanation for these events is that the mental ordeal truly was a
battle of wills.
Further, the reality of this battle has been officially confirmed by the Final
Fantasy VII Ultimania Omega Guide; for example, in Chapter 7 of "Maiden Who
Travels the Planet," a short novella starring Aerith that is featured in the
book, it's stated that Cloud's spirit/consciousness pursued Sephiroth's
retreating spirit/consciousness into the Lifestream after his physical body
was destroyed, as Sephiroth was still continuing to hold Holy back; the two
then had a final showdown in which Sephiroth was nearly victorious, but fell
to Cloud in the end, Sephiroth's spirit being banished to the Lifestream
afterward.
11) -Why Holy Failed, and the Truth About the Lifestream's Role in Saving the
World-
When the Ultimate White Magic Spell, Holy, collided with its polar opposite,
Meteor, in the sky over Midgar, it seemed that deliverance had arrived for the
people of Gaia and the Planet itself. However, seemingly, the Spell failed and
was being overpowered by the Black Magic Spell. Why was this? Was it because
the Planet had deemed to allow Meteor to pass, so as to annihilate Homo
Sapiens, as is so often concluded? No. Were that the case, having Holy assault
Meteor to begin with would not have been necessary, nor should it have
logically occurred. For that matter, if the Planet was targeting Homo Sapiens,
based on Bugenhagen's description of Holy from what he learned in the City of
the Ancients, Holy should have been able to remove both Meteor and Homo
Sapiens, as the intention behind using it is to allow the Planet to remove all
that which it determines as bad for itself. Why, then, does Holy fail? What
does Red XIII mean about it having "the opposite effect"? I will here explain
these matters.
The following statement from Red XIII is what most-often inspires the
conclusion that Holy was helping Meteor, and, consequently, has inspired
thoughts that the Planet deemed to allow Meteor to strike so as to rid itself
of Homo Sapiens:
"Holy is having the opposite effect."
However, this conclusion takes Nanaki's statement out of context, ignoring
those words that he stated beforehand:
"It's too late for Holy. Meteor is approaching the Planet."
What, then, does this mean? Why was it too late for Holy? In what way?
Meteor's proximity to the Planet was a part of this problem for what reason?
According to Chapter 7 of "Maiden Who Travels the Planet," the short novella
starring Aerith (featured in the Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Omega Guide), the
extreme gravitational force that lay between the Planet and Meteor -- which
caused a huge destructive storm to kick up -- caused Holy to be ineffective
against Meteor. Rather than destroying Meteor, the gravity pulling on Holy in
opposite directions resulted instead in its power adding to the destructive
effects of the situation, its power unable to focus directly on Meteor.
It was here that the Lifestream came into play. Guided by Aerith and the
consciousnesses within the Lifestream (including Jessie, Biggs, Wedge, Dyne,
and Zack), the Planet's life energy rose up from within the bowels of the
Planet and pushed back against Meteor, reducing the powerful gravitational
pull on Holy, and allowing it to then apply its full force against Meteor,
destroying it.
The following images depict this conflict from its beginning to its end:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/HolyArrives.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/HolyAltered.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/HolyParts.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/MeteorisNeutralized.jpg
12) -The Cetra are Not from Another Planet-
A misconception that often arises concerning Final Fantasy VII's storyline is
that the Cetra were not from Gaia, but another Planet, and that their
migrations took them from one Planet to another. This misconception arises
from a misunderstanding of the following dialogue:
Sephiroth
"This Planet originally belonged to the Cetra. Cetra was a itinerant
race. They would migrate in, settle the Planet, then move on..."
"At the end of their harsh, hard journey, they would find the
Promised Land and supreme happiness."
What should be kept in mind is that Aerith -- a Cetra herself -- specifically
states that the Cetra are born from the Planet and then return to it when they
die:
Aerith
"All I know is..."
"The Cetra were born from the Planet, speak with the Planet, and
unlock the Planet."
"And....... then......"
"The Cetra will return to the Promised Land. A land that promises
supreme happiness."
Something else to be kept in mind is that the word "Planet" is used
interchangably with the word "Land," even by Ifalna, a Cetra. Further, when
relating the function of Materia to Cloud, Sephiroth uses both words in the
same sentence in the same context:
(Ifalna in Icicle Inn, commenting on the Knowlespole of the Cetra freezing
over)
Professor Gast
"Hmm, even here so close to the North Cave, the snow never melts."
"Is that because the planet's energy is gathered here to heal its injury?"
Ifalna
"Yes, the energy that was needed to heal the Planet withered away the
land... then the Planet..."
(Sephiroth's explanation of Materia's function)
Sephiroth
"...the knowledge and wisdom of the Ancients is held in the materia."
"Anyone with this knowledge can freely use the powers of the Land and the
Planet. That knowledge interacts between ourselves and the planet calling up
magic..... or so they say."
With all this in mind, Sephiroth was most certainly speaking in regard to THE
SURFACE of the Planet.
Another point that raises the misconception is Aerith's statement concerning
the spirits of the Ancients in the Temple of the Ancients:
"Those are the spirit bodies of the Ancients."
"They've been away from their Planet for a long time to protect this Temple."
While she says that the Ancients' spirits in the Temple had been away from
their Planet for a long time, that doesn't necessarily imply a different
Planet. "Planet" can also refer to a world's Lifestream, and in Final Fantasy
IX, we're told that the true form of a Planet is its Lifestream. This is what
all life returns to at the time of its death.
Thus, it can be concluded that the Cetra were most certainly always residents
of the Planet Gaia.
13) -The Promised Land Revealed-
"What is the Promised Land?" The great question of Final Fantasy VII's mythos.
The question that players, in-game characters, and game developers have sought
an answer for. Is the Promised Land the Northern Crater, a land filled with
rising Spirit Energy, as Shin-Ra believed the Promised Land to be? Or is it
Midgar, the technological behemoth of metal and highways where Shin-Ra held
its seat of power for decades, as the game's Character Designer, Tetsuya
Nomura, once said he believed it to be? Is it the Lifestream itself, the great
river of Spirit Energy from which all life on the Planet Gaia springs? Or is
it something which we find within ourselves? Here, I will seek to answer the
great question.
The answer to all of the questions above is this: Yes. Yes, the Northern
Crater IS the Promised Land. Yes, Midgar IS the Promised Land. Yes, the
Lifestream IS the Promised Land. Yes, the Promised Land IS a peace which one
finds within theirself. But the answer to the above questions is not "Yes" for
everyone. For many, the answer to all these questions may be "No." The
Promised Land is something personal for every individual. Someone can't tell
another individual what the Promised Land is. The Promised Land isn't the same
for every person. It is whatever grants a person a sense of completion, a
sense of supreme joy and happiness. For one person, this may be their romantic
partner; for another, it may be their children; for another, it may be money;
for yet another, it may be achieving, acquiring, or learning any number of
different things.
We find two indications in-game of the Promised Land being something personal.
The first comes from Aerith when AVALANCHE has been jailed in the Shin-Ra
headquarters, and the second comes from Elder Hargo of Cosmo Canyon. Aerith
says that her mother's spirit has told her that one day she would leave Midgar
and find HER Promised Land:
Aerith
"Someday I'll get out of Midgar... Speak with the Planet and find my
Promised Land."
"...That's what mom said."
"I thought I would stop hearing her voice as I grew up, but...."
As for Elder Hargo, he first states that he believes there is no one thing
called the Promised Land. He then goes on to describe what he believes to have
been the Promised Land for the Cetra, citing them rejoining with the Planet
(the Lifestream) at the time of their deaths as being the fulfillment of their
journeys and the acquisition of their supreme happiness:
"There is no one place called the Promised Land. That is what I believe. No
no, it does exist. Hmmm... You can say that too. In other words, it doesn't
exist for us, but it did for the Ancients. The Promised Land is the resting
place of the Ancients. The life of the Ancients is one continuous journey. A
journey to grow trees and plants, produce animals, and raise mako energy.
Their harsh journeys continued throughout their lives... The place they return
to after their long journey... Their burial land is the Promised Land. Huh?
Supreme happiness? I believe that, for the Ancients, it was the moment that
they were able to return to their planet. At that moment they were released
from their fate, and gained their supreme happiness..."
The Promised Land for the Ancients was the Lifestream. This does not
necessarily hold true for everyone, however.
To summarize things thus far, the Promised Land is not the same for everyone.
It may be anything for anyone, but it is whatever gives that person supreme
joy, whatever grants them fulfillment. Considering that people are quite
possibly as varied in desires as there are things to be desired, there may be
a limitless number of Promised Lands, a different one for every person that
one sees.
Having now established what the Promised Land is, or -- more accurately --
what the Promised LANDS are, let us now examine how one finds this place of
ultimate joy. According to Aerith, the location of the Promised Land is not
something one will know until they've found it:
Aerith
"...You don't 'know' where the Promised Land of the Ancients is."
"You search and travel, until you feel it. Like you just know,
'...this is the Promised Land.'"
What's interesting to note about this is that Aerith only says that one
doesn't know WHERE their Promised Land is. To put it another way, they don't
know HOW TO FIND it, though they may know full well WHAT it is for them. To
give an example, one whose Promised Land is fulfilling their desire to have a
romantic partner that they will love wholeheartedly and who will love them
back wholeheartedly may know that this is their ultimate desire, yet they may
not know at all how to achieve it. This is true of many people who will find
fulfillment in all-consuming romantic love, and also true of many others who
know what their ultimate desire is. According to Aerith, they all would
"search and search" until they just felt it and KNEW that they had found their
Promised Land, their ultimate fulfillment.
Another side to the difficulty in knowing where/how to find one's Promised
Land is the hardships that they most likely will face in searching for it.
Using again the example of one who seeks all-consuming romantic love, they may
find that the path to this is not an easy one. They will likely face a great
deal of emotional sorrow and hardship before they find this ultimate
happiness. Quite often, those who seek this particular brand of fulfillment
will find themselves becoming "desperate for love" as such folks are often
described, possibly resorting to any number of means by which to find this
love, whether it is singles clubs, love match websites, or ads in the
Personals section of their local newspaper. To clarify this particular point,'
a Promised Land will not be achieved save by overcoming hardship. This is
directly connected to the game's theme of building off of the concept of the
Sephiroth of Jewish mysticism.
In the Kabbalah, it's stated that man is separated from God by the sin of the
world, and the only way he can return to God is by navigating the paths of the
Sephiroth. The Sephiroth, also known as the "Tree of Life," is a spiritual
grid that represents the 10 divine emanations of God as projected into the
mortal world. These 10 aspects of God are comprised of 22 paths based in seven
realms of mortal existance. Along each path, a soul must overcome obstacles to
reach the next node, gaining a further understanding of itself and more of its
potential -- yet still limited -- understanding of God. If it is triumphant
throughout the life of its time as a mortal, it will gain a full understanding
of itself and as great an understanding of God as is possible for a mortal
being. The soul attains this great understanding when it reaches the central
node on the grid, the Tifaret (also spelled as "Tipharet," "Tiferet," and
"Tipheret"). From here, the soul will ascend to the seventh and highest realm
of conscious mortal existance, where it gains full understanding of itself and
may rejoin with God.
Just as an individual following the paths of the Sephiroth and seeking their
way back to God must overcome obstacles along the paths in order to achieve
this, so too must one do so in seeking their Promised Land. This is
demonstrated in-game by the Cetra's journey. It is described as a "harsh, hard
journey" at the end of which they would find their Promised Land:
Sephiroth
"This Planet originally belonged to the Cetra. Cetra was a
itinerant race. They would migrate in, settle the Planet, then move on..."
"At the end of their harsh, hard journey, they would find the
Promised Land and supreme happiness."
Referring back to Elder Hargo's comments on the Cetra, again, he states that
the "harsh, hard journey" of the Cetra ended when they were allowed to rejoin
with the Lifestream:
"The life of the Ancients is one continuous journey. A journey to grow trees
and plants, produce animals, and raise mako energy. Their harsh journeys
continued throughout their lives... The place they return to after their long
journey... Their burial land is the Promised Land. Huh? Supreme happiness? I
believe that, for the Ancients, it was the moment that they were able to
return to their planet. At that moment they were released from their fate, and
gained their supreme happiness..."
We can connect the matter of rejoining with the Lifestream to the matter of
rejoining with the Promised Land in the case of the Cetra based on what Aerith
says concerning the Cetra's origins, and what Bugenhagen says concerning
Spirit Energy and the cycle of rebirth in Final Fantasy VII:
(Aerith in the Shin-Ra headquarters)
Aerith
"All I know is..."
"The Cetra were born from the Planet, speak with the Planet, and
unlock the Planet."
"And....... then......"
"The Cetra will return to the Promised Land. A land that promises
supreme happiness."
(Bugenhagen in Cosmo Canyon)
Bugenhagen
"Well, let's get to the subject."
"Eventually... all humans die. What happens to them after they die?"
"The body decomposes, and returns to the Planet. That much everyone
knows. What about their consciousness, their hearts and their
souls?"
"The soul too returns to the Planet."
"And not only those of humans, but everything on this Planet. In
fact, all living things in the universe, are the same."
Bugenhagen
"The spirits that return to the Planet, merge with one another and
roam the Planet."
"They roam, converge, and divide, becoming a swell, called the
'Lifestream'."
"Lifestream.... In other words, a path of energy of the souls roaming
the Planet."
Bugenhagen
"'Spirit Energy' is a word that you should never forget."
"A new life... children are blessed with Spirit energy and are
brought into the world."
"Then, the time comes when they die and once again return to the
Planet..."
While this brings up the question of why the journey to DIE is made so
difficult for the Cetra, there may have been any number of cultural
assumptions amongst the Cetra that led them to feel that they must do their
best to help cultivate life on the Planet in order to rejoin with the
Lifestream, or perhaps it was a sense of duty that drove them in such a
regard. The game is, sadly, unclear on this matter, nor are hints provided.
For all we're made aware, there may have been a cultural assumption amongst
the Cetra that they felt they would only be worthy of the return to the
Lifestream by helping to cultivate life on the Planet's surface. Whatever the
reason, this journey of the Cetra along the paths of the Sephiroth to reach
their own personal Promised Land was a journey to the Lifestream, made more
difficult for them than it was for other forms of life due to it being the
fulfillment of self for these Ancients.
What we can conclude from all this is that the Promised Land is not the same
thing for everyone, nor is there any means by which an individual can
determine HOW to find their personal Promised Land. They simply must seek it
out, and when they find it, they will just KNOW they have found it. We can
also conclude that -- whatever an individual's journey may be for -- the path
to one's Promised Land will be made harsh for the sake of them overcoming
obstacles in order to reach it. While one individual may be able to easily
attain something that is not very special to them, for another, that is their
Promised Land and it will be a harsh path, indeed, before they can acquire it.
As for why this may be, it is likely to provide the Spirit Energy of the
individual with the necessity to undergo experiences, forming memories and
maturing as a result. All this is done so that when the Spirit Energy's host
body dies and the Spirit Energy returns to the Lifestream, it will be able to
provide memories/experiences for the Lifestream as a whole to learn from and
grow. We know that it is these memories and experiences that provide the
Lifestream with the ability to live and grow based on a statement made in the
first Final Fantasy film, Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within:
(Aki Ross, quoting Dr. Sid's journal)
"All life is born of Gaia and each life has a spirit. Each new spirit is
housed in a physical body. ...Through their experiences on Earth each spirit
matures and grows. When the physical body dies the mature spirit enriched by
its life on Earth returns to Gaia bringing with it the experiences, enabling
Gaia to live and grow."
The implications of the matter would suggest that limits are placed on an
individual's abilities, the situations they're placed in, or both, so as to
provide them with the NECESSITY to struggle for their ultimate achievement of
self.
In conclusion, the Promised Land is a reality, and it is a different reality
for different people. It is also the culmination of their effort and the
hardships that they must face and overcome. These are hardships that they will
absolutely be required to deal with in order to mature as an individual and
reach their Promised Land, in so doing, ensuring that they will provide the
lifecycle as a whole with the means by which to grow.
(Note: For where to find the information concerning Tetsuya Nomura stating his
belief that the Promised Land is Midgar, refer to FLAREgamer.com:
http://flaregamer.com/b2article.php?p=81&more=1)
14) -The Cetra Were Really Nomads-
A misconception that has arisen concerning Final Fantasy VII is that the Cetra
were not truly nomads, Sephiroth's statement that they were -- coming from
Gast's scientific journals -- possibly being misinformed due to a belief that
Gast found space dust or otherworldly particles on JENOVA's body when he was
studying it and concluded that JENOVA -- whom he believed to be a Cetra -- had
been a nomad that traveled from one Planet to another, and then concluded that
this must be true of all Cetra. This belief is fallacious, however, as will be
explained. It could possibly be argued that Gast reached this conclusion based
on false information, but in any event, Gast was certainly correct concerning
the Cetra's migrations, though he was wrong about some other things.
Most notably, it's stated in Cosmo Canyon that the life of the Cetra was one
continuous journey, a journey to cultivate life:
Elder Hargo
"There is no one place called the Promised Land. That is what I believe. No
no, it does exist. Hmmm... You can say that too. In other words, it doesn't
exist for us, but it did for the Ancients. The Promised Land is the resting
place of the Ancients. The life of the Ancients is one continuous journey. A
journey to grow trees and plants, produce animals, and raise mako energy.
Their harsh journeys continued throughout their lives..."
While it could possibly be argued that the Cetra's "journey" was a metaphor
for life, it should be noted that the rest of Gast's information concerning
the Cetra seemingly pans out to be correct. His information concerning them
was 1) that they were nomads, 2) that they sought the Promised Land, 3) that
some of them gave up the ways of the Cetra and became Common Homo Sapiens/the
ancestors of the people that dominate the Planet during the game's present,
losing their Cetra abilities and intimate relationship with the Planet, and
4) that the Planet faced a crisis that the Cetra alone stood against, with
most of them perishing before the threat was abated.
Most obviously, the Cetra did seek the Promised Land. Less obviously, but
still accurate nonetheless, is that the Common Homo Sapiens of the present
bear similarities to the Cetra both in that they're all Homo Sapiens and can
breed together (Aerith's parents were Ifalna, a Cetra, and Professor Gast, a
Common Homo Sapien), and in that Homo Sapiens who follow the ways of the Cetra
can even pick up some of their abilities. The entire main cast gains the
understanding of hearing the Planet's cries and being aware that they are the
cries of the Planet, and Bugenhagen even gains the understanding and capacity
to interpret the knowledge floating about in the memories in the air in the
City of the Ancients, thus allowing him to learn of Holy. If nothing else, at
least, no information in-game ever serves to contradict the matter. With these
matters in mind, for the Common Homo Sapiens to be devolved Cetra is certainly
a reasonable possibility, if not outright meriting the status of fact.
Regarding the fourth matter, this was also correct, as the Planet did, indeed,
face a crisis that the Cetra alone faced and conquered, though at their own
expense, this crisis later being revealed to have been JENOVA, the "Crisis
from the Sky."
With all this in mind, three of the four assumptions Gast had concerning the
Cetra are certainly correct, and the fourth itself receives no contest from
any evidence in-game.
While it has been argued that Gast's information arose from studying JENOVA's
body and is, thus, inaccurate, as was his conclusion that JENOVA was a Cetra,
there is no in-game evidence to support the notion that Gast reached this
conclusion after studying JENOVA. For that matter, the same logic that argues
that because Gast mentioned the matter in his scientific journals of the
JENOVA Project, it must be information that he had gained from studying
JENOVA's body would also have to account for the other information mentioned
in the journals, all of which most obviously could not have been assumptions
drawn from studying JENOVA's body, and all of which were correct. This leaves
us to ponder where Gast had gotten this information concerning the Cetra, and
with 3/4 of the information definitely accurate, then so too is the fourth
matter likely to be.
Something to be kept in mind is that Gast was a lifelong scholar of the
Ancients, and had long studied them before he ever conducted the JENOVA
Project. The information he had concerning the Cetra most likely came from the
people of Cosmo Canyon, a place had been known to visit, likely for the
purposes of studying:
Elder Bugah
"You can't talk of the Ancients without mentioning Professor Gast. He used to
come here sometimes. He was a ShinRa scholar who spent his life studying the
Ancients."
Considering the likely origin of Gast's knowledge concerning the Cetra
themselves -- regardless of misunderstandings concerning JENOVA -- it stands
to reason that if one point of his knowledge concerning the Cetra was off,
then so too would all of it be. However, the other 3/4 of Gast's assumptions
concerning the Ancients pan out to be true, and so too then was this one most
likely to have been, as it's never contradicted or contested by anything
in-game.
The Cetra were most certainly nomads that went about cultivating life across
the surface of the Planet.
15) -Bizarro Sephiroth and Safer Sephiroth: What they are-
These are two of the most often-debated matters of Final Fantasy VII's
storyline, sadly rendered all the more difficult to determine due to the
graphical limitations that were in place at the time of the game's
development. However, coupled with Character Designer Tetsuya Nomura's designs
of the two bosses, the nature of the creatures can be determined.
Bizarro Sephiroth is actually a pupa-like entity in Sephiroth's form (notice
that its bangs matches Sephiroth's hair, his bangs often referred to among the
fandom as "the Bangs of Doom") from which Safer Sephiroth was arising, thus
the name of the background music for the Bizarro battle being "Birth of a
God." This certainly fits due to the angelic and heavenly appearance of Safer
Sephiroth. We can be certain that Safer Sephiroth was "hatching" from Bizarro
Sephiroth due to the torso of Safer Sephiroth protruding from Bizarro
Sephiroth's head, as well as the wings of Safer Sephiroth extending from
behind the smaller torso:
http://photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/BizarroSephiroth.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/Final%20Fantasy%20VII/Se
phirothofBizarroSephiroth.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/Final%20Fantasy%20VII/JE
NOVAofBizarroSephiroth.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/FF7Analysis/Bizarro.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/Final%20Fantasy%20VII/Bi
zarroSephirothbyNomura.jpg
http://photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/SaferSephiroth.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/Final%20Fantasy%20VII/Sa
pherSephirothbyNomura.jpg
Thus, it is that Safer Sephiroth is clearly an ascended form of Sephiroth that
evolved out of the pupa-like form that was Bizarro Sephiroth.
(Note: Credit for this concept goes to my wife, Carys.)
16) -What Did Hojo Do to Red XIII?-
One of the enduring questions of Final Fantasy VII is "What did Hojo do to
Nanaki?" Was he injected with JENOVA Cells? Was he infused with Mako? Were any
number of other experiments carried out on him? Sadly, we cannot determine
this from the game. Even Red XIII himself seems unsure of what Hojo may have
done to him. All he ever expresses in this regard is a fear that he may turn
out mindless like the black-cloaked Sephiroth Clones:
Red XIII
"Cloud..."
Red XIII
"I'm number 13. Am I going to go mad too?"
Tifa
"I don't know what Hojo did to you, but you've been all right so far,
right?"
Red XIII
"But..."
Tifa
"Be strong."
Red XIII
"But, I..."
Tifa
"Stop it, Red XIII! Be strong!"
Whatever Hojo did to Nanaki, he's never implied to have glowing eyes (the sign
of Mako infusion), nor does he demonstrate any of the behavior of an
individual injected with JENOVA's Cells. That said, he is listed with the
Sephiroth Clones in the Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Omega Guide as someone who
received a tattoo, but the category under which they're being labeled is only
something akin to "The locations of Sephiroth Clones that can be discovered
and descriptions of people who have been given identification numbers are as
follows." In other words, simply because Red XIII is on that list, he's not
necessarily being identified as a Sephiroth Clone. He's simply being
identified as an individual with an identification number.
It's possible that he was intended for use in the Sephiroth Clone experiment
but that Hojo never got around to infusing him with Mako or injecting him with
JENOVA's Cells before AVALANCHE freed him, but being that he identifies Nanaki
as a member of a species on the brink of extinction, it's rather unlikely that
he would have opted to waste such a rare secimen for an experiment that could
be -- and was -- conducted just as well without its use. While we can't
determine exactly what -- if anything -- Hojo did to Nanaki, we can safely
determine that he didn't inject him with JENOVA Cells or infuse him with Mako.
17) -Explanation of the Sphere Cloud Sees During The Ending of Final Fantasy
VII-
One of the enduring mysteries of Final Fantasy VII -- and a point of quite a
bit of speculation -- is the nature of the sphere that Cloud sees in his mind
while it journeys to battle Sephiroth's form after the destruction of
Sephiroth's body (see the sphere here: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/
Squall_of_Seed/GaiasCore.jpg). Sometimes speculated to have been the Promised
Land, other times speculated to have been the Cetra's homeworld, and any
number of other things, I believe the answer lies in just where it was that
AVALANCHE had confronted Sephiroth: The centre of the Planet.
To be more specific, AVALANCHE would have been in close proximity to Gaia's
core, and I believe that the sphere that Cloud witnessed overhead is THE core
itself.
For why I believe this to be so, there is, first, the Lifestream's presence
after Cloud has defeated Sephiroth's form, and, second, the very similar
sphere seen within Final Fantasy X/X-2's world, Spira, on the Farplane:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/SpirasCore.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/SpirasCore2.jpg
Recall that the Farplane lay at the center of Spira, and the abundant amount
of Spirit Energy (Pyreflies) floating around in there. We know that the
lifeforce of the Planet itself resided within the Farplane based on Shinra's
analysis of the area in Final Fantasy X-2:
Shinra: Aha...
Yuna: What are you looking at?
Shinra: Farplane data.
Shinra: The more I study it, the more fascinating it gets. There's limitless
energy swirling around in there.
Yuna: Limitless energy?
Shinra: The life force that flows through our planet...I think.
Like Spira's core, where Pyreflies (Spirit Energy) freely moved about in
close proximity, when Cloud looks up at the sphere above him, there are small
orbs of energy floating about.
We find another similarity when looking at the Gaia of Earth in Final Fantasy:
The Spirits Within: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/TheG
aia.jpg
While we can't determine from this shot if the energy below Aki and Gray has a
sphere form, based on its depth within the Earth and the nature of density
within the Earth, it's safe to assume (as even the metallic core of our own
Earth is believed to be a sphere due to density).
While not a very elaborate explanation, I believe that the simplicity of this
theory adds to its plausibility, and that it is the most likely of all all
possible explanations.
18) -Contrasting Cait Sith No. 1's "Death" With Aerith's-
Something interesting and worth noting concerning Aerith's death is that the
game had previously set-up death in the very cliche manner that Yoshinori
Kitase and Tetsuya Nomura spoke of in an interview in EDGE magazine in May
2003. Cait Sith No. 1's "death" was made overly dramatic and followed by a
return of the character -- completely negating any tragedy or sense of loss in
the process -- to intentionally offset the player's emotions concerning death
and cause them to disassociate it with the realistic nature of death. In this
way, when Aerith's death arrived, it was an even greater shock than would have
otherwise been the case. The developers further capitalized on this shock by
having Cloud be nearly forced into killing Aerith himself, the other party
members yelling at Cloud and bringing him back to his senses, only for the
form of Sephiroth to descend from above and pass a sword through her.
A brief analysis of both scenes yields what is the most realistic of the two,
in that one is set-up in a very dramatic over-the-top fashion, only for the
entire matter to be rendered moot less than two minutes later, whereas
Aerith's death came like a whisper and its effects lasted for the rest of the
game. To further emphasise the point, note the level of drama in the dialogue
that went into Cait Sith's death scene, and then the amount that went into
Cloud's. Further note all the behaviour involved, both in regard to Cait Sith
and Aerith, and those around them, keeping in mind that Cait Sith's "demise"
was obviously coming from the moment that the Cait Sith doll said that it
would sacrifice itself, while Aerith's death seemed to have been completely
subverted by Cloud being pulled back to his senses:
(Cait Sith's death sequence)
Cait Sith
"Sorry to keep you waiting!! It's me!!"
"I'll handle the rest!"
Cait Sith
"Well, everyone.. Take care of yourselves!"
Aerith
"Cait Sith..."
Aerith
"Come on, Cloud... Say something."
Cloud
"I'm not good at this."
Cait Sith
"Mmm, I understand. I feel the same too."
Aerith
"Why don't you read our fortunes?"
Cait Sith
"Say, that's right... I haven't done it in a while, huh?"
"I'm so excited. Right or wrong, I'm still the same 'ol me."
"Now, what should I predict?"
Aerith
"Hmm, let's see how compatible Cloud and I are!"
Cait Sith
"That'll cost ya. Exactly one date!"
Cait Sith
"Here I go!"
Cait Sith
"This isn't good. I can't say it."
"Poor Tifa."
Aerith
"No! Tell me!"
"I promise I won't get mad!"
Cait Sith
"Is that so? Then I'll tell you."
"Looks good. You are perfect for each other!"
"Aerith's star and Cloud's star! They show a great future!"
"Cloud, I'll be your matchmaker, preacher... I'll do whatever you
want me to!"
"You just call me when it all happens!"
Cait Sith
"Thank you for believing in me, knowing that I was a spy."
"This is the final, final farewell!"
Aerith
"Be strong Cait Sith!!"
Cait Sith
"She told me to 'Be strong.' I feel so happy."
::He trips and falls::
Cait Sith
"Owwww......"
Cait Sith
"What happened?"
Cait Sith
"I can still move more."
Cait Sith
"This must be it!"
"The Ancients sure did a great job making this."
Cait Sith
"I can protect the Planet too! I'm kinda embarrassed..."
Cait Sith
"There's plenty of stuffed toys like my body around, but there's
only one me!"
Cait Sith
"Don't forget me even if another Cait Sith comes along."
::Cait Sith approaches the altar::
Cait Sith
"Good bye, then! I guess I'm off to save the Planet..."
::Cait Sith turns to face the altar and screen flashes white::
(Aerith's death sequence)
::AVALANCHE enters the Sleeping Forest with the Lunar Harp::
The Sleeping Forest awoke...
::AVALANCHE advances to the City of the Ancients and finds some beds in one of
the houses::
Cid
"Yeah, and it looks pretty comfortable."
Tifa
"Shall we take a break here?"
::They stop to rest for the night; during the night, Cloud awakens and looks
around::
Cloud
"I feel it..."
::The others come in; Cloud's speaking likely awoke them::
Cid
"Do you know what TIME it is!?"
Cloud
"Aerith is here.
...and so is Sephiroth."
Cid
"Wa, wa, wait a minute. You serious!?"
Tifa
"But how can you tell?"
Cloud
"...It's not an excuse. I feel it in my soul."
Cid
"Shit, Cloud, we can't be sittin' around on our asses."
Cloud
"...right. Let's hurry and find Aerith."
::They leave the house; AVALANCHE heads down the central path at the
intersection that lies near the entrance to the City of the Ancients::
Cloud
"Aerith's voice...... Coming from there?"
::Eventually, AVALANCHE reaches a structure with a glass stairway leading down
underground; they follow the staircase and see Aerith kneeling on an altar::
Cloud
"Aerith?"
::Cloud advances toward Aerith's position; the other members of AVALANCHE
start to follow him, but he waves them back; when he gets in front of Aerith,
a red light flashes and Cloud clutches his head, and is then forced to draw
his sword and hold it above his head, set to bring it down on Aerith; he's
obviously fighting against Sephiroth's will that's trying to force him to
crush Aerith beneath his Buster Sword; after a long moment of tension, Cloud
prepares to bring down the Buster Sword::
Cid
"Cloud!"
Tifa
"Stop!"
::Cloud shakes his head and steps back::
Cloud
"Ugh... what are you making me do?"
::The form of Sephiroth descends from above and pierces its blade through
Aerith's back and out her stomach; her head lolls forward and she collapses
into Cloud's arms::
As can be seen from this, Cait Sith's "death" was given a lot more of a
dramatic build-up than Aerith's, at least in the sense of how characters
in-game reacted to the matter, and also in that Cait Sith's "death" was
obviously on the way, whereas Aerith's seemed to have just been averted, only
for her to be killed a moment later.
As can be seen from comparing these matters and examining the interview in
EDGE magazine with Nomura and Kitase, Cait Sith's "death" served to act as a
contrast with Aerith's, it representing all those things that Nomura and
Kitase wished for death not to be in a story, whereas Aerith's represented
those things that they wished for one to be. Whereas Cait Sith's was overly
dramatic, sacrificial, and rendered moot by an immediate "resurrection,"
Aerith's death came like a whisper, was tragic, and held meaning for the rest
of the game.
19) -All That Remained of Sephiroth's Body After His Fall Into The Mt. Nibel
Mako Reactor Was its Torso-
An often-overlooked -- or disregarded -- matter concerning Final Fantasy VII
is that all that remained of Sephiroth's body after its fall into the Mt.
Nibel Mako Reactor was his torso. Only being noticeable for a few seconds
during a couple of in-game FMVs, it is often overlooked or dismissed as having
been the developers saving time by not rendering any of Sephiroth's body below
his waist, and that the scene wasn't intended to indicate that his legs were
gone at all. Others have said that a hair-like material was growing out of his
waist where his legs once were, as part of some mutation incited by JENOVA's
Cells or from absorbing Spirit Energy, while others yet have said that it was
a move performed for censorship purposes, with it, again, not being indicative
of Sephiroth's legs being gone.
I will address each of these matters and reveal the truth.
To start, Sephiroth's legs were most certainly gone. Note these screenshots:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/SephirothsTorso.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/SephirothWithNoLegs.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/SephirothWithNoLegs2.jpg
Next, particularly note these, the first of which using arrows that will point
out that hair can be seen over his shoulder (indicating that it is, indeed,
behind him), and that it can be seen below his waist where he should have
legs. Another screenshot with arrows will point out the boundary where his
torso ends in torn, hanging flesh, and will also point out both rock and hair
as visible when they would been blocked were there legs:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/SephysTorsoEdited.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/SephysTorsoEdited2.jpg
As we can see from these screenshots, there is only indication that
Sephiroth's legs were gone, and none that they remained. Based on what the
game shows us, there is only indication that Sephiroth's legs were gone.
Now on to the matter of rebuttals:
Rebuttal #1: "The developers attempted to save time by not rendering
Sephiroth's legs, assuming no one would notice that they weren't there due to
the brief timeframe in which they fail to appear. For that matter, they never
intended for the FMVs to be scrutinized to this degree. Someone slowing down
the video with a program to watch it frame-by-frame wasn't something they
expected."
In regard to this, it likely wouldn't have taken as much effort to render the
tops of legs and a waist wearing black pants as it did to render all that hair
and the rocky background that are visible instead. Further, if it wasn't
intended to convey that his legs were gone, then this wasn't just a case of
being lazy during the making of an FMV, but a case of outright stupidity, as
the scene shows us beyond all reasonable doubt that his legs are not there.
Thus, the developers would have been irrefutably conveying something not at
all intended to be the case.
As for the point about the FMV not being very long and not intended to be
scrutinized to this degree, the obvious lack of legs is visibile for a solid
2.5 seconds in JUST the FMV in which Cloud hands over the Black Materia to
Sephiroth's body. Considering how quickly the human eye can process incoming
stimuli (a lot faster than that), it would be a vastly stupid assumption on
their part to think that no one would notice without the aid of a video
program.
Rebuttal #2: "Sephiroth's legs aren't so much gone as being replaced, as
Sephiroth's body is absorbing Spirit Energy and mutating (or being altered by
JENOVA's Cells mutating within him), fibrous material growing from his waist
as a result. The hair appears to be blending right in with the skin,
suggesting that there's no boundary, but, rather, that it is growing out of
it. What may seem to be torn flesh is just thick locks of hair. It's the same
color as the hair.
Anyway, this transformation is just being incited by JENOVA's Cells. In the
Temple of the Ancients, Sephiroth's form says that he is becoming one with the
Planet and "Mother" (JENOVA), the word "becoming" suggesting the present
tense. In other words, the process is already taking place. No forms of JENOVA
have legs, after all. Him merging with JENOVA in the present tense would
explain why his body would be the focal point of the Reunion."
To begin with, the first shot we see of Sephiroth's body in the Mako crystal
makes it obvious that the only hair in there is that growing out of his head:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/SephirothsTorso.jpg
As for the hair blending in with the skin, it isn't the same color at all.
Refer to the pictures posted above. The hair is white, whereas his skin is
flesh-colored. They aren't the same color at all. Further still, his hair
isn't even touching the bottom of his torso. Refer again to this picture:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/SephirothsTorso.jpg
That's from the first FMV that is shown of his body, when it is revealed. From
this image, it is obvious that Sephiroth's hair is behind his body and off to
its left.
The next FMV (in which Cloud hands over the Black Materia) is looking at the
torso from the angle of its front-right. With that in mind, recall that the
hair is positioned behind and to the left of the body. Therefore, when looking
at the torso from the front-right, its hair will be seen directly on the other
side of the torso, creating the illusion that the hair is extending straight
down along where the waist should be:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/SephirothWithNoLegs2.jpg
Here is a visual representation of this:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/Final%20Fantasy%20VII/An
gleOfTorsoView.jpg
Further, it should be noted that after this front-right perspective is shown,
the angle switches back to a head-on shot when the Black Materia begins
interacting with Sephiroth's body, the hair still in the position it had been
in before: Behind the torso and to the left:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/SephysTorso2.jpg
There was no hair growing out of the torso's waist.
As for the nature of Sephiroth's ribs, the graphics of the FFVII FMVs -- while
spectacular at the time of rendering -- are not perfectly representative of
reality. This extends to the anatomy of the characters.
In any event, his body wasn't the focal point of the Reunion. It was already
over and done with moments before when the Sephiroth Clones were killed and
their bodies cast down into the Crater to be absorbed by JENOVA's main body.
The name of the JENOVA-SYNTHESIS boss suggests the combination of two or more
parts to create something more complex.
Rebuttal #3: "The scene was just handled that way for censorship purposes. It
wasn't intended to convey that Sephiroth's legs were gone. He was simply naked
and his genitals could not be shown."
If this were at all plausible, simply choosing to render tree roots or rock in
front of Sephiroth below his stomach would have sufficed, as would having him
wear his black pants. Neither is the case. The intention is conveyed by the
FMV itself: Sephiroth's legs were gone.
I hope that I have successfully conveyed the nature of this scene, it being
that Sephiroth's torso was -- beyond all doubt -- lacking its legs at that
point. That said, note that Square-Enix has now retconned this aspect of the
game's story, creating a life-sized model of Sephiroth as he was in the
Materia Tree where he summoned Meteor, and placing this model on display in
the Square-Enix Character Goods Shop. In this model, he has -- at the least
-- the thigh of his left leg, as well as a mutation below his torso area that
wasn't present in the original game, this mutation being a large black wing
that's folded across his body (obstructing the area below his left thigh and
the area where his right leg would be):
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/SephirothDisplay.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/SephirothDisplay2.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/SephirothDisplay3.jpg
20) -Vincent Does Not Have a Prosthetic Arm-
A common misconception concerning Vincent of Final Fantasy VII is that his
left arm is a prosthetic replacement, placed there to replace his arm after it
suffered damage at Hojo's hands and had to be ampuatated or that it was
simply replaced out of cruelty. However, this is simply not the case. The
gauntlet is nothing more than that: A gauntlet.
Note that when looking at the gauntlet in both Dirge of Cerberus screenshots
or Nomura's original design of Vincent, black leather is visible between the
joints of the gauntlet, meaning that it's simply metal grafted onto leather:
http://photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/VincentValentine.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/VinnysGauntlet2.bmp
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/VinnysGauntlet.bmp
In all fairness, at this point, it could still be argued that the prosthetic
itself is merely metal grafted onto a leather covering that covers a
prosthetic. However, when taking note of Vincent's transformations, Vincent
transforms into creatures that have two arms with no suggestion that their
left arms are prosthetics as they appear the same as their right arms. Most
certainly Vincent's left arm is not a prosthetic.
(Note: Thanks go to Peter McConville for bringing up the matter of Vincent's
transformations.)
21) -Are Spira and Gaia Connected?-
According to Kazushige Nojima, the Scenario Writer of Final Fantasy VII, VIII,
X, and X-2, yes, they are. In the Final Fantasy X-2 Ultimania Guide, he
reveals in an interview that he wrote the game's story with the intention in
mind that the character named "Shinra" (a member of the Gullwings, the Sphere
Hunter group that the game focuses on) was the ancestor of the founders and
rulers of the Shin-Ra Corporation seen on Final Fantasy VII's world of Gaia.
According to Nojima, after Vegnagun and Shuyin's defeat, Shinra received
massive financial backing from Rin and attempted to use the remains of
Vegnagun to extract the Spirit Energy on the Farplane into a usable form that
would allow it to be a power source. In-game, we see Shinra arrive at the
conclusion that this could be done in Chapter 5:
(If one returns to the bridge of the Celsius after reaching the Farplane Glen
and speaks with Shinra)
Shinra
"Aha..."
Yuna
"What are you looking at?"
Shinra
"Farplane data."
Shinra
"The more I study it, the more fascinating it gets. There's limitless energy
swirling around in there."
Yuna
"Limitless energy?"
Shinra
"The life force that flows through our planet...I think."
Shinra
"With a little work, we could probably extract the energy in a useable form."
Brother
"Sweet!"
Shinra
"Of course, that'd take generations."
Brother
"That's no fun!"
Buddy
"Well, still, it is something worth shooting for."
Yuna
"Think how much Spira would change if we ever got it to work!"
Yuna
"Maybe one day we could build a city full of light, one that never sleeps!"
Shinra
"No doubt about it."
Yuna
"Just imagine!"
Yuna
"But I'll never get to see it...will I..."
::Shinra shakes his head, meaning "No"::
Brother
"Shinra! Don't make Yuna sad!"
Shinra
"Right. My bad."
This is obviously a suggestion that energy from the Farplane could be
extracted and used in such a manner. It's also made apparent in-game that
finding a means to utilize the energy within the Planet Spira is something
that Rin would have supported:
(If Rin is pinned as the culprit behind wrong-doing on the Mi'hen Highroad
involving the malfunctioning Machina, it's revealed that the Machina
malfunctioned and that he attempted to cover it up)
Rin
"This chocobo was being employed to power a ferryboat, so I purchased him."
Yuna
"What did you find out about the machina incidents?"
Rin
"I have deduced that both the hover incident and the malfunctioning machina
drones were accidents."
Paine
"And what caused these "accidents"?"
Rin
"I am trying to clear that matter up. I asked my assistants to inspect our
machina some time ago."
Yuna
"An inspection? I had heard that it was an experiment, to synchronize the
machina."
Rikku
"Yeah, I heard that, too."
Rin
Yes... while performing maintenance to keep the machina under control, we also
experimented with upgrading them."
Rikku
"But you still couldn't control them!"
Rin
"True, but-"
Yuna
"How about this: The modified machina that went haywire might have been what
attacked the hover."
Yuna
"What's more, synchronized machina always act in unison."
Yuna
"One malfunction could have triggered a similar effect in all the Highroad's
machina."
Yuna
"Something strange happened while we were investigating."
Yuna
"Someone cut off our CommSphere's transmission."
Rin
"It broke?"
Yuna
"No. It was broken. We could see the culprit through a separate CommSphere."
Yuna
"Rin... it was you."
Yuna
"That's when I realized: you never intended to catch the culprit."
Yuna
"When I think about it, I've seen you on the Highroad a number of times now."
Yuna
"Once before the machina started acting strange. And then again after the
incident was over."
Yuna
"But before I could talk to you, you vanished, as if you didn't want to be
seen."
Yuna
"When the hover was destroyed, you knew the upgraded machina were behind it."
Yuna
"But then, when you tried to investigate, they all rebelled at once."
Yuna
"So, you went around dismantling the rogue machina. Yes, while we were busy
fighting them."
Yuna
"Then, you slipped away just as everything was settling down. I am right,
aren't I?"
Rin
"You are suggesting that my decision to upgrade the machina resulted in a
number of casualties... ... and that I tried to cover it up?"
Yuna
"You put the investigation in our hands because we were amateurs. You hoped we
would botch the case."
Yuna
"And then, I kept calling you even though I didn't have any leads."
Yuna
"You would have objected to the meaningless interruptions, if you really
wanted to solve the case."
Rin
"I see. It appears that I have underestimated you, Yuna."
Rikku
"Why, Rin?"
Rin
"If word got out that machina pose a danger, people would fear them and stop
using them."
Paine
"So Yevon's not alone in sweeping things under the rug."
Rin
"I firmly believe that machina are an indispensable part of Spira's
development."
Rin
"Even if there is another incident, I intend to conceal the evidence."
Yuna
"You really think people will follow you that way?"
Rin
"I am not alone in my thinking."
Rin
"We are researching ways to extract the vast energy that sleeps in Spira, and
use it to power machina."
Paine
"You're a jackass."
Rin
"I will take that as a compliment."
What's further worth mentioning is that of the time of the events of the Last
Mission from Final Fantasy X-2: International+Last Mission (occurring three
months after Shuyin's defeat in Final Fantasy X-2), it was already an
established reality that Shinra and Rin were working together and researching
the matter of extracting energy from the Farplane, as revealed by Rikku on
Floor 10 of Yadonoki Tower:
(Thanks for this translation goes to Marcelo X)
Yuna: "Is Shinra helping out, too?"
Rikku: "Ahhh, now that you mention it..."
Rikku: "Well, all I know is that Shinra left the ship. He got together with
Rin and what do you think all that research they're doing is for?"
Rikku: "I know everything" is all he said in that smug way of his. I've seen
him around all over the place."
In other words, as of three months after Final Fantasy X-2's main events had
come to an end, the concept Nojima spoke of was already in play. What's
further notable about this is that Final Fantasy X-2: International+Last
Mission was released 11 months after the original Final Fantasy X-2, and well
after the Final Fantasy X-2 Ultimania Guide featuring the interview with
Nojima had been published.
Also notable is that during the interview, the afore-mentinoed interview,
Director Motomu Toriyama reveals that he arranged the first shot of the
Bevelle Underground to be the same as the first shot of Midgar in Final
Fantasy VII. Doubtless, this was intended to be something of a tribute to the
concept Nojima had conceived.
Another bit of homage to the idea comes with the North American and European
versions of the game, this done with the name of the Fiend called "King
VERMIN!." In Final Fantasy VII, this is a title that Barret addresses
President Shinra with at one point, using the same capitalization and
punctuation as seen with the Fiend's name:
President Shinra
"And such a waste of good fireworks, just to get rid of vermin like
you..."
Barret
"VERMIN? That's all you can say... VERMIN!"
"Y'all Shinra're the VERMIN, killing the planet! And that makes you
King VERMIN! So shu'up jackass!"
Here follows a couple of translations of the segment of the interview from
which the information regarding the connection comes, one of which was a
fan translation with the dialogue localized into English mannerisms, the other
being an interpretation by Altavista's online translator Babel Fish:
(Note: Both of these translations were taken from this website under the
"Nojima Interview" section of the "Evidence" category:
http://www.willamette.edu/~ejohnson/findex.htm
Note 2: Daisuke Watanabe is the game's Scenario Planner
Kazushige Nojima is the Scenario Writer
Motomu Toriyama is the Director)
(Fan translation with the dialogue localized into English mannerisms)
Question: "Is there a connection between Shinra and FFVII?"
Nojima: "Yes, actually. After Shinra quit the Gullwings he got enormous
financial backing from Rin and went to the Farplane to start extracting the
Mako energy used by the Vegnagun. But the system for utilizing this energy
could not be completed in his generation, so far in the future when space
travel was possible, the Shinra Company was founded on another planet... or
something like that. That would be a thousand years or so from this game's
story."
Question: "And VII's story takes place after that?"
Nojima: "Well, you could say that's how I personally feel about it."
(Babel Fish translation)
Question: "It is connected to ƒVƒ“ƒ‰ your ‚Á ‚Ä "VII", it is?"
Nojima: "To tell the truth so is. ƒVƒ“ƒ‰ you who stop gull group, receiving
the enormous financial help by phosphorus, it starts pulling the demon æ
energy which ƒ”ƒFƒOƒiƒKƒ“ used in the strange boundary. So with his one
generation very, you do not complete the system in order to utilize the energy
and the ‚Ä, future reaches the point where it can go to the distant star, the
Shinra company you are possible with another star, that.... . About 1,000
years passing from the latest story, however it probably is thing what."
Question: "After that there is 'VII' story?"
Nojima: "Even well, in me such feeling you will say."
It should be noted that Nojima's response to the question of "And VII's story
takes place after that?" in the first translation ("Well, you could say that's
how I personally feel about it") is not complete in terms of context in and of
itself, as the two lines following this involve Nojima explaining what he
means by this. He is not throwing out a disclaimer that this is his personal
opinion and that it shouldn't be taken as canon. After all, he has already
said "Yes" to the question of whether or not X-2's Shinra is connected to
Final Fantasy VII, and being the Scenario Writer of Final Fantasy VII, X, and
X-2, he should be aware of his own intentions for the stories he has written.
As can be seen in the translation by Babel Fish, a literal translation of this
line would be "Even well, in me such feeling you will say." Based on my own
attempt at translating this, I feel that this sentence flows into the next
better -- in terms of context -- if phrased as "Well, you could say those are
the feelings I have inside me." Note that as far as Japanese is concerned,
someone's "personal feelings" would be equivalent to feelings "inside" them,
but I personally just find that this phrasing flows better, as the next
sentences involve Nojima describing those feelings.
What follows is this (again, based on my own translation):
"When I think about the characters from the story, those are the images I have
inside me. Shinra was a good person, but his descendants will be like the
President [of Shin-Ra Inc.] (laughs)."
What's clear from all this is that this is certainly Nojima's intention for
the characters and the development of Spira, and he has set it up to follow
the manner in which Final Fantasy X-2 left off, though he has not yet
conceived an entire narrative of specific details regarding the matter for
publication in a game or film. The concept obviously couldn't be touched upon
within the narrative of Final Fantasy X-2 itself even to the extent it was
during the interview in the Ultimania Guide without completely getting
sidetracked from the main story (Yuna's story) that was resolving itself
during the game, must less a fully fleshed out application of the idea.
That said, however, Nojima did fully intend for the connection he mentions
during the interview to be the canon of the storylines of both Final Fantasy
X/X-2 and Final Fantasy VII. He even goes so far as to place the first step
of the concept (Rin and Shinra beginning their research into the life energy
within the Planet together) into the narrative of Final Fantasy X-2:
International+Last Mission. He has put the ball into play. He just has yet to
apply the entire course of events which follows as a result into a published
title.
As of September 2005 and the publication of the Final Fantasy VII Ultimania
Omega Guide, that is still the case, though the matter now has further
indication to establish it as canon with the Guide stating this concerning
Shinra of the Gullwings in the "Final Fantasy VII in Other Games" section of
the book under the "Final Fantasy X-2" heading:
(My own translation)
"In the Gullwings, the group which the protagonist Yuna is a member of, there
is a boy named 'Shinra.' His name is reminiscent of the Shin-Ra Company, and
he's researching ways to use the life force flowing through the Planet as
energy. The results of this can't be seen in FFX-2, but perhaps someday his
descendants will found a company that supplies energy from the Planet?"
Whether Kitase will expand on those ideas for a future title or not remains to
be seen, but is irrelevant as far as the canon status of this concept goes.
What's relevant is that Nojima outright answered "Yes" to there being a
connection, established the set-up for the concept with Final Fantasy X-2,
explained the concept and the events that follow it in the interview from the
Ultimania Guide for FFX-2, set the concept in motion in Final Fantasy X-2:
International+Last Mission, and said these are things that WILL happen
(example: "Shinra was a good person, but his descendants will be like the
President [of Shin-Ra Inc.]").
Points often brought up by fans to contest the concept:
*Point: The idea totally contradicts the story of Final Fantasy VII. In the
game it's stated that the first Mako Reactor was approved for use only some 30
years before the main events of the game begin, and it had only been about 15
years that Shin-Ra even realized that Mako extraction could be profitable.
Nojima's idea that this has been going on for possibly thousands of years fits
in nowhere.
*Response: This point is the one brought up most often to contest the idea,
when, in fact, it fails to actually contradict it. Nojima's concept in no way
contradicts the established storyline of Final Fantasy VII, and only taking
what Nojima said out of context -- accidentally or deliberately -- will lend
to the belief that it does.
What he said is that Shinra attempts to apply the concept using the remains of
Vegnagun. However, he finds that he cannot successfully implement the concept,
and some 1000 years later, his descendants will travel from Spira to the
Planet Gaia. He does NOT say that they start setting up Mako Reactors as soon
as they get there. He merely says that on this other Planet they will found
the Shin-Ra Corporation. He does not imply that they do so straight away, nor
does he suggest that they begin using Mako extraction as soon as they found
the Shin-Ra Corporation.
What his concept amounts to is this: "After Vegnagun and Shuyin are defeated,
Rin invests a large amount of money in Shinra's concept of drawing energy from
the Farplane and harnessing it in a usable form. Shinra attempts to use the
remains of Vegnagun to do this, but is unsuccessful. 1000 years later, his
descendants will travel to the Planet Gaia. Sometime in the future after that,
they will found the Shin-Ra Corporation. Sometime in the future once again,
they will discover that they can successfully implement the concept conceived
by their ancestor and will utilize the correct means to do so."
*Point: There is no mention of JENOVA anywhere in Nojima's concept. He left
out one of the fundamental aspects of Final Fantasy VII's prehistory.
*Response: Nojima's concept is not a fleshed out idea. Those are the concepts
he had in mind when writing X-2, not the body of a narrative in and of itself.
It is a very basic concept that is taking the full spectrum of the timeline of
events into consideration in the same sentence or two. "And VII's story takes
place after that?" does not mean "So VII's story begins immediately after
Shinra's descendants arrive on Gaia?" It just's a general inquiry as to
whether or not VII's story chronologically falls after that point. With that
in mind, Shinra's descendants may very well have arrived before JENOVA did.
*Point: It's a bit farfetched that VII's story begins immediately after these
guys show up, meaning at most, they couldn't have been around for more than
100 years before the game starts, yet no one seems to recall that they're
aliens or makes menton of it.
*Response: Again, by his own admission, Nojima's concept is not a fleshed out
idea. It is a very basic concept that is taking the full spectrum of the
timeline of events into consideration in the same sentence or two. "And VII's
story takes place after that?" does not mean "So VII's story begins
immediately after Shinra's descendants arrive on Gaia?" It just's a general
inquiry as to whether or not VII's story chronologically falls after that
point. This is not very different from the argument that the concept
contradicts VII's story. It's only by taking what was said out of context that
this argument is ever applied.
*Point: Nojima's idea would suggest that the Spirans will develop technology
that allows for space travel, yet in the game's present, Shin-Ra had to
develop 26 prototypes before they could even produce a rocket that would be
capable of going into space. That leaves quite a plothole seeing as how the
technology of the game's present is not as developed as that of it's supposed
past.
*Response: Once again, Nojima's concept is not yet a fully fleshed out idea
and is all in his head. He has not yet touched upon the matter of the lost
technology, though he, doubtless, would do so should he fully flesh out the
idea. For that matter, it's not as though it would even be all that difficult
a thing to arrange. The Spiran vehicles used for space travel could easily be
written to have been destroyed -- along with the technology to reproduce them
-- due to a crash landing on Gaia, or they could be written to have been
destroyed by JENOVA during its assault upon the people of Gaia. This is not to
say that either of these possibilities are what occurred, but it is to say
that there's no reason to believe that the technology SHOULDN'T have been
lost.
*Point: The world of Spira operates on entirely different concepts of life and
death, as well as Magic and summoning. For example, there's never a need for
Sendings on Gaia, nor are there Fayth who are used as the conduit by which to
bring forth Summons.
*Response: The worlds actually operate on exactly the same concepts of life
and death, as well as Magic and summoning. Pyreflies = Spirit Energy = Mako =
Spheres = Materia = Lifestream. Spheres (the source of Magic in FFX) are
crystalized Pyreflies which were able to coalesce through their attachment to
physical matter (usually water). Pyreflies, after all, permeate everything in
Spira.
Materia (which, interestingly enough, has a spherical shape) is crystalized
Mako, which is itself a condensed/liquidized derivative of the
Lifestream/Gaia's Spirit Energy.
Also notable is that both worlds feature the concept of Spirit
Energy/Pyreflies returning to the Planet and then being sent back to the
surface world to give life to more creatures. Further still, on Gaia, there
were the Cetra, people who could manipulate Spirit Energy through their
connection to and understanding of the Planet. On Spira, there were Summoners,
people who could manipulate Pyreflies because of their strong wills,
formidable mental prowess, and their understanding of the mechanics of such
things.
As far as there being a big difference in terms of summoning, there's actually
no difference at all. Materia merely connects one to the Lifestream, using the
memories within this crystalized Spirit Energy as a conduit, and through this
connection, one can manifest Magical Spells (including Summons) based on those
memories.
On Spira, Aeons were called forth through one's mind connecting to that of a
Fayth, one whose body and spirit were bound within a statue of a powerful
creature. The Fayth's memories are then processed through their dreams, which
a Summoner will be able to glean through their mental rapport with that Fayth.
The Fayth's memories essentially serve as a blueprint of sorts for the
Summoner, who will then tap into Pyreflies and manifest them in a form based
on the memories of the Fayth as regarding the statue their spirit is bound
within.
The concept -- that of tapping into the memories of another to manifest them
as a Magical Spell or a Summon through Spirit Energy -- is the same on both
worlds. It all comes back to memories in the end. (For more on this matter,
refer to the "Spirit Energy and Memories: The Magic of Final Fantasy" article
further down in this document.)
As far as Sendings go, there seems to be something a bit off-kilter with
Spira's Lifestream. Rather than Spirit Energy being one massive swell on
Spira, it swirls around everywhere, rather aimlessly. There doesn't really
seem to be any coherence to it all. This may be partly why people can become
Fiends and Unsent after death.
However, that said, pretty much the same things can happen on Gaia. A
requirement for one becoming an Unsent, for example, is a strong emotional tie
to the living world. An example of this in Final Fantasy X would be Maechen,
whose unquenchable thirst for knowledge kept him bound to the surface of Spira
for 1000 years. Similarily, in Final Fantasy VII, the guys from Beginner's
Hall weren't able to be at peace after dying due to their thirst for
knowledge. When encountering their spirits in the Respectable Inn in Junon,
one of them tells Cloud that he wasn't able to rest because he wanted to learn
more.
As far as Fiends go, recall that it was enmity for the living that would cause
peoples' restless spirits to manifest as such creatures. In VII, the spirits
of the Gi Tribe became Fiend-like entities in the Gi Cave due to their hatred
for the people of Cosmo Canyon.
Really, there's not any notable differences in the mechanics of life, death,
and Magic on Spira and Gaia. They're essentially the same.
*Point: Nojima isn't even a Square-Enix employee any longer. His personal
opinion is hardly anything to take as canon.
*Response: If Yoshinori Kitase and Tetsuya Nomura were then to no longer be
Square-Enix employees, would their claims from the May 2003 issue of EDGE
magazine concerning how Final Fantasy VII was written (that it was intended
for Aerith to die to cause the player to experience the feeling of tragic
death and that Aerith was never intended to be revived) no longer be valid?
The matter in question is the intent with which the story was written. It's
not even as though the idea is entirely from left field. The set-up for it was
placed into Final Fantasy X-2 and actually set into motion in X-2:
International+Last Mission.
For that matter, being that Nojima is the writer, his personal opinion is what
conceived the story of the game in the first place. Further still, as of this
writing, Nojima is still working with Square-Enix on several projects,
including Final Fantasy VII: Before Crisis, Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core,
Final Fantasy VII: Dirge of Cerberus, and Kingdom Hearts II (for which he also
is serving as the Scenario Writer, having written its predecessor, as well),
all of this being nearly a full two years after Final Fantasy X-2:
International+Last Mission was released, and even further than that beyond the
point at which Nojima was no longer an employee of Square-Enix.
(Note: Thanks to Richard Van Moppes for bringing up the matter of the
mechanics of life and death in Spira as a possible counterpoint.)
22) -Analyzing the Storyline of Final Fantasy VII Based on Its Symbolism-
While it's well known that Final Fantasy VII draws on Jewish mysticism,
establishing a great deal of symbolism with the ancient belief system, the
extent of that symbolism is not always realized. I have here attempted to
establish an explanation that points out the correlation between in-game
events, scenarios, and concepts that are a direct reference to their
counterparts in Jewish mysticism. What I have determined from my studies is
that the core themes of Final Fantasy VII are taken straight out of the lore
of Jewish mysticism, and given an in-game representation. The level of
inspiration that these ancient concepts provided for Final Fantasy VII is
striking, as are the intricate levels at which they were interwoven throughout
the game's story. I hope that with this document, fans of Final Fantasy VII
and Final Fantasy as a whole -- as well as those who may simply have an
interest in religious symbolism as used in games -- will be able to find a
whole new angle by which to examine this groundbreaking title in the Final
Fantasy series.
-The Set-Up
In the Kabbalah, it's stated that mankind is separated from God by the sin of
the world, and the only way it can return to God is by navigating the paths of
the Sephiroth. The Sephiroth, also known as the "Tree of Life," is a spiritual
grid that represents the 10 divine emanations of God as projected into the
mortal world. These 10 aspects of God are comprised of 22 paths based in seven
realms of mortal existance. Along each path, a soul must overcome obstacles to
reach the next node, gaining a further understanding of itself and more of its
potential -- yet still limited -- understanding of God. If it is triumphant
throughout the life of its time as a mortal, it will gain a full understanding
of itself and as great an understanding of God as is possible for a mortal
being.The soul attains this great understanding when it reaches the central
node on the grid, the Tifaret (also spelled as "Tipharet," "Tiferet," and
"Tipheret"). From here, the soul will ascend to the seventh and highest realm
of conscious mortal existance, where it gains full understanding of itself and
may rejoin with God.
Of specific importance to a matter we'll be addressing here are the properties
of the Tifaret. As previously mentioned, the Tifaret is the central node on
the Tree of Life, and is associated with ascension, as well as representative
of beauty and certain virtues and vices. It's virtues are love and balance,
while its vices are pride and self-importance. When unbalanced, the Tifaret in
an individual will give way to an illusionary dilemma in which they suffer
from over-identification with others.
Also of importance to the matter we'll be analyzing here is the name of God,
"YHWH"/"JHVH" (commonly written as "Yahweh"/"Jehovah").
(Note: For more information on the Sephiroth and its multitude of properties,
visit these webpages:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sephiroth_%28Kabbalah%29
http://www.humanenergyscience.com/articles_kabbalah.htm
http://www.colorsystem.com/projekte/engl/65hebe.htm)
-Analyzing the game in regard to symbolism and/or themes of Jewish mysticism-
There are two "Gods" in the story: JENOVA and the Lifestream. For both, there
is a concept that involves their "children" rejoining with them: JENOVA has
its "Reunion" with the Cells in the Clones drawing them to the creature, and
the Lifestream has its Spirit Energy returning to it upon the death of a
"child" -- which it gifted with Spirit Energy when its life began -- the
Spirit Energy taking back with it the memories of that individual's lifetime,
from which the Lifestream will live and grow. One could say that JENOVA is a
dark "God" that attempts to conquer the light "God" (the Lifestream). With
these concepts in mind, recall the name of God, "Jehovah." "JENOVA" is a
corruption of this name, and this is reflected through the creature's
defilment of the Planet. Ifalna states that so long as JENOVA remains, the
Planet Gaia will never be able to heal.
Moving on, "Sephiroth" means "Numbers" when loosely translated from its Hebrew
origin, and in the game we have numbered "Sephiroth Clones." They're naturally
drawn back to JENOVA (God calling His children back to Him, and them being led
back on a grid of paths that is God's tool, it actually being emanations of
God Himself as projected into the mortal world), and Sephiroth in Final
Fantasy VII places the Clones on "paths" to seek out the Black Materia as they
make their way to the Reunion.
When the Clones finally get to the Northern Crater's Whirlwind Maze, the
Crater being the site where the Reunion is to take place, they are killed and
knocked into a chasm, no doubt for their Cells to be assimilated by JENOVA,
thus the creature fought inside the Planet later bearing the name
"JENOVA-SYNTHESIS," a synthesis being defined as the combination of two or
more separate parts into a complex whole. They've rejoined with "God." Also
notable is that -- briefly returning to the matter of the "Tree of Life" title
-- at the Northern Crater, Sephiroth's body lay at the centre of a large tree.
While on the subject of the center of the Tree of Life, let us return to the
matter. As mentioned before, the central node on the Tree is called the
Tifaret. Interestingly enough, the name bears a very striking resemblance to
the first name of the character known as Tifa Lockhart. Tifa is the Tifaret,
so to speak, at least for Cloud. In the Lifestream, she helps him find
himself, and he comes to fully understand himself, the penultimate goal of
following the Sephiroth's paths. One seeks to find an understanding of
theirself and then they may ascend to the final realm and rejoin with God.
Through Tifa, Cloud reaches the highest plain of conscious existance, gaining
an understanding and acceptance of himself, and, in so doing, is easily able
to purge JENOVA and Sephiroth from his mind during the game's ending. In
actuality, both Tifa and Cloud constitute a Tifaret. Tifa bears its virtues,
while Cloud bears its vices. He also is the one to experience the effects of
an unbalanced Tifaret, the illusion of over-identification. In being unwilling
to accept himself for who he was, Cloud over-identified himself with that
which he felt he must be in order to be special: Someone like Zack. This
illusion of imbalance nearly crippled Cloud's mind during the game. With
Tifa's help, he was able to overcome it, and accept who he was, thus,
achieving balance:
Cloud
"Everyone...... I'm sorry. I don't know what to say......"
Red XIII
"Don't say anything, Cloud. All you've been doing is apologizing."
Cloud
"I never was in SOLDIER."
"I made up the stories about what happened to me five years ago,
about being in SOLDIER."
"I left my village looking for glory, but never made it in to
SOLDIER......"
"I was so ashamed of being so weak; then I heard this story from my
friend Zack..."
"And I created an illusion of myself made up of what I had seen in my
life....."
"And I continued to play the charade as if it were true."
Barret
"Illusion, huh...? Pretty damn strong for a 'lusion, I'd say."
Cloud
"I'm physically built like someone in SOLDIER."
"Hojo's plan to clone Sephiroth wasn't that difficult."
"It was just the same procedure they use when creating members of
SOLDIER."
Cloud
"You see, someone in SOLDIER isn't simply exposed to Mako energy."
"Their bodies are actually injected with Jenova cells......"
"For better or for worse, only the strong can enter SOLDIER."
"It has nothing to do with the Jenova Reunion."
"But weak people...... like me, get lost in the whole thing."
Cloud
"The combination of Jenova cells, Sephiroth's strong will, and my own
weaknesses are what created me."
"Everyone knew that. I'm...... Cloud."
Cloud
"......the master of my own illusionary world."
"But I can't remain trapped in an illusion any more......"
"I'm going to live my life without pretending."
Tifa further has a connection to the Tifaret through the name of her final
Limit Break and the name of her bar in the Slums of Sector 7, entitled "Final
Heaven" and "7th Heaven" respectively. As previously mentioned, the Tifaret
grants access to the highest realm of mortal existance, it, thus, being the
"Final Heaven" and -- being the seventh realm -- also the "7th Heaven."
Next up for consideration is Bizarro Sephiroth (also known as "Reverse
Sephiroth"), the next-to-final form seen of Sephiroth's body, in which his
body is being reborn as Safer Sephiroth from the pupa-like entity that is seen
as the bottom part of the boss in that battle. The name "Reverse
Sephiroth"/"Bizarro Sephiroth" is symbolic in the sense that what Sephiroth
was doing was a reversal of the religious Sephiroth's purpose. It's supposed
to lead to God, the holy of holies. Sephiroth had, indeed, been brought into
contact with JENOVA's Cells while a fetus in Lucrecia's womb for the purpose
of leading Shin-Ra to the Promised Land. Yet despite all this, here we find
him serving as the obstacle to the Spell known as "Holy" being released. In
symbolically becoming the opposite of what he's supposed to be, this was a
"fall from grace," thus the symbolism of a one-winged Angel in the Safer
Sephiroth battle that follows the Bizarro battle.
In the battle with Safer Sephiroth, there is not only symbolism in the
appearance of Sephiroth, but also in his name. As with "Tifaret," "a" and "e"
can and are often used interchangeably for Hebrew words. That is also the case
with "Safer," which may also be spelled as "Sefer," "Sapher," and "Sepher." In
Hebrew, "Sefer" means "Book." Therefore, "Safer Sephiroth" means "Book of
Numbers."
When examining the Book of Numbers of the Pentateuch, as seen in both the
Bible and the Torah, we find that it involves taking up events after the
Israelites had spent nearly an entire year in the Mt. Sinai area, during which
time they were promised the land of Canaan should they be obedient to God.
This land came to be referred to as "the Promised Land." Worthy of note is
that the Book of Numbers picks up in the second month of the second year since
the Israelites' Exodus from Egypt. With this in mind, I refer back to there
being 22 paths that link the 10 spheres of the Sephiroth (2 & 2). Also of note
is the fact that the Book of Numbers involves the Israelites ending their
settlement in Sinai, preparing to depart to claim the Promised Land of Canaan,
and then setting out. In the Safer Sephiroth battle, the player is facing the
ascended form of Sephiroth, with him at last prepared to claim the Promised
Land of the Ancients: The Lifestream.
One major point to emphasise is that the Kabbalist Sephiroth is the emanations
of God Himself as projected into the mortal world. In Final Fantasy VII, it
was much the same case in regard to JENOVA and Sephiroth's relationship. He is
-- in a sense -- the mutation of JENOVA in a Gaian body, its "emanations" as
projected into the world. While his own self and possessing his own
individuality, Sephiroth is the "evolution" of JENOVA, his consciously
perceiving mind combined with its instinctual viral desire to replicate.
Finally, I wish to point out the connections to Jewish mysticism as found in
Aerith, the Cetra, and the Promised Land. To start with, Aerith is 22 years
old and there are 22 paths of the Sephiroth. The Cetra and the Promised Land's
explanations are intertwined, so I will here present them together:
Just as an individual following the paths of the Sephiroth and seeking their
way back to God must overcome obstacles along the paths in order to achieve
this, so too must one do so in seeking their Promised Land. This is
demonstrated in-game by the Cetra's journey. It is described as a "harsh, hard
journey" at the end of which they would find their Promised Land:
Sephiroth
"This Planet originally belonged to the Cetra. Cetra was a
itinerant race. They would migrate in, settle the Planet, then move on..."
"At the end of their harsh, hard journey, they would find the
Promised Land and supreme happiness."
Referring back to Elder Hargo's comments on the Cetra, again, he states that
the "harsh, hard journey" of the Cetra ended when they were allowed to rejoin
with the Lifestream:
"The life of the Ancients is one continuous journey. A journey to grow trees
and plants, produce animals, and raise mako energy. Their harsh journeys
continued throughout their lives... The place they return to after their long
journey... Their burial land is the Promised Land. Huh? Supreme happiness? I
believe that, for the Ancients, it was the moment that they were able to
return to their planet. At that moment they were released from their fate, and
gained their supreme happiness..."
We can connect the matter of rejoining with the Lifestream to the matter of
rejoining with the Promised Land in the case of the Cetra based on what Aerith
says concerning the Cetra's origins, and what Bugenhagen says concerning
Spirit Energy and the cycle of rebirth in Final Fantasy VII:
(Aerith in the Shin-Ra headquarters)
Aerith
"All I know is..."
"The Cetra were born from the Planet, speak with the Planet, and
unlock the Planet."
"And....... then......"
"The Cetra will return to the Promised Land. A land that promises
supreme happiness."
(Bugenhagen in Cosmo Canyon)
Bugenhagen
"Well, let's get to the subject."
"Eventually... all humans die. What happens to them after they die?"
"The body decomposes, and returns to the Planet. That much everyone
knows. What about their consciousness, their hearts and their
souls?"
"The soul too returns to the Planet."
"And not only those of humans, but everything on this Planet. In
fact, all living things in the universe, are the same."
Bugenhagen
"The spirits that return to the Planet, merge with one another and
roam the Planet."
"They roam, converge, and divide, becoming a swell, called the
'Lifestream'."
"Lifestream.... In other words, a path of energy of the souls roaming
the Planet."
Bugenhagen
"'Spirit Energy' is a word that you should never forget."
"A new life... children are blessed with Spirit energy and are
brought into the world."
"Then, the time comes when they die and once again return to the
Planet..."
While this brings up the question of why the journey to DIE is made so
difficult for the Cetra, there may have been any number of cultural
assumptions amongst the Cetra that led them to feel that they must do their
best to help cultivate life on the Planet in order to rejoin with the
Lifestream, or perhaps it was a sense of duty that drove them in such a
regard. The game is, sadly, unclear on this matter, nor are hints provided.
For all we're made aware, there may have been a cultural assumption amongst
the Cetra that they felt they would only be worthy of the return to the
Lifestream by helping to cultivate life on the Planet's surface. Whatever the
reason, this journey of the Cetra along the paths of the Sephiroth to reach
their own personal Promised Land was a journey to the Lifestream, made more
difficult for them than it was for other forms of life due to it being the
fulfillment of self for these Ancients, with the Promised Land -- and, thus,
fulfillment -- being a personal thing that varied in nature from one
individual to another, and absolutely could only be reached through overcoming
hardship.
(Note: For more on the Cetra and this theme of hardship, refer to the section
of this document entitled "The Promised Land Revealed.")
Something else worthy of note is that the Cetra's migrations mirrors the
wanderings of the Israelites that left Egypt in the Pentateuch and Torah. They
too sought their Promised Land, the Land of Canaan. It was even referred to as
"the Promised Land."
Also notable, and -- perhaps -- more interesting, is that Final Fantasy VII
also plays somewhat on Christianity, with Sephiroth essentially being the
Jesus to JENOVA's God. In Christianity, it is believed that Jesus was the
product of an emanation of God manifesting inside the womb of a mortal woman,
developing, and then being born. In Final Fantasy VII, we find the closest
thing possible occur: The Cells of JENOVA are injected into Lucrecia's womb,
where they meld with Sephiroth's body as it develops.
Further, the game's sequel, Advent Children, features another such reference
through its title. The Advent of Christ is said to be his return, or "second
coming" as it is often referred to as. In the film, Sephiroth is reborn, and
his "second coming" is witnessed.
I hope that with this I have successfully conveyed the symbolic nature of
Final Fantasy VII and provided a new reason to appreciate the thought that lay
behind it on the part of its developers.
-Bonus Essay-
Spirit Energy and Memories: The Magic of Final Fantasy
The purpse of this document is to present my thesis on Magic and memories in
Final Fantasy. Essentially, I seek to present that Spirit Energy and/or
memories are the source of Magicks in the Final Fantasies. Further, I seek to
express the possibility that all Final Fantasy worlds (or, at the least, the
worlds of Final Fantasy VII, VIII, IX, X/X-2, Tactics, and The Spirits Within)
have a Lifestream.
-NOTE THAT THERE WILL BE SPOILERS AHEAD FROM Final Fantasy VI, VII, VIII, IX,
X, X-2, Tactics, The Spirits Within, AND Unlimited-
In FFVII, there is a concept of the souls of those who die returning to the
Planet:
Bugenhagen:
"Well, let's get to the subject."
"Eventually... all humans die. What happens to them after they die?"
"The body decomposes, and returns to the Planet. That much everyone knows.
What about their consciousness, their hearts and their souls?"
"The soul too returns to the Planet."
"And not only those of humans, but everything on this Planet. In fact, all
living things in the universe, are the same."
"The spirits that return to the Planet, merge with one another and roam the
Planet."
"They roam, converge, and divide, becoming a swell, called the 'Lifestream'."
"Lifestream.... In other words, a path of energy of the souls roaming the
Planet."
"'Spirit Energy' is a word that you should never forget."
"A new life... children are blessed with Spirit energy and are brought into
the world."
"Then, the time comes when they die and once again return to the Planet..."
We're further made aware that the game's Materia (the spheres through which
people in this world access Magicks) are crystalized Spirit Energy, condensing
and crystalizing when it has gone to the Planet's surface, occurring through
both natural and artifically-induced means (Mako siphoning). Further still, it
would seem that when one has died and their Spirit Energy returns to the
Planet, it takes with it the knowledge (memories) of the individual that it
had provided the energy of life for, and it is through these memories that
the wielders of Materia connect to the Planet and call forth Magicks:
(Stated by Sephiroth on Mt. Nibel.)
"...the knowledge and wisdom of the Ancients is held in the materia."
"Anyone with this knowledge can freely use the powers of the Land and the
Planet. That knowledge interacts between ourselves and the planet calling up
magic..... or so they say."
The same concepts show up in The Spirits Within, in which it is said that the
spirits of those who die return to the "Gaia," (the spirit of the Earth)
taking with them the experiences (memories) of their lifetimes, these
experiences allowing the Gaia to grow, and with the implication offered that
the Spirit Energy will be recycled and put back onto the surface world to
supply another living being with Spirit Energy:
(Stated by Aki, quoting Dr. Sid's journal.)
"All life is born of Gaia and each life has a spirit. Each new spirit is
housed in a physical body. ...Through their experiences on Earth each spirit
matures and grows. When the physical body dies the mature spirit enriched by
its life on Earth returns to Gaia bringing with it the experiences, enabling
Gaia to live and grow."
FFIX has this concept, as well (referred to as the "cycle of souls" by
Garland), though the source of souls is only referred to as "the light [of
Gaia]" rather than "the Lifestream" or "the Gaia." It's further made apparent
that the Planet Terra also has a "light." To better explain this and the
connection of these "lights" to the Lifestream of Final Fantasy VII and the
Gaia of The Spirits Within, I will here explain the nature of Garland's plan
to have Terra assimilate Gaia:
In Pandemonium, Garland tells Zidane that this was his plan for Gaia:
"I have no intention of destroying Gaia. I only wish to make Gaia into
Terra."
What does Garland mean by this? Was he going to cause the Planets to collide
and merge through accretion in a cataclysmic smashing together of celestial
bodies? Was he going to teleport Terra's matter into the space being occupied
by Gaia's, merging the two into a form that would be both of the previously
existing Planets, but neither at the same time?
Perhaps that would have been part of the process at some stage (the memory
of Terra and another Planet apparently physically fusing witnessed in Memoria
would lend some measure of support to such a theory), but one thing
can be certain: What Garland was speaking of was replacing Gaia's
Lifestream/Gaia/Spirit Energy with Terra's. For any who may be confused at
this point while recalling that Final Fantasy VII was the Final Fantasy in
which the Lifestream was present, I wish to clarify that, yes, the world of
Final Fantasy IX does, indeed, have a Lifestream, as well.
Recall what Mikoto says in Bran Bal concerning the nature of the Cycle of
Souls:
"Planets have a cycle of souls. Souls are born from the planet, and then
return to it."
Now recall what Bugenhagen says in Final Fantasy VII concerning the nature of
Spirit Energy:
"'Spirit Energy' is a word that you should never forget."
"A new life... children are blessed with Spirit energy and are
brought into the world."
"Then, the time comes when they die and once again return to the
Planet..."
In other words, both worlds have a Lifestream. To further explain what it is
that Garland was attempting to accomplish, I must make note of the Lifestream
of the Earth in Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within film. The Planet of the
film had a Lifestream, as well, ironically enough called its "Gaia." It's
said in the film that new life is granted a spirit from the Earth's Gaia
(Lifestream), with this spirit then returning to the Gaia upon the death of
its host, carrying back with it the memories and experiences of its lifetime.
In summary, from all this, we can establish that all three worlds have a
Lifestream. With this in mind, recall that the Gaia of the Phantom Homeworld
was attempting to take over the Gaia of the Earth, changing the Earth's blue
Gaia into the Phantom Homeworld's red Gaia. In the event that this sounds
familiar, it certainly should, as this changing of blue to red is precisely
what Garland spoke of doing in regard to Gaia and Terra:
Garland
"We must sort the souls."
"I want to disrupt Gaia's cycle and drain its souls, filling the void with
the souls of Terra."
"To speed the cycle of souls is to speed the work as a whole. Thus, war..."
"And in time... Gaia's souls are gone, and Gaia becomes Terra."
Zidane
"But...how!?"
Garland
"You saw it with your own eyes. You saw the Iifa Tree and the Mist it emits."
"The role of the Iifa Tree is that of Soul Divider. The Mist you see
comprises the stagnant souls of Gaia..."
Zidane
"Oh yeah? But we stopped the Mist! So much for that!"
Garland
"All you saw was the back of the tree..."
"Come and see for yourself. See the true form of this planet."
Zidane
"What is this?"
Garland
"Think of it as an observatory. A place to measure the radiance of Gaia and
Terra."
Zidane
"What are you talking about? And what is this weird light?"
Garland
"That is the center of the planet. The end and the beginning of the cycle of
souls."
"The light remains Gaia's, for now, but when the blue changes to crimson,
all will belong to Terra, and its restoration will be complete."
Garland tells Zidane that he was going to show him the TRUE form of Terra,
and then proceeded to show him the light that was at the center of Gaia,
further stating that this light was the beginning and end of the Cycle of
Souls: In other words, Gaia's Lifestream. Keeping in mind that Garland said
he would show Zidane the TRUE form of Terra, that would mean that he didn't
regard the physical material that they could see and walked upon as the true
form of the Planet, rather regarding the Lifestream of the Planet itself as
its true form, all the physical material around it just being a shell of
sorts to contain it and upon which it could cultivate life.
Recalling once again that the Gaia of the Phantom Homeworld in The Spirits
Within was changing the Earth's Gaia from blue to red, this would mean, then,
that what Garland was trying to do was the same thing: Replace Gaia's
Lifestream with Terra's, converting the Lifestream already present and
housing Terra's Lifestream in the vessel of physical material upon which life
had been cultivated and reared by Gaia.
In summary, the Gaia concept of The Spirits Within is exactly the same as the
Lifestream concept of Final Fantasy VII and the Cycle of Souls of Final
Fantasy IX. Earth's Gaia (The Spirits Within) is that Planet's Lifestream, the
same as Gaia's Lifestream (Final Fantasy VII) is that Planet's Gaia, with Gaia
and Terra of Final Fantasy IX having the same concept with these "lights" at
their cores.
To put it another way, Lifestream = Gaia = "Light."
Next, based on what we're told in Final Fantasy VII and The Spirits Within, we
know that the memories of the dead will be taken to the Planet's
Lifestream/Gaia/"Light"/Whatever, yet in Final Fantasy IX we see this process
interrupted by the Iifa Tree. As a result, Mist covers much of one continent
and later the whole world. Further, much of the world is desolate, as was the
area around Midgar in Final Fantasy VII, the heart of Mako siphoning (notable
because in both cases, the life force of the Planet was being drained).
Black Mages, beings with the inherent ability to use Magicks, are created from
this Mist that now covers Gaia. Garland says the Mist was formed of the
stagnant souls of the dead that were unable to return to the core of the
Planet. In other words, they were composed of Spirit Energy that could not
return to the core of the Planet:
Garland: "The role of the Iifa Tree is that of Soul Divider. The Mist you see
comprises the stagnant souls of Gaia..."
This presents us with the suggestion that Spirit Energy provides power, and
that is, indeed, the case. In Final Fantasy VII, the Shin-Ra corporation draws
Spirit Energy out of the Planet, it taking on a more compressed form called
"Mako." This Mako is then converted to allow Shin-Ra to provide electricity,
the Mako becoming electrical energy and then being converted into whatever
forms of energy that it may be used toward as electrical energy, such as light
energy, heat energy, and kinetic energy. Further notable is, again, that the
source of Magic in this game is Materia, condensed and crysalized Spirit
Energy from the Lifestream, it acting as a link between its wielder and the
Planet, as the knowledge (memories) within the Materia interacts between the
two, allowing the wielder to call Magicks forth. Further, JENOVA/Sephiroth's
plot in Final Fantasy VII was to deal a fatal would to the Planet, resulting
in a massive outpouring of Spirit Energy from within the Planet to that area
to heal the wound, only it/he/they would be at the wound and would absorb the
Spirit Energy as it came forth.
In Final Fantasy X and X-2, we see Spheres used as a frequent source of power,
them being, interestingly enough, in the shape that Final Fantasy VII's
Materia takes on. In Final Fantasy X, we learn that Spheres are made when
absorbing and recording people's memories:
(In Macalania Woods, at the lake where the Spherimorph was fought.)
Tidus
"This place..."
"It's just water, isn't it?"
Auron
"This is what spheres are made of."
"It absorbs and preserves people's memories."
Then, in X-2, we learn that Spheres are composed of Pyreflies:
(In Cloister Infinity/Cloister 100 of the Via Infinito.)
Rikku: "So what happened to everyone's Spheres?"
Trema: "Destroyed. Turned to Pyreflies and scattered."
[Note: Keep this matter of the Spheres being formed when absorbing memories
and then later being revealed to be composed of Pyreflies in mind.]
A further note of interest is that we frequently see the souls of the dead
composed of Pyreflies through Final Fantasy X and X-2's Unsent characters,
such as Auron, Seymour, Belgemine, Lady Ginnem, and Maester Mika. Further
still, the Farplane (the resting place of the world of Spira's dead) has a
massive amount of Pyreflies floating about within it. When people and Fiends
die, Pyreflies are given off from their forms, or, in the case of the Fiends,
their bodies disippitate into the Pyreflies of which they are composed. With
this in mind, the nature of Fiends as explained in Final Fantasy X should be
recalled:
(Stated by Lulu in Kilika.)
"The dead need guidance."
"Filled with grief over their own death, they refuse to face their fate."
"They yearn to live on, and resent those still alive."
"You see, they envy the living."
"And in time, that envy turns to anger, even hate."
"Should these souls remain in Spira, they become fiends that prey on the
living."
"Sad, isn't it?"
"The sending takes them to the Farplane, where they may rest in peace."
It should also be noted that Pyreflies are what are seen fading away when a
Sending occurs. Further still, when one has been sent to the Farplane, their
image will appear there amongst the Pyreflies that float about there in
response to one's memory of the sent deceased. From all of this we can infer
that the Pyreflies of an individual are their very soul, or -- as Final
Fantasy VII put it -- their "Spirit Energy."
Keeping in mind for a moment that Materia is crystalized Spirit Energy, in
regard to Final Fantasy X, it should be noted that all abilities learned in
that game are learned on the SPHERE Grid (capitalized for emphasis), and the
abilities seen in Final Fantasy X-2 are learned through the use of the
DresSPHERES (capitalized for emphasis). In other words, the magical abilities
that people learn in Spira come from Spheres, just as the magical abilities
people display in Final Fantasy VII come from the Spheres of that world:
Materia.
The Dresspheres of Final Fantasy X-2 are clearly shown to be the crystalized
Pyreflies/Spirit Energy of People of the past. Lenne's memories were the basis
for the Songtstress Dressphere, and her spirit is even seen emerging from the
Dressphere after the final confrontation with Shuyin. It is because of this
that Shuyin often confused Yuna for Lenne during the game:
Buddy: "Lenne, huh?"
Shinra: "Yeah, the girl from the Songstress dressphere."
Yuna: "That's Lenne?"
Shinra: "Sure. She wore that dress one thousand years ago."
Rikku: "Why didn't you tell us?"
Shinra: "No one asked. Besides, all I knew was her name. What's to tell?"
Yuna: (Narrating) "What Shinra said surprised me, but only a little. So there
really was a connection."
Rikku: "Okay, okay. So, the reason Shuyin keeps calling Yuna "Lenne" is --"
Paine: "Because of that dressphere?"
To summarize things thus far, we can conclude that Lifestream = Gaia =
"Light" and that Spirit Energy = Pyreflies. We can also conclude that Materia
= Spheres. Thus, it can be concluded that Lifestream = Gaia = "Light" =
Spirit Energy = Pyreflies = Materia = Spheres.
Taking all of this into account, let's now take things a step further and
consider what Shinra of Final Fantasy X-2 says concerning the Farplane, where
a vast amount of Pyreflies can be seen:
Shinra: "Aha..."
Yuna: "What are you looking at?"
Shinra: "Farplane data."
Shinra: "The more I study it, the more fascinating it gets. There's limitless
energy swirling around in there."
Yuna: "Limitless energy?"
Shinra: "The life force that flows through our planet...I think."
Shinra: "With a little work, we could probably extract the energy in a
useable form."
Brother: "Sweet!"
Shinra: "Of course, that'd take generations."
Brother: "That's no fun!"
Buddy: "Well, still, it is something worth shooting for."
Yuna: "Think how much Spira would change if we ever got it to work!"
Yuna: "Maybe one day we could build a city full of light, one that never
sleeps!"
Shinra: "No doubt about it."
Yuna: "Just imagine!"
Note that Shinra's words suggest the same concept as the use of Mako Reactors
seen in Final Fantasy VII.
As with Final Fantasy VII, in Final Fantasy X we also see Spirit Energy used
as a source of increasing one's power. When People and Fiends die, Pyreflies
are given off. After Seymour has murdered Maester Kinoc, he absorbs the
Pyreflies from Kinoc's body and those that three Guado and a soldier of
Bevelle give off, transforming into Seymour Natus. This is a strong indication
that the Pyreflies are the free-floating Spirit Energy of the dead, and can be
harnessed as a source of power the same as Spirit Energy is in Final Fantasy
VII. In fact, we have absolute confirmation of this through Sin. Yu Yevon
formed this armour of immense power by gathering Pyreflies around himself and
holding them together with Gravity Spells, then forming from them the
monstrosity that would ravage Spira for 1000 years.
Also, note that the Pyreflies reside within the Planet, and that the Pyreflies
constituting the souls of one that is Sent will be sent there, as one who has
not accepted death while still alive or has not died and then been Sent cannot
be seen on the Farplane.
Moving on, in The Spirits Within, we're told that the OVOpacks used to power
everything were derived from micro-organisms, their "bioetheric energy" (their
Spirit Energy) drawn out to be used as a power source and contained in these
packs. One of the Eight Spirits used to counter the Phantom Homeworld's Gaia
was one of these OVOpacks:
(In the battlefield wasteland of Tuscon, Arizona.)
Aki: "We're very close."
Gray: "I don't see anything."
Gray: "You're not gonna tell me it's him?"
Ryan: "That's impossible."
Aki: "It's not the [dead] soldier. It's his OVOpack."
Gray: "How do you explain that? Packs power the weapons, the barrier cities. I
mean it's just bioetheric energy."
Aki: "And to create that energy we use living tissue; single cell organisms."
Gray: "You're telling me his backpack is the seventh spirit."
Aki: "Yes."
Again, Spirit Energy was the source of power, in this case, used to power the
weapons employed against the Phantoms, the barrier that kept them out of the
new New York City and other barrier cities, and that was used to power the
Zeus Cannon.
On the subject of the Phantoms themselves, they were ghosts of a world
destroyed, carried to the Earth on a chunk of their own Planet that contained
their world's Gaia. When this chunk of their homeworld (the Phantom Meteor, or
Leonid Meteor) slammed into the Earth, the Spirit Energy of the dead beings
began to run amok on the Earth. Near the end of the film, their world's Gaia
essentially poisoned Earth's Gaia, pooling down into it, and began attempting
to convert it into itself. It seems that the Gaia of the Phantom homeworld was
attempting to take the Earth's physical material as a new vessel until it
itself was negated by the Spirit Wave of the Eight Spirits of Earth.
Next, with Final Fantasy VIII, we find a less obvious but no less striking
matter. Scattered across the world of Final Fantasy VIII are Draw Points,
areas on the surface of the Planet where tendrils of energy leak out and can
be "drawn" into one who is junctioned to a Guardian Force (Final Fantasy
VIII's version of Summon creatures), allowing one access to Magicks. Further,
energy can likewise be "drawn" from monsters and even other people, leaving
similar energy trails behind as it is transferred from one being to another as
it does when pulled out of the Planet and into an individual's body. The
striking thing about this is that the Draw Points that leak energy out of the
Planet bear a significant resemblance to the Mako Fountains of Final Fantasy
VII, areas in that world where Spirit Energy leaked out of the Planet,
condensed, and became Materia:
A Draw Point:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/ADrawPoint.jpg
A Mako Fountain:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/MakoFountain4.jpg
While they don't bear an EXACT resemblance, conceptually they're akin: Both
involve energy leaking up out of the Planet and through to the surface. In
other words, when drawing Magicks out of the Planet, one is drawing Spirit
Energy out of it, gaining access to a certain number of Spells associated with
the memories contained in the Spirit Energy that was drawn.
Similarily, when drawing energy from a monster or another person, one is
drawing on Spirit Energy out of that being, gaining access to Spells
associated with the memories contained in that Spirit Energy:
Drawing:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Squall_of_Seed/DrawingFFVIII.jpg
Finally, in regard to Final Fantasy: Unlimited, throughout this series
various types of sandy materials (more various in color than the different
types of Materia) known as "Soil" were the fuel for powering certain weaponry
and many machines. Not surprisingly, the revelation comes that Soil is the
Life Crystals of the dead. In other words, the crystalized Spirit Energy of
the dead.
Based on all this, we can establish that Spirit Energy and Lifestream-like
concepts are a staple of at least the worlds of Final Fantasy VII, IX, X/X-2,
Unlimited, and The Spirits Within, as well as possibly Final Fantasy VIII, and
that Spirit Energy is a source of power in all of them.
However, we can draw something else from all of this due to some specific
elements of the nature of Spirit Energy/Pyreflies seen in Final Fantasy VII
and Final Fantasy X/X-2, and specific elements regarding the nature of
Summons as seen in Final Fantasy VIII and IX: Spirit Energy itself would
only seem to be half of the equation in regard to the source of power. The
other half is memories. In fact, it may well be that it is the memories
THEMSELVES that allow Spirit Energy to provide power in the first place!
This conclusion can be drawn for several reasons:
As mentioned before, in Final Fantasy VII, when explaining the function of
Materia, Sephiroth says the following:
"...the knowledge and wisdom of the Ancients is held in the materia."
"Anyone with this knowledge can freely use the powers of the Land and the
Planet. That knowledge interacts between ourselves and the planet calling up
magic..... or so they say."
Materia contains the knowledge of the Ancients. To put it another way, their
memories. Now let's recall once more what The Spirits Within states to be
taken to the Gaia of the Earth upon the death of a creature:
"All life is born of Gaia and each life has a spirit. Each new spirit is
housed in a physical body. ...Through their experiences on Earth each spirit
matures and grows. When the physical body dies the mature spirit enriched by
its life on Earth returns to Gaia bringing with it the experiences, enabling
Gaia to live and grow."
The experiences of those who die are taken with their Spirit Energy back to
the Gaia. In other words once again, their memories. This time, however, we
learn that these memories actually serve to allow Gaias/Lifestreams to GROW.
Consider now the Aeons and Dream Zanarkand of FFX and X-2. Dream Zanarkand was
bound to existance by the dreaming of those pople who had lived in Zanarkand
before and during the war with Bevelle: The Fayth. When it became apparent
that the war with Bevelle was lost, Yu Yevon had them become the Fayth Cluster
on Mt. Gagazet, where they would generate their memories and he would tap into
them, and from them create Dream Zanarkand, so that the Zanarkand they knew
would live on. They generated memories of the Zanarkand they had known while
they were forced into a perpetual cycle of dreaming by Yu Yevon, him tapping
into the dreams they generated to create Dream Zanarkand and its living,
breathing, reproducing inhabtiants. Actual life was made from these memories.
The Aeons, also, were produced from tapping into the dreams of Fayth, possibly
-- if not likely -- based on their memories.
Something else worthy of note is that Pyreflies constantly react, displaying
the memories associated with them, as is shown to occur on the Farplane,
and in the ruins of Zanarkand. Further still, the Unsent -- being composed of
Pyreflies -- can even process their own memories through the Pyreflies of
which their forms are composed and allow others to see them, such as when
Auron shows Tidus the promise he made to Jecht to look after him:
Auron
"We must talk."
Tidus
"What?"
Auron
"There is something you should know."
Tidus
"I know...it's about you, right?"
Auron
"I am also an unsent."
"You are not surprised?"
Tidus
"I think I kinda knew. It was Yunalesca, wasn't it?"
Auron
"When Braska and Jecht died defeating Sin..."
"I just couldn't accept it."
"I came back here... tried to avenge them."
"But she struck me down."
"Somehow I made my way, crawling, down Mount Gagazet."
"But my strength left me just outside Bevelle. That's where Kimahri found me."
"I told him about Yuna... just before I died."
"I've been wandering ever since, never going to the Farplane."
Tidus
"Auron..."
Auron
"Don't make that face. Being dead has its advantages."
"I was able to ride Sin and go to your Zanarkand."
Tidus
"And you've been watching over me since then, haven't you?"
"Why?"
"What's the big idea? Why me?"
Auron
"It is one of those things that is difficult to explain."
"Very well, I will show you."
::Auron walks to the middle of the room::
Auron
"My memories."
::Auron kneels and several Pyreflies rise from his form. We're then shown
images of Braska and Jecht, as seen through Auron's eyes 10 years earlier::
Something else worthy of note comes from The Spirits Within and Final Fantasy
X-2. In The Spirits Within, Aki -- having a piece of a Phantom's spirit
contained within her body -- frequently experienced that Phantom's memories of
its final moments of life. Similarily, in X-2, Yuna frequently experienced
Lenne's memories of her final moments of life as well as occasionally felt her
feelings.
Taking a brief step back to the concept of Spirit Energy crystalizing, in
Final Fantasy: Tactics, upon the death of a character in a battle (once the
timer above their body reached "0"), a message reading "[Insert character's
name]'s spirit became a crystal" will often appear, accompanied by the fallen
unit's body being replaced on the battlefield by a crystal. If another
character moves to that space and takes the crystal, they can either use it to
replenish their HP and MP, or to learn a Spell or other ability that the
fallen character had known. In other words, they can absorb a memory of that
fallen character. Granted, this isn't a huge point and is the only possible
connection to the matter in Final Fantasy: Tactics, and there's no indication
that other Spells and abilities are learned in a manner that is associated
with either Spirit Energy or memories, but I felt that this was a point that
shouldn't be left out.
Similarily, in Final Fantasy VI, upon the death of an Esper, its spiritual
essence would crystalize into objects known as "Magicite." Despite the Esper
being dead, if someone was in possession of a Magicite, they could call the
being forth in battle. Further still, they could learn Spells from the
Magicite, these being Spells the Esper itself had known or is associated with,
such as the Fire Spells that can be learned from Ifrit's Magicite.
In a somewhat similar concept, in Final Fantasy VIII, without Guardian Forces,
people could do nothing more than battle with their own physical prowess and
skills of warfare. They would have no access to Magicks whatsoever without GFs
unless they were a Sorceress. When Junctioned to a GF, however, they have the
potential for a great arsenal of magical Spells to be at their disposal, yet
junctioning oneself to a GF causes memory loss over time, suggesting that the
GF draws on the memories of its Junction partner in order to supply them the
power it does (not just calling the GF forth, but drawing, stocking, and
junctioning Magicks), the one junctioned to a GF acting as a Fayth of sorts:
(After Squall and the other main characters -- minus Rinoa -- discover that
they grew up together, but that all of them but Irvine had forgotten.)
Squall
"...Why is it that we forgot?"
"We grew up together as kids...How's that possible...?"
Irvine
"How about this?"
"...The price we pay for using the GF."
"The GF provides us its power."
"But the GF makes its own place inside our brain..."
Quistis
"So you're saying that the area is where our memories are stored?"
"No...! That's just a rumor the GF critics are spreading."
Zell
"So if we keep relying on the GF, we won't be able to remember a lot of
things?"
Quistis
"There's no way Headmaster Cid would allow such a dangerous thing!"
Irvine
"Then how is it that I remember, while everyone else has forgotten?"
"Well...?"
"In my case, I hadn't junctioned a GF until recently."
"That's why I remember a lot more than you guys."
Quistis
"How about you, Selphie?"
"Your first experience with the GF was when you came to Balamb Garden, right?"
Selphie
"...Yeah."
...
Selphie
"I have a confession to make!"
Selphie
"When I was 12, I went on an outdoor training session."
"I found a GF inside one of the monsters I defeated..."
"I junctioned that GF for a while. So I have experience with GF, too."
"But...but, it's really weird! I can't remember the name of that GF!"
Quistis
"It must be the GF's fault...
The GFs take up residence within one's mind, drawing on their memories, and
possbily placing the memories associated with the Spells they "learn" there.
Spells can be lost if drawn from a party member, or if just plucked out of
their mind and cast away, as Ultimecia often does to party members during the
final battles of the game.
Like those that came before it, Final Fantasy IX also has a strong connection
to memories. The game emphasises all memory and life having began at a single
source, known as the Crystal. All life is connected, each having its beginning
with the crystal, no matter how far back in time it is that the Crystal
propagated life into existance. The game has a place known as "Memoria," which
literally means "Memory" in several languages, and in which the characters
trace their own Spirit Energy's memories back to the beginning of its
existance with the Crystal, all of them even able to recall that their world
was once entirely covered with water, despite this having been, perhaps,
millions or billions of years before their lifetimes. Zidane was even able to
recall things of Gaia's far past, despite being from Terra, this being because
all life has a single source when one traces it back far enough: The Crystal.
This, of course, still leaves us to question whether or not the Magicks of
Final Fantasy IX are connected to Spirit Energy or memories, as they are in no
obvious way derived from memories beyond the connection with the Black Mages
being composed of Mist, which is stagnant Spirit Energy, which would contain
memories. On this Gaia, Magicks are learned by equipping oneself with certain
equipment for a certain period of time, rather than by equpping oneself with
Materia, Spheres, or some other crystalline object. Granted, Kuja gained a
great deal of magical power when he absorbed the souls that were trapped
within the Invincible, but that still only leaves us to connect only the
Black Mages' and Kuja's Magicks to Spirit Energy and/or memories.
However, consider the writing on the Eidolon Wall of Madain Sari. It would
seem that some of the Summoners of Madain Sari determined that the legends of
Eidolons were the basis of their creation, and not the other way around,
essentially meaning that the memory of these beings amongst the citizens of a
village or tribe would manifest the Eidolon according to their customs and
conceptions of these what these beings were like, essentially meaning the
collective memory of these cultures would create the beings, even affecting
the forms they would take:
(Written on the Eidolon Wall in Madain Sari, and accessible after performing
the small sidequest necessary to reveal all of the writing on the wall.)
-The Legend of Eidolons-
"We discovered eidolons by researching legends documented from around the
world. The Thunder God, Ramuh, is one of those legends. Some theorize that the
eidolons were created from the legends, and not the other way around."
...
-The First Eidolon Discovered, Shiva-
"Shiva took the form of a young girl when she was first discovered. She now
appears as a grown woman. Eidolons adapt their forms to the time and culture
in which they appear. Shiva illustrates this theory. In certain areas, Shiva
is depicted as a snow fairy. This cannot be verified, since the only written
document that remains is in the summoner village. People associate Shiva with
the snow fairy. Why she changes forms remains a mystery."
With this in mind, recall that the memories of the Fayth were used to create
people in Dream Zanarkand who were alive in every way. Memories made life,
just as they make the Gaias/Lifestreams of their worlds grow. As it was in
that case, so is it in this one: Memories gave birth to life. Tidus, a Dream
of the Fayth, even begins pooling off Pyreflies/Spirig Energy as he began to
vanish from Spira during X's ending, displaying that he also had Spirit
Energy, and -- perhaps -- was Spirit Energy given form in the first place,
being created from memories (more on this toward the end of this document).
We also find memories coming to life in that Kuja recreates the Four Chaoses
and sends them against Zidane and the others in Memoria. To do this, he
accessed the memories of the Crystal, pulled them out, and gave them form:
"Nice of you to come."
"I'm surprised you beat the 4 Chaoses that I created from the crystal's
memory."
Moving on, it is through objects that one calls the Eidolons forth, a Garnet
used to bring Bahamut forth, for instance, or Pumice used to bring forth Ark.
These legendary creatures have somehow gained an association to these items.
No doubt the customs (collective memories) of those from whom the legends --
and, thus, the Eidolons -- arose established these assocations, thus
essentially allowing these items to act as a Summon Materia would. It's said
in Final Fantasy VII that the knoweldge (memories) within the Materia allows
one to call forth Magicks, and this would include Summons, as well. The game
shows us an example of this through the Eidolon known as Madeen, the Ribbon it
carried as Mog allowing it to be called forth by Eiko.
Likewise, then, it must be, that the items that allow one to learn Spells such
as Fire have had memories become associated with them, instilling these items
with the Spells out of the very concept of them being associated with such
Spells. Essentially, it's a massive case of "mind over matter."
To summarize all this, Memories/Spirit Energy/Pyreflies = Lifestream = Gaia =
"Light" = Materia = Spheres = Magic/Power.
In conclusion, I believe that every world in Final Fantasy may have a
Lifestream, and that access to Spirit Energy containing memories -- or raw
memories themselves -- play a large role in how Magicks CAN be accessed.
Granted, the Goddess Statues of Final Fantasy VI and the Sorceress Power of
Final Fantasy VIII may suggest to us that there is a "true" form of Magic for
their worlds, with Spirit Energy and/or memories -- accessed in different ways
depending on the world and/or situations -- allowing one to simulate the
concept. Perhaps Magicite usage -- drawing on the memories within the
crystalized Spirit Energy -- allow one to simulate the nature of some true
form of Magic in VI, or the use of Para-Magic through GFs in VIII allows one
to simulate the nature of some form of true Magic in that game (it was
developed to simulate the Sorceress Power in the first place). Or perhaps it
is that the Goddess Statues only had their power in the first place due to
the BELIEF that they had such power, and the subsequent belief that all
Magicks in the world were dependent on the endurance of the power instilled in
the Statues remaining bound to some vessel, whether it was the statues
themselves or Kefka's body.
In any event, what is certain is that Spirit Energy and memories CAN provide
power, and have done so in -- at the least -- Final Fantasy VI, VII, VIII, IX,
X/X-2, Tactics, Unlimited, and The Spirits Within, and that the worlds of at
least VII, IX, and The Spirits Within have a Lifestream, though there's
significant indication of such a possibility in regard to VIII and X/X-2's
worlds, as well.
All this shows us beyond all doubt that memories themselves are power. Perhaps
it is even the case that it is not Spirit Energy that provides power so much
as it is memories themselves, for we have seen memories provide power even
when seperate from Spirit Energy (in the summoning of Dream Zanarkand), and
even give life, that which Spirit Energy is said to do. Perhaps it is even so
that memories spawn Spirit Energy in the first place, as Tidus of Final
Fantasy X had Spirit Energy, despite having been a Dream of the Fayth, his
very existance maintained by a flow of memories.
While we possibly cannot answer all questions, we can hypothesize, and it is
my belief that it IS memories that give rise to Spirit Energy to begin with
based on all that we see them do, even without the presence of Spirit Energy,
and with it being said that it is memories that allows the swell of Spirit
Energy within Planets to grow. As for how this could happen, consider that
memories pertain to our senses of touch, smell, sight, sound, and taste, the
basic aspects by which we measure life. Arguably, they could also pertain to
a sixth sense of "touching with the mind." With these memories consisting of
those things by which life is measured, and with their status as energy, it
may well be that the energy takes form based on the memories within.
Thus, Memories = Spirit Energy = Pyreflies = Lifestream = Gaia = "Light" =
Materia = Spheres = Magic/Power.
Additional Support: From masamune1600 of EyesonFF's Forum comes this bit of
information on Final Fantasy: Tactics Advance, which serves as an addendum to
the information presented in my article, and was made in response to it:
"If the crystals were not necessary world-threads, if Ivalice remained after
all the crystals had been destroyed, what was their purpose? And if Ivalice
remained, why did the destruction of crystals trigger Mewt's memories? I would
propose that the crystals were the embodiment of the desires of the
inhabitants of Ivalice. These inhabitants were derivative of Mewt's mind;
therefore, each crystal shattered also shattered part of the illusion. The
vast charade of Ivalice lost collective desire as each crystal was destroyed,
and so Ivalice did unravel, but not completely. The crystals, in embodying
Ivalice's desires, can also be interpreted as memories. Mewt's memories gave
rise to the inhabitants; their desires were a function of Mewt's memories. In
wanting to forget, to push the memories of reality away, Mewt defined the
desire of Ivalice as a desire to exist. This existance would nullify reality,
sealing away the unpleasant memories of suffering. So, each crystal's
destruction forced memory back to Mewt.
Side note: The Totema, guardians of the crystals, are easily explained by
this theory. If each Totema is representative of a different race of Ivalice,
then the totality of the five Totema would defend the collective desires of
the citizens of Ivalice.
Now, the crystals themselves don't seem to lend to magic directly, but they
are partial foundations of that world. The false world of Ivalice can be
interpreted, in fact, to be constructed purely from memories and desires. If
this is the case, then the world is dependent on memory for its survival. In
FFVII, as you pointed out, the planet needs Spirit Energy. On the party's
first trip to Cosmo Canyon, the player sees what just might happen to the
planet should that Energy keep being condensed and refined into Mako. In both
these cases, then, we see the worlds, such as they are, dependent upon the
manifestation of memory for continuation."
The answers will hopefully continue to come forth, even as the memories of
these tales continue to grow.
(4)
-Acknowledgements-
I would like to thank the following members of GameFAQs regarding their
contributions -- unintentional as they may have been --toward the writing of
this FAQ:
Leuchest/The Dark Legend
MobiusGear1
A very special thanks to Katicflis, also of GameFAQs.
I would also like to thank Square-Enix and the staff behind the stories
discussed in this document for having made them.
Most of all, I must thank my wonderful wife Carys for everything she's done
for me, as well as for all of the information concerning Japanese she has
imparted to me and what she has taught me of the language. You've made me one
happy bastard, livvy. I love you, Carys. You're absolutely amazing.
And thank you, as well, for your countless contributions to this document.
-Works cited in the creation of this document-
-Final Fantasy VII
-Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children
-Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Prologue
-Reminiscence of Final Fantasy VII
-Final Fantasy VII: Last Order
-The Distance: The Making of Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children
-Final Fantasy VII: Before Crisis
-Final Fantasy VI
-Final Fantasy VIII
-Final Fantasy IX
-Final Fantasy X
-Final Fantasy X-2
-Final Fantasy X-2: International+Last Mission
-Final Fantasy: Tactics
-Final Fantasy: Tactics Advance
-Final Fantasy: Unlimited
-Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within
-Final Fantasy VII: On the Way to a Smile
-Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Advent Pieces Script
-Final Fantasy VII: Kaitai Shinsho
-Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Omega Guide
-Final Fantasy VIII Ultimania Guide
-Final Fantasy X Scenario Ultimania Guide
-Final Fantasy X-2 Ultimania Guide
-Electronic Gaming Monthly (October 2005; Issue #196)
-Official Japanese Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children website:
www.square-enix.co.jp/dvd/ff7ac/
-Official North American Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children website:
na.square-enix.com/dvd/ff7ac/
-Destiny Fulfilled, a Final Fantasy VII fansite:
http://www.geocities.com/ffviidestiny/
-DarkAngel's Gunshot Romance website, a Final Fantasy VII: Before Crisis
fansite:
http://www.freewebs.com/gunshotromance/index.htm
-Marcelo X's translation of the Last Mission scenario from Final Fantasy X-2:
International+Last Mission, which can be found on his site:
http://www.warmech.net/warmech.html
-Spira to Midgar: The Final Fantasy Connection website:
http://www.willamette.edu/~ejohnson/findex.htm
Final Fantasy VI, Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children,
Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Prologue, Reminiscence of Final Fantasy
VII, Final Fantasy VII: Last Order, The Distance: The Making of Final Fantasy
VII: Advent Children, Final Fantasy VII: Before Crisis, Final Fantasy VII: On
the Way to a Smile, Final Fantasy VIII, Final Fantasy IX, Final Fantasy X,
Final Fantasy X-2, Final Fantasy X-2: International+Last Mission, Final
Fantasy: Tactics, Finaly Fantasy: Tactics Advance, and Final Fantasy: The
Spirits Within are all registered trademarks of Square-Enix. They own the
rights to these works, their featured characters, and the likenesses of said
characters.
The publishing copyright on Final Fantasy VII: Katai Shinsho is held by
Famitsu/Aspect.
The publishing copyrights on the Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Omega Guide, the
Final Fantasy VIII Ultimania Guide, the Final Fantasy X Scenario Ultimania
Guide, and the Final Fantasy X-2 Ultimania Guide are held by Square-Enix.
The publishing copyrights on issues of Electronic Gaming Monthly are held by
Ziff-Davis Inc.
This article may be linked to on other sites. Further, it may be quoted on
other websites PROVIDED that the URL to this webpage is provided. However, it
may not be otherwise distributed publicly without advance written permission
from me. Use of this document on any other web site or as a part of any public
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copyright.
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In-Depth Plot Analysis
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