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eternal-reverie · 4 years ago

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*drumroll*

notes of a kh au of both evil plans successfully getting a sora puppet!!

some context, this is a canon divergence idea inspired by this thing I drew a while ago.

ok im absolutely thriving with this fic idea but first, there was a painful hurdle in thinking about how to rework the Chain of Memories plot for Naminé to go along with Marluxia’s plan completely, and that naturally would change a lot of things. Especially regarding Riku’s story plus Axel’s role and a bunch of other characters. It’s actually so intimidating with all these characters and their conspiracies clashing with each other, scooping all that up to transform that into a (hopefully) coherent sequence of events;; in comparison, Days was pretty simple to deal with the change.

Anyway what I have so far is this:

Roughly decided that Marluxia, Namine, Sora, and Xion are the main characters. Riku and Roxas are in comatose states but still influence the story. Xemnas is the main antagonist naturally. Aqua and Ven become key players towards the end. Saix, Axel, Zexion, and Xigbar are also important. Larxene will be a surprise element. Mickey, Donald, Goofy, and DiZ are there for the most part too.

The original event that pushed Naminé to tell Sora the whole truth was Axel letting her go meet Sora. So for this plot divergence to work, someone has to intervene here. I mulled it over and decided Larxene should be the one to to do it, resulting in her attacking Axel. They argue in the midst of the fray on who’s the real “traitor.” Sora arrives and defeats them both. Larxene learns of Saix’s plot before she fades. Axel then tells Sora to trust his instincts and to fight off Marluxia’s schemes, before cryptically telling him to not forget their appointment on the clocktower for ice cream. Axel then “fades” away.

Namine becomes more convinced with going through the deception (though not completely) due to interacting with the Angelic looking Specter. She encounters this figure and is given some revelation into some of Marluxia’s motives. i’ll have to think a lot about Namine and how her desire to end her loneliness comes into conflict with her integrity, in addition to how she is manipulated. She consistently guides so many characters through the series with her insight, so that’s a trait i want her to grow into. I think she’ll be the one pulling the strings in the end..

One of the biggest changes is Riku’s reverse/rebirth story. Originally, Riku doesn’t fall into Zexion’s trap due to Namine’s influence and advice dealing with darkness. However, in this AU, Naminé is going ahead with tricking Sora, being absent for Riku. So Riku would lose to Zexion, who’s desperate to use him as a counter to Marluxia’s command of Sora. Though it won’t work out for Zexion in the end because Ansem would finally be able to possess Riku fully...

Which has got me thinking there would be a clash between Ansem and Marluxia in the castle. I think it would be interesting for two of these characters who have a guardian behind them to fight!? Somehow Marluxia wins, adding to his arrogance when it comes to Xemnas.

DiZ is now stumbling over what to do and the mouse would get sad at these turn of events; both heroes of the keyblade now compromised...which leads to Mickey thinking, wait there’s someone in the realm of darkness!!! this is now a secret mickey redemption story

That will lead to Aqua returning to Castle Oblivion to do pest control and finds Axel and Zexion scrambling about trying to find the Chamber of Waking. She promptly decides that Ven is no longer safe there and gets him out. She finds Riku replica and recruits him (might change this detail, forgot to say that Marluxia told Naminé to power him down prior. Aqua finding a replica could be interesting, lest Axel or Zexion gets to him first,,)

Also forgot to mention that Riku is now the one placed in the pod for him to sleep and not turn back into Ansem. (role reversal with sora woo!!)

Sora goes happily along with Naminé but despite all the memory rearranging is still wary of Marluxia in charge (thanks Axel). Something that’s interesting in CoM was how Marluxia told Naminé to destroy Sora’s heart, finding this last resort a shame and rather having preferred him unmarred. So this AU is just that, the plan with Sora’s uninjured heart (but perhaps...breaking his heart could be point reached...in regards to Ven’s heart hidden in there..)

Mar’s character is actually one of the harder things to address. So I need to think more but I want this story to touch upon his hidden memories as so many things will remind him of the old plight of losing a loved one. Mainly observing the interactions between Naminé and Sora, Aqua and Ven, and maybe Xion??? I want Saix’s search for Subject X aka Skuld to be relevant to this too. there’s!!! so!!! many!! examples!?!?!

As he remembers more, the specter haunting him becomes more smaller and human-like. The specter will talk to Namine more for the most part. This will influence Naminé to turn the tables against Marluxia; so you could say she will manipulate and influence him with her memory powers along with her insight.

Will he gain a sibling-esque affection for Sora and Naminé? Yes. Vaguely... I think Sora’s going to lose against Xion... so Marluxia’s going to have to take up the protective role much to his displeasure. Being around Sora’s and Namine’s hearts for an extended amount of time will be a factor in his memory returning and regaining a heart.

Much of his story is taking control back of his destiny vs finding what his true purpose is and what method he choses. I feel like his time as a union leader could contribute to him feeling qualified taking over the organization. Plus him having a strong feeling that Xemnas’s plan is b.s. which is of course, spot on. Does Marluxia become a good guy in the end? im not sure yet, but I want to say no for the most part. (oh the appeal of tragic villain protagonists) who’s to say he wouldn’t sacrifice or destroy anything to recover what he’s lost?

in regards to Xion, I think she’ll be the one in most pain oh boy. Roxas was asleep through the Castle Oblivion events and Xion left seashells at his bedside during that time. The discarded Sora memories, as a result of Naminé’s interference, will pour directly into her mostly. Xemnas sees this plan working and once Roxas wakes, forces him and Xion to clash resulting in Xion successfully absorbing Roxas and becoming the perfect sora puppet. sorta

Xion is at this point, still in confusion on who she is. Everything in her tells her she’s Sora, but the dearest memories of her own life so far is of Roxas taking her up on the clocktower for ice cream, and she holds on to that. Xion also has the discarded C.O. memories including Axel’s last remarks to Sora. I want Xion and Repliku to meet in this story.

Xemnas discovering comatose Ven will be a main thing eventually. Which led me to this image of Xion!Sora thinking Ven is Roxas ;-;

Up to this point, I still need to address how real Sora and Xion!Sora clash. It’ll probably be in the throne room, not unlike what happens at the climax in ddd. the moment I’m most excited for is Marluxia’s humiliation at these turn of events LOL that’s why i drew that joke comic for the most part! someone commented on the post with ‘GET OFF THE STAGE MARLUXIA’ and i was GONE LMAO

there’s more stuff (from my 10 pages of notes i made yesterday. it’s a small square sketchbook so it’s probably more like 5 pages) but i think this summarizes the majority of my ideas. Idk if I’ll get this off the ground promptly since the scope is so big 😵 but it’s a start!

Here’s some sketches! lol i couldn’t resist.

sorry if there some gaps or holes since this wasn’t an outline, i just jumped around with ideas. now to think about this more meanwhile i have other responsibilities to attend to @_@

#i need to give this a proper tag #hrmm ok #puppetplanaufic #there #a project title i guess #warning this is long #and there's some sketches!! to look at #kh #this is just all the main characters receiving the bad ending of their respective games?#um days already has a 'bad' ending but like this one is...way worse #also a bunch of identity crises!#just average kh stuff #long post #sorry the read more doesn’t work on mobile 😥

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nadziejastar · 5 years ago

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What if Subject X turns out to be Ava instead?

I’d still feel the same as I do about Skuld being Subject X. The only character who deserved to be Subject X was Isa. He was made for that role. It was ridiculous that KH3 tried to pass Saïx off as a normal person when he was clearly a science experiment gone wrong, lol. I also put Ava and the other foretellers into the same category as the rest of the Union X characters. They are great background characters that add interesting lore to the series. But I don’t feel like they should all be transported to the present and become the main focus of the new arc. The KHUX characters aren’t really that personable. There’s also enough main characters as it is, at least for now. If Lea and Isa were to grow closer to other characters, I’d prefer it be with the existing protagonists. There is so much more potential there.

Other than Subject X, what I didn’t like about Lea’s characterization in KH3 was his single-minded focus on Roxas. He’s grown so much as a character since KH2, it felt like such a waste to make him go back to that again. It’s not that I didn’t like Roxas and Axel’s friendship or anything. I did like it. I just hated how that one relationship eclipsed everything else about Lea’s character.

His relationships with everyone else were left very underdeveloped because I guess Square thought fans only cared about Axel/Roxas, and to a lesser extent, Axel/Roxas/Xion. I don’t like the characters being stuck in their separate trios in general, which was another reason I didn’t like KH3. I want to see everyone interact. But with Lea specifically, there is so much potential with his other relationships. The Xehanort Saga went out of its way to show that he had a lot in common with everyone, not just Roxas. The LAST thing I wanted for Lea in KH3 was to go back to being Axel and go back to being in the sea-salt trio of all things. Talk about character regression. I’ve complained a lot about how Lea/Isa was such a wasted opportunity, but so were Lea’s other relationships.

Lea/Sora: These two have had almost no development together, even after Lea joined the good side. Why? Sora was the one who inspired Axel to betray the organization in CoM, and it wasn’t just because he was connected to Roxas. Axel gave up his life for Sora in KH2. He made him feel like he had a heart. Sora is the one who can connect with anyone. Lea was the perfect person to benefit from a character like Sora. Axel’s whole character arc in 358/2 Days was about reconnecting with his inner child—his true self—and changing back into Lea. Lea wanted to be with his friends forever. Axel told himself to grow up and stop wishing for the impossible, but then he changed his mind at the end. Axel said he and Sora had a lot in common and they did. Lea was a natural optimist who would do anything for his friends, like Sora. I want a heartfelt scene where Lea thanks Sora for everything and tells him about how much he changed after meeting him.

Lea/Kairi: Yes, they did get a little development in KH3, but not nearly enough. This relationship would have been a lot better if Xion’s bond with Axel carried over to Lea and Kairi. That’s what I think Nomura originally wanted, anyways. Instead of having an underdeveloped bond with Kairi and and an underdeveloped bond with Xion, focus on ONE well-developed bond with Kairi. Same with Ventus. Kairi and Lea were both from Radiant Garden and both were implied to be test subjects. They both had a lot in common, too. They both missed someone they cared about which led to them summoning Keyblades. Isa also has a lot in common with Kairi. They both wanted to be helpful but felt like they just got in the way. Neither of them were naturally good at fighting and needed to be protected a lot. This made them feel like a burden. Kairi and Isa have the potential to grow very close and I think it would be an adorable friendship.

Lea/Riku: Axel actually got a lot more interaction with Riku in the novels, which was great. They became friends. Axel acted playful and childish in a way he never did with Roxas or Xion. They ALSO have a lot in common since they’re the leader. They both worry about their friends and want to step in and do everything for them. They also both have a tendency to keep their feelings a secret from others and handle their emotional problems on their own. I think Lea would be comfortable talking with Riku about certain things he might not with other characters. Riku spent a long time battling the darkness, for Sora’s sake. And Lea was all alone for many years trying to help Isa, who was possessed. And since Riku was possessed, he could also understand how Isa felt, being used as a vessel.

Lea/Mickey: After being in Organization XIII for so long, Lea needs to be around upbeat, lighthearted characters. Mickey was the one he turned to for help when he was recompleted. Without him, he never would have summoned a Keyblade. In the KH2 novels, Mickey trusted Axel and was glad Riku became friends with him. Any Disney characters would provide good character development for Lea. Let’s not forget that Pluto adored Axel. I’d rather see Lea grow close to Pluto than any Union X character…

Lea/Ventus: I’m of the opinion that Axel’s relationship with Roxas was always meant to carry over to Ventus. I hated the way Roxas was handled in KH3 because it prevented Lea from forming a deeper bond with Ven, who Lea was obviously meant to grow close to ever since BBS. I don’t think it was a coincidence that Lea’s best friend was a vessel, and Ventus was best friends with Terra, who was also a vessel. Roxas never understood Axel or learned about his past, but Ven could definitely understand Lea if he got to know him. Too bad he was never given the chance. Ven and Lea are both outgoing and have a childlike sense of fun. And Ven is also one of the only characters to have an established friendship with Isa. Ven is a great person to help Isa come out of his shell and be more comfortable around new people. I liked that they were playing frisbee together in the ending. I would prefer to see their friendship developed more rather than Lea and Isa being used as props to introduce Skuld.

Lea/Aqua: I think these two have great potential. Out of the wayfinder trio, Aqua was the most complex and had the most emotional depth. Out of the sea-salt trio, Axel was the most complex and had the most emotional depth. Both of them keep their more sentimental feelings to themselves, though. Both of them know what it’s like to lose hope and be lost in darkness for a very long time. Both of them know what it’s like to give up everything for a friend. Aqua is mature and more of an adult than most of the other characters, so I think Lea could talk with her about serious stuff, like his past. Isa also has a lot in common with her. Both are mature, reserved and a bit shy.

Lea/Terra: Lea picked up Terra’s wooden Keyblade. That definitely was supposed to be significant. He took care of Ven when he was in the organization, alone with no memories. It was just like how Terra took care of him. I’m sure Aqua and Terra would be grateful to Lea for looking out for their friend. Lea and Isa are closest in age to Terra and Aqua. They wouldn’t have to feel like the “old guys” of the group with them. The potential for a great friendship is all there. But now I’m not sure if they’ll even get a chance to interact. Heck, I would be more excited to see Lea and Isa grow close with Hayner, Pence, and Olette more than anyone from Union X.

#kh #kingdom hearts #kh3 #kh axel #kh lea #kh terra #kh aqua #kh sora #kh kairi #kh pluto #kh riku #kh isa #kh ventus

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flamesilocks · 6 years ago

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𝑪𝑯𝑨𝑹𝑨𝑪𝑻𝑬𝑹 𝑺𝑯𝑬𝑬𝑻 repost, don’t reblog !

𝐛𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐜𝐬 !

FULL NAME. Lea/Axel PRONUNCIATION. LEE-yah (wtf is “Lee”)/ACK-suhl NICKNAME. Flurry of Dancing Flames, Dark Rescue, Access, Flamesilocks, among others GENDER. Leans sorta genderfluid in presentation but sticks to masculine pronouns. HEIGHT. 2 inches taller than Isa and the same height as Luxord, that’s about as specific as I get with it cuz I like to stick to established canon for his height regardless. AGE. 15 (BBS) / 25 (Days) / 27 (KH3). SPOKEN LANGUAGES. Japanese, technically, but KH sort of acts like there’s a common tongue.

𝐩𝐡𝐲𝐬𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 !

HAIR COLOR. Firetruck red EYE COLOR. Jade BODY TYPE. Ectomorph ACCENT. Casual (with occasionally flowery or dramatic turns of phrase) VOICE. Sort of high and drawling when he’s offhand and occasionally obnoxiously loud, dipping into smoky huskiness when he’s amused or threatened, and otherwise bright and sharp and sarcastic. (I lean more Keiji Fujiwara than Quinton Flynn tbh.) DOMINANT HAND. Ambidextrous POSTURE. Sprawling and angular, tending to slouch and splay and take up space with broad gesticulations and smooth movements, but at times he’ll lock up with crossed arms and bent legs when he’s stressed or observing. TATTOOS. Two black upside down tears on his cheeks as a Nobody. BIRTHMARKS. Eh (still thinking about this) MOST NOTICEABLE FEATURE(S). That freaking mane of hair, but also those snapdragon eyes.

𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐝 !

PLACE OF BIRTH. Radiant Garden HOMETOWN. Radiant Garden BIRTH WEIGHT. Pass BIRTH HEIGHT. Pass MANNER OF BIRTH. Unremarkable FIRST WORDS. "Happy!” SIBLINGS. None (though in some very au verses he’s got twin younger siblings and an older brother) PARENTS. Unnamed father, unnamed mother (one day I’ll find their stupid monikers again) PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT. Lea’s father was distant and weak-willed, and cared about Lea but spent all his energy attending to his wife. Lea’s fondest memory of his father is throwing a frisbee around in the yard, but this pastime didn’t last, and as his father gradually shut him out, Lea pushed harder and acted out more. Meanwhile his mother was manipulative, putting on a front of caring while quietly sucking the life out of everyone around her. Lea didn’t catch on to her tricks until it was too late, and by then she’d at least taught him some things he could later put into practice as Axel. Both of them made his house far less of a home and he didn’t fit into any of their molds for him, so he constantly ran away to Isa. When he remembers his childhood, he remembers Isa’s room and their adventures together much more clearly than anything to do with his parents, who he does not miss and has not sought out after the fact.

𝐚𝐝𝐮𝐥𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 !

OCCUPATION. Keybearer, primarily. That’s where all the munny’s at. But also part-time at an ice cream shop in Twilight Town. CURRENT RESIDENCE. Twilight Town almost exclusively, but he occasionally stays in Radiant Garden. CLOSE FRIENDS. Isa, Xion, Roxas, Subject X [Skuld, I mean, c’mon], and less close but still important are Sora, Riku, and Kairi (not necessarily in that order) RELATIONSHIP STATUS. Eternal dumpster fire buddies with Isa. FINANCIAL STATUS. His parents weren’t well off but weren’t especially hurting either, they just didn’t give him a lot of pocket money and he certainly wasn’t the best equipped student unless Isa lent him things. So really he’s financially better off post-Organization. DRIVER’S LICENSE. None and don’t let him drive CRIMINAL RECORD. Let’s...uh, let’s see here. First and also second degree murder, conspiracy to murder, at least one charge of kidnapping, just...several assault and battery charges, um, accessory to more murders, probably? And of course multiple charges of too hot to live, that he’s super guilty of.

𝐬𝐞𝐱 & 𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 !

SEXUAL ORIENTATION. Bisexual, but preferring more masculine partners ROMANTIC ORIENTATION. Homoromantic PREFERRED EMOTIONAL ROLE. Equal PREFERRED SEXUAL ROLE. Equal leaning submissive LIBIDO. Above average. He’s a passionate person and at the right moment it doesn’t take much to get his motor running, and while he’s pushy with his affections, he’s too attentive and nervous of his partner’s boundaries to cross lines. TURN ONS. Danger, being physically overwhelmed/restrained, games of cat and mouse, partners who rarely or only show vulnerability during intimacy, partners with understanding but limited or no experience, praise related to his beauty or skill, being powerfully desired (and dirty talk that communicates desire), being considered someone’s one and only, finding those things that will make his partner melt for him, teasing, begging (and being made to beg) TURN OFFS. Dirty talk that devalues him or the experience of being with him, bullying or intensely personal teasing, excessive pain or restraint, selfish partners, having his jealousy exploited, exhibitionism, non-playful or genuinely uncomfortable punishment, (unhappy) tears, fear, naivete or a lack of understanding that actively puts his partner at risk LOVE LANGUAGE. Quality time. Lea seeks out people he loves and looks for ways to spend time with them and share experiences, and of course he feels most secure with those loved ones when he can see them on a regular basis (daily, weekly, monthly) at an agreed upon time and spot. But the “where” and “what” is not nearly as important as the “who,” and Lea begins to feel like the relationship is lacking when that quality time dries up. RELATIONSHIP TENDENCIES. Lea likes being someone’s one and only, so he takes it one at a time. But apart from that (and depending on the verse) he can definitely have a slew of past lovers behind him as long as he accumulated those while he wasn’t already in a relationship or had broken off a relationship at the time that he acquired the new lover. He always needs to curl around someone at the end of the day, but he needs to be able to trust his partner, and he can’t do that if they can’t trust him.

𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐞𝐨𝐮𝐬 !

CHARACTER’S THEME SONG. My Oldest Friend by Andrew Belle, Aha! by Imogen Heap, First Train Home also by Imogen Heap, Face My Fears by Utada Hikaru (i know shut UP IT FITS) HOBBIES TO PASS TIME. Sleeping, magic and combat practice, theater, dancing MENTAL ILLNESSES. PTSD, autistic spectrum, maybe certain others,,, PHYSICAL ILLNESSES. None LEFT OR RIGHT BRAINED. Left probably PHOBIAS. Horses None to speak of (though certain circumstances may cause him to develop a phobia of deep water) SELF CONFIDENCE LEVEL. Appears high, but in actuality he’s very self-deprecating and projects a lot more confidence than he really feels. VULNERABILITIES. Low self-esteem, secretive and manipulative, impulsive, selfish (mostly as a Nobody), bad planner, callous and violent when backed into a corner, much more focused on his own loved ones ahead of the common good

TAGGED BY: @divinerxeclipsed TAGGING: not sure who’s done it already and this one’s a p big time commitment, so uh, steal it

#ooc #long post #kh3 spoilers

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81scorp · 5 years ago

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Constructive criticism: 7 MCU films (and a bonus)

(Originally posted on Deviantart Apr 10 2017)

Comicbookmovies. More specifically: Superhero comicbookmovies. They have been made before with varying degrees of success. The whole superhero comicbookmovie wave didn`t really take off until Bryan Singer`s X-Men. More Marvel-based superheromovies were made, but like earlier attempts they were not as good as superhero comicbookmovies could be. So Marvel decided to make their own movies, after all... Who knows Marvel better than Marvel? Not only were their own movies big hits but they also had something the previous Marvel movies didn`t have: a shared movie universe. It seems like Marvel couldn`t do anything wrong. But even people who know what they`re doing can stumble sometimes and the MCU is not an exeption.Let us, in my very subjective and nitpicky editorial, see what I would have changed.

SPOILERS for Avengers, Iron man 3, Avengers: Age of Ultron (and minor SPOILERS for Thor the dark world and Captain America: Civil war) Iron man 2

Nick Fury`s introduction People who didn`t stay after the credits and don`t know the comics wouldn`t know who Nick Fury is and would probably be confused by the fact that he and Tony seem to have met each other earlier. How about: In the beginning, before we are introduced to Ivan Vanko we see the after credit scene from the first movie as an introduction and quick reminder. Whiplash or Crimson Dynamo? The bad guy here is an amalgamation of Whiplash and Crimson Dynamo. But we never hear his codename. It feels like they didn`t put that much thought into Him. his civilian name in the movie is Ivan Vanko. In the comics, that is the alter ego of Crimson Dynamo, so I would have picked that to be his codename. How about: In one scene where Tony and Ivan talks to each other Ivan could (somewhat poetically) describe himself as a "crimson dynamo". Just let the name name pop up in a conversation somewhere.He can keep the whips though. And yes: the movie has more problems than these two. It`s just a big filler before Thor and Avengers. But I don`t want to change too much if it risks removing characters or other stuff that are necessary to introduce before the Avengers. Thor

The dutch angles The primary use of the Dutch angle is to cause a sense of unease or disorientation for the viewer. To give them the feeling that something is not quite right. In this movie it was used at times where it was unnecessary. I didn`t notice it much the first time I watched it, but the second time it was more noticable. To summarise: A little less dutch angles would have been better. Save them for special scenes. Preferably the ones with the villain. (The night when Thor first arrives on earth could also work since it would symbolize that earth is a new, strange place for him.) The explanation of the OdinsleepIn the scene where Odin collapses after Loki yells at him it may seem to the uninitiated that Loki gave Odin a heart attack. It could have been foreshadowed earlier. How about: Before Thor flips the table Odin has a moment of weakness. Frigga is worried and asks if it is the Odinsleep. Odin confirms her suspicion and says that considering what has just happened he`s afraid of what will happen if he lets the sleep wash over him. Frigga: Don`t hold it back, the last time you did that you almost died. Let it come. The kingdom will be safe long enough for that.

Odin: I wish I could believe you.

Frigga: Thor can handle it, he`s mature.Cut to: Thor showing his maturity by flipping the table. Hawkeye`s screentime Mostly just my personal opinon, but since he will be part of the Avengers he could have been given more things to do. For example: That agent that described the warriors three as "Xena, Jackie Chan and Robin Hood" could have been Hawkeye.And when the Warriors three fight the destroyer he could try to help from the sideline by shooting an explosive arrow at it. (Which of course doesn`t even leave a scratch.) Hawkeye: Well... that was helpful.

Thor`s fight with the Destroyer Could have been a little longer (30 seconds or so) to give the feeling that Thor has to struggle a little. Avengers

The Chitauri army`s Phantom Menace-like defeat So... nuking the ship knocks out their life support system? But in one scene one of them took their mask off to scream at the Avengers. So... appearently they don`t need it to survive in earth`s atmosphere. How about: When the portal is closed many Chitauri soldiers see it and they know what it means: no more backup. They wont have superiority in numbers anymore. Two of them look at each other. They nod as if they know what they have to do. They activate some kind of device on their wrists which sends a signal to all the other soldiers. All the other soldiers activate a suicide function in their suits. The two soldiers that I mentioned earlier do the same. (A kind of "better to die than to be caught alive" strategy.) "But what about those flying dragon thingies?" you may ask. First I thought about the soldiers having some kind of remote-control-killing-device for them. But they can be taken care of in a short montage by Thor, The Hulk and the military. Iron man 3

The Mandarin Not gonna lie, I did not like the twist where it turns out that Ben Kinglsey was just an actor and not the real Mandarin. However, it IS a clever idea to have someone pose as the bad guy and draw attention away from the real threat. So I learned to be OK with this. What I DO have a problem with however is that the guy that is "supposed" to be the Mandarin is SO different from the comicbook version that you wonder why they even bothered to call him that. How about: We lose the part about him being a nerdy guy who got his feelings hurt by Tony. He could have been there at the new year`s eve party, enjoying himself, just being a successful billionaire like Tony. He could have been played by a dark-haired, asian-ish looking actor and his nationality should be a mystery so people in China don`t get offended. His name could be John Donemo (a combination of "John Doe" and "Nemo", hinting that it`s not his real name, since the Mandarin`s real name was never revealed in the comics). And in the end he should not be killed but instead be sent to an ambiguous death in an explosion where no body is found. And yes, I know, Marvel saw the error of their ways and made "Hail to the King" where we find out that there is another Mandarin who is the real one. I doubt that we will ever see him in future movies, but still, it`s nice to know that Killian wasn`t the "real" Mandarin. Thor the dark world

Killing Frigga As I mentioned earlier in my CC of Man of Steel and Batman v Superman, one thing I`m not a big fan of is when they kill characters that have played an important part and/or has been in the comicbook a long time. How about: Just put her in a coma? I know, it`s still technically a women in refrigerator thing. On the other hand, they are probably gonna use her death to get Loki to Hela`s realm in the sequel. But still, it`s gonna be one of those revolving door deaths that cheapens life, with the coma idea they can still get her back without doing that. Selvig in the nude It`s not as much Selvig in the nude that I have a problem with as it is the lucidity of his mental state in that scene. He seems unaware of the world around him. And his insanity is played for laughs in this scene but is more serious in later scenes, and the later scenes are better.How about: Selvig runs around in a bathrobe, his underwear and is barefoot. Instead of looking like he has no idea of who or where he is, he could look stressed. As if he has realized that a big threat is coming and he doesn`t have much time to stop it. Avengers: Age of Ultron

Killing Strucker They could have used him a little more, gotten a little more mileage out of his character before they offed him. How about: not killing Strucker. Don`t mention him again after he`s been arrested. But how do I feel about the killing of Pietro you may wonder? His death meant something and worked for the story, so in his case I see no reason to come up with my own idea. Thor`s pool of exposition Why did Thor need Dr Selvig`s help? Where was this vision pool? was it on earth or Asgard? Was there a reason for this way of exposition besides getting a shirtless scene for Chris Hemsworth to get the attention of the ladies? How about: Thor travels to Asgard to get help from the three norns: Urd (an old woman), Verdandi (a woman roughly in her thirties) and skuld (a teenage girl). (I don`t know if they were of different ages (like the way that I`m describing them here) in the comics, but I think it would make sense since they represent past, present and future in the norse mythology.) Thor asks them to show him the future, they refuse. He asks again, says it`s important, they give in but give him a warning. Skuld places her Hand on his forehead and gives him the vision. Falcon`s screentime This is just me but I think they could`ve given Falcon more to do. Yes, I know, he`s a minor, supporting character. But still. Rhoades got to have fun with the other Avengers fighting the robots in Stark`s tower while Sam Wilson was out scouting for new recruits. How about: In the third act, when SHIELD and War Machine arrives to take care of Ultron`s soldiers, Falcon also arrives to help. Avengers!...It`s not THAT they cut Cap off but rather HOW they cut him off. You clearly see that he`s about to yell "assemble". How about:

A: Let cap shout "Avengers! Assemble!"

B: Let him just shout "Avengers!" but cut him off a little earlier so we don`t see that he`s about to shout the other word. I know, it`s a minor thing, but still. Captain America: Civil War

Falcon`s lethal weapons This actually doesn`t bother me that much. In this universe it has been established that Falcon used to work in the military so it would make sense for him to use lethal weapons. But since I criticized Batman v Superman for Batman`s killing and held him to a higher standard I figured I should treat both superheroes equally and not give Marvel special treament. So... how about: Instead of bullets: tranquilizer darts and instead of bombs: gas-grenades. Killing Crossbones Just my opinion but couldn`t they have waited and used him in at least one more movie before they killed him? How about: Instead of lifting all of him up with her TK powers, Wanda just rips off his vest. But other than that, things still happen the way they did: She has to act fast, tries to get it out of harms way, it explodes near a building, human casualties, guilt. Correlation and causation

Vision: I`m saying there may be a causality. Corrolation: mutual connection between two (or more) things. Causation: act of making something occur. Corrolation does not imply causation. The Vision is trying to say the rise of villains is because of the heroes. In some cases there may be a hint of truth in this. An example the incredible Hulk (The Leader getting his superintellect was caused (accidentally though) by Banner`s DNA.) But in most cases the bad guys would have existed even without the help of the heroes. One would think that a supercomputer would know the difference between the two and know which one it is in this situation. How about: Vision could...

A: say: I`m saying there are signs of correlation.

B: Just not say this line. To be fair though, I would never have thought about this myself if I hadn`t seen a video where someone who analyzed it pointed it out. Even if I have a few things to say about these movies I still like them. (Yes, even Iron man 3 and most of Thor the Dark world.) But this last one however... It`s not a movie but it is marvel and it is quite bad.

One more day

When I was little and read the issue where Spidey tied the knot with MJ I was A OK with it. Thought that it was interesting and wanted to see where they would take it. Joe Quesada did not like it and he didn`t have to either. But if he wanted to break them apart couldn`t he have done it in a smarter, more mature way? Personally I`m not against the idea of Pete and MJ getting a divorce but Quesada didn`t like that either because it "aged the character". There`s a post One More Day issue where the Chameleon is imitating Pete and goes through his stuff for some research and finds out that Pete has a teaching job. Doesn`t having a teaching job age the character? How would I have done it? When Spidey goes to Dr Strange and is given the chance to meet the brightest minds in the Marvel universe he could get help from Dr Doom. Doom is good at both magic AND science so he shouldn`t have too much of a problem contacting Aunt May`s spirit. But in return he asks Spidey for a quid pro quo. A few days (or weeks) later Doom could steal something (or do some other illegal thing) in N.Y. Spidey arrives to stop him but Doom reminds him of their quid pro quo and Spidey remembers his promise and lets Doom go. Reporters see this, everyone in N.Y. thinks Spidey is working with Doom and Jonah Jameson is loving every minute of it. Pete and MJ go their separate ways until this whole thing blows over. Classic Spider-Man plot.

But basically: Spidey`s "deal with the devil" could be with Dr Doom, and his and MJ`s marriage shouldn`t be erased from reality. And those are my thoughts, feel free to disagree.

#81scorp #constructive #criticism #editorial #marvel #mcu

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nadziejastar · 5 years ago

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i hope this question is alright. i noticed that what broke isa’s character for me when saïx was given agency is that his berserker mode no longer made sense. rather than seem like pent up rage against his abusers, it seemed to just be saïx again being a total douchebag. saïx always came off to me as someone with ptsd, maybe c-ptsd and suddenly giving him agency against xemnas and the apprentices is a strange take. i can elaborate more but the 300 character limit is brutal lol!!

i hope this question is alright.

Perfectly alright.

i noticed that what broke isa’s character for me when saïx was given agency is that his berserker mode no longer made sense. rather than seem like pent up rage against his abusers, it seemed to just be saïx again being a total douchebag.

I completely agree. Saïx’s characterization in KH3 was nothing like I was expecting based on all the past games. It was totally incongruous with his depiction in all the other media (games, novels, manga). It was ridiculous. I was completely baffled over why he was acting the way he did, why he was apparently completely in control of himself during his fight, and why he was being treated like a totally normal guy, when he obviously was not.

saïx always came off to me as someone with ptsd, maybe c-ptsd and suddenly giving him agency against xemnas and the apprentices is a strange take. i can elaborate more but the 300 character limit is brutal lol!!

Feel free to elaborate as much as you want if you feel like you have more to say. But from what you’ve said in the 300 character limit, I couldn’t agree more. Saïx absolutely seemed to have PTSD to me, too. I would say Axel did, too. Something very awful happened to them both, leading them to join the organization. Though I think Saïx had gotten the worst of it. Axel’s anger seemed to stem primarily from the way Isa was so abused. It’s why he had the patience of a saint with him. I don’t know exactly what happened to Saïx, but it sure as hell wasn’t him becoming an apprentice to look for Skuld.

I also found it really weird that Xemnas showed up as soon as Saïx stopped attacking Lea. Seriously. It was instantaneous. Since the Norts were all supposed to share a heart and consciousness, it actually makes sense. But oddly, Xemnas had no reaction whatsoever to Saïx just standing there refusing to fight Lea. He didn’t scold him or call him a traitor or anything. He didn’t acknowledge him whatsoever. It was downright bizarre. To me, it’s just evidence that Saïx’s fight got drastically rewritten at the last minute, but they left certain things the same, making it into nonsense.

Lunacy: A term describing insanity, once considered to have been due to changes of the moon, now used legally and colloquially but not by clinicians. In the middle ages, the symptoms and behaviour of those with mental disorders or defects were often ascribed to demonology or witchcraft, and some sufferers were cared for by monastic orders.

Belief in the “lunar lunacy effect,” or “Transylvania effect,” as it is sometimes called, persisted in Europe through the Middle Ages, when humans were widely reputed to transmogrify into werewolves or vampires during a full moon.

It really, REALLY bothered me that everything cool and interesting about Saïx—the berserk mode, the lunacy, his vampire-like design and personality, the X-shaped scar—all of it has been entirely removed from any story context. It’s all just random aesthetics that have no meaning now. He’s just a normal guy who was kind of a douchebag. That’s it. That’s what he was reduced to.

NOBODY in good faith could possibly argue that Saïx’s concept and design don’t fit the backstory of a test subject waaaaaaaay more than his canon backstory. It’s literally impossible. Saïx’s lunacy fits being a human lab rat. I suspected that he and Axel were test subjects even in the original KH2. Because it just fit that well.

Honestly, it pissed me off that apparently, we were supposed to see that Saïx was only pretending to fight Lea to the death, in order to keep up appearances. He needed to seem loyal to Xemnas so he could bring back Roxas or whatever.

It’s honestly the stupidest thing ever. I’m a big fan of the manga Berserk, so I enjoy reading up on the history of berserkers and such. And I find the idea that Saïx was just putting on an act the whole time to be ridiculous and it spits in the face of what it means to be a berserker.

Berserkers would slay anyone who got too close. Friend or foe. Isa wasn’t aware that he was fighting his best friend. That was the whole point. Isa’s heart was strong enough to regain some control before he killed Lea. That is very much in the spirit of this series.

Xemnas: My friends! Remember why we have organized–all the things we hope to achieve. The strength of the human heart is vast. Soon, though…we will have gained power over it! Never again will it…have power over us.

The heart is the most powerful thing in existence. All Xemnas wanted was to gain power over the heart. This was what he said while looking up at the giant heart-shaped moon. The same moon that causes Saïx’s lunacy.

Roxas: Love is a power?

Xaldin: None you or I will ever grasp. Nor will they, for long. The love between them will wither and die. Love never lasts.

Roxas: But you don’t have a heart. How would you know?

Xaldin: I have eyes, and a brain. We have no further business here. Try not to dawdle.

Roxas: That still doesn’t explain what love is… Is love fighting to protect what’s most important to you? Where does its power come from?

Throughout all of Days and KH2, Xemnas did have total control over Isa’s heart. He turned him into a very powerful killing machine who felt like his only purpose in life was to become stronger.

I love Roxas and Axel. I’m sure Saïx would scoff at that. Call it a trick of my artificial memories. But the time I spent on that clock tower was real.

But he was incapable of the power of the heart—love.

Roxas: I found out about love on today’s mission–that it’s something powerful.

Axel: That’s true. It is. But I’ll never get to experience it.

Roxas: Nobodies can’t love?

Axel: You need a heart, man.

Roxas: Right…

Axel: Love is what happens if there’s something really special betweentwo people.

Roxas: You mean, like, if they’re best friends?

Axel: Well, you can care about your friends, I guess, but that’s not what I’m talking about.

Love is the greatest power of all. It’s a power even Xemnas cannot control. He has power over “nothing”. That was what Isa’s fight with Lea should have been about. Very simple.

It’s why Isa stopped attacking Lea when he looked into his eyes, just before he finished him off.

It’s why he was just standing there like a mindless zombie and the camera zoomed in on his face when Xemnas began attacking Lea.

It’s why Isa was the one shown standing there behind Xemnas right before he tried to finish Lea off. This was what Isa’s character arc was set up for ages ago. Ever since KH2FM+. Literally over a decade of build-up for this moment.

Saïx emotionally abuses Axel and his two friends for an entire game. Then, he spends the entirety of the next game trying to kill him, and succeeds at the end. Then, in the grand finale, they have a lukewarm reconciliation at the last minute. Does this feel like a satisfying and well-thought out story that fits in with the themes of Kingdom Hearts? NO!

The entire fight was supposed to be a dramatic demonstration of how much Isa LOVED Lea. He loved him so much he was able to break free of Xemnas’s control, to protect him. Nobody could ever convince me that Saïx/Isa had a good character arc in KH3. He didn’t. It was abysmal. I actually found it offensive, it was so bad. It’s because the setup for his story was so good and they turned it into such trash.

#kh meta #kingdom hearts 3 #KH #kh saix #anti-kh3 #kh isa

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nadziejastar · 5 years ago

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I mean, it's nothing specific towards Skuld. That’s an overly reductive summary of my viewpoint. I didn’t even know that Subject X was Skuld when I first played KH3, since I barely knew anything about KHUX. I would feel this way towards any character if they were Subject X. But yes, I do hate canon Subject X because she was forcefully inserted where she didn't belong. She became the main purpose of Lea and Isa's relationship out of nowhere, and their OWN relationship didn’t get the focus it deserved and needed. So, this would be a good opportunity to show how absurd the resolution of Axel/Saïx really was and why I have a good reason to hate Subject X for her role in the story.

Nostalgia… And memory. We are the ones who lost their hearts—the ones who are no one. Nobodies. Not light nor darkness—we live in the twilight.

Axel stopped outside the crystal ball room and took a deep breath.

Why are we here? What are we doing? No—why am I here?

Now, Axel did want to help Roxas. But what Kairi said in her letter was a way more accurate description of his relationship with Saïx. Whether Lea/Isa or Axel/Saïx, they had a very...intense relationship, to say the least. Good or bad, there was a ton of powerful emotions between them. It was Axel’s most intense relationship, bar none. This intensity was a fundamental aspect of his character.

Roxas wilted again, and something in his expression weakened Axel’s resolve slightly.

I just did what I thought was the best thing at the time. For Roxas, for Xion, for the Organization—and for Isa. But most of all for me.

He turned away from Roxas and made himself walk away.

Lea/Axel had very strong attachment and affection for who he remembered Isa to be. He stayed in Organization XIII for him, even when he no longer recognized him as that person anymore. I got the impression that Lea was not just best friends, but in LOVE with Isa. That’s how powerful their emotional connection was presented to be.

It’s messed up, Axel thought. Why am I trying to put Saïx in charge of the Organization…?

“I thought I told you not to get too involved.” Saïx swung his chair, turning his back on Axel. Axel could feel nothing but a will of rejection from that back.

“Just look at it. I won’t say any more than that.”

For Saïx to say that, he probably doesn’t intend to tell me any more. Axel stared at Saïx’s back. The two of us have definitely changed since those times.

“…I wonder which of us it was that changed,” muttered Axel, and Saïx’s shoulders trembled for just a second. Without waiting for an answer, Axel left the room.

And I don’t think that’s an unfounded or baseless interpretation. The subplot at the Beast’s Castle in Days was always parallel to Axel’s motivation for completing Kingdom Hearts. On the day Kingdom Hearts became visible in the sky (Day 94), Roxas questioned why they were fighting. Why did they even need hearts?

Really? Axel wondered to himself. Did that self in my memories really have a strong heart? Don’t really know. And then, Nobodies without hearts wish for only one thing. A heart. If I was asked if I wanted a heart, I guess I’d answer that I did. But do I really want a heart? Can a heart really fill this hollowness I’ve carried since I fell into existence as a Nobody?

Axel didn’t let Roxas know, but deep down he actually had similar doubts. He was ambivalent about getting his heart back, because he wasn’t convinced it would truly heal the emptiness he felt.��

No—he had definitely betrayed them. The one who killed everyone in that castle, who led Riku to Naminé—that was him. And yet it wasn’t a total betrayal. Doubts still swirled inside him.

Why am I here? What do I want? How can I become whole again?

Even now, he wasn’t sure.

What should I have done? What should I do?

The mission on Day 94 was at the Beast’s Castle and Roxas first questioned why the Beast was fighting the Heartless. And the whole time in that world, Roxas kept wondering what he was fighting so hard for.

“Once Kingdom Hearts is complete, I bet you’ll be able to figure it out.”

The magic words again, Axel thought. It’ll all make sense when Kingdom Hearts is complete.

But was that true? No one had ever seen it happen before. So who knew? Still, all they could do was believe in it. Pitiful Heartless, mindlessly collecting hearts…

Roxas finally learned that the Beast was fighting out of love. And I got the sense that it was a hint. Axel was motivated to complete Kingdom Hearts for the same reason. He wasn’t even sure if it would work. He was skeptical. But he chose to believe in it.

“We don’t need them both. Just one. And pretending won’t change it. Think good and hard about it.”

I am thinking. I’m thinking so hard that I’m sick of it. I’m thinking so hard that I just want you to tell me the answer. He wanted to tell him so, but Saïx had already started walking towards the lobby.

It’s just like that back is rejecting me. And, I’m realizing that my memories of the past are too different from the thoughts I’m having now.

Why the hell am I here? I don’t really know any more. What the hell do I want to do?

Axel was always questioning why he was still in the organization when he thought about how much Saïx had changed. And he always felt like Saïx’s back was rejecting him.

He’d been overthinking the do’s and don’ts so much that he lost sight of what he wanted. And he couldn’t gather the courage to follow Roxas. Was he afraid of rebelling against the Organization? No—it was just that he wanted things to stay the way they were, even more than Xion or Roxas did.

He had been using the Organization for his own ends from the start. The only thing that had changed in the meantime was who it was all for. Maybe Saïx would call that a betrayal. But his world had changed.

Axel wasn’t really in the organization to get his heart back. He wasn’t even in the organization because he was afraid of rebelling. He was doing it all for Saïx’s sake. And he got fed up with that at the end of Days.

Today I have to destroy Roxas. I cannot betray the organization.

From the little shelf at his bedside, Axel took a white envelope, and looked at it vaguely for a while. Putting it in his pocket, Axel got up off the bed and left the room.

But that decision didn’t last very long. He decided he couldn’t betray the organization, then went to see Saïx.

Maybe this is the last time I’ll see Saïx, too.

Thinking, Axel looked at the seated Saïx’s back.

“We’ve known each other for a pretty long time, haven’t we?”

Ignoring Axel’s words, Saïx continued typing on the keyboard.

“Say something. Have you even thought that maybe I can’t erase Roxas?” Axel said, in a playful tone, and Saïx finally looked up. “It’ll be all right. Cause I’m tough.” Axel puffed out his chest.

“How stupid,” said Saïx, and for a moment he smiled.

He tried to emotionally connect with him, thinking it was the last time he might see him. And Saïx still had his back turned to him. But no matter how many times Saïx rejected Axel and left him staring at his back, Axel still kept trying and trying and trying. Axel never would have even considered destroying Roxas if it wasn’t for his feelings for Isa.

Axel waited.

In the shadows of the spaces between, he waited for Sora… For Roxas.

“Traitor,” Saïx had called him. But his betrayal of Organization XIII wasn’t exactly a recent development, Axel thought with a bitter laugh.

He could hardly feel the pain anymore. And it wasn’t that the wound was healing—no, this was just the end coming closer.

Before he reached Sora and the other two, Nobodies appeared in his way.

“Really, Saïx…?”

Number 7 had probably sent them—but whether to finish him off or to keep that trio from coming any farther, Axel wasn’t sure.

Saïx broke Axel’s heart into a million pieces.

He wanted to fight that way again. He wished they had talked more, about lots of things. About nothing. He wanted to talk to his friend again.

But why do I feel this way if Nobodies have no hearts?

His time was running out, thanks to Saïx. He could hardly move anymore.

Axel was physically and emotionally destroyed by that man. Yet in KH3D...he went back to him. Very quickly and happily, too. All I could say was wow. Just...wow.

Saïx: There's something I've meant to ask.

Xemnas: About Axel? The poor fool. How long will he keep chasing the illusion of friendship, when he himself lacks emotion? Trying so hard to retrieve what he has lost, when it may never have existed in the first place. He deserves nothing more than our pity.

And Saïx had psychotic rage towards Axel when he left. This rage was VERY personal.

“Hilarious,” said Saïx.

He’s being sarcastic… Joking, in other words.

Saïx had made up his mind not to say such things in front of the other Organization members. It was something he could only be towards Axel, something special that could only have been born from the relationship Saïx and Axel had had as humans.

It was a result of the extreme closeness they shared as humans.

He felt sad somehow, like he missed someone. That voice, that attitude… Axel. His name is Axel. But who is he? Oh—I remember. The guy with the scar on his forehead said he was trying to find Axel. Sora’s mind raced.

Axel’s sadness had nothing to do with a mystery girl. Saïx’s rage had nothing to do with a mystery girl. He was not offended on anyone else’s behalf. It was for leaving him. KH3 tried to downplay this and water down the powerful emotions between Axel and Saïx. And all they did was make it seem ridiculous that they were even friends in the first place, let alone best friends.

Axel’s eyes crinkled as he remembered his own best friend—the only friend he’d ever had, in fact.

“If your best friend goes away, you’re sad, and if you get to be with them, you’re happy,” Naminé added. “Isn’t that how it is, Axel?”

“…That’s about the size of it.” Axel nodded and sat down on the remaining empty sofa, staring at the sea-salt ice cream he held.

Their whole relationship is pointless if you don’t address all of this sadness, heartbreak, and abuse. KH3 just swept it all under the rug. It tried to deflect all of your attention away from Axel and Saïx’s relationship. It diverted your attention to Roxas and Xion being back, and also to Subject X. It was all so they wouldn’t have address the elephant in the room. They needed to fix Lea and Isa’s relationship with EACH OTHER. KH3 did not do that.

“I don’t want to disappear, but I’m not upset or sad about it.”

But they really, really needed to.

Axel didn’t waste a second grabbing his chakrams. But his body was reluctant somehow.

I don’t want to disappear… But still, it wouldn’t be so bad if I did. Not here.

I mean, come on. Saïx KILLED Axel with a vicious smile on his face. He wanted Axel to PAY for leaving him. He acted like one of those crazy, jealous, obsessive ex-lovers that stalk and kill the person for dumping them. I also got the impression that Isa was in love with Lea. Saïx was devastated when Axel left because his memories of the past were that powerful.

He wanted…to find hope—the hope that Sora and Riku had.

Saïx gave him a cruel grin. “You will lose everything!”

And then the Claymore pierced Axel’s chest.

I don’t want to disappear. I can’t disappear now. I shouldn’t have to disappear at all. Why am I doing all this? Who is it for? For Roxas… For Riku, for Naminé… And for myself. There are still things I should do. Things I have to do.

They gave him a sense of purpose. He WAS jealous, but he wasn’t JUST jealous. He was a lot more conflicted than that. Saïx hated Isa’s memories and wanted them to disappear. I mean, it may have been a negative relationship, but it was still a very intense relationship. Toxic, but passionate.

“Well, I think you can be inseparable, even if you’re apart. It’s like, if you feel really close to each other. Like best friends,” said Axel.

Yet this incredibly destructive, intense, personal relationship played a relatively minor role in KH3. Saïx showed up and acted very casual with Lea. And Lea's reaction was very mild toward the guy who sadistically murdered him not long ago.

“As long as we remember one another, we’ll never be apart. Got it memorized?”

Roxas grinned. “Who are you, and what have you done with Axel?”

“Hey! I tried, okay?” All that effort to cheer them up, and they just turned it into a punch line. Chagrined, he looked away.

They just casually chat about some random girl. SHE is now is the main focus of their friendship. Their OWN relationship was incredibly milquetoast and watered down. It took a back seat. They didn’t act like best friends, or even former best friends. They didn’t act like they liked, cared about, or respected each other. They just tolerated each other for the sake of that girl. Basically, it seemed like they were just using each other because they shared a common goal. That’s the note this relationship ended on.

Axel kept talking. “There’s something special only born between two people who are even more than friends… that’s love.”

“More special than friends? Like…if they’re best friends? Inseparable?”

“Well, you can care about your friends, but that’s not exactly it…” Axel paused, groping for words that might make sense to Roxas.

I got the sense that Lea and Isa’s and/or Saïx and Axel’s relationship was probably considered a bit TOO intense for something between two men. So a female had to be inserted to downplay that. Wouldn’t want people to get the wrong impression. Only a female is the "correct" target for that level of intensity. It’s sexist. it’s homophobic. And it’s just all around small-minded.

Maybe…the pain I felt then was the hurt of someone’s heart? I feel it even more clearly than the pain in my body. It’s hard to endure, but…something about it is almost comfortingly familiar, too. It’s a special hurt, born from the same thing as my lost memories. I want to run away from it. But I won’t.

And it’s such a waste in a series all about pain bringing you closer together and the power of the heart. Yeah, it wouldn’t be unfair to say that I hated it.

#kh isa #kh lea #kh saix #kh axel #kh leaisa #kh akusai

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nadziejastar · 6 years ago

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I was SO MAD when Nomura said he didn't know how Saix got his scar! The answer is obvious when you put the pieces together, but he refuses to do so

There are several Organisation members whose original names are still unknown. Will we have a chance to learn them someday, or to find out about the scar on Isa’s face?

Nomura: If there is a sequel, then that chance may come. But in my heart right now my desire is a blank page.

Ugh, I felt the same way. I was SO mad. After 10 years of looking forward to the resolution of this subplot… that is the only explanation we are going to get apparently. I couldn’t help but laugh and roll my eyes, though. Because, like you said, it’s so obvious what Saix’s deal was, if you put the pieces together. I was just thinking, “Gee, I wonder why you have no interest in explaining Isa’s scar, Nomura? Maybe because you gave Isa’s backstory to Skuld?”

Even if Nomura does give us another explanation for the scar in a hypothetical sequel, I still won’t care because it won’t feel authentic. I’ll know deep down it’s not the real reason. Plus, with the precedents set already, it’ll most likely be something stupid. Like, “Isa gave himself the scar to never forget Subject X”. Ugh, better not jinx it.

Terra: Strength for what?

Riku: To protect the things that matter. You know, like my friends.

Going into KH3, there were many things I was excited about. But there were three things I was looking forward to the most. One of them was seeing Terra, Aqua, and Ven get saved. This was a given. There was no way it was NOT going to happen. I was disappointed in how it happened.

I would have preferred to see the characters actually use the power of waking instead of just talking about it. These segments actually could have provided much-needed closure to the characters’ emotional journeys. I would have preferred to see Ventus dive into Terra’s heart to wake him up, instead of Sora just nonchalantly freeing him with a flick of his Keyblade. But, at least they got saved…I guess.

Another one had to do with Riku and Terra. I haven’t had the chance to talk much about this, but I guess now is as good a time as any. This was also was a HUGE disappointment for me. I LOVE Riku and Terra. This actually ties into my disappointment with Lea and Isa’s story. I was looking forward to Riku and Terra’s subplot for years. I was just…speechless when I learned that it would all amount to nothing.

In “KHI”, the robed man, Ansem the Wise’s apprentice Xehanort’s Heartless (the body of Xehanort’s Heartless before he inhabited Riku’s body), appeared on the Destiny Islands. Is this because it was Master Xehanort’s homeworld?Nomura: That may be one reason, but if he somehow had some of Terra’s memories, we can consider that it might be because he had laid eyes on Riku previously. In terms of the elements of Terra and Master Xehanort, I think the questions of how their power is related and divided, as well as who has whose memories and heart, will become a key to the story after this one.

Riku’s period of absence was something that Nomura wanted to cover in BBS Volume 2. We see KH1 Riku in the Blank Points secret ending. It looks like that would have been the game where we would see a LOT more from his perspective over the course of the entire series, filling that “blank” period.

Is that to say that there’s a possibility that within Xehanort’s Heartless, the darkness that sleeps in Riku’s heart, there might remain something of Terra…?Nomura: That’s also a riddle connected to the next story, so everyone please use your imagination.

This connection between Riku’s darkness and Terra was supposed to be followed up in the “next story”. Of course, that is the game that got cancelled. During Blank Points, we also saw Riku watching Roxas and Xion. This was the time period where he struggled with the darkness inside of him. I was SO looking forward to learning about this.

Lingering Sentiment: “Aqua…Ven… A Keyblade? Who are you? I know you. We’ve met before, way back when. No, that wasn’t you. You’re not the one I chose. Where is he? Xe…ha…nort… Is that you? Xeha…nort… Xehanort!”

To Terra, Riku was his last chance for help. He was the boy he’d chosen to carry on his legacy. Riku gave him hope when he thought his friendships were beyond repair. He inspired him to listen to his heart. During his time in the darkness, Terra must have been thinking, “Riku will save me.” As the Lingering Sentiment, he clearly had Riku on his mind.

When each world is completely debugged, a scene is shown that was not seen in Kingdom Hearts I. Did those scenes occur at the same point in time as Kingdom Hearts I?

Nomura: Yes, they were memories deep in the data of the worlds recorded in Jiminy’s Journal, however as a result of Data Riku searching after the worlds were debugged, they were tangible to the King and company.

And that strange unexplained cutscene in Re:coded appeared to show that Terra was indeed searching for Riku. And Riku showed signs that he recognized Terra. Something about that darkness was familiar somehow. He smiled at the robed figure, like it was an old friend he hadn’t seen in a long time.

Then the darkness immediately engulfs him. In DDD, the bad guys are able to travel to the sleeping Destiny Islands because a version of Xehanort physically existed there. So it is safe to say that Riku was already possessed even at the very beginning of KH1.

I always thought Riku’s personality in KH1 was strange. In BBS, he’s a really pure-hearted kid who wants nothing more than to protect his friends. His powerful light is what drew Terra to Destiny Islands to begin with. In all the later games, he’s a very devoted friend who is wiling to do anything to protect the people that matter.

How could he have become Maleficent’s pawn and agree to turn on Sora so easily? It made total sense that Riku’s openness to Xehanort’s Heartless was more about his connection to Terra than some innate disposition to he had to darkness.

Riku: I’ve got something you need to see.

Sora: Oh yeah?

Riku: A hidden truth that isn’t part of your memories. I want you to see it. And, I want you to feel it.

Sora: Well, okay. I know you wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important.

Riku: Thanks, Sora. Close your eyes.

In Re:coded, we also saw a new scene of Riku in Neverland, reaching out to the moon. Data Riku felt it was very important to show Sora. In that scene, Riku was behaving more like Xehanort than himself. The way he reaches for the moon is so similar to how Xemnas reaches for Kingdom Hearts.

Riku: Darkness had taken ahold of my heart, and Kairi had lost hers completely. But at the end of your journey, Sora, you would have saved us. Now, what did me and Kairi have in common? When you watched–what did you feel?

Sora: Umm…

Riku: It was “hurt.” We had both lost ourselves, and we were hurting. So what would you have done?

I think this is because Riku already had a piece of Xehanort’s heart implanted inside of him, and he was gradually being swallowed by it. Riku’s possessiveness toward Kairi and his decision to turn on Sora was really Ansem Seeker of Darkness and his desire to find the last princess, manifesting through Riku. He was Xehanort’s vessel in KH1. Just like with Lea and Isa, I don’t think Riku got to truly heal his “hurt”, either.

“Stop it, Sora!” he shouted desperately, managing to block the Keyblade. “Don’t you recognize me?!”

“Yeah, I do. I can see exactly what you’ve become!”

“Augh!” Another blow from the Keyblade knocked Riku down. He couldn’t see that giant shadow anymore—did that mean it really was himself?

“How can the light hurt you? Have you really become a creature of the dark? You’re not Riku anymore—just a pawn of the darkness.” Full of regret, Sora kept the Keyblade pointed at him. “It’s time for you to face the light!”

This is a scene from the Chain of Memories novel. It’s when Zexion is trying to mess with Riku’s mind. It’s one of my favorite scenes in the series. Riku constantly refers to himself as a “creature of the dark” in the novels. He feels so ashamed of himself. His biggest fear is that Sora will realize what he “really” is, and destroy him.

A fierce glow radiated from Sora. Just like a shock wave of darkness, it had a terrible power that bowled Riku over and pressed in on him.

“I’m fading… Fading away…into the light…?”

If he was a creature of darkness—if he couldn’t fight the darkness with his own strength—then there was no other way but for Sora to destroy him, Riku thought hazily.

And if someone had to destroy him…he would much rather that Sora do it than anyone else.

Riku accepts this fate as something he deserves.

Young Xehanort: It was yours first, wasn’t it? But you succumbed to the darkness you could not control, and your prize–the Keyblade–passed onto Sora instead. Your mistakes always end up being other people’s problems.

Young Xehanort uses the same tactic Zexion did. He tries to manipulate Riku, using his guilt. They want him to fall to darkness so that he can become a vessel yet again. It doesn’t work. But even in KH3D, Riku still blames himself for the problems that Xehanort caused.

“That was my… my dark side. I gave into the darkness once, and ever since, it’s chased be around in one form or another. The seeker of darkness who stole my body, a puppet replica of the shadows in my heart, and now, I’m facing me.”

This subplot explaining Riku’s darkness most likely would have explained why he saw a dark version of himself in Monstro in KH3D. This other Riku is trying to kidnap Pinocchio, but he’s wearing an Organization cloak, which KH1 Riku was not. It seems like Riku saw a past version of himself from an alternate timeline—one who won’t get saved by Sora.

This Riku meets Young Xehanort and gets a black robe. Eventually, his heart will get totally swallowed by Xehanort. He will become a full-fledged vessel, and join and the Real Organization XIII. Then they will transport his whole body through time, like they did with all the other versions of Xehanort, including Terranort. I don’t believe that Riku Replica had anything to do with this subplot originally. They didn’t NEED replicas. They had time travel. That’s what Young Xehanort’s Keybalde was for. That’s why they left Vexen and only took Isa with them.

Riku: After allowing darkness into my heart, am I still fit to wield the Keyblade? Even after locking you away, here you are, haunting me again. So I get it now. There’s no point in trying to hold the darkness back.

Ansem: At last, you see clearly.

Riku: You know…when I look at you…there’s this memory that flashes back. A secret I said I’d keep when I was little. The main reason I kept dreaming about seeing the outside world…was ‘cause of him.

Riku could clearly recognize Terra yet again during the ending. The darkness that hounded him constantly was not a manifestation of Riku’s true nature. It was actually a friend in need reaching out for help.But Riku never learns this. How can he truly forgive himself if he never learns that he was not to blame for succumbing to “his” darkness?

That it wasn’t his fault that the Destiny Islands fell to darkness, simply for wanting to see the outside world? That he is worthy to wield the Keyblade? That he’s not and never was a “creature of the dark”? Xehanort is the source of all the bad things that happened. Not him. He was being used as a vessel, like Terra. He was a victim.

When do Riku and Terra meet again?

Nomura: In Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep, Terra made a promise to Riku, “anyway, when you reach me, let’s teach the world the power to protect the ones we love, and the truly spacious world we live in”, in case he should ever succeed him. It appears Riku has remembered this promise, but when will the two ever meet again?

Terra and Riku don’t even speak in KH3. I. Was. So. Mad. LOL.

Then of course, there was Lea and Isa’s story. The one other thing I was really excited to see the resolution to.

So not only the members up to number VI were living in Radiant Garden, but Lea and Isa as well?

Nomura: Yes that’s right. But at this time they were just two innocent boys who liked to play with a frisbee.

Yes, exactly. That’s what I found so interesting about them in BBS. They were just a couple of nice, normal kids who weren’t harming anyone. What’s the point of going out of your way to show how innocent they are, unless you plan on showing what made them change? This all seemed like it was foreshadowing a very dramatic revelation.

By the way, Braig’s dealings with Master Xehanort in Birth by Sleep make sense, he was to become a vessel.

Nomura: There is a certain reason for Braig to proudly exclaim, “As for me, I’m already half Xehanort.” Isa (Saix) is included too. I think you’ll understand the details about their circumstances eventually.

To me, it was so obvious, I never even questioned it. Two innocent kids are trying to sneak into a castle while shady human experiments are going on. They wind up in Organization XIII. Axel absolutely delights in assassinating its members, and he has a plan to overthrow Xemnas. And Saix is on on it, too.

Saix is pathetically miserable. He desperately longs for a heart, more than anyone. He has a big-ass scar of death on his face, orange eyes, pointy ears, and his personality did a total 180 after the events of BBS. He changed from someone who Lea loved spending time with…to someone exactly like Xehanort.

What else could they possibly have been trying to imply with all of this context? And I thought the idea of them being research specimens was fascinating. It totally explained Axel’s complex personality, and it also added an additional layer of tragedy to his whole story. Axel was NOT in the Organization by choice. He was a victim. And Isa was basically Terra 2.0. Though unlike with Terra, Isa’s closest friend doesn’t even know he’s a vessel.

That he is also suffering. Axel just thinks Isa’s forgotten about him. I really wanted to see them heal each other’s “hurt”. I wanted to see Isa get saved just as much as Terra, Aqua, and Ven. He was a victim. Riku, Lea, and Isa were all victims whose pain never got acknowledged by the story. So they never get to confront it and heal. Even though healing pain was the main theme of KH3.

Even though Axel had been eliminated in Kingdom Hearts II, since that time, had you considered having him appear again in his human form Lea?

Nomura: I thought a lot about that. Should I leave him as he was or should I bring him back again? However, when I considered the people that Lea wants to bring back, his existence plays a big role. I think Lea has successively become a key character.

Yes, Lea is a key character. According to Nomura, his pain was special. He’s the only one who doesn’t say Sora’s name out loud in the Blank Points ending. Because he’s planning to fix his own pain. He doesn’t have to sit around and wait for Sora to do it. That’s why he sought out Mickey and Yen Sid in the first place.

Too Precious to Lose

Axel and I talked for a while about the things we can’t bear to lose. Axel thinks that for Nobodies, it’s our pasts, because that’s all we have to remember the pain of losing something.—Roxas

Axel’s whole relationship with Saix was to demonstrate that Lea has something important that he’s lost. Something that he wishes to recover. And he has the power to do this now. His Keyblade is called Flame Liberator. The Phoenix represents, “the freeing of the spirit from the bounds of the physical.” It represents the point when a person recognizes their true nature and is liberated from suffering. It’s the bird of resurrection and immortality. He finally has the strength to “protect what matters”.

Roxas: What is it that you’re so afraid of?

Riku: Huh? Hmm… Losing something that’s important.

Riku learned that you need to acknowledge the pain of losing someone you care about. That is the key to awaken someone who’s lost in the Realm of Sleep. Because it shows how much you love them. This love gives the other person the strength to face their own pain, and return to reality again. Unconditional love is even more important than having the strength to protect what matters. That’s what Riku learned. That’s what Lea and Isa needed, too.

Yet in KH3, all of these lovely themes get tossed aside. Now I’m supposed to just accept that Lea doesn’t really need to save Isa. He’s not really a victim. He’s not really suffering. The mind control experiments and Isa’s scar weren’t really that important to the plot. I. Was. So. Mad.

As bad as the long wait was, I could handle waiting a very long time to get proper closure. I am pretty patient when I have to be. But with these things, I’ll never get closure. The story will forever remain unresolved. And that just sucks. Two of the things I wanted to see the most. Things Nomura explicitly told us we’d learn more about…just thrown in the trash. It was a total slap in the face as a fan.

And yet, I truly believe Nomura is deeply unhappy with KH3′s story, as well.

Hmm if I had to choose a favorite character, I would say Sora, and Noctis. Why them? Of course Sora, I’ve been together with him for more than ten years now, this is the first time I’ve been with a character for such a long time, so he’s very very special for me and he’s been adopted by Disney also, so he’s a very very good boy. More like a good son actually. —Jul 2013

Around late 2013-2014, he was taken off of the FFXV project and it was drastically changed from his original vision. And Birth By Sleep Volume 2 was also cancelled around this same time. This interview was done before either of those things happened. Back then, he clearly had a lot of respect for what Sora’s character represented, and he was a lot more positive in his interviews overall.

“If I had to pick, I am a person more on the dark side like Xehanort and co. I harness the burning anger in my heart into what I create. Kingdom Hearts III’s current development explodes very much in this sense. Each time, it’s a battle with Sora and co. who are the exact opposite of myself, it’s been over 10 years and yet we haven’t reached a conclusion.” —Oct 2014

Something drastically changed his outlook over that year. He said he was filled with “burning anger,” and started to distance himself from Sora’s character.

“I actually don’t sympathize or empathize with Sora at all,” Nomura says. Instead, he relates to the game’s mysterious villains, Xehanort or likely Ansem, anyone who’s fallen prey to their dark natures. “I think I’m closer to those characters, so Sora is like my enemy,” he says. “How I always think of him is I would unleash my attacks on him, and then I draw him in a way that I think he will be able to make a comeback at me. In that sense, I really think that Sora is just like an opposite personality character to who I am.”—June 2018

By the end of KH3′s development, he seemed to actively dislike Sora.

“The Kingdom Hearts series has become a huge title nowadays and back then it was more like I was making it secretively in the corner, but now that a lot more people are involved I do feel that it’s not my title anymore, it’s everyone’s title. And just talking about all this … It actually kind of makes me really sad.”—June 2018

This…deeply saddened me, too. Because it explained so much about KH3′s story. To me, it didn’t feel like Nomura’s true vision. It just didn’t feel like the same Kingdom Hearts I grew up with. The story was massively watered-down and the character arcs weren’t resolved in a satisfying manner. At all.

It felt like the higher-ups wouldn’t give Nomura full creative control because they needed to make the game as mainstream as possible. And that doesn’t work with a story that has a decade’s worth of side stories to resolve. So they canceled BBS Volume 2 and pushed for KH3′s story to be greatly simplified. And KH3′s entire story line got butchered in the process. And I think that’s the real reason why Nomura wants to distance himself from the Xehanort arc, and also why he doesn’t want to explain Isa’s scar. He’s very depressed with how everything turned out and he wants to start over with a blank slate.

#kh #kh meta #kh riku #kh terra #kh lea #kh isa #kh axel #kh saix #kh xehanort #anti-kh3 #kingdom hearts meta

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nadziejastar · 6 years ago

Note

On Subject X and Lea/Isa friendship. The writers should’ve done more to develop the concept. I think it’s cool that that young Isa/Lea wanted to save someone, but they don’t explore the idea for us to think that they were connected. They mentioned it BBS, a little, but afterwards? No clue. I do like your Kairi theory though.

Thanks! I really like the Kairi theory, too. I have no proof or anything, but it just feels right to me. My gut tells me that since Kairi, Lea and Isa are all from Radiant Garden, the writers wouldn’t have wasted such a perfect opportunity to draw some connections there. And it just fits the story SO much better.

In KH3, they were clearly trying to play up the idea that Lea and Isa were super close to this girl, as if she was the third member of their trio or something. And yet, if we are to go by their own descriptions…they don’t even know her. She was a traumatized amnesiac girl they met with a handful of times in the shadows. How close could they have possibly been to her? She was NOT their group’s Kairi or Aqua. They didn’t even know her name.

But his voice was still oddly low. Running into Saïx had brought out a different side of him—and that side was a little scary.

“This just doesn’t seem like you,” said Roxas.

“What do you mean?”

Roxas found he couldn’t quite put the answer into words. What can I say…? “You don’t like things to be complicated.”

That was the best he could do. It wasn’t quite right, either…but he didn’t know how to describe this.

If it actually had been Kairi, then they were simply trying to do a selfless deed for a person they had never met, expecting nothing in return for their actions. And they failed miserably, destroying their lives in the process. We know it is very in-character for Lea to want to help “stray puppies”. Despite not getting to learn much about Isa, it fits with his character based on the Reports in KH3, and also his personality based on the Bunnymoon weapon. Also, one of Saïx’s weapons is named Artemis, who was a lunar goddess and a patron of young girl children.

The fact that they never mentioned Kairi in Days would have made far more sense than Skuld, since they were never claiming to be BFF’s with her or anything. Plus, they had their own issues to worry about at that point. They weren’t trying to take over the Organization to learn about Kairi.

It would also help explain Axel’s unconditional love and empathy for Saïx. He thinks Saïx changed from a gentle and selfless boy to the messed-up freak he is all because one fateful day, they tried to help an innocent little girl who was being used as a human guinea pig. Roxas thinks that Axel is a pretty uncomplicated guy. It’s why he and Xion found it so hilarious when Axel expressed his deeper feelings that one time under the red sunset. It felt so out-of-character to them based on the facade Axel puts on.

The sun sank lower and lower as Axel watched, his mind wandering.

If he stared for too long, the image would burn itself into his eyes, visible even after his eyes were closed.

A phantom sun.

Someone had once told him why sunsets were red… Who was that?

But of course, that couldn’t be further from the truth. Axel is far from uncomplicated. He just keeps his true feelings close to his chest. His feelings for Isa/Saïx were incredibly complicated. I think Axel was thinking about Isa that day while he was staring into the red sunset. He was thinking that he would never see the person he loved ever again.

The person he used to be inseparable from has changed into someone totally unrecognizable to him. Someone who has forgotten all about him, long ago. But, as a small comfort, he would never have to be apart from Isa, as long as he had the memories of him. In his memory, the Isa he loved would live forever, and they would always be inseparable. And that is what put him in such a sentimental mood that day.

In KH3, Axel acts the same way he did in the Days novel. He stares into the sunset with a wistful expression on his face. And who is it that he sees at that moment? Xion. A being made from Sora’s memories of Kairi. That’s who appears, as if to comfort him and offer him hope that the heart’s connections are never truly lost. I thought Kairi and Lea’s relationship was adorable and so sweet. I just wish they had gone farther with it and included Isa, too.

“I just…want these days to last forever,” Roxas murmured, slow and pensive. “Hanging out after the job’s done, eating ice cream, watching the sunset…”

Axel peered at his profile as he did just that. The sunset’s glow touched Roxas’s face and Xion’s with warm red.

I like how the description of Roxas and Xion’s face in the novel is so similar to what we saw in KH3 with the warm sunlight on Xion. I know Axel was thinking about Isa that day. I believe he was thinking about Isa yet again in KH3. He still feels that they are inseparable. And if Isa was still in the Organization’s clutches, then he would never be free either.

“Well, nothing lasts forever,” Axel mumbled, looking off to the side again. “Least of all for a bunch of Nobodies.”

At that, both of their expressions fell.

Seriously, you two? You’re always grinning or getting bummed out…just like real live people with hearts. Axel exhaled and gathered some words. “But, you know, hanging out every day isn’t the only thing that matters. We’ll still have one another, even if that changes.”

“Really?” Roxas perked up.

“Yeah. As long as we remember one another, we’ll never be apart. Got it memorized?”

Roxas grinned. “Who are you, and what have you done with Axel?”“

Hey! I tried, okay?” All that effort to cheer them up, and they just turned it into a punch line. Chagrined, he looked away.

Xion burst into giggles, and then, as if it was contagious, Roxas started laughing, too.“Oh, c’mon, it’s not that funny!” Axel scolded.

They paused, looked at each other, and giggled again.“I don’t know why I put up with this…”

“But, I mean…it just didn’t sound like you, Axel.” Xion could barely hold in laughter long enough to get the words out.

A wish that they could always be together—was longing for the impossible. But at least they could always remember one another.

They teased him about what he said because he never talked about his true feelings. He likes to give the impression that he’s totally carefree, so as not to be too vulnerable. They genuinely had NO idea how much he was suffering over losing Isa. I’m sure they would have felt horrible for laughing at him if they had the slightest clue what he had been through.

Lea: Now that we’re going back, I’m worried about everything.

Kairi: Well, you don’t have to worry alone anymore, Axel.

And that’s exactly what Kairi offered to Lea. Someone to lean on finally. Plus, Kairi is an established character. If it had been revealed that the girl Lea and Isa wanted to rescue had been her all along, the audience would have far more reason to care. With Skuld, since she’s NOT an established character, (at least in this timeline) they really needed to shoe-horn her in by making her Lea and Isa’s supposed long-lost BFF, despite it being incredibly forced and not very convincing if you think about it for more than 5 seconds. With Kairi, that wouldn’t have been the case.

She already had a history with Lea through KH2 and Xion. She develops a bond with Lea and grows naturally closer to him over the course of the story. I also like that it would have given Kairi a much stronger narrative tie to her final battle with Saïx. The man who kidnapped her is actually a body-hijacked version of the guy who simply wanted to rescue her as a child. That’s really tragic. It’s as tragic as Riku realizing the darkness within him was a body-hijacked version of the special boy who bequeathed him the Keyblade all those years ago. Kairi’s reunion with Isa would have been so heartwarming. But just like with Riku learning about Terra, it never happened.

But yes, if they wanted anyone to actually care about this alleged friendship between Lea, Isa and Skuld, then they should have done a much better job actually incorporating it in the story. Of course, I would bet my next 5 paychecks that the reason they didn’t do this…is because they hadn’t thought of it back then. My guess would be that this idea came to fruition circa 2015. That’s when Nomura is on record saying that they were still unsure of where the series was headed in the future.

There was not a single mention of this girl in the novels. Yet there were numerous hints that something was very unique about Saïx—extremely strong suggestions that he was an unwitting vessel of Xehanort. The situation with his heart is mentioned multiple times by Xigbar, it’s brought up by Namine, and even Xion says that Saïx gives off a strange aura, like how Riku does with Xehanort’s Heartless inside of him. Yet, nary a word about anything even remotely resembling “Subject X”. Nothing.

There was a strange material that enabled one to fly through the Other Sky—Gummi blocks, fallen pieces from that meteor shower. And something about women known as the Princesses of Heart. All these immensely important shards of information began to fit together in Xehanort’s mind.

“What in the world were they talking about?” said Even, who had been trying to eavesdrop.

Xehanort ignored him and continued down the stairs to the basement laboratory. He flung open the door, and the others all turned to him at once.

“Aeleus, where is the girl?” Xehanort asked.

“She’s asleep…” Aeleus pointed to the capsule room in the back.

The girl was very particular—unique among people. They had not been able to create any Heartless using her heart. Perhaps because she was too young, or perhaps…

Xehanort disappeared into the capsule room.

But there IS a mention of Kairi in that laboratory. I like how in the credits for BBS both Lea and Isa look up at the sky, like how Kairi did when her necklace glowed. Almost as if it was to hint at their future connection.

Lea said the same lines, “Why do I always get the icky jobs,” and “I’ll always be there to bring you back,” to Xion in KH Days when he brought her back. Does he remember that?

Nomura: The nature of the being known as Xion and all memories to do with her were erased, but he would remember other things.

They obviously had a MUCH different vision for Isa’s character, even at the time that KH3D and KH2.5 came out. They were building up a far different story for his character right up until the release KH3, when they did a complete U-turn. It was incredibly jarring. The secret ending of 2.5 clearly shows Isa being taken away without his consent and the series Memorial Ultimania (released in 2014) states that he was “retrieved” after Young Xehanort was tracking him with the Recusant’s Sigil on his forehead.

The writers obviously thought that Isa was worthy of having Lea use the same words for him that he used for Roxas and Xion. Lea had a dream of Roxas telling him he made them a promise. As soon as he woke up, he went searching for someone, even putting himself at great risk by using the Door to Darkness. Well, he wasn’t looking for Roxas. Roxas was Sora’s Nobody, and Lea gave up on turning Sora back into a Nobody. That’s what his entire character arc was all about in KH2. No, he was looking for Isa.

Yet regarding KH3, here’s what Nomura said according the to the Ultimania translations from this thread:

Saïx rejoined the Organization to atone for what he did in the past. He drifted away from Axel and put Roxas through a lot because of his jealousy and displeasure, but vowed to do good for the sake of both Axel and Roxas.

I swear, the first time I read this, it put me in such a bad mood. Not only was it SO blatantly inconsistent with what we saw in the cutscenes, everything being set up by the story’s morals and themes, and everything being foreshadowed in the novels…but it also felt so…cruel and victim-blaming.

Q: Who are the thirteen researchers of darkness?

A: Thirteen seekers of darkness that share a consciousness and heart with Master Xehanort, serving as raw material for the X-Blade. In this game, they failed in their attempts to make Sora the 13th of their ranks, but who’s to become the 13th in his stead? And who are the six whose identities have not been revealed?

If Isa was indeed made a vessel as a teenager, (and it was HEAVILY implied that he was), why should he have to “atone” for anything? When someone becomes a vessel, their heart is captured by Xehanort. Or “swallowed,” to use another word used in an interview translation.

Q: I want to ask about Terranort. When Ansem SOD and Xemnas were defeated in KH1 and 2, were both Master Xehanort and Terra revived?

A: Ordinarily, Terra should have been revived at that point, but because his body was possessed by Xehanort, his heart didn’t return, and only his body did. That body was used as the vessel for the heart of Terra (from BBS) that was called from the past.

When Xemnas was defeated, Nomura said that Terra’s heart didn’t return to his body; it was still captured and in Xehanort’s clutches. If Isa was a vessel too, then there’s no reason his heart would have returned to his body, either. They can’t have it both ways. They can’t say that Terra had no free will in Xemnas’ atrocities and then say that Isa has to “atone” for what Saïx did. Does Terra have to atone for Apprentice Xehanort and Xemas’ actions? The ultimate question is… was Isa a vessel all along, or was he not? Enough waffling on this issue. Make up your damn mind.

Also the whole concept of joining the New Organization to atone is just utter brain-dead nonsense, no matter how you spin it. How is a person supposed to do anything good when they let Xehanort capture their heart, allowing him to share a consciousness with them? Shouldn’t giving up your heart have… I dunno…consequences?

When someone loses their heart, they lose the ability to feel, to care, to have empathy. Isn’t that the entire reason Axel suffered so much? From not having a heart? He forgot how to feel or experience love. It was Roxas, Xion and Sora who made him feel like he had a heart again. Indeed, they allowed him to nurture and grow a heart again. Besides, just look how Saïx acted when he had no heart! Yet here I’m being told that Saïx is going to “atone” by giving up his heart? LOL, yeah right.

Even if you hypothetically assume he was NOT a vessel, losing his heart made Saïx a sociopathic zombie. That’s supposedly why he “drifted away” from Axel, right? How is he going to do anything altruistic in that condition? Not to mention that Saïx was so utterly miserable without a heart, that I just cannot see him giving it up as soon as he got it back, under ANY circumstances (well, maybe to save Lea). There’s also another issue: the continuity being drawn between Isa and Saïx. The writers went TOTALLY out of their way to make Saïx as villainous and nasty as possible. As a die-hard Isa fan, this is sad for me to admit. But I don’t even think his actions in KH3 made him feel like he really fit in with the rest of the cast during the ending.

And then there’s the revelation that Saïx initially became Xehanort’s lapdog for Skuld. I’m sure she’d be very…touched…to find out that Isa sacrificed his morals, fought his friends and helped a madman usher in the apocalypse, all for her. Such a nice foundation for a healthy relationship. All for a girl he isn’t sure even existed. I won’t mince words. When Lea said to Isa that he thought this was “all for her” it made me want to throw up. That’s how revolting that idea was to me. The idea that “Isa” became “Saïx” for a girl.

That doesn’t even get into the whole Replica Program and what a goofball subplot that was. The Replica Program was not even finished when Vexen was eliminated. Now all of a sudden it can grant flesh-and-blood bodies, as soon as a heart is inserted? Yeah, okay. And Saïx knew all along that Vexen would be perfectly willing to come along and work on these replicas, too? And he also knew that Roxas and Xion could just jump out of Sora’s heart into the replicas? Whatever you say, game.

And I must say: it was so ridiculous how Saïx is supposed to be “atoning” while he’s beating the shit out of Lea, or at least standing there watching Xemans do it. Why couldn’t Saïx and Vexen atone for their actions as, ya know…regular people? They could help the good guys defeat Xehanort and then worry about replicas. Though I still say Isa should have to atone for nothing.

But why join Xehanort and help him usher in the Apocalypse? Oh right. Because that was the only excuse the writers could come up with to justify Roxas and Xion coming back physically in the plot. The replicas were such a waste of screen-time in KH3. That whole subplot should have been dropped a long time ago. As far as I’m concerned, Isa’s character arc was sacrificed at the altar of shallow fanservice to bring back Roxas and Xion at the very end. They had no business coming back as separate characters from Kairi and Ventus, if that’s the best way Nomura could come up with to make it happen.

In order to bring them back, the following things had to happen in the story:

Isa’s entire character arc and redemption got turned into a sick joke.

The whole fascinating concept of the Recusant’s Sigil needed to be thrown out, in order to give Saïx enough agency to “atone” and procure the replicas.

Vexen and Demyx have to act totally OOC, join up with Xehanort despite having no good reason to, then complain about getting “benched”. Because they had NO reason to be there other than the replicas.

The entire awesome and dark concept of the Seekers of Darkness being unwilling flesh puppets (”raw material”) had to be thrown in the trash.

It ruined the tension of Organization XIII’s search for the 13th vessel by making Vexen and Demyx “reserve” members

Replicas became a deus-ex-machina for Xehanort to use as his vessels.

Nobody could use common sense and question the obvious connection between Roxas and Ventus, stalling the search for Ventus and the 7 Guardians of Light.

#anti-kh3 #kingdom hearts #kh #kingdom hearts meta #kh meta #kh3 spoilers #kh theories #kh3 theories #kh kairi #kh saix #kh axel #kh lea #kh isa #kh isalea #kh leaisa #kh akusai

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nadziejastar · 5 years ago

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-- Mr. Nomura, since you are the one that is writing the scenario this time, how is the progress coming along?

Nomura: Since we are arriving near the conclusion of Xehanort in KINGDOM HEARTS III, the outline of the story has been solidified but not necessarily the direction where the KINGDOM HEARTS series is continuing to head. We are still trying to decide where to go from several choices.

Thanks! Yeah, me too. KH3 was the worst case of video game blue balls ever. So many spin-off games that built up to a game...that answered almost none of the questions those spin-off games brought up. When KH2 ended, I felt a sense of closure. When KH3 ended, I felt betrayed. Yeah, a lot of people were rescued in KH3 (not even Isa, though...) but we all knew that was gonna happen. Plus the reunions felt rushed. Other than that, none of the other mysteries were resolved. What is No Heart? How did Xehanort set out on his evil path? Why was Xemnas unable to use a Keyblade? How did having Terra’s memories affect him? What was Pluto doing in Re:Coded, and where did he go? In a lot of ways KH3 felt more like a sequel to Union X than the Xehanort Saga games. I think that you’re right and that Subject X was just an exposition dump to move the story forward. I highly doubt that she’ll have any real connection to Xion. Nomura said that they didn’t know what direction the story was headed even in June 2015. All of this stuff, including Subject X, wasn’t planned out very well. It was all thrown together at the last minute to provide an excuse to move the series forward.

--There are several Organisation members whose original names are still unknown. Will we have a chance to learn them someday, or to find out about the scar on Isa's face?

Nomura: If there is a sequel, then that chance may come. But in my heart right now my desire is a blank page.

Which is why it seems to be mostly recycled unused plots from the Xehanort Saga that were tweaked around a bit to fit the time travel stuff. Even the power of waking was changed into a time travel gimmick. Subject X’s backstory feels FAR more appropriate for Isa. Ya know, the one with the X-shaped scar, LOL. I think the fact that Nomura said he wanted a “blank page” is an indicator that he intends to move away from the Xehanort Saga as much as possible. His response doesn’t inspire much faith that he plans to resolve the many unanswered mysteries of this arc or its characters. I wouldn’t get my hopes up for any meaningful connections between Skuld or Xion. Even stuff like the Chamber of Waking has been retconned to involve the time-travelling foreteller characters. It’s unlikely that Isa will get much individual attention going forward, either. Skuld's purpose was to replace him, which is why SHE became Xehanort’s lab rat and he became the Replica delivery boy. Lea and Isa were used as props to introduce her to this timeline, so she can become relevant. Nomura just needed an excuse to focus on new characters, and it came at the Xehanort Saga’s expense.

Nomura: The reason you haven't been shown any Final Fantasy characters is that there are so many original characters that need to resolve their own problems and issues. And because their issues and problems are very difficult, there just hasn't been that much space to fit Final Fantasy characters so far.

Nomura: It does come to an end, but I'm not fully swayed to one emotion. I'm not really happy, I'm not really sad. Although I do feel a little sad when I think some characters will probably never appear ever again. Once I think about that, it makes me a little sad. But other than that I'm just more relieved that I was able to tell the full story.

Nomura: The Kingdom Hearts series has become a huge title nowadays and back then it was more like I was making it secretively in the corner, but now that a lot more people are involved I do feel that it's not my title anymore, it's everyone's title. And just talking about all this … It actually kind of makes me really sad.

I think this is the main reason why he wants a “blank page”. He always sounded pessimistic in his interviews starting around the time Versus XIII got cancelled. Personally, I would categorize Isa as one of those characters that are never going to appear ever again. We may see “Isa” (aka Saix), but the Isa that was in BBS is gone. Which is sad.

Nomura: In the secret episode of KHBBSFM, I believe it displayed “0.5”. After that it would be a full volume sequel to BBS. Being a sequel to BBS as a full volume, it was supposed to advance as “0.5” but because KH3 is still a priority, this time “0.1” went up one step to “0.2”.

Nomura: At first, I did want to use a next game to dig down into how Xehanort went from that simple boy playing the chess-like game to an admirer of the darkness. But, if I do that, then the Dark Seeker Chronicle wouldn't have ended with KH3 after all (laughs.) Some ideas had solidified to a degree, but it's shelved for now.

I truly don’t think that KH3′s plot turned out the way Nomura wanted it to. At all. He sounds very unsatisfied with the amount of “resolution” the Dark Seeker Saga provided. But at this point, it’s too late to fix things, so he wants to move on to new stuff. Unfortunately, it seems like it’s going to contradict a lot of what has already been established, like the experiments on the darkness of the heart.

#anti kh3 #kingdom hearts

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