#ddd's meta

[veinsfullofstars]

💙 MetaDede Week 2024 Day 1: Sworn Partners (Free Day) 💜

(ID: Kirby series fanart, four-panel comic, of Meta Knight being exhausted and King Dedede offering a solution. Transcript in Alt Text. END ID.)

Partially inspired by this post by @das-a-kirby-blog.

Next Day | Prompt List (made by @mtddweek)

Started 07/31/24, finished 08/05/24.

[yokyoaaa]

So I have a vision

[stupidgalaxybrain]

What if... I come back from the dead and do @das-a-kirby-blog's DTIYS?

Times are tough, and in moments like those, sometimes you got to come back to Kirby. I loved the structure of this piece and really wanted to give it a shot. The limited color scheme was a fun challenge, as was packing in so many characters! I changed a couple things around, like putting in Lololo, Lalala, and Kracko on Dedede's side since they were his minions in Dream Land. I also removed Dark Crafter because, while I love the rep, I thought tying Yin-Yarn to the Jamba Heart was more accurate to shared enemies of our sworn partners. Regardless, I loved the original and I hope I did it justice. Maybe I'm back? We'll see...

[galactaknightyaoi]

☀️ IT'S MY BIRTHDAY!! 🌙

This is my gift to myself :) I drew my favorite guys ever.

For a while I've been itching to draw the wedding outfits from this post again. I made them up on the fly as I was drawing, but I actually really like how they ended up turning out. They're super cute!! (though, yet again, you can't see almost any part of Dedede's outfit... 💔)

But then I couldn't get it out of my head to make a companion piece for it, with their mirror versions. And so. I did. What they have going on is a little bit messy, though...

Marriage or divorce!! Take your pick.

[chocokeyboard]

Okay what the heck are you all people doing

[verysadpaper]

can’t forget number 4!

[sucharandomwolf]

[michiriii]

Day threeeEEEE WOOOOOOOOOOO

[joethesparkle]

braid braid

[besobendito]

👑🦇 don't forget, ok?

[toastedbutterbrick]

KRBAY POSTER!!!

[veinsfullofstars]

"Still trying to intimidate me? Cute."

(ID: Kirby series fanart of Meta Knight and Galacta Knight based off of a couple dynamics template by @/ReddsMess on Twitter. Original template and source below the cut, as well as a HAL language variant. Top-left panel - high-angle shot of MK lit from above, standing firm and glaring up through his mask, his wings curled out and breaching the panel in places, subtitled "Well well..." Top-right panel - low-angle shot of GK lit from below, looming in the air and leering down through his mask, his wings curled out and his hands spread wide in challenge, both of which breach the panel in places, subtitled "Look who came to see me..." Bottom panel - MK & GK stand next to each other, the latter leaning towards the former and gently caressing the side of his mask with the back of one hand, grinning smugly and wrapping a wing around the knight, subtitled "My Knightmare." MK stands stiffly with his fists clenched at his sides, blushing vividly and glaring away from the warrior. A little flurry of white hearts emanate from GK, while one small one hovers above MK. END ID.)

Started 03/30/24, finished 04/02/24, updated for color correction 11/02/24.

---

HAL language variant:

Original by ReddsMess (template link) NOTE: The artist has marked 16-18+ in their bio, so browse at your own risk!

[fire-bug1]

He is looking RESPECTFULLY.

[braveheartstoryteller]

Once again I'm having thoughts about the meta of Kingdom Hearts. While there are many ways to interpret this story, as it is in all stories, there is one way I personally love most: the angle of the journey of growing up. Or put in another way, understanding and accepting your child self. It is both, really. Depending on one's journey, one might resonate more than the other. And that is what makes KH so special. No matter how old you are, KH can resonate.

It is two angles that make a greater whole. Or in the case of the story, two characters that make a greater whole: Sora and Riku.

Riku is the adult side. From the beginning, Riku felt the responsibility to "protect what matters." It is that pressure, and the fear that he wasn't strong enough that pushed him forward toward darkness. Coupled with the jealousy of Sora's freedom, brought that antagonistic side out. Eventually of course, Riku found what he was looking for, and found his dawn.

Sora on the other hand, is the child side. Full of youthful exuberance, naivety, and openness, Sora always follows his heart. But along the way, each journey slowly changes him, even in ways he doesn't realize. He just keeps going, pushing, changing, much like a child would.

In the novelization of Dream Drop Distance, there are these lines as Sora is thinking about Quasimodo:

“He thought about what it really meant to let your heart be a prison and to let it live free. I can’t imagine how painful and sad it must be to go through life with your heart locked away. You can’t follow your heart and live the way you want.”

You could say, that was Riku's perspective. I've noted before, that in DDD, Riku's sound idea plays Dearly Beloved from the get go. Whereas for Sora it doesn't until Riku's sound idea joins his. In other words, Riku has already begun to connect with his child side. While Sora, still has no idea what is going on, let alone connect with his adult side.

It is this mixture that begins to show a unique narrative. As a person grows, often the child self gets left behind.

You remember what you were like as a kid, and sometimes you wonder: where did that go? Or perhaps you had dreams, some probably ridiculous, but some not so much. Yet in growing up you left them behind as the pressures of responsibility mounted. But in all that you know one thing, you've lost something important: yourself.

It is that beautiful blend of ideas, that makes up a unique way that which to look at KH. Of course with advent of Yozora, it feels all the more likely there is something like this going on. But even without him, the narrative already supports this idea, even from the very beginning.

For me at least, it's a perspective that gets my brain, and my creative heart, going.

[m0n0morph]

I refuse to elaborate

[reunionatdawn]

My Analysis (and Critique) of Lea's Japanese KH3 Character Arc

(Japanese Translation) Roxas: No matter how many times you disappear, I'll always bring you back. Axel: Yeah. Roxas: Got it memorized? Axel: It's a promise between best friends.

Nomura said that in his mind, KH3 begins at DDD, so that is where I'll start with this analysis. At the beginning of Axel's arc, he had a dream where Roxas reminded him, "You made us a promise". Us.

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. (KH3D Ultimania, May 2012)

We the audience know that he also made that promise to Xion. But Axel didn't remember her anymore. However, it was implied that he did remember making that promise to someone besides Roxas.

Xigbar and Saix appeared as members of Organisation XIII. Did they return as humans like Lea and the others? Nomura: The conditions of becoming a human have been met, so you’d think they had returned, wouldn’t you? For them to have been with Xehanort and the others, perhaps they were collected after they had become humans and before Lea and the others woke up. You could say the same for the members of Organisation XIII that didn’t appear in this title, however… I’d rather everyone use their imaginations. (KH3D Ultimania, May 2012)

This scene is from the HD Re:Coded movie, and it takes place shortly before DDD starts. It shows Young Xehanort and Braig physically taking Isa before everyone woke up. Xehanort has had his eye on Isa for a long time. He knew exactly where to find him due to the sigil.

Lea: That's me. Dilan, Aeleus, Even, Ienzo—We're people again. But only the ones who joined the Organization here. I guess Xehanort doesn't count, but where are Braig and…Isa?

Axel awakens in the Heartless Manufactory. Unlike the others, he was still wearing the Organization XIII black robe. The fact that both he and Isa were not wearing the same clothing as the apprentices when they lost their hearts implies that their status was different from the other apprentices. IMHO, it was always heavily implied that they were subjects of the experiments on the darkness of the heart.

I really liked this scene because it was reminiscent of the scene from 0.2 where Aqua faced her shadow while looking in the Magic Mirror. Axel was now face-to-face with Lea. His other self. Now that he was human again, he would have to confront his past and all the emotional baggage he'd been running away from up until then.

There was a sense of dramatic tension when Lea finally uttered Isa's name, highlighting the deep emotional history between them. And unlike all of the other apprentices, Isa wasn't there. Along with Braig, he had mysteriously disappeared, setting the stage for Lea's journey.

(Japanese Translation) Lea: Ah, this is such a hassle. What about the idea that they weren't recompleted at all? What do you think of that? Ienzo: That would be— Lea: No, never mind. I'll go search for them. Ienzo: Huh? How are you going to do that? Lea: My role is the same as usual.

It wasn't TOO obvious as to spoil the eventual twist, but it was still heavily implied that Isa was the other person Lea made that promise to. And the fact that Lea was going to go find him to keep that promise was a significant turning point for his character development. Saix was the one who mortally wounded Axel in KH2. He hurt and betrayed him in the deepest possible way. For him to immediately go to bring him back demonstrated such a profound sense of love and forgiveness on Lea's part. I found it very touching, and it only made me want to learn about their past even more.

Is he still able to pass through the Corridors of Darkness like before? Nomura: Diz is also human and can pass through the Corridors of Darkness. Since Lea has the memories of being Axel, he saw the message Ansem wrote on the wall in Radiant Garden and thought that was the only way he could travel. Of course, using the Corridors frequently is dangerous. (Famitsu, May 2012)

It was also interesting that Lea was the only human member of the Organization who could still use the corridors of darkness. And Lea's dialogue hinted that this ability was something he had used before as a human as well. I don't think this was the first time Isa had disappeared. DiZ and the Beast were the only other non-Nobodies who were able to traverse the corridors of darkness. DiZ had this ability due to the hatred in his heart. And the Beast because of his desire to bring back Belle. Lea likely had a mix of both sentiments.

Why did Lea visit Disney Castle when he should have been looking for his friend? Nomura: To search for his friend he needed the power to move between worlds, and there is no way to do that other than become a Keyblade Wielder. At the time, wanting to be made a Keyblade Wielder, Lea saw a message recorded by Ansem the Wise in the past and, knowing it was dangerous, used the Corridors of Darkness once more to go talk with King Mickey and the others. That’s why after Maleficent left he was asking at the Mysterious Tower. (KH3D Ultimania, May 2012)

I loved the scene where Lea proudly reclaimed his human name. Naturally, he didn't want to be referred to with the name Xemnas gave him anymore. And it sends the message to the player that Lea is not the same as Axel from KH2. Axel tried to turn Sora into a Heartless by targeting Kairi, something he was ashamed of and gave up his life to atone for. Lea had moved on from that goal. He wanted to be on the side of light, wielding a Keyblade. But his motivation for wielding a Keyblade was simple. He just wanted the ability to safely travel between the worlds so he could continue to look for Isa.

Who are the thirteen researchers of darkness? Nomura: 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? Nomura: Time was stopped just as Master Xehanort was materializing. So he moved his consciousness to Young Xehanort’s body. Reacting to this, King Mickey exclaimed, “That’s impossible!” Young Xehanort was holding a Keyblade that he originally wasn’t able to handle thanks to Master Xehanort’s power. Though the keychain on it is different, the Keyblade he takes out is Master Xehanort’s. (Famitsu, May 2012)

Nomura referred to the seekers of darkness as "raw material" who shared a consciousness and heart with Master Xehanort. He did not need their mind or will; only their body. MX literally moved his consciousness over to Saix's body and controlled him like a puppet.

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. (Famitsu, May 2012)

When Lea first began training, he could not summon a Keyblade. Yen Sid wasn't even sure if he had the potential. And at that point in the story, Lea still had a lot of inner conflict. He was still unsure of what happened to Isa. All he knew was that he had gone missing with Braig. Would Isa still see him as a traitor? Would they have to fight? I'm sure this sense of doubt weighed heavily on Lea's mind. During the final confrontation, he looked very shaken when it was finally revealed that Isa was back on Xehanort's side.

Other than Braig, Isa was the only member of the original Organization who was already a vessel. That's why he was the only one they bothered to collect before the game started. And yes, Nomura suggested that we were supposed to learn more about what actually happened to him and why he became a vessel in the next game after DDD. He wasn't power-hungry like Braig, so there must have been some other reason for how he ended up in that condition.

Mickey: Aw, Sora. Don't tell me your heart's sleeping, too. Yen Sid: No, Mickey. This affliction is not the same. Riku: Can we do anything for him?

After returning to the MT, Lea was off by himself in the corner lost in his own thoughts. Naturally, everyone would have learned from Yen Sid about Master Xehanort's plan to turn Sora into one of the thirteen dark vessels. And obviously, if someone like Sora could be turned into a vessel, then the person doesn't have to consent to it, like Braig did. In fact, Xemnas specifically revealed to Sora he previously conducted mind control experiments to create a vessel.

Xehanort's plan with Sora was to cause his heart so much pain that he would become an empty husk. In a figurative sense, "empty husk" implies a person is physically present but emotionally hollow, as if they lost their original meaning or purpose.

When I first played DDD in 2012, my impression was that Lea probably was not thinking that Isa made a conscious choice to side with Xehanort again. He was lost in his own thoughts until Riku asked about a cure for Sora's affliction. There was a very subtle implication that the same thing that just happened to Sora is probably what happened to Isa, a long time ago. And I wasn't convinced that Isa even regained consciousness after he was recompleted. After Axel left him in KH2, he was just an empty husk ripe for the taking.

What happens to the hearts of those who have had Master Xehanort’s heart planted within them? Nomura: They’ll gradually be swallowed by it. As for Master Xehanort, he plans to control them completely. The planted parts of the heart are captured rather than disappear. (Famitsu, May 2012)

Saix was depicted as a unique Nobody in Days. While the other Nobodies could awaken their human hearts, Saix seemed to be the exception. He was the only member who couldn’t see Xion as anything. And he was unable to feel anything other than rage. His heart had not disappeared, but it was captured and likely dormant.

After Riku successfully used the power of waking on Sora, Lea was ecstatic. The true power of a Keyblade Master is not exhibited through combat. The Keyblade's true power is to bring back a heart that was lost. THAT is the power Lea knew he wanted.

Nomura: I figured since Lea had returned to his human form, it'd be no good if he didn't have any power to bring back the person he wants, so I thought he should become a Keyblade Wielder. (Famitsu, May 2012)

Lea then summoned his Keyblade effortlessly. And I really liked the Phoenix motif they incorporated into the design. After dying in a blaze of glory, Axel rose from the ashes and was reborn as Lea. The Isa that Lea knew as a boy was effectively dead. His body was merely a hollowed-out shell. But Lea now had the power to bring him back to life. Even if the overall plot was convoluted, I loved DDD for Lea's storyline alone. It got me incredibly hyped for KH3 and I waited seven long years to see the conclusion to Lea’s storyline in particular.

(Character File Short Story) The setting sun was red again today. When my daily training was done, I always watched the sunset from the top of a hill in the Secret Forest. “Bet you don’t know why the sun sets red. You see, light is made up of lots of colors. And out of all those colors, red is the one that travels the farthest.”

I really enjoyed the symbolism of this quote. Of the seven lights, Lea was the red one. And red is the one that travels the farthest. More than any color, it can penetrate the deepest darkness.

(Japanese Translation) Lea's training with me. He apologized to me over and over again. It's alright, I'd say, but he'd keep on apologizing… At first I was a bit scared but as we trained together we started talking to each other. I found out Lea also has a best friend he wants to save. I felt like, he's not a person that I can bring myself to hate. Sometimes... he'd stare at my face. So I'd ask him, what's wrong? "I don't know, but I feel like it's something I must recall", he'd say...

Hayner, Pence, and Olette felt a bond with Roxas due to the relationship their data counterparts had with him. And it’s clear that Lea was experiencing the same effect. The heart works in mysterious ways, after all. Obviously, DDD foreshadowed that Lea was supposed to regain his memories of Xion eventually. But honestly, I felt no desire for Xion to come back when the implication was that Lea/Kairi was, on a heart level, the same bond, just in different physical forms.

Lea told Kairi that his goal was to save his best friend. When this scene was first shown off at the orchestra event in 2017, I still think he was supposed to be referring to Isa. But sometime during KH3's troubled development, they completely dropped the whole "save Isa" subplot and I guess we were all just supposed to take it for granted that he was talking about Roxas here. At least...I think?

Lea: Way back when I was a kid, I met this other weird kid. Somehow we became fast friends. Never saw him again—nearly forgot about him, too. Then I met Roxas. Couldn't believe it. The two of 'em were identical. Oh, I didn't tell Roxas. Didn't want him to go vanishing on me, too. The kid's name was Ventus. He's one of the lost Keyblade wielders we're looking for. Think he's still got me memorized?

The handling of the Roxas/Ven situation in KH3 was...confusing to me, to say the least. There was no particular indication that Lea ever viewed Ventus and Roxas as two separate people. Lea knew that Sora's goal was to free Roxas's heart and also to save Ventus. And Lea never said anything to indicate that he thought those were two separate goals. To him, saving Ventus was saving Roxas.

Lea was looking forward to meeting Ventus again. Not just because of their brief encounter as kids in BBS, either. It's because he wanted closure with Roxas after their friendship fell apart due to Axel lying to him about his true identity. Lea wasn't sure if Ventus would still have the memories of being Roxas, though, so he was worried he wouldn't remember their time together in the Organization.

Roxas was a blank slate amnesiac. His whole life revolved around eating ice cream after work because he had no memories of anything else. Axel was determined to keep him that way to fulfill his own emotional needs. On the other hand, Ventus had his own life and his own group of friends. I was excited to see Lea grow beyond his over-attachment to Roxas, which is what tore their friendship apart in the first place. I wanted to see Lea establish a healthier friendship with Ventus on more equal grounds as young adults.

Ventus: Yeah, 'course! We’re friends. I can't believe you became a Keyblade wielder just like me. Lea: Yeah… Sora: Axel, you know Ven? Ventus: Axel? Who's Axel? Lea: See, see, see? Major brain ache.

Unfortunately, that never happened. When they finally reunited at Yen Sid's Tower, Lea learned that Ventus didn't know who "Axel" was. There was no follow up conversation to mend the rift after Roxas walked away from Axel, leaving behind only the Winner stick. The whole reunion scene was just played off as comic relief.

Jiminy: Not to worry, folks. To help us out, I've given each of you a Gummiphone. They've got summaries of everything that's happened so far. That way, you can read up, if you like. And if anyone has any questions, we can call each other.

I guess after this, Lea was able to download an info file on his Gummiphone and that's when he learned that Ventus wasn't really Roxas, they just looked identical. It's pretty dumb. And the later joke when Ven and Roxas met ("had a couple of plot points that needed ironing out") indicated that Nomura probably never intended for Roxas and Ventus to be two separate people and couldn't even pretend to take the idea seriously. But anyways, after this scene, Lea now knew that "Roxas" was a totally different person from "Ventus".

(Japanese Translation) Lea: Roxas… In the end, the day has come without me being able to save you.

Lea's motivation was now stated to be "saving Roxas". It did confuse me that he seemed to completely forget about saving Isa. I guess that we, the audience, were just supposed to assume that Isa made a voluntary choice to become a vessel in DDD (even though I didn't get that impression at all). And Lea apparently just wanted to focus on getting Roxas back again to fill that best friend shaped in hole in his heart. So, everything went backwards, and Lea was once again the same character as Axel from KH2. Honestly, how boring.

(Japanese Translation) Isa: This world isn't your true home, is it? Lea: You… Isa: I'm not here to fight. Relax.

Before the final battle, everyone spent one last night with their best friends. Lea ate ice cream and watched the sunset all by himself. And the scene should have ended just like that. Lea should have reunited with Ventus (who actually matured from his life as Roxas) and the two of them should gotten closure. But Ven had his own best friend he wanted to save and his own home to return to. This scene should have emphasized that Lea needed to finally save his best friend.

When Isa showed up, Lea was pretty shocked. And honestly, so was I. DDD depicted him as a full vessel. Someone who totally shared a heart and mind with Master Xehanort. Why was he now suddenly acting so nonchalant and friendly? How was he able to just sneak about without Xehanort knowing? It was so jarring and killed all of the dramatic tension DDD built up regarding their reunion. However, it did leave me with the impression that the clock tower was once a special spot to Lea and Isa before it became the RAX special spot.

(Japanese Translation) Lea: Hey! Isa: You won't be able to eat that much, will you?

IMO, Isa was supposed to be a completely separate character from Saix. You were supposed to hate Saix. But his Mystery Gear was a cute bunny rabbit. While it was incredibly jarring to see Isa suddenly wolfing down ice cream, it was intended to change our perception of him. In Japanese media, a fondness for sweets often symbolizes a connection to simpler, childlike pleasures, hinting that the character may have an innocent or pure aspect to them. The big plot twist planned was that Isa was supposed to be endearing.

(Japanese Translation) Isa: One of those is for Roxas, but who's the other one for? Were you planning to eat two by yourself? Lea: I don't know. For some reason, I ended up buying three.

Yes, it can be interpreted that Lea got the extra ice cream for Xion. But he still had no memory of who she was. So, the scene does imply he got it with Isa in mind. It's kind of cute that Isa knew it was for him and was teasing him about it and Lea got so embarrassed. The whole "you can't eat two by yourself" was also a reference to Days and what Roxas wrote in his diary after he got the Winner stick.

(Japanese Translation) Lea: Anyway, what are you here for? Isa: Do you remember? When we were best friends, sneaking into the castle from time to time… Lea: Yeah. Isa: To save the friend we made there, we became apprentices to Ansem the Wise.

Isa then reveals that he and Lea once wanted to rescue a girl from Ansem's castle. I really want to talk a bit about this sudden backstory exposition dump, which seemed to come out of absolutely nowhere. I don't think it's too farfetched that this idea of helping a girl was always a part of their backstory, even when Days and BBS were first written. However, I highly doubt this girl was supposed to be one of the Lost Masters or a character from Union X. If this idea existed all the way back in 2009, the girl was probably just Kairi. In any case, rescuing the girl was probably just a small fraction of the backstory Nomura initially had planned for Lea and Isa.

Experiments of the Heart – Notes on Subject X, Excerpt 1 (KH3) After his initial experiments on me, Ansem the Wise ceased his research into the heart, his hand stayed by some fear I cannot fathom. Yet this new subject is like me: devoid of memories. She is the perfect sample upon which to continue my master's work. She, too, could benefit from it; by traversing the heart, we have a direct path into memory. I myself have begun to reclaim my lost past thanks to these very experiments.

After AtW initially delved into Xehanort's heart, he put a stop his research. Xehanort then conducted more research in secret, including experiments on the girl and other kidnapped victims.

Ansem's Report 2 (KH1) The experiments caused the test subjects' hearts to collapse, including those of the most stalwart. How fragile our hearts are! My treatment produced no signs of recovery. I confined those who had completely lost their hearts beneath the castle. Experiments of the Heart – Notes on Subject X, Excerpt 2 (KH3) My pilot studies used a handful of subjects, but none possessed the fortitude to endure them. Ultimately, all suffered mental collapse. I knew it would be a heavy blow to lose a subject as unique as she.

Subject X was one of the pilot subjects mentioned in Ansem's Report 2. The girl and the others were imprisoned under the castle. All of them turned into Heartless except for the girl, who regained lucidity. Xehanort found her useful and she was locked up long enough to befriend Lea and Isa. But Braig/Luxu eventually took her away.

Memoirs, Excerpt 2 (KH3) We slipped into the castle that day knowing only that we wanted, with all our hearts, to save her. But we did not find her inside on that day or the next, or any of our subsequent visits. Had she been moved? Had we simply imagined her? Lea and I knew there was only one way to be certain. And so we stand before the castle gates today, not as trespassing children but in order to become Ansem the Wise's newest apprentices.

Sometime after the girl disappeared, Lea and Isa offered to become apprentices because they wanted to save her. However, the real Ansem already ceased his research and it's highly unlikely he would accept new apprentices. So, Lea and Isa most likely became apprentices to the impostor Ansem while he was in the midst of his research on the Heartless, which was a secret from the real Ansem.

Ansem's Report 4 (KH1) The Heartless appear in groups, and are multiplying rapidly. I've provided them both living and nonliving samples. They've responded only to the living. They seem to multiply after absorbing something from the living creatures. Their prey vanishes without a trace. I believe the Heartless are taking hearts. They are born from those who've lost their hearts, and thrive on hearts seized from others. The hearts taken by the Heartless become Heartless themselves.

Under the guise of helping out with research, perhaps Lea and Isa were used as "living samples"? That would explain why they were wearing the black coats when they were recompleted, rather than the white lab coats that all the other apprentices wore.

(Japanese Translation) Xemnas: The experiment to generate Heartless was an attempt to control the mind and abandon the ego. Even if we made one lose their heart that way, one could still harbor a heart in their body, which serves as a vessel.

In Ansem's Report 8, the experiment to generate Emblem Heartless required Xehanort to recreate the conditions that spawned the Pureblood Heartless. So, Xehanort would have needed another subject, right? This subject would have probably met the same fate as Subject X. Suffered a mental breakdown and locked up in the Chamber of Repose. Saix's favorite insults for Xion were "defective failure" and "broken". Almost like it was intentional innuendo to foreshadow his dark backstory of being turned into a vessel.

(Japanese Translation) Subject X and Notes on Mental Experimentation 2 (KH3) During the initial experiments, we tested a few candidates, but none of them could maintain their sanity—they all broke down. I can't afford for something to happen to her, this special subject. In the midst of this, it was revealed to my master that I had been conducting repeated tests using a large number of subjects. This led to a strict order to halt the research and dispose of all the results. But that wasn't all. Along with the release of many test subjects, she, too, disappeared without a trace. Where is the subject now?

This Secret Report from KH3 coincides with Ansem's Report 9. After discovering what his apprentices were doing, Ansem sealed off the Chamber of Repose. Xehanort believed Ansem found Subject X and hid her away, but it was actually Braig who had done so already. But Ansem may have taken other subjects out of the prison and hid them. And I always found it noteworthy that Saix was retconned to have orange eyes starting in Days and DDD. It may have been foreshadowing that he too had a connection to Ansem the Wise. Maybe Isa was one of the subjects taken away?

(Japanese Translation) Lea: I remember. But we never found her, did we? Isa: Have you given up? Lea: I haven't given up, but… Right after we became apprentices, before I even knew what was happening, Ansem the Wise disappeared. Before I even knew what was happening, we became Nobodies. Before I even knew what was happening, you became Xemnas's right-hand man. It wasn't even a matter of that, was it?

Lea speaks about this mystery girl as though he hasn't even thought about her in many years, and he was completely caught off guard by Isa's question. The English version of this scene leads you to believe that both Lea and Isa made a choice to become Nobodies and then they both voluntarily chose to join the Organization (and doing all the dirty work involved with following Xemnas) all in order to find Subject X. But in Japanese, this was not really the case.

Lea repeatedly used the phrase 「なんだか知らねぇうちに」 ("Before I even knew what was happening") to describe how events unfolded. The dialogue suggests that their original plan was to become apprentices to Ansem the Wise in order to save the girl. But everything else was portrayed as an unintended consequence. In other words, the situation spiraled out of control.

Lea also used the phrase 「それどころじゃ���かっただろ」 ("It wasn’t even a matter of that, was it?"). This means that the situation they were in (Ansem disappearing, becoming Nobodies, Isa becoming the right-hand man) was too overwhelming or urgent to focus on their original goal of finding the girl. She wasn't the priority to Lea anymore. She was never his motivation for joining the Organization.

(Japanese Translation) Isa: Xemnas's original self, Xehanort, used her as a research subject. I thought becoming his right-hand man would be the quickest way to save her. Lea: So… did you find her? I helped you at first, didn't I? To help you climb the ranks. Isa: I didn't find her. There wasn't even a trace of her. Maybe she was never there to begin with. At some point, I started to think that way. And before I knew it, my goal had changed—to become a stronger existence.

Saix's primary goal was to get close to Xemnas so he could stab him in the back and take over the Organization. And it probably had more to do with a getting revenge on Xemnas than anything altruistic. He knew Xemnas had a "friend" in the Chamber of Waking and he wanted to use that to his advantage. Saix literally had no heart. He barely even reacted when Axel almost died in Castle Oblivion. His obsession with strength was likely due to his gradual Nortification.

And there's no reason to believe that Saix was not fully Norted by the start of Days. The idea that he was just selflessly looking for that girl and only acted so evil because Axel grew closer to Roxas and Xion is a retcon to avoid addressing the elephant in the room—Saix was possessed. That's why Axel grew distant from him in the first place.

I honestly don't know why they completely dropped the possession idea after DDD, since it would have made Isa so much more sympathetic. I guess they thought fans didn't care enough about Isa to think too deeply about it. I personally thought it was not only very insulting to Isa's character but the audience as a whole. It's insulting to drop such a flagrant retcon at the last minute and assume that the player wouldn't possess the reading comprehension to even notice. But honestly, I think Nomura thought so, too. But he mentally checked out with KH3 and stopped caring.

(Japanese Translation) Lea: That's where you went wrong. It's not too late—quit the Organization already. Isa: And you're the same. Roxas is just like the friend we were searching for. That friend is already gone. It's better to think that way.

IMO, this line had a slightly different nuance in Japanese. Isa was saying that Lea's borderline obsession with Roxas mirrors his own fixation on finding the missing girl. And if you ask me, both of them were the same in that regard. Lea was trying to replace the best friend he lost with a new one. And Isa was using the girl similarly.

(Japanese Translation) Lea: Don't mess with me! I'll bring Roxas back, no matter what. And I'll find that friend too. If it comes down to it, I'll even bring you back. Isa: The marks under your eyes… they're gone. Lea: Yeah. I don't need them anymore. Isa: You, who used to be such a crybaby—I was the one who taught you the charm to reverse your tears. Lea: Shut up. Go home already. I'll beat you to a pulp tomorrow! Isa: I'm looking forward to it.

There were little vague hints for a deeper backstory that we never got to see, like Isa getting a Winner stick and the mention of Lea's upside-down tears. I’m sure the Winner stick was an important memento to Lea and Isa even before Roxas gave it to Axel in Days. And tears no doubt had to do with his bond with Isa. That's why the subject embarrassed him so much. Yes, just like in DDD, it's still strongly implied that Lea originally made the promise to Isa that he'd always bring him back. When Lea says, "I'll even bring you back," the camera angle even is the same as Lea's dream from DDD. Just like when Axel declared that to Xion before they fought, Lea was getting worked up remembering his past promise to Isa.

MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR I am assuming that you already have a copy of KINGDOM HEARTS III if you are looking at this page, but as I do not know if you are reading this before or after you played the game, I will write my foreword without any spoilers. I had quite a tough time writing the story this time around. So many characters appear in this game, with each of them having their own set of problems and needing to choose their own fate. They are characters that were born over the course of ten plus years, and each character has fans who love them. I ask for everyone to see their stories to the end, and see what each of them grasped from their stories. I rewrote the ending multiple times, and took a lot of time deciding how I want it to play out on the screen. After much thought, I ended up keeping it simple. I believe that KINGDOM HEARTS III is truly completed when the two thoughts - whatever you feel from playing the game, and my thoughts that I’ve secretly placed in the game - match up together. I hope that everyone playing the game will complete the game for us. The release of this game was truly a long time coming. We did make you wait for a long time, but I’m sure it will feel like a blink of an eye for you to reach the ending compared to the time it took to get here. However, I believe the reason as to why this series has lasted this long, is because of the feeling that it leaves you with after you finish playing the game. It would make me happy if you talk with friends about KINGDOM HEARTS III, the new addition to the series, and if that triggers you to think about stories that haven’t been told yet.

As a whole, the KH team just wanted the Dark Seeker Saga over with. I don’t think they ever intended for Isa’s storyline to continue past KH3. But Nomura secretly wanted players to finish KH3 feeling unsatisfied and thinking of all the other stories he wasn't able to tell. Even if that meant he had to connect one of the Lost Masters to Lea and Isa's past in a pretty contrived way, he wanted their backstory to be left open for the possibility that he could depict it someday.

Back in 2019, it was still unclear whether he'd ever revisit this backstory (his answer was leaning towards a no). In 2022, Nomura finally confirmed that we WILL see more of this backstory since fan interest was sufficient. But it still leaves their storyline in KH3 feeling less like an actual conclusion, and more like a teaser.

To say I was extremely disappointed in Lea and Isa's story back in 2019 when I first played KH3 would be…an understatement. The short scene about their past was still mainly just exposition to introduce a girl who would be important in the NEXT game. I would later learn that this girl was possibly Skuld from the mobile game Union X. Whatever. I certainly didn't buy KH3 to learn about her, lol.

Ultimately, the big reveal in DDD that Saix was a human puppet meant nothing in KH3. Saix just randomly turned back into Isa again off-screen. So, after this clock tower scene, I realized that there was not going to be any storyline where Lea would need to use his Keyblade to be the hero, bring his best friend's heart back from the darkness, and change him back to the person he once was. I had to force myself to keep playing after that. And it was VERY hard.

"Fans all have different favorite characters, so I thought I should give each of them their own time to shine, but because the amount of things needed to be explained was too large, I had to find a way to have Sora move forward, at the very least. Actually, when the scenarios were being written, the Keyblade Graveyard part was the most difficult. If I focused on each character at a time, the progression of events would be quite slow, and the battles involving Sora were necessary to be shown, so making allowances for everything was difficult. The way I imagined it, all of the characters tied to each other should fight in order and put an end to everything [themselves], but if I did that, the explanations would end up being too long. On the other hand, if I made the enemies you can battle only a few people, and showed the rest via cutscene, that wouldn't have been very satisfying. After worrying about it quite a lot, with a certain intention in mind, I placed the emphasis on the pacing, and the way the plot unfolded was able to be brought to life."

At first, I do think Nomura probably tried his hardest to incorporate an abridged version of Lea and Isa's backstory into KH3 (along with many of the other Organization XIII members' backstories). But due to the troubled development, costly budget, and the push to make the game more accessible, the team pressured him to make the game more fast-paced, cut down on the amount of boss fights, and keep the exposition to a bare minimum. Lea and Isa's entire scrapped storyline needed to be concluded with barely ANY screentime. I think Nomura was very unhappy about this. And he probably also had no idea how to even to write it with such restrictions.

『キングダム ハーツIII』でのロクサスやシオンの復活に関しては、かなりギリギリまで悩んでいて、復活させないルートのストーリーまで考えていました。ただ、皆さんの想いが強かったので復活ルートになりました。どうしようかと悩んでいる部分に関しては、皆さんの想いにかなり影響を受けますね。 "I struggled quite a lot, right up until the last moment, about the revival of Roxas and Xion in Kingdom Hearts III, and I even thought through a story where they wouldn't be revived. However, because everyone's feelings were so strong, it became the revival route. When I'm uncertain about how to proceed, everyone's feelings have a significant influence."

Lea's whole fight with Isa at the KG was basically a plot device to allow Xion and Roxas to return. Logically, I understand why it was written that way. Fans were, by and large, more invested in the nostalgic reunion of the Days trio anyways. Without a detailed backstory, fans wouldn't be emotionally invested in a Lea/Isa reunion. Most fans simply saw Isa as the contemptible bastard who bullied Xion and Roxas, not as Lea’s beloved childhood friend/lover. Logically, this choice made sense. But emotionally, I still hated how the final story played out. It just felt so cheap. And I definitely got the sense that Nomura's heart really wasn't in it, either.

"復活させないルートのストーリーまで考えていました" (I even thought through a story where they wouldn’t be revived)

The phrasing here makes it clear that not only was a non-revival route considered, but it was detailed enough to have its own story. The use of "ただ" (however) and the detail about a fully fleshed out non-revival story imply that Nomura probably leaned toward not reviving them. And I really would kill to see this alternate version of KH3. Hell, if you ask me, I think an alternate version of the Lea/Isa battle was not only written and storyboarded, but it probably even was partially animated and only altered at the last minute.

Isa does not even look rageful like he does in his KH2 berserker mode. He looks totally mindless. Like he's a puppet being controlled. It's interesting how he stops his attack just as he's about to finish off Lea. Then Xemnas comes out of nowhere. He is clearly pissed that they're not clashing, and he steps in to finish Lea off himself.

Isa is watching and he seems to be gaining a bit of self-awareness. And then he steps in just in the nick of time to save Lea.

Just kidding!

That's when Xion gains self-awareness and does it instead. Isa kinda just hangs out in the background. He says nothing and does nothing until he's defeated by Roxas. I have no idea whether he was supposed to be fully self-aware during this fight or not. Re:Mind sorta hints that he deliberately did nothing to help Lea so Xion could come to her senses. But I guess it really didn't matter because Isa was chopped liver in this game's storyline anyway. I guess the team thought, as long as Isa helped R+X come back, that was enough. He didn't really need to be a well-developed or likable character in his own right.

Roxas reveals that Isa was working the whole time to help him get a body. Wow, how convenient. No wonder Isa wasn't allowed to be possessed. The plot needed him to do things off-screen. How did Roxas even know this? No idea. It makes absolutely no sense. But I definitely had no trouble believing Nomura when he said he only decided to revive Roxas at the last minute to please the fans. I had already suspected as much, but I respect his honesty for actually admitting that, considering how angry it made some fans.

(Japanese Translation) Isa: What's with that face? Lea: Damn it, stop letting yourself be manipulated so easily! Isa: Don't you think you've outgrown that little charm by now? Lea: Yeah. Isa: Then quit making that face.

They never actually reveal what the "charm" to reverse tears was. The word used was "おまじない" (omajinai) which often conveys an element of emotional reliance or psychological comfort. It's not an actual magic spell; more like a silly little ritual, like crossing fingers for good luck. It often has a whimsical or lighthearted connotation and can involve anything from simple gestures to spoken phrases.

In KH2, Hayner shot down the notion that their friend group would stay together forever. Naturally, things would change after they grew up. There's a very similar exchange in 358/2 Days. Axel told R+X that being together forever was impossible. Then they both looked sad, and he tried to cheer them up. "What's important isn't that we hang out with each other every day. As long as we keep each other in our thoughts, we'll never be apart, right?" To me, it seemed like Axel was just repeating something told to him by Isa, to keep him from crying.

Regardless of how much Isa wanted to help Subject X, I don't think he would ever have chosen to become a vessel or become Xemnas's right-hand man. The more likely scenario is that his storyline was supposed to have overlapping themes with Xion's. Rather than let himself become a puppet dancing on Xemnas's strings, he chose to disappear. And Lea did not take that decision very well. He probably beat Isa up and dragged him back to the Organization himself.

(Japanese Translation) Lea: You should stop pushing yourself too hard. You've been looking for her all this time, haven't you? Isa: Maybe. I've been searching for her seriously—even going as far as siding with them. Meanwhile, you acted like you'd forgotten her, made new friends, and started enjoying yourself. Watching you like that… it just pissed me off. It felt like our goal was slipping further away.

In Days, one of Saix's reports mentions the plan Lea and Isa formulated when they joined the Organization together. After KH3, players just assumed that their goal was to find Subject X. But again, Lea's dialogue casts doubt on that. After everything that happened, he was not particularly concerned with Subject X anymore. He didn't even know that Isa was still looking for her. Whatever their shared goal was, it was likely to be something more mutual and personal to them. Like, taking out Xemnas, securing their freedom, and then eating ice cream and watching the sunset every day. I'd wager that when Days was first written, that was the idea, more or less.

Disney has been more conservative lately about LGBTQ content and they are the ones that own KH. Or maybe Square-Enix just thought overt romantic undertones between two men would damage the game's "accessibility" especially in places like China or the Middle East where even implied homosexuality is illegal. In any case, the KH3 team clearly wanted to drive home that Isa was obsessed with a girl. He was mad that Lea forgot about the girl. The GIRL, okay!? Honestly, I think Nomura was probably told to "tone it down".

(Japanese Translation) Lea: I never forgot. Isa: Yeah, I know. You're not that kind of person. Probably… I was just jealous. Lea: You're being honest. Isa: Once I'm human again, I wouldn't say something this embarrassing.

Lea's shadow self was a crybaby. He couldn't bear to lose his best friend. Isa's shadow was also related to his difficulty acknowledging his feelings. The VERY subtle implication was that Isa was not being candid about his intentions. His anger at Axel in Days and KH2 didn't have a damn thing to do with any girl. And finding her wasn't the reason he joined the Organization once again in KH3. But he didn't want to admit the real reason. It was too embarrassing. So, he lied.

You used to be a crybaby. Before I knew it, the marks under your eyes that stopped you from crying disappeared, and you began to make friends other than me and laughed with them. [...] In the end, you're still a crybaby, but you don't need those upside-down tears anymore. Just like you don't need me anymore. Yes, I thought I wasn't someone you wanted around any longer. That's why I sacrificed myself for that man. If you don't need me, then there's nothing left for me.

He does admit it in his Character File short story, though. He thought Lea didn't need him anymore and he no longer had any purpose. But if he stated this on screen without also mentioning the girl, I think too many people would have realized how gay Isa and Lea were for each other. We couldn't have that now, could we? The short story HEAVILY implies that Lea's upside-tears were related to how much he needed Isa and couldn't bear to lose him.

“I never thought he would grow as much as he has. We originally planned to have him exit upon being defeated by Roxas during the opening of KHII, but all the staff, myself included, were strongly inclined to have him keep playing an active role after that. It's possible he will have things to do in the future, too. I tried to put that into his 'see you' line in KH2 FM+.”

Overall, Lea and Isa's storyline in KH3 was only a shadow of what it was originally intended to be. After waiting seven years, I can’t say I enjoyed it all that much. But I respect that Nomura didn't completely extinguish the intimacy between these two and their final exchange was still extremely tender. Especially with the Japanese voice acting. The last words that Lea and Isa exchange on screen are "see you". That particular line was apparently very significant.

Axel: Let's meet again in the next life. Roxas: Yeah, I'll be waiting.

Even in the original KH2, I always suspected that what Axel said to Roxas was what he and his human best friend once said to each other. But Lea, being the crybaby that he is, couldn't let Isa go.

Next to you, I eat the sweet and salty ice cream. It tastes the same as it did back in Radiant Garden when we were young. I never imagined a future like this, sitting side by side and eating ice cream. Being the crybaby is supposed to be your specialty. And yet… The sunset stings my eyes.

It makes me sad that for most players, the main takeaway they got from Lea and Isa's KH3 storyline was: "Who is Subject X? Is she Ava or Skuld? Where did Luxu take her? Will Lea and Isa go looking for her in KH4?" I couldn’t care less about Subject X or the Lost Masters arc, to be frank. The main payoff for their story wasn't supposed to be a potential reunion with some time traveling girl in KH4. It was supposed to be this moment right here. This epilogue scene was supposed to be the definitive ending to Axel's long and painful character arc. At least Tomoco Kanemaki viewed it that way.