Latest Posts by terra-fatalis - Page 7

FF7 Remake ~English/Japanese Comparison Master Post

I have been noting the differences between the official North American English language version of FF7R and the Japanese game. Translation choices are guided by cultural differences and the media tropes, audience expectations, and localized needs that shape the narrative. These small differences can significantly impact how we understand characters and their relationships. I love sharing my observations and guesses with other fans!   I think I am pretty unbiased since this is my first real encounter with the story (husband played the OG so I know a little bit) but know these are still my thoughts on it. I am overall disengaged from the surprisingly vitriolic ship wars. Pls don’t drag me into that.     I have made 10 posts at least 20 about it so far. The earlier ones are a bit sloppily done but as I’ve continued, the later posts got more streamlined and easier to read. Sorry for typos. I’ll update this master post occasionally when more posts come. If you are so moved, there is a link to send me a cup of coffee because I can only really do these late at night.   

20. Tifa’s resolution 19. “You can’t fall in love with me” 18. EVERYONE DIES 17. Interlude: CLOUD AND TIFA LUUURRRVVEE EACH OTHER - I only did a few and they are somewhere in the comments.  16. Untranslatable weird speech things: the case of Reno 15. Untranslatable weird speech things: the case of Wedge ~Shameless request to please buy me coffee. I don’t have a patreon 14. Hide and Seek with Tifa and Aerith, aka Chicks before Dicks  13. We’ve got a bodyguard, don’t forget. MINE. 12. HOHEEEEEEEEE + video 11. Pretty boys, homely girls, nailed it, and is Cloud…kind of stupid? 

~~Pause for a Reeve appreciation post~~ 10: Someone’s got a bit of a crush 9. That’s the perfect type for you I’d say. 8. Is Tifa, like, your girlfriend? 7. Aerith’s personality differences.  6. Not a “Merc” and other observations.  5. You and everybody and their mother.  4.5 note: A great Japanese youtuber compares the Ghost scene. 4. Tifa, the protector. 3. Lovers used to give these when they were reunited… 2. Flirting at the bar. 1. Alone at last.

tifa week | reunion | day three 🐬🥊💫

Tifa & Aerith Reunited!

Credit: @marlenadia

Thank you so much @tifa-daily​ for this wonderful event!

Aerith & Marlene: a special bond

Marlene Wallace is a little sweet 4 years old child and Barret’s adoptive daughter.

The strange interaction between Aerith and Marlene in Chapter 12 of the Remake raises the mistery: what kind of information did Aerith share with this kid? And, more importantly, why?

This scene brought up a longstanding question too: is Marlene a Cetra?

I don't presume to have an answer! I have no idea about what the devs have in mind for this character. With this post I'll just try to highlight all the elements that showed the bond between Aerith and Marlene in the FFVII compilation.

Key Art

Since the early concepts of this character, Marlene’s been represented holding a flower. Nothing really strange, if it were not for the fact that flowers in Midgar are true rarety and are mainly related to Aerith.

Marlene is in Barret’s key art. The picture is more or less the same both for the OG and for the Remake and it depicts Barret and Marlene staring at the flower bed in Aerith’s church, even if this specific scene has never been showed in any entry. 

Final Fantasy VII

In the OG Tifa asked Aerith to rescue Marlene from Seventh Heaven before the collapse of Sector 7 plate. They spent a relatively short time together, but Marlene became immediately very fond of Aerith and never forgot her.

The player could find again Marlene with Elmyra, while Aerith had been kidnapped by Shinra. Marlene told Cloud that Aerith liked him and she got really angry if he didn't answer in an interested way (”Stupid!”). But if he answered in a positive way she was also aware that it was the kind of information that could hurt Tifa (”I won’t tell Tifa”).

If the player had the date with Aerith, Marlene recognized her voice and, later, Cait Sith said she got really sad when she came to know about Aerith's death.

Marlene appeared again at the very end of the game where she perceived Aerith's presence when the Lifestream started to erupt from the surface of earth to reject Meteor.

On the Way to a Smile

Marlene appears also in the novel On the way to a smile, especially in Case of Tifa. She is described to be a very sensitive and mature child:

It was Marlene who noticed the changes in Cloud (...) Marlene was an observant child, sensitive to the grown-ups’ moods.

Maybe Marlene thought Tifa wasn’t listening when she said in a small, lonely voice, “Cloud and Tifa aren’t getting along”.

This would mean nothing if taken out of context but I think it fits the continuity of her character development until Advent Children, the entry where she is openly depicted to be a little copy of Aerith.

Advent Children

At the beginning of the movie Marlene is the narrator that resumes the events concerning Meteorfall, the Lifestream and the battle against Sephiroth. 

She has the same hairstyle and pink ribbon as Aerith, and her white outfit slightly recalls Aerith’s dress from Crisis Core. Her skirt and socks are decorated with floral motives. 

She behaves like Aerith: she is blunt, encouraging and she always sais what she thinks

Her room is full of interesting elements:

There’s a pink sleeveless dress in a corner

There are various pictures of flowers hung on the walls and a vase of Aerith’s flowers on the windowsill

There’s a picture of a church and the photo of the flower bed in Aerith’s church  

(Yes I know, the quality of the images is really bad. I’m looking forward for the 4K version of the movie in June).

Marlene has sort of a healing role toward Denzel, since she takes care of him when he has Gestigma symptoms (in the movie and the novels) and she is the only child who has no Geostigma. The Remnants seem to understand that she’s different from the other children and they keep a close watch on her

When she arrives at the church she tends the flowers like Aerith used to

When Loz’s going to kill Tifa she distracts him throwing a globe of Materia that looks exactly like White materia

She senses where Cloud has Geostigma (he has a puzzled look when she askes if it hurts, as if she wasn’t supposed to know it)

When Aerith intervenes in the battle she can feel her presence (in the Japanese version she sais お姉ちゃん, which means “older sister”).

Final Fantasy VII Remake

In the Remake Aerith meets Marlene in the same way as she did in the OG but this time Tseng finds them immediately at Seventh Heaven (I’m not sure if this is meant to be a relevant change or just a revised and more realistic way to show the scene, all we know is that the Whispers didn’t intervene). Despite this change something “strange” happens between them anyway...

Marlene, who was crying frightened, immediately calms down and hugs Aerith again. She notices that she smells like “their flower”, to which Aerith answers:

as if she already knew they won’t spend much time together in the future. 

Before Barret and the others leave to save Aerith from Shinra, Marlene tries to warn her father saying he should help Aerith but she can’t explain the real reason. 

And dulcis in fundo, at the end of the game, Marlene, once again, can perceive the “presence” of someone. In this case it’s her daddy calling her name.

And that’s all for now! 

I have no idea how the story is going to develop in the next entries of the Remake, but maybe it is not so wrong to think that this young character will have a more important role in the future!

‘Course she did.

I’ll be going now. I’ll come back when it’s all over.

Why Tifa is the only person, living or dead, who can resolve Cloud’s crisis

Alternate title: “What really happened in the Lifestream”

Of course the Lifestream scene has been discussed to death within the fandom. While some consider it one of the greatest triumphs of the Cloud/Tifa relationship and the game in general, others are quick to diminish its events and Tifa’s role. “Oh, any other childhood friend character who knew Cloud could do the job.” “Oh, Cloud only needed Tifa as moral support, he could have figured everything out himself.” “Oh, Aerith (maybe +Zack) could have done it by accessing her Cetra/time machine/empath/Planet powers.”

The Lifestream sequence is extraordinarily dense with many subtle visual cues, so there’s a lot to untangle and interpret. But no matter how you slice it, any take which downplays or eliminates Tifa is fundamentally missing the point of this scene, both for the plot and for Cloud’s character arc.

A lot of the confusion stems from a fundamental misunderstanding of what actually needs to happen in the Lifestream and why. Thus, using specific details from the sequence, I’d like to present my take on the following:

Part 1: What Cloud needs to accomplish in the Lifestream to advance the plot

Part 2: Why Tifa is the only person, living or dead, who can resolve Cloud’s crisis, where we will discuss fun things such as:

Why Tifa is the the focus of his greatest flaw

What Tifa’s presence in the Lifestream accomplishes

Part 3: Why those “Tifa-less” fan theories just can’t work

This is a very long ride so let’s get to it!

Continua a leggere

Marlene knows him well.

Marlene is a smart kid.

Trust Marlene.

Marle's dog...??

Talk about a coincidence!

(Previous post here)

Aerith's key art

Since the release of the original FF7 each main character's had a dedicated key art.

They mostly remained unaltered in the Remake because their symbolism applies to both entries, while Aerith and Yuffie's changed in order to fit the themes of this new installment.

In the first picture Aerith was looking at the Highwind, but in the new one the airship's disappeared...why?

In the OG she wished she could fly on the Highwind one day. Probably this key art was meant to give to the player the illusion she could fulfill her dream and continue the adventure with her companions, in order to make more painful and unexpected her destiny.

I think her Remake key art has a totally different meaning. The central point of this picture is not the absence of the airship but the fact that she's staring at the blue sky:

The last line of the Remake makes more sense in Japanese

The sky, I hate it.

It links up better with the scene of Crisis Core where she perceived Zack's death while it started raining.

But maybe this time there's a chance...

This new picture has also a parallel with Tifa's key art: both staring at the sky, both relating it to a special person❤️

What a nice coincidence!

I can't get this out of my mind

@zerith-week

“As long as we’re together, I won’t be afraid.” “Yes, I promise.”

@zerith-week day 2: promise

23 tiny wishes by wlop

“I have 23 tiny wishes. But im sure you wont remember them all. So i wrote them all into one. I want to spend more time with you.” For Zack and Aerith

4k wallpaper, original file, brush set and painting process video will be provided to supporters on my Patreon:www.patreon.com/wlop

Aerith by wlop

Looking forward to the remake version! #FinalFantasy7 Support me on patreon to get the high res wallpaper image and painting process: https://www.patreon.com/wlop

Talk about a coincidence!

A debated canonicity

(Previous post here)

Mad1en who Trave1s the P1anet (adding typos to prevent unpleasant comments) is one of the most controversial entries of FFVII lore.

It was included in FFVII Ultimania Omega, published in 2005. Fans have debated ever since if this short story is part of the canon entries of the compilation, as it was written by an external writer that never took part to the realisation of the game.

Part of the fandom thinks it's canon because Square Enix never said it isn't, another part thinks it's not canon because Square Enix never mentioned it again ever since it was published (neither ever provided an official translation nor decided to sell it outside Japan. Quite self-explanatory, considering that "Picturing the Past" has been immediately translated and it's sold everywhere in the world).

The particularity of this novel is that here Aerith states she loves Cloud more than Zack. Not a word is spent to describe how she feels when she understands that Zack didn't cheat on her but endured experimetations for years and died to save Cloud, and that Cloud had created an alter ego based on Zack's traits. These lines started to divide the fans after the release of Crisis Core, that describes a tender and sincere romantic relationship between Zack and Aerith.

Yes, SE never officially said if this novel is canon or not, but I'd like to point out a fact:

The Remake includes tons of references to all the entries of the compilation.

Some examples?

The Avalanche members that show up in Chapter 4 wear the original uniforms of Before Crisis:

Crisis Core references can be found everywhere in the game, for one thing, Zack's last stand:

Dirge of Cerberus was already hinted in the game when Cloud, Tifa and Barret fell in the misterious lab beneath Sector 7 and is going to be heavily referred in the Intergrade. From the trailer we can see Weiss:

There are many references to Advent Children too. For example, Sephiroth has the black wing that he only showed in the movie:

Last order is quite difficult to refrence, as it doesn't add anything new to the story but it's rather a reinterpretation of Nibelheim incident. Anyway, it is mentioned in FFVII Remake World Preview (Square Enix book that includes "Picturing the Past"):

And now talk about the novels:

New characters, like Kyrie, come from The Kids are alright, a Turks side Story:

And here's an example from On the Way to a Smile too: from a dialogue with Jessie it's revealed that Cloud doesn't know the names of vegetables:

...turned out he [Cloud] didn't know a carrot from a gysal green. At first, Tifa was amused that mighty Cloud's new life started with learning vegetables names... (Case of Tifa)

So:

Before Crisis

Crisis Core

Advent Children

Dirge of Cerberus

Last Order

The Kids are alright

On the way to a Smile...

Picturing the Past was written alongise the Remake to clarify the origins of the mural painting in Aerith's room...

They are all abundantly referenced multiple times during the game. Find a more exhaustive list here.

And now it's the turn of Ma1den who trave1s the P1anet.

The author of this novel based himself on the original dialogues and story of the OG and reinterpreted them adding some new elements to create a coherent narration (full of discrepancies that, ehm, have already been disproved years ago, like Aerith's age when she met Zack, Hojo being not really dead, Zack's personality being totally different from Crisis Core, Aerith already knowing about Zack's death, normal souls that should merge immediately in the Lifestream, Omnislash being not Zack's ability...not that this ever convinced anyone).

Correct me if I'm wrong, but...

There are no references at all in the whole game. Not a single word that inequivocally refers to this novel.

Not a word to hint the fact that bad people's souls will rot in the Lifestream and won't be part of it because their spirits are beyond redemption (like what happened in the novel to President Shinra and Hojo).

In the novel Biggs, Wedge and Jessie are tormented by the deaths caused by the explosion of Mako reactor n.1. Jessie feels guilty both in the OG and in the Remake but Biggs and Wedge don't show much regret and the Remake shows that Shinra caused the massive explosion of the reactor, not Jessie. But wasn't the Lifestream supposed to be the place where all knowledges are merged together? I may be wrong but this would suggest that Jessie would have known it after her death.

There are hints that suggest the Aerith of the resolution scene is the one who already died in the OG: she talks to Cloud as if they had passed a long time together, she talks about death and finally disappears in a sparkling greenish light.

It would have been a great scene to put any reference to Ma1den but...it didn't happen.

Well...wierd the devs forgot to mention just this entry...

What a coincidence.

I could cry😭🎉🎊

Grazie grazie grazieeeeeeee 💖💖💖☄️☄️☄️

Ahhh yes! That ending scene with Zack was fantastic, what a range of emotions the first time I watched it. Confused, worried I’d see a sad ending again, confused again, dawning comprehension, then a ton of exciting and wtf combined. I think I’m still stuck in that last one, haha.

Thank you for putting in words what I was too sleepy to express last night! Yes, when I saw the last stand I feared I would have finished the game in tears like I did when I played CC, but I ended up in tears anyway when I saw him alive. This ending is so full of hope, expectations and misteries. I can't understand people who disliked it.

That hug hitted home so hard! Such a big load of emotions: need of comfort, trust, that "inexplicable something" buried inside Cloud that lead him to hug her... I really hope the devs will spend a scene in the future to show how he will re-evaluate this moment after regaining his true-self.

Barret is absolutely the cherry on top of this game and his English VA can't be prized enough for his amazing job. I don't know how he sounds in JP but the English one made a great job in conveying the essence of the character even in the perspective of non-native English players. I found him so grotesque in the OG but now I can't help but love him. His interactions with other characters are great but, yes, his bond with Marlene is priceless.

My very second favourite part of the game is Aerith rescuing Marlene (rescuing Betty, encouraging Wedge to save the Sector 7 citizens, all the scene), but your moments are close ones. There are so many beautiful well-developed and emotional scenes and so much attention to details that it's even difficult to establish a ranking. Otherwise we wouldn't be here after a year still noticing&analyzing new details :)

What are your expectations for the Intergrade? Since the devs had complete freedom about the setting of this episode I hope we could see the Sector 7 fall from the upper plate perspective and I'm really looking forward for any reference to Denzel.

happy ffviir 1 year anniversary! 🎉🎊🎈 do you have a moment or detail from the remake that's still your favorite even a year later?

Hi Hartofhearts!

Happy first year anniversary to you too!

Well there are MANY moments I really love about this first part of the Remake, but if I have to choose just one, I definitely take this scene, and all that follows it until the end. 

This is by far the most unexpected and most welcomed change of the Remake and it still gives me goose bumps! I can’t wait to see where this will lead, I really hope he could be reunited with Aerith this time…!

What about you??

AERITH & TIFA CG IN BRAVE EXVIUS

happy ffviir 1 year anniversary! 🎉🎊🎈 do you have a moment or detail from the remake that's still your favorite even a year later?

Hi Hartofhearts!

Happy first year anniversary to you too!

Well there are MANY moments I really love about this first part of the Remake, but if I have to choose just one, I definitely take this scene, and all that follows it until the end. 

This is by far the most unexpected and most welcomed change of the Remake and it still gives me goose bumps! I can’t wait to see where this will lead, I really hope he could be reunited with Aerith this time...!

What about you??

Reblogging because fundamentally I agree on everything but one point. Adding the "read more" line because I ended up writing more than I expected, it's late at night and probably it's filled with grammar mistakes and inconsistencies.

First of all I'm loving this article, it's really well written and I agree with its content.

The only point I disagree is the firm idea that Aerith will undoubtly die OR her presence will ruin other characters' arcs.

I'd say you're right if we could reasonably assume that from now on things will be going exactly like in the OG and that Aerith's survival is just the faint illusion of some fans. But after all the changes set in the first part of the Remake I don't see how things could be faithful to the OG anymore.

I think Aerith has a big chance to survive. The first part hinted her death way too often to just end up in the Forgotten City and let her die the way she did in the OG. Like "do you remember the tons of times Cloud foreshadowed her death and Aerith seemed to hope she could change her future? Well, it was useless she died anyway". Oh thank you Square Enix.

I don't want to degress too much on plot speculations and stay close to the shipping subject, but can we still assume this is just a Remake of the story as we know it? Maybe yes, probably no. If we defeated the "Whispers" I guess everything can happen from now on. As far as we know this could turn out to be a sequel, or even an illusion.

Aerith's survival is irreconcilable with the events of the original story just like Zack's survival but...actually he survived anyway.

The point is that whatever happens, wherever this Remake will bring us, her survival won't affect the romantic endgame. I am a CT. And not because I prefer Tifa over Aerith, but because I think that reading this story under the perspective of "Cloud will always love Aerith" is both inconsistent and turns Cloud into one of the worst jerks in the world. For a tons of reasons that CAs usually conveneintly ignore.

The big problem of this story is that SE never fully closed Aerith's character arc for what concerns the romantic aspect. In the OG she had strong feelings for Cloud, then there was the date (yes I think her date is the canon one), Cait Sith's prediction and...? She died and the romance died with her, and Cloud never talked about her until the end of the game. She saved everyone from the Lifestream, but what about her and her feelings? When we discovered the truth about Zack there was not a single word that closed their story. Zack said one line about Aerith and it is even not much of a great line. I get why Maiden was created, even if I'm convinced it's not a canon entry.

That's what caused the LTD not the fact that CT wasn't obvious. People who really like Aerith can't accept her being left alone in the Lifestream with Cloud and Tifa living happily ever after. They can't accept Cloud's feelings faded away when he regained his true personality, at the point that most of them refuse that Cloud had ever had a fake personality in the first place.

Crisis Core somehow tried to fix this flaw of the OG but the damage was already done and I lost count of how many times I argued with people who rabidly try to diminish the importance of Zerith. There's no other entry in the compilation where romance is more blatantly obvious than CC but this still happens too often: People trying to disminish the canonicity of CC in favour of Maiden. People saying Zack and Aerith weren't in a relationship. People saying Cloud didn't love Tifa at the time of Nibelheim incident. People saying Zack was in a relationship with Cissnei. People saying Cloud was always himself and trying to minimize his brain damage and the link with Zack. People claiming that Zack in AC was just a product of Cloud's imagination.

I could spend the whole day adding examples. All this to proof that even if Cloud lives with Tifa and raises children with her for at least 4 years (Case of Denzel is set after DoC) they live as totally strangers, because he'll pine for Aerith forever, throwing away all the themes of AC. It's so ridiculous that's incredible that someone could really believe it. But actually A LOT of people are convinced about this, sometimes it feels like most of the fandom thinks so.

SE knows it, they are aware of how many fans want a happy ending for her. Like you said, for many fans she IS the greatest, bestest and most importantest, and she can't be dismissed once again in the Forgotten City just to show up to save the day when Meteor is about to distroy the world. The devs have to give an answer to the expectations between Cloud and Aerith that they set 24 years ago. And they could do it by letting her survive.

The king of CA claims has always been: "IF Aerith survived she'd have been the love interest" followed by "she would heal Cloud in the Lifestream" and "She'd have the Highwind scene". They're debunkable under many perspectives but - at least when I tried to - it never worked. Withthe Remake the devs could let her survive and show that her life doesn't affect the bond between real-Cloud and Tifa. She can't steal moments that belong to other characters. She wouldn't even want to do it. The Lifestream scene will always be Tifa's scene, no matter how much some fans would like to see it played by the mage instead of the monk.

The devs already started to show this. Remake Aerith knows something about the future, and her flirtious attitude toward Cloud is different than in the OG. All their original flirting scenes were removed, most of the new flirting scenes heavily refer to Crisis Core (when they're not a copy&paste), reducing to a minimum the genuine bonding moments between them. Hell, of all the themes her resolution scene could revolve around, the core of it is the famous "You can't fall il love with me. It's not real." No matter how much some people try to distort this sentence to turn it in a love confession. It isn't. It doesn't matter how much people try to read Hollow as a CA love song, it starts when the camera focuses on Zack and Aerith. The devs are softly giving to fans the answer about the LTD in a way that her presence won't affect the outcome.

So I really hope she could survive. For one because I'm selfish, I like her and I don't want to cry her death in 4K. Then because if she dies again at the Forgotten City, the "IF" statements will be brought up again and again and again. Even if the devs would show Cloud and Tifa getting married, someone will always claim that deep in his heart he loves Aerith and Tifa is a rebound, and I don't really feel like keep debating again about who Cloud Strife loves over the next 25 years.

Dead or friendzoned, choose one: The Aerith uncertainty principle.

This article argues that while it might be possible for Aerith to be a love interest in FFVII:R, or that she might survive in FFVII:R, that these things can't both happen. disclaimer: I don't believe either will be happen. ______________________________________________________ Imagine this, the year is 2040, you're playing FFVIII:Remake. Rinoa is doomed out in space, just when she thinks she's about to die, she looks up and sees Squall coming towards her, in a move of unprecedented daring he had jumped out of the Ragnarok to go save her. Your eyes start tearing up as the last recollections of your childhood flood back into your mind and out your eyes. And then, suddenly, from the side of the screen.....Seifer comes floating into frame. Oh yeah, you had almost forgotten, Seifer didn't become evil during the remake timeline.

Afterwards, in the cockpit, Seifer hugs Squall and Rinoa as eyes on me starts playing. How big of an unwelcome intruder would Seifer be in that situation? How much of an insult would this be to one of Rinoa and Squalls most iconic moments? Clearly this would never happen, but why not? If Seifer hadn't turned evil, surely he'd have wanted to save Rinoa as well. Logically it makes sense for him to be there, and yet I think everyone would understand why Seifer isn't welcome there. So why on earth, when discussing final fantasy VII, do I honestly hear people say that if Aerith had lived, she'd have saved Cloud in the lifestream sequence and what's more, actually advocate for this to happen? People need to realize that even if you think Aerith is just the bestest, brightest, most importantest character in the universe, other characters still exist, and people love those other characters. And some of those people work at Square Enix, and they sure as hell won't elevate one character to the detriment of all others. Tifa and Cloud have moments together, important moments, iconic moments. There is Tifa choosing to stay behind and take care of Cloud in Mideel, there is the lifestream, there is the highwind. These are all beloved, iconic moments that fans are clamoring to see, and in each and every one of them Aerith is as unwelcome as Seifer is during "eyes on me", or Rikku during "Suteki da ne". Aerith is an ancient, the entire plot revolves around her, everyone loves her, she has magical powers and is the only person who can save the world! Imagine someone whose already that important, and then forcing her into moments belonging to other characters, there is no quicker way to aggravate a fanbase, or make a character distinctly unlikable. So Aerith, fundamentally, cannot be in those scenes, because those moments belong to other characters. But if Aerith is alive, and a supposed love interest, can she really be left out of those scenarios? Imagine Cloud is in a coma, imagine Tifa staying with him to take care of him while Aerith goes to save the planet. Imagine Tifa going into Clouds sub-conscious and pulling him out, then imagine Cloud and Tifa spending the night before the battle together, cementing their importance to each other, while Aerith goes to spend the night at Elmyra. Then, afterwards, the party defeats Sephiroth and Cloud rejects Tifa in favor of Aerith..... Cementing him as the biggest asshole ever, and Aerith as the most undeserving Mary Sue winner of a love triangle of all time.

Do you see any way of doing that that would not be a gigantic slap in the face to the character of Tifa? Who cared for Cloud while in a coma, who journeyed through his sub-conscious with him and spent her last night on this earth together with him? Fundamentally, the only way Aerith can survive, is if she takes a back in other story-arcs. People have tried to invent nonsensical ways in which Aerith could save Cloud from the lifestream, or suggest alternate routes where you still have the standard "Tifa route", but can also choose the "Aerith route". And all these ideas conveniently ignore the same basic thing. Aerith isn't the center of the universe. Every scene, every moment, every piece of importance you give to her, causes her to cast a larger shadow on the rest of the cast. People want her to be the love interest because they look at her importance to the plot, to her powers as an ancient. They look at how much of a main character she is and their first reaction is somehow "lets give her more". But her importance is exactly why this can never happen, because in order for her to take up the roles played by other characters, those characters need to take up the roles she leaves behind. And Tifa cannot do that. No matter how alive Aerith is, no matter how in love Aerith and Cloud are, Tifa will never be able to summon holy, she will never be able to save the planet by talking to the essence of life. Tifa can never fill Aeriths role, which is why Aerith can never fill hers. Because both matter, and if the thing that makes one special is taken from her, and given to the other, then you've insulted your characters, your fanbase, and your legacy by making one character the sad shadow of who they were, a pathetic ant compared to 'the Mary goddessue'. Aerith cannot do everything. Which means that if you love Aerith, you have 2 choices. You can either have Aerith be a genuine potential love interest, and have that plot point die with her. Or you can have her survive, and sit by as she takes a backseat to other characters, or you can have neither, but you can't have both. Or, you can do the worst of all worlds and argue that the entire story will change to fit this new harlequin romance novel you've invented and antagonize all your fans by removing all those iconic scenes altogether.....yeah, I don't see that happening.

Talk about a coincidence!

(Previous post here)

On 14th February 2019, Square Enix decided to celebrate Valentine’s day with an article about 

5 great Final Fantasy love stories.

Here we find:

- Noctis & Lunafreya (FFXV)

- Tidus & Yuna (FFX)

- Maria & Draco (FFVI)

- Squall & Rinoa (FFVIII)

and..........

Zidane & Garnet? Celes & Locke? Serah & Snow?

No

Zack & Aerith. Crisis Core. 

Weird. This happened just one year before the release of the Remake, where, coincidentally, there are tons of Crisis Core references. Aerith almost cries while remembering Zack, Zack survives his last stand and there is a beautiful slow-motion scene where Zack and Aerith perceive each other’s presence while Hollow starts playing...

But don’t worry,

It must be just a coincidence!

Cloud’s flashback in Kalm:

Cloud recalls the days before Nibelheim incident. 

Real-Cloud (the Shinra infantryman) patrols Nibelheim square and continuously stops to stare at the water tower and Tifa’s house. 

Since 1997.

Just saying.

Talk about a coincidence!

A possible connection between Aerith and Stamp (as a reference of Zack)

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BEFORE READING: This post is based on theories more than actual facts, since the true nature of Stamp hasn’t been revealed yet. I’ll provide some elements that could hint its connection with Zack but all this has to be considered as a personal opinion. If this will turn out to be all wrong, I apologize in advance.

(Link for the previous post here)

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Stamp is a new character introduced in FFVIIR. It is:

“A sweet little canine character beloved by the citizens of Midgar. A regular fixture in cartoons and movies, his face is on every corner of the city either in toy or poster form. Originally used as propaganda material during wartime.”

Most of the fans assume that this dog is a metaphor to represent Zack. The main proof for this theory is the fact that, in Crisis Core, Angeal used to compare Zack to a puppy:

“Are you Zack, the puppy? My son wrote to me once about you, zero attention span, restless as a little puppy.” - [Angeal’s mother to Zack].

This description links up very well with Stamp’s song lyrics (here).  

The biggest mistery around this character is its double design: it is shown to be a beagle during the whole game, but in the end we can see it as a terrier. 

My personal opinion is that this is a metaphor about Cloud’s fake persona. We, players, mostly play as Cloud, so we see the elements of the game through his eyes (and we never see Stamp when we are not Cloud).Cloud thinks to be a former SOLDIER because he’s overlapped his image on Zack’s. 

“Real-Stamp” (Zack) is the terrier, but we see it as a beagle (Cloud) because we see the world through his alter ego. 

At the end of the game, when Zack defeats his destiny, we can see terrier-Stamp because Cloud has no altered personality (or, at least, not yet).

So, my take is that Stamp represents Zack in both forms. 

Of course, I could be totally wrong.

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I’ll provide some comparisons to support this theory. Around Midgar we can find some posters with Stamp, and most of them can be related to actions that Zack did:

Zack encourages Cloud to work hard to become a SOLDIER.

Zack saves Mako poisoned Cloud, carrying him from Nibelheim -represented by the flames- to Midgar.

Zack took part to a mission in Icicle Inn with the Turks against Avalanche. During the mission they had to go through a cave with falling icicles. There he lost two SOLDIER friends (mabe this will have something to do with the Intergrade?). 

There’s a Stamp magazine on Tseng’s desk. The only other times we’ve ever seen his desk was to show Aerith’s letters (Crisis Core) and the dossier about Nibelheim incident, (Last Order) when the Turks were trying to save Zack from the army.

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That said, assuming I got this subject at least partly right, let’s talk about the elements that link Aerith to Stamp-Zack.

In Aerith’s childhood room, in Shinra HQ, there’s a book with Stamp and a letter in the background. I tried to translate what’s written on the cover but the picture is very blurred, so there could be mistakes, especially because I don’t speak Japanese (in bold the parts I’m rather sure to be right):

スタンプからの招待状

さえスタンプファンクラブ 「スタンププリーダー」      

Invitation from Stamp 

 Only Stamp fan club “Stamp breeder”

Definitely a strange translation. 

Anyway, the odd fact is that this book appears in Aerith’s room, of all the places of the game, and nowhere else, so I’m wondering if it is maybe meant to metaphorically hint the 89 letters Aerith wrote to Zack.

(Picture taken from Reddit)

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There’s another detail that could link Stamp-Zack with Aerith: the stars.

In both designs Stamp wears a hat/helmet decorated with stars. Stars have been often used as a military symbol around the world, and so seems to do Shinra.

All characters’ outfits have been redesigned for the Remake. On the shoulders of Aerith’s jacket we can see some decorative stars. And not common stars but military stars, normally used in army uniforms or medals. Quite an uncommon choice for the clothes of a girl strictly related with life, peace and nature (a link to an older design of her jacket without stars, meaning they were introduced purposely for the Remake). 

As a side note, her gray bracelet has the same design of the guard of the Buster sword. 

Talking about stars, also in her canon outfit to see Don Corneo she wears some accessories with star pendants (earrings, necklace, bracelets and sandals). At first it seemed to me a strange choice, as stars in FFVII are commonly related to the promise (and there were no stars in her OG red dress), but in the light of a possible connection with Stamp-Zack it really makes more sense.

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In short, I’m convinced the devs are hinting once more Aerith’s bond with Zack, even in these subtile details. I was unsure if I had to created this post, given the uncertainaties around the subject. Anyway..

..even if I’m wrong, I have to admit it is a good number of coincidences!

EDIT:

All this recalls me something...

"Aerith’s star and Cloud’s star! They show a great future!” [Cait Sith, Temple of Ancients]

...and now it turns out the stars could be related to Zack? And consequently related to Cloud because of his alter ego? What a coincidence...

Talk about a coincidence!

(Previous post here)

Aerith and Tifa parallel 

Eyes are the window to the soul

Cloud has the so-called Mako-Eyes, due to Mako infusion treatment. This is normally a distinctive mark of SOLDIERS and during the game many characters notice them: President Shinra, Reno, Rude, Elmyra...

Aerith

Aerith commenting about Cloud’s eyes was an important plot point of the OG as it was the first hint about her connection with Zack.

This dialogue takes place when they escape from the church across the rooftops of Sector 5 slums.

The devs decided to change this scene for the Remake and replace it with one that recreates step by step a romantic moment between Aerith and Zack from Crisis Core (for those who don’t know what I’m talking about, 0:13).

When Cloud and Aerith arrive in Evergreen Park, a place that's special for her, she starts talking about Zack and her cheerfulness fades away for the first time.

Zack’s name causes Cloud one of his migraine attacks. When he opens his eyes again she comments about their beauty and when he points out that’s because of the Mako she just sais “...I know”.

Tifa

In Chapter 3 Johnny is arrested by Shinra Public Security and Cloud and Tifa have to intervene to make sure he doesn’t talk about Avalanche. Cloud seems to have no hesitation to kill Johnny but Tifa stops him. 

This is the first time during the game where she openly states how much he’s changed and, coincidentally, she does it commenting about his eyes. Of course she’s not talking about their color. Here too he answers in a similar way, saying it's because of the Mako, to which she replies “I remember...”.

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To sum up

Aerith:

likes SOLDIER eyes

because they remind her of Zack, the guy she loved.

She gets sad because she misses Zack.

In Crisis Core Mako eyes were described as “color of the sky - but not scary at all”.

Tifa: 

doesn’t like SOLDIER eyes

because they are different from those of the guy she had a crush on.

She gets sad because she misses the Cloud of 7 years ago.

The camera focuses on his eyes while she says that he’s scaring her.

...

WAIT! 

The devs can’t be saying that SOLDIER-Cloud is NOT real-Cloud, that Aerith likes his Zack-side and that real-Cloud doesn’t use to cut civilians in half with a massive sword...

... Right?!

What an unexpected & unexplainable coincidence!

Talk about a coincidence!

(Find the previous post here)

Tiny beautiful details: little CloTi hint

Final Fantasy universes are populated by all kind of fantastic creatures and monsters, like Moogles, Chocobos, Bahamuts, etc..

Cloud has always been compared to Chocobos by fans because of his hairstyle. In the OG Tifa points out this resemblance.

In Chapter 9 of the Remake Chocobo Sam compares Tifa to a Bomb. The name of the side quest is A dynamite body so we can guess the reason of his comment.

Interestingly enough, in the OG Tifa compares Cloud to a Chocobo when the group finds the bird’s nest on the way to Mt Corel, and the “Bombs” could be fought for the first time on the bridge in Mt. Corel.

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The following picture is Tifa’s key art for Final Fantasy VII Remake. She is wearing her default weapon, the Leather Gloves. Their description is: Well-worn leather gloves that have seen their fair share of fights. It implies that she’s had them for a long time.

...Now let’s take a closer look at her bracelets

Do I need to add anything else?

EDIT:

Sure I do!!! In Chapter 10, when Aerith and Tifa talk about going shopping together, Aerith sais Cloud will be their pack-Chocobo!

...What a coincidence!

  A E R I T H   G A I N S B O R O U G H

Thank you for the tag!

Now I’m even more convinced that they were meant to be a pair. 

Before writing the post I checked a list of OG accessories to see if there was anything similar to the “Crescent Moon Charm”. I noticed the “Earrings” and the small moons inside them, however I didn’t mention them in my post because I’m convinced they have nothing to do with the “Charm”.

“Earrings” recur in other FF entries and they are always used to increase Magic. In the specific case of the original FFVII, the stat is MAGIC +10.

The “Earrings” accessories in FFVII Remake have the same use: “Earrings” boost Magic by 5%, “Platinum Earrings” by 10%. The design changed a little but they still include the shape of a moon and the curled metal pattern. 

The “Crescent Moon Charm” has a totally different use, it reduces damage taken when equipped by non-active characters. It has nothing to do with magic. And there was no other accessory in the OG with similar use. 

The charm was created after Tifa’s earring of the OG, with a new use and, yes, probably it was meant to play a role in the scene between Tifa and Marle. I really hope said deleted scene will be in the Intergrade. From the trailer it seems it’s going to fill that annoying hole between the scene where Tifa and Barret escape from the Reactor and the one where Tifa goes to Wall Market.

Naysayers should understand that coincidences don’t exist in fiction. Fiction tries to recreate reality, but it’s NOT reality. If something in fiction seems to be an odd coincidence then it’s not a coincidence at all. 

If designers spent time and energies to create a brand new charm, make it identical to Tifa’s earring, describe it in a way that refers to the concept of love and relate it with the idea of protection - that’s the leading theme of Cloud and Tifa’s arc - IT’S NOT CASUAL. 

It’s such a nice and meaningful detail!

It’s not a coincidence, they’re definitely from the same pair

(the Crescent Moon Charm earrings, that is)

It’s not new to #clotination that the Crescent Moon Charm from FFVIIR is the same as the earring from Tifa’s mature dress and her OG dress, and they’re likely from the same pair because it’s just too perfect to be a coincidence. See: this Tweet, this recent, highly-recommended Tumblr post by @skystarsflowers , and this shameless self-promotion reblog from last year with the OG concept art.

I’ve seen some naysayers try to wave it away by saying that because there are three Crescent Moon Charms in the game (Marle’s gift, Tifa’s outfit, and the Whack a Box prize), “it’s not like it’s meant to be an earring or something, it’s probably just a normal in-world item and it’s just a coincidence that Tifa decided to wear it as an earring.” Weak, I know.

However, the side by side comparison of the inventory image vs. Tifa’s earring helped me notice something: they are absolutely earrings and they absolutely make a perfect pair.

(Source: the aforementioned Tweet)

Continua a leggere

Talk about a coincidence!

Crisis Core and Advent Children References

Second post about CloTi and ZeriTh hints in FFVII Remake!

Find the previous post here.

THE PERFECT OUTFIT

Be sure to pick an outfit that goes with mine, okay?

Leave it to me, Tifa!  😂

In order to sneak in Don Corneo’s palace, Aerith and Tifa wear nice elegant dresses, and Cloud has to disguise himself as a lady. It’s interesting how Cloud and Tifa’s outfits can match in colors, fabrics and details:

These are the OG canon outfits. To get this combination the player has to choose the Mature dress for Tifa in Chapter 3, and complete Chocobo Sam odd jobs in Chapter 9. The odd jobs depend on the answers given at Wall Market: if the player prefers Tifa probably Cloud will get this dress. The CANON dress. 

To get the satin outfits the player has to choose the Sporty dress for Tifa in Chapter 3, and complete Madam M odd jobs in Chapter 9. Same logic: if the player prefers Aerith, probably this will be Cloud’s dress.

For this last combination the player has to choose the Exotic dress for Tifa in Chapter 3, and skip the sidequests in Chapter 9.

It reminded me how Cloud and Tifa’s outfits perfectly match also in Adven Children.

The choice of Aerith’s dress depends on how many Odd Jobs in Chapter 8 were completed:

6 sidequests: red dress

3-5 sidequests: long pink dress

0-2 sidequests: short pink dress

They don’t match with Cloud or Tifa’s, but her two new dresses are pink and also the train of the OG red dress has a lighter shade...

Do you remember the promise she shared with Zack in Crisis Core?

(Yes, I edited the picture. No I didn’t alter the meaning. Link for the whole scene).

These details are AMAZING 💗

What a coincidence!

Aerti Parallel [ 6 / ∞ ]: We make a great team

Final Fantasy 7 Original VS Remake - Key art

Talk about a coincidence!

Crisis Core - Final Fantasy VII Remake Parallels

A TOKEN OF APPRECIATION

Crisis Core:

During their first encounter, Zack and Aerith spend some time together at the market, but a kid steals Zack’s wallet. Local people and shopkeepers are reluctant to help him find the kid, but in the end the Accessory seller apologizes with Zack for having misjudged him...

Clerk: Hey, Aren't you...You are! The guy who was chasing that kid around! I heard about you from the neighborhood folks. I thought you were just some dumb outsider, but it turns out you're a pretty good guy. I'm sorry we misjudged you, this is just a small token of our appreciation.

...and he gives him some items (best reward consist in: 1 Soma, 1 Hi-Potion and 1 Remedy). Then Zack buys the pink ribbon for Aerith.

Remake: 

In Chapter 3 Tifa and Cloud go around the slums of Sector 7 to change water filters and collect money (Water filters - Water tower...am I overthinking? Anyway). At the end of the side quests they head back to Stargazer Heights (that water tower again!) and have a conversation with Marle. At first Marle is rather prejudiced against Cloud, but she seems to change her mind when she sees Tifa happy after spending some time with him:

Marle: Take care you two! ...Oh? You're looking pretty chipper!

Tifa: Uh...I don't feel that different.

Marle: Must be my imagination then. Anyway! Keep your wits about you, merc! A token of my appreciation. Be good to her.

At the end of the conversation she gives him a Crescent Moon Charm. This accessory is used to reduce damage when equipped by non-active characters (so from the perspective of Cloud, he can use it to protect the others).

The description of this charm is VERY interesting...

A charm imbued with the fervent desire to be by one’s side for eternity.

And...it is identical to the earring Tifa wears with her default dress at Wall Market!  🌙

Or better: the moon earring already existed in the OG as it was part of Tifa’s outfit to see Don Corneo. The devs created this new accessory and shaped it exactly like her earring, giving it a new significance since it represents a connection between Cloud and Tifa. 

The same exact thing that happened in Crisis Core with Aerith’s ribbon! 🎀

What a coincidence!