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The Unpopular Opinions Thread



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Ðari

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  • I saw the appeal as a kid but as I started to read other stories and look at video game single players for their narrative, pacing and exposition I felt the Disney worlds gave Sora less than 3% of screen time in his own transformation and development as a character just to soft reset him in the next game
  • Chain Of Memories Sora is the first Sora that consistently has gotten the most screen-time post world/room completion where you see the gradual change in his personality. While I am not a fan of his personality, the exposition of his actual devolpment over the course of that game, for better or worse, is absolutely incredible and they have YET to repeat this kind of focus on the MC in this franchise, insane!
  • The reasons why worlds like Twilight Town, Hollow Bastion, and Radiant Garden were so well received by the writers within the same community is because putting Sora in that environment he actually feels like he stands out or isn’t assisting an already well established franchise as its errand boy
  • The disney worlds served as an allure for new and old fans, a nostalgia pluck back in 2002
  • the evolution of Sora's character design greatly deviates him from being "apart" of that world out side of worlds where Donald's magic constructs a disguise. I actually appreciate that, but this unfortunately conflicts with how he's always felt shoe-horned in and the narrative of the worlds themselves never feel like they're about the person you're playing as or your party.
 

Phoenix

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  • I saw the appeal as a kid but as I started to read other stories and look at video game single players for their narrative, pacing and exposition I felt the Disney worlds gave Sora less than 3% of screen time in his own transformation and development as a character just to soft reset him in the next game
  • Chain Of Memories Sora is the first Sora that consistently has gotten the most screen-time post world/room completion where you see the gradual change in his personality. While I am not a fan of his personality, the exposition of his actual devolpment over the course of that game, for better or worse, is absolutely incredible and they have YET to repeat this kind of focus on the MC in this franchise, insane!
  • The reasons why worlds like Twilight Town, Hollow Bastion, and Radiant Garden were so well received by the writers within the same community is because putting Sora in that environment he actually feels like he stands out or isn’t assisting an already well established franchise as its errand boy
  • The disney worlds served as an allure for new and old fans, a nostalgia pluck back in 2002
  • the evolution of Sora's character design greatly deviates him from being "apart" of that world out side of worlds where Donald's magic constructs a disguise. I actually appreciate that, but this unfortunately conflicts with how he's always felt shoe-horned in and the narrative of the worlds themselves never feel like they're about the person you're playing as or your party.
You raise some really good points, and one thing I'm starting to realise is that Sora, in KH1, is straight up a Disney protagonist from a Disney story. Has parents, never seen and never come up after one line. Plays in a child neverland. Has an insane plan to go into sea to see other worlds with two coconuts, which in real life is suicidal, but not out of place for a Disney fable. Has ridiculous clothes and kind of looks like Mickey. He's more of a cartoon than an actually realised chatacter.

It's only CoM and onwards that the story tries to make them seem more like humans in a human world. Kairi goes to school, there's more logistics involved with the planning, the lore of the Keyblade and the worlds is developed. But you still have remnants of their earlier portrayal. Like the running joke about Sora's mom. Or what about Riku and Kairi's family, are they worried? How did anyone explain anything about their disappearances?
 

Ðari

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You raise some really good points, and one thing I'm starting to realise is that Sora, in KH1, is straight up a Disney protagonist from a Disney story. Has parents, never seen and never come up after one line. Plays in a child neverland. Has an insane plan to go into sea to see other worlds with two coconuts, which in real life is suicidal, but not out of place for a Disney fable. Has ridiculous clothes and kind of looks like Mickey. He's more of a cartoon than an actually realised chatacter.

It's only CoM and onwards that the story tries to make them seem more like humans in a human world. Kairi goes to school, there's more logistics involved with the planning, the lore of the Keyblade and the worlds is developed. But you still have remnants of their earlier portrayal. Like the running joke about Sora's mom. Or what about Riku and Kairi's family, are they worried? How did anyone explain anything about their disappearances?
I'm glad you mentioned Sora's mom, i still find that to be absolutely hilarious that she was only ever heard and not seen and has yet to be revisited.

Riku's family is never even mentioned anywhere in the past 20+ years these games have been out. We at least see Kairi's grandmother on-screen in flashbacks, but she's the only adult with any direct relation and relevance to one of the core cast from KH1.

I had a theory the reason there was no real outrage over the kid's disappearance is likely because their homeworld sat in the Realm of Darkness for the entirety of the first game. Residents were either reduced to heartless and when it was restored, that "frozen in time" state the world was in just unpaused and continued as normal. Though just my theory on that, but Sora being gone for a year with no explanation in-game? Even if they treated it like the kids talking to the adults in the Peanuts and the adults are off screen.

Lol I honestly think someone at Disney REALLY liked FF10 to agree to let Squaresoft (at the time) use their major IPs and music for a hybrid FF/Disney RPG.
 

Chie

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Everyone forgot Sora when he was gone for a year, while Namine restored his memories. The question is how everyone reacted after he woke up, we only see Kairi and Selphie.
 

Phoenix

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I'm glad you mentioned Sora's mom, i still find that to be absolutely hilarious that she was only ever heard and not seen and has yet to be revisited.

Riku's family is never even mentioned anywhere in the past 20+ years these games have been out. We at least see Kairi's grandmother on-screen in flashbacks, but she's the only adult with any direct relation and relevance to one of the core cast from KH1.

I had a theory the reason there was no real outrage over the kid's disappearance is likely because their homeworld sat in the Realm of Darkness for the entirety of the first game. Residents were either reduced to heartless and when it was restored, that "frozen in time" state the world was in just unpaused and continued as normal. Though just my theory on that, but Sora being gone for a year with no explanation in-game? Even if they treated it like the kids talking to the adults in the Peanuts and the adults are off screen.

Lol I honestly think someone at Disney REALLY liked FF10 to agree to let Squaresoft (at the time) use their major IPs and music for a hybrid FF/Disney RPG.

And it's not even like we need to know their entire family life, but there's just not a good reason for them to be so absent. Like, we see Cloud's mom in FF7. Squall's family in FF8 (or lack thereof) is central to the story. Same for Tidus and his family in X. But Riku disappears for a year. He's not forgotten either, Selphie mentions that Riku left. What?! They should be saying he's missing or kidnapped. And then when everyone remembers Sora, at no point does he ever think "I should probably visit mom".

I think you have a good take on the Realm of Darkness thing, but not for Riku for that year. That just doesn't make any sense if you take it as a normal FF story. But if you take it as a Disney fairy tale, you can ignore a lot of stuff and that's normal.
 

Ðari

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Everyone forgot Sora when he was gone for a year, while Namine restored his memories. The question is how everyone reacted after he woke up, we only see Kairi and Selphie.
Man, this was convenient writing for Sora, everyone remembers Riku but we were never introduced to his family in any capacity, so he's the odd man out in that year M.I.A. The only reason I find this to be especially strange is because across several games he received a lot of character development, but as Pho said in the nature of disney influence, it's not super important to worry about family. I'm more or less just giving contrast from first playthrough to revisiting the games decades later.
And it's not even like we need to know their entire family life, but there's just not a good reason for them to be so absent. Like, we see Cloud's mom in FF7. Squall's family in FF8 (or lack thereof) is central to the story. Same for Tidus and his family in X. But Riku disappears for a year. He's not forgotten either, Selphie mentions that Riku left. What?! They should be saying he's missing or kidnapped. And then when everyone remembers Sora, at no point does he ever think "I should probably visit mom".

I think you have a good take on the Realm of Darkness thing, but not for Riku for that year. That just doesn't make any sense if you take it as a normal FF story. But if you take it as a Disney fairy tale, you can ignore a lot of stuff and that's normal.
Major flashbacks to KH2's ending when the trio reunites. I was sixteen at the time, and that was a wholesome moment, in my thirties I say, "Did you guys go let your parents know your back? Man that must've been a fun discussion." from a safety perspective of course.

I hope you can respect my sense of humor/joke there @vaderskywalker lmao
 

Phoenix

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Major flashbacks to KH2's ending when the trio reunites. I was sixteen at the time, and that was a wholesome moment, in my thirties I say, "Did you guys go let your parents know your back? Man that must've been a fun discussion." from a safety perspective of course.

Yeah, same. I must've been 16-17, and I thought, we made it! Now in my mid thirties, and I just feel awful for their parents.

And then they just leave again after!
 

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Indeed. Also, with the amount of darkness that our heroes had experienced, it must have taken a toll on their mental health.
 

Zackarix

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It's a symptom of Aqua not exisiting a concept until BBS, but man does it make Mickey look like a total monster to not do anything or even mention Aqua until almost the very end

Like, it was a decade!!
It would be better if Mickey didn't find out where Aqua was until after KH2. But that opens up the question of how he finds out if he didn't bump into her during his own Realm of Darkness adventure. It's easiest to have him meet her during that time and not mention it until much later for "reasons"
 

Squood!

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To be fair Mickey only found out around KH1's end

And right after he was dealing with Riku stuff in CoM. The time Yen Sid forbade Mickey from telling had to have been around the time of Post-CoM 358/2 Days, cuz Mickey and Riku seperated at some point during the game therefore he could report to Yen Sid.
 
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