Why does Riku's keyblade have an eye?

[Riku-KH]

I found out about the keyblades owned by the for tellers having eyes and representing an animal of some sort. But why would Riku's key have an eye? Knowing more about those keys with eyes only make the reason for Riku's that more confusing!
When I try thinking the reasons, all I get is creepy answers... So, I don't want to assume the worst answer.
I use to think it was a dark thing, but now I know it's not! I've thought of this for a long time. I just never asked about it. Does anyone have the answer I'm looking for? Or is it something I'll have to wait for until the next game comes out?

 

[Audo]

Re: Why dkes Riku's keyblade have an eye?

Well the Dark Eye is mostly just used as a visual motif for darkness in general. Or that's how it was used before KHx anyway.

Vanitas' Keyblade also has a Dark Eye (two, actually) but as far as we know he has no connection to the foretellers either.

 

[Riku-KH]

Re: Why dkes Riku's keyblade have an eye?

But Vanitas might have some connection with MX. So that might be why his key has an eye. Riku's key is a lot like the ones in KHx. It resembles an animal by the looks of it. It has a wing like a bird for its teeth and on it's handle. It's pretty hard to tell Terra was Riku's successor. But none of the wielder's keys look like their mentors, so... yeah.

 

[Audo]

Re: Why dkes Riku's keyblade have an eye?

Well, it's not just Riku's Keyblade that has the eye (and for the record, I don't really think the angel wing qualifies as being animal-like in the same way that the Foreteller's (and MX's) Keyblades are. Those all have the animal head in the middle). Riku's Soul Eater, which is not a Keyblade, but a manifestation of the darkness in his heart, also bears the eye. For most of the series it really has just been used as a recurring motif for darkness, and that actually might even hold true for the Foreteller's as well.

 

[Oracle Spockanort]

Re: Why dkes Riku's keyblade have an eye?

So we know Xehanort's Keyblade is one of the oldest ones and has a similar motif as the Foretellers' Keyblades. Characters who have weapons with the evil eye motif in the series are always characters that have been controlled, aligned, or possessed by Xehanort.

I'd say that being close to Xehanort's ancient Keyblade has influenced their own weapons, and perhaps serve as a representation that Xehanort has directed their destinies.

...Similar to how Young Xehanort's own destiny is guided by Xehanort and that Keyblade.

But Vanitas might have some connection with MX. So that might be why his key has an eye. Riku's key is a lot like the ones in KHx. It resembles an animal by the looks of it. It has a wing like a bird for its teeth and on it's handle. It's pretty hard to tell Terra was Riku's successor. But none of the wielder's keys look like their mentors, so... yeah.

It's an angel and demon wing to represent Riku's decision to walk the middle road to the dawn. He wields Darkness but fights for the Light.

 

[Riku-KH]

Re: Why dkes Riku's keyblade have an eye?

Hmm... I guess I didn't know what the wings were on his key. I never found anything that said that. But, I won't argue with you, I believe you! That was the answer I tried avoiding. Xehanort being the reason and all... But I suppose it could make sense. He should have a different looking keyblade now though.

 

[Anagram]

Re: Why dkes Riku's keyblade have an eye?

So we know Xehanort's Keyblade is one of the oldest ones and has a similar motif as the Foretellers' Keyblades. Characters who have weapons with the evil eye motif in the series are always characters that have been controlled, aligned, or possessed by Xehanort.

*eyes widen in realization* 0_0 ...after so many years of people arguing it's to do with darkness them all be a Xehanort thing never crossed my mind....

 

[Oracle Spockanort]

Re: Why dkes Riku's keyblade have an eye?

Hmm... I guess I didn't know what the wings were on his key. I never found anything that said that. But, I won't argue with you, I believe you! That was the answer I tried avoiding. Xehanort being the reason and all... But I suppose it could make sense. He should have a different looking keyblade now though.

I wouldn't be surprised if KH3 led to Riku gaining a new Keyblade like how Mickey has two Keyblades...but this is the Keyblade Riku earned of his own inner strength. I'd say this represents Riku's ability to take command of his destiny and create his own path while not forgetting where he had to fight against in order to regain his right to wield.

It'd be kind of counterproductive to give him a new one in order to separate him from Xehanort.

*eyes widen in realization* 0_0 ...after so many years of people arguing it's to do with darkness them all be a Xehanort thing never crossed my mind....

I hadn't thought about it either until Grass made the Rebirth theory + Re:coded's scene about Xehanort's Keyblade. I decided to look at all of the instances of the eye motif and it always leads back to Xehanort.

We never see any characters but Riku, Terra, Vanitas, and the many forms of Xehanort have weapons with the eye (either story wise or via gameplay when we get a new charm...Bar Void Gear but we could say that he's a remnant so it's different)

 

[Chuman]

Re: Why dkes Riku's keyblade have an eye?

Wouldn't it be hilarious if riku was the rightful successor to MX's keyblade and used it against him?

 

[kuraudoVII]

Re: Why dkes Riku's keyblade have an eye?

Wouldn't it be hilarious if riku was the rightful successor to MX's keyblade and used it against him?

It'd have some sort of symmetry to it. Riku was the rightful heir to a keyblade, but that particular one went to Sora instead who went on to beat him with it.

 

[Anagram]

Re: Why dkes Riku's keyblade have an eye?

I hadn't thought about it either until Grass made the Rebirth theory + Re:coded's scene about Xehanort's Keyblade. I decided to look at all of the instances of the eye motif and it always leads back to Xehanort.

We never see any characters but Riku, Terra, Vanitas, and the many forms of Xehanort have weapons with the eye (either story wise or via gameplay when we get a new charm...Bar Void Gear but we could say that he's a remnant so it's different)

In hindsight the eye being for Xehanort makes more sense too. He's a seeker, seekers seek and more than one ancient group in real life used some form of eye as a sign of knowledge. *and if you go back far enough gods*

Buuut that's probably all coincidence. This series wasn't planned from start to finish by any means until recently. haha

 

[Chuman]

Re: Why dkes Riku's keyblade have an eye?

It'd have some sort of symmetry to it. Riku was the rightful heir to a keyblade, but that particular one went to Sora instead who went on to beat him with it.

Yep. Xehanort pmuch made riku into what he was, and it was ASOD's influence that led to riku's fall from grace so it would be sweet justice if riku took the big X's weapon in return and released his heart from terra's body.

 

[DarkGrey Heroine]

Re: Why dkes Riku's keyblade have an eye?

Eye of Darkness = some kind of connection to darkness, it appears on the wielder's Keyblade if he has or just made some connection to the darkness. I wouldn't go as far as making is a symbol of some kind of connection to Xehanort. The golden eyes are a proof of that sort of link already.
End of Pain has the Eye too, and it's rather the representation of Sora realizing the darkness and hurt within himself that he must solve. You obtain it after all the DDD plot, so it's after the connection between him and the darkness has been made.
I guess the Void Gear has two Eyes for the sake of a cool design, also because Vanitas is pure darkness and nothing else.

I personally don't see an actual animal in Soul Eater's or Way to the Dawn's design that much. End of Pain has an animal skull shape on it, though, yet I wouldn't take it as a link to the Foretellers o.o

If Riku inherits the ancient Keyblade of Xehanort, I'll see only Naruto in KH, with all the Naruto/Asura and Sasuke/Indra stuff, Sora is Naruto and Riku is Sasuke and once again they'll have to battle each other and then be all best buddies again... And if Xehanort is some sort of Indra, then Asura is Eraqus and... I don't want a scenario like that >__> I don't think Riku will succumb to the Darkness ever again, or that a good Sora/evil Riku battle will happen again :/

 

[Oracle Spockanort]

Re: Why dkes Riku's keyblade have an eye?

Eye of Darkness = some kind of connection to darkness, it appears on the wielder's Keyblade if he has or just made some connection to the darkness. I wouldn't go as far as making is a symbol of some kind of connection to Xehanort. The golden eyes are a proof of that sort of link already.
End of Pain has the Eye too, and it's rather the representation of Sora realizing the darkness and hurt within himself that he must solve. You obtain it after all the DDD plot, so it's after the connection between him and the darkness has been made.
I guess the Void Gear has two Eyes for the sake of a cool design, also because Vanitas is pure darkness and nothing else.

Sora only went through that pain because Xehanort forced him to. He nearly became a Xehanort himself. KH3D's entire plot is about how Xehanort has been controlling their fates. It can definitely represent the Darkness (and that was likely the intended meaning when this series started) but there is no way to not connect this to Xehanort anymore when every instance of this eye's appearance coincide with something Xehanort has done. We never see this eye motif appear under any other circumstance except when Xehanort has manipulated things for his own plans.

SoD - His spear is pretty much Soul Eater.

Riku - In Re:coded it is discovered SoD met with Riku as Destiny Islands was being destroyed by the Darkness. Whatever that meeting was about, the next time we see Riku in the first Kingdom Hearts after the Rising Falls scene, he has this weapon. It is never stated how Riku learned how to use it and we always assumed it was Maleficent who gave it to him, but considering what we know about SoD's machinations, it seems likely that Riku obtained it due to the fact he met Xehanort.

Later, Soul Eater becomes the base for Way to Dawn and Riku can summon them interchangeably. Note that Riku gains his new Keyblade while still under the guise of Ansem: SoD.

End of Pain is obtained after completing all Special Portals, but due to the name it seems to be a representation of what Sora and Riku had to face in KH3D and all of that was controlled by Xehanort.

Terra - Darkgnaw and Chaos Ripper are Keylades we obtain as Terra. Chaos Ripper, being the only story Keyblade, is obtained after Xehanort sets Terra up and kills Eraqus. It is a representation of Xehanort's manipulation of Terra, of Terra's Darkness that was only forced out of him because Xehanort made it so, and it can even represent the fate that befalls him at the end of BBS.

Vanitas - We know that Xehanort created Vanitas from Ven's Datkness and Ven had been a planned vessel before he proved himself to be too frightened by the Darkness inside of him. Vanitas then becomes Xehanort's vassal who does his dirty work and also serves as a means to the end in order to create the X-Blade. Due to the fact that we now know the gold eyes do not represent Darkness but rather that person has a piece of Xehanort's heart within them, we can pretty much assume Vanitas probably did too. His brief appearance in KH3D has led many to this theory.

Sora - End of Pain, although not being a story-based Keyblade, still has its own meanings. Sora was led and trapped within his own Darkness by Xehanort. This Darkness was caused by the pain of those Sora is connected to and the fact that Sora attempted to take on that pain at the wrong time because Xehanort forced him into a dream within a dream. That Darkness made Sora a prime vessel for Xehanort, and if Lea had not arrived when he did, Sora certainly would have been.

Now, if the eye really represented Darkness, I believe we would have seen more instances of it being used that were unrelated to Xehanort but we never have. Xehanort has been our main villain, yes, but Maleficent and other villains who utilize the Darkness have been in the series to give opportunities for it to appear and yet the eye motif has been predominantly connected to Xehanort and his connections to the story.

In the past this might have been true because of the fact that the Foretellers have them, but that is more like an origin point for the eye and not its modern use and meaning. Xehanort's Keyblade, being the oldest, comes from this time so there is clearly something going on with that and we all recognize that.

But with every moment shown within the series where the eye has been present, it has always come back to Xehanort directly and indirectly.

 

[DarkGrey Heroine]

Re: Why dkes Riku's keyblade have an eye?

@Master Spockanort, now that you presented me the facts, I make the difference between what the Eye originally represented and what its current meaning has become. It's indeed strange the Eye appears only on Keyblades (and, well, Dual Soul Eater, not sure it's an actual Keyblade), and other characters that had/have connections to Darkness don't carry the symbol with them. In the end, it really has become another symbol of Xehanort, like the golden eyes and the white hair. That's really the reason Riku's Keyblade still has the Eye on it, because of Xehanort's indirect influence on him through Ansem SoD...

 

[hlc1988]

Unfortunately for Riku, as soon as he met Terra, I think it was preordained (in a way) that Xehanort would influence him. I hope Riku's keyblade does change - to demonstrate how he is no longer influenced by Xehanort. He's forged his own path, one that Xehanort did not want for him. He wanted him, originally, as his 13th vessel.

Though, knowing how deep this series goes, there will probably be some twist with Riku's keyblade and Xehanort. Especially since we don't know when or how Riku was able to summon Way to the Dawn.

 

[Chuman]

I think him getting the oldest keyblade in existence, proving himself more worthy for it, would demonstrate it perfectly. Out of everyone before him with the eye on their weapon, riku was the only one to usurp his influence and use darkness how xehanort always claimed to, hand in hand with light. It would show how the keyblade was originally meant to be used, by "consuming the darkness, turning it back to light".

however, who knows, maybe xehanort was good before he had that keyblade and would transform him into another xehanort. On that note, can't wait to see its keyblade transformations.

 

[hlc1988]

I think him getting the oldest keyblade in existence, proving himself more worthy for it, would demonstrate it perfectly. Out of everyone before him with the eye on their weapon, riku was the only one to usurp his influence and use darkness how xehanort always claimed to, hand in hand with light. It would show how the keyblade was originally meant to be used, by "consuming the darkness, turning it back to light".

however, who knows, maybe xehanort was good before he had that keyblade and would transform him into another xehanort. On that note, can't wait to see its keyblade transformations.

That's an interesting view. Based on Xehanort's actions, I really doubt he ever really used darkness how he claimed to, hand in hand with light. Didn't in DDD, Young Xehanort acknowledge how Riku had succeeded in handing darkness in a way never seen before or something?

It would be different if the oldest keyblade did go to Riku. He has that understanding that Xehanort does not of light and darkness. What if Riku earned the right to wield the original X-blade?

 

[Anagram]

^ I remember Mickey saying Riku handles darkness like never seen before. I'm not sure about Xehanort but I do remember him saying DDD that Riku was "resistant" to it now.
*just randomly adds two cents to other people's conversation and leaves* :smile:

 

[Chuman]

That would be an idea. What if MX's keyblade is the embodiment of darkness? That would be why it is the oldest keyblade, it corrupted the sixth foreteller who started the keyblade war and it has been passed down to current day xehanort. Every user who wields it is influenced by an ancient evil who wants the x-blade to control kingdom hearts, but why?

an alternative ending would be, sora wielding it and becoming corrupted, riku then wields the x-blade while fighting off it's powerful seduction and rescues sora with it. Or sora pulls a Sam Winchester and sacrifices himself permanently by gaining control and helping riku win within his heart, in which sora would save everybody like has been talked about and riku could become the new protagonist.