An examination of the infamous and commonly exaggerated "What a passionate person" scene, in both English and French. (Note: The original Japanese dialogue matches the English translation almost exactly, so I won’t bother addressing it.)
In the English version, the professor is obviously calm while speaking about Lysandre. His sentences all end in periods…
…until he starts talking to you about your journey. Now we've got exclamations!
It's amazing how many people read Lysandre's hate speech perfectly fine, but as soon as Platane says "What a passionate person," they resolve to not read ANY of his dialogue past this point for the rest of the game. I’ve seen so many make fun of him and portray him as gushing unabashedly over Lysandre and his views, so I was very surprised when I got to this part of the game and was able to see what actually happened. Oh! Not only is the professor so calm, but he’s quick to strongly imply that you probably shouldn’t take Lysandre’s views to heart and supplants them with something wholesome. Where was this in fandom??
I, personally, was given the impression of a scientist making an analytical observation, stating Lysandre’s demeanor and pondering on the motive. Lysandre IS passionate. Where is the lie? Platane is at no point agreeing with the hate speech, and is clearly telling you that you don’t have to agree, either. And then he seems much more concerned about YOU, the player, and how you're doing.
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I can’t deny that the French version seems to be much more in line with the fan portrayal…at first. Here he is jazzed as all get out over Lysandre –
“What fire, what passion! What an orator! There is such heat that emerges from him! Like a blaze! I imagine that it’s the pride of his lineage that speaks.”
‘What an orator’? Yes, French!Platane does seem suspiciously in Lysandre’s corner. But then he IMMEDIATELY turns it around and is just as emphatic in speaking against him.
“But the words of Monsieur Lysandre actually only express his point of view, not necessarily THE truth. Bah!” The ‘Bah!’ at the end cracks me up every time. I can’t help imagining him doing a dismissive hand wave.
“Screw what Lysandre says. BAH!” ( ≡︶ ^ ︶≡)ノ