Some Final Fantasy Things

Top Fifty Final Fantasy Characters

19. Reno and Rude, FFVII, Advent Children

Reno and Rude are a package deal.  One without the other is just sad, so I've listed them on my favorite characters list together. And while they exist in FFVII, it wasn't until Advent Children that I really started to love them.  They were working against us in FFVII, but never really seemed like big villains.  They were rather minor inconveniences.  It seems eventually they decided to side with us (us being the protagonists...  Yes indeed, I AM Cloud, Tifa, Cid, Vincent, and all the others.  Just as you are.) And since they were working with "us" in Advent Children, we got to see more of them (though still not all that much.)

From what we do see of Reno and Rude, they are clearly intended to be the comic relief in an otherwise serious story.  Every story needs some comedy, and these guys are great at it.  So I love that they provide an element of comedy, but I also love that they are both very skilled at their jobs.  They sometimes seem like lovable fuckups, but they aren't always...  Those Turks don't hire just anyone.  These guys are smart and good at what they do.  I love a character who people don't necessarily take seriously showing at times just how capable and intelligent they really are. 

I also admire their friendship due to the fact that they are virtually opposites of each other.  Opposites attract.  Everybody knows that.  Reno is silly and seems somewhat clumsy at times.  He's not afraid to say whatever he's thinking and sometimes even seems a little cocky.  Rude, on the other hand, seems to like to stay quiet, speaking only when he has to.  He seems more serious and chooses his words and actions more carefully.  Rude even dresses sharply, in that suit and tie, while Reno seems to be adhering to a dress code on a half-assed level. They could hardly be more different. The idea of these two being friends makes me really happy.

Top Fifty Final Fantasy Characters

21. Snow Villiers, FFXIII

Snow is a confident, strong, and passionate man.  He fights not only for the woman he loves and his friends, but also for people in general.  It seems to be his goal to protect anyone who might need him, regardless of whether or not he even knows them personally. While he may come across as overly confident and full of himself at times, that's not necessarily a bad thing.  Someone who feels weak and worthless probably wouldn't be much effective trying to save the world.  You've got to have confidence to get stuff done sometimes... (most of the time, really... Just think about the real world.  The guys who think they are the best end up being seen by others as being the best.  People like confidence.)

I love Snow.  His relationship with Serah is one of my favorite Final Fantasy relationships of all time.  It seems much more genuine than some of them.  Everyone says opposites attract and they are a perfect example of that.  He's tall, assertive, and strong, while she's smaller, more quiet, and a much better mage than physical fighter.  I just think they are adorable together. ^_^ (and they are both some of the friendliest and caring Final Fantasy characters too.)

It seems to me that Snow brings a feeling of safety to the group.  He's a strong fighter (the second strongest FFXIII character in my experience, if equipped with the right stuff.)  Snow is also very kind to everyone.  He's even nice to Hope, the kid who was planning on murdering him.  How could you not trust this man with your life? (unless you're Hope's mom......) <-- that was sarcasm...  She was a grown ass woman.  She wanted to fight.  What was Snow supposed to do?  Tell this forty year old woman she wasn't allowed to decide to fight to protect her son?  She knew what she was getting herself into, and she risked it anyway.  That's her choice.  No fault of Snow's.

But let's get back on topic: The feeling of comfort that comes along with Snow's presence extends into the second game as well (for me at least.) While playing FFXIII-2, I was having a lot of trouble getting into the plot and kept having to actually force myself to continue playing...  I was losing interest in the game fast... That is, until we met up with Snow.  Seeing him again and having him fight alongside us really made the game for me.  If I hadn't run into him when I did, I'm not sure if I'd have ever finished it.  I ended up liking it in the end, but I didn't really at first.  Snow's presence changed my opinion of the game quickly and motivated me to keep playing.  Without him, I may have never finished it... (I never finished X-2...)

Thank you, Snow, for keeping my attention and motivating me to appreciate a great game!  And for being a really great character... 

Also, he's gorgeous.  Look at him.  I made this collage prior to the Lightning Returns trailer though, so there are no pictures of him from that up there... He's fucking gorgeous in that one though.  Snow is the most exciting part of Lightning Returns to me.  He'll probably only show up for about twenty minutes, but I'm still really excited to see him... but also scared because I know he's going to be sad. :(  Snow's probably going to make me cry... But all the best FF characters do, don't they?

Top Fifty Final Fantasy Characters

22. Zidane Tribal, FFIX

Zidane is the best Final Fantasy protagonist as far as I'm concerned. (and by 'protagonist,' I mean main, title character - usually the character you start with at the beginning of the game.) Even though he's only at number twenty two on my favorites list, he's higher up on the list than any of the other main protagonists.  This is because he's a bit different than most other title characters in the Final Fantasy series.

Mr. Tribal seems to be reluctant to take things seriously.  He's a jokester, and isn't quick to get offended.  Zidane is constantly making small jokes here and there and doesn't get very angry whenever someone insults him.  He's overall just a pretty easy-going guy. Steiner even makes fun of him through most of the game, making rude remarks about his tail and social standing, but Zidane just shrugs it off, calling the man "Rusty" and otherwise ignoring his insults.  Zidane's ability to leave these things alone rather than getting in fights and learning to hate this man is admirable. I know I certainly wouldn't keep trying to make friends with someone who constantly makes fun of me.  Zidane is a more patient man than I.

Even though Zidane tends to be silly and make light of serious situations, he can also be very genuine and comforting when the occasion calls for it. When he meets Vivi, Zidane is nicer to the black mage than anyone else is, offering to look after him and giving him really great words of advice to boost his confidence.  He also clearly cares deeply for Garnet, comforting her when the occasion calls for it, and doing everything in his power to make it back to her at the end of the game.  Zidane even comforts Kuja and reassures him that he's not worthless after the party's final battle with him.  Kuja, the game's main antagonist, the man who tried to kill Zidane and his friends time and time again...  Zidane behaves kindly to him in the end, even after all of their disagreements and violent attempts at each others' lives.  It's not everyone who would be so understanding and forgiving.

Besides that one time when Zidane went emo for a few minutes, refused to let his friends help him, and called Vivi a stupid brat, he was a really great friend and likable character. But we know he didn't mean the things he said...  Vivi knows he didn't mean that.  Everyone has their little PMS moments, and that was Zidane's.  He snapped out of it quickly and got back to being his friendly, charming self.