I kid you not, this little baby is 3000 words.
Okay It has taken me since November (I think) till February 13th to finish Kingdom Hearts, Re:CoM, and Kingdom Hearts 2. Considering the times I couldn't play it such as exams, holidays and getting stuck on certain boss-fights, I think I made pretty good time!
After finally killing Demyx (WHICH TOOK WAY TOO DAMN LONG) I went straight for the Beast's Castle... well fine I stopped in Ancient china first, saw Riku, met Xiggy defeated a few things, then I was out of there.
I was all pumped up for the classic Disney ballroom scene then, damn it, Xaldin went and ruined it. My mind went into "BITCH MUST PAY" mode. Thinking about Xaldin now I'm sure squeenix was like "Come on guys we need more characters in Organization XII who don't look effeminate! So let's just get a guy who has big beefy arms that could rival those of Trogdor and SIX FREAKING PHALLIC WEAPONS. " Can't have everyone thinking that the organization is full of girls. Larxene is the only one who can have that title. Well.... technically there can be some debate surrounding Marluxia because the game developers had every intention of also making him female but then there was the whole 'two women trying to bring down an organization controlled by men and failing miserably thanks to, you guessed it, a man betraying them.' Not to mention the fact that the only one they out-rank is Roxas ... and he is considerably younger than everyone.
Subtle Enix, subtle.
But when you finally get to fight him it's awesome... well not the fight but the cutscene before the fight. At first I was like "BITCH IS KIDNAPPING MY FAVOURITE DISNEY PRINCESS. NEVAR FORGIVE!" but then it was so beautiful! When Belle elbowed him in the gut and stole that rose.... so many levels of awesome. I instantly yelled "HELL YEAH! FAVOURITE CHILDHOOD DISNEY PRINCESS, GO!"
/wipes tears of pride
Xaldin is a bit of a pansy. You'd figure with all his beefy muscles that he could take being elbowed in the stomach by a young dainty woman, but then again everyone in the organization has an Achilles' heel.
I don't remember much about all the other worlds. I was just going through them like I was in a daze because I just wanted to go to that lovely neon-lit world at the top of the map. I really only remember bits and pieces of them. But one thing I know I won't be forgetting anytime soon; Sora and his stupid but hilarious mental images of dancing with Kairi. There was also a shiney lavender shojou background! That was pretty unexpected for Halloween Town. And then there is Atlantica. Oh, Atlantica. A world where you don't even fight anything! Well, no, I lied. You do fight Ursula WITH THE POWER OF MUSIC. As much as I complain I really did like all the music. But if you dare mention this to me I will deny it. The song they sing to Ariel after you complete the world, it's lame but cute. But seriously, don't let the duck sing. Ever. And I love Ariel telling Eric about the whole 'I'm a mermaid' deal because he's actually surprised. Even if he didn't see her tail because of all the commotion, what is he thinking "Orly? I thought you just wore seashell bras for the hell of it."
I used a lot of limits while running through worlds. All of them were extremely useful but my two favourites were Tron's limit because it was so effective and (not pirate) Jack's limit purely because of the way Jack was flinging Sora around. <3 It's cute okay.
To Twilight Town! Hayner, Pence, and Olette are actually good friends to have. Sure, I hate it when people who can't fight jump into situations of danger. I hate this because most of the time people who do this end up being saved by the person who they were trying to rescue in the first place and, they could just get someone who can fight to go rescue their friend for them. It's senseless to just go to your certain death to save a friend because you become completely ineffectual and, hell, if your friend manages to escape on their own think of the extreme crushing guilt they would feel from knowing that they inadvertently caused your death. But strangely enough, I don't hate Hayner, Pence, and Olette for doing this. They didn't know when the hell Sora was going to show up and they knew Kairi couldn't fight. They didn't even know if Axel was that strong of a, um, being because he didn't whip out his chakrams or anything. If Axel had normal human strength they could just beat him by ganging up on him.
Sea-Salt Ice Cream is a stupid name for a computer password Maybe little Ienzo was the one who chose the password.
Speaking about that, exactly how young was Ienzo when he died? If everyone after Xemnas joined in order of their 'other's' deaths and II to IV were all working of the same experment around the time they lost their hearts, wouldn't that mean that they all died together? But in Birth by Sleep you meet Ansem's apprentices and they all look exactly like their nobodies (in terms of age) except for Ienzo who doesn't look to be any older than 12 years. Poor kid.
This realm of darkness isn't all that dark. Look at all that pink and blue! And oh crap! Nobodies! But don't worry, Axel to the rescue! Wait, I thought he was evil...... Let's think about this for a minute.
Axel is a member of Organization XIII who plotted to betray it with Marluxia and Larxene, but then he betrayed them only to later betray the Organization on his own. This guy is quite the enigma.
Axel: Hey, Sora! Check this out! :D /explodes
.............
.................
Axel? Damn it, he's fading away! And I was really starting to like him in this game! The Axel who would relentlessly pound my face in with his chakrams so that I didn't have any time to execute an attack would definitely not be done in by my hands and he is sure as hell not going to die at the hands of the Organization that he betrays then follows then betrays again. If Axel is going to die he's going out with a bang! Hell, he's the only one who got to go out on his own terms. And for his actions he is rewarded with........ a longer time to disappear so he can monologue!
Axel: Oh hey, tell Kairi that I'm sorry for the whole 'trying to kidnap you twice' thing.
Sora: Tell her yourself!
Axel: I would buuuut my heart just wouldn't be in it..... 'cause, you know, I don't have one.
/BA DUM TSH
HAHAHAHAHAHAhahahahaaa......... Man, I'm gonna miss this guy. He even gave me a new keyblade... or was it meant for Roxas...... or did Sora just jack his weapon and turn it into a keyblade? But if it was for Roxas, that would be kind of depressing.
But seriously, Roxas was kind of a douche to him during the cut-scenes we did see of them together. Especially that whole scene where Roxas is like "Who care no one will miss me, especially not my bff who is trying to convince me to not leave because he knows that it's most likely the last time he will ever see me again if I do decide to go." So Roxas is either a ditz or a jerk. Maybe this whole 'Nobodies' thing is actually like persona where is reflects the bad parts of you.... that would explain a lot except for the fact that Kairi has no freaking darkness in her heart and therefore could not have a persona. There goes that theory. Hopefully Roxas is not quite insensitive as he appears to be. Think of how his and Axel's friendship was like...
Axel: Hey Roxas, look at this! /chucks fireball at someone
Roxas: /sporfle
Roxas: How about this? /chuck keyblade at someone
Both: HAHAHAHAHA /high fives
Now, that's a friendship I could go for.
What the hell are you thinking Kairi! Don't jump into a pile of heartless! You're useless right now! Riku then gives her a keyblade. GO KAIRI, GO!
Xigbar boss fight. My one reaction was "HE'S ON THE FUCKING CEILING."
After the battle I realized that I was using Final Form all throughout the battle. I don't even remember getting final form. It just occurred to me that Sora's clothes were grey and not yellow while I was watching the cut-scene.
Then, there it was, the reunion scene. Sora! Kairi! Hugs all around! Then Sora's like "Hey jerk- I mean Xehanort's heartless. Thanks for saving Kairi." Riku then decides to blow this Popsicle stand -but wait! Kairi calls him Riku! The drama!
Obviously since Namine believes that bffs like Roxas and Axel hold hands all the time, so does Kairi, much to the fangirl's excitement.
"I SEARCHED EVERYWHERE FOR YOU!" Holding Riku's hand, falling to the floor, tears streaming down his cheeks. And me, being the sap that I am, I'm on the verge of tears. Man, this little reunion makes Sora and Kairi's hug seem really insignificant. And yay new keyblade! Being the sap that I am I equipped Oathkeeper to Master Form and Oblivion to Final Form. What keyblade am I actually using right now? Leon's is my favourite even though it's not the strongest; it's a good balance between magic and strength.
At this time a friend of mine came over. She's only slightly familiar with this game.
"Hey, you know Riku? Do you remember what he looks like?"
"Yup."
"Look at him now!"
"What happened to him?"
"Horrible tanning bed accident."
"Really?"
"Of course not!"
PROOF OF EXISTENCE AAAAAA! What a symbolic room! I don't see a fourteenth grave, stupid Sues! But seriously, when Axel sent Repliku to finish off Zexion did he just decide that "Hey, when I get back from castle Oblivion I should really mess up that guy's grave!" But as we all know, it was Enix trying to cover up the fact that they didn't give him an actual weapon in the original CoM. But man, I feel kind of sad looking at Larxene's grave. I really liked her. Why did I have to kill one of the only strong female characters in this series?
I don't know how I beat Luxord. Honestly I have no bloody clue. I had no idea what I was trying to do and somehow eventually I won... I think. Saix was pretty easy. Compared to Luxord, yeah, he was easy as pie.
But OH NOES! CHRISTOPHER LEE IS IN TROUBLE! Hang in there Christopher Lee! But sadly the machine blows up taking the life of The Bowling Champion of The World with it.
I love how Sora and company tries to run to Christopher Lee but Riku is pushing Sora back and this somehow stops the rest of the guys from running to him. It's like Riku's big beefy Xehanort's Heartless arms have a force field that can push back everyone at the same time.
BUT DON'T WORRY GUYS, CHRISTOPHER LEE DID NOT DIE IN VAIN! He died for one of the most important purposes of all; Making Riku bishi again!
But wow Riku has more hair in his face than a Maltese! I really want Sora to just go up to him and push his bangs up and go "Peek-a-boo" or something.
Sora: /spreads Riku's bangs apart
Riku: What are you doing?
Sora: I was looking for the Russian circus. I thought I might be in here.
Oh me and my Don Bluth references!
That "How do I face everyone?""You do it like this *funnyface*" part was hilarious.
Riku then proceeds to rip off his clothes. Oh, calm down fangirls! He dresses himself in layers just like Clark Kent!
What a nice surprise! Riku becomes a party member. Now he must never leave.
Looking at the character profiles I noticed something. What the hell has happened to Riku's posture! Wait......
Baggy pants?
Long hair?
Bad posture?
This can only mean one thing! RIKU HAS BECOME A GOOD-FOR-NOTHING TEENAGER!
GET OFF MY LAWN, RIKU YOU WHIPPERSNAPPER!
/shakes fist
So Namine, Roxas, Kairi and Sora have their trippy little scene and in classic KH fashion, once you defeat the final boss.... you must fight him again five times. But in this game, guess what we have? QUICKTIME EVENTS!
Potion 100 munny. Watermelon 5000 munny. Getting to face the final boss with your favourite character at your side, Priceless.
I almost thought I royally screwed up when Xemnas took Sora and was electrocuting him, or whatever he was doing. Then suddenly "Sora!" and then I'm controlling Riku.
It seems like when you trade ankle-belt hems for baggy pants the stats are Cool +15, Speed -20.
RIKU YOU ARE SO SLOW. YOU SHOULDN'T WEAR BAGGY PANTS WHILE FIGHTING. DON'T YOU KNOW THAT ALL DELINQUENTS WHO WEAR BAGGY PANTS WHEN ROBBING 7-ELEVENS ARE ALWAYS CAUGHT BY THE POLICE BECAUSE THEY CAN'T RUN FAST ENOUGH WITH THEIR JEANS HALFWAY DOWN THEIR ASS! PULL UP YOUR FREAKING PANTS RIKU.
But don't worry Riku saves the day! And then suddenly everything goes black. I was freaking out because I couldn't figure out if I was supposed to be hitting both X and triangle to make both of the boys move, and frankly, I didn't want to stop pressing buttons to find out for fear of being annihilated.
Sora and Riku talk about how awesome it is to be friend on a moonlight beach. I don't care how corny it is, it's adorable!
Suddenly there's a graphics quality switch!
Go Kairi's letter, go! Now you know why Sora was falling from the sky in the first opening. And everyone is waiting for them on Destiny Islands! Well, everyone is waiting for Sora, at least. Hell, Kairi didn't even look at Riku once Sora was on shore, and they are supposed to be friends! It seems like the one who is most excited to see him King Mickey. Sure, I know that Sora and Kairi like each-other and it's supposed to be special because it's Roxas and Namine seeing each-other again, but Riku is her friend too and he's saved her so many times! He deserves at least a little recognition. At least smile at him, Kairi.
/Sigh. Sora gets all the girls!
I think Riku deserves a happier ending. In order to save Kairi he turns to the darkness and to get her heart back he is willing to kill Pinocchio (when, if it wasn't for saving his friend's heart, he wouldn't kill any innocent person/puppet/thing) and because of the darkness he has to play puppet to some psycho heartless. Not to mention the fact that he probably was determined to save Kairi on his own because he thought Sora had replaced them. Then to save Sora he immediately goes out to fight Roxas and when he fails he is then forced to turn to the darkness again to get the power to beat him but this time it messes with his physical appearance. That combined with the extreme guilt he feels for betraying his best friends is a good recipe for angst. It's really sad if you consider the possibility that Riku might still like her. At least he is reunited with his friends. But Riku was supposed to be the chosen one!
I guess part of the reason why I wasn't really satisfied with the ending was that I didn't really get what was going on with Roxas and Namine. I don't see how they suddenly became bffs in that short amount of time. When Namine was getting kidnapped (like original, like nobody) she did make that promise with Roxas but other than that I didn't see anything that really said 'these guys are good friends' and I don't now about you, but I think saying 'You were never meant to exist' is a good way to show you care. Maybe I'm just forgetting some nice parts. Eeh, I guess I'll play the Roxas chapter over again.
And if I understand this correctly how Roxas ended up in the computer in the first place was because when Riku kidnapped him after beating him he and DiZ shoved him into the computer (Why?)while Sora's memories were being restored. And Axel was just popping in to try and get him out of there. And normally I would ask how did Sora know about all those defeated Nobodies which he couldn't remember fighting, but then after checking the interwebs I found out it's explained in Final Mix Plus, and as we all know, No Export For You applies here. and I'm still wondering why Kairi returned to Destiny Islands at the end of the first game when everyone was supposed to go back to their 'original worlds' which for her would be Radiant Garden.
Thinking about it now, Axel is pretty lucky to actually have emotions, or at least figments of emotions. He was able to at least have the capacity to 'like'. Xemnas can only remember anger and hate. You never really realise just how much the Nobodies memories affect them until that moment. I think lot of the interactions between them are determined by this. For one thing, it explains the friendship between Roxas and Namine and how Lexaeus seems to be a bit closer to Zexion than everyone else (well, close enough to warrant mentioning him in his last words). But there is a slight flaw with this theory; Lea and Isa. Lea does end up meeting Ven which could explain why Axel is friendly with Roxas but then there's Saix. I don't think bros kidnap each-other's hostages. But who knows, Birth by Sleep could very well validate my hypothesis.
After finally killing Demyx (WHICH TOOK WAY TOO DAMN LONG) I went straight for the Beast's Castle... well fine I stopped in Ancient china first, saw Riku, met Xiggy defeated a few things, then I was out of there.
I was all pumped up for the classic Disney ballroom scene then, damn it, Xaldin went and ruined it. My mind went into "BITCH MUST PAY" mode. Thinking about Xaldin now I'm sure squeenix was like "Come on guys we need more characters in Organization XII who don't look effeminate! So let's just get a guy who has big beefy arms that could rival those of Trogdor and SIX FREAKING PHALLIC WEAPONS. " Can't have everyone thinking that the organization is full of girls. Larxene is the only one who can have that title. Well.... technically there can be some debate surrounding Marluxia because the game developers had every intention of also making him female but then there was the whole 'two women trying to bring down an organization controlled by men and failing miserably thanks to, you guessed it, a man betraying them.' Not to mention the fact that the only one they out-rank is Roxas ... and he is considerably younger than everyone.
Subtle Enix, subtle.
But when you finally get to fight him it's awesome... well not the fight but the cutscene before the fight. At first I was like "BITCH IS KIDNAPPING MY FAVOURITE DISNEY PRINCESS. NEVAR FORGIVE!" but then it was so beautiful! When Belle elbowed him in the gut and stole that rose.... so many levels of awesome. I instantly yelled "HELL YEAH! FAVOURITE CHILDHOOD DISNEY PRINCESS, GO!"
/wipes tears of pride
Xaldin is a bit of a pansy. You'd figure with all his beefy muscles that he could take being elbowed in the stomach by a young dainty woman, but then again everyone in the organization has an Achilles' heel.
I don't remember much about all the other worlds. I was just going through them like I was in a daze because I just wanted to go to that lovely neon-lit world at the top of the map. I really only remember bits and pieces of them. But one thing I know I won't be forgetting anytime soon; Sora and his stupid but hilarious mental images of dancing with Kairi. There was also a shiney lavender shojou background! That was pretty unexpected for Halloween Town. And then there is Atlantica. Oh, Atlantica. A world where you don't even fight anything! Well, no, I lied. You do fight Ursula WITH THE POWER OF MUSIC. As much as I complain I really did like all the music. But if you dare mention this to me I will deny it. The song they sing to Ariel after you complete the world, it's lame but cute. But seriously, don't let the duck sing. Ever. And I love Ariel telling Eric about the whole 'I'm a mermaid' deal because he's actually surprised. Even if he didn't see her tail because of all the commotion, what is he thinking "Orly? I thought you just wore seashell bras for the hell of it."
I used a lot of limits while running through worlds. All of them were extremely useful but my two favourites were Tron's limit because it was so effective and (not pirate) Jack's limit purely because of the way Jack was flinging Sora around. <3 It's cute okay.
To Twilight Town! Hayner, Pence, and Olette are actually good friends to have. Sure, I hate it when people who can't fight jump into situations of danger. I hate this because most of the time people who do this end up being saved by the person who they were trying to rescue in the first place and, they could just get someone who can fight to go rescue their friend for them. It's senseless to just go to your certain death to save a friend because you become completely ineffectual and, hell, if your friend manages to escape on their own think of the extreme crushing guilt they would feel from knowing that they inadvertently caused your death. But strangely enough, I don't hate Hayner, Pence, and Olette for doing this. They didn't know when the hell Sora was going to show up and they knew Kairi couldn't fight. They didn't even know if Axel was that strong of a, um, being because he didn't whip out his chakrams or anything. If Axel had normal human strength they could just beat him by ganging up on him.
Sea-Salt Ice Cream is a stupid name for a computer password Maybe little Ienzo was the one who chose the password.
Speaking about that, exactly how young was Ienzo when he died? If everyone after Xemnas joined in order of their 'other's' deaths and II to IV were all working of the same experment around the time they lost their hearts, wouldn't that mean that they all died together? But in Birth by Sleep you meet Ansem's apprentices and they all look exactly like their nobodies (in terms of age) except for Ienzo who doesn't look to be any older than 12 years. Poor kid.
This realm of darkness isn't all that dark. Look at all that pink and blue! And oh crap! Nobodies! But don't worry, Axel to the rescue! Wait, I thought he was evil...... Let's think about this for a minute.
Axel is a member of Organization XIII who plotted to betray it with Marluxia and Larxene, but then he betrayed them only to later betray the Organization on his own. This guy is quite the enigma.
Axel: Hey, Sora! Check this out! :D /explodes
.............
.................
Axel? Damn it, he's fading away! And I was really starting to like him in this game! The Axel who would relentlessly pound my face in with his chakrams so that I didn't have any time to execute an attack would definitely not be done in by my hands and he is sure as hell not going to die at the hands of the Organization that he betrays then follows then betrays again. If Axel is going to die he's going out with a bang! Hell, he's the only one who got to go out on his own terms. And for his actions he is rewarded with........ a longer time to disappear so he can monologue!
Axel: Oh hey, tell Kairi that I'm sorry for the whole 'trying to kidnap you twice' thing.
Sora: Tell her yourself!
Axel: I would buuuut my heart just wouldn't be in it..... 'cause, you know, I don't have one.
/BA DUM TSH
HAHAHAHAHAHAhahahahaaa......... Man, I'm gonna miss this guy. He even gave me a new keyblade... or was it meant for Roxas...... or did Sora just jack his weapon and turn it into a keyblade? But if it was for Roxas, that would be kind of depressing.
But seriously, Roxas was kind of a douche to him during the cut-scenes we did see of them together. Especially that whole scene where Roxas is like "Who care no one will miss me, especially not my bff who is trying to convince me to not leave because he knows that it's most likely the last time he will ever see me again if I do decide to go." So Roxas is either a ditz or a jerk. Maybe this whole 'Nobodies' thing is actually like persona where is reflects the bad parts of you.... that would explain a lot except for the fact that Kairi has no freaking darkness in her heart and therefore could not have a persona. There goes that theory. Hopefully Roxas is not quite insensitive as he appears to be. Think of how his and Axel's friendship was like...
Axel: Hey Roxas, look at this! /chucks fireball at someone
Roxas: /sporfle
Roxas: How about this? /chuck keyblade at someone
Both: HAHAHAHAHA /high fives
Now, that's a friendship I could go for.
What the hell are you thinking Kairi! Don't jump into a pile of heartless! You're useless right now! Riku then gives her a keyblade. GO KAIRI, GO!
Xigbar boss fight. My one reaction was "HE'S ON THE FUCKING CEILING."
After the battle I realized that I was using Final Form all throughout the battle. I don't even remember getting final form. It just occurred to me that Sora's clothes were grey and not yellow while I was watching the cut-scene.
Then, there it was, the reunion scene. Sora! Kairi! Hugs all around! Then Sora's like "Hey jerk- I mean Xehanort's heartless. Thanks for saving Kairi." Riku then decides to blow this Popsicle stand -but wait! Kairi calls him Riku! The drama!
Obviously since Namine believes that bffs like Roxas and Axel hold hands all the time, so does Kairi, much to the fangirl's excitement.
"I SEARCHED EVERYWHERE FOR YOU!" Holding Riku's hand, falling to the floor, tears streaming down his cheeks. And me, being the sap that I am, I'm on the verge of tears. Man, this little reunion makes Sora and Kairi's hug seem really insignificant. And yay new keyblade! Being the sap that I am I equipped Oathkeeper to Master Form and Oblivion to Final Form. What keyblade am I actually using right now? Leon's is my favourite even though it's not the strongest; it's a good balance between magic and strength.
At this time a friend of mine came over. She's only slightly familiar with this game.
"Hey, you know Riku? Do you remember what he looks like?"
"Yup."
"Look at him now!"
"What happened to him?"
"Horrible tanning bed accident."
"Really?"
"Of course not!"
PROOF OF EXISTENCE AAAAAA! What a symbolic room! I don't see a fourteenth grave, stupid Sues! But seriously, when Axel sent Repliku to finish off Zexion did he just decide that "Hey, when I get back from castle Oblivion I should really mess up that guy's grave!" But as we all know, it was Enix trying to cover up the fact that they didn't give him an actual weapon in the original CoM. But man, I feel kind of sad looking at Larxene's grave. I really liked her. Why did I have to kill one of the only strong female characters in this series?
I don't know how I beat Luxord. Honestly I have no bloody clue. I had no idea what I was trying to do and somehow eventually I won... I think. Saix was pretty easy. Compared to Luxord, yeah, he was easy as pie.
But OH NOES! CHRISTOPHER LEE IS IN TROUBLE! Hang in there Christopher Lee! But sadly the machine blows up taking the life of The Bowling Champion of The World with it.
I love how Sora and company tries to run to Christopher Lee but Riku is pushing Sora back and this somehow stops the rest of the guys from running to him. It's like Riku's big beefy Xehanort's Heartless arms have a force field that can push back everyone at the same time.
BUT DON'T WORRY GUYS, CHRISTOPHER LEE DID NOT DIE IN VAIN! He died for one of the most important purposes of all; Making Riku bishi again!
But wow Riku has more hair in his face than a Maltese! I really want Sora to just go up to him and push his bangs up and go "Peek-a-boo" or something.
Sora: /spreads Riku's bangs apart
Riku: What are you doing?
Sora: I was looking for the Russian circus. I thought I might be in here.
Oh me and my Don Bluth references!
That "How do I face everyone?""You do it like this *funnyface*" part was hilarious.
Riku then proceeds to rip off his clothes. Oh, calm down fangirls! He dresses himself in layers just like Clark Kent!
What a nice surprise! Riku becomes a party member. Now he must never leave.
Looking at the character profiles I noticed something. What the hell has happened to Riku's posture! Wait......
Baggy pants?
Long hair?
Bad posture?
This can only mean one thing! RIKU HAS BECOME A GOOD-FOR-NOTHING TEENAGER!
GET OFF MY LAWN, RIKU YOU WHIPPERSNAPPER!
/shakes fist
So Namine, Roxas, Kairi and Sora have their trippy little scene and in classic KH fashion, once you defeat the final boss.... you must fight him again five times. But in this game, guess what we have? QUICKTIME EVENTS!
Potion 100 munny. Watermelon 5000 munny. Getting to face the final boss with your favourite character at your side, Priceless.
I almost thought I royally screwed up when Xemnas took Sora and was electrocuting him, or whatever he was doing. Then suddenly "Sora!" and then I'm controlling Riku.
It seems like when you trade ankle-belt hems for baggy pants the stats are Cool +15, Speed -20.
RIKU YOU ARE SO SLOW. YOU SHOULDN'T WEAR BAGGY PANTS WHILE FIGHTING. DON'T YOU KNOW THAT ALL DELINQUENTS WHO WEAR BAGGY PANTS WHEN ROBBING 7-ELEVENS ARE ALWAYS CAUGHT BY THE POLICE BECAUSE THEY CAN'T RUN FAST ENOUGH WITH THEIR JEANS HALFWAY DOWN THEIR ASS! PULL UP YOUR FREAKING PANTS RIKU.
But don't worry Riku saves the day! And then suddenly everything goes black. I was freaking out because I couldn't figure out if I was supposed to be hitting both X and triangle to make both of the boys move, and frankly, I didn't want to stop pressing buttons to find out for fear of being annihilated.
Sora and Riku talk about how awesome it is to be friend on a moonlight beach. I don't care how corny it is, it's adorable!
Suddenly there's a graphics quality switch!
Go Kairi's letter, go! Now you know why Sora was falling from the sky in the first opening. And everyone is waiting for them on Destiny Islands! Well, everyone is waiting for Sora, at least. Hell, Kairi didn't even look at Riku once Sora was on shore, and they are supposed to be friends! It seems like the one who is most excited to see him King Mickey. Sure, I know that Sora and Kairi like each-other and it's supposed to be special because it's Roxas and Namine seeing each-other again, but Riku is her friend too and he's saved her so many times! He deserves at least a little recognition. At least smile at him, Kairi.
/Sigh. Sora gets all the girls!
I think Riku deserves a happier ending. In order to save Kairi he turns to the darkness and to get her heart back he is willing to kill Pinocchio (when, if it wasn't for saving his friend's heart, he wouldn't kill any innocent person/puppet/thing) and because of the darkness he has to play puppet to some psycho heartless. Not to mention the fact that he probably was determined to save Kairi on his own because he thought Sora had replaced them. Then to save Sora he immediately goes out to fight Roxas and when he fails he is then forced to turn to the darkness again to get the power to beat him but this time it messes with his physical appearance. That combined with the extreme guilt he feels for betraying his best friends is a good recipe for angst. It's really sad if you consider the possibility that Riku might still like her. At least he is reunited with his friends. But Riku was supposed to be the chosen one!
I guess part of the reason why I wasn't really satisfied with the ending was that I didn't really get what was going on with Roxas and Namine. I don't see how they suddenly became bffs in that short amount of time. When Namine was getting kidnapped (like original, like nobody) she did make that promise with Roxas but other than that I didn't see anything that really said 'these guys are good friends' and I don't now about you, but I think saying 'You were never meant to exist' is a good way to show you care. Maybe I'm just forgetting some nice parts. Eeh, I guess I'll play the Roxas chapter over again.
And if I understand this correctly how Roxas ended up in the computer in the first place was because when Riku kidnapped him after beating him he and DiZ shoved him into the computer (Why?)while Sora's memories were being restored. And Axel was just popping in to try and get him out of there. And normally I would ask how did Sora know about all those defeated Nobodies which he couldn't remember fighting, but then after checking the interwebs I found out it's explained in Final Mix Plus, and as we all know, No Export For You applies here. and I'm still wondering why Kairi returned to Destiny Islands at the end of the first game when everyone was supposed to go back to their 'original worlds' which for her would be Radiant Garden.
Thinking about it now, Axel is pretty lucky to actually have emotions, or at least figments of emotions. He was able to at least have the capacity to 'like'. Xemnas can only remember anger and hate. You never really realise just how much the Nobodies memories affect them until that moment. I think lot of the interactions between them are determined by this. For one thing, it explains the friendship between Roxas and Namine and how Lexaeus seems to be a bit closer to Zexion than everyone else (well, close enough to warrant mentioning him in his last words). But there is a slight flaw with this theory; Lea and Isa. Lea does end up meeting Ven which could explain why Axel is friendly with Roxas but then there's Saix. I don't think bros kidnap each-other's hostages. But who knows, Birth by Sleep could very well validate my hypothesis.