Final Fantasy XII Blog Time 3: Sazh is the man, and it's time to beat up the Pope.
Hey folks major spoilers here, so I'll include a break to prevent you all from accidentally ruining really dramatic moments of the story.
So, I'm twenty hours in, and shit has truly gotten real now. A few hours back, Hope was forced to be paired with Snow on their way to Hope's house. As you may or may not know, Hope holds Snow responsible for the death of his mother, though Snow was still unaware of that fact. Hope finally tells him, at the same time blowing him off a ledge and trying to stab him in the head. It ends poorly and Snow hauls Hope toward their pals, trying to make it past the PSICOM units stationed.
It builds up to a really touching moment where Snow admits that he has been dragging others into his conflict, and he doesn't know how to make up for what he's done. But at the very least, he realizes he's been running away from those who deserve some sort of apology. Hope admits he always knew killing Snow wouldn't bring his Milf back, and there is finally reconciliation when, while staying at Hope's house, his dad even forgives Snow, saying that they've all done a good job protecting one another, and that they need to go and do what they have to do.
I do a poor job of typing it out here, but the whole chapter was really well paced and written. The emotional beats felt just right, and it actually redeemed Hope a lot in my eyes. Especially since he doesn't complain anymore. Looking back on it, he actually does have a really good development arc, especially in regards to his parents and the loss of his mom. Really touching stuff.
The other ridiculously depressing/shocking moment was Sazh trying to kill himself via a bullet to the head. Turns out that Vanille was the one who turned his son Doji into a L'cie, and Sazh just can't bring himself to shoot her, despite the betrayal. Also turns out his son was being held by Queen PSICOM bitch, and right in front of his eyes he sees his boy turn into a crystal as he fulfills his focus. It's depressing as hell, especially because at this point we don't know that turning into a crystal doesn't necessarily mean death.
Sazh realizes he just doesn't have it in him to kill her, and so he brings the gun to his head and pulls the trigger.
Of course, it's shown later in a flashback that he couldn't do that either, much to his dismay. I think he might be one of the most well-written SE characters I've come across in years. You can totally identify with him as being the everyday man who just got swept up in some ridiculous string of events because he and his son were in the wrong place at the wrong time. Yeah, he's funny, but he is also one of the emotional pillars of the story.
Where I'm at now, the whole party has finally assembled for the first time in game, and I've been given the choice to mix my party up at last.
We're going to kill the shit out of the pope. Yeah, you heard me. THE POPE.
-Ryo
P.S, I'll do an XMAS post later to share what the bounty was this year. Been a while. =p
So, I'm twenty hours in, and shit has truly gotten real now. A few hours back, Hope was forced to be paired with Snow on their way to Hope's house. As you may or may not know, Hope holds Snow responsible for the death of his mother, though Snow was still unaware of that fact. Hope finally tells him, at the same time blowing him off a ledge and trying to stab him in the head. It ends poorly and Snow hauls Hope toward their pals, trying to make it past the PSICOM units stationed.
It builds up to a really touching moment where Snow admits that he has been dragging others into his conflict, and he doesn't know how to make up for what he's done. But at the very least, he realizes he's been running away from those who deserve some sort of apology. Hope admits he always knew killing Snow wouldn't bring his Milf back, and there is finally reconciliation when, while staying at Hope's house, his dad even forgives Snow, saying that they've all done a good job protecting one another, and that they need to go and do what they have to do.
I do a poor job of typing it out here, but the whole chapter was really well paced and written. The emotional beats felt just right, and it actually redeemed Hope a lot in my eyes. Especially since he doesn't complain anymore. Looking back on it, he actually does have a really good development arc, especially in regards to his parents and the loss of his mom. Really touching stuff.
The other ridiculously depressing/shocking moment was Sazh trying to kill himself via a bullet to the head. Turns out that Vanille was the one who turned his son Doji into a L'cie, and Sazh just can't bring himself to shoot her, despite the betrayal. Also turns out his son was being held by Queen PSICOM bitch, and right in front of his eyes he sees his boy turn into a crystal as he fulfills his focus. It's depressing as hell, especially because at this point we don't know that turning into a crystal doesn't necessarily mean death.
Sazh realizes he just doesn't have it in him to kill her, and so he brings the gun to his head and pulls the trigger.
Of course, it's shown later in a flashback that he couldn't do that either, much to his dismay. I think he might be one of the most well-written SE characters I've come across in years. You can totally identify with him as being the everyday man who just got swept up in some ridiculous string of events because he and his son were in the wrong place at the wrong time. Yeah, he's funny, but he is also one of the emotional pillars of the story.
Where I'm at now, the whole party has finally assembled for the first time in game, and I've been given the choice to mix my party up at last.
We're going to kill the shit out of the pope. Yeah, you heard me. THE POPE.
-Ryo
P.S, I'll do an XMAS post later to share what the bounty was this year. Been a while. =p