Rodney
06-16-2012, 07:37 AM
This is the seventh of my series of threads and polls, asking all of you for your personal rankings of the characters from each FF game in the numbered games. You can base them on personality, usefulness in gameplay, relevance to the story, general enjoyment of each character, or even frivolous things such as their character themes. Whatever you want to base them on. Also included is a poll on which you can vote for your absolute favorite from each game.
This is my seventh one. It's for FF10! And I'm sure many of you were waiting for this one! The rankings were easy for my top three, but it got a bit sketchy for my bottom four, because this game shares something with the next two games' casts: I didn't really . . . hate anyone in this. I either liked or loved them all. So since I'm once again only basing this one completely on personality, this one was a matter of separating those I found to be truly great from those I found to merely be good.
So here are my rankings:
1. Rikku: Once again, the requisite "perky young girl" rules all for me! I had to step back before absolutely cementing her here, but when I realized that every time I played FF10, I went through everything as quickly as I could just to get to the scene of her reunion with Tidus and her subsequently joining the party, that's what made me realize that she's the tops for me. Love her excitement, her energy, and her basically being willing to call other party members on their BS. And I like it when she's the one to talk to Tidus in Guadosalam about Yuna's marital situation instead of Lulu, and when she rides the machina with him to the temple instead of her. And you know she's got something special to her when pretty much everyone in the party likes her. (Lulu thought she was fun to be with, Kimahri thought she should always stay the way she is, Tidus bonded with her over being the sole two people opposed to what Yuna would have to do, Yuna had the family bond with her, Auron stood up for her in front of that guard at Macalania Temple, and after getting over her being an Al Bhed (and before, too, I guess), Wakka was very friendly with her. And even then, despite largely being the party's mascot of sorts, she even proved to be sort of deep -- she could stand up for what she believed in, and she openly spoke up against the wrongness of Yevon's teachings. If not for her, Yuna would've gone ahead and died at the end of her pilgrimage! So for pretty much everything I said here, Rikku's number one.
2. Kimahri: Part of it is the nonhuman factor, I admit. Another part of it is that there's something about his "strong and (mostly) silent" act that I liked. I mean, really liked. I think it's because the first time I played, I wondered if I'd ever hear him do more than grunt when attacked in battle, and then was shocked that he not only did speak, but that he spoke much earlier than I expected him to. One thing I both admired and kind of resented (though only at first) was his loyalty and dedication to Yuna. (Resented only because . . . sheesh, Tidus was new, yes, but it wasn't like he was gonna kill or rape her. But after he got past that stage, I was cool with it.) And even despite being mostly secondary compared to everyone else, he even got his own neat little storyline of his rivalry with Biran and Yenke. That battle's a bitch, to be sure, but it's a good way of bringing his character arc full circle. Too bad he's crap for abilities due to the Sphere Grid. But yeah, I love Kimahri, anyway. So number two for him.
3. Yuna: Not once have I ever seen a soft-spoken, meek-sounding female character manage to actually come off as strong and confident at the same time, but damn it, Yuna did it and did it well. I liked her quiet confidence, her need to protect everyone she cared about no matter what the cost (including sacrificing herself), and, as Seymour and others pointed out, her commendable resolve. Actually, Yuna's character, in general, was a big part of my enjoyment of both the game and the story. And I'll flat-out say it. Of every FF love story I've seen, she and Tidus had, by far, the best one. Because it was the first one in which I felt that the game was one-hundred-percent showing us how and why they fell in love rather than just telling us and expecting us to buy. (FF8 was mainly telling on Squall's end, but showing on Rinoa's, and FF9 was all telling from both Zidane and Garnet's ends.) Her steadfastness was probably a minus against her (especially when not telling everyone else what she was going to do about the marrying Seymour thing), but other than that, I quite enjoy her. So number three for her.
4. Wakka: Four through seven is where things get dicey and difficult to call. But in the end, Wakka is at number four because I felt like he gave me the most laughs. Actually, I kinda liked that he was like another Steiner -- he had both funny and serious moments and could be deep just like Steiner did, and in a lot of ways, his character arc paralleled Steiner's. I loved his big brother/little brother relationship with Tidus, and I really loved it when he put him in headlocks twice (once in Besaid, once on the Thunder Plains). And I enjoyed hearing his Islander accent -- all of his "ya's" and "bruddas." And dare I say it, I liked the subtle hints planted of something blossoming between him and Lulu. I basically dig Wakka, in general. But he's at number four because he tops the list of the characters I merely like.
5. Tidus: Oddly enough, Tidus almost got to number four. In fact, I initially put him there when I was writing out this poll, but quickly erased him when I remembered something about him that bugged me. First, the good. Basically, four things he said or did put him above the bottom two: screaming really loud at Kilika Temple (causing an awesome moment of camerawork and some great reactions from the other party members), his hilarious delivery of "Hey, gimme a break!" in Luca (when he, Wakka, and Auron were surrounded by too many fiends -- and it was a saying that, after I asked Bob twice to incorporate it into AFFR and he even said he would, I was disappointed not to see show up), his nearly slipping up and revealing that Rikku was Al Bhed to Wakka on the Moonflow, and just yelling at Seymour, "And stay up there!" But aside from those four moments, I did like his character arc, as well, and the relationships he forged with the other party members. Plus, I found myself needing him in battle a lot, even if not all the time. His Blitz Ace and Energy Rain rocked, as far as I'm concerned. The reason he's down here, though? His daddy issues. He hated his father just because his mother never paid attention to him when he was around? Um . . . okay. Talk about an Oedipal complex. Though I liked how he ended things with Jecht at the end of the game, though. And yes. He's a dork. But I like dorks. So . . . Tidus.
6. Lulu: I liked Lulu quite a bit. I liked her being smart and knowledgeable about nearly all things in Spira. I liked her being the calming influence on the party during the early goings. And I even liked the moments she was capable of actually demonstrating some humor. Her deep-seated regrets about Chappu and Ginnem also added interest to her character. But really, other than those things, she just didn't pop to me as much as the five characters above her. I really liked her, but at the same time, she somehow didn't interest me much. Not to mention her black magic just couldn't and didn't do it for me.
7. Auron: But not to say I dislike him. I do like him. His personality type is just not one with which I've historically identified. Unless said personality type is attached to the right type of character. What I liked: how calm he could nearly always be under fire, how he immediately took charge of the party the moment he joined up with them, and even the times he showed a lack of humility in battle. (During the early goings with him, if he is KO'd and revived and Lulu's in the battle with him, she'll ask him if he's all right, and he'll just write it off as a warmup.) There is one really mean thing he does that I really don't like and really don't get why he did it -- laughing right Tidus's face when he freaks out on him in Luca. I . . . just don't get why he did. The dude's alone and scared in a time he knows absolutely NO ONE in. So there it is. Auron's last.
But these are just my rankings. How about everyone else's?
This is my seventh one. It's for FF10! And I'm sure many of you were waiting for this one! The rankings were easy for my top three, but it got a bit sketchy for my bottom four, because this game shares something with the next two games' casts: I didn't really . . . hate anyone in this. I either liked or loved them all. So since I'm once again only basing this one completely on personality, this one was a matter of separating those I found to be truly great from those I found to merely be good.
So here are my rankings:
1. Rikku: Once again, the requisite "perky young girl" rules all for me! I had to step back before absolutely cementing her here, but when I realized that every time I played FF10, I went through everything as quickly as I could just to get to the scene of her reunion with Tidus and her subsequently joining the party, that's what made me realize that she's the tops for me. Love her excitement, her energy, and her basically being willing to call other party members on their BS. And I like it when she's the one to talk to Tidus in Guadosalam about Yuna's marital situation instead of Lulu, and when she rides the machina with him to the temple instead of her. And you know she's got something special to her when pretty much everyone in the party likes her. (Lulu thought she was fun to be with, Kimahri thought she should always stay the way she is, Tidus bonded with her over being the sole two people opposed to what Yuna would have to do, Yuna had the family bond with her, Auron stood up for her in front of that guard at Macalania Temple, and after getting over her being an Al Bhed (and before, too, I guess), Wakka was very friendly with her. And even then, despite largely being the party's mascot of sorts, she even proved to be sort of deep -- she could stand up for what she believed in, and she openly spoke up against the wrongness of Yevon's teachings. If not for her, Yuna would've gone ahead and died at the end of her pilgrimage! So for pretty much everything I said here, Rikku's number one.
2. Kimahri: Part of it is the nonhuman factor, I admit. Another part of it is that there's something about his "strong and (mostly) silent" act that I liked. I mean, really liked. I think it's because the first time I played, I wondered if I'd ever hear him do more than grunt when attacked in battle, and then was shocked that he not only did speak, but that he spoke much earlier than I expected him to. One thing I both admired and kind of resented (though only at first) was his loyalty and dedication to Yuna. (Resented only because . . . sheesh, Tidus was new, yes, but it wasn't like he was gonna kill or rape her. But after he got past that stage, I was cool with it.) And even despite being mostly secondary compared to everyone else, he even got his own neat little storyline of his rivalry with Biran and Yenke. That battle's a bitch, to be sure, but it's a good way of bringing his character arc full circle. Too bad he's crap for abilities due to the Sphere Grid. But yeah, I love Kimahri, anyway. So number two for him.
3. Yuna: Not once have I ever seen a soft-spoken, meek-sounding female character manage to actually come off as strong and confident at the same time, but damn it, Yuna did it and did it well. I liked her quiet confidence, her need to protect everyone she cared about no matter what the cost (including sacrificing herself), and, as Seymour and others pointed out, her commendable resolve. Actually, Yuna's character, in general, was a big part of my enjoyment of both the game and the story. And I'll flat-out say it. Of every FF love story I've seen, she and Tidus had, by far, the best one. Because it was the first one in which I felt that the game was one-hundred-percent showing us how and why they fell in love rather than just telling us and expecting us to buy. (FF8 was mainly telling on Squall's end, but showing on Rinoa's, and FF9 was all telling from both Zidane and Garnet's ends.) Her steadfastness was probably a minus against her (especially when not telling everyone else what she was going to do about the marrying Seymour thing), but other than that, I quite enjoy her. So number three for her.
4. Wakka: Four through seven is where things get dicey and difficult to call. But in the end, Wakka is at number four because I felt like he gave me the most laughs. Actually, I kinda liked that he was like another Steiner -- he had both funny and serious moments and could be deep just like Steiner did, and in a lot of ways, his character arc paralleled Steiner's. I loved his big brother/little brother relationship with Tidus, and I really loved it when he put him in headlocks twice (once in Besaid, once on the Thunder Plains). And I enjoyed hearing his Islander accent -- all of his "ya's" and "bruddas." And dare I say it, I liked the subtle hints planted of something blossoming between him and Lulu. I basically dig Wakka, in general. But he's at number four because he tops the list of the characters I merely like.
5. Tidus: Oddly enough, Tidus almost got to number four. In fact, I initially put him there when I was writing out this poll, but quickly erased him when I remembered something about him that bugged me. First, the good. Basically, four things he said or did put him above the bottom two: screaming really loud at Kilika Temple (causing an awesome moment of camerawork and some great reactions from the other party members), his hilarious delivery of "Hey, gimme a break!" in Luca (when he, Wakka, and Auron were surrounded by too many fiends -- and it was a saying that, after I asked Bob twice to incorporate it into AFFR and he even said he would, I was disappointed not to see show up), his nearly slipping up and revealing that Rikku was Al Bhed to Wakka on the Moonflow, and just yelling at Seymour, "And stay up there!" But aside from those four moments, I did like his character arc, as well, and the relationships he forged with the other party members. Plus, I found myself needing him in battle a lot, even if not all the time. His Blitz Ace and Energy Rain rocked, as far as I'm concerned. The reason he's down here, though? His daddy issues. He hated his father just because his mother never paid attention to him when he was around? Um . . . okay. Talk about an Oedipal complex. Though I liked how he ended things with Jecht at the end of the game, though. And yes. He's a dork. But I like dorks. So . . . Tidus.
6. Lulu: I liked Lulu quite a bit. I liked her being smart and knowledgeable about nearly all things in Spira. I liked her being the calming influence on the party during the early goings. And I even liked the moments she was capable of actually demonstrating some humor. Her deep-seated regrets about Chappu and Ginnem also added interest to her character. But really, other than those things, she just didn't pop to me as much as the five characters above her. I really liked her, but at the same time, she somehow didn't interest me much. Not to mention her black magic just couldn't and didn't do it for me.
7. Auron: But not to say I dislike him. I do like him. His personality type is just not one with which I've historically identified. Unless said personality type is attached to the right type of character. What I liked: how calm he could nearly always be under fire, how he immediately took charge of the party the moment he joined up with them, and even the times he showed a lack of humility in battle. (During the early goings with him, if he is KO'd and revived and Lulu's in the battle with him, she'll ask him if he's all right, and he'll just write it off as a warmup.) There is one really mean thing he does that I really don't like and really don't get why he did it -- laughing right Tidus's face when he freaks out on him in Luca. I . . . just don't get why he did. The dude's alone and scared in a time he knows absolutely NO ONE in. So there it is. Auron's last.
But these are just my rankings. How about everyone else's?