Trippin Balls

So we all remember Cloud's frequent spazz attacks throughout the game. I cannot for the life of me remember what the justification was (probably Jenova cell induced, right?).

Anyway, after watching Advent Children a couple days ago and starting a new game today I wondered whether Jenova/Sephiroth was responsible for all of them, or perhaps Zack in his infinite caring for Cloud might have been responsible.

Okay that made trout all sense. Let me try again. At the very beginning, Cloud kind of freaks out and is warned to be careful and that "this is not a normal reactor".

A part from the psycho ambiguity to the statement itself, what good would Jenova/Sephiroth have to warn Cloud here? I mean do they really care?

I would think that all the times Cloud is "helped out" by his spazz attacks it is actually Zack being a bro and helping his spikey headed ass out of trouble. Alternatively it could be the real Cloud that Tifa unlocks in Mideel but now we're getting even more ridiculous.

Thoughts? HELP ME MAKE SENSE OF THIS.

I'm going to go 50/50 the Jenova cells within Cloud, or the underlying personality of Cloud himself. These all center around Cloud's incongruent memory of the past, but it is unclear whether this is Cloud's unconscious trying to fix his memory, or the Jenova cells trying to break him down.

I don't see Sephiroth as involved in any of them, as I really don't think he regards Cloud as much of anything worth his attention. Likewise I don't see any hand of Zack's involvement in any of this, until the compilation he was dead and gone.

I only mentioned Sephiroth because I was under the impression the Reunion was his doing and not Jenova but I've read so many theories over the years that I can't remember what is fact! :exdee:

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what is fact!

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In fiction a fact is whatever interpretation the writer of the latest installment though suited their iteration the best. :D

I used to think of it as Jenova, but the more I think of it the more it being Cloud makes sense.

I feel liked we have solved a great riddle here today VeloZer0. I'm excited to see what, if any, this knowledge does to alter my perception of the game!

Also Cloud dude way to give yourself intense migraines. It's like Cloud!Cloud realises that Zack!Cloud is a stubborn git and won't respond to anything except extreme pain.

Or that could be Cloud duking it out with Jenova in order to get a message through. I don't know if I would like to have that going on inside my cranium.

That said, I still don't understand the significance of the "watch out! this isn't just a reactor!" line. It doesn't really seem to has significance to anything, other than the fact that Cloud has underlying mental problems.

That line has never made sense. This isn't just a reactor? WHAT IS IT THEN? I suppose it might be the player's warning that there is a boss fight coming but by that point you can't do anything (and you probably don't understand how to do anything either) so it seems completely and utterly pointless.

Unless it was some sort of remnant memory of his time in Nibelheim Reactor. Because that really wasn't just a reactor.

I do think it is Sephiroth because I think Sephiroth was using the Jenova Reunion theory to manipulate the clones into getting Jenova, the Black Materia, and fulfilling his plans. I believe Sephiroth called both #1 and Cloud to Midgar at the beginning of the game to break out Jenova. Sephiroth wants him alive and healthy to complete his mission.

The one scene that nails it for me is in Junon, after you get a night of sleep, the voice asks Cloud to remember what happened 5 years ago. I think it's because he wanted Cloud to begin doubting himself and his past in order to keep him mentally unstable and eventually give the Black Materia to Sephiroth.

That scene in Junon is the one I thought was most important too, because it really is the first "conversation" that Cloud has with whatever the smurf is going on. It just seemed way too friendly.

But you could also attribute the conversation in Junon to Cloud's inner self trying to get him to start questioning his fake memories.

After falling into Sector 5:
Mysterious Voice: "Back then…… You could get by with just skinned knees……"
While sleeping in Aries's house:
Mysterious Voice: "I haven't slept in a bed like this…in a long time."
In Junon:
Mysterious Voice: "When you went to Mt. Nibel then, Tifa was your guide, right?"

Interesting how it changes point of view. Though with the translation the way it is I am probably reading too far into it.

Maybe it's because he's got multiple personalities, one of which is JENOVA, one of which is derived from his memory of Sephiroth, one of which is Zack, and one of which is the subconscious of Cloud himself. It's as good a theory as anything else :exdee:

All I know is the music screech that plays when Cloud has a freak out makes my ears bleed.

I remember hiding under the goddamn blankets the first time I heard it. Not cool man.

I was always kind of waiting for the entire game to have been a really weird dream, or a really bad acid trip.

Or maybe he ate some of Soup Dude's soup, and it had something laced in it. That's why Soup Dude will never let him have any soup. It's his subconscious saying, "Bro. This trout ain't GOOD."

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Originally Posted by fierytempest

I was always kind of waiting for the entire game to have been a really weird dream, or a really bad acid trip.

Or maybe he ate some of Soup Dude's soup, and it had something laced in it. That's why Soup Dude will never let him have any soup. It's his subconscious saying, "Bro. This trout ain't GOOD."

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I'm going with this.

We haven't really got anything better, and Square's holding out, so I support it whole heartedly.

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Originally Posted by VeloZer0

I still don't understand the significance of the "watch out! this isn't just a reactor!" line. It doesn't really seem to has significance to anything, other than the fact that Cloud has underlying mental problems.

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This stems from the time when Cloud worked for Shinra. He was getting confused from an experience he had in an alternate reactor.

It is a little known fact that the No. 2 Reactor was actually half-reactor, half-Chinese Karaoke Bar.

Anyone who has actually been in one of these will be able to relate to the fear in Cloud's voice...

That is something I did not know! What an interesting combination.

Memories of the Numa Numa song haunt him to this day.

Found proof that Cloud did drink at the Number 2 reactor Karaoke Bar. He is an unused flashback scene in Advent Children.

Cloud Strife Drunk. - YouTube