I've been known to have some interesting causes in the name of Final Fantasy characters. I dispelled the myth of the spooniness of Edward by defeating the game with him on my own. I champion the greatness of Red Mages. I demand praise towards the Goddess known as Quistis. But this one will seem really wierd, but if you'll permit me a moment or five, I think I can explain myself.
For the longest time I have been baffled by the hatred towards Tidus as a whole. It seems like a general consensus that he is a whiney, weak character who is generally very girly and a pain in the ass. However, for the entire duration of the game I never associated such traits with him, and fail to see just why people are so quick to dismiss him as a character.
Now I will say before I begin that this entire essay with have MAJOR SPOILERS. I repeat, MAJOR SPOILERS. I will not be using any spoiler tags, so unless you've already played the game then I suggest you look away right now.
...
...
...
...
Alright then we'll begin.
Basically, for me the character of Tidus is much more orientated towards a selfless hero, who acts more for other people (or perhaps more specifically for one person, namely Yuna) rather than for himself. Throughout the game he shows many different aspects of his character which I would attribute to being positive, and generally becomes a stronger character as the game progresses.
First of all, let's get the obvious out of the way; the voice. James Arnold Taylor, who does the voice for Tidus, generally tends to sound the same no matter what voice he does. If you've ever played X-Men Legends 2, you'll know that in terms of voice, Iceman = Tidus. Now I am firmly of the belief that the large majority of Tidus hating comes from his voice. Although it is suited to his appearance, that of a young, short teenager, because of the general whine and chirpiness that comes with this means that it will probably grate easily. Let's face it, when was the last time you could stand listening to a teenage boy harping on about anything ever without starting to feel the urge to kill? We'll put the voice on the wayside, and that's where it will stay. In different translations, and in different countries, the voice will inevitably be different. Language quirks, pronounciation, dialect, you name it, it goes towards the creation of a voice. It just so happens that in the English language this goes towards creating quite an annoying voice.
Now onto his appearance. There's generally quite a few jokes about him baring a resemblance to Meg Ryan. But again I think it is something that is a product of a culture, namely Japanese culture. These games are made for a certain age group in Japan, and as such generally the games makers will pick up on popular elements of entertainment in order to make the game appeal towards it's target audience. It isn't the first time that Squenix have done this. Famously Squall from Final Fantasy 8 was supposedly based upon Gackt (though official sources say he was based more upon River Phoenix). Generally speaking, whatever's "in" with the kids it will usually find it's way into various forms of media, and games are no exception. Tidus therefore is more a product of Japanese trends, the bleached-hair being the best example of this. He's designed to appeal to a designated target audience, considering that he is the antagonist and the primary reason for the narrative continuing throughout. Unfortunately this doesn't translate very well into our culture (and let's face it, those Japanese can do crazier things. Nintendo Wii anyone?).
So let's look almost exclusively at his personality. It's true that Tidus develops throughout the game. It has been stated by JAT that Tidus develops significantly, even his voice changing to reflect this;
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wikipedia
James Arnold Taylor, the English voice actor for Tidus, has mentioned that Tidus' maturity goes through stages of development during the story, and that his voice reflects this, i.e., the points of narration offered by Tidus sound mature, while those from when the game began had a higher pitch.
So we can assume that the Tidus by the end of the game is not the same Tidus we see by the end. But how does he develop?
One of the main storyline arcs during the game is the apparent dissaperance of Jecht, who through various plot points is revealed to be Sin, the scourge of Spira. During the first stages of the game, it is made explicitly clear that Tidus abhores Jecht with a passion. The apparent reason for this is because of Jecht's alcohol problems, and the fact that he often berated Tidus.
Quote:
Tidus: "Putting people down... They're as bad as my old man!"
Yuna: "But, Sir Jecht was a kind and gentle man!"
Tidus: "Well, not my Jecht."
T-Narrative: Even ten years after he left...just thinking about my old
man got me angry. But maybe that was just my way of keep-
-ing him... Nah.
Quote:
Tidus: "Well, there wasn't much to honor about my old man, that's for
sure."
So obviously Tidus doesn't have a good relationship with his father, who he feels abandoned him and his mother. It's never stated how long after Jecht dissapered Tidus' mother dissapered. It is safe to assume that by the time Tidus travels to Zanarkand he has been an "orphan" for some time. At such a young age losing both of your parents so soon together can be traumatic enough, but Tidus seems a relatively stable character despite all of this. His true reason for hating Jecht becomes more apparent in a scene in the Farplane.
Quote:
Tidus: "Whenever my old man was around, my mother wouldn't even look at me.
Maybe that's when I started to resent him, even hate him. When he left
us...Mom just lost her energy."
As young children, we all need our mothers as we are naturally dependant upon them. I could start talking Freudian Oedipus Complex stuff, but that's probably not suitable nor relevant here, so we'll just keep with the idea of Tidus needing attention from his mother. Now it's unfair to pin on Tidus weakness because of this resentment. He was a child at the time, and many of us would have probably felt the same way at that age if our mother's were too occupied with another to bother with us. The dilema here is the fact that while Tidus' couldn't stand Jecht being around, when he left it was as bad a situation as he had to watch his mother slowly wither away without Jecht around. So there is a sense of double resentment, at both Jecht being present and leaving. It's no wonder that, in the mind of Tidus, Jecht is seen as a root of all problems. This is a perfectly acceptible and logical bit of reasoning for Tidus.
Yet despite all of this, upon finding out that Sin is Jecht, Tidus' reaction is one of denial at first.
Quote:
Auron: "It depends on what you mean by 'alive.' He is no longer human.
But then... I felt something of Jecht there in that shell,
couldn't you? You must have felt him when you came in contact
with Sin."
Tidus: "It can't be..."
Auron: "It is. Sin is Jecht."
Tidus: "No! That's ridiculous! No way! I don't believe you!"
Auron: "But it is the truth. You'll see for yourself. Come with me."
However, upon next coming into contact with Sin, Tidus' own emotions get the better of him;
Quote:
T-Narrative: "I have no idea what I was thinking when I ran after Sin that day.
But before I knew what I was doing, there I was chasing him down
like a thief at market. Maybe I was angry. Maybe I wanted to go
home. I kept thinking of Zanarkand, and my old man.
The next time the party encounters Sin face to face is under the lack near Macalania temple. By this point Tidus has already come to accept his true feelings for why he hates Jecht, and has even seen a recording of his father, who has also grown and developed as a perosn, understanding why people saw him as a hero in this world.
Quote:
T-Narrative: It was then I knew...that Sin really was my old man. For the first
time, I was finally able to believe it.
Tidus: "The song... You were listening, too! What is it this time?"
[Tidus is shown an image of Zanarkand's cityscape.]
Tidus: "Zanarkand... You homesick, too? That's not your world anymore. You're
Sin now."
[Tidus is shown a memory of him, younger, sitting on the houseboat deck.]
Tidus: "Hey, I'm older now, you know? I know. You want this to end. I'll find
a way. Promise."
Now obviously, if Tidus had been the "crybaby" that he is attributed to so often, then he would have just decided to leave Jecht trapped as Sin, instead of promising to help him escape. This to me seems like a very noble deed to do. Tidus has no reason to help Jecht. Infact, with everything that has happened between them, Tidus has more reason to enhance Jecht's suffering further. But it just shows the nobility of his character that he is prepared to help his father out, despite the seemingly impossible task of defeating a seemingly undefeatable foe.
The entire scene between Tidus and Jecht Inside Sin is pivitol to this whole part of the story. It's the first time that Jecht and Tidus have talked directly to each other. Both of them are now different people compared to ten years ago , but it is still where the two of them "have it out" so to speak;
Quote:
Jecht: "Hey."
Tidus: "Hi."
Jecht: "Hah! You got tall, but you're all bones! You eating right, boy? You've
really grown."
Tidus: "Yeah, but you're still bigger."
Jecht: "Well, I am Sin, you know."
Tidus: "That's not funny."
Jecht: "Well, then... I mean...you know. Let's end this."
Tidus: "Dad?"
Jecht: "Yeah?"
Tidus: "I hate you."
Jecht: "I know, I know. You know what you have to do."
Tidus: "Yeah."
Jecht: "I can't hear the Hymn so well anymore. Pretty soon, I'm gonna be Sin.
Completely. I'm glad you're here now. One thing, though... When it
starts, I won't be myself anymore. I won't be able to hold myself back.
I'm sorry."
Tidus: "That's enough. Let's finish this, okay?"
Jecht: "You're right. Well, then... Let's go!"
[Jecht stumbles off the edge of the platform and turns into Braska's Final
Aeon.]
Tidus: "I promise this'll be quick! Hit me with all you got, Dad!"
[They defeat Jecht in his transformed state. Jecht appears back in the arena,
human, after it's done. Tidus cradles him.]
Jecht: "You'll cry. You're gonna cry. You always cry. See? You're cryin'."
[FMV. Tidus cries.]
Tidus: "I hate you, Dad."
Jecht: "Save it for later."
Tidus: "Right... We've got a job to do, don't we?"
Jecht: "Good. That's right. You are my son, after all."
Tidus: "You know...for the first time, I'm glad...to have you as my
father."
Jecht: "Heh.
This entire scene is the outcome of Tidus' own hatred towards Jecht. It would have been acceptible, and even expected, that Tidus would have told his father he loves him. However he does the complete opposite. He states he hates him. Tidus knows that both he and his Father are going to die (I'll touch on his very important point next), and is more than happy to be completely truthful with his Father. He doesn't fear what his father, or anyone else, might think of such a comment. It's truthful and heartfelt, if unorthadox. Yet despite this the scene is fundamentally contradictory, since Tidus obviously shows affection to Jecht, cradling him as he died. This is typical of Tidus' character; caring about others almost unconditionally. It highlights a very important lesson that Tidus has obviously learned; You don't have to like someone to love them. Tidus truly hates Jecht. But in the same sense he still loves him as his father. It's a real dilema within Tidus that he has to deal with, so it's no wonder that he actually cries during this scene (note that this is the first time in the game that we actually see Tidus cry despite his constant taunting of being a "crybaby"). The fact that even after this traumatic scene Tidus is still prepared to fight just shows how much Tidus has grown as a character, and how strong a will he really has.
However, perhaps the most important element of Tidus' positive character is his acceptance of his own death. I doubt anyone here is unafraid of death. I'm afraid of death and I'm one of the most benign people you'll ever meet. A large majority of people, when faced with their own demise, would usually just wallow in self pity. But Tidus' scenario is unique. Not only is he aware of his own possible demise, but he has an obvious way out. I speak of course of the Fayth;
Quote:
Tidus: "The people... What, they're all dreams? Me, too?"
Fayth: "Yes, you're a dream of the fayth. You, your father, your mother,
everyone. All dreams. And if the fayth stop dreaming..."
[The fayth shows him a Zanarkand without any buildings -- only his houseboat.]
Tidus: "No! So what if I'm a dream! I...I like being here."
Fayth: "We've been dreaming so long...we're tired. Would you and your father...
Would you let us rest? Both you and your father have been touched by
Sin. Sin, the one whom all Spira -- the spiral -- revolves."
Tidus: "What are you saying?"
Fayth: "You two are more than just dreams now."
One cannot say that Tidus isn't aware of the implications of the true defeat of Sin. His dialogue pretty much confirms that he is aware that his own life is on the line now. It is quite ironic that this is a role reversal from Yuna, who had already accepted her own death at the start of her pilgramige. By the time they have encountered Yunalesca, Tidus' and Yuna's roles have been reversed. Whereas before everyone but Tidus was aware that Yuna would have to die, only Tidus knows that he will die. But rather than becoming hysterical about this new fact, Tidus is surprisingly chirpy;
Quote:
Tidus: "Nothing... I blacked out. I was dreaming. You called me...and I woke
up. Nothing like a good nap! Well, I'm ready. Let's go."
From this I would read that Tidus is aware of what is going on around him, and that the survivial of Spira, and more important Yuna, are at stake. So he keeps his knowledge to himself until almost the last minute, just before the party defeats Yevon. How the party would have reacted, Yuna in particular, to this news is up for speculation. I would talk about Yuna's own character here, but she's not the focal point here.
So basically, from that moment on, Tidus is aware that he will die upon Sin being defeated. He could have tried to stop the party from defeating Sin. He could've allowed the party to simply go ahead with the Final Summoning, but he is actually the one who spurs the party on to find another way, despite it effectively confirming his death.
Quote:
Auron: "And the cycle went on."
Tidus: "We'll break it!"
Wakka: "But how? What, you got a plan now?"
Lulu: "If one of us has to become a fayth...I volunteer."
Wakka: "Me too, Yuna!
Tidus: "Tidus: That still won't change anything, you know? You'd bring the
Calm, and then what? That won't break the cycle!"
Wakka: "Listen... You wanna defeat Sin and keep Yuna alive... You don't want
Sin to come back, ya? That is just not gonna happen, brudda, you know?"
Lulu: "If you want everything, you'll end up with nothing."
Tidus: "But I want everything!"
Wakka: "Now you're being childish!"
Tidus; "I give up! So what would an adult do, then? They know they can just
throw away a summoner, then they can do whatever they like. You're
right. I might not even have a chance. But no way am I gonna just stand
here and let Yuna go. And what Auron said about there being a way... I
think it's true."
To me this is true bravery. While the motives behind it may have differed from Yuna's, the fact that Tidus was prepared to go through with it is good enough. Not many of us would be willing to sacrifice ourselves for the lives of others. Not many of us get a chance to. But Tidus does get this chance, and he doesn't back down. For someone who is apparently a crybaby and a weakling, this is surprising behaviour.
I hope if you've read this you've gain some better understanding of Tidus as a character. Compared to some other Final Fantasy characters, Tidus is actually one of the strongest. He manages to grow up as a child despite being orphaned, is prepared to do anything for others, and even comes to terms with his own father who abandoned him as a child. To top it all off, he even sacrifices his own life for the good of Spira without even a mention to the other party members. To me, Tidus is a very heroic and noble character, and is easily one of the most positive characters to come from a Final Fantasy. Besides Yuna (and possibly Auron), no one else seems to show such a strong character. Athough the other characters go through their own journeys and sacrifices (Wakka and Lulu losing Chappu, Rikku losing her mother, Kimahri losing his respect in his tribe), none are as poigniant as Tidus'. He manages to get through circumstances that would send most people into a spiral of despair. Indeed, in a world that revolves around death and despair, Tidus is a breath of fresh air, and is the catalyst from which the events of the game derive.
So in short, think about the sort of person Tidus is before you are so quick to dismiss him as weak or whiney. In many ways he is more noble than any of us could ever hope to be, and is an archetype hero in almost every way.
