Rikku's entry to the team

[Mo-Nercy]

If Rikku had been subject to a probationary period, she surely would've failed at the Thunder Plains.

She can customize weapons and armor, the only one who can use steal and use (so far) and has an awesome overdrive. So even if they gave her a probitionary period she would have still passed easily. Her skills are special. Tidus on the other hand was a complete noob like the only true level 1 among the group.

Oh yeah, I forgot that she teaches the group how to Customise. Fair point.

I remember my first playthrough and when Auron gives Tidus his first sword in Zanarkand and he stumbles about like he doesn't know how to hold it, I remember thinking that the bar had definitely dropped for protagonists. We went from mercenary to military school student to alien monkey thief to guy with uneven shorts who can't hold a sword.