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Similarities; A connection between Cloud and Aeris
Topic Started: Mar 18 2006, 04:18 PM (501 Views)
UsagiMamoru
Member
A lot of people say that Cloud and Aeris are too different and they say that Aeris is only about happiness. Well, to them I say, replay the game. Cloud and Aeris do have something in common that was a huge part of their lives. Aeris is cheerful, but she is more than just hearts and flowers. Cloud and Aeris had both experienced loneliness. Cloud has his past. Aeris had a lonely past as well. She was not popular, regardless of what anti people might say. She had been lonely. She tells Cloud that only a handful of people know her. She was constantly chased by Shinra and didn't have anyone to talk to. Zack and Tseng were the only people who knew her well. When Aeris takes Cloud to her house, it is clear that she didn't know many people in her town and didn't have many people to talk to. She had a loneliness, but still was able to be cheerful, even with that. Before she met Cloud, she was alone when Zack left and didn't have anyone she could talk to. She knew Cloud's loneliness. They shared that before they met each other. Cloud was someone who would talk to Aeris and didn't judge her because she was a cetra. He saw her for who she was. Aeris was the first person to show Cloud love. They both had a tragic past and shared loneliness until they met each other. Cloud and Aeris have more in common than some people put. They also both had been hurt by people they liked. Zack didn't care about Aeris the way she cared about him and Tifa shunned Cloud. Cloud and Aeris understand the loneliness each other faced and they bring each other hapiness.
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Shiva
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You made some good points and I agree with you. :D However, anyone who doesn't think that Cloud and Aerith are "enough alike" need to look at the fact that all of the couples Square-Enix has used, from FFVII through FFX, have all been opposites. In fact, Cloud and Aerith's relationship is very much like these other relationships...

* Final Fantasy VIII: Want to see Cloud and Aerith reinvented in another game? Then play FFVIII and take a look at Squall and Rinoa. This pairing is Cloud and Aerith remade. Squall and Rinoa give us a look into what might have happened if Aerith had not died
-Squall is the brooding, dark soldier with a mysterious past. He is very much of an introvert and a loner, never opening up to anyone. Sound familiar? It should, because he acts exactly like Cloud. He even has the same job-- he is a mercenary (Squall was hired to protect and help out Rinoa; Cloud was hired by Aerith to be her bodyguard). Heck, he even carries an oversized weapon and has Limit Breaks that are reminiscent of Cloud's. During the course of the game, Squall begins to open up to Rinoa, much in the same way Cloud opened up to Aerith and was able to laugh and cry. Squall's moment of greatest emotional breakdown was when he thought he had lost Rinoa, saying to her:

"(Rinoa... You feel so cold. Are you going to be like this forever?)... Isn't there anything I can do?! You were so full of life. Now you don't even make a sound. I want to hear your voice...."

Compare that to Cloud's speech at Aerith's death (the moment of Cloud's greatest show of emotion)::

"... Aerith. This can't be real!" "Aerith is gone. Aerith will no longer talk, no longer laugh, cry... or get angry.... What about us? What are WE supposed to do? What about my pain? My fingers are tingling. My mouth is dry. My eyes are burning!"

-Rinoa is the cheerful, optimistic, and flirtatious daughter of a noted general. Just like Aerith, Rinoa is someone of importance, often referred to as "princess" (Aerith was the last of the Cetra, and the rightful heiress to the planet). I have heard CloTis attempt to compare Rinoa with Tifa. This is absolutely laughable, because Rinoa is nothing like Tifa. She has dark hair and eyes. That is the only way Rinoa resembles Tifa. In all other things, Rinoa is just like Aerith. Tifa was an introvert; Aerith and Rinoa are extroverts. Tifa could not express her feelings to Cloud; Aerith and Rinoa are outspoken and flirtatious with Cloud and Squall. Tifa was a physical fighter; Aerith and Rinoa are both mages. I am only scratching the surface here, too.

It is also interesting to note that Squall and Rinoa made their promise to each other in a flower field. They promised to be reunited there. And just who is associated with flowers, Tifa or Aerith? Aerith, of course! In fact, Aerith is shown meeting with Cloud in a field full of flowers in FFVII: Advent Children.

* Final Fantasy IX: Just like Cloud and Aerith are opposites, Zidane and Garnet are also opposites...

-Zidane is a cocky, flirtatious thief. Like Cloud, he has a mysterious past and later discovers that he is, in fact, an experiment. Zidane also has a polar opposite in the game, the silver-haired villain, Kuja. Sounds rather like Cloud and his polar opposite, the silver-haired Sephiroth, does it not? Zidane is a physical fighter, just like Cloud and Squall.

-Garnet/Dagger is a princess, someone of great importance, just like Aerith and Rinoa. She is one of the last of her kind, one of a mysterious race known as Summoners (Aerith was the last of the Cetra, another mysterious race). Garnet is quiet, yet strong-willed, a complete opposite of Zidane. She is also a princess while Zidane is, let's face it, a criminal. How opposite can you get??? Garnet is also a white mage, weak physically, but strong in mind and magic.

* Final Fantasy X: Tidus and Yuna are also opposites; Tidus's name/celestial objects refer to the sun while Yuna's name/celestial objects refer to the moon. Not only that, but their story is directly parallel to that of Cloud and Aerith...

-Tidus is an outspoken, cocky blitzball star who, like all FF heroes, has a mysterious past. He also becomes a Guardian for Yuna during her pilgrimage, vowing to protect her from her fate.

-Yuna is the daughter of a famous man, High Summoner Braska. Like Aerith, and all of the female FF heroines before her, she is someone of great importance. She is also a white mage and a Summoner, someone with unusual powers, just like Aerith (a Cetra), Rinoa (a Sorceress), and Garnet (also a Summoner). Yuna is traveling on a pilgrimage with her Guardians to Zanarkand, where she will obtain the Final Aeon. We later discover that Yuna will die upon summoning the Final Aeon. And yet she bravely moves forward, with the good of the world in mind. Sound familiar? Aerith willingly sacrificed herself for the good of the planet in FFVII.

It is only later in the game that Yuna realizes the truth about Tidus. He is merely a dream, to be lost when she destroys the enemy. And yet Yuna bravely presses on selflessly, much the way Aerith did in FFVII. Even when Tidus is lost to Yuna, she does not stop loving him and she does not stop looking for a way to be with him. Just like Cloud, at the end of FFVII, who expresses his desire to be reunited with Aerith, Yuna searches for a way to be with Tidus once again. Again, we see the idea of love beyond death being presented. CloTis may mock this, but it is something Square clearly believes in. It is amusing for me to see so many CloTis that are fans of TidusxYuna, but not of CloudxAerith. Hellooooo???? These two pairings are the same!

* Final Fantasy X-2: In this game, we see a continuation of Yuna's search for Tidus. Although he is gone, she continues to love him, hold his memory dear, and search for a way to be reunited with him. Also, in this game, we see another story that supports love beyond death. Shuyin and Lenne, while dead, still love one another, although they haven't seen each other for thousands of years. They are soul mates and their spirits persist in Spira, searching for one another. This is what love means, people. Loving someone forever is something that a lot of CloudxTifa fans are unable to comprehend. Their idea of love is shallow, at best. If you cannot grasp the true meaning of love, as demonstrated by CloudxAerith, TidusxYuna, and ShuyinxLenne, then you are a very sad person, indeed, and have clearly never experienced true love.

None of Square-Enix's couples have been alike. When you are too much alike, a relationship is doomed to fail. For example, look at Tifa and what she needs in a significant other. Tifa is a very tragic person. She has had many unhappy events in her life, including the death of her father at the hands of Sephiroth, the death of her mother when she was very young, the razing of Nibelheim by Sephiroth, and the destruction of Sector 7 in Midgar. Tifa is potrayed in FFVII as being very pessimistic, uncertain, and insecure. Tifa often becomes hysterical in high-pressure situations, while Aerith remains calm, supportive, and optimistic. When it comes to physical strength in the women of FFVII, Tifa is tops. However, when you look at her mental, emotional, and spiritual strength, Tifa is rock-bottom. Tifa needs a man that will support her, comfort her, and be her "hero". Are any of these things Cloud? Sorry, but no. Cloud is not the type of person to support or comfort anyone, and he certainly wasn't interested in fulfilling the promise to Tifa. In fact, Cloud is the type of person who needs someone to comfort and support him. So, in many, many ways, Tifa and Cloud are just alike. That is why a relationship between these two could just never work. They both need someone who is open with their feelings (they both hide their feelings from the world and everyone in it), someone who is sure of themselves (because they are both very unsure), someone who is mentally and emotionally strong (because they are both pretty weak in these areas). Why would Cloud open up to someone who can't open up to him? Plus, Cloud could never measure up to Tifa's expectations of him, stating, "I could never live up to being Cloud." All throughout the game, he felt as if he had let Tifa down and Tifa was constantly worrying about him or asking for help from him. Tifa truly expected too much of Cloud, which made him feel like a failure. Their relationship was just a tad unhealthy.

Now, let us look at Aerith. While Aerith's life wasn't always grand, she made a point out of remaining optimistic, cheerful, and happy. Aerith was always there to support Cloud and ease his fears, letting him know that everything was okay. In terms of strength of character, emotional strength, mental strength, and spiritual strength, Aerith had enough for her and Cloud both. Cloud needs a woman like this. Someone who can help him through trying times. Someone that he can open up to. Someone he can be himself around. Aerith never let Cloud put on the "tough guy act". She took charge and got him to open up and be himself for once. With Aerith, Cloud could be just plain Cloud. With Tifa, Cloud had to be SOLDIER First Class Cloud.
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UsagiMamoru
Member
Yes, I've played all the Final Fantasy games and most of the couples have been opposites. The only exception has been Locke and Celes. Still, they hadn't officially gotten together, but it was strongly implied.

My favorites were, Zidane and Garnet, Zidane and Dagger, Squall and Rinoa, Cecil and Rosa, Tidus and Yuna, Cloud and Aeris, I loved all of them actually. Also, there was something going on between Butz and Reina in the beginning, but they made that plot dissapear.
I've beaten all FFs 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 10-2 and played FF1, Tactics, Mystic Quest and all the other spinoffs. Also, I've played every version of FFIV. Their were like fifty versions, The SNES One released as FFII, The Japanese fan translated one, the PSX one, and the GB one. I beat all four versions. Hee. That game has been remade more times than the Lunar games. The Japanese fan translated one was great. (off topic) Most couples in shows and games are opposites, showing that they truly need each other. Someone you love brings out a new side in you.

You are awesome at writing essays. Mine usually get too long and jumbled up and repetetive.
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