#FF7R Reactions

[deathberi]

FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH (2024) ↳ Vincent vs the keycard reader ➤ Shinra Manor

[the-prima-vista]

[laputaskies]

Friends, they say, are the family we select.

[venivenias]

vincent how the fuck did you copy and paste your face onto sephiroth

[hgmason-hellion]

Just a toddler Ven and his teddy bear, based off sims 3 screenshots (some below)

Literally let him be tiny and loved, okay?

[bluerosesburnblue]

1. I don't know if you're keeping up with FFVII Rebirth stuff, since I know you haven't played FFVII Remake (though I know you at least kept up with the general idea of what happened with FFVII Remake). But have you noticed how divided some of the fandom is with what's going on with it? Like, how some people think there are multiple timelines going on (which I definitely think is the case. And I think SE just confirmed that). Whereas some think there are only one.

2. And not even just with the timeline thing (though that's certainly part of it), people are just so adamant that everything they think about how FFVII Rebirth is going to go is absolutely right. And I'm just... worried that people are going to be wrong in some areas. And are building it up in their heads too much, and are going to be disappointed in the end. I feel like I learned my lesson some with Game of Thrones and KHIII, but this recent fandom trend (not just with FFVII oc) concerns me. 3. And I guess I'm wondering if you've also noticed that kind of thing in other fandoms, or feel the same way. I'm sure we could name other fandoms that are doing that (KH very much still is). And I also feel like FNAF definitely does that: like in "I've solved the story of FNAF (or this part of the story of it), and everyone else is wrong." And it feels like, at least in some ways, people are in danger of making their own stories of the stories they say they love, and not loving the real thing. 4. I'm hoping that the FFVII Rebirth thing will be SLIGHTLY better, now that SE has confirmed that it's multiple timelines. But a part of me is still kind of biting my lip, because it still feels like at least parts of the fandom are like, "FFVII Rebirth is going to open like X, and then do this thing, and then this is going to happen, and end like this." And I'm kind of like... why? ...Not that I want to put bad thoughts about FFVIIR out there now, when there's so many reasons to be hyped atm.

You know, funny enough, I was actually talking to a friend of mine yesterday about this exact same thing happening in the Pokemon fandom right now with regards to the ending of Pokemon Scarlet/Violet and how the fandom is completely split on what a certain device in the finale (not gonna spoil things since you did say you might be interested in the game) does. One side takes what the game says it is at face value, the other has a conspiracy theory that "fixes" certain plot holes that they're adamant is correct. And both arguments, to me, are kind of pointless since we already know that the upcoming second DLC this winter is going to cover it? They weren't even subtle about the fact that we're going to be getting more on it, with the DLC pack being called "The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero" (Area Zero being the location of the game's finale)

And you're right, it is a worrying trend across a lot of fandoms. There's this... I don't know, obsession, with the idea of being "the one who called it" amongst certain people. As someone who's been known to engage in theories myself, I don't think there's anything wrong with theorizing, necessarily, or with defending the merits of your arguments pre-release, but you also have to be open to being wrong and willing to look at your stuff before and after and realize that "being wrong" isn't always some sort of failing on your part (though some people are just wrong because their comprehension of established facts were wrong and that usually is their fault, that's only an issue if you stubbornly refuse to allow yourself to be wrong when presented with corrected information)

Like, you might remember some of my KHUx theorycrafting and the fact that I was half-right, half-wrong on some things. Like, I called the fact that Ephemer and Brain were going to split up with one going outside of the Datascape to try to save the others and one staying behind, and that the one who stayed behind would also get out of the Datascape after the others were gone. I was wrong about which was which. Looking back, I can look at my own reasoning and see where it was sound, and where I was just limited by the available information (IIRC I said all of this before Brain handed Master's Defender and the Book of Prophecies over to Ephemer, which would have certainly changed my reasoning). Not having all of the pieces because they hadn't been revealed yet isn't a failing on my part. A failing on my part would be seeing those pieces and how they contradict what I've come up with, and refusing to adjust my stance because I won't allow myself to be wrong

Being wrong isn't some horrible, life-ruining thing that a lot of people in fandoms make it out to be. More people should be open to being wrong, actually. Takes the fun out of things if you always know what's going to happen, and to me it also kind of belittles authors by assuming that you know their own work better than they do (which, again, sometimes warranted because some modern authors shun "predictability" and make nonsensical plots just to surprise *COUGH* GAME OF THRONES *COUGH*, but frequently not)

Actually, another example. I've mentioned that I'm a fan of the comic One Last God: Kubera. It's a really wonderful, intricately crafted narrative and part of that is due to the fact that the whole thing was written as a fully complete novel before the author decided to convert it to a comic. It isn't being written as it goes, but has been fully planned out from the very start of the comic. Now, up until one of the most recent updates, there were two big theories in the fandom that most people... just kind of assumed were probably going to be true. Without giving too much away, one of the theories was that a certain character who would frequently seem to have their motivations and what they know shift between scenes, was time-traveling (and we were sometimes seeing their present self, and sometimes their self from another time). Another theory was that two of the highest-level gods in the series (Primeval Gods) were actually split personalities of the same person. Now, the former theory had some merit to me, the second made no goddamned sense since we had seen the two interact with each other, they've always been depicted as separate, and there's at least one instance where one is in the room and gives the exact location of the other (which even people who believed the theory took as fact even though it being fact would contradict the theory?), but the people who believed that one were diehard about it. Couldn't go into a discussion about either character without it being brought up

Well, lo and behold, one of the latest updates from this past month revealed that, actually, there's a way for someone to impersonate a god and that's what's been happening, with this directly being the real answer for the first theory and having a strong implication to be the real answer behind the second theory. I'm loath to even call it a twist, since the mechanic behind it is just... something that we knew about from the very start of the series and just didn't realize the implications of until it was said outright. I sure as hell didn't think about it, but when I saw it my first thought was "oh, DUH." But I saw people genuinely upset about this reveal because it contradicted the theory, calling it "disappointing" because "it feels like the author thought about it at the last minute," and "the time travel theory made way more sense." When, no, it doesn't. The new update is literally just taking something we were told at the very start to its logical conclusion. And yet people were getting upset because they had completely sold themselves on the theory being the true answer and their belief in it being "right" to the point where they were blaming the author rather than their own guesswork. It's something I find infuriating

All this being a very long-winded way of saying that from my observation, there's an ever-growing intersection between fans who are entitled and fans who refuse to allow themselves to be wrong that's leading to an unfortunate trend of people desperately coming up with theories, then refusing to admit when they're wrong and counting their theories as "better" than the source material. And this, unfortunately, just makes fandoms a much more hostile place between people who actually do like the source material and are open to new experiences and these fans

And I do want to make it clear that there's a distinction between defending your theory and reasoning when you have confidence that you're correct, and outright refusing to accept contradictory information because you can't handle the idea of having a flaw. I would know, because I got accused of doing the latter constantly at my last job when I was doing the former. The difference is in being able to verify the evidence you're using to support your logic. Like, for fuck's sake, I'm not "being defensive" or "trying to get out of things" when I hand you the stats and say something doesn't look viable. Same stuff can apply to fan theories

Also, as if this wasn't long enough already, I just gotta add:

And it feels like, at least in some ways, people are in danger of making their own stories of the stories they say they love, and not loving the real thing.

I hate to say it, that's most of fandom culture these days and I hate it. Go into any given character tag on Tumblr and you'll see a million headcanons that directly contradict what's said in the source material at best and completely undermine the character's entire storyline at worst. You'd start to suspect that the people making these have no sense of reading comprehension and are only here for the aesthetics, but then scroll a bit and you'll see dozens of "redesigns" that "fix" the character by completely ignoring a ton of the cultural influences, small personality-defining hints in the look, or in-universe justifications for things. Want to find a fic of a certain character because you like their personality? How about a dozen where they're so wildly out of character that the only possible explanation is that the author just decided to write out an OC and slapped the character's name on because that's the kind of look they imagined their OC having, because there's no way they could've gotten that from the source material

There's a reason I started a Fandom Critical tag on here for this kind of stuff. It's so pervasive nowadays. Like, it kills any desire I once had to publish my own stuff because, well, fuck, no one's gonna care about what I actually have to say about my works, they'll just appropriate whatever little bits and pieces suit them

And I just genuinely don't get it. I don't get how we got to this point where people will go around praising a creator's works with one breath while showing no sign of understanding or even liking that work with the "fan" content they produce. And this is a separate, but related, issue to the theory stuff above because, like I said, it's possible to just guess wrong with theories and it's fine so long as you don't refuse to accept that you were wrong or get militant about it, but a lot of non-theory fanworks? Those just go beyond into sometimes ignorant, sometimes spiteful territory. You don't even want to see what my blacklist on here looks like just to try to get a handle on some of that stuff because at some point the lack of respect for the original works and their creators just really eats away at me

[priceofreedom]

I don't get why people are saying Zack isn't OG like what you just posted

I mean even if he wasn't OG, it's actually not something to be furious about? Like he's just a fictional character, there's no need to get angry at him for just existing

Many people these days are technically idiots tbh

because they haven't even played the game to begin with. while Zack doesn't have a lot of screentime, he is a key character in the story. everyone who has played the OG knows that. hell the way Cloud behaves for a good part of the game as well some of his memories come from him, but people refuse to accept it because that would mean Zack is actually relevant. and i don't think i need to mention this but... Zack is quite literally the reason Cloud is alive to begin with. but i guess that's not important at all, apparently? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

idk Zack antis are just very weird, they are pissed that Zack gets to have his own game (even though CC has been out for years, but okay) and will be important in Rebirth, but like so what?? That doesn't make Cloud less important. that doesn't mean the whole remake will focus on him and leave the other characters to dust. I feel like all the hate he is getting lately is out of insecurity, because people think he is meant to overshadow everything and everyone once he gets more attention and that's not it. i really wish people stopped complaining and hating and just played the games. i'm sure if they stopped being so blinded by hatred they would actually like Zack and enjoy the story more.

and like you say getting so worked up over his existence is just ridiculous, he is fictional, he is not gonna come out of the screen and kill you ffs ajhakldshgsd it's the chronically onlineness for me 💀

[kleptoyade]

Klepto reacts to the new FF7 Rebirth theme song announcement trailer

Blind reaction to the new trailer, since I hadn't seen it yet!

If you've ever wanted to watch 5 minutes of me fangirling over Vincent Valentine and his new armor, now is your chance!

[du-hjarta-skulblaka]

Somehow ended up relistening to TAZ Balance and its forcing me to acknowledge the fact that I am. Almost certainly going to rewatch the entirety of Crit Role campaign 1, despite the fact I'm literally on the final Vecna fight, both before I actually finish it and before watching the other new seasons hhshsjfjf

[noxtivagus]

oh my god thinking about how much i love granblue 🥺

[snapscube]

As someone who's just finished ff7i & is about to start ff7r I have to ask, are the ai allegations about that game true?

nope, not even remotely. was just a very overblown reaction to the vibes of a single wonky line read/edit. a certified twitter moment.

[rottenpumpkin13]

What do you think would be FF7R Sephiroths reaction be to seeing Cloud in drag ?

*Sephiroth walks into battle and sees Cloud from the back*

Sephiroth: He who runs from the enemy is not defined as a fearless man, Cloud.

*Cloud turns around in full drag*

Sephiroth: Ah, my apologies. I did not mean to disrespect your pronouns.

Sephiroth: She who runs from the enemy—

Cloud: oh PISS OFF

[stygiansis]

@TifaTheMonk‬ and I have a new podcast for #CloTiKiss2024 / #InternationalKissDay! Our reaction to te iconic Cloud and Tifa gondola kiss, and our commentary on its implications to the story and the LATEST and most explicit official death of the CloTi/Clerith LTD! Premieres at 7PM EST tonight! #CloTi #FF7R #FF7Rebirth #FFVIIRebirth Link: https://youtu.be/7fx72v0_Oyk

[gulava]

I hate to get involved but the issue throughout FF7R is that NO ONE is getting through to Cloud. He only ever knocks out of it when it clicks that he did something awful and against his nature.

His reaction to some of the situations are different, of course. Tifa was in danger because of him so he breaks down, unable to do anything. He “failed her again”. Aerith was in danger because Cloud pushed her into a corner in order to get the Black Materia and he just left her there so he tries to help her before it’s too late and another dear friend gets hurt because of him.

But the thing is even when either try to hold him back at Temple of the Ancients, he doesn’t suddenly get better or knock out of it. He’s still as violent and affected by Sephiroth’s influence. It feels like his friends are losing him. It’s not just romance-related here. This is all about his mental health and sometimes it takes hurting someone you care about to realize how far gone you are.

And what’s beautiful is how supportive all his friends are despite all this. The way they treat the Ex-Soldiers suffering from degradation. The way Barret stands up for them at the beach. The way Tifa doesn’t want to leave them alone in danger and tells Cloud that he can talk to ANY of them whenever he’s feeling unwell. The way Aerith tells Cloud that whatever happens, she’s there for him.

Despite any of the issues I may have with this game, this is by far one of my favorite aspects and I don’t really care for this specific part being put under a shipping lense.

[pen-and-umbra]

Finally having a minute to jot down my thoughts on this idea. The introduction of young Sephiroth is an incredible sight and a thrilling cinematic sequence. But what really draws my attention is the whole ordeal with feathers. Granted, Sephiroth had long been associated with a wing and black feathers, but here's a caveat: Ever Crisis shows him appearing amidst white feathers. Dove's feathers specifically. The metaphor is clear: this a young, uncorrupted and fairly innocent Sephiroth. But is it all there's to it?

Spool back a few years, and FF7R begins with a sickly-looking eagle or vulture flying over dessicated land near Midgar — a bird clearly affected by environmental issues, but also a bird of prey.

The opening then goes on to allude to the looming presence of something that frightens Aerith. Cloud later hallucinates a black feather falling to the floor during the reactor bombing.

Those who had followed the franchise since the beginning recognized it as a hint of Sephiroth's involvement / presence / influence.

So, how does the very first FF7 Rebirth trailer begin? It all starts with a flock of white doves flying over Midgar's plate (?). The dove has a long history of symbolism on its own. It is a symbol of hope, faith, and peace.

At first glance, the symbolism is relevant to the ending of the first part of the remake. As Aerith puts it, the future is a blank page that can change because it is no longer bound by Destiny, so there's hope that the upcoming (tragic) events, as the players have come to know them, will play out differently. But later the trailer cuts to a single white feather floating above Zack, who survived and is dragging a comatose Cloud across the wasteland.

A feather that was previously featured as black throughout FF7R is now white. Who has recently been associated with white feathers (and doves)? Young Sephiroth. The not yet corrupted one at that.

Here's some wild guesswork. We know that Zack survives his final stand in the Terrier timeline; the latest State of Play FF7 Rebirth trailer confirms it and reiterates through Sephiroth that there appear to be different "worlds" (and, ironically, the purpose of the Reunion appears to bear an entirely different meaning in the remake, merging of two worlds or something along those lines, as per Sephiroth). The same timeline then shows a white feather — something newly associated with pure!Sephiroth. We also know that, for some reason, previous events in this timeline resulted in different outcomes: fewer troops hunting Zack, a seemingly different Midgar design, and a different breed of Stamp — a guard dog rather than a hunting dog, despite Aerith’s assertion that past is set in stone.

We know that there was a single key event that set off a chain reaction of misfortunes, and that event was the Nibelheim mission. So, what if not only the events of the Wutai campaign had changed (Stamp being a defensive breed, possibly reflecting a different ShinRA ethos), but also the events of the Nibelheim incident? Zack and Cloud are still on the run, but a different set of circumstances could have led to that. What if Sephiroth had not gone insane and fallen into the Lifestream, what if Sephiroth was never corrupted in the Terrier timeline? Hence a white feather?

With that in mind, it's fascinating to take a fresh look at the scene unfolding at the End of Creation. Sephiroth's pronouns there are the same ones he used before going insane. This leads to another observation. The Sephiroth we meet at the end of Midgar Highway is unmistakably the Sephiroth from the Advent Children continuity, as evidenced by the black feathers and AC-style falling debris battle.

Assuming there are now at least two timelines at work — Terrier vs. Beagle, white feathers vs. black feathers, a bird of prey vs. a dove — would it be a stretch to speculate that there are two distinct Sephiroths at odds with potentially conflicting motivations? 

The fact that Sephiroth mentions waiting for Cloud, as he did in the first part of the remake prior to the party entering the Crossroads, stands out in the newest trailer. And, indeed, when Cloud strikes Sephiroth at the end of FF7R, he is transported to a pocket dimension of sorts where ore!Sephiroth is standing by. There are two notable nebulae visible in the sky. One red, clearly associated with destruction and possibly Jenova, and one livelier in appearance, which may allude to the world of Lifestream and creation. Could this be a sign of two opposing wills at work?

Now this is not to say that a redemption arc is on, but SE has surely made enough space for something similar to take place. Who knows? The infamous "7 seconds until end" could very well be the time we need to make up our minds whether we trust Sephiroth of the End of Creation, or not. Whether we deal with Terrier one or the Beagle one. Considering the Reunion apparently takes on the meaning of merging / colliding / intersecting of worlds or timelines, seven seconds until the end may very well indicate the process of it. What emerges after the Reunion: the Terrier chain of events or the Beagle one?

[icharchivist]

part of what makes fic so interesting to me is that it’s like… supplemental, rather than interchangeable with canon? like, even fix-it fics are a /response/ to what happens in canon. an alternate take rather than a total replacement. so fundamentally they’re the kind of thing that exists and plays with the context of the original media. so a lot of fanfiction works really well as good fanfiction, but if you suddenly canonize it and make an original thing, it’s suddenly a lot less enjoyable because it can’t use that context it had to make its story work. that’s my two cents at least

100% agreed, totally

I feel like... it's also canon imposing a reading too which doesn't have to be there, while fanfic can do the job.

like i really think a lot about the ff7r in this because in its position as a remake (ie, supposedly exploring the plot of the 1997's game), for a lot of people it's a replacement to the OG. Some additions can be felt as great character exploration! but some others additions, especially those rooted in fanservice (like making Sephiroth appear a LOT during the Midgar portion of the game) end up just.... being wrong. Like it's not the Sephiroth we actually learnt about.

and it's its own hell because as the remakes were designed to be 3 games, they really wanted to engage people by challenging that, perhaps, things aren't going to happen the same way, and from what i've heard even Rebirth, ending on the City of the Ancients scene (you know the one) left the scene ambiguous specifically so the player would feel the need to buy the third game just to know "so they did it or they didn't?"

and it sucks because it's canon, for crying out loud. It's rewritting a story from 1997 and calling it a "remake" so some people are going to go into the remake thinking they're getting the 1997's experience, but instead of trusting its story the game is obsessed about surprising its audience, which is. wild!! to do about one of the most beloved and well known game in gaming.

and it really removes so much of the wiggle room fanon can give like. There's extensions i really like and all but from what i've seen of Rebirth there's an extensively long section where they take a vacation break when they drop by the Costa Del Sol and it's mostly there to advance the romance with the girls (which goes ways farther than it does in the OG because i genuinely think the OG gives you a lot more room to read those as platonic if you don't want to think about the romances, but also kinda take away from hcs you would have about how the romance could go by imposing a clear path about it) and just whyyyy why whywhy--

sorry i'm getting lost in my thoughts everytime and ff7r is so much the example of it that i can't stop thinking about it, but yeah, like. fanfic is great!! it's a reaction to canon but canon doesn't have to live up to fanfic. but when canon undermine its own writing, replace stuff, especially in a way they think would please the fans it just.... feels like it doesn't understand why people were emotional about it to start with yaknow?

mopes.