I think I’ll just get right to the point.
I loved KH3; 75% of it, I’d say. But the issue is, the 25% I don’t like is almost deal-breaking. Let me explain why. it goes without saying but kh3 spoilers ahead. also, kairi stans, this is not for you. I’m not looking to argue with anyone, this is just my grievances with the game.
They mcfucking murdered Kairi.
I’m not even talking about her cheap, literal death. I mean, KH3 killed any possible way for her to be a well-rounded, likable, independent character. We were promised she would fight (“This time, I’ll fight”) and she even says “No, I’ll protect you” to Sora and yet she only fights once. As in, one (1) time. What the fuck was the point of having endless, timeless training if she doesn’t come out swinging?
Also, as a princess of heart, you’d think she’d be considerate, but no, she’s not. She was so wonderful with Lea/Axel, I was so hopeful that she would actually befriend others and make meaningful connections. But instead, while Sora is worrying about Riku, she shoves a paopu in his face. He’s silent, taken aback, clearly hesitant and confused, until she explains, “I just want to be apart of your life no matter what, that’s all.” That’s all. She only convinced Sora to take the paopu by saying nothing between them would change. But still, she never once asked how he felt. She never once tried. It felt like she just was so determined to get what she wanted that it didn’t matter that Riku was sitting just down the beach; it didn’t matter Sora seemed unsure of such a lofty promise.
And then, her relationship with Riku. It’s non-existant. Not only did KH3 basically kill Kairi as a character, they killed the destiny trio. She didn’t speak with Riku even once the whole game. Hell, Kairi spoke to Sora all of twice. And all of them were to be a doe-eyed “perfect” love interest for Sora.
What is even her personality? She literally has no purpose outside of being Sora’s SO. Is she… kind? Is she… sassy? She had more personality in kh2 and oof man that’s… not good. She became essentially a smiling, pretty piece of cardboard.
And then, her powers. So she’s swept away first, and yet she’s supposed to be the light that guides Sora back? She’s the force “holding Sora together”? HOW? And then both Namine and Xion seem to have this 6th sense of Kairi, and vice versa, that makes no sense – on top of the fact that it implies that they are so similar that they are essentially interchangeable. Listen, if your character can be swapped out with someone else and it’d be the same…. You have a bad character.
And then they actually killed her! Again, WHATS THE POINT OF MAKING HER STRONG & ABLE TO FIGHT IF ALL SHE DOES IS GET TAKEN HOSTAGE AND TURNED INTO A DAMSEL IN DISTRESS? LITERALLY? AND THEN LITERALLY KILLS HER. I CAN’T. I CAN’T.
I’m angry because she had so much potential. I wanted her to join Sora’s party (more than for one fight…), I wanted her to have her own motivations and goals, I wanted her to have a personality, and instead they did … this.
This brings me to my next grievance. At the end of dream drop distance, Sora and Riku’s friendship was so solid. It was so close and so sweet. But in kh3? It’s like they purposefully watered Riku down just to make sokai a thing. Like are you fucking kidding me? They advertised Riku with Sora so much leading up to kh3, and yet you only see Riku like, less than a handful. And then, at the end, Riku sacrifices himself, again, for Sora… only for Kairi to get the credit for saving him! Because… deus ex machina, I guess?
Throughout the worlds, there was this recurring theme: acts of true love. Almost all of them require sacrificing oneself. Hercules and Meg, Anna and Elsa, Repunzel and Eugene, even Will and Elizabeth Turner. Let’s see, who has sacrificed themselves for Sora? Oh right. Riku. Kairi has never once shown this kind of love for Sora. And yet at the end, it seems like Sora has decided Kairi is this true love…? He looks into the light when he’s floating with Kairi like he gets it, but all it takes is one braincell to see that this parallel simply doesn’t work with Kairi!
I guess you could count the moment Sora shields Kairi from the incoming blow (though, why he hugged her instead of blocked the hit with the keyblade, I don’t know) and the moment Kairi shielded Sora as a heartless in KH1, but I would argue that Sora shielding Kairi is just him upholding his promise to protect her, not an act of true love or sacrifice; and Kairi was in no real danger when she protected heartless sora so it really doesn’t have the weight. These moments are nothing in comparison for what Riku has done for Sora every game since kh1. And I guess what bothers me so much is that for all my theorizing (probably another post, or I’ll just link to others’ posts about the theory), that probably is just it: they are going to sweep Riku’s sacrifices under the rug and claim that sokai is true love just for those two weak moments. It’s a slap to the face. It laughs and says, “its not that deep”. Essentially, they are saying “hey all that character development Riku and Sora got in dream drop? Don’t matter. Keep scrolling.” Its so cowardly it makes me sick.
The only hope I have now is that all of this was purposefully misleading. The fact that Sora and Kairi didn’t even share the paopu correctly; the fact Sora seemed confused and hesitant around his connection to Kairi; Sora’s mission to bring her back & his seeming success before disappearing; the secret movie.