Of course Ada is his password and of course everyone knows that
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Of course Ada is his password and of course everyone knows that
Resident Evil Heroes in the yr 2037
So...there's this AGED filter on Tiktok which lets you get a glimpse of your older self. Naturally, as a Resident Evil fan, I'm very interested in how the characters will look like...aged (minus that slowed aging thing that they've got going on with Jill in DI). Rosemary's DLC happened in 2037 and by that time, our favorite legacy characters will have been in their senior years already. To be specific:
Chris will be 64 yrs old
Jill & Ada will be 63 yrs old
Leon will be 60 yrs old
Claire will be 58 yrs old
Rebecca will be 57 yrs old
Jeezus, big numbers, yeah. So using their most recent CGI pics, these are what they will probably look like beside a 16 yr old Rose Winters:
Ada's still stunning. 😳
Had Ethan lived and if Capcom didn't just sidetrack Mia's role as Rose's mom, these should've been their visuals too.
Pretty interesting.
I really believe that in Damnation it's Carla and not Ada, because Ada always just wanted to complete her work, and over at Damnation it seems that she wants to sow Chaos, just like Carla.
That's the fun of being in a fandom: Crafting HCs, coming up with theories, and shipping characters based on official lore. 👍
Do you play RE4 reamake? Thats true?
https://twitter.com/SmokinSexyStyIe/status/1678992365355188225?t=nw8sBsL9MmAebPRmb8InwQ&s=19
Are you referring to this dialogue, anon?
It's a playful complimentary banter, that's for sure! And like Leon himself said, "Take it however you want it." I like how it serves as a nice contrast to how Leon interacts with the other characters in-game. Plus, it demonstrates to the players/audience that at this point in the game, Leon and Ashley have bonded enough to no longer feel awkwardness and distrust towards each other.
But really. I've nothing against people who ship Lashley, but the thing is, RE4's premise is built around the bodyguard crush romance trope (particularly popular in the late 90s, early 2000s) which is why the devs have placed so much effort in removing certain interactions between them for good measure. At the end of the day, it's not the freaking point of the game, Leon even ending it with a soft rejection on Ashley's latch-ditch attempt at making him spend more time with her. 🤷
Saw on twitter that there was a scene Jill was teasing the redfield siblings. Is that true?lol
Hello, hello! Your ask got burried with Leon shipping ones, sorry. I don't remember the exact dialogues, but I kinda have gotten a teasing vibe between the Redfields and Jill during that lab scene with Rebecca where they'd just zeroed in on Alcatraz as the common denominator of their separare investigations. There weren't a lot of scenes with Jill and the Redfields together, really. The movie was mostly:
Chris & Claire
Leon & Jill
Maybe special mention also on the Leon & Chris action scenes toward the end.
Then there's that very last scene in the sunset after the BIG FIGHT. The humor there was delivered through Leon mostly, but there were micro-interactions between Jill and Claire that could warrant your interest. :)
What do you think about this scene?
https://youtu.be/2yt_Tvt0qMs
28:50
He looked as if he was impressed her 🤔
I mean, you've described that look yourself: He's impressed. 🤷Helena's only 24 years old during RE6, and Leon probably remembers his early days in the service (Operation Javier era in canon), thinking that Helena's got a good (or maybe bad, depending on how you look at it) future with what she's shown to him so far. Subjectively and not to underplay her own backstory with Deborah, I think Helena's character serves two purposes as far as Leon's concerned:
1) As a foil to him. She's there to remind the audience/players of how much Leon has grown (become unhinged?) since RE2. Helena's a young agent prone to reckless decisions, while Leon at this point's a battle-weary soldier who's just tired of all the sh*t.
2) As an accessory so that Leon's story with Ada can progress CLEARLY. Capcom used female intuition through Helena to directly address Leon and Ada's story. Which is a good move, actually. Let that "Leon's been in love with Ada for decades" discourse be thrown out of the window by another woman. Their most memorable spoken lines together had direct implications to Ada, after all.
Her and Leon's last scene is the most telling of all:
Through Helena, Capcom's telling us that there's a FUTURE between Ada and Leon. That they'll continue to meet because their destinies are just that intertwined.
I saw this on twitter and I couldn't believe my eyes. 😂🤦
"In that cutscene with him and helena in the elevator, you can see he is troubled because he loves her. Helena even says "She is more than just a friend, isn't she? you have feeling for her." Leon probably would have said something but the stupid elevator broke."
Ohlordie. 🫠 I'd rather not involve Helena in unnecessary shipping discourse; most (if not all of) Aeon enjoyers think fondly of her. After all, she's like a canon representation of us in wanting this between Leon and Ada:
But yeah, Leon didn't say anything because Helena was right and he was probably feeling incredulous over the fact that this woman who barely knew him caught on his "thing" with Ada so fast.
I mean, look at Leon. He's like a boy who's just been caught stealing cookies from a jar. Leon probably doesn't want to be judged harshly by Helena given that "his" Ada has a shady career background. After all, they both work for the government and he's a relatively more experienced agent than her. Like maybe he's thinking, he should know better?
And again with the situational context + relationship build-up thing. If none of those are fulfilled within a piece of media, then it's probably just the person consuming it with whatever-colored glasses they have. And that's shipping and it's totally fine. 🤷 Come to think of it, Helena's buddy chemistry with Leon in RE6 kinda resembles that of what he has with Jill in DI. We have Leon and then, we have a sardonic female partner who's had enough of his corny one-liners.
Please 🙏 just answer this. Aren't they in love with each other?
"Following their escape, their paths would cross from time to time, Leon as a U.S. government operative and Ada as a spy. Ada makes no qualms about using Leon when it suits her needs, but Leon is loath to bring himself to be done with her. They don't consider each other enemies, but it's hard to tell how they feel for each other. Complicated is the word that aptly summarizes their relationship."
https://residentevil.fandom.com/wiki/Leon_and_Ada
Okay anon. I'm not entirely sure if you're pro or against this ship, but it's pretty obvious by now that I support Leon x Ada by virtue of their character build-up and their love story that spans more than a decade in timeline.
AT THE VERY LEAST, your quoted statement proves that Capcom acknowledges that Leon and Ada have a relationship (complicated it may be). IN CONTRAST, all the other Leon ships are fanon because either Capcom plainly calls them "comrades-in-arms" or just do not bother to make Leon interact with them. But you know, shippers will continue to ship whoever they want with Leon, never mind his canonical lore, and that's completely fine. The secret is meticulously choosing the media you consume and the people you become moots with.
" the RE6 FILES which are CANON and written by people from CAPCOM flat out states that THERE'S NO LOVE BETWEEN THEM and that ADA only USES LEON so she can benefit from his good will."
Thats true?
Anon at this point, I'm not sure where you're getting your canon info. 🤣 Coz really, Helena's "She's more than just a friend" dialogue + Leon and Ada's actions in re6 speak otherwise. If anything, re6 IS the AEON game imho. It's been a while, but I can honestly name a few instances off the top of my head:
Leon
-Thinking it's Ada, Leon protecting Carla Radames from Chris.
-Leon shielding Ada from Simmons' attacks with his own body. We know he's self sacrificial and all, but using your own body to ensure another's welfare? That takes the cake.
Ada
-Saving Sherry and by extension, Jake. This one resonated with me so much because why would she waste her time on these two? If, as you say, Ada was still a manipulative b*tch at this time in canon, what would she gain from helping them out? Then I remember...Sherry's important to Leon. That's why.
-Literally being Helena and Leon's guardian angel the entire time. The helicopter? The rocket launcher? The chip?
You can find all these scenes on Youtube, if you don't believe me. Lol
And this will be the last ask that I will entertain regarding other Leon ships vs. AEON. DO talk to me about why you love the ship. Let's steer clear from exchanging passive-aggressive rebuttals. Please.
I sent the wrong link sorry, that's true link 😅 I know you're tired of these bc, but I saw Leon saying "You're pretty." on a blog. Who did he use this word for in the movie? And what is the context?
https://www.tumblr.com/chris-is-not-evil/722125798449053696/i-think-people-may-have-different-views-about?source=share
I've been really, really stressed out about my job these past few days, so while I may sound annoyed when I reply, receiving your asks about DI is kinda therapeutic. So yeah, I don't really mind answering your asks, anon (assuming you're only one).
Leon has said a lot of things in this movie, but never "You're pretty." Mark my words, they're all one-liners and punchlines. ALL CRINGEY.
As for your blog link. The poster says he/she hasn't seen the movie, so why worry? It appears that he/she is only using the phrase as an example for explaining flirting and context. Personal biases make shippers squeal about Leon's vocal inflections whenever he says another female character's name (regardless of the context). The blog poster is making the same point in that "You're pretty" as a phrase can be taken as flirty or just friendly depending on a lot of things. Has there been a relationship buildup between character A and character B in the story? What are their circumstances?
Maybe think of it this way. If Leon says "You're pretty" to Ada after their kiss in the cable car in re2r, it's pretty safe to assume it's a form of flirting. The game has made it clear that there's something going on between the two and it's certainly along romantic lines. However, if Leon says it to Sherry after Claire leaves them for Chris and they've been captured by the US government, it becomes complimentary...a form of praise and perhaps, a confidence booster for the kid. Idk. Just my two cents.
On DI, Leon's voice trembled when he called Clarie from afar. And the Cleon shippers are happy about that. Is that exactly what happened?
I mean... I'm not surprised. 🫠 Leon can literally just be standing beside a female character and people will be like: "Leon you sl*t, but I ship it!"
And sure, if you want to ship Leon to a character based on how his voice cracks or inflates/deflates when he mentions her name, go on right ahead. 🤷 Shipping is free real estate, after all. Nevermind situational context or romantic build-up.
However! By that logic, Leon's other call-outs should also be considered romantic!!! If he has that "CLA..IRE!!!" shout (never mind that it's one of the only 2 times Leon interacts with her in the movie. I sure hope shippers won't mistake Chris' concerned call-outs to her while the big bad villain is having his speech as Leon's because that's pushing it too far. I do wonder why after getting the vaccine, Leon takes off right away without waiting for his one true love 🥲), what about his first interactions with the other girls??? 🫢
To Jill: "Well, what d'you know, Jill Valentine. How's it going?"
And he holds her hands for the most part in the sewer (never mind that he kinda needs to do it to help her fight off lickers)
To Rebecca: "Re...be...caa..." (never mind that Leon's struggling to stay human at this point, and we need him as the audience to say Rebecca's name for the movie to naturally progress)
(I do hope you know I'm being sarcastic here.)
Leon is Gay?
I don’t think so. Capcom has only ever shown him having interest in women.
They ship Leon with everyone except the woman he's in love with. I think they don't consider Ada suitable for Leon because she is Asian. A complete racism
I've been an adult long enough to have experienced shipping wars over here in the early 2010s. Sh*t's like going into a warzone, anything you say can cause the death of your drive to keep a blog. Never mind that it's your opinion; if you say something against them, you're doomed. *war flashbacks*
And I can't really say that I haven't encountered racist and misogynistic tirades against Ada just because she's Leon's canonical love interest. Especially if you go to Tikt0k where Leon's character is so overly s*xualized it's become so cringey. It used to be just camps preferring different canon characters for the hero. Now it's canon characters getting thrashed for the benefit of a self-insert fantasy. Self-inserts have been in existence for a long time, but that part of Leon's fandom nowadays has kinda grown uncomfortably unbearable.
It's fine and all, like do as you please. Express your desires for a bunch of pixels and even headcanon him to be a different character altogether to fit your fantasies (Leon smoking? Leon being rough? lolwhut), but NOT at the expense of his supposed/intended female partner. The reality of it all is that Leon is a pixel art and so is Ada. By virtue of that, Ada will never be your competition because Leon can never love you back. And even if he's a real person, I doubt he'd even consider looking past Ada especially after re6. Like that's his WOMAN.
people: capcom won’t make Leon and Ada end up together
me: UM ACTUALLY ☝️
Leon is the most likely thematically and story wise to end up leaving the government on his own terms to pursue something he’s personally and emotionally wanted to for years (Ada)
It’s a missed opportunity to not let Leon have his break and to not let him continue on being the doormat for Americans government. we've seen a lifetime of leon's life not being his own. from the minute we meet him in re2 and the ending of it, he
never
has
a choice
he’s forced into becoming a government agent. Blackmailed with the idea of them hurting Sherry.
And forced into a life he never wanted.
During re4 we see how he handles it. Sarcasm and aggression to others and a hostility that doesn't align with his actual personality anymore. he puts on a front, a way to cope with everything that had happened to him and to manage it somehow. he's one of the few characters that's portrayed to not be able to handle it. he's always had survivors guilt and it's been one of the primary characterizations that we go back to
the multitude of times where he loses everyone he knows and or cares about- leaves another dent in his heart and he HAS ONE. he's not like the other characters that can so mindlessly go through things and come out from the other side. he'd rather DIE than let someone down.
we see his reluctance to work with the government in
infinite darkness, damnation, re6, vendetta, (and also probably death island)
his character arc has always been "wants to help people, but knows that what he's doing isn't enough anymore-"
"when i was a kid, i used to think about the kind of man i'd grow up to be- i never... thought my life would turn out this way."
"I keep fighting...and fighting and fighting. Instead of seeing an end to this shit, it just keep getting worse. Is this what my life is supposed to be? Fighting the living dead and bastards that make them? What's the point of it all?"
HE KNOWS HE CAN'T KEEP GOING- but his heart is what makes him do it
his suicidal ideation had always been a focal point to his characterization since re2. whenever he gets into the dark places, he goes into self harm with ways like his alcoholism. if he can't kill himself, he's going to do it slowly. if he can't pull the trigger on himself, he'd rather die in combat.
he knows that people still need him though, he wouldn't do it.
and that's also one of his major faults. he'll always put other people before what he wants and needs.
it MAKES SENSE, and is a missed opportunity to not have him chase the ONE women he had been able to have a connection with since 1998. ada makes the MOST sense to have her be the one thing that leon has had personal desire for ada
"-sacrifice is a very huge thing for him (Leon), and after that it's honour, it's duty, and the only time you ever really see him grasping for personal need seems to be anything involved with- well- Ada Wong... that long history there, she's the one continuing facet throughout this entire experience, his life has been, the recurring element of personal need but at the same time of mistrusting that need, because it goes against everything that he believes he stands for- so it makes for interesting character dynamic-"
WHICH LEADS INTO
ADA gaining his trust
the biggest arc for Ada has been her "redeeming" herself in her eyes. She's always been portrayed as a woman working on the opposite side of leon's objectives but she CONTINUALLY GOES OUT OF HER WAY TO KEEP LEON SAFE.
THIS GOES AGAINST WHAT ADA'S CHARACTERIZATION HAS ALWAYS BEEN. he's been the one facet of HER life where she can not leave him behind- even though she was portrayed EARLY ON to show that she WANTS HIM TO LEAVE.
her arc has always been, and i think it's so much clearer in re4r, that she's redeeming herself in her own eyes. that despite her work, she finds comfort in the idea of leon still being there.
by the time we have re6, we have a full arc. her saving sherry
something that she DOES NOT NEED TO DO
she's shown time and time again that she will GLADLY LET THE OTHER PERSON DIE if it BENEFITS HER (EXCEPT FOR WHEN IT COMES TO LEON)
but sherry is important to Leon, and in extension, now important to Ada. she takes her time to save civilians, save Helena even though helena literally held a gun up towards ada. (which to be fair, is fair, since ada killed helena's mutated sister.)
i've used the helena gifs over and over again so i will refrain for now and hit you with the texts lol
"she's more than just a friend, isn't she, you have feelings for her,"
re6 has always been the aeon game that the resolution has been, they trust each other, even if the world is against them. they will go out of their way for each other
a climax of the arc would be for leon to leave the government on his own terms so he can actually have something he has wanted. and he could still pursue his other desires like to help people without being under the thumb of the government.
and ada can finally redeem herself in her eyes and leons. we already see that leon was willing to do LITERALLY ANYTHING TO STOP CHRIS FROM HURTING ADA.
ada has always had her history shrouded in mystery, but the one thing we've always been clear about is her feelings for leon and her choices haunting her. she actively pushes leon away when she can but like a moth to a flame, she finds herself unable to stay away from him even if it's better for the both of them to stay away
they pull towards each other- and it would MAKE SENSE if she were able to leave her life behind as WELL.
both of them were forced into a life they both did not want.
both of them find refuge in each other
both of them grow to have an understanding for each other
to have them continue on like this doesn't give them a resolution
it doesn't give them closure
and frankly, it's a disservice to have them just work until they're dead
both ada and leon have a fleshed out story (sure it could've been more fleshed out), but they have a story. a conflict, an arc, a storyline, back and forths, a climax, and now we need a resolution. an ending that i'm sure fans have been waiting for for 25+ years.
And this, ladies and gents, is the MAIN REASON why I'm in love with Leon as a character. He's a badass at first glance, but deep down inside, he's really just a softie whose job is slowly killing him.
The rookie we all saw in re2 (and the person Ada fell so hard for)? That's him without the masks. That unhinged and moody person we all saw in re4 was him trying to cope with the new realities of his job. On one hand, being an agent addresses his need to protect innocent people and it also feeds his self-sacrificial tendencies. On the other hand, we see the same job also destroying what's left of his sanity after Raccoon City. It's kinda sad how much his mental fortitude has degraded from re4 -> ID -> RE6 and then we see him at his worst, literally drowning in alcohol, in Vendetta. The latest CG film, DI, has a snippet of Leon addressing his complicated relationship with his job. He says it's an honorable way to "make a living" and at least, it's a testament to him choosing to DO GOOD despite the traumas.
Remember this scene in re2r? Leon's not dumb, he knows the government he's serving is corrupt, but he pushes on because AT LEAST IT HELPS PEOPLE. Leon may have already lost his boyish looks from re2, replacing it with a permanent scowl on his face to match with an all-out sardonic attitude, but that rookie's "Helping people like them. That's why I joined the force!" declaration is still deeply ingrained in him. Despite all the explosions he's caused as a battle-hardened agent and the cringey one-liners he's let out, the rookie lives on as the core tenet of his being.
It's been a long time since Leon's debut as a character in the franchise and maybe, despite his lingering popularity, Capcom already has plans for when they will retire his character for good. As a fan, I can only really be satisfied with one kind of ending for Leon. Interestingly, we don't really know anything about his life outside of killing zombies (and apparently, thrashing all types of vehicles in the process). All we know is that he and ADA have a deep, long-standing connection that the both of them stubbornly hold onto against all odds. Like Heart said in her post, I fervently hope for this ending to be with Leon FINALLY leaving the government job he hates for an Ada who's READY to retire from mercenary work. In Separate Ways, it has been mentioned that Ada's working towards achieving her "true purpose." No matter what that purpose it, her finally achieving it and then realizing she has nothing else left on her plate apart from settling down with Leon? That's a great way to close out their story. Capcom, if you're reading this....
It even opens the possibility of a far-along future with an Aeon kid, maybe helping out Rose...but yeah, that's another discourse entirely.
Wasn't expecting this to become a full-blown essay, but oh well. 😅
You didn't mention the dubs, but anyway
https://www.tumblr.com/sarndonic/722046551664558080/one-more-question-dont-dubbings-make-the-ship?source=share
I didn't talk about the dubs on purpose. ✌ I'm not a Spanish speaker, so I'm certainly not in any position to talk about translation nuances. On the other hand, I can definitely say something about how Don Quixote has been used in re4r to add depth to Luis' backstory because I've studied it in Uni. But I do love getting your asks, Anon. It helps me to zone out of my demanding job if only for a little while. 😅
One more question, don't dubbings make the ship Canon?
""Much like supernatural’s finale dub situation *long-suffering sigh at the memory of that* Luis and Leon are slightly more canon in various dubs. In the Italian dub of the game, Luis tells Leon to come dance with him at the ball after calling Leon prince charming. In the German dub, Luis and Leon refer to each other as prince and princess."
And HE CALL HİM SANCHO!
Luis calls Leon “Sancho” throughout the game, which is a double entendre. In Spanish slang, “sancho” is a gay man who sleeps with another man that’s already in a relationship/is the “side bitch.” Sancho is also a character from the novel Don Quixote; Sancho is Don Quixote’s illiterate squire. Leon replies “who are you calling sancho?” which could really go either way. We know Leon’s read or at least heard of the novel since he tells Luis he was a “fine knight, Don Quixote.”
I think you're reading through their scenes with a lot of personal biases and that's fine. You can ship who you want with Leon, I understand that it's part of enjoying a great character. But I do have some opinion on the usage of the novel Don Quixote in re4r as a device for allegory.
I've never heard of "Sancho" as a Spanish slang for a gay man "side bitch." I do know that Mexican guys use it to refer to another guy who they know their wives/GFs also sleep with. If anything, you can use the slang to interpret Luis+Leon+Ashley this way: Luis being Don Quixote thinks that Leon as Sancho is the one getting in the way of his potential romance with the Princess Dulcinea (who in re4r is an actual person, Ashley). While this negative association exists, I'm just sad it ruins the allegory a little bit. There's more to Don Quixote than just discussing the relationships of its characters, but for the sake of brevity, let me focus on just that since that's what the ask is about.
Luis calls himself Don Quixote because he thinks he's on a mission for redemption. We know Leon to be the true protagonist of re4r or so to speak, the real Don Quixote of this game, but Luis doesn't know this because he's on a personal mission to be good. Luis and Leon tag along during the game a lot so it makes sense that the latter becomes the Sancho to the former's personal character journey.
But alas, here comes the inevitability of death making its ugly presence known in the narrative. In the end, like Don Quixote, Luis dies and Leon's there beside him, much like Sancho, "cheering" him up or providing companionable comfort. While the real Don Quixote dies in such an un-knightly fashion, Luis dies a hero saving his imaginary squire. And Leon affirming that Luis has achieved his objective by holding his hands is the best possible closure this guy can get given the circumstances.
Luis and Leon canon?
"Much like supernatural’s finale dub situation *long-suffering sigh at the memory of that* Luis and Leon are slightly more canon in various dubs. In the Italian dub of the game, Luis tells Leon to come dance with him at the ball after calling Leon prince charming. In the German dub, Luis and Leon refer to each other as prince and princess."
" Originally Capcom’s dev team said they wanted to have Ashley and Leon hold hands to show the connection between them, but decided not to go with it because they were worried audiences would take that as an incentive to ship them/a romantic gesture and they wanted to keep Leon and Ashley’s relationship strictly platonic. Leon ends up holding Luis’s hand later in the game while Luis dies. "
What's with all these shipping asks about Leon? Haha. Doesn't matter, really! Leon's a pretty interesting character to digest (mainly because he gets shipped with virtually everyone in the RE:verse and he's popular with self-inserts too), so keep 'em coming.
And yes, I get your logic. If A = B, then B must be = C, right? So to speak: Leon doesn't hold hands with Ashley because Capcom thinks it's a romantic gesture and they don't want players to arrive to that kind of conclusion. So Leon holding Luis' hands must be romantic, right? Right??? Right, okay.
Subjectively (and I say this, subjectively), I want to point out that the act of holding hands may not be the most effective of gestures that you can use to convey romance. If an author's intention is to show a subtext of this in any media, a kiss to the lips IS and WILL always be the bullseye way. Capcom has certainly done that in re2r with Leon and Ada, giving them enough build-up to make it believable in the end (and extra painful given the circumstances).
But you can argue...holding hands should be romantic for Leon and Luis' case because it's often seen as an important first step in teenage romances? Yes, it's the simplest way to show intimacy. And yes, that makes it appealing to people who, let's just say, are still inexperienced when it comes to romance. But here's where the situational context comes in. You have to consider ALSO what the hell is actually going on that has pushed character A to hold character B's hands. In this case, apart from the obvious fact that they are certainly no longer teenagers, Leon does it because Luis HAS just died. And in all their previous scenes together, you can tell that Leon's not very trusting of Luis. Leon and the players know Luis is Umbrella and his early scenes make him come off as morally gray if not full-on sleazy.
With all these in mind, the hand holding becomes a show of support or camaraderie. And specifically for Leon and Luis' case, reconciliation. Leon's not much of a talker, and you have to remember that before the hand holding in question, Luis raises an important question: "People can change, right?"
As part of that reconciliation, the hand holding becomes Leon's way of saying yes. That people can change and Luis has proven (at least to Leon) that he has changed from his "evil" ways. At least in Leon's eyes, Luis has died a good man.
As audience, we're supposed to be touched by this supposedly "evil" character getting a satisfying closure. Subjectively (and I say this, subjectively), I don't see any sort of romance in it. But hey, nothing's stopping you from shipping... I guess?
Now, on the other side of things, I can understand Capcom's choice of veering away from the hand holding with Ashley. In the first place, resident evil 4's plot is a common romance trope. Remove all the zombies and you have an early 2000s chickflick. Here's a young woman needing protection from a handsome, much older guy (See: Whitney Houston's The Bodyguard). So to speak, there's a romance trap that they want to get rid off because it's not the freaking point, if you now what I mean. Capcom removing the hand holding is just them making sure that the players WILL understand their intended relationship between Leon and Ashley for the story to work. That Leon has become an older brother figure/mentor to her. The ending even supports this with Leon rejecting Ashley's last-ditch attempt of getting her crush's attention.