Apr 24, 2024
HIM!
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HIM!
Pretty much everyone has had the "aha!" moment when looking back on Shulk saying "it's like there's two versions of me in my head" line just after losing Fiora, and how it's Zanza screaming to get revenge and destroy all mechon.
But what I find more interesting is how Shulk's-i.e. Zanza's-narrow-minded and destructive desire for revenge latches on to most of the other party members.
Reyn is an open and shut case, he was never like how Shulk usually is, preferring to smack things and let his emotions run wild and drive his words and actions. Oh sure he isn't stupid by any means, but he's justifiably angry and bitter towards the mechon, so of course he'd go along; he was only surprised that Shulk said it first.
Sharla, on the other hand, is cautious and anxious, stemming from how she leans into taking care of others. She's led on the path to revenge for her colony by Shulk reassuring her of being a Homs, saying they "won't stand here waiting to be eaten", which is a nice foreshadowing of how the party acts at the end of the game.
Dunban's supposed to be the wise mentor, unflinching and unwilling to let his anger get the best of him... but for as wise as he is, he makes the choice to ignore his condition and set off to join Shulk for vengeance. He can teach and guide as much as possible-which he does well-but later it's Shulk-the one who started the revenge quest in the first place-that has to take him down a peg and get him to start acting right. (I do wonder if maybe part of Zanza was talking when Shulk was begging Dunban not to be alright with killing a fellow Homs, they are his food supply after all...)
Melia's initial course of action when facing the Telethia for a second time is to cut her losses and run, but Shulk's empathizing with her situation leads her to adopting the same anger and bitterness for mechon later on for what they do to her father and her kingdom. It took a while, yes (she separates herself from the party multiple times for a reason, as she believes her heart must not interfere with her duty), but two strangers-turned-friends sharing a similar trauma? It's little wonder that they cope the same way, by going full destruction mode.
Riki and Seven are the only ones not subtly tainted by this destructive, vengeance seeking journey. Riki because he's a stealth second mentor to the party and is near bursting with joy and kindness, so he never wants to get revenge, he just wants to help his friends and pay off his debt. Seven because... well it's her experiences during the story so far and her deep compassion for others that end up turning Shulk-and therefore everyone else in the party-around, showing that their end goal doesn't have to be total destruction; you can fight not out of revenge or seeking power, but to protect people's hopes, dreams, and futures.
Hell, if you wanna get crazier, Shulk succumbing to the apocrypha when he finally gets to the Mechonis could be read as a visual representation of him rejecting Zanza's influence. The host fighting back against the parasite, flipping around what Zanza sees the Bionis inhabitants as on his body.
And the earliest you can see these things is during Shulk and Reyn's conversation after losing Fiora-pretty much at the start of the game-and once you notice the pattern with Dunban and Sharla, you can't stop seeing it for the rest of the game. Very good writing here.
YES HE IS
The side plot of Melia having feelings for Shulk is not a favorite of mine, and it's exactly why this scene where Shulk and the other member of the love triangle run past her is so fucking funny
Like it's deeply unserious how much the game is written to kick Melia in the knees
You guys think he's single? 🥴
The Naked Dunban strategy is really fun, hot, sexy, and cool until I remember ether attacks and visions, then I have to lock tf in 😭
Bana being the progenitor of many Nopon being evil capitalists who plot and scheme in later games was the funniest thing in XC1, and it's still just as funny when he's brought back in Future Connected lmaooo
Omg, gay people lore...