Was Jenova Braindead?

Lord Noctis

Lord Noctis

Harbinger of Darkness
AKA
Caius Ballad
This is something thats been buging me. I always assumed Jenova was braindead throughout FF7. But she seemingly has a line of dialogue after you beat her in the Forgotten city.

Jenova:You are a puppet.

Was that just a mistranslation?
 
ForceStealer

ForceStealer

Double Growth
I don't think it was a mistranslation (there's a typo though:P). But yeah she was braindead, Sephiroth could have made her speak though.
 
Lord Noctis

Lord Noctis

Harbinger of Darkness
AKA
Caius Ballad
Possibly. I mainly ask because I'm in a debate over whether it was sephiroth, or Jenova responsible for Aerith's death. The other dude say Jenova was responsible and is using that line as his evidence that Jenova was in control of herself.
 
Cat Rage Room

Cat Rage Room

Great Old One
AKA
Mog
Even if it was Jenova who said it and she was fully conscious, it was you know, Sephiroth who killed her. Even though Sephiroth borrowed her corporal form for a bit, he's the one who did it.
 
ForceStealer

ForceStealer

Double Growth
Well the Ultimanias say she was braindead, so that pretty much says she was. But since Sephiroth, after killing Aeris, took the (a?) form of Jenova I guess he spoke with her voice for that part?
 
Lord Noctis

Lord Noctis

Harbinger of Darkness
AKA
Caius Ballad
JIMMY BROOKS: CRIPPLED VIRGIN said:
Even if it was Jenova who said it and she was fully conscious, it was you know, Sephiroth who killed her. Even though Sephiroth borrowed her corporal form for a bit, he's the one who did it.
Click to expand...

I know this of course. the problem is trying to convince someobdy else.

@Atem Do we have that particular Ultimania piece translated on this site?
 
LicoriceAllsorts

LicoriceAllsorts

Donator
I am so utterly confused by Jenova that I don't even mind admitting it.

I thought she controlled Sephiroth. However, I also thought that he animated what was left of her body, in Hojo's tank, through his will. I don't know how I managed to believe both those things simultaneously. Jeez, it's like a religion.

When did he kill her?

I also thought, but am obviously completely wrong, that she had some kind of intelligence/will that transcended distinctions of cell function - it didn't need brain cells, because it operated like a kind of hive mind in every single Jenova cell, no matter who or what was carrying that cell. Once she's 'dead', do these lose their consciousness/identity but keep their function? Because the remnants didn't seem to think she was dead.

Pondering these mysteries is more interesting than doing my taxes, that's for sure.
 
Lord Noctis

Lord Noctis

Harbinger of Darkness
AKA
Caius Ballad
LicoriceAllsorts said:
I am so utterly confused by Jenova that I don't even mind admitting it.

I thought she controlled Sephiroth. However, I also thought that he animated what was left of her body, in Hojo's tank, through his will. I don't know how I managed to believe both those things simultaneously. Jeez, it's like a religion.

When did he kill her?

I also thought, but am obviously completely wrong, that she had some kind of intelligence/will that transcended distinctions of cell function - it didn't need brain cells, because it operated like a kind of hive mind in every single Jenova cell, no matter who or what was carrying that cell. Once she's 'dead', do these lose their consciousness/identity but keep their function? Because the remnants didn't seem to think she was dead.

Pondering these mysteries is more interesting than doing my taxes, that's for sure.
Click to expand...

Its always been my understanding that Sephiroth gained full control of Jenova after falling into the lifestream, and used her as his avatar throughout the game while his own body was reforming.
 
ForceStealer

ForceStealer

Double Growth
Yeah, she tried to gain control of him but he overpowered her and from that point on her will has been insignificant to nonexistent. I know we have that ultimania somewhere...just still looking for it...
 
Last edited:
Dark and Divine

Dark and Divine

Pro Adventurer
AKA
D&D
This was what I could find:

***Sephiroth's will and Jenova's will*** (Page 53)
The Sephiroth clones seen in various locations continue gathering for the
Reunion. Seemingly, the will of Jenova as a human is the result of it
consuming Sephiroth's spirit; in actuality, Sephiroth is controlling Jenova.

(Accompanying screenshot caption)
Sephiroth's voice is heard through his "mother," Jenova, as applied through
its cells in the Sephiroth Clones.
Click to expand...

***The Sephiroth of the water altar*** (Page 157)
Immediately after the tragedy surrounding Aerith takes place, the battle with Jenova-LIFE begins, doing so such that it interrupts Sephiroth's words; they're continued after the battle, but the title of whom they're credited to changes from "Sephiroth" to "Jenova." The reason for this is that the confrontation on the altar occurs with Jenova while it's displaying Sephiroth's mimed form. It then changes to a more accurate display of its true nature.
Click to expand...

These quotes came from the FFVII Ultimania Omega guide. You can read them in here.
 
LicoriceAllsorts

LicoriceAllsorts

Donator
The first quote states clearly enough that he's in control. But, as far as I can work out, the second quote contradicts this, implying that Jenova is miming Sephiroth and that her 'true' nature is still her own, as the words are attributed to her.

Not being difficult - just confused.
 
Dark and Divine

Dark and Divine

Pro Adventurer
AKA
D&D
I think that the line atributed to Jenova was a way to give us a clue that it wasn't really Sephiroth's real self that was travelling around the world, but him using Jenova's body as his avatar.
 
Masamune

Masamune

Fiat Lux
AKA
Masa
I don't know what everyone's getting confused about. It clearly says that they were just differentiating between Sephiroth and Jenova. That's all there is to it.
 
Cat Rage Room

Cat Rage Room

Great Old One
AKA
Mog
No, I mean the way the game itself presented the whole situation. The Ultimania clears it up of course, I didn't mean that.
 
Makoeyes987

Makoeyes987

Listen closely, there is meaning in my words.
AKA
Smooth Criminal
Jenova's pretty damn braindead if she can't even spell "because" right, in her one and only line in the entire game.

Jenova: Beacause you are....a puppet.
Click to expand...

:awesomonster:
 
The Twilight Mexican

The Twilight Mexican

Ex-SeeD-ingly good
AKA
TresDias
Dark and Divine said:
I think that the line atributed to Jenova was a way to give us a clue that it wasn't really Sephiroth's real self that was travelling around the world, but him using Jenova's body as his avatar.
Click to expand...

This.


And, really, JENOVA's not so much braindead as it is that it never had any high-level intellect to begin with. Yes, it's a cunning creature, but apparently all it thinks about is destroying and infecting:
http://thelifestream.net/final-fantasy-vii/220/final-fantasy-vii-series-terms-and-definitions/

In any case, it seems to still be treated as being as much "aware" as could really apply to it:
http://thelifestream.net/final-fantasy-vii/284/crisis-core-complete-guide-keyword-collection/8/
("... it continued to work with Sephiroth to summon Meteor and destroy the planet")
http://www.gamefaqs.com/console/psx/file/197341/42137
("However, Jenova would awaken because of Gast's guidance of Shin-Ra's Science Department")

Also, if you ask me, a lot of these entries -- including Sephiroth and Cloud's 10th Anniversary Ultimania profiles -- treat JENOVA and Sephiroth as interchangeable. There doesn't really seem to be any distinction made between the two -- which I think is the point: Sephiroth's the evolved/new form of JENOVA ("new god").

Examples:
-In Sephiroth's profile, the following description is made: "Born into the Shin-Ra Company as 'JENOVA's son,' a fallen hero who inherited Jenova's will to destroy the planet."

-Cloud's profile refers to Cloud as a "puppet of JENOVA," refers to him as still under the "will of JENOVA" during Advent Children, and comments on the effects of Sephiroth's influence on him during the film with, "It's almost as if he can never escape from JENOVA's command."
 
Glaurung

Glaurung

Forgot the cutesy in my other pants. Sorry.
AKA
Mama Dragon
Did she have a brain to begin with? I mean, what kind of lifeform she was? Was a single being or just a bunch of cells which only struggled to infect and reproduce?
 
Max Payne

Max Payne

Banned
AKA
Leon S. Kennedy,Terry Bogard, The Dark Knight, Dacon, John Marston, Teal'c
Jenova is more like an organic plague than an intelligent lifeform.
 
The Twilight Mexican

The Twilight Mexican

Ex-SeeD-ingly good
AKA
TresDias
JIMMY BROOKS: CRIPPLED VIRGIN said:
Doesn't it's Ultimania description (found here, no less) state it as 'very intelligent'?
Click to expand...

Thinking about that more, it may be that its intelligence refers more to its cunning. It knew to adopt forms based on the images it scanned from the Cetra's minds so as to allow it to get close enough to infect them.

Given that it has this instinct to destroy planets, I really doubt the creature has what we would call an actual intellect. It's just very smart when it comes to doing what it does.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom