The Twilight Mexican
Ex-SeeD-ingly good
- AKA
- TresDias
This thread will serve as research and development for an upcoming article I would like to do for the Canon of FFVII section on the front end of the site.
I had hoped to get another translator's input about all this before taking it to the forum at large, but I guess they must have too much going on to look into it, as I've not heard back from them. That being the case, I'll proceed on ahead and see what kind of feedback I get.
Before I get into the meat of this, a little backstory: This investigation is the result of a debate Starling and I were recently having in this thread. I'm somewhat embarrassed that I was so certain of my position during that debate only to now only be able to present these findings and shrug my shoulders while shaking my head.
It's also a little embarrassing that the problematic passages were things I overlooked despite having these books for years. I can blame getting used to reading redundant profiles and descriptions across various Ultimanias, but I still ultimately missed all of this until now, and that's my own fault.
I have no idea what to do with this information and am hoping all of you can help. The matter quickly got away from me.
I've probably confused you enough, so let's just get to it. Let's start with what we can reasonably say we know to be fact:
================================================================================
—Shin-Ra discovered mako energy in [ μ ] – εуλ 1959 (source: Compilation timeline from the FFVII 10th Anniversary Ultimania and timeline from the Crisis Core Ultimania)
—Dirge of Cerberus took place in [ ν ] – εуλ 0010 (source: multiple references in the 10th Anniversary Ultimania, including the Compilation timeline)
—Deepground originally existed as a medical facility for SOLDIER (source: Term list from the 10th Anniversary Ultimania and term list from the Dirge of Cerberus Official Complete Guide (page scan for the latter of the two))
—Rosso was born in Deepground (source: her 10th Anniversary Ultimania profile and her own words during Dirge of Cerberus). She was also 25 during DC (source: her 10th Anniversary Ultimania profile), so she was born in Deepground no later than [ μ ] – εуλ 1985
—Based on the above, Deepground likely existed no later than [ μ ] – εуλ 1984
—Deepground's shift from a SOLDIER medical facility to a giant lab for inhumane experimentation occurred as a result of the project that produced Genesis (source: term list from the DC Official Complete Guide)
—Sephiroth was born 25-30 years before FFVII took place, meaning between [ μ ] – εуλ 1982 and 1977 (source: timeline from the FFVII Ultimania Omega and multiple references from the 10th Anniversary Ultimania, including the Compilation timeline and Sephiroth's own profile)
—Genesis and Angeal are slightly older than Sephiroth, but are almost the same age as him -- thus, all three were born approximately 25-30 years ago (source:
,
, and the scenario Q&A from the Crisis Core Ultimania)
—Sephiroth became popular during the Wutai War, inspiring many young men -- including Genesis -- to join (source: Sephiroth's 10th Anniversary Ultimania profile, "Hero" entry from the Crisis Core Complete Guide's Keyword Collection,
, and
)
—The Wutai War began around [ μ ] – εуλ 1992 (source: Compilation timeline from the FFVII 10th Anniversary Ultimania)
From all of this we can ascertain:
—Rosso was likely born in [ μ ] – εуλ 1985 when Sephiroth was, at most, eight years old -- before the Wutai War and before Sephiroth became famous
—Since Deepground had to exist for Rosso to be born there, Deepground existed long before Sephiroth would have inspired many others to join SOLDIER -- and presumably before Genesis, Angeal and Sephiroth were even born
—Since SOLDIER had to exist for Deepground to be built as a SOLDIER medical facility, SOLDIER itself existed before Genesis, Angeal and Sephiroth
We also have other sources pointing toward this latter conclusion about SOLDIER pre-dating Sephiroth. First, the Shin-Ra Company's profile from pg. 56 of the Ultimania Omega:
(page scan)
----
Keyword 【神羅カンパニー】
この世界を事実上仕切っている、巨大企業。もとは「神羅製作所」という名の兵器開発会社であったが、魔晄エネルギーの発見を機に飛躍的に成長。魔晄エネルギーを凝縮した「 マテリア」や、魔晄エネルギーを直接その身に浴びた精鋭兵士「ソルジャー」を戦場に投入して当時世界全土に広がっていた大戦を終結 に導き、さらに生活面にも魔晄エネルギーを応用することで、その後の世界を支配した。
Keyword: "Shin-Ra Company"
A megacorporation that effectively governs the world. Originally a weapons development company named "Shin-Ra Works," it grew rapidly from the discovery of mako energy. Deploying crystallized mako energy ("materia") and elite troops who had been directly exposed to mako energy ("SOLDIER") to the battlefield, Shin-Ra guided to its end a great war that had engulfed the whole world in those days; in addition, they would later control the world due to the use of mako energy in people's day-to-day lives.
----
From this we can ascertain:
—There was a war going on "in those days" (when Shin-Ra discovered mako)
—Shin-Ra ended that war after developing mako by adding materia and SOLDIER to the battlefield
—The SOLDIER units deployed at that time were only showered with mako; no mention is made of Jenova here, and this is long before Jenova would have been discovered, which is said to have been approximately 30 years before FFVII (i.e. approximately [ μ ] – εуλ 1977) (source: timeline from the FFVII Ultimania Omega and the Compilation timeline from the FFVII 10th Anniversary Ultimania)
—After the war, Shin-Ra ended up controlling the world because of people's dependence on mako
It's clearly not talking about the Wutai War since that started in [ μ ] – εуλ 1992, not "in those days" (i.e. around [ μ ] – εуλ 1959), and also because Shin-Ra already controlled the rest of the world prior to the Wutai War.
Next, on pg. 216 of the same book, we have this entry about materia that reiterates what pg. 56 said:
(page scan)
----
マテリアと戦後の社会
魔晄エネルギーが固体に凝縮されたものがマテリアだ。自然状態でもエネルギーの豊富な場所では天然のマテリアが生成されることがあるが、それは希有な例で、一般に出まわっ ているマテリアは、神羅が実用製品として人為的に作り出したものである。
マテリアには古代種の知識が詰まっている、と言われる。これは、星と対話してその知識を引き出せた古代種の力を、一般人でも、知識の凝縮体であるマテリアを介在させればあ る程度は実現できる……ということを指した表現だ。
マテリアは基本的に戦闘用であり、従来の兵器をはるかに超える力を持つ。兵器開発会社だった神羅がマテリアを商品化し、みずから戦場に投入したことは、ソルジャー投入と並 び、大陸をまたがり長年つづいていた戦争をあっさりと終結に導いた。マテリア製造技術を編み出し独占していた神羅は、必然的に戦後の世界を牛耳ることに。世界は平和を迎え たものの、神羅の独裁体制のなり、ますます魔晄に頼って星やほかの生物の命をかえりみない時代へと突入し、今日に至っている。
"Materia and postwar society
When mako energy condenses into a solid state, it becomes materia. Although materia will sometimes form naturally in places abundant with energy, this is an extremely rare occurrence and what materia is generally available was produced by Shin-Ra as a commercial product.
Materia is said to contain the knowledge of the Ancients. Thus, it is possible for an ordinary person to utilize this solidified knowledge to some extent to draw upon the knowledge of the Ancients and establish a connection with the planet ... or so they say.
Materia is used primarily for combat purposes, with power far exceeding traditional weaponry. When they were a weapons development company, Shin-Ra commercialized materia, personally deploying it onto the battlefield along with SOLDIER, and quickly bringing an intercontinental war that had lasted several years to an end. Having the monopoly on the materia manufacturing process they developed, Shin-Ra inevitably dominated the postwar world. Although the world welcomed peaceful times, it led to Shin-Ra's dictatorship and the rush into an era of ever-increasing mako dependence without consideration for the life force of the planet and other living things -- an era that continues to this day."
----
We even have an in-game source that further reiterates this in the form of some comments when we first meet Cid in the original game. Here he makes some comments that speak of Shin-Ra still being a weapons developer during some "meaningless war":
----
長くて下らない戦争中に、神羅カンパニーがいろんな技術を開発したのは知ってんだろ？
今は魔晄屋だが、昔は兵器開発会社だったからな。
"You know Shinra developed a lot of technological gadgets during the meaningless war, right?
Now it's a Mako company, but in the old days it was a weapons manufacturer."
----
This earlier conflict can't be the Wutai War since he references Shin-Ra still being a weapons developer in those days. It had certainly transitioned into a power company before then.
What overall conclusions can we draw from all of this?:
—The Wutai War isn't the only significant war within living memory in FFVII's world
—SOLDIER and Deepground existed before Sephiroth
—These original SOLDIERs are more similar to Deepground's SOLDIERs than those who came after Sephiroth, as they lack Jenova cells
With regard to that third point, indeed, every guidebook entry for conventional SOLDIERs mentions both mako and Jenova while only mako has ever been linked to Deepground SOLDIERs (e.g. their respective 10th Anniversary Ultimania entries). In addition, whoever wrote the entry for SOLDIER at this Japanese FF wiki also seems to have taken the understanding that Deepground's fighters don't receive anything from Jenova: 根本的にはDGソルジャーはソルジャーではない人間を改造する場合と、通常のソルジャーを更に改造してなる場合があるので、ジェノバ細胞を持っているかいないかは余り関係 ない ("DG SOLDIERs aren't SOLDIERs in the conventional sense, as -- whether enhancing a baseline human or further modifying an ordinary SOLDIER -- it doesn't matter whether they have Jenova cells").
This all gels rather perfectly, giving us a cohesive flow of events and terms in FFVII's history. Everything makes sense.
... Until we look at the opening lines of Sephiroth's profile on pg. 52:
(page scan: page scan)
----
先の大戦時にめざましい活躍を見せた、神羅の英雄。ソルジャーの先駆けであり、最高の存在ともてはやされていた。
Shin-Ra's hero, who put on an outstanding performance during the most recent great war. Forerunner of SOLDIER and touted as the SOLDIER supreme.
----
The word translated as "forerunner" here, by the way, is 先駆け/"sakigake" and means precisely that -- "harbinger," "trailblazer," "pathfinder," "pioneer." You may even recognize it as the name of the first interplanetary craft launched into space by Japan.
In other words, it sounds a lot like this passage from the Ultimania Omega means to say that Sephiroth was the first SOLDIER.
Given the obvious complications (i.e. catastrophe) this raises for the timeline we've just finished constructing above, it's tempting to dismiss this as a badly worded phrase that doesn't quite mean to say what it seems to. Unfortunately, this Meteor-esque continuity conundrum finds reinforcement in a segment on pg. 211 of the Ultimania Omega:
(page scan)
----
プロジェクトの産物――セフィロス
ルクレシィアの胎内にいたときから、ジェノバ細胞とともに成長をとげたセフィロス。肉体的には、人間である宝条とルクレシィアの子だが、プロジェクトにおける位置付けは人 為的に作られた「古代種の」ジェノバであり、"ジェノバの息子"とも言える。同時に彼は、ソルジャー（→P.217）として最初の存在だ。ただし、のちに量産された一般の ソルジャーは、心身ともに健康な成人の肉体にジェノバ細胞を埋めこんで魔晄を照射するという、より簡略化された方法で生み出されているのに対し、セフィロスは身体の質から して根本的に異なっている。
(caption on screenshot of Rufus saying "Mm? Did you know that Sephiroth is an Ancient?")
ジェノバの正体を知らない神羅の幹部は、セフィロスを新生古代種と考え、あつかっている。
Result of the project -- Sephiroth
When he was in Lucrecia's womb, Sephiroth was growing along with the Jenova cells. While he is biologically the human child of Hojo and Lucrecia, in light of his role within the project to artificially recreate Jenova "of the Ancients," he could be called "Jenova's son." At the same time, he was the first to be a SOLDIER (→pg. 217). However, Sephiroth's body is fundamentally different in quality from that of the common SOLDIERs put into mass production later, who are produced by a simplified method in which adults of healthy mind and body are injected with Jenova cells and exposed to mako.
(caption on screenshot of Rufus saying "Mm? Did you know that Sephiroth is an Ancient?")
Jenova's true nature is unknown to Shin-Ra's executives, who believe they are dealing with a reborn Ancient with Sephiroth.
----
From this passage, we get 最初の存在/"saisho no sonzai" (literally, "first existence") として/"toshite" ("in the role/capacity of") ソルジャー ("SOLDIER") -- "the first to be a SOLDIER."
What are we to do with this then? If not for two lines ("Forerunner of SOLDIER" and "At the same time, he was the first to be a SOLDIER"), we would have a rock solid timeline.
Certainly we could just be selective in our reading and take it to have meant only that Sephiroth was the first of the conventional, Jenova-type SOLDIERs, the entry for whom that passage on pg. 211 directs us toward with the "(→pg. 217)" notation -- but that strikes me as a rather intellectually dishonest approach to take.
Or maybe it is a fair reading since a later portion of the same book has a preview for Dirge of Cerberus on pg. 575, in which it makes reference to Deepground SOLDIERs?:
(page scan)
----
メテオ災害からの復興が進んでいたある日、各地の町が「ディープグラウンドソルジャー」と呼ばれる謎の兵士集団に襲撃される。彼らは、3年前にミッドガルが崩壊したときに、地下へ閉じこめられたとされるソルジャーたちだった。「これより、全世界の狩りとりを行なう。選ばれる価値のない者には、殺戮と虐殺を与える」と宣言する彼らに対して、ヴィンセントが立ち向かっていくのだ。
On a day set aside to recognize the restoration since Meteorfall, many towns come under attack by a host of mysterious troops called "Deepground SOLDIERs." These SOLDIERs were trapped underground when Midgar collapsed three years ago. Standing against their declaration that "The time has come to cleanse this world. The pure will be spared for the cause, while the tainted will be hunted down and exterminated," Vincent goes to confront them.
----
At the very least, the presence of this passage and the fact that the game was released only four months after the Ultimania Omega tells us that the scenario for Dirge of Cerberus was complete when this book was published and the existence of Deepground SOLDIERs was not unknown to the authors of this book. That doesn't confirm their intent for us one way or the other, but it may indicate that they weren't printing the book in September of 2015 knowing full well this detail about Sephiroth being the first SOLDIER would be retconned in January of 2016.
In other words, they probably wouldn't have put those lines to print if they knew they wouldn't hold up with the backstory soon to be introduced to fans by Dirge of Cerberus.
Then again, on pg. 46 and pg. 47 of -- yet again -- this same book, we have the personal timeline for Vincent from his profile telling us that when he was shot and killed at 27, he had confronted Hojo to blame him for Lucrecia going into self-imposed exile after her body became hideous due to the Jenova Project:
----
【約23年前】ルクレシィア失踪。宝条を責め、逆上した宝条に肉体を改造されるが、それも罰だと受け止め、棺のなかで眠りにつく（※2）
※2
セフィロスを産んで数年ルクレシィアの身体はしだいに変調をきたし、外見も醜く変化していった。人に見せられぬ姿となった己に絶望したルクレシィアのせい――憤ったヴィンセントは宝条に食ってかかるが、逆に銃で撃たれ、意識を失っているあいだに宝条の「科学的好奇心」のエジキとなってしまう。
[Approximately 23 years ago] Lucrecia disappears. Vincent blames the maniacal Hojo, but ends up with his body modified by him; perceiving this as a punishment, Vincent goes to sleep in a coffin. (※2)
(※2)
For several years after giving birth to Sephiroth, Lucrecia's body gradually became abnormal, and her appearance became grotesque. Vincent fell into his own despair over her no longer wanting to be seen by anyone -- filled with resentment, he confronted Hojo and blew up at him, but was shot and fell prey to Hojo's "scientific curiosity" after losing consciousness.
----
A couple of those details were promptly retconned four months later when we saw an expanded flashback of Vincent being shot by Hojo -- only for Lucrecia to then walk into the room looking normal to see what had happened, and to then stick around for however much longer it took before she could bond Chaos to Vincent to save his life.
Of course, regardless of whether this was an expected retcon or an unanticipated change, the content offered by the Ultimania Omega needs to be able to stand together on its own at least at the time of publication -- and it doesn't seem able to do that. We're still left with two passages speaking of Shin-Ra developing and utilizing SOLDIER many years before they should have had the first SOLDIER.
Obviously, it is also possible that one of these details is simply an error and was always incorrect from the moment it was printed. If we did have to choose one of the two to discard, the statements that Sephiroth was the first SOLDIER should be what goes -- it has an equal number of references within the book to those about SOLDIER's longer history (both are found in the same sections to boot, only a few pages apart on both occasions), but it is also the only contentious detail here that creates a wider disconnect when looking at other points on the timeline. Nothing else in the timeline is depending on Sephiroth being the first SOLDIER to make it work.
Even if we were to just disregard the passages about Shin-Ra having SOLDIER in the same time period in which they pioneered mako siphoning, Sephiroth being the first SOLDIER has to square with Deepground's existence as a SOLDIER medical facility and the experiment that led to Rosso's birth being underway by [ μ ] – εуλ 1984 -- when he was only somewhere between two and seven years old, and would not yet inspire young men the world over to swell SOLDIER's ranks for almost another ten years.
The longer history of SOLDIER, on the other hand, easily settles into place with the facts about Deepground's history, as well as what Cid says about the "meaningless war" when we meet him. And again, this version of history has as many claims to its name as Sephiroth being the first SOLDIER ever.
Simply in terms of establishing the most cohesive timeline possible and reducing continuity conundrums, the claim about Sephiroth should be the one to go if either does have to. Going this route may be the one more likely to offend the sensibilities and long-held understandings of FFVII fans, but it's also the route that makes the most sense in terms of the overall Compilation of Final Fantasy VII.
Ironically, going off only the original game and the Ultimania Omega, one could probably make both of these details fit without any concerns. Neither gives a timeframe for when mako siphoning was pioneered, nor when the Wutai War took place -- at least nothing beyond Elmyra's vague statements that "During the war, my husband was sent to the front. Some faraway place called Wutai" about 15 years before the main events of the game. There are also no comments about when SOLDIER was first active, so, depending on their preferred interpretation of history, one could imagine the "meaningless war" Cid speaks of as being the Wutai War, suppose that it had started some 30 years before AVALANCHE rode a train up to Mako Reactor No. 1 (perhaps not long after the mako refinery process and Jenova were discovered?), and assume the war lasted at least 15 years, giving time for Elmyra's husband to die fighting over there -- with SOLDIER being developed somewhere in the interim.
It's only when taking dates like [ μ ] – εуλ 9/23/1959 (for the discovery of mako siphoning) into account along with timeframes like "around [ μ ] – εуλ 1992" (for the beginning of the Wutai War) and ages like 25 (for Rosso) that things fall apart. Maybe Deepground succeeded in destroying the world after all.
In the interest of complete fairness to all information presented and being objective, it seems to this fan that a synthesis of data should be taken to preserve as much as possible when working out the inconsistencies in FFVII's setting. In that spirit, I do propose accepting that the passages about Sephiroth being the first SOLDIER are in reference to conventional, modern SOLDIERs. That way, both details are correct.
So, all is tidy then now, correct?
Sadly, not even close. There's one more even more apocalyptic passage to deal with, this time from pg. 208 of the Final Fantasy 20th Anniversary Ultimania File 2: Scenario guidebook (published in 2008, after Dirge of Cerberus and even Crisis Core had already seen release):
(photo of relevant passage)
----
神羅カンパニー
世界の覇権をにぎる巨大企業
比類なき財力と軍事力を兼ね備え、世界を思うがままに牛耳る大企業。もとは「神羅製作所」という一兵器開発会社だったが、魔晄エネルギーの発見により事業内容を転換。魔晄の独占供給、マテリアやソルジャーの投入によるウータイとの戦争の終結などを経て、高い地位を確立した。その経営方針は、邪魔な対象を徹底的に排除する強引なものだが、巧みな情報操作で人々の心をつかむような狡猾さも兼ね備えている。物語終盤ではメテオの破壊やウェポノの侵攻阻止など、英雄さながらの目的を掲げて動くものの、クラウドたちとは行動方針のちがいにより敵対関係をつらぬく。
(caption on screenshot of President Shinra saying "Cetra, or the Ancients will show us the way to the 'Promised Land.' I'm expecting a lot out of her")
巨大企業としての地位を確固たるものとした神羅は、さらなる経営拡大のために「約束の地」を探し求める。
Shin-Ra Company
The corporate giant that dominates the world
The megacorporation for whom -- combining unmatched wealth and military strength -- the world is their plaything. Originally a weapons development company called "Shin-Ra Works," they changed up their business model after discovering mako energy. Through monopolization of mako, ending the war with Wutai through the introduction of materia and SOLDIER, etc., they installed themselves at the top of the social order. Their business practices combine such tactics as using overwhelming force to completely eliminate obstacles, as well as the subtle manipulation of information to control the sentiments of the people. By the endgame, their goals have shifted to match those of the heroes where the Meteor crisis, Weapon, etc. are concerned, but their adversarial relationship continues due to differences in method.
(caption on screenshot of President Shinra saying "Cetra, or the Ancients will show us the way to the 'Promised Land.' I'm expecting a lot out of her")
Shin-Ra seeks the "Promised Land" to further expand its power and secure its position as a megacorporation.
----
Now we have another somewhat similar passage to those we looked at earlier in the Ultimania Omega regarding Shin-Ra's history -- only here it's being said that manufactured materia and SOLDIER were introduced during the Wutai War! A war which began approximately seven years after Rosso was born in a facility that was built as a SOLDIER medical facility in the first place!
This timeline is so fucked not even every incarnation of The Doctor working together could save it.
I had hoped to get another translator's input about all this before taking it to the forum at large, but I guess they must have too much going on to look into it, as I've not heard back from them. That being the case, I'll proceed on ahead and see what kind of feedback I get.
Before I get into the meat of this, a little backstory: This investigation is the result of a debate Starling and I were recently having in this thread. I'm somewhat embarrassed that I was so certain of my position during that debate only to now only be able to present these findings and shrug my shoulders while shaking my head.
It's also a little embarrassing that the problematic passages were things I overlooked despite having these books for years. I can blame getting used to reading redundant profiles and descriptions across various Ultimanias, but I still ultimately missed all of this until now, and that's my own fault.
I have no idea what to do with this information and am hoping all of you can help. The matter quickly got away from me.
I've probably confused you enough, so let's just get to it. Let's start with what we can reasonably say we know to be fact:
================================================================================
—Shin-Ra discovered mako energy in [ μ ] – εуλ 1959 (source: Compilation timeline from the FFVII 10th Anniversary Ultimania and timeline from the Crisis Core Ultimania)
—Dirge of Cerberus took place in [ ν ] – εуλ 0010 (source: multiple references in the 10th Anniversary Ultimania, including the Compilation timeline)
—Deepground originally existed as a medical facility for SOLDIER (source: Term list from the 10th Anniversary Ultimania and term list from the Dirge of Cerberus Official Complete Guide (page scan for the latter of the two))
—Rosso was born in Deepground (source: her 10th Anniversary Ultimania profile and her own words during Dirge of Cerberus). She was also 25 during DC (source: her 10th Anniversary Ultimania profile), so she was born in Deepground no later than [ μ ] – εуλ 1985
—Based on the above, Deepground likely existed no later than [ μ ] – εуλ 1984
—Deepground's shift from a SOLDIER medical facility to a giant lab for inhumane experimentation occurred as a result of the project that produced Genesis (source: term list from the DC Official Complete Guide)
—Sephiroth was born 25-30 years before FFVII took place, meaning between [ μ ] – εуλ 1982 and 1977 (source: timeline from the FFVII Ultimania Omega and multiple references from the 10th Anniversary Ultimania, including the Compilation timeline and Sephiroth's own profile)
—Genesis and Angeal are slightly older than Sephiroth, but are almost the same age as him -- thus, all three were born approximately 25-30 years ago (source:
(2:00-minute mark in this video)
"My dream is for my parents and me to serve the hero Sephiroth our apples one day. Since we are close in age, I'd like to show him what I've accomplished in my life."
"My dream is for my parents and me to serve the hero Sephiroth our apples one day. Since we are close in age, I'd like to show him what I've accomplished in my life."
"This issue is for the newcomers to Red Leather. As a welcome gift, here is some basic information about Genesis.
Hobby: Reading. He happened upon a copy of LOVELESS in his parents' study. It has been his favorite work ever since.
Why he joined SOLDIER: The heroics of Sephiroth, who is the same age as Genesis, inspired him to work for the good of the world.
We will update you on any new information as it becomes available."
Hobby: Reading. He happened upon a copy of LOVELESS in his parents' study. It has been his favorite work ever since.
Why he joined SOLDIER: The heroics of Sephiroth, who is the same age as Genesis, inspired him to work for the good of the world.
We will update you on any new information as it becomes available."
—Sephiroth became popular during the Wutai War, inspiring many young men -- including Genesis -- to join (source: Sephiroth's 10th Anniversary Ultimania profile, "Hero" entry from the Crisis Core Complete Guide's Keyword Collection,
(page scan)
神羅が抱えるエリート兵士。タークスにスカウトされるなどして集まった人材のうち、ジェノバ細胞を埋めこまれたうえに魔晄を照射され、身体能力を人工的に強化された者のこ とを言う。この過程は、通常ならばあり得ない変化を無理やり心身に起こさせる乱暴な試みであため、結果として異常をきたす者も多く、その変化に耐えることができた者のみが ソルジャーとなる。
精鋭兵として選ばれた存在であるソルジャーは、その実力によってさら1ST、2ND、3RDの3つのクラウドにわけられる。上位クラスほど人数はかぎられており、最上位で あるクラス1STに至っては数えるほどしかいない。それぞれのクラスには異なる制服が支給されるが、クラス1STのみは私服を着ることも認められている。
(caption on screenshot of Cloud saying "I joined SOLDIER so I could be like you")
戦場で華々しく活躍していたセフィロスは、少年たちにソルジャーへのあこがれを抱かせた。クラウドやザックスがソルジャーを目指したのも、セフィロスがいたか らこそ。
"Shin-Ra's elite soldiers. With their personnel recruited by the Turks, their physical capabilities are artificially enhanced through exposure to mako and the injection of Jenova cells. As many who undergo the process experience abnormal results, and only those who can withstand it will become SOLDIERs, the procedure typically isn't imposed on one's mind and body against their will.
Those selected to join these elite troops join SOLDIER in one of three classes -- 1st, 2nd or 3rd -- divided according to ability. The number of people in the top classes is limited, and only a handful reach the highest rank of 1st. Although each class is issued its own uniform, only those in 1st Class are allowed to also wear plain clothes.
(caption on screenshot of Cloud saying "I joined SOLDIER so I could be like you")
Flourishing on the battlefield, Sephiroth instilled in many young men a desire to join SOLDIER. Cloud and Zack set their sights on SOLDIER because of him specifically."
神羅が抱えるエリート兵士。タークスにスカウトされるなどして集まった人材のうち、ジェノバ細胞を埋めこまれたうえに魔晄を照射され、身体能力を人工的に強化された者のこ とを言う。この過程は、通常ならばあり得ない変化を無理やり心身に起こさせる乱暴な試みであため、結果として異常をきたす者も多く、その変化に耐えることができた者のみが ソルジャーとなる。
精鋭兵として選ばれた存在であるソルジャーは、その実力によってさら1ST、2ND、3RDの3つのクラウドにわけられる。上位クラスほど人数はかぎられており、最上位で あるクラス1STに至っては数えるほどしかいない。それぞれのクラスには異なる制服が支給されるが、クラス1STのみは私服を着ることも認められている。
(caption on screenshot of Cloud saying "I joined SOLDIER so I could be like you")
戦場で華々しく活躍していたセフィロスは、少年たちにソルジャーへのあこがれを抱かせた。クラウドやザックスがソルジャーを目指したのも、セフィロスがいたか らこそ。
"Shin-Ra's elite soldiers. With their personnel recruited by the Turks, their physical capabilities are artificially enhanced through exposure to mako and the injection of Jenova cells. As many who undergo the process experience abnormal results, and only those who can withstand it will become SOLDIERs, the procedure typically isn't imposed on one's mind and body against their will.
Those selected to join these elite troops join SOLDIER in one of three classes -- 1st, 2nd or 3rd -- divided according to ability. The number of people in the top classes is limited, and only a handful reach the highest rank of 1st. Although each class is issued its own uniform, only those in 1st Class are allowed to also wear plain clothes.
(caption on screenshot of Cloud saying "I joined SOLDIER so I could be like you")
Flourishing on the battlefield, Sephiroth instilled in many young men a desire to join SOLDIER. Cloud and Zack set their sights on SOLDIER because of him specifically."
"This issue is for the newcomers to Red Leather. As a welcome gift, here is some basic information about Genesis.
Hobby: Reading. He happened upon a copy of LOVELESS in his parents' study. It has been his favorite work ever since.
Why he joined SOLDIER: The heroics of Sephiroth, who is the same age as Genesis, inspired him to work for the good of the world.
We will update you on any new information as it becomes available."
Hobby: Reading. He happened upon a copy of LOVELESS in his parents' study. It has been his favorite work ever since.
Why he joined SOLDIER: The heroics of Sephiroth, who is the same age as Genesis, inspired him to work for the good of the world.
We will update you on any new information as it becomes available."
—The Wutai War began around [ μ ] – εуλ 1992 (source: Compilation timeline from the FFVII 10th Anniversary Ultimania)
From all of this we can ascertain:
—Rosso was likely born in [ μ ] – εуλ 1985 when Sephiroth was, at most, eight years old -- before the Wutai War and before Sephiroth became famous
—Since Deepground had to exist for Rosso to be born there, Deepground existed long before Sephiroth would have inspired many others to join SOLDIER -- and presumably before Genesis, Angeal and Sephiroth were even born
—Since SOLDIER had to exist for Deepground to be built as a SOLDIER medical facility, SOLDIER itself existed before Genesis, Angeal and Sephiroth
We also have other sources pointing toward this latter conclusion about SOLDIER pre-dating Sephiroth. First, the Shin-Ra Company's profile from pg. 56 of the Ultimania Omega:
(page scan)
----
Keyword 【神羅カンパニー】
この世界を事実上仕切っている、巨大企業。もとは「神羅製作所」という名の兵器開発会社であったが、魔晄エネルギーの発見を機に飛躍的に成長。魔晄エネルギーを凝縮した「 マテリア」や、魔晄エネルギーを直接その身に浴びた精鋭兵士「ソルジャー」を戦場に投入して当時世界全土に広がっていた大戦を終結 に導き、さらに生活面にも魔晄エネルギーを応用することで、その後の世界を支配した。
Keyword: "Shin-Ra Company"
A megacorporation that effectively governs the world. Originally a weapons development company named "Shin-Ra Works," it grew rapidly from the discovery of mako energy. Deploying crystallized mako energy ("materia") and elite troops who had been directly exposed to mako energy ("SOLDIER") to the battlefield, Shin-Ra guided to its end a great war that had engulfed the whole world in those days; in addition, they would later control the world due to the use of mako energy in people's day-to-day lives.
----
From this we can ascertain:
—There was a war going on "in those days" (when Shin-Ra discovered mako)
—Shin-Ra ended that war after developing mako by adding materia and SOLDIER to the battlefield
—The SOLDIER units deployed at that time were only showered with mako; no mention is made of Jenova here, and this is long before Jenova would have been discovered, which is said to have been approximately 30 years before FFVII (i.e. approximately [ μ ] – εуλ 1977) (source: timeline from the FFVII Ultimania Omega and the Compilation timeline from the FFVII 10th Anniversary Ultimania)
—After the war, Shin-Ra ended up controlling the world because of people's dependence on mako
It's clearly not talking about the Wutai War since that started in [ μ ] – εуλ 1992, not "in those days" (i.e. around [ μ ] – εуλ 1959), and also because Shin-Ra already controlled the rest of the world prior to the Wutai War.
Next, on pg. 216 of the same book, we have this entry about materia that reiterates what pg. 56 said:
(page scan)
----
マテリアと戦後の社会
魔晄エネルギーが固体に凝縮されたものがマテリアだ。自然状態でもエネルギーの豊富な場所では天然のマテリアが生成されることがあるが、それは希有な例で、一般に出まわっ ているマテリアは、神羅が実用製品として人為的に作り出したものである。
マテリアには古代種の知識が詰まっている、と言われる。これは、星と対話してその知識を引き出せた古代種の力を、一般人でも、知識の凝縮体であるマテリアを介在させればあ る程度は実現できる……ということを指した表現だ。
マテリアは基本的に戦闘用であり、従来の兵器をはるかに超える力を持つ。兵器開発会社だった神羅がマテリアを商品化し、みずから戦場に投入したことは、ソルジャー投入と並 び、大陸をまたがり長年つづいていた戦争をあっさりと終結に導いた。マテリア製造技術を編み出し独占していた神羅は、必然的に戦後の世界を牛耳ることに。世界は平和を迎え たものの、神羅の独裁体制のなり、ますます魔晄に頼って星やほかの生物の命をかえりみない時代へと突入し、今日に至っている。
"Materia and postwar society
When mako energy condenses into a solid state, it becomes materia. Although materia will sometimes form naturally in places abundant with energy, this is an extremely rare occurrence and what materia is generally available was produced by Shin-Ra as a commercial product.
Materia is said to contain the knowledge of the Ancients. Thus, it is possible for an ordinary person to utilize this solidified knowledge to some extent to draw upon the knowledge of the Ancients and establish a connection with the planet ... or so they say.
Materia is used primarily for combat purposes, with power far exceeding traditional weaponry. When they were a weapons development company, Shin-Ra commercialized materia, personally deploying it onto the battlefield along with SOLDIER, and quickly bringing an intercontinental war that had lasted several years to an end. Having the monopoly on the materia manufacturing process they developed, Shin-Ra inevitably dominated the postwar world. Although the world welcomed peaceful times, it led to Shin-Ra's dictatorship and the rush into an era of ever-increasing mako dependence without consideration for the life force of the planet and other living things -- an era that continues to this day."
----
We even have an in-game source that further reiterates this in the form of some comments when we first meet Cid in the original game. Here he makes some comments that speak of Shin-Ra still being a weapons developer during some "meaningless war":
----
長くて下らない戦争中に、神羅カンパニーがいろんな技術を開発したのは知ってんだろ？
今は魔晄屋だが、昔は兵器開発会社だったからな。
"You know Shinra developed a lot of technological gadgets during the meaningless war, right?
Now it's a Mako company, but in the old days it was a weapons manufacturer."
----
This earlier conflict can't be the Wutai War since he references Shin-Ra still being a weapons developer in those days. It had certainly transitioned into a power company before then.
What overall conclusions can we draw from all of this?:
—The Wutai War isn't the only significant war within living memory in FFVII's world
—SOLDIER and Deepground existed before Sephiroth
—These original SOLDIERs are more similar to Deepground's SOLDIERs than those who came after Sephiroth, as they lack Jenova cells
With regard to that third point, indeed, every guidebook entry for conventional SOLDIERs mentions both mako and Jenova while only mako has ever been linked to Deepground SOLDIERs (e.g. their respective 10th Anniversary Ultimania entries). In addition, whoever wrote the entry for SOLDIER at this Japanese FF wiki also seems to have taken the understanding that Deepground's fighters don't receive anything from Jenova: 根本的にはDGソルジャーはソルジャーではない人間を改造する場合と、通常のソルジャーを更に改造してなる場合があるので、ジェノバ細胞を持っているかいないかは余り関係 ない ("DG SOLDIERs aren't SOLDIERs in the conventional sense, as -- whether enhancing a baseline human or further modifying an ordinary SOLDIER -- it doesn't matter whether they have Jenova cells").
This all gels rather perfectly, giving us a cohesive flow of events and terms in FFVII's history. Everything makes sense.
... Until we look at the opening lines of Sephiroth's profile on pg. 52:
(page scan: page scan)
----
先の大戦時にめざましい活躍を見せた、神羅の英雄。ソルジャーの先駆けであり、最高の存在ともてはやされていた。
Shin-Ra's hero, who put on an outstanding performance during the most recent great war. Forerunner of SOLDIER and touted as the SOLDIER supreme.
----
The word translated as "forerunner" here, by the way, is 先駆け/"sakigake" and means precisely that -- "harbinger," "trailblazer," "pathfinder," "pioneer." You may even recognize it as the name of the first interplanetary craft launched into space by Japan.
In other words, it sounds a lot like this passage from the Ultimania Omega means to say that Sephiroth was the first SOLDIER.
Given the obvious complications (i.e. catastrophe) this raises for the timeline we've just finished constructing above, it's tempting to dismiss this as a badly worded phrase that doesn't quite mean to say what it seems to. Unfortunately, this Meteor-esque continuity conundrum finds reinforcement in a segment on pg. 211 of the Ultimania Omega:
(page scan)
----
プロジェクトの産物――セフィロス
ルクレシィアの胎内にいたときから、ジェノバ細胞とともに成長をとげたセフィロス。肉体的には、人間である宝条とルクレシィアの子だが、プロジェクトにおける位置付けは人 為的に作られた「古代種の」ジェノバであり、"ジェノバの息子"とも言える。同時に彼は、ソルジャー（→P.217）として最初の存在だ。ただし、のちに量産された一般の ソルジャーは、心身ともに健康な成人の肉体にジェノバ細胞を埋めこんで魔晄を照射するという、より簡略化された方法で生み出されているのに対し、セフィロスは身体の質から して根本的に異なっている。
(caption on screenshot of Rufus saying "Mm? Did you know that Sephiroth is an Ancient?")
ジェノバの正体を知らない神羅の幹部は、セフィロスを新生古代種と考え、あつかっている。
Result of the project -- Sephiroth
When he was in Lucrecia's womb, Sephiroth was growing along with the Jenova cells. While he is biologically the human child of Hojo and Lucrecia, in light of his role within the project to artificially recreate Jenova "of the Ancients," he could be called "Jenova's son." At the same time, he was the first to be a SOLDIER (→pg. 217). However, Sephiroth's body is fundamentally different in quality from that of the common SOLDIERs put into mass production later, who are produced by a simplified method in which adults of healthy mind and body are injected with Jenova cells and exposed to mako.
(caption on screenshot of Rufus saying "Mm? Did you know that Sephiroth is an Ancient?")
Jenova's true nature is unknown to Shin-Ra's executives, who believe they are dealing with a reborn Ancient with Sephiroth.
----
From this passage, we get 最初の存在/"saisho no sonzai" (literally, "first existence") として/"toshite" ("in the role/capacity of") ソルジャー ("SOLDIER") -- "the first to be a SOLDIER."
What are we to do with this then? If not for two lines ("Forerunner of SOLDIER" and "At the same time, he was the first to be a SOLDIER"), we would have a rock solid timeline.
Certainly we could just be selective in our reading and take it to have meant only that Sephiroth was the first of the conventional, Jenova-type SOLDIERs, the entry for whom that passage on pg. 211 directs us toward with the "(→pg. 217)" notation -- but that strikes me as a rather intellectually dishonest approach to take.
Or maybe it is a fair reading since a later portion of the same book has a preview for Dirge of Cerberus on pg. 575, in which it makes reference to Deepground SOLDIERs?:
(page scan)
----
メテオ災害からの復興が進んでいたある日、各地の町が「ディープグラウンドソルジャー」と呼ばれる謎の兵士集団に襲撃される。彼らは、3年前にミッドガルが崩壊したときに、地下へ閉じこめられたとされるソルジャーたちだった。「これより、全世界の狩りとりを行なう。選ばれる価値のない者には、殺戮と虐殺を与える」と宣言する彼らに対して、ヴィンセントが立ち向かっていくのだ。
On a day set aside to recognize the restoration since Meteorfall, many towns come under attack by a host of mysterious troops called "Deepground SOLDIERs." These SOLDIERs were trapped underground when Midgar collapsed three years ago. Standing against their declaration that "The time has come to cleanse this world. The pure will be spared for the cause, while the tainted will be hunted down and exterminated," Vincent goes to confront them.
----
At the very least, the presence of this passage and the fact that the game was released only four months after the Ultimania Omega tells us that the scenario for Dirge of Cerberus was complete when this book was published and the existence of Deepground SOLDIERs was not unknown to the authors of this book. That doesn't confirm their intent for us one way or the other, but it may indicate that they weren't printing the book in September of 2015 knowing full well this detail about Sephiroth being the first SOLDIER would be retconned in January of 2016.
In other words, they probably wouldn't have put those lines to print if they knew they wouldn't hold up with the backstory soon to be introduced to fans by Dirge of Cerberus.
Then again, on pg. 46 and pg. 47 of -- yet again -- this same book, we have the personal timeline for Vincent from his profile telling us that when he was shot and killed at 27, he had confronted Hojo to blame him for Lucrecia going into self-imposed exile after her body became hideous due to the Jenova Project:
----
【約23年前】ルクレシィア失踪。宝条を責め、逆上した宝条に肉体を改造されるが、それも罰だと受け止め、棺のなかで眠りにつく（※2）
※2
セフィロスを産んで数年ルクレシィアの身体はしだいに変調をきたし、外見も醜く変化していった。人に見せられぬ姿となった己に絶望したルクレシィアのせい――憤ったヴィンセントは宝条に食ってかかるが、逆に銃で撃たれ、意識を失っているあいだに宝条の「科学的好奇心」のエジキとなってしまう。
[Approximately 23 years ago] Lucrecia disappears. Vincent blames the maniacal Hojo, but ends up with his body modified by him; perceiving this as a punishment, Vincent goes to sleep in a coffin. (※2)
(※2)
For several years after giving birth to Sephiroth, Lucrecia's body gradually became abnormal, and her appearance became grotesque. Vincent fell into his own despair over her no longer wanting to be seen by anyone -- filled with resentment, he confronted Hojo and blew up at him, but was shot and fell prey to Hojo's "scientific curiosity" after losing consciousness.
----
A couple of those details were promptly retconned four months later when we saw an expanded flashback of Vincent being shot by Hojo -- only for Lucrecia to then walk into the room looking normal to see what had happened, and to then stick around for however much longer it took before she could bond Chaos to Vincent to save his life.
Of course, regardless of whether this was an expected retcon or an unanticipated change, the content offered by the Ultimania Omega needs to be able to stand together on its own at least at the time of publication -- and it doesn't seem able to do that. We're still left with two passages speaking of Shin-Ra developing and utilizing SOLDIER many years before they should have had the first SOLDIER.
Obviously, it is also possible that one of these details is simply an error and was always incorrect from the moment it was printed. If we did have to choose one of the two to discard, the statements that Sephiroth was the first SOLDIER should be what goes -- it has an equal number of references within the book to those about SOLDIER's longer history (both are found in the same sections to boot, only a few pages apart on both occasions), but it is also the only contentious detail here that creates a wider disconnect when looking at other points on the timeline. Nothing else in the timeline is depending on Sephiroth being the first SOLDIER to make it work.
Even if we were to just disregard the passages about Shin-Ra having SOLDIER in the same time period in which they pioneered mako siphoning, Sephiroth being the first SOLDIER has to square with Deepground's existence as a SOLDIER medical facility and the experiment that led to Rosso's birth being underway by [ μ ] – εуλ 1984 -- when he was only somewhere between two and seven years old, and would not yet inspire young men the world over to swell SOLDIER's ranks for almost another ten years.
The longer history of SOLDIER, on the other hand, easily settles into place with the facts about Deepground's history, as well as what Cid says about the "meaningless war" when we meet him. And again, this version of history has as many claims to its name as Sephiroth being the first SOLDIER ever.
Simply in terms of establishing the most cohesive timeline possible and reducing continuity conundrums, the claim about Sephiroth should be the one to go if either does have to. Going this route may be the one more likely to offend the sensibilities and long-held understandings of FFVII fans, but it's also the route that makes the most sense in terms of the overall Compilation of Final Fantasy VII.
Ironically, going off only the original game and the Ultimania Omega, one could probably make both of these details fit without any concerns. Neither gives a timeframe for when mako siphoning was pioneered, nor when the Wutai War took place -- at least nothing beyond Elmyra's vague statements that "During the war, my husband was sent to the front. Some faraway place called Wutai" about 15 years before the main events of the game. There are also no comments about when SOLDIER was first active, so, depending on their preferred interpretation of history, one could imagine the "meaningless war" Cid speaks of as being the Wutai War, suppose that it had started some 30 years before AVALANCHE rode a train up to Mako Reactor No. 1 (perhaps not long after the mako refinery process and Jenova were discovered?), and assume the war lasted at least 15 years, giving time for Elmyra's husband to die fighting over there -- with SOLDIER being developed somewhere in the interim.
It's only when taking dates like [ μ ] – εуλ 9/23/1959 (for the discovery of mako siphoning) into account along with timeframes like "around [ μ ] – εуλ 1992" (for the beginning of the Wutai War) and ages like 25 (for Rosso) that things fall apart. Maybe Deepground succeeded in destroying the world after all.
In the interest of complete fairness to all information presented and being objective, it seems to this fan that a synthesis of data should be taken to preserve as much as possible when working out the inconsistencies in FFVII's setting. In that spirit, I do propose accepting that the passages about Sephiroth being the first SOLDIER are in reference to conventional, modern SOLDIERs. That way, both details are correct.
So, all is tidy then now, correct?
Sadly, not even close. There's one more even more apocalyptic passage to deal with, this time from pg. 208 of the Final Fantasy 20th Anniversary Ultimania File 2: Scenario guidebook (published in 2008, after Dirge of Cerberus and even Crisis Core had already seen release):
(photo of relevant passage)
----
神羅カンパニー
世界の覇権をにぎる巨大企業
比類なき財力と軍事力を兼ね備え、世界を思うがままに牛耳る大企業。もとは「神羅製作所」という一兵器開発会社だったが、魔晄エネルギーの発見により事業内容を転換。魔晄の独占供給、マテリアやソルジャーの投入によるウータイとの戦争の終結などを経て、高い地位を確立した。その経営方針は、邪魔な対象を徹底的に排除する強引なものだが、巧みな情報操作で人々の心をつかむような狡猾さも兼ね備えている。物語終盤ではメテオの破壊やウェポノの侵攻阻止など、英雄さながらの目的を掲げて動くものの、クラウドたちとは行動方針のちがいにより敵対関係をつらぬく。
(caption on screenshot of President Shinra saying "Cetra, or the Ancients will show us the way to the 'Promised Land.' I'm expecting a lot out of her")
巨大企業としての地位を確固たるものとした神羅は、さらなる経営拡大のために「約束の地」を探し求める。
Shin-Ra Company
The corporate giant that dominates the world
The megacorporation for whom -- combining unmatched wealth and military strength -- the world is their plaything. Originally a weapons development company called "Shin-Ra Works," they changed up their business model after discovering mako energy. Through monopolization of mako, ending the war with Wutai through the introduction of materia and SOLDIER, etc., they installed themselves at the top of the social order. Their business practices combine such tactics as using overwhelming force to completely eliminate obstacles, as well as the subtle manipulation of information to control the sentiments of the people. By the endgame, their goals have shifted to match those of the heroes where the Meteor crisis, Weapon, etc. are concerned, but their adversarial relationship continues due to differences in method.
(caption on screenshot of President Shinra saying "Cetra, or the Ancients will show us the way to the 'Promised Land.' I'm expecting a lot out of her")
Shin-Ra seeks the "Promised Land" to further expand its power and secure its position as a megacorporation.
----
Now we have another somewhat similar passage to those we looked at earlier in the Ultimania Omega regarding Shin-Ra's history -- only here it's being said that manufactured materia and SOLDIER were introduced during the Wutai War! A war which began approximately seven years after Rosso was born in a facility that was built as a SOLDIER medical facility in the first place!
This timeline is so fucked not even every incarnation of The Doctor working together could save it.
Last edited:
These outliers and inconsistencies would be far fewer if Tres was involved in the process of checking the official guide books for errors.
: