Aerith's death: post Compilation.

[ForceStealer]

I thought he was just blocking Holy, and then it showed up when he was gone. I didn't think he was affecting each spell's power in anyway.

 

[Max Payne]

I see.

Well either way, how could we know which spell was stronger than the other when neither has ever really been used? We just know holy was created as a foil to meteor, but we don't know if it is a perfect foil.

Then there's matter of, any defense that comes later than an offense is always going to be at a disadvantage.

 

[Masamune]

Furthermore, I was kidding before, but just how positive are we that Cloud is not creating those conversations?

So Cloud's a schizophrenic now, as well as a manic depressive?

Dude's got problems.

 

[Roger]

Sephiroth was the one propelling Meteor forth and weakening Holy with his power wasn't he? That would tip the scale in Meteor's favor.

Holy IS a spell summoned from the planet like any other magic isn't it?

Sephiroth was out of the picture after Cloud Omnislashed him. At least that's the impression I got from Lifestream - Black. I think Holy was just held back to long, it wasn't meant to combat Meteor when it had already entered the atmosphere.

 

[Terrafig]

By game mechanics, the person who summons Holy/Meteor should have an effect on its power through sheer magical ability. It's ultimately an Aeris vs. Sephiroth showdown, even if they're both dead or hands-off at the time.

I agree that Red's line suggests that Holy is acting against humanity alongside Meteor. Bugenhagen suggested the possibility that Holy would perceive humanity as evil. His deranged laughter seems to suggest that he saw it as a certainty.

Also, I get the impression she feels that she's done and can dissolve now. She saw to Cloud's closure, and clearly walks away at the end. I assume that to mean she would play no role in a hypothetical sequel.

I got that impression eight years earlier. When she died.

 

[Makoeyes987]

Red XIII's line was a mistranslation, fyi.

His statement was about how Holy's no longer able to stop Meteor due to Meteor being so close to the planet, thus its effect is no longer helpful.

 

[ForceStealer]

Yeah, I know it was, but I mean it helped the perception I got at the time. Also, Holy wasn't made to specifically combat Meteor, it was made to wipe the Planet of all things harmful, so why would it have trouble?

Furthermore, if Holy is the Planet's will, and the Lifestream is the Planet's will, why would one succeed where the other failed?

I got that impression eight years earlier. When she died.

Well done. Can we finally file this as "water under the bridge" yet?

 

[Terrafig]

I seem to prefer many of the mistranslations in this game.

Well done. Can we finally file this as "water under the bridge" yet?

Just pointing out that I really doubt Aeris' farewell in Advent Children is anymore sacred than her death in the original game. She'll be back, just like the terminator.

 

[Ryushikaze]

Yeah, I know it was, but I mean it helped the perception I got at the time. Also, Holy wasn't made to specifically combat Meteor, it was made to wipe the Planet of all things harmful, so why would it have trouble?

Furthermore, if Holy is the Planet's will, and the Lifestream is the Planet's will, why would one succeed where the other failed?

Because at all times the planet's will did not want to destroy those living on the planet and Holy was fashioned in a specialized way that made it too dangerous to lob off at short range. So another part of the planet's will had to come and push it away so it could go off at full strength.

Imagine, if you will, a grenade that you pulled the pin on, but the target is too close to your allies, so you hold the lever until your allies are far enough away. Holy v Meteor is like that situation. When the lifestream pushed it away, it 'let go' and wiped the hell out of Meteor.

 

[Ite]

Imagine, if you will, a grenade that you pulled the pin on, but the target is too close to your allies, so you hold the lever until your allies are far enough away. Holy v Meteor is like that situation. When the lifestream pushed it away, it 'let go' and wiped the hell out of Meteor.

That is a perfect damn analogy!!

 

[ForceStealer]

@Ryu, that is a good analogy, I just never get the impression the Lifestream was 'pushing Meteor'. We just saw it meet up and then blinding flash, I always thought the Lifestream itself was neutralizing/destroying Meteor.

Just pointing out that I really doubt Aeris' farewell in Advent Children is anymore sacred than her death in the original game. She'll be back, just like the terminator.

I think it might be merely by virtue of time passed.

What I mean by that is if Advent Children (or any other manner of sequel) appeared in '98 or '99, I think there'd be a higher chance of Aerith and Sephiroth not appearing. And I mean that even if SE was identical to how it was in '04.
I think that, with Advent Children coming out seven years after the original game, Square either felt their hands were tied with regards to fanservice, or they themselves wanted to see these characters again. The movie's premise was a love letter to fans, and so appearances by two of its most-beloved characters were pretty much guaranteed. For the same reason that returns to old-school movies/books are rarely direct sequels but are more often reboots. I've said before that anyone that didn't expect Sephiroth to return in AC was deluding themselves, and this is what I meant by that.
After the movie, they wanted to do more and thus had to continue with that story. That's why I think Aerith's closure in AC will be more relevant than it was from FF7 - unless of course they wait another decade to continue it, then they'll have the same problem. FFX-2 came out a year after X. If they had waited seven years, I'd be willing to bet Auron would have made an appearance.

That's how I see it anyway.

 

[Roger]

unless of course they wait another decade to continue it, then they'll have the same problem.

Seems like it's going that way.

 

[Obsidian Fire]

The Compilation didn't ruin Aerith's death for me because I was introduced to the Compilation as a whole. I knew it was coming and I knew what was going to happen afterwards. I also didn't have that much of an issue with Aeirth's involvement in ACC for a couple of reasons.

The first would be that Aerith didn't "come back to life" the way characters like Cid or Tidus or Palrom etc. have come back. They are all really alive and Aeirth isn't and that does limit her. She can't enjoy life the way the rest of AVALANCHE is currently doing.

The second reason is that all of Aerith's abilities in ACC are based on abilities she had when she was alive. In the OG, she talks to Cloud in his head, grabs his spirit out of the Lifestream and her final limit break is Great Gospel, a limit break that consists of rain with healing powers. Now she has the strength of the Planet behind her, so they're bigger in scope.

The third reason is that at the end of the OG, Aeirth has accepted that she is an Ancient. Part of that acceptance is sticking around in the Lifestream to convey its will to humans. If she dissolved into the Lifestream it would undo that growth.