Best And Worst Parents Of Final Fantasy 7

[jazzflower92]

In Final Fantasy 7 I noticed a subtle theme about surrounding the role of a parent.In the series there are a lot of shining examples of parents while there are some who should have been contacted by the child services and hauled their butts to jail.Who do you believe ranks the best and the worst?

The best in my opinion would be Barret who I can say really does love the heck out of Marlene.He trys his best to make a life for her while also being an known ecoterrorist.Barret might be at times rough around the edges but he will do everything in his power to make the world a better place for his little girl.

The worst in my opinion would have to go to Hojo and that is all I am going to say because frankly he didn't even care at all about being a father.

 

[Octo]

Agreed that Hojo is the worst. But personally I'd say the best parents are Ifalna and Elmyra. The former because she died to protect Aerith, and the latter because she took in Aerith and raised her as her own single handedly.

I don't doubt Barret loves Marlene but I find some of his decisions questionable. Like a four year old running a bar

 

[jazzflower92]

Agreed that Hojo is the worst. But personally I'd say the best parents are Ifalna and Elmyra. The former because she died to protect Aerith, and the latter because she took in Aerith and raised her as her own single handedly.

I don't doubt Barret loves Marlene but I find some of his decisions questionable. Like a four year old running a bar

Oh,yeah I forgot Ifalna and Elmyra.They really do seem like the best parents because of what they did for Aerith.I can say that it took some guts for Ifalna to escape Shinra so she can give Aerith freedom.Plus Elmyra was brave for preventing Aerith from be taken back by Shinra as well.I think Elmyra wins hands down because she raised a child that wasn't her own for fifteen years.I can also imagine it being hard for her to hear the news of Aerith dying.

 

[Octo]

Yeah, I know she gets a brief mention in one of the novellas (if I recall correctly) but I can't help feeling Elmyra deserved a bit more than that. But I dunno, I guess she's not young and sexy enough for the compilation

 

[CameoAmalthea]

Aerith's parents were all very good, both her father and her two moms. I love that FFVII shows adoption in such a positive light. Tifa also seems to be a good mother figure to Marlene along with Barret. Cloud and Tifa both seem to do fairly well by Denzel.

I'll admit, I was a bit pissed at Denzel's biological parents for running off and leaving him. Prioritize your son, he needs you!

Hojo is definitely not a good parent. President Shinra, as discussed at length in another thread, isn't winning any metals although he at least loves his children in his own way.

Veld is interesting. Before he "lost" his daughter he prioritized his job over spending time with his daughter, but he clearly loved her. After he realizes she's alive he's willing to give anything for her and is very devoted. He has the view of parenthood which says parents would give anything for the happiness of their child. It's definitely the right attitude to have about parenting. Veld was also a fairly good father to all his Turks in a http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/AFatherToHisMen way.

 

[jazzflower92]

Yeah, I know she gets a brief mention in one of the novellas (if I recall correctly) but I can't help feeling Elmyra deserved a bit more than that. But I dunno, I guess she's not young and sexy enough for the compilation

I call her a strong woman with a backbone.I have a feeling she is one of those apron matriarchs that makes good out of a tough situation.I think a lot of games need more middle aged women characters because I think they don't get a lot of attention.Mainly due to the shallowness of business excutives playing to the lowiest common denominator.But yeah she is not focused as much because she is a woman who is middle aged and no one thinks anyone wants to pay attention to her.

This woman has been through a lot with the death of her husband,to raising a foster child all on her own,having that child being constantly watched,and then said child dies.On the other hand she also takes care of Marlene for a while and I have a feeling Elmyra has grown a heart for the little girl.

 

[Flintlock]

Octo already hinted at this, but...

Marlene is four years old. She has already lost her real parents and has had to be adopted. She lives in a dirty, dangerous city full of criminals and monsters. Barret leaves her behind to run a bar in a slum while he runs around setting off fireworks, risking imprisonment or even execution. No matter how noble his intentions, in the real world that would be called neglect, not good parenting.

 

[jazzflower92]

Octo already hinted at this, but...

Marlene is four years old. She has already lost her real parents and has had to be adopted. She lives in a dirty, dangerous city full of criminals and monsters. Barret leaves her behind to run a bar in a slum while he runs around setting off fireworks, risking imprisonment or even execution. No matter how noble his intentions, in the real world that would be called neglect, not good parenting.

Now that I think about it Barret's parenting is questionable.I think if I remember he is called out by Cait Sith for the damages his terrorist plot did.Barret does fully realize his goal of saving the earth was actually a cover for getting revenge at Shinra for burning down his hometown.However,remember his reason for fighting Sephiroth was Marlene.Yeah,his parenting is like many things full of noble intentions but often times its needs to be revaluated.

 

[Octo]

Yeah, I often wonder how it will be for Marlene when she grows up. I don't know if she even remembers Dyne or Eleanor, but then Barret buggers off on her a few times and then eventually leaves her in the care of Cloud and Tifa....and then Cloud buggers off for a bit too. Sounds like a recipe for abandonment issues. :/

 

[jazzflower92]

Yeah, I often wonder how it will be for Marlene when she grows up. I don't know if she even remembers Dyne or Eleanor, but then Barret buggers off on her a few times and then eventually leaves her in the care of Cloud and Tifa....and then Cloud buggers off for a bit too. Sounds like a recipe for abandonment issues. :/

Yeah,Marlene has gone through a lot in her young life.Then again a lot of named important characters in the series seem to have some parent issues.

That brings us to Hojo and President Shinra the worst of the parents.I also remember that President Shinra abandoned Lazard's mother which is why Lazard hates his father.Not to mention his emotionally neglectful relationship with Rufus.Hojo I can say sees his son as an experiment and although nothing is told about Sephiroth's childhood there must be a huge reason why Sephiroth ultimatly disdains the man even before he found out the half truth about his origins.

 

[LicoriceAllsorts]

Zack's mom and dad. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree.

 

[jazzflower92]

Then of course there is Lucrecia.

Now lets be honest here the chick gladly at first allowed her child to be experimented all the while her ex who was looking out for both her and her child's saftey.But she brushes his worries off saying its in the name of science.Lady,putting science before your child is immoral and will have untold consquences.Not to mention the fact did you even think for a second they would allow you to raise your son at all.It makes me think she just blinded herself to how awful a person that Hojo was.Do you believe for a minute that he would actually show any love for another human being because if thats the fact you are really that oblivious.

I am also really astounded at Lucrecia's selfishness and how it sealed her son's future.As much as I think she did love her son and wanted to see him she still took a self centered choice which really makes her a bad parent.

 

[ForceStealer]

Guys. I'm not saying Barret's father of the year. But Marlene was not left behind to RUN the bar! They just left her IN the bar, which was closed.

I mean, come on, she couldn't even REACH the bar.

And, I know it's difficult to say, but Marlene gives every indication of being an incredibly strong person, who has a very strong relationship with Barret, even with his frequent absence. Remember that FF7 DOES only take a couple months. She references him in ACC (AWESOME touch, by the way), there's this little tidbit from Case of Tifa,

Marlene, who had always slept with Tifa, slept with her foster father Barret the night before he left. Their conversations could be heard late into the night.

And, of course, there's this

D'aww (mostly that they rendered them together, more than anything)

So, I dunno, I understand where people come from regarding Barret, but I like his relationship with Marlene.

 

[The Twilight Mexican]

I like their relationship too, issue-riddled as it is.

Guys. I'm not saying Barret's father of the year. But Marlene was not left behind to RUN the bar! They just left her IN the bar, which was closed.

I imagine we tend to think that Marlene was left to run the place because of this:

Tifa
Cloud! I got a message from the Weapon Shop man upstairs.
He has something he wants to give you. Don't forget!
Marlene, you watch the store while we're gone!

Marlene
All right!! Good Luck.
Take care!

That, and the place doesn't really have a proper door.

 

[looneymoon]

I don't doubt Barret loves Marlene but I find some of his decisions questionable. Like a four year old running a bar

Fucking THIS. I think I brought this up before in one of the LTDs.

Then when all is over he leaves his friends to raise her instead.

Barret is a terrible father and I really don't have any sympathy for him on that front.

 

[Cat Rage Room]

Barret is a terrible father and I really don't have any sympathy for him on that front.

He loves his kid, though. My mother did an absolutely terrible job of parenting but I can pretty securely say she loves me. Humans and how we operate can be weird that way.

 

[looneymoon]

Doesn't matter imo. You can love your kid as much as any other parent, but can still abysmally fail at parenthood - ie. the obligations and the responsibilities you owe in the rearing of that child.

Barret-Marlene is a terribly shallow and unexplored account of what it's like to grow up with an absentee father.

 

[Cat Rage Room]

Doesn't matter imo. You can love your kid as much as any other parent, but can still abysmally fail at parenthood - ie. the obligations and the responsibilities you owe in the rearing of that child.

I don't know. Looking back it I don't really care that my mother failed at parenting me. Yes, that is an utterly huge thing to fail at, but I know plenty of people who had traditionally fulfilling childhoods but their parents are lukewarm at best towards them. My mother is a shady individual but her love for me (and my siblings) is absolute.

Conversely, my father actually performed more of the traditional 'parental' duties but he's actually a piece of shit.

What factor is missing here?

 

[Splintered]

I kind of really like Barret and Marlene because of how imperfect it is?

You don't leave a 3/4 year old in the house unsupervised period, much less a bar full of breakable glass and alcohol. But I figured that this was just a piece of the slum life, where you don't get the luxury of full time babysitting.

He obviously wasn't the most subtle parent, he left Marlene alone to go fight Shinra, he has a gun arm, he waps Biggs across the screen right in front of her... and yet she absolutely adores him and vice versa.

He even gets called out on his parenting, but instead of being angry like he usually is he just hangs his head, admits it, but he's still trying to do his best. And he struggles with the hypocrisy, like his confrontation with Dyne (him having had so much blood on his hands) or when he gets upset with paying Cloud so much because he wanted to save money for Marlene's schooling.

Obviously it's not the "best" parent of FFVII, but it is probably the most charming, especially since it's not perfect. Probably because Barret just tries his best, and in the end he gives up his hate-on for Shinra because he knows that the most important thing is not that but saving the world for Marlene. It always comes down to her, and yeah, I'm a sucker for that.

Yeah, I often wonder how it will be for Marlene when she grows up. I don't know if she even remembers Dyne or Eleanor, but then Barret buggers off on her a few times and then eventually leaves her in the care of Cloud and Tifa....and then Cloud buggers off for a bit too. Sounds like a recipe for abandonment issues. :/

Would be if it weren't for the fact that Marlene is more mature than 99% of the cast. She's seriously well adjusted for a girl with an incredibly odd family dynamic, fathers that leave a lot, a brother figure that is dying, another kind father figure that has breakdowns then finds out he has a lethal disease, had people she greatly respected die, being kidnapped after watching her mother figure get beat on, and grew up in the slums.

And she handles it all like a boss, all the while lecturing Cloud for trying to walk away, and refusing to let Tifa leave the church until they get a chance to confront Cloud. She's probably the only person with her head screwed on right in the entire franchise. And she's, what, 6?

 

[Cat Rage Room]

You don't leave a 3/4 year old in the house unsupervised period, much less a bar full of breakable glass and alcohol. But I figured that this was just a piece of the slum life, where you don't get the luxury of full time babysitting.

This is a reality in a lot of poor environments, too. I grew up impoverished myself, and if you were to ask someone 'hey you got a full time babysitter for your job' they'd just be like 'No seriously I have to go to fucking work. Excuse me.'

Babysitting, for me, was a luxury for the middle class. I grew up a latchkey kid.

 

[looneymoon]

Barret is a sympathetic character, so there's automatic sympathy given to him by the audience because he's a guy we grow and care for. He's still a bad father.

Marlene on the other hand is just sort of there. We don't exactly get an in-depth exploration on her feelings about her dad never going around. She just seems to unconditionally love him just because.

I know the story doesn't really focus on that, which is fair enough. But it becomes really irritating when these issues should really be considered, especially if you're shoehorning Marlene into the Cloud/Tifa familial dynamic (which goes out of its way to exclude Barret's role). That's kind of a HUGE THING...

It's just spectacularly bad writing and character exploration.

 

[Cat Rage Room]

I'm not denying that he's a bad father in terms of parenting, but their love for each other is genuine, and Marlene doesn't actually seem to be suffering for it. If you have an imperfect relationship, but the two actually get along well, or better than well, what is it?

Yeah, the burden is in Barret to be a better dad, but exactly...what? I think I'm speaking from a similar place because of my childhood. Being a bad parent is a bad thing, obviously, but I mean...Argh, I wish I could express myself better on it.

 

[jazzflower92]

I'm not denying that he's a bad father in terms of parenting, but their love for each other is genuine, and Marlene doesn't actually seem to be suffering for it. If you have an imperfect relationship, but the two actually get along well, or better than well, what is it?

Yeah, the burden is in Barret to be a better dad, but exactly...what? I think I'm speaking from a similar place because of my childhood. Being a bad parent is a bad thing, obviously, but I mean...Argh, I wish I could express myself better on it.

Yeah,as a character I think Barret is really more than a expy of Mr.T.He is a man who has been through hardships and is trying to be a good father but at the same time his skills have been shown to be less than stellar.His love doesn't need to be proven by words but by actions and closer inspection.Barret wants his little girl to grow in a world that she is loved and safe.I mean Barret was like any other parent always afraid of what would happen to her.He's not the best but he is trying to do with what he can.

 

[looneymoon]

Mostly because of how all the characters had a giant dump taken on them in Advent Children, to be perfectly honest.

At least in the original game, you had the complex exploration between social responsibility vs personal responsibility (as Splintered's post summarised). AC Barret is basically like "WELL YUP I'M JUST GONNA CONVENIENTLY ABANDON MY DAUGHTER AGAIN SO THE WRITERS CAN HAVE A CONVENIENT EXCUSE TO SHACK UP THE MAIN CHARACTERS."

 

[Cat Rage Room]

AC Barret is basically like "WELL YUP I'M JUST GONNA CONVENIENTLY ABANDON MY DAUGHTER AGAIN SO THE WRITERS CAN HAVE A CONVENIENT EXCUSE TO SHACK UP THE MAIN CHARACTERS."

Is there a fundamental difference between a child of a military parent who is gone for a large portion of the time and Barret's actions throughout the Compilation?