After finishing Rebirth, I went back to the OG and started playing the game again just after the events at the Forgotten Capital (effectively playing through all of Part 3’s content, I did the same after Remake too, playing after Midgar up to the ending)
Refreshing myself on all the story moments that happen post FC (Part 3 has a LOT of story left to cover
) there were several moments where I thought it could be appropriate for an Aerith “interlude”, as I don’t think anyone should pretend Aerith isn’t going to be having a significant presence in Part 3, in whatever capacity, alive, Jenova illusion, Obi-Wan Kenobi, what have you.
I agree with
@eleamaya that Icicle Inn is likely to be the earliest opportunity for there to be a natural and organic way of having an Aerith interlude, since it’s where she’s from. Even if we don’t have any such interlude, or even this be the place where the party discuss with Cloud what happened at the altar in FC, Aerith’s presence will be strongly felt in Icicle Inn regardless.
I seriously don’t think they are going to make the Gast and Ifalna videos optional viewing this time around, as not only is there important character work in them, they contain a lot of essential lore (stuff we already know by this point in Rebirth, but that’s not to say Part 3 could use this as an opportunity to illuminate things further).
After that I reckon the entire Northern Cave/Crater sequence is another fairly likely scenario for there to be an interlude, Aerith mention, or for this to be where things about her death come to light.
But also there’s a strong chance this sequence hues more closely to the original, where it’s a majorly important scene for Cloud and Tifa, and their past and relationship. This sequence strongly goes hand in hand with the Lifestream sequence later on, neither can really exist without the other, and there’s already been very heavy foreshadowing and sign posting throughout Remake and Rebirth that we are still very much on this path towards it in the story.
Where I
actually think a better place for an Aerith interlude to take place is, right after NC.
Tifa wakes up in Junon, and learns she was in a coma for 7 days. I think it would be worth Tifa herself either having a dream/receiving a vision, of Aerith.
As far as I’m concerned given Cloud and Aerith got to say goodbye seven or so different times, in seven or so different ways during the end sequences of Rebirth, a lot of their relationship dynamic has reached its conclusion, especially as far as this portion of Part 3’s story is concerned.
What is left unresolved, by virtue of nobody else actually getting to say goodbye to Aerith, is her relationships with everyone else. The other people she speaks about in her Cosmo Canyon speech, her song at the Gold Saucer, her monologue in the Temple of the Ancients, and in her final prayer at the altar. But you would easily think that, much like a lot of those who ship Clerith would want everyone else to fervently believe, all Aerith cares about and thinks about is Cloud, at the expense of everyone else. Only by the creative choice to have the final scenes be so laser focused on Cloud and his perspective, to the detriment of Aerith’s own character, whose development and journey as a character is suddenly ignored, much like all the other characters she has been shown to care about and love.
So this is a big thing Part 3 needs to fix. It would be furthering this undoing of all of Aerith’s growth, if all her scenes in Part 3 are continuously in Cloud’s orbit. This has nothing to do with shipping, nor Zack or any of the unresolved pieces of the narrative for their relationship.
This is all about her relationships with the other characters.
Especially Tifa, who like in the original, you could strongly argue is the one member of the party she actually grows closest to, and forges a deeper connection and level of understanding than she ever has with Cloud, the man whose real persona she never meets.
So Part 3 desperately needs a Tifa and Aerith scene. Whether that’s a resolution scene, or maybe more likely something that facilitates the Lifestream sequence. I don’t believe Aerith will be involved or even mentioned, as I don’t see them changing how that sequence is all about Cloud and Tifa. But I can see, personally want even, Aerith helping Tifa in some way, even if it’s just advice or guidance or something, whatever feels appropriate.
I also see this being a likely case for Cloud, but instead of Aerith, it should be Zack helping him.
Again I’m not arguing this from a shipping perspective, but from one where I’m looking at all the character developments and relationship dynamics that were thoroughly explored in Rebirth, and seeing what I believe is currently lacking.
To me that is a Tifa and Aerith resolution, and now, more scenes with Cloud and Zack. Zack should be the “spirit guide” to Cloud, not Aerith.
Given how much they’ve already revealed and explored about the twists and reveals of both the NC and Lifestream scenes, I think a strong way of helping to make the Lifestream scenes as impactful, asides from keeping it focused on Cloud and Tifa’s relationship, is also understanding what really does remain unresolved with the other characters. And to me that is Tifa and Aerith, and Cloud and Zack.
For Cloud to regain his identity and real self, he needs Tifa’s help. But if he is also to shed his identification with Zack, he himself would have some aspect or part to play in that. Not Aerith. She doesn’t know the real Cloud, again not to stress that point too much. But she does know Tifa, and is in a much better position (and by the need of narrative, a necessity at this point) to help her than she is Cloud.
So to sum up, I think the time Tifa is in a coma for 7 days is a suitable place and break in the story for there to be a key scene with Aerith.
As for where it feels appropriate for there to be the scene where the full acceptance of Aerith’s passing comes to play, not NC, nor the Lifestream, but to me the return to the Forgotten Capital is where I feel it would best suit.
It’s returning to the place of her death. By this point in the original, at Cosmo Canyon, they each all remembered Aerith, so maybe the scenes there in Part 3 could actually be where this moment of acceptance comes into place, thus leading them to return to the FC. Because it’s also here where the full understanding of Holy, Aerith’s prayer, and her sacrifice comes into narrative focus, so again it’s both a natural and organic way for Aerith herself to come into focus too.
As to whether that’s in the form of another interlude with her, it’s all still speculation.
And this is just talking about places in the main narrative where it feels likely for these moments to occur. This isn’t even going into Zack’s ongoing side story that will continuously bleed more I reckon into the main story, and I’m not going to go over the same points I’ve made before about how obviously they’ve made the foreshadowing for Aerith and Zack’s reunion in Part 3.
