Messenger of Death - Kuja Fanclub

[Dark and Divine]

Ah, I don't think I had seen that one translated yet. That would make sense actually, considering he did similar in IX.

Here's the trailer with english subtitles, courtesy of our member Drakeclawfang.

 

[Flowing Ice]

Whoops, I did mean subs, not translated. Thanks though! I'll watch when I can.

hmm. what's everyone's fave Kuja moment from IX?

Mine is...so hard to choose though. I'd say that the whole part with him and Bahamut at the end of Disc 2 is just plain epic though.

 

[Dark and Divine]

Mine is when Kuja enters in Trance and leaves Terra in ruins with Ultima.

Not only it shows Kuja's godlike power, but when the camera goes 360º around him, the look on Kuja's face is so sad, but at the same time so pure and so graceful.

 

[Flowing Ice]

Yeah...He's quite a sexy beast...(Yeah, I'm into guys..but my ways probably scream that)

I have thought about how unusual it is they could defeat Trace Kuja though, but my theory is he never had the chance to recover yet from all of the power he used to destroy Terra, not to mention having to travel deep into the heart of the Crystal World.

Ok, so, maybe it's not so much of a theory as probably a no duh..but still.

 

[Dark and Divine]

I have thought about how unusual it is they could defeat Trace Kuja though, but my theory is he never had the chance to recover yet from all of the power he used to destroy Terra, not to mention having to travel deep into the heart of the Crystal World.

Well, probably Zidane and his friends's combined power and teamwork was enough to surpass Kuja's godlike power.

It's not a real novelty in terms of the FF saga, sadly. Or in general, for that matter.

 

[Flowing Ice]

Actually, I'd say that was part of it, but I really doubt Kuja got to recover as well. I mean..you can have the party go to rest at an inn before going. He didn't want to waste any time to begin with. In other words, he would of started going straight there right after Gaia's destruction.

Even born Gods get tired after all, right?

 

[Dark and Divine]

Ok, I've come across with something very interesting...

While I was drifting through Schala-Kitty's FFchaoticcosmos, I came across a member there named Xi-Feng who is a huge Kuja's fangirl and she was kind enough to translate cutscenes and Reports involving Kuja and post the stuff in her blog.

So, here it is...

(Don't click it if you don't want to be spoiled)

Credits and thanks go naturally to Xi-Feng for translating this.

 

[Joe]

Read it all and loved it.

I really like the role Kuja takes on in this next game. Very nice!

 

[Dark and Divine]

Glad you like it.

Spoiler: And here's the first part of that report.

Wow, Kuja's japanese VA is far better than the english one.

 

[Dark and Divine]

Spoiler: Fanartz

Now for some discussion...

What did you think of Kuja's character in the Dissidia games?

Well, I have conflicted feeling towards Kuja's character in Dissidia.

While it was good to see Kuja updated for the 21st Century and him having a voice, on the other hand, his character didn't do justice to his original self in FFIX

Sure, he was a theatrical as he was in FFIX, but instead of his flamboyant but elegant personality, we gto stuck with a whining bitch that gets more and more annoying when listening to his english VA.

While I loved Akira Ashida's work as the japanese VA for Kuja, JD Collum was constatly annoying. Fortunately, he was a bit better in Dissidia Duodecim, the same way that Kuja reacted a bit more like his FFIX self: extremely intelligent, manipulative but graceful at the same time.

Design-wise, i really liked Kuja in Dissidia, though his uniform is pretty much the same it was in FFIX, but the adittion of his bracelets was a welcome addition.

The only bit I don't like in Kuja's design are the overly long fingernails and the fact that his eyes are too round, while in FFIX he was more oriental looking, wich i thought i suited better Kuja's design. But other than that, his uniform was great has it was in FFIX.

And what about you guys? What did you think of Kuja in the Dissidia games?

 

[Ite]

The eyes thing doesn't bother me. In FFIX, he's the same species as Zidane so it was strange having one with enormous Disney eyes and another with little slits.

 

[Dark and Divine]

In FFIX, he's the same species as Zidane so it was strange having one with enormous Disney eyes and another with little slits.

Yes, this is true, but for some reason, I think that Kuja looks better with them.

 

[Flowing Ice]

I'll reply to your thoughts better later, but keep in mind it was the Voice Director's fault for how the English voice of Kuja happened. JD wasn't given ANY material to work with, and knew nothing about Kuja. Not only that, but was told to mimic the Japanese voice, which is just impossible.

I'm not claiming that I think the voice is necessarily good, but the blame shouldn't be on him.

 

[Dark and Divine]

Yes, but that's exactly the problem. The VAs should have enough feddback abou the character they're going to voice over, their manneirisms, their background and such.

Proof of this is that JD Collum actually sounds better as Kuja in Duodecim than in the original Dissidia. I still think that his voice isn't the best one for Kuja, though.

 

[Flowing Ice]

On the whole same specifies thing,e even if they are, that doesn't incessantly mean they'll have the exact same look. Presumably garland prepared most of the Angels of Death to look unique, to be able to blend in better with society. Kuja was even able to become a Lord for example.

As for his character in Dissidia.. Honestly, I don't recall his whining, lol.

 

[Mantichorus]

I still haven't played DuoDecim yet, so I can't comment on his characterisation there, but I was disappointed with how nearly all the characters were portrayed in the first Dissidia (but especially the genome duo).

They all seemed more like caricatures of their original selves. Of course, there is a theory that they're archetypes of themselves, while the real ones aren't involved in the Dissidia conflict.

 

[Dark and Divine]

Kuja in Lord Of Vermillion:

 

[Mantichorus]

As a fan of both Final Fantasy games and BlazBlue, I'm looking forward to that game.

 

[Kobato]

Kuja needs some attention 8D

 

[Mantichorus]

Awesome pics, but some of them should be spoiler tagged as NSFW. I'm only saying this as I'm on a public access PC....

 

[Desiree]

Kuja is definitely my favourite villain in the series.

Yeah...He's quite a sexy beast...(Yeah, I'm into guys..but my ways probably scream that)

I have thought about how unusual it is they could defeat Trace Kuja though, but my theory is he never had the chance to recover yet from all of the power he used to destroy Terra, not to mention having to travel deep into the heart of the Crystal World.

Ok, so, maybe it's not so much of a theory as probably a no duh..but still.

Well technically Kuja was never really defeated. First time you fight him he wipes the floor with your party with a Ultima, second time you only manage to tire him up, but in the end he annihilates you with a Ultima barrage once again.

FFIX party isn't that weak either. They have handful of Eidolons that are quite powerful in FFIX. Also Zidane has already surpassed level of base Kuja then iirc. Still doesn't quite add up how would they match against someone with the power to launch world devouring beams of energy with few waves of hand along with a lot other godly powers.
Of course he must've been tired from using all that power to destroy Terra, travelling between worlds, creating monsters etc. It also might be that Kuja was afraid to truly use his full potential because it could've destroyed the Crystal - even if it was his objective, I don't think that it would be very easy decision to make and he maybe wanted to avoid it for a while.

 

[Kermitu Kleric Katie]

I wanna join! Kuja's one of my favorite FF villains, and The Darkness of Eternity is one of my favorite FF songs.

 

[Dark and Divine]

Welcome, then!

 

[Kuja9001]

My name says it all, he's my favorite villain.

 

[Kermitu Kleric Katie]

I still haven't played DuoDecim yet, so I can't comment on his characterisation there, but I was disappointed with how nearly all the characters were portrayed in the first Dissidia (but especially the genome duo).

They all seemed more like caricatures of their original selves. Of course, there is a theory that they're archetypes of themselves, while the real ones aren't involved in the Dissidia conflict.

Dissidia 012 explains away his bad characterization in the first Dissidia and makes him act more Kuja-y.