Sephiroth: What the fuck happened?

[megas_sephiroth]

I don't know. To me, considering how much Sephiroth held Gast in such a high regard, he could have been laughing at the thought that Gast was really his father, but what loving father would leave his son to the hands of a psychotic made man just for a simple identification mistake. I'm more pissed at Gast than Lucrecia, because he wasn't willing to face his mistake and take responsibility for what he started.

Well, at that point he had to save his family from Hojo, right? I don't remeber that part of the game very well...

One could argue that he should have brought Sephiroth along when he escaped, rather than leaving him with Hojo. Of course, that would have ShinRa chase them everywhere, which they did in anyway.

 

[Masamune]

My interpretation of that scene is Sephiroth laughing ruefully at the fact he has no idea who his parents even are. That's why he asks 'What does it matter…?' because he really has no clue about his parentage.

 

[megas_sephiroth]

My interpretation of that scene is Sephiroth laughing ruefully at the fact he has no idea who his parents even are. That's why he asks 'What does it matter…?' because he really has no clue about his parentage.

He kind of "knows" who his mother is. He actually says: "My mother is Jenova. She died right after she gave birth to me."

But not knowing, being who he was and given his age could also be a viable explanation for the laugh and the "what does it matter...?"

 

[BWAngel]

Well, at that point he had to save his family from Hojo, right? I don't remember that part of the game very well...

One could argue that he should have brought Sephiroth along when he escaped, rather than leaving him with Hojo. Of course, that would have ShinRa chase them everywhere, which they did in anyway.

I don't think Ifalna(sp?) and Gast were dating or married by then, but what do I know. I can't see Gast doing that because he would have been charged with kidnapping and stealing company property. Staying, trying to protect Sephiroth from Hojo's tortures, and raising him like a father could have prevented a lot.

EDIT: Did SE ever properly tell us what Seph's childhood was like.

 

[Makoeyes987]

Gast had nothing to do with Jenova Project S. He wasn't the one who came up with the idea of creating Sephiroth at all. You can't blame him for them breaching all ethics in terms of scientific experimentation.

The fact is its Lucrecia and Hojo's fault. By the time he discovered Sephiroth was created, he left Shinra. Gast's only crime was actually discovering her and starting the experiments.

 

[megas_sephiroth]

Gast's only crime was actually discovering her and starting the experiments.

Can't really fault him, though, he was a scientist...

 

[Ⓐaron]

Yeah he pretty much had no idea what a monster she was and presumably would've stopped the experiments if he'd been in a position to do so. It would've been nice if he would've stayed and fought the system but it's more than one should reasonably expect a person to do as far as I'm concerned.

 

[Aya]

Like I said before it is 50/50 on Hojo and Lucrecia's fault Gast had nothing to do with it.

Sephiroth's childhood is still a mystery. He did seem to really to like Gast they must of known one another. When in the ShinRa mansion he says something among these lines:
"Professor Gast... Why didn't you tell me anything? ...Why did
you die?"
From these lines you can tell that they knew one another and I never understood why Hojo never told Sephiroth that he was the father. Futhermore from FFVII and CC you can tell he does not like Hojo one bit.

 

[Tetsujin]

Gast left ShinRa.

So I guess it's safe to assume he actually had a conscience.
Good man imo.

 

[Ⓐaron]

Exactly, if he'd stayed and done nothing then one could condemn him, but either resigning in protest or staying and trying to throw a wrench in their experiments would be ethically acceptable courses of action. It's questionable how much he could've done to stop things if he'd remained in the company without getting fired, since Shinra didn't really seem to give a shit about ethics, so it's probably fine that he just resigned without doing anything else to stop them.

 

[megas_sephiroth]

Exactly, if he'd stayed and done nothing then one could condemn him, but either resigning in protest or staying and trying to throw a wrench in their experiments would be ethically acceptable courses of action. It's questionable how much he could've done to stop things if he'd remained in the company without getting fired, since Shinra didn't really seem to give a shit about ethics, so it's probably fine that he just resigned without doing anything else to stop them.

I doubt he could have done much, remember what happened to Vincent...

 

[Aya]

I don't think he could of ever done anything either. I just said Sephiroth seemed to of known Gast. Gast seemed the only scientist with morals.

 

[BWAngel]

I don't think he could of ever done anything either. I just said Sephiroth seemed to of known Gast. Gast seemed the only scientist with morals.

Point taken. Although, I always thought Gast was a part of Project S. Lucrecia just donated herself and her unborn child for it.

 

[Masamune]

Eh, how Gast is blameless, I do not know. He was responsible for the Jenova Project. First of all, he assumed Jenova to be a Cetra instead of carrying out extensive research. You don't play God without sufficient information first, because you might end up creating half-alien psychopaths.

 

[Ⓐaron]

The point is that he had no idea what he was getting himself into and stopped assisting the project when he realised it was ethically questionable. Maybe he should've done more research on Jenova's origins before proceeding with the project but I can't fault him too heavily for not expecting something like the plot out of a science-fiction novel to happen as a result of their research.

 

[megas_sephiroth]

The point is that he had no idea what he was getting himself into and stopped assisting the project when he realised it was ethically questionable. Maybe he should've done more research on Jenova's origins before proceeding with the project but I can't fault him too heavily for not expecting something like the plot out of a science-fiction novel to happen as a result of their research.

Yeah, between something he already knew (the cetra) and something unlikely (an alien), we can't really blame him for thinking Jenova was an ancient...

 

[Ⓐaron]

Pretty much, the worst thing he's guilty of is naïveté.

 

[Gale]

Gast was murdered for leaving Shinra. Granted, it was more Hojo than the rest of the company, but they're rather notorious for brutally tying loose ends, especially non-cooperative ones. Had Gast tried to fight them, he'd probably have gotten himself killed sooner. He did all he could.

And I don't really hate Lucrecia for what she did. She's a terrible mother who made stupid, naive decisions, but she's clearly suffering for it. Her guilt over Sephiroth, for all intents and purposes, destroyed her. Hojo never felt anything like that, and if nothing else Lucrecia deserves some credit for that.

 

[Cat Rage Room]

It's funny that stuff like magic (worldwide magic, anyway), superhuman soldiers, science fiction like monstrosities, and even monsters in general are relatively recent occurances in FF7's world. I really wish the FF7 world of 40-50+ years ago was expanded on. I'm tired of hearing about the Lifestream and Sephiroth. I want some world history and cultural background.

 

[Gale]

Considering how many small towns there are in FF7 I get the impression that before Shinra and Mako the world was somewhat underdeveloped. The only real internationalism seems tied directly to Shinra, which just dominates the entire economy and political structure of the world. It didn't seem as though there were any large governments before them.

 

[megas_sephiroth]

@Gale

I don't really have anything against Lucrecia, granted that she made a very bad decision when she allowed her unborn child to be experimented on, she crearly regrets it. She probably would have raised Sephiroth like any other child and maybe he wouldn't have become a crazed murderer, with megalomaniac plans for attaining godhood.

@The Notorious MOG

Spoiler

It is said in ACC that 40 years ago Mako didn't exist

, so it would be kind of nice to know a world without ShinRa.

 

[Masamune]

The point is that he had no idea what he was getting himself into and stopped assisting the project when he realised it was ethically questionable. Maybe he should've done more research on Jenova's origins before proceeding with the project but I can't fault him too heavily for not expecting something like the plot out of a science-fiction novel to happen as a result of their research.

In a world where giant tank/triceratops half-breeds are commonplace, I think Gast should have been extra vigilant with his experiments.

He is equally responsible for Sephiroth's creation, or even more so because he spearheaded the project.

"No snowflake in an avalanche ever feels responsible."

 

[Ⓐaron]

He may have started the research on Jenova, but my point is that I can't see any way he could have known it would lead into... that. He was naïve. That's the worst I'm willing to say about him.

 

[Gale]

We also need to consider that we have the hindsight of a compilation and realize how dark and frightening Shinra really is.

The Jenova project seems to be where many of their elicit activities began, but Gast likely had no idea how far the company would go.

 

[megas_sephiroth]

In a world where giant tank/triceratops half-breeds are commonplace, I think Gast should have been extra vigilant with his experiments.

He is equally responsible for Sephiroth's creation, or even more so because he spearheaded the project.

"No snowflake in an avalanche ever feels responsible."

The triceratops thing was still indigenous, Jenova was an alien. I don't think we should blame him for the outcome as it was not foreseeable.