I'm reminded of an ancient FF6 fanfic that I will never be able to find again because even if it still exists out there (which, after this many years, is uncertain) I'm not just going to start wading through FF6 fanfics until I find it; there are zililons of them.
Anyway, it was something about a sort of FF6 After Years setting where after FF6's plot happened, Magic no longer existed, so things like Items and Potions and Alchemy and Science became the dominant all powerful force, and then some new OC Big Bad built himself a lightning machine and tried to take over and/or destroy everything. The one part I clearly remember was the first time the entire reunited FF6 crew meet the new endboss: in an attempt to get him over as a new big serious threat to take seriously via the Worf Effect, he activates his lightning powers and instantly and in one move splortches Mog, Gogo, and Umaro, who are now dead forever.
Even back in my own shitty teen phase, even I remember thinking the choice of victims was immersion-breakingly obvious. Not only is it a rather glaring logic hole (we have established he has the power to turn three entire party members into a fine red mist instantly, but everyone else is able to band together and avenge them in a much more fair fight in which he somehow forgot he could do that) but seriously, those exact three? You very, very clearly just dropped a bridge on the ones who all happened to have the common thread of "the silly joke character/the character least relevant to the main plot." Not even the ones considered missable side characters by gameplay standards, because Shadow was fine, of course, even though he'd arguably ambiguously already died back in the actual game. No, this was a calculated fuck-you to your least favorites, and your least favorites were the ones you felt got in the way of your serious story for serious people. And that's teenaged me calling you out on this.
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Date: 2020-01-17 09:43 pm (UTC)Anyway, it was something about a sort of FF6 After Years setting where after FF6's plot happened, Magic no longer existed, so things like Items and Potions and Alchemy and Science became the dominant all powerful force, and then some new OC Big Bad built himself a lightning machine and tried to take over and/or destroy everything. The one part I clearly remember was the first time the entire reunited FF6 crew meet the new endboss: in an attempt to get him over as a new big serious threat to take seriously via the Worf Effect, he activates his lightning powers and instantly and in one move splortches Mog, Gogo, and Umaro, who are now dead forever.
Even back in my own shitty teen phase, even I remember thinking the choice of victims was immersion-breakingly obvious. Not only is it a rather glaring logic hole (we have established he has the power to turn three entire party members into a fine red mist instantly, but everyone else is able to band together and avenge them in a much more fair fight in which he somehow forgot he could do that) but seriously, those exact three? You very, very clearly just dropped a bridge on the ones who all happened to have the common thread of "the silly joke character/the character least relevant to the main plot." Not even the ones considered missable side characters by gameplay standards, because Shadow was fine, of course, even though he'd arguably ambiguously already died back in the actual game. No, this was a calculated fuck-you to your least favorites, and your least favorites were the ones you felt got in the way of your serious story for serious people. And that's teenaged me calling you out on this.