CW: Death
Now that I've sat on Rebirth's incredibly confusing and polarizing ending for a while and listened to the many discussions trying to make sense of it (I especially recommend this one with NicoB and Maximillian Dood), I think that I really like the direction they've taken it. In the original game, Cloud seemed to come to terms with Aerith's death far too quickly, but denial is a huge part of the initial stages of grief. Someone said that the confusing ending mirrors the reaction of fans of the OG game back when reliable information on the internet was scarce, and there were tons of rumors about secret tricks to bring Aerith back. In many ways, it took many fans a lot longer to accept Aerith's death, especially because of how sudden and unexpected it was, than it took Cloud.
Now, you add in the further complexities of ideas about fate and what it means to have a proper "death." Lots of people complained that they were robbed of the emotional impact of Aerith's death in Rebirth because it was so confusing. But I think that there is simply no way to replicate the emotional impact of the original game, especially given that "Will Aerith die?" was the big question on everyone's mind from the moment we realized Remake was not a faithful retelling of the original story. I think the confusion IS the emotional impact, and it is a legitimate manifestation of grief. Closure does not always come easily. In a genre full of narratives about defying fate, it's really interesting that in FF7R, fate does not refer to the will of the Gods but the canon itself, co-created by the game developers and the way it has lived on in the imaginaries of fans. It is a trajectory of normativity, an idea of *how things should be.* This version of fate is not so easily defied, and not everyone *wants* it to be defied in the first place. It's such a meta commentary on the cliche of defying fate in so many RPGs, where one could almost say that defying fate *is* the most typical fate of a JRPG protagonist.
Furthermore, the fact that Aerith was denied a proper "death" in this game resonates with how subjugated minorities can also be denied proper deaths in the real world. In the OG game, the act of Cloud dropping Aerith's body into the bottom of the pool represented the closure afforded by a proper funeral. But not everyone is fortunate enough to get something like this. I'm thinking of the many South Americans who disappeared suddenly and have never been found due to the political instability of the region as a result of US foreign intervention, or the many gay men who died during the AIDs crisis in the 1980s, or the families of trans youth that took their lives who refuse to honor them and insist on holding a funeral with their deadnames. In such cases, it's almost impossible to indulge in a romanticized narrative of "defying fate."
It seems really painful that we're gonna have to wait another 3-4 years for the final game in the trilogy to receive proper closure, but hey, at least we know it's coming in 3-4 years. Many people don't even have that luxury.
Anyway, I've been listening to "No Promises to Keep" on repeat (if you didn't know, there's a full version with expanded lyrics). I'd love to know if the ending impacted anyone else so deeply as well!
They got me really good with the ending, like I cried in relief because they make you think Cloud saved her at first, which made it that much worse when you realize he didn’t. Then the music for the first part of the boss battle and the way all the other party members have full limit gauges because they’re so upset. I literally had to pause my game because I had tears to the point I couldn’t see what I was doing.
I honestly thought Cloud’s behavior made the ending that much sadder and more impactful, especially compared to how miserable everyone else in the party is. It just hammered home the point that he is super mentally unwell and getting worse, it’s really sad. It doesn’t bode well for him for the next game.
(Also, as a side note, speaking of grief and this game, people’s individual trials. Especially Aerith’s. I was a wreck after those, lol.)