Understanding Kingdom Hearts (and every other story) - Unraveled
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Date: 2023-12-10
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Comments and reviews: 30
-dariusbrown9000
I have no problem with the many kingdom hearts spinoffs(my favorites are Days and coded) but I do have a problem with developers thinking it's fine to force their players to play through every story to get the full picture. Especially when those stories contradict each other. BBS and coded don't contradict much but Days gives me a whole new perspective on KH2. Roxas and Xion aren't pushovers, they're children. They should be given the time to process what is happening around them. When Brian says CoM and Days are tied together by Xion, it frustrates me. He's not wrong. Xion came from Castle Oblivion but didn't appear in CoM(that I know of. I've yet to complete that game because. According to Days, she exists within Roxas thereafter. That's the whole reason he can dual-wield. The reason Roxas fights so hard is for his friends, same as Sora. It would have been much better playing through KH2 as Roxas simply because there would be a connection. Between him and the remainder of Org. XIII. Sora is confused because he doesn't remember anything, nor does he know who the Org. is. Roxas would know, and therefore the player wouldn't have to take so much on faith. Plus nobody who knows Sora knows Roxas, so it'd be like playing KH1 again.
It's just frustrating that every side story is considered canon even though they don't fit together. They don't correlate back to Sora who was the main character. So many other three-dimensional characters have been introduced, yet Sora who is objectively a conduit for the player is still the main character, even though he's been given amnesia three times so far.
I'm worried that Nomura doesn't know who Sora was supposed to become anymore, but is still trying to push this narrative. If Sora is the one who connects everyone, their stories should be just as important. But there is no longer enough time to tell the individual backstories of this ever-growing cast of people.
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I have no problem with the many kingdom hearts spinoffs(my favorites are Days and coded) but I do have a problem with developers thinking it's fine to force their players to play through every story to get the full picture. Especially when those stories contradict each other. BBS and coded don't contradict much but Days gives me a whole new perspective on KH2. Roxas and Xion aren't pushovers, they're children. They should be given the time to process what is happening around them. When Brian says CoM and Days are tied together by Xion, it frustrates me. He's not wrong. Xion came from Castle Oblivion but didn't appear in CoM(that I know of. I've yet to complete that game because. According to Days, she exists within Roxas thereafter. That's the whole reason he can dual-wield. The reason Roxas fights so hard is for his friends, same as Sora. It would have been much better playing through KH2 as Roxas simply because there would be a connection. Between him and the remainder of Org. XIII. Sora is confused because he doesn't remember anything, nor does he know who the Org. is. Roxas would know, and therefore the player wouldn't have to take so much on faith. Plus nobody who knows Sora knows Roxas, so it'd be like playing KH1 again.
It's just frustrating that every side story is considered canon even though they don't fit together. They don't correlate back to Sora who was the main character. So many other three-dimensional characters have been introduced, yet Sora who is objectively a conduit for the player is still the main character, even though he's been given amnesia three times so far.
I'm worried that Nomura doesn't know who Sora was supposed to become anymore, but is still trying to push this narrative. If Sora is the one who connects everyone, their stories should be just as important. But there is no longer enough time to tell the individual backstories of this ever-growing cast of people.
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-elSethro
I just get frustrated that they keep making up new clones of original characters as one-offs, have them die and/or sacrifice themselves, and then keep bringing every single freaking one of them back.
KH2 is all about -Roxas shouldn't be his own person. He must join with Sora. This has to happen even though it means Roxas has to die. Wish there was another way, but there just isn't. -
Then in KH3, for absolutely no reason, Sora just starts saying -You know, Roxas should be his own person. I have learned absolutely nothing from my previous adventure, and all that stuff we clearly and definitively established in the last game is no longer valid. I'm going to go make Roxas a clone body so we can be separate again. -
And then, of course they have to also bring Ventus back, whom Roxas is a clone of. And they also bring back clones of Kairi/Xion (and Namine, though at least she looks different, Riku/replica, and Sora/Vanitas, and like 8 Xehanorts/Terras or whatever.
WHY DOES THERE HAVE TO BE 2+ VERSIONS OF EVERYBODY? I really wish they could just come up with stories that don't involve clones. Or, if you have to have clones, then they should stay dead after you kill them off so that you don't have so many running around all the time.
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I just get frustrated that they keep making up new clones of original characters as one-offs, have them die and/or sacrifice themselves, and then keep bringing every single freaking one of them back.
KH2 is all about -Roxas shouldn't be his own person. He must join with Sora. This has to happen even though it means Roxas has to die. Wish there was another way, but there just isn't. -
Then in KH3, for absolutely no reason, Sora just starts saying -You know, Roxas should be his own person. I have learned absolutely nothing from my previous adventure, and all that stuff we clearly and definitively established in the last game is no longer valid. I'm going to go make Roxas a clone body so we can be separate again. -
And then, of course they have to also bring Ventus back, whom Roxas is a clone of. And they also bring back clones of Kairi/Xion (and Namine, though at least she looks different, Riku/replica, and Sora/Vanitas, and like 8 Xehanorts/Terras or whatever.
WHY DOES THERE HAVE TO BE 2+ VERSIONS OF EVERYBODY? I really wish they could just come up with stories that don't involve clones. Or, if you have to have clones, then they should stay dead after you kill them off so that you don't have so many running around all the time.
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polygon
Prequels and time dilations should be their own seperate stories. I feel you basically demonstrated the Hero's Journey and the Kingdom Hearts story perfectly fine as is, cause that was pretty much what I walked away from as a kid and even through replays. I don't feel addressing previous and unstated context from other projects, even if they'd be congruent in the timeline, is necessary. That would be like explaining the Hero's Journey of Fellowship of the Ring and ending up explaining that and the Silmarillion as one whole story. Granted, this was a bit to make you Spiral into madness which is what you know we all come for lmao loved your work on Polygon BDG, big fan
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Prequels and time dilations should be their own seperate stories. I feel you basically demonstrated the Hero's Journey and the Kingdom Hearts story perfectly fine as is, cause that was pretty much what I walked away from as a kid and even through replays. I don't feel addressing previous and unstated context from other projects, even if they'd be congruent in the timeline, is necessary. That would be like explaining the Hero's Journey of Fellowship of the Ring and ending up explaining that and the Silmarillion as one whole story. Granted, this was a bit to make you Spiral into madness which is what you know we all come for lmao loved your work on Polygon BDG, big fan
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-erikm8373
While much of this video is made in jest, I will admit I am intrigued by your revisions to the standard story circle we know. Oddly, I think there is some, not much, but some merit to considering both:
-the anti-hero's cradle, the steps of a tangential story of a side character that supports the journey of a hero, but is not present alongside the entire journey.
-The steps in the villains fall, the inverse of the hero's journey describing how a villain gets so dang villainous.
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While much of this video is made in jest, I will admit I am intrigued by your revisions to the standard story circle we know. Oddly, I think there is some, not much, but some merit to considering both:
-the anti-hero's cradle, the steps of a tangential story of a side character that supports the journey of a hero, but is not present alongside the entire journey.
-The steps in the villains fall, the inverse of the hero's journey describing how a villain gets so dang villainous.
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-tylercafe1260
It'll be a headache to dissect why almost everything he said was wrong but the effort was nice.
The saddest part and I mean this genuinely is that when he started his prediction he was just saying what happened in Dream Drop Distance. So it wasn't even a -prediction- it was a plot point everyone saw.
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It'll be a headache to dissect why almost everything he said was wrong but the effort was nice.
The saddest part and I mean this genuinely is that when he started his prediction he was just saying what happened in Dream Drop Distance. So it wasn't even a -prediction- it was a plot point everyone saw.
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polygon
If I get a PlayStation: Three, which I think I'm going to, I am going to get the games Alice: Madness Returns and Kingdom Hearts. I've wanted to play those games for a while now. Especially Alice: Madness Returns. If you leave me alone for a while with a video game, I will eventually figure it out on my own.
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If I get a PlayStation: Three, which I think I'm going to, I am going to get the games Alice: Madness Returns and Kingdom Hearts. I've wanted to play those games for a while now. Especially Alice: Madness Returns. If you leave me alone for a while with a video game, I will eventually figure it out on my own.
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-phoenixdzk
You get contacted by a future version of yourself and then you Nort a boy!
It's worth noting that by Avengers Endgame there's a deleted draft where Thanos (after witnessing his future beheading) killed Captain America in the past and threwvhis corpse at the Avenger's feet just before the final fight
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You get contacted by a future version of yourself and then you Nort a boy!
It's worth noting that by Avengers Endgame there's a deleted draft where Thanos (after witnessing his future beheading) killed Captain America in the past and threwvhis corpse at the Avenger's feet just before the final fight
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-kitkatmuffin
-Sora will get norted, Donald will kill Goofy, Riku will cut his own hair, Kairi will continue to not matter- wow congratulations literally everything you predicted turned out to be WRONG
This is what happens when you forget The Climax happens in The Resurrection, not The Ordeal
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-Sora will get norted, Donald will kill Goofy, Riku will cut his own hair, Kairi will continue to not matter- wow congratulations literally everything you predicted turned out to be WRONG
This is what happens when you forget The Climax happens in The Resurrection, not The Ordeal
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-bryanholley8511
the hilarious part about this is that Eren from AOT actually falls into this -villain's journey-. Also, the prediction was sort of right about kh3, in the respect that Sora did actually -lose- throughout the game. lol
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the hilarious part about this is that Eren from AOT actually falls into this -villain's journey-. Also, the prediction was sort of right about kh3, in the respect that Sora did actually -lose- throughout the game. lol
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polygon
This video should be shown in every high school freshman English class because it both explains the Monomyth in explicit, easy-to-digest format, and then systematically deconstructs the whole idea of it being universal.
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This video should be shown in every high school freshman English class because it both explains the Monomyth in explicit, easy-to-digest format, and then systematically deconstructs the whole idea of it being universal.
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-terminatgor2322
I saw the video 2/3 years ago before i played kingdom hearts. I completely forgot this video and now i have my Vietnam flashbacks. Now i want to see it again with my new found kingdom hearts knowledge
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I saw the video 2/3 years ago before i played kingdom hearts. I completely forgot this video and now i have my Vietnam flashbacks. Now i want to see it again with my new found kingdom hearts knowledge
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-Stormshine
yknow xehanort did both win and lose in kh3. like there was a whole timeline shift about it. anyway i hope bdg is somehow aware of Kingdom Hearts: Dark Road, the mobile game story about xehanort's past
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yknow xehanort did both win and lose in kh3. like there was a whole timeline shift about it. anyway i hope bdg is somehow aware of Kingdom Hearts: Dark Road, the mobile game story about xehanort's past
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-mattkeflowers
I love that this is not only a deconstruction of the overly complex kingdom hearts story, but also the a deconstruction of how reductive and simplistic the hero with a thousand faces story can be
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I love that this is not only a deconstruction of the overly complex kingdom hearts story, but also the a deconstruction of how reductive and simplistic the hero with a thousand faces story can be
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-CaptainZlex
The only people who care enough to understand Kingdom Hearts as this point are people who played the first few games. Nostalgia is one of the main things keeping the franchise going.
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The only people who care enough to understand Kingdom Hearts as this point are people who played the first few games. Nostalgia is one of the main things keeping the franchise going.
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-HomeOnTheEdge
i can't tell if this is making fun of the convoluted storytelling in Kingdom Hearts or how much the Hero's Journey is an oversimplification, but i love it either way
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i can't tell if this is making fun of the convoluted storytelling in Kingdom Hearts or how much the Hero's Journey is an oversimplification, but i love it either way
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-iCantMakeMovies
This video has been up for years. Still, I ask: what is that song Brian sings under his breath at the opening title? It's been driving me crazy since 2019.
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This video has been up for years. Still, I ask: what is that song Brian sings under his breath at the opening title? It's been driving me crazy since 2019.
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-DanielleWulf
The fever dream tone of this video reminds me of when I was in elementary school and bought the 3rd kingdom hearts manga thinking I would just fill in the gaps
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The fever dream tone of this video reminds me of when I was in elementary school and bought the 3rd kingdom hearts manga thinking I would just fill in the gaps
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-mollyhertel6893
i came here to learn something new, turns out I studied this concept of telling stories in 9th grade and this instead brought back traumatic memories
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i came here to learn something new, turns out I studied this concept of telling stories in 9th grade and this instead brought back traumatic memories
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-modelmajorpita
Love the way this explains the plot of Kingdom Hearts while also showing how the monomyth is oversimplistic nonsense and Joseph Campbell was a hack.
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Love the way this explains the plot of Kingdom Hearts while also showing how the monomyth is oversimplistic nonsense and Joseph Campbell was a hack.
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-MiniMii550
Square Enix managed to make a more confusing and convoluted story than the Legend of Zelda timeline with 3 measly mainline games and a couple spin-offs
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Square Enix managed to make a more confusing and convoluted story than the Legend of Zelda timeline with 3 measly mainline games and a couple spin-offs
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-MiningNatureYT
-I expect Xehanort to win by norting Sora-
. its been a bit since I played kh3 but i vaguely recall that actually happening so good job BDG
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-I expect Xehanort to win by norting Sora-
. its been a bit since I played kh3 but i vaguely recall that actually happening so good job BDG
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-nathanparker5958
I just started watching these and I literally cannot stop laughing, this is my favorite series because it is indeed THIS MESSED UP
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I just started watching these and I literally cannot stop laughing, this is my favorite series because it is indeed THIS MESSED UP
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-_pokki_
After all these years I just have to mention that -the dream dropbox- is such a better name and it's been occupying my brain for so long
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After all these years I just have to mention that -the dream dropbox- is such a better name and it's been occupying my brain for so long
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polygon
Unironically this is a great example of why the monomyth doesn't fit all stories, especially ones from non-Western storytelling cultures
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Unironically this is a great example of why the monomyth doesn't fit all stories, especially ones from non-Western storytelling cultures
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-domino6490
Who else remembers when KH was FF for babies lol, now look at it. One of the most notoriously confusing RPG continuities of all time
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Who else remembers when KH was FF for babies lol, now look at it. One of the most notoriously confusing RPG continuities of all time
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polygon
I feel like Brian has since pulled Dream Drop Distance out of the bucket but idk. I really liked gathering all the cutie beans
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I feel like Brian has since pulled Dream Drop Distance out of the bucket but idk. I really liked gathering all the cutie beans
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polygon
8: 06 fun fact the main reason im watching this is because my tumblr mutual told me about roxas and I want to know about him
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8: 06 fun fact the main reason im watching this is because my tumblr mutual told me about roxas and I want to know about him
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-chables74
Great episode! But boy do I not care for the monomyth and Campbell-s many massive disservices to cultural anthropology.
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Great episode! But boy do I not care for the monomyth and Campbell-s many massive disservices to cultural anthropology.
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-m3ta328
someone please tell me if the song he sings at the beginning is real or not because if it-s real i need to hear it
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someone please tell me if the song he sings at the beginning is real or not because if it-s real i need to hear it
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-pengomode7442
fun fact Brian was technically correct as in Kingdom Hearts 3's DLC he technically loses and is erased!
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fun fact Brian was technically correct as in Kingdom Hearts 3's DLC he technically loses and is erased!
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