Kingdom Hearts and Comphet

This is a collaboration between me and my friend, Hannah. I may make more video essays in the future or I may not. Kingdom Hearts is just my special interest so I have a lot to say about this particular topic. Hannah really likes it too, but they can never be on my level let's be fr.
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KH Shitpost Instagram: @ middumbfarts
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Twitter: @ oliver_bluebug
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Tiktok: @ oliverbluebug
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[@oliverbluebug]

Okay so this video has already received a lot of backlash. And those comments will be left up bc I don’t want to hide the fact that making queer KH content will get harassment from bigoted SKs. But I have received a comment attacking/belittling me and Hannah for our identities. Hate comments about the video will be permitted as long as no hate speech and slurs are used, but personal bigoted attacks against real people will be deleted. This does not mean we wont argue with comments left up, though. Anything you do say will be seen by us and most likely will get responded to.

[@mewmewpowergirl1625]

I want to say Riku is the most important person in Sora life but they don't have to be together romantically just live and be content to be honest I don't think Sora has romantic feelings for anyone at all but Riku is the most important person in his life in realm of darkness they just seem content with each other and happy just to have each other

[@AuroraPeachy]

I never realized that it's after the paopu scene solidifies their platonic relationship that Sora has no problem touching Kairi 😮

[@hydrategea]

it's such a subtle detail but it adds so much depth to their relationship when you realize it!! thanks for watching :) your videos reading out the sleeping realm theory are seriously the only way i was able to understand it all haha

[@oliverbluebug]

Holy crap we got soriku royalty at our baby’s first video essay 😳😳😳 Ty for ur support 🩵🩵🩵

[@CampingforCool41]

THE VINE BOOMS ON THE REPLIKU SCENE LMAO 😂😂😭

[@celineosthaus8032]

Something I find very interesting is that in KH3, it's the first time that Sora gets teased about a guy. In Japanese, Donald actually tries teasing Sora about him saying Yozora (who looks like Riku) is good looking. But Sora doesn't get it at all what he was implying. Goofy mentions how Yozora look more like Riku than Sora which prompts Donald to go "very good looking, huh?"😏

[@oliverbluebug]

Yeah!!! It’s also notable that in this interaction, Sora is the initiator in saying that Yozora is too good looking to be him. Donald and Goofy go from pushing Kairi into his thoughts to actually waiting for his real thoughts to come out and then teasing him for that. Real character development for them.

[@Tercurnich]

Omg!!! This video is so GOOD! I thought nothing could surprise me after Tennelle's Riku is gay video, but I learned a lot from this video and it made me realise a lot of new things too. I also laughed a lot to the visual and sound effects you added on Repliku and Sora's relationship-like argument at castle oblivion. It was always so queer coded to me and the effects expressed it so playfully! To quote Master Xehanort: "Very well done". I hope you keep uploading more videos like this. Happy pride month to you both!!!🏳‍🌈

[@spoonofgreed]

Amazing video! I'm so happy more people are talking about this on youtube! I don't know if it's been said already, but I just wanted to add that Naminé in japanese actually uses exclusively gender neutral wording to refer to Sora's most important person and not feminine, despite Sora switching from masculine to feminine-leaning pronouns, which is honestly very telling. Edit: The doc with this info is '"That Person" How a Pronoun Revealed the Heart of a Story' by the SoRiku Ultimania.

[@oliverbluebug]

@@spoonofgreed I FOUND IT tysm

[@wombatcuddles]

Absolutely FANTASTIC video!! It really helps put together how cohesive the writing and themes are! I really hope people will be open minded when watching this bc they'll come out of it galaxy-brained, guaranteed.

[@SpilledSageTea]

First off, great job!! It must have taken so long to edit but the video really took off!! I'm so happy for you guys!! I expect to see more content in the future!! ❤❤❤

[@Fragmentsinfractals488]

I watch the video... again.... And I want to point out the first time Riku tries to give Sora the paopou, he doesn't mention Kairi and she is already far ahead. Basically Riku wants him to share with him, but doesn't want to out what he is doing. And Sora ... doesn't get it. And then Riku makes the deal "to share the paupou with Kairi" out of Spite. Also, "Riku has changed" because of Sora, and I think Kairi can sense that.

[@CocoaCatniptv]

Great video!!!!! I’m glad someone took the time to analyze Sokai’s relationship in this way, because to me this makes the most sense narratively. Also ignore the haters! They always crawl out of their holes ready to pitch a fit over queer takes, but your video is amazing and they’re just mad that you’re onto something. 😊❤

[@oliverbluebug]

Thank you for ur support but unfortunately I cannot ignore them bc I love to argue with and shit on bad people 🩵🩵🩵

[@ashleemeow]

KH1 Neverland does actually provide a bit more of a parallel between the relationships of Sora/Riku/Kairi and Peter Pan/Tinker Bell/Wendy that you did miss here (you do have to watch the Peter Pan movie to get the full context so definitely understandable if you don't pick it up while playing). KH actually has Peter treating Wendy as way more of a love interest than you see in the film, in a way that almost has to be an intentional comparison to where Sora is at by this point in the game and how he thinks he feels about Kairi. And long story short, the climax of the Peter Pan movie has Peter reveal that Tink (the jealous best friend who even goes so far as to try to kill the supposed "love interest" who abruptly came into their lives when they previously used to spend all their time with each other instead, sound familiar?) is actually the most important person to him.

[@oliverbluebug]

@@ashleemeow Riku as tinker bell is CRAZY if true. I might rewatch the movie now.

[@Fragmentsinfractals488]

@@oliverbluebug Riku's Light as Aitsu is Correlated to Disney Magic, a lot. Think Riku's voice making Sora fly in the Ansem, Seeker of Darkness Final Battle.

[@Fragmentsinfractals488]

About the prompts of "remember Namine" being brought out by aggression, we see the same thing with Demyx in Two, attempting to get Sora to remember Roxas. You see, the Actual True Memories, the things the Castle would have brought out without Namine interfering, are placed in the Darkness of Sora's Heart. The Oblivion. (wink) Darkness is awakened by Violence. Namine is using her Darkness to manipulate his Darkness and the Memories Asleep within when he fights. This pulls at Sora and Riku "fighting" with Toy Swords as Children, and Sora pulling at fighting with Riku Replica to get him to Remember. Darkness trials to remember Love.

[@Fragmentsinfractals488]

Oh, And I forgot to mention. When Sora meets the Construct of Riku on Destiny Islands in Chain of Memories, Sora and "Riku" continue to use "Aitsu" but Riku uses it to refer to Namine which confuses the crap out of Sora. So, he decides to basically start calling Namine "dude" despite the contradiction. Basically, the logic doesn't square but Sora loves "Aitsu" too much to care whether it makes sense or not. Simply, "Riku" talks about "Aitsu" as if it isn't him, and correlates Aitsu and Namine. But when Sora goes to ask about "Aitsu", the Island starts collapsing. "Riku" tells him to "protect Aitsu" and Leads Sora to Namine. "Riku" disappears, but Namine is Standing where Riku was in the Real version of the Memory of the Islands Destruction (we see this is Recoded, it just before when Ansem, Seeker of Darkness send him to Hollow Bastion. We see in as a Data Riku Memory)

[@oliverbluebug]

I’m starting to think that English chain of memories and Japanese chain of memories are just different games at this point lol

[@Fragmentsinfractals488]

@@oliverbluebug They kind of... are.

[@alandoodles]

​​​​@@oliverbluebug​Oh no yeah there is a whole doc about the whole Aitsu thing and how that never translated to English. Namine never even said it was a girl that was truly the one most important to Sora. It was interesting and it blew my mind. The whole Aitsu pronoun being masculine leaning but sort of nuetral but odd to call a girl in japanese getting simplified to she really muddled that aspect of Chain of Memories in English. It's crazy how much the difficult nature of translating such a pronoun naturally into English along with het norm sort of messed with that. Although they seriously could of just used neutral terms the whole time at least. It closer than plain exclusively feminine pronouns. But yeah, it's closer to using "dude" in a neutral way at best but it doesn't totally fit. Basically, the context around "aitsu" being used for a girl is usually in an antagonistic manner. Sora uses it with Larxene for example in Japanese. Otherwise, there are some instances where "aitsu" is used by a guy towards a girl that is a good friend but they want to establish them as "one of the guys" of sorts to their girlfriend to not have her worry. But that isn't very common and doesn't make sense here. If a girl uses "aitsu" towards another girl, it also usually indicates negative feelings towards said girl. So yeah. It's pretty pointed and Japanese players' reactions of Sora's pronoun switch towards Namine make that pretty clear. Some mention confused why not "anoko" the female leaning but neutral prounoun. Things like that. Japanese prounouns are interesting that way. It's more a spectrum.

[@oliverbluebug]

@@alandoodles I’ve heard of the document about this whole thing multiple times in these comments and I think it would be really great for me to find it but I don’t know what to look for. Is there an official title or author you could give me? A link you could share? It would be greatly appreciated.

[@333sfxx]

@@oliverbluebug ik this was a little while ago so u may have found the link already but here it is anyways lol docs.google.com/document/d/1w4chumbjsDa3docqcf0jAs6gSAtgaq8nfVJnuwSyQsI/edit

[@oras7745]

45:43 I just now noticed this, but when Eric (who is supposed to be the Sora in this parallel) first reacts Arielle's true form, the framing of the scene shows Eric in the foreground in a golden cut, but the background only consists of the starless night sky and a prominent big blue moon. That reminded me of that one scene in Coded where Data Riku told Data Sora about how Riku and Kairi felt while being apart from Sora, and it shows Riku standing on the clock tower in London, reaching for the moon which is also blue. Now, I could be reading too much into it (maybe just all moons in KH are blue and it doesn't matter), but the color aside, considering the framing of Eric's reaction and the fact that Coded chronologically takes place after KH2, it may be supposed to further cement the parallel of Sora and Eric here. Eric is the moon that Arielle wanted to reach. Sora is the moon Riku wanted to reach. This doesn't feel as strong of an argument, but I found the thought interesting nonetheless. 46:04 and here the frame is very interesting as well. It shows Arielle and Eric in front of each other in a profile view. The background is the actual interesting thing, because you can see from where Eric comes into the frame, the surface of the water is lit by moon light and the light from the moon itself also partly shines into the frame, whereas on Arielle's side the sky is really dark, almost becoming one with the color of the water. So does that mean Eric is a light that shines into Arielle's darkness? You know, like Sora is for Riku?

[@Lyraaaaaaaaaaaaa]

@1:04:59 ish I've posted this on the riku is gay video, but Sora and Kairi are sharing a toast here in a Disney game that can't have alcohol. They might die tomorrow, so why not put a nice little bow on their arc? Let's ""share"" this fruit, honoring our past promise but also recognizing that life took us in different ways

[@oliverbluebug]

@@Lyraaaaaaaaaaaaa that’s quite a nice thought, thx for sharing it with me

[@fiskiies]

Pan/Whatever person here who played this series since I could hold a controller. Prefacing with this because I will happily cheer for both gay/straight pairings in media. Sora x Kairi is straight up one of the most boring and uninteresting pairings. Not because Kairi is a BAD character per se l, she’s just outwardly written to take a back seat again and again. I think it’s safe to say 20+ years later Nomura isn’t just doing it on accident at this point lmao like WHOOPS forgot to write something interesting about Kairi for this game. He’s even outwardly stated the series is about Sora and Riku. They’ve explicitly helped each other grow and overcome their shortcomings. They have so much more chemistry than the VAST majority of straight romance in media where the two characters get a few instances of screen time together and expect us to buy that they are head over heels for each other (Sora and Kairi). It’s so flat and lifeless and GOD do we not need more of that. I don’t hate Sora and Kairi, I’m just so indifferent towards them. I get weird second hand embarrassment from the shoehorned hugging and hand holding because realistically they’ve barely spent any time together over the past 2 yrs up to the current games. And it’s not like they felt super close in KH1 to begin with. ANYWHO, hell yea to all the LGBTQ people that find their special characters in media they can relate to. No one can take that from you. There’s literally sooooo much straight media and so many more boring straight relationships to invest yourself in, let us have a second LMAO.

[@RaiderGamerSpice]

It's hilarious that this video hasn't even reach 1k views, and haters still managed to find it. With how much they love hate-searching gay KH content, they must have secretly been convinced that KH is gay but don't want to admit it 🤭 That nonsense aside, thank you for this video! I love seeing new analysis videos from new KH fans that see just how gay it is, and point out everything I and fellow Sorikus have been saying for a long time. If you haven't seen it already, I recommend Tennelle Flowers' "Riku is gay" videos, they're basically like yours, but longer and with more focus on Riku 🥰 Oh, and I just subscribed! 💖

[@oliverbluebug]

Thx but we literally shouted out that video in the intro

[@RaiderGamerSpice]

@@oliverbluebug Oh, shoot. I watched it once and went to bed, I literally forgot 😭 So sorry! 💀

[@lens_hunter]

Popped up in my recommendations. Not sure why, I dont watch queer content, nor do I like Kingdom Hearts. It is truly baffling.

[@oliverbluebug]

@@lens_hunter well y’know you don’t have to watch things in ur recommended right? Like if I didn’t know what kh was I just wouldn’t click the video. I’m not holding you hostage 😭

[@evaundertale2247]

I actually had a theory that Kairi been known sense the start of kh 3 when she stopped writing letters for Sora to read she knew they weren't ment to be and even wrote my own final letter idea called mind made up. It talks about her insecurities and more from her seeing the weakening bond between her and Sora it stems from fear of being left behind and how despite the paopu possibility meaning something else for Sora she still wanted to keep that childhood wish. I feel like people forget even in kh 2 you see Kairi start showing signs of realizing Sora might not want to have it romantically with her when Olette says its romantic and she just kinda smiles its honestly nice way hint at both their relationship not just through Sora's pov but also Kairi's to

[@oliverbluebug]

I feel like Kairi knew since the reunion cuz she isn’t stupid right? She could feel that sora was stiff as a board and took forever to hug her back. And then she probably realizes that he needs Riku more than her right? The way she says “sora say something to him” and pushes him to take Riku’s hand. She literally watches him fall to his knees and cry over Riku when he couldn’t do anything like that for her. And as we talked about in this video, her use of “follow” while Riku uses “side-by-side” before the final battle. She knows something’s up.

[@evaundertale2247]

@@oliverbluebug yes its sad that most the fandom doesn't pay attention to the little details To add to this if she didn't realize she definitely realized by remind especially with Sora's phrasing. "Wondering here with Kairi reminded me how important it is to share moments with friends." (I think I quoted it correct) Like he blatantly says it right after Chirithy suggests giving them alone time. It sounds like he reaffirms it more confidently now to anyone who might insinuate them romantically.

[@oliverbluebug]

@@evaundertale2247 I’m also glad that Kairi seems accommodating to sora. I’m glad she’s not a dick about him not liking her back.

[@evaundertale2247]

@@oliverbluebug same it's honestly sweet. Sad the fanfics like to make her a villian 😭

[@BrandonNinja]

That's not true obviously. KH3 put all of that speculation to rest.

[@Fragmentsinfractals488]

Funny enough, Larxene's rant about the Star Charm, despite being a Gaslight, fits Riku as Aitsu. Sora has been Wearing the Crown Necklace the Whole Time, but forgot the Meteor Promise where Riku (the Aitsu) gave it to him. "No surprise, since you also couldn't remember "her' name". Sora remembers Riku, but he forgot that Aitsu is Riku, the Light. And when Sora grabs the Star Charm back, he shoves it against the Crown Necklace by his Heart. hmm.

[@matrixmilky596]

great video! i think other commenters have already said everything i would lmao, but you did a great job with this analysis

[@shadowelii]

OH SHIT I CAN ALREADY TELL THIS VIDEO IS GOING TO BE SOO GOOD Stay strong amidst the flames, I have a brand new video to watch while I work YIPPEEEEEE🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉👏👏👏👏👏👏👏🙌🙌🙌🙌

[@99PurplePrincess7114]

I'm so tired of these idiots in the comments clearly ignoring everything said in the video (or lets be real, not even watching and just ragecommenting because they just wanna be angry so bad) They are using their own views (which ironically are severely comphet) to dismiss extremely obvious signs and parallels and defend clear mistranslations of the original to suit their own opinions and interpretations. But I'm also really freaking tired of people who claim to be for female characters or feminist use this to be homophobic. YES we ALL know Kairi is poorly underwritten. But this doesn't magically erase all the Soriku subtext. This is not erasing Kairi for gay ships. This is seeing what the story is actually leaning towards. Both can be true. We all want more Kairi relevance. Not just Sokai shippers. Not just the people claiming no romance. We Sorikus want it too. We just don't ignore what the story is saying just for fake Kairi material. WE WANT REAL KAIRI MATERIAL, NOT JUST LYING TO OURSELVES THAT SHES MORE IMPORTANT THAN SHE ACTUALLY IS. (or at least, not misinterpreting what is she really is for the story) Stop claiming people that ship the main character and their best friends just want gay for the sake of gay. And yes, the fact that men write these stories and men end up more developed than the females IS a big issue. We get that too. We also want that to change. But 1) obviously men with male experiences write men better, with varying female experience accounting for how bad a female character will turn out. This is just more proof that we need more female written stories out there in general, but we shouldn't expect perfect representation from everything, especially something in development for more than two decades (We can expect better rep as the years go on but thats another discussion). 2) every time we hear "CAN'T SORA AND RIKU JUST BE FRIENDS? WHY DOES IT HAVE TO BE GAY?' we should be allow to do the same thing and ask why Sora and Kairi can't be friends. Why can't they be best friends with an unbreakable bond? This game will always be about friendship above all else. How Sora's relationships are all important to him. Above all else, we want the Destiny Trio to have that strong friendship. (Riku and Kairi included, they should get more interactions together.) And 3) if you are truly so offended at us Sorikus or anyone shipping MCs with their male best friends/rivals that anytime you see any mention of them you feel annoyed or angry enough to fight our ship, then its deeper than just thinking our ship is wrong. It's deeper than thinking theyre better off as friends or that were pushing aside the female leads for the gay. Youre being homophobic. Whether it's unintentional or deep seeded or unknown or even nonchalant. Our opinions on a ship should not set you off this way if it wasn't. There are real, concrete reasons we ship Soriku, this video shows clear parallels and examples that you cannot brush away without omitting or outright lying about scenes and lines. You can prefer other ships or agree to disagree about interpretations but to just bash us and call us wrong with nothing backing you up but opinions is disingenuous and y'all are causing way more harm than could ever be good. Queer perspectives exist, and were allowed to like ships and relate to them and interpret them and discuss them. Stop pretending we dont exist and that the straight lens is the only one that can possibly be correct, both on the creators and fans sides. (Sorry I got ranty, I just really liked your video and hated seeing all the dismissive petty empty comments you guys were getting. This was well made and didn't deserve that. I'd love to see more KH stuff from you!)

[@oliverbluebug]

Thank you for the comment. It’s lovely. I also think the Kairi writing predicament is something that should be addressed more instead of ppl attacking you for disliking her. Bc the truth is, Nomura dislikes her. He said it himself that he doesn’t like writing Kairi bc she is uninteresting to him. It’s rather sad bc Nomura can write great female characters. I think Aqua is a great example of a female character that is well written. I also really like Naminé, although she suffers from lack of screen time. Tbh my hottest kh take is that Aqua is actually the heroine of the kh series bc she is playable in 3 titles (bbs, 0.2, kh3) and her inner world is given a lot of attention. Her fears, world view, relationships, etc. But then the character that the game is trying to tell us is the main heroine, kairi, is boring. All the elements are there, but they’re never explored bc Nomura doesn’t want to. Personally I’m hoping that kairi going to train with Aqua will really help her. I think she needs relationships outside of her friendship with Sora, cuz that’s kind of all she has right now. She needs to get dynamics with other characters, so I’m anxiously awaiting her role in kh4.

[@99PurplePrincess7114]

@@oliverbluebug I agree that Aqua is the main heroine if Kairi is the only other option. Which is really sad (not on Aquas part because she so awesome) Kairi could be so much more it hurts. Nomura lamenting on Kairi being uninteresting when HE KNOWS DAMN WELL HE HAS THE POWER TO FIX THAT. It sucks that he can literally change that right now but just doesnt. I also really hope for Kairi-Aqua training time, along with RIku-Kairi both searching for Sora, preferably together, an awesome girl friendship with Kairi Namine and Xion, hell even Kairi becoming good friends with the Twilight Town kids at the same time with Roxas, causing them to also become friends, which could also expand on her and Leas friendship. SO MANY POSSIBILITIES that are right there ready to be explored. She can actually be written well, she can be interesting. AND make her more than just the love interest that does nothing, or the friend thats just there being nothing but support. All we can hope for is a change in how to write Kairi to finally give her own purpose. We can criticize the writing for Kairi without hating her. People need to start recognizing what woman hating actually looks like (i've been in the KH fandom since 2009, i KNOW what Kairi haters actually look like) Most Sorikus these days love Kairi. The 'hates the female lead in the way of the gay relationship' type of fan is almost nonexistent these days, and the ones that are still around are still young and have time to mature and learn. Anyone else who actually hates Kairi is just a misogynist and trust me, they are the type to openly bash her. I like what you said that we need to address her bad writing instead of attacking for disliking her, especially when there is no actual hating, just irritation with her poor writing. Kairi deserves better and we all know this.

[@CampingforCool41]

@@99PurplePrincess7114I don’t think Nomura ever said anything about whether or not he likes writing Kairi or finds her uninteresting. I think that was just a fan theory that got passed around to explain why she’s written poorly.

[@oliverbluebug]

@@CampingforCool41 y’know I’ll admit I have heard he doesn’t like writing Kairi on multiple occasions from different ppl but i don’t actually know the source

[@CampingforCool41]

@@oliverbluebug yeah I’ve never come across it and I’ve read through more Nomura interviews than I want to admit lol Also it would be pretty weird for a writer to admit publicly that they find their own character uninteresting. Not that it doesn’t seem plausible he might feel that way at this point but it didn’t seem like he felt that way in the beginning, just by how he used to talk about her anxieties and how they had planned on making her playable.

[@c.q.studios5437]

Normally don’t comment on stuff, but I feel the need to balance out a lot of the dismissals you’re getting here because I find it unfair. I don’t have a lot of specific stuff to say. I’m not great with words. But I throughly enjoyed this video and think you guys did a great job explaining and exploring your reading (one I personally agree with, KH is very queer lol). It was nice to see a video fully dedicated to exploring Sora’s relationship with Kairi while still acknowledging Sora’s (and Riku’s) queerness. I feel like people tend to pass them by in favour of the whole Soriku of it all (which is fair and I enjoy that too) but I love seeing other aspects of KH’s queerness highlighted as well. I think one of my favourite things you pointed out in this video is the fact that after Sora knows where he and Kairi stand he’s finally able to hug her and be less awkward around her again. That was something I never noticed before but makes me really happy now that you’ve pointed it out. Thank you for making this video. Do you plan on making more in the future?

[@oliverbluebug]

There’s definitely things I could make a video on. Not sure if Hannah will always be collabing in the future. I have a lot to say about kh, but I think a lot of it has already been said by a lot of ppl. I was thinking of making a video about how Xion is actually a Riku parallel, bc most ppl assume she’s a Kairi parallel but it doesn’t make much sense under closer inspection. But I’m not sure. Do you have any suggestions for videos you would like to see in the kh KZbin space?

[@c.q.studios5437]

@@oliverbluebug Well, I’m a chronic KH mobile game enjoyer, so if you have any thoughts about UX or DR, I’d love to hear them. But, I mean, other than that I’m not really sure. I tend to just enjoy listening to people talk about things they’re passionate about so… The Xion video sounds like I’d be interesting if you make it I’ll be sure to check it out (/gen) (And also I think if you want to make a video on a subject it doesn’t really matter if someone’s made a similar one before. Sometimes people want to hear the same thing repeated and everyone gives the subject their own little twist. I mean everyone focuses on different things, I’m sure even in a subject that has been covered before there’s something unique you’d be pointing out ^^)

[@alandoodles]

​@@c.q.studios5437I agree.

[@Fragmentsinfractals488]

I like your video. However, small point, Namine actually does try to tell Sora about Aitsu using "your precious person " and "They" in the Japanese , but it is implied she is trying to get Sora to turn over the "Aitsu is Riku" revelation by himself. The "she is your Light" is actually "They are your Light" Namine also in Japanese makes it clear she knows the Meteor Promise and the Oathkeeper Promise are two different things. The Meteor Promise Person is called "precious person " and "They" The Oathkeeper promise Girl is called her and referenced as an example to connect to "the precious person" of the Meteor Promise. Further, Namine used the Resonance between Sora and Riku's Hearts to make Sora believe Riku was in the Castle But Sora still thinks it is Kairi because Namine's Darkness got in too deep. So, Namine allows it to be so she can fix Sora's Memories because he must connect a Real Memory himself.

[@logan.walker]

God, I wish they would have translated COM as "They are your Light".

[@logan.walker]

Great video! If you are planning more KH content, with or without Hannah, I am definitely looking forward to it! :D

[@oliverbluebug]

@@logan.walker I do have a new video in the works. I’m hoping to get it out this or next week.

[@donttellsaul]

I used to think that in KH3, "Sora and Kairi are finally a couple," with MelMem serving as a remedy for their lack of interactions and a bridge for the next saga. Even as I also believed that the previous games were about the connection between Sora and Riku. However, after watching your analysis, I now lean towards a platonic SoKai. I don't think Nomura intended it through a queer lens (which would be HUGE), but rather as star-crossed lovers. Where even though Kairi inherited the keyblade, she doesn't express a desire to return to Radiant Garden, in contrast to Sora, an ordinary boy who inherited it by accident and is down for the ride with and for Riku. Kairi only left because she felt insecure about being abandoned. I'm glad I stumbled upon your video, even as I doubt SoRiku will become canon (mainly due to backlash). I'm happy to find someone who understands SoKai as a misunderstanding pushed too far. I don’t blame Donald nor Goofy, as it seems only “natural” for this young, sappy boy to be in love with his close girl best friend. It is, indeed, such a beautiful closure for their awkwardness, not even as a queer tale, but an overall identity one. Also, gotta admit, this is such a great production for your first long form video.

[@CampingforCool41]

I think KZbin ate my comment but I wanted to mention at the Namine scene at 32 minutes plus the ending of CoM where she says “she is your light” in eng, in both scenes in jp she actually uses completely gender neutral language, and it ends up being just Sora that assumes she’s talking about “that girl”. It’s hard to explain but in that ending scene she uses two distinct pronouns that imply she’s talking about two different people- one when she’s referring to the person who is Sora’s light in the darkness and who he made “another promise” to (meteor shower promise)… and she uses a different pronoun immediately after when she is referring to Kairi’s charm, using it as an example of how if he remembers one thing, more memories will return. The two prounouns she uses also have the connotation of proximity in time and/or distance- the one she uses for “the light in the darkness” has the connotation of being physically close and/or recently spoken of while the pronoun she uses to refer to Kairi has the connotation of being physically far away and/or not recently spoken of. This corresponds with both Riku and Kairi’s current locations (Riku being in the castle at that moment) and also their physical positions when Sora tries to remember his light in the darkness. “That person (near him)” is Riku, while “that person (far from him)” is Kairi. I’m not very good at explaining it but the fact that Namine never says Kairi is his precious person or his light in jp makes me personally believe that she does know Riku is Sora’s precious person, but leaves it ambiguous to respect Sora’s wishes at the beginning of CoM to figure it out for himself. Another interesting bit in kh2 with the Halloween town scene- in JP Sora only says “Maybe I never gave a real present after all” in a general way, while it’s Goofy who assumes Sora is just talking about Kairi and prompts Sora to think about her in Sally’s place. Just another instance of characters making hetnorm assumptions about Sora’s feelings.

[@oliverbluebug]

Woah. Japanese is crazy man. Pronouns that refer to closeness? That’s crazy. Thx for letting me know that’s super interesting. Nothing but kh could make me yearn to learn a language so badly.

[@forgotten_lumis5595]

@@oliverbluebugHave you read the Soriku Ultimania Aitsu documents yet? I’m pretty sure this stuff is all in those. If you haven’t yet, I would totally recommend it! They’re really in depth and go into analysis on all the Disney couples and pronoun usage in that game as a whole and stuff in that game.

[@hydrategea]

this is so interesting ty for pointing it out!! if only the translations included this much nuance, so much of the backlash around queer themes could be avoided

[@hydrategea]

@CampingforCool41 i wish youtube had a dm feature lol - but i want to thank you for your service with how you've been replying to crazy comments all day, you're always spot on and we really appreciate your support :)

[@fentasies]

great video!! i’ve been thinking about this topic recently and i’m glad y’all decided to make this. ☺️

[@oliverbluebug]

Glad to be representing the thoughts and feelings of soriku nation 🫡🫡🫡🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍🌈

[@rayvenden]

I loved this video!!! I laughed, and I cried /gen When LeaIsa and EraqusXehanort are massive Soriku parallels, I can't be crazy... right? Also of note, I forget exactly where it said this (I think KH3 ultimania?) but it was written that Sora doesn't exactly know what love is. So it's possible he doesn't know his own feelings yet (understandable especially with the topic at hand) or possibly he's aromantic (also understandable, but to me sad for Riku because Riku gay). I would absolutely listen to more hours of you talking about more KH topics 🙏

[@hydrategea]

i was actually thinking about writing a bit about an aro/ace interpretation of sora, since that's where i actually see a lot of myself in his character!! it became a bit off topic and biased but i'd definitely be interested in returning to it one day :)

[@rayvenden]

@@hydrategea that would be a great topic to explore! I would be interested in hearing your thoughts ☺

[@oras7745]

It's actually the Character Files. There is a whole mini story of Sora lamenting over his inability to understand "what love is to begin with" (despite him being able to get when characters are in love with each other, even when not fully realizing it themselves, like Kristoff and Anna, he thought they were a couple when they weren't yet).

[@rayvenden]

@@oras7745 thank you for clarifying! I forgot exactly where that was written and it was bugging me

[@oras7745]

@@rayvenden You're welcome! :)

[@Hobbittastic]

love this video 😭

[@lily4002]

We love u oliver and hannah!!!!! -sincerely void

[@oras7745]

And another comment to balance out the snowflake homohpobes and probably some unnecessarily hostile Sokai shippers (I know not all of them are like that, but some tend to be very protective over their ship). While I think KH3 and especially Remind could have used a bit more analysis, I still think this is a great video! Massive props for releasing this! I really liked the way you highlighted the development of Sora and Kairi's friendship and where they are now. I also never noticed that Sora has no problems with touching Kairi after she clarifies her intentions with the Papou Fruit. It didn't make any sense to me that Sora would be so awkward with Kairi in KH2, then not spent time with her at all (not even after seeing she reciprocated the cave drawing) and then suddenly be all touchy and hand-holdy with Kairi, even though he proclaimed just in the carribean that he doesn't understand much about love (in JP) and never had a revelation on that topic before the Papou Scene (where he also looks extremely awkward, taken aback, hesitant and (as you pointed out) even a bit sad). So with your logic explanation it makes total sense to me that Sora is not awkward with Kairi anymore and confident in his relationship with her, because he is not pressured by any expectations anymore. I'm so glad more people are talking about the queer aspects of this franchise. It's really refreshing and gives me hope that maybe in time KH fans will become more accepting of interpretations like this. As it is now, it's really tiring. Noone is forcing them to agree, yet they are still being so annoyingly butthurt over an interpretation of the story. If they think it's not true, then there's no reason to bother with this at all, right?

[@oliverbluebug]

Thanks for the feedback! Yeah I think that if I was to put more time into the video I would have added more to the kh3 section, like bringing back the Pooh parallel and about sora having distance from Pooh is really about sora and kairi not having a strong connection anymore. And also stuff about Riku and Sora. We were kind of at a disadvantage with time at the very start cuz we decided to do this during this month instead of in may, and then I had to balance writing the script, recording, and editing with my full time job. I wanted to get it out before the very end of the month too, that’s why Hannah’s parts are way more fleshed out than mine. So, with how some of it is rushed, thank you for still enjoying and supporting us 🩵🩵🩵

[@oras7745]

@@oliverbluebug Ah I see. Yeah, I get that. As I said, it's still a very good video. It just felt a bit weird that the KH3 portion was so short, but I totally get your reasoning. And you could always do a follow up video on the things you had to leave out. If you want to, of course. :) And you're very welcome. It's just really cool to see people be brave and talk about the queer side of KH, despite the unnecessarily agressive pushback most of these videos unfortunately get. I think the least I can do is show my support. So thank you both for this video! :D

[@Fragmentsinfractals488]

I have a theory on why Roxas's Dream Memories are like that. {Riku, glitch Kairi}. It is because Namine chained Aitsu(Riku) and Kairi/Namine to fuse Sora and Riku's True Love Destiny and Kairi/ Namine together. Which is literally what Xion was. Roxas thinks Sora likes Kairi that way because Kairi feels like Xion feels like Aitsu feels like Riku's Light.

[@oliverbluebug]

Yeah yeah I see!! Like how on first glance you think Xion is a Kairi parallel but she’s actually the Riku parallel.

[@Fragmentsinfractals488]

@@oliverbluebug No, literally. the Glitches are Xion (a person Namine cannot make him remember) and the Glitches is the Aitsu being pulled out of Sora's Memories of Kairi. (Xion literally is an incomplete Sora constructed from Kairi's Memories evolving into Sora as Riku perceives him, the real Sora). It is in Xion's Battle theme. If you are aware, Dearly Beloved is Riku and Sora's Heart's Singing together. (the Voice of True Love). Xion's Battle Theme has Kairi's theme in the Middle but at the End, the melody is Dearly Beloved. Musically, Xion's Energy signature changes from Kairi to Soriku resonation. hmm.

[@oliverbluebug]

@@Fragmentsinfractals488 people always say Xion is Kairi and Sora’s nobody or whatever but the truth is that she’s all three of them.

[@Fragmentsinfractals488]

@@oliverbluebug The Snarl of Memories cutscene in 358/2 straight shows you Riku is there. It is Xion's Dream of a Memory only Riku had.(fighting Zexion in Reverse/Rebirth) And she turns into him during it. In front of the Our Eyes.

[@alandoodles]

This was intriguing to watch.

[@Rose-SunG524]

This was a good time! A lot of great points & takes on what KH & Nomura are trying to express with the dynamic between Sora & Kairi. Tho I do think Sora's being closer to her in KH3 after the timeline hop thing they had to do cuz Sora's lost his light in the darkness, & thinks it's Kairi, but it's a ton more to explain & we don't have all the pieces told yet. & even then he still ends up referring to her a friend & doesn't keep his view of her consistent, so I think it was a great choice here to simplify that to your audience. It's so difficult to explain to a gen audience that "hey, the story writing here is oddly realistic to what a lot of queer ppl had to go through, & the fact that they're done it before even just within the series strengthens this point" as well as Nomura general writing style of putting a lie in the foreground & the real answer in the bg so that when the plot twist is finally revealed, you can go back & pick out how it lead there. A red herring. Red herrings/plot twists & parallels are the 2 major tools Nomura uses in his writing so it's wild to me that a take that this is yet again happening is somehow a stretch? Drives me crazy lol

[@oliverbluebug]

Yeah bro it’s not even at 500 views and there’s already negative comments bro. 💀💀💀💀

[@Rose-SunG524]

@@oliverbluebug yyyyeeaaaaaa anything against SoKai gets crazy push back. Honestly I feel that's a sign you're at least onto smth cuz ppl are quick to defend smth they don't fully get without much evidence, & also some of the stronger push back on KH topics end up on those topics being correct?? Like ppl fighting that nobodies didn't have hearts just cuz the game said so & oop, DDD happened & ppl STILL wanna argue lol Whether or not your guys' view is right or wrong, we get crazy takes from the SoKai is canon gang all the time. & the most push back they get is a "eh, I don't think this would happen, but it was a good listen" or whatever. This vid is great & deserves to be here ^^b

[@oliverbluebug]

@@Rose-SunG524 I totally feel you. I love being in a fandom where plot twists are considered retcons. With this video it’s also not necessarily about right or wrong also. We’re just studying the content under a lens of analysis. It’s pretty common to analyze books and movies outside of the author’s intentions. But in video games ppl r more concerned for what’s canon or not. I do believe that Nomura did give Sora a comphet arc, but I also believe that the readings we give certain scenes were not intended by him. And it’s okay to have these readings and talk about them. I think it makes kh better media that it actually grows more meaningful depending on what you’re analyzing for.

[@Rose-SunG524]

@@oliverbluebug No yea, you're absolutely correct about not necessarily needing to be the canon reading. I wish the fandom understood its mystery more & also understood Nomura purpose for making his story open for different views & interpretations (not that it's not the usual but that he purposely keeps this in mind when working with his team to make this story). I just mean it's the crazy double standard that ppl NEED to be correct on their theories & interpretations when it comes to queer topics, or even just when the queer part isn't even the main part of the theory. You even hint about a ship that threatens a straight ship? War. For some reason.

[@CampingforCool41]

@@oliverbluebug It's like they were clicking the refresh button waiting for a gay kh video to jump on lol

[@kingscittlesgaming1708]

I just always assumed sora was straight bi or ase (or aroace i think its called when dont feel romance please correct that if wrong idk terms that well) but never thought of soriku before and while i still only really see em as good friends i do see how can see otherwise i do quite like the writing that depending on people interpitations and experinces can have differnt interpretation also i loved the video btw. I hope i typed this well i normally dont comment onnstuff cause im quite bad at words.

[@tramsroy]

omg yall are famous 1k views 😱😱👀😱👀👀👀👀😱👀😱 slay very great video proud of yall 👌👌✨👌✨👌👌💜💜🫶🫶👌

[@mewmewpowergirl1625]

You have to understand Sora and Riku exchanged crowns when they were children and the keyblade oblivion is called passing memory in Japanese so the papu fruit is the crowns they exchanged also Castle Oblivion memories

[@hydrategea]

GAY PEOPLE MENTIONED LETS GO ‼️‼️‼️‼️

[@oliverbluebug]

Bro caught in 4K pretending he didn’t also make the video

[@mewmewpowergirl1625]

I find it interesting that Riku and Sora are in love because in the beta footage Sora tried to strike down Riku with his back turned

[@Fragmentsinfractals488]

The Dark side of Love invoking the Darkness of Envy.....

[@oras7745]

What beta footage if I might ask?

[@mewmewpowergirl1625]

@@oras7745 Just type in Kingdom hearts beta

[@mewmewpowergirl1625]

@@oras7745 just go on KZbin type in kingdom hearts beta footage you will see it

[@mewmewpowergirl1625]

@@oras7745 Type in kingdom hearts beta footage you will see sora tries to strike riku in the back and neck with his back turned it seem Sora would have learned compassion from those around him because he unhinged

[@mewmewpowergirl1625]

Paopu=Crowns Passing Memory Keyblade=Black Crown Castle Oblivion=Memories Namine=Riku replica called Aitsu Aitsu=Male way of saying You in Japanese

[@seraphshou9697]

Banger video, what you said about Namine's role in comphet was bespoke. BUT about the papou scene. I don't have the translation on hand but in the Japanese version the line is moreso along the lines of "if two people feed each other papou fruit" instead of sharing one. Also I know the Japanese version of kh3 has slightly less romantic dialogue between Kairi and Sora, but honestly with all the handholdy shit I think Sokai is probably supposed to be canon. Only thing that makes me doubt slightly is what Sora's Japanese Japanese VA said, and of course the odd mention of Riku at the beginning of the scene.

[@oliverbluebug]

@@seraphshou9697 idk man Riku did get that taisetsu na hito and he literally does that true love self sacrifice that is foreshadowed by tangled and frozen worlds and then Nomura saying time and time again that the series is about sora and Riku. Also sora does hold Riku’s hand in kh2. All this to say sokai is definitely not canon until the game says explicitly. One line from Sora implying he reciprocates Kairi’s feelings or just referring to her as his gf or smthn. They’re not together unless they’re actually together right? And I’ll have to look into the kh1 jp dub. I did get some things wrong so i was thinking next pride month I could remake the video or just my parts. If ur right I’ll include this.

[@seraphshou9697]

@@oliverbluebug I agree that Riku is absolutely 100% gay for Sora. Like unironic explicit canon. And I mean yes they're not officially together together, but most of the fanbase seems to have the impression that they are. And I assume Nomura is aware of that, so it would be quite shocking for him to be bold enough to then canonize Soriku.

[@oliverbluebug]

@@seraphshou9697 i definitely believe in Nomura to not cave under pressure and think he doesn’t give a shit what most fans think or want. I mean, a lot of fans thought that scene at the end of kh3 where Riku goes to get Naminé in Repliku’s place was romantic and Nomura went out of his way to clarify that it wasn’t true. This is nomura’s playhouse and we are just lucky to play it, we as fans don’t really get a say. And it’s not as if soriku isn’t popular. And uh. If sokai becomes canon, then kh will be actual queerbaiting. And I’d like to hope that it’s not baiting us.

[@seraphshou9697]

@@oliverbluebug Its fair to assume Nomura will stick to his artistic vision, and honestly I do think Square and Disney would accept gay main characters if Nomura put any effort into pushing for it. But I don't know if I'd necesarilly say Sora ending up with Kairi would be queerbaiting as long as Riku is canonically gay. And I have no doubt Riku will eventually explain his feelings to Sora. Though idk I am definitely biased as I don't want to get my hopes up cuz I'll be pretty dissapointed if I start to expect Soriku will be canon only for it to be dropped.

[@oliverbluebug]

@@seraphshou9697 even if Riku is canonically gay I think the queerbaiting is from stuff like the reunion scene and the magical rainbow keyblade they make together and all the stuff that’s both Riku and Sora. But I understand not wanting to get ur hopes up.

[@crazystart8581]

My personal take on Soriku. Is that Soras sexuality is not known to us. And that especially whether heterosexual or not is allowed to have a deep relationship with Riku. Even if Sora is romantically interested in Kairi and is solely heterosexual, he can have this deep relationship with Riku while also having a distant kind of bumbling relationship with Kairi. None of these are mutually exclusive.

[@paperhearts3984]

This is not a hate comment, but rather a form of critic. I think if you're going to put a video out for people to give their opinions on, you shouldn't be arguing with them in the comments because they don't believe your viewpoint. Calling people hypocrites for simply having a different opinion on this topic isn't very debate-like. Another thing is you commented somewhere that Sora has been a teenager the entire series. That is not true. Sora has also been showcased as a mere child in birth by sleep. I also don't really see why his sexuality is so important. This is a game about adventure, twists, and turns. Not romance.

[@hydrategea]

i think if people are going to go out of their way to make bad faith comments on a video clearly not intended to be argumentative, it opens them up to pushback. especially if the comments they leave are full of homophobic dogwhistles. and to your latter point: something you might notice is that we never talk about sora during the events of birth by sleep!! fun fact gay people are born and at one point were in fact children.

[@oliverbluebug]

Pretty ballsy of you to come on a video of mine on my channel and tell me what I should and shouldn’t do. Arguing with people is literally debate. And I didn’t calls someone a hypocrite I said their points sounded like hypocrisy, literally the opposite of a personal attack, it was an argument on their points. If anything they should be grateful that I’m leaving their comments up and engaging with them. It is within my power to just delete their comments y’know. Also if you think kh isn’t about romance at all then why are you here? It’s not that I don’t want views, it just genuinely doesn’t make sense to me why someone would go out of their way to watch someone that they’re not interested in. It seems like they’re making themselves angry on purpose.

[@Rose-SunG524]

I'd love to hear a debate for SoKai but it almost always turns out to be nothing but "well Sora obviously has a crush on Kairi!" & straight up homophobia/bad faith takes. But also?? Like?? Why does this even need to be debated. What's the point of a debate for smth ppl aren't even interested in & just want to argue? As soon as the topic is queer, ppl are ready to fight against it. Our exps are always met with opposition when??? Why does it matter what the person down the road's opinions are?? If you hear it someone put their exp into smth they like, why tf does it need to be fought against?? It's a waste of energy Also?? This series literally has couples that get focused on all the time. The series is about connections; relationships of all kinds. Both the good & the bad. I feel like that's disingenuous for ppl to claim this series isn't about romance when it clearly does get focused on, the writing for this series always goes beyond for making ppl feel things, & a lot of ppl that argue this will bring up how Sora & Kairi are sooooo in love n such. Like you can't have this view only against SoRiku here in any good faith like this. It literally hurts no 1 to have ppl share how they view the series. Debate is not needed here like this

[@oliverbluebug]

@@Rose-SunG524 yeah. When ppl say kh isn’t about romance it’s so stupid bc Disney is about romance all the time.

[@CampingforCool41]

@@Rose-SunG524 People really think we haven't seen the arguments for sokai ten million times already.

[@predleysoom7672]

while i think this is a good video and appreciate the effort and love you showed a series that i also love, i don’t know if i think imposing strict views of a fictional child’s sexuality is any better than making them compulsory het lol. if you want to explore sora’s view on relationships and sexuality, i think claiming that he is bi fits better since he has clearly developed feelings for kairi no?

[@oliverbluebug]

“Child’s sexuality” even tho he’s a teenager. Been a teenager this whole time. Teens can be gay. And then you’re okay with claiming he’s bi? I thought it was a “child’s sexuality”? But you’re okay with it now? Smells like hypocrisy.

[@CampingforCool41]

Interpreting Sora as gay isn't "imposing a strict view of a fictional child's sexuality" any more than saying he's bi is though? You are free to interpret him that way but viewing his "crush" on Kairi as comphet is just as valid and has sound reasoning behind it.

[@predleysoom7672]

@@oliverbluebug you realize that a teenager is a child right? really fucking weird thing for you to say tbh. Also, i opened up my comment praising the video for the effort and passion, and literally just gave the lightest criticism possible. I never said you can't interpret a fictional character as strictly gay, or any sexuality whatsoever. I said that your views on comphet are ironic seeing as you are doing the exact same thing in reverse. there is a trend of gay fandoms manufacturing gay relationships, often between young boys, that i find weird. It's usually in anime or japanese video games, and is heavily influenced by the fact that boys in japan are not typically portrayed as being extremely forward or vocal about love and relationships. Aside from the weird "teenager" comment and your passive aggressiveness towards people that took the time to watch, and click like on your niche 1 hour long video essay, I still enjoyed it!

[@predleysoom7672]

@@CampingforCool41 Well, it is though. Canonically, Sora likes Kairi. You can't just ignore that because you may want him to be gay. You can make the claim that Sora likes Riku, while still maintaining the vision between Sora and Kairi that Square has always had for the series. In which case, he would be bi which i think is a pretty reasonable claim. If you are specifically searching for gay relationships in fiction to relate to or be a fan of, then yes you can go to any series with a 14 year old boy as the protagonist and analyze microinteractions with his friends/love interest (especially in Japanese media), and easily interpret that character as gay. This is why i said that this thought process is essentially the inverse of comphet.

[@mattrocde]

Here's my hot take - men have gotten so bad at writing women in adventure narratives we're circling back around to inadvertently making the main character seem like he's gay with his best friend. Just cause Kairi is boring and the narrative is allergic to writing interesting things for her to do with Sora doesn't mean Sora and Riku are gonna bone. And to be clear I do think it's fair to say Sora and Riku are more close and in touch with each other as friends than Sora & Kairi are as lovers, but that doesn't necessitate Sora and Riku being sexually intimate with one another. Not to be too critical, but it brings to mind the quote "Those who cannot conceive Friendship as a substantive love but only as a disguise or elaboration of Eros betray the fact that they have never had a Friend". Edit since I thought of this after writing - this popped up randomly into my recommended, so people aren't actually seeking this out. You just hit the algorithm, somehow.

[@CampingforCool41]

Wow you are so original queer people talking about their queer readings of fictional characters have definitely never had that CS Lewis quote thrown at them wow it must be true that they’ve never had a friend!

[@simplyhenry99]

​@@CampingforCool41yea! Its totally not something we heard multiple times now and we are beyond sick of it as a way to dismiss queer people interpreting characters are queer. You aren't anything new for us.

[@mattrocde]

@@CampingforCool41 Man, I'm not saying you guys haven't had friends, chill out - but it sure is strange trying to so aggressively assert a character as queer and homosexually attracted to his best friend? I think it's fair to call that out as a bit weird since there's a big issue today of men not being able to be close to one another without being labelled as gay. Interpretting/relating to queerness is fine! I'm fine with it! I'm sorry if I touched a nerve, but I think it'd be better if we just talk about the point of the quote in our context that men can be close, great friends without needing to be gay?

[@oliverbluebug]

It’s kind of weird to make this about sex when they’re both minors 🙄 also I didn’t claim they were together. They getting together in the future tho quote me on this

[@mattrocde]

@@simplyhenry99 Not trying to be new, but maybe we can try something new in talking about the point of contention instead of taking a quote too hard? I apologize if someone called you all friendless with that quote, but surely you realize I'm not intending to be insulting? It's not meant personally, it's about the fact that "reading" a character who is explicitly *not* queer in canon as queer seems a stretch to many people, especially when it involves shipping him with his best friend who many might relate to. I'm glad you guys might be able to relate to it in your own ways, but don't be surprised if some people see it as a bit weird since it's about characters who are predominantly underage

[@sammerscrescent7925]

No means for offense, but this whole vibe of Sora moving away from Kairi and being attached more to Riku really threw me off. I used to love KH because Kairi was Sora's light and hope. KH2 stepped up Kairi's character for giving her motivation to fight, even if it was short. But then KH3 came around and the dynamic shifted to Sora needing Riku more. It cost Kairi her proper character development and gave her the worst arc and imagery. Now she's a shell of her former glory because of the new dynamic. She's been completely pushed off. And I really hate KH for that. It's just not for me.

[@oras7745]

I can totally understand that you feel that way. It must be hard when you care about something and then it just isn't there anymore. Maybe it helps to see it like this(?): Sora and Riku drifted apart from Kairi, mostly because of circumstances. Kairi's character up to this point has been solely defined by her feelings for Sora and her friendship with the boys. The way I see it, the fact that she now has to deal with the reality that they're probably not going to be as close as they used to be will make Kairi go through her own character arc. One where she learns to accept change and that although life took them in different directions, they will never stop caring about each other. She will spent more time with Aqua, Terra and Ven and she will find her own way and her own purpose, one that is for her alone and isn't tied to Sora or Riku. I also personally think there is a high chance Kairi is going to play a role similar to KH2 where she will be a beacon to bring the boys home as soon as business in Quadratum is done. This will show what I was talking about before: that they're still friends and important to each other, even though things may be different. There is no doubt in my mind that Sora and Riku will come home different people. And Kairi will be different as well. Granted, most of this about Kairi's possible arc and role in the future is highly speculative. But I think there is a good chance that now Kairi is away from the boys, but with a goal, chances are high she is going to have at least a few moments of character development. I really think Kairi is supposed to be more than just the girl who likes Sora. And I get that you probably didn't see Kairi as I described her, but maybe this gave you a new perspective on some things? Anyway, you don't have to agree with me of course.

[@Aveance94]

As an outsider looking in I'm having a hard time seeing this as anything but two extremely over socialized people projecting themselves on art they enjoy. Which is fine that's what it's there for. But as far as rhetoric goes it's pretty shaky at best and volatile at worst.

[@prisonBob]

yeah this video is whack lol

[@oliverbluebug]

You claim that in terms of rhetoric it’s shaky at best and volatile at worst. If you have examples I would like to hear them. If it’s good faith criticism I would like to hear it, it’s our first video essay after all. I do want to ask what “extremely over socialized” means exactly? Like is it a bad thing to be socialized?

[@Aveance94]

@@oliverbluebug So as for rhetoric the main issue is there is a simpler and more holistic interpretation of KH that doesn't involve shoehorning personal experience to justify it. Such as "this is the gayest hippie I've ever seeen" without any explanation besides "even sora was weirded out" in terms of axel or conflating platonic and romantic love for the sake of being on the lgbtq spectrum. As for being over socialized its just as detrimental to a person as being under socialized. Think of it like a Goldilocks zone. When you're over socialized you've become so ingrained in a social structure that you've lost the ability to perceive the world without it. It can lead to many of the same behaviors you see in under socialized people the biggest of which is how obvious something isn't "normal" to normies and how it can make it difficult to function outside of the social structure thats over socialized you. My advise is to come back and revisit this topic if its something you feel strongly about and cut away as many of your opinions as possible to try and get to the root of why you think the way you do about this subject. It would make a much easier to digest topic. Also as an outsider I don't know what half the stuff you assumed I'd know at the onset of this besides the kh lore. For whatever reason a normie like me got this recommended to me and I enjoy getting to know other people perspectives on stuff I too enjoy. Maybe next time add a normie clause with supplementary info like how you gave a nod to the video about sora and riku.

[@oliverbluebug]

@@Aveance94 well the examples you gave are jokes. The thing about Axel wasn’t meant to be strong rhetoric bc it was just a joke I made to break up the analysis. The video isn’t about him and I don’t actually believe he smokes pot and is a hippie. That’s why I didn’t provide proof. Bc it’s not true. Is there any other examples that aren’t just jokes?

[@hydrategea]

@@Aveance94 if the largest rhetorical fallacy you can point out is a joke about axel looking high i'm pretty impressed with our script. and i think the "normie" clause came when i literally said i'm assuming the viewer has a grasp on queer theory. the ability to find queer themes in a piece of media doesn't make me unable to see outside my sphere, but i'd say your inability to take our insight seriously based on the fact it's it's backed up by personal experience points to you maybe needing to step out of your own

[@xanatous]

reaching

[@oliverbluebug]

That’s actually crazy. In a single word you have communicated to me that you didn’t actually understand any of kingdom hearts, you didn’t come here in good faith, you seek out content that you disagree with, you’re deeply insecure about people having conflicting opinions to you, and youre deeply miserable and take it out on others. I think you might be a genius or something. I’m impressed.

[@prisonBob]

dang chill nerd. people can disagree with you and that is okay.

[@BrandonNinja]

I'm sorry some fans give you backlash. However, Sora clearly likes Kairi especially in KH3. They both share a paopu fruit together which is a symbol of love. It doesn't feel force since this was established in the very first game.

[@parryagent1667]

They do talk about the paopu scene in 1:02:06. And I think with the extra context that 1. As stated in the video, Sora only accepts the paopu when Kairi explicitly states that it isn't meant to be romantic, and 2. That Nomura wasn't even sure if he wanted to put the paopu scene in kh3 at all

[@Fragmentsinfractals488]

A thing to consider. Sora and Riku share one paopou as the Combined Keyblade. You know, Two Keyblades which come from the Heart, Combine, and have One Paopou on the End. Plus the Heart and Crown and the Rainbows..... And that happens Two times before Sora and Kairi share two paopou that Star Cross, symbolically hinting that Sora and Kairi are Fated to never be a thing.

[@oras7745]

Thank you for not being a scumbag, like so many others. Fr it's highly appreciated. And yeah, Sora likes Kairi. He cares about her, because she is one of his oldest friends. However, apart from things others have said 1) Sora's japanese VA himself felt the need to mention in an interview that he doesn't think sharing the fruit necessarily means they are in love. 2) the scene where they share the fruit is a rabbit hole in itself. It starts with Sora wondering about Riku and he can't pull his eyes from him until Kairi literally shoves the papout fruit in his face. He hesitates and looks super uncomfortable and even a bit sad (if you look closely you can even see Sora's eyes wandering off to the side where Riku sits, to the fruit and then to Kairi) until Kairi says it's a "good luck charm in hopes they won't be separated", which happened anyway... twice. It's a sweet scene meant to wrap up their dynamic, but not a declaration of love. 3) there is also the fact that Sora himself said he doesn't understand much about love, which is reinforced in the Character Files which came out shortly after ReMind. Not that you can't interprete Sora ans Kairi's relationship as romantic of you want, but at this point I don't think them being a couple is the intended engame.

[@oras7745]

​@@Fragmentsinfractals488contrary to Sora and Riku who have been portrayed as two shooting stars flying together in the sky at least two times before KH3.

[@Quintessence4444]

Nah they just show more of Riku than Kairi because of the target audience. Lea and Isa however..

[@oliverbluebug]

Lea and Isa are. A soriku parallel. 🧍

[@CampingforCool41]

??? Lea and Isa are brick in your face soriku parallels lol

[@Fragmentsinfractals488]

Saix- " I was Jealous.." Riku: " I wanted to live my life the way you do" "Truth is, Sora, I was Jealous of you", Gee...

[@celineosthaus8032]

It is truly curious how this fandom only accepts mlm ships as valid if there is no alternative mlw ship. Getting tired of these double standards.

[@celineosthaus8032]

@@oliverbluebug You misunderstood me. I'm saying that it is weird how Leaisa seems to be more accepted as a gay ship than Soriku because there is no mlw rival ship. I myself ship Soriku. I just think it's curious that some people can see Leaisa but not Soriku, especially because they do parallel each other.