The ULTIMATE Kingdom Hearts Character Tier List

It's time to settle this once and for all. Which original Kingdom Hearts characters are the light in the darkness, and which are the forgotten Nobodies?
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#KingdomHearts #TierList

[@NicoB]

Hayner Kick S++++ Tier

[@krsynx]

I'll give it a 69th like. Nice.

[@ljeans531]

This is actually a good tier list.

[@TheRoosterBucket]

Man, can’t wait for kingdom hearts 3.9 to come out in 14 years!

[@alexande_r_3951]

Could you do a tier list videos about the games??

[@knightofanguish7399]

SHOW ME ANGUISH NICOB

[@Dan-ww5kb]

Nico, talking about why Riku is S Tier: “He makes Darkness as his bitch.” *W H E E Z E* I died when I heard that

[@KeniaPieces]

Yup, that's true

[@knightofanguish7399]

SHOW ME ANGUISH

[@Vaedyx]

The fact that Riku had the best redemption arc based on a full circle regarding the darkness makes it so much funnier cuz it’s thoroughly true 😂

[@NintendoSegaGuys]

Wanna hear something neat? In the KH manga Larxene can be seen reading a book called Marquis de Sade a real book which the word sadism is coined from so Nico is right about Larxene fans. I saw it in a iceberg video.

[@yukithebunny3838]

0:35 Dark Road Cast 0:50 Terra 2:10 Eraqus 3:21 Vanitas 5:34 Xigbar/Braig 7:29 Xaldin/Dilan 9:30 Vexen/Even 11:08 Lexaeus/Aeleus 11:57 Zexion/Ienzo 13:23 Saix/Isa 15:42 Axel/Lea 18:07 Sora 21:04 Demyx 22:25 Luxord 24:50 Marluxia/Lauriam 26:24 Larxene/Elrena 29:23 Ansem 32:35 Mansex...I mean, Xemnas XD 37:08 Young Xehanort 39:16 Old Xehanort 42:43 Ansem the Wise 44:35 Hayner 46:46 Riku 50:16 Olette 50:43 Pence 51:04 Master Of Masters 53:22 The Foretellers 55:41 Ephemer 58:26 Skuld 1:00:48 Kairi 1:04:21 Strelitzia 1:05:45 Brain 1:06:56 Chirithy 1:09:01 Roxas 1:13:22 Namine 1:15:28 Xion 1:16:12 Repliku 1:17:47 Aqua 1:18:47 Ventus (Call me Ven) 1:20:07 Yozora

[@sadcatgirlx]

thank u!!

[@gamestop15]

Perfect

[@dannythekhexpert6468]

Larxene should’ve been higher, she’s the only character in this whole whimsical sparkly Disney-saturated series who is written so sadistically twisted that it’s makes for such a fun character to hate lol Not to mention the massive personality discrepancy between herself and that of Elrena’s, I’m dying for an explanation to that and overall it makes her and Marluxia really intriguing and mysterious characters lol

[@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE]

I have a theory that she was trapped by Malicifent for years. In the Union Cross finale, we see Elrena show up at the mountain leading to Malicifent’s castle. It’s possible Malicifent did something to her to cause her to become so bitter. Though that’s just a theory of mine. 🤔

[@runningoncylinders3829]

I thought her name was Arlene before I saw this.

[@killertoadstools]

@@runningoncylinders3829 No, Union Cross confirmed her somebody is called 'Elrena'.

[@ericlegacy8834]

Funnily enough, makes me think of how Young Xehanort and the Chess Xehanort were drastically different. But Larxene is the female version of that. Really strange and I kind of hope there's some sort of explanation for her changing like that.

[@kumakibbs]

I agreeeee, Larxene is such a fun character. I also I thought it was something like Nobodies can possibly have a change their personalities compared to their somebody...even if it is a slight change.

[@MadMasterPorkey]

The sheer difference of personality between Larxene and Elrena... You could say that it was quite _shocking_

[@CHEESEPUFF_7]

Pfffft

[@himemiuu]

you had me at "what's there to say about roxas, MY SON" definitely (and easily) best boi in the entire franchise for me 🥲💖

[@user-gu4zg5uz3r]

pleased to see someone rank characters based on their actual personalities, charisma, and how much of an interesting/in-depth force they are in the story instead of going down the lane of '[character] defeated strong enemy character 3000 times and they were badass so they are best' argument. and while i've come to appreciate sora a lot more recently, i do agree that the current state of him is more of a good protagonist than a good character. i still hope sora gets developed with proper conflict in the upcoming games, he always had potential of becoming an incredibly interesting character and i'd like to see KH address more on his personal problems that we've only caught a glimpse of in kh3.

[@silversauceran]

in my opinion, there aren't many well written, charismatic, interesting personalities in kingdom hearts at all, fun voice acting and show boating aside, so it's interesting that sora is being singled out here, probably because of main character fatigue syndrome. in fact, i would argue the exact opposite, that sora is actually one of the few characters who has a compelling and dynamic perspective to explore, given the extent of all of his adventures and how they have affected him, yet the kingdom hearts plot actually does sora a disservice by focusing on trying to develop everyone but him. case in point: roxas, who is essentially another side of sora, yet the story retcon takes the easy route separating them rather than allowing any kind of meaningful integration, simply because they have different faces. sora is easily both a good protagonist and a good character, as someone who is hopeful, moral, kind, determined, yet less than perfect, and extremely relatable. however, i agree that the sky (ha) is the limit for his character, and hope to see the upcoming stories reflect that.

[@foreverfuturebound]

@@silversauceran i agree. sora's actually been my favorite since i was really little. i love how kind he is, and how he always wants others to be happy :)

[@cmiller0987]

@@silversauceran Glad I'm not the only one. All the other characters in this series seem to get all the good writing, personality and development while Sora just doesn't seem to. I've noticed this in other media as well and I hope that in the upcoming games that changes

[@hilotakenaka]

I feel like Zexion’s major amount of attention in KH3 makes me think the writers plan on (hopefully) utilising him more in future games That way, our baby boy can be done justice

[@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE]

Considering Marluxia and Saix are getting more attention it’s extremely plausible. Not to mention they did bring up how he was an orphan back in BBS

[@hilotakenaka]

@@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE Considering that the writers like the trend of making new Keyblade wielders, I wouldn't be surprised if Ienzo's dad looked similar to him but with a goatee and wielded a keyblade that looked similar to his book weapon.

[@GeminiWolfstarGaming]

@@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE You know, ever since we learned Ienzo was an orphan, I've always wondered who his parents were. Even though KH hasn't gone into any real familial territory, I can't help but wonder if his parents were important at some point, like someone from the more immediate past prior to BbS. Also Ienzo, as well as all the other Org. members, their backstories aren't fully fleshed out. I'd love to get into more of a deep dive into each character's backstory. A lot of pieces are still missing... much like Marluxia and Larxene's memories of their true selves, as if someone had tampered with their memories, altered them. Axel may have told Roxas and Xion that everyone else remembers their true selves, but we now know that's not entirely true. Either he wasn't in on the memory tampering, or he just wasn't told about it. I can totally see Xemnas forcing his hand into getting Lauriam and Elrena's memories altered for them to join his side.

[@kurimiaisukurimu]

I've never understood this notion that Xion doesn't have any character besides just being a tearjerker. I'd argue that her whole development and arc are the most complete besides Roxas, Riku, and Terra. Plus, with her sass and banter with Roxas and Axel and also her temper, I'd say she has more personality than any of the female main characters.

[@CHEESEPUFF_7]

EXACTLY

[@hunterhoffman9980]

i’d say she truly is my favorite character

[@InudogReturns]

Couldn’t have said it better myself!

[@DLxxx]

@CreamyIceCreamBoi Ok, I agree with you about her story in Days, but what part of her "conclusion" in KH3 was more satisfying than any other main character? I'd argue she was one of the ones that got brushed off the WORST, after being brought back through incredibly contrived and utilitarian means, with no acknowledgement of the sacrifices she's made or what she was able to achieve despite living in a world that didn't seem to have enough space for her. She BARELY got to talk to Roxas and Axel, let alone reconcile their past falling out. Got no real resolution with Siax or Xemnas (not ever discovering the former's efforts to save her, and the latter only viewing her as a "useless puppet" right till the very end, spitting in the face of everything she's worked to prove), and her general lack of contribution, action, and screentime in the end of KH3 failed to narratively justify her return in the eyes of many people. I dunno.. I just don't see what there is to praise about her appearance in KH3. It's wasteful and lazy at worst, and barely serviceable at BEST. Of course, none of that is the fault of Xion herself, so I can thankfully compartmentalize and not let that influence my perception of the character in the story regardless. Even with her lackluster return though, she's definitely above C tier at least, for sure.

[@Blarglesnarfe]

Larxene’s voice, design, and scenes are great. Seriously, rewatch CoM. She KILLS every line. She personally prods and pisses off Sora everytime she appears, drawing out his worst. Also, she has consistently rad boss fights with her clones and speed. She’s so much fun to hate.

[@umpteenthreason9627]

As someone who just can’t get into KH… I enjoyed this video, simply because of how much Nico’s enthusiasm for the series shines in it. I feel like a grandma listening to her grandson gush about his favorite Ani-may. I don’t get a word of what he’s saying, but it fills me with joy to see him be so passionate. Even if I can only respond with “That’s so nice, dear!”

[@somegal934]

1:11:45 Nico getting mad at himself talking over the scene killed me

[@harvestcheddar0]

I would say Namine actually serves a lot to the story and I love her development. She is the one who went through hoops to tell Sora about everyone’s suffering so they end up being saved. She overcome her own selfish wishes to not be alone and ended up being selfless by putting everyone else’s suffering above her own. She connected with and cared about Roxas so much she wanted him to understand himself and believed returning to Sora was better than fading away, even before she knew him. So in that sense, it’s her own development that moves the plot along which is generally how good characters are written. Though, she does need more going forward. Also, I have a theory she’s linked to Ava or something (those pods she uses for memory totally look like dandelions and her curtains have symbols from Scala on them) but that’s neither here nor there.

[@peachiebunnies]

When Nico went over what kind of people Larxene stans are I felt personally called out 😭😭

[@ninjaydes]

I saw your comment before Nico got to Larxene, and I still wasn't prepared for the roast.

[@kumakibbs]

bro i felt it

[@deltaphazon4688]

I'd argue manga Olette is better than Game Olette because Manga Olette threatens to bash Axel's head in with a nail bat which automatically bumps her up a tier or two for me.

[@bouclechocolat]

Who knew olette was so based

[@DreamyDiamond]

it seems the manga is just better at writing the girls. I'll have to check it out lmao

[@celineosthaus8032]

The manga isn't canon. Unlike the novels, who are third-tier canon.

[@joenoeb.forenscimus761]

Xion being lower than Kairi kills my Heart. But Roxas and Axel being S tier revives it.

[@emilianoizanagi2245]

I mean let’s be honest she ironically didn’t need to exist.

[@Dreq458]

@@emilianoizanagi2245 and, both fittingly and paradoxically, that's the point. she was created because xemnas didn't expect sora to yield a nobody. her identity is based on memories belonging to someone else. she's the 3rd member of a trio of nobodies who never should've existed and were destined to die in the first place. what xion proved, however, is that "purpose" and "right to exist" are all dependent on how others see you and how you see yourself. it's subjective. sora wanted roxas to be his own person because both he and roxas saw him as his own person. roxas and axel wanted xion to live because both they and her saw her as her own person. however, axel didn't return as his own person because axel himself thought he was the same guy more or less. he stated that to roxas and xion so they just ran with it. xion's appearance to other people changes based on how said people see her. and her value changes along with it. saïx saw her as just a hooded puppet and treated her as such. xemnas saw her as sora because her purpose to him was to keep sora in a coma and use her as a sora replacement (and that carried to kh3). roxas and axel- you get the point. whose perspective is correct? who's wrong? there is no objective answer because the value we place on people and things is up to interpretation. being artificial doesn't matter. if freaking toys, a wooden puppet, and data people can become their own hearts, then so can a replica who has made an impact on the people around her and who strives to be her own person.

[@AigisVibes720]

It’s crazy, because I think the sea salt trio are all S tier, at least for me. Compared to the other trio’s I think most would agree.

[@duhneez2068]

i love xion too. but don’t be sad, it’s just that nico has forgotten who she was like 10x thru/o the series😔

[@SRFAA]

@@AigisVibes720 Xion is good, but she's not S-tier good lol. She's definitely the weakest link in the trio.

[@Streek471]

I disagree with how low Sora is, but I respect the reasoning. I think he does strike the best balance between Disney and Square out of everyone in the cast though, and I love that about him.

[@onlyacomentarynothingspeci2419]

The more the moments hit were he looses his composure that screaming moment in KH3 gave me goosebumps and I got so pumped up when Sora killed the organization Members left and right

[@DecadeNeo21]

He's like a mix of Mickey,Zack,and Tidus.

[@Rodolphin]

I personally think DDD and KH3 lowered his rank. KH1 and 2 Sora is definitely A rank because he actually showed growth. DDD and KH3 took a half step back with Sora personality of being too innocent.

[@rotciv557]

Lexeaus DID get that scene in Days where he punches Roxas, that was pretty funny.

[@DreamyDiamond]

"There. Now you're on your last leg."

[@unknowngirl2714]

Man, I remember when Nico first started playing KH. I never would've thought he'd enjoy this series that much. Seeing him geek out over all those characters warms my heart in a weird way :D

[@coreDesignix]

Nico: Demyx is kind of annoying Me: you dont have all the facts Anyone paying attention to me: which are? Me: i love him 🥺

[@zachtemoro2116]

To be fair to Terra, Xehanort despite being an obvious bad guy in BBS, Eraqus trusts Xehanort A LOT and he’s still a Keyblade Master. Plus if you watch Terra’s interactions with Xehanort, he doesn’t even necessarily tell Terra that Darkness is the best and that light sucks, he cleverly manipulates Terra by actually using KH logic that everyone knows: Darkness can’t be destroyed, there needs to be a proper balance, you have to channel it. Hell, Maleficent makes Terra steal Aurora’s heart because Terra doesn’t have control over his Darkness. After learning that Eraqus didn’t trust him, his own friend who he grew up with was made to spy on him, and that Xehanort who has control over his own Darkness is seemingly trying to help Terra control his own Darkness, of course Terra would be willing to believe Xehanort when he’s in a vulnerable state. TL;DR Terra shouldn’t be blamed for Eraqus’ failings. Tells Terra to fear and control his darkness without actually teaching him how, and the one person who trys to actively help Terra (Xehanort) is heavily trusted by Eraqus. Terra only acts the way he does in BBS because Eraqus sucks

[@sure-peaks3442]

it's incredibly confusing when there's no tierlist in the background showing where everyone is and it's just Nico talking

[@misterfevillord1588]

I hate larxene, but i like hating her. She is a cool antagonist that plays the role of being hate-deserving.

[@OuchieOuch0130]

Nico, you have to read the dang MANGA, you will love Xion and Roxas so much more.

[@Rosa-kd2cl]

And he already loves Roxas enough to call him his son. He’s going to need to create a SSS tier lol.

[@tejasgokhale7783]

I love the manga for Days. It gives so much more characterization to the organization members and honestly makes them that much more interesting than their game counterparts

[@dungeonmaster3464]

I wish I could disagree about the Foretellers, but I can't because objectively they haven't done anything to deserve a higher placement. I like all their personalities, they're perfectly serviceable characters, but the plot barely treats them like people. They're are a living inciting incident. It was nice to see them interact in the movie, they had a compelling family dynamic. But individually they were the 5 warlords who tore the world apart, that was their role (pardon the pun). I really hope that they get more development in the future. They're definitely being built up to be the next antagonist group, but I don't want them to get the Organization XIII treatment where most of them were bowling pins to be knocked down.

[@crazybagel9979]

We got tier list for Danganronpa and Kingdom Hearts, now the next one is gonna be Ace Attorney after TGAA2 ends

[@michaelcarlton1484]

He still has to play the Vs. crossover with Professor Layton in my opinion.

[@thelightningpython7444]

Hopefully you'll do a Persona character tier list around the 25th anniversary.

[@VincentEternal]

I hope he plays 1,2, and eternal punishment.

[@VincentEternal]

@@leithazizpagy4699 well 1 is very important to the 2 duology story and I think its aged well enough and has a good story that it’s worth playing at least once.

[@SkyflyNB]

@@VincentEternal it'd be really cool if he played 2

[@rirururu4697]

Roxas and Riku at the top. Sounds good.

[@KeniaPieces]

I'm just going to say this once. Riku will be my forever S tier Plus, (in my opinion), he's a husbando material and my first crush since he first appeared in KH series

[@duhneez2068]

hot long hair riku will always live on in our hearts

[@KeniaPieces]

@@duhneez2068 I agree

[@wat5058]

A lot of what makes or breaks Aizen as a villain that's "a step ahead of everyone else" is that he oozes charisma when he's in the spotlight. By comparison, Old Xehanort kind of just feels like...the bad guy.

[@shawnjavery]

For me it was always the sheer absurdities of his actions that made it work. In that sense Xehanort also works, though I do prefer his other incarnations to master Xehanort, mainly because they have more charisma.

[@alja4991]

THANK YOU FOR THE WAY YOU TALKED ABOUT KAIRI. I'm sick of people dragging her for how dirty she's being treated by Nomura. She's amazing and I hope she will finally be allowed to show it 🥺

[@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE]

Honestly I feel like people hate Terra way too much. Most of the bs that happened in BBS was mainly Eraqus’s fault for being a Light Nazi. For crying out loud, Xehanort was RIGHT. So I don’t think it was illogical for Terra to trust him. #TerraDidNothingWrong Also F*CK ERAQUS

[@dungeonmaster3464]

BBS unfortunately had some clumsy writing. Xehanort was right about what he said about Eraqus, but he also so obviously villainous Eraqus to manipulate Terra. I don't think the writers put enough emphasis on Eraqus's "blinded by the light" dynamic, because we only get a chance to see it at the beginning and at the end. Personally, I don't dislike Terra. Eraqus failed him for matters his control, and Xehanort encouraged him when Eraqus put him down for not developing exactly as he wanted. Terra probably felt like he wasted his time and effort after he failed the exam, and that made him easy to manipulate.

[@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE]

@@dungeonmaster3464 I don’t think Xehanort obviously being the villain should be considered bad writing. Besides, I felt they make it pretty obvious Eraqus isn’t the perfect father figure that he was originally made out to be. Him trying to kill Ven is a perfect example of that

[@RayeedW]

I would put kh2 Sora in A or S. It felt like he had the most character there. He was cocky, badass, and showed a lot of emotion throughout the game.

[@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE]

Really?? KH2 Sora had his moments but I personally thought he was the weakest. I’d personally say KH3 & CoM Sora is peak since I felt he got pushed over his limits the most in those games.

[@RayeedW]

@@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE damn weaker than DDD? I felt like he was very charismatic in 2 while also being serious whenever he needed to be. The portrayal of his emotions and voice acting was done very well by Haley imo. It really felt like he got older from kh1 and com. Seeing him struggle in hollow bastion with the weight of being a keyblade wielder was a great moment to me. I feel like kh3 Sora had some of that ddd shit where they made him overly goofy left over and they made it seem like he was completely useless without his friends. His friends are his power but we’ve seen how strong he is on his own. As for Com Sora, funnily enough I don’t remember too much about him. I just remember him being nice to Namine and being confused.

[@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE]

@@RayeedW I mean, Sora has always been goofy. That’s a big part of his charm. At least in my eyes. My problem with KH2 Sora is that they really didn’t do a whole lot of interesting things with him. His story was basically just to find Riku & Kairi. And I personally felt they didn’t handle that nearly as well as they did in KH1. That being said, he still had good moments. Like when he was all giddy about meeting Santa in Holloween Town & that talk Riku after defeating Xemnas. Those are easily his best moments in 2 IMO

[@RayeedW]

@@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE Yeah I’m completely fine with him being goofy sometimes but when they really exaggerate that characteristic is when I personally don’t like it. To each their own though.

[@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE]

@@RayeedW that’s fine agree to disagree

[@thelunadiviner7367]

You better buy my t-shirts Nico...or feel the wrath of the Moon’s Divine Judgement!

[@fallenangelmaxthemad9]

I agree to the opinion on the kh2 prologue. I fucking love the prologue and I honestly wish they'd remake 358/2 days instead of reducing it to a cutscene collection

[@rubysu9265]

Xion will always be S tier in my heart 🥰 I know that Roxas is probably the best character in the series but Xion's always been my favourite, I loved 358/2 Days & I hope she gets more love from later games 💝

[@AigisVibes720]

Both Roxas and Xion are S tier for me, best girl and best boy. I wanna see more of them in future games too.

[@nnightkingj]

Just realized you could make a pretty decent kingdom hearts fighting game with plenty of unique characters

[@misterfevillord1588]

Ff dissidia was originally planned as a kh game, but Disney didn't want to show Donald and mickey in a fighting game, so they used ff characters instead

[@sofaris576]

@@misterfevillord1588 I am kinda glad that happen. That way I got to know and love Shantotto.

[@misterfevillord1588]

@@sofaris576 true, but fighting with xigbar or luxord would have been so cool! Or Donald duck!

[@Redxan600]

@@misterfevillord1588 Just wanna correct you on something. It wasn't Disney who denied the idea. It was Tetsuya Nomura himself. I believe he said it in the 358/2 Days ultimania? Though, I could be wrong.

[@edgeofultima7483]

Well, someone did make a really good mod for Dissidia that replaces most of the characters music and locations with Kingdom Hearts characters music locations. The movesets actually lineup really well especially Riku over squall. I wish I could have also replace the voices but they just turn them off

[@Flipface4]

My first KH game was 358 days/2 and god... Imagine *that* being your intro into the game. My friend had 2 and had no clue about Roxas while I was having my heart torn apart. I was young at the time, I can't remember how old I was, but I know I was in middle school at least. Not gonna lie, I had a crush on Xion at the time and uh, that ending really got me. Roxas' whole story is probably the most heart wrenching thing in the series. (BBS is a close second, like, extremely close second) I actually wonder if Nico has seen the Man on the Internet Roxas theme with lyrics video...

[@TheFunchip]

My first KH game was also KH 358/2 days, my cousin knew the plot of KH CoM and we were utterly confused when we talked about the good and bad guys in the story.

[@Gwen1661]

Just the other day I was thinking about the organization members and how both their weapons and their elements/powers compliment their personalities and boss battles and it really shows how much characterization you can give to someone with these things alone.

[@vilmublues752]

I mean, Lexaeus also had a close relationship and was protective of Zexion, which is a little sweet when you remember Zexion is like a kid compared to him.

[@squidneyyg]

yea 🥺🥺🥺 that’s his lil brother

[@kaialone]

At least Xaldin had that cool moment where he threatened Axel with his spear and cut off some of his hair everyone thought that was the coolest shit when I was in high school

[@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE]

If only I saw it as a kid since that scene was final mix exclusive

[@kaialone]

@@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE We were all watching it in Japanese on youtube back in the day :^p

[@misterfevillord1588]

The Japanese voice actor passed away a little after kh2. So, like with Phil, they didn't give him a replacement out of respect to the VA. And such, his contributions to the plot were cut. But i have the feeling Nomura had bigger plans for him at the beginning. He is the member III of the organization and had a close relationship with xigbar. And he received a lot of new scenes in kh2fm. If only they gave replacements to voice actors

[@halnyx7488]

What is liable to shoot Luxord to a higher rank is the fact that he is probably the only one who has Luxu/Xiggy a little frazzled. For some reason he makes him nervous because he's "playing along" with Xigbar's schemes and implies that he's aware of something that he shouldn't.

[@TheDimensionDweller]

I'm on a Xigbar kick again, so it is absolutely fantastic to see him in that S tier! He's such a fun and intriguing character

[@halnyx7488]

I know Kingdom Hearts 3 had a lot of flaws, and compared it the earlier installments it fell a bit below the expectations of fans, however that being said you really put some perspective in terms of the story element. This was a pretty fitting way to close the chapter on Xehanort and his incarnations, particularly Heartless Ansem, who has been a very strong presence to the very end. And even in his final moments he manages to give a resounding impression that leaves his mark in the series.

[@albertsetiawanie5808]

18:07 (NicoB rating Sora’s Tier List) 1:09:02 (NicoB rating Roxas’s Tier List)

[@optidalfprime3904]

Damn, young Xehanort is my fav Xehanort. Ignoring what happens in dark road, he's the guy that learned of his future. He thinks highly of himself like "Yeah, I'm so cool, I'm gonna plan everything and make this grand plan to fuck everyone over" without knowing how much work and patience it actually takes to execute it all. That's why he insults Sora all the time and even more once Sora sends him back to the past, and is all smug once he found out how Sora would end. How dare a no-name like Sora get in his way of realizing his destiny? Sora vanishing serves him right, nerd! That's why Master Xehanort is still a douche but doesn't go around calling smack on everybody. He has patience and actually did everything to get to this point. Also, why is Olette so low? and I'm gonna ignore the positioning of Larxene entirely.

[@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE]

Also Ben Diskin is amazing voicing him

[@Zodia195]

You know the great thing about Ventus is, WE'RE NOT DONE WITH HIS STORY YET! Because we now have to deal with things Union Cross related and he was connected with that too! I really want to see him reunite with Lauriam and Elrena in future games, I really do. As far as ranking goes, I would do Luxord #1 (I like his personality type too much and he's more mysterious then Luxu, heck we still don't know his 'keyblade legacy' yet), Luxu #2, and then Roxas #3. One thing that Nico didn't mention was Luxu's behavior in Union Cross, he comes off as more 'noble', so I imagine the MoM telling him those things in the Union Cross finale did fuck him up just a bit. I know I'd be devastated.

[@dontedoestuff]

I can’t get over Riku Replica in D. I think the fact that he’s a “copy” of another character but he has an entirely different yet still satisfying arc makes him interesting by default.

[@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE]

Exactly! That’s what makes him so tragic

[@Jaxv3r]

Yeah I can give him at least mid C or low C tier TBH

[@thewolface2339]

One hundred percent agree on the whole "copy" aspect. Mainly because, if Kid Icarus showed me anything it's that even if two characters are technically the same person they can still be vastly different in personality and the "copy" can still be just as interesting or more than the "original."

[@thenortcourtofjustice2138]

My biggest issue with KH3 was the fact that they didn’t give us a chance to see the Xehanorts interact. Even when they came out with the DLC, we were still denied. PLEASE JUST MAKE MY XEHANORT BARBECUE PARTY FANFICTION A REALITY DAMN

[@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE]

I can understand why we didn’t but I do agree a few scenes like that would have been nice

[@thenortcourtofjustice2138]

@@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE Ahhh. I see you too are on the side of JUSTICE. Tell me: what do you think of joining my top secret Ace Attorney Xehanort Crossover Harem

[@bouclechocolat]

Barbecue party 😂

[@DLxxx]

KH3 did a pretty lackluster job giving the true organization characters the catharsis and resolution many of them needed. Ansem had a nice speech, but absolutely nothing beyond that (aside from ruining Aqua's entire narrative). Xemnas constantly used and abused his subordinates, and rather than have him come to regret that naturally, he just suddenly states that he misses the original organization 13, and feels lonely right at the very end. This is made even more hard to swallow with Remind, where he CONTINUES to dismiss RAX as "useless pawns", and neither party gains a better understanding of the other. It was heavily implied at multiple points in Days that Xemnas held an unspoken respect and soft spot for Roxas, due to his resemblance of Ventus, yet this detail never gets any pay off. He also never acknowledged Xion's sacrifice (in fact, no one does, which is UNBELIEVABLE). Or the fact that she disproved his ideals and was able to exert her will over her own circumstances in 358. Siax gets no closure with either of them too. We're just supposed to believe Roxas knew about his involvement in his return, as well as Ansem the Wise's involvement, even though he couldn’t have possibly known ANY of these things (no one in the main cast even knew Ansem the Wise was alive and active for the whole game). It's such a waste of the themes and ideas that could've been explored.

[@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE]

@@DLxxx Can’t agree with that. All of the organization members were given amazing conclusions IMO. And I honestly don’t think Saix’s story is done yet. The only one I’ll give you is Vanitas as I feel his story could have been explored more. However quick thing I should mention. The reason why no one mentions Xion’s sacrifice should be obvious. Everyone forgot who she was.

[@d_aye_d]

Fun fact: Eraqus is designed to look like Hironobu Sakaguchi, the father of Final Fantasy

[@sayospecter6731]

And just like how Yen Sid is Disney backwards, Eraqus is an anagram of Square, referring to the relationship of the two companies that own the franchise.

[@dirge-of-midgar2962]

As unbiased as he tried to be i really think Nico let how jaded he is from the years of boss fights sway him a bit lol

[@mr.selyumor5402]

This IS a videogame after all

[@readyeddy1631]

My main gripe of these original Kingdom Hearts characters is that we see them in the same outfits no matter what world. Imagine Organization 13 dressed based on the Final Fantasy classes they are based on. That would be so cool.

[@Dreq458]

YES 😁

[@KazumaKuzuryu4162]

My favourite villain of all time, Master Xehanort, in D, you wound me Nico. XO

[@jo-yenwong2882]

Man, this was great. I really miss hearing you talk at length about Kingdom Hearts, guess it's time to rewatch those LPs as we wait in agony for the next game then. Hopefully the 20th anniversary celebration gives us something substantial, other than Dark Road.

[@kittenmitten9430]

Nico it doesn't matter how hard you blur that thumbnail, I can still tell you put Roxas at the top

[@absoutezeo2126]

I sincerely hope someone clipped the part where Nico says "I _like_ Mansex."

[@rcrude8866]

Gee. Can't believe Nico didn't put Horace in the top tier, bad tier smh

[@loftwingheropon2743]

As punishment NicoB must play some Motherflippin FRUITBAALLLL for eternity.

[@Tsukikoiko]

I am glad Nico loves roxas as much as I do. I love this boi so muchhhhhh

[@ninjaydes]

So happy to finally hear what Nico thinks about these characters, especially Sora and Xehanort.

[@etprinceps9526]

LMAO I actually thought that Nico was serious about Hayner at first I was like "Did I miss a game?"

[@Noaomi]

This has made me realise that kingdom hearts has a real problem not just with kairi, but female characters in general who just don’t get enough given to them to be really cool characters. Like, apart from Aqua they all kinda feel really similar Edit: and Roxanne but she’s also not had great characterisation (plus she still feels similar in union x)

[@keybladeaprentice]

I mean Haley Joel Osment just sounds like he's having the time of his life when he's voicing Vanitas

[@demyx981]

I think with Vexen/Even, i do think it fell under a sense of "Doing it for the Vine" but the vine is his Science blog. Like he wanted to genuinely work under Xehanort/Xemnas at first because he was pushing the boundaries that Ansem the wise wouldn't. The problem is that when he came back as a nobody, he became a lot more of a "you gotta crank out what the organization needs" rather then an actual scientist, which is why I think he is usually resentful. That clip in KH2FM where he's looking for Mansex really shows how he almost has not patience for what the Organization is doing if it gets in his own path. When it comes to his return/becoming a nobody again, i think it was a sense of being more used and pushed off to the side that made him realize that he's not being used for his intellect or research, but just because he's the only one that can create something.

[@jackzx13]

To this day, i'm still confused to why a heart who is consumed to the darkness and lost it's body is called a heartless, and the body left behind is called a Nobody. Like, their name means the exact opposite of what they are. They describe each other instead.

[@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE]

Nah when a person is consumed by Darkness, their heart turns into the heartless. & The body that is left behind becomes the nobody as you said. I do agree it’s a bit weird that both describe the opposites tho lol. Though Tbf they both have the exact same attributes. Heartless don’t have hearts either just like nobodies.

[@Vic_Trip]

@@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE How does KH3 assert that all Org XIII members had hearts if they were nobodies? I didn't get that at all...

[@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE]

@@Vic_Trip All Dream Drop Distance revealed was that the organization members were able to grow their hearts back over time. So when they first became nobodies they still had no hearts. If you rewatch the cutscenes for 358 you can even see this in action through Roxas. At the beginning Roxas showed barley any emotions. However over the course of the game, he started acting more human as he hung out with Axel & Xion. That was when he grew a heart. They even compare this to Pinocchio in Pranksters Paradise and the Toys in Toy Box. If even an empty puppet is able to grow a heart, then so can nobodies too.

[@wingsreport9274]

My opinion on Elrena/Larxene is where she ended up at the end of Union X. Since she had no one with memories of her her mind was probably wiped. She woke up at the base of Maleficent's castle so Elrena might have been taken in by her and fell under her sadistic influence. Molded from a blank slate.

[@immagamer11]

I am always so overjoyed every time I see a NicoB Kingdom Hearts video, thank you so much!

[@shihoblade]

Terra absolutely dominates everyone in BBS beating both his master and Xehanort. Even after he gets tricked out of his body, he uses discarded armor pieces to gimp slap A creature with his own ridiculous powers and master Xehanorts powers/experience on top. Terra is unstoppable when it comes to pure combat. Remember when Terranort basically solos the whole good cast at the end? Yeah lingering Will beat that by itself.

[@TUCell-ps5mi]

Terra is basically what happens when a sheltered prodigy is thrown into the outside world with no real preparation whatsoever. He's a great character who is also flawed, a solid B-tier in my eyes and possibly more.

[@orochisan4989]

Also when aqua beat terra-xehanort terra was also helping and holding him back the absolute tank

[@DLxxx]

Strength alone doesn't make for an interesting character. That's just superficial. It's all about execution, narrative cohesion, emotional resonance, strong arcs that are well bookended, etc. So, I'm really inclined to ask (without being rude or dismissive): why would that matter? 😕

[@sarthakarora3212]

@@DLxxx because he's strength is exactly why he was targeted by villains. You can't just remove strength from the equation cause that affects peoples lifes fiction or not.

[@shihoblade]

@@DLxxx I misunderstood the goal of the video. Off top I thought it was a power tier list and Terra was the first one mentioned. Mid typing I realized I was mistaken but I still wanted to comment on how powerful he is, so I left it here so people can enjoy. But I do think his power adds a cool factor wortg considering that people often ignore.

[@hiroprotagonest]

I've only seen a playthrough of KH1 which is why this is the perfect video for me to watch.

[@AeroWraith901]

Roxas is so good, as an ally he can do the boss fight all by himself

[@DreamyDiamond]

I've met Paul St Peter irl at a panel. Less ripped Chad and more chill uncle Actually, to be a bit more critical on the girl characters here, they all suffer from Nice Girl Syndrome. I'll give the exception to Naminé and maybe Aqua, but even Kairi's development really dropped since 3.

[@desmondmalone438]

56:05 yeah I know OCs are meant to be our place in game but we prefer our characters to be able to have a conversation with other characters that isn’t just a sentences

[@edelysie]

I was devastated when you put Namine in D tier, she's just underutilized uwu i do think that's a common problem with the kh cast, a lot of them have a lot of potential and hints of interesting lore but they just haven't been developed enough :c

[@PhantomVizor777]

You did an excellent job explaining your placements for each of these characters. Well done Nico. :)

[@Catlady29]

I'm so glad about your Riku rank 🙏🏻

[@luffypilled]

I agree with most of this tierlist, but would probably move Ventus, Larxene, Marluxia, and Skuld all up because theyre so interesting to me. I dont really find myself that invested in Sora after KH3 and its actually the plot crumbs that KHUX left that are the most intriguing part of the series to me right now. Always makes me sad thinking about how KHUX has such a great and intriguing story that got stuck being stretched through years on a mobile game.

[@jajie-yl4hu]

Are you gonna do this for Ace Attorney when you finish GAA2?

[@ruleofoz2207]

I don't always agree with you when it comes to kingdom hearts, but that rant about kairi sums up how i feel perfectly. So much so I am doing a rewrite of the series where she's the deuteragonist and doesn't spend all of kh1 inside sora...'s heart. I am dispointed that Roxas didn't get his own Tier: "garbage character nobody cares about" Sponsored by IGN.

[@SadChatt]

Someone finally agreed with me about Aizen, I knew Nico’s taste is way too similar to mine

[@Jay-ch5xu]

Chirithy is for merch, and that makes it S tier. Buy it.

[@SoraZ2112]

I was waiting for Nico to say that Old Xehannort is the Junko Enoshima of Kingdom Hearts. NicoB even said some of the same things. All he needed was a fursona.🤣

[@BobbyTheGamerOfJUSTICE]

I honestly think it’s not fair to compare the 2 lol. Xehanort is a FAR better written character than Junko especially

[@13CrystalHeart]

Hey, Nico? Have you ever read the KH2 manga? Kairi's actually a bit more proactive there, like she attempt to fight Axel when he kidnaps her (by biting him), actually gets out of her cage at one point by mimicking a Dusk (tho Demyx guilts her into going back), and she draws blood on Xigbar by throwing her Keyblade at his face. She also stands up to Saix when he has his Berserkers physically threaten her. Amano Kairi > pre-ReMind Kairi, and I don't think she's really appeared in any notable capacity in the KH3 manga yet, but I hope she gets to show off her spunky side more there.

[@RenzXY]

This man did it with Danganronpa now he has done it with Kingdom Hears

[@scampboxx]

It's only a matter of time before he does an Ace Attorney tier list

[@thomasfairburn5254]

So we have had Danganronpa and Kingdom Hearts Tier lists. What's next Ace Attorney, 13 Sentinels, Zero Escape?

[@Liezuli]

To me, Namine was a really strong-willed character. Despite the crappy hand she was dealt she quickly started making her own choices and doing what she believed in, starting from betraying Marluxia to help Sora, to repeatedly disobeying DiZ to see Roxas. And then straight up infiltrating The Castle That Never Was to rescue Kairi. And then calling Lingering Will in KH3. Whenever she had a chance to make a difference she did. I hope she gets more screentime going forward.

[@Redxan600]

Mr. Nico's tier list is one of the most spiciest thing I have ever watched.

[@Yourhomeboy_evan]

@nicob you forgot the ACTUAL first time you met roxas. That secret cutscene in KH1?...so badass they gave away a boss fight as a way to say that new games were coming

[@Wolfbane382]

While I do agree with Nico's assessment about Eraqus and the fact Mark Hammel is a great voice actor in everything he does, he wasn't my pick for Chucky. To me, Brad Dourif will always be Chucky. And I'm not alone on that either.

[@SamLoser2]

Since DDD I have loved Young Xehanort as a villain. Now I am actually biased towards very evil and unrepentant villains, and so I found his calm and matter-of-fact evil much more threatening and entertaining than old Xehanort supper hammy and over-the-top way of speaking, but I have a lot of hope for Dark Road. Chess-playing Xehanort after time-traveling Xehanort in his personal timeline, and he was probably a lot like Riku, stuck on the islands without any feeling or purpose or meaning. I imagine he didn't have many people on the islands he connected with either, so when he met his future self, for the first time he felt like he had a purpose, a grand purpose (from his perspective), and having that knowledge without having any close companions on the the islands explains his behavior in DDD & KH3 at lot, at least for myself. Afterwards when playing chess with Eraqus he has forgotten all that, and so given the opportunity he is able to form a connection with his peers like a normal young man having been unburdened from the knowledge of his hand in fate. But the etchings in his heart from his time in the future symbolize the seeds of darkness that would go on to corrupt him into the man we see all these years later. Ultimately he was manipulated by his own future self so that he would become his future self.

[@johans3164]

This is a goldmine. Thank you for making this kickass video. Darkness is SSS tier easily

[@whatever6541]

Come ok nico you know you loved the fruitball minigame and you can't convince us otherwise

[@lukeshioshio]

Larxene could have been groomed into being like that when she became a nobody. Not sure why though.

[@kumakibbs]

Okay Nico, Imma give you Larxene being in C tier (she she should be higher imo) but she has the best personality in the whole series, so she's S tier for me, you gotta read the manga Nico come on. Not taking any further arguments. On the side note, I remember skipping over a few of your lets play bc i wasn't interested in the series and then once I saw that you kept going until like KH2 i was like damn is this KH series that good that Nico went straight into the next installments. SO I went back and watched all your LPs up to that point and onward. And man, do I not regret doing so, KH has become one of my favorite series to this day because of you Nico

[@sofaris576]

Looking at how Kairi was handled makes me think of other shows and games where the love interest was handled way better. In all of those instances the characters get way more screen time, do stuff and are more like partners on equal footing. Take Reg and Riko from Made in Abyss fore example. Yeah Riko relies a lot on Reg protecting her. She is litterly caried by him but she is book smart and puts her knoledge always to practical use (like using the local monsters to murder her enemies, that was so cool), she is resourceful, courages and never gives up even when she is at deaths door steep. She has this "has no power but still takes action" thing going fore her and I found that really cool. And she is always there to shine as a character. I could write way more way I love her. Love interest might not be the right word. Although I do ship those 2. Alot of turn based RPGs just make the love interest a playable character and have them kick ass and be characters. Yuna and Garnet are both bad ass powerful summoners/ white mages that are in a fight actully kinda cooler then there love interests. Kairi got the Partner treat meant fore 1 Boss fight. Yuna and Garnet get it fore entire games. In some of those examples its actully questionable who is the main character and who is the suporting main character. In FF IX Zidane is defiantly the main and in FF X I would say its Yuna but in Made in Abyss I am not sure.

[@ShintaTakama]

The manga version of Vexen's death in CoM is much edgier and cooler. Axel literally stabs Vexen through the chest from behind before lighting him on fire.

[@rikukeyblademaster1575]

Riku honestl is literally like a son to me I swear he is an amazing kid because he misjudged a lot but let me tell you I honestly love his character he and that is exactly the reason why I based my entire youth KZbin channel around him

[@silversmilegirl]

A tierlist for Persona 3/4/5 characters would be cool! Though personally I'd definitely want Nico to be familiar with Persona 5 Royal content first

[@bouclechocolat]

Re:young xehanort, I know i probably won't change any minds but I do want to give him a little depth. There's about a 5-year difference between what I'll call chess xehanort and young xehanort. Without spoiling what we do know so far from Dark Road, it's fair to say chess xehanort hasn't had the experiences yet that will leave him incredibly bitter and jaded like we see in Re:Mind when he talks to Master of Masters. In re:mind you can tell he's frustrated about something, but holding back expressing/REALLY explaining it. Until the later parts of 3 (specifically when sora starts trying to save his friends by time travelling), young xehanort is pretty good at keeping his emotional expression in check, so something about sora abusing the power of waking to save his friends triggered something for young xehanort.

[@bouclechocolat]

Also this may be either good or bad news depending on what you like lol, but Dark Road xehanort is also pretty spacey and disengaged, but not in the same depressed kind of way that young xehanort is (more just like he's lost in his own thoughts)

[@LizardOfOz69]

I'm surprised you put Old Man Xehanort in D, and not E. The way you describe him, gives me Junko vibes.

[@marlepeace9844]

I can’t watch all of this yet because spoilers but I came for Roxas and Nico did not disappoint.