The death of Aeris

[sabin]

Who thinks this scene is moving?

 

[Vivi-Gamer]

It certainly is, but these days it has been so overblown through the gaming community - Many snubbing their nose at it just because it's notorious. Much like how you even mentioend it in the headline of this topic, it's hardly regarded as a spoiler these days even. Back in the day it was certainly unexpected though. I don't regard it as the saddest moment in Final Fantasy - I still think Celes alone on the island in Final Fantasy VI tops it. But seeing such a purely innocent lady such as Aerith sudden disappear was such a striking moment. I think the game handled it very well, especially following Cloud after his loss.

 

[Razberry Knight]

Its a famous scene but because of the fact that she was a heavily relevant character and then suddenly gets killed. Not suddenly but it just wasnt exoected. Keep in mind that this was new to games. Yes we've seen main characters lose loved ones before but never so important. To me it felt like Aeris didnt fullfill her true potential at that moment and I was left asking "now what?"

 

[Busta]

I knew about the event before I played FFVII and came upon this scene, so I saw it coming and it lost it's shock value when it occured to me. I think it is definitely a blow to the party and mood of the game, but I think what would have made it more of an impact and significant meaning had Aeris last longer into the game before she was killed off. We really only get to see a small part of her before she's murdered, and we hardly get to use her abilities and skills in battle. I say have her die at least halfway through Disc 2, at the earliest.

 

[Sheechiibii]

I really disliked Aerith's character, so when she died I wasn't as moved as I would have been if I'd liked her. I'd kept her out of my party whenever possible and disliked her, so when she died I couldn't feel bad about it at all.

 

[LanguageSponge]

Before this November, I had only played VII once, and I didn't even finish it. I was twelve years old the first time around (nearly 13 years ago) and Safer Sephiroth trounced me. And I was actually able to make tea for several people while he destroyed me with his Super Nova attack or whatever it's called. I was very surprised the first time I played through and Aeris got killed, but while the music and the scene itself did move me, it didn't hit me half as hard as it did the second time around, about a month ago. Firstly because I knew it was coming but distinctly remembered that it didn't bother me all that much the first time around, and so many people have gone on and on about how tragic it was for so many years now. But this time, it hurt, and a lot, because this time I'd been using Aeris or Aerith to kick everything's arse for the whole of the first disk. I stole a great staff for her in the train yard in Midgar, with comparatively loads of Materia slots of Double Materia growth. Coupled with that, her Limit Break that works like Entrust, I can't remember its name, filling up everyone else's Limits in place of her own, was really broken and I was able to get Omnislash and many characters' third Limits on the first disk thanks to her. The Demon Wall in the Temple was dead in one turn.

When I started the game I spent ages considering who I'd use as my last party member after the inevitable happened, and by the time it did, I still didn't have an answer. I ended up using Tifa and Yuffie. After the first disk I didn't use anyone else - I went to the trouble of getting Vincent and never even used him. The more I play Final Fantasy the more I realise how overpowered they seem to make the girls - Aeris, Yuffie, Tifa and Quistis come to mind. And many of the best Blitzball players in X are girls.

 

[Cardinal Copia]

I remember going out with my uncle when he bought this game when it was released. I always sat and watched him play it, everyday, all day. When it got to this scene, my whole family was watching him play the game. Needless to say, we all cried. And the damn song playing the whole time didn't help either :/
This scene doesn't bother me anymore. It sucks seeing her die and all, but it doesn't make me get all emotional like when I was a kid.

 

[The Witch]

We think it's moving.

Cloud thinks it's depressing.

And Sephiroth thinks it's funny.


This scene, to me, isn't that impacting other than Cloud's reaction. When I first played it I wasn't a fan of Aerith, I didn't really start to react until I saw Cloud's pain. That's where it got heartbreaking for me. I hate seeing people's reactions to death but Cloud's was so touching and sad. The way he isn't use to feeling that kind of sadness, the shock of it all, even the way he goes into describing how he's hurting and how he's physically reacting... it's all so very uncomfortably moving in a bittersweet and tragic way. I've read some people think the way Cloud's narrating his pain is unreal, but people forget that Cloud isn't use to loving people or caring for them and when he lost Aerith and was overcome by the heartbreak it was shocking to him. He didn't know he could feel that way, and when he did it just overwhelmed him.

The only other reaction to a death that is more heartbreaking is rick grime's reaction to lori dying.

 

[Necrosis]

It is a truly moving scene, hits you like a truck. The way the music enters in sync with the bouncing materia and how the music continues to the boss fight (so as to not break the mood) is very well done.

 

[The Witch]

It is a truly moving scene, hits you like a truck. The way the music enters in sync with the bouncing materia and how the music continues to the boss fight (so as to not break the mood) is very well done.

Yes! That in particular is very sad and I have no idea why. But seeing the Holy bouncing off the alter just as her theme plays... it breaks my heart. Even so, I can't for the life of me figure out why

Another sad aspect of the scene is hearing Cloud's heartbeat in the background. I use to think it was either Cloud's or Aerith's heartbeat, but after reading Maiden saying she died instantly I began to second think it.

This part in Maiden of the Planet says;

She watched Cloud's face which looked as if his heart was going to fall apart from the sadness of loosing her, the anger and hate he had for her being taken from him.

(...)

But a cry came through to her.

It wasn't the sound of her cry. If it was then she would have felt the blood gushing up through her throat and the fury that forced its way out from the depths of her soul - It was the sound of Cloud's heart cracking. It was the cry of his heart that could never be healed of the grief he had towards Aerith's death, the blame towards himself and the hatred he had for Sephiroth.

She was surprised at the great sorrow he had for her. She was a little happy that he thought so much of her but she also felt the pain that was many times greater. There was nothing she could do about Cloud's suffering and the pain ached in her heart.

The pain continued even though she was in the Lifestream.

Since the entire scene is focusing on CLOUD'S pain it makes sense that the heartbeat is his heartbeat. It's showing that Cloud & Aerith are one, and with her death his death was symbolized.

 

[Ed Elric]

I knew about the event before I played FFVII and came upon this scene, so I saw it coming and it lost it's shock value when it occured to me.

Same. My pops had already played the game before I had and so, I wasn't very surprised because my old man had already told me about it,
I was too young back then to care about death-- i didn't know what it was and so... it had little affect on me. I think it was a good idea to get the story going and have that "talk" from fans about how much they loved her... i wouldve liked to see more of her but we weren't able.. such is life.

 

[The Witch]

Isn't it weird, though. She died and she's still a big influence on the story, and especially for games. i mean, can anyone think of any other character that has lived on as long as Aerith has? she died in 1997 but her death is still spoken of... she was even remembered in Wreck-It Ralph

 

[Ed Elric]

Without a doubt Aerith is, and probably will always be, the biggest most talked characters of all time. Her death affected everything in FVII and had such a big role throughout the game and also when she was alive. One of Cloud's first party members. I guess it's so famous because she was a main character, she had a good girl personality, and then there's more of her later on in the game that we discover about. We're constantly reminded of her, its only natural really. Not to mention, it was unexpected.

 

[Sheechiibii]

Personally I didn't like Aerith, and her death didn't bother me in the slightest. It made very little difference to my game since she was never in my party. When I think of FFVII Aerith's death is one of the last things that I think of. Sometimes I wish I'd liked her, because then I might have been more moved by the scene, but I found her a really bad character so I couldn't care. I was almost (don't shoot me) glad because I wouldn't have to put up with her any more.

 

[ff1-10]

Even though I was told about it before I actually got to it, it still made me really sad. I think it was because I felt for Cloud, though; that made it the most sad. Whoever is "cannon", blah blah blah, I always saw something romantic going on between them, I saw their "potential", and so losing Aerith heavily like that out of nowhere was...weird. I, too, liked how the music played during the boss battle. The way you could hear your slashes through that slow motion music; it was really fitting for the moment and cool sounding. And during AC debates about Cloud's grieving, having started back on my last save just last night right when you leave the Forgotten Capital and have to go after Sephiroth in the snowy mountains, I realized just how quickly the party had to "move on" from the situation; it really wasn't moving on. It was more like, "I(Cloud)/we gotta suck it up and just hurry this up because Sephiroth isn't going to rest. There isn't time for grieving." It was just all about, "NEEXXTT!" I felt it right when I was left off there on that spot, the feeling of rushing the emotions up against a wall and then closing the door on them. So it only makes sense that Cloud is grieving, if not suffering, too, in AC.

 

[Celes Chere]

Aerith's death scene always moves me because she made such a huge impact on everyone in the party (and you as the player). I personally knew it was going to happen but I didn't expect to be as heart breaking as it was. NOT ASHAMED TO ADMIT THIS but I cried.

 

[Sunowo]

Who thinks this scene is moving?

It was really a heartbreaking scene. I mean, she was a flower seller... Who the f*ck kills a flower seller? It's like the meanest thing you can do ¬¬

 

[Sadie]

I always liked Aerith. She's my favorite character in the game as far as the story goes. She was very important, she knew how to save the planet and Sephiroth knew this, Aerith would intervene in his plans because she had the white materia. Cloud felt hurt when Sephiroth kills Aerith. His words showed it. Personally, I was sad when she died, i didn't believe...but she will never be forgotten

 

[Dionysos]

It was a moving scene without a doubt.

I knew it was coming, however. The back of the case of the game depicts Aerith's death (or rather her being buried in the water). The trailers which I saw before getting the game also depicted this moment. And then everybody was talking about it.

I'm not sure if this death was intended to be a shock plot-twist or not, since they didn't do much to hide it. The impact of it was still dramatic. How they dealt with it was really emotional. The music of her theme tune played at just he right moment (as Aerith's materia started to bounce off the rocky stepping stones, moments after she was stabbed). It signaled the passing of a very important character - the scene was silent save for heart beats during the actual stabbing, and so her music started at the moment her soul (etc) probably left her body.

Her burial was very interesting. Rather than just being buried in the earth like you would expect for a funeral scene, Cloud carefully places her body into the waters of the Forgotten Captial (her ancestors' capital), and her hair starts to part as she slowly sinks into oblivion. It creates an iconic scene, almost a funerary baptism, and it is no wonder that they chose this for so much of the promotional material too.

Aerith's death has so much impact as well because she becomes the Jesus-figure of FFVII. Shinra is the Roman Empire and Sephiroth-Jenova are the Jews... Or let's not take it that far! Aerith is the Jesus-Aslan of the game without a doubt. In Aerith's case without the resurrection element (however, myths created by fans that Aerith can be brought back to life are perhaps a testament to Aerith's Jesus-like role here - people didn't want to let her go and so they claimed that she could be brought back, some joining a cult of fandom claiming that it was all true and they had seen it themselves).

Compare this with other FF deaths and few can come close. There are other characters which I care more about, but their deaths were not as iconic and symbolic as Aerith's death.

 

[LovingOfLightning]

It's funny, you always think you're over it by now, but just the memory of those few piano notes causes tears! All these years later!
And our hearts will be broken all over again next year. (Although for some more broken over what they've done to the game)
It's going to happen again and ARGH! I reckon the media will spoil it when it's released.
That's the only thing that concerns me about the Remake! The media will be all "LOOK AT THIS AMAZING GAME! LOOK AERIES DIES!".
But then again, how many people are there left in the world to spoil plot details of this game?
I'm also confident it'll be the biggest selling title of next year. Hands down.

Back to the death. I never got into the meme joke about not bothering to level her up. He Exp on whatever materia she has built up are useful too.
That said, I never worked out who's heartbeat it was at the start of the scene. And now you've made me remember that bit as well!
Why doesn't this hurt ever go away!!