Sephiroth was injected with more Jenova cells than just about anybody -- or rather, he was injected while still in the womb, so his mind developed with Jenova latent in it from the start. Jenova isn't actually a Cetra, it turns out; the researchers were mistaken. It's an alien, highly malignant intelligence, essentially a sentient virus.
It's not entirely clear to me how much of Sephiroth's behavior is due to human mental breakdown, how much is due to his being genetically modified such that his brain may have faulty wiring, and how much is the direct influence or control of Jenova, which affects the minds of those injected with its cells. Still, you'd think he wouldn't entirely snap until he woke Jenova up by opening its tank. (Or was it aware of and reaching out to him from the moment he set foot in the outer reactor chamber, in front of Jenova's holding cell?)
The heroism of Sephiroth is not all that well developed in FF7, no. Everyone's heard of him, and Cloud wants to get his name in the papers just like Sephiroth, so apparently his exploits are famous. But all we really see of him before he goes ballistic is that he's superhuman in his abilities, yet as you say, a rather cold fish. (And I'm betting that "how does it feel to be back in your hometown?" line is actually Zack's, misremembered).
Crisis Core does a good job of showing why Sephiroth really could inspire awe and respect. He's a little like Beatrix, Celes or Gabranth, in that he's serving a master we don't like, but he's much more fleshed out as a person. (It also sets up that Sephiroth was beginning to question Shinra well before he snapped, although that doesn't explain why he took his anger out on innocent civilians). Sephiroth also looks different: people usually respond to otherness either by antagonism or by putting it on a pedestal. Most of all, Sephiroth's uber-stats make him ungodly impressive in battle. There's a certain mystique that tends to go with that kind of character, even if as writers we find it an unsatisfying archetype.
I do roll my eyes at the way that Squeenix milks Sephiroth, and the way he's acquired a sort of cult status in fandom. But the latter, more than anything else, convinces me that in gameverse, Sephiroth could have commanded the same kind of fan following.
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branchandroot
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Date: 2013-09-30 01:49 am (UTC)It's not entirely clear to me how much of Sephiroth's behavior is due to human mental breakdown, how much is due to his being genetically modified such that his brain may have faulty wiring, and how much is the direct influence or control of Jenova, which affects the minds of those injected with its cells. Still, you'd think he wouldn't entirely snap until he woke Jenova up by opening its tank. (Or was it aware of and reaching out to him from the moment he set foot in the outer reactor chamber, in front of Jenova's holding cell?)
The heroism of Sephiroth is not all that well developed in FF7, no. Everyone's heard of him, and Cloud wants to get his name in the papers just like Sephiroth, so apparently his exploits are famous. But all we really see of him before he goes ballistic is that he's superhuman in his abilities, yet as you say, a rather cold fish. (And I'm betting that "how does it feel to be back in your hometown?" line is actually Zack's, misremembered).
Crisis Core does a good job of showing why Sephiroth really could inspire awe and respect. He's a little like Beatrix, Celes or Gabranth, in that he's serving a master we don't like, but he's much more fleshed out as a person. (It also sets up that Sephiroth was beginning to question Shinra well before he snapped, although that doesn't explain why he took his anger out on innocent civilians). Sephiroth also looks different: people usually respond to otherness either by antagonism or by putting it on a pedestal. Most of all, Sephiroth's uber-stats make him ungodly impressive in battle. There's a certain mystique that tends to go with that kind of character, even if as writers we find it an unsatisfying archetype.
I do roll my eyes at the way that Squeenix milks Sephiroth, and the way he's acquired a sort of cult status in fandom. But the latter, more than anything else, convinces me that in gameverse, Sephiroth could have commanded the same kind of fan following.