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despite Squall seeming very negative in the moment of attempting to hit rinoa. Honestly? I think it's good that it stayed. We very little have a game with such a daring scenario that makes a character more human. It is just another flaw in Squall and nobody is perfect as a human. Squall doesn't make a habit out of it and it isn't something that's integral to him, he isn't violent by nature with Rinoa, in fact, he very clearly deep down loves her. But this scenario just obviously shows how insecure he is as a human, regardless if it was a playful moment or if he was genuinely frustrated in the intended script of the story(as more implied due to Rinoa's knee jerk dodging reaction). Every man has frustrations as a human, and it's daring to make the main character who is good deep down but has bad things about them, flaws. we are quick to judge and demonize people and punish them. But we do forget that this is a story, and a story is harmless in the case that if it never actually happened. Squall is a fictional character and he resembles a lot about male insecurity(NOT "Toxic Masculinity"). Squall as a person has more emotion from that scene and it goes to show how much he hurts as a person in FFVIII. Name a man without anger and frustration and I guarantee you they are either an "enlightened Buddhist" or they have a serious mental illness that should be taken care of. Kitase and Nojima regretting that scene I think display their insecure Japanese culture just too afraid to express their masculine emotions, and regardless if it's good or bad. Kitase regretting it is either that they are genuinely soft people for regretting to write that, or that they care too much what people think. of course no violence upon people is condoned, I just think that Squall as a person bottles up his emotions so much and that's what caused him to act the way he did, very similar to normal men in real life. regardless it is what it is, and I wouldn't change it. basically. it adds to the story and makes Squall a better-written character.
Same here. I've seen a lot of people react like he was trying to hit her, but even when I first saw it in 1998 I never thought he was actually trying to hit her.
Yeah agreed maybe its just down to the limits of the tech at the time, but Squall also looks like he "half arses" the motion towards her, making it come across more like gooooo awaaaaay rather than hitting her
Same, I always thought he was like "bah go away" and to be honest, when I played this game I was 17 and I sort of adopted this? lol I've never tried "striking anyone" but when someones bugging me I jokingly shoo them away in a manner like Squall's. I never tried to hit/strike anyone and never thought he was trying to do that.
Squall is an amazing character. On the topic of heroism, Squall is resistant to the idea of the being the leader until his comrades convince him that he can be the leader he's destined to be. Squall is different from most other heroes because he initially just wants to exist in the world, rather than be the one who makes things happen in the world. His path to heroism is complex because he's reluctant to the role, whereas most other protagonists are more willing to fill the role. Squall's growth from being reactive to proactive really makes him a wonderful protagonist compared to others.
Yeah, one thing i think 8 and 6 did a lot better than most other games is how they handled their lead. 6 just intentionally avoided a clear protagonist while 8 made the issues of who the protagonist is and why others would follow him a relevant question in his own character arc. I mean even 7 had me kinda wondering sometimes why some party members would stick around with cloud at some points. Putting an introvert like Squall into a military role naturally in a position where others learned to rely on him, even when it was just as part of their job at first. Most protagonists in RPGs will have a moment of doubt about their role but i don't see many that really feel like they have to grow into it first
@@WhoMightThis1Be they put a lot on a 17 year old's shoulders lol. I played 8 before 7 and I never bonded with cloud like I did with squall. Cloud was bad ass of course but his personality didnt hit with me. I love seeing squall's inner thoughts. I felt that really helped his character. Wish he had more thoughts of rinoa though. My first time playing, their romance was out the blue for me. It took another playthrough to see subtle hints that he even liked her lol
It's interesting if you compare Squall to teenage Cloud in FF7. They're almost perfect contrasts of each other. Cloud wanted to be a hero when he was younger and desperately tried to measure up to guys like Zack and Sephiroth but felt ashamed because he never made it as a SOLDIER. Squall actually does become an elite SeeD at a young age and rises to the top of his own military organization but he's thrust into the role of hero despite not really wanting it. Cloud had something to prove but Squall just wanted to be left alone.
I took Squall's 'strike' as more of a playful 'get-out-of-here' kind of gesture. More for comedy of the PS1 Era that was difficult to get across the screen when there wasn't facial expressions or voice acting.
Same, I took it as like he was shoving her away in a more "go away" nature than a strike to do harm. Especially given how Rinoa just rolls with it and laughs.
Final fantasy 8 is so underrated most people say Squall rip off cloud but I like his character and weapon and I like that he’s one of few protagonist in the franchise that ends up with the girl
All the protagonists after Cloud were rip-offs of Cloud in some shape or form, especially Squall and Lightning. The brooding-ness is over the top with them and while I loved VIII and XIII, they both had very little reason to be this way.
@@MichaelMarques it’s funny tho because Cloud for most of his game doesn’t really brood. After his initial apathy towards Avalanche at the beginning, he’s a pretty regular guy. Squall on the other hand was a brooder for most of his game and I think they explain why very well
Squall just has some psychological problems, but his intent is pretty selfless in general, until Rinoa. Cloud's intentions are.. all over the map, and maybe that's interesting for HIS character, but Squall is "different" I think Squall, unintentionally is ASD representation.
I still remember the day I bought FFVIII. I was at Toys R Us participating in a Pokemon card game tournament. I got my ass kicked pretty quickly and had a lot of time to kill. I had some birthday money on me, and considering how much I loved VII, I ended up buying VIII on a whim. Although I lost the card tournament, buying FFVIII was a great consolation prize.
@@kinoko5566 the memory is so vivid, I still wish I could relive it though...that excitement of getting home and forgetting all about losing in the tournament knowing I had a brand new FF adventure waiting for me when I got home..
I got it the Xmas closest to when it was released, along with an Action Man game. Tried FF8 with my sister and we got to the entrance to Ifrits cave and she didn’t seem to enjoy it so we played Action Man together all day. A few days later I started FF8 again on my own, the rest is history for me. Wow
There's a kind of quirk in Japanese culture ; it's often seen in anime too (or maybe it's an anime trope), where when someone is teasing you, you sort of land a playful *bonk* on their head. It's more an endearing gesture rather than something abusive or violent. And that's exactly how I interpreted the scene during the concert. I think Mr Kitase is expressing regret solely for the sake of his international playerbase.
Are you daft? The video mentioned staff that were against it; it wasn't 'solely' international players. Maybe you're right in the sense that most people who _were_ bothered by it were outside of Japan, I mean that is a lot of people, but I don't think most took it the wrong way. At least I would hope not.
@@大銀河帝国の皇帝 never visited Japan so anime is all I have to go by. Though I planned a visit in February and then the pandemic fucked it up. Always nice to learn something new about people. :)
Literally now just realized the plumage on his jacket around his neck emulates a lion's mane, which makes sense considering his connection to lions in the game.
I always thought the 'whatever' line was spoken as a kind of 'i'm tired, I want to get out here because I'm awkward as hell in social situations' rather than as an aggressive line. A key way of interpreting Squall is to look at how other characters react to him. They laugh at his awkwardness and act like that's just the way Squall is; he's super serious, emotionally detached and awkward. I think a lot of the humour in FF8 is brilliant but would work better with voice acting. FF7R actually turns Cloud into Squall sometimes with his super awkwardness (and it being played for humour) which wasn't really there in the original FF7.
Yeah, but the plot line of FF7 is that cloud only pretends to be a badass when he is in fact quirky as hell. I guess it might look like Squall at times, but for different reasons.
One of my favorite things about Squalls character design is how European his looks are in the original FF8, it's such a diversion from typical jrpg protagonists. It just stood out to me as a way of saying "He's different, he's not your typical hero, don't expect him to be one."
The whole cast was kind of modeled that way. The most anime hair character you end up getting is Selphie and it's fairly downplayed. After the runaway success of Final Fantasy VII in the west (Final Fantasy always sold well in its niche before that) Squaresoft (Square-Enix) decided to give the whole cast a more Western-oriented push for mass appeal.
Squall is an introvert, introverts rejoice!! He is my favorite FF main character, he’s one of the only main protagonist who is human too. Most main characters are either enhanced, aliens or supers, Squall is just a normal human who got really powerful.
Squall is my fav. He was the first character to break the hero mold; he wasn’t the chivalrous knight type like Cecil or the optimistic happy go lucky flirtatious type like cloud or lock; he was a loner and he has the best weapon in all of final fantasy
he's such a deep character i can't understand how some people brush him off as "emo" like wtf do y'all understand how complicated the human psyche is ?!?
Some stoic/ emo characters can really grate over the course of a long JRPG. Not naming any names, but sometimes those characters don't get much of an explanation as to why they're crappy towards others, or even an arc that sees them reconciling their issues. That's where I defend Squall; he develops emotional intelligence and a sense of identity as the game progresses, going from a Wagnerian moody-boy to someone who learns to trust his friends and lighten up.
I think it's partially because of the overuse of "whatever" in the English localization, and also his flanderized character appearing in Kingdom Hearts that was a lot more simplistic and "emo" than he was in FF8. And also people that never played the actual game trying to comment on a character that was more complex than they could comprehend
8 is my personal favourite, it was the first one I finished on my own when I was about 10, 7 was also great but I had to ask my friends older brother for a lot of help since I didn’t really understand it much, also my first play through of 8 I didn’t realise what drawing higher stacks of magic did to your stats until ultimecias castle, currently replaying for the multiple’ith time if that even makes sense on my switch
I always loved Squall, the introverted anti-social reluctant hero. He and Final Fantasy 8 hold a special place in my heart. It always bothered me, that enix could never just let Squall be Squall as he was and always had to change him. Looking at you Kingdom Hearts and Dissidia.
Honestly I like the long hair version of Squall as well as the short haired version but I'm glad short hair is his original design. After experiencing the story of FFVIII then seeing him in KH with long hair it feels kind of like a nod to Laguna. Also I noticed that DFFOO Burst banner for Squall, its an awesome game.
As others have said, I always took that part of the scene as a 'shoo'. In my opinion this, as with a lot of other things in entertainment, get blown out of proportion by modern eyes without any regard to the original tone or intent of the past. But then again, if he regretted it even back then...then maybe the intent was misguided from the start? At any rate, great video! Anything FF8-related is an A+ in my book.
It would be nice to see the story gap between the founding of Balamb Garden and the start of the game, I feel there's an interesting tale there which probably expands Squall's story further.
My bestfriend and myself thought of this same thing years ago. Even hoped for a prequel but as we grew up we kept seeing ff8 going lower and lower in the popularity list and realized its never going to happen. We will be lucky to get an 8 remake before 1 to 6 get a remake lol
My favorite character to this day, when I was 17 I was sort of an awkward teenager, dealing with some stuff, and at the time ended up paralyzed (long story) and I was isolated a lot trying to recover. Playing Final Fantasy VIII during that time helped me out a lot and to this day is very close to my heart.
Final Fantasy VIII is my favorite game in the series, so it should come to no surprise that Squall is my favorite protagonist. And yes, I called him "Squall." As much as I'm a huge Kingdom Hearts fan, I never did like that they changed his name to Leon. Yes, I know Leon is part of his last name, Leonheart. Yes, I know he changed his name to start his life a new. But STILL. He'll ALWAYS be Squall! Great video you guys!
Despite FFVIII being my first and favorite FF, I'll admit that I knew very little of what was mentioned in this video. Well done again guys! Also, that rendition of The Landing is still giving me goosebumps!
Lol that honor goes to Jean Phillipe Brisco from Michigan: Report from Hell as voiced in the English version of the game. But Squall is a close second.
I went from 7 to 8 and loved them both. I never really saw Squall as emo. Closed off, but not emo. I heard about the "whatever" bits before, and to me that was laziness because Squall's responses and thoughts in Japanese show more of his cutting personality. Less emo and more sharp imo. Frankly, I liked Squall as a protagonist.
You never saw Squall like a emo cause he is not an emo. Cloud in advent children is emo but he in the movie is about to die and had depression so maybe i buy that behavior.
@@La-hora-del-terror fair point. Yeah, Cloud in the movie was, but facing your own mortality has that effect I find. For both Squall and Cloud in their games I found them both to be guarded and closed off, but given each of their experiences, it fit. Their hard pasts fit the behavior they showed us and we do get to see both of them evolve a bit and grow with the game. People who call them emo clearly have'nt run into many emo kids lol
@@nt.2549 i don't call emo Squall cause he is not sad, in the Spanish version he is not so harsh with his words and i'm not an orphan but i share and understand his suffering. That is one of the biggest reason of love or hate Squall, i think this character was created to motivate the lonners like me to trust in people
@@La-hora-del-terror fair. I didnt mean to imply you did, but I have seen it float around in various places, unfortunately. A few of my gaming friends even described him like that, which kinda sucks, but oh well. Their loss imo.
@@nt.2549 they should learn Spanish and play that version, is better if they play the original japanese but i play the Spanish version and he is not so idiot. Also he doesn't say whatever so many times (his whatever is change to "so what" but he doesn't say it so many times) also is more like the original japanese but with some expressions and sarcasm from Spain (don't expect Squall saying "olé" 😂😂)
My brain in it's younger years was always trying to contemplate why Squall and Leon (Resident Evil) looked alike. It went into overdrive when Kingdom Hearts did the rename.
Final Fantasy 8 Best Intro, never get bored watch the intro. Best Ost. Best GF, can summon GF every time i want when fight with enemy. Best with challenge secret boss. I just hope someday they will remake this.
Ff8 was the first game I played on ps1, it's my first RPG, and it was my first ff game. I got it and ff7 at the same time. I looked at both covers but ff8 called out to me more. Squall is so relatable to me 🤗
Zell is and always will be my fave ff character but Squall is a close second. I just fell for the both of them in so many ways. I've heard people hark on about Squall comes across as cold and emo but actually play ff8 and be ready to fall in love with this guy.
I love the insight on "whatever". I'd heard before that Squall's responses weren't so harsh in the Japanese version, but hadn't seen that dissection of specific instances. Yeah, he comes off way different with this lines. Funny you mention their concern over the names of two characters being the same with how they renamed Edward. I agree though, that's probably it. That or they did it as an in-joke, like they renamed Leonhart to just Leon and now do the reverse. Interesting on the bit about Squall trying to hit Rinoa. I never interpreted it that way, I took it more as him waving his hand like "set outta here!" and Rinoa fell back laughing. Great video, thank you for it. Squall may not be the most outwardly likeable protagonist, but he's a lot more complex and interesting than some realize, and probably one of the better developed characters through the run of his game.
Maybe Spanish version is made from Japanese cause Squall is not that harsh, is a moron in the beggining but he had some funny dialogues in his mind. That thing of Squall trying to hit Rinoa i always see like "man shut up". If i don't ever see that interview of Kitase i would never know that. Squall is the typical character that you hate him cause you don't understand him and his thoughts or you love him cause you share his own pain, suffering and you think like him.
The names of Cloud, Squall and Lightning are all connected with the sky and elements. Cloud - Made from water droplets or ice crystals floating in the sky Squall - A sudden gust of violent wind or localised storm, bringing rain snow or sleet. Lightning - the flash of light from the clouds which is accompanied by thunder. All of these combine together in order to make a thunderstorm or similar weather's. It's cool the way the 3 protagonists link to each other in name.
Squall is my favorite FF character, especially given how much character development he had from start to finish. Also, in KH I always took his long hair as an age thing. As if he and Rinoa had lived on a while after the story before his world disappeared. They even portray him as a more mature role model to Sora. Cloud just stayed Cloud chasing Sephiroth around the world
I swear, instead of River Phoenix as Squall, I always thought he looked like Tom Cruise. This was back in the late '90s when we had to use our imaginations a bit more.
Final fantasy 8 was my first final fantasy game growing up, I always loved it and only recently found out that it is widely hated by the community. I never understood why, I love the game with all it’s flaws
True story, when I named Squall the first time I played Final Fantasy 8 I named him Leon. I named him that because I was a fan of Leon from Resident Evil at the time.
Fantastic! Thank you very much. I was a loner angsty teen when this came out, and in a world that didn’t cover much of the whole social anxiety / trauma stuff like they do now, Squall was a super important character for me to relate to and grow from. I have no idea where I would be if not for being able to grab onto things I could relate to at that time.
fyi, the phrase in the fire cavern isn't "getting choked up" it's just "choke" meaning to underperform at a critical moment. getting choked up is like, being on the verge of tears so that its difficult to speak
Squall Leonhart is indeed one of the most popular characters in the Final Fantasy Series. Him & Cloud have appeared in more games than any Final Fantasy characters. When you said that Squall’s popularity that led him into more Final Fantasy games, non-Final Fantasy games, & wider entertainment properties. This got me thinking, we have Cloud Strife in Super Smash Bros, which was a mind-blowing reveal since Cloud & FFVII are associated more with PlayStation than Nintendo. But it became reality, & I still can’t believe it to this day. Cloud Strife is in the same game as Mario, Link, Samus, Snake, Sonic, Mega Man, Pac-Man, Ryu, & even Joker, & the list goes on. What if, & I’m not saying it’s gonna happen, but what if Squall Leonhart made it to Super Smash Bros Ultimate as the 2nd Final Fantasy Rep. In my opinion of all the Final Fantasy Protagonists, I think he would make the most sense to make it in, because while he isn’t as iconic as Cloud or FFVIII as iconic as FFVII, Squall is one of the most popular characters in the Final Fantasy Series, as you said in the video, & I agree. He’s up there with Cloud (obviously), Lightning, Noctis, & Tidus in terms of popularity. But in terms of the faces, Cloud & Squall are the most recognizable characters in the series, & they’re both in the Kingdom Hearts games. Heck, in KH2, Cloud & Squall team up & have an awesome moment together in taking out the heartless, I loved it. That’s why I would love to see Squall Leonhart in Smash, just so he can be with Cloud as a friendly rival in Ultimate. Squall would be a very unique fighter if he had the Junction System as his fighting mechanic. To be honest, I don’t think we’ll get another Final Fantasy character because Cloud was treated poorly in Smash 4 & Ultimate by only having a few trophies & spirits, as well as only having 2 tracks, which disappoints me because Final Fantasy is super well known for its music, & it’s a crime that we don’t have that many in Smash, but it’s probably due to Square’s stinginess with their properties, who knows. Even though it’s very unlikely, I still would love to Squall in Smash, & I think he would be awesome!
FF8 was the first game of the series I owned. I'm currently working on a playthrough for my channel, but I have to replace all the music to avoid copyright strikes. That's definitely a chore! Squall's gunblade has a cameo in Parasite Eve. As for FF13 Lightning? I can easily see her being Squall's daughter. They look so similar in the face and have the same type of attitude.
The last part.. I never thought of it that way and I believe many people didn't either. He just raised his arm a little and the action spoke "stop being goofy" or "don't mess with me"... something like that.
I'm surprised you didn't mention that Yuffie calls Leon by his original name "Squall" in Kingdom Hearts to which he replies "It's Leon" and she just laughs it off. It's during the part where they're in the little house with Aerith in one of the Traverse Town districts.
I always loved the custom Renzokukens. Also, I kind of like the whatevers. Maybe I am wierd, but the Squall in my head was anti social adn trying to avoid people but never aggressive. Heck, that "Strike" always seems like a shoo when was young. Too half assed to be a strike. And at a time where they were getting along better, so it would be odd
Thank You! Sqaull is my favorite being a moody gothic middle schooler it was easy for me to project myself in his shoes lol Your likes was at 147 I broke my OCD and put it to 148 thats how much I love ye guys lol
An 8th fact is that there is a music video dedicated to Squalls " whatever" call Squalls United States of Whatever". Thanks for the awesome video. Keep up the hard work and know that yall are appreciated for it.
This channel and your content is so well done and well researched. The motion graphics, the information sourcing, the pacing, and the video essay format; very informative yet really entertaining!! Kudos! 💎🧙🏼♀️🐉🗡⚔️🗡⚔️🗡🐉🧙🏽♂️💎
I found the last fact the most interesting. Because I never interpreted it as Squall trying to hit Rinoa. I always thought he was angrily shooing her away and startled her, which is why she reeled back.
Even though I literally always kept Squall at a low % for limit break, I don't think I specifically noticed the different versions of Renzokuken... Aside from Bahumut, perhaps. It was great, anytime I had to heal the party, I'd use Rinoa with 100% death to KO Squall so I could revive him at low health again. Who needs to actually run from the T-rex in the training ground at Balamb Garden? Only 3 things could survive Lionheart: Omega and Ultima Weapons and Ultimecia 3. Great video! Seeing Chocobo's games makes me want to see a history of the Chocobo spinoff games.
cloud was actually the blue print for squall, he also didn't care about much in the beginning of the game. its always a good starting point for a good character development
Nomura: Alright let's name him Leon because he has slightly longer hair and that might throw people off. Square: Well okay what about a Cloud? He has a red scarf, bandaged sword, and a wing sprouting out his shoulder. Nomura: 😐
I grew up playing the Spanish version of the game, and when I played the English version for the first time some years ago, I was surprised when I read "Whatever" time and again. I didn't remember Squall having a catchphrase like that in the Spanish version!
In the French version, while the first mission Quistis is saiying to Squall she makes students nervous then say : "My skills? My authority? Who knows?" And that's Squall who answer: "Maybe your charms". Localisation was really different from country to country. 😅
The last part is sort of a surprise to me. When I first played this game in the eighth grade I never got the impression that Squall was trying to physically hit Rinoa. I always thought he was sort of swiping at her, like when you gesture at someone to go away.
I never read that moment in the consciousness Squall trying to hit rinoa, I always read as him just kind of waving his hand at her and like he's trying to say stop it.
He's also briefly mentioned as Squall before he tells them that he no longer goes by that name. In his codex entry it talks that he gave up the name of Squall because he felt shame for failing to save his world from the heartless.
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despite Squall seeming very negative in the moment of attempting to hit rinoa.
Honestly? I think it's good that it stayed. We very little have a game with such a daring scenario that makes a character more human. It is just another flaw in Squall and nobody is perfect as a human. Squall doesn't make a habit out of it and it isn't something that's integral to him, he isn't violent by nature with Rinoa, in fact, he very clearly deep down loves her. But this scenario just obviously shows how insecure he is as a human, regardless if it was a playful moment or if he was genuinely frustrated in the intended script of the story(as more implied due to Rinoa's knee jerk dodging reaction). Every man has frustrations as a human, and it's daring to make the main character who is good deep down but has bad things about them, flaws.
we are quick to judge and demonize people and punish them. But we do forget that this is a story, and a story is harmless in the case that if it never actually happened. Squall is a fictional character and he resembles a lot about male insecurity(NOT "Toxic Masculinity"). Squall as a person has more emotion from that scene and it goes to show how much he hurts as a person in FFVIII.
Name a man without anger and frustration and I guarantee you they are either an "enlightened Buddhist" or they have a serious mental illness that should be taken care of.
Kitase and Nojima regretting that scene I think display their insecure Japanese culture just too afraid to express their masculine emotions, and regardless if it's good or bad. Kitase regretting it is either that they are genuinely soft people for regretting to write that, or that they care too much what people think.
of course no violence upon people is condoned, I just think that Squall as a person bottles up his emotions so much and that's what caused him to act the way he did, very similar to normal men in real life.
regardless it is what it is, and I wouldn't change it. basically.
it adds to the story and makes Squall a better-written character.
Cloud Strife no one asked.
@@jasonthompson318 I asked
I always looked at it as Squall trying to shoo away Rinoa not as trying to strike/hurt her.
Yeah, I thought he was motioning for her to buzz off.
Same here. I've seen a lot of people react like he was trying to hit her, but even when I first saw it in 1998 I never thought he was actually trying to hit her.
Yup same here, she laughs after it so i guess she thought the same? :D
Yeah agreed maybe its just down to the limits of the tech at the time, but Squall also looks like he "half arses" the motion towards her, making it come across more like gooooo awaaaaay rather than hitting her
Same, I always thought he was like "bah go away" and to be honest, when I played this game I was 17 and I sort of adopted this? lol I've never tried "striking anyone" but when someones bugging me I jokingly shoo them away in a manner like Squall's. I never tried to hit/strike anyone and never thought he was trying to do that.
Squall is an amazing character. On the topic of heroism, Squall is resistant to the idea of the being the leader until his comrades convince him that he can be the leader he's destined to be. Squall is different from most other heroes because he initially just wants to exist in the world, rather than be the one who makes things happen in the world. His path to heroism is complex because he's reluctant to the role, whereas most other protagonists are more willing to fill the role. Squall's growth from being reactive to proactive really makes him a wonderful protagonist compared to others.
❤❤
Yeah, one thing i think 8 and 6 did a lot better than most other games is how they handled their lead. 6 just intentionally avoided a clear protagonist while 8 made the issues of who the protagonist is and why others would follow him a relevant question in his own character arc. I mean even 7 had me kinda wondering sometimes why some party members would stick around with cloud at some points.
Putting an introvert like Squall into a military role naturally in a position where others learned to rely on him, even when it was just as part of their job at first. Most protagonists in RPGs will have a moment of doubt about their role but i don't see many that really feel like they have to grow into it first
@@WhoMightThis1Be they put a lot on a 17 year old's shoulders lol. I played 8 before 7 and I never bonded with cloud like I did with squall. Cloud was bad ass of course but his personality didnt hit with me.
I love seeing squall's inner thoughts. I felt that really helped his character. Wish he had more thoughts of rinoa though. My first time playing, their romance was out the blue for me. It took another playthrough to see subtle hints that he even liked her lol
so relatable no matter what age you are
It's interesting if you compare Squall to teenage Cloud in FF7. They're almost perfect contrasts of each other. Cloud wanted to be a hero when he was younger and desperately tried to measure up to guys like Zack and Sephiroth but felt ashamed because he never made it as a SOLDIER. Squall actually does become an elite SeeD at a young age and rises to the top of his own military organization but he's thrust into the role of hero despite not really wanting it. Cloud had something to prove but Squall just wanted to be left alone.
I took Squall's 'strike' as more of a playful 'get-out-of-here' kind of gesture. More for comedy of the PS1 Era that was difficult to get across the screen when there wasn't facial expressions or voice acting.
I think so too. That's why Rinoa laughed at him after that
Exactly this. It's slow and they are joking around it seems like. I never took it as him trying to actually hit her. He's pretty far off too
Same, I took it as like he was shoving her away in a more "go away" nature than a strike to do harm. Especially given how Rinoa just rolls with it and laughs.
thats how i interpreted it as well. never came across as violent to me.
Same. Never felt it was meant to be a serious blow, never even occurred to me that might have been the intent.
To me Rinoa's sick back flip/roll followed by playful laughter will always cement the scene as harmless and comedic.
Always!!❤
Final Fantasy Union: "Squall, can we interview you?"
Squall:"...........whatever"
Japanese Version:
Final Fantasy Union: "Sqaull, can we interview you?"
Squall: "Well excuuuuse me princess."
I’m ashamed that I laughed so hard at this. It’s so stupid.
Well executed 👏🏽
Squall: "Go talk to a wall!"
My favorite Final Fantasy character in my favorite Final Fantasy game
I 100% agree. VIII was the first FF I ever played so it holds a special bit of nostalgia for me
Saaaame
@@MegaMania91 same, my entry game to the final fantasy world
Same, very relatable for me
Samesies.
Final fantasy 8 is so underrated most people say Squall rip off cloud but I like his character and weapon and I like that he’s one of few protagonist in the franchise that ends up with the girl
ff8 was GOAT
All the protagonists after Cloud were rip-offs of Cloud in some shape or form, especially Squall and Lightning. The brooding-ness is over the top with them and while I loved VIII and XIII, they both had very little reason to be this way.
@@MichaelMarques it’s funny tho because Cloud for most of his game doesn’t really brood. After his initial apathy towards Avalanche at the beginning, he’s a pretty regular guy. Squall on the other hand was a brooder for most of his game and I think they explain why very well
Squall just has some psychological problems, but his intent is pretty selfless in general, until Rinoa.
Cloud's intentions are.. all over the map, and maybe that's interesting for HIS character, but Squall is "different"
I think Squall, unintentionally is ASD representation.
@@MichaelMarques yeah this is a shitty take
I still remember the day I bought FFVIII. I was at Toys R Us participating in a Pokemon card game tournament. I got my ass kicked pretty quickly and had a lot of time to kill. I had some birthday money on me, and considering how much I loved VII, I ended up buying VIII on a whim. Although I lost the card tournament, buying FFVIII was a great consolation prize.
Beautiful
@@kinoko5566 the memory is so vivid, I still wish I could relive it though...that excitement of getting home and forgetting all about losing in the tournament knowing I had a brand new FF adventure waiting for me when I got home..
Wow I forgot toys r us held Pokémon card game tournaments lol. I went to one to watch when I was a kid. Very nostalgic to hear your story though 😄
I got it the Xmas closest to when it was released, along with an Action Man game. Tried FF8 with my sister and we got to the entrance to Ifrits cave and she didn’t seem to enjoy it so we played Action Man together all day. A few days later I started FF8 again on my own, the rest is history for me. Wow
There's a kind of quirk in Japanese culture ; it's often seen in anime too (or maybe it's an anime trope), where when someone is teasing you, you sort of land a playful *bonk* on their head. It's more an endearing gesture rather than something abusive or violent. And that's exactly how I interpreted the scene during the concert. I think Mr Kitase is expressing regret solely for the sake of his international playerbase.
Are you daft? The video mentioned staff that were against it; it wasn't 'solely' international players. Maybe you're right in the sense that most people who _were_ bothered by it were outside of Japan, I mean that is a lot of people, but I don't think most took it the wrong way. At least I would hope not.
I don't know but we also do that kind of gesture in normal life. It not just anime
@@大銀河帝国の皇帝 never visited Japan so anime is all I have to go by. Though I planned a visit in February and then the pandemic fucked it up. Always nice to learn something new about people. :)
@@RuhulBassett But we only use the gesture with close friends. Please never do it with strangers😅 Hope you can visit Japan soon and enjoy
@@大銀河帝国の皇帝 Bahahaha. That would be funny in its own. A complete stranger and foreigner to boot, bonking people on their head when he meets them.
Literally now just realized the plumage on his jacket around his neck emulates a lion's mane, which makes sense considering his connection to lions in the game.
Lol you’re slow.
Wow, Square had the most genius artists working for them
I always thought the 'whatever' line was spoken as a kind of 'i'm tired, I want to get out here because I'm awkward as hell in social situations' rather than as an aggressive line. A key way of interpreting Squall is to look at how other characters react to him. They laugh at his awkwardness and act like that's just the way Squall is; he's super serious, emotionally detached and awkward. I think a lot of the humour in FF8 is brilliant but would work better with voice acting. FF7R actually turns Cloud into Squall sometimes with his super awkwardness (and it being played for humour) which wasn't really there in the original FF7.
Yeah, but the plot line of FF7 is that cloud only pretends to be a badass when he is in fact quirky as hell. I guess it might look like Squall at times, but for different reasons.
One of my favorite things about Squalls character design is how European his looks are in the original FF8, it's such a diversion from typical jrpg protagonists. It just stood out to me as a way of saying "He's different, he's not your typical hero, don't expect him to be one."
He was modeled after river Phoenix ❤
The whole cast was kind of modeled that way. The most anime hair character you end up getting is Selphie and it's fairly downplayed. After the runaway success of Final Fantasy VII in the west (Final Fantasy always sold well in its niche before that) Squaresoft (Square-Enix) decided to give the whole cast a more Western-oriented push for mass appeal.
I always assumed Squall was just playfully swatting at her.
FF8 had the best OST!
"Salt Flats"......"Silence In Motion" Classic
The extreme
@@pchain999 The man whit the machine gun
@@gabrielbelouche3954 whenever I hear that song I think of Megatu from Zoolander dancing
@@JPeoplzOIII lol
"The Landing" is straight hype though........
Squall is an introvert, introverts rejoice!! He is my favorite FF main character, he’s one of the only main protagonist who is human too. Most main characters are either enhanced, aliens or supers, Squall is just a normal human who got really powerful.
Squall is my fav. He was the first character to break the hero mold; he wasn’t the chivalrous knight type like Cecil or the optimistic happy go lucky flirtatious type like cloud or lock; he was a loner and he has the best weapon in all of final fantasy
"optimistic happy go lucky flirtatious type like cloud"
Yeah, that Definitely sounds like Cloud.
@@usasoldiern that’s how he was it wasn’t until they started to build on the lore of FF7 did they take him down a darker emo path
FF8 was my first and most played in the series. So many great memories of this game, thanks for the extra info!
Me too
he's such a deep character
i can't understand how some people brush him off as "emo" like wtf do y'all understand how complicated the human psyche is ?!?
Some stoic/ emo characters can really grate over the course of a long JRPG. Not naming any names, but sometimes those characters don't get much of an explanation as to why they're crappy towards others, or even an arc that sees them reconciling their issues. That's where I defend Squall; he develops emotional intelligence and a sense of identity as the game progresses, going from a Wagnerian moody-boy to someone who learns to trust his friends and lighten up.
The same way people thought Cloud was an Emo despite having a freaking identity/personality crisis going on.
I think it's partially because of the overuse of "whatever" in the English localization, and also his flanderized character appearing in Kingdom Hearts that was a lot more simplistic and "emo" than he was in FF8. And also people that never played the actual game trying to comment on a character that was more complex than they could comprehend
FF8 doesn’t get nearly the love it deserves. Such a beautiful game.
with over 9.6 million units sold before the Remastered was even released. It's definitely within the top 5 most-loved FFs.
It has a lot of flaws if you judge it within the scope of more "traditional" FF games, but I don't care.
It's a bloody great game.
You sure about that people love this game lol
@@GerolBayani Alot of those sales were also people who were still so hyped about FF7 that they all bought the next entry in the series.
I never took that as Squall trying to hit Rinoa. I always thought it was him just trying to shoo her away.
Squall was the first Final Fantasy protag to have a dope ass fight scene
8 is my personal favourite, it was the first one I finished on my own when I was about 10, 7 was also great but I had to ask my friends older brother for a lot of help since I didn’t really understand it much, also my first play through of 8 I didn’t realise what drawing higher stacks of magic did to your stats until ultimecias castle, currently replaying for the multiple’ith time if that even makes sense on my switch
I always loved Squall, the introverted anti-social reluctant hero. He and Final Fantasy 8 hold a special place in my heart. It always bothered me, that enix could never just let Squall be Squall as he was and always had to change him. Looking at you Kingdom Hearts and Dissidia.
Idk if kingdom hearts counts because None of the final fantasy characters act as themselves ahaha
@@TheKozzee Eh, Auron and Tifa kinda do
Dissidia didn't really change much, Kingdom Hearts Squall is like 10 years older and also an alternate universe Squall
FF8 was the game that I was absolutely horrible at but was by far my favourite in the series.
Honestly I like the long hair version of Squall as well as the short haired version but I'm glad short hair is his original design. After experiencing the story of FFVIII then seeing him in KH with long hair it feels kind of like a nod to Laguna.
Also I noticed that DFFOO Burst banner for Squall, its an awesome game.
As others have said, I always took that part of the scene as a 'shoo'. In my opinion this, as with a lot of other things in entertainment, get blown out of proportion by modern eyes without any regard to the original tone or intent of the past.
But then again, if he regretted it even back then...then maybe the intent was misguided from the start?
At any rate, great video! Anything FF8-related is an A+ in my book.
It would be nice to see the story gap between the founding of Balamb Garden and the start of the game, I feel there's an interesting tale there which probably expands Squall's story further.
My bestfriend and myself thought of this same thing years ago. Even hoped for a prequel but as we grew up we kept seeing ff8 going lower and lower in the popularity list and realized its never going to happen. We will be lucky to get an 8 remake before 1 to 6 get a remake lol
@@shivur5073 wtf are you talking about? Everything you just said was wrong 🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦♂️
My favorite character to this day, when I was 17 I was sort of an awkward teenager, dealing with some stuff, and at the time ended up paralyzed (long story) and I was isolated a lot trying to recover. Playing Final Fantasy VIII during that time helped me out a lot and to this day is very close to my heart.
I always thought Squall raised his to hand as he was going to push Rinoa off, just like she does to him shortly after.
1998 my goodness I had this game for ps1 I was just a teen and I still love it to this day.
Gone are the days when Square Enix isnt afraid to be more original with their ideas.
Final Fantasy VIII is my favorite game in the series, so it should come to no surprise that Squall is my favorite protagonist. And yes, I called him "Squall." As much as I'm a huge Kingdom Hearts fan, I never did like that they changed his name to Leon. Yes, I know Leon is part of his last name, Leonheart. Yes, I know he changed his name to start his life a new. But STILL. He'll ALWAYS be Squall!
Great video you guys!
Despite FFVIII being my first and favorite FF, I'll admit that I knew very little of what was mentioned in this video. Well done again guys!
Also, that rendition of The Landing is still giving me goosebumps!
Squall is my second favorite final fantasy after Cloud! I’m in love
Squall most underrated videogame character ever
Lol that honor goes to Jean Phillipe Brisco from Michigan: Report from Hell as voiced in the English version of the game. But Squall is a close second.
"You Keep Using That Word, I Do Not Think It Means What You Think It Means" - Inigo Montoya
Zindane is the most underrated. He is legit an angel of death.... with a tail
Now I want a FF VIII remake
I went from 7 to 8 and loved them both. I never really saw Squall as emo. Closed off, but not emo. I heard about the "whatever" bits before, and to me that was laziness because Squall's responses and thoughts in Japanese show more of his cutting personality. Less emo and more sharp imo. Frankly, I liked Squall as a protagonist.
You never saw Squall like a emo cause he is not an emo. Cloud in advent children is emo but he in the movie is about to die and had depression so maybe i buy that behavior.
@@La-hora-del-terror fair point. Yeah, Cloud in the movie was, but facing your own mortality has that effect I find.
For both Squall and Cloud in their games I found them both to be guarded and closed off, but given each of their experiences, it fit. Their hard pasts fit the behavior they showed us and we do get to see both of them evolve a bit and grow with the game. People who call them emo clearly have'nt run into many emo kids lol
@@nt.2549 i don't call emo Squall cause he is not sad, in the Spanish version he is not so harsh with his words and i'm not an orphan but i share and understand his suffering.
That is one of the biggest reason of love or hate Squall, i think this character was created to motivate the lonners like me to trust in people
@@La-hora-del-terror fair. I didnt mean to imply you did, but I have seen it float around in various places, unfortunately. A few of my gaming friends even described him like that, which kinda sucks, but oh well. Their loss imo.
@@nt.2549 they should learn Spanish and play that version, is better if they play the original japanese but i play the Spanish version and he is not so idiot. Also he doesn't say whatever so many times (his whatever is change to "so what" but he doesn't say it so many times) also is more like the original japanese but with some expressions and sarcasm from Spain (don't expect Squall saying "olé" 😂😂)
My brain in it's younger years was always trying to contemplate why Squall and Leon (Resident Evil) looked alike. It went into overdrive when Kingdom Hearts did the rename.
Th fact I'm a huge fan of Angel and David Borneaz voicing Squall blows my mind!
Man...thats some lazy localization....
Localization: ...Whatever...
River Phoenix will live on forever in the FF8 universe as Squall...
They need to remake this game I’ll grab it in a heartbeat
Why remake perfection?
Regards,
Tony
Final Fantasy 8
Best Intro, never get bored watch the intro.
Best Ost.
Best GF, can summon GF every time i want when fight with enemy.
Best with challenge secret boss.
I just hope someday they will remake this.
Why would you want a remake when they'll make it some shitty action game. Ugh square I hate you ruining final fantasy
To me the arm swing seemed more like being annoyed with a sibling. In that way it made him feel more human as it showed him finally opening up some.
I had no idea Squall was drawn to look like River Phoenix. Fascinating!
Ff8 was the first game I played on ps1, it's my first RPG, and it was my first ff game. I got it and ff7 at the same time. I looked at both covers but ff8 called out to me more.
Squall is so relatable to me 🤗
oh man I loved Chocobo Racing as a kid, and having Squall in it was so cool!
the fact that his limit break can make a cinematic finish if it got remake
Zell is and always will be my fave ff character but Squall is a close second. I just fell for the both of them in so many ways. I've heard people hark on about Squall comes across as cold and emo but actually play ff8 and be ready to fall in love with this guy.
I love the insight on "whatever". I'd heard before that Squall's responses weren't so harsh in the Japanese version, but hadn't seen that dissection of specific instances. Yeah, he comes off way different with this lines.
Funny you mention their concern over the names of two characters being the same with how they renamed Edward. I agree though, that's probably it. That or they did it as an in-joke, like they renamed Leonhart to just Leon and now do the reverse.
Interesting on the bit about Squall trying to hit Rinoa. I never interpreted it that way, I took it more as him waving his hand like "set outta here!" and Rinoa fell back laughing.
Great video, thank you for it. Squall may not be the most outwardly likeable protagonist, but he's a lot more complex and interesting than some realize, and probably one of the better developed characters through the run of his game.
Maybe Spanish version is made from Japanese cause Squall is not that harsh, is a moron in the beggining but he had some funny dialogues in his mind.
That thing of Squall trying to hit Rinoa i always see like "man shut up". If i don't ever see that interview of Kitase i would never know that.
Squall is the typical character that you hate him cause you don't understand him and his thoughts or you love him cause you share his own pain, suffering and you think like him.
Funny. Nomura's original design for Squall looks a lot like Lightning.
Some fans often say that Cloud, Squall and Lightning looks kind of identical to each other
Ummm isn't supposed to said a way around?
I mean Lightning is based on genderbender Squall (esp the gunblade) + Cloud (personality)
And lightning isn't her real name just like leon in kh
The names of Cloud, Squall and Lightning are all connected with the sky and elements.
Cloud - Made from water droplets or ice crystals floating in the sky
Squall - A sudden gust of violent wind or localised storm, bringing rain snow or sleet.
Lightning - the flash of light from the clouds which is accompanied by thunder.
All of these combine together in order to make a thunderstorm or similar weather's. It's cool the way the 3 protagonists link to each other in name.
Squall is my favorite FF character, especially given how much character development he had from start to finish. Also, in KH I always took his long hair as an age thing. As if he and Rinoa had lived on a while after the story before his world disappeared. They even portray him as a more mature role model to Sora. Cloud just stayed Cloud chasing Sephiroth around the world
I swear, instead of River Phoenix as Squall, I always thought he looked like Tom Cruise. This was back in the late '90s when we had to use our imaginations a bit more.
After reading the all 15 Japanese version I can say I’m glad we have his catchphrase as “whatever” and not “well, excuse me” 😂
Final fantasy 8 was my first final fantasy game growing up, I always loved it and only recently found out that it is widely hated by the community.
I never understood why, I love the game with all it’s flaws
I wouldn’t say it’s widely hated by the community but I would say criminally overlooked
True story, when I named Squall the first time I played Final Fantasy 8 I named him Leon.
I named him that because I was a fan of Leon from Resident Evil at the time.
Fantastic! Thank you very much.
I was a loner angsty teen when this came out, and in a world that didn’t cover much of the whole social anxiety / trauma stuff like they do now, Squall was a super important character for me to relate to and grow from.
I have no idea where I would be if not for being able to grab onto things I could relate to at that time.
It's strange how I never noticed the whole thing with that scenario realistically I just thought it was squall kind of doing his leave me alone thing.
The first badass character from Final Fantasy i was introduced to because of Kingdom Hearts was Squall. Or As I still like to call him Leon.
This is easily one of the best videos I've seen about Squall, a lot of cool facts I actually didn't know! :)
fyi, the phrase in the fire cavern isn't "getting choked up" it's just "choke" meaning to underperform at a critical moment. getting choked up is like, being on the verge of tears so that its difficult to speak
Love this game, so much so that I have Squall's Griever pendant (the Lion head part) on my forearm.
Squall Leonhart is indeed one of the most popular characters in the Final Fantasy Series. Him & Cloud have appeared in more games than any Final Fantasy characters. When you said that Squall’s popularity that led him into more Final Fantasy games, non-Final Fantasy games, & wider entertainment properties.
This got me thinking, we have Cloud Strife in Super Smash Bros, which was a mind-blowing reveal since Cloud & FFVII are associated more with PlayStation than Nintendo. But it became reality, & I still can’t believe it to this day. Cloud Strife is in the same game as Mario, Link, Samus, Snake, Sonic, Mega Man, Pac-Man, Ryu, & even Joker, & the list goes on.
What if, & I’m not saying it’s gonna happen, but what if Squall Leonhart made it to Super Smash Bros Ultimate as the 2nd Final Fantasy Rep. In my opinion of all the Final Fantasy Protagonists, I think he would make the most sense to make it in, because while he isn’t as iconic as Cloud or FFVIII as iconic as FFVII, Squall is one of the most popular characters in the Final Fantasy Series, as you said in the video, & I agree. He’s up there with Cloud (obviously), Lightning, Noctis, & Tidus in terms of popularity.
But in terms of the faces, Cloud & Squall are the most recognizable characters in the series, & they’re both in the Kingdom Hearts games. Heck, in KH2, Cloud & Squall team up & have an awesome moment together in taking out the heartless, I loved it. That’s why I would love to see Squall Leonhart in Smash, just so he can be with Cloud as a friendly rival in Ultimate. Squall would be a very unique fighter if he had the Junction System as his fighting mechanic.
To be honest, I don’t think we’ll get another Final Fantasy character because Cloud was treated poorly in Smash 4 & Ultimate by only having a few trophies & spirits, as well as only having 2 tracks, which disappoints me because Final Fantasy is super well known for its music, & it’s a crime that we don’t have that many in Smash, but it’s probably due to Square’s stinginess with their properties, who knows. Even though it’s very unlikely, I still would love to Squall in Smash, & I think he would be awesome!
I took it as a “get out of here, or enough of you” from him.
That's how I always interpreted it as well. Never as an attempt at striking Rinoa.
@@mikefenton5634 As grumpy as he comes off, the dude never resorts to violence even with people he finds insufferable.
As always great work and thanks
Shoulda had Squall get up and shout "two for flinching!". POP,POP!
Squall: "It's Lee-on"
FF8 was the first game of the series I owned. I'm currently working on a playthrough for my channel, but I have to replace all the music to avoid copyright strikes. That's definitely a chore!
Squall's gunblade has a cameo in Parasite Eve. As for FF13 Lightning? I can easily see her being Squall's daughter. They look so similar in the face and have the same type of attitude.
Good video. Only one I think I really knew about already was the different animations for Squall's Renzokuken attack against certain bosses.
The last part.. I never thought of it that way and I believe many people didn't either. He just raised his arm a little and the action spoke "stop being goofy" or "don't mess with me"... something like that.
I never thought Squall actually intended to hit Rinoa.
I'm surprised you didn't mention that Yuffie calls Leon by his original name "Squall" in Kingdom Hearts to which he replies "It's Leon" and she just laughs it off. It's during the part where they're in the little house with Aerith in one of the Traverse Town districts.
I feel like Squall's early design draft got reused...to become Aya Brea
I always loved the custom Renzokukens. Also, I kind of like the whatevers. Maybe I am wierd, but the Squall in my head was anti social adn trying to avoid people but never aggressive.
Heck, that "Strike" always seems like a shoo when was young. Too half assed to be a strike. And at a time where they were getting along better, so it would be odd
you guys really do an excellent job at research and quality of video absolutely love it keep it up
I still have my copy of Chocobo Racing, and the memory card that has the save with all characters unlocked. I LOVE that game.
6:52
I may be wrong but I think that's Dorgann (Bartz's father) from V and not Leon from II.
Still, great video :) Keep up the good work!
I didnt know the stuff about his limit break I'm gonna have to replay it again
You didnt know it was different on certain bosses? In fact i think he has the only limit break that did that in the series.
Thank You!
Sqaull is my favorite being a moody gothic middle schooler it was easy for me to project myself in his shoes lol
Your likes was at 147 I broke my OCD and put it to 148 thats how much I love ye guys lol
Love these popping up, keep em coming
Getting to read Squall's thoughts really made his character development so much better. Although I didn't like FF8's story I still love it's music.
Thanks for another great Video.
Oh and I loved the background music
An 8th fact is that there is a music video dedicated to Squalls " whatever" call Squalls United States of Whatever". Thanks for the awesome video. Keep up the hard work and know that yall are appreciated for it.
The reason why Squall is my favorite character is because we are both lone wolves
Man, I love Squall. He's just like me... or I'm like him 🤔
FF8 my favorite FF game. Hopefully it will get some love on PS5
This channel and your content is so well done and well researched. The motion graphics, the information sourcing, the pacing, and the video essay format; very informative yet really entertaining!!
Kudos!
💎🧙🏼♀️🐉🗡⚔️🗡⚔️🗡🐉🧙🏽♂️💎
not only did i already know about the translations of 'whatever', i bookmarked that legends of localization page back in may...
I found the last fact the most interesting. Because I never interpreted it as Squall trying to hit Rinoa. I always thought he was angrily shooing her away and startled her, which is why she reeled back.
Seems to be the general consensus
Even though I literally always kept Squall at a low % for limit break, I don't think I specifically noticed the different versions of Renzokuken... Aside from Bahumut, perhaps. It was great, anytime I had to heal the party, I'd use Rinoa with 100% death to KO Squall so I could revive him at low health again. Who needs to actually run from the T-rex in the training ground at Balamb Garden? Only 3 things could survive Lionheart: Omega and Ultima Weapons and Ultimecia 3.
Great video! Seeing Chocobo's games makes me want to see a history of the Chocobo spinoff games.
Squall: "To the moon, Rinoa!"
cloud was actually the blue print for squall, he also didn't care about much in the beginning of the game. its always a good starting point for a good character development
Nomura: Alright let's name him Leon because he has slightly longer hair and that might throw people off.
Square: Well okay what about a Cloud? He has a red scarf, bandaged sword, and a wing sprouting out his shoulder.
Nomura: 😐
I grew up playing the Spanish version of the game, and when I played the English version for the first time some years ago, I was surprised when I read "Whatever" time and again. I didn't remember Squall having a catchphrase like that in the Spanish version!
In the French version, while the first mission Quistis is saiying to Squall she makes students nervous then say : "My skills? My authority? Who knows?" And that's Squall who answer: "Maybe your charms". Localisation was really different from country to country. 😅
The last part is sort of a surprise to me. When I first played this game in the eighth grade I never got the impression that Squall was trying to physically hit Rinoa. I always thought he was sort of swiping at her, like when you gesture at someone to go away.
The MC who inspired me to make combination weapons for my Ocs.
I never read that moment in the consciousness Squall trying to hit rinoa, I always read as him just kind of waving his hand at her and like he's trying to say stop it.
Squalls name in KH was Leon because his surname is Leonhart.
He's also briefly mentioned as Squall before he tells them that he no longer goes by that name. In his codex entry it talks that he gave up the name of Squall because he felt shame for failing to save his world from the heartless.