TFS' Final Fantasy VII: Machinabridged

Haven't read 8-Bit Theater all the way through, but I can see where you'd draw the comparison.

This feels less cynical than that series, though.

Firstly, yes, more optimistic. Second, I'd recommend finishing it.

Its less Cynical cause they are not going to THAT extreme with it, its still the basic plot and not well what Eight Bit Theater did.

While I don't think that "what if the saviors of the world were dysfunctional crazy people instead of classic heroes?" is a wrong way to characterize FF 7 MA, I don't really think it's a deliberate 8-Bit Theatre style parody, either. The original, un-abridged version of FF 7 was also about dysfunctional, crazy heroes — FF 7 MA just exaggerates that aspect. It's particularly noticeable in the early parts of the game, because in the original we didn't realize just how crazy and dysfunctional everyone is yet.

But seriously, look at the FF 7 cast.

1. A guy who hates himself so much that he convinces himself he's actually a different, much more awesome guy.
2. That guy's childhood friend, who knows how crazy he is before he does, but doesn't say anything because she thinks she might be the crazy one.
3. Mr. T, if Mr. T were the leader of a terrorist organization and had replaced one of his arms with a machine gun.
4. A girl thinks she's in love with the first guy because the guy the first guy is pretending to be was the girl's boyfriend before he died and that's who she really (still) has feelings for.
5. A talking lion-dog who hates his father for something he didn't actually do.
6. A teenage thief/ninja who fights with her father because they both desperately want to save their homeland but disagree on how to do it.
7. A robotic cat that's actually a spy controlled by a government agent, sent there specifically to track the party's activities.
8. A guy who acts like an emo vampire because his girlfriend was subjected to experiments that resulted in her giving birth to the antichrist.
9. A pilot and engineer who curses like a sailor because his dreams of being an astronaut were crushed.

All of these people are screwed up and dysfunctional to a greater or lesser extent. FF 7 MA didn't invent that (like 8BT did), it just exaggerates it to humorous effect.

edited 15th Nov '17 8:39:30 PM by NativeJovian

This also reminds me that we didn't see Cid in the trailer, so there is a good indication we won't make it to Rocket Town this season.

I'm guessing they're ending the season at Nibelheim? It's been a while since I last played.

edited 15th Nov '17 10:25:41 PM by terumokou

We have a Shipping Alert!

"A girl thinks she's in love with the first guy because the guy the first guy is pretending to be was the girl's boyfriend before he died and that's who she really (still) has feelings for."

Aerith absolutely does have feelings for Cloud beyond him just reminding her of Zack. She says as much in the date with her.

Aerith: ".........first off, it bothered me how you looked exactly alike. Two completely different people, but look exactly the same. The way you walk, gesture... I think I must have seen him again, in you..."

Aerith "But you're different. Things are different... Cloud...I'm searching for you..."

Cloud: "............?"

Aerith: "I want to meet you."

Cloud: "But I'm right here."

Aerith: (I know, I know... what I mean is...) "I want to meet..... you."

I'm cautious about how they will handle Cait Sith in the show. I've read/watched/listened to several FF 7 parodies and every time, its annoying behaviour is cranked up to eleven and everyone in the group hates it with a fiery passion. While I personnaly never minded the guy very much and he even got into my party for a while... so it bothered me a lot.

Let's keep our fingers crossed I guess.

edited 16th Nov '17 4:30:37 AM by Talden

Apparently his mount is going to be a redux of that depressed robot from HG 2 G and Caith Sith himself is going to sound like Palmer. Make of that what you will.

I'm expecting to like Cait Sith, seeing as he's a remote-operated drone piloted by Reeve. Reeve being a solid contender for Best Character, right up there with Tifa and Barret, I'd be shocked if I didn't like his drone.

edited 16th Nov '17 6:17:43 AM by TobiasDrake

I still have to get around to watching this (sorry, catching up with a decade of One Piece is eating all my time) but TFS is good at making bad characters not bad. Cait Sith could easily be the worst part of FFVII's original plot because nothing about him joining the party makes sense. But in a pardoy, that could work. Play up how absolutely nonsensical the whole thing is.

I'm not really interested in rehashing a 20 year old Ship-to-Ship Combat, but suffice to say that at least at first, Aeris is attracted to Cloud because Cloud reminds her of Zack. Whether it's a deliberate case of Loving a Shadow or she's simply attracted to Cloud because he's displaying the same traits she found attractive in Zack is unclear, but even the quote you bring up shows that she doesn't actually know the real Cloud. She never meets the goofy, socially awkward doofus whose idea of a pep talk ends with the phrase "let's mosey" and who occasionally pukes his guts up from motion sickness, because that guy doesn't resurface until after she's dead. Had she survived, she may have grown to love the real Cloud, or she may have realized that it was Zack, rather than Cloud, that she was in love with all along. We don't really know.

Regarding Cait Sith, I never really saw why people hated him so much. He didn't bother me any, and he honestly had a couple of great scenes (like when he agrees to let himself be crushed by the Temple of the Ancients since he's just a robot anyway). Plus I really liked Reeve as Shinra's Token Good Teammate, so the whole Heel–Face Turn / Becoming the Mask thing he went through as Cait Sith appealed to me.

I remember that I tried to edit the character page for FF 7 (I wanted to put something in about Paz and Yazu's teamwork in Advent Children) and I couldn't because the damn thing had been locked, presumably because of ship wars. Good times.

So, about schedule : I'm guessing that the whole season's actually ready to go on a weekly basis, with perhaps a break during the holidays?

edited 16th Nov '17 12:37:29 PM by Sannom

Probably something like a HBO/Showtime kind of schedule. Like 10 episodes now and a break for the rest of the year. That's the feeling I'm getting.

The best thing about Cait Sith's heroic sacrifice is how it's immediately undermined by him showing up again and saying "I'm Cait Sith No. 2, what's up?"

And that happens as an afterthought right in the middle of Cloud's freakout and hitting Aerith which makes it even better. It really represents Cait Sith's character well. I think his best moment is sticking it to Scarlet because, seriously, fuck the Shinra Execs that aren't Reeve and maybe Palmer.

They're gonna have a blast with those bits.

Yeah, I like that too. Cait Sith makes a dramatic heroic sacrifice and then it's just like, "...I mean, it's a drone. So, here, have another one. F*ck, have twelve. We aren't talking about a person here."

edited 16th Nov '17 4:20:04 PM by TobiasDrake

I always liked how banal his thoughts were as he heads off to his doom. "Man, those guys are nice. I'm super glad I could help out. Oh well, time to get smushed!"

I always thought that was the weirdest choice, storytellingwise, to establish "it's just a video game lol deaths don't stick" so close to doing one of the few party member deaths in all of JRP Gness that infamously DOES stick. Really robbed Aerith's death of its impact the first time through; I remember thinking, "Okay, this is a pretty scene and all, but let's get real, at most I'm going to have to do some kind of collect-the-Mac Guffins sidequest to resurrect her. Why does this game expect me to take this seriously?"

edited 17th Nov '17 1:50:28 PM by HighCrate

I was watching the stream and apparently the bartender website Tifa was bragging about is a legit site.

Comments as I watch:

I'm loving Barret and Red 13's bromance.

#YouHad1Job So is that part actually difficult or something?

The dankest memes

Sephiroth likes his coffee like he likes his women, spiked with a little masamuneshine.

I friend-ship Barret and Red so much.

Fanart of Sailor Barret?

Is there an in-universe explanation for noone noticing Red?

Aerith Bob continues with the burns.

Oh, Jiminy Cricket on my shoulder and call him my conscious, Aerith is quite the jealous jezzabelle, isn't she?

It was very easy to fuck up if you weren't prepared for it.

Aerith....is not fond of other women. 0_o

I honestly haven't watched any of this since the first episode.

Got a few laughs out of it, but it might be a bit much. I really hope the group becomes less...antagonistic towards each other as time goes on.

Always the cute ones with the yan streak