This contains several major story spoilers... I wouldn't recommend reading if you are ever going to go through Final Fantasy X for the story.
Love between people destined to die, father-child
relationships, free will versus fate, sacrifice, and existentialism are
several themes the Playstation 2 video game Final Fantasy X
examines through the narrator and main character, Tidus.
A brief description of Tidus is necessary. His outfit has many
intricate details worth noting: the white lining to his black, blue,
and yellow vest, the baggy, patchy pants with one leg permanently
rolled up, and the matching "Y" shaped earring and chain necklace
that is apparently his family's crest. His weapon of
choice is a sword, but a lighter and smaller type than his
mentor, Auron's. Following the long tradition of video game
magic, his sword is always in his hand when he needs it, but never
when he doesn't. He must keep it in his pants or something.
Despite his naivety, immaturity, and flashy arrogance, he is well
liked by others because of his cheerful, outgoing, and good hearted
demeanor. In short, he's like a spoiled punk rock star stuffed into
the body of an ill dressed, volley ball playing beach bum. His voice actors were Seiichi Morita in Japanese and James Arnold Taylor in English.
Before the actual game content, Tidus spent his days in
the futuristic city of Zanarkand being famous and liking it. As
a star of a bizarre fictional underwater soccer/basketball
fusion sport, he generally felt content with the exception of the
deep hatred for his missing father, Jecht. The story begins with
an attack on the city by a mysterious creature named Sin and his
friend Auron dragging him into the world of Spira to defeat it.
Throughout his travels of the unfamiliar world, he narrates the
adventures. At first, he believes that finding the elusive and
destructive Sin would lead him back home to his jaded,
comfortable life. However, like most good dynamic heroes, he
changes as do his priorities. One of these changes is how he views his
father.
Jecht's character is first revealed in tainted dream
sequences and flashbacks that Tidus has. The only qualities
Tidus recalls are Jecht's arrogance and flashiness; ironically these
are characteristics Tidus himself displays, albeit to a lesser extent.
Tidus remembers Jecht a patronizing to fault and constantly
critical- more of a bully than a father. In reality, Jecht loved his
son and only wished to push him to become talented and famous.
Throughout the story, Tidus finds spheres, much akin to R2-D2
holograms, that show how his father got trapped in Spira and
how much he missed his son. Auron also speaks of how while
traveling with Jecht ten years earlier, Tidus was the only thing
Jecht cared about. Slowly, as he discovers this, Tidus' hate begins to
fade and be replaced with understanding and eventually, he
realizes he had loved his father all along. The other major
character that affects Tidus is the heroine and his romantic interest,
Yuna.
It's interesting to note that while the narration
and point of view come from the hero, Tidus, it could be argued
that Yuna is the main character. Much of the journey reflects her
character and how she changes as opposed to Tidus. Their
relationship and fulfillment of their respective destinies run
parallel in many ways. Thus, to discuss Tidus, it is logical to
discuss how Yuna relates to him as well. Although very separate and distinct, when combined, they
become something special. It would take quite a thick skull not to
see their relationship forming before they even meet. Although this
phenomena isn't exclusive to the Final Fantasy series, the pairing
up of the hero and heroine has become an infamous reoccurrence.
From their first flirtatious meeting by the fireside to their
embarrassing-to-watch laugh out loud scene, it's obvious they
were meant for each other. However, the love story wouldn't be
interesting without a problem for the couple to face. In this case,
one of them is obligated to die. Yuna forcefully feels it is her duty
to save the world from Sin by summoning a terrible power called
the Final Aeon. It is the only known way to destroy Sin, but with
a few drastic costs: Sin will be reborn in ten years and the
summoner will die after releasing it. Yuna knows this and is
willing to sacrifice her life for a temporary peace in Spira. Tidus is
kept in the dark of Yuna's fate most of the story, unaware of her
doomed destiny should she succeed.
In one of the most
bizarre and least understood twists in a modern video game, Tidus
discovers he doesn't really exist near the end of the
story. His body, memories, and feelings are all just dreams of
spirits that lived in a magical civilization destroyed by Sin 1,000
years earlier. Zanarkand, his home, was really just the setting for
their dream. His presence in Spira, or the real world, is required by
necessity. Embodying the hopes of these lost souls, he is their
second attempt to address the death Sin caused them. Jecht was
the first, failed attempt. Why did the writers decide to include this
far reaching, almost ridiculous twist? Some have suggested the writers were trying to make unexpected turns just for the sake of having unexpected turns. While that
is a possibility, I believe Tidus' non-existence has well thought out implications. One main theme in
the story is free will versus fate. Yuna is fated to die by
destroying Sin, yet Tidus doesn't allow her to sacrifice herself.
Instead, he consciously makes a decision to reverse their roles. Instead of allowing her to cast the Final Aeon, he and the other
heroes discover a way to destroy the cause that recreates Sin. Unfortunately, the cost is
Tidus' existence in Spira. Instead of following the prescribed
destiny of a higher order, Tidus took matters into his own hands, a
staple of existential philosophy.
Taking matters into his
hands leads to a confrontation with his missing father. He finds
Jecht controlling Sin, but not by his own will. It's like a good
hearted processor being screwed into a powerful computer
motherboard, condemned to do its evil
bidding. Despite the fact Tidus has come to terms and
understands his father, he sadly chokes out, "I hate you." With
all the mental anguish over the years he had accumulated towards
his father, he could not bring himself to say, "I love you", which
exactly what he wanted to say. Thus, the final battle insues. After
defeating Sin and assuring it will not be reborn, Tidus does indeed
cease to exist since his role is complete. He slowly turns
transparent in front of Yuna, and the rest of his adventuring
friends. However, he deliberately made the decision to take weight
of responsibility, to make the ultimate sacrifice, for his love for
Yuna and to redeem himself for the hatred he felt towards his
father. In what I feel is the most dramatic scene in any video game
or cinema for that matter, his ghostly presence tries to hug Yuna.
Even as he fades into non-existence, the power of love is still
present. To symbolize his conscious decision to sacrifice himself,
his fading spirit jumps off the edge of the airship. Jecht is
waiting for him in the clouds as he floats down. They reach out,
and in a moment of perfection, they slap each other's hands in a
high five. Tidus finally resolves his inner conflict and becomes a
true hero.
There is one final scene after the credits that
can be seen figuratively or realistically. Mythologically speaking, heroes are often
reborn in a figurative sense. After conquering the obstacles and
trials, the hero is reborn as someone better than before. The scene
is Tidus floating in a fetal position, possibly indicating his rebirth.
Figuratively, he left his childish and self-absorbed persona behind
and was reborn into a compassionate and understanding young
man. It is also possible that as a reward for his selfless action, he is
literally reborn into Spira. No one knows for
sure, but we're probably going to find out soon.