Part 35: Final Chapter - Cecil Saves the World

Final Chapter - Cecil Saves the World

Video: Epilogue











One to be born
from a dragon
hoisting the light
and the dark
arises high up
in the sky to
the still land......
Veiling the moon with
the light of eternity,
it brings
another promise
to mother earth with
a bounty and mercy.




The entire ending is on video, though I must warn you that the text boxes scroll very slowly since the game itself automates this. Alternatively, you could just listen to the awesome music that plays for all four segments.

Video: Where Are They Now?







Thus the Big Whale returns to its sleeping place at the mouth of the dragon.



Let's start today's lesson.
Yes, master.
Where's Palom?
Not again! I will fetch him!




Palom managed to make it all the way to Toroia. Huh, how about that.

You know, it was then I cast Ice to open Mt. Ordeals...





Ouch!
Enough of your boasting! Elder is waiting for you!




Please! No!
Ha-ha-hah! That serves you right!



Palom and Porom are pretty much back to normal, at least as normal as two five-year-old super-mages can be.



To begin with, Your Highness lacks self-awareness of being the successor to the throne!
Don't worry!



Please do what you say for a change!







Edge is now the King of Eblan, though he's still his boistrous, immature self. He's also still hung up on Rydia despite having no chance with her.



I had not expected her to come back here.
Amazing girl!





Come on! There's nothing different between us.

It sure will be fun around here.
Yes, and she's beautiful!




Rydia's found a new family with the summoned monsters, with the King and Queen all too happy to have her.



Honey!
Stop calling me that! You are a Queen now!







I'm sure that Yang will rebuild a fabulous Fabul!

Yang and Sheila become King and Queen of Fabul, with Yang becoming so full of power that he even steals his wife's lines. Despite being King, he also continues to lead his future pupils to master the art of Karate.





But let us finish today's work before that. Don't you want to rebuild our castle?





Watch me from up there, Anna. I have the people of Damcyan with me! I hope Tellah will keep you company...

King Edward's melodies haven't diminished despite having to rebuild his castle. He's still weighed down by the death of Anna, but now he has the courage necessary to run his nation.



Work hard! Rebuild our castle as soon as possible!



Scrap the tanks! There won't be another war!
Father! I wonder what Cecil and others are doing.
I received good news! Cecil will ascent the Baronian throne with Rosa as the queen!
Really!?
And we are invited to their ceremony!
How nice!





King Giott, ever chill, tells his men to dismantle their main attack force since now that Cecil murdered the concept of hatred there's obviously never going to be any conflict again. He's more worried about Cecil's coronation and wedding than repairing his dwarven fortress.



Forgive my absence. I must strengthen myself to be a true Dragoon before going back.





Kain, ashamed by his actions, decides to live in seclusion in Mt. Ordeals, hoping to overcome his negative emotions to become the best Dragoon possible.

Video: The Royal Wedding
















The moon where FuSoYa and Golbez are residing takes off on its own, leaving the Blue Planet's orbit to go elsewhere.




Cecil?
Nothing. I thought I heard my brother's voice.
Really?
Never mind.




Sorry.
You have plenty of time later to spend together, Rosa! Or shall I say Queen!
Rosa is fine.
Okay, Rosa! The bride needs make up! The maids are waiting! Hurry up!
Okay!



Rosa heads off, leaving Cecil alone to monologue for one last time.





Now we come to the coronation or wedding or reception or whatever the hell this is.







There are antics abound with the sillier characters, such as Cid having to pull away Edge from the bride.








Hey, the female characters are constantly admired, so why not have someone lust over Cecil for a change?




Yang's a pretty disciplined dude, so he simply walks up, chats with the royalty, and goes to his spot.








Palom's Palom, and Porom's Porom. Palom even tries to hit on Luca. Then the Elder shows up and forces them to behave.



Like Yang, Edward's entrance is not that exciting considering he's pretty well-mannered and cordial.







Finally, there's Rydia, who Edge has trouble seeing again for obvious reasons.

And of course, Kain's absent from the proceedings to follow his dreams of living on a monster-infested mountain to overcome his feelings for his best friend's wife.






Ladies and gentlemen, Final Fantasy II is complete.

Video: Credits







We've had the usual mainstays working on this game. Most of you probably noticed that the avatars I gave to the characters and bosses were based off Amano's art. And of course I posted the game's music whenever possible. Tokita was one of the big guys behind this game, and he'd end up working on the sequel seventeen years later.



And as some have thought/said, the translation was the work of a native Japanese speaker, three in fact. That said, the translation wasn't that bad considering space and censorship issues. The only major things were poor syntax with articles. A few plot points got screwed up, but overall they did a good enough job getting kids like me enthralled by the story.



I love this game, but I'm glad to be finished. Seven and a half months of LPing FF4 is enough for me.

This is the game that got me into RPGs. When I was a kid, I played a bit of it at my great-aunt and uncle's house, and loved it so much I eventually got it for Christmas. I still remember all the time I'd spend exploring the huge world with my manly party of Cecil, Tellah, Cid, and Yang. Granted, I don't remember much else because my memory's horrible, but I still had lots of great memories with this game.

And that's not even considering all the other versions I've played, including some of the Hard Type translation, the PS1 translation, the GBA translation, and the DS remake. Granted, I think the only one of that bunch I actually beat was the GBA one. And then there's The After Years. Yikes.

This game's a classic. As I said in the beginning, it doesn't have a remarkable story, but damn if it's not well-told. From Cecil's redemption arc, to various characters having to forgive good people for doing bad things, to Cecil having to deal with the man he was at war against being his own flesh and blood. This game made simple scenes compelling with its primitive graphics and limited sprite work, sometimes using the gameplay itself to enhance the story and its themes.

I appreciate all of you for following, and I really appreciate everyone who contributed, whether it was some insightful commentary about the story, approaching it in ways I'd never have thought of, creating beautiful fan works from art to rom hacks, pointing out obscure glitches and programming quirks that few ever knew existed, or simply just stating your admiration or curiosity about this game. I said The After Years gave me a new appreciation for this game, and now that I'm much older I can finally appreciate the original for what it is. It definitely has its share of flaws, but overall it's a game I'd easily recommend to anyone interested in jRPGs or stories in games.

Until next time!