Eyes on Final Fantasy Forums > Reference > General Archive > What the hell was Leon doing?

[Ender]

Wasn't Leon with the party when they were ambushed by the Uber-knights in the intro?

The question I have is why Leon specifically? It'd have been more compelling if Leon arranged for the destruction of his hometown and the initial ambush under the proviso that he was proving his worth and loyalty to the Empire, but I don't recall any justification for that in the game.

Instead, I got the impression that he was taken captive by chance and then "convinced" as to the benefits/sensibility of the Empire's cause/vision, sort of Palpatine-Anakin Skywalker style. Not brainwashed, but more like the Emperor pushed the right buttons to "unlock" Leon's deeper desires for power.

Leon = Anakin
Emperor = Palpatine
Dark Knight = Vader
Dreadnaught/Warship = Death Star
Princess of Fynn = Leia?

Mind you, the game came out before the Star Wars prequels, so it's only a loose fit in places, but a lot of the elements are there IMO.

That way I don't have to buy into some sort of psychological or magical "mind control" scenario, which IMO the game makes fairly clear with Leon's reactions to his sister and friends was not the case.

[Sephiroth1999AD]

Ender's explanation sounds pretty good. I never thought Leon was being controlled, more like the Emperor convinced him to work for him so that Leon could gain more power. Other than that, I think FFII's story goes a lot like Star Wars Episode V: Empire Strikes Back. Ender's list of FFII characters that correspond to Star Wars characters sounds pretty good, although I think the Cyclone was more like the Death Star than the Dreadnought. The comparison between Princess Hilda and Princess Leia sounds about right, though, since they're both princesses ranking high in the rebel army.

[Crossblades]

My guess is that Leon since the beginning he thought the only way to survive if he had power. He probably felt that rebelling against the empire would be futile, so he pledged loyalty to them. But then again, I could be wrong

[Bart's Friend Milhouse]

Remember this was the first FF that had a proper story. After FFI this must have been a quite a stroke of genius

[DarkLadyNyara]

Oh, for its time, FFII has a brilliant story. And in said story, Leon is a power-hungry little snot.

The question I have is why Leon specifically? It'd have been more compelling if Leon arranged for the destruction of his hometown and the initial ambush under the proviso that he was proving his worth and loyalty to the Empire, but I don't recall any justification for that in the game.

Gah! Must...resist...the...plotbunny...

[darksword12]

Well, think about it this way. Say the emperor did brainwash Leon into being his servant. I think it makes perfect sense that the emperor doesn't want Leon taking his place. They can still become adversaries, even if Leon was a servant of the emperor at first. Think of the scenario if this happened in Star Wars, in some way or another. I'm sure Palpatine would be more than a little miffed at Vader.

Alternatively, who says power-hunger can't be a character's tragic flaw?

[The black mage]

Yep, thats the way i see it, and in Star wars 3,5,6 vader wants power but becomes a spinless cowared, Leon though see's his opertunity to take power, an takes it (unlike Vader)

[Twig]

You do get a little bit more insight when the game is beaten.

Spoiler: When all the characters are celebrating the Emperor's defeat, many of them vocalize their hopes and plans for the future. Leon however decides to leave because of his past deeds into seclusion, even though his sister begs him to stay. There is a reference that he might return someday when he is ready.

This makes me believe that he wasn't brainwashed and was acting on his own accord. He helped defeat the Emperor, but that alone couldn't wash away his sins.

A story of redemption told with only a handful lines of text.