Bravely Default Theorymajig
Entry posted by Kaleidoscope Tekulo
415 views
So, before I activate the last crystal, I wanted to jot down my thoughts about where this game is heading.
Spoilers for the game be ahead. Ye be warned.
I can`t help but feel there is a theme of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Four Crystals, Four protagonists, Four regions of strife.
Conquest - The Anchiem Crystal of Wind
The people of Anchiem were taken advantage of through a series of unfortunate events outside of their control. After the winds stopped blowing, the corrupt government took action by forcing its residents into harsh labor. At that point, the water wells were charging an arm and a leg for water, forcing those who would could not afford it to head to an oasis. Once at the oasis, they were promptly mugged and left with nothing even after they were assured the oasis was safe. This corruption went all the way to the top of authority, thus making its people conquered by local powers.
War - The Florem Crystal of Water
While this chapter seemed more or less tame and goofy in its prospects, it also painted a very grim picture. For starters, all of the local young women were at odds with one another to be titled the most beautiful in all of the land. This pitted likely allies against each other (they were all after a common goal, yet such similar people were torn apart through their own personal desires). All`s fair in love and war, as was illustrated by the red mage. This was also the chapter where a Valkyrie, a Hunter and a Summoner manipulated the locals. With underhanded tactics such as baiting Agnes with a letter fortelling an attack, the theme of war was ever present. The chapter took a very unsettling turn when the story of two young girls seeking hairpins eventually turned on one another resulting in both of their deaths. Olivia too was killed in cold blood in this chapter. It painted the picture of the situation the Wind Vestal was in; a war.
Famine - The Hartschild Crystal of Fire (All the more fitting that this horseman had a red horse)
While war seems a more likely theme due to the storyline and theme, this one was more about the ravages of war despite that this theme was a civil war. Agnes and co. only ever met with one side of this war; the shieldbearers. The Swordbearers were only reperesented by their leader whom we only saw briefly in a cutscene. The main fight was against mercenaries who were otherwise personally uninvolved with the dispute. With a toxic gas that turned a lush area into a desert and with so many locals deceased, famine was apparent in this area. Children were forced into labor in the mines and exclaimed how they got eggs with dinner should they do a good job finding ore. Once Egil was taken to Caldesla, he remarked that he got eggs every day and so he was willing to part with the precious ore he found later in the story. The shieldbearers, though originally the larger group, was so desperate for soldiers that they begged for the help of complete strangers. Famine from the ravages of war seemed very prominent here.
Death - The Eternia Crystal of Earth
Death is very much a theme in this chapter. Eternia, while said to be a city of immortality, showed a very grim past. One village is entirely marked with graves after an epidemic of sorts ravaged the area. It is also the site of the Vampire Castle and vampire asterisk. Even the undead were a part of this area. The fact that the earth is the element here seems fitting, as we many are buried underground. It is also a large burden to decide to awaken the Earth Crystal as Eternia relies on its power to keep many of its inhabitants alive. The area is covered in snow and it all seems like an arctic tundra where nothing grows. An immortal city of death.
It`s mostly for these reasons that I feel like the end of the world as they know it is about to change once the final crystal is activated. It also has to do with the fact that Edea`s father is being overly cryptic and vague regarding why he is so adamant that the crystals remain in their natural state of being covered in grey smooze. OH MY GOSH, IT`S SMOOZE. THE BRINGER OF DESTRUCTION!
NOTHING CAN STOP THE SMOOZE! AAAAAAAAAAAA
GET OFF MY LAWN!
~ Tekulo <3
2 Comments
Recommended Comments